A system for erasing a non-volatile storage system that reduces the voltage across the word line select transistors which interface between the word lines and global control lines. The use of the lower voltage across the word line select transistors allows for the word line select transistors to be made smaller. The use of smaller components allows the non-volatile storage system to include more memory cells, thereby providing the ability to store more data.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to technology for non-volatile storage.
2. Description of the Related Art
Semiconductor memory devices have become more popular for use in various electronic devices. For example, non-volatile semiconductor memory is used in cellular telephones, digital cameras, personal digital assistants, mobile computing devices, non-mobile computing devices and other devices. Electrical Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EEPROM) and flash memory are among the most popular non-volatile semiconductor memories.
Both EEPROM and flash memory utilize a floating gate that is positioned above and insulated from a channel region in a semiconductor substrate. The floating gate is positioned between source and drain regions. A control gate is provided over and insulated from the floating gate. The threshold voltage of the transistor is controlled by the amount of charge that is retained on the floating gate. That is, the minimum amount of voltage that must be applied to the control gate before the transistor is turned on to permit conduction between its source and drain is controlled by the level of charge on the floating gate.
When programming an EEPROM or flash memory device, typically a program voltage is applied to the control gate and the bit line BL is grounded. Electrons from the channel are injected into the floating gate. When electrons accumulate in the floating gate, the floating gate becomes negatively charged and the threshold voltage of the memory cell is raised so that the memory cell is in the programmed state. More information about programming can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 6,859,397, titled "Source Side Self Boosting Technique For Non-Volatile Memory;" and U.S. Pat. No. 6,917,542, titled "Detecting Over Programmed Memory," both patents are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
Some EEPROM and flash memory devices have a floating gate that is used to store two ranges of charges and, therefore, the memory cell can be programmed/erased between two states, an erased state and a programmed state that correspond to data "1" and data "0." Such a device is referred to as a binary or two-state device.
A multi-state flash memory cell is implemented by identifying multiple, distinct allowed threshold voltage ranges. Each distinct threshold voltage range corresponds to a predetermined value for the set of data bits. The specific relationship between the data programmed into the memory cell and the threshold voltage ranges of the memory cell depends upon the data encoding scheme adopted for the memory cells. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,222,762 and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0255090, both of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety, describe various data encoding schemes for multi-state flash memory cells.

System to reduce stress on word line select transistor during erase operation


A roller arrangement in a folding apparatus of a rotary printing press includes a plurality of gathering rollers for passing a plurality of incoming ribbons along a line substantially tangential to the plurality of gathering rollers, thereby forming a multi-layered web. A first nip roller and a second nip roller, each having a coating of a resilient material are arranged such that the layered web is passed through a nip formed between the first and second nip rollers substantially tangential to each of the first and second nip rollers.

In a folding apparatus which is coupled to one or more rotary printing presses, a plurality of printed webs or ribbons is usually passed over a corresponding number of gathering rollers in order to arrange the ribbons on top of each other before feeding them as a multi-layered web to a pair of nip rollers, arranged on top of a former board for longitudinally folding the layered web.
In prior art folding apparatuses, the nip rollers consist of a driven metal roller, usually a steel roller, and a non-driven rubber or urethane roller which is pressed against the driven metal roller with an adjustable force, in order to adjust the friction between the layered web and the driven metal roller so as to thereby control the tension of the layered web before it passes the former board. Owing to their compact and space efficient design, the gathering rollers and the nip rollers located on top of the former board are arranged such that the layered web is fed at an angle to the nip of the nip rollers. Therefore, the layered web either wraps around both nip rollers or wraps around the circumference of one of the nip rollers, while it only peripherally contacts the other nip roller. Due to the so-called radius effect, the ribbons of the layered web which are passed over the outside of the wrapped nip roller are pulled off more rapidly than the ones which pass over the inside of the roller because of their greater distance from the center of the roller. If the ribbons are afterwards passed to the inside of a subsequent roller, e.g., the nip rollers behind the former board, wrinkles and other undesirable irregularities of the printed and folded products can occur severely affecting the quality of the printed products.
European Patent Application No. 0 747 312 A1 purports to disclose a folding apparatus comprising an arrangement of gathering or take-off rollers for feeding at least two webs as a multi-layered web to an intake roller arranged above a former board for folding the layered web. In this apparatus, the layered web is fed at an angle to the intake roller and the intake roller is formed by a single guide roller which is not in contact with another roller and which therefore does not allow a control of the web tension.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,398,604 discloses a nip roller arrangement comprising a driven transport roller rotatably supported in bearings fixed to a frame and an associated nip roller carrying a removable nip sleeve which is made of resilient material. The nip roller is rotatably supported in pivotable arms and can be brought into contact with the conventionally constructed driven transport roller by means of a pneumatic actuator.
It is an object of the present invention to provide for a roller arrangement in a folding apparatus of a web-fed rotary printing press which eliminates the occurrence of an unequal tension among the respective single ribbons of a layered web when feeding the layered web through a nip formed between a pair of nip rollers.
It is another object of the present invention to eliminate the occurrence of wrinkles and other undesirable irregularities in the printed product which are caused by the radius effect when transporting a layered web through a nip of a pair of nip rollers located on top of a former board for longitudinally folding the layered web.

Roller arrangement in a folding apparatus of a web-fed rotary printing press


Example-driven creation of record matching queries. The disclosed architecture employs techniques that exploit the availability of positive (or matching) and negative (non-matching) examples to search through this space and suggest an initial record matching query. The record matching task is modeled as that of designing an operator tree obtained by composing a few primitive operators. This ensures that record matching programs be executable efficiently and scalably over large input relations. The architecture joins records across multiple (e.g., two) relations (e.g., R and S). The architecture exploits the monotonicity property of similarity functions for record matching in the relations, in that, any pair of matching records have a higher similarity value than non-matching record pairs on at least one similarity function.

Data cleaning is a critical element for developing effective business intelligence applications. The inability to ensure data quality can negatively affect downstream data analysis, and ultimately, key business decisions. An important data cleaning operation is that of record matching that identifies records which match the same real world entity. For example, owing to various errors in data and to differences in conventions of representing data, product names in sales records may not match exactly with records in master product catalog tables. In these situations, it is desirable to match similar records across relations.
Record matching is a problem of great significance for a variety of business intelligence applications. Implementations of record matching rely on exact as well as approximate string matching (e.g., edit distances) and use of external reference data sources. Record matching can be viewed as a query composed of a small set of primitive operators. However, formulating such record matching queries is difficult and depends on the specific application scenario. Specifically, the number of options both in terms of string matching operations as well as the choice of external sources can be daunting.
This problem of matching similar records has been studied in the context of record linkage and of identifying approximate duplicate entities in databases. Given two relations R and S, the record matching problem is to identify pairs of records in R×S that "represent" the same real world entity. Typically, both relations R and S can be quite unclean with many incorrect, abbreviated, and missing values, and therefore, the task of designing a program for accurately matching records is challenging. Such challenges arise in record matching scenarios across a variety of other domains, including, but not limited to, matching customers across two sales databases, matching patient records across two databases in a large hospital, matching product records across two catalogs, etc. In all these scenarios, a primary requirement in addition to accuracy is that the record matching programs also be efficiently executable over very large relations.

Example-driven design of efficient record matching queries


A visual and tactile confirmation golf grip and system is provided. The golf grip includes a grip body having an upper portion, a lower portion, a grip length, a proximal end, a distal end, and an exterior body surface. The exterior body surface is defined by a first quadrant, a second quadrant, a third quadrant, and a fourth quadrant. The golf grip may include a first alignment channel, a second alignment channel, a third alignment channel, and a fourth alignment channel. The alignment channels are configured to extend longitudinally along the exterior body surface. The golf grip is configured such that for any given quadrant, there is only one alignment channel in that particular quadrant. The alignment channels are sized and dimensioned to accommodate two-point discrimination, and thus allow a golfer to tactilely perceive the alignment channels to help build psychomotor confidence, which ultimately leads to better golf shots.

Perhaps one of the most important fundamental skills in the game of golf is the ability to properly align the golf club face to the intended target. This skill is extremely critical when it comes to the aspect of the game referred to as putting. When putting, a slight misalignment of the golf club face can result in missing a putt by several inches or more. The same holds true for shots made with irons and woods.
Compounding the problem of alignment is the fact that golf grips are not always applied to golf clubs with the proper orientation with respect to the golf club face. Golf grips are often difficult to apply with the correct intended orientation. This difficulty is due, in part, to the viscoelastic nature of the grip material, which makes the grip subject to rotational deformity during and after application. However, much of the inaccuracy in grip alignment stems from the fact that most golf grips are applied by "eyeballing" the orientation of the grip with respect to the golf club face.
When misaligned, the golf grip creates a potential error in shot direction. This is due to the fact that a golfer will often trust that the golf grip was applied with the proper orientation with respect to the golf club face. Trusting that the golf grip was applied properly, especially when the golf grip includes a "reminder," the golfer will grasp the golf grip in accordance with the "reminder" and believe that the golf club face is properly aligned. However, if the golf grip is misaligned, then the golfer will likely be addressing the golf ball with an open or closed golf club face, which results in an error in shot direction.
The orientation of a golf club in space is dependent upon visual and palpation sense. Golf is in part a hand-eye coordination sport, but more than that it is a sport that requires spatial relationships relative to the body's motion in performing the golf swing. One of the inherent body functions is that which is known as proprioception. Propriocepiton is the ability to sense where any given body part is in relation to other body parts.
There is one other anatomical and physical property in the human body that assists in determining position. This is known as sensibility; the body's ability to determine fine objects by feel. This ability is measured by what is known as two-point discrimination. Two-point discrimination is defined as the ability to discern that two nearby objects touching the skin are truly two distinct points, not one. The test for two-point discrimination is usually performed utilizing two sharp points. Typically, a person has the most sensibility on their finger pads and lips. A normal measurement for two-point discrimination on the finger pads and lips ranges from about 2 to 5 millimeters, while other body parts, such as the back, have a normal two-point discrimination ranging from 30 to 40 millimeters. When the two points are closer together than the range of two-point discrimination a person cannot tell whether they are being contacted by one point or two points.
Motor memory is another important aspect of making a repeatable, consistent golf stroke. A golfer's sense of sight and touch play an important role in the golf swing. In the case of a golf swing, motor memory is very dependent upon tactile sensibility for spatial relationships.
There still remains a need for a golf grip and alignment system to confirm that the golf grip was applied with the desired orientation and that this orientation is maintained throughout the life of the golf grip. Moreover, there is a need for a golf grip that facilitates holding the grip and also helps prevent rotation during use. Specifically, there remains a need for a visual and tactile confirmation golf grip and alignment system that recognizes and utilizes the body's innate abilities of proprioception and sensibility by two-point discrimination.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Visual and tactile confirmation golf grip and system


A hub unit is fixed to a body's side in such a state that a lubricating ring member is held between a hub receiving surface which constitutes a step portion of a large-diameter portion and a vehicle inner side end face of an inner ring with at least either of an abutment surface of the lubricating ring member with the hub receiving surface and an abutment surface thereof with the vehicle inner end face of the inner ring made to constitute a lubricant holding surface which holds a lubricant, whereby the hub receiving surface and the vehicle inner side end face of the inner ring are made to easily slip relative to each other, thereby making it possible to prevent the generation of an abnormal noise between contact surfaces of the inner ring and the hub receiving surface of the axle.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a hub unit mounting structure.
2. Related Art
A drive wheel supporting rolling bearing device is configured such that an axle (a drive shaft) is spline fitted in a central shaft hole in a hub wheel from an inner side of a vehicle, so that the axle and the hub wheel rotate together.
To describe specifically, the axle is formed diametrically large at a body portion and diametrically small at a distal end side thereof, and a spline is formed on a root side of the small-diameter portion of the axle, while a threaded portion is formed on the distal end side thereof, whereby a hub receiving surface of a vehicle outer side end face of the large-diameter portion of the axle is brought into abutment with a vehicle inner side end face of an inner ring by spline fitting the axle in the shaft hole in the hub wheel. Then, a nut is screwed on the threaded portion at the distal end of the axle so as to be pressed against a vehicle outer side end portion of the hub wheel, so that the hub wheel and the inner ring are held axially by the nut so screwed and the hub receiving surface, whereby the hub wheel, the axle and the inner ring are integrated together.
By the configuration that has been described above, normally, the axle, the hub wheel and the inner ring rotate together as an integrated unit. In conditions where a vehicle is drastically started or turned, however, the axle is twisted and a slip occurs between contact surfaces of the inner ring and the end face of the large-diameter portion of the axle, whereby a stick-slip noise (a so-called clink noise) is generated.
As a countermeasure against this, the tightening force of the nut is increased to increase, in turn, the frictional force at the vehicle inner side end face of the inner ring so that no slip is generated between the contact surfaces of the inner ring and the end face of the large-diameter portion of the axle. Alternatively, a lubricant is applied to the vehicle inner side end face of the inner ring to thereby, on the contrary, decrease the frictional force between the contact surfaces so as to release the twist generated in the axle on an early occasion.
Furthermore, according to JP-A-2005-75067, in order to effectively prevent the generation of the stick-slip noise, by bringing a non-wheel side of a connecting portion of an axle where the axle connects to a hub wheel nearer to an abutment spot between an end face side of an inner ring and a large-diameter portion of the axle, a difference in torsional rigidity of the axle between the abutment sport and a connecting spot on the non-wheel side of the connecting portion is made small.
When the tightening force of the nut is increased, however, there has been caused a problem with the strength of the threads, and with the application of the lubricant, there has been caused a problem that the effect of the lubricant does not last long. In addition, with JP-A-2005-75067, a change in structure of both the hub unit and the axle is entrained.


The present invention provides an organic EL device including: a substrate; a stacked structure having at least a first electrode, a light-emitting layer and a second electrode; a sealing member for sealing the substrate and the stacked structure; and a filling layer which enables easy optical adjustment and has optical properties equal to the optical properties of surrounding materials while preventing moisture from entering in the EL device, wherein a layer containing a water-polymerizable monomer is provided between the stacked structure and the sealing member.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an organic electroluminescence device (hereinafter, simply abbreviated as "organic EL device") used for a flat device display or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, an organic EL device as a self-luminous device for a flat device display has received attention. Organic EL devices are classified into a top emission type and a bottom emission type depending on device structure.
An organic EL device easily causes characteristic degradation due to water or oxygen. It is known that even a small amount of water may cause peeling of an organic compound layer and an electrode layer, and produce dark spots. Therefore, an organic EL device is sealed with a sealing member (for example, etching glass cover) having a moisture absorbent placed inside, and the moisture absorbent removes water and oxygen infiltrating into the organic EL device, thereby ensuring a lifetime of the organic EL device.
As one example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-008852 discloses a technique in which a deoxidized and dehydrated portion having an alkali metal or an alkali earth metal is formed at any position inside a sealed space.
Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-079056 discloses a technique in which ceramics such as zeolite or a metal oxide such as calcium oxide is placed inside a sealed space.
The above technique of Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-008852 is effective in a bottom emission type organic EL device since an alkali metal or an alkali earth metal has a metallic luster. However, it is difficult to employ the technique in a top emission type organic EL device since light extraction efficiency and the efficiency of deoxidization or dehydration are mutually contradictory. Further, since film formation of these materials is performed by a sputtering method or the like, these materials have a problem in costs.
The above technique of Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-079056 has a problem of having difficulty in optical adjustment when the technique is adopted for a top emission type organic EL device, because the metal oxide is a solid particle and has a large size in shape.


A front part structure of a vehicle body is provided. A suspension frame is disposed posterior to a front-side component in a longitudinal direction of the vehicle. An apron side member extends in the longitudinal direction. An apron lower member extends in the longitudinal direction, connects the front-side component and the suspension frame and is disposed below the apron side member. The apron lower member is formed into a square cylindrical shape. Two walls of the apron lower member, which are opposed to each other are respectively fixed to the suspension frame.

The present invention relates to a front part structure of a vehicle body including an apron side member which is disposed in a longitudinal direction of a vehicle, an apron lower member which is disposed below the apron side member in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle so that the apron lower member connects a front-side component of a vehicle to a suspension frame.
In the front part structure of the vehicle body, a suspension arm attachment portion is disposed in an end portion (hereinafter, referred to as 'front end portion') of the suspension frame on the front side of the vehicle in consideration of the layout of an engine or a transmission. In addition, an apron lower member attachment portion to be attached with the rear end portion of the apron lower member is disposed in the front end portion so as not to interrupt an operation in which the suspension arm is attached to the suspension arm attachment portion.
As an example, in the past, a structure of the apron lower member attachment portion is known in which a nut is fixed by welding to an upper surface of a flange protruding from the front end portion of the suspension frame and a bolt insertion hole which is concentric with the nut is formed in the flange. Then, the upper surface of the rear end portion of the apron lower member comes into contact with only the lower surface of the flange, and then an attachment bolt is inserted through the bolt insertion hole from the downside to thereby be screw-connected to the nut.
As another example, a structure is known in which the lower surface of the rear end portion of the apron lower member comes into contact with only the upper surface of the front end portion of the suspension frame to thereby carry out an attaching/fixing operation (see Patent Document 1).
Patent Document 1: Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 1-116778 A
The apron lower member transmits a shock generated from the front side of the vehicle to rear-side components such as a suspension frame so as to support the shock together with the rear-side components, thereby functioning to restrict the vehicle from being deformed by the applied shock. In order to carry out the restricting function, the apron lower member is configured to have large rigidity.
However, according to the known structure, since the rear end portion of the apron lower member is attached to the suspension frame in such a manner that the upper surface of the rear end portion of the apron lower member comes into contact with only the lower surface of the flange and then the attachment bolt is inserted through the bolt insertion hole from the downside to thereby be screw-connected to the nut, attachment strength that the rear end portion of the apron lower member is attached to the front end portion of the suspension frame is not strong. Additionally, even when rigidity of the apron lower member is strong, a shock generated from the front side of the vehicle cannot be sufficiently transmitted to the rear-side components such as the suspension frame. As a result, a problem arises in that it is difficult to sufficiently restrict the vehicle from being deformed when the shock is applied.


A reciprocating pump, actuated by an expandable material, can be used to pump well fluids from a wellbore toward the surface of the earth. The expandable material can include piezoelectric, electrostriction, magnetostrictive, or piezomagnetic material. By using the expandable material, the pump can be sufficiently small to fit in various types of tubing within a wellbore.

1. Technical Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to the field of electrical submersible pumps and in particular to an electrical submersible pump having a reciprocating linear motor.
2. Description of the Related Art
Electrical submersible pumps ("ESP") can be used to produce fluids from a wellbore. Conventional ESPs are rotary pumps or push-rod reciprocating pumps. The rotary pumps generally include an electric motor that rotates one or more impellers. The push-rod reciprocating pumps generally include an actuating rod that is driven by a motor located on the surface of the earth.
Both types of conventional pumps can have a diameter that is too large to fit through various types of tubing that may be used within a wellbore. Furthermore, the conventional ESPs can be so big that they require substantial equipment on a drilling rig to insert them into a wellbore. Therefore, it is desirable to have a pump that can be sufficiently small to fit within tubing and be deployed without a drilling rig.

Electrical submersible pump with reciprocating linear motor


A circuit arrangement for safety-critical control systems, for example, for the control of anti-lock brake systems, is based on an at least partly redundant processing of input data which are taken into account for generating control signals. The control system is disconnected upon non-correlation of the signals. A microprocessor system is provided for data processing and includes two or more central processor units permitting parallel processing of the input data. The output data of the CPUs are checked for correlation. Each write/read memory of the microprocessor system has a generator to generate a test information. The write/read memories and the read-only memories are extended by memory spaces for the test information. In every writing or reading access to the memories, the contents of the memory space is tested with the associated test information for correlation, and an error identification signal is generated in the absence of correlation or plausibility.

The present invention relates to a circuit arrangement which is intended for use in safety-critical control systems and comprises a microprocessor system including two or more central processor units or CPUs and by which input signals are evaluated and control signals are generated by data processing, that is at least in part redundant. Input data are processed in parallel and the results of the parallel, redundant data processing are compared and, in the absence of proper correlation, signals are generated for error identification or disconnection and disablement of the control system.
European patent application No. 0 496 509 discloses a circuit arrangement of this type which, exactly as the present invention, is intended for the control of an automotive vehicle anti-lock system. The information obtained by way of wheel sensors is processed in parallel in two microprocessors and the data processing results of the two microprocessors are correlated by another microprocessor to produce an error identification signal when the results differ. The anti-lock control system is disconnected in the presence of an error in order to ensure at least the conventional braking function.
German patent No. 32 34 637 discloses another example of a circuit arrangement of this type which is also used to control and monitor an anti-lock vehicle brake system. In this patent specification, the wheel sensor signals are supplied in parallel to and synchronously processed in two identically programmed microcomputers. The output signals (and intermediate signals) of the two microcomputers are checked for correlation to produce an error identification signal. One of the two microcomputers in this known circuit serves to generate braking pressure control signals and the other one serves to produce test signals. In this concept, a second microcomputer, that is identical in design and programming with the first microcomputer, is necessary especially for identification of a data processing error.
In still another prior art circuit arrangement disclosed in German patent publication No. 41 37 124, the input data are supplied to two microcomputers, of which only one performs the complete intricate signal processing operation. The second microcomputer mainly has a monitoring function. Therefore, the input signals are processed further after conditioning and after the generation of time derivatives by way of simplified control algorithms and a simplified control philosophy. The simplified processing is sufficient to generate signals which, by comparison with signals processed in the more sophisticated microcomputer, permit concluding proper operation. Although the cost of manufacture can be reduced by using a low-performance test microcomputer, in comparison with a system having two microcomputers of identical performance, the effort needed for error identification is still considerable.
Further, it is known in the art, for example, from U.S. Pat. No. 4,277,844 to write test information to a memory space and to compare the contents of the memory space with associated test information.

Circuit arrangement for safety-critical control systems


The invention is about reducing friction and wear and risk of seizure of mechanically interacting lubricated surfaces. A working surface of a mechanical piece engaged with another piece in relative sliding movement is processed for reduced friction. Two distinctly separate zones are allocated on the surface, one attractive to a lubricant used and the other repelling to the lubricant. The repellency may be conveyed to the repelling zone by either a mechanical modifying process or by a chemical change. In a preferred embodiment of the invention the repellency is obtained by lapping. The lubricant attractive layers are associated in a preferred embodiment of the invention with an assembly of recessed microstructures.

In order to reduce friction and wear in mechanically interacting surfaces a lubricant is introduced to the zone of interaction. As described schematically in FIG. 1A to which reference is now made, under ideal lubricating conditions, the lubricant film 20 between the surfaces 32 and 34, moving at relative velocity V, forms an intact layer which permits the moving surfaces to interact with the lubricant. Under such conditions, no contact between the Interacting surfaces 32 and 34 occurs at all, the lubricant layer is said to carry the load P existing between the interacting layers. If the supply of lubricant is insufficient, a reduction in the effectivity of the lubrication ensues, which allows surface to surface interactions to occur.
As described schematically in FIG. 1B to which reference is now made, below a certain level of lubricant supply, the distance between the moving surfaces 32 and 34 diminishes because of load P, the asperities of the surfaces, which are the peaks of surface material protruding from the surfaces, may mutually interact. Thus, for example, the asperity 36 of surface 34 of a machine part, can form physical contact and interact with the asperity 38 of surface 32. The asperities of surfaces 32 and 34 carry all of the load existing between the interacting surfaces. In such a condition, often referred to as boundary lubrication, the lubricant is ineffective and the friction and wear are high.

Method for reducing wear of mechanically interacting surfaces


A method may include ingesting a plurality of sources files from a plurality of infrastructure assets; inputting the plurality of source files into a cognitive computing engine (CCE); receiving an output from the CCE, the output indicating a plurality of relationships between the infrastructure assets; and updating a data store based on the plurality of relationships.

An enterprise may have thousands of assets (e.g., servers, web applications) that may interact to provide support to employees of the enterprise and services to customers of the enterprise. Each asset may be associated with multiple other assets. Thus, when an asset is compromised, degrades, etc., other assets connected to the asset may be impacted as well.


A chain drive having a phaser such as a hydraulic vane phaser interposed between a timing chain and a driving or driven shaft is provided. The phaser or the vane are controlled to oscillate more at certain engine speeds to thereby reduce the tensioning force on the chain at the certain engine speeds.

Traditionally, the camshaft (or, in a multiple camshaft engine, camshafts) of an internal combustion engine, which actuates the intake and/or exhaust valves, is connected to the crankshaft, which receives the force from the pistons, by a timing chain, belt or gear arrangement driving sprockets, pulleys or gears, respectively, on the ends of the shafts. The relative timing of the camshaft(s) and crankshaft in such a system is fixed, and must be chosen to be tailored to power or economy at a given engine speed or load condition. This is inherently a compromise, as an automobile engine does not, obviously, always run at the same speed or load, and a given car owner might desire either power or economy at different times. The demands of emissions control complicate matters further.
This has given rise to Variable Cam Timing (VCT) systems, where the timing of the valves relative to the crankshaft can be changed by altering the relative rotational positions of the camshaft(s) and crankshaft. One of the more successful systems for VCT involves using a device called a "phaser" to allow the camshaft sprocket, which is linked to the crankshaft by the timing chain, to shift angular position relative to the end of the camshaft. Typically, the phaser is a coaxial arrangement of an outer housing which forms the sprocket (or pulley or gear) and an inner rotor fixed to the camshaft. The angular position of the rotor and housing can be shifted by fluid pressure acting on pistons or vanes on the rotor inside cylinders or chambers formed in the housing.
The "vane phaser" setup is commonly used in VCT systems, and will be used in the examples in this disclosure, although it will be understood that the method of the invention will work with other forms of phasers known to the art. Butterfield and Smith, U.S. Pat. No. 5,172,659, "Differential Pressure Control System for Variable Camshaft Timing System", assigned to BorgWarner Inc., shows a vane phaser system which uses the inherent torque reversals in the camshaft caused by the actuation of the valves to move the vane from one position to another. Fluid is led from one side of each vane to the opposing side through a valve. When the valve is open, the rotor is free to oscillate, the fluid passing freely from one side of the vane to the other. When the valve is closed, the fluid cannot flow, and the vane is held in position. By opening the valve while the torque reversal is acting to move the camshaft in the desired direction, then closing the valve, the camshaft is allowed to move, then held in place by the fluid on each side of the vane.
U.S. patent application No. 20030047395, entitled CONTROL SYSTEM FOR VIBRATION EMPLOYING PIEZOELECTRIC STRAIN ACTUATORS by Patton, Mark E. teaches a vibration control system for an engine or transmission cover on a motor vehicle to absorb and dissipate gear or chain-induced vibration uses a piezoelectric strain actuator with a passive resonant control system to absorb and dissipate vibration at a fixed resonance frequency of transmission and engine timing covers. Another embodiment uses an open-loop active control system, based on signals already existing on-board in the engine controller and a control map of phase, amplitude and frequency. Still another embodiment employs a hybrid system, combining open- and closed-loop control.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,561,146, entitled METHOD OF CONTROLLING RESONANCES IN INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE HAVING VARIABLE CAM TIMING by Todd, et al. teaches a method of controlling resonances in timing drive systems for internal combustion engines having variable cam timing systems using cam phasers with the capability of being locked in position. Locking or unlocking the phaser changes the resonant characteristics of the timing drive system. The invention uses these changes in characteristics between locked and unlocked phasers to minimize the effects of resonance in timing drives by changing between locked and unlocked states as engine RPM passes through resonant points.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,327,859, entitled ENGINE TIMING DRIVE WITH FIXED AND VARIABLE PHASING by Pierik et al. teaches an engine timing drive for driving a camshaft and an accessory such as a balance shaft has a transmission member including a fixed phase output for driving the accessory and a variable phase output for driving the camshaft. A preferred embodiment incorporates a planetary cam phaser in a driven sprocket that also carries a fixed phase output gear as an accessory drive.
Further, there are a number of patents teaching methods or devices for dealing with resonance and related matters. These patents typically use tensioners whereby the tensioners are softened various means.
As can be appreciated, timing drives especially modern timing drives with their lower inertia and lower friction can develop resonances that can increase the load in the timing drive. This increase in load may be undesirable. Methods and apparatus are devised to reduce these high loads. The methods and apparatus include: making the tensioner softer by increasing the leakage of the tensioner and increasing the piston to bore clearance. The methods and apparatus further include: adding a torturous path vent plug; adding apressure relief; and adding a force release to the tensioner piston.
With the introduction of one or more cam phaser(s) into a timing drive, the increased inertia from the cam phaser can cause the engine speed at which the resonance occurs to change and may affect the operating speed of the engine operation. Typically, within a neighborhood of a particular engine speed, the tensional force exerted on a chain is bigger even than that at higher engine speeds. Therefore, it is desirable to use the newly added phaser for reducing resonance or undue tension of a timing drive.

Method of changing the duty cycle frequency of a PWM solenoid on a CAM phaser to increase compliance in a timing drive


Exemplary embodiments enable debugging executable code using a debugger in a computational device that provides a programming environment including a presentation layer. For example, an exemplary method includes providing a first marshalling function that receives a portion of information manipulated by the executable code and produces a presentation layer representation of the portion of the information. The presentation layer representation is compatible with a debugger that debugs the executable code. An exemplary method also includes debugging the executable code to produce a presentation layer representation of the portion of the information with the first marshalling function so as to display the presentation layer representation of the portion of the information to a user via a display device. The debugging also includes modifying the presentation layer representation of the portion of the information to produce modified information for use by the executable code, a device, or a user.

A debugger is software that identifies "bugs" in a program as the program is developed. As used herein a "bug" is any behavior in a program that is not what the program is intended to do. The debugger further helps a programmer to fix program code that does not operate in a desired manner. Typically, a debugger allows the programmer to monitor the program as the program executes. The programmer may modify instructions in the program using the debugger. Furthermore, the programmer may use the debugger to modify values stored in memory for the program.
The debugger may further allow the programmer to start and stop execution of the program in multiple ways. For example, the debugger may enable the programmer to insert breakpoints in the program that halt execution of the program at the locations where the breakpoints are inserted. The debugger may further allow the programmer to view values of variables and other objects at the breakpoints. For example, the programmer can view the state of the program at each breakpoint and thus, gather valuable information regarding how the program behaves.
The debugger may further allow the programmer to start and stop program execution via a technique called "single stepping." With single stepping, a single statement in the program is executed then program execution is halted. Then, the next statement is executed and program execution is halted. This process may repeat as long as single stepping is active or until the end of the program is reached.
Debuggers may require that the program be available in executable form for the program to be executed. In many instances, a compiler will generate this executable form of the program. The compiler builds a symbol table when compiling the program. The symbol table is a data structure that holds information regarding each identifier in the program. The information may include type, size, and memory location of each object that is identified by an identifier in the program and is specific to the programming language in which the program is written.
The debugger may access information in the symbol table to display information regarding an object in the program. For example, the debugger may display a value for an object when program execution is halted. To display the object's value, the debugger may need to locate and read the language-specific representation of the value of the object which is stored in memory, and convert the information into a representation that the debugger can understand (e.g. a "source code representation"). Based on the information in the symbol table, the debugger determines the data type (language-specific), size and memory location of the representation of the object. The debugger reads the value of the language-specific representation of the object at the memory location specified by the symbol table. The debugger uses the type definition for the type specified for the object in the symbol table to format and display the value of the object. A debugger may use its own conversion to read from the symbol table to convert the language-specific representation of the object to source code representation. The debugger then displays the source code representation of the object using a presentation layer in the debugger, where the presentation layer is a component that displays information to the user and/or that accepts information from the user.
In addition to accessing the symbol table to display a value of an object, the debugger may also access the symbol table to modify a value of an object when program execution is halted. For example, when the programmer provides a modified value of an object (such as a variable) through the presentation layer of the debugger, the debugger receives the value in a format that is native to the debugger (e.g. the source code representation). The debugger uses the information in the symbol table and the debugger's conversion function to convert the modified value in the source code representation of the object into a corresponding modified value of the language-specific representation of the object.

Debugging using presentation layer representations of objects


An electronic flash device includes a first DC--DC converter circuit of separately-excited type, a second DC--DC converter circuit of separately-excited type, a capacitor to be charged by the first DC--DC converter circuit and the second DC--DC converter circuit, and a discharge tube which converts charging energy charged to the capacitor into light energy. The first DC--DC converter circuit includes a first switching element having a first control electrode, and an a first oscillation transformer to which energization is controlled by the first switching element. A first control pulse signal is supplied to the first control electrode. The second DC--DC converter circuit includes a second switching element having a second control electrode, and an a second oscillation transformer to which energization is controlled by the second switching element. A second control pulse signal is supplied to the second control electrode. The first DC--DC converter circuit and the second DC--DC converter circuit are connected in parallel, and the first and second control pulses are supplied such that the second control electrode changes from a non-energizing state to an energizing state before the first control electrode changes from an energizing state to a non-energizing state.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a charging circuit for an electronic flash device.
2. Description of Related Art
Known methods for rapidly charging electronic flash devices include a method of increasing the turn ratio between the primary winding and the secondary winding of an oscillation transformer and detecting the voltage of a main capacitor so as to stop the charging voltage at a predetermined voltage at which the electronic flash device becomes usable, and a method of switching the turn ratio between the primary winding and the secondary winding of an oscillation transformer on the way during charging. Another method which has been used for rapid charging involves charging with a push-pull converter (hereinafter referred to as "P--P converter").
FIG. 4 illustrates a known P--P type DC--DC (direct-current-to-direct-current) converter circuit. Reference numeral 1 denotes a battery which is the electrical power source, reference numeral 2 denotes a resistor, reference numeral 3 denotes a capacitor, reference numeral 4 denotes a first oscillation transistor, reference numeral 5 denotes a first switching element, and reference numeral 6 denotes a diode. A parallel circuit composed of the resistor 2 and the capacitor 3 is connected between the base of the first oscillation transistor 4 and the emitter thereof, and the base of the first oscillation transistor 4 is connected to the cathode of the diode 6 via the first switching element 5, and the anode of the diode 6 is connected to the negative pole of the battery 1.
Reference numeral 7 denotes a resistor, reference numeral 8 denotes a capacitor, reference numeral 9 denotes a second oscillation transistor, reference numeral 10 denotes a second switching element, and reference numeral 11 denotes a diode. A parallel circuit composed of the resistor 7 and the capacitor 8 is connected between the base of the second oscillation transistor 9 and the emitter thereof, and the base of the oscillation transistor 9 is connected to the cathode of the diode 11 via the second switching element 10, and the anode of the diode 11 is connected to the negative pole of the battery 1.
Reference numerals 13 and 14 denote resistors. Reference numeral 15 denotes an oscillation transformer, having a first primary winding P.sub.1, a second primary winding P.sub.2, a secondary winding S and a feedback winding F. The junction point of the first and second primary windings P.sub.1 and P.sub.2 is connected to the negative pole of the battery 1, and the other ends of the first and second primary windings P.sub.1 and P.sub.2 are connected to the collector of the first oscillation transistor 4 and the collector of the second oscillation transistor 9, respectively.
Both ends of the secondary winding S are connected to each other via the diodes 18 and 19. The feedback winding F is connected between the cathodes of the diodes 6 and 11 according to the polarity indicated in FIG. 4, and the resistors 14 and 13 are connected to the diodes 6 and 11 in a parallel manner. The junction point of the cathodes of the diodes 18 and 19 is connected to the positive pole of a main capacitor 23.
Reference numeral 16 and 17 denote diodes, which are inserted between the cathode of the diode 11 and the anode of the diode 18 and between the cathode of the diode 6 and the anode of the diode 19, respectively. Reference numeral 20 denotes a voltage detecting circuit, which is connected to the main capacitor 23 in a parallel manner. Reference numeral 21 denotes a trigger circuit for triggering emission of light, and reference numeral 22 denotes a discharge tube. Reference characters "a", "b" and "c" denote terminals, which are connected to a camera control circuit (not shown).
Now, description of the DC--DC converter circuit will be made. When a charging signal for the electronic flash device is supplied from the camera control circuit (not shown), a voltage of a high level is generated at the terminal "a". Accordingly, the level of each of the resistor 12, the control electrode of the first switching element 5 and the control electrode of the second switching element 10 becomes high, so that the first and second switching elements 5 and 10 both are brought into a conducting state. Since the structures of the primary-side oscillation circuits respectively composed of the first oscillation transistor 4 and the second oscillation transistor 9 are the same, the start of oscillation is effected contingently to the balance of the various elements. Here, description will be made under the presupposition that the first oscillation transistor 4 is the first to start oscillation.
Once the switching elements 5 and 10 are brought into a conducting state, a base current flows from the battery 1 via the emitter and base of the first oscillation transistor 4, the first switching element 5 and the resistor 14. Due to the base current, a collector current of h.sub.FE times the base current flows to the first primary winding P.sub.1 of the oscillation transformer 15. The collector current causes an electromotive force to be generated in the secondary winding S and the feedback winding F.
Due to the electromotive force generated in the secondary winding S, a current flows through the diode 18, the main capacitor 23, the battery 1, the emitter and base of the first oscillation transistor 4, the first switching element 5 and the diode 17, and due to the electromotive force generated in the feedback winding F, a current flows through the resistor 13, the battery 1, the emitter and base of the first oscillation transistor 4 and the first switching element 5, so that with each current flowing as the base current of the first oscillation transistor 4, the first oscillation transistor 4 instantly comes into a saturated state.
When the current flows to the first primary winding P.sub.1 and the magnetic flux of the core thereof becomes saturated, a reverse electromotive force is generated in each of the windings, so that a reverse bias is applied between the base and emitter of the first oscillation transistor 4, and a current flows to the feedback winding F via the resistor 14, battery 1, the emitter and base of the second oscillation transistor 9 and the second switching element 10. Also, when the current flows to the second primary winding P.sub.2, a current flows through the diode 19, the main capacitor 23, the battery 1, the emitter and base of the second oscillation transistor 9, the second switching element 10 and the diode 16, so that with each current becoming the base current of the second oscillation transistor 9, the collector current of the second oscillation transistor 9 flows to the second primary winding P.sub.2. This electromotive force causes the electromotive force generated in the secondary winding S and the feedback winding F to be generated at the polarity at which the electromotive force increases as a base current, and thus the second oscillation transistor 9 instantly comes into a saturated state.
In such a way as described above, the first and second oscillation transistors 4 and 9 are instantly switched, and alternately are placed in conducting states and non-conducting states, thereby performing DC--DC converting operations. This voltage step-up operation causes a high-voltage charging charge to be stored in the main capacitor 23. Then, the potential of the main capacitor 23 increases, and a charge completion signal is generated at the point of time at which the voltage detecting circuit 20 judges the voltage to be a certain voltage, e.g., 330V. The charge completion signal is supplied via the connection terminal "b" to the camera control circuit (not shown). The camera control circuit changes the level of the connection terminal "a" from a high level to a low level so as to place the switching elements 5 and 10 in a non-conducting state, and stops the oscillation of the oscillating transistors 4 and 9 by means of stopping the base current thereof, so that charging to the main capacitor 23 is stopped. Subsequently, at the point of time at which a flash emission signal for the electronic flash device is supplied to the trigger circuit 21 from the camera control circuit via the terminal "c" in accordance with a photo-taking operation, a high-voltage pulse of several kV is applied to the trigger electrode 22a of the discharge tube 22 from the trigger circuit 21. Then, the discharge tube 22 is excited by this high-voltage pulse, and the charged charge of the main capacitor 23 is discharged so as to cause the discharge tube 22 to emit flash light, thus illuminating an object to be photographed.
According to such a known example, in the event that a known single oscillation circuit is used, there is approximately 10 .mu.sec of time until the magnetic saturation of the oscillation transformer is cleared, and although the duty ratio between the conducting state and non-conducting state differs between at the time of start of oscillation and at the time of completion of charging, that duty ratio taken as an overall average is around 70% in general electronic flash devices built in cameras. Accordingly, with the P--P converter shown in the known example in FIG. 4, that duty ratio can be made greater by instantly inverting the operation of the oscillation transformer, thus allowing for charging of the main capacitor 23 to be perpetually conducted, thereby facilitating speedy charging.
However, although the duty ratio of the known example is increased, switching time of 3 .mu.sec to 5 .mu.sec is required for switching of the oscillation transistors 4 and 9, so that the duty ratio is around 85%, meaning that the duty ratio could not be made to unlimitedly approach 100%.


The description relates to a process for the production of aqueous chlorine dioxide solutions through oxidation of chlorite with oxo acids and/or oxo acid anions having a suitable redox potential in a buffered aqueous medium, wherein an acidic aqueous solution A is produced which has a pH of about 5 or less and contains the oxo acids and/or oxo acid anions, and the acidic aqueous solution A is mixed with an aqueous chlorite solution B to form chlorine dioxide, wherein a pH of less than 6.95 is adjusted in the reaction mixture, this pH value being stabilized by a buffering system contained therein.

a) Field of the Invention
The invention is directed to a process for the production of aqueous chlorine dioxide solutions through oxidation of chlorite with oxo acids and/or oxo acid anions having a suitable redox potential in a buffered aqueous medium.
b) Description of the Related Art
Numerous attempts have been made up to the present, without satisfactory results, to kill Legionella in hot water systems in order to reduce potential health risks. Further, conditions exist in industrial cold water systems which favor bacterial growth and which lead to a biofilm on the surfaces of transporting lines which has been countered up to the present by biostatic means. For example, isothiazolone, thiocyanates, quaternary ammonium compounds and chlorine-containing compounds are used for this purpose. A great disadvantage of these biostatic means consists in that the cold water often has CSB/BSB values above the limiting values due to the large amounts used. In fact, only an increase in temperature to about 73.degree. C. and an increase in the flow volume have proven suitable for killing Legionella in water systems. However, there is a risk that after a certain period of time the Legionella which have not been killed will propagate again from the biofilm and encrusted deposits in the water line system, especially from so-called dead strains, and will once again cause lasting contamination of the system. Therefore, nonionic phosphonic acids with hydrogen peroxide (EP 0 540 772 A1) or grapefruit seed extract (EO 0 602 891 A1) were recently proposed for combatting Legionella. However, none of these methods has been successful.
Aqueous chlorine dioxide solutions are promising candidates for the areas of application mentioned above. However, the known processes for industrial production of aqueous chlorine dioxide solutions have grave disadvantages which pose obstacles to the use of chlorine dioxide solutions produced by these methods in drinking water and in related areas.
According to the process in DE-PS 27 28 170, 7 to 21 parts by weight of chlorite, 7.5 to 22.5 parts by weight of hypochlorite and 0.5 to 1.5 parts by weight carbonate are dissolved, in that order, in 35 to 105 parts by weight water. In order to adjust a slightly alkaline pH, 7.5 to 22.5 parts by weight of diluted inorganic or organic acid are added. A stabilizer, especially in the form of a peroxide, is advantageously mixed in beforehand.
According to DE-AS 27 30 883, an aqueous chlorine dioxide solution is produced by acidifying a chorite solution to a pH of about 4 and subsequently raising the pH value to about 7.0 to 7.2 by adding a water-soluble metal hydroxide. This is followed by the addition of carbonate. The teaching disclosed in DE-AS 27 30 883 offers the advantage that the aqueous chlorine dioxide solution remains stable exclusively through the sodium carbonate, so that additional stabilizers in the form of peroxides, for example, can be dispensed with. The stabilized chlorine dioxide solution is said to be storable for long periods of time, that is, months and years, and is suitable particularly for treatment of drinking water.
According to the teaching of the two processes mentioned above, the carbonate serves to ensure buffering in the basic pH range. However, the incorporation of the carbonate stabilizing in the alkaline range leads to a high pH value which is undesirable for various reasons: a high pH promotes the reformation of chlorite ions so that the known chlorine dioxide solutions always contain an unwanted proportion of chlorite ions. Moreover, in the alkaline range, highly toxic and therefore undesirable chlorate can form through various types of reactions. For example, when alkaline hypochlorite solution is mixed with chlorite solution, the oxidation of the chlorite beyond the oxidation stage of the chlorine dioxide leads to chlorate. Further, chlorine dioxide tends in the alkaline range toward disproportionation in chlorate and the by-product chlorite.
The process according to DE-PS 34 03 631 is also directed to the production of a slightly alkaline system based on a chlorite solution. It aims at the production of an aqueous "chlorite" solution which is stabilized by a peroxide compound, modified, and adjusted in the alkaline range. In this process, an aqueous solution with a pH of 3 or less containing sulfate ions is mixed with a peroxide compound which is stable therein, wherein a 0.001 to 0.1 molar concentration of peroxide compound results in the end product. This solution is mixed with an aqueous alkaline chlorite solution in such quantity that there results a pH of greater than 7.0, especially between 7.5 and 8.0. A water-soluble phosphate is preferably added to the resulting end product, wherein a buffer action occurs as a result of the third stage of dissociation of the orthophosphoric acid. This satisfies the requirement that a pH value of greater than 7 is maintained.
Although the known process described above admittedly leads to advantageous uses in individual cases, subsequent scientific tests have shown that the chemical designations connected with it are not applicable and, further, improvements would be desirable. With respect to the incorrect formulas, reference is had to M. Rimpler, W. Regment, D. Pacik, "Balneozoon und Hydroxan, Die Anwendung non halogenhaltigen Sauerstoffkomplexen fur die Balneologie und den Schwimmbadbereich [Balneo-organisms and Hydroxan, The Use of Halogen-containing Oxygen Complexes in Balneology and Swimming Pools]", Forum Stadte-Hygiene 43 (1992) Sept./Oct., pages 226-230. It is shown in this article that chlorine dioxide formed according to the known process is transferred in the presence of chlorite ions to a charge-transfer complex of the formula Cl.sub.2 O.sub.4.sup.- which converts to the tetrachlorodecaoxide anion in the alkaline range by means of oxygen. This anion can also be formed from chlorine dioxide through the action of an oxidizing agent such as hydrogen peroxide. The disadvantage of the products obtained by means of the known methods consists in that they all contain chlorite which is disadvantageously liberated when used, for example, for the treatment of drinking water. In this connection, it must be considered particularly in regard to the treatment of drinking water that legally prescribed limits for chlorite may not be exceeded. The currently applicable maximum value is 0.2 mg chlorite/l.
Oxoferin.RTM. is a known activated oxygen which is stabilized in alkaline medium and embedded in a matrix of chlorite ions. The stabilized activated oxygen is in the form of a solution. A medication containing this activated oxygen can be advantageously used for the treatment of skin damage or for wound healing disorders. Its production is described in EP-A-0 093 875.
In the Olin system, chlorine bleach and a chlorite solution are reacted at a pH of 3.5 to 4. Sulfuric acid is used to adjust the pH. This system is commercially available as Model 350 Dioxolin. This process is carried out in a single mixing process, which leads to uncontrolled processes and complex mixtures. It has the further disadvantage that no buffer is provided by the sulfuric acid.
As was first described in W. J. Masschelein, Trib. Eau 42 (542); 1990, pages 49-52, chlorine dioxide has a toxic effect on Legionella. The chlorine dioxide used for technical purposes in this reference was obtained from chlorite and acetic anhydride. After consumption of the strong oxidizing agent chlorine dioxide, a mixture of this kind, due to the acetate carbon body contained therein, is a nutritional base for other undesirable microorganisms especially in drinking water systems. This fact therefore militates against the use of an aqueous chlorine dioxide mixture of this kind in the foodstuff and drinking water domains, especially since the addition of organics to drinking water has meanwhile been prohibited in many countries (e.g., in the German Federal Republic (TVO)).
Aside from the above-described processes for chlorine dioxide production through oxidation or disproportionation of chlorite, chlorine dioxide can also be obtained by reduction of chlorates. A process of this type is the Mathieson process or sulfur dioxide process. This is a counterflow process in which a solution of sodium chlorate is mixed with sulfuric acid at the head of a reaction vessel and an air-sulfur dioxide mixture is blown in at the bottom. An air-chlorine dioxide mixture can be removed from the head of this reactor. This mixture also contains proportions of chlorine.
In order to reduce any chlorine that is formed, a surplus of sulfur dioxide is used in the process. The addition of chloride ions also increases the yield of chlorine dioxide. A process of this kind is disclosed, e.g., in WO 90/05698.
The Solvay process or methanol process uses methanol for the reduction of the chlorate. Since the reaction speed of this process is lower than that of the Mathieson process, the process must be carried out at a higher temperature. A process of this kind is described, e.g., in EP 0 357 198.
Chlorate can also be reduced to chlorine dioxide by chloride. The resulting chlorine dioxide is always contaminated with chlorine gas. If this contamination is undesirable, the chlorine dioxide is absorbed by an aqueous solution and thus separated from the chlorine. A process of this kind is described in EP 0 106 503.

Method of preparing aqueous chlorine dioxide solutions


An exposure system includes a mask stage module adapted for holding a first mask and a second mask, wherein the first mask is configured for illumination by a first beam to form a transformed first beam having a first pattern from the first mask and the second mask is configured for illumination by a second beam to form a transformed second beam having a second pattern from the second mask. The exposure system also includes a beam combiner configured to combine the transformed first and second beams to form a resultant beam, wherein the resultant beam is projected into a substrate coated with a photoresist layer.

The semiconductor integrated circuit (IC) technology has progressed rapidly in continued minimization of feature size and maximization of packing density. The minimization of feature size relies on the improvement in photolithography and its ability to print smaller features. For example, an alternating phase shifting mask can be used to print smaller features from a given imaging tool. The alternating phase shifting mask is usually accompanied by a second trim mask. However, double exposures and changing masks often result in higher manufacturing cost, lower manufacturing throughput, and more alignment issues.

Mask superposition for multiple exposures

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.


An improved pipe connection comprises a connection slot, a sleeve and a clip assembly. When a pipe is inserted therein, the clip assembly is used to thrust the pipe into the slot while anti-skiing plates and stretching clips automatically grasp the pipe such that a complete connection can be completed within a very short moment.

Conventional pipe joints as a whole are of simple structure, that is, female thread is cut in the interior of a joint while male thread is on the surface of the end of pipe-to-be-connected. Having the threaded end sealed with plastic tape, the pipe is then screwed into the joint, and a wrench or spanner is used to tighten the joint. As wrenches and spanners, however, are not common tools for ordinary people, such work has general become exclusive for plumbers and is difficult to be simplified. Moreover, inconvenience during this process is encountered as thread cutting, tape sealing and spanner tightening are to be proceeded in the field to match the actual lining. In response to these problems, people have invented fast-assembled joints to eliminate difficulties and inconveniences caused. Some of these kinds of fast-assembled joints are even being applied to water pipe connections resulted in simplified and prompt performance. However, the high cost both in material and energy in such known joints are not economical.

Pipe connection with clip assembly having pivoting plates

No. 4-3, Lane 97, Lung Chuan St., Panchiao


Embodiments relate to type-I PLLs that do not lock at a sub-harmonic frequency of a reference clock signal by controlling timing of charging or discharging of one or more capacitors in the PLLs. A phase frequency detector (PFD) of a type-I PLL can prevent sub-harmonic locking by generating a clear output signal to cause a sampling capacitor of PLL's loop filter to discharge only during a time period when the sampling capacitor is not being charged. For example, the PFD can include a gating element to control the time during which the clear output signal is generated. By ensuring that the sampling capacitor is not discharged during a time period while it is being charged, the PLL's voltage-controlled oscillator is controlled to oscillate at an intended frequency rather than at a sub-harmonic of the intended frequency.

Field of the Disclosure
This disclosure pertains in general to phase locked loops (PLLs) and more particularly to a sample and reset type-I PLL.
Description of the Related Art
PLLs are widely employed in radio, telecommunications, computers, and other electronic applications. They can be used to demodulate a signal, recover a signal from a noisy communication channel, generate a stable frequency at multiples of an input frequency (frequency synthesis), or distribute precisely timed clock pulses in digital logic circuits such as microprocessors. Since a single integrated circuit can provide a complete PLL functionality, PLLs are widely used in modern electronic devices, with output frequencies ranging from a few hertz up to many gigahertz.
PLLs can be implemented as either a type-I PLL or a type-II PLL. Type-II PLL typically uses a large capacitor for improving stability of the loop, which increases the die cost and also causes leakage current issues as the technology scales down to deep sub-micron CMOS process technologies. A type-I PLL can reduce leakage current issues by implementing a linear phase detection and also by eliminating the large capacitor for stability. A drawback of conventional type-I PLLs is sub-harmonic locking, where the type-I PLL locks the loop to a frequency of the divider clock signal that is a sub-harmonic value of a frequency of an oscillator output signal of a voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO). Conventional type-I PLLs use a separate frequency detector loop that prevents the PLL from sub-harmonic locking by ensuring that the VCO oscillates at the proper frequency.

Phase locked loop with sub-harmonic locking prevention functionality


A power supply circuit for a CPU includes a first control circuit, a switch circuit, an operational amplifying circuit, and a second control circuit. The first control circuit is connected to a BIOS to receive a CPU identification signal. The switch circuit is connected to the first control circuit, and also connected between a CPU and a PSI pin of a VRM. The operational amplifying circuit is connected to the VRM to receive a current monitor signal output from the VRM. The second control circuit is connected to the operational amplifying circuit, the first control circuit and the PSI pin of the VRM. When the CPU identification signal is at a high level and the current monitor signal output from the VRM is lower than a reference voltage of the operational amplifying circuit, the switch circuit turns off, and the operational amplifying circuit outputs a second control signal to make the PSI pin of the VRM grounded.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to power supply circuits, and particularly to a power supply circuit for a central processing unit (CPU) in a computer.
2. Description of the Related Art
Energy consumption is an important issue for electronic products, such as personal computers. The CPU consumes a significant portion of the energy needed by a computer, and is therefore a logical target for minimizing energy consumption. The CPU having a power state indication (PSI) function will automatically reduce the voltage at the PSI pin of a voltage regulator module (VRM) in order to change the power supply, for example, from 5-phase to 3-phase when the CPU is idle. However, there are still many kinds of CPUs without the PSI function in the market.

Power supply circuit for central processing unit

Hong Fu Jin Precision Industry (ShenZhen) Co., Ltd.


A method and apparatus for setting up a ringback media session between a calling party and a ringback server. A signaling proxy may receive a call setup message seeking to set up a call from the calling party to a called party and responsively forward the call setup message from the signaling proxy to the called party. Thereafter, the signaling proxy may receive from the called party a reply to the call setup message indicating that the call is not yet answered by the called party. In response, the signaling proxy may send a call-forwarding initiation message to the ringback server to initiate forwarding of the call to the ringback server and setup of a ringback media session between the ringback server and the calling party. That message may include a designation of particular media that the ringback server should provide to the calling party, based on subscriber profile data.

In a traditional telephone network, ringback is typically an audible tone sequence presented to a caller to signal that the called party's phone is being alerted of the caller's incoming call to the called party. Upon hearing ringback, the caller may generally assume that the called party is receiving a corresponding, concurrent (or nearly concurrent) alert, such as an audible ringtone sequence. The ringback usually continues until either the called party (or a call-handling function, such an answering machine) answers the call or the caller hangs up before the call is answered.
The model for ringback has evolved similarly in both circuit-switched telephony with out-of-band signaling and services (Signaling System 7 (SS7) and Advanced Intelligent Network (AIN), for example), and packet-based telephony, such as Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP).
Ringback tone in these types of systems is typically stored as an audio data file on a network entity, such as a network server, and played out to a caller's phone during call setup when the entity receives a signal, from a called switch for example, indicating that the called party's phone is being alerted.
The server-based model of ringback tone storage/playout can support multiple ringback tones, and lends itself to a variety of schemes for customization of ringback tones. An example of customization of ringback tone is a user feature that allows a subscriber in a carrier or service provider network to select one or more ringback tones that will be presented to callers to that user. The carrier or service provider may in turn charge a fee to the subscriber for access to the feature.
In recent years, basic techniques for setting up and connecting VoIP calls have also advanced substantially. As a general matter, a signaling protocol such as the well known Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) will be used to exchange signaling messages between calling and called parties, so as to set up a VoIP call between the parties. For instance, when the calling party dials the telephone number of a called party, the calling party's VoIP phone may generate and send over an IP network to the called party's phone a SIP "INVITE" message that requests setup of a media session between the phones. The SIP INVITE message designates the IP address of calling party's phone and describes one or more attributes of the desired session, such as voice coding scheme to be used and so forth.
Upon receipt of the SIP INVITE message, the called party's phone may then ring to alert the called party of the call. Possibly in response to the called party answering the call, the called party's phone may then generate and send over the IP network to the calling party's phone a SIP "200 OK" message that indicates acceptance of the requested session. The SIP 200 OK message similarly designates the IP address of the called party's phone and describes any alternative proposed attributes of the call session.
Upon receipt of the SIP 200 OK message, the calling party's phone then generates and sends to the called party's phone a SIP "ACK" message, which acknowledges setup of the session. The calling and called parties may then proceed to exchange packets representing voice or other bearer data in the agreed manner, i.e., the call may proceed.
One significant advance in this regard is the introduction of an enhanced proxy system now well known as the "IP Multimedia Subsystem" or "IMS." With IMS, the IP network will include at least one "Call Session Control Function" (CSCF), which functions as an enhanced signaling proxy through which SIP signaling flows, and which can act upon or in response to the SIP signaling in order to provide or facilitate various services. One CSCF (referred to as a calling CSCF (O-CSCF) or a proxy CSCF (P-CSCF)), may serve a calling party, while another CSCF (referred to as a called CSCF (T-CSCF) or a serving CSCF (S-CSCF)), may serve a called party. Further, the network may include at least one "Home Subscriber Server" (HSS), which is a profile database that contains service profile data for various subscribers, such as data indicating for a particular call what services and service attributes apply to a given calling party and to a given called party. In addition, the network may include various application servers that are arranged to carry out special services or functions.
In practice, when a device sends a SIP INVITE message, the message will pass to a CSCF. The CSCF may then query the HSS to determine whether particular applications should be invoked, based on the profile of either or both parties to the SIP signaling exchange. According to this determination, the CSCF may then send the SIP INVITE to a particular application server (designated by the HSS for instance), and the application server may then operate on or in response to the SIP INVITE in some manner and send the SIP INVITE back to the CSCF, and the CSCF may then send the SIP INVITE along to its destination.
An example application of such IMS signaling is to facilitate pre-paid or other account balance tracking for VoIP calling. When a party seeks to set up a VoIP call by sending a SIP INVITE to a called party, a CSCF may shunt that SIP INVITE to an account balance server, and the account balance server may confirm (by reference to the HSS for instance) that the calling party has sufficient balance to proceed with the call and, if so, may pass the SIP INVITE back to the CSCF, and the CSCF may pass the SIP INVITE along to its destination. When SIP 200 OK and SIP ACK messages flow in turn between the calling and called parties, the CSCF may then further signal to the account balance server, to allow the account balance server to begin decrementing the calling party's account balance. And when the call ends (as a SIP "BYE" message flows from one party to the other, for instance), the CSCF may similarly signal to the account balance server, to allow the account balance server to stop decrementing the calling party's account balance and update the balance record accordingly. Many other examples of IMS signaling are possible as well.
In other situations, the CSCF itself may itself apply enhanced services when faced with SIP signaling, regardless of whether the CSCF also requests the assistance of an application server. For instance, when the CSCF receives a SIP INVITE destined to a particular party, the CSCF may query the HSS and thereby determine that the called party has a call-forwarding function set to indicate that calls to the called party should be forwarded to a designated third party. In response, the CSCF may then convert the SIP INVITE into a SIP 181 call-forwarding initiation message and send the SIP 181 message to the third party's device, instead of setting up the call to the originally called party. Upon receipt of such a message, the third party's device may then respond with a SIP 200 OK indicating acceptance of the forwarded call (possibly in response to a the third party answering the call), and that SIP 200 OK would flow through the CSCF to the calling party. In turn, the calling party may send a SIP ACK via the CSCF to the third party, so as to complete setup of the forwarded call, and the calling party and third party may begin communicating.
One additional function that can be carried out by a CSCF or other IMS elements (e.g., a Service Capability Interaction Management (SCIM) function) is to verify the availability of, and reserve, any access-network bandwidth necessary for a device to engage in a requested communication session (such as a VoIP session for instance). Where a party's device communicates via a cellular wireless network, for instance, the device may be served by a Packet Data Serving Node (PDSN) and a Radio Access Network (RAN). When session setup signaling passes through IMS, the CSCF, SCIM, or other IMS entity may further engage in signaling with the PDSN or RAN (or with a Policy Decision Function (PDF) that in turn communicates with a Policy Enforcement Point (PEP) such as the PDSN) to determine whether the bandwidth necessary for the requested session is available and, if so, to reserve the bandwidth.

Method and system for setting up a ringback media session


The inventions herein relate to novel games of chance and apparatus and methods for their play. In one embodiment, a multi-level game of chance is played by presenting the player with multiple options, where there is at least one positive option and at least one negative option. By way of example, at each level the player selects one of four boxes, where two have a monetary amount, and one has a strike. Optionally, the fourth box may comprise a xe2x80x98mystery boxxe2x80x99, which requires a decision within a decision. When presented with the mystery box, the player may elect to open it or not. If they do not open it, game play resumes at the existing game level. If they open it, one of multiple options is presented, including a positive option and a negative option. In the preferred embodiment, the positive option could include: a multiplier of the winnings of the player, e.g., a double of the money in the player""s account, or the updating of the safe level for the player. A negative result could be an additional strike. Preferably, the probability of a negative outcome from the opening of the mystery box should be the same as the probability of a negative event the general playing of the game. In studio participation, casino based play, or play over an electronic network, such as the Internet, is contemplated.

These inventions relate to methods, an apparatus for their implementation, of unique player participation games, and for improved methods of play for games of chance. More particularly, these inventions relate to new and improved games involving player participation in a broadcast medium, such as television, and in other communication media, such as over the Internet or other communications network.
Player participation games fall broadly under the categories of games of chance and games of skill. One of the main forms of games of chance is lotteries, which by definition, involve the three elements of: 1) prize, 2) chance and 3) consideration. If these three elements are present, then the game is considered to be a lottery, and is typically then run by a governmental entity. In the United States, lotteries are typically run by the individual states, or collectively by a group of states. In other countries, it is typically the national government that runs the lottery. Countries and states attempt to strictly limit the game play to their geographic boundaries. For example, in Austria, while electronic access to the game may be available over the Internet, or in order to play, the person must have a bank account in Austria, and be able to navigate the non-english menu.
Games have been conducted in any of a number of formats. Certainly, live, in person games have been performed. Yet other games have been played and broadcast over a broadcast medium, such as radio or television. Yet other games have been played through active communication media, such as the telephone, or over a communication network such as the Internet.
Various attempts have been made to provide game play over the Internet. By way of example, the game show Jeopardy has been placed on the web at http://www.sony.com.
Various other attempts have been made to extend the general concept of gambling to broad communication media, such as the Internet. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,800,268 entitled, xe2x80x9cMethod of Participating in a Live Casino Game from a Remote Locationxe2x80x9d has been asserted in a litigation in against an off shore corporation. The ""268 patent discloses a system in which a player may participate in a live casino game from a location remote from the casino. A player interface station, such as a computer terminal or other special input device, is connected by a communication line to the casino. A second communication line is established from the casino to the player""s financial institution. The player is presented with an image of an actual xe2x80x9clivexe2x80x9d game. The player then participates directly as if they were physically present at the casino. A wager is cleared with the player""s financial institution to insure adequate resources to cover the bet.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,845,739 to Ronald A. Katz is entitled, xe2x80x9cTelephonic Interface Statistical Analysis Systemxe2x80x9d. The patent describes various operating formats, including a format the to be performed in association with television media. Specifically, in one embodiment, a real-time format is provided in which television viewers participate on a real-time basis in a game show for prizes. Expanded audience participation is achieved. Various levels of qualification are provided, such as for a child""s television game format is utilized, parental clearance may be required. The use of personal identification numbers (pin numbers) is disclosed. In one implementation, the caller is prompted to identify which of the actual studio of audience participants the caller will be aligned with. Additionally, the caller may be instructed to indicate the extent of a wager. As the game progresses, the individual player""s accounts are credited or debited, thereby providing on-going accounting data. In yet another implementation, a non real-time operation is provided. Such a show might involve a quiz for callers based on their ability to perceive and remember occurrences within the show. Pre-registration is optionally utilized. In this implementation, a sequence or time clock would be utilized in order to limit or control individual interfaces to a specific time or geographic xe2x80x9cwindowxe2x80x9d. In this way, the caller questions may be utilized across various time zones without the caller having obtained the question earlier than other callers within a given time zone.
Berman, U.S. Pat. No. 5,108,115 discloses a game show and method entitled xe2x80x9cInteractive Game Show and Method for Achieving Interactive Communication Therewithxe2x80x9d. An interactive communication system is provided which permits individuals to electronically select at least one possible outcome of a plurality of outcomes of a future event. Successful contestants possibly share in a prize aware associated with the event. A home audience of a televised game show may electronically communicate a series of random numbers using their touch tone telephone to participate in the show.
Recently, various governmental entities and trade organization have addressed the issue of game play over the Internet. Congressman Kye has introduced a bill which would preclude the offering of Internet based gaming, though permitting states to offer Internet gambling. Consideration has been given to requiring that the states sponsored gaming be limited to an intranet, in an effort to limit those participating to persons physically resident within the states boundaries. Various international lottery organizations have promoted similar restrictions, namely, precluding the individuals offering of games of chance, and reserving that option exclusively to the state.
Various lottery formats are known to the art. In one classic format, a predetermined number of tickets are provided with certain printed matter, such as numbers or other indicia, where the information is then obscured by a scratch off layer. By removing the layer and revealing the underlying information, the ticket holder may determine whether they have won or not. Various extensions have been made to a xe2x80x9cvirtualxe2x80x9d scratch off ticket where no physical is provided.
A conventional lottery proceeds as follows. First, a series of numbers are selected, either by the player or by some automated selection system, such as by computer. Upon the occurrence of a pre-determined event, such as on a set date and time, numbers are randomly chosen. Both mechanical methods, such as selection of ping-pong balls bearing numeric designations, or electronic means such as through a random number generator, may be utilized. The selected numbers are then provided to the participants, such as through a broadcast medium like newspapers, radio and television. Finally, the holder or holders of winning the tickets then present their ticket for payment.
In yet another aspect of game play, a typical television presented game show lasts on the order of one half hour. Various shorter format games or shows have been utilized, for example, a football based advertisement or game has been presented by IBM during televised football games under the name xe2x80x9cyou make the callxe2x80x9d. Yet other shorter version games have been presented over web TV or on the game show network.
The television game show xe2x80x9cWho Wants to be a Millionairexe2x80x9d is believed to have originated in Britain, and has become extremely popular in the United States. The game is a trivia game. While being principally a game of skill, the nature of the questions, or the contestants knowledge of the potential answers, makes the game at times a guessing game or game of chance. The format consists of one contestant and one host. The contestant is presented with a question and four possible answers. If the contestant answers the question correctly, they advance to a next level, each level being associated with a higher monetary prize amount, which is roughly twice the amount of the preceding level. A contestant is given three xe2x80x9clife linesxe2x80x9d: a xe2x80x9c50/50xe2x80x9d where in two incorrect answers are removed, thereby leaving the correct answer and one incorrect answer, the xe2x80x9cphone a friendxe2x80x9d, wherein the contestant may call a friend by telephone and solicit their response to the question, subject to a 30 second time limit, and an xe2x80x9cask the audiencexe2x80x9d option where the audience is polled regarding their view of the correct answer to the question. Various safe levels are established, such as at $1,000.00 such that the contestant would be awarded that amount of money in the even that they fail to correctly answer a question. Finally, after a question is posed, the contestant may elect to discontinue play, and to receive that amount of money won at the preceding level.
Despite the wide spread participation in various forms of game play, as well as the suggestions for implementing those games on a mass communication network, such as through the telephone or Internet, the possibility for new games, or improved game play exists. In particular, there is a need for improved games of chance, which provide excitement for the player, and optionally a viewer audience.
This invention relates to methods and associated apparatus for novel game play. In the preferred embodiment, the game is a game of chance.
In the preferred embodiment, the game is played at a multiple number of levels. At each level, the contestant is presented with multiple options, such as a depiction of four uniquely labeled boxes, amongst which the contestant may choose. The options would include at least one positive outcome and at least one negative outcome. In the case of four boxes, e.g., one could include a strike, two could include a monetary amount, which may be either the same or different and optionally, the fourth box could comprise a mystery box, described below. The contestant selects, at random, one of the options. If the option selected is one of the positive options, such as a monetary amount, they proceed to the next level and the winnings are added to the prior winnings total. If a negative option is selected, such as a strike, in the preferred embodiment, the level is reset and play continues at that level. Preferably, the player is allowed a predetermined number of negative events, such as three strikes, prior to discontinuing play.
The xe2x80x98mystery boxxe2x80x99 consists of a decision within a decision. A first decision was to select that option, which then was revealed as comprising a mystery box. The player is then given the option of whether to reveal that option. The option within the mystery box would include at least one positive result and at least one negative result. In the preferred embodiment, there would be three results possible with a mystery box, a positive result such as a multiplier for the money, such as a doubler of the contestantxe2x80x99 prior winnings, an updating of the safe level for the player or an additional monetary amount. Alternatively, other positive results such as a free play or a reduction in the number of negative events is possible. Preferably, the probability of a negative result from the opening of the mystery box should be equal to the probability of a negative event if the mystery box were not selected.
The prizes at the various levels may be set as desired to result in a predetermined pay out for the game. Optionally, guaranteed low end prize structures (GLEPS) may require payment of predetermined prize amounts, and possibly payment of a minimum amount of a prize e.g., $500.00. The monetary spacing between various levels may be set as desired, either as an arithmetic progression or as a multiplicative progression, e.g., a substantial doubling of the prize amount at every level. Optionally, when a maximum game level is reached a jackpot or other proportionally large prize may be awarded. If the jackpot is not won in a given game, it may then roll over to a subsequent game. Alternative forms of progressive play may be utilized.
In another aspect of this invention, game play in a first game may require progression through a plurality of levels, leading to game play on a second game for those who have reached the maximum level on the first game. In one implementation, the maximum prize level in the first game may be equal to the minimum prize level in the second game.
Various modes of play are contemplated. In studio game play may be utilized with a broadcast, either live or for taped replay. Yet another mode of game play involves playing at a gaming venue, such as where other games of chance, e.g., slot machines, are played. Yet another venue may consist of game play by the player from their hotel room in a venue which allows gambling. In yet another mode of game play, a network, such as the internet, may be utilized to permit game play, whether for a monetary amount or to provide other points or indications of score. The game may be played in any venue where not prohibited, whether on land or in an airplane or ship, and may be played in any form of wired or wireless environment, such as via hand-held web enabled communication devices.
The game may be played by a single individual, or may be played with multiple players. The multiple players may play against one another, for scoring, or may merely play in parallel without further interaction.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide an improved game of chance having a higher level of audience interest and potential participation.
It is yet another object of this invention to provide for an improved Internet game of chance.
It is yet a further object of this invention to provide for enhanced modes of game play in association with existing forms of game play.

Games, and methods and apparatus for game play in games of chance