A non-volatile memory system having an array of memory cells, a memory controller and a memory operations manager, with the array and memory operations manager typically being implemented in a common integrated circuit separate from an integrated circuit containing the memory controller. The memory operation manager carries out memory read, erase, program and program verify operations in response to receipt of memory read, erase, program and program verify commands, respectively, issued by the memory controller. The program verify operation includes reading an address to be verified and programming the address to be verified with data in the event the address had not been properly programmed. The program verify command obviates the necessity of issuing multiple commands in order to carry out the verify function.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to memory systems and particularly to a non-volatile memory system having the capability of verifying programming operations using a reduced number of commands.
2. Description of Related Art
Non-volatile memory systems, including flash memory systems, have increased in popularity. Among other things, such memory systems have replaced hard disk drives as a primary memory resource in certain applications. Non-volatile memory systems of the flash variety contain memory cells that are initially erased to a "1" state, with the cells being selectively programmed to a "0"state during memory programming operations. As is well known, memory programming is carried out by application of appropriate voltages to the word and bit lines associated with the cell to be programmed. These programming voltages are effectively applied in the form of pulses, with the magnitude and duration of the pulses being such that multiple application of the pulses is required to complete the programming operation.
In a typical flash memory system, a programming operation includes a verification step to determine whether the cells to be programmed have been adequately programmed. This verification is similar to a read operation. In the event a cell has not been properly programmed, a further programming pulse is applied and the verification step repeated. In a typical programming operation, multiple cells are programmed. By way of example, assume that a byte of data is to be programmed with AAH (D0-D7=10101010). Since the cells are presumably in an initial erased state (11111111), only bits D1, D3, D5 and D7 will be programmed. Since all of the cells are not exactly the same, it is likely that at some point in the programming sequence one cell will be programmed before other cells are programmed. Continuing with the example, assume that a program verification indicates that bit D1 has been programmed but bits D3 D5 and D7 have not been programmed (10111111). In that event, at least one additional programming pulse will be needed. Such programming pulse will be applied only to the cells associated with bits D3, D5 and D7 and not cell associated with D0 since it is undesirable to over program cells.
It can be seen that several memory operations may be required in order to carry out a programming operation which includes program verification. This is especially true when a large segment, such as multiple bytes, of the memory is to be programmed. The present invention greatly simplifies such programming operations, particularly in those applications where a large segment of memory is to be programmed. This and other advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art upon a reading of the following Description of the Preferred Embodiment together with the drawings.
As previously noted, data systems incorporating memory systems having multiple memory devices are well known. By way of example, FIG. 1 depicts a simplified conventional memory system which includes a host device 20, an address decoder 22 and memory devices 24A and 24B. The host device 22 may be a microprocessor and the memory devices 24A and 24B may be separate memory integrated circuits. An address bus 26 is used to provide addresses to an address decoder 22 and to the memory devices 24A and 24B. The address decoder 22 has two outputs connected to enable inputs of the memory devices 24A and 24B. Typically, the most significant bit(s) of the address are provided on the bus 26 to the decoder 22, with the remaining address bits being provided to each of the memory devices.
When memory is to be accessed, the processor 20 causes the address decoder 22 to decode the most significant bit(s) of the memory address placed on an address bus 26. The decoder 22 will select one of the two memory devices 24A and 24B by generating either signal Sel 0 or Sel 1. The selected memory device will respond to the address presented to it on the address bus and the deselected memory device, which is disabled, will not respond. Although not shown, a data bus is used to transfer data between the memory devices and the processor 20, with only the selected device outputting data to the data bus during memory read operations.
The approach depicted in FIG. 1 is sometimes referred to as radial device selection where each memory device has a separate select input. This approach works well when relatively few memory devices are employed and where access speed, particularly random access speed, is important. However, if a large number of memory devices are used so that large amounts of data can be stored, the requirement of separate select lines for each memory device results in large memory boards and a relatively large pin count for the control logic circuitry. Thus, unless access speed is critical and a large number of memory devices are used, the radial device selection approach of FIG. 1 is not ideal.
FIG. 2 shows an alternative prior art device selection technique, sometimes referred to as serial selection. Again, a host device 28 is used which is connected to several memory devices 30A, 30B and 30C by way of a system bus 32. The memory devices 30A, 30B and 30C are usually implemented as separate integrated circuits. The system bus 32 includes memory address and memory data and various control signals so that each of the memory devices 30A, 30B 30C receives the same addresses, data and other signals. Each memory device is preassigned a unique address so that only one device will be accessed by the host device 28 during a memory operation. Typically, the memory devices 30A, 30B and 30C are assigned addresses by way of jumper or switch settings represented by elements 34A, 34B and 34C.

Memory system having read modify write function and method


An addressing method and computer system for sharing a large memory address space using address space within an operating system's virtual address space. The system provides sharing the SSB over many processes without the disadvantages associated with process based global sections. For instance, the novel system does not require that each process maintain its own dedicated page table entries (PTEs) in order to access the SSB thereby requiring less operating system virtual memory to maintain the PTE data structures. The system uses a process to switch to kernel mode, then identifies those sections of the operating system virtual memory space that are not being used; in some cases the unused address space can be 1.5-1.8 gigabytes in size. The unused address space is linked together to form the SSB. The system alters the privileges of the PTEs corresponding to the SSB so that user mode processes can access this usually protected operating system virtual memory space. The result is a statically mapped large memory address buffer (SSB) that can be immediately shared by all processes within the computer system while consuming only a single statically mapped PTE which all processes can use. In one example, 500 processes mapping to a 2 gigabyte SSB requires only 2 megabytes of memory storage for the corresponding PTEs, assuming conventional memory page sizes. In one example, the SSBs are allocated from a system space virtual memory map which is 2 gigabytes in size in a 32-bit VMS operating system.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of computer systems. More specifically, the present invention relates to the field of memory addressing methods and systems within computer systems.
(2) Prior Art
Large computer systems today contain memory management hardware and software which provide processes with access to a defined range of physical memory (e.g., hardware volatile memory). Operating systems of the computer system utilize memory stored data structures which define and maintain virtual address memory spaces which can be made private to each process. The virtual memory space is then used transparently by the process to access data that is stored within the physical address memory space. The above data structures provide a mapping or "translation" between the addresses of the virtual memory space used by the process and the addresses of the physical memory space used by the computer system's hardware memory management systems which maintain the data in the physical memory. A typical computer system can provide respective memory mappings for as many as 500 or more processes simultaneously.
One prior art memory management system is shown in FIG. 1A. Two virtual address memory spaces are shown as 10a and 10b which correspond to a process 1 and a process 2, respectively. Also shown is a large physical memory address space 20. The physical memory address space 20 is typically realized in volatile memory (e.g., random access memory). According to the memory management system of FIG. 1A, within a 32-bit operating system, the allowed size of each virtual memory space 10a and 10b is approximately 2 gigabytes (GB), with another 2 GB of memory space being reserved for the operating system. The operating system allocates a working set of physical memory to each virtual address space 10a, 10b. Working set 22a is allocated for virtual memory space 10a and working set 22b is allocated for virtual memory space 10b. In a 32-bit operating system, the typical size allowed for a given working set is about 10-20 megabytes (MB), however, in some database applications a maximum of 200 MB can be reserved. In a prior art 32-bit operating system, a maximum of 4 GB of physical memory can be addressed. Therefore, the size of the working set is restricted by the operating system due to fairness concerns so that each process has sufficient access to the 4 GB of physical memory.
A working set is divided into pages of physical memory, e.g., one page 24a is shown for working set 22a and one page 24b is shown for working set 22b. The size of a page is programmable, but one typical size is 8 kilobytes (KB). When a process accesses data, it utilizes addresses within its virtual address space which are converted by a page table data structure into addresses within pages of the process's working set within the physical memory space 20. The operating system uses the page tables of each process to map pages of physical memory space 20 into the virtual address space (10a, 10b) that the process can access.
FIG. 1B illustrates three exemplary page table data structures 30a, 30b and 30n for process 1, process 2, and process n, respectively. The page table data structures 30a, 30b, and 30n are stored in the operating system's address space and maintain the mapping between a process's virtual addresses and the addresses of pages within the physical memory space 20 (FIG. 1A). For each process, virtual addresses are received (e.g., over lines 32a, 32b, and 32n) and the appropriate page address of the physical memory space are output by the tables (e.g., over buses 34a, 34b, and 34n). Since many processes can operate simultaneously (e.g., 500 or more), many page tables can be simultaneously accessed and need to be simultaneously maintained. As discussed further below, in order to share a block of physical memory across several processes, each process requires its own page table to provide the proper address mapping into the shared memory.
In the addressing mechanism of FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B, many more physical memory pages can be mapped by a process than fit within the process' working set. In other words, the virtual memory size in the prior art memory addressing system, for a single process, is very much larger than the allocated working set size. In this case, as additional physical memory pages are needed by the process, they are retrieved from a non-volatile memory storage (e.g., disk 104 of FIG. 1A) and copied into the working set 22a, 22b for that process, overwriting other pages that might currently exist within the working set 22a, 22b. Conversely, if a page of a working set 22a, 22b is not currently required, it is stored in the non-volatile storage 104 to free up space within the working set 22a, 22b for other information. The above "swapping" of pages to and from the non-volatile storage 104 and the volatile working sets 22a, 22b is called "paging." The smaller the working set size, the more disk input/output accesses are required to flow data into and out of the working sets 22a, 22b. Therefore, small working sets reduce the overall performance of the prior art memory addressing mechanism.
To maximize system performance, database processes within a database system require access to shared global memory sections (also called global memory caches) which are shared by all processes. One prior art mechanism utilized for this purpose is a process based global section. Process based global sections are mapped into the address space of each process that requests access to the global section, and thus are subject to the address space management policies and restrictions enforced by the operation system memory management subsystem. For instance, in the prior art, the number of physical pages owned by any one process is limited to the size of its working set or under another quota system. As discussed above, a working set is typically limited to 200 MB in size (400K pages of 2 KB) on 32-bit systems and 520 MB in size (65K pages of 8 KB) on 64-bit systems.
Small working sets increase paging. Paging requirements of the memory management subsystem reduce system performance when using the global sections of the prior art. For instance, accessing pages of the global section of the prior art that are not currently mapped in a process' working set requires mapping of the page into the process to make its individual PTE valid and further requires reading of the page from its backing storage device (e.g., from a hard disk). Each of these tasks reduces system performance. Further, global sections of the prior art require file backing storage, which can use a system page file or an image file. This means that dedicated disk space is needed for essentially all pages that are mapped that exceed the working set restrictions (e.g., to store what is not currently in the working set) thereby also reducing performance, especially for working sets that are very small. In addition, ejecting pages from the process' working set can result in writing the page back to its backing storage device, again reducing performance. What is needed is a system for providing shared memory that is not limited by the above small working set sizes and thereby is not subject to as much paging to and from disk storage.
Another disadvantageous policy of the operating system memory management subsystem is that process level page table entries (PTEs) of the global section are not shared between processes. In a prior art shared global section, a large amount of physical memory is required to maintain the mapping of the shared global section between the processes. Accordingly, each process requires its own PTE data structure to share the global section. Specifically, the physical memory required to store these replicated data structures is typically 8 bytes per PTE times the global section size in pages times the number of processes mapping to the global section. For example, consider 500 processes times (2 GB global section/8K page size) times 8 (bytes per PTE). This equals approximately 1 GB of operating system memory storage for the PTEs required for a 2 GB process based global section. Therefore, in a 32-bit operating system, the 1 GB memory used by the required PTE data structures consumes one quarter of the memory space available (4 GB) to the computer system's operating system. Such large memory usage for memory mapping overhead is not an effective use of memory resources. What is needed is a system for providing shared memory mapping that does not require such large amounts of memory storage to maintain PTE data structures.
The above performance and system memory consumption disadvantages are not alleviated or reduced within computer systems that contain 64-bit operating systems and/or 64-bit directly addressable physical memory spaces under the prior art addressing mechanism. Indeed, within these systems, the above performance and system memory consumption disadvantageous are exacerbated because the required sizes of the page table data structures per process are increased. Moreover, although 64-bit addressable physical memory provides a substantial amount of volatile memory storage, the prior art addressing mechanism still limits the size of the working set to 200 MB or 520 MB per process. This is especially true for 32-bit operating systems having 64-bit directly addressable physical memory. Therefore performance disadvantages result due to heavy disk I/O operations. For 64-bit operating systems having 64-bit directly addressable physical space, the larger limiting factor concerns the immense size of the page table data structures within the operating system's address space.
Accordingly, what is needed is an addressing system that provides a large amount of shared global memory space across many processes without the limitations described above. Specifically, what is needed is an addressing system that provides a large amount of shared global memory space to many processes and is not limited by the above working set sizes so it thereby offers efficient performance. What is further needed is an addressing system that provides a large amount of shared global memory space to many processes and does not consume large amounts of system virtual memory for storing large numbers of PTE data structures. The present invention memory addressing system provides the above features and others not necessarily recited above but which will become clear within discussions of the present invention herein.

Addressing method and system for sharing a large memory address space using a system space global memory section


A method of compressing a puncture mask information is disclosed, the method comprising making a delayed puncture mask by deleting the last k bits of the puncture mask; and appending k zeros to the beginning of the puncture mask; making a differential puncture mask by XORing the delayed puncture mask with the puncture mask; and compressing the differential puncture mask.

A goal in communication systems is to transmit and receive signals while utilizing minimal transmission channel bandwidth and keeping the overall error rate below an acceptable threshold. Channel bandwidth is filled by transmitters attempting to send ever more data. Errors occur due to interference and channel limitations which distort the data. Systems transmitting and receiving data include cell phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), local area networks (LANs), wide area networks (WANs), and the like. Such systems may communicate unit to unit, such as cell phone to cell phone, or may use base stations, dish antennas, satellites, and the like.
Transmitted signals are corrupted in many ways before reaching the intended receiver. Interference from signals sent by other transmission sources, leakage from power lines and wired communication systems and the like will all act to corrupt a desired signal. In general, a wireless transmitter will send the transmission signal out in all directions. This transmitted signal will bounce or reflect off buildings, trees and the like. The portion of a signal that is sent along a path leading directly to receiver will reach that receiver. However, portions of the signal which reflect off a building towards the receiver will also reach the receiver. This latter portion of the signal reaches the receiver at a later time than the first portion of the signal, causing a type of interference known as multipath. These interference sources, and others, make it very difficult for a receiver to receive a transmitted signal with an acceptable degree of accuracy, and will increase the frequency of errors. The rate which errors occur in communication systems is expressed in terms of the number of bits of information transmitted, and is referred to as the bit error rate, or BER.
One conventional method of decreasing a communication system's BER is to assign to each original symbol desired to be sent to a receiver, a series of symbols called chips, which are actually sent. This assignment process is called encoding. The number symbols desired to be sent divided by the number of chips actually sent is known as the coding rate. In other words, the ratio of the encoder input rate to the encoder output rate is the coding rate. The redundancy inherent in this coding will allow the receiver to properly decode the received data even in the presence of errors in the reception of individual chips. The encoded user data is referred to as the code word.
As a simple example, assume in a binary system the symbol 1 is to be sent to a receiver. If the symbol 1 is sent and interference corrupts it such that it looks to the receiver like a 0, an error has occurred. Instead, a system may be used in which the series of chips 101 may be sent instead of the 1, and 010 may be sent for each 0. That is to say, a 1 is encoded as a 101, and a 0 is encoded as a 010. The coding rate for this system is ⅓, since 3 chips are sent for each bit. If 101 is sent, and interference corrupts the 1st chip such that it look to the receiver like a 0, the receiver will receive the series 001. Since 001 is different from 101 by only 1 chip, but is different from 010 by two chips, the receiver can easily assume that a 101, corresponding to a 1, was sent. In this situation, no bit error has occurred, even though there was one chip error.
The disadvantage of such a system is the rate of information moving from transmitter to receiver is cut by ⅓ since every bit sent to the receiver requires the transmission of three chips. In situations where the interference is relatively low, this 3:1 redundancy becomes an unnecessary waste of transmission bandwidth. It is desirable to achieve an optimal compromise wherein the code rate if just sufficient to achieve the BER criteria as specified by the standard being used. For instance, in the above example it may be desirable to send only two chips per bit to the receiver. One method known to be effective in adjusting the code rate is the use of a puncture mask, wherein selected bits of the code word as defined by the puncture mask are not transmitted. A puncture mask is a binary sequence having the same length as the code word wherein a zero in the puncture mask indicates the bit is not sent, and a one indicates it is sent. On the receiving side, a zero indicates a position where an erasure is to be inserted. An erasure is an indication to the decoder that there is ambiguity about the value of the received bit.
Where a user data series has been encoded, the puncture mask can be used to delete chips in order to make better use of the available bandwidth. For example, if each symbol to be transmitted is encoded as 3 chips, the code rate would be ⅓. Then, if every third chip is removed, the resulting code rate is ½. By having a variety of puncture masks which may be used, a receiver and transmitter may adjust the coding to minimize the wasted bandwidth while keeping the BER below an acceptable threshold.
FIG. 1 shows a conventional use of a puncture mask. The series. Ti 110 is the user data that a transmitter wants to send to a receiver. The series Ti 110 is first encoded into the longer series Wi 120, which is the code word. A puncture mask Pi 130, having the same length in bits as the code word Wi 120 is then used. For each 1 in the puncture mask, the corresponding chip is transmitted. For each 0 in the puncture mask, an erasure, or deletion occurs, and the corresponding chip is not transmitted. These erasures result in a shorter data series Ei 140, which is sent to the receiver.
Ei 140 is sent by the transmitter, and is distorted by interference before it is received. What is actually received is shown as received data Ri 210 in FIG. 2. Once Ri 210 is received by the receiver, the above operation needs to be performed in reverse. Therefore, the receiver must have the same puncture mask Pi 220 available as was used by the transmitter in FIG. 1. FIG. 2 shows a received data series Ri 210, and the puncture mask Pi 220. For each 1 in the puncture mask Pi 220, the corresponding received data chip is seen as received encoded data. For each 0 in the puncture mask Pi 220, an erasure is inserted after the previous chip in the received user data. This results in the received encoded data series Si 230. This received encoded data series Si 230 can then be decoded into the received user data Ui 240, which, if everything went right, is the same as the user data series Ti 110 in FIG. 1.
As seen from the above, the transmitting unit and the receiving unit each need to have access to the puncture mask Pi 220. The length of each puncture mask Pi 220 is the same length as the code word Wi 120 in FIG. 1, which is the same length as the received encoded data series Si 230 in FIG. 2.
Some standards of wireless communication have a variety of puncture masks which may be used. The use of these puncture masks enables the coding rate to be optimized over a wide range of transmission channel conditions. With conventional means of puncturing, the puncture mask is simply stored in a memory. However, simply storing the puncture masks leads to a requirement of a fairly large memory on a VLSI chip designed to implement these wireless standards. It is thus desirable to be able to store this information on the integrated circuit in an efficient manner.


Integrated circuits with a resistance element and gate-last techniques for forming the integrated circuits are provided. An exemplary technique includes providing a semiconductor substrate that includes a shallow trench isolation (STI) structure disposed therein. A dummy gate electrode structure is patterned overlying semiconductor material of the semiconductor substrate, and a resistor structure is patterned overlying the STI structure. The dummy gate electrode structure and the resistor structure include a dummy layer overlying a metal capping layer. A gate dielectric layer underlies the metal capping layer. An interlayer dielectric layer is formed overlying the semiconductor substrate and the STI structure. End terminal recesses for the resistance element are concurrently patterned through the dummy layer of the resistor structure along with removing the dummy layer of the dummy gate electrode structure to form a gate electrode recess. Metal gate material is deposited in the end terminal recesses and a gate electrode recess.

The majority of present day integrated circuits (ICs) are implemented by using a plurality of interconnected field effect transistors (FETs), also called metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs or MOS transistors). A MOS transistor includes a gate electrode as a control electrode overlying a semiconductor substrate and spaced-apart source and drain regions in the substrate between which a current can flow. A gate insulator is disposed between the gate electrode and the semiconductor substrate to electrically isolate the gate electrode from the substrate. A control voltage applied to the gate electrode controls the flow of current through a channel in the substrate underlying the gate electrode between the source and drain regions.
Traditionally, the gate electrode is formed from a semiconductor material such as polycrystalline silicon, commonly referred to as "polysilicon". However, due to polysilicon depletion and threshold voltage shifts attributable to boron penetration into the channel region that severely degrade device performance, the semiconductor industry has begun replacing at least portions of polysilicon gate electrodes with metal gate electrodes. Replacement of polysilicon with a metal gate electrode solves both the boron penetration and the polysilicon depletion issues.
In addition to MOS transistors, integrated circuits commonly include various other devices such as, but not limited to, resistors, capacitors, memory devices, or the like. Polysilicon resistors may be formed in accordance with gate-first high-k metal gate (HKMG) fabrication techniques. In accordance with the gate-first HKMG techniques, resistors are formed with an appropriate dopant profile to establish a pre-determined resistivity for the polysilicon resistors, and the polysilicon resistors may be formed independent from gate electrodes of transistors. However, with gate-last HKMG techniques, dummy polysilicon structures are formed followed by front-end-of-line (FEOL) fabrication techniques to form source and drain regions for the transistors, with the dummy polysilicon structures removed and with the resulting gap filled with an appropriate material to form a gate electrode. Due to the removal of dummy polysilicon structures in gate-last HKMG techniques, doped polysilicon resistors formed in accordance with gate-first techniques cannot be formed in accordance with gate-last HKMG techniques. Further, undoped polysilicon has too high of a resistivity to be employed as a resistor itself.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide integrated circuits and gate-last HKMG techniques for forming integrated circuits that include a resistor. Further, it is desirable to provide the gate-last HKMG techniques that enable the integrated circuits to be formed with the resistor without addition of further fabrication stages. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description of the invention and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background of the invention.

Integrated circuits including a resistance element and gate-last techniques for forming the integrated circuits


A method and apparatus is disclosed that is capable of verifying on site the health, calibration and integrity of individual phased array modules of a phased array antenna system and, in certain cases, enabling the phased array antenna system to overcome element failures by use of a beam-steering computer. The present disclosure provides a test probe or RF radiator in or adjacent the antenna array for supplying and receiving test and calibration signals.

Direct radiating Electronically Steerable Phased Array Antennas (ESAs) are generally comprised of multiple individual antenna elements spaced in a grid pattern on a flat or curved surface, the combined energy of individual elements forming the antenna. Steering of the antenna is accomplished by electronically adjusting the time delay or phase shift on individual elements in such a way that, for example, the energy received by each element from a plane wave in a selected direction combines coherently, whereas the energy in other directions does not. This process, commonly referred to as beamforming, is the fundamental basis for the ESA concept.
The pointing accuracy, which is the ability to obtain a desired beam shape and the ability to suppress sidelobes (gain responses in unwanted directions), is highly dependent on the precision and accuracy of the electronically controlled time delay or phase shift device in each element. The gain response of every antenna element must be precisely and accurately controllable and in wideband applications the frequency response characteristics must also be matched to achieve optimum results. As the operating frequency is increased the mechanical and electrical tolerances become critical, such that it has become impractical to fabricate antennas with the degree of process control required to achieve acceptable performance. This is particularly true for antennas operating at microwave frequencies.
One of the methods used in the manufacture of phased arrays is to place a small transmitting or receiving element in the near field of each element and to use it to measure the gain and phase or time delay characteristics of each individual element. A compensation table can then be generated and used to adjust the magnitude of the control voltages to correct for the gain and phase errors of individual elements. This process is time consuming and is typically only valid at the frequency and the ambient temperature at which the calibration measurements were made.
Other prior art examples use even more complex designs which provide an improved application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a monolithic microwave integrated circuit with coupling. Further developments have used a combination of these prior art designs. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,163,296; U.S. Pat. No. 6,208,287; U.S. Pat. No. 6,252,542; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,480,153.

Method for accurate auto-calibration of phased array antennas


A motor drive device includes an inverter output unit that drives a motor using electrical power supplied from a supply power generation unit, a voltage detection unit that detects a voltage value of a DC voltage, a current detection unit, a current limiting resistor and a current change-over switch connected in parallel between a bus and the voltage detection unit, and a motor drive control unit that controls the inverter output unit based on the voltage value and controls turning on and off of the current change-over switch based on the current value. The motor drive control unit turns on the current change-over switch when the motor is to be driven, and turns off the current change-over switch when the current value changes only by an amount less than a first threshold in a first time period during driving of the motor.

Among motor drive devices that drive a motor, there is a device including an inverter that converts direct current (DC) power into alternating current (AC) power, and supplies the AC power to a motor, and an inverter control device that controls operation of the inverter. This type of motor drive device is desired to drive a motor stably. To drive a motor stably, the motor drive device described in Patent Literature 1 monitors the DC voltage during motor driving, and feeds back the result of monitoring to controlling of the motor.


The present invention provides a device and a method for determining the resolution of a multiple resolution scanner. The scanner comprises a housing with a transparent platform for placing a document, a scanning module movably installed in the housing, a driving device installed in the housing for driving the scanning module to scan the document, a calibration region installed in the housing with an identification mark, and a control circuit installed in the housing for controlling the operation of the scanner. The scanning module comprises a case with an opening on its top for receiving the light from the document, a sensor installed in the case for transforming the light from the document into corresponding image signals, a lens module installed in the case for converging the light from the document onto the sensor wherein the resolution of the lens module is variable, and a lens module control device installed in the case for changing the resolution of the lens module. The control circuit processes the image signals generated by the scanning module and controls the lens module control device to change the resolution of the lens module. When the control circuit determines the resolution of the lens module, it uses the driving device to move the scanning module into the calibration region, uses the scanning module to scan the calibration region to get the image signal corresponding to the identification mark, and then determines the resolution of the lens module according to the image signal corresponding to the identification mark.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a scanner, and more particularly, to a multiple resolution scanner comprising device and method for determining its resolution.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A multiple resolution scanner commonly comprises a lens module which has several lenses with different resolutions movably installed in the scanner. Moving or rotating the lenses allows changing of the resolution of the scanner. The lens module further comprises more than one lens detector for detecting the positions of the lenses to determine which resolution is currently being used.
Please refer to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a prior art lens module 10. The lens module 10 comprises two lens detectors 12,13 for detecting the lens currently in use. The lens detector 12 is used for detecting a first lens 14 and the lens detector 13 is used for detecting a second lens 16. When the lens detector 12 detects that the first lens 14 is in use, it generates a detecting signal to indicate that the resolution of the first lens 14 is the present resolution of the lens module 10. Similarly, when the lens detector 13 detects that the second lens 16 is in use, it generates a detecting signal to indicate that the resolution of the second lens 16 is the present resolution of the lens module 10. The resolution of the lens module is determined based on the signal of the lens detector 12 or 13, therefore if the lens detectors 12,13 are worn out, it will be impossible to determine the resolution of the lens module 10. Moreover, if there are additional lenses of differing resolutions in the lens module 10, the structure becomes more complicated thus driving up costs.

Device and method for determining resolution of a multiple resolution scanner


In a fuel feed unit (3) for a motor vehicle, a suction jet pump (6) provided for filling a baffle (2) of a fuel tank (1) is manufactured in one piece with a holding part (4) for a fuel pump (5). The holding part (4) is of pot-shaped design for receiving the fuel pump (5) and carries a fuel filter (7) on a vertical wall (8). Fuel thereby passes to the suction jet pump (6) immediately after the fuel pump (5) has been started up.

The invention relates to a fuel feed unit for a motor vehicle, with at least one fuel pump fastened to a holding part and intended for sucking in fuel from a baffle arranged in the bottom region of a fuel tank, and with a suction jet pump provided for feeding fuel out of the fuel tank into the baffle and connected to the fuel pump via a supply line.
Such fuel feed units are often used in present-day motor vehicles and are therefore known. The fuel filter, is, as a rule, shaped in the form of a bag and is fastened to an intake connection piece of the fuel pump. The fuel pump is pre-stressed, together with the fuel filter, against the bottom region of the baffle by the holder. A forward-flowline leading from the feed unit to an internal combustion engine of the motor vehicle has a branch for the supply line leading to the suction jet pump. The suction jet pump is usually fastened in the wall of the baffle and serves for ensuring a minimum filling level of fuel in the baffle when the fuel tank is almost empty.
The known fuel feed unit has the disadvantage that it is complicated to mount and the supply line has to be very long for mounting in the fuel tank. However, the result of the supply line having a long length is that, after the fuel pump has been started up, the suction jet pump feeds fuel into the baffle only after a delay. Consequently, when the fuel tank is virtually empty, the fuel pump is often for a short time not supplied with fuel. This may lead to damage to the internal combustion engine or to an exhaust gas catalytic converter.
The problem on which the invention is based is to design a fuel feed unit of the type initially mentioned, in such a way that it is particularly simple to mount and fuel is fed particularly quickly into the baffle after the fuel pump has been started.
This problem is solved, according to the invention, in that the holding part and the suction jet pump form a pre-mountable structural unit.
By virtue of its design, the suction jet pump can be connected to the fuel pump before being mounted in the fuel tank. On account of the invention, it is no longer necessary for the supply line for the suction jet pump to be laid in the fuel tank. The mounting of the feed unit according to the invention, thereby becomes very simple. Another advantage of this design is that the functioning of the fully mounted fuel feed unit can be checked outside the fuel tank. Moreover, the supply line for the suction jet pump can be made very short.
This leads to particularly low flow losses in the supply line and therefore to a particularly low power consumption of the suction jet pump. Since the supply line is of short length, it has a small volume, thus contributing to a particularly short delay in the feed through the suction jet pump after the fuel pump has been started up. Fuel is therefore fed into the baffle virtually immediately after the fuel pump is started up.
According to another advantageous development of the invention, the delay in the operation of the suction jet pump after the fuel pump is started up can be kept particularly small if the supply line of the suction jet pump is led vertically from the delivery side of the fuel pump to the suction jet pump. Furthermore, as a result of this configuration, no gas bubbles can accumulate in the supply line and consequently impair the operation of the suction jet pump.
According to an advantageous development of the invention, the suction jet pump requires a particularly low volume flow of fuel for it to operate if, in the case of a fuel pump with a high-pressure stage and a low-pressure stage, the supply line of the suction jet pump is connected directly downstream of the high-pressure stage, as seen in the direction of flow.
A contribution to further simplifying the mounting of the fuel feed unit according to the invention is made if the holding part is manufactured in one piece with the supply line.
The fuel feed unit according to the invention has a particularly simple design if the holding part for receiving the fuel pump is of pot-shaped design. Moreover, this configuration leads to a particularly simple mounting of the fuel feed unit according to the invention.
The fuel filter, could, for example, be designed in the form of a bag, as in the known fuel feed unit. However, according to another advantageous development of the invention, contamination of the fuel filter is kept particularly low if the fuel filter is arranged in a vertical region of the wall of the holding part. As a result, dirt particles can fall down from the fuel filter after the fuel pump has been switched off.
The fuel feed unit according to the invention is particularly compact if the suction jet pump is arranged directly below the fuel pump. Furthermore, gas bubbles can thereby escape from the supply line very simply.
According to another advantageous development of the invention, the mounting of the holding part, together with the suction jet pump, in the fuel tank becomes particularly simple if the holding part has, in its bottom region, an orifice designed for sucking in the fuel and provided in front of a passage in the baffle for mounting purposes.
The holding part could have, for example, a flange for the connection of the suction jet pump. However, according to another advantageous development of the invention, the holding part can be manufactured, together with the suction jet pump, from plastic in a common injection mold in a particularly cost-effective way if the suction jet pump is manufactured in one piece with the holding part. Mounting of the suction jet pump on the holding part is thereby avoided.
A contribution to further simplifying the mounting of the fuel feed unit according to the invention is made if the holding part has a degassing line for the fuel pump.


A method for preparing lithium hexafluorophosphate, which is useful as an electrolyte in primary and secondary cells, involves combining and cooling phosphorus pentachloride and lithium fluoride, and then adding hydrogen fluoride. Using this method, which is simple to perform, a good yield of the product can be obtained.

The invention relates to a method for the preparation of lithium hexafluorophosphate by reaction of phosphorus pentachloride, lithium fluoride and hydrogen fluoride.
Lithium hexafluorophosphate can be used as an electrolyte in primary and secondary cells. Such cells comprise an anode, a cathode and an electrolyte, which is dissolved in an aprotic, non-aqueous solvent. Primary cells cannot be recharged. Such a primary cell is disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,546,022 (=DE-OS 1,935,941). The primary cell described therein comprises a sodium anode and a cathode containing elemental sulfur. The lithium hexafluorophosphate used as the electrolyte is dissolved in a polyether solvent.
Secondary cells are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,427,874. Carbon material which is doped with lithium is used as the anode, and, for example, mixed oxides of lithium and cobalt are used as the cathode. Among other things, lithium hexafluorophosphate can be used as the electrolyte, and certain pyrocarbonates (anhydrides of carboxylic acid esters) are used as solvents.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,880,714 (=EP 385,724) also discloses electrochemical cells with lithium hexafluorophosphate electrolyte. The lithium-containing electrolyte is used in a solvent mixture of propylene carbonate and dimethoxyethane. The problem is that lithium hexafluorophosphate is unstable in its pure form. Furthermore, it is strongly hygroscopic, so that it is not easy to prepare. For this reason, U.S. Pat. No. 4,880,714 proposes a method for preparing lithium hexafluorophosphate in which the salt of a Lewis base and hexafluorophosphoric acid is reacted with a lithium base. The reaction, for example, of ammonium hexafluorophosphate and lithium hydride, is performed in a complexing solvent such as 1,2-dimethoxyethane, and the resulting complex of lithium hexafluorophosphate and two molecules of 1,2-dimethoxyethane is precipitated and can be isolated.


A device for the targeted adjustment of the angle of incidence of a rotor blade (13) which is rotatably mounted, at the foot (14) thereof, on a hub (12) of a rotor (11) of a wind power installation (10). The device includes a gearing, a driving toothed wheel (21, 41) that meshes with the gearing (20, 40), and a lubricating device. The lubricating device, due to a temporary displacement of the driving toothed wheel (21, 41) from an operating position into a lubricating position, can be engaged with a defined point of the gearing (20) or the driving toothed wheel (41), respectively previously engaged with the driving toothed wheel (1) or the gearing (20, 40), so as to transfer lubricant.

This invention relates to a device for adjusting the angle of incidence of a rotor blade of a wind power installation.
In known devices, the rotor blade is rotatably mounted on a hub of the rotor of the wind power installation such that it can be adjusted in its angle of incidence—via a gearing provided in the area of its blade foot, said gearing being aligned essentially transversely to the longitudinal axis of the rotor blade—by means of a driving toothed wheel rotatably mounted on the hub and meshing with the gearing. However, the reverse arrangement is actually also known, namely that the hub can comprise the gearing and the driving toothed wheel being rotatably mounted on the rotor blade. In the same manner, there are arrangements with hydraulic rotary drives or cylinders whose linear movement is converted into a rotational movement by means of coupling bars.
The above mentioned open tooth-wheel drives for the adjustment of the angle of incidence of a rotor blade of a wind power installation are known, e.g. from DE 10140793. Here, the driving toothed wheel is driven by an electric motor and arrested, as a rule, by brakes located on the driving shaft. Due to the arresting of the driving toothed wheel, the rotor blade is also arrested in the desired angle of incidence.
As a rule, open tooth-wheel drives can be lubricated without any further problems since they utilize the entire available rotary area within the course of a given interval, and accordingly, all areas of the gearing can be regularly brought into contact with a lubricating device.
A suitable lubricating device is known from the article "Zentralschmieranlagen in Windkraftanlagen" (Central Lubrication Systems in Wind Power Installations)(T. Biesler, "Erneuerbare Energien" June 2002). Therein, a lubricating pinion consisting, for example, of felt or covered with felt meshes with a gearing of an open tooth-wheel drive. The lubricating pinion is mounted on a hollow-drilled axis which is provided on both sides with lubricant connections. The lubricant is passed via the axis to radial bores in the lubricating pinion and escapes again on its tooth flanks. Upon adjustment of the gearing by the driving toothed wheel, the lubricating pinion rotates synchronously with it and transfers lubricant to the areas of the gearing respectively being engaged with it.
Open tooth-wheel drives for adjusting the angle of incidence of a rotor blade of a wind power installation are distinguished from most of the other open tooth-wheel drives by being only in a defined operating position which is also designated as 0° position, during the predominant part of the operating period. The angle of incidence of the rotor blade corresponding to this position is applicable for the predominant part of all wind situations. The teeth of the driving toothed wheel and the gearing which are engaged with each other in the 0° position are subject to high loads which are caused, in particular, by the occurring torsional forces of the rotor blade. Other teeth of the driving toothed wheel and the gearing are loaded in rare cases (namely, when the rotor blade is moved—in strong wind conditions—from the 0° position into a different operating position for power reduction).
The primarily loaded areas of the driving toothed wheel and the gearing are subject to a high risk of corrosion since any possibly existing lubricant on loaded tooth flanks is displaced in the course of time so that the corresponding tooth flanks concerned will mesh with each other unlubricated after some time. Due to the high forces transferred, frictional corrosion can, thus, occur. The risk of corrosion is frequently yet reinforced by climatic effects (high humidity of the air, salt concentration of the air in coastal or offshore locations). Accordingly, these areas require a targeted, regular lubrication. At the same time, however, they cannot be reached or only barely by conventional lubricating methods since they are engaged with each other most of the time.
The above described lubricating pinions or most of the alternative lubricating devices are not suitable for tooth-wheel drives which predominantly remain in one operating position since a large part of the lubricant provided on all teeth of the pinion would drip off unused, would soil the hub and, thus, endanger the safety of the maintenance personnel accessing the hub. With conventional lubricating devices, a targeted lubrication of the primarily loaded areas of driving toothed wheel and gearing is not possible.
The primarily loaded areas of open tooth-wheel drives for the adjustment of the angle of incidence of a rotor blade of a wind power installation can only be specifically lubricated if the rotor blade is moved from its operating position into a lubricating position to make these areas accessible for conventional lubricating methods. This can be done, for example, during the natural non-working phases of the wind power installation (e.g. in the absence of wind). Although this procedure does not cause any operational production losses, it is problematic since a production phase can be very long and there is the risk that the load-bearing lubricating film does not survive this phase, and thus, damages to the gearing will occur. This problem presents itself especially at coastal or offshore locations where it is very rarely windless. Another possibility is the introduction of specified maintenance intervals during which the installation is shut down to move the rotor blades into a lubricating position. This procedure certainly ensures sufficient lubrication of the loaded areas, but will be connected with a production loss which especially the operating companies are unwilling to accept.

Device for adjusting the angle of incidence of a rotor blade of a wind power installation


A plastic cable chain having two free ends comprises at least two metallic cables jacketed in a plastic material and spaced apart by cross-linked spacer members. Each of the cables have opposing free ends with a respective eyelet for facilitating the coupling of the eyelets on opposing cable free ends. The eyelets are connected by a connecting link to define thereby a continuous substantially plastic cable chain. In a preferred embodiment, the eyelets are formed by the free end of the cable being bent over and joined to another part of the cable to form a closed loop. The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing a length of the plastic cable as well as to a method of coupling the ends of the plastic cable together to make a continuous chain.

The present invention relates to a cable chain and more particularly to a plastic cable chain. The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing a length of cable chain and to a method of coupling the ends of the chain to make the chain continuous.
The use of plastic cable chain as a "silent drive" for office machines, such as duplicators or copiers, is well known. The main problem encountered in the use of plastic cable chain with such machines is its high incidence of failure due to breakage. The breakages occur at the weakest point of the chain which is that part at which, during manufacture, the exposed cable ends of the chain have been coupled together to make the chain continuous. One manufacturing method is to weld the free ends of the metal cable together but, although a wide variety of welding techniques have been tried, they have been found to introduce weaknesses in the welded metal leading to brittle and fatigue failures during use.
An alternative technique that has been employed is to crimp a steel bush 2 over the exposed metal ends 14, 16 of the cables as shown in FIG. 1. This method has the added advantage that the forming of the chain into a continuous length can be performed in situ thereby reducing manufacturing costs. This method however has been found to have disadvantages in that the service engineer requires special hand tools and must be extremely careful in using these tools to avoid weakening the cable. The first step involves the service engineer cutting the plastic jacket 18 (one pitch each side) lightly with a sharp razor blade all around and carefully stripping or twisting off the jacket 18 to expose the ends 14, 16 of the stainless steel cables. Extreme care must be taken at this stage to ensure no cutting or fraying of the cables which can be of very small diameter, 1 mm or less. The service engineer must then carefully slide the stripped cable into the oval splice bushing 2 having a chamfered end. Again the service engineer must take extreme care not to fray the cable and must also ensure that he feeds the cable into the chamfered end last. The bushing 2 must then be accurately centered ensuring that the chain is straight before a crimp tool is positioned over the bushing 2 and squeezed tightly for maximum splice strength. It has also been found that the failure rate of plastic cable chains having their ends crimped in this manner is undersirably high. There is a need therefore to find a means of facilitating the task of the service engineer whilst also providing a design of cable chain with a longer operational life. It is an object of the present invention to meet that need.
U.K. Patent No. 703,751 to British Ropes, Ltd. and R. Elkington, discloses belts having a plurality of belt reinforcing members embedded therein such as wire, cord, and cable extending longitudinally off the belts. In joining the ends of the belt, it is essential that the opposing ends of the reinforcing members be aligned at the meeting ends of the belt and that the reinforcing members be joined together without weakening the belt or impairing its flexibility. This is accomplished by placement of a socketed cylindrical shank having on its outer end a ring-like eyelug on each reinforcing member end. The axis of eyelug orifice is perpendicular to the axis of the shanks. The ends of the reinforcing members are inserted into the shank socket and swaged thereto. The eyelugs of each reinforcing member on opposite ends of the belt are interdigitated, so that their orifices are coaxial, thereby permitting the insertion of a flexible hinge pin therethrough, the opposite ends of which are screw-threaded and fitted with washers and retaining nuts.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,847,031 to Araya discloses a connecting link for a roller chain that includes a pair of link plates, one of the plates having integrally secured thereto a pair of connecting pins, so that the pins are cantilevered therefrom. The other link plate is installed over the distal ends of the connecting pins and a resilient locking member is placed on the distal ends of the connecting pins outwardly of the link plate.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,060,006 to Abel et al. discloses a plastic ladder chain made continuous by affixing the exposed metallic cable ends to a master coupling link of stainless steel. The cable ends of the confronting ladder chain ends are fastened to a respective one of two identical, separate links and then the separate links are connected together by a master cross link having apertures therein to receive the outer ends of the separate links. Retainer clips hold the master cross links in place by engaging annular grooves on the opposite ends of the master cross links.


A catheter tracking system for visualization of fluoroscopic images, the system comprising a fluoroscope for generating fluoroscopic image data, a fluoroscopic image visualization monitor, a catheter having an elongated shaft, particularly an intraventricular catheter, distal tip and a radio opaque portion adjacent the distal tip. A circumferential radio opaque band may be used to determine the relative position, orientation and motion of the catheter. An image analysis system capable of analyzing the image of the catheter and the radio opaque band, for receiving fluoroscopic image data from the fluoroscope determining physical parameters related to the left ventricle, and the relative position, orientation and motion of the catheter therein, and for determining the location and other parameters of treatment on intraventricular surfaces.

This invention relates to the field of computer based viewing hardware with fluoroscopic tools for cardiac surgery, and more particularly to viewing devices for myocardial revascularization.
Heart disease is a significant health problem which has been the subject of substantial medical study. Bypass surgery has become commonplace; yet such surgery may be unavailable to many patients, either because of the nature of the occlusions or the physical condition of the patient. One promising alternative technique for treating such cases is known as transmyocardial revascularization (TMR). Although this technique was considered as early as the work of Dr. C. Beck xe2x80x9cThe Development of a New Blood Supply to the Heart By Operationxe2x80x9d, Annals of Surgery, Vol. 102, No. 5 (11/35) pp. 801-813, the method was not extensively studied until the work of Dr. M. Mirhoseini and M. Cayton, an example of which is found in xe2x80x9cLasers in Cardiothoracic Surgeryxe2x80x9d in Lasers in General Surgery (Williams and Williams; 1989) pp. 216-223.
Myocardial revascularization systems used by interventional cardiologists include a percutaneous myocardial revascularization (PMR) instrument that is a catheter and tissue removal energy delivery system that creates channels partially into the myocardium from inside the left ventricle. In the PMR procedure, an interventional cardiologist performs a cardiac catheterization procedure using a catheter with an internal optical fiber that is inserted into the femoral artery at the groin and advanced through the heart""s aorta arch into the left ventricle. Once in the ventricle, the catheter is guided to the endocardium where the device creates pathways through the endocardium and partially into the myocardium.
PMR generally requires that a physician use a hand-held device that encompasses and guides either a mechanical cutting device or one or more optical fibers through which laser energy is directed. Mechanical or laser energy cuts or vaporizes heart muscle tissue immediately in front of the distal end of the device. From the standpoint of safety and efficacy, the laser based procedures minimize both ancillary tissue damage and embolic material production, both results are highly desirable. Varying penetration depths are possible. Clinical tests have demonstrated that revascularization channels/pathways, which generally communicate with the ventricle, facilitate revascularization of the heart muscle and recovery of heart function.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,876,373 entitled xe2x80x9cSteerable Catheterxe2x80x9d, issued Mar. 2, 1999, based on application Ser. No. 08/833,352, filed Apr. 4, 1997 by Giba et al., U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/156,963, entitled xe2x80x9cSteerable Catheter with Tip Alignment and Surface Contact Detectorxe2x80x9d, filed Sep. 18, 1998 by Khairkahan et al., and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/326,118, entitled xe2x80x9cNon-deforming, Deflectable Multi-lumen Catheterxe2x80x9d and filed Jun. 4, 1999, are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. These applications teach steerable catheters and methods of use, particularly adapted for PMR use. The distal portion of the catheters are deflectable. Rotation of the catheters, therefore, such as within the left ventricle during a PMR procedure, will allow treatment of essentially any surface area within the ventricle. The catheters have a relative movement compensation mechanism for maintaining positioning between the distal portion of the catheter and the functional device, such as an energy delivery device disposed therein. The deflectable portion of the catheter is non-deformable.
Another approach to catheter construction for PMR is described in International Publication WO 96/35469, entitled xe2x80x9cSystem for Treating or Diagnosing Heart Tissuexe2x80x9d, International Application No. PCT/US96/06700, filed May 9, 1996, to Kesten et al., and WO 98/39045, entitled xe2x80x9cCatheter with Three Sections of Different Flexibilitiesxe2x80x9d, International Application No. PCT/US98/04484, filed Mar. 6, 1998, to Javier et al., are also hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. In these systems, an aligning catheter, shaped to extend along the long axis of the left ventricle, guides a laser catheter to various and predetermined individual points within the left ventricle. The intraluminal catheter has an elongated tubular shaft with proximal, intermediate, and distal shaft sections for positioning a therapeutic or diagnostic device within a patient""s body region such as a heart chamber. The intermediate shaft section has greater flexibility than the proximal or distal shaft sections, and is preferably of sufficient flexibility to easily assume the curvature of the patient""s aortic arch, and reduce the force of contact between the catheter distal end and tissue defining the patient""s body region to thereby reduce restriction on the rotation of the catheter. The flexible intermediate shaft section is preferably of a length to occupy a significant portion of the arctic arch, and the catheter overall length is preferably sufficient to have a catheter proximal extremity extending out of the patient and a distal extremity extending at least into an aortic passageway adjacent the patient""s left ventricle. In embodiments, the distal section of a guiding or first delivery catheter, is provided with a double bend, or other predetermined geometry and dimension, to facilitate a perpendicular approach by a laser or other energy delivery device to the surface of the endocardium of the left ventricle.
Fluoroscopy is used in PMR and other intracardiac catheter-based procedures for guidance and visual marking, to locate the optical fiber""s distal end inside the heart for proper channel formation and prevent excessive penetration thereof into the myocardium. A plastic transparency may be placed on the fluoroscope monitor, the shape of the ventricle manually traced using an ink marker, and then manually marking the channels as they are formed. The manual markings are often not drawn on the transparency exactly where the interventional cardiologist, having a slightly different optical vantage point of the procedure, might see the references, thereby increasing the complexity of the positioning the catheter and estimating the precise position inside the left ventricle to form channels. Furthermore, manually drawing an outline of the left ventricle based on a fluoroscopic image, which is moving according to the cardiac or respiratory cycles, can be problematic. Additionally, dye typically injected to enhance the fluoroscopic image has a short duration. Moreover, since most current fluoroscopy imaging systems are two-dimensional based imaging systems, the cardiologist must monitor two perpendicular planar images of a heart to view a PMR""s optical fiber""s position in a three-dimensional perspective by switching between two images. Furthermore, tracking already created channels is a problem since the screen may not readily show locations of these previously created channels. Additionally, excessive radiation while using a fluoroscope system poses radiation hazards to patient and operating room personnel.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,369,678 entitled xe2x80x9cMethod for tracking a catheter probe during a fluoroscopic procedure,xe2x80x9d by Chiu, teaches of fluoroscopy for monitoring the location of a catheter inside a body during balloon angioplasty or laser ablation for percutaneous interventional procedures. Chiu teaches a method for determining catheter tip location from fluoroscopic images using digital imaging processing techniques that confine full X-ray dosage to a central area, compensating for the reduced X-ray dosage in the peripheral areas by computer imaging enhancement but does not solve the problems currently associated with the use of fluoroscopy for guidance and visual marking in PMR and other intracardiac catheter-based procedures.
It is desirable to have apparatus and methods that use integrated hardware of a computer workstation, video capture, image display and manipulation and angular feedback from the fluoroscopy device to assist the cardiologist during the PMR procedure. There is a further need for apparatus and method that solves the problems associated with the use of fluoroscopy for guidance and visual marking in PMR and other intracardiac catheter-based procedures. Furthermore, there is a need to reduce the complexity of positioning such catheters and estimating the precise position inside the left ventricle to form channels during myocardial revascularization.
This invention describes a method of using computer based image processing techniques to automate this process as well as adding new capabilities to allow faster and more accurate placement of channels. An advantage of the disclosed invention is to solve the problem of determining catheter location within the left ventricle.
It is a further advantage to replace the current manual channel mapping technique with a computerized, video-based map. The computer-based channel map would also have greater accuracy than the manual map.
The present invention is a method to use fluroscopic image processing preferably in combination with specifically designed radio opaque markers on the distal portion of an intraventricular catheter to provide accurate information regarding the location and orientation of the catheter. This would be a useful enhancement to the PMR procedure. The distal portion of the intraventricular catheter is marked with asymmetric markers that are spaced a known distance apart on at least two portions of the catheter that are roughly orthogonal to each other, or at least or on two portions of the catheter that have a known angle between them.
The fluoroscopic image is processed using image-processing techniques that use edge-detection and pattern recognition to determine the 2-D location of these markers. The software then compares the 2-D geometry to the known spatial relations of the various markers and derives the true 3-dimensional location and orientation of the catheter. This invention provides additional accurate information regarding catheter position and orientation without requiring any imaging modalities other than fluoroscopy, which is already in use for these procedures. The combination of specifically designed system of markers, which may be radially asymmetric in order to provide information regarding rotational orientation, with edge-detection and pattern-recognition software provides location and orientation information for a catheter used in intraventricular procedures.
It is a further advantage of the present invention to decrease the degree to which the fluoroscopy related PMR procedure is dependent upon orthogonal visualization capability or means, thus allowing the user to remain predominantly in an RAO-30 projection throughout most of the procedure
Numerous other advantages and features of the present invention will become readily apparent from the following detailed description of the invention and the embodiments thereof, from the claims and from the accompanying drawings.

Fluoroscopic tracking enhanced intraventricular catheter system


A multi-station liquid mixing and dispensing apparatus. The apparatus includes a housing that defines a first pocket for supporting a first container, a second pocket for supporting a second container, and a third pocket disposed vertically above at least one of the first pocket and the second pocket. The apparatus also includes a first door pivotably coupled to the housing and enclosing the first pocket, and a second door pivotably coupled to the housing and enclosing the second pocket. The apparatus also includes a valve coupled to the housing to control flow of chemical concentrate to at least one of the first container and the second container.

This invention relates generally to liquid handling and more particularly, to combining and dispensing multiple liquids in a manner that the usage is simplified and maintenance is substantially reduced.
In the maintenance of large buildings such as office buildings or stores in shopping centers, it is customary to mix the required cleaning agents from a source of concentrate with water. The resulting solutions are then filled into suitable containers such as bottles or buckets. Apparatuses of this type are available from JohnsonDiversey, Inc. of Sturtevant, Wis., as the Quattro SS Solutions Center, J-Fill Select and Taski Ultra Easy.
While the previously described units afford accurate, reliable and safe dispensing of solutions, their operating could be simplified as well as their maintenance. For example, these apparatuses require the hand movement of one knob or button for selection of concentrates and the movement of a valve or another button for flow of water.
It would simplify the operation of these types of apparatuses if only a single selector knob had to be manipulated and a valve could be activated by a container or a trigger.
The objects of the invention therefore are:
a. Providing an improved liquid mixing and dispensing apparatus.
b. Providing a liquid mixing and dispensing apparatus which allows for easier filling of containers.
c. Providing a liquid mixing and dispensing apparatus of the foregoing type which reduces labor costs to repair.
d. Providing a liquid mixing and dispensing apparatus of the foregoing type which minimizes training.
e. Providing a liquid mixing and dispensing apparatus of the foregoing type which improves work productivity.

Multi-station liquid dispensing apparatus with automatic selection of proper flow rate


In a preferred embodiment, an apparatus, including; telescoping inner and outer members; a release collar circumferentially encircling the outer member; at least one rotatably mounted pawl disposed in the outer member; the at least one rotatably mounted pawl being depressed into at least a first depression formed circumferentially in the inner member by the release collar; and the at least one rotatably mounted pawl being movable between unlocked and locked positions. A vibration damper for the hold open rod is also provided.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to hold open rods generally and, more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to a novel hold open rod that employs rotatably mounted pawls as locking members and a snubber.
2. Background Art
The following patents are known:
U.S. Pat. No. 3,367,689, issued Feb. 6, 1968, to McCarthy, and titled ADJUSTABLE STRUT, discloses a lengthwise adjustable strut that uses a dumbbell-shaped, loose member as a locking member.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,390,874, issued Jul. 2, 1968, to McCarthy, and titled TELESCOPIC STRUT, discloses a lengthwise adjustable strut that uses a cylindrical, loose member as a locking member.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,442,541, issued May 6, 1969, to Metz, and titled RELEASABLE FASTENER, discloses a lengthwise adjustable strut that uses a toothed, radially movable, loose member as a locking member.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,469,871, issued Sep. 30, 1969, to Betts, and titled RELEASABLE LOCKING DEVICE, discloses a lengthwise adjustable strut that uses one or more loose members as locking members.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,945,744, issued Mar. 23, 1976, to Metz and titled TELESCOPING STRUT CONSTRUCTION, discloses a lengthwise adjustable strut that uses one or more loose dogs as locking members.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,014,467, issued Mar. 29, 1977, to Ferguson, and titled DISHWASHER AND COUPLING, discloses a lengthwise adjustable coupling that uses one or more loose balls as coupling members.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,362,415, issued Dec. 7, 1982, to Metz et al., and titled EXTENSIBLE AND RETRACTABLE STRUT WITH SAFETY LATCH, discloses a lengthwise adjustable strut that uses a spring-loaded lever as a locking member.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,366,945, issued Jan. 4, 1983, to Blaüenstein, and titled HOSE COUPLING WITH DOUBLE LOCK, discloses a hose coupling that uses one or more loose balls as locking elements.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,453,449, issued Jun. 12, 1984, to Hollmann, and titled HOLDING APPARATUS, discloses a lengthwise adjustable holding apparatus that uses one or more loose balls as locking members.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,453,748, issued Jun. 12, 1984, to Ekman, and titled QUICK-COUPLING MEMBER, discloses a quick-coupling that uses one or more loose balls as locking members.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,546,956, issued Oct. 15, 1985, to Moberg, and titled COMPRESSED AIR COUPLING, discloses a compressed air coupling that uses one or more loose balls as locking members.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,682,795, issued Jul. 28, 1987, to Rabushka et al., and titled TENSION ACTUATED UNCOUPLER, discloses an uncoupler that uses one or more loose balls as locking members.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,960,344, issued Oct. 2, 1990, to Geisthoff et al., and titled LOCKING MECHANISM FOR FIXING AN OUTER PART ON AN INNER PART, discloses a lengthwise adjustable part that uses one or more loose balls as locking members.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,066,049, issued Nov. 19, 1991, to Staples, and titled LOCKOUT DEVICE FOR HOSE FITTING, discloses a hose fitting that uses one or more loose balls as locking members.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,265,970, issued Nov. 30, 1993, to LaBarre, and titled STRUT CONSTRUCTION, discloses a lengthwise adjustable strut that uses one or more loose balls as locking members.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,366,313, issued Nov. 22, 1994, to LaBarre, and titled STRUT CONSTRUCTION, discloses a lengthwise adjustable strut that uses one or more loose balls as locking members.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,579,875, issued Dec. 3, 1996, to Vargas et al., and titled SELF LOCKING STRUT, describes a lengthwise adjustable strut that uses spring-loaded pins as locking members.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,632,568, issued May 27, 1997, to Fechter, and titled AUTOMATIC UNCOCKING SHAFT SENSING COUPLER, discloses an uncocking shaft sensing coupler that uses one or more loose dogs or balls as locking members.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,779,385, issued Jul. 14, 1998, to Fechter, and titled AUTOMATIC UNCOCKING SHAFT SENSING COUPLER, discloses an uncocking shaft sensing coupler that uses one or more loose dogs or balls as locking members.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,950,997, issued Sep. 14, 1999, to Metz, and titled TELESCOPING STRUT CONSTRUCTION, discloses a lengthwise adjustable three-member strut that uses one or more loose locking dogs and a spring-loaded member as locking members.
In connection with most prior hold open rods or struts, there have existed significant problems involving inadvertent release under load. Specifically, with either compressive or tensile loads applied between the telescoping members of the prior art hold open rods or struts, there was a danger that the operator could accidentally slide the locking collar to a release position while the hold open rod or strut was still under load, possibly leading to a sudden collapse of the hold open rod or strut and an accompanying uncontrollable swing or fall of the component being held by virtue of its own weight. Such a condition was capable of causing serious injury or death to either the operator or other personnel in the area.
In the past, hold open rods or struts of the type noted have been used with aircraft cowlings, in order to retain the cowlings in an open position as during maintenance, and/or servicing of the aircraft engine. Depending on the size of the aircraft, such cowlings can weigh hundreds of pounds, and the potential of injury resulting from being struck by an inadvertently released cowling can be readily appreciated if one considers structures of such magnitude and size.
The more recently issued patents address this problem and require that a compressive load be removed, mechanically or manually, from the hold open rod or strut before the release collar can be moved and the hold open rod or strut thereafter collapsed. None of the cited patents require that the release mechanism be rotated a significant degree before the hold open rod can be collapsed. Such devices also still employ loose balls or dogs as the locking members and fail to address the following problems:                In an intermediate position, the prior art hold open rods or struts do not offer locking under tensile loads.        Because the dogs are loosely retained, instances occur when the dogs actually roll over within their slots, causing jamming and non-lockup conditions. These instances can occur particularly under extreme vibration situations.        Due to a point contact of the dogs to the inner tube, there is less holding capacity than if a line contact were provided.        Because of the loose balls and dogs, there is more wear on the inner tube and release collar under vibration.        Because the loose balls and dogs can fall out, the devices offer less than failsafe designs.
None of the forgoing patents discloses the use of one or more rotatably mounted pawls as locking members.
Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide a hold open rod that offers locking in the intermediate position under tensile loads.
It is a further object of the invention to provide such a hold open rod that prevents the locking members from rolling over within their slots.
It is an additional object of the invention to provide such a hold open rod that provides a line contact between the locking members thereof and the surface on which they ride, thus offering more holding capacity.
It is another object of the invention to provide such a hold open rod that provides locking members that are not loose.
A further object of the invention is to provide such a hold open rod in which the locking members thereof cannot fall out, thus providing a more failsafe design.
An additional object of the invention is to provide such a hold open rod with a vibration snubber as part of thereof.
Another object of the invention is to provide such a hold open rod that cannot be collapsed before rotating the release mechanism thereof a significant degree.
Other objects of the present invention, as well as particular features, elements, and advantages thereof, will be elucidated in, or be apparent from, the following description and the accompanying drawing figures.

Hold open rod with rotatably mounted pawls as locking members and a snubber

Triumph Actuation Systems - Connecticut, LLC


A method, system and device for communication establishes communications sessions between otherwise incompatible communication networks. A central unit is used to facilitate communication systems between objects, by referring to a database of communication attributes associated with different communication networks used by a calling part and a called party. Rather than have direct connections from one communication network to a next communication network, and having unique translators to support such direct connections, each of the communications is directed to a central facility, that identifies common protocols that are supported by the different communication networks to be employed when establishing a communication session between a first communication network and a second communication network. Included at the central facility is a database having subscriber information, and a network number associated with a subscriber, where the network number has associated therewith different communication numbers assigned to that subscriber in the different communication networks at which the subscriber may be located.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to methods and devices for enabling communication between different communication networks. More particularly, the present invention is directed to devices, switches, central facilities, and distributed facilities that at least partially, if not completely, establish communication linkage and coordination between different communication networks, including global telephone communication networks, normal telephony communication networks, proprietary data networks, Internet, and electrical distribution networks, for example.
2. Discussion of the Background
During the information age, communication services and the infrastructure for providing communications has become a commodity. As the information age progresses, significantly more communication services are offered in various forms, each of which having various attributes and servicing different niche audiences. While in most countries the communication infrastructure, at least for telephony, has been established at one time or another by way of a government corporation, or government condoned monopoly, at least at some basic level telephony-based networks are somewhat compatible. However, as more services become available, such as cable television, wireless satellite links, proprietary wireless local loop, Internet and other terrestrial-based networks. These are an increasing number of protocols and physical components needed to support those services. To the extent it is possible for the different communication networks to provide and share information between the different networks, perhaps by way of a caller request, or data message sent from one network to the next, the burden is on each of the different networks to provide a customized connection to the other networks. This is illustrated in FIG. 1, where it is seen that different networks, such as GSM 1, ISDN 3, public switch telephone network (PSTN) 5, cable-TV 7, electrical service 9, Ethernet, 11, and Internet protocol (IP) 13 network each provide individual connections between themselves in a "spaghetti-like" fashion. Consequently, in order to provide connections between the respective networks, the network connections are made directly, thus requiring many translation devices and adapters for each network.
As presently recognized, a limitation with this point-to-point interconnection approach for existing network services, is that every time a connection is required between the different networks, every network must be provided with a new adapter so as to be compatible with the new network. Adding the adapter is a straightforward process from a planning perspective, but implementation is very difficult and cost increases significantly every time a new service is brought on line. Furthermore, such a system provides a barrier-to-entry for smaller proprietary networks that may ultimately bear the burden of funding the expense of updating the adapters for other existing communication systems.
Within the telecommunications world there are operators who have long offered telecommunication services within limited geographical areas. However, there are also new telecommunication operators, and other operators that provide an opportunity to provide telecommunications and other communication services which may be compatible, or even competitors with conventional telecommunication networks. For example, some of the new tele-operators include electrical distributors, cable TV operators, Internet providers, wireless services such as LMDS, etc. Originally, these different "nets" each served different purposes, and were not configured to work with each other since their services were in different topical areas. However, given the significant event of deregulation of the telecommunications markets in the United States and in various other countries, it is presently envisioned that a transformation will occur on a global scale regarding the use of "non-conventional" resources to provide communication services. It is presently recognized that while these different services may be available, in order to have a commercially viable system that offers the consumer (i.e., subscriber, with commercially valuable service that truly allows the subscriber to have worldwide communication freedom regardless of where the subscriber presently is and plans to be in the future) point-to-point translators or gateways are being viewed as the solution. According to the configuration shown in FIG. 1, it is up to the different systems themselves to work out the differences in protocols and communication capacities so as to establish communications between the "unconventional" communication providers, if in fact the communications link can be established at all.
In view of the evolution of communication networks in the present deregulation era, the present inventors have recognized that the conventional point-to-point approach towards connecting different networks, will necessarily provide an economic barrier to new services that wish to enter the communications arena, because as each new service comes on line, additional translation and adapter equipment is required for all of the other systems.
As presently recognized, each of the different nets have one feature in common: each net communicates information from one point to the next. When it comes to communicating between different networks, language barriers (protocol differences) present themselves, which must be overcome in order to share the resources available between the different networks. The communication protocols, are not unlike different European languages. For example, more often than not incompatible "native" languages are not an absolute barrier due to the diversity of language skills held by many people. For example, as presently recognized, while it is possible that when one person approaches another person and begins communicating in language A, the second person will instantly be able to understand and converse in that language so that seamless communication may be had. However, often it is the case that when the first person begins communication with the second person in language A, but the second person recognizes that communication is not possible, and tries to respond with language B, hoping that the original speaker will be able to speak language B. Using this ping-pong approach, the two people eventually reach a determination regarding whether or not there is any common language that may be spoken between the two. When a common language is identified, the two may communicate directly, however, if there is no common language between the two, then it will be necessary to use a translator (a third person) in order to allow for the two to speak with each other. The present invention, to some extent, leverages on this concept, and provides a central facility that helps facilitate in a fast and efficient manner different communication protocols that may be common between the two different networks so that those networks may operate in a direct communication mode. However, when communication is not possible the central facility provides an infrastructure for converting between the two languages (a translation function). Furthermore, the central facility helps educate both the first network and the second network, for future communication sessions, by efficiently providing to the different communication networks attributes of specific subscribers and networks that are used in the overall communication system.

Method, system and device for establishing communication between different communication networks


A solid-state radiation detector with increased pixel density. The solid-state radiation detector includes multitudes of linear signal wires for detecting recorded image information as image signals, and a signal detection means disposed on an opposing side of the detector substantially orthogonal to the linear signal wires, and connected to the linear signal wires to detect the image signals from the linear signal wires. A connection section of each of the linear signal wires, extending substantially orthogonal to the opposing side, for connection to the signal detection means is disposed such that the distance from the opposing side to each of the connection sections differs with each other.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a solid-state radiation detector constructed to receive radiation representing image information to record the image information therein, and to output image signals representing the recorded image information.
2. Description of the Related Art
Today, in radiological imaging for medical diagnosis, a variety of solid-state radiation detectors is proposed and put into practical use. Such detectors are constructed to tentatively store charges in a storage section of a solid-state detection element obtained by detecting radiation, and to output the stored charges after converting to image signals representing radiation image information. For example, from the aspect of charge generation process in which radiation is converted to charges, two types of solid-state radiation image detectors are proposed, one of which is called an optical conversion type and the other of which is called a direct conversion type. From the aspect of charge readout process in which stored charges are read out, two types of solid-state radiation image detectors are proposed, one of which is called a TFT (thin film transistor) readout type and the other of which is called an optical readout type.
Here, the optical conversion solid-state radiation detector includes, for example: a solid-state detection unit (image readout unit) including multitudes of photoelectric conversion elements (solid-state detection elements) formed in a matrix on an insulative substrate; and a phosphor stacked on the solid-state detection unit, thereby fluorescence emitted from the phosphor when radiation is irradiated thereon is detected by the photoelectric conversion elements, and signal charges obtained through the photoelectric conversion are tentatively stored in the storage sections of the photoelectric conversion elements (normally, in the case of optical conversion type, the photoelectric conversion section also serves as the storage section), then the stored signal charges are converted to image signals (electrical signals) and outputted, as described, for example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2(1990)-164067.
The direct conversion solid-state radiation detector includes, for example, a solid-state detection unit including multitudes of charge collection electrodes formed in a matrix on an insulative substrate, and a radiation conductor, stacked on the charge collection electrodes, that receives radiation to generate charges representing radiation information, thereby signal charges generated in the radiation conductor when radiation is irradiated thereon are collected by the charge collection electrodes and tentatively stored in the storage sections, then the stored signal charges are converted to electrical signals and outputted as described, for example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 1(1989)-216290.
The TFT readout method is a method in which signal charges stored in the storage sections of the solid-state detection elements are read out by scan-driving TFTs connected to the storage sections, and the optical readout method is a method in which the signal charges are read out by irradiating readout light (readout electromagnetic wave) on the solid-state detection elements.
Further, the inventor of the present invention has proposed improved direct conversion solid-state radiation detectors as described, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,268,614 and 6,376,857. The improved direct conversion solid-state radiation detectors are direct conversion and optical readout type solid-state radiation detectors. These detectors include the following in the order listed below: a first conductive layer which is transparent to recording radiation; a recording photoconductive layer which shows photoconductivity (more precisely, radiation conductivity) when irradiated by the recording radiation transmitted through the first conductive layer; a charge transport layer acting as substantially an insulator against charges having the same polarity as charges charged on the first conductive layer and as substantially a conductor for charges having the opposite polarity; a readout photoconductive layer which shows photoconductivity (more precisely, electromagnetic wave conductivity) when irradiated by a readout electromagnetic wave; and a second conductive layer which is transparent to the readout magnetic wave. Here, signal charges (latent image charges), representing image information, are stored in the interface (storage sections) between the recording photoconductive layer and charge transport layer.
The image signals outputted from the solid-state radiation image detectors of various types described above are outputted to outside, then subjected to various kinds of signal processing by a signal processing unit in the subsequent stage, and outputted as visible information through an output means such as a CRT, or the like. In this way, the use of the solid-state radiation detector allows image signals representing radiation image of a subject to be obtained and immediately outputted as a visible image or the like.
In the solid-state radiation detector described above, the solid-state radiation detector is connected to a substrate on which a signal detection circuit is provided through a TAB (Tape Automated Bonding) film. As illustrated in FIG. 12, in elements 200, which are linear wires, connection sections 201 for connecting the elements 200 to the TAB are disposed in a line, so that a pitch of the elements 200 is the same as a pitch of the connection sections 201. Here, the pixel density of the detector may be increased by narrowing the pitch of the elements 200. The connection sections 201, however, need to be formed with a greater width than that of the elements 200 for structural reasons, so that elements 200 may not be formed with a narrower pitch than that of the connection sections 201, which has limited the pixel density.