A system and method for broadcasting data in accordance with predicted usage. In accordance with the method, the predicted usage of data records within a given set is determined. The broacast order is then determined based on the predicted usage and the data records are broadcast in the order determined. Two kinds of embodiments are considered: one in which variant index fanouts are not allowed (i.e., fixed fanout has to be used), and the other in which variant index fanouts are allowed. For the case of fixed index fanouts, a first method for the optimal index tree construction minimizes the average cost of index probes. For the case of variant index fanouts, a second method (method 2) builds index trees with variant fanouts. The first method uses access frequencies of data records to build a fixed fanout index tree. In the second method, the number of fanouts of each index is determined as a function of the access frequencies of those nodes (data or indexes) that the index node points to.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to broadcasting data in a wireless mobile computing environment.
2. Related Art
Mobile computing, referring to the activity of using personal digital assistants, such as palmtops and notebook computers, to access a large number of databases via wireless networks, is an emerging technology. A significant amount of research effort has been directed towards exploring various aspects of mobile computing, such as energy saving, cache management, query processing and data allocation. Applications such as using palmtops to access airline schedules, stock activities, traffic conditions and weather information on the road are expected to become increasingly popular. It is noted, however, that several mobile computers, such as desktops and palmtops, use small batteries for their operations and are not directly connected to any power source. As a result, energy saving is a key issue to resolve before one can anticipate an even wider acceptance of mobile computers.
In general, a mobile server is expected to concurrently serve hundreds or even thousands of clients. In large part, because the cost of broadcasting is independent of the number of users, periodic broadcasting is the prevalent method for information dissemination in a wireless communication environment. When a palmtop is actively listening to a channel, its CPU is in an active mode to examine data packets so as to determine if they match the predefined patterns. Such CPU operations for data examination consume much more power than those for simply receiving data. Therefore, to achieve energy savings it is highly desirable to let the palmtop stay in the doze mode most of the time and only enter the active mode when it is necessary. As a consequence, it is advantageous to use indexed data organization to broadcast data over wireless channels so that those mobile units can be guided to the data of interest efficiently and only need to be actively listening to the broadcasting channel when the relevant information (indexes or data) is present. The structure of an index tree determines the index probing scenario for data access under such an indexed broadcasting.
A conventional index tree is given in FIG. 1a, and its corresponding broadcasting sequence is shown in FIG. 1b. Suppose that record R5 is the record to be accessed. Then, after being routed to the root index, I, the request will probe I and a2, and then reach R5. Clearly, using this index tree, a request to any record will take two index probes. Note that the number of index probes is proportional to the amount of time that a mobile unit has to stay in the active mode.
Typically, conventional wireless servers provide a symmetric balanced index tree with essentially the same fanouts for all index nodes. One possible reason for this is that in a conventional file system (one that is not used in conjunction with wireless mobile computing) the cost of executing an index probe for data access is almost negligible as compared to other CPU and I/O operations. Thus little overall performance improvement is obtained by minimizing the number of index probes. Such a cost model, however, does not hold in the context of wireless mobile computing, in which the cost for a mobile unit to listen to the indexed broadcasting message is one of the major sources for power consumption. Hence, reducing the average number of index probes will result in a lower power consumption.
It is noted that in most databases the access frequencies of different data records are usually different from one another. This phenomenon is termed data access skew.
In light of the above, the present invention provides a system and method for broadcasting data in accordance with predicted usage. In accordance with the method, the predicted usage of data records within a given set is determined. The broacast order is then determined based on the predicted usage and the data records are broadcast in the order determined.
In the preferred embodiments, two kinds of systems are considered: one in which variant index fanouts are not allowed (i.e., fixed fanout has to be used), and the other in which variant index fanouts are allowed. For the case of fixed index fanouts, a first method (method 1) for the optimal index tree construction that minimizes the average cost of index probes is provided. For the case of variant index fanouts, a second method (method 2) for building index trees with variant fanouts is provided.
The first method uses access frequencies of data records to build a fixed fanout index tree. Exploiting data access skew, the index tree built by the method could be imbalanced. Thus, in cases where variant fanouts are allowed the second method is preferred. In the second method, the number of fanouts of each index is determined as a function of the access frequencies of those nodes (data or indexes) that the index node points to.
After an index tree is built, the mobile unit can locate the data of interest, according to the index tree, with the minimal probing cost. It is noted that the average cost of index probes can be significantly reduced not only by employing an imbalanced index tree that is designed in accordance with data access skew, but also by exploiting variant fanouts for index nodes.
These, and other features and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

International Business Machines Corporation


In order to predict properties of a first device, data is obtained relating to properties of second devices having characteristics in common with the first device. The data comprises values of a first parameter at specific values of a second parameter. The data is organized in a first matrix with each row or column representing one value of the second parameter, and each column or row contains for one of the second devices the value of the first parameter at each of the values of the second parameter for which data is available. The first matrix is factorized into a second matrix and a third matrix. The second matrix represents a relationship between the second parameter and hidden features. The third matrix represents a relationship between the second devices and hidden features. The second matrix and/or the third matrix is used to predict at least one value of the first parameter and at least one respective specific value of the second parameter outside a predetermined range.

In many technical fields, it is desirable to be able to predict the properties of a device, based on partial data relating to the properties of the device. For example, when a device is operating under certain technical conditions, the partial data about the operation can be obtained. However, it is desirable to be able to predict the properties and behaviour of the device under different technical conditions. As one example, the disclosure relates to predicting the properties of a device across a wide range of temperatures, in particular based on partial data relating to the properties of the device across a narrower range of temperatures.
In order to provide a concrete example, this disclosure specifically describes the use of a method in order to predict the properties of optical modules in data communications networks. However, it will be appreciated that the method can be used in order to predict the properties of any suitable technical device.
Optical modules (i.e. optical transceivers) are ubiquitous in high bandwidth data communications networks, for example in mobile access networks, where they are used to interconnect baseband and radio units.
Optical modules that are placed outdoors in remote radio units are exposed to tough environmental conditions, especially an extreme range of temperatures from −40 up to 90 or more degrees Celsius. Under such conditions, the modules may reach the limits of their operating range and may produce warnings, alarms or even traffic loss and hardware failure.
The optical module itself has a small cost (tens to a few hundred dollars), but the cost of sending a service team to replace an optical module in challenging outdoor premises (e.g. antenna towers, etc.) can be thousands of dollars. It is therefore desirable to be able to predict an incoming failure or potential risk in advance, without waiting for the failure to occur. Such a prediction allows the replacement of an optical module that may fail in normal scheduled maintenance activities without adding extra service costs. This also avoids outages in critical traffic periods.
In order to allow such predictions, optical modules are monitored, and warning and alarm thresholds are set for various analogue monitoring parameters of the optical module. One important parameter is the laser bias current. Once the given parameter exceeds the threshold that has been set, a Network Management System raises the related warning or alarm, which trigger the urgent service operation. However, the warning thresholds may provide an alert with some margin before the failure would cause traffic loss, but a service operation (with the associated costs) would be activated, since it would be a bad practice to leave a 'warned' or 'alarmed' module in operation.


A brake assembly for roller skates. The brake assembly operates on two inline wheels which have a brake drum extending outwardly from them. The brake member is pivotally held so that it contacts the brake drums on the two inline wheels. The brake may be activated by a mechanical link attached to a pivoted horseshoe shaped device surrounding the ankle portion of the skate. Alternatively, it may be electrically activated by a potentiometer which may either be moved by the rearward movement of the skater's ankle, or by the rearward movement of the skater's toe.

The field of the invention is brakes for roller skates and more particularly for roller skates of the type referred to as inline skates. Numerous devices have been tried for assisting in the braking of inline skates. The most common brake is a pad which rubs against the skating surface when the skater tips his skate rearwardly. A brake of this type is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,564,718. Since the braking effect is very dependent upon the skating surface, such brakes are not completely reliable. Furthermore, some skating surfaces are very abrasive and the brakes can quickly wear.
Applicant has devised a toe activated brake which is the subject of U.S. Pat. No. 5,609,346. This brake utilizes the downward and rearward movement of the toe to activate a brake which rubs against the wheel.
The Zorzi, et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,505,469 shows a braking device activated by a quarter which is pivotally attached to the shoe. As the quarter rotates rearwardly a cable is activated which in FIGS. 1 and 2 tilts a block into contact with the skating surface. In FIGS. 3, 4, 5 and 6 the cable activates the movement of a braking pad 332 against the hub, and in FIGS. 7 through 12 the quarter may be moved either rearwardly or forwardly to cause a braking element to rub against the tire portion of the wheel.
A pair of disks rub against the rear two wheels of an inline roller skate in U.S. Pat. No. 5,639,104. This rubbing results when the skater displaces his or her weight backwards.
None of these braking systems has found wide application and an improved brake design is needed.


Disclosed are a muli-bit non-volatile memory device, a method of operating the same, and a method of manufacturing the multi-bit non-volatile memory device. A unit cell of the muli-bit non-volatile memory device may be formed on a semiconductor substrate may include: a plurality of channels disposed perpendicularly to the upper surface of the semiconductor substrate; a plurality of storage nodes disposed on opposite sides of the channels perpendicularly the upper surface of the semiconductor substrate; a control gate surrounding upper portions of the channels and the storage nodes, and side surfaces of the storage nodes; and an insulating film formed between the channels and the storage nodes, between the channels and the control gate, and between the storage nodes and the control gate.

This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2004-0091491, filed on Nov. 10, 2004, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.
1. Field of the Disclosure
Embodiments of the present disclosure include a semiconductor memory device, and more particularly, to a multi-bit non-volatile memory (NVM) device, a method of operating the same, and a method of manufacturing the multi-bit NVM device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Semiconductor memory devices are categorized into volatile memory devices and non-volatile memory (NVM) devices. Volatile memory devices, such as DRAMs, have been used in, for example, computers in order to store data in a hard disk and to process data in a short time when power is supplied.
However, as demand for mobile phones and digital cameras increases, demand for NVM devices also increases due to their advantages over DRAMs, which are used in computers. For example, NVM devices can process data in a short time, and store data even when power is no longer supplied.
An example of NVM devices is a flash memory device with a storage node. Depending on the type of the storage node, flash memory devices are classified into floating gate devices, and SONOS devices with oxide/nitride/oxide (ONO) structures. A conventional flash memory device will now be described.
FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a conventional floating gate flash memory device 100.
Referring to FIG. 1, the conventional flash memory device 100 includes a floating gate 120 which is used as a storage node, and is insulated from a control gate 130 by an inter-gate insulating film 125. In addition, the floating gate 120 is insulated from a semiconductor substrate 105 by a gate insulating film 115.
In the conventional flash memory device 100 shown in FIG. 1, when a voltage is applied to the control gate 130, charge tunneling occurs through the gate insulating film 115 and charges are stored in the floating gate 120. Alternatively, a voltage can be applied to a source/drain region 110 of the semiconductor substrate 105 to generate hot carriers that are injected into the floating gate 120.
In this case, cells are arranged in an array on the entire surface of the semiconductor substrate 105, thus increasing the integrity of the flash memory device. Recently, NAND array flash memory devices have been used in high-capacity devices due to their high integrity.
FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a conventional SONOS flash memory device 150.
Referring to FIG. 2, the conventional SONOS-type flash memory device 150 includes a nitride layer 170 that is used as a storage node. The nitride layer 170 is insulated from a semiconductor substrate 155 and a control gate 180 by oxide layers 165 and 175, respectively.
In this structure, when a voltage is applied to the control gate 180 and a source/drain region 160 of the semiconductor substrate 155, hot carriers are injected into the nitride layer 170. On the other hand, when a high-voltage is applied to the semiconductor substrate 155, charges existing in the nitride layer 170 are removed.
The conventional memory devices 100 and 150 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 have a planar array structure. However, to increase integrity and capacity, many efforts have been made to develop a memory device with a three-dimensional array structure. In addition, methods of operating a unit cell in multi bits in order to increase a memory capacity have been developed.

Multi-bit non-volatile memory device, method of operating the same, and method of manufacturing the multi-bit non-volatile memory device


A closed-loop system for dynamically distributing memory bandwidth between real-time components and non-real-time components is provided. Specifically, the present invention includes monitors for measuring a performance of each of the real-time components. Based on the measured performance, closed-loop feedback loop is communicated to a unified memory system. The feedback is used by the memory controls within the unified memory system to efficiently and dynamically distribute memory bandwidth between the real-time and the non-real-time components.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a closed-loop system for dynamically distributing memory bandwidth. More specifically, the present invention relates to a closed-loop system for dynamically distributing memory bandwidth between real-time components and non-real-time components based on a measured progress of the real-time components.
2. Background Art
In providing content such as video and audio data in a digital format, digital signals are often transmitted to a Set-Top Box (STB). Typical applications in which a STB is utilized include digital cable television and satellite television. In general, set-top boxes include highly integrated chips developed using System-on-a-Chip (SOC) methodology. The components of the SOC rely on a unified memory architecture to provide the most cost effective memory subsystem. Such an architecture, however, leads to a mixture of functional components that have real-time requirements and functional components that have non-real-time requirements. With such a mixture, the memory allocation between the real-time components and the non-real-time components must be carefully balanced to ensure the functionality thereof is satisfied.
Heretofore, the functionality of the components has been satisfied using an open-loop architecture that provides sufficient excess performance such that all real-time demands are met. This approach has been generally acceptable for low performance components, which may have sufficient memory subsystem performance for the real-time components and very few demands placed on non-real-time components. Unfortunately, for higher functionality components, the open-loop architecture leads to higher cost and/or components of the chip not receiving as much memory allocation as is needed.
In addition, as more demands are placed on the components of a SOC, it as advantageous to maximize the efficiency of the memory subsystem wherever possible. As such, the memory controller may take into account access patterns in its selection of operations to perform. By increasing the efficiency of the memory subsystem, more total work is done by the system for a given memory technology, bus frequency and width. If the entire system has non-real-time demands, then the functional components and memory subsystem could be run entirely open-loop. However, in the case of a STB having real-time components such as video display and decoding, specific deadlines would be missed. Missed deadlines result in unpleasant artifacts such as repeated pictures, audio pops, or visual streaks. Such artifacts are undesirable and may render the STB noncompetitive.
One alternative to open-loop components is to raise the priorities of the real-time components over the non-real-time components so that all real-time deadlines are met. Unfortunately, this wastes bandwidth and thus, useful work since the memory subsystem may not be as efficient since it must be "reserved" for the real-time components. Another alternative is to use a higher frequency or wider memory components to deliver excess bandwidth. As is well known, however, excess memory bandwidth is accompanied with higher costs, which can render the STB noncompetitive in the marketplace. In addition, many existing systems have priority controls that are hard coded or statically defined based on a-priori assumptions on workload. The priority input is generally based on a very fine scale such as the individual bus command or over several commands. Accordingly, no "global" dynamic analysis is performed.
In view of the foregoing, there exists a need for a closed-loop system for dynamically distributing memory bandwidth between real-time components and non-real-time components. A further need exists for a system in which a performance of the real-time components is measured. In addition, a need exists for closed-loop feedback to be provided to a unified memory system so that the memory bandwidth can be distributed with optimal efficiency.

Closed-loop system for dynamically distributing memory bandwidth

International Business Machines Corporation


The invention relates to inserting a first and a second Reference Signals in a radio signal to be transmitted over a wireless communication system, the radio signal being emitted according to a specific SC-SFBC scheme, the method comprising:                determining K integers such as

The present invention applies in MIMO or MISO telecommunication systems using SC-SFBC or variants of SC-SFBC. These SC-SFBC-like schemes have been developed to offer low PAPR (peak-to-average power ratio), full diversity in the context of MISO or MIMO transmission and to preserve the single carrier property of the OFDM-like schemes.
Indeed, single carrier frequency-division multiple access (SC-FDMA) also known as DFTsOFDM has been chosen in several communication standards, including LTE, for its low PAPR (peak-to-average power ratio) which enables to reduce the energy consumption of the transmitter.
DFTsOFDM consists in applying a M-size DFT (discrete Fourier transform) to a block of symbols X=(X0, . . . XM−1), obtaining M complex symbols Sk in the frequency domain, and mapping the resulting M samples Sk in the frequency domain to M out of N inputs of a N-point IDFT (inverse discrete Fourier transform), obtaining thus at the output of the IDFT a signal {tilde over (x)}=({tilde over (x)}0, . . . , {tilde over (x)}N−1) occupying, during each time interval corresponding to a DFTsOFDM symbol, M allocated subcarriers out of the N existing subcarriers. The signal {tilde over (x)} is a time-domain signal whose frequency-domain representation, during a given time interval, are the complex symbols Sk for each kth occupied subcarrier with k=0 to M−1. Equivalently, the time-domain signal {tilde over (x)} during a given time interval represents, in the frequency domain, the complex symbols Sk for each kth frequency with k=0 to M−1.
It is known (Hyung G. Myung Single Carrier Orthogonal Multiple Access Technique for Broadband WirelessCommunications Ph.D. Thesis Defense|2006.12.18) that, for a localized subcarrier mapping, the signal in the time domain at the IDFT output has exact copies of input time symbols Xn (with a scaling factor) in the M-multiple sample positions {tilde over (x)}M.n, and in-between values are sum of all the time input symbols in the input block with different complex-weighting, when N is a multiple of M. Signal {tilde over (x)} is an oversampled version of the block of symbols X. If, for example, a block of symbols X(n)=(0, . . . , 0, Xn, 0, . . . , 0) with Xn non-null is presented to the input of a DFTsOFDM modulator, that is to the input of the M-size DFT, among the samples in the radio signal {tilde over (x)} corresponding to symbol Xn, only a part will be of high energy. It is also known that, for a completely distributed subcarrier mapping, signal {tilde over (x)} is a repetition of the block of symbols X and therefore if a block of symbols X(n)=(0, . . . , 0, Xn, 0, . . . , 0) with Xn non-null is presented to the input of a DFTsOFDM modulator, among the samples in the radio signal {tilde over (x)} corresponding to symbol Xn, only a part will be of high energy. For other subcarrier mapping types and/or non-integer N/M ratios similar relationships between the pre-DFT symbol Xn and corresponding samples in the radio signal (among which only a fraction have high energy if a block of symbols X(n)=(0, . . . , 0, Xn, 0, . . . , 0) is presented to the input of a DFTsOFDM modulator) can be established. Therefore, for each position n, the high energy samples in the time-domain signal {tilde over (x)} corresponding to symbol Xn can be identified, the positions of the high energy samples being dependent on the position n. Such high energy samples are thus in the radio signal in time periods dependent on the position n of symbol Xn. Within the current state of the art, the time periods can be identified based on the exact subcarrier allocation and of the N/M ratio for a DFTsOFDM symbol. For each position n of symbol Xn within the symbol block, said time periods only depend on the exact subcarrier allocation and on the N/M ratio and do not depend on the value assigned to symbol Xn.
By high energy samples corresponding to symbol Xn in signal {tilde over (x)} we understand those samples {tilde over (x)}k for which the values abs({tilde over (x)}k/Xi) are superior to a given threshold Th1 conveniently chosen when a block of symbols X(n)=(0, . . . , 0, Xn, 0, . . . , 0) with a non-null value assigned to Xn is presented to the input of a DFTsOFDM modulator whose output is signal {tilde over (x)}=({tilde over (x)}0, . . . , {tilde over (x)}N−1).
Equivalently high energy samples corresponding to symbol Xn are the sample(s) corresponding to symbol Xn which may be efficiently processed to retrieve the information related to symbol Xn. Thus, the high energy sample or at least the high energy samples corresponding to symbol Xn are the samples that have, relatively to the other samples (referred to as low energy samples or samples containing residual information) corresponding to symbol Xn, the most important contribution to the correct estimation of symbol Xn.
Since only high energy samples have interest in the case of the present invention (the samples containing residual information are considered as interference) we refer to them indifferently as high energy samples or as samples.
By samples containing residual information on a symbol Xn in signal {tilde over (x)} we understand those samples {tilde over (x)}k for which the values abs({tilde over (x)}k/Xn) are inferior to a given threshold Th2 conveniently chosen when a block of symbols X(n)=(0, . . . , 0, Xn, 0, . . . , 0) with a non-null value assigned to Xn is presented to the input of a DFTsOFDM modulator whose output is signal {tilde over (x)}=({tilde over (x)}0, . . . , {tilde over (x)}N−1).
Nonetheless, in MIMO the use of multiple antennas for the transmitter and the receiver has brought performance enhancement. The Alamouti precoding has been introduced in such a case ensuring full diversity for a rate of one symbol per channel use. The Alamouti precoding can be implemented in a SC-FDMA transmitter with two transmit antennas and M out of N subcarriers, per antennas, allocated to a user.
When implementing Alamouti precoding as a space-frequency block coding (FIG. 2), that is by implementing Alamouti precoding to adjacent frequency samples Sk and Sk+1 resulting from the DFT of the same data block, the PAPR is significantly increased.
Therefore, to avoid this PAPR increase, a SC-SFBC-like scheme using the Alamouti precoding within the same SC-FDMA block, between non-adjacent frequency samples (FIG. 3.1) has been developed. Therefore, instead of implementing the Alamouti precoding to each pairs of (Sk; Sk+1) of the M outputs of the DFT of the same data block, it is implemented to each pairs of (Sk; Sp-1-k) of the M outputs of the DFT of the same data block, p-1-k being modulo M, where M is the size of the DFT and p is an even integer. The Alamouti precoding matrices implemented are:
      A          (      I      )        =      [                                        S            k                                                -                          S                              p                -                1                -                k                            *                                                                        S                          p              -              1              -              k                                                            S            k            *                                ]  when k is even and
      A          (      II      )        =      [                                        S            k                                                S                          p              -              1              -              k                        *                                                            S                          p              -              1              -              k                                                            -                          S              k              *                                            ]  when k is odd,
where each column represents a transmit antenna (Tx1 and Tx2) and each row represents a frequency of the subcarriers for each pairs of (Sk; S(p-1-k)[M]). The outputs of the PAPR preserving SFBC on FIG. 3.2 are the vector STx1 and STx2 represented on FIG. 3.2. STx1 being the vector intended to be transmitted through the transmitter 1 and STx2 being the vector intended to be transmitted through the transmit antenna 2.
Like shown in the literature (C. Ciochina, D. Castelain, D. Mottier and H. Sari, "A Space-Frequency Block Code for Single-Carrier FDMA," Electronics Letters 44(11):690-691 Feb. 2008.) the signal sent on the Tx1 and on the Tx2 have the same PAPR, thus both have a SC-type envelope fluctuations, leading to low PAPR. It is known that the signals sent on the Tx1 and on the Tx2 are both DFTsOFDM signals and it has been shown (C. Ciochina, D. Castelain, D. Mottier and H. Sari, "A Novel Space-Frequency Coding Scheme for Single-Carrier Modulations," 18th Annual IEEE International Symposium on Personal, Indoor and Mobile Communications (PIMRC'07), Athens, Greece, September 2007.) that the DFTsOFDM symbols on Tx1 and respectively Tx2 can be obtained from blocks of symbols eqXTx1 and eqXTx2 respectively (FIG. 3.3). Therefore, the concept of high energy samples and/or of samples containing residual information corresponding to symbol Xn in signal {tilde over (x)}, already defined in a DFTsOFDM context, can be applied in a straightforward manner to a SC-SFBC transmitter, which is a specific type of DFTsOFDM transmitter.
In such a SC-SFBC implementation of Alamouti precoding, at the receiver side (FIG. 3.4) after going through a guard removal or CP removal the symbols received go through N-sized DFT modules before demapping the M out of N occupied subcarriers. Then frequency domain equalization and Alamouti decombining is performed (for example MMSE, minimum mean square error) in the frequency domain on pairs of subcarriers Alamouti-precoded together) before retrieving the modulation symbols.
In millimeter-Wave systems, which is the case of the new radio standard or 5G currently at normalization, operations performed at high carrier frequency level are subject to strong/fast phase variations. This makes the tracking of the channel state difficult, especially when reference signals (RS) are set in blocks, that is in blocks of symbols dedicated to reference signals and occupying one whole DFTsOFDM symbol, since a strong variation phase can occur between two successive transmissions of RS transmitted in dedicated DFTsOFDM symbols.
On the other side, inserting RS occupying less than one whole DFTsOFDM symbol, to track more efficiently any corruption of the signal—for example the phase variations—requires to insert the RS with the data modulation symbols in the block presented at the DFT input, to allow conserving the low PAPR of DFTsOFDM waveform. Nonetheless, contrary to the case where reference signals are set in dedicated blocks, when inserting reference signal multiplexed with the data modulation symbols at the DFT input, at the receiver side the reference signal may only be extracted after the IDFT 3.4.9 in FIG. 3.4. Therefore, the extraction is done once the different modules of the SC-SFBC receiving scheme have been applied, that is these modules may be applied on corrupted symbols without any compensation. Thus the performance of such a receiver, and especially the Alamouti de-combiner, can be strongly degraded when the symbols are strongly corrupted.
The present invention aims at improving the situation.
To that end, the invention relates to a method for inserting K pairs of a first and a second Reference Signals in a radio signal to be transmitted over a wireless communication system, said radio signal being intended to be emitted by an emitter comprising at least two transmit antennas, each antenna being configured for transmitting on at least an even number M, strictly greater than 4, of different frequencies, and K being a strictly positive integer strictly smaller than M/2, said radio signal being provided by:                applying a M size DFT to a block of symbols X=(X0, . . . XM−1), and obtaining for each kth frequency, with k=0 to M−1, a complex symbol Sk in the frequency domain;        obtaining, at an output of an IDFT module corresponding to a first transmit antenna, during a given time interval a first signal representing, in the frequency domain, the complex symbols Sk for each kth frequency with k=0 to M−1;        obtaining, at an output of an IDFT module corresponding to a second transmit antenna, during the given time interval a second signal representing, in the frequency domain, the complex symbols (−1)k+1 εS*(p-1-k)[M] for each kth frequency, with k=0 to M−1 and p a predefined even integer lower or equal to M−1 and higher or equal to 0 and ε is 1 or −1 and Sk* being the complex conjugate of Sk;        emitting the radio signal corresponding to the first and second signal; said method comprising:        determining K integers such as
      {                            n          i                |                  i          ∈                      〚                          1              ;              K                        〛                              ,              0        ≤                  n          i                ≤                              M            2                    -          1                    ,              ∀        i            ,              j        ∈                              〚                          1              ;              K                        〛                    2                    ,                        i          <          j                ⇒                              n            i                    <                      n            j                                }    ;                and for each pair i of first and second Reference Signals:        inserting the first Reference Signal in the radio signal, such as high energy samples of the first Reference Signal are in time periods in the radio signal, said time periods being dependent on a position ni of the symbol Xni in the block of symbols;        inserting the second Reference Signal in the radio signal, such as high energy samples of the second Reference Signal are in time periods in the radio signal, said time periods being dependent on the position ni+M/2 of the symbol X(ni+M/2) in the block of symbols.
According to the invention the high energy samples of the first Reference Signal in the radio signal are emitted, on one transmit antenna, in the same time periods when the high energy samples of the second Reference Signal are transmitted from the other transmit antenna. Time periods including the high energy samples of a pair of first and respectively second Reference Signals for one transmit antenna are the same as the time periods including the high energy samples of a pair of second and respectively first Reference Signals for the other transmit antenna. Therefore, in those time periods, information relative to the first and second Reference Signals are emitted from the two transmit antennas emitting the SC-SFBC signal, and no information (or only residual information) relative to non-reference signals are emitted in said time periods. That is reference signals are time domain superposed in time periods at the emitter side, and consequently information relative to reference signals is received in corresponding time periods at the receiver side. Such insertion of samples of the reference signals in the radio signal provided by the specific scheme (SC-SFBC-like scheme) applied on the block of symbols, enables to separate at the receiver side the information relative to samples of the reference signal from the information relative to samples of other modulation symbols. Therefore, the invention enables a receiver to extract parts of the signal containing the information relative to the transmitted reference signals samples, in the time domain, without extracting parts of the signal containing information relative to samples of non-reference signals, or at the most extracting only parts of the signal containing residual information relative to the samples of non-reference signals.
Indeed, if the high energy samples of reference signals and non-reference signals were emitted from different transmit antennas in the same time periods, they would appear time-domain superposed at the receiver side in the corresponding time period. This would require to apply the full receiving scheme before being able to separate information relative to reference signals from information relative to non-reference signals at the receiver side.
The scheme which provides the radio signal, according to the invention, for example a SC-SFBC, is a linear scheme, that is the radio signal issued from applying the scheme on block symbols X=(X0, . . . XM−1), is equal to the radio signal which is the sum of signals (the sum is realized just after applying the IDFTs onto each transmit antenna) respectively issued from applying the scheme on blocks symbols X(0)=(X0, 0, . . . , 0), . . . X(n)=(0, . . . , 0, Xn, 0, . . . , 0), . . . X(M−1)=(0, . . . , 0, XM−1). Each such post-IDFT signal issued from applying the scheme on the block of symbols X(n)=(0, . . . , 0, Xn, 0, . . . , 0) is referred to as the samples in the radio signal corresponding to symbol Xn. The high energy samples of each such post-IDFT signal issued from applying the scheme on the block of symbols X(n)=(0, . . . , 0, Xn, 0, . . . , 0) are in time periods dependent on the position n of symbol Xn within the block of symbols.
Moreover, in the radio signal, the samples corresponding to different symbols Xn may overlap in the time domain (at least with the samples containing residual information), each set of such samples contributes to the radio signal. The radio signal issued from applying the scheme on block symbols X=(X0, . . . , XM−1) is equal to the sum of the samples corresponding to the symbols Xn, n integer from 0 to M−1. Here, the samples corresponding to different symbols Xn can be seen, from a mathematical point of view, as a multi-dimensional structure having as dimensions the size N of the IDFTs and the number of transmit antennas.
By samples in the radio signal corresponding to symbol Xn (or samples of the corresponding symbol Xn) it is understood that there exists a value ρn such as the samples in the radio signal can be obtained by applying the specific scheme to the block X(n), with the value of Xn set to ρn. This only defines the samples corresponding to symbol Xn in the radio signal but does not limit the way such samples can be obtained. The symbol Xn is referred to as the corresponding symbol of the samples, such value ρn is referred to as a corresponding value of the samples.
The samples in the radio signal corresponding to symbol Xn can be inserted in the radio signal in different ways. For example, the value of the symbol Xn is set to a corresponding value ρn and the specific scheme is applied to a block of symbols containing the corresponding value in position n. In another example, the value of the corresponding symbol Xn is set to 0 in the block of symbols, and the samples corresponding to symbol Xn are added at the output of the IDFT. In yet another example, desired samples in the radio signal corresponding to symbol Xn can be obtained through frequency domain processing.
As mentioned above the samples in the radio signal corresponding to symbol Xn can be obtained in different ways, thus the corresponding value ρn can be theoretical. That is, there is no such symbol of value ρn in the block of symbol on which is applied the specific scheme, but instead the samples can be added to the output of the IDFT instead of processing the corresponding symbol Xn. The invention encompasses the embodiments where the insertion of the reference signals is done in the time domain, that is pre-DFT or post-IDFT, but also where the insertion of reference signals is done in the frequency domain, that is after applying a DFT but before applying the IDFT.
High energy samples in the radio signal corresponding to symbol Xn are emitted during specific time periods. The times of emission of these high energy samples are dependent to the position n of the corresponding symbol in the block of symbol. The times of emissions can be different on different antennas for the emission of the high energy samples in the radio signal corresponding to a given symbol Xn.
Thus by time periods dependent on the position n we relate to the time periods during which the high energy samples in the radio signal corresponding to symbol Xn, at the position n in the block of symbols, are emitted relatively to the beginning of the emission of the bloc of symbol.

Method and device for inserting k pair of reference signal

Abstract: {                            n          i                |                  i          ∈                      〚                          1              ;              K                        〛                              ,              0        ≤                  n          i                ≤                              M            2                    -          1                    ,              ∀        i            ,              j        ∈                              〚                          1              ;              K                        〛                    2                    ,                        i          <          j                ⇒                              n            i                    <                      n            j                                }    ;                and for each pair i of first and second Reference Signals:        inserting the first Reference Signal in the radio signal, such as samples of the first Reference Signal are in time periods in the radio signal, said time periods being dependent on a first position in the block of symbols processed by the specific SC-SFBC scheme;        inserting the second Reference Signal in the radio signal, such as samples of the second Reference Signal are in time periods in the radio signal, said time periods being dependent on a specific position according to the first position in the same block of symbols.


An account reconciliation system having a particular usefulness in the reconciliation of centrally billed accounts and more specifically, in the reconciliation of centrally billed accounts in the travel industry is provided. The system and methods of the present invention expand on the traditional match/non-match techniques and provide complete transaction management for every item on a client's account. In another sense, reconciliation is redefined to include each and every transaction on an account regardless of it's reconciliation status, i.e., matched, unresolved, pending, etc. Consequently, the present invention reconciles the client's account to the account balance.

Central billing is a common accounting practice often used by large employee-based companies. In general, central billing typically occurs when a card vendor assigns a common account billing number that can be used by multiple employees or authorized personnel to charge authorized items to the company. The company usually receives a single bill at the end of the billing cycle for all its employees' charges.
In the travel industry, central billing is especially popular and a service offered by most card vendors. As an example, Company A may request a charge card company to assign a Company account number to be used for all of Company A's charged airline tickets or other travel related charges. In this manner, when an authorized person from Company A requests a ticket from Company A's travel agency, the charges will be automatically placed on the Company account instead of the individual's account. Charges throughout a specified billing cycle, e.g., monthly, accrue on the Company's account number for numerous employees and tickets. At the end of the billing cycle, a single bill for all the charges made using the Company account number as the form of payment is usually remitted to the Company for payment. Most companies enjoy the simplicity of receiving one bill for payment at the end of each billing cycle instead of having literally hundreds of individual bills remitted to their travelers.
Central billing, however, creates numerous problems in the area of account reconciliation. Often times the bill recipient, e.g., Company A, includes in its contract with its travel vendor the non-trivial requirement to reconcile the monthly statements issued by its card vendor for its centrally billed account(s): i.e., identify each charge and credit on each account, calculate the total amount of the charges determined to be correct and ready to be paid, and properly apply applicable rebates and fees. In addition, the central billing reconciliation process often escalates as the volume of individual items on each account increases.
The traditional account reconciliation process for centrally billed accounts is a "match/non-match" approach. Continuing with the above example, the travel agency typically receives an electronic copy of the card statement listing all the travel transactions (charges and credits) billed during the cycle. The travel agency conducts a one-time match against Company A's charges and Company A's travel records typically based on a ticket number and creates a list of matched items and a list of unmatched items. Matched items are subsequently forwarded to the Company on a report, which includes the identifying accounting information, such as the travel authorization number, employee ID, project code, or the like captured in the employees' original travel records.
The unmatched items, which include any charge records that do not have corresponding travel records, e.g., tickets that were voided after the day of issue, modifications to tickets made at the airport, and data entry errors (e.g., misspellings), remain unidentified. Typically, companies refuse to pay for unmatched items because many times the company is unable to establish a proper explanation of the charge, e.g., which employee charged the travel ticket. The bill reconciler must then research each unmatched item in order to explain the charge and resubmit for payment. In a voluminous industry, such as the travel/ticket industry, this research process is cumbersome and very time consuming. In addition, it is often the case that the reconciler is simply unable to identify the item when the airline provides incomplete data. Thus, the unmatched item is left unpaid and eventually becomes a write-off for the card vendor.
Most credit card companies have moved to electronic credit card processing which often further complicates central bill account reconciliation. For example, if an authorized employee from Company A purchases a travel ticket from the travel agency on Monday using the centrally billed card account, the card charge is processed electronically and nearly immediately by the card company. So on Tuesday, Company A's travel company shows the record of the ticket issued and its charge card company shows receipt of the charge record. At the end of each week, travel agencies submit reports of ticket sales to the airlines through the Airline Reporting Corporation (ARC). ARC oversees settlement processing for all airlines and charge card vendors to include an accounting of the number of tickets issued and dollars charged. Until Friday of each week, the travel agency has the opportunity to void the travel record/ticket from Company A's ARC report as if it never existed; however, it cannot similarly void the transaction on the Company's central bill account. If the travel agency voids Company A's ticket on Thursday, for example, the charge on the Company's credit card account, which has already been processed, will remain. At the end of the week, when the travel agency submits its sales report to ARC, ARC sees that a ticket has been voided and generates a correcting credit to the Company's central bill account for the voided ticket. When these transactions appear on the Company's account, they are unmatched items. In other words, a charge record for Company A is presented for matching to a ticket record for a ticket that was issued in week one, but which no longer exists. The credit for the voided ticket, which was generated by ARC in week two, is also presented with no matching charge record. In the event that these transactions take place within the established billing cycle of Company A, a chance exists that these debit and credit transactions will appear together on the same month's central bill account. However, in about at least twenty-five percent of the cases, the debit and credit will not appear on the same monthly statement, thus further complicating the reconciliation process.
Additionally, many credit card vendors, like American Express® and Diners Club®, do not permit "carry-over" balances and all charges during the billing cycle are due upon receipt of the bill. In this sense, the Company is asked to pay all the transactions on their account, whether or not a reconciled match is made for each one. Thus, if the debits and credits do not appear in the same cycle, the company may be billed for an item which has been voided, returned, or otherwise not received. Many times, this "overbilling" results in a charge dispute. Therefore, while traditional reconciliation processes generally match a high percentage of the items, this approach is still inadequate. Even a small percentage of unmatched items can equate to a large number of unmatched and unresolved entries that must be researched and corrected.
A system and method for account reconciliation that includes a traditional matching technique to identify and resolve matched items, as well as a tracking, research and correction technique to identify and resolve the unmatched items is needed. Moreover, a system and method for account reconciliation that identifies, tracks and reconciles pending transactions to the account balance, including all accounting items whether matched or unmatched, is needed.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

System and method for account reconciliation

American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc.


A content management system and method work as a companion to other applications that control the system. The system and method draw information from the operations or structure of the controlling application to display and manage the content objects relevant to a record displayed by a user of the controlling application and stored in the content management system. The system and method operate in conjunction with the controlling application so that this management and display of content objects is dynamic, real-time, and context-sensitive for the user.

Field of the Invention
The present system relates to content management technologies and, more particularly, technologies that integrate with controlling applications to provide content presentation and other content management functionality in the context of the user experience within the controlling application.
Description of the Related Art
Physical documents as well as electronic documents and other content objects such as email, audio, video, etc., that themselves serve as business records or that relate to other business records may be located throughout an organization. Such items may be located in boxes, filing cabinets, email inboxes, file systems, databases, and in other storage repositories. Such items often drive business processes and are critical not only to the value propositions of an organization, but also to its legal and regulatory compliance and internal policy compliance and governance requirements. The physical nature of documents causes a wide variety of issues for organizations that slow down processes because the documents cannot be located in more than one place at one time, high volumes are difficult to manage, process and store, they are susceptible to environmental damage, and often need to be viewed by more than one person at one time. Even electronic documents and other content objects, if not properly managed, can present the same logistical issues as physical documents. One such example is the difficulty in determining whether or not an electronic file is the original. This is often encountered when many recipients receive the same email with an attachment, or when the same file is stored multiple times on a file system under different directories with different names. Considered collectively, these issues compel organizations to implement document management and enterprise content management (ECM) systems that attempt to solve these and other core issues.
ECM systems help users capture, manage, access, view, secure, collaborate on, store and dispose of content objects relating to business records. ECM features and functions are designed to facilitate fast and efficient processing of a content object, to help identify the actual business records, and to access and store the content objects until their retention time has lapsed.
An ECM system may be considered as a stand-alone application or as a companion to an underlying business system in areas such as payment processing, billing systems, security, service management, sales, resource planning, human resource management, customer relationship management, manufacturing, forms automation, or business intelligence. When an ECM system is operable as a companion to an underlying business system, then the underlying business system may be considered a 'controlling' application in the sense that the underlying business system in some way directs or 'controls' the actions, behaviors, and display of the ECM system's functionality in a manner that is intended to enhance or improve the use of the underlying business system.
For example, traditional ECM systems address content management needs by inducting both the content object and the business system's data into the ECM system's own storage repository, thereby duplicating the business system's data. The result is an ECM system that is largely disconnected from the business system and that requires frequent data synchronization of, and batch data processing between, the ECM system and the business system. Careful planning and constant management is needed to minimize mistakes caused by incorrect or untimely data synchronization of the ECM system and the business system. This disconnected environment requires extra labor resources to perform manual processes to review synchronization log files, determine the occurrence of both success and failure events, and resolve errors associated with failure events.
A more recent approach of some ECM systems has been to embed links and buttons into a business system and to display a list of content objects when the button is clicked. In a simple approach, clicking the button or link will launch a user interface to show all content objects available. In a more sophisticated approach, clicking the button or link will show a limited set of content objects directly related to the record displayed on the screen. Both of these methods produce satisfactory results for users searching for content objects in business environments with lower volumes and/or lower complexity. As volume and/or complexity increases, certain requirements related to security, user training costs, and the ability to show various interrelationships among content objects and records in other business systems, lead organizations to seek a more flexible and sophisticated approach.

System and method for content management


The apparatus for decorating a cake or tart(gateau) includes a base plate (1) adapted to accommodate the cake or tart to be decorated; a number of pins (6) distributed over and projecting from a top surface (1a) of the base plate (1) and oriented so that they penetrate the cake or tart and extend transversely in relation to cake or tart surfaces to hold the cake or tart on the base plate (1) when the base plate is tilted; and a shaft (8) attached centrally to the base plate (1) having a shaft length (L) such that the base plate (1), when resting with a rim portion thereof and the shaft end (8a) on a flat supporting surface (16), is oriented at an angle (.English Pound.) with respect to vertical such that the center of gravity of the cake or tart (15) and any supporting plate on which it rests is located vertically over the top surface of the base plate (1) so as to hold the cake or tart in a tilted orientation facilitating decoration of its rims.

The present invention relates to an apparatus for decorating the rims of cakes and tarts.
A device which is aimed at solving a similar problem has become known from the German Utility Model with the Register Number G 84 37 532. In the device according to this prior publication U-shaped insertion clips are provided for central insertion either from above or from below into the cake or tart body. Because of the thus permitted handling ability, the cake or tart body can be positioned vertically upright and can now be rolled over the decorating material contained in an oblong dish or the like.
In order to make sure that the decorating material will adhere to the rim of the cake or tart when the aforementioned apparatus is used, the latter requires a corresponding previous treatment. Preferably, this is done by applying to the rim a layer of jam, marmalade or whipped cream. This must be done in the conventional way. The rolling motion is likely to affect the layer on which the decorating material is intended to stick. With the aid of this device it is not possible to decorate the rims of cakes and tarts or gateaus, unless the decorating materials are chocolate flakes, chopped nuts, or the like.

Apparatus for decorating the rims of cakes and tarts


A prosthesis includes: two pairs of elongated joint elements forming disc joint surfaces and facet joint surfaces; one pair of elements able to be positioned relative to each other. Each disc joint surface is in the shape of a hemisphere portion; positioning surfaces including posterior positioning surfaces; the prosthesis is associated with at least one rigid transverse element comprising positioning surfaces designed to be placed against the posterior positioning surfaces. Such placement permits one pair of joint elements to be positioned relative to the other pair of joint elements such that the disc joint surfaces are situated in a same geometric hemisphere.

The present invention relates to a total intervertebral joint prosthesis, i.e. a prosthesis for both the disc and facets.
The degeneration of an intervertebral disc is commonly treated by implanting an intervertebral disc prosthesis. Such a prosthesis nevertheless has the drawback of not treating the facet joints, which may also have deteriorated due to the repeated non-physiological movements of the vertebrae resulting from the degeneration of the disc.
Inappropriate implantation of an intervertebral disc prosthesis may also be a source of degeneration of the facet joints.
In order to resolve this problem, total vertebral joint prostheses have been designed, i.e. comprising prosthetic disc joint portions rigidly connected, by connecting arms, to prosthetic facet joint portions, cf. in particular patent application publication No. WO 2005/067824 A1. The disc joint and the facet joints are thus precisely positioned relative to one another, which allows precise control of the interactions of the disc joint with the facet joints.
Such a known combined prosthesis comprises two pairs of elongated elements designed for posterior implementation, one pair being designed to be placed in the intervertebral space on the left side of the vertebral bodies of the two considered vertebrae, and the other pair being designed to be placed in the intervertebral space on the right side of those vertebral bodies; each element of a pair of elements comprises a disc joint surface, a facet joint surface, and a connecting arm extending between said disc joint surface and said facet joint surface; when the two elements of a same pair of elements are placed one above the other, the disc joint surface of one element cooperates with the disc joint surface of the other element, and the facet joint surface of one element cooperates with the facet joint surface of the other element.
It nevertheless appears that the existing combined prostheses are not optimal. In fact, these prostheses can cause a risk of imperfect restoration of the physiological movement of the vertebrae, and, in particular, of being capable of undergoing significant wear over time. Certain prostheses include means for positioning one pair of elements relative to the other, which does not, however, exclude more or less significant imprecision in the positioning of one pair of elements relative to the other. Several other prostheses are purely and simply provided without means for positioning one pair of elements relative to the other. Furthermore, the existing combined prostheses have relatively complex and costly structures to manufacture.


An optical disk recording/reproducing apparatus for accurately determining optimum recording power of a laser beam even if medium deviations occurs, stabilizing recording quality, and realizing recording which hardly causes read inability error. In test recording, a laser drive (5) irradiates a laser beam to an optical disk (1) to record information while varying the recording power stepwise and reproduce the information stepwise recorded on the optical disk. A recorded state index value calculating unit (9) determines the value representing the index of the recorded state from the signal level of the reproduced information at each step. A smoothing calculating unit (11) performs smoothing calculation of the recorded state index value at each step. An optimum recording power determining unit (12) determines the optimum power by acquiring the optimum value from the recorded state index values at the steps after smoothing calculation to record information on the optical disk with the optimum power determined in recording.

FIG. 6 shows a procedure of a general OPC of a disk recording/reproducing apparatus which irradiates an optical laser beam from an optical head and varies a reflectance of a recording layer of a disk to perform a recording operation. As shown in FIG. 6, first, while a recording power of the optical laser beam is varied on a test recording area of the disk stepwise, for example, by fifteen steps, a test recording operation (test writing of data) is performed (first step). Next, an RF signal is reproduced and sampled while the test recording area (an area to which the test writing operation is performed) is read again (second step), a recording state index value (for example, β (asymmetry)) which represents an index of a recording state is calculated from the sampled RF signal (third step), and a value closest to a target value is selected out of the calculated recording state index values and a power corresponding thereto is selected as an optimum recording power, thereby determining the optimum power of the laser beam irradiated in recording operation (fourth step).
However, recently, recording media become diversified with increase in writing speed, decrease in price and the like, and there are deviations in media quality and characteristic of apparatuses. Accordingly, even if a power is varied stepwise at the time of performing the general OPC, the recording state index value which can be obtained is not always changed uniformly. In this case, the optimum recording power may be not accurately acquired or an improper recording power may be acquired. When a recording operation is performed with an inaccurate optimum recording power, there occurs a problem that a recording quality is deteriorated, thereby not reading the recorded data.
As a known method solving such a problem, there is disclosed a method in which the test recording area is reproduced, the recording state index value is acquired, powers P1 and P2 of a point on which the acquired recording state index value is varied from large to small and a point on which the acquired recording state index value is varied again from small to large are acquired, and an average of the powers P1 and P2 is given as the optimum recording power (for example, see (Paragraphs 7 to 14 and FIG. 2) of Patent Document 1 (JP-A-9-180193)).
As another known method, there is disclosed a method in which an unrecorded area is reproduced prior to a recording operation, a scratch or a fingerprint of the disk is detected, and a corresponding point is skipped in OPC when the scratch or the fingerprint is detected (Paragraphs 5 to 7 and FIG. 9) of (for example, see Patent Document 2 (JP-A-2002-319135).

Optical disk recording/reproducing apparatus and optical disk recording method


An method of operating a multiple speed (gear ratio) mechanical transmission and engine combination to optimize (reduce) fuel consumption comprises the steps of determining a fuel efficiency map for an engine, providing a multiple speed mechanical transmission controller having data and program storage capabilities, providing data regarding the fuel efficiency map to the controller and providing a control algorithm in the controller whereby operation of the engine/transmission combination is optimized for fuel economy in accordance with the fuel efficiency map.

An unwavering goal of contemporary vehicle designers is the achievement of increased fuel efficiency, i.e., reduced fuel consumption. Designers of passenger cars, light trucks and long haul tractor trailers continually strive to improve the fuel efficiency of their vehicles while addressing other operating and performance parameters. While recent fuel consumption reductions stated in percent of hybrid vehicles are impressive, much smaller percentage fuel consumption reductions when applied to long haul tractor trailers typically represents much larger actual savings in fuel consumption because such vehicles consume more fuel on a miles per gallon basis and are driven many miles farther during any given period of time, for example, a year.
One of the improvements to long haul tractor trailers in recent years is the automated mechanical transmission. In this device, a relatively conventional multiple speed (gear ratio) heavy duty transmission includes an actuator assembly which is controlled by a master controller or microprocessor. The microprocessor includes a plurality of inputs which receive signals from various sensors such as speed sensors, a throttle position sensor, brake and ABS sensors, a shift selector, an operator controlled mode selector and other devices and, through the use of algorithms, computational routines, look-up tables and the like, controls operation of the master clutch and selection and engagement of transmission gears. Because such systems will consistently command upshifts and downshifts based upon the sensed conditions and established shift rules, fuel efficiency of such devices is generally good.
The fuel efficiency (consumption) of a particular engine, i.e., a particular size or output engine from a particular manufacturer, may be presented in a fuel efficiency map. This map relates fuel consumption as a function of engine speed, delivered torque and delivered horsepower. The fuel map includes a plurality of isograms or isolines of constant fuel consumption which are roughly arranged about a single value of speed and torque, i.e., a point, of maximum fuel efficiency. Stated somewhat differently, a single, vehicle operator or a single shift program when used with two engines having distinct fuel efficiency maps will be unable to achieve optimum fuel efficiency with both and may perform at a fuel efficiency well below that which could be obtained by commanding shifts based upon the fuel efficiency map of the given engine to achieve optimum fuel efficiency.
Different styles and designs of internal combustion engines and engines from different manufacturers have different fuel efficiency maps. Accordingly, if a truck or tractor manufacturer utilizes two or more different engines in a particular truck, the experience and habits of one operator utilizing a manual transmission or an automated mechanical transmission with the same control algorithm and operating logic will not provide optimum fuel efficiency in both trucks.
Such automated mechanical transmissions often have multiple control modes such as fully automatic and manual. The fully automatic mode may include several sub-modes that emphasize, that is, more heavily weight, one control variable or parameter over others. For example, one automatic control mode may emphasize performance, while another may provide improved control at very low vehicle speeds while a third may seek to minimize shifting by utilizing more widely separated upshift and downshift values.
The present invention is directed to further improving the fuel efficiency of multiple speed mechanical and automated mechanical transmission engine combinations.

Multiple speed transmission having fuel economy mode


A system for writing data to a storage media comprises a data acquisition device for acquiring digitized data; a media writing device for inputting the digitized data to the storage media; and a computer comprising a first microprocessor for controlling operations of the computer; a first storage device for receiving and storing the digitized data from said data acquisition device; and a second storage device for receiving and storing the digitized data from the first storage device, and for transferring the digitized data to the writing device after the first storage device transfers the digitized data to the second storage device for substantially eliminating writing errors.

A digital x-ray image capture system typically includes a x-ray source that directs x-rays through a subject and onto an image capturing device for capturing an image of the subject in digitized form. The digitized data is sent over a fiber optic cable to a computer for permitting image processing on the digitized data and for, ultimately, storing the processed data on a memory storage device.
A compact disc writer then receives the processed data from the memory storage device and writes it to a compact disc which, in a single track format, writes the data sequentially and helically along the disk, as is well known in the art. Once writing is initiated, the compact disc writer requires the data be in a continuously and uninterrupted bit stream until completion of the writing process.
Although the presently known and utilized system is satisfactory, it is not without drawbacks. If additional images are sent to the computer while the computer is transferring data to the compact disc writer, the data transfer to the compact disc writer can be temporarily interrupted causing a writing error, generally referred to in the art as buffer underrun.
Consequently, a need exists for improvements in the construction and mode of operating the digital x-ray image capture system so as to overcome the above-described drawbacks.

System for writing digitized X-ray images to a compact disc


An ultrasonic surgical instrument comprises a cylindrical shaft and a blade at a distal or free end of the shaft, the blade being unitary and continuous with the shaft, without an intervening joint. The shaft has a longitudinal axis and the blade includes a flat or planar blade body with a proximal end eccentrically disposed relative to the shaft axis. Thus, the blade body or at least a proximal end portion thereof is disposed eccentrically relative to the shaft. The blade in its entirely may be inclined relative to the shaft axis or extend parallel thereto.

This invention relates to an ultrasonic surgical tool or instrument. This invention also relates to a method for manufacturing the tool or instrument.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,379,371 discloses an ultrasonic surgical blade, particularly for cutting bone tissue, which has a blade body with a smooth continuous cutting edge and a shank connected at one end to the blade body and operatively connectable at an opposite end to a source of ultrasonic vibrations. The shank is provided with an axially extending bore for the conveyance of cooling fluid to the cutting edge, while the blade body is provided with an axially extending through-slot communicating at one end with the bore. The blade body is preferably provided at an end opposite the shank with a recess communicating, with the bore for distributing fluid from the slot towards the cutting edge. The recess preferably has a configuration which parallels at least a portion of the cutting edge. Where the cutting edge is circular and the blade body has a planar surface between the fluid distribution guide surface and the cutting edge, for instance, the recess has a fluid distribution surface inclined with respect to the planar blade surface and extending along a circular arc.
In the manufacture of such a bone-cutting instrument, the blade body is generated separately and then affixed to the end of a tubular shaft. Thus there is a joint between the instrument shaft or horn and the blade.

Ultrasonic surgical instrument and method for manufacturing same


The heating capacity particularly at low outside air temperatures in a vehicular air-conditioning unit that heats the vehicle interior by heat pump operation of a refrigerant circuit using a compressor is improved. During heating, a refrigerant discharged from a compressor 2 releases heat in a radiator 4 into the vehicle interior, and the refrigerant decompressed after the heat release in the radiator evaporates in at least one of an external heat exchanger 7 and a ventilation heat exchanger 24. During cooling, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor releases heat in the external heat exchanger, and the refrigerant decompressed after the heat release in the external heat exchanger evaporates in an internal heat exchanger 9 to absorb heat from the vehicle interior. The vehicular air-conditioning unit includes a hot gas cycle circuit 31 for decompressing a part of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor, and causing the decompressed part of the refrigerant to flow through the internal heat exchanger to release heat into the vehicle interior.

Conventionally, the vehicle interior of a vehicle that runs on an engine (internal combustion engine) is cooled or dehumidified by an air-conditioning unit in which a refrigerant circuit includes a compressor driven by the engine, and heated using engine waste heat.
An electric vehicle that runs on an electric motor and a hybrid vehicle that combines an engine and an electric motor are commercialized in recent years, for the purpose of helping to resolve global environmental issues. The vehicle interior of such a vehicle is cooled or dehumidified by driving an electric compressor included in a refrigerant circuit of an air-conditioning unit with power of a charged battery.
To heat the vehicle interior, on the other hand, engine waste heat can be used in a hybrid vehicle. In a pure electric vehicle, however, engine waste heat is unavailable. The only way is either to draw heat from the outside air by heat pump operation of the air-conditioning unit to heat the vehicle interior, or to use an electric heater. The electric heater has, however, a COP (coefficient of performance) of 1 at the maximum, and consumes a large amount of power stored in the battery. This leads to a shorter cruising range of the electric vehicle.
A COP greater than or equal to 1 can be achieved by heating the vehicle interior by the heat pump operation in which the electric compressor is driven to draw heat from the outside air by an external heat exchanger. In a low outside air temperature environment such as in the middle of winter, however, the temperature difference in pumping is significant and the compression ratio of the compressor is high, and so there is the problem of decreased heating capacity or efficiency.
In view of this, the following air-conditioning unit has been previously developed: a ventilation heat exchanger for recovering heat from the air discharged from the vehicle interior for ventilation is provided to recover heat from the ventilation air in addition to the heat pump from the outside air, thus heating the vehicle interior (see Patent Document 1).


The present invention provides a method for the preparation of high liquid oil margarine in the form of a water-in-oil emulsion wherein selected phospholipids (for example, PC, PE and lyso-PC/PE) play an important role in stabilizing the margarine. The total fat content of said high liquid oil margarine is made up of a minimum of about 96% liquid oil and a maximum of about 4% added hard fat and phospholipids. The method comprises preparing a water-in-oil emulsion by blending an aqueous phase with oil phase at a temperature above the crystallization temperature of the added hard fat and reducing said temperature until hard fat crystallization occurs, and supercooling in heat exchanger to obtain a high liquid oil margarine. The method of the invention uses selected phospholipids and the use of heat exchanger “votator” for fat crystal nucleation and provides a margarine comprising very low levels of saturated fats and virtually no trans fatty acids.

Regular margarine contains of 80% fat by weight and 20% aqueous phase (with a maximum water content of 16%). Regular margarine is a water-in-oil emulsion in which the water phase is emulsified in oil phase by protein (usually milk protein as an emulsifier). The oil phase in most margarines contain 17-20% saturated fat, however between 30-35% of saturated fat is trans fat which is produced during the manufacturing of partially hydrogenation of fat. The amount of trans fat can be varied in regular margarine (30-50%) depending upon the quality of fat. In a normal processing of margarine (a water-in-oil emulsion) the fat phase is thermally prepared by dissolving the fat in liquid oil and mixing with aqueous phase (containing water, emulsifier, salt, preservative and color) to produce a water-in-oil emulsion. This emulsion is rapidly cooled in a scraped surface heat exchanger (so called Votator or Perfector) to achieve fat crystal nucleation. The Votator consists of two main parts (A and B units). The "A" unit is a coolant and supercools the margarine below its crystallization point to produce fat crystals; whereas the "B" unit is a pin worker in which the mass is worked vigorously to complete crystal formation and reduce the crystal size and then allowed to rest to achieve phase stabilization prior to packaging.
For many years, it has been known that the saturated and trans fats are "unhealthy" in margarine. Most margarines on the market today, however, are manufactured with partially hydrogenated fats and as a consequence can still contain substantial quantities of trans and saturated fatty acids. Data from the Institute of Shortening and Edible Oils (ISEO) indicate that high levels of trans fats in the diet may raise LDL (bad) cholesterol levels and lower HDL (good) cholesterol levels. The concern about saturated fatty acids was initially addressed when the industry launched soft tub margarines. For tub-type margarines, a typical composition of the fat phase is 33-52% monounsaturated fat, 29-48% polyunsaturated fat and 17-20% saturated fat. Tub margarine with 17-20% saturated fat is stable against coalescence of water droplets since water droplets become trapped within the saturated fat crystal network. If regular margarine (water-in-oil emulsion) prepared with low saturated fat (5-10%), the stability and mouthful of finished margarine would be reduced and water droplets become coalesced and eventually the oil and water phase will be separated. It is almost impossible to produce and stabilize a regular margarine with 2-4% added solid fat using traditional regular margarine manufacturing procedure.
Although recent introduction of margarines with intersterified fat to the market eliminated the trans fats, it did not reduce the amount of saturated fats significantly. Interesterification is a process that rearranges the fatty acid groups within and between different triglycerides to adjust the melting range of a fat and oil mixture. As a consequence the solid fat content (SFC) of the mixture reduces due to dissolved intermediate melting point triglycerides in the oil and show less SFC, but in fact the saturated fatty acids remain high. A typical margarine produced with intersterified fat contain 10-15% saturates. The process of random interesterification of fat is expensive, using toxic chemicals and adding significant costs to the manufacture of products contain intersterified fats.
A recent invention in production of margarine involving a double emulsion system eliminates trans fats and reduces the added solid fat down to 4%, however this procedure requires production and stabilization of two oil-in-water emulsions and mixing them under certain conditions to avoid phase separation prior to solidification and stabilization in the form of oil-in-water-in-oil emulsion system (see Kakuda et al. PCT Patent Application WO 01/80659, published on Nov. 1, 2001). This procedure also requires additional machineries such as homogenizer and preparation of emulsions in a batch system and it takes a long time to finish the product, which affects the product cost. In this procedure the uniformity of the product's texture is less consistent and can be vary in each batch.
There remains a need for a simple and economical process to produce a regular margarine (water-in-oil emulsion) with no trans fatty acids and minimal (for e.g. 2-4%) amounts of saturated fats. Such a procedure should not require additional equipment and be amenable to use in any regular margarine production line.

Process for preparing high liquid oil, no trans, very low saturates, regular margarine with phospholipids


A method of generating writing pattern data of a reflective mask for use in a non-telecentric exposure tool comprises obtaining a vertical position profile by measuring vertical positions of a plurality of X, Y coordinates arbitrarily set on the surface of a blank mask substrate when mounted on a mask stage, or by measuring and calculating a flatness profile, calculating unevenness of the blank mask substrate surface from the vertical position profile, calculating a shift amount of an image position, generated in a wafer mounted on a wafer stage of the exposure tool, in accordance with the unevenness of the blank mask substrate and parameters of a non-telecentric optics of the exposure tool, and obtaining corrected writing pattern data by correcting design pattern data of the reflective mask based on the shift amount of the image position and a reduction ratio of a projection optics of the exposure tool.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a writing technique of a mask using an electron beam or laser beam, particularly to a method of generating writing pattern data of a mask for use in an extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography technique utilizing soft X-rays, and a method of writing a mask.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, as the next-generation lithography technique, an EUV lithography technique involving a reduced reflective-type projection exposure technique using 5- to 15-nm soft X-rays has been developed on a worldwide scale. In this lithography, since there is no substance (material) suitable for a refractive optical element in an EUV light region, a mask, illumination optics, and projection optics are all constituted of reflective types. An Mo/Si multilayered film indicating a high reflectance with respect to EUV light is formed on the mask, and a Cr— or Ta-based absorber with respect to the EUV light is used in an opaque material. Similarly, the Mo/Si multilayered film is formed on a reflective mirror which is an optical element of reflective optics.
The use of a system similar to a so-called optical scanner in an EUV exposure tool is planned, illuminative light having an annular shape is applied to the mask in an oblique direction at an angle of incidence around 6°, the mask and a substrate (wafer) to be exposed are scanned relatively with respect to the projection optics at a speed ratio in accordance with the reduction ratio, and reflective light from the mask surface on which a mask pattern is formed is projected/reduced to thereby form a mask pattern into a film on the wafer.
In the projection optics of the reflective type exposure system, since a non-telecentric system is constituted on a mask side, image shift of the projected/reduced pattern on the wafer, which is in-plane displacement, is a problem. A position where the pattern is formed into an image shifts in a horizontal plane of the wafer because of unevenness of the mask surface.
For example, when a vertical position of the mask in a portion where a certain pattern is formed displaces from a reference plane by 0.1 μm, a projection image forming position shifts from an original image forming position by about 2.6 nm on the wafer. In the same manner as in a usual photo-mask, a positional shift by elastic deformation of the mask also raises a problem. The positional shift of the pattern is caused by the weight of the mask, stresses of various thin films formed on the mask (multilayered film, absorber, buffer, etc.), temperature, and holding. Since a film structure of the EUV mask is complicated, there is a possibility that the pattern positional shift by in-plane stress non-uniformity of the film raises a problem.
Displacement of the mask plane (or height) in the Z-direction (vertical direction), which is a cause for the image shift, is caused not only by an uneven shape (e.g., uneven surface) of the mask but also flatness of a mask holding mechanism (mask chuck). This also applies to unevenness of the wafer, or flatness of the wafer chuck. Furthermore, mechanical fluctuation in the Z-direction in driving the mask or a wafer stage is also a cause. Thus, since the image shift is attributed to a mask front surface shape at exposure, and does not indicate a constant value, it is difficult to control the shift by the exposure tool. However, the above-described image forming position shift of the mask pattern is minimized in a possible range, and transfer position precision needs to be secured. For this purpose, the distance between points in at least a plane between the mask and the wafer is kept constant, and exposure is performed. In a conventional exposure technique, for securement of a depth of focus (DOF) and suppression of magnification error, postures of the mask and the wafer are usually controlled by Z-axis driving mechanisms and tilt mechanisms to hold constant distances based on the result of measurement of both vertical positions using focus sensors, respectively. For example, as a method of correcting the image shift at the exposure to thereby perform exposure, in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 11-219900, it has been proposed that while adjusting relative positions in the Z-direction, the mask and the wafer stage should be moved synchronously in reverse along the Y-direction to thereby suppress the positional shift attributed to Z-displacement of the mask. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,229,871, it has been proposed that unevenness should be disposed on a non-planar chuck surface, and an easily bendable mask should be chucked. Accordingly, the relative positions in the Z-direction are easily driven/controlled to thereby correct in-plane positional shift in the scanning direction.
However, since the vertical position of the mask or the wafer monitored by the focus sensor indicates a value in a local position, the distance between the mask and wafer is simply controlled to be constant based on the average vertical position in an irradiation region plane even in a full field exposure tool or a scanner exposure tool. Since there is necessarily local unevenness in the irradiation region plane of a finite region, not all vertical positions in the irradiation region plane take constant values. Therefore, even when the distance between the mask and the wafer surface is controlled to be constant based on the average vertical position in the irradiation region plane, image shifts are produced in individual patterns in accordance with the local unevenness included in the irradiation region plane, and therefore positional precision is deteriorated.
As described above, there has been a problem that a transfer pattern cannot be obtained with sufficient positional precision in a non-telecentric exposure system represented by the EUV lithography technique. Therefore, there has been a demand for realization of a method of generating writing pattern data capable of obtaining a transfer pattern with the necessary positional precision, and a method of writing a mask in a non-telecentric exposure system using a reflective mask.

Method of generating writing pattern data of mask and method of writing mask