Certain embodiments relate to systems and methods for generating a single group image from multiple captured images. A first image and a second image may be captured, the first image including a first part of a group and the second image including a second part of the group. A user interface may be provided, in some embodiments, for capture of the second image that enables a photographer to provide input regarding the relative positioning of the first and second image as well as providing input on the relative positioning of the first and second parts of the group and the image scene background. In some embodiments, a lowest energy seam line may be determined for an overlapping portion of the first and second images, and the lowest energy seam line may be used for generating a final stitched image including both the first and second parts of the group.

Digital imaging capabilities have been integrated into a wide range of devices, including digital cameras, tablet computers, and mobile phones. Digital imaging devices and image capture systems can refer to any type of device that can capture one or more digital images, including devices that capture still images or videos.
The integration of digital processing technology with imaging devices has enabled more powerful and easier to use photographic products, and has enabled compact devices to capture and enhance image data. For example, digital imaging devices may employ image stitching, which is the process of combining multiple photographic images with overlapping fields of view to produce a segmented panorama or high-resolution image. Commonly performed through the use of computer software, most approaches to image stitching align the edges of two or more images, determine overlapping regions of the edges, and combine the images based on the overlapping regions, for example into a panorama. Some digital imaging devices can stitch their photos internally, while some image stitching techniques are performed on a separate computing device.
As another example, digital imaging devices may employ image blending, which is the process of integrating an object or portion of a first image into a scene of a second image. This type of operation is useful for correcting, repairing or modifying digital images as well as for creating photo-montages. Image blending typically requires selection of the object or portion from the first image by a user, which can be a time consuming process requiring familiarity with a variety of tools in conventional image editing software. Consequentially, several problems arise including the fact that seams are typically introduced between the edited region and the rest of the original image.
One common use of an image capture device such as a digital camera is capturing an image of a group of people. However, the photographer is often part of the group and therefore the group and photographer may desire that the photographer be included in the image. One solution to this is to ask another person, not in the group, to take the image. However, there are not always other people available to act as photographer. Another solution to the problem of including the photographer in the group image is to use the camera's self-timer feature to capture the image, giving the photographer time to join the group after setting up the shot. However, use of the self-timer generally requires balancing the camera on a nearby object. There is not always such an object readily available, and use of an available nearby object often results in less-than-ideal framing and/or focus of the group image. Manually blending the photographer, as imaged in a separate photo, into the group photo is a time-intensive digital editing process requiring skill and familiarity with specialized software.


In the measurement of partial discharge, a voltage detected by an antenna is input to a spectrum analyzer and a phase difference between an operating voltage and a power supply of the spectrum analyzer is obtained by phase domain analysis using the spectrum analyzer. Based on the phase difference and the voltage phase shift associated with the input impedance of a signal converter circuit, the time axis displayed on the screen of the spectrum analyzer is compensated. After the compensation has been carried out, the voltage detected by the antenna is input into the spectrum analyzer and the partial discharge pattern which synchronizes with the operating voltage is measured by phase domain analysis using the spectrum analyzer.

The gas insulated device, such as a gas circuit breaker, gas insulated switchgear and gas insulated bus, which is used in a transmission and delivery system is structured such that a high-voltage conductor is encased in a sealed metal container filled with an insulating gas and is supported by an insulating support medium. If a defect, such as a metal particle, is present in the sealed metal container, a high electric field is formed locally at the tip of the particle, causing a partial discharge to occur. If the partial discharge continues to exist, mechanical deterioration inside the device may occur, which may eventually result in a breakdown. In view of such circumstances, to conduct preventive maintenance of gas insulated devices, early detection of partial discharge which indicates a preliminary breakdown is important.
When detecting partial discharge, a specific pattern of the partial discharge signal is developed, and based on the pattern, the type of defect is identified. In this case, the pattern of the partial discharge signal depends on the phase of the rated voltage applied to a high-voltage conductor, for example, an alternating voltage (operating voltage) of 60,000 to 500,000 volts (50/60 Hz). Therefore, the operating voltage is synchronized with the partial discharge signal (see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 09(1997)-80111).

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method and system for measuring partial discharge


The present invention is directed to systems and method for attenuating intermodulation interference. In particular, methods and systems to attenuate intermodulation interference contained within an aggregate signal having a transmitted signal that was transmitted over a communications channel having channel effects that produce the intermodulation interference are provided. The communications channel may be a cable television distribution network and the signal may be a cable television signal. A method is provided to predict when intermodulation interference will be large, so that actions within a receiver can be taken to reduce the impact of the interference and improve overall receiver performance.

1. Field
The present invention relates to cable television distribution networks, and more specifically to canceling intermodulation products within communications signals transmitted on cable television distribution networks.
2. Background
A downstream cable TV plant typically carries tens to hundreds of carrier signals used to transmit television, Internet and other data information. These carriers are arranged in a frequency division multiplexed ("FDM") format with six megahertz ("Mhz") spacing between carriers in North America and eight Mhz spacing in Europe.
A cable plant contains non-linear elements, such as amplifiers and laser drivers that introduce intermodulation ("IM") interference. When the carrier signals pass through such non-linearities, intermodulation interference is generated within the carrier signals. This interference is referred to as IM products. The IM products occur in frequencies which are the sum and difference of multiples of carrier frequencies and generally fall in the bands of the desired signals, where they interfere with the desired signals.
IM products are typically time varying within a signal envelope. The IM spectrum may contain a series of narrow lines, especially if the plant contains many analog TV carriers such as in the case of a National Televison System Committee ("NTSC") formatted signal. The NTSC standard for television defines a composite video signal with a refresh rate of 60 half-frames (interlaced) per second. Each frame contains 525 lines and can contain 16 million different colors. The IM spectrum may be spread (i.e., not predominated by spectral lines) if the plant contains mostly digital carriers. Some of the digital carriers may be data-bearing signals, such as Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification ("DOCSIS") signals. DOCSIS signals are used to support cable modem data transmission. Second order IM products are referred to as composite second order ("CSO") products and third order IM products are referred to as composite triple beat ("CTB") products.
Because the IM products interfere with a desired signal, methods to remove or attenuate the IM interference are needed. Typical approaches attempt to address this problem at the transmitter end of a cable plant. These approaches often assume the availability of original undistorted data or knowledge of the nonlinearity. These systems are limited in their ability to remove or attenuate IM interference because often a readily accessible version of the original undistorted signal and/or knowledge of the nonlinearity transfer characteristics are not well known.
What are needed are methods to reduce IM interference that do not require knowledge of the non-linearity and access to an original undistorted signal.

Systems and methods to attenuate intermodulation interference


H2S-containing gases, particularly such gases at elevated pressure, are treated to remove H2S by reaction in a liquid medium with SO2, the SO2 being present in stoichiometric excess with respect to the H2S. The SO2 is produced by combustion of sulfur, preferably sulfur produced in the reaction between H2S and SO2, preferably with oxygen. The process produces a treated gas that is substantially free of both H2S and SO2. An acid-gas absorber/stripper system or other system typically found in such processes to raise or concentrate the H2S level in the gas to be treated, is not needed in operations according to the invention.

The present invention relates to a process of removing hydrogen sulfide from natural gas or an industrial gas, in an integrated system wherein sulfur is produced. More preferably, the present invention relates to such processes wherein the gas being treated is under a relatively high pressure.
One of the most common systems for processing natural gas containing hydrogen sulfide and producing sulfur involves the use of well-known absorber-stripper steps to separate H2S and the well-known Claus process to produce sulfur. In such system, in simplified form, the basic steps are usually:    (a) H2S removal from sour gas, using an H2S absorbent, to obtain sweetened product natural gas;    (b) stripping H2S out of the H2S-rich absorbent to obtain H2S;    (c) H2S combustion to obtain a mixture of SO2 and H2S;    (d) solid-catalyzed H2S reaction with SO2 at high temperature to form and recover S and to make an off-gas containing reduced amounts of H2S and SO2; and    (e) treating the off-gas from step (d) to recover as S a major fraction of the remaining amounts of H2S and SO2 and to form a stack gas that is released to the atmosphere;Steps (c) and (d) in combination are often regarded as the Claus process.
My U.S. Pat. No. 6,495,117, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference, describes a process in which gaseous hydrogen sulfide (H2S) reacts with gaseous sulfur dioxide (SO2) in the presence of an organic liquid or solvent, preferably above the melting point of sulfur, wherein the following reaction occurs:2H2S(g)+SO2(g)→3S(l)+2H2O(g)  (1)
In that reaction, H2S is present in excess, so that an H2S-containing off-gas is produced. The reacting gases may flow co-currently or counter-currently to a stream of the organic liquid. A preferred example of such a reactor is a tray-type column in which the reacting gases flow counter-currently to a stream of the organic liquid. The sulfur produced by Reaction (1) in either type of reactor forms a separate liquid phase that flows co-currently with the organic liquid.
The gaseous sulfur dioxide is produced by combustion of hydrogen sulfide contained in the reactor off-gas. Preferably this combustion is conducted fuel-rich to avoid the risk of forming SO3 and NOx, both of which are undesirable.
My U.S. Pat. No. 6,645,459 discloses a generally similar process in which SO2 gas, en route from the combustion furnace to the reactor, is cooled using a direct or indirect quench to produce an aqueous stream that is introduced into the reactor at one or more points to provide cooling.
In other known processes, H2S and SO2 are present in the reactor in stoichiometric or near-stoichiometric quantities. For example, a process piloted by the Jefferson Lake Sulfur Company but never put into commercial operation [Oil and Gas Journal, 50(4), pg. 59, 1951] burns sulfur to obtain SO2 that is then mixed with an H2S-containing gas. The H2S and SO2 are in stoichiometric ratio. The mixture is heated and passed over a series of catalytic beds similar to those used in the conventional Claus process.
A process described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,170,766, (Townsend) generates SO2 by burning sulfur with air and absorbing the SO2 in di- or triethylene glycol and contacting an H2S-containing gas with the solution at near-ambient temperature to generate a slurry of solid sulfur in the glycol. The slurry is then heated above the melting point of sulfur, settled, and the two liquid phases are separated by decanting. Water and unreacted SO2 are separated from the glycol phase by distillation. A major disadvantage of this process is the need to cool the sulfur-saturated, regenerated glycol below the sulfur-precipitation temperature. Solid sulfur will coat cooling surfaces under these conditions if a heat exchanger is employed.
In a process described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,441,379 (Renault, assigned to the Institut Francais du Petrole and commercialized as the "IFP process") H2S and SO2 react in a column in the presence of a solvent consisting of ethylene glycol, water and a catalyst at a temperature above the melting point of sulfur. The IFP process is employed to treat the tail gas of a Claus plant and hence the H2S and SO2 are present, to the extent possible, in exact stoichiometric ratio—neither is in excess and hence neither can be substantially reacted away. As a result the gaseous effluent from the IFP reactor contains objectionable amounts of both H2S and SO2. The process still requires incineration of the tail gas to eliminate H2S, and the SO2 content of the stack gas cannot meet today's strict environmental standards.
Another process, the CrystaSulf™ process, is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,733,516 and 5,738,834 (DeBerry) In it, H2S reacts in a column at high pressure in the presence of a non-aqueous, water-immiscible organic solvent consisting of one or more tertiary amines to provide basicity and one or more aromatic solvents to render the solvent immiscible in water. The reaction is carried out at a temperature high enough, typically 50° to 70° C., to keep the sulfur formed in solution. The sulfur-rich solvent is then cooled to cause a part of the sulfur to precipitate by crystallization. The oxidizing power of the solvent is restored, either with air or with SO2, before the solvent is recycled to the H2S-absorption step. Because of the basicity of the CrystaSulf solvent, 10% or more of the H2S absorbed is converted to sulfate or thiosulfate, which must be removed continuously from the solvent with a caustic wash step. Costs are incurred for the caustic and for disposal of the salts formed. Because the solvent is water-immiscible, the sulfur product must be washed with methanol or other volatile solvent to clean the sulfur and to recover Crystasulf solvent. Both of the latter must then be treated further to reclaim the volatile solvent mixed with them. Still another complication of the CrystaSulf process is the need to cool the sulfur-saturated solvent in a heat exchanger to cause sulfur to precipitate. Solid sulfur coats the cooling surfaces and must be removed on a regular basis.
Another process is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,124,685 (Tarhan). Here again, an excess of H2S with respect to SO2 is used in the reactor, to ensure that the reactor off-gases do not contain SO2. However, the H2S in the reactor off-gas is recycled rather than combusted. SO2 for the reaction is produced by combustion of sulfur, particularly some of the sulfur produced in the reactor.
Current processes for treating gases having low concentrations of H2S tend to involve sequestering the H2S in a chemical that is discarded, creating waste problems, or using an aqueous redox process to form a colloidal slurry of sulfur, that includes a complex regeneration system, or require an amine absorber/stripper system to concentrate the H2S before it is fed to the reactor.
Improvements to and variations in the Claus process are still being made. There is, however, still a need for a process for sulfur removal from gases, especially industrially generated gas streams, that meets high standards for emissions controls, is suitable for use with gas streams containing relatively small amounts of H2S, recovers sulfur values, is economic, and is versatile. In addition, there is a need for a process having the capability of treating gases at higher pressures, where reaction rates are increased, and where solvent flows can be reduced. This invention provides such a process.

Process for sulfur removal suitable for treating high-pressure gas streams

The Regents of the University of California


An intraocular lens assembly (70) including a lens assembly comprising an interface element adapted for attachment to an ocular structure, the lens assembly comprising a tensing element (76) adapted to expand and contract relative to the lens assembly and apply a tensing force on the ocular structure directed towards an inner volume of the lens assembly.

Natural accommodation in a normal human eye having a normal human crystalline lens involves automatic contraction or constriction and relaxation of the ciliary muscle of the eye (and zonules controlled by the ciliary muscle) by the brain in response to looking at objects at different distances. Ciliary muscle relaxation, which is the normal state of the muscle, shapes the human crystalline lens for distant vision. Ciliary muscle contraction shapes the human crystalline lens for near vision. The brain-induced change from distant vision to near vision is referred to as accommodation.
Accommodating intraocular lens (IOL) assemblies have been developed that comprise an IOL that moves in response to ciliary muscular contraction and relaxation, thereby to simulate the movement of the natural lens in the eye, and, inter alia, help provide patients with better focusing ability.
One example of an accommodating IOL assembly is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,476,514 to Cumming. Cumming describes an accommodating IOL with plate haptics for implantation within the capsular bag of the eye, after removal of the natural lens by an anterior capsulotomy. During a postoperative healing period following surgery, anterior capsular remnants fuse to the posterior capsule of the bag by fibrosis about the plate haptics, and the lens is deflected rearward to a distant vision position against the elastic posterior capsule of the bag in which the posterior capsule is stretched rearward. After fibrosis is complete, natural brain-induced contraction and relaxation of the ciliary muscle relaxes and stretches the fused remnants and increases and reduces vitreous pressure in the eye, respectively, to effect vision accommodation by the fused remnants, the posterior capsule, and vitreous pressure.
However, prior art accommodating IOLs have certain drawbacks. For example, they do not address the problem of loss of accommodation in the eye. Accommodation may be lost during the aging process due to hardening of the natural lens. Loss of accommodation due to a progressive denaturation of the lens proteins produces an abnormal condition commonly known as "presbyopia". Presbyopia generally affects individuals in the early to mid forties and the resultant gradual loss of visual acuity is generally treated with bifocal spectacles.
Accommodation may also be lost due to a change in the size of the lens, with a resultant loss in tension of the zonules, thereby affecting the ability of the zonules to focus the lens. This loss in accommodation may occur with aging, but may also occur upon removal of the natural lens. For example, in a normal human eye, the diameter of the crystalline lens may be approximately 8-9.5 mm, and may have an anterior-posterior thickness of approximately 4.5 mm. After removal of the cortex and nucleus of the lens, such as after phacoemulsification in cataract surgery, the capsular bag may extend to 10.5 mm and have a width of only 2.0 mm. This causes a slackening of the zonules, which is not restored by prior art apparatus or methods upon insertion of an IOL. Thus an IOL assembly that retains the accommodation ability of the eye, including the ability of the zonules to focus the lens, is greatly needed.


An image forming system includes a plurality of processing apparatuses. An image forming apparatus includes an image forming section, storage, an acquiring section, a first specifying section, a receiver, a second specifying section, and a notifying section. The storage stores therein a position of each of the processing apparatuses. The acquiring section acquires state information from each of the processing apparatuses. The state information indicates whether a corresponding one of the processing apparatuses is in a normal function state or a malfunction state. The first specifying section specifies, from among the processing apparatuses, a malfunctioning processing apparatus for which the malfunction state is indicated by the state information. The second specifying section specifies a relative position of the malfunctioning processing apparatus with respect to a mobile terminal device. The notifying section notifies of specific information relating to the relative position specified by the second specifying section.

The present disclosure relates to an image forming system and an image forming apparatus.
A printing system has been disclosed which simplifies work. The printing system includes a printer and a mobile terminal device. The mobile terminal device includes a printer state selection acquiring section, a printer state selection confirming section, and a display section. The printer state selection acquiring section acquires a printer state. The printer state selection confirming section causes the display section of the mobile terminal device to display the printer state. The printer state indicates that paper is depleted or jammed, for example.

Image forming system and image forming apparatus


According to the present invention, there is provided a delivery vehicle including sickle red blood cells carrying a moiety. The moiety can be any type of diagnostic or therapeutic agent. The present invention further provides for a method of diagnosing systemic hypoxia, acidosis, or hypertonicity by administering sickle red blood cells to a patient and detecting the location of the sickle red blood cells. Additionally, the present invention provides for a method of therapeutic treatment of systemic hypoxia, acidosis, or hypertonicity by administering sickle red blood cells to a patient. Further, the present invention provides for a delivery vehicle that specifically localizes or concentrates at systemic hypoxia, acidosis, or hypertonicity areas. The delivery vehicle is used in diagnosing and therapeutically treating these areas of hypoxia, acidosis, or hypertonicity also. The present invention further provides for a method of making the delivery vehicle described herein.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to the field of delivery vehicles for use in diagnostic and therapeutic applications, and specifically towards diagnostic and therapeutic applications involving hypoxic areas of a patient.
2. Description of Related Art
Hypoxic tissue areas are defined as areas having low oxygen content. Generally, the hypoxic tissue area is a result of numerous factors including, but not limited to, a reduction of the oxygen-carrying capacity of blood as a result of a decrease in the total hemoglobin or an alteration of the hemoglobin constituents, decreased blood flow, and any abnormal cellular growth. As a result of the decreased oxygen content, the hypoxic areas are further characterized as having increased tonicity, and a low pH due to acid build-up resulting from anaerobic glycolosis.
Hypoxic areas occur anywhere in the body of a patient, but are particularly found in areas associated with injuries occurring as a result of a stroke, decreased blood flow, reperfusion injury, decreased vascular development, and tumors. With regard to tumors, experiments have provided direct and indirect evidence of hypoxic areas occurring in tumors therein. For example, tests involving glass polarographic electrodes confirm the presence of hypoxia in tumors.
Hypoxic areas located within regions of a tumor are of particular concern to researchers involved with tumor and cancer treatment. Low oxygen levels within regions of a tumor or cancer limits the effectiveness of radiation therapy, since cells maintained in a hypoxic environment are resistant to radiation damage. Radiation resistance occurs because free radicals produced in the presence of low oxygen levels are less damaging toward tumor cells. Consequently, more treatment is required in these hypoxic areas in order to kill the tumor cells.
Generally, in order to treat tumors, the tumor regions must first be found and then targeted. Presently, there is no routine technique available to target tumor tissue. More importantly, no routine clinical tool is available specifically applicable towards imaging tumor hypoxia and to deliver treatment directly thereto.
A number of techniques to monitor tumor hypoxia are available or are under development. These techniques include glass polarographic assay, alkaline comet assay, nitroimidizole-related radiolabelled compounds (Zhang et al. 1998), and fluorine-MRI using hexofluorobenzene. The most widely used measurement of tumor hypoxia is the glass electrode technique. The limitations of this technique however, are that measurements do not adequately represent the entire tumor, since measurements are limited to tissue oxygenation along a linear tract, 1 or 2 mm deep.
Other techniques for measuring tumor hypoxia include NMR of fluorinated compounds (Mason et al. 1998) and techniques based on oxygen quenching of the fluorescence of an excited fluorophor immobilized in a polymer at the end of an optical fiber (Young et al. 1996). The inherent problem with these techniques is that they all require tumor access and are highly invasive. On the other hand, techniques that are non-invasive, such as imaging techniques using nitroimidazole analogues, yield only relative values of tissue oxygen since binding intensity is affected by tumor metabolism.
Accordingly, there is a need for a non-invasive, accurate and detectable mechanism for determining the location of hypoxic areas, and specifically hypoxic areas associated with tumors. Moreover, there is a need for a method of diagnosing and therapeutically treating hypoxic areas associated with tumors. Additionally, there is a need for a routine, non-invasive measurement of human tumor hypoxia in order to determine the effectiveness of chemotherapy as well as radiation therapy. Further, there is a need for improving standard radiation therapy by targeting the small radiation resistant hypoxic regions of a tumor.

Imaging and targeting tumors using sickle cells


A mirror for a piezoelectric resonator consisting of alternately arranged layers of high and low acoustic impedance is manufactured by at first producing a first layer on which a second layer is produced, so that the second layer partially covers the first layer. Then, a planarization layer is applied on the first layer and on the second layer. Subsequently, a portion of the second layer is exposed by structuring the planarization layer, wherein the portion is associated with an active region of the piezoelectric resonator. Finally, the resulting structure is planarized by removing the portions of the planarization layer remaining outside the portion.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of piezoelectric resonators, e.g. BAW (bulk acoustic wave) resonators, and particularly to a method of manufacturing an acoustic mirror for a piezoelectric resonator, as well as to a method of manufacturing a piezoelectric resonator. In particular, the present invention relates to a method of manufacturing an acoustic mirror, which is highly planar and has both excellent uniformity in the layer deposition and a planar surface of the entire mirror structure.
2. Description of the Related Art
Radio-frequency filters based on BAW resonators are of great interest for many RF applications. Substantially, there are two concepts for BAW resonators, so-called thin film BAW resonators (FBAR), on the one hand, as well as so-called solidly mounted resonators (SMR). Thin film BAW resonators include a membrane on which the layer sequence consisting of the lower electrode, the piezoelectric layer, and the upper electrode is arranged. The acoustic resonator develops by the reflection at the upper side and at the lower side of the membrane. In the alternative concept of solidly mounted resonators, an SMR includes a substrate, for example a silicon substrate, on which the layer sequence consisting of the lower electrode, the piezoelectric layer, and the upper electrode is arranged. So as to keep the acoustic waves in the active region in this design, a so-called acoustic mirror is required. It is located between the active layers, i.e. the two electrodes and the piezoelectric layer, and the substrate. The acoustic mirror consists of an alternating sequence of layers with high and low acoustic impedance, respectively, e.g. layers of tungsten (high acoustic impedance) and layers of oxide material (low acoustic impedance).
If the mirror contains layers of conducting materials, such as tungsten, it is recommended, for the avoidance of parasitic capacitances in the filter, to structure (pattern) and substantially limit the corresponding mirror layers to the area below the active resonator region. The disadvantage of this procedure is that the topology resulting hereby can no longer be completely planarized. Due to the unevenness, undesired modes are induced in the resonator and/or a reduction in the quality of the resonator is caused. This problem is very critical in so far as already small steps or remaining topologies of several percent of the layer thickness have significant influence on the operation behavior of such a resonator.
On the basis of FIGS. 1 and 2, two known methods of manufacturing acoustic mirrors for piezoelectric resonators or BAW resonators are explained in greater detail.
FIG. 1 shows a solidly mounted resonator with structured mirror. The resonator includes a substrate 100 with a lower surface 102 and an upper surface 104. A layer sequence 106 forming the acoustic mirror is arranged on the upper surface. Between the substrate and the mirror, one or more intermediate layers serving for stress reduction or adhesion improvement may be arranged, for example. The layer sequence includes alternately arranged layers 106a with high acoustic impedance and layers 106b with low acoustic impedance, wherein intermediate layers may be provided between the mirror layers. On the upper surface 104 of the substrate 100, a first layer 106b1 with low acoustic impedance is formed. On the layer 106b1, a material 106a1, 106a2 with high acoustic impedance is deposited and structured at the portions associated with the active regions of the resonator. Over this arrangement, a second layer 106b2 with low acoustic impedance is deposited, upon which in turn a material 106a3, 106a4 with high acoustic impedance is deposited and structured section-wise. Upon this layer sequence, again a layer with low acoustic impedance 106b3 is deposited. On the resulting mirror structure, a lower electrode 110, on which again the active or piezoelectric layer 112, for example of AlN, is arranged, is at least partially formed. On the piezoelectric layer 112, an insulation layer 114 covering the piezoelectric layer 112 except for the regions 116a and 116b is formed. Two upper electrodes 118a and 118b in contact with the piezoelectric layer in the portions 116a and 116b are formed on the piezoelectric layer. A tuning layer 120a and 120b, via the thickness of which a resonance frequency of the resonators can be adjusted, is at least partially arranged on the upper electrode 118a, 118b. By the portions of the upper electrode 118a and 118b in which it is in connection with the piezoelectric layer 112, and the underlying portions of the lower electrode 110, two BAW resonators 122a and 122b are defined. The mirror structure 106 shown in FIG. 1 includes λ/4 mirror layers 106a, 106b.
In the example of a solidly mounted resonator shown in FIG. 1, as it is produced by Epcos AG, for example, the metallic layers 106a are structured without planarizing the resulting topology. The layers 106b with low acoustic impedance are deposited over the structured layers 106a, as described above. Thereby, the steps shown in FIG. 1, which continue in the deposition of the overlaying layers, develop. This procedure is disadvantageous regarding the resulting strong topology in the layers lying above the mirror 106, in particular, with reduced piezoelectric coupling of the active layer 112 as well as increased excitation of undesired vibrational modes arising.
FIG. 2 shows a further example known in the prior art for solidly mounted resonators with a structured mirror. In FIG. 2, again a substrate 100 is shown, on the upper surface 104 of which an oxide layer 124 is deposited, into which a pit or depression 126 is introduced. Further intermediate layers may be provided between the oxide layer 124 and the substrate 100. In the pit 126, the acoustic mirror is formed, which consists of a layer sequence comprising a first layer 106a1 with high acoustic impedance, a layer 106b with low acoustic impedance, and a layer 106a2 with high acoustic impedance. On the surface of the resulting structure, an insulation layer 108 is deposited, on which the lower electrode 110 is at least partially formed. The portion of the insulation layer 108 not covered by the lower electrode 110 is covered by a further insulation layer 128. On the insulation layer 128 and on the lower electrode 110, the piezoelectric layer 112 is formed, on the surface of which the upper electrode 118 is in turn partially formed. The portions of the piezoelectric layer 112 not covered by the upper electrode 118, as well as parts of the upper electrode 118 are covered by the passivation layer 114. The overlapping areas of lower electrode 110, piezoelectric layer 112, and upper electrode 118 define the BAW resonator 122.
In the example shown in FIG. 2, the pit 126, in which the mirror layers 106a, 106b are deposited after each other, as described above, is etched into the oxide layer 124 in the area of the resonator 122 to be produced. By one or more CMP (chemical mechanical polishing) processes, the layers outside the mirror pit 126 are removed, as this is described in the U.S. patent application US 2002/154425 A1, for example.
The method described on the basis of FIG. 2 is disadvantageous in that the layers are slightly thinner in the corners of the mirror pit 126, and a slight dish topology in the resonator region 122, indicated with the reference numeral 130, develops, which again leads to increased excitation of undesired modes and to reduced resonator quality.

Method of manufacturing an acoustic mirror for piezoelectric resonator

Avago Technologies Wireless IP (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.


Methods and apparatus are provided for sending an encrypted command message from a remote keyless entry device to a receiver in a motor vehicle. The method comprises defining a key generating key within the remote keyless entry device, and using that key generating key to generate a working key. The working key is transmitted from the remote keyless entry device to the receiver during a training session without transmitting the key generating key. The working key is modified each time the remote keyless entry device is placed in the training mode. After the training session, a message encrypted with the working key can be transmitted from the remote keyless entry device to the motor vehicle receiver where the encrypted message is decrypted with the working key.

Remote keyless entry systems are widely used in connection with motor vehicles. The owner of the motor vehicle or another authorized person can, for example, unlock one or more of the vehicle doors, lock the vehicle doors, unlock the vehicle trunk, or sound an alarm by pressing one of a plurality of buttons on a remote keyless entry device, often referred to as a key fob or remote keyless entry (RKE) transmitter. The key fob or RKE transmitter transmits a command signal, by some form of modulated electromagnetic radiation, to a receiver in the motor vehicle. The signal includes the command (e.g., unlock the driver door) and, at least, an identifier that identifies to the receiver that this particular RKE transmitter is authorized to send such a command to this particular motor vehicle. Although the RKE transmitter provides a great convenience to the vehicle owner, it also presents various security issues. In order to overcome these security issues, it is common to encrypt the transmission from the RKE transmitter to the receiver. Initial attempts at security used a fixed encryption key for the transmission. Unauthorized persons could monitor and record a transmission from the RKE transmitter and could use the recorded transmission to gain unauthorized access to the vehicle at some later time.
To improve security, motor vehicle manufacturers adopted a "rolling code" method of encryption. The rolling code is base on some type of transmitter specific "secret" that is shared between the transmitter and the receiver. That secret information is used as an encryption key, or as the key to a message authentication code (i.e., a code that can only be generated by one in possession of the key). Some input to the encryption/authentication process is incremented in a manner known to both the transmitter and the receiver with the transmission of each message. That is, each time a command is transmitted from the RKE transmitter to the receiver in the motor vehicle, some input is incremented to insure that the encrypted message or authenticator changes with each transmission. By using the rolling code, the system cannot be defeated by simply intercepting a transmission and repeating it later. There are many ways to implement rolling code encryption. In one form of the rolling code both the RKE transmitter and the receiver are set to an initial code seed and rolling algorithm. Every time a command message is sent from the RKE transmitter to the receiver, both the RKE transmitter and the receiver update the code according to the rolling algorithm. Because the receiver will not always receive a transmission from the RKE transmitter (a blind transmission), for example when the receiver is beyond the range of the RKE transmitter, the receiver must be able to look ahead and react to codes that are within an acceptable future code window. Some mechanism must be provided to resynchronize the RKE transmitter and the receiver if the transmitted code is not within the acceptable window. The need for resynchronization can occur, for example, when a lost RKE transmitter is replaced or when for any other reason the transmitted code is outside the window. Such need for resynchronization is met by placing the RKE transmitter and the receiver in a training or program mode. The necessity for providing for a training mode, however, creates an additional security issue. During the training, the RKE transmitter must transmit the code secret, such as an encryption key, to the receiver. An unauthorized person in possession of the RKE transmitter could place the RKE transmitter in the training mode and cause the RKE transmitter to transmit the secret information. The unauthorized person could record the secret information and use it to gain access to the motor vehicle at a later time. Although there are a multitude of methods for implementing a rolling code encryption method for a motor vehicle remote keyless entry system, all of those methods are susceptible to the security issues presented by the necessity for a training mode.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide remote keyless entry devices, systems and methods that overcome the security issues attendant with prior devices, systems, and methods. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing technical field and background.

Method, device, and system for secure motor vehicle remote keyless entry


A method of initiating a cycle of operation based on a consumable includes providing a consumable reader having a software architecture configured to image data, communicate over a network, and identify functionalities of appliances based on a unique identifier associated with each instance of a functionality, imaging data about the consumable using the consumable reader; retrieving cycle data associated with the consumable based on the imaged data; ascertaining in the software architecture at least one functionality associated with the cycle data; selecting from the plurality of appliances an appliance having the at least one functionality using the unique identifier associated with an instance of the at least one functionality; and communicating the cycle data to the selected appliance over the network of appliances wherein the selected appliance can conduct a cycle of operation associated with the consumable using the cycle data.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the use of consumables by a communicating appliance in a network, and more particularly, to selecting the appliance from a plurality of appliances that has a functionality associated with the consumable.
2. Description of the Related Art
Household appliances typically operate on an article using one or more cycles of operation. Many appliances perform the cycles of operation using a consumable. A consumable comprises a finite supply of at least one product or a perishable good that must be periodically replenished or replaced. For example, a washing machine might use a detergent and a fabric softener while washing clothes, or a dishwasher might use a detergent and a water softener while washing dishes. In some cases, appliances perform cycles of operation on a consumable as the article. A consumable may be a food item where, for example, a range oven or a microwave oven might perform a cycle of operation related to the consumable.
It is known to provide cycles of operation to an appliance based on a consumable, and to provide communication between the appliance and a device has or obtains information about the consumable. However, there is a need to improve communication with the appliance about the consumable.

Method for initiating a consumable-based cycle of operation


A communication terminal is provided with display means, navigation means for navigating through information candidates, selection means for selecting one of the candidates, and a processor controlling the display means in accordance with the operation of the navigation means and the selection means. The display means comprises a first display part for displaying a string of entered information, and a second display part for displaying a string of a plurality of possible information candidates. One of the candidates in the second display part is highlighted by the cursor controlled by the navigation means. The processor copies the highlighted candidate from the candidate string into the entered information string upon selection by the selection means.

Communication terminals, such as hand portable phones or handsets, are able to handle and exchange ever increasing amounts of data. Traditionally, this type of terminals is equipped with a pocket calculator keypad with twelve alphanumeric keys including the figures 0-9 and some extra signs.
These alphanumeric keys include several figures, signs, letters, special signs and so on available by multiple pressing of the individual keys. In general, a key can include up to ten different signs or more. Therefore, inputting of text, for e.g., short messages may require many key strokes compared with the number of letters in the message.
However, integration of the entry of alphanumeric data into a thumb wheel has been described in EP 755 142 A. This thumb wheel is placed in the upper left corner of the phone. When text is entered into the display, a position pointed out by a cursor is highlighted. By rolling the thumb wheel the sign displayed in the currently highlighted field changes, and by pressing the thumb wheel the highlighted sign is selected and the cursor jumps to the next position.
In accordance with the invention there is provided a method of entering information into a communication terminal having a display, navigation means for navigating through information candidates, and selection means for selecting one of the candidates, said method comprising displaying in the display a string of entered information, displaying, separately from the entered information string, a second string of possible information candidates, one of these candidates being highlighted by the cursor controlled by the navigation means, and copying the highlighted candidate from the second string to the entered information string upon selection by the selection means. Hereby, the user will be able to overview both the written characters and the characters he may select for entering. This makes it possible to vary the string of candidates, and the information entry method may be used in relation to several different applications, such as normal text entry, calculator entry, music entry, and entry of Chinese signs.
The invention provides a new and improved method of entering data into a communication terminal, allowing the user to increase the data entry rate.
In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, the method is used in a communication terminal, such as a phone having navigation means provided as a depressable roller wheel, said method including moving the cursor by rolling the roller wheel, and selecting an item pointed out by the cursor by depressing the roller wheel. Then the user may concentrate on what is going on in the displayxe2x80x94while he is only using a single key.
In accordance with the preferred embodiment of the invention, the terminal is equipped with at least two entry modes for entering different types of information into different applications in the terminal, and comprising sorting the possible information candidates in the second string in dependence on the current mode of the terminal. When entering a text in Latin letters, there is no need for displaying Chinese letters, music notes, or other irrelevant signs.
Preferably, the terminal sorts the possible information candidates in the second string in dependence on at least one previously selected character. This sorting will preferably be language dependent. In English, e.g., when a word already contains the letters xe2x80x9cphxe2x80x9d, the next candidate will probably be one of the letters xe2x80x9caxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9cexe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9cixe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cyxe2x80x9d. Similar lists may be made for all letters and languages. If a terminal, e.g., includes 20 languages, a corresponding number of lists may be stored within 6-10 Kbytes in total. However, it will only be the list for the language selected by the SIM card or manually by the user that will be used.
When more memory space is available a full electronic dictionary can be loaded into the memory of the terminal. Then the processor will search the dictionary memory to find a word matching the letters already entered, and display the best matching word in a third display part selectable for the user. The displayed suggestion will be adapted dynamically when a letter is entered.
This concept will be very useful for languages having many different signs or characters, such as Chinese, Thai, and Arabic. Here, the dictionary could link the sign and the English pronunciation in Latin letters together. Then the processor will search the pronunciation strings to find the string that fits best with the letters already entered. The corresponding sign will be displayed in the third display part.
The invention furthermore relates to a communication terminal having display means, navigation means for navigating though information candidates, selection means for selecting one of the candidates, and a processor controlling the display means in accordance with the operation of the navigation means and the selection means. The display means comprises a first display part for displaying a string of entered information, and a second display part for displaying a second string of a plurality of possible information candidates, one of these candidates being highlighted by the cursor controlled by the navigation means. The processor copies the highlighted candidate from the second string into the entered information string upon selection by the selection means. The same information concept may thereby be used irrespective of the type of information to be entered.
When the terminal according to the preferred embodiment of the invention is used as a hand portable phone, the display may be a substantially rectangular LCD display, wherein the first display part constitutes the major part of it, and the second display part is provided as a strip along one of the edges of the display. This will give a good appearance when the display is a graphical display.
Preferably, the terminal is provided with navigation means having a roller body, such as a thumb wheel. When the roller body is rolled, the cursor will move, and when the roller body is pressed, the item pointed out by the cursor is selected. This allows for good control of the cursorxe2x80x94especially when the roller body is placed centrally below the display. However, the navigation means may be provided as a navigation key known per se and having a step-up/step-down functionality, and the selection means may be provided as a separate key, e.g., a soft key, for selecting the item currently pointed out by the cursor. This will improve the entry rate when the candidates are sorted in an intelligent way.
An important advantage of the inventive concept is that the same entry concept may be used for different types of entries. When the terminal is equipped with at least two entry modes for entering different types of information into different applications in the terminal, the processor sorts the possible information candidates in the entry string in dependence on the mode of the terminal.
In each mode the processor will handle a basic default string of candidates. According to a preferred embodiment, the processor will, for each information candidate entry, generate a dynamic string of candidates, comprising a group of the most probable characters in the beginning followed by the default string. Then, for longer words, the letter to be entered may be found among the first 4-8 lettersxe2x80x94which will be about half a rotation of the roller body.
The inventive concept will be especially valuable for the handling of complex signs, such as Chinese signs. For this purpose, a third display part will be created in some applications, when necessary. The user may input Latin letters for the pronunciation, and the terminal will display the best fitting Chinese signs in response thereto for selection. This concept may also be used for normal text editing, where the processor then suggests a full word found in a dictionary stored inside the terminal in response to the entered letters of a word.

Data entry by string of possible candidate information in a communication terminal


A process for combustion of the combustible material includes introducing the combustible material into the combustion chamber, advancing the combustible material through the combustion chamber, supplying combustion air to the combustion chamber for drying and partially combusting the combustible material and final ash burnout in a primary combustion zone, and removing ash products from the combustion chamber. The fuel or fuel/carrier fluid mixture is supplied into the combustion chamber to create an oxygen deficient secondary combustion zone for NO.sub.x reduction and other nitrogen bearing compounds decomposition. An oxidizing fluid is supplied into the combustion chamber above the oxygen deficient secondary combustion zone for thorough mixing with combustion products and at least partial burnout of combustibles in an oxidizing tertiary combustion zone. A furnace for combustion in accordance with this process is also disclosed wherein a combustion chamber is configured such that combustible material can be advanced from a drying zone, to a combustion zone, to a burnout zone, and then into an ash pit. An air source provides air for drying, combustion and burnout in a primary combustion zone. Fuel or a fuel/carrier fluid mixture is injected above the primary combustion zone to create an oxygen deficient secondary combustion zone, to reduce NO.sub.x and decompose other nitrogen bearing compounds entering the secondary combustion zone. An oxidizing fluid is injected into the combustion chamber above the oxygen deficient secondary combustion zone.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a process and apparatus for combustion of waste such as municipal solid waste (MSW), refuse derived fuel (RDF) or other comparable solid waste; the process results in simultaneous reduction in nitrogen oxides (NO.sub.x), carbon monoxide (CO), total hydrocarbons (THC), dioxins (PCDD), furans (PCDF), and other organic emissions.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Most of the existing processes and apparatuses for combustion of waste include a combustion chamber equipped with a sloped or horizontal stoker grate that reciprocates or travels to move the waste from the waste inlet side of the combustor to the ash removal side of the combustor. A portion of the combustion air, generally equivalent to 1.0 to 1.3 of the waste stoichiometric requirement, is supplied under the stoker grate. Such combustion air is typically called undergrate air, or UGA, and is distributed through the stoker grate to dry and burn the waste present on the stoker grate. The waste is first dried on the drying portion or drying grate of the stoker grate, then combusted on the combustion portion or combustion grate of the stoker grate. The residual waste that primarily includes ash and carbon is then decarbonized or burned on the burnout portion or burnout grate of the stoker grate. The bottom ash is then removed through an ash pit. To assure carbon burnout, a high level of excess air, compared to the amount required for carbon burnout, is maintained at the burnout grate. In addition to other species, the products of waste drying, combustion and burnout contain products of incomplete combustion (PIC's) such as carbon monoxide (CO) and total hydrocarbons (THC), oxides of nitrogen (NO.sub.x), such as NO, NO.sub.2, N.sub.2 O and other nitrogen bearing compounds such as NH.sub.3, HCN and the like.
The majority of NO.sub.x evolved from the stoker grate is believed to form from the oxidation of nitrogen bearing compounds and a smaller portion forms from the oxidation of molecular nitrogen.
Additional air or overfire air is usually introduced above the stoker grate and mixed with the products evolved from the stoker grate to burn out the combustibles. The excess air level downstream of the overfire air injection is generally in the range of 60% to 100%. Nitrogen bearing compounds that evolve from the waste react with oxygen in and downstream of the overfire air injection zone, forming significant additional NO.sub.x. Because of the low combustion temperatures in and downstream of the overfire air injection, most of the NO.sub.x formed in this zone is by the oxidation of nitrogen bearing compounds (less than about 10% are formed in this zone by the oxidation of molecular nitrogen). Based on measurements by the inventors, typical mass burn operations would result in about 30% of the total NO.sub.x formed on the stoker and about 70% in and downstream of the overfire air injection.
In most cases, a boiler is an integral part of the combustor to recover the heat generated by MSW combustion. In some cases, cooled flue gases from downstream of the boiler are recirculated back into the combustion zone to reduce oxygen concentration and to lower combustion temperatures and thus are believed to decrease oxides of nitrogen formation. A disadvantage of flue gas recirculation (FGR) is generally a higher concentration of products of incomplete combustion within the flue gases and within the stack gases because of reduced combustion efficiency.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,781,162 teaches an apparatus for mixing recirculated flue gases with combustion air before the gases reach an igniter. The '162 patent discloses combustion without recirculating vitiated air from over a burnout grate for overfiring. The '162 patent teaches neither fluid swirling in the combustion chamber nor injecting fuel above a stoker grate.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,938,449 discloses a waste disposal facility which uses a rotary kiln that differs from a stoker. The rotary kiln includes a hollow, open-ended circular tube body mounted for rotation about its circular axis. Hot flue gases are recirculated to dehydrate the waste material and remove oxygen. The '449 patent does not disclose fluid swirling in the combustion chamber or fuel injection downstream of the primary waste combustion zone.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,336,469 teaches a method of operating a magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) power plant for generating electricity from fossil fuel. The MHD combustor has a first stage which operates substoichiometrically, second stage natural gas injection, and third stage air injection for complete combustion. The '469 patent does not disclose the use of vitiated air from the combustor for overfiring and does not disclose fluid swirling within the combustion chamber. The '469 patent discloses a dwell chamber downstream of the MHD generator for reducing nitrogen oxides, but does not disclose nitrogen bearing compound decomposition.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,672,900 teaches a tangentially-fired furnace having injection ports for injecting excess air above a fireball of the combustion chamber to eliminate the flue gas swirl as the flue gas flows into a convection section. The furnace uses pulverized coal as a fuel. Secondary air is tangentially injected into the furnace and swirls in the direction opposite of the flue gas swirl. The '900 patent does not suggest the use of recirculated vitiated air from the main combustor for overfiring, fluid swirling within the combustion chamber, or fuel injection downstream of the primary combustion zone.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,013,399, 4,050,877 and 3,955,909 teach reduction of gaseous pollutants in combustion flue gas. The '909 patent discloses two-stage combustion within a combustion chamber. Heat removal occurs in the first, second or both combustion stages to reduce nitrogen oxides. Secondary combustion air is injected or diffused through tubes into the stream of gaseous combustion products flowing from a primary combustion chamber to promote mixing and complete combustion without an excessive amount of secondary air.

Process and apparatus for emissions reduction from waste incineration


A method for manufacturing a piezoelectric thin film component wherein a thin titanium film is deposited on a bottom metal layer such that parts of the thin titanium film remain on crystal grain boundaries of the bottom metal layer and form seed crystals. A polycrystalline piezoelectric thin film is formed on the bottom metal layer so that a pervoskite crystalline lattice is grown from the seed crystals.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a piezoelectric thin film component and the manufacturing method thereof. The present invention also relates to an inkjet-recording head using the piezoelectric component, and an inkjet printer using this [head]. The present invention more particularly relates to a new improvement of a piezoelectric thin film component where residual strain is minimized.
2. Description of the Related Art
An actuator using a piezoelectric thin film component, which converts electric energy into mechanical energy or vice versa, is used for a pressure sensor, a temperature sensor, an inkjet type recording head, and others. In the inkjet type recording head, a piezoelectric thin film component is used as an actuator to be the drive source of ink ejection.
This piezoelectric thin film component generally comprises a piezoelectric thin film comprised of polycrystalline substances, and a top electrode and bottom electrode which are disposed sandwiching the piezoelectric thin film. The composition of the piezoelectric thin film is generally a binary system in which the main component is lead zirconate titanate (hereafter "PZT"), or a ternary system where a third component is added to the binary system.
The piezoelectric thin films with such composition are generated, for example, by a sputtering method, sol-gel method, MOD process (Metal Organic Decomposition process), laser ablation method and CVD method. For example, a ferro-electric substance using the binary system PZT is noted in "Applied Physics Letters, 1991, Vol. 58, No. 11, pp. 1161˜1163". Also, piezoelectric materials using the binary system PZT is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-40035, and in the "Journal of the American Ceramic Society, 1973, Vol. 56, No. 2, pp. 91˜96".
When a piezoelectric thin film component is applied to an inkjet type recording head, for example, a piezoelectric thin film (PZT film) with a 0.4 μm˜20 μm film thickness is appropriate. The piezoelectric thin film needs a high piezoelectric charge constant, therefore it is normally necessary to perform heat treatment at a 700° C. or higher temperature to grow crystal grains of the piezoelectric thin film.
When a piezoelectric thin film (PZT film) with a 0.5 μm or higher film thickness is formed, performing heat treatment to obtain a high piezoelectric charge constant causes cracks inside the film, which is a problem.
A method disclosed in "Philips J. Res. 47 (1993) pp. 263˜285" is creating a sol or gel composition, baking at high temperature to crystallize the piezoelectric thin film, and repeating this process to increase the film thickness of the piezoelectric thin film.
The piezoelectric thin film created by this method, which has a multi-layered interface, cannot present good piezoelectric characteristics, and processability is poor. Repeating the heat treatment also leads to deterioration of piezoelectric characteristics, such as crystals losing orientation.
A piezoelectric thin film is normally formed on a bottom electrode, which is formed on a substrate, and heat treatment performed to form the piezoelectric thin film causes curvature and strain on the substrate, which is a problem. Also good adhesion is required between the bottom electrode and the piezoelectric thin film.
So the present inventor and others considered various ways to increase the piezoelectric charge constant of a piezoelectric thin film, and discovered that it is effective if the crystals of the piezoelectric thin film have a predetermined crystal orientation and columnar structure, and also have a crystal structure with a grain size of 0.1 μm to 0.5 μm (Japanese Patent Application No. 9-288757).
However, the present inventor and others further examined and discovered the following problem. When an electric field is applied to a virgin state piezoelectric thin film component, residual strain and polarization strain remain in the piezoelectric thin film component, even after the electric field is removed, and good piezoelectric strain characteristics (displacement characteristics) cannot be obtained. In other words, if an electric field is applied to a piezoelectric thin film and this is polarized, the domain (crystal grains) of the piezoelectric materials creating the piezoelectric thin film moves such that the polarization axis matches with the direction of the electric field. Then cavities are generated in the grain boundaries of the grains, which seems to be causing residual strain.

Process of making a piezoelectric thin film component


The present invention provides a method and system for facilitating a sale of debt accounts between a seller and one or more potential buyers. The method of the present invention preferably comprises the principal steps of (a) creating a computer readable database comprising data pertaining to a plurality of debt accounts, each account comprising a plurality of data fields; (b) grouping the accounts into at least one lot based upon at least one correlation among the data in the data fields; (c) searching the computer readable database for information corresponding to information designated by the potential buyers; (d) receiving one or more purchase offers for one or more lots from the potential buyers; and (e) communicating the purchase offers to the seller. The present invention further facilitates a sale of an item between a seller and a buyer which comprises the following principal steps: (a) receiving from at least one seller information pertaining to a plurality of items to be offered for sale; (b) establishing a spending limit for the buyer, the spending limit including a balance which designates an amount of funds available to the buyer; (c) communicating to the buyer at least a portion of the information pertaining to the items to be offered for sale; (d) receiving a plurality of purchase offers from the buyer, each purchase offer having an item and purchase price associated therewith, wherein each purchase price may be for an amount less than or equal to the balance of the spending limit; (e) communicating the pending purchase offers to each seller; (f) receiving an acceptance of a purchase offer from a seller; (g) calculating a new balance for the buyer's spending limit by deducting from the spending limit the purchase price associated with the offer; and (h) withdrawing any of the buyer's pending purchase offers for which the associated purchase price exceeds the amount of the new balance.

The present invention relates to a method and system for facilitating a sale of debt using a computer network.
The market that processes bad or charged-off debt receivables has grown substantially in recent years. Representing a shift in the paradigm of the creditor processing methods of charge-offs, bad debt sales have become typical in the world of credit collection as an alternative and competing process to traditional agency placements. However, the lack of an organized market for the sale of debt accounts, combined with the complexity of the asset, has heretofore hindered debt sales.
Debt accounts are complex asset and many factors affect the value of a portfolio of debt accounts. For example, each of the following criteria must be considered to accurately access a portfolio's value: i) the type of accounts (e.g., credit card accounts, consumer loans, auto loans, commercial loans, mortgages, student loans, retail accounts, telecommunication accounts, utility accounts, bad checks, bankruptcy judgments, etc.); ii) identity of the lending institution or original account holder; iii) the placement level, or the number of agencies that have attempted to collect on the accounts (e.g., at charge-off, after firsts, after seconds, after thirds, etc.); iv) the geographic origin of the accounts (e.g., country, region, state, city, zip code, etc.); v) the principal value of the portfolio; vi) account balances; vii) age of the accounts; viii) selling institution; ix) purchase contract terms (e.g., representations and warranties).
Given the many factors that affect the value of a portfolio of debt accounts, the ability to communicate and receive accurate information relating to the debt accounts is critical to the buying and selling process. However, there has been no effective standardization in the language used to communicate information relating to debt accounts being offered for sale. Heretofore, sellers of debt accounts have generally organized the accounts into a portfolio and then created non-standardized description for the portfolio.
The lack of a standardized system has a number of drawbacks. For example, when advertising a portfolio for sale the seller may not provide all of the critical information that the buyer needs to properly access the value of the accounts. In addition, because of the lack of standardization, information provided by the seller may be misinterpreted by the buyer. For example, the buyer's definition of terms such as "consumer loans" or "after firsts" may differ significantly from the seller's definition. The lack of standardization under the present system has generally made the selling of debt accounts a difficult and time-consuming process in which the potential buyer must conduct a significant amount of due diligence before an assessment of the value of a debt portfolio can be made. As a practical matter, the time and expense of assessing the value of a debt account under known systems has prevented many potential smaller buyers from entering the debt market. Thus, there is a strong need for a standardized system of communicating information relating to debt accounts being offered for sale.
Another disadvantage of presently used methods for selling debt accounts is the manner in which accounts are grouped into portfolios. For example, prior to the present invention, there has been no effective methodology for considering sales demand when grouping accounts into portfolios. Sellers have generally selected arbitrary factors to group accounts or have grouped them randomly. By failing to consider sales demand for the particular grouping of accounts, sellers may delay sales by failing to take advantage of current market demand. By way of example, a seller (without information regarding current market demand) may package a portfolio containing debt accounts from all states, a portfolio for which no current market demand exists. However, had the seller known, for example, of a market demand for similar portfolios of accounts limited to particular regions, the seller could have packaged the portfolio to meet market demand. Thus, there is a strong need for an improved system and method for grouping debt accounts into portfolios or lots for sale.
Another shortcoming of present methods for selling debt accounts is the lack of an efficient means of regrouping account portfolios. Heretofore, sellers have generally grouped accounts into portfolios and offered the portfolio for sale. If the structure of the portfolio did not meet the buyer's need, there has generally been no effective means for regrouping the accounts into a new portfolio to meet the market demands. Furthermore, if a seller and a buyer have reached an agreement as to the purchase of a portion of a portfolio, there has been no efficient means for the seller to regroup the unsold accounts into a new portfolio. Because of these limitations of presently known methods, most debt accounts are grouped into portfolios by the seller and sold as an "as is" package to buyer, regardless of the buyer's need. Thus, there is a strong need for a method and system for regrouping lots to meet sales demand.
Another shortcoming in presently known methods for selling debt accounts is the lack of automation. Heretofore, there has been no automated method or system for grouping accounts into portfolios or lots for sale, allowing potential buyers to search for lots meeting their needs, accepting purchase offers from potential buyers and communicating those purchase offers to sellers. There is a strong need for an effective automated method and system to carry out these and other transactions necessary to complete an account sale. Thus, there is a strong need for an effective automated system for facilitating the sale of debt accounts.
Another of the many disadvantages of presently known methods for selling debt accounts and other types of assets is the lack of an effective means for the buyer to completely leverage its buying power. For example, under conventional buying systems and methods, a buyer with $100,000 in funds available is generally limited to extending bids totaling $100,000 (without obtaining credit). Thus, for example, if the buyer extends two bids for $50,000, the buyer is unable to place any further bids without running the risk of over extending himself. There is a strong need for a method and system that would further extend the buyer's ability to ensure a successful purchase by enabling redundant extension of the buyer's capital resources without compromising capital budge constraints.

Method and system for facilitating a sale


An actuator system for use with a sheet transport system having a first roller and a second roller. The actuator system includes an idler assembly and a drive assembly. The idler assembly is coupled to the first roller and is biased to hold the first roller in a closed position engaging the second roller for transporting a sheet. The drive assembly is configured to engage the idler assembly to move the first roller between an open position spaced from the second roller and the closed position and to disengage the idler assembly when the first roller is in the closed position so that the first roller is held in the closed position solely by the idler assembly.

Laser images are widely used in the medical imaging field to produce visual representations on film of digital medical images. Laser imagers typically include a film supply system, a film exposure system, a film processing system, and a transport system that moves film from the film supply through the laser imager along a transport path. The film supply system generally comprises a supply of unexposed film stacked in a cartridge or magazine. The transport system typically includes a mechanism for removing individual sheets of film from the cartridge, and a feeder system for delivering the individual sheets of film to the transport path along which the film is transported through the film exposure and processing systems to an output tray for access by a user.
When transferring the individual sheets of film to the transport path, it is important that the film be properly delivered to the transport path. A piece of film that is delivered at an angle, or skewed, relative to the direction of travel along the transport path can cause an image to be improperly produced on the film and cause film jams along the transport path.
One type of feeder system includes a drive roller and an idler roller that together form a feed roller pair for receiving an individual sheet of film after its removal from the film supply. Initially, the idler roller is held out of contact with the drive roller. Upon a sheet of film being placed in contact with the drive roller, a gear drive system, which is coupled to each end of the idler roller with a pair of spring-loaded links, drives the idler roller to a closed position to secure the film between the idler roller and the drive roller. The drive roller is then driven to transport the film away from the film supply to the transport path.
In the closed position, the spring-loaded links are designed to provide closing pressure between the two rollers. However, since the gear drive system is directly coupled to the idler roller via the spring loaded links, the gear drive system continues to influence the closing pressure between the idler roller and drive roller when in the closed position. During assembly, the gear drive system can be improperly installed, resulting in an uneven closing of the idler roller against the drive roller. In such an instance, the closing pressure can vary between the ends of the rollers, resulting in the film becoming skewed as it is delivered from the film supply to the transport path.
Thus, there is a need for an improved feeder system for delivering film from a film supply to a transport path in an imaging apparatus.

Imaging apparatus with sheet transport system employing cam actuating system


Hard-carbon films with unique structures, methods for producing the films, and articles coated by the films are provided. These hard-carbon films are synthesized by the plasma surface treatment of a polymer substrate or a polymer-coated substrate in a plasma containing SFx species, where x is less than 6, and may be produced under room temperature, low pressure environments.

Diamond has captured the attention of scientists for a long time because of its extreme properties. It is the hardest known material (˜90 GPa), and until recently was considered to have the highest bulk modulus (1.2×1012 N/m2) and lowest compressibility. It has the highest known thermal conductivity at room temperature (2×103 W/m·K) and an extremely low thermal expansion coefficient (0.8×10−6 K−1). It is characterized by a broad optical transparency in the UV and IR regions. It is an electric insulator with a resistivity at room temperature of ˜1016 Ω·cm, which may vary over a range as large as 10–1016 Ω cm when it is doped. It is biocompatible, and exhibits negative electron affinity. See May, P. W., CVD Diamond—A New Technology for the Future, Endeavour Magazine 1995, 19(3), pp 101–106.
The first synthetic diamond crystals were produced from graphite using very high pressures and temperatures during the early 1950s, independently by two research teams, one in Sweden (Allmänna Svenska Elektriska Aktiebolaget) and the other in the USA (General Electric Company). See Ball, P., Hard Work: Diamond and Hard Materials, In Made to Measure: New Materials for the 21st Century, Princeton University Press, 1999, p 313. During the subsequent decades the high pressure, high temperature GE diamond producing technology attained commercial status and has now become available world-wide.
The interest in diamond has once again resurged due to research demonstrating that polycrystalline diamond films and diamond-like carbon films can be deposited at low pressures and at relatively low temperatures by using techniques such as Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD). Presently, all CVD approaches employed for the deposition of diamond films require the presence of activated carbon-containing precursors. Other methods for the synthesis of diamond films have involved the use of thermal, plasma, and combustion-flame approaches.
Most of the diamond and diamond-like carbon (DLC) films have been synthesized by starting with hydrocarbon (HC) precursors such as methane and acetylene. Studies have demonstrated that even if graphite, and not diamond, is the thermodynamically stable solid carbon allotrope, diamond and diamond-like structures could be produced at low pressures and temperatures in the presence of hydrogen atoms. See Landis, C.; Cleveland, T.; Cloninger, M. J.; and Pollock, D., Buckyballs, Diamond, and Graphite, In Topic Oriented Approach Development, available online at www.chem.wisc.edu/˜newtrad/CurrRef/TOAHome/TOAHome; Davis, R. F. Ed. Diamond Films and Coatings, Noyes Publications, 1993; and Monaghan, D. P.; Laing, K. C.; Logan, P. A.; Teer, P. and Teer, D. G., How to deposit DLC successfully, Materials World 1993, 1(6), pp 347–349. The role of hydrogen atoms in the formation of diamond and DLC structures has been attributed to a number of factors. These include, (i) their efficiency for abstracting hydrogen atoms from the precursor hydrocarbon molecules, thereby generating an "activated" carbon-based species, (ii) their ability to "neutralize" surface dangling bonds thereby preventing cross-linking reaction mechanisms which are responsible for the formation of graphitic structures; and (iii) their etching specificity under certain experimental conditions, which provides preference for diamond formation at the expense of graphite.
During CVD and Plasma Enhanced CVD (PECVD) processes, the activated molecular fragments resulting from a specific HC/H2 mixture are deposited on substrate surfaces at 600–900° C. These high temperatures are usually required to shift the reaction equilibrium towards the formation of diamond structures. However, the high substrate temperatures considerably limit the applications of these films because they cannot be deposited on temperature-sensitive substrates, such as polymers and low melting point alloys. Moreover, CVD techniques result in deposition of films composed of a network of small diamond crystals in the micrometer range, which may be unsuitable for applications requiring highly uniform and smooth films.

Hard carbon films formed from plasma treated polymer surfaces


The method serves to compensates anisotropy in an inertial rotation sensor comprising a metallized vibrating bell (1) having a bias voltage applied thereto, the vibrating bell (1) having an edge (7) electrodes (5.1, 5.2), and the method comprises the steps of measuring, preferably by multiplexing, the anisotropy between the electrodes and of applying to the electrodes a fraction of the bias voltage that depends on the differences measured between the electrodes.

Inertial rotation sensors are known that comprise a vibrating bell, generally a hemispherical bell, having its surface metallized to receive a bias voltage, the bell having an edge facing electrodes that are carried by a stand. The electrodes are subdivided into control electrodes and detection electrodes. Control signals are applied to the control electrodes so as to cause the vibrating bell to vibrate, thereby deforming the bell with deformations of orientation that is sensitive to rotation of the sensor. The detection electrodes serve to measure the orientation of bell deformations and, by suitable processing, to deduce therefrom the rotary movements of the sensor. The displacements of the resonator relative to the electrode-carrier stand at two ends of a diameter are equal in modulus and in sign when they result from control signals for sustaining vibration, and they are equal in modulus but opposite in sign when they result from parasitic displacements of the bell, in particular bending of the axis of the bell. Summing the measurements taken on a given diameter serves to eliminate the parasitic displacements providing the detection gains are equal.
It is also known that the gain for each electrode is a function firstly of the area of the electrode and secondly of the size of the airgap between the electrode and the facing edge of the vibrating bell. In spite of very strict manufacturing tolerances, different electrodes have different areas or different airgaps leading to differences in gain between the electrodes, and this applies regardless of whether the electrodes are control electrodes or detection electrodes. In addition, in existing systems, each electrode is connected to a processing system and the various processing systems may also present gain differences between one another. As a result, in general, anisotropy exists both for control and for detection. This anisotropy is a source of error when calculating the rotary movements of the sensor.

Method of compensating anisotropy in a vibrating-bell inertial rotation sensor


A memory device management system includes a first key acquisition unit that acquires a first key, a second key generation unit that generates a second key in accordance with a configuration of a memory device that is a management target, an equality determination unit that determines an equality between a value of the first key and a value of the second key, and a data erasure processing unit that erases data stored in the memory device in a case of a determination that the value of the first key and the value of the second key are different.

Regarding storage devices using non-volatile memories, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, First Publication No. Hei 7-219720 (hereinafter referred to as "Patent Document 1") describes a semiconductor disk that is provided with a data storage unit composed of a plurality of flash memories. The semiconductor disk includes a first table that converts a logical block address designated for accessing data by a higher-level computer into a real block address in the data storage unit and a second table that stores flag information for managing the state of data at the real block address.
When writing data, the semiconductor disk uses the first table to convert a logical block address that has been designated for writing the data into a real block address. Then, the semiconductor disk sets an "invalid block" flag (a flag indicating that the data is invalid) in an area of the second table corresponding to the real block address.
Additionally, the semiconductor disk searches the second table and retrieves a real block address at which an "empty block" flag (a flag indicating an empty block in which data can be written) is set in the data storage unit. Then, the semiconductor disk writes data at the real block address at which the "empty block" flag is set, and sets a "valid block" flag (a flag indicating that valid data is being stored) in an area of the second table corresponding to that real block address. Then, the semiconductor disk sets the value of the real block address in an area of the first table corresponding to the designated logical block address.
Additionally, the semiconductor disk performs an erasure process for updating the invalid blocks to empty blocks. In the erasure process, the semiconductor disk erases the data in the real blocks for which "invalid block" flags are set in the second table, and updates the flags of these real blocks in the second table to "empty block" flags.

Memory device management system, memory device management method, and non-transitory computer-readable recording medium erasing data stored in memory device if a value of a first key and second key are different


A raster scanning system is disclosed which utilizes a focus error correction system for correcting a focus error both in the fast-scan plane and in the cross-scan plane without affecting the scan characteristics of the post polygon optics. The focus error correction system comprises at least two axially adjustable lenses. One of the lenses is spherical and the other is cylindrical in the fast scan plane. The spherical lens has to be adjusted first to correct the focus error in the cross-scan plane. Next, the cylindrical lens should be adjusted to correct the focus error in the fast-scan plane.

This invention relates to a raster scanner, and more particularly, to a raster scanner optical system which corrects a focus error caused by manufacturing tolerances of the optical elements of the raster scanner.
Raster scanner optical systems contained in the prior art have a light source, such as a laser, which emits a coherent light beam. The beam is collimated in both the fast-scan or tangential plane and in the cross-scan or sagittal plane by multiple optical elements. The collimated beam in the cross-scan plane is focussed at a point near a facet of a rotating polygon mirror by a cylindrical optical element while in the fast-scan plane the light beam remains collimated when the beam strikes the facet of the rotating polygon mirror.
The rotating polygon mirror causes the reflected beam to revolve about an axis near the reflection point of the rotating polygon mirror. This reflected beam can be utilized to scan a document at the input end of an imaging system as a raster input scanner or can be used to impinge upon a photosensitive medium, such as a xerographic drum (photoreceptor), in the output mode as a raster output scanner.
Typically, an optical element has manufacturing tolerances such as surface radii, element thickness or refractive index which can cause a slight deviation in the divergence of a light beam. In a raster scanner, which has a plurality of optical elements, the error caused by each optical element is cumulative. Consequently, manufacturing tolerances of the optical elements can substantially shift the focal point of the light beam from a point on the photoreceptor plane to a point outside of the photoreceptor plane which degrades the quality of the printed document.
Depending on the parameters of the raster scanner, the depth of focus, which defines the acceptable range of the focus error, varies. The low resolution raster scanners (i.e. 400 SPI) have a larger depth of focus compared to high resolution raster scanners (i.e. 600 SPI). Therefore, the low resolution raster scanners are more tolerant to the focus errors. On the contrary, the high resolution raster scanners are frequently impacted by the manufacturing tolerances of the optical elements. Usually, in a high resolution raster scanner with a small allowable depth of focus, the amount of the focus error is larger than the depth of focus.
To solve this problem, an option is to use optical elements with tight tolerances. However, this recourse is cost prohibitive and impractical.
Furthermore, the acceptable focus error in the fast-scan plane may be different than the focus error in the cross-scan plane. Since different optical elements are utilized to differentiate the light beam in the fast-scan plane from the light beam in the cross-scan plane, the conjugates in the fast-scan plane are different than the conjugates in the cross-scan plane. Therefore, the focus error in the fast-scan plane has to be corrected in a different manner than the focus error in the cross-scan plane.
Also, if the spot is elliptically shaped, the size of the spot in the fast-scan plane is smaller than the size of the spot in the cross-scan plane. Consequently, the allowable depth of focus in the fast-scan plane is smaller than the allowable depth of focus in the cross-scan plane which makes it more challenging to correct the focus error in the fast-scan plane than in the cross-scan plane.
Ordinarily, a pre-polygon cylindrical lens which only affects the light beam in the cross-scan plane is used to correct the focus error in the cross-scan plane. However, the focus error in the fast-scan plane remains unaffected. To "correct the focus error" as used herein shall mean moving the focus into the range defined as"allowable depth of focus" which is the acceptable range of the focus error.
It is an object of this invention to provide optical means to correct the focus error, caused by the manufacturing tolerances of the optical elements of the raster scanner, in both the fast-scan and cross-scan planes.

Two element optical system for focus error correction in laser scanning systems


A sheet-forming slurry composition is composed of zirconia powder, an organic binder, and a solvent. The zirconia powder contains 2 to 10 mol % of yttria in solid solution form and has a BET specific surface area of up to about 12 m.sup.2 /g and a mean particle size multiplied by the specific surface area of up to 3 .mu.m.m.sup.2 /g. The composition is formed into a green sheet having improved flexibility, binder removal capability, sinterability, and dimensional stability, which is then fired into a sintered part having improved denseness, gas barrier property, and surface smoothness.

One well-known prior art method for preparing sintered zirconia parts involves forming sheets by means of a doctor blade. According to this method, sintered zirconia parts are prepared by furnishing a slurry composition comprising zirconia powder, an organic binder, and a solvent, applying the slurry onto a carrier film to a predetermined thickness by means of a doctor blade, drying the coating by evaporating off the solvent, thereby solidifying the coating into a green sheet, working the green sheet into members of desired shape as by cutting or punching, and firing the members. It is critical for this method that green sheets possess sufficient flexibility and strength to withstand stresses applied during working steps such as cutting and punching and handling steps such as roll-up and raveling. It is also important that parts resulting from binder removal and firing of such green sheets are free of distortion, deflection or cracking and have a minimal shrinkage factor, a high density, and dimensional stability.
Several organic binders are known in the art to impart flexibility to ceramic molding compositions containing zirconia powder and be susceptible to burning off and sintering. Exemplary of such known binders are acrylic polymers, acrylic polymer emulsions, ethylene oxide polymers, hydroxyethyl cellulose, methyl cellulose, polyvinyl alcohol, isocyanates, wax lubricants, aqueous urethanes, methacrylate salts, wax emulsions, and ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer emulsions.
Although sheet-forming compositions were prepared by adding these organic binders to zirconia powder along with solvents, it was very difficult to find a compromise among the above-mentioned requirements including flexibility, binder removal, sinterability, and dimensional stability. More particularly, if compositions were specially formulated to form green sheets having improved flexibility, binder removal and sinterability would be poor. If compositions were specially formulated to form green sheets having improved dimensional stability, the sheets suffered from flexibility. In addition, the optimum binder content largely varies with the type of zirconia powder.
In summary, sheet-forming slurry compositions should meet the requirements that green sheets formed therefrom are of uniform thickness and have appropriate flexibility and tensile strength, and that parts resulting from binder removal and firing of such green sheets are free of distortion, deflection or cracking and have a minimal shrinkage factor, a high density, and dimensional stability.
Although prior art sheet-forming slurry compositions were formulated so as to improve one or more factors among the flexibility, binder removal and sintering capabilities, and dimensional stability of green sheets as mentioned above, it was very difficult to find a good compromise among these factors insofar as conventional types of zirconia powder were used. Some factors were improved fully, but the remainders improved to only limited extents. No satisfactory sintered parts were obtained.

Slurry composition and sintered part prepared therefrom