A machine for spectacle lens, comprising a lens holding unit for holding left and right spectacle lenses, and a drill drive unit relatively moving in left and right directions and in front and rear directions with respect to the lens holding unit and for forming a hole on the spectacle lens held on the lens holding unit, wherein the lens holding unit has lens supporting base plates separated at left and right to match the left and the right spectacle lenses, the spectacle lenses at left and right are supported by the lens holding unit via the lens supporting base plates, and the left and right lens supporting base plates can be rotated around positions symmetrical with respect to the front-to-rear direction.

The present invention relates to a machine for spectacle lens for forming a hole to mount a frame on a spectacle lens when a rimless spectacle frame is mounted on the spectacle lens.
A rimless spectacle frame, i.e. a so-called two-point frame is used as a spectacle lens frame from the viewpoints of design and lightweight structure.
As shown in FIG. 5, a two-point frame 1 is designed in such a manner that left and right spectacle lenses 2 and 2 are directly connected by a bridge 3, and one end of a temple 4 is directly fixed on the spectacle lens 2. The fixing of the bridge 3 on the spectacle lens 2 and the fixing of the temple 4 on the spectacle lens 2 are executed via a screw 5 or a pin, which penetrates the spectacle lens 2.
Therefore, for the purpose of attaching the two-point frame 1, a hole where the screw or the pin is penetrating is formed on the spectacle lens 2.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a conventional type machine 7 for spectacle lens for forming a hole on the spectacle lens 2.
The machine 7 for spectacle lens comprises a lens holding table 9 and a drill supporting unit 11 mounted on a base 8.
The lens holding table 9 has a Y-axis table 12 to move in a direction (Y-axis direction) to come closer to or to be separated away from the drill supporting unit 11, and an X-axis table 13 to move in a direction (X-axis direction) perpendicularly crossing the Y-axis. When a Y-axis handle 14 is rotated in a normal or reverse direction, the Y-axis table 12 comes closer to or is separated away from the drill supporting unit 11. When an X-axis handle 15 is rotated in a normal or reverse direction, the X-axis table 13 is moved to the left or to the right.
On an upper surface of the X-axis table 13, a lens holding unit 16 is provided.
The lens holding unit 16 comprises a reference plane 17 and a stopper-roller 18, which is disposed at a certain distance from the reference plane 17. The spectacle lens 2 is pressed to the reference plane 17 and the spectacle lens 2 is also pressed to the stopper-roller 18. As a result, positioning of the spectacle lens 2 is performed and its posture is determined.
It is so designed that the spectacle lens 2 is fixed on the X-axis table 13 by a T-shaped spectacle presser 19. The spectacle presser 19 is removably fixed by screws. In the figure, reference numeral 20 denotes a reference line marked on the spectacle lens 2.
The drill supporting unit 11 is provided with a slide guide unit 21, which can be tilted in left and right directions around its lower end. A slider 22 is mounted on the slide guide unit 21 so that the slider 22 can be moved in a vertical direction (Z-axis direction). The slider 22 can be moved in a vertical direction by operating a Z-axis handle 23.
A drill 24 for drilling a hole is attached on the slider 22, and the drill 24 is rotated by an electric motor (not shown).
Now, description will be given on a case where holes are drilled on the spectacle lens 2 in the conventional type machine 7 for spectacle lens.
First, the spectacle lens 2 is set on the lens holding unit 16. Then, the spectacle lens 2 is moved to a machining position and a hole is drilled.
Under the condition that the spectacle presser 19 is taken off, the left and the right spectacle lenses 2 to be machined are placed on the lens holding unit 16, and positioning and posture alignment are performed on each of the spectacle lenses 2.
To perform the positioning and the posture alignment, an upper edge of the spectacle lens 2 is pressed to the reference plane 17, and the spectacle lens 2 is further pressed to the stopper-roller 18. For the tilting of the spectacle lens 2, the reference line 20 is utilized. When the positioning and the posture alignment have been completed, the spectacle presser 19 is mounted, and the spectacle lens 2 is fixed on the lens holding unit 16.
When the upper surface of the spectacle lens 2 is curved, the slide guide unit 21 is tilted and adjustment is made so that the drill 24 is directed perpendicularly to the surface of the spectacle lens 2. The Y-axis handle 14 and the X-axis handle 15 are rotated, and the Y-axis table 12 and the X-axis table 13 are moved to the hole drilling position. While the drill 24 is being rotated, the drill 24 is moved down by operating the Z-axis handle 23, and a hole is drilled on the spectacle lens 2.
Depending on the type of the spectacle frame, the spectacle lens 2 must be mounted by tilting the spectacle lens 2 because of its design. For instance, under the condition that spectacles are put on, each of the spectacle lenses may be tilted upward from the center to the edge. When such type of spectacle frame is used, the spectacle lenses 2 must be tilted to be symmetrical to left and right when the positioning of the spectacle lens 2 is performed on the lens holding unit 16.
In the conventional machine 7 for spectacle lens as described above, the machine has positioning function in Y-axis and X-axis directions of the spectacle lens 2 but has no positioning function for tilting. Therefore, an operator must tilt the spectacle lens 2 manually. However, how far the spectacle lens 2 should be tilted depends on the sense and the skill of the operator. The accuracy in finishing depends on the skill of the operator. In some cases, the balance between left and right may be lost.


A sliding bearing assembly for a press die set includes a guide post having at least two external grooves disposed parallel to the post axis, each of which has two flat surfaces oriented at 90 degrees to one another. A guide bushing is slidably mounted on the post by guide blocks and a retainer assembly. The guide bushing includes a number of guide blocks equal to the number of grooves in the guide post, and each has a groove opposed to a corresponding groove in the post. The retainer assembly, which is positioned within the guide bushing, includes at least two cross roller bearings, one for each groove on the guide post, mounted on a generally circular frame. The roller bearings are mounted on the frame with the axes of the rollers at such an angle relative to the plane of the frame that the rollers run along the aligned opposed grooves in the guide post and guide blocks.

1. Field of the Invention
This present invention relates to a press die set used in a punching process, a bending process, a drawing process, a coining process, a forging process, a rubber die process, a mold die process, a die-cast process, a powder molding process or the like, and in particular to a slidable part such as a guide post, a retainer, and a guide bushing in the die set. Further, the present invention relates to a roller and a frame constituting a retainer.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a press die set in which upper and lower dies are vertically slidden, relative to each other, through the intermediary of guide posts, a retainer and guide bushes so as to perform a punching process.
Conventionally, a ball retainer shown in FIG. 23 has been widely used as the above-mentioned retainer. The ball retainer has a substantially cylindrical shape plastic casing 601 in which several ball bearings 602 are rotatably held. Since the thickness of the casing 601 is less than the diameter of the ball bearings 602, the ball bearings pierce through the inside of the casing so as to make contact with a guide post while the casing does not make contact with the guide post. Similarly, the ball bearings make contact with a guide bushing which surrounds the exterior of the ball retainer. Further, when the ball bearings are rotated, the guide post, the ball retainer and the guide bushing are slidden, relative to each other.
The conventional guide post is columnar, having an outer diameter slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the retainer. Further, the conventional guide bushing is cylindrical, having an inner diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the retainer. Gaps between the ball bearings, the guide post and the guide bushing, are filled with lubricant such as grease so as to enable smooth slide motion.
However, since the conventional retainer uses ball bearings, and accordingly they make point-contact with the guide post and the guide bushing, the total contact area is not so large even though a larger number of ball bearings are used. Accordingly, a high pressure is exerted to the ball bearings, causing several problems such as occurrence of thread-like scratches on the guide post, breakage of a lubricant film, occurrence of friction heat, and further, in the worst case, occurrence of seizure.
Further, the individual bearings are made into point contacts with the guide post and the guide bushing, excessive play or rattling occurs, deteriorating the dimensional accuracy thereof and further the freedom thereof is very much so the positional adjustment therefore is difficult.
Further since the conventional retainer has a large frictional resistance, it inevitably requires a large force for slide motion of the die set. Further, the ball bearings are lined in an oblique direction, and accordingly, the relative motion between the guide post and the retainer is likely to effect in this oblique direction. The same is said to the relative motion between the retainer and the guide bushing. As a result, the motion of the die set is not in a true vertical direction but is added thereto with rotational motion, causing spiral motion or precession, and accordingly, an unpreferable lateral load is exerted to a punching cutter in dies, thereby possibly causing problems of breakage and abrasion.
The present invention is devised in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and accordingly, one object of the present invention is to provide a novel press die set having high dimensional accuracy, which hardly fails during operation, and which facilitates the positional adjustment.


A circuit for generating and distributing highly accurate and stable clocks on a large integrated die is described. A Digital De-skew System is used to help prevent metastability and dither, provide a wide controllable delay range, and alternate sampling of phase detectors.

Most integrated circuits such as a microprocessor consist of multiple circuit elements fabricated on a semiconductor material such as silicon. Generally, a clock signal is routed to many, if not most, of the circuit elements. This clock signal is used for the timing of the circuit elements.
The current trends in integrated circuit design are toward smaller device dimensions, higher levels of integration, and higher operating frequencies. Unfortunately, these trends tend to increase clocking inaccuracies. In order to meet narrowed timing requirements associated with higher operating frequencies, it would be desirable to not only prevent increased clocking inaccuracies, but to decrease clocking inaccuracies. Thus, generating and distributing highly accurate and stable clocks on a large integrated die present a challenge.
One method to manage and lower clock inaccuracies is to incorporate a Digital De-skew System (DDS) in the-global clock distribution of an integrated circuit. The integrated circuit die is typically divided into domains. A DDS is then inserted between domains to dynamically or statically lower the clock skew between them. A DDS typically consists of phase detectors, buffer control circuits, and adjustable buffers distributed throughout a clock distribution structure. FIG. 1 shows an example of such a DDS in a global clock distribution of an integrated circuit. The phase detectors 110–116 measure the phase error between two clocks and generate lead/lag signals depending on the relationship between the two clocks. The lead/lad signals are then processed by buffer control circuits which control the adjustable buffers 128–133, 143, 145, 155–157, 159–161.
Existing DDS' typically suffer from at least three problems. A first problem is that the generated delays from the adjustable buffers are not linear. FIG. 2 shows a graph of an output 215 of a nonlinear delay buffer. The y-axis 205 represents adjustable delay steps of the buffer measured in picoseconds. The x-axis 210 represents control bits that adjust the buffer. In order to achieve stability and convergence within a DDS, the delay steps of the buffer should be linear. Output 215, however, is not linear; delay steps gradually decrease as the control bit value asserted increases. Nonlinearity decreases the controllable delay range of the buffer.
A second problem is metastability and dither. Metastability may occur when a phase detector detects two perfectly aligned incoming clocks under ideal conditions. In contrast, dither may occur when the phase detector detects a phase difference between two clocks, but the delay step is too large to correct the difference between the two clocks. Thus, the phase error between the two clocks toggle around an equilibrium point.
A third problem is jitter when updates occur. Jitter is any cycle to cycle variation in a clock. In general, the larger the change in generated delays, the larger the resulting clock jitter.
Therefore, it would be desirable for a DDS to generate linear delays having a wide controllable delay range, detect phase differences without being susceptible to metastability and dither, and prevent large sudden changes in generated delays.

Circuit to manage and lower clock inaccuracies of integrated circuits


Systems and methods for providing high performance soft magnetic underlayers for magnetic recording media are described. One such magnetic recording medium includes a substrate, an amorphous soft magnetic underlayer including CoFeMoNb on the substrate, where an atomic percent of the Mo is greater than about 8 and an atomic percent of the Nb is greater than about 9, and a magnetic recording layer on the soft magnetic underlayer.

Perpendicular magnetic recording is a form of magnetic recording in which bits of information are stored in a direction that is perpendicular to the plane of the recording media, which is typically a rotating disk forming part of a disk drive. To obtain this orientation of the bit magnetization, the anisotropy constant of the magnetic recording layer is configured such that its "easy" magnetic axis is perpendicular to the plane of the media. The magnetization establishing each bit is imparted by a write head. The layer in which the bits are formed is typically a magnetically "hard" recording layer. ("Hardness" and "softness" in this context refers to the ability for producing saturation in a magnetic layer with increasing external magnetic fields. A soft layer can produce magnetic saturation significantly faster than a hard layer.) In order to provide an appropriate closed loop for the field created by the write head when writing each bit, the hard recording layer is usually formed atop a "soft" magnetic underlayer ("SUL").
While the role of the recording layer is to carry the individual bits of recorded data, the role of the SUL is to guide the magnetic write field flux perpendicularly through the recording layer and then through the SUL in a return path to the write head. Often however, the SUL does not sufficiently guide the magnetic write field produced by a write head and is a source of noise. As such, there is a need for a SUL that better guides or enhances the write field and reduces noise.


Devices for removing particulate from surfaces may include at least one belt coupled with at least one guide to rotate the belt(s) about the guide(s). A vacuum cavity may be disposed around a portion of the belt(s) to remove captured particulate therefrom when a negative pressure is introduced in the vacuum cavity. A surface may be cleaned by rotating a dry belt about a guide and positioning a portion of the dry belt on the surface to capture and collect particulate. A portion of the dry belt can pass into a vacuum cavity, and collected particulate may be removed from the dry belt into the vacuum cavity. A cleaning apparatus may be formed by coupling a belt to a guide so the belt can rotate around the guide. A vacuum cavity can be disposed to encompass a portion of the belt. Other aspects, embodiments, and features are also included.

The accumulation of dust, dirt, sediment, particulate and other matter on objects and surfaces has long been a factor in everyday life. Whether in the home, the business, commercial/industry or public spaces etc., the desire to remove such accumulations of dust, dirt, sediment, particulate and other matter from objects and surfaces for purposes of cleanliness, health, appearance etc. has similarly been an ongoing chore for people in their homes, businesses, commercial/industry and public spaces etc.
Various devices and means have been utilized for the task of dusting/cleaning of objects and surfaces, including dusting cloths, feather dusters, air-flow/vacuum techniques, brushes, chemical sprays, wipes etc. Many of these devices and means have found their use, and a certain degree of success.
However, it has been that such devices and means in the task of dusting/cleaning of objects and surfaces do come with their inherent limitations and drawbacks. Feather dusters tend to get dirty and increasingly tend to just move excess dust and particulate from one location to another or into the air, then to settle back onto either the original surface or onto another surface, and only to have to be moved or picked up again. Dusting cloths get soiled and have to be repeatedly washed and/or discarded. Air-flow/vacuum techniques can be effective but can be insufficient without the added use of brushes, bristles or high-pressures that also tend to further disperse such dust and particulate. Chemical sprays may be effective but can be more costly and/or produce more waste due to the containers in which they are kept and the paper towels and other application devices needed to assist in their use; then the chemicals are depleted and must be replaced with additional purchase and added waste to the user and to the environment. Other hand-held disposable devices that have come into use can also be effective, but soon lead to waste once they become soiled and ineffective, and need to be replaced.

Cleaning apparatus, methods of making cleaning apparatus, and methods of cleaning


A motorcycle that securely prevents adhesion of fuel to an external surface of a fuel tank as it is bounced back in the course of refueling, and avoids interference with parts positioned below the fuel tank. The fuel tank has a filler opening formed in its transversal center with an upward opening. A projecting part projecting toward the filler opening is provided on a bottom wall of the fuel tank opposite to the filler opening.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a motorcycle having a fuel tank formed with a filler opening facing upward.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventionally, a fuel tank on a motorcycle has a filler opening at its upper end facing upward. Fuel is poured into the tank through the filler opening by inserting a filling tube of the fueling gun or of the portable fuel tank into the filler opening. While pouring, a refueling person checks the fuel level within the fuel tank through a gap between the filler opening and the filling tube to determine if the desired fuel level has been reached or not.
In recent years, some motorcycles have been provided with an air cleaner below the fuel tank. The fuel tank in this type of motorcycle has a relatively shallow depth in the area above the air cleaner. The filler opening is often formed in this area of shallow depth, and sometimes in the course of refueling, part of the fuel bounces back after hitting the bottom face of the tank and turns into fine particles that are spattered out of the fuel tank through the filler opening.
Fuel that is spattered out of the fuel tank adheres to and contaminates the outer surface of the fuel tank. Therefore, in fuel tanks having a shallow depth below the filler opening, fuel bouncing back in the course of refueling adheres to the external surface of the fuel tank and creates a problem in that the adhered fuel must be wiped off each time.
JP-B-3214654 discloses a fuel tank configuration to prevent fuel from bouncing back. In JP-B-3214654, a guide groove is formed on the bottom wall of the fuel tank opposite to the filling opening, for leading the fuel slantingly downward to the rear. The guide groove is formed in such shape that part of the bottom wall of the tank is downwardly swelling out, and is constituted with a concave groove having a cross section of circular arc. The inner surface of the guide groove is formed into a concave curve.
However, even when such a guide groove is formed on the bottom wall of the fuel tank, fuel hitting the wall of the guide groove constituted with a concave curve may still bounce back upward and spatter out of the filling opening. The amount of fuel spattering out of the tank may be reduced by forming the filler opening with a smaller bore. Such design, however, hinders the visual check of the fuel level in the course of refueling.
In addition, the fuel tank of JP-B-3214654 leads to the problem of reduced air cleaner capacity, because the upper wall of the air cleaner, located below the fuel tank, is concaved to avoid interference with the bottom wall of the fuel tank opposite to the filler opening, which is projected downward by the depth of the guide groove.


A door speaker box includes an enclosure member and speaker operatively attached thereto, such that they define an acoustic volume, into which the speaker communicates. The enclosure member and speaker are configured to be installed as a speaker box unit in the vehicle door, such that speaker box unit seals the door against moisture passage into the vehicle interior. A flange integrally formed in the enclosure member extends substantially around a portion thereof and is configured to seal against such moisture passage. A hardware mounting surface may be integrally formed in the enclosure member, and configured to receive and support a door hardware component. The flange may further define and enclose the acoustic volume, and may be configured to seal multiple access holes in the inner panel, such that the door is characterized by an absence of rain paper or other dedicated water barrier.

Many vehicles employ side door assemblies having windows requiring operating hardware which is known as the window regulator. The window generally moves between a fully open position, in which it is substantially disposed within the door assembly and a fully closed position, in which the majority of the window is located above the belt line of the door assembly.
Additional hardware items also conventionally reside in or on a vehicle door and therefore, may need to be assembled into the door assembly with the window and regulator in a coordinated manner to avoid interference. A typical door system includes interior and exterior handles and a door latch for releasably holding the door in a closed position. Interior and exterior lock actuators are also often provided in the door assembly, which are operatively linked to the latch or handles to selectively prevent the handles from releasing the latch assembly to an open position.
The window assembly may reside in between an outer panel, which is part of the vehicle exterior, and an inner panel, which may provide structural integrity for the vehicle door. The inner panel often includes one or more service or access holes to facilitate installation of the window regulator and other door hardware components. These access holes may be sealed by rain paper to prevent water and moisture from entering the interior of the vehicle. Many vehicle doors also include a trim panel attached to the inner panel, which forms part of the vehicle interior exposed to the vehicle occupant.
A speaker which is part of the vehicle audio system may also be mounted in the vehicle side door. The speaker converts an electrical signal from the radio or amplifier into audible sound waves in the form of music, information, or notification signals from the vehicle's operating system.

Door speaker enclosure with integral water barrier and hardware attachment


A vacuum lifting/lowering head comprises a fixed, steadying upper handle adapted, in use, to be gripped by the user, and a movable, lower handle displaceable under the manual control of the user, both handles being suitable for either left or right hand manual operation. An opening is provided in a part of the head, and a valve member is associated with the opening to control the extent of exposure thereof and displaceable by the user's manual movement of the lower handle. The invention also includes a vacuum lifting apparatus provided with such a head.

This invention relates to a vacuum lifting/lowering head, e.g. for use in conjunction with vacuum lifting apparatus, such as the general kind described in GB 2080764. The invention also includes said vacuum lifting flowering in combination head with such a vacuum lifting apparatus.
With such apparatus the expansion or contraction of the variable length, bellows-like lift tube is controlled by controlling the vacuum level within the tube, which level is in turn controlled by a user operable, or settable, valve to connect and/or isolate the interior of said lift take to atmosphere. Thus, in a fully open valve position, the tube interior is open to atmosphere, the vacuum within the tube is rapidly destroyed and, with the tube hanging vertically from a suspension point, the tube falls to its maximum expanded length. Conversely, in a fully closed valve position, the vacuum is at a maximum and the tube rises to its maximum contracted position--being in use a maximum lift height. It follows that intermediate opening of the valve achieves an intermediate position.
Previously proposals for valve arrangements for vacuum lifting/lowering heads have however been relatively complex and hence costly c.f. GB 2080764 and 2200615, and the object of the present invention is to provide a head of simple operation and hence of low manufacturing costs.


A linear motor is equipped with a coil body (62), and a yoke (71) that supports a magnetism generating body (72) and that moves relative to the coil body (62). The yoke (71) has a first portion (73) that is formed from a magnetic material and disposed based on the saturation state of the magnetic field, which is generated by the magnetism generating body (72), in the yoke (71).

In exposure apparatuses that are used in the manufacturing of, for example, semiconductor devices and liquid crystal display devices, many linear motors, which are capable of noncontactual drive, are used as drive apparatuses of, for example, reticle stages on which masks (reticles and the like) are mounted and wafer stages on which photosensitive substrates (wafers, glass plates, and the like) are mounted.
This type of linear motor comprises a structural body that has a group of coil bodies and rows of permanent magnets that sandwich the coil bodies from above and below; in addition, the permanent magnets are fixed by, for example, bonding them to a magnetic body, i.e., a yoke, so as to hold them and form magnetic paths through which their magnetic flux passes. Furthermore, the linear motor is configured so that it obtains drive power (thrust) produced from the Lorentz force generated by energizing the coil bodies, which are positioned in the magnetic field produced by the permanent magnets.
The lines of magnetic force that are generated by the coil bodies act on a casing, which houses the coils, as well as on the permanent magnets and the yoke that supports such; however, if a fluctuating magnetic field acts on the casing, which is a conductor, the permanent magnets, or the yoke, then eddy currents will arise in the vicinity of the surface of the conductor, and those eddy currents counteract the magnetic field fluctuations. Therefore, Patent Document 1 discloses a technology wherein the coil body casing is formed from a highly conductive plate material and an opening is provided therein in order to adjust the value of the resistance to the eddy currents.
Patent Document 1 Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, Publication No. H11-196561

Linear motor, stage apparatus and exposure apparatus


A tire uniformity inspection machine is calibrated by applying to at least one force measuring channel thereof a signal which simulates the application of a force of a magnitude greater than any force actually applied to the machine during calibration. That signal, which is preferably of a magnitude appropriate to simulate the largest forces encountered during actual tire testing, can be generated by connecting the channel, preferably at its input, to an energy source through an impedance. The response of the channel to the signal is measured and a calibration factor is determined based on that response. Such calibration factor accounts for the actual behavior of the channel more truely than prior art calibration techniques which relied solely upon the relatively small signal excitation conditions achievable by applying a relatively small actual force to the machine. Thus, the invention affords tire uniformity measurements of improved accuracy.

Nonuniformity-indicating parameters are measured using a tire uniformity inspection machine. In a typical tire uniformity inspection machine, tires are conveyed to a test station where each tire is mounted upon a chuck, inflated and rotated with its tread surface in forced radial contact with the circumferential surface of a loadwheel. The loadwheel is a rigid cylindrical structure which rotates freely on a spindle due to its engagement with the tire. To measure forces exerted on the loadwheel by the tire in directions of interest, the opposite ends of the loadwheel spindle are each fitted with force transducers. Those transducers typically comprise triaxial loadcell assemblies mounted for sensing forces in three mutually orthogonal directions, namely; the radial, lateral and tangential directions. For each of these directions, each loadcell assembly includes a series of four strain gauges connected in a conventional bridge arrangement so as to respond to forces acting in a particular direction by generating an analog signal whose instantaneous magnitude is correlated to the instantaneous magnitude of that force. The analog signals from the appropriate loadcells at opposite ends of the spindle are then combined in order to report the total force acting on the loadwheel in a particular direction. The combined force signal is then applied as an input to an analog signal processing network associated with one of a number of distinct measuring channels. Force measuring channels may be of either a "suppressed" or "unsuppressed" type.
A typical unsuppressed measuring channel has at its front end an instrumentation amplifier. In addition to amplifying the signal, the instrumentation amplifier serves to electrically isolate the force transducer as well as to add or subtract any required offset to the signal generated by the transducer. The output of the instrumentation amplifier is usually applied to an active filter to attenuate frequencies other than those of significance. The output of the filter represents an unsuppressed analog signal which is then applied to an analog to digital (A/D) converter and converted to a digital signal representing the nominal unsuppressed output of the channel. A computer samples the output of the A/D converter and digitally processes the information in order to calculate the value of a given nonuniformity-indicating parameter characterizing the tire under test. A plurality of different nonuniformity-indicating parameters characterizing the same tire are usually measured substantially simultaneously by each of the remaining channels of the tire uniformity inspection machine. Those parameters are then typically displayed, recorded and/or compared with specification criteria in order to initiate further action such as rejecting the tire if the specification criteria are not met or, in appropriate cases, initiating corrective measures such as grinding the tire in selected areas in order to improve its performance.
The average radial load impressed on the tire to establish a desired test condition is quite large in relation to the force variations actually generated by the tire. Thus, when measuring a nonuniformity-indicating parameter correlated to radial force variation, the total instantaneous force registered by the force transducer includes not only a component indicative of the force variations generated by the tire under test but also a much larger component representing the average radial load on the tire. During operation of a typical tire uniformity inspection machine for testing, the loadwheel exerts an average radial load of about two thousand pounds on the tire under test whereas the actual force variations generated by the tire are typically less than about twenty pounds. To increase the resolution of force variation measurements made under such conditions, it is common practice to measure such a parameter using what is known as a suppressed channel of the tire uniformity inspection machine in order to cancel the effects of the large average radial load. A suppressed channel is similar to the unsuppressed channel described above except that it includes a suppression network between the filter and A/D converter.
The suppression network includes a summer which subtracts from the unsuppressed signal, which represents the total force on the transducer, a suppression signal representing the average radial load on the tire in order to cancel that component from the unsuppressed signal. In order to minimize inaccuracies due to noise and quantization error, the resulting signal is then applied to an amplifier whose gain is selected to be large enough so that the magnitude of the largest signal expected to be generated by the amplifier will correspond to the upper end of the input range of the A/D converter. The output of the amplifier is applied to the A/D converter which, in response, generates a digital signal representing the nominal suppressed output of the channel.
After the output of the A/D converter associated with either a suppressed or unsuppressed channel is sampled by the computer, the computer derives an indicated value, I, for each data sample, A, by solving an equation of the form: EQU I=(A-T)*C EQUATION 1
In the above equation, the data sample term, A, corresponds to the "actual" output of the A/D converter of the channel as originally sampled by the computer when a tire is being inspected. The term T, for "tare", is a constant representing the magnitude of the observed output of the A/D converter with no external load applied to the force transducer. The term "C" is a calibration factor which the machine must apply so that the "indicated value" equals as nearly as possible the true externally applied force. The tare and calibration factor terms determined and stored prior to initiating out tire inspection operations. The calibration factor is determined by carrying out a calibration procedure.
That procedure includes applying a relatively small known force to the force transducer using weights of modest size. Such weights total less than about one hundred pounds and typically weigh about fifty pounds in all. The use of such small weights is possible because the strain gauge loadcells typically used as force transducers in tire uniformity inspection machines have a fairly linear transfer function (i.e., ratio of output voltage to applied force) over their more than two thousand (2000) pound typical operating range. Such weights are applied to the machine so as to act on the transducer along the same direction as the forces to which the channel being calibrated is to respond during tire testing. This is accomplished by attaching the weights to the loadwheel or to the loadwheel spindle using fixtures connected to the machine either directly or, indirectly through a cable and pulley system.
Determination of the calibration factor in the conventional manner was straightforward and was based solely on the magnitude of the digital signal generated by the A/D converter of the channel in response to the aforementioned weight. The calibration factor was calculated simply as the ratio represented by the magnitude of the output of the A/D converter to the magnitude of the known applied force.

Calibration apparatus and method for improving the accuracy of tire uniformity measurements and tire testing method using same


A method for non-invasive detection of a disease, a status of illicit-drug use, or smoking status includes transferring a body fluid obtained from a patient to a sensor comprising a nano-scale surface structure to allow the body fluid to come in contact with the nano-scale surface structure, illuminating the body fluid and the nano-scale surface structure by a laser beam, scattering the laser beam by the body fluid and the nano-scale surface structure to produce a scattered light, and analyzing the scattered light using a spectral analyzer to diagnose a disease, the status of illicit-drug use, or smoking status in the patient.

This invention relates generally to the methods and systems for detection of very small amount of chemicals (trace chemicals) by employing light scattering probes. More particularly, this invention relates to an improved light scattering probe and a chemical sensor.
Despite the fact Raman detectors have sensitivity down to a level of single molecule detection (SMD), due to several technical difficulties; conventional Raman sensors still have very limited applications. Specifically, one of the major limitations of Raman spectroscopy application is the weak Raman scattering signal for trace chemical detection. There are many efforts in attempt to resolve this problem of low scattering signals in the field of Raman sensing. However, such efforts still have very limited success and have not been able to make Raman detectors available for practical and economical applications that urgently require ultra sensitive chemical trace detections.
Roughened or nano-structured sensing surface is known to generate strong scattering signals. Specifically, the nano-structured materials have found numerous applications in sensing, bioscience, materials science, semiconductor, etc. One of the promising applications of sensing technologies with nano-structured materials is Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) and Surface-Enhanced Resonance Raman Spectroscopy (SERRS). It has been discovered that the Raman scattering signal can be enhanced by 104˜1014 times when molecules are adsorbed on a nano-structured noble metal (such as Ag Au and Cu, but not limited to Ag, Au and Cu) surface compared to normal Raman scattering. Specially, Raman scattering signal gets remarkably enhanced if the surface nanoparticles are isolated. The enhancement is determined by several factors, among them, the dimensions of the nano-particles and the distance among these nanoparticles on the surface are very important. It is found that as the scale of these nanoparticles decreases, the signal enhancement of Raman scattering increases. Further, as the distance between neighboring nanoparticles islands varies, the enhancement effect of Raman scattering also varies. However, the conventional technologies, for example, VLSI lithography technology, are still encountered with technical difficulties to fabricate nano-structure surfaces with reduced dimensions of the nano-particles and reduced distance among these nano-particles on the surface to achieve scattering signal enhancement.
The very limited availability of non-contaminated nano-structured noble metal surface is still a major difficulty faced by those of ordinary skill of the art in applying the technologies of SERS (Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering) and SERRS (Surface-Enhanced Resonant Raman Scattering) for trace chemical detection. A non-contaminated nano-structured noble metal surface is required to conveniently deploy in the field for molecular adsorption and subsequent measurement. Due to this limit availability, even though the detection of trace chemicals can be achieved a part-per-billion (ppb) level, the techniques of applying SERS and SERRS for detecting trace of explosives and/or other chemical materials still have very limited applications.
The technologies of applying SERS and SERRS for detecting trace chemicals were described in many published papers such as "Probing Single Molecules And Single Nanoparticles by Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering", Shuming Nie and Steven R. Emory, Science, 1997, 275, 1102-1106; "Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy of Individual Rhodamine 6G Molecules on Large Ag Nanocrystals", Amy M Michaels, M. Nirmal, and L. E. Brus. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1999, 121, 9932-9939; "Single Molecule Detection Using Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS)", Katrin Kneipp, Yang Wang, Harald Kneipp, Lev L. Perelman, Irving Itzkan, Physical Review Letter, 78, 1997. 1667-1670; "Nanosphere Lithography: A Versatile Nanofabrication Tool for Studies of Size-Dependent Nanoparticle Optics", Christy L. Haynes and Richard P. Van Duyne, J. Phys. Chem. B 2001, 105, 5599-5611.
However, these publications do not provide an effective method to produce and package the non-contaminated nano-structured noble metal surface to achieve field applications of SERS and SERRS for trace chemical detection. Furthermore, none of these publications provide method to fabricate nano-structured materials with well-controlled nano array that have reduced and optimized dimensions of the nano-particles and reduced and optimized distances among these nano-particles on the surface to achieve scattering signal enhancement.
There are ever increasing demands to take advantage of the greatly improved nano-structured surface now provided by the invention as that disclosed in the co-pending Application so that Raman sensors can be practically implemented to effectively realize these applications that are urgently in demand.
Therefore, a need still exists in the art to provide practical configuration for conveniently implement the Raman sensors in applications to antiterrorism, forensic, medical diagnoses, disease preventions, industrial process monitoring, environmental cleaning up and monitoring, food, and drug quality control, etc.

Non-invasive disease diagnosis using light scattering probe


A thin film transistor array panel for an X-ray detector includes a dummy pixel including a photo diode and a TFT for detecting leakage current. The photo diode includes first and second electrodes (178,195) facing each other and a photo-conductive layer (800) disposed between the first electrode and the second electrode. The TFT includes a semiconductor layer (150), a gate electrode (123), a source electrode (173) connected to a data line, a drain electrode (175) connected to the photo diode. The dummy pixel further includes a light blocking layer (196) for blocking light incident on the photo diode. Alternatively, the semiconductor layer is disconnected between the source electrode and the drain electrode.

(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a thin film transistor array panel, and in particular, to a thin film transistor array panel for an X-ray detector.
(b) Description of the Related Art
An X-ray detector includes a thin film transistor (TFT) array panel provided with an array of TFTs. Each pixel of the TFT array panel includes a P type photo-conductive layer containing P type impurity, an intrinsic photo-conductive layer without impurity, an N type photo-conductive layer N type impurity, and an array of PIN photo diodes including two electrodes for applying voltages across the conductive layers. The X-ray detector is a device for converting a light into an electrical signal, which applies a bias voltage to electrons generated by the PIN photo diodes in response to X-ray from an external device to transmit the electrons to other devices.
However, the electrical signal generated by the TFT array panel for an X-ray detector may include leakage current flowing in the photo diodes or on a surface of the photo diodes. Accordingly, it is difficult to determine a reference for the electrical signal including the leakage current.

Thin film transistor array panel for X-ray detector


A cyclone separator is disclosed. The cyclone separator includes a housing that forms a separation chamber, a central cylinder made of a non-metal refractory material and located inside the housing, and a support structure that supports the central cylinder. The separation chamber is divided by the central cylinder into an outer separation chamber and an inner separation chamber. The separation chamber includes an inlet and an outlet that are in communication with the outer and inner separation chambers, respectively. The support structure comprises a hollowed-out upwardly-arched structure that is connected to an inner wall of the separation chamber by continuous pouring or masonry, with an arch face of the support structure being connected to a lower end of the central cylinder to support the central cylinder. The central cylinder is connected to both the housing and the supporting structure by continuous pouring or masonry.

A cyclone separator is one of the key components in a coal gas circulating fluidized bed gasification system. The cyclone separator mainly functions to separate a large amount of high temperature solid substances from a gas stream and send the separated substances back to a furnace chamber, so as to ensure multiple burning reaction cycles of a fuel with a desulfurizing agent. A central cylinder is a key component of the cyclone separator. The central cylinder operates in an environment intensely scoured by a high-temperature dust-containing flue gas of over 900° C. Conventionally, a central cylinder comprises a cylindrical structure made of metal. Such a central cylinder has a rather short service life due to its poor performance in resisting thermal deformation and scouring, and thus requires to be replaced every two years or so. If not replaced, the deformed central cylinder would not only reduce the separation efficiency of the cyclone separator, but also increase the wearing of a rear flue and the burden of a subsequent dust remover. In addition, replacing the central cylinder requires a system shutdown, and the replacing process involves complex disassembly and reassembly, which demands a large amount of labor and time, increasing the cost of operation and maintenance. Moreover, a metal central cylinder is usually expensive to manufacture. Therefore, traditional cyclone separators suffer from obvious technical shortcomings such as a heavy investment, a high cost of manufacturing, a high cost of maintenance, and a short service life.

Cyclone separator having central cylinder made of non-metal refractory material

JIANGSU HUAWEI MACHINERY MANUFACTURING CO., LTD


A source-follower transistor based buffer provides high linearity. A replica transistor is used to generate a replica voltage substantially equal to the output voltage of the buffer. The replica voltage is level shifted by a level shift circuit and applied at the drain of the source-follower transistor to improve the linearity of the buffer. The buffer may be used in conjunction with a switched-capacitor sampling circuit. A damping circuit may be used to reduce charge glitches due to sampling. The damping circuit may be a low pass filter. The buffer may be used in an interface circuit that produces an output signal from an input signal and controls the level of the output signal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to electronic circuitry. More particularly, the present invention relates to buffers.
2. Background Art
Buffer circuits typically are used to drive a low impedance while providing a high input impedance. For example, buffer circuits may be used at the interface of continuous-time and discrete-time circuits such as switched-capacitor sampling circuits to avoid the effects caused by sampling of the preceding continuous-time signal. Accordingly, buffer circuits are commonly used at the input of switched-capacitor based analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) such as sigma-delta ADCs, pipeline ADCs, algorithmic ADCs, etc.
A source-follower transistor is conventionally used as a buffer. In their simplest forms, source-follower transistor based buffers do not often meet the high linearity characteristics desired for many buffer circuit applications. In addition, charge glitches caused by a sampling circuit that follows a buffer circuit are typically coupled to the buffer circuit's input terminal through a parasitic capacitance "Cgs" of the source-follower transistor. This coupling can degrade the linearity of preceding continuous-time signals at the buffer circuit input. Accordingly, there is a need for a buffer circuit having high linearity.
Furthermore, buffer circuits, such as ones based on source-follower transistors, often generate an output signal having a level that is offset from the level of the corresponding buffer circuit input signal. It is often desirable to control the level of buffer output signals.
In addition, the level of a buffer circuit input signal may affect buffer circuit performance. Therefore, it is also often desirable to control the level of buffer input signals.


A composition of matter includes a polymerizable mixture comprising 1 to 99 weight percent of a first monomer and an initiator therefor, the first monomer being one of 1) at least one free-radically polymerizable monomer or 2) at least one cyanate ester monomer, and 99 to 1 weight percent of a second monomer and an initiator therefor, the second monomer being the member of 1) or 2) that is not selected as the first monomer, wherein the curative for the cyanate ester is a transition metal-containing organometallic compound curing agent and the curative for the free-radically polymerizable monomer is a free-radical generating curing agent or a transition metal-containing organometallic compound. The polymeric mixtures are useful, for example, in applications requiring high performance, such as high temperature performance; in composites, particularly structural composites; structural adhesives; vibration damping materials; electronic applications such as printed wiring boards, semiconductor encapsulants and electronic adhesives; photoresists; injection molding and prepregs; protective coatings; tough self-supporting films; and high performance binders. In addition, a curable composition including (1) an ethylenically unsaturated monomer or (2) an ethylenically unsaturated monomer and a cyanate ester monomer, and certain organometallic neutral compounds is useful in the graphic arts.

Industry is constantly searching for lighter, stronger, and more resistant materials to be used in place of the materials used today. Cyanate ester resins are known for their thermal stability, chemical inertness, solvent resistance, and electrical properties. Thus, more and more uses are being found in a variety of fields which demand high performance materials, such as structural composites, printed wiring boards, semiconductor encapsulants, structural adhesives, injection molding and prepregs, and high performance binders. The high performance characteristics of cyanate ester resins are offset by their brittleness. To expand their utility, several strategies have been pursued to toughen these materials.
Several patents have dealt with curable compositions comprising cyanate ester monomers and ethylenically unsaturated monomers. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,600,760, 4,116,946, and 4,383,903. Catalysts used for cyanate cure are metal salts, such as zinc octoate, cobalt naphthanate, or certain amines. Use of organometallic catalysts was not taught or suggested. No control over morphology was taught in any of the references.
Cyanate ester resins are formed from polyfunctional cyanate monomers. The use of an organometallic compound as thermal and/or photocatalyst for the cure of a cyanate ester resin has been described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,215,860.
Polymerization of ethylenically unsaturated monomers by thermally or photochemically generated free radicals is well known in the art (see J. M. G. Cowie in "Comprehensive Polymer Science", G. Allen and J. C. Bevington, Eds., Pergamon Press, Oxford, 1989, Vol 3, pages 1-15). Typical free radical generators include organic peroxides, onium salts, azo compounds, and carbonyl compounds.
The use of photoreactive organometallic transition metal carbonyl complexes in conjunction with organic compounds, such as organohalo compounds (H. M. Wagner and M. D. Purbrick, J. Photographic Sci. 1981, 29, 230) and electron accepting olefins (C. H. Bamford and S. U. Mullik, J. Chem. Soc. Faraday I 1976, 72, 368), in free radical curing is known. For example, benzenechromium tricarbonyl with CCl.sub.4, has been used to photopolymerize methyl methacrylate (C. H. Bamford and K. G. Al-Lamee, J. Chem. Soc. Faraday I 1984, 80, 2175) and styrene (C. H. Bamford and K. G. Al-Lamee, J. Chem. Soc. Faraday I 1984, 80, 2187); in both cases, the active initiating species has been shown to be the CCl.sub.3 radical and little or no curing occurs in the absence of CCl.sub.4.
Gatechair et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,707,432) has shown the combination of certain cationic organometallic complexes, such as ferrocenium salts, with .alpha.-cleavage photoinitiators, such as acetophenone, to be useful photoinitiator systems for free radical polymerizations. DeVoe and Palazzotto (EPO Publication No. 0 344 911 A2) have further shown that certain cationic organometallic complexes by themselves are useful photoinitiators for acrylic polymerizations.
Cyanate ester resins have been proposed for use in vibration damping. U.S. Pat. No. 4,223,073 describes the use of polycyanurates in "high temperature damping" composites. These are single component systems in that cyanate ester groups are the only polymerizable groups present; thus, little control is possible over morphologies of the cured resin. Damping properties are varied by changing the organic backbones of the polycyanurates and the effective dampers are not based on commercially available resins. Further, the "high temperature damping" appears to refer to temperatures of around 100.degree. C. Japanese Patent Applications 4,202,316, 4,202,353 and 4,202,354 all describe vibration damping materials comprising preformed saturated polyesters and cyanate ester monomers.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,833,404 discloses a viscoelastic layer for use in a damping means for a vibratory part, the layer being an interpenetrating polymeric network (IPN) which is broadly stated to consist essentially of an elastomer and a plastic. The IPN is prepared sequentially where the first component is cured in the absence of the second component which is then added by swelling or combining the two components as latexes. There is no disclosure to simultaneous or sequential formation of the networks in the presence of both components. The networks are independently crosslinked and continuous.
Electronic adhesives based on cyanate ester compositions cured with organometallic catalysts have been described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,143,785. Cyanate esters are combined with preformed thermoplastic polymers, conductive particles, catalysts and coupling agents in a solvent such as tetrahydrofuran and preferably coated on a release liner to provide an adhesive film. Only the cyanate ester component is cured by the organometallic catalyst because the other component is prepolymerized.

Energy-curable cyanate/ethylenically unsaturated compositions

Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company


The present invention offers a picture projecting device which projects a clear picture even in a bright environment by cutting out the influence of outer light, regardless of the kind of projector used.. On the surface of a screen 20 inside an airplane, a first polarizing film 22 is put on. Further, a second polarizing film 32 is put on the input portion of outer incident light such as window glasses 9 or cover 8 of the room light. The second polarizing film 32 has the same polarizing trait as that of the first polarizing film 22, but they are placed so that the plane of polarization of the second polarizing film 32 differs from that of the first polarizing film 22 by 90.degree.. The outer incident light H passing through the second polarizing film 32 enters the screen 20 as a polarized transmission light h1. The light will be reduced completely by the first polarizing film 22 placed on the screen and will not reflect.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a picture projecting device which is capable of projecting a clear picture in a bright environment.
2. Description of the Prior Art
When showing data to a number of people at a meeting, presentation, class and the like, devices such as video projectors, overhead projectors, or slides are used to enlarge the data and to project them onto a screen.
When doing so, the sunlight coming in from the window or the light from the room light reflected on the screen make it difficult to see the projected pictures, so there was a need to close the curtains of the windows and turn out the light to make the room dark.
However, the darkness of the room was inconvenient for the listeners who needed to read printed material or take a memo, and there was a device such as spotlight needed at their side.
So, in Japanese Laid-open Utility Model No. 3-5147, there is an idea mentioned where a polarizing board having the same polarizing trait as that of the output portion of the liquid crystal panel of a liquid crystal projector is used as the screen so that the influence of outer light would be reduced.
The idea taught in the Utility Model could only reduce the influence of outer light when a picture from a liquid crystal projector was projected to a transmitting screen.
But in an airplane where a video projector is used, all the blinds on the windows had to be shut as well as turning off the room light to cut off outer light when projecting a video, and passengers were troubled by having to shut the blind on the window by themselves. So, there was inconvenience in having to trouble even the passengers who did not want to see the video.
Therefore, the present invention offers a picture projecting device which projects a clear picture even in a bright environment by cutting out the influence of outer light, regardless of the kind of projector used.


A method, software system, and computer-readable medium are provided for determining whether a malware that implements stealth techniques is resident on a computer. In one exemplary embodiment, a method is provided that obtains a first set of data that describes the processes that are reported as being active on the computer in a non-interrupt environment. Then, the method causes program execution to be interrupted at runtime so that an analysis of the active processes on the computer may be performed. After program execution is interrupted, a second set data that describes the processes that are reported as being active on the computer in a interrupt environment is obtained. By performing a comparison between the first and second sets of data, a determination may be made regarding whether the collected data contains inconsistencies that are characteristic of malware.

The constant progress of communication systems that connect computers, particularly the explosion of the Internet and intranet networks, has resulted in the development of a new information era. With a single personal computer, a user may obtain a connection to the Internet and have direct access to a wide range of resources, including electronic business applications that provide a wide range of information and services. However, as more computers have become interconnected through various networks such as the Internet, abuse by malicious computer users has also increased, particularly from invasions or attacks delivered over a network or over an information stream. As those skilled in the art will recognize, these attacks come in many different forms, including, but certainly not limited to, computer viruses, computer worms, system component replacements, spyware, adware, denial of service attacks, even misuse/abuse of legitimate computer system features, all of which exploit one or more computer system vulnerabilities for illegitimate purposes. While those skilled in the art will realize that the various computer attacks are technically distinct from one another, for purposes of the present invention and for simplicity in description, all malicious computer programs will be generally referred to hereinafter as computer malware, or more simply, malware.
Those skilled in the art and others will recognize that malware may become resident on a computer using a number of techniques. For example, a computer connected to the Internet may be attacked so that a vulnerability on the computer is exploited and the malware is delivered over the network as an information stream. By way of another example, malware may become resident on a computer using social engineering techniques. For example, a user may access a resource such as a Web site and download a program from the Web site to a local computer. While the program may be described on the Web site as providing a service desirable to the user; in actuality, the program may perform actions that are malicious.
When a malware becomes resident on a computer, the adverse results may be readably noticeable to the user, such as system devices being disabled; applications, file data, or firmware being erased or corrupted; or the computer system crashing or being unable to perform normal operations. However, some malware perform actions that are covert and not readily noticeable to the user. For example, spyware typically monitors a user's computer habits, such as Internet browsing tendencies, and transmits potentially sensitive data to another location on the network. The potentially sensitive data may be used in a number of ways, such as identifying a commercial product that matches the observed tendencies of the user. Then the spyware or an associated adware program may be used to display an advertisement to the user that promotes the identified commercial product. Since the advertisement interrupts the normal operation of the computer, the actions performed by the spyware may not be desirable to the user.
Increasingly, malware is employing stealth techniques to hide on a computer or otherwise prevent detection by programs designed to protect a computer (e.g., antivirus software, anti-spyware software, and the like). For example, malware may be distributed with a RootKit which is a type of malware that prevents the detection of other malware. Those skilled in the art and others will recognize that a RootKit acts as a "man-in-the-middle," monitoring and altering communications between an operating system and programs designed to protect a computer from malware. In this regard, if an antivirus software attempts to list the contents of a directory containing one or more files used by a malware, then the RootKit will censor the file name from the list. Similarly, a RootKit may hide entries in the system registry, process lists and the like, thereby controlling access to all of the information that the RootKit wants hidden. However, those skilled in the art and others will recognize that the functionality implemented by a RootKit may be integrated into other types of malware. Thus, the example of a RootKit is one way to implement stealth techniques for preventing detection of a malware, and this example should be construed as exemplary and not limiting.
While specific disadvantages of existing systems have been illustrated and described in this Background Section, those skilled in the art and others will recognize that the subject matter claimed herein is not limited to any specific implementation for solving any or all of the described disadvantages.

Identifying malware that employs stealth techniques


A method for manufacturing a metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) transistor is described. In the invention, doped regions of the local pocket type are formed in the substrate after the source/drain terminals of a MOS transistor in the logic circuit area are formed. The method includes the steps of forming an insulation layer over the entire substrate. Then, a portion of the insulation layer is removed to expose the spacers on the sidewalls of the gate electrode. Subsequently, the spacers are removed, and then an ion implantation operation is conducted to implant dopants into the substrate through the windows formed by the uprooted spacers. Ultimately, doped regions of the local pocket type are formed in the substrate under the lightly doped drain source/drain terminals of a MOS transistor.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) transistor. More particularly, the present invention relates to a MOS transistor having a local pocket structure that can be used for fabricating embedded memory.
2. Description of Related Art
Logic circuit devices and memory devices are normally formed on separate silicon chips. However, as a faster operating speed is demanded, the newer generation of integrated circuit chips is likely to have a mixture of these two types of devices in a single chip. For example, embedded dynamic random access memory (DRAM) has a chip layout that includes a mixture of logic circuit devices and memory devices.
Nevertheless, logic circuit devices and memory devices have different functional properties that require different processing operations. Logic circuit devices are mainly used for logic computation, and therefore should have a very high data-transmission rate. Hence, the source/drain regions of a logic device must have a high concentration of dopants. In addition, the source/drain regions must have a low sheet resistance. Consequently, a layer of metal silicide is generally deposited over the upper surface of a source/drain terminal. In contrast, memory devices are used mainly for data storage. Because a correct data bit can be registered within a memory unit for a defined period only if leakage current is small, a lightly doped source/drain terminal is usually required. Hence, a metal silicide layer is rarely formed over the source/drain terminal of a memory transistor.
As the line width of a device continues to shrink, a short channel effect becomes a critical factor affecting the operational characteristics of the device. To prevent further deterioration of the device, the diffusion of dopants between the source/drain terminals of a MOS transistor in the logic circuit area must be prevented. The conventional method of preventing dopant diffusion includes doping the substrate surrounding the source/drain terminal with dopants having a polarity opposite to the dopants in the source/drain terminal itself. In other words, doped pocket structures are formed around the source/drain terminals. However, forming a doped pocket structure around the source/drain terminal leads to some other problems. For example, the source/drain region and the pocket structure together produce a rather large PN junction capacitance. Furthermore, a portion of the doped pocket structure may overlap with the inversion region. Hence, more intense short-channel inversion effects result, leading to a reduction of device current and a lowering of device efficiency.
In light of the foregoing, there is a need to provide an improved method for manufacturing a MOS transistor.


Systems and methods for debugging software and/or hardware are disclosed. A processor may execute a program for a certain amount of time. The context of the processor at the end of that time may then be made available to a simulator operable to simulate the processor. The program can then be executed from that point on the simulator using the context. Additionally, a context resulting from the execution of the program on the simulator may result and be restored to the processor for continued execution.

Embedded systems are special purpose or customized devices controlled by a computer system through software application programs and hardware drivers which run on some form of operating system. Through software control these embedded systems are customized to provide a variety of features, forming a very broad market for these devices. For example, embedded systems include personal information managers, set-top boxes for cable, satellite, and Internet TV, or any smart device created using a computer system such as a smart dishwasher. An embedded system may be any device having a processor and peripheral hardware run under software control.
A typical process flow for developing an embedded system includes a software design flow and a hardware design flow where both flows develop separately according to a common specification. The testing and verification of software typically do not occur until a suitable hardware prototype, such as through an ASIC, (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), is created at the hardware creation stage. Waiting to test the software and hardware portions until a hardware prototype has been created extends the overall design cycle if re-work is required to make the software and hardware components compatible with each other.
One method known for detecting design flaws early in the process integrates the development of the software and hardware by performing software debugging and verification before an actual working hardware prototype is completed. This approach provides the opportunity for a shorter time to market and higher product quality since testing may be accomplished through either a hardware or a software solution (or both), and before any time and money is spent developing a physical implementation that may not be compatible with the software components developed.
Typically, a software debug session is performed in a single executing environment. That is, a particular debug session is typically performed entirely either on actual hardware, a hardware tool, or a simulator. Debugging can include anything required to bring any software and/or hardware up to operating mode dependability. Thus, debugging is a process of detecting, locating, and correcting a problem in a software program and/or hardware. Further, a software program which does not provide a desired result may be said to have a bug, even when debugging such a program may result in making no changes to the actual instructions, or software program, itself. Thus, debugging software can include identifying faulting instructions and simply changing context to enable further execution of instructions.
Debugging software using hardware tools like an in-circuit emulator (ICE) or scan based debugger (like RISCWatch) can be expensive. Thus, it may be cost prohibitive to provide hardware-debugging tools for all developers, or even for all testers. Further, a given hardware tool may slow down the execution of the software. For example, it may take more time to reproduce a problem on a hardware tool than if the same program ran on the real hardware. Furthermore, if multiple processors have to be debugged simultaneously, accurately reproducing a problem may be virtually impossible using some debugging tools.
Alternately, the software may be debugged using a simulator. A simulator may be, for example, either a functional or cycle accurate simulator, or some combination of the two. A simulator can provide very detailed internal state information and fine control when interacting with multiple processors. This is especially true when interacting with multiple Instruction Set Architectures, or ISAs. However, debugging software exclusively on a simulator can be problematic. For example, the debugging may be very time consuming. That is, if the problem(s) appear after running the software program on hardware for a significant time such as several minutes or hours, the same problem(s) may not be encountered on a simulator for a translated significant time of hours or days.
An emulator (especially those which are FPGA-based, such as Quickturn or Aptix) provides an environment for detailed debug of the hardware, much like the simulator environment. An emulator is significantly faster (e.g., by two or more orders of magnitude) than a simulator but may come with a steep price tag (i.e., specialized hardware may be required).
Thus, each executing environment has associated benefits and limitations. Although actual hardware may execute the fastest, it may not yield much information about the execution of the program other than whether or not the program terminates prematurely. Hardware tools are expensive, may slow down software execution, and are limited in their ability to debug multiple processors simultaneously. Software simulators may execute very, very slowly and may be limited in their ability to exactly replicate hardware functionality. Hardware emulators may be faster than simulators; however they may also be even more expensive than hardware tools. It may therefore be desirable to perform debug using more than one executing environment.
Accordingly, a need exists whereby detailed debug may be performed less expensively and faster than current methods, systems, and devices allow. Further, a need exists whereby software debug may be performed interchangeably among actual hardware, hardware tools, emulators, and simulators. The various advantages and disadvantages are summarized in TABLE 1 below:
TABLE 1DEBUGCOST PERDEBUGDEBUG DETAIL &METHODDEVELOPERSPEEDDEBUG CONTROLHARDWAREcheaperfastestleastHW TOOLSexpensivefasterlessFPGA-BASEDmost expensiveslowermoreEMULATORSIMULATORcheapestslowestmost

Method and system for software debugging using a simulator


It is an object of the invention to minimize the efforts required to integrate a new communication media and network service into an operating system. These and other objects are accomplished by implementing the link control protocol layer as an operating system service multiplexing a set of network protocol connections to a set of communication media connections routing messages between respective connections. The LCP function is isolated by a set of network interfaces and a set of communication media interfaces. The invention allows the NCP and datagram support to be independent of the LCP support so long as the NCP and datagram implementations conform to the interfaces provided by the LCP operating system service that allow exchanges of state information. Also, the LCP operating system service allows the addition of new types of physical communication media support to the PPP subsystem of the present invention with knowledge only of the interfaces to the LCP layer and the framing characteristics of the communications medium. Further, because the LCP layer is now isolated by the interfaces, enhancements to the LCP layer become accessible to all communications media as well as to the NCP and datagram protocols without impact to the media or network layers.

This invention relates generally to data communication on computer networks and computer protocols which facilitate such communication. More particularly, it relates to techniques for decoupling a Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) implementation both from the device driver which interacts with the communication media coupled to the network and from the network protocol layer, e.g., TCP/IP, which utilizes the services provided by the Point-to-Point Protocol.
In the very early days of computing, computer systems were standalone processors to which peripheral devices such as displays and printers and input devices were connected. Each computer system was independent and there was little communication between computer systems. Today, it is well known to interconnect computer systems in computer networks such as local area networks or wide area networks to achieve a variety of benefits including the sharing of data, services and resources available from the various computer systems coupled to the networks.
To communicate between the different computer systems along a network, many communication protocols have been developed. Some examples of well-known network protocols include the System Network Architecture (SNA), Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), Network Basic Input Output System (NetBIOS), and Internet Packet Exchange/Sequence Packet Exchange (IPX/SPX). Other communication protocols are known and widely used. Because of the dynamic nature of the link in wide area network (WAN), different protocols with telecommunications links are used such as the Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) which is the subject of the present invention is a well known protocol for encapsulating a network protocol over a point-to-point link in a wide area network. The PPP is described in RFC 1332 and RFC 1661 of the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) both of which are incorporated by reference.
The functions and associated software in a local area network are often described as a series of layers. Data transfer between one copy of a distributed application over the network to another copy of the distributed application is accomplished by using the services of an underlying series of communication layers. Generally, each layer in one computer system has a counterpart layer in the receiving computer system so that each layer communicates with respective peer layers.
The seven layer Open Systems Interconnect (OSI) model is one of the best known descriptions of local area network communications, although many communication implementations combine or omit one or more of the OSI layers. In OSI, the physical layer is the lowest layer which interacts directly with the network. It includes the actual bit stream transmission across the physical connections to the network. The second layer is the datalink layer which provides multiplexing and framing of the physical layer stream into messages. It also provides error detection, synchronization information and physical channel management. The third layer is the network layer which controls routing of information through the network. Services such as addressing, network initialization, switching, segmenting and formatting are provided in this layer. Sometimes acknowledgement of data delivery is accomplished in this layer; sometimes in the datalink layer.
The fourth layer is the transport layer which controls transparent data delivery, multiplexing and mapping. Reliable delivery as opposed to best effort in the layers below is accomplished by this layer if desired by the application. Services such as retransmission of missing data, reordering of data delivered out of order and correction of transmission errors are usually accomplished in this layer. The fifth layer is the session layer which uses the information from the transport layer to group pieces of data together as a common activity between two nodes in the network called a session. The sixth layer is the presentation layer which includes the interface between the session layer and the seventh layer the application layer. The presentation layer presents the information for use in the application layer without compromising the integrity of the session layer. The presentation layer provides data interpretation and format and code transformation while the application layer provides user application interfaces and management functions. The present invention is implemented largely in PPP layers which correspond closely to the OSI layers two, three and four.
WAN-based protocols, however, while layered on a conceptual basis, have often not followed this layered approach in their actual implementation. In prior implementations of PPP, for example, the entire protocol process is provided in a monolithic process operating in user space.
FIG. 1 illustrates one exemplary prior art architecture to provide the PPP functionality in UNIX based operating systems, e.g., AIXR developed by the IBM Corporation. The local system 10 communicates to remote systems 11 over the public switched telephone network 12 over a particular media technology, for example, ASYNC, Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN), X.25 or Synchronous Data Link Control (SDLC). These messages are caught by the local system 10 by communication media mechanism 13 which possesses the specific interfaces dictated by the particular communication medium. The software portion of the communication media mechanism 13 operates in the kernel space of the operating system. A plurality of the mechanisms may exist each for a particular medium although only one is shown in the drawing. Each communication medium, mechanism will include its own device drivers each with a specified interface. The point-to-point process 15 must be able to couple to each of these interfaces to support each of the communication media.
The point-to-point protocol process 15 operates in the user space of the operating system. The point-to-point protocol process 15 establishes the physical connection; for example, it places a phone call to a remote system 11. The PPP process 15 encapsulates the network protocol data on the outgoing side by adding the PPP information and strips the point-to-point protocol data from incoming data. The point-to-point process 15 may provide the framing requirements which are specific for each communication medium mechanism to be supported. For example, the PPP process 15 may verify the integrity of the data of the incoming messages and remove any transport specific information in the packet such as octet stuffing or transport protocol headers. For outgoing messages, it would add transport specific information such as any data integrity calculations. The PPP process implements the Link Control Protocol (LCP) and the Network Control Protocol (NCP) which are subprotocols of the PPP. The LCP is used to agree on common link characteristics. The LCP handles the assignment and management of addresses which is especially difficult over switched point-to-point links. The LCP functions are handled for each instance of the communication medium by a separate copy of the point-to-point protocol process. A family of Network Control Protocols are used to establish and configure different network layer protocols. The NCPs handle negotiation of NCP characteristics, such as network addresses, for their respective network datagram protocol. Not all of the possible NCPs are typically handled by a given prior art PPP process. Network datagram support is provided by the PPP process so that network data is routed appropriately. Data destined for the remote system as the proper point-to-point information added to ensure proper routing at the remote system.
The software modules implementing the network protocols 17 operate in kernel space. In AIX, these software modules are considered parts of the operating system which allow the network applications such as hypertext transfer protocol (http), file transfer protocol (ftp) and telnet to be independent of the physical media over which communication is accomplished. For example, in the case of the Internet Protocol (IP), the IP network layer provides the interface to the socket layer so that all TCP/IP applications can transport data over point-to-point protocol connection. The network layers also serve as the interface between the communication media mechanism and the operating system network services.
Shown generally are the user processes 19 such as network applications which utilize the network services provided by the operating system.
The prior art implementations of the point-to-point protocol in a UNIX based operating system use a user space process which performs all the functions described above. As can be appreciated by the description above, the PPP process is very detailed and complicated. When a new communication mechanism is to be supported, the point-to-point process must be rewritten for the new communication mechanism. Naturally, the revision process incurs additional expense and time in the development cycle. Further, the vendor of the new communication mechanism must understand all aspects of point-to-point protocol rather than just the specifics necessary to support the new transport media. New network support also requires a similar reimplementation of the point-to-point protocol process. For example, the existing PPP software may be changed to handle new network control protocols or datagram protocols. Again, the vendor must have understanding of many aspects of point-to-point protocol, rather than just the additional support.
It is, therefore, desirable to minimize the efforts required to integrate the new communication media or network services into an operating system providing PPP for data link connections.

Flexible point-to-point protocol framework

International Business Machines Corporation


An HVAC unit having a multiple air valve unit comprising two air valve devices sharing at least one common rotation axis is described.

HVAC units generally provide both conditioned and non-conditioned air to various locations via paths or airways. In general, these paths or airways are guided by ducts or other such structural means to ensure that the air coming from the HVAC unit reaches the proper destination and with the desired air temperature.
In the automotive context, for example, air from the HVAC is often conducted to various regions, both inside and outside of the vehicle. Conditioned air or non-conditioned and conditioned air mixed together, often exits or is 'outletted' or discharged to various areas of the vehicle to provide for passenger comfort. To achieve such comfort, air that passes through the HVAC unit arrives, with the help of air directing and/or air controlling devices, (such as valves, flaps, doors or other such air directing and controlling devices.), into outlets and, eventually paths that lead out of the HVAC unit.
There is, therefore, a need to have means to control the air directing and/or air controlling devices, such as, for example, valves, flaps, doors or other such similar air directing and/or controlling devices, to ensure that air reaches its destination in the proper volumes, and the proper speeds, and/or at the proper temperatures. In automotive HVAC units, it is often necessary to control air flows to more than one outlet from the unit. In fact, the desired control of air flows to multiple outlets via multiple air paths is often difficult to obtain, since to control air flow to multiple outlet paths, multiple air valves, flaps or other such air directing and controlling devices, is needed. For example, in the prior art, in HVAC units with three possible outlet paths, it is common to use two or more air valves. Each valve is motion controlled via an actuation source. The actuation source may be electric actuator motors, pneumatic actuation device, or a mechanical connection to the user control knob or lever (collectively referred to herein as actuator devices).
In addition, it is required that there be a means of transferring the mechanical motion from the actuation source to the air valve. This has generally be achieved by mechanical links, levers, gears or cams, or direct mechanical connection to the actuation device, (motion transferors) such solutions requiring a separate actuation device for each air valve. Alternatively, proper air flows and/or air characteristics may be found by reducing the quantity of air valves, thereby reducing the complexity of controlling the motion of each air valve, reducing the cost and increasing reliability.
With the current state of the art, multiple actuation devices are used for multiple air directing and/or air controlling devices, therefore providing for HVAC systems either with additional parts consisting of mechanical links, levers, gears or cams, or with additional parts particularly required for the use of the multiple actuation devices. These extra parts not only add cost, but may also reduce the reliability of the system. In addition, when mechanical links, levers, gears or cams are utilized, positional accuracy of the air valve, for example, with respect to the actuation device, is degraded, resulting in less control directing air flow to the desired outlet or of the temperature of the outlet air and increased potential for quality problems such as binding, noise, and incorrect airflow. The mechanical component such as links, levers, gears or cams require a high level of geometric accuracy and cam bind, disengage, or causes noises such as squeaks and rattles and thumps if not dimensioned correctly.

Single point direct actuation of two air devices

Abstract: Concentric air valve device shafts interface with a common actuation device in such way to allow for rotational motion between the actuation device and the air valve device unit, and to allow to air valve devices to control or distribute air into three or more air outlets of the HVAC unit.


An order picking system having a system for transferring an article from a source container to a reception container. A article holder is configured for taking the article from the source container and placing the article into the reception container. A protection case is movable between a source position above the source container and a reception position above the reception container. A gate is configured to provide an opening in a bottom portion of the protection case when the gate is in an open state, and to close the opening when the gate is in a closed state. The protection case is configured for moving from the source position to the reception position when the article holder transfers the article from the source container to the reception container. The article holder is configured to hold the article above the bottom portion of the protection case when the article holder is moved from the source container to the reception container.

Order picking operations involve extracting specified goods from a storage system in a retail facility or a warehouse, and collecting them, for example, to prepare customers orders. Order picking processes have become the most labor-intensive and costly part of the supply chain for any warehouse or retail environment, where the cost of order picking is estimated to be as much as 55% of the total operating expense. This makes order picking one of the most controlled logistic processes.
Known order picking systems perform effective collection of goods having a regular shape, such as goods packed in rectangular packages. However, for goods having irregular shapes, such as grocery products, known order picking systems are less effective. For example, articles having irregular shapes cannot be firmly held by the picking mechanism. Therefore, they can fall from the picking mechanism during transfer from one box to another. In addition, instead of one article required for the customer's order, multiple articles can be taken from a box.
Therefore, it would be desirable to develop novel order picking system and method capable of handling articles having irregular shapes.


Various systems and methods for implementing multi-mode semiconductor devices are discussed herein. For example, a multi-mode semiconductor device is disclosed that includes a device package with a number of package pins. In addition, the device includes a semiconductor die or substrate with at least two IO buffers. One of the IO buffers is located a distance from a package pin and another of the IO buffers is located another distance from the package pin. One of the IO buffers includes first bond pad electrically coupled to a circuit implementing a first interface type and a floating bond pad, and the other IO buffer includes a second bond pad electrically coupled to a circuit implementing a second interface type. In some cases, the floating bond pad is electrically coupled to the circuit implementing the second interface type via a conductive interconnect, and the floating bond pad is electrically coupled to the package pin.

The present invention is related to connecting IO from a semiconductor die to a package. More particularly, the present invention is related to systems and methods for connecting one of multiple interface types implemented on a semiconductor die to appropriate pins on different packages encapsulating a substantially similar semiconductor die.
A typical semiconductor design provides a number of IO buffers that are carefully placed around the periphery of a semiconductor die to be in proximity to package pins to which the IO buffers will be bonded. FIG. 1a shows an example of such a layout approach where a semiconductor die includes a number of IO buffers 110 surrounding the periphery of a semiconductor die 100, with each IO buffer 110 located in proximity to respective package pins 120. Each of IO buffers 110 include a single bond pad indicated by the cross-hatched area on the respective IO buffers 110. Some of IO buffers 110 are electrically coupled to package pins 120 by bonding wires 130. Other of the IO pads 110 are bonded to a ground plane 150 indicated by the lined area surrounding semiconductor die 100, or to a power plane 160 indicated by the stippled area surrounding semiconductor die 100. The different IO buffers are coupled to electrical circuitry on semiconductor die 100 that implement different interface types. In particular, IO buffer 110b and IO buffer 110c are electrically coupled to a circuit implementing an interface A. IO buffer 110d and IO buffer 110e are electrically coupled to a circuit implementing an interface B. IO buffer 110h, IO buffer 110i, IO buffer 110j, IO buffer 110k and IO buffer 110l are electrically coupled to a circuit implementing an interface C. IO buffer 110o, IO buffer 110p, IO buffer 110q, IO buffer 110r and IO buffer 110u are electrically coupled to a circuit implementing an interface D. IO buffer 110v and IO buffer 110w are electrically coupled to a circuit implementing an interface E; and IO buffer 110x and IO buffer 110y are electrically coupled to a circuit implementing an interface F.
Turning to FIG. 1b, one conventional circuit 199 for connecting an IO buffer to associated interface circuitry is depicted. Circuit 199 may be implemented for each of IO buffers 110 shown in FIG. 1a. Circuit 199 includes a semiconductor substrate 177 with a number of metal layers 162, 184, 188, 192, 196 disposed thereon. It should be noted that the aforementioned metal layers may be formed of a conductive metal or other conductive materials as are known in the art. Thus, as used herein, the phrase "metal layer" is understood to mean a layer of conductive material. Each of metal layers 162, 184, 188, 192, 196 is separated from adjacent metal layers and semiconductor substrate 177 by insulating layers 164, 182, 186, 190, 194, 198. In addition, IO buffer 110 includes a bond pad 112. Bond pad 112 includes two bond pad layers 170, 171 interconnected by a number of vias 172. Bond pad 112 is further connected to underlying circuitry by way of a via 175. As shown, via 175 electrically couples bond pad 112 to a wire on metal layer 184, but could connect bond pad 112 to lower metal layers where such was desired.
In an ideal situation, bond wires 130 are as short as possible and extend directly to an adjacent package pin without crossing another bond wire or requiring any substantial directional changes. To accommodate this ideal situation, semiconductor die 100 of FIG. 1a may be designed such that IO buffers are located at the ideal locations such that they are aligned with respective package pins. Thus, a semiconductor die is often designed with some consideration of the final interfaces that will be supported and into which package the semiconductor die will be encapsulated. For most designs, such an approach is possible, however, it can be costly. In particular, while all interfaces are offered, the device may result in higher than necessary part costs and at times an uncompetitive price point for a given part. In addition, such an approach may result in inordinately high pin count packages that are not compatible with particular end designs or form factors.
Other approaches to reduce interfaces offered and thereby reduce pin count include implementing various versions of the semiconductor design that each contemplate a particular IO set and package. Such an approach, however, is costly as it requires the maintenance of different designs, the production of different semiconductor die, and in some cases a reduction of overall yield. Again, the aforementioned limitations may combine to render a device uncompetitive.
Another option is to implement a custom package design, or force a given semiconductor design into selected package that is not optimized for the semiconductor die. Neither option is ideal as a custom package design may introduce yield problems, and in any event may be costly. Turning to FIG. 1c, an example of forcing a particular die into a selected package is depicted. Semiconductor die 100 may be packaged in a package including fewer package pins compared with that shown in FIG. 1a. In such a case, the reduced number of package pins may reduce the number of interfaces that are implemented. Thus, as shown, only interface B, interface D, interface E and interface F are provided at the package pins. In using a different package, it may be necessary to use long bond wires 130 to extend from IO buffers associated with the desired interface circuitry and the selected package pins. While such an approach may be possible in some circumstances, it may not be ideal as the length of the bond wires is increased. Further, in some cases, such an approach may not be possible due to the length of bond wires and/or cross over between the bond wires with the potential of electrical shorts associated therewith.
Hence, for at least the aforementioned reasons, there exists a need in the art for advanced systems and methods for providing flexibility in packaging a semiconductor die and/or implementing the semiconductor die.

Systems and methods for supporting a subset of multiple interface types in a semiconductor device