A system and method based on electrocardiogram (ECG) complexity analysis for real-time detecting shockable ventricular fibrillation (VF) and ventricular tachycardia (VT), and discriminating them from non-shockable tachyarrhythmia (e.g. supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) and atrial fibrillation (AF)) and high-frequency noise. In the disclosed invention, complexity measure CM (0 to 100), quantitatively characterizing the complexity nature of the non-linear dynamics underlying cardiac arrhythmia, is extracted from the sensed patient ECG signal using ECG complexity analysis. From the calculated complexity measure, by three thresholds (low complexity threshold (LCT), mediate complexity threshold (MCT), and high complexity threshold (HCT)), different kinds of tachyarrhythmia (i.e. heart rate (HR) above a preset rate threshold) and high-frequency noise are discriminated from each other: for non-shockable tachyarrhythmia, CMxe2x89xa6LCT; for VT, LCT less than CMxe2x89xa6MCT; for VF, MCT less than CMxe2x89xa6HCT; and for high-frequency noise, HCT less than CM. The disclosed system and method can be used as a primary cardiac tachyarrhythmia detection scheme or as a backup system to reconfirm arrhythmia detection using conventional techniques.

A. Field of The Invention
The present invention relates generally to a new cardiac tachyarrhythmia detection system and method, which is suitable for use in cardiac therapy and monitoring equipment and other similar devices which incorporate techniques of ECG processing and analysis. These devices may include out-of-hospital or in-hospital, external automatic defibrillator (AED), implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD), pacemakers, and other similar systems. More particularly, the present invention relates to a system and method capable of discriminating ventricular fibrillation (VF), ventricular tachycardia (VT), non-shockable tachyarrhythmia, and high-frequency noise, using an ECG complexity measure CM.
B. Description of The Prior Art
Despite major advances in the diagnosis and treatment of heart disease over the past decades, a substantial number (350,000 in the USA) of patients each year suffer sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) due to, for example, ventricular tachycardia (VT) or ventricular fibrillation (VF). However, the national survival rate of SCA is merely about 5%. The standard therapy for SCA is early cardioversion/defibrillation either by implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICD) or by automatic external defibrillator (AED). An important parameter that affects the reliability and accuracy of these therapies is the algorithm or technique used to detect shockable VT and VF and while avoiding unnecessary shocks possibly caused by non-shockable tachyarrhythmias (e.g. supraventricular tachycardia (SVT), atrial fibrillation (AF), etc.) and some high-frequency noise commonly encountered under practical situations.
Since electrical shocks always have adverse affects on the myocardium, another primary goal of all cardiac therapies is to minimize the number and energy level of electrical signals delivered to the patient. To this end, VT, which requires much lower energy levels for effective therapy, must be effectively differentiated from VF. Moreover, the safety of a device, as well as its ease of use, extent of automatic operation, and widespread acceptance also depend on the performance of the arrhythmia detection system and method.
All devices and systems monitoring the cardiac state of a patient and/or generating antitachyarrhythmia therapy rely on the analysis of the electrocardiogram (ECG) from the patient. The analyses proposed and used so far were based on manipulation of information in the time-domain, frequency-domain, time-frequency domain, and bispectral domain, and even nonlinear dynamics domain. However, all these manipulations have fundamental limitations associated with the linear nature, computational complexity, or difficulty in real-time implementation as well as low sensitivity and specificity. For this reason, currently, the percentage of patients with ICDs who are paced or shocked unnecessarily exceeds 40%. Similarly, AEDs are only 90% effective or sufficiently sensitive to detecting ventricular tachyarrhythmia and 90-95% accurate in detecting and correctly classifying other heart rhythms. Moreover, discrimination of VT from VF is still a difficult object to achieve using existing algorithms for ICD and AED. Therefore, a need still exists for a simple and effective arrhythmia detection system and method using sophisticated signal processing techniques.
It has been found that the electrical activity of the heart is best described as by a non-linear dynamical system. The theory used to describe such systems is known as non-linear dynamics theory, which can be used therefore to analyze the dynamic mechanisms underlying the cardiac activities. Dynamical systems such as the heart can exhibit both periodic and chaotic behaviors depending on certain system parameters. For instance, VF is a highly complex, seemingly random phenomenon, and can be described as chaotic cardiac behavior. Therefore, a diagnostic system with the ability to quantify abnormalities of a non-linear dynamic cardiac system would be expected to have an enhanced performance. In fact, methods have been described which were derived from nonlinear dynamics in ECG signal processing and arrhythmia prediction and detection. For example, Poincare map or return map of the ECG amplitude for cardiac fibrillation detection was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,439,004, issued to Duong-Van. U.S. Pat. No. 5,643,325, issued to Karagueuzian et al., disclosed the degree of deterministic chaos in phase-plane plot may indicate a propensity for fibrillation including both the risk of fibrillation and the actual onset of fibrillation. A method for detecting a heart disorder using correlation dimension (by Grassberger-Procaccia algorithm) was also disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,643,325, incorporated herein by reference. A slope filtered point-wise correlation dimension algorithm is utilized to predict imminent fibrillation, as disclosed in U. S. Pat. No. 5,425,749, issued to Adams, and xe2x80x9cSlope Filtered Pointwise Correlation Dimension Algorithm and Evaluation with Prefibrillation Heart Rate Data,xe2x80x9d were disclosed in the Journal of Electrocardiology, Vol. 24, Supplement, pp. 97-101, authored by Kroll and Fulton. These non-linear dynamics derived methods are based on the phase space reconstruction, and the computational demand and complexity are considerable for current ICD and AED, therefore, they are still difficult to apply in the real world.
The cardiac electrical signal is the complex resultant of a plurality of spatial and temporal inputs and many non-linear dynamic features or characteristics should be expected in this signal, such as different spatio-temporal patterns manifested in the ECG. One such dynamic feature is xe2x80x98complexity.xe2x80x99 Different non-linear dynamic cardiac behavior is associated with different degrees of complexity. Therefore, the measure characterizing complexity can be used as an effective tool for detecting VT and VF. Correlation dimension and approximate entropy have been proposed as means of characterizing complexity, however, these approaches requires highly accurate calculations involving long data segments and are very time-consuming (See Caswell Schuckers S. A., xe2x80x9cApproximate Entropy as a Measure of Morphologic Variability for Ventricular Tachycardia and Fibrillationxe2x80x9d, Computers in Cardiology, 1998, 25:265-268). Hence, these approaches cannot be extended to real-time application in ICD and AED. Another method of complexity analysis was proposed by Lempel and Ziv in xe2x80x9cOn the Complexity of Finite Sequencesxe2x80x9d, IEEE Trans. Information Theory, 1976, IT-22: 75-81. Zhang et al. have disclosed some results of this kind of complexity analysis for normal sinus rhythm, VT, and VF, in xe2x80x9cDetecting Ventricular Tachycardia and Fibrillation by Complexity Measurexe2x80x9d, IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 1999, 46: 548-555. All the above-mentioned references are incorporated herein by reference. However, none of these references mention the way to perform real-time complexity analysis in ICDs and AEDs. Moreover, none of these references discuss a method that can be used to avoid unnecessary therapy caused by SVT or high-frequency noise.
In view of the clinical importance of ventricular conditions, more emphasis should be put on the analysis and feature extraction of the ventricular electrical activity, manifested as QRS complex on the ECG. By an optimized threshold method, the xe2x80x9ccomplexityxe2x80x9d of ventricular activity patterns can be analyzed quantitatively by complexity analysis after transforming it into a character sequence. The cardiac tachyarrhythmia detection system and method of present invention as disclosed herein is simple, computationally efficient, effective, robust and reliable, and well suited for real-time implementation and, at the same time, it has immunity ability to noise and artifacts. Therefore, it offers all the desirable features for the practical application in AED and ICD.
The present invention fulfills the need in AEDs and ICDs by providing a cardiac arrhythmia detection system and method, which provides a clearer and more reliable indication of the onset of VT and VF that has been available in the prior arts and, at the same time, avoids possible misidentifications caused by SVT, high-frequency artifacts or noise.
It is, accordingly, an objective of the present invention to provide an improved system and method for simultaneously detecting shockable VT and VF, and discriminating non-shockable SVT, and high-frequency artifacts and noise as well.
A further object of the present invention is to provide such a detection system and method which is capable of correctly and accurately distinguishing in real time different kinds of cardiac episodes (shockable and non-shockable) using an easy-to-implement algorithm without computation complexity.
It is an additional object of the present invention to utilize the dynamical non-linear nature of the heart as exhibited in ECG signals to detect VT and VF by quantitative measurements thereof using non-linear dynamic theory.
It is still another further object of the present invention to provide such a detection system and method, which discriminates VT from VF and thereby allows the application of lower-energy cardioversion therapy for VT to provide significant energy savings for the battery powered device and improved patient comfort, such as an implantable cardioverter/defibrillator, high-energy defibrillation therapy for VF and, at the same time, avoiding unnecessary shock for SVT.
These and other objects of the invention are realized by providing a novel cardiac tachyarrhythmia detection system and method as described in more detail below. More specifically, the present invention pertains to a method and apparatus which uses the complexity measure of a nonlinear dynamical system associated with cardiac rhythms to detect VT, VF, SVT and high-frequency noise.
As discussed above, the non-linear dynamic cardiac activity has different characteristics for different cardiac rhythms. These characteristics are apparent from the different spatio-temporal patterns in the corresponding ECG waveforms with different complexity. In accordance with this invention, the complexity of these patterns is quantified and designated as a complexity measure CM. The CM, calculated by a complexity analysis, has a value between 0 to 100. The larger CM value, the more complex the activity. For non-shockable tachyarrhythmias (such as SVT and atrial fibrillation (AF)), the corresponding CM is lower than for VT and VF since, during SVT and AF, the cardiac activity has a regular, more organized, and periodic state. CM has a lower value for VT than for VF, since cardiac activity during VT is more stable and the ventricular activity (QRS complexes) basically looks more similar than that of VF. The high-frequency artifacts or noise manifest random-like activity, therefore, the corresponding CM values are much higher than the values for cardiac activities.
By directly analyzing the non-linear dynamics representing cardiac activities and quantitatively characterizing the associated complexity as a parameter CM, the detection system and method of the present invention is able to overcome the limitations of existing methods and is capable of discriminating accurately between VT, VF, SVT, and high-frequency noise.
This invention offers a considerable improvement over current methods of analysis by employing a new criterion for reliable separation among VT, VF, SVT, and high-frequency noise. Particularly, by using three CM thresholds (i.e. low complexity threshold (LCT), mediate complexity threshold (MCT), and high complexity threshold (HCT)), different kinds of tachyarrhythmia (i.e. heart rate (HR) above a pre-set rate threshold) and high-frequency noise are discriminated from each other: for non-shockable tachyarrhythmia, CMxe2x89xa6LCT; for VT, LCT less than CMxe2x89xa6MCT; for VF, MCT less than CMxe2x89xa6HCT; and for high-frequency noise, HCT less than CM. In this way, the arrhythmia is determined accurately and rapidly allowing the device or system to select the corresponding therapy, if required.
Moreover, since VT, VF, SVT, and high-frequency noise are accurately detected in appropriate shock treatment and lower energy consumption is achieved.

System and method for complexity analysis-based cardiac tachyarrhythmia detection


The invention includes a user method, routines and system for identifying an imprint on a therapeutic dosage form. The method includes reducing imprints to their basic informational components; grouping the basic informational components into searchable basic informational component group databases; searching the databases in an organized manner; and matching features of the imprint to basic informational components, resulting in a positive identification of the imprint.

This invention relates to a method, routines and system for identification of imprints on dosage forms, whether defined by the United States Pharmacoepia or not, thereby assisting in the identification of the drug product. In particular, the invention is directed towards dosage forms other than liquids, inhalants and parenterals.
In 1962, the article "Identification Guide for Solid Dosage Forms" by Hefferren et al. (Hefferren, J. J. et al., Identification Guide for Solid Dosage Forms, Journal of the American Medical Association, Dec. 22, 1962), hereinafter the "Guide," described an attempt to identify tablets, capsules and softgels by their size, shape, color and markings for approximately 5000 drug products. The method used physical measurement of size, assignment of the unknown drug product to predetermined shapes, matching color to a standard color reference such as 'paint chips' and markings on dosage forms known within the industry as "imprint." Only a few drug products bore an imprint at that time. The Guide was of particular benefit in emergency rooms and coroners' laboratories because of their need to know and their ability to physically manipulate unknown drug products. However, in the process of identification, the specimen of the drug product was destroyed in many cases. At each step of the decision-tree in the Guide, the user's choices were "narrowed to one or, at most, a relatively few drugs. A tentative identification was thus established.
At that time the state-of-the-art of tablet and capsule identification was primitive by today's standards. Experts, such as forensic scientists, pharmacists and specialists in poison centers could be relied upon to use the Guide, but it had little utility in non-expert hands. The Guide has not been formally maintained and no new products have been cataloged since June 1962.
An effective system to make any physical identification must rely on objective, rather than subjective, information or data points. Size is objective but its measurement is fraught with difficulties—standard tools and methods and their immediate availability are needed in expert hands. However, shape is subjective, as it is difficult at times to describe the overall appearance of a dosage form verbally. The description of a dosage form as oblong, oval or caplet does not provide a definitive description. Similarly, color is subjective. It is difficult to describe the color of a dosage form, as example, such as pink, coral, peach or rose verbally without the use of a color chip.
A survey of the available resources is instructive: no print resource nor existing electronic catalog was or is adequate to fully meet the technical demands of identifying a drug product, by professionals and the public at large. In the current art, both print and electronic resources exclude non-numeric, non-alphabetic information, which leads users to the situation of multiple choices from which to make an identification. Lastly, print resources are dated from the day they are published and rapidly decline in value.
An electronic catalog was copyrighted in 1974. Its methodology presented imprints in text-only format, e.g., 93 150 3 (93=Teva Labs and 150 3 distinguishes it as an acetaminophen 325 mg and codeine 30 mg tablet) even though logos were already a common feature of imprints. Unable to accommodate logos, this catalog increased the possibility of finding an imprint by listing all possible combinations of imprint features but redundancy reduced its ease of use. Burden of these combinations within the catalog soon becomes obvious to the user. Lacking any discriminating routine for attacking imprints, the user has 398 choices from which to make an identification if the feature 93 is used for the initial search, 140 choices if the feature 150 is chosen and 210 choices if the feature 3 is chosen, all of which choices may require the user to assess them individually in order to arrive at a possible identification. Users may also be impeded by the multiplicity of screens needing to be reviewed; as in the exemplary imprint 93 150 3 above, the electronic catalog presents nine or ten screens displaying the multiple records. In another example, the imprint BRA 200 may be identified approaching first the feature BRA then 200 but not by approaching feature 200 and then BRA. After examining a list of 359 possibilities containing the feature 200, the user finds that the feature BRA is absent. In another example, the imprint 230, the user must evaluate 16 records to make a rather simple identification. The electronic catalog presents a multiplicity of choices but makes no definitive declaration of identification for users.
Furthermore, because of the text-only format of the electronic catalog, direct representation of logo features is precluded. The catalog contrives, as an example, the Abbott Laboratories logo with either the capital letter A or E, while a lower-case printed letter 'a' might be a better expression, but still not a direct expression, of the logo itself. Other logos may not lend themselves to such contrivances, consequently expensing valuable information. The user may be left with no direct representation of logo imprint features and at times outright absence of information, all serious deficiencies for a leading reference in the field.
For the above reasons the electronic catalog cannot be definitive in making a positive identification. It follows then that a reasonable strategy for the publisher of the electronic catalog might be to limit its use to experts. In fact, each resultant informational screen bears the legend "All POISONDEX® product information is CONFIDENTIAL, intended for use by healthcare professionals, and may not be released to non-medical personnel."
Lastly, this imprint catalog, initially and for more than a decade afterward, did not include the National Drug Code (NDC) in each record although NDCs were widely in use since the 1960s. Consequently, no search to confirm a drug product by its NDC is currently available. Regardless of its dated features and reflecting the burgeoning drug market, the current electronic catalog has had a market for its more than 30,000 imprints and their combinations, whether they exist or not on a current drug product, for nearly the past three decades.
Recently several websites offer direct searches of databases for imprints on tablets and capsules, specifically www.rxlist.com and identadrug.com. The former site is not easy to use, both lack a comprehensive database of imprints and neither accommodates logo imprint features. More significantly, the former site uses no more technology with which to search for an imprint than a simple 'grep'—input of a string of characters or digits as seen in the imprint, but not logos, leading to the output of multiple records containing the same string somewhere therein and not necessarily related to the imprint itself. At both sites the user is left with making a choice; no definitive declaration of an identification is provided. Their technology is little different from that of the 1974 electronic catalog discussed above.
Yet another database marketed on a CD-ROM disc uses color, shape and scoring as input to its search routines. The routines are difficult to use and the database is incomplete. Again the user is left with choices from a multiplicity of records in order to make the identification. This database has been developed with no more technology than that used by the Guide reported by Hefferren in 1962. If the user misrepresents color, shape or scoring, likely no records will be found and no identification can be made.
A prior art compilation of records for automated database has been developed, containing drug product records of imprint features in text only and associated descriptors. This compilation has the title Readi-TCID©. However, Readi-TCID© does not have nor utilize method and routines for identifying definitively an imprint of dosage forms. The database only displays a collage of imprint logos as found on tablets and capsules in the United States known at the time of development.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,025,984 describes a portable drug information computer. However, the '984 patent is not capable of identifying imprints on dosage forms. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 4,289,958 generally relates to a device to take physical measurements and to compare these measurements and shapes to a data set punched into cards. The data set makes no reference to using an imprint as a means of making or confirming an identification of a dosage form. Both patents have the significant drawback that they deal with the least effective means of making an identification today—shape and scoring.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,700,998 and 5,845,264 both overlook the current US FDA required imprints on solid dosage forms in certain drug categories and further claim an indicia using bar code that may be applied to the surface of selected dosage forms. Further, pharmacies, hospitals, nursing homes and possibly consumers require specialized equipment to read the indicia whenever and wherever an identification is required for selected dosage forms. Bar code indicia applied to dosage forms is redundant to current practices, cannot be visualized at will by the unaided eye, is far more complex than drug makers' current imprinting methods and may have limited applicability in the case of some solid dosage forms.
All of the previously discussed methods and systems of drug identification have significant drawbacks, relying on technology in use for more than thirty years. It is an object of the present invention to solve these and other problems and to claim the development of new technology in the art of identifying tablets and capsules. The present invention alters no present regulation or production methods and its method and routines are applicable to the unaided eye, readily available computer technology and equipment and any applicable, comprehensive database. The present invention accommodates all dosage forms and all imprint features—both non-numeric and non-alphabetic as well as numeric digits and alphabetic characters—and organizes all imprint features with the goal of the least number of decisions within its routines to arrive at a declarative identification.
Identification of drug products is made by using the common descriptors of the art and associating them with imprint features within an applicable database. First the process involves a method of assigning all, including heretofore unrecognized or unused, imprint features as components within classes in a database. Secondly, routines permit users of the system to compare imprint features, as seen on dosage forms, to database components, presented in a hierarchy of classes and aided by computer programs.
Novel method and routines of the present invention avoid the problems of matching dosage form physical characteristics, of using only partial catalogs or data sets, all of which are significantly devoid of logos and of lacking the cardinal concept: imprints are unique. By method herein, the features of imprints are the sole independent variables and physical characteristics are solely descriptors and dependent variables. The method, routines and system of the present invention are elegant in their simplicity and solve longstanding and intractable problems in the art.

Method, routines and system for identification of imprints on dosage forms


The collapsible display table includes a collapsible truss framework that supports a folding table top and one or more folding utility shelves. The two link members in each truss pair of the framework are pivotally connected together in a scissors configuration so as to be extendable horizontally from a first collapsed position to a second extended position. A pair of table top support arms pivotally connected to the top of the framework on opposite sides are provided for supporting the table top, and at least one pair of shelf support arms is removably attachable between adjacent legs on opposite sides for supporting a lower shelf. The legs of the collapsible display table preferably include telescoping foot extensions. The table top and lower utility shelf are preferably made of a plurality of segments hingedly connected together, allowing them to be foldable. In an alternate embodiment, the truss framework includes multiple truss pairs of link members pivotally connected together in a scissors configuration.

1. Field of the Invention:
This invention relates generally to folding, collapsible structures, and more particularly relates to a collapsible display table having a truss framework, a folding table top and a folding utility shelf.
2. Description of Related Art:
Folding card tables and heavy work tables having individual legs or pairs of legs that are pivotally connected to a table top to swing down from a concealed position to lock into a set up position are well known. The portability of such tables is generally limited by the size of the table top. The lighter card table style tables are generally not strong enough or stable enough to support modern video or computer types of displays that are currently used in travelling presentations. The heavier, folding work style tables are generally quite large and heavy, making them impractical for use as a portable display table in presentations, often requiring the use of a truck for transporting video or computer display equipment and appropriate display tables. The size and weight of video or computerized display equipment that can be supported on smaller, more readily portable display tables have also been generally limited. A display table offering one or more utility shelves would also be useful for providing an efficient use of space for display equipment, but conventional tables providing one or more utility shelves have also generally not been collapsible and easily portable.
It would therefore be desirable to provide an improved collapsible display table with a collapsible support framework. It would be further desirable to provide a collapsible display table that would provide greater strength and stability, to allow support of relatively large, heavy video display monitors, televisions, video or film display equipment, and the like. It would also be desirable to provide a collapsible display table offering one or more utility shelves, to offer a larger and more efficient use of space for accommodating display equipment. The present invention fulfills these needs.


An apparatus for sterilizing, filling and sealing containers has a sterilization chamber, a cooling chamber, and a filling and sealing chamber, through which the containers are conveyed by means of an endless conveyor device. For presterilizing the chambers before the apparatus is put into operation, these chambers are acted upon by a gaseous sterilizing agent flowing through them, which is fed through an inlet or an outlet for the containers. In order that regions less affected by the flowing sterilizing agent as it flows, because they are in the lee, will also be disinfected well, the flow direction of the sterilizing agent is changed multiple times. A blower with a reversible flow direction is used for this purpose.

The invention is based on an apparatus for sterilizing, filling and sealing containers. Before being put into operation each time, the individual chambers as well as the filling and sealing devices built into them in such apparatus are sterilized by having a sterilizing agent in gaseous or vapor form, such as a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and air, flow through them and act on them for a predetermined period of time. To that end, the device for feeding the sterilizing agent into and through the chambers is designed so as to have the sterilizing agent flow in one direction through the chambers in succession. It sometimes happens that in corners reached only poorly by the sterilizing agent, germs will survive and will get into containers and into the product to be placed in them.

Apparatus for sterilizing, filling and sealing packaging containers

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A sensing circuit for sensing logic data is shown. A memory cell is electrically connected to a bit line. The sensing circuit includes a first pre-charging module electrically connected to the bit line for pre-charging the bit line. A selecting module is electrically connected between the bit line and a first data line for transmitting signals and for isolating capacitances. A second pre-charging module is electrically connected to the first data line for pre-charging the first data line. A first voltage keeping module is electrically connected to the first data line for maintaining a signal on the first data line at a voltage level. An isolating module is electrically connected between the first data line and a second data line for transmitting signals and for isolating capacitances. A third pre-charging module is electrically connected to the second data line for pre-charging the second data line.

The invention relates to a sensing circuit, and more particularly, to a sensing circuit for a single bit-line semiconductor memory device.
Memory is one of the key components in electronic equipment on the market. Memory can be divided into two groups by the way the memory stores information: volatile memory and nonvolatile memory. A memory is called a volatile memory because it is the kind of storage device that when the power is cut, digital data stored in the volatile memory will be lost. For example, products such as DRAM or SDRAM belong to the volatile memory group. The advantage of volatile memory is that the access speed is fast, so it is often used as a buffer between a high speed processing unit and other circuits. But the disadvantage of volatile memory is that it cannot keep the data stored in it after the power is cut. On the other hand, nonvolatile memory can keep data stored in it even after the power is cut. However, the disadvantage of nonvolatile memory is that the access speed is slower than volatile memory. Products such as ROM or flash memory belong to the nonvolatile memory group.
The application of volatile memory is very broad, in addition to being used in personal computers as a data storage device, volatile memory is also used for storing digital data in devices such as cell phones, personal digital assistants, and laptop computers.
Generally speaking, a memory installed in an electronic device can perform basic mode operations according to a controlling signal from the electronic device, such as write mode, erase mode and read mode. In write mode, the electronic device writes digital data into specific storage addresses of the memory according the controlling signal; in erase mode the electronic device erases digital data at specific storage addresses of the memory according the controlling signal; in read mode the electronic device reads digital data out from specific storage address of the memory according the controlling signal.
A memory always includes a sensing circuit (or a sensing amplifier) for reading out data at specific storing addresses in the memory according to instruction of controlling signal. The sensing circuit is electrically connected to a memory cell array in the memory used for storing digital data. In the 1998 "Symposium on VLSI Circuits Digest of Technical Papers", page 158 to page 161, a sensing circuit is disclosed. Please refer to FIG. 1, which is a circuit diagram of a single bit-line ROM sensing circuit of the related art. In FIG. 1, the ROM contains a sensing circuit 10 and a memory cell array 20. Wherein the memory cell array 20 includes a plurality of memory cells 22, the addresses of the memory cells 22 is defined by a plurality of word lines WL1˜WLn and a plurality of bit lines BL1˜BLn, that is, at the cross point of each word line and each bit line there is a memory cell 22 electrically connected to the word line and the bit line. In FIG. 1, each memory cell 22 is an NMOS transistor, the drain being electrically connected to the bit line, the gate being electrically to the word line, and the source being electrically connected to ground.
Using a bit line BL1 as an example, the bit line BL1 is electrically connected to the sensing circuit 10. The sensing circuit 10 contains a first pre-charging module 12, a selecting module 14, a second pre-charging module 16, and a sensing-locking module 18. The first pre-charging module 12 is electrically connected to the bit line BL1 for pre-charging the bit line BL1. In FIG. 1, the first pre-charging module 12 is an NMOS transistor for pre-charging the bit line BL1 to 0V, the drain being electrically connected to the bit line BL1, the gate being electrically connected to a controlling signal Y1b. The selecting module 14 is electrically connected between the bit line BL1 and a data line DL, for passing a signal on the bit line BL1 to the data line DL according to the controlling signals Y1 and Y1b. In FIG. 1, the selecting module 14 is a transmission gate containing an NMOS transistor and a PMOS transistor, and the turn on and turn off of the transmission gate is controlled by the controlling signals Y1 and Y1b. The second pre-charging module 16 is used for pre-charging the data line DL. In FIG. 1, the second pre-charging module 16 is a PMOS transistor, the drain being electrically connected to the data line DL, the gate being electrically connected to a controlling signal PRE, the source being electrically connected to a power supply voltage VDD, for pre-charging the data line DL to VDD. The sensing-locking module 18 is electrically connected to the data line DL and is for sensing the digital signal on the data line DL and locking to the digital signal to generate an output signal on the output signal line OUT.
Please notice that the above description only uses one bit line BL1 as an example, in reality there are more than one bit line being electrically connected to the same data line DL via the selecting module 14, as shown in FIG. 1.
Described next is the job flow illustrating how the ROM in FIG. 1 uses the sensing circuit 10 to read data. When the ROM reads digital data stored in the memory cell array 20, a controlling unit (not shown in FIG. 1) uses the controlling signals to control the first pre-charging module to pre-charge the bit line (such as bit line BL1) corresponding to the address of the desired data to 0V, and then uses the controlling signal Y1 and Y1B to turn on the selecting module 14. A controlling signal PRE is next used to control the second pre-charging module 16 to pre-charge the data line DL and the bit line BL1 to VDD. Finally, the controlling unit inputs a high voltage to the word line (such as word line WL1) corresponding to the address of the desired data such that data stored in the selected memory cell 22 (in this example, the memory cell located at the cross point of bit line BL1 and word line WL1) is output to the output line OUT via the bit line BL1, the data line DL, and the sensing-locking module 18.
However, there is a significant flaw in the sensing circuit 10 shown in FIG. 1. When the memory cell 22 first stores digital value 0, the memory cell 22 is at low threshold voltage state. To read out the "0" stored in the memory cell 22, the selected bit line BL1 and data line DL must be pre-charged to VDD and discharged to 0V via the path to ground formed by the memory cell 22 in a turned on state, ending the reading process. Because the bit line BL1 is electrically connected to multiple memory cells 22 and the data line DL is electrically connected to multiple selecting modules 14, the bit line BL1 and the data line DL combine with a very large parasitic capacitance because they have a very large layout area. Therefore, during the process of reading the logic value "0", both the second pre-charging module 16 and the selected memory cell 22 must charge (or discharge) the bit line BL1 and the data line DL, which have a very large parasitic capacitance. This causes a direct constraint on the speed of the ROM. Additionally, charging (or discharging) the bit line BL1 and the data line DL with a very large parasitic capacitance consumes a great amount of power.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Sensing circuit for single bit-line semiconductor memory device


A safety razor with a thin profile that can be easily transported on a person, without risk of injury or damage to the razor blades.

Most men shave some portion of their face every day, or nearly every day. For many men, their beard grows so fast and dense, that they shave more than once per day. Most men with fast-growing and/or thick beards prefer to wet-shave with a safety razor. Wet shaving is using a razor with water and a lubricant, such as shaving cream or soap. A safety razor is a device which has embedded razor blades, to reduce the risk of an inadvertent cut. A safety razor holds one or more razor blades at an angle that will properly shave a beard, while keeping the user's hands a safe distance from the cutting surface. A plurality of men use safety razors to shave.
Most wet-shave safety razors are impractical for a person to carry. Typical safety razors have a head and a handle, forming, roughly, a "T." Although many safety razors come with a blade protector, the blade protector is generally easy to knock off. Additionally, the shape of the safety razor makes it clumsy to carry in a pocket, purse, or back-pack. When a safety razor is carried in such a way it is easily damaged. Additionally, the blade cover is easily removed through natural jossling and movement, risking injury, or at the very least, a dull and useless blade. Because of these drawbacks, few people carry a safety razor with them during the day.
This creates a difficulty for men who travel and have a thick beard. By the end of the work-day, they would like to shave their beard a second time, but they do not have the means to do so.
Disposable safety razors have additional issues. Disposable safety razors have the same form-factor as a regular safety razor. As a result, they are difficult to vend, because they are relatively bulking and poorly shaped. Additionally, disposable safety razors are relatively expensive to ship, because they do not nest or pack well in a box. Not only does this increase the cost of shipping the disposable safety razor, because the box is full of air, it increases the cost of putting the safety razor on display on a store shelf. Last, disposable safety razors are environmentally unfriendly. They are made out of plastic that is placed in a landfill. Although the metal will bio-degrade, the plastic will not. Additionally, since the metal is embedded in the plastic, the plastic cannot be re-cycled.
The market is looking for a thin, disposable safety razor that can be easily carried by a person during the day. Preferably, such a device should be easy to carry in a safe place, such as a wallet or purse.


A system and method for managing a network of nodes that share sensor data is presented. In one embodiment, the system and method clusters groups of nodes into subnets. Nodes in a common subnet share sensor data with other nodes in the subnet at one rate, while nodes that are not in a common subnet share sensor data at a second substantially reduced rate.

Sensor platforms, also referred to as nodes or virtual nodes, share sensor information across communications links that are generally not managed by the application at the physical layer. As the number of nodes increases, the volume of traffic increases, taxing the bandwidth capacity of communications links and the computational capacity of the nodes to process the shared sensor information. Prior art solutions assign groups of nodes into smaller operating groups or subnets. Typically this assignment of operating groups or subnets is performed manually. Nodes within a subnet share sensor information, while nodes in different subnets do not directly share information with each other.
Generally subnets are designed to be small enough that sharing sensor data between nodes does not overwhelm the processing capability of any individual node or the communications links between nodes. If the sensor bandwidth is not correctly anticipated or the subnets are not properly designed, nodes can become overwhelmed with sensor data and associated data communications links between nodes can become congested. This can result in delays of important sensor data reaching a node or in the data not being communicated to the node at all.
A target tracker receives sensor data about one or more targets from multiple nodes and fuses the sensor data about common targets from the multiple nodes. Typically the target tracker is configured statically and attempts to keep up with the flow of sensor reports it receives. If more reports are received than the target tracker can process, the target tracker will fall behind, delaying the assimilation of sensor reports into useful tracking data. If the flow of sensor reports is sustained at a greater rate than can be processes, the target tracker will drop reports. Important sensor data therefore would not be fused into the tracking data for one or more tracked targets.
Advantages over the prior art are herewith provided in the following disclosure.


Device, method, and system for recording diffractive high resolution text, pictorial, and/or other graphical information is provided which is particularly suited to recording information that would be difficult to reproduce by typical counterfeiting methods. The information recorded may be used to authenticate the recorded item, or indirectly, an item to which the recording is attached. Such items may include legal, financial and commercial instruments, credit cards, and packaging for such items as software, art, and other items where forgery of the item may be a concern. In one embodiment of the invention light is selectively passed by a shutter, and a spatial filter then cleans the beam to remove undesirable frequency components. A liquid crystal display (LCD) dynamically receives a data stream from a computer where each of the displayed data values presents an optical characteristic (for example density, phase, or polarization) to the filtered beam and causes diffraction into a plurality of diffracted beams, the character of which is dependent on the data displayed. A mask selectively passes only predetermined ones of the beams so that only frequency components that will generate the desired optical interference fringes are allowed to pass. Additional optical components receive the passed beams and redirect them to overlap at an output plane to form interference fringes. These interference fringes can have a very high spatial frequency so that extremely fine lines or small objects, including text and graphics, can be recorded.

Apparatus and methods for generating and interrogating holograms and other optical diffractive devices have been known since the early 1960's however such devices were largely sophisticated laboratory research tools. More recently, the advent of high resolution color photocopying, digital scanning, and image processing have made counterfeiting documents incorporating only 2-dimensional information much simpler. Holograms and other media capable of storing 3-dimensional information have become increasingly important in preventing counterfeiting and assuring the authenticity of documents and items attached to such documents. For example, it is common for Visa and MasterCard type credit cards to include an embossed "rainbow" hologram on the front of the card. Computer software developers including Lotus Development Corporation, Microsoft Corporation, and others have included a holographic label on their product packaging to help distinguish their product from a potential unauthorized reproduction of their product. It is also anticipated that commercial instruments, including stock certificates, currency, and other negotiable financial instruments, may someday benefit from the inclusion of holographic indicia on the instrument itself.
The incorporation of holographic security devices, such as the holograms built into credit cards and fused to negotiable instruments, as well as applications to currency, raises a need for high quality holograms that cannot easily be counterfeited and that can be produced quickly and cheaply in volume to reduce the cost per hologram or diffraction grating. High resolution holographic grating array masters are currently produced using E-Beam techniques and are therefore relatively expensive and slow to manufacture. Other methods of producing lower resolution grating arrays have become commonplace enough to threaten their potential usefulness in the field of security. Therefore, there is a need for high resolution but inexpensive gratings that cannot easily be produced by counterfeiting.
Holographic diffraction grating arrays have been manufactured since as early as 1980. In the last few years, high resolution grating arrays have found a new use in the security field as anti-counterfeiting devices. The technologies used in the manufacture of these arrays include holographic recording of spot diffraction gratings and E-Beam etching of the holographic grating fringe structure itself.
Conventional holographic systems extant at this time seem to be limited to spot sizes and therefore feature sizes on the order of 1/400 inch (about 60 microns). Even at this relatively large feature size, the recording of large array areas with conventional techniques can be prohibitively slow (and therefore expensive) since each image pixel typically requires individual motion of the film platen and subsequent exposure. These conventional systems are also generally limited to fixed spatial frequencies, or at best to a predetermined set of fixed spatial frequencies, which limits the type of imagery or graphical information they are capable of recording. There are also quite a number of such systems in operation at this time, a situation which seriously limits their credibility and utility in the field of security.
E-Beam writing of grating arrays which is capable of high resolution, is so prohibitively expensive a process and requires such a large capital investment that it's utility in anti-counterfeiting is secure. It is not seriously limited as to feature size as each fringe of any desired grating array can be written individually. Unfortunately, the production of relatively small grating arrays requires a considerable amount of time on extremely expensive equipment. As with the invention described herein, clever programming is also necessary to take full advantage of such as system. E-Beam recording techniques also require relatively sophisticated equipment control and computer control techniques to achieve the desired output.
To date there seems to be no system extant capable of producing inexpensive, large area, high resolution, grating arrays. Therefore, it is clear that there is a need for system, apparatus, and method that provide solutions to these limitations in the prior art.
In one aspect the invention provides means for controlling the shape of the exposure area in a very accurate and precise manner, and to generate final images that contain microscopic two-dimensional image data such as text or other graphical art, where such data can be unique for each exposure area.
In another aspect the invention provides means for representing features in greater detail than provided in conventional systems.
In another aspect the invention provides means for controlling the shape of each output exposure footprint.
In yet another aspect the invention reduces pixelation, quantization, or stair stepping and the rough edges which result from pixel quantization in the final output image so that the output image follows the actual contours in the macroscopic image.
In another aspect the invention provides means for adjusting the output grating spatial frequencies and spatial orientations at will, including presenting or altering the frequencies and orientations continuously and in real-time during operation of the apparatus.
In another aspect the invention provides means for modifying or controlling the spatial frequencies during operation without changing the optical configuration.
In another aspect the invention provides means for generating a multitude of diffractive patterns rapidly, with the potential for generating the diffractive patterns in real time.
In another aspect the invention eliminates moving parts in the optical system and to thereby increase speed and provide greater stability.
In another aspect the invention provides means for more readily maintaining system alignment than would be provided in conventional two beam configurations, or configurations involving mirrors or prisms.
In another aspect the invention provides means for generating diffractive areas which are smaller than have been realized with conventional systems.
In another aspect the invention provides means for forming multi-directional gratings in a single exposure.
In another aspect the invention provides means for accurately and precisely controlling diffraction efficiency by modifying the contrast of the image displayed on the image display device.
In yet a further aspect the invention provides means for using system noise characteristics (including noise introduced by the optical system and image display device imperfections) to uniquely identify the system from which a particular hologram or grating was produced, as a security feature to verify the hologram or grating authenticity.
In another aspect the invention provides means for generating holograms having even exposure density across the entire hologram and for eliminating the Gaussian pits that are typically present in conventional systems which use a focussed narrow beam, by providing a filtered and expanded beam to illuminate the image display device.
In another aspect the invention provides a system permitting rapid photographic exposure by reducing settling times typically required in conventional systems having moving optical components and hence vibration, and by providing a large exposure footprint even for small pixel dimensions, and for providing means for exposing multiple angles in the same exposure footprint simultaneously.
These and other features and advantages are provided by the present invention as will be readily apparent in light of the accompanying drawings and detailed description.

Apparatus and method for generating diffractive element using liquid crystal display


Systems and methods for flow verification and validation of mass flow controllers are disclosed. A mass flow controller may be commanded to a specified flow and flow measurement commenced. Gas is accumulated in a first volume and while measurements are taken within this volume. Gas may then flow into a second volume while measurements are taken. The various measurements taken during the two intervals may then be used to calculate the flow rate. The flow rate, in turn, may be used to determine the accuracy of the mass flow controller relative to a setpoint. Additionally, these systems and methods may utilize only one volume to perform flow verification by flowing gas into this volume, taking measurements, and calculating the flow rate based only upon this set of measurements.

Modern manufacturing processes sometimes require precise stoichiometric ratios of chemical elements during particular manufacturing phases. To achieve these precise ratios, different process gases may be delivered into a process chamber during certain manufacturing phases. A gas panel may be used to deliver these process gasses to a process tool with one or more chambers or reactors. A gas panel is an enclosure containing one or more gas pallets dedicated to deliver process gases to the process tool. The gas panel is in turn composed of a group of gas pallets, which is itself composed of a group of gas sticks.
A gas stick assembly may contain several discrete components such as an inlet fitting, manual isolation valve, binary controlled pneumatic isolation valves, gas filters, pressure regulators, pressure transducers, inline pressure displays, mass flow controllers and an outlet fitting. Each of these components is serially coupled to a common flow path or dedicated channel for one particular process gas. A manifold and a valve matrix channel the outlet of each gas stick to the process chamber.
To achieve a certain stoichiometric ratio, a process tool controller asserts setpoints to the mass flow controllers, and sequences the valve matrices, associated with certain gas sticks. The indicated flow value is output by the mass flow controller of each gas stick and monitored by the process tool controller.
A mass flow controller (MFC) is constructed by interfacing a flow sensor and proportioning control valve to a control system. The flow sensor is coupled to the control system by an analog to digital converter. The control valve is driven by a current controlled solenoid valve drive circuit. A mass flow measurement system is located upstream of the control valve. The control system monitors the setpoint input and flow sensor output while refreshing the control valve input and indicated flow output. Closed loop control algorithms executed by the embedded control system operate to regulate the mass flow of process gas sourced at the inlet fitting through the proportioning control valve and outlet fitting such that the real-time difference or error between the setpoint input and indicated flow output approaches zero or null as fast as possible with minimal overshoot and as small a control time as possible. As over 500 species of gases may be used in the manufacturing of certain electronic components, the operation of each of the respective mass flow controllers is critical. Typically, these mass flow controllers are validated using the process chamber itself. FIG. 1 depicts one such prior art system where process chamber 130 is used as a flow verification tool. To verify mass flow controller 120, a setpoint signal is input to mass flow controller 120 which in turn begins flowing gas to process chamber 130. As the volume of process chamber 130 is known, a primary flow measurement technique known as rate-of-rise may be utilized to measure the flow into that volume. This method utilizes the conservation of mass principle and the equation of state of the gas to derive a relationship between the pressure in a fixed volume and the flow (mass flow) into that volume. The equation is given as,
                              m          .                =                              [                                          Δ                                                                                P                  ·                  V                                            RT                        ]                                Δ                                                                          t                                              eq        .                                                    (          1          )                    where ΔP is the change in pressure over the interval Δt, R is the universal gas constant, T is the absolute temperature of the gas, and V is the volume of the measurement chamber. Eq. 1 utilizes the ideal gas equation as the equation of state; similar equations can be derived for other equations of state.
Unfortunately, the volume of typical process chamber 130, which may be on the order of 20 to 60 liters makes measurements of small flow extraordinarily time consuming. Additionally, process chamber 130 may exhibit large temperature gradients throughout its volume, distorting both the measurement and calculation of the mass flow into process chamber 130.
FIG. 2 shows the amount of time required to achieve a given change in pressure for some typical flow rates using typical process chamber 130 of between 20 and 60 liters. Due to many other constraints, a minimum pressure of 0.1 Torr may be required to initiate the measurement, and 0.3 Torr minimum accumulated pressure required to make the measurement. As a result, to perform a single flow point validation of a 2 sccm flow can require up to 5 minutes and verification of a mass flow controller may then take as long as 30 minutes. This lengthy validation cycle decreases the tool availability and adds cost to the user.
In addition to the slowness of the measurement, the accuracy of the measurement is typically no better than +/−5% of the reading. The primary contributing errors are: errors in temperature, errors in chamber volume, and unaccounted for gases (adsorption or desorption).
Other methods of validating mass flow controller 120 may utilize a secondary volume in parallel to process chamber 130 to measure flow. However, these methods do not allow the measuring of transient (non steady-state) performance of mass flow controller 120, and the many steps required to determine the volume upstream of mass flow controller 120 make this technique difficult to integrate into existing systems and may exacerbate already long time requirements for validation.
Thus, there is a need for systems and methods for validating a mass flow controller which can quickly measure dynamic performance and validate a mass flow controller, while simultaneously improving the accuracy of the validation process by reducing measurement uncertainties.

Method and system for flow measurement and validation of a mass flow controller


A test element analysis system for an analytical examination of a sample, in particular of a body fluid, is disclosed. The test element analysis system comprises an evaluation device with a test element holder for positioning a test element containing the sample and a measuring device for measuring a change in a measuring zone of the test element, the change being characteristic for an analyte. The test element holder contains contact elements with contact surfaces which allow an electrical contact between contact surfaces of the test element and the contact surfaces of the test element holder. The contact surfaces of the contact elements of the test element holder are provided with an electrically conductive surface containing metallic ruthenium.

Test element analysis systems are commonly used especially in medical diagnostics for analyzing body fluids such as blood or urine. The sample to be examined is firstly applied to a test element. Here the process steps that are required to detect the analyte which are usually chemical, biochemical, biological or immunological detection reactions or physical interactions take place which result in a characteristic and measurable change of the test element especially in the area of a measuring zone of the test element. In order to determine this characteristic change, the test element is inserted into an evaluation device which determines the characteristic change of the test element and provides it in the form of a measured value for display or further processing.
Test elements are often designed as test strips which are essentially composed of an elongate support layer, usually made of a plastic material, and a measuring zone with a detection layer containing detection reagents and, if necessary, other auxiliary layers such as filtration layers. The test elements of the present disclosure additionally contain contact surfaces, also denoted as contact areas, which can be used to make an electrical contact between the test element and the evaluation device. In the case of electrochemical assay methods conductor paths and electrodes are located on the test element. Even test elements which do not use methods of electrochemical analysis can have electrically conducting contact surfaces for example in order to transfer calibration data or batch information that are stored on the test element to the evaluation instrument.
The accompanying evaluation devices have test element holders with special contact elements which make an electrically conducting contact between the test element and the measuring and evaluation electronics of the evaluation instrument. These contact elements are usually in the form of electrical plug connections with metallic spring elements which are often provided with a noble metal surface usually of gold or platinum. The test strips are inserted into the test element holder for the measurement during which the contact surfaces of the contact elements of the evaluation instrument are moved across the electrodes of the test elements. In an end position the contact surface of the contact elements of the evaluation instrument is then in contact with the contact surface of the test element. An electrically conducting connection is made between the test element and evaluation instrument by a pressing force that is in particular defined by the shape and spring force of the contact element. This should in particular ensure that the transition resistance between the contact surface of the contact element of the evaluation instrument and the contact surface of the test element is as low and constant as possible to enable an exact and reproducible signal transfer. A constant and reproducible transition resistance is especially important in order to still obtain exact measurement results even after multiple test elements have previously been plugged in and thus to obtain a high and reproducible measurement accuracy especially with regard to the fact that such test element analytical systems are often used for many years or many tens of thousands of subsequent test strip insertions are carried out. This is of major importance especially in the clinical field where such test systems often have to handle a high throughput.
A major advantage of pluggable contact devices is the ability to easily join and separate the electrical connection so that the test element and evaluation device can be stored and used independently of one another. Since the contact surfaces should, on the one hand, ensure that the transfer of electrical current is as optimal as possible which requires a certain contact pressure, but, on the other hand, joining the contact connection and in particular repeated joining and separating the contact connection puts a great strain on the connection, the contact surfaces of the evaluation instruments are often provided with a layer of noble metal for example by plating or galvanizing with gold, silver, platinum or palladium. The often high mechanical strain on the contact surfaces especially due to abrasion, deposition or scratching of the contact surfaces is thus also a problem because a certain contact pressure has to be ensured for a reliable electrical contact and a certain insertion path of the test element is necessary for mechanical reasons and in particular to ensure guidance when plugging in and mechanical stability in the plugged state. It is very important that the contact surfaces are as resistant as possible to external influences in order to make a very secure and reliable contact between the contact surfaces of an electrical contact connection and with regard to having the lowest possible contact resistances. In this connection, the external influences can be of a chemical, physical or mechanical type. Thus, especially during the plugging process, the two contact surfaces rub against one another resulting in a very high mechanical strain. Corrosion effects and especially crevice corrosion also have an adverse effect on the contact security and contact resistance. Another problem of such test element analytical instruments is that the support material of the test elements that are used often consists of an elastic and relatively soft plastic foil on which the contact surfaces and electrodes are placed so that this structure on a relatively soft base material can have disadvantages for an exact contacting.
A major disadvantage of noble metal-noble metal pairs for contact surfaces of such plug-in connections is that, even irrespective of their geometry and/or the pressing force, the metal surfaces are very often damaged when the contact surfaces are joined and thus electrical contact problems occur. Such contact problems often manifest themselves in that the transition resistances between the contact elements of the evaluation device and contact surfaces of the test element become very high or in an extreme case there may be no longer any electrical contact between the components of the contact connection. When observed under the microscope, the picture of damage that often results, especially in the case of flat contacts such as conductor paths or electrodes, is characterized by a major change in the thickness of the metal layer of these contact surfaces after the insertion. Thus the metal layer of the electrodes is strongly deformed in some areas by the second contact surface that moves across it, in particular in the form of grooves, ridges and scratches. This pattern of damage occurs especially when the electrodes are mounted on relatively soft base materials. These deformations may become so large that the metal layer is completely stripped away in some areas by the second contact surface moving across it. In this case, electrical contact between the test element and evaluation device is no longer possible. Such deformations of metal layers which serve as contact surfaces manifest themselves as non-defined and considerably increased transition resistances or in the complete lack of an electrical contact. Such contact elements are therefore unsuitable for use in analytical systems which are intended to ensure a reproducible determination of analyte over a long period of use.
In U.S. Pat. No. 8,673,213 B2, EP 1 725 881 B1, WO 2005/088319 A2 and "Untersuchung and Optimierung von Kontaktsystemen in elektrochemischen Messgeräten", Dissertation of S. Riebel, 2006 a test element analysis system with contact surfaces coated with a hard material is disclosed. The documents disclose a test element analytical system for the analytical examination of a sample, especially a body fluid. The system comprises at least one test element with one or more measuring zones and contact areas located on the test element, in particular electrodes or conductor paths. The sample to be examined is brought into the measuring zone to carry out an analysis in order to determine a characteristic measured quantity for the analysis. The system further comprises an evaluation instrument with a test element holder for positioning the test element in a measuring position and a measuring device for measuring the characteristic change. The test element holder contains contact elements with contact areas which enable an electrical contact between the contact areas of the test element and the contact areas of the test element holder. One of these contact areas is provided with an electrically conductive hard material surface. Hard materials are understood as materials which, due to their specific binding properties, are very hard and in particular have a Vickers hardness of greater than about 1000 kp/mm and include in particular carbides, borides, nitrides and silicide, high-melting metals such as chromium, zirconium, titanium, tantalum, tungsten or molybdenum including mixed crystals and complex compounds thereof.
Despite the improvements due to the use of hard materials, a need for even more robust and reliable contacts exists. Contact surfaces coated with hard materials show abrasion of materials at contact surfaces. In particular, contact surfaces coated with a hard material may exhibit deviations from form and surface quality of the contact surface over lifetime. Contacts with contact surfaces coated with hard materials may be highly sensitive to form and surface quality. Thus, quality problems may occur when using contact surfaces coated with a hard material. Contact surfaces coated with hard material may exhibit a drift in transition resistance over lifetime, e.g., after multiple plugging operations, in particular after several tens of thousands plugging operations. In addition, contact surfaces coated with hard materials may show a run-in behavior, also denoted as running-in characteristics, with respect to transition resistance. Furthermore, manufacturing of contact surfaces coated with hard materials may be complex, requires several processes and thus, may be expensive. In addition, process reliability of manufacturing of contact surfaces coated with hard materials may be insufficient. Reel-to-reel processes may not be possible.
Such contacts having ruthenium dioxide may be disadvantageous because the application of ruthenium dioxide may be complex and expensive. In particular, a galvanic coating may be not possible and, thus, manufacturing of ruthenium dioxide contacts may be expensive and non economic.
There is a need for reliable and defined electrical connection between the contact surfaces of a contact element of a evaluation device and the contact surfaces of a test element over a long time period, especially under high mechanical strain and even after numerous contacting operations.


A furnace in combination with a heat pump and solar panels for providing domestic hot water and forced hot or cooled air utilizing heat pump achieved efficiency levels in an on-demand and unlimited domestic hot water, heating and air conditioning system. In heating mode, recycled air acquires heat from the heat pump's condenser coil and transfers this heat to the on-demand hot water.

A. Field of the Invention
This invention is in the field of solar panel energy systems and furnaces and furnace systems for providing forced air heating and cooling and providing hot water, and particularly for providing forced air heating and cooling and on-demand domestic hot water in conventional single family homes and in other buildings and environments.
B. Prior Art-Patent References
Prior art patents of interest include U.S. Patent Numbers listed below, these patents being incorporated herein by reference to disclose relevant prior art.
4,125,15111/1978Hays, et al.4,171,77210/1979Hays, et al.4,274,581 6/1981Hays, et al.4,293,09310/1981Raymond4,796,437 1/1989James4,798,240 1/1989Gerstmannetal5,074,46412/1991Moore, Jr., et al.5,239,838 8/1993Tressler5,305,614 4/1994Gilles5,351,50210/1994Gillesetal6,347,527 2/2002Bailey. et al.6,739,139 5/2004Solomon
C. Prior Art-Heating, Cooling and Hot Water Systems
Conventional home heating ventilating, air conditioning (HVAC) and hot water systems use fossil fuel furnaces, electrical resistance heaters and combinations of same. For such conventional furnaces which use combustible fuels to produce hot water and heated air for a home fossil fuels, notably oil, have been experiencing dramatically increased costs. Furthermore, these furnaces operate in an energy wasteful manner. One aspect of this wasted energy occurs because a typical gas or oil-fired water heater stores between 40-100 gallons of hot water at 140° F. for 24 hours a day for an average home, while the home uses the hot water for less then one hour per day. Further undesirable aspects are: (a) that firing oil, propane or natural gas to heat homes releases harmful carbon monoxide and other pollutants into the environment, (b) much of the heat generated by the fuel rises up the chimney or flue and is wasted into outdoor air, and (c) the wasted heat adds to global warming.
Due to this increase in fossil fuel prices, in addition to an increase in overall electric consumption placing a toll on the power grids, and the general inefficiencies of these systems, there has been a major interest in alternative methods and more efficient techniques of heating and cooling a house.
One of the best known approaches seeking to conserve energy and cost is to use an on-demand tankless or flash hot water heater, which heats only the water being used at the time of the demand and thus has no water storage tank and no cost to heat or maintain heated a large quantity of stored water. However, such tankless hot water heaters still require heat from fossil fuel or from electricity, with the usual waste and efficiencies. Another prior art system uses an air handler with a hot water coil; however, this technique uses hot water produced by an oil or gas fired boiler to be fed through a coil to produce hot air, with the previously described waste in energy during the heating cycle.
Also known in the prior art are combined heating and cooling systems in which a warm air furnace has associated with it an air conditioning system having a cooling coil placed in the air duct. However, such systems are essentially two complete systems, a hot air heater which is relatively large and bulky and a cooling coil from an independent cooling system.
It is also known to combine a refrigeration system and hot water heating system to affect a transference of heat energy therebetween. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,293,093 ("the '093 patent"), discloses a refrigerant system and hot water heating arrangement, wherein the superheat of the refrigerant is rejected to water to be heated, such that this heat energy may be utilized to provide hot water. In effect, the '093 patent teaches the capturing of waste heat from a refrigerant and the subsequent use of the heat for a useful intended purpose. However these techniques, as well as heat pumps employed to heat water, use liquid-to-liquid heat exchangers, as described in FIG. 8 and FIG. 11 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,796,437 ("the '437 patent"). These methods also involve storing the water with the inherent loss of energy in such storage systems.
Tankless or on-demand unlimited domestic hot water systems have been limited to utilizing resistance electric or fossil fuels for the primary source of energy. While this technique saves considerable cost associated with producing domestic hot water by not having to store the heated water and absorbing the energy loss related to that method, it still requires traditional heat input with traditional inefficiencies.

Solar and heat pump powered electric forced hot air hydronic furnace


An assembly includes a cylinder head with an integrated exhaust manifold that has four exhaust flow passages directing cylinder exhaust from inlets arranged to correspond with exhaust from the four cylinders, respectively, and has only three outlets. The assembly includes a twin scroll turbocharger having a housing with a first scroll passage, a second scroll passage, and only three inlets. Two of the exhaust flow passages join in the cylinder head to direct exhaust flow into only one of the inlets of the housing and through the first scroll passage. Exhaust flow through the other two of the exhaust flow passages flows separately into the other two inlets in the housing and joins in the housing to flow through the second scroll passage.

Cast cylinder heads often have multiple internal cavities for exhaust flow or for coolant flow. Manufacturing a cylinder head with multiple cavities can be difficult and time consuming. For example, cavities that have complex shapes and that overlap one another in different directions can require many core sections, as well as complex core boxes with multiple slides to create a core assembly used in the cylinder head casting mold. Additionally, cylinder heads that have integrated exhaust manifolds must be configured so that the exhaust passages are properly positioned to fluidly communicate with turbochargers. Flow adapters are often required between the cylinder head and the turbocharger in order to properly connect the passages.

Assembly with cylinder head having integrated exhaust manifold and method of manufacturing same


A cleaning device for cleaning sidewalls of a liquid container. The cleaning device includes a cover that can be removably disposed over a flotation device. The cover has a lower cleaning portion that cleans the sidewalls of the container upon contact with the sidewalls. The cover also has an upper noncleaning portion.

Many liquid containers, such as swimming pools, hot tubs, bathtubs, or the like, will experience a build up of unwanted chemicals, dirt, oils and other contaminants around the perimeter wall of the container at the level of the liquid-air interface. This build up around the perimeter is often referred to as a ring and is increased by variations in the liquid level that allow residual liquid along the container perimeter to dry, thereby leaving a chemical, mineral or other deposits on the container wall. As the inner wall is exposed to the liquid in the container, the deposits build upon previous deposits until a discolored and unsightly ring often forms around the container perimeter wall.
Cleaning devices have been developed to clean the deposits from the walls of pools, tubs, and other containers. Most of these cleaning devices involve automated machines that spray a cleaning solution onto the container surface and then scour the surface with a brush. Unfortunately, these types of devices usually involve continual monitoring during the cleaning process and may involve considerable set up and take down time.
Other types of cleaners involve free floating devices that can move about the container and spray jets along the container walls. Unfortunately, these devices require motors to move the cleaner and a mechanism to ensure that the jests are sprayed on the walls. Additionally, these devices are turned on and off in order to activate the device for cleaning or deactivate the device to conserve the power supply.


An elevator car position indicator utilizes a plurality of indicating pins whereby a visually impaired passenger in the elevator car is able to determine the actual car position by touch. The pins are arranged in a Braille configuration at a face plate of the car control station. The indicating pins are connected with armatures of electromagnets and are guided in apertures formed in the face plate. The electromagnets are connected through a control circuit to a coding circuit to which is supplied the car position information wherein the car position is transformed into the corresponding number in Braille and the corresponding indicating pins are pushed out from the face plate.

The present invention relates generally to an apparatus for indicating elevator car position and, in particular, to an elevator car position indicator for use by visually impaired persons.
Typical car position indicators used in elevator cars have light emitting diodes arrays which are arranged at the points of intersection of a point matrix, or have seven segment indicators. The car position information is, for example, generated in the binary code and is supplied to suitable coding circuits connected with the point matrix or the seven segment indicator respectively. Since both of these known types of indicators provide only optical indications, such car position indicators are not suitable for use by visually impaired or blind passengers.
Push button switches for use in elevator cars are shown in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,742,198 and in the European patent document EP-A-O 446 487. In use, the number indicating the floor in question is arranged in Braille below the push button with the same number indicating the actual floor, so that the blind passengers can enter calls for their desired destination floor. It is further known that on the floors, in the vicinity of the elevator doors, signboards are arranged indicating the floor number in Braille. Under these circumstances, a blind passenger, in order to ascertain whether the desired floor has been reached, will at every stop of the car at a floor have to read by touch the signboard arranged at each floor, or will have to count the acoustical signals sounding upon passage of each floor.
The present invention seeks to solve the problem of indicating car position to visually impaired or blind passengers so that the drawbacks described above are avoided.

Elevator car position indicator for use by visually impaired persons


The invention provides an efficient structure for synthesized static arrays. Array structures are very common in chip design, and often when doing ASIC design the option of custom-designing these arrays does not exist, therefore necessitating that the arrays be synthesized, placed and routed on silicon in a manner similar to random logic. Standard array structures are not easily synthesized, placed and routed. The invention takes advantage of the case in which the design requirements are such that the array is loaded in whole and then remains static for a period of time. The array implementation writes one column of the array (instead of a row) at a time so that the desired contents of the array are xe2x80x9crotatedxe2x80x9d 90 degrees before being written to the array. This allows the latches in a column to share a gated clock signal, which allows for an array placement optimized for clock distribution and for general routing density.

The invention relates to electronic systems. More particularly, the invention relates to a memory array organization for use in an electronic system.
Typical memory array organizations are arranged as rows of latches because data is logically arranged in rows. For example, an instruction memory storing 8 eight-bit instruction words, would consist of eight rows of eight latches and associated decode and selection circuitry.
FIG. 1 illustrates an 8xc3x978 memory organized as rows. Such a memory array organization is common in the prior art. However, when designing an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), memory arrays, along with other circuit elements are synthesized, placed and routed using electronic design automation (EDA) tools. Because of the interconnection of latches and associated clocking signals, these memory arrays are not easily placed and routed.
Write addresses are decoded by address decode circuitry 100, which generates a write enable signal to cause the latches of a row of memory to latch the incoming data, labeled Write Data in FIG. 1. Data is read from the memory array by selecting the desired row from read multiplexer 120.
FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment of a row of memory in the memory array of FIG. 1. FIG. 2 illustrates that each latch in each row of the memory array receives a gated clock signal to enable the latches. Given that the latches in any given row share a gated clock, it is necessary to place the latches in each row in very close proximity to each other, in order to control clock skew and limit the amount of place and route resources that must be dedicated to clock distribution within the array. Therefore, placement of the array of FIGS. 1 and 2 are placed to optimize clock routing lines, which increases the routing required to couple the latches to the read multiplexer.
A memory array having a plurality of latches is organized in columns and rows, the rows store contiguous bits of data. The memory array includes a first subset of latches and a second subset of latches. The first subset of latches represents a first column of data coupled to a first multiplexer to select signals from one of the first subset of latches. The first subset of latches is coupled to receive a first clock signal. The second subset of latches represents a second column of data coupled to a second multiplexer to select signals from the second subset of latches. The second subset of latches is coupled to receive a second clock signal.

Memory array organization for static arrays


A system and method are provided that, among other things, can reduce the burden on receiving computers, increase data throughput, reduce system failure, and provide components of a scalable and flexible network architecture. Specifically, the system and method provide a multichannel-multicast network environment for use in dynamically assigning data to channels. This configuration is particularly useful in a trading network environment, as it effectively performs channel reassignments in a way not to disturb the receipt of the underlying data. While the example embodiments described herein pertain to electronic trading, the principles of the present invention may be equally applied in other environments where the advantages presented herein are beneficial.

Electronic trading refers to a trading system that matches orders by an electronic trading platform. Current examples of electronic trading platforms include the Chicago Mercantile Exchange ("CME") Globex® trading system, the Chicago Board of Trade ("CBOT") e-cbot, and Eurex, just to name a few. A trading system that matches orders electronically is also referred to herein as an "electronic exchange." Exchanges like the CME and CBOT currently offer trading via open outcry in addition to electronic trading.
Traders link to an electronic exchange through a computer network. Then, using a front-end trading system, traders can participate in the electronic markets offered by these electronic exchanges. Electronic exchanges or independent companies like Trading Technologies® develop, deploy, and support front-end electronic trading systems that allow traders to access various electronic exchanges. Some of Trading Technologies® products include X_TRADER®, X_STUDY™, X_RISK®, and X_TRADER® API.
Presently, certain kinds of market data is multicast to the traders' computers over the network. As known in the art of computing, multicast refers to the delivery of information to many receivers at the same time in a single stream. Typically, the kinds of market data where multicast becomes useful is price information, such as the distribution of a product's current highest bid price, the current lowest ask price, the last trade price, and other types of price information. Currently, a trader may choose to subscribe from a list of hundreds, if not thousands, of different products, in which each product has its own multicast price feed. Generally speaking, the amount of market data, from which a trader may subscribe, will only increase in time as electronic exchanges add new products to their offerings and as the growth of trading volume for particular products grows.
According to one current network configuration type, a subscribing computer on a network must receive every, or nearly every, price feed that comes across the network, as a result of the price feeds having the same multicast address. This network configuration type requires that the subscribing computer filter the price feeds to retrieve the desired price data. The burden due to this undesirable filtering process is substantially increased as the number of computers subscribing to different price feeds are added to the same network and as the price feed for a given product increases as the trading volume for the product increases.
According to another current network configuration type, products are grouped onto several different channels, such that each channel has a certain bandwidth and a different multicast address. While this can reduce the number of price feeds a trader must subscribe to or filter, it works well if all the channels are equally busy and equally needed. Oftentimes, this is not realistic. Trading volume for some products may spike at different times, while the trading volume for other products might not spike at all. As a result, the network becomes under utilized at some times and over utilized at other times. Over utilization can lead to network failure, or at the very least, delayed price feeds. In a competitive environment like electronic trading, where every second (or even a fraction of a second) counts in seizing market opportunities, this rather inflexible network configuration is also an unacceptable long-term solution.
Therefore, what is needed is an improved network configuration that can be utilized going forward by systems that call for the distribution of data in environments such as electronic trading.

Trading Technologies International, Inc.


A system for controlling the navigation of a fishing boat between waypoints representing successive positions around a navigation route. The system includes an input device for setting the waypoint positions, a position detector to detect the actual position of the fishing boat, a trolling motor to produce a thrust to propel the fishing boat, a steering motor to control the direction of the thrust, and a heading detector to detect the actual heading of the fishing boat. The system also includes a control circuit which determines a desired heading using a desired waypoint and the actual position of the fishing boat, and generates a steering control signal applied to the steering motor to steer the fishing boat from the actual position to the desired waypoint. The system operates in various modes which allow repeated navigation of the fishing boat around a navigation route. The system provides for automatic waypoint storage as the fishing boat is maneuvered around a navigation route.

A recreational fishing boat is often equipped with a trolling motor for propelling the boat through a suspected fish habitat while an operator fishes. The navigation route of the fishing boat through the habitat is selected by the operator based upon a number of factors. The factors typically include the water depth, the water temperature including the location of thermoclines (boundaries between bodies of water with contrasting temperatures), the topography of the bottom including natural or man-made structures, the composition of the bottom (e.g., sand; rocks; weeds), the current and the location of shorelines and/or other above-water obstacles. A desired navigation route may also depend on the need to travel from one location to another, such as from a boat launch pad or dock to the general vicinity of a desired fishing area, or by the operator's experience and intuition. Once a particular navigation route is selected, the operator may desire to repeat the route a number of times while fishing.
Originally, an operator was required to operate a trolling motor manually. However, the attention and time required to operate the trolling motor interfered with the fishing activity itself. In response, a number of systems have evolved to automatically control the operation of a trolling motor, thereby allowing the operator to devote her attention and time to fishing. One known system controls a trolling motor to maintain a selected distance between a fishing boat and a shoreline or fixed structure. Another system controls a trolling motor to maintain a selected water depth beneath a boat. Yet another system controls a trolling motor to maintain a boat at a desired heading. Another system controls a trolling motor to maintain a boat in a fixed position.
Known control systems, however, do not provide an operator with flexibility in setting a desired route. As described above, a desired navigation route may depend on a number of factors combined in various ways at the discretion of the operator. For example, the operator may want to set a navigation route as a fishing boat is manually navigated through a suspected fish habitat while the operator monitors any or all of the above factors. Once a navigation route is selected, the operator may want to repeatedly navigate the fishing boat around the navigation route, either in forward or reverse order, while fishing. It would be advantageous to provide a system that allows an operator to select a navigation route by entering waypoint positions, or waypoints, representing successive positions along the navigation route. Such a system would allow an operator to select waypoints using any factor or combination of factors that is desirable, and would control a trolling motor to navigate a fishing boat between the selected waypoints.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a flexible system for controlling the navigation of a fishing boat equipped with a trolling motor. It would also be desirable to provide a system for controlling the navigation of a fishing boat between a plurality of waypoints representing successive positions around a navigation route. Further, it would be desirable to provide a system for controlling the repeated navigation of a fishing boat around a navigation route. It would also be desirable to provide a system for controlling the navigation of a fishing boat around a navigation route represented by a plurality of waypoints stored manually via a keypad or a switch, downloaded from an electronic chart, or stored automatically by the system based on actual position as an operator navigates around the navigation route.

System for controlling navigation of a fishing boat


A semiconductor substrate having thereon a surface including features to be filled is placed in a vacuum chamber having a high density plasma source and a target of material to be deposited. A vacuum is drawn, and a plasma is struck in a gas by means of the high density plasma source. The substrate is then biased to cause ions from the plasma to bombard the substrate with energies sufficient to facet top corners of features on the surface of the substrate. After a desired amount of faceting has occurred, the target is biased to cause ions from the plasma to sputter the target, resulting in a plasma comprised of target material and the gas. The substrate is then biased sufficiently to provide a near perpendicular flow of ions of target material to the substrate, but at sufficiently low energy to deposit a film of the material to be deposited. The substrate bias may be held sufficiently high to prevent or reduce buildup on the facets. The substrate bias may be adjusted during the deposition process to allow increased deposition on the facets. Alternatively, the target may be biased from the start, resulting in formation of a plasma comprised of both the gas and the material to be deposited. Ions from this plasma may then be used to first facet the surface of the substrate by employing a high negative substrate bias, then to deposit a film of the material to be deposited by employing a lower negative substrate bias.

1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to methods of deposition of materials to fill a topography on a surface during the manufacture of semiconductor devices. More particularly, the present invention is directed to a method of deposition of materials to fill a topography which includes faceting of openings in situ with deposition of materials to fill the openings during the manufacture of semiconductor devices.
2. The Relevant Technology
In the continuing quest to reduce the minimum feature size of integrated circuits, the aspect ratio, i.e., the ratio of height to width, of structures to be formed has increased. This is the natural result of attempting to fit as many structures as possible within a given area.
High aspect ratios for structures such as contacts and vias present a challenge for deposition techniques.
Contacts and vias are formed by first etching holes or trenches in an etchable layer, usually silicon dioxide. The hole is then cleaned, then filled with deposited conductive material, typically metal such as aluminum or tungsten deposited by sputtering. To decrease contact resistance, a thin layer of titanium may be sputter deposited in the hole before filling with aluminum or tungsten.
FIG. 1 shows a partial cross section of a partially formed semiconductor device having a substrate or underlying layer 12 with an etchable layer 14 thereon in which has been etched a contact hole or via. The result is a surface on substrate 12 including horizontally oriented surface portions 16 and vertically oriented surface portions 18, joined at top corners 20 and bottom corners 22.
In typical sputter deposition, sputtered flux from a target of material to be deposited approaches a surface at various directions D, as shown in FIG. 2. Top corners 20 shield the lower portions of vertically oriented surface portions 18 from some of the sputtered flux, such that a buildup of a deposited film 24 occurs near upper corners 20 as shown in FIG. 2. When an additional deposited film 26 is deposited to fill the rest of the hole, a void 27 is formed in additional deposited film 26 because of the buildup near upper corners 20. Void 27 causes increased resistance in the contact or via structure, and in severe cases can be large enough to prevent reliable contact all together.
One way to decrease the formation of voids such as void 27 is to etch angled surface portions (facets) 28 on upper corners 20, as shown in FIG. 4, prior to filling the hole. Facets 28 allow more of the sputtered flux to reach the lower portions of the hole, resulting in less likelihood of creating a void. Facets 28 are typically etched in a separate step before filling the hole, after which separate step, a clean step may be required. It would thus be an advantage to combine into one process the steps of etching facets 28 and of depositing a material to fill the hole.