Each radio paging receiver includes an originating party identification table in which an individual originating party code provided for each information supplier and a name of the information supplier are registered, a received message memory into which a message received is stored using an identification symbol of a paging number and an originating party code as keys, an index table for systematically indicating storage regions of messages received from any of the information suppliers registered in the originating party identification table using the name of the information supplier as an index name, and a message display unit for displaying, when a message is received or is to be read out, if the message has an index name provided thereto, the message with the index name added thereto. The radio paging receiver generates and adds an index name to information of each message received from an information supplier, and refers, upon reading out of a message, to the index table to retrieve a desired message.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a radio paging receiver which can display received message information with numerals or characters, and more particularly to an index managing method and apparatus for received messages for a radio paging receiver which has a plurality of paging numbers.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional radio paging receiver which can display a message indicates, when a simple paging signal is received, by means of the sound of a loudspeaker, a lamp or the like that a call has been received. However, when message information is received, the radio paging receiver together with indicating the reception, displays the received message information with characters such as alphanumeric characters on a liquid crystal display unit (LCD) once and then successively stores and accumulates the message information into a built-in memory so that the message successively stored in the memory may be read out and displayed later with characters such as alphanumeric characters on the LCD in response to an operation of a user.
Further, information services by such radio paging receivers as described above have spread recently, and it has become possible to provide a plurality of N paging numbers to one paging receiver so that a plurality of information services can be received by the one radio paging receiver in such a way that stock price information is received with a certain paging number whereas exchange rate information is received with another paging number. A radio paging receiver having a plurality of call numbers provided thereto in this manner has call numbers different for the individual information services, and when messages are to be displayed, identification information for each call number, for example, 1, 2, 3, . . . , or the like, is displayed for each message.
However, the displaying order of messages relies only upon the time series receiving order of the messages stored in the memory completely irrespective of the types of the information services mentioned above, that is, the call numbers.
Thus, another paging receiver has been disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Application No. JP4-257127/1992 wherein messages stored in a memory are sorted using identification information corresponding to a call number as a key to produce a directory and, when each message is to be displayed on a display unit, a user will refer to the directory to select the required message so that the selected message is displayed.
In particular, the radio paging receiver of the document mentioned above includes, as shown in FIG. 1, an antenna 1, a radio unit 2 which intermittently performs a receiving operation, a decoder 3 for detecting a paging number destined for the self paging receiver and a message from a received signal, a liquid crystal display unit (LCD) 5 for displaying received messages, an EEPROM 6 in which a plurality of N paging numbers provided as paging numbers to the paging receiver are stored, a RAM 7 into which messages, information types and so forth are stored, a notifying apparatus such as a loudspeaker 10 and a driver 9 for the notifying apparatus, and a microprocessor (MPU) 4 for controlling operation of the components.
An information supplier who tries to send a message to the paging receiver will dial a particular paging number from a push-button telephone set of a public communication network or the like and then transmit message information with a push signal.
The paging signal passes through the public network and a paging center office and is converted into an address signal, which is a receiver identification number in a radio section, by a radio base station. Then, the address signal is modulated into a burst signal for the radio section together with a message signal and transmitted all at once.
Several kinds of standards have been established as the format of burst signals transmitted from each radio base station, and as an example, a signal format of the CCIR Radio Paging Code No. 1 or POCSAG is illustrated in FIG. 2.
Each burst signal includes a preamble of 1.125 seconds and a plurality of succeeding batches each of 1.0625 seconds and is transmitted in a FSK modulated state. Each batch includes 17 code words, and the first code word is a synchronization code word (SC). Each of the remaining 16 code words is composed of a total of 32 bits, the first bit indicating whether or not the code words are address words or message words, 20 bits representing addresses or information, a BCH code of 10 bits for allowing error detection and correction, and the last bit a parity bit. Further, the 16 code words are divided into 8 frames each including 2 code words, and each individual pager is called with a particular one of the 8 frames.
Each paging receiver receiving a radio signal compares, by the decoder 3, the address signal (20 bits) demodulated by the radio unit 2 with N paging numbers (each formed from 20 bits) stored in the EEPROM 6. When the received address signal coincides with one of the paging numbers, the paging receiver sends to the MPU 4 a paging number detection flag signal indicating that the receiver has been called and an identification symbol notifying the CPU which one of the paging numbers set for each receiver the call is for (it is). The identification symbols of the paging numbers are determined for each receiver with an arbitrary number of bits and in an arbitrary order so that N paging numbers provided for each receiver may be distinguished with a number of bits smaller than the paging numbers (each formed from 20 bits), and serve also as identification codes showing by type the information services that can be received by each receiver.
After the decoder 3 sends the paging number detection flag signal and the call number identification symbol to the MPU 4, it performs error correction of the message information data sent successively to the paging number and sends only the information bits, one code word at a time to the MPU 4.
The MPU 4 stores the call number identification symbol sent thereto from the decoder 3 into a memory region of the RAM 7, discriminates whether the code words sent successively from the decoder are message information or a paging code, and if the code words are a paging code, stops reception of data at that time. On the other hand, if the code words are message information, the MPU 4 stores the code words into the memory region of the RAM 7. Then, the MPU 4 converts data, which have been stored in the memory, into messages of character data and stores the messages into a message region in the RAM 7. In this instance, if the message region has a message or messages already stored therein, the MPU 4 performs sorting of the message or messages together with the new message based on the call number identification symbols.
After the receiving processing of the message signal is completed, the MPU 4 drives the notifying unit such as a loudspeaker, a light emitting diode LED or the like by the driver 9 to notify the user carrying the apparatus that a call has been received, and displays the contents of the received message on the liquid crystal display unit LCD 5.
The messages stored in the RAM 7 can be read out and displayed, after each has been displayed once upon reception, at any time in response to an operation of a user.
Next, a method of managing messages, characteristic of the present conventional example, is described.
In the message region of RAM 7, a data region of a length for a fixed number of characters is allotted to each page number as a sector on a one sector-one message basis.
The data processing method is variable by message length, and when a message exceeds the number of characters for one sector, sectors are added one at a time and pointers attached, pointing form the front sector to the next sector.
Pointers showing the address of the head sector of each message are attached for the respective fixed addresses.
A table of pointers for showing the addresses of head sectors is called an index table or a directory and each message is managed by this index table or directory, as shown in FIG. 3, a directory is constituted from pointer (a) pointing the next directory, identification symbol N and pointer (b) pointing to the head sector. When a new message is to be stored, a call number identification symbol n of the directory and a call number identification symbol n' of the new message to be stored are compared with each other beginning at the head of the directory, and the directory of the new message is inserted in front of the message which they coincides with both of them, producing pointers to update the directory.
A desired one of the messages stored in the RAM 7 can be displayed on the LCD at any time by the user calling the directory by an operation of a switch button or the like. The message displayed in this instance is read out from the RAM 7 in accordance with the order sorted with the identification symbols of the paging numbers.
However, while the conventional system described above can classify received messages for individual paging numbers, that is, for individual types of information services, when messages destined for one paging number are received from a plurality of information suppliers of the same category, those messages are still displayed the order of reception. Consequently, the conventional system has a problem in that much time is required to retrieve and display a desired message from an information supplier.

Index managing method and apparatus of received messages for a radio paging receiver


A method of providing information regarding a service to a client includes receiving, at a first search server, first information regarding a plurality of service providers including a first service provider, receiving, at a second search server, second information regarding at least one service which is to be received from a first server of the first service provider, and providing the first information and the second information to a client, wherein the first search server and second search server are separate physical devices, and wherein the first search server and the second search server are separate from at least one server belonging to the plurality of service providers including the first server.

1. Field of the Invention
Methods and apparatuses consistent with the present invention relate to providing/receiving a service from a plurality of service providers, and more particularly, to a method and apparatus for allowing a client to select an Internet protocol television (IPTV) service from among IPTV services provided by a plurality of IPTV service providers, and receive the selected IPTV service from a server of the IPTV service provider.
2. Description of the Related Art
Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) includes a service providing information, moving picture content and a broadcast to a TV via an IP network, i.e., ultra high speed Internet. Since integrated services with communication and broadcasting have become available, much attention has been paid to IPTV, and activation of IPTV is expected to significantly affect not only communication and broadcasting industries but also content creation and household appliance industries.
In order to allow a client to receive an IPTV service via an IP network, an additional IPTV set top box is needed. That is, only clients having an IPTV set top box manufactured according to specifications determined by a service provider who provides an IPTV service can receive the IPTV service. For example, if IPTV service providers of three companies, i.e., an A company, a B company and a C company, are present, a service consumer purchasing a set top box of the A company can use only an IPTV service provided from the A company, and must further purchase a set top box from the B or C company in order to use an IPTV service of the B or C company, respectively. An IPTV network unique to a service provider is referred to as a managed network. Under a managed network, incompatibility between an IPTV service provider and a set top box reduces the range of selection of a service consumer, thereby degrading the quality of an IPTV service or preventing the fundamentals of IPTV service from being increased.
In order to solve incompatibility between an IPTV service provider and a set top box, the Open IPTV Forum that have been recently formed is conducting a discussion about standards for IPTV services. The Open IPTV Forum is discussing the creation of common standards independent of an IPTV service provider and the provision of an IPTV service based on the standards to a service consumer.
Open IPTV is aiming at making an interface and hardware platform that are independent of an IPTV service provider so that IPTV services can be received from a plurality of IPTV service providers via one set top box. According to Open IPTV, since all services provided from a plurality of IPTV service providers can be used via one set top box, the range of service selection of a service consumer can be increased.
The standards for IPTV services is now being established so that not only IPTV services that are provided via a conventional managed network and are dependent of an IPTV service provider but also IPTV services that are provided via an open Internet network and are independent of an IPTV service provider can be provided via one set top box.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method and apparatus for providing/receiving service of plurality of service providers


A system for page-based optical data storage includes a sensor array positioned to track a data page when the data page is optically read from or recorded to a storage medium. A servo mechanism is used to position the sensor array. A plurality of alignment points are defined relative to the photodetector pixel array. An alignment arrangement is located at each alignment point. The sensor array further includes servo-feedback signal generation logic operative to drive the servo mechanism based on error signals from the alignment arrangements, thereby aligning the two-dimensional photodetector array with respect to the two-dimensional data page.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to page-based optical data storage. The invention further relates to optical head servo-tracking in page-based optical data storage applications.
2. Background Art
In page-based optical data storage, a page of data is recorded by storing an optically modulated page of data onto the active recording area of an optically sensitive medium. The page is then read by optically interrogating the medium, producing an optically modulated two-dimensional data page that conveys the information that was previously recorded. Detection is performed by imaging the two-dimensional data page onto the two-dimensional active pixel photodetector area of a sensor array. The detector detects the image, and the image is subsequently processed to decode the data. One example of page-based optical data storage is holographic data storage (HDS), where information is recorded as holographic gratings in the optic medium.
As in other optical data storage technologies [for example, compact disks (CD) and digital versatile disks (DVD)], page-based optical data storage also requires the tracking of focus, radial shifts and longitudinal shifts of the media with respect to the read/write optical head. Moreover, the two-dimensional pages are also sensitive to rotations of the two-dimensional page, especially to rotations about the axis perpendicular to the page (azimuthal tracking).
Background information may be found in Geoffrey W. Burr, Holographic Storage, Encyclopedia of Optical Engineering, Marcel Dekker, Inc., 2003; H. Zhang et al., "Multi-layer Optical Data Storage Based on Two-photon Recordable Fluorescent Disk Media," Proc. of IEEE 18th Symposium on Mass Storage Systems and Technologies, pp. 225-236, San Diego, 2001; Kurt W. Getreuer, Optical Disk Drives—Mechanical Design And Servo Systems, Encyclopedia Of Optical Engineering, Marcel Dekker, Inc., 2003; and Jean Schleipen et al., Optical Heads, Encyclopedia Of Optical Engineering, Marcel Dekker, Inc., 2003.
Page-based optical data storage technologies and, in particular, HDS, have benefitted greatly from the recent development of low cost CMOS active pixel sensors (APS), such as the ones available today in high resolution digital cameras. These sensors, compared to traditional charge-coupled device detectors, present the advantages of lower unit cost (due to the simpler design and manufacturing) and design flexibility provided by the CMOS process, allowing more functionality to be included in the detector chip. However, these sensors have invariably been optimized for imaging applications, not for data storage.
For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for an improved sensor for page-based optical data storage.

Servo-tracking and three-dimensional alignment in page-based data optical storage


Box closing apparatus applies equal pressure around the joint between upper and lower portions of a box so that the portions are sealingly interconnected around the entire joint between the portions. The apparatus has upper and lower press plates between which the box is received. In addition, a tape dispenser is provided for application of tape to the joint after the upper and lower box portions are engaged. Rotation of the press plates is permitted to facilitate application of the tape to the box joint.

This invention relates generally to packaging of semiconductor wafers, and more particularly to a box closing apparatus for semiconductor wafer packaging.
The final stages of semiconductor wafer production are conventionally carried out in a clean room so that the finished wafers are free from particulate matter deposits and moisture. The condition of the wafers must be maintained as they are transported to a facility in another city or country. Moreover, the wafers must not be physically damaged either by the packaging process or by the rigors of their transportation.
Accordingly, specialized transportation boxes have been developed for transportation of the semiconductor wafers. Typically, these boxes contain a cassette which holds the wafers with minimal contact of the front and rear surfaces of the wafer. The wafers may be loaded into the cassette manually, or automatically by existing machinery. The loaded cassettes are manually placed in a lower portion of the box. An upper portion of the box is placed on the lower portion over the cassette and pressed down against the lower portion. The box is designed for a snap-latching interengagement of the upper and lower halves. To insure that the two halves are sealed together, tape is applied around the circumference of the box over the joint between the upper and lower halves. The box is then sealed inside a flexible, moisture barrier package (e.g., an aluminum coated acrylar polymer material).
The placement of the cassette into the wafer transport box and closing of the box are carried out by hand. To close the box after the loaded cassette is placed in the lower portion, a technician presses down on the upper portion of the box. It is often difficult to apply sufficiently even pressure of the upper portion of the box to interengage the upper and lower portions all of the way around the joint. As a result, the technician would have to take considerable time to achieve the joinder of the upper and lower portions. Occasionally, the box portions might not be fully interconnected all the way around the joint.


The present invention relates generally to microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices for the manipulation of cells or groups of cells, such as oocytes, embryos, and sperm. In particular, the present invention relates to Cell Labeling MEMS devices (2F), Microinjection MEMS devices, IntraCytoplasmic Sperm Injection (“ICSI”) MEMS devices, Zona Coring MEMS devices, Enucleation MEMS devices, Enucleation/Nuclear Transfer MEMS devices, and Cytoplasmic Transfer MEMS devices. The present invention also relates to kits containing the MEMS devices of the present invention.

Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS) are machines fabricated on a microscopic scale using surface micromachining or LIGA processes. MEMS devices can include moveable members (e.g., gears, rotors, linkages, levers, hinges and mirrors) for applications including sensing (e.g., acceleration or chemicals), switching (electrical or optical signals) and optical display (e.g., moveable mirrors) functions. MEMS devices can further include actuators or motors for driving gear trains to perform various functions including coded locks and self-assembling structures.
In recent years, the design possibilities of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) have expanded as the field has further matured. Recent advances in single crystal silicon wafer manipulation, the addition of integrated circuits as a practical modality for controlling these microstructures as well as other associated technologies has widened the horizon of possible uses (Senturia, S. D., et al., (1992) "A Computer-Aided Design System for Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMCAD)" Journal of Microelectromechanical Systems 1(1):3; Clerc, P-A., et al., (1998) "Advanced deep reactive ion etching: a versatile tool for microelectromechanical systems" J. Micromech. Microeng. 8(4):272-278; Petersen, K. E., (1998) "Toward Next Generation Clinical Diagnostic Instruments Scaling and New Processing Paradigms" Biomedical Microdevices 1 (1):71-79). One of the most promising novel aspects of this field is the design of MEMS which modulate and manipulate the small scale world of individual cells, thus facilitating, for the first time, an actual hands-on method for addressing biological issues at the level of the most basic unit of order in multicellular organisms.
Whereas many cells in the body are of a size on the order of a few microns, there is a special class of cells, the female gamete called the oocyte, which is far larger, on the order of 100 microns. Further, these cells, in many animals from sea urchins to mammals, are surrounded by a five to twenty micron thick selectively permeable glycoprotein coat called the Zona Pellucida.
The modification of the surface of the glycoprotein coating of oocytes and embryos is a desirable operation in endeavors such as the labeling of a great many of oocytes and embryos in the animal husbandry industry.
Further, the delivery of and removal of materials into and out of the cytoplasm of oocytes is a desirable operation in endeavors such as the generation of transgenic animals, intracytoplasmic sperm injection, assisted hatching, enucleation, nuclear transfer, and cytoplasmic transfer. At present the outcome of these procedures, being technically demanding and relatively novel and as such, not optimized, is very poor. The generation of transgenic animals born by way of microinjection of pronuclei offers very low percentages of actual transgenic animals but the applications for transgenic animals offers great promise (Wagner J, et al., (1995) "Transgenic animals as models for human disease" Clin Exp Hypertens 1995 May; 17(4):593-605; Woychik R P, and Alagramam K, (1998) "Insertional mutagenesis in transgenic mice generated by the pronuclear microinjection procedure" Int J Dev Biol 42(7 Spec No): 1009-17; Ebert K. M., (1998) "The use of transgenic animals in biotechnology" Int J Dev Biol 1998; 42(7 Spec No):1003-8). The use of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), the placement of a sperm into the cytoplasm of an oocyte using a microinjection pipette, can be found in both animal husbandry as well as in human assisted reproduction (Joris H, et al. (1998) "Intracytoplasmic sperm injection: laboratory set-up and injection procedure" Hum Reprod 13 Suppl 1:76-86). Being a relatively new procedure, not all human assisted reproduction clinics offer ICSI as an option but studies have shown that it can offer significant advantages to those couples suffering from male factor infertility (Palermo G. D., et al. (1996) "Intracytoplasmic sperm injection: a powerful tool to overcome fertilization failure" Fertil Steril 65(5):899-908).
Additionally, many assisted reproduction clinics have found that the use of assisted hatching, the removal of a portion of the glycoprotein coating to facilitate embryo escape from the glycoprotein coat, offers the chance of a positive reproductive outcome to those women who produce embryos with impaired zona pellucidas (Meldrum D R, et al. (1998) "Assisted hatching reduces the age-related decline in IVF outcome in women younger than age 43 without increasing miscarriage or monozygotic twinning." J Assist Reprod Genet. 15(7):418-21; Magli M C, et al. (1998) "Rescue of implantation potential in embryos with poor prognosis by assisted zona hatching" Hum Reprod 13(5):1331-5).
More recent developments in the animal husbandry field report that somatic cell nuclei can be used as nuclear donors in nuclear transfer (Campbell, K. H. S. et al. (1996) "Sheep cloned by nuclear transfer from a cultured cell line" Nature 380, 64-66; Heyman Y, et al. (1998) "Cloning in cattle: from embryo splitting to somatic nuclear transfer." Reprod Nutr Dev 38(6):595-603; Loi P, et al. (1998) "Embryo transfer and related technologies in sheep reproduction." Reprod Nutr Dev 38(6):615-28). The technique of nuclear transfer includes several demanding aspects, two of which are the enucleation, or removal, of the genetic material from the recipient oocyte and the deposition of a donor nucleus in the enucleated oocyte.
Recent early stage research has shown that infertility for some women can be ameliorated by the transfer of a small quantity of cytoplasm taken from a donor oocyte from another woman, presumably one without any cytoplasmic deficiencies (Lanzendorfise; Mayer J F; Toner J, Oehningers, Saffan D S, Muashers (1999) "Pregnancy following transfer of ooplasm from cryopreserved-thawed donor oocytes into receipient oocytes" Fertility and Sterility 74(3):575-7).
The rigors of the physical manipulation of these cells during the generation of transgenic animals, intracytoplasmic sperm injection, assisted hatching, enucleation, nuclear transfers and cytoplasmic transfer as well as the sheer enormity of the demand that these procedures place on technical staff represents two of the main reasons for failure. Thus, any improvements to these procedures which result in higher rates of success as well as increased capacity for processing is of great value.

Microelectromechanical devices useful for manipulating cells or embryos, kits thereof, method of making same, and methods of use thereof


In a method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device, a seal material is formed by drawing on a first substrate. A starting point and a terminal point of the drawing overlap forming a closing portion. The seal material is obliquely drawn so as to depart from an active area as the drawing departs from the closing portion. After drawing the seal material so as to surround the active area, the seal material is obliquely drawn so as to close to the active area as the drawing closes to the closing portion. The liquid crystal material is dropped in the inside surrounded with the seal material. After that, a second substrate is arranged on the seal material and the liquid crystal material. Then, the first substrate and the second substrate are attached by curing the seal material.

A liquid crystal display device is used in various fields of OA equipments such as a personal computer and a television set, taking advantage of the features such as light weight, thin shape, and low power consumption. In recent years, the liquid crystal display device is used also as displays for a portable remote terminal such as a cellular phone and a PDA (personal digital assistant), a car navigation equipment, and a game machine.
A One Drop Filling (ODF) method is put in practical use as one of the techniques of forming a liquid crystal display panel. In the ODF method, seal material is drawn in the shape of a frame. When the seal material is drawn from a starting point to a terminal point, it is demanded that the seal material may not break off between the starting point and the terminal point. Since the starting point and the terminal point of the seal material overlap, a closing portion used as a connecting portion of the seal material is formed. In the closing portion, since application quantity of the seal material increases more than other portions when a pair of substrates is pasted together, line width of the seal material expands locally.
Recently, it is demanded to make a frame portion small by enlarging the active area for displaying images with respect to an outside dimension of the liquid crystal display panel. Since the width between an end of the active area and a substrate end has a tendency to be reduced with the demand of the narrow frame which makes the surrounding frame size of the active area small. Accordingly, when the seal material expands locally, a portion of the seal material may flow into the active area resulting a poor display or on a planned cut line resulting a cutting defect of the substrates.

Liquid crystal display device and method of manufacturing the same


A rapid method for characterizing and identifying microorganisms using Focal-Plane Array (FPA)-Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy is disclosed. Multi-pixels spectral images of unknown microorganisms spectra are analyzed and compared to spectra of reference microorganisms in databases. The method allows rapid and highly reliable identification of unknown microorganisms for the purpose of medical diagnosis, food and environmental control.

Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy is a known technique for the identification of microorganisms (Mariey et al., 2001 Vibr. Spectrosc. 26:151). Infrared (IR) spectroscopy measures the vibrations of chemical bonds within all the biochemical constituents of cells, i.e., proteins, lipids, polysaccharides, and nucleic acids, and provides quantitative information about the total biochemical composition of the intact whole microorganism. Furthermore, because the IR spectra of microorganisms consist of distinct and unique patterns the spectra effectively serve as "fingerprints," allowing for their use in taxonomic discrimination. Indeed, the use of IR spectroscopy as a means of differentiating and identifying bacteria was extensively reported as early as the 1950s. However, it was concluded at that time that, although individual strains of bacteria definitely exhibit unique IR spectra, the identification of bacteria by IR spectroscopy could not be regarded as a useful technique, as the procedure was too time-consuming and impractical. Indeed, reports on the study of microorganisms by IR spectroscopy became less frequent in the 1960s and virtually ended in the mid-1970s.
Interest in this technique revived in the early 1990s, when the development of FTIR spectroscopy in combination with the emergence of chemometric techniques for the analysis of FTIR data opened a wide range of new applications for IR spectroscopy (Griffiths and Chalmers eds, 2001 Handbook of vibrational spectroscopy, John Wiley & sons, New-York, vol. 5). Beginning with the pioneering work by Naumann and co-workers in Germany (Naumann et al., 1991 Nature, 351:81; Helm et al., 1991 J. Gen. Microbiol. 137:69), FTIR spectroscopy has been demonstrated within the past decade to be useful for microbial analysis (Naumann, 2000 infrared spectroscopy in microbiology, in: R. A. Meyers (eds) encyclopedia of analytical chemistry, Wiley, Chichester pp. 102-131). The method is uniformly applicable to virtually all microorganisms that can be grown in culture.
Suggested potential microbiological applications of FTIR spectroscopy include (i) identification of life-threatening pathogens in the clinical laboratory: (ii) epidemiological investigations, conductance of case studies, screening of pathogens, hygiene control, elucidation of infection chains, therapy control, and detection of recurrent infections; (iii) characterization and screening of microorganisms from the environment; (iv) monitoring of biotechnological processes; (v) microbiological quality control in the food and pharmaceutical industries; and (vi) maintenance of strain collections.
The fundamental requirement for FTIR identification of microorganisms is that the variance within the spectra of one taxon must be smaller than the variance among spectra of different taxa. Although the variations in biochemical composition among different taxa do result in differences in their IR spectra, these differences may be very slight (e.g., between different strains). Thus, the above requirement imposes stringent conditions on spectral reproducibility, and interest in IR bacteria identification waned in the 1960s largely because these conditions could not be achieved with the IR instrumentation available at the time
The reproducibility of the sample-handling technique employed to acquire the FTIR spectra of bacteria is also of critical importance. Analysis of IR spectra to determine identification of microorganisms by providing a fingerprint has been used in the past. However, such analyses have yielded relatively poor reproducibility and identification success rate. FTIR spectra of bacteria are normally recorded by depositing cells suspended in saline solution on an optical window (e.g., ZnSe) and drying the sample to form a bacterial film. Spectral variability results from differences in the distribution of the cells on the IR window, thickness of bacterial film, moisture content of the film and the like.
FTIR spectra of microorganisms are commonly acquired in the transmission mode, although various other techniques such as attenuated total reflectance (ATR) and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRIFT) have also been employed. For spectra acquired in the transmission mode, spectral reproducibility depends mainly on the uniformity of the sample (sample homogeneity, particle size) and sample thickness (or pathlength). Sample nonuniformity leads to baseline variations owing to the scattering, diffraction, and refraction that occur as the IR beam passes through the sample, whereas variations in sample thickness result in variations in band intensity, although consistency in relative peak intensities is maintained.
Conventional IR methods for bacterial identification have a number of additional drawbacks. For example bacterial cells must be extensively cultured prior to FTIR analysis to increase the overall biomass and then transferred from the growth media onto an IR-transparent optical window, an IR-reflecting substrate, or an IR internal reflection element for spectral collection in the transmission mode, transmission-reflection, or attenuated total reflectance mode, respectively. Both these steps represent bottlenecks that have prevented the speed advantages of FTIR bacteria identification from being fully exploited. Furthermore, they make building a spectral library a laborious and time consuming process, which likely accounts, in part, for the lack of commercial bacterial infrared spectral databases that would be required in order for FTIR bacteria identification to be implemented in routine microbiological analysis.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,660,998 to Naumann and Labischinski describes a method for identifying bacteria by obtaining IR spectra of small colonies. The colonies of between 50 to 4,000 cells are deposited on a surface, localized with a microscope and a spectrum of each colony is obtained. However, when microorganisms are deposited on a surface or suspended in a solution for acquisition of spectral data, there usually results an inhomogeneous distribution of the microorganisms within the sample. Conventional acquisition of spectral data does not discriminate regions of inhomogeneities and therefore provides an "average" signal, which may comprise signal contributions that render the spectral information less reliable for identifying microorganisms. Furthermore, bacterial colonies, even when originating from a pure strain, may exhibit physiological and biochemical variability that can influence the reproducibility of the spectral data.
There is therefore a need for improved methods for identifying microorganisms using spectral data.

Method for the spectral identification of microorganisms


A method for patterning an insulative layer with high precision to accommodate the pitch reduction of wiring conductors and forming insulating layers that are superior in insulation performance, migration resistance, etc. is disclosed. According to the method, there are provided a first step of forming a pattern having openings on a surface by using a high resolution material, a second step of forming an insulating layer of a reliable second insulating material in spaces between the residual first resist material and a third step of removing the residual resist material. The pattern formation is preferably performed by using an ultraviolet-curable resin, to form a precision pattern. Since a highly reliable, thermosetting resin remains on the substrate in an actual product, superior properties of migration resistance and adhesiveness with the substrate can be obtained.

In printed wiring boards and multiple-pin ball grid array (BGA) packages, it is increasingly required that the wiring density be increased. Increased density requires that the interval of a conductor pattern that is formed on a substrate becomes very small. For example, about five years ago, the width of wiring lines themselves was about 150 microns (.mu.m) and the pitch of pads was about 650 .mu.m. However, at present, the width of wiring lines and the pitch of pads are less than 75 .mu.m and less than 200 .mu.m, respectively. There even exist such types that the line width is about 50 .mu.m and the pitch is about 125 .mu.m. As such, the wiring density has tripled or quadrupled in these several years. A technology is now required which accommodates the above trend.
The core of the technology for accommodating the increase in the wiring density relates to the formation of wiring layers themselves. Along with this, a decreased pitch of the wiring layers requires development of a method for forming a precision pattern of insulating layers, made of, e.g., organic material, around the wiring layers.
In a conventional technique for shaping an organic material layer into a given pattern, first a resin layer is formed by applying a liquid ultraviolet-curable resin (commonly referred to as a photoresist or resist) to a substrate, and then unnecessary portions of the resin layer are removed by exposure and development with the use of a certain mask. This technique is used very widely even today, because it can provide the highest productivity and form a precision pattern to a certain extent.
However, to attain a small pitch that is in the above-mentioned range, there occur problems with currently available ultraviolet-curable resins. The problems are associated with the resist (a specific example is a resist that reacts and sets upon illumination with ultraviolet rays; also called "solder resist"). The resins most commonly used for industrial purposes as resists are required to satisfy not only a high resolution property but also other various properties, which are opposed to those required for high resolution. For example, for a solder resist or the like to become a permanent protection film it should be highly reliable. The reliability, which is a very broad concept, is often defined as a collective concept including a low possibility of occurrence of diffusion phenomena such as migration between wiring layers and good adhesiveness with a substrate. Many other properties required include high mounting performance and high adaptability to a manufacturing process (specifically, a low possibility of occurrence of solder balls due to post-flux repulsion and high adhesiveness with a sealing resin for fixing mounting parts). The ultraviolet-curable resist might accommodate the above-mentioned pitch reduction if the high precision property were the only requirement. However, actually the ultraviolet-curable resist is required to satisfy a variety of conflicting properties, and currently there does not exist a single ultraviolet-curable resist which satisfy all of the properties required. Problems associated with a variety of properties required for the ultraviolet-curable resist will be described later in terms of specific problems with formation of resist dams.
The resist dam is a post-shaped portion made of an insulating material such as a resist. The resist dam is formed in the vicinity of a conductive pad formed on a substrate, and serves as a dam for preventing solder on the conductive pad from contacting with an adjacent conductive pad. That is, the resist dam is a dam made of a resist which serves to prevent solder from short-circuiting adjacent wiring conductors. In other words, the resist dam has a role of preventing the occurrence of what is called solder bridging. The technique itself of preventing solder bridging by means of a dam of an insulative layer is known as disclosed in Published Unexamined Utility Model Application No. 57-163764. This utility model application discloses a structure which prevents short-circuiting of conductive members by forming dams of insulative layers in the vicinity of the conductive members.
A technique of patterning an insulative layer at a fine pitch is necessary to forming resist dams. FIG. 1 shows a general appearance of resist dams. FIG. 1 is a top view of wiring conductors. As shown in FIG. 1, wiring conductors 2 are formed on a substrate and an insulating layer 3 is so formed as to generally cover the entire structure. Windows 4 are formed in the insulating layer 3 immediately above pads 2a (that are tip portions of the wiring conductors 2) to thereby partially expose the pads 2a. This becomes more apparent by referring to FIG. 2(a), which is a sectional view taken along line 2a--2a in FIG. 1. Referring to FIG. 2(a), the wiring conductors 2a are formed on the substrate 1 and resist dams 3a are formed between the wiring conductors 2. It is seen from comparison with FIG. 1 that the resist dams 3a constitute part of, that is, continuous with, the insulating layer 3 and are defined by the windows 4. As a matter of fact, when solder 5 is formed on the pads 2a, it is actually formed only on the pads 2a by virtue of the existence of the resist dams 3a. If it were not for the resist dams 3a, solder formed on one pad 2a may contact with the adjacent pad 2a, to cause short-circuiting. This phenomenon is called solder bridging.
FIGS. 3-6 show a background art method for forming resist dams. As shown in FIG. 3, a number of pads 2a are formed on the substrate 1 in a predetermined pattern. The substrate may be any of a ceramic substrate, a glass substrate, and an organic resin substrate. Next, as shown in FIG. 4, a liquid resist 3 of an ultraviolet-curable type, which is on the market, is applied to the substrate 1 and the pads 2a. Next, as shown in FIG. 5, the liquid resist 3 is exposed to ultraviolet rays with the use of an exposure mask 7. In this operation, openings (hatched portions) of the mask 7 are positioned immediately above the pads 2a. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 6, portions of the liquid resist 3 are removed by development. As a result, resist layers remain at desired positions to form resist dams 3a between the wiring conductors 2a.
The use of this resist dam technique to fine-pitch wiring conductors is disclosed in prior applications. For example, Published Unexamined Patent Application No. 2-272791 discloses a structure in which solder resists are provided in the spaces between wiring pads and at least a part of pad peripheries that are continuous with the spaces in a case where the spaces between the pads are too narrow to form resist dams. In this application, because of the narrow spaces between the wiring pads, the resist dam formation itself is replaced by another technique. Further, Published Unexamined Patent Application No. 6-252540 discloses a technique of making resist dams that are formed in the vicinity of metal pads higher than the total height of the pads and solder formed thereon. Higher resist dams would be somewhat effective in preventing solder bridging in forming fine-pitch wiring conductors. However, this application does not disclose any technique of effectively forming dams of insulative layers at very narrow gaps between the fine-pitch wiring lines, and therefore cannot be considered a proposal of an essential solution.
As the pitch of wiring conductors is reduced, the problem of migration between the wiring conductors becomes more likely to occur. Migration is a phenomenon in which metal that constitutes a wiring layer is ionized and resulting ions diffuse through a space between insulating layers to finally reach the adjacent wiring layer. Since migration is a diffusion phenomenon, the problems become more serious as the space between wiring conductors is reduced. In general, the diffusion phenomenon occurs between adjacent wiring conductors (see pitch "W" between 2 and 2' in FIG. 1). The migration mechanism becomes apparent by referring to FIG. 2(b), which is a sectional view taken along line 2b--2b in FIG. 1. In the 2b--2b cross-section, the wiring conductors 2 and 2' are completely covered with the insulating layer 3. Migration occurs between the wiring conductors 2 and 2' through the insulating layer 3. In particular, at a present time when the pitch W of the wiring conductors is small (less than 125 .mu.m), the migration problem comes to exist. One method for preventing this problem is to study the material of the insulating layer 3. One countermeasure would be to select an ultraviolet-curable resist that is highly resistant to migration, but this type of resist is generally low in resolution property. If a resist having a high resolution property is used to attain a fine pitch, the migration resistance is lowered. As such, the resolution and the migration resistance are contradictory properties. This results from the fact that a photo-initiator, a sensitizer, and an amine-type substance which are typically added to increase the resolution of an ultraviolet-curable resist also have effects of increasing free ions in the resin and enhancing the permeability of chlorine ions and alkali ions that are contained in chemicals used in a manufacturing process, thereby making the diffusion phenomenon more active through interaction with moisture, that is, adversely affecting the migration resistance property. Thus, to provide a single ultraviolet-curable resist that satisfies a plurality of contradictory properties is a subject to be attained in connection with the current ultraviolet-curable resist.
More detailed discussions will be made of the relationship between increasing the density of wiring conductors and the migration resistance. In particular, the requirement of increasing the density of wiring conductors is converted into a requirement for a property of the resist, that is, high resolution of a photo-curable resist used in a manufacturing process. On the other hand, the migration resistance is required for a resist as a constituent material of a completed product. As described above, if a resist is used which enables precision patterning to accommodate the pitch reduction, the migration resistance is lowered. Therefore, with the tendency of pitch reduction of wiring conductors, the object of forming resist dams between narrow wiring layer and the object of minimizing the migration between wiring conductors cannot be attained at the same time as long as the same insulating layer (i.e., the resist). This is one aspect of specific problems with formation of resist dams which correspond to the problems associated with a variety of properties required for the resist.
Further, the use of a resist is problematic in terms of formation of a precision pattern. For example, since the resin is in liquid form, it is applied to a substrate first. However, there may occur such defects as blooming and resin sticking in subsequent exposure and development steps. The occurrence of these types of defect is particularly troublesome in forming a precision pattern. This is because in forming a precision pattern, small pattern dimensions more likely cause exposure defects and misregistration. However, since the resin has already photoreacted at a time point when such defects are found, it is difficult to strip off the resin from the substrate, which means that there is no other way than scrapping that substrate. This results in a decrease in production yield.
Thus, if resist dams are formed by using an ultraviolet-curable resist, the production yield will become low though resist dams of a very high precision pattern can be formed. In addition, there is a possibility that quality-related problems such as migration will occur in products.
On the other hand, it is possible to form resist dams by using a thermosetting resist. Thermosetting resists are less likely to cause inferior migration resistance and yield reduction, which are problems associated with ultraviolet-curable resists. However, thermosetting liquid resists are not suitable for forming of resist dams of a precision pattern which is intended by the invention, because they are low in resolution.
The industry seeks a method of making an insulating layer overcoming at least some of the aforementioned short comings.

Method of forming a layer having a high precision pattern and layer

International Business Machines Corporation


Host cells may be treated for an infection or a hyperproliferative disorder which is characterized by the presence, in the affected cells, of a trans-acting factor capable of regulating gene expression by inserting into the cells a polynucleotide construct having a cis-acting regulatory sequence which is regulated by the trans-acting factor and an effector gene which renders said cell susceptible to protection or destruction. For example, the cis-acting region may be homologous to the HIV tar region, and the effector gene may encode ricin A or HSV-1 thymidine kinase. Upon infection with HIV, the HIV tat protein activates the tar region, and induces transcription and expression of ricin A, resulting in cell death, or of HSV-1 tk, resulting in cell death upon treatment with dideoxynucleoside agents such as acyclovir and gancyclovir.

The therapy of viral infection is in its infancy. Bacterial infection is typically treated with agents, such as antibiotics, which take advantage of the differences in metabolism between the infecting organism and its host. However, viruses largely employ the host's own enzymes to effect their replication, and thus leave few opportunities for pharmacological intervention. By employing strong regulatory elements, the virus obtains transcription and translation of its own genes at the expense of host genes.
In mammals, viral infection is combatted naturally by cytotoxic T-lymphocytes, which recognize viral proteins when expressed on the surface of host cells, and lyse the infected cells. Destruction of the infected cell prevents the further replication of virus. Other defenses include the expression of interferon, which inhibits protein synthesis and viral budding, and expression of antibodies, which remove free viral particles from body fluids. However, induction of these natural mechanisms require exposure of the viral proteins to the immune system. Many viruses, for example herpes simplex virus-l (HSV-1), exhibit a dormant or latent phase, during which little or no protein synthesis is conducted. The viral infection is essentially invisible to the immune system during such phases.
Retroviruses carry the infectious form of their genome in the form of a strand of RNA. Upon infection, the RNA genome is reverse-transcribed into DNA, and is typically then integrated into the host's chromosomal DNA at a random site. On occasion, integration occurs at a site which truncates a gene encoding an essential cellular receptor or growth factor, or which places such a gene under control of the strong viral cis-acting regulatory element, which may result in transformation of the cell into a malignant state.
Viruses may also be oncogenic due to the action of their trans-acting regulatory factors on host cell regulatory sequences. In fact, oncogenesis was the characteristic which lead to the discovery of the first known retroviruses to infect humans. HTLV-I and HTLV-II (human T-lymphotropic viruses I and II) were identified in the blood cells of patients suffering from adult T-cell leukemia (ATL), and are believed to induce neoplastic transformation by the action of their trans activating factors on lymphocyte promoter regions. HTLV-I and II preferentially infect human lymphocytes, and on occasion, cause their transformation into malignancy. Since then, two additional retroviruses have been found to infect humans: HIV-I and HIV-II, the etiological agents of AIDS. However, HIV-I and II apparently contribute to cancer only through their immunosuppressive effects.
HIV I and II apparently infect cells which express the CD4 surface protein. This protein is present in abundance on thymocytes and some T-lymphocytes, and to a lesser extent, on some antigen-presenting cells. HIV infection is initially characterized by flu-like symptoms, followed by a long latency period, which may last five to ten years. Upon entering its active phase, HIV infection results in a rapid decline in the population of "helper" T-lymphocytes (TH), which is usually recognized as a decline in the ratio of T4.sup.+ /T8.sup.+ (CD4.sup.+ /CD8.sup.+) T-lymphocytes. The patient typically experiences severe diarrhea, and if the central nervous system is infected, exhibits a form of dementia. The depletion of T.sub.H cells cripples the immune system, and the patient succumbs to an opportunistic infection by, for example P. carinii or cytomegalovirus, or to Karposi's sarcoma. The natural immune system appears wholly incapable of combatting HIV infection, despite the typical presence of apparently neutralizing serum antibody titers during latency.
Current therapy for HIV infection per se is limited mainly to administration of AZT to inhibit viral progression, although M. S. Hirsch, J Infect Dis (1988) 157:427-31 reported synergistic inhibition of HIV by AZT with GM-CSF (granulocyte-monocyte colony stimulating factor) or .alpha. interferon. AZT (3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine) is representative of a class of dideoxynucleoside (ddN) antiviral agents. These agents rely on the ability of host DNA polymerases to reject a ddN, and the tendency of viral polymerases to accept ddNs and incorporate them into replicating polynucleotides. Upon incorporation, a ddN stops polymerization, as it lacks the 3' hydroxyl group necessary for the next phosphodiester linkage. The ddNs are typically inactive in their administered form, and depend on phosphorylation by host cell enzymes for conversion to the active triphosphate ddNTP.
H. Mitsuya et al, Nature (1987) 325:773-78 disclosed the organization of the HIV genome, and suggested various strategies for development of HIV therapies. Speculated therapies included administration of antisense RNA (as free strands or encoded by an "antivirus") to inhibit viral transcription, administration of glycosylation inhibitors, administration of interferons to inhibit viral budding, and administration of dideoxynucleoside analogues to inhibit viral replication. Dideoxynucleoside analog drugs useful for HIV therapy (e.g., AZT, ddC, etc.) depend on host cell enzymes for activation by phosphorylation. D. Baltimore, Nature (1988) 335:395-96 suggested treating AIDS by removing bone marrow cells from an infected subject, and transfecting hematopoietic cells in the bone marrow extract with DNA or virus encoding an RNA or protein able to interfere with HIV growth. The DNA could encode RNA that might bind to HIV regulatory proteins, antisense RNA, mutant viral polypeptides, or a viral DNA-binding protein lacking its regulator function. The transfected cells would then be re-introduced into the subject, and provided with a selective advantage to insure dissemination.
A. I. Dayton et al, Cell (1986) 44:941-47 disclosed that the HIV tat gene is essential for viral protein synthesis and replication. Dayton suggested that one might inhibit HIV by interference with tat, without otherwise affecting the host cell. M. A. Muesing et al, Cell (1987) 48:691-701 disclosed that the tat protein (rather than tat mRNA alone) is essential for transactivation. Muesing also found that a tat-art fusion (having 114 amino acids fused to the C-terminus of tat by deletion of 7 nucleotides) retained full tat activity. A. D. Frankel et al, Science (1988) 240:70-73 disclosed that tat forms metal-linked dimers in vitro, and suggested that possible treatments for AIDS may involve chelation of metal ions, or competition for tat monomer binding. A. D. Frankel et al, Proc Nat Acad Sci USA (1988) 85:6297-30 disclosed the synthesis of an HIV-1 tat fragment which retains the metal-binding properties of tat. The fragment formed heterodimers with native tat, and can displace tat in homodimers. Frankel suggested using the tat fragment to inhibit tat dimerization, using liposomes to deliver the peptides or a tat-fragment gene. The amino acid sequence reported for tat from one HIV-1 isolate is
______________________________________ Met Glu Pro Val Asp Pro Arg Leu Glu Pro Trp Lys His Pro Gly Ser Gln Pro Lys Thr Ala Cys Thr Asn Cys Tyr Cys Lys Lys Cys Cys Phe His Cys Gln Val Cys Phe Ile Thr Lys Ala Leu Gly Ile Ser Tyr Gly Arg Lys Lys Arg Arg Gln Arg Arg Arg Pro Pro Gln Gly Ser Gln Thr His Gln Val Ser Leu Ser Lys Gln Pro Thr Ser Gln Ser Arg Gly Asp Pro Thr Gly Pro Lys Glu. ______________________________________
A similar protein is found in HIV-2.
The tar sequence, which acts in cis and is regulated by HIV tat, is found approximately at nucleotides +19 to +82 in the HIV-1 genome. The sequence contains two extended, inverted repeats, and is thus predicted to be able to form stem loop structures (Muessing, supra). HIV-2 exhibits a similar region.
Haseltine, U.S. Pat. No. 4,738,922 disclosed the HTLV I and II LTR promoter regions, and their use with trans-activators (luk) in vectors for amplified expression of heterologous proteins, exemplified by chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT). HTLV-I LTR apparently promotes constitutive expression, which is further amplified in the presence of HTLV-I luk, while HTLV-II LTR apparently requires HTLV-II luk for expression. Haseltine mentioned that viral trans-acting factors can alter the expression of host cell genes as well as viral genes, and Haseltine disclosed the concept of inserting a vector having the HTLV LTR fused to a heterologous gene into a cell having the HTLV genome, which results in the trans-activation of the heterologous gene and the overexpression of its product. Haseltine disclosed the use of the HTLV LTR in the absence of luk to generate empty capsid vaccines, and suggested using the HTLV LTR for expression of antigens, to provide for destruction of the cell by monoclonal or polyclonal antibodies.
E. A. Dzierzak et al, Nature (1988) 331:35-41 disclosed a prototypical gene therapy method in mice. Dzierzak removed bone marrow cells from mice, exposed the mice to lethal radiation, and introduced human .beta.-globin (BG) genes into the removed marrow using a retroviral vector, pSV(X)neo. The BG gene was inserted to read in the opposite direction from proviral transcription, and constructs both with and without the viral LTR enhancer regions were prepared. The mice were then reconstituted with the recombinant bone marrow, containing hematopoietic stem cells. Dzierzak found that human .beta.-globin was expressed in the resulting recombinant mice, and that the expression was found only in cells of erythroid lineage. J-K Yee et al, Proc Nat Acad Sci USA (1987) 84:5197-201 disclosed construction of retroviral vectors encoding HPRT under control of either the metallothionein promoter or the human cytomegalovirus (hCMV) promoter. Yee found that HPRT expression doubled when transcriptional regulatory sequences were deleted from the U3 region of the retroviral LTR.
S.-F. Yu et al, Proc Nat Acad Sci USA (1986) 83:3194-98 disclosed the construction of self-inactivating ("SIN") retroviral gene transfer vectors. SIN vectors are created by deleting the promoter and enhancer sequences from the U3 region of the 3' LTR. A functional U3 region in the 5' LTR permits expression of the recombinant viral genome in appropriate packaging cell lines. However, upon expression of its genomic RNA and reverse transcription into cDNA, the U3 region of the 5' LTR of the original provirus is deleted, and is replaced with the U3 region of the 3' LTR. Thus, when the SIN vector integrates, the non-functional 3' LTR U3 region replaces the functional 5' LTR U3 region, and renders the virus incapable of expressing the full-length genomic transcript. Yu constructed a recombinant virus using the Mo-MuLV LTR regions and packaging (psi) sequence, and inserted a neomycin resistance (Neo) gene under control of either a metallothionein promoter (virus MT-N), an HSV tk promoter (virus TK-N), or a SV40 promoter (virus SV-N) as a selectable marker. Yu also inserted a human c-fos gene under control of a human metallothionein promoter (hMT) into TK-N, and demonstrated inducible transcription of c-fos in NIH 3T3 cells after infection with the recombinant virus.
S. L. Mansour et al, Nature (1988) 336:348-52 disclosed a method for selecting cells after homologous recombination with a linear transfecting vector. A linear vector was prepared having a region homologous to a target gene, a neomycin resistance gene inserted in an exon of the homologous region, and an HSV-tk gene outside the homologous region. Upon specific homologous recombination, the transformed cell displays a phenotype negative for the target region and HSV-tk, and positive for neomycin resistance (homologous recombination into the target site disrupts the target site gene, and fails to incorporate the tk gene). The phenotype distinguishes cells having homologous recombination from non-specific integration, as the latter cells will display a phenotype positive for the target gene, HSV-tk, and neomycin resistance. Neomycin resistance is tested by culturing cells in neomycin, while tk.sup.+ is tested by culturing cells in gancyclovir (which is converted to a toxic product by tk).
R. D. Palmiter et al, Cell (1987) 80:435-43 disclosed the preparation of transgenic mice having a DNA construct encoding the diphtheria A chain under control of the elastase promoter. The elastase promoter is active only in pancreatic acinar cells, and promotes the expression of elastase. The DNA constructs were microinjected into mouse eggs, and the resulting progeny examined. Transgenic mice in which the construct was active failed to develop normal pancreatic tissue.
M. E. Selsted et al, J Clin Invest (1985) 76:1436-39 disclosed the primary amino acid sequence for three related human cytotoxic effector polypeptides, termed human neutrophil antimicrobial peptides (HNPs). The three HNPs have 29-30 amino acid residues and exhibit activity against bacteria, fungi, and herpes simplex virus (T. Gantz et al, J Clin Invest (1985) 76:1427-35).
T. L. Wasmoen et al, J Biol Chem (1988) 263:12559-63 disclosed the primary amino acid sequence of human eosinophil granule major basic protein (MBP). MBP is an effector polypeptide having 117 amino acid residues, a pI of 10.9, and exhibiting cytotoxic activity against mammalian cells and parasites.
M. A. Adam et al, J Virol (1988) 62:3802-06 disclosed retroviral vectors which exhibit efficient RNA packaging, having a psi+sequence. R. D. Cone et al, Mol Cell Biol (1987) 7:887-97 disclosed the construction of retroviral vectors (pSVX) including a human .beta.-globin gene, and the use of the recombinant vectors to obtain human .beta.-globin expression in a murine erythroleukemia cell line. A. D. Miller et al, Mol Cell Biol (1986) 6:2895-902 disclosed cell lines useful for packaging replication-defective retroviral vectors.
Guild et al, J Virol (1988) 62:3795-801 disclosed retroviral vectors using the Mo-MuLV LTRs and psi (packaging) sequence, useful for transfer of entire genes into mammalian cells. Guild employed .beta.-actin and histone promoters (which are active in essentially all cells) to obtain transcription of neo.sup.r (as a selectable marker). Expression of the neo.sup.r was demonstrated in vivo, after virus-infected bone marrow cells were used to reconstitute lethally-irradiated mice.
A. D. Friedman et al, Nature (1988) 335:452-54 disclosed transfection of tk.sup.- mouse cells with plasmids expressing HSV-1 tk, and HSV-1 VP16. VP16 acts as a trans activator for transcription of the immediate early genes in herpes simplex virus (HSV-1). On the VP16 plasmid, the promoter was replaced with the Mo-MSV promoter, and the carboxy terminal of the VP16 was deleted. The resulting plasmid codes for a mutant VP16 protein which competes with wild type VP16 for DNA binding. Transfected cells exhibited resistance to HSV-1 replication upon later infection. Friedman suggested that one might induce resistance to HIV by transfecting with a dominant mutant of the HIV trans-activator protein (tat).
J. Sodroski et al, Science (1985) 229:74-77 disclosed the location of the HIV tat gene. J. Sodroski et al, Science (1985) 227:171-73 disclosed construction of a plasmid having CAT under control of the HIV LTR. The HIV LTR contains the transactivating region (tar) gene which is induced by tat. Sodroski discovered that transactivating factors would induce transcription of genes under control of the HIV LTR. B. M. Peterlin et al, Proc Nat Acad Sci USA (1986) 83:9734-38 disclosed plasmids having the HIV tar gene, and the effects of orientation and position of tar on transactivation by tat. Peterlin found that tar functions best when downstream from a promoter and an enhancer. Activation with tat increased transcription to RNA. G. J. Nabel et al, Science (1988) 239:1299-302 disclosed that a HIV tat-III-CAT fusion plasmid could be activated by HSV and adenovirus trans-acting factors.
B. K. Felber et al, Science (1988) 239:184-87 disclosed an assay for HIV, using CD4-expressing cell lines transfected with the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) gene under control of the HIV LTR. Upon infection with HIV, the transfected cell lines expressed CAT in proportion to the amount of virus present. Felber suggested using the assay as a means for screening possible anti-HIV drugs for their ability to inhibit viral growth, and for identifying anti-tat drugs.

Methods and polynucleotide constructs for treating host cells for infection or hyperproliferative disorders


An object is to provide a solid state image pickup device and a camera which do not worsen a sensor performance in terms of an optical property, a saturated charge amount and the like. A solid state image sensor including a pixel region having a plurality of pixels includes at least a photodiode and an amplifying portion amplifying photocharges outputted from the photodiode in the pixel region, and further includes a well electrode for taking well potential of a well region in which the amplifying portion is arranged. Between the well electrode and the photodiode, no element isolation regions by an insulation film are arranged. Moreover, on the surface of a first semiconductor region in which the photodiode stores the charges, a second semiconductor layer of a conductivity type reverse to that of the first semiconductor region is arranged.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image pickup device and a camera, and more particularly to an image pickup device and a camera in which charges are converted into a voltage in a pixel region to be read as a voltage signal like an active pixel sensor (APS).
2. Description of Related Art
In recent years, a demand for a digital single lens reflex camera has been developing, and a sensor used in the digital single lens reflex camera is sized to be large one from APS-C size to a 35 mm film size.
Moreover, the used sensor itself widely varies from a CCD to an APS and the like.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-230400 (corresponding U.S. application was published as U.S. Publication 2001012133A) discloses an amplifying type image pickup device having a plurality of two-dimensionally arranged pixels, each including a photoelectric conversion element and an amplifying transistor, wherein: a first conductivity type semiconductor region constituting each photoelectric conversion element is formed in a common well composed of a second conductivity type semiconductor formed in a first conductivity type semiconductor substrate; a first conductivity type semiconductor region constituting a source and a drain of each of the amplifying transistors is formed in the common well; and a plurality of electric contacts for supplying a reference voltage to the common well is provided in the inside of the pixel array area in the common well.
In the APS sensor which has the large image pickup surface mentioned above, it is necessary to perform a voltage conversion of charges based on certain reference potential. When the reference potential is distributed on the image pickup surface, also the optical signal having received the voltage conversion has shading according to the distribution. Thus, there is a problem in which image performance is seriously damaged.
For coping with the problem, the prior art disclosed in the publication mentioned above provides an electrode for fixing the potential of the well in which a source follower is arranged to the reference potential when the source is used as an amplifying portion in a pixel, for example.
FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing the cross-sectional structure of prior art. In FIG. 10, an electrode region for taking well potential is denoted by a reference numeral 2.
A reference numeral 1 denotes n-type semiconductor region forming a photoelectric conversion region. A reference numeral 2 denotes p-type semiconductor region. A reference numeral 3 denotes a well contact wiring. A reference numeral 4 denotes P-well. A reference numeral 12 denotes an element isolation region. Reference numerals 13-17 denote source and drain regions of MOS transistor. A reference numeral 101 denotes a photoelectric conversion unit. A reference numeral 102 denotes a transfer MOS transistor. A reference numeral 103 denotes a reset MOS transistor. A reference numeral 104 denotes a selection MOS transistor. And, a reference numeral 105 denotes an amplifying MOS transistor.
FIG. 11 is a plan view showing the planar structure of the prior art. The well region 2 of FIG. 10 corresponds to a well electrode 1101 in FIG. 11.
A reference numeral 1104 denotes a photodiode. A reference numeral 1102 denotes a poly wiring (poly gate). A reference numeral 1103 denotes a MOS transistor unit (N+). Lmin denotes element isolation width. And, Smin denotes an area of the well electrode 1101.
Generally, between a well region and a light receiving unit, an insulating isolation region represented by the localized oxidation of silicon (LOCOS), the shallow trench isolation (STI) and the like is arranged. In FIG. 10, LOCOS 12 is arranged as such an element isolation region.
In arranging the element isolation region, the following restrictions are especially given from a viewpoint of an exposure process on production. Those are (1) the securement of the minimum separation width Lmin and (2) the securement of the minimum electrode area Smin.
In performing the miniaturization of a pixel, by the restrictions mentioned above, the light receiving area of a photodiode used as the light receiving unit becomes small, and the sensor performance has been worsened in terms of the optical property thereof, the saturated charge amount thereof, and the like.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a solid state image pickup device and a camera which do not worsen the sensor performance in terms of the optical property thereof, the saturated charge amount thereof, and the like.

Image pickup device and camera for converting charges into voltage


Sheet resistance of titanium silicide formed on silicon is diminished by enhancing formation of nucleation sites for the C-54 phase. Fluorine is introduced into silicon by either the implantation of BF.sub.2 or F, followed by creation of a cap oxide over the silicon surface. During subsequent annealing, fluorine outgasses, forming bubbles in the silicon. Upon removal of the cap oxide, the gas escapes and the silicon surface is pitted and uneven, enhancing subsequent formation of C-54 nucleation sites.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process for improving the silicide sheet resistance of titanium silicide formed upon silicon. Specifically, fluorine is implanted into N+ doped regions of silicon and annealed under a cap oxide, resulting in enhancement of nucleation site density for the subsequent transformation into C-54 phase titanium silicide.
2. Description of the Related Art
With the decreased size of semiconductor devices, the sheet resistivity of the electrically-conducting structures of these devices, such as the gates of MOS transistors, emitters of bipolar transistors, local interconnect regions of MOS and bipolar transistors, and interconnect lines connecting these devices together, is beginning to limit the speed of operation.
One well-known technique for reducing sheet resistivity is to form a layer of metal silicide over these electrically-conducting structures. The resulting silicided structures provide the lower resistivity of a metal silicide, along with the well-known attributes of silicon.
TiSi.sub.2 is one of the most extensively utilized metal silicides. A major problem with forming TiSi.sub.2, however, is that sheet resistance increases strongly for N+-doped silicon with decreasing linewidth. The relationship between sheet resistance and linewidth for TiSi.sub.2 is shown in FIG. 1.
At least two distinct phases of TiSi.sub.2 have been recognized. These phases are known as C-49 and C-54. C-49 TiSi.sub.2 exhibits substantially higher sheet resistance than the C-54 phase. FIG. 1 can therefore be explained by a nucleation and growth model.
FIG. 2 illustrates this nucleation and growth model. As shown in FIG. 2A, C-49 phase 1 is initially formed upon the surface of linewidth 2, along with C-54 nucleation sites 3. FIG. 2B shows that upon further reaction, C-54 phase 4 grows at nucleation sites 3. FIG. 2C shows the ultimate result wherein growth areas of C-54 phase 4 merge to form a continuous region of C-54 having lower sheet resistance. Because C-54 phase nucleation site density is dependent upon linewidth, narrower linewidths yield fewer nucleation sites from which the lower resistive C-54 phase can grow.
Improved processes have been proposed to promote formation of TiSi.sub.2 having low sheet resistances. Sakai, et al. (1992 VLSI Tech. Dig. 66) describe implanting As into both the N+ and P+ regions of a CMOS structure prior to silicide metal implantation, causing pre-amorphization of the silicon. Titanium is then applied to the amorphous silicon, followed by a sequential two-step sintering process in which C-49 phase is created and converted into C-54 phase. Fujii, et al. (1995 VLSI Tech. Dig. 57) describe enhancement of the Sakai process utilizing high-temperature sputtering of titanium.
Several groups have investigated the physical basis underlying these pre-amorphization techniques. Chen, et al. (1996 Mat.Res.Symp.Proc. 89) suggest that pre-amorphization does not increase the rate of conversion of C-49 to C-54, but instead enhances the reaction rate between Ti and loosely bound amorphous silicon, resulting in C-54 having larger grains and lower resistivity. Kittl, et al. (1996 VLSI Tech. Dig. 14) suggest that pre-amorphization causes formation of C-49 silicide having a grain size smaller than the linewidth. Xiao, et al. (1990 Mat.Res.Soc.Proc. 167) have suggested that pre-amorphization utilizes latent energy stored in amorphous silicon to enhance the kinetics of the C-54 phase transformation reaction.
The pre-amorphization techniques discussed above have been somewhat successful in lowering sheet resistance on silicided surfaces. However, pre-amorphization techniques remain experimental. The process in accordance with the present invention utilizes the conventional siliciding process with the addition of a single fluorine implant step to enhance formation of C-54 phase titanium silicides at the extremely narrow linewidths demanded by modern devices.

Method of improving silicide sheet resistance by implanting fluorine


A method and apparatus for protecting property, wherein the method comprises receiving information indicating an attack on the property, determining, from the received information, a type of attack upon the property indicated by the received information, and transmitting a data packet to a receiver, the data packet comprising metadata describing the determined type of attack.

Thieves and other criminals can target property such as vehicles, temporary buildings (for example, cargo containers) and permanent buildings with the aim of gaining entry and stealing any goods from within. In the case of vehicles, the thieves and other criminals may also seek to steal the vehicle itself. There are various ways in which thieves and other criminals may attempt to attack property. For example, in an attack termed "peel and steal", a cargo door of a vehicle is levered away (such as with a crowbar) from the main bodywork and then peeled so as to create an opening through which a thief may access the vehicle. Similar attacks may be perpetrated against temporary buildings such as cargo containers, wherein a door of the container may be prised open to allow access. Equally, doors, windows or shutters of structures may be prised open or otherwise broken to allow illegal (that is, unauthorised) access.
Vehicles and structures can have valuable goods contained therein, such as tools which can be expensive and without which some users cannot work, and therefore protecting property is becoming increasingly important.
Vehicle attacks are performed using means of attack including forced entry with hand tools, lock picking, keyless hacking and, more recently, a technique termed 'peel and steal' in which the top of a door of a vehicle is levered or pulled outwards and downwards, or the bodywork of a vehicle is otherwise peeled open. It is desirable that an attack on a vehicle can be prevented before the vehicle has been damaged.

Systems and methods for protecting property


A surge suppressor for a radio frequency (RF) transmission line includes an a printed circuit board having a conductor for connection in series with a RF transmission line. The conductor has a capacitance for passing RF signals and blocking transients. To the printed circuit board are mounted a choke and a resistor, each of which is connected in series with the transmission line and in parallel to each other and to the capacitance of the conductor. The choke passes steady, direct current signals for powering equipment located on an antenna. The surge suppressor further includes the first and second discharge stages connected to the conductor on opposite sides of the impedance. Each stage includes a discharge device connected to the conductor through a radio frequency choke. The choke blocks leakage of radio frequencies into the discharge devices. A gas discharge tube is used for the first stage, which is for connection to an antenna side of the surge suppressor. A solid state device, having a lower breakdown voltage than the gas discharge tube, is used in the second stage, which is for connection to voltage sensitive equipment. The resistor assists in isolating the first and second stages. The first stage further includes a second gas discharge tube having a breakdown voltage higher than the first gas discharge tube for use in warning of degradation of the first gas discharge tube.

A common example of a transmission line carrying radio frequency (RF) signals is a coaxial cable connecting an antenna to a voltage-sensitive equipment such as a receiver or transmitter. Often unprotected and exposed to the atmosphere, antennas and the transmission lines connecting the antennas to equipment are subject to high energy transient voltages or surges caused by lightening and, consequently, so too are the transmitters and receivers. Most such equipment have solid state devices at their input and/or output circuits. Since solid state devices have low breakdown voltages, at least as compared to vacuum tubes, a voltage surge can cause substantial damage to the equipment.
In order to protect voltage-sensitive equipment from damage caused by high voltage surges, a surge suppressor, sometimes also referred to as a surge arrestor or protector, is inserted between a transmission line susceptible to such surges and the equipment. The arrestor functions to shunt or discharge to ground high voltage transient signals. Several different types of discharge devices are available. An air gap device has two conductors closely-spaced separated by an air gap. When a voltage differential across the gap reaches a sufficiently high level, the air ionizes and begins to conduct, thus discharging the surge to ground. An air gap device does not provide adequate protection for solid state components. A relatively high-voltage differential is required before it will conduct. It also has a slow response time. Furthermore, the conductors breakdown after a few lightening strikes. Thus, air gaps tend to be less reliable than other discharge devices. Gas discharge tubes, on the other hand, tend not to deteriorate from frequent discharges. Relatively small, compact gas tubes are also able handle large currents. However, at the relatively low discharge voltage thresholds desired for equipment with solid state devices, a gas discharge tube can be triggered by peak voltages in an RF signal, thus momentarily interrupting the signal. At higher discharge voltage thresholds, gas discharge tubes may not provide adequate protection. More importantly, gas discharge tubes have relatively slow response times. Therefore, some fast rising, high voltage spikes may not be discharged. Solid state discharge devices such as sidactors, avalanche type diodes and metal oxide varistors, on the other hand, have comparatively low voltage thresholds and quick response times for discharging transients voltages. However, solid state discharge devices have, as compared to similarly sized gas discharge tubes, low current handling capacity. Very large solid state devices are required for discharging large current surges, making them impractical to use in many applications.
All discharge devices have associated with them parasitic capacitances that tend to load the transmission line in the radio frequency range, thus attenuating the desirable RF signals. In a radio frequency application, therefore, a discharge device is preferably coupled to the transmission line in a manner that provides adequate and reliable protection and avoids significantly degrading or attenuating RF signals on the transmission line. Several examples circuits for coupling various types of discharge devices, including air gap and gas discharge tube, to a RF transmission line are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,359,764, 4,409,637 and 4,554,608 of Block. Block's RF surge suppressor units include two connectors, two conductors, at least one discharge device and a capacitor, all of which are matched to the transmission line to pass RF signals in a preselected range. Segments of an RF transmission line are connected to the two connectors, and the two conductors interconnect the connectors. The discharge device is connected between one of the conductors and ground or between the two conductors, and the capacitor is inserted in line with one of the conductors. The impedances of the conductors, the capacitor and the discharge device are tuned so that the entire circuit matches the characteristic impedance of the transmission line at the desired operational radio frequencies, thus assuring minimal loss or attenuation of the RF signals travelling through the unit along the transmission line. The capacitor blocks direct current voltages commonly associated with transients caused by lightening from travelling through the surge arrestor. Once voltage on the transmission line builds to the breakdown voltage of the discharge device, the discharge device shunts the transient signal to ground.
In a surge arrestor unit disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,122,921 of Koss, a capacitor is placed in line with one of the conductors of RF coaxial transmission line to block flow of direct current, just as the circuits of Block. On the side of the capacitor to be connected to an antenna, a gas tube discharge device and a choke are connected in parallel with each other and between the inner conductor and the outer conductor of the RF transmission line (which is grounded). To the side of the capacitor to be connected with the voltage sensitive equipment is a resistor connected between the inner and outer conductors of the transmission line. The choke passes small direct current transients to ground. The capacitor, on the other hand, passes RF signals but not direct current signals. The choke creates a back emf when the speed and magnitude of a transient surge is sufficiently high to create a voltage that causes the discharge device to breakdown and conduct, thus protecting the capacitor. The resistor discharges an voltages on the equipment side of the capacitor.
The surge suppressor units of Block and Koss suffer from several problems. First, fast rising transients tend to pass through the in-line capacitor and to the equipment before the discharge device begins to conduct. Second, high voltages across the capacitor tend to cause a reverse transient flow of current from the equipment. Third, surge suppressors fabricated using conventional materials, and methods, like those of Block, require that each unit be manually tuned during assembly. The impedances inherent in the conductors in each unit depend on the physical geometry of the conductors and the other components within the unit. The impedances will tend to vary between units due to the difficulty of precisely reproducing the physical layout of the units. Thus, tuning not only must take into account the variations in the inherent impedance of the discharge devices, but also the natural variations in the parasitic impedances of the conductors. Indeed, Block teaches using the parasitic impedances to form a band-pass filter to pass the RF signals of interest. Thus, careful tuning is critical for satisfactory performance of surge suppressors such as Block's. Fourth, breakdown and conduction of the discharge device in both Block and Koss interrupts RF signal flow. Fifth, the capacitors totally block the flow of direct current along the RF transmission line. However, RF transmission lines are now being used to deliver power to equipment located on an antenna, such as down converters and amplifiers. Thus, the surge suppressors of Block and Koss cannot be used in these RF transmitting and receiving systems.

Surge suppression for radio frequency transmission lines


An electric-powered vehicle is equipped with a power storage system having power storage devices each including a plurality of serially connected cells, and an integration control device. Contactors and current sensors are connected in series to the power storage devices. Control devices capable of managing statuses of the power storage devices are provided in addition to the power storage devices, the contactors, and the current sensors, thereby forming unit power storage modules. The unit power storage modules are connected in parallel. An electrical load whose driving is controlled by using powers of the power storage devices is provided. The integration control device is connected to the electrical load and the control devices of the unit power storage modules.

In electric vehicles such as a hybrid vehicle and an electric vehicle capable of being self-sustaining by powers of power storage devices mounted thereon, high-voltage power storage devices having a substantially specialized design have been conventionally used. This is intended to improve performance (for example, safety performance, power performance, and the like) of a vehicle system. Such an electric-powered vehicle is equipped with a power storage system having: high-voltage power storage devices in each of which a plurality of cells are connected in series; and an integration control device which integrally controls the power storage devices and the vehicle.
Arts of an electric-powered vehicle equipped with the power storage system having: the conventional power storage devices in each of which the plural cells are connected in series; and the integration control device which controls the power storage devices and the vehicle include, for example, the following Patent Literatures 1˜7. Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2009-033936 being Patent Literature 1 describes an art relating to individual ON control of parallel connected batteries. Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2000-340266 being Patent Literature 2 describes an art relating to abnormality determination based on a temperature deviation of parallel-connected batteries. Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2001-095163 being Patent Literature 3 discloses an art for independently controlling currents of parallel-connected batteries. Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2004-028861 being Patent Literature 4 describes an art relating to voltage detection logic of a parallel battery pack. Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2004-031014 being Patent Literature 5 describes an art relating to a method of calculating a maximum charge/discharge power when parallel battery packs are connected in series. Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2004-031123 being Patent Literature 6 describes an art relating to a method of calculating a capacity of a parallel battery pack. Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2008-153150 being Patent Literature 7 describes an art relating to abnormality detection and disconnection based on the calculation of internal resistances of parallel-connected batteries.


The field of the invention is that of weapon aiming sights having a light intensifier. To make certain firing modes safe, a weapon may be provided with a camera allowing a soldier to take aim while remaining protected. The proposed invention allows this function to be fulfilled at night. For this purpose, a night vision aiming sight with a light intensifier comprising two optical channels is fitted onto the weapon. The first optical channel provides the camera placed on the weapon with an intensified image. The second optical channel provides the firer with a directly observable intensified image. In a variant, the aiming sight also includes a display that supplies the soldier with additional information superimposed on the intensified images.

1. Field of the Invention
The field of the invention is that of weapon aiming sights having a light intensifier.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is of paramount importance for a soldier to maintain very good mobility in all mission situations and particularly when he is moving around in an urban environment. When a soldier is aiming his weapon, he may become a potential target. To obviate this drawback, a video camera is placed on the barrel of the weapon, this camera being, for example of the CCD (charge coupled device) sensor type. This camera is coupled either to a helmet sight positioned on the soldier's helmet, or to an imager positioned for example on his wrist. This device allows the soldier to take a shifted sight of the target and consequently allows him to fire while remaining protected. However, the firing configuration most often used nevertheless remains that in which the soldier takes direct aim of the target with the naked eye. The camera must therefore be sufficiently small and shifted away from the line of sight so as not to impede this conventional firing configuration. This configuration is illustrated in FIG. 4, which shows a perspective view of the weapon/camera system. The line of sight 100 of the camera 1 is shifted away from the line of sight 200 of the soldier so as to provide him with a correct sight without being impeded by the camera.
For carrying out night missions, it is conventional to fit a night vision sight on the weapon. This sight generally comprises at least one objective, a light intensifier device and an eyepiece. The objective forms an image of the external scenery on the entrance window of the intensifier device. This comprises three main parts: a first photosensitive surface, which converts the optical image into an electronic image; an electron amplifier, which amplifies the electronic image; and a second surface that converts the electronic image into an amplified light image. Thus, the image of the external scenery is amplified, then collimated to infinity by the eyepiece before finally being observed by the soldier. In this case, the image provided by the camera is of course lost, the light levels being too low to allow a correct image with current sensors. Thus the security provided by the camera during daytime missions is lost. It should be recalled that the soldier may be pinpointed at night by combatants that have either light intensifier binoculars or thermal cameras.

Night vision aiming sight with two eyepieces