A heat exchanger for use with a carpet cleaning system having combined exhaust gases of an internal combustion engine and other hot exhaust gases expelled from a vacuum pump as a single input to a heat exchanger for heating the carpet cleaning fluid. A heat exchanger control system permits constant control of a stream of cleaning fluid both while the cleaning fluid is flowing through the heat exchanger and while the cleaning fluid is stagnant within the heat exchanger, without the potential overheat condition of the portion of cleaning fluid stagnant in the heat exchanger known in prior art devices that required a constant flow of the cleaning fluid.

Currently, in situ cleaning of carpets and upholstery utilizes equipment for heating cleaning liquid that is conveyed under pressure to and sprayed onto the surface to be cleaned and then vacuum removed from the surface with the soil. This equipment is usually mounted in a panel truck, or van, for ease of transport and often includes the transport's internal combustion engine for driving the cleaning liquid and vacuum pumps.
As disclosed in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/329,227 filed Dec. 23, 2002 in the names of Wayne E. Boone, et al. for "DIRECT DRIVE INDUSTRIAL CARPET CLEANER," the complete disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference, typical industrial floor cleaning systems generally provide for the management of heat, vacuum, pressure, fresh and gray water, chemicals, and power to achieve the goal of efficient, thorough cleaning of different substrates, usually carpets but also hard flooring, linoleum and other substrates, in both residential and commercial establishments. Professional substrate cleaning systems are also utilized in the restoration industry for water extraction.
Of the many industrial substrate cleaning systems available, a major segment are self-contained having an own power plant, heat source, vacuum source, chemical delivery system, and water dispersion and extraction capabilities. These are commonly referred to as "slide-in" systems and install permanently in cargo vans, trailers and other commercial vehicles, but can also be mounted on portable, wheeled carts. Slide-in systems comprise a series of components designed and integrated into a package with an overall goal of performance, economy, reliability, safety, useful life, serviceability, and sized to fit inside various commercial vehicles.
FIG. 1 schematically illustrates one state-of-the-art industrial slide-in substrate cleaning system 1 (shown without scale) for carpets, hard flooring, linoleum and other substrates, one well-known example of which is the self-contained, gas-powered, truck-mounted model that is commercially available from Hydramaster Corporation, Mukilteo, Wash.
Typically, the components of a conventional slide-in carpet cleaner system 1 are structured around a frame or structural platform 2 onto which the majority of the components are mounted. The slide-in 1 typically includes a drive system 3 mounted on the platform 2 and having a power plant 4 coupled to receive fuel from an appropriate supply, a vacuum pump 5 that is the source of vacuum for removing gray water or soiled cleaning solution from the cleaned substrate, either carpet or other flooring, and an interface assembly 6 for transmitting power from the power plant 4 to the vacuum pump 5. The power plant 4 may be, for example, any steam or electric motor, but is usually an internal combustion motor, such as a gasoline, diesel, alcohol, propane, or otherwise powered internal combustion engine. A standard truck battery 7 is provided as a source of electric energy for starting the engine. An intake hose 8 is coupled to a source of fresh water, and a water pump or air compressor 9 driven by the power plant via V-belt (shown), direct drive, or otherwise for pressurizing the fresh water. One or more heat exchangers and associated plumbing 10 are coupled for receiving the pressurized fresh water and heating it. A recovery tank 11 is provided wherein gray water or soiled cleaning solution is stored after removal from the cleaned surface. A high pressure solution hose 12 is provided for delivering pressurized, hot water/chemical cleaning solution from the machine via a wand or cleaning tool 14 to the substrate to be cleaned, usually a carpet or hard flooring, and a chemical container 13 or other chemical system is coupled for delivering a stream of cleaning chemical additives into the hot water, typically as it enters the high-pressure solution hose 12. The wand or cleaning tool 14 is coupled to the high pressure solution hose 12 for receiving and dispersing the pressurized hot water/chemical cleaning solution to the carpet. The wand or cleaning tool 14 is the only "portable" part of truck-mount slide-in professional carpet cleaning systems 1 in that it is removed from the vehicle and carried to the carpet or other substrate to be cleaned, and it is the only equipment that makes physical contact with the carpet to be cleaned. A vacuum hose 15 is coupled to the wand or cleaning tool 14 for recovering the soiled water-based chemical cleaning solution from the cleaned surface via the wand or cleaning tool and delivering it to the recovery tank. Valves 16 and 17 control coupling of the hot water/chemical cleaning solution and recovery vacuum, respectively, to the wand or cleaning tool 14. The control valves 16, 17 may be either separate control valves (shown) or combined in a single control valve.
The slide-in or portable system 1 operates by delivering fresh water to an inlet to the system, utilizing either a standard garden hose or a fresh-water container. The system 1 adds energy to the fresh water, i.e., pressurizes it, by means of the pump or air compressor 9. The fresh water is pushed throughout the heat exchanger apparatus and associated plumbing 10 using pressure provided by either the pump or air compressor 9. The heat exchangers 10 gain their heat by thermal energy rejected from the power plant 4, e.g., from hot exhaust gases, coolant water used on certain engines, or another known means. On demand from the wand or cleaning tool 14, the heated fresh water is mixed with chemicals from the container 13 as the hot water is exiting the machine and entering the high-pressure hose 12. The hot water travels typically, but not limited to, between 50 feet to 300 feet to the wand or cleaning tool 14. The operator delivers the hot solution via the wand or cleaning tool 14 to the carpet or other surface to be cleaned and almost immediately extracts it along with soil that has been emulsified by thermal energy or dissolved and divided by chemical energy. The extracted, soiled water or cleaning solution is drawn via the vacuum hose 15 into the recovery tank 11 for eventual disposal as gray water.
It has been suggested that instead of using a separate heater for heating the cleaning liquid that waste heat from the internal combustion engine be used for that purpose. U.S. Pat. No. 4,593,753, granted Jun. 10, 1986 to P. J. McConnell for "EXHAUST GAS LIQUID HEATING SYSTEM FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES" discloses a system for heating water with exhaust gas heat. U.S. Pat. No. 4,109,340 granted Aug. 29, 1978 to L. E. Bates for "TRUCK MOUNTED CARPET CLEANING MACHINE" discloses a system in which the cleaning liquid is passed first through the cylinder block of a liquid cooled, internal combustion engine and then through a heat exchanger which also has engine exhaust gases passing therethrough. U.S. Pat. No. 4,284,127 granted Aug. 18, 1981 to D. S. Collier et al for "CARPET CLEANING SYSTEMS" discloses a similar system which directs the cleaning liquid through a first heat exchanger into which the liquid engine coolant also is directed. The preheated cleaning liquid then passes through a second heat exchanger where it extracts heat from the engine exhaust gases.
In all of the aforementioned systems in which the cleaning liquid is directed in heat exchange relationship with the exhaust gases of the internal combustion engine there is a danger that the cleaning liquid could become overheated. To avoid damage to surfaces to be cleaned the temperature of the cleaning liquid, as a general rule, should not exceed 250 degrees F. Internal combustion engine exhaust gases can reach temperatures as high as 1650 degrees F. With the engine running and a low flow rate for the cleaning liquid the latter can rapidly be heated to an undesirably high temperature in the exhaust gas heat exchange.
One attempt at a solution for controlling the cleaning liquid temperature is disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 3,594,849 granted Jul. 27, 1971 to C. L. Coshow for "CLEANING APPARATUS" which provides a cleaning system in which air and heated cleaning fluid recovered from a carpet is conveyed in heat exchange relationship with cleaning liquid being conveyed to the carpet.
More typically, a thermostatically controlled dump valve is incorporated for dumping the overheated cleaning liquid before it can reach the surface to be cleaned. One such dumping arrangement is described hereinafter and in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 4,940,082 granted Jul. 10, 1990 to James R. Roden for "CLEANING SYSTEM," the complete disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. U.S. Pat. No. 4,940,082 also disclosed utilization of the heat contained in the return air stream after it passed through the vacuum pump. Because the vacuum pump adds a significant quantity of heat to this air stream useful heat can be obtained from its exhaust and imparted to the cleaning liquid being heated. However, U.S. Pat. No. 4,940,082 offered no suggestions for preventing overheating of the cleaning liquid in heat exchange relationship with the engine exhaust gases.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,991,254 granted Feb. 12, 1991 to Roden, et al. for "CLEANING SYSTEM," the complete disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference, disclosed extracting heat both from the exhaust gases of an internal combustion engine and the air exiting a vacuum pump to heat the cleaning liquid. Heat from these two sources was mixed before imparting it to the cleaning liquid by mixing the exhaust gases and the air from the vacuum pump before placing the mixture in heat exchange relationship with the cleaning liquid. U.S. Pat. No. 4,991,254 also disclosed utilizing heat from a cooling system for the internal combustion engine to further heat the cleaning liquid. A thermostatically controlled dump valve in a high pressure hose at the exit of second heat exchanger prevents delivery of too high temperature cleaning liquid to the cleaning wand. The dump valve detects cleaning liquid temperature in excess of 250 degrees F and opens, thereby dumping the over heated cleaning liquid into waste tank until the cleaning liquid at the exit from heat exchanger again has a temperature within the desired range.
However, in some applications it would be desirable to avoid wasting the unused cleaning liquid by dumping it when it gets too hot.


A method for preparing a pre-filled multi-chamber injection system includes providing an injection system body, the injection system body defining an open proximal end, a body interior, and an open distal end. The method also includes introducing a first substance into a distal end of the body interior. The method further includes disposing a distal stopper member in the body interior, the distal stopper member and the injection system body defining proximal and distal chambers in the body interior. Moreover, the method includes introducing a second substance into the body interior. In addition, the method includes disposing a proximal stopper member in the body interior. The method also includes inserting an elongate member at least partially into the body interior, the elongate member having a plurality of flow channels for fluidly coupling the proximal and distal chambers. The method further includes coupling a plunger member to the proximal stopper member.

Millions of syringes, such as that depicted in FIG. 1A (2), are consumed in healthcare environments every day. A typical syringe (2) comprises a tubular body (4), a plunger (6), and an injection needle (8). As shown in FIG. 1B, such a syringe (2) may be utilized not only to inject fluid into a patient, but also to withdraw or expel fluid out of or into a container such as a medicine bottle, vial, bag, or other drug containment system (10). Indeed, due to regulatory constraints in some countries such as the United States as well as sterility maintenance concerns, upon use of a medicine bottle (10) with a syringe (2) as shown in a particular patient's environment, such medicine bottle may only be utilized with a single patient and then must be disposed of—causing significant medical waste from bottle and remaining medicine disposal, and even contributing to periodic shortages of certain critical drugs. Referring to FIG. 2A, three Luer-type syringes (12) are depicted, each having a Luer fitting geometry (14) disposed distally, so that they may be coupled with other devices having similar mating geometry, such as the Luer manifold assembly (16) depicted in FIG. 2B. The Luer manifold assembly of FIG. 2B may be used to administer liquid drugs to the patient intravenously with or without the use of an intravenous infusion bag. The Luer fittings (14) of the syringes of FIG. 2A may be termed the "male" Luer fittings, while those of FIG. 2B (18) may be termed the "female" Luer fittings; one of the Luer interfaces may be threaded (in which case the configuration may be referred to as a "Luer lock" configuration) so that the two sides may be coupled by relative rotation, which may be combined with compressive loading. In other words, in one Luer lock embodiment, rotation, possibly along with compression, may be utilized to engage threads within the male fitting (14) which are configured to engage a flange on the female fitting (18) and bring the devices together into a fluid-sealed coupling. In another embodiment, tapered interfacing geometries may be utilized to provide for a Luer engagement using compression without threads or rotation (such a configuration may be referred to as a "slip-on" or "conical" Luer configuration). While such Luer couplings are perceived to be relatively safe for operators, there is risk of medicine spilling/leaking and parts breakage during assembly of a Luer coupling. The use of needle injection configurations, on the other hand, carries with it the risk of a sharp needle contacting or stabbing a person or structure that is not desired. For this reason, so called "safety syringes" have been developed.
One embodiment of a safety syringe (20) is shown in FIG. 3, wherein a tubular shield member (22) is spring biased to cover the needle (8) when released from a locked position relative to the syringe body (4). Another embodiment of a safety syringe (24) is shown in FIGS. 4A-4B. With such a configuration, after full insertion of the plunger (6) relative to the syringe body (4), the retractable needle (26) is configured to retract (28, 26) back to a safe position within the tubular body (4), as shown in FIG. 4B. Such a configuration which is configured to collapse upon itself may be associated with blood spatter/aerosolization problems, the safe storage of pre-loaded energy which may possible malfunction and activate before desirable, loss of accuracy in giving full-dose injections due to residual dead space within the spring compression volume, and/or loss of retraction velocity control which may be associated with pain and patient anxiety.
Further complicating the syringe marketplace is an increasing demand for prefilled syringe assemblies such as those depicted in FIGS. 5A and 5B, which generally comprise a syringe body, or "drug enclosure containment delivery system", (34), a plunger tip, plug, or stopper (36), and a distal seal or cap (35) which may be fitted over a Luer type interface (FIG. 5A shows the cap 35 in place; FIG. 5B has the cap removed to illustrate the Luer interface 14). Liquid medicine may reside in the volume, or medicine reservoir, (40) between the distal seal and the distal end (37) of the plunger tip (36). The plunger tip (36) may comprise a standard butyl rubber material and may be coated, such as with a biocompatible lubricious coating (e.g., polytetrafluoroethylene ("PTFE")), to facilitate preferred sealing and relative motion characteristics against the associated syringe body structure and material. The proximal end of the syringe body (34) in FIG. 5B comprises a conventional integral syringe flange (38), which is formed integral to the material of the syringe body (34). The flange (38) is configured to extend radially from the syringe body (34) and may be configured to be a full circumference, or a partial circumference around the syringe body (34). A partial flange is known as a "clipped flange" while the other is known as a "full flange." The flange is used to grasp the syringe with the fingers to provide support for pushing on the plunger to give the injection. The syringe body (34) preferably comprises a translucent material such as a glass or polymer. To form a contained volume within the chamber or reservoir (40), and to assist with expulsion of the associated fluid through the needle, a plunger tip (36) may be positioned within the syringe body (34). The syringe body (34) may define a substantially cylindrical shape (i.e., so that a plunger tip 36 having a circular cross-sectional shape may establish a seal against the syringe body (34)), or be configured to have other cross-sectional shapes, such as an ellipse.
Such assemblies are desirable because they may be standardized and produced with precision in volume by the few manufacturers in the world who can afford to meet all of the continually changing regulations of the world for filling, packaging, and medicine/drug interfacing materials selection and component use. Such simple configurations, however, generally will not meet the new world standards for single-use, safety, auto-disabling, and anti-needle-stick. Thus certain suppliers have moved to more "vertical" solutions, such as that (41) featured in FIG. 5C, which attempts to meet all of the standards, or at least a portion thereof, with one solution; as a result of trying to meet these standards for many different scenarios, such products may have significant limitations (including some of those described above in reference to FIGS. 3-4B) and relatively high inventory and utilization expenses.
In some cases, multi-component injection systems may mix injectable components (e.g., liquids, solid, and/or powders) before injection. Several multiple chamber injection systems configured to mix and injection multiple components are disclosed in U.S. Utility patent application Ser. No. 14/696,342, which was previously incorporated by reference herein.
Moreover, an increasing number of injectable liquids (e.g., medicines) have an additional requirement that two or more components are preferably injected serially (e.g., into a patient) within a short time (e.g., seconds) of each other. Multiple components can be injected serially using separate injection devices (e.g., pre-loaded syringes) or using the same injection device to serially draw the multiple components from separate open containers and serially inject them. However, such serial injection using separate injection devices or serially drawing and injecting the multiple components necessarily results in multiple needle insertions into a patient, and can be inaccurate and lead to loss of components. Further, serial injection using separate injection devices or serially drawing the multiple components into a syringe can lead to unnecessary exposure of a user to one or more uncapped needles. Moreover, serial injection using separate injection devices or serially drawing and injecting the multiple components can cause an unacceptable lag between injections of the multiple components. Several multiple chamber injection systems that address these serial injection issues are disclosed in U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/682,381, which was previously incorporated by reference herein.
In addition, an increasing number of injectable liquids (e.g., medicines) have yet another requirement that time of exposure of the injectable liquid to metals (e.g., stainless steel of a needle) be minimized. Still another requirement is the desirability of systems suitable for patient self-injection.
It is also desirable to incorporate needle stick prevention technology into the injection system. The ability to retract the sharp end of the needle at least partially inside of the syringe protects the person giving the injection and the patient from inadvertent needle stick injuries.
There is a need for injection systems which address the shortcomings of currently-available configurations. In particular, there is a need for multiple chamber safety injection solutions which may utilize the existing and relatively well-controlled supply chain of conventionally delivered prefilled syringe assemblies such as those described in reference to FIGS. 5A and 5B.


Disclosed is a composition, which may be melt extrudable, comprising polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine complex in at least one polymer. Also disclosed is a process for preparing the composition or shaped articles, including films, made therefrom. The composition can be extruded, blown film extruded, or molded into films, fibers, tubing, and shaped articles thermoformed or molded shapes, including containers, usable, for instance, as catheters, in delivery systems for drugs and nutrients, specimen containers, or surgical devices.

Poly(vinylpyrrolidone) complexed with iodine (polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine complex) is widely recognized for its anti-microbial properties. Since the iodine is tightly complexed, germicidal properties can be obtained without the toxicity or staining concerns associated with preparations containing elemental iodine. Its use in medicine and veterinary medicine as an anti-infective is widely recognized, where the complex is also known as "povidone-iodine".
Efforts were made to combine polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine complex with polymer and copolymer products by radiation-grafting or by solution or dispersion coatings. See, e.g., JP2003095277A.
A polymer characterized as comprising a backbone and bonded thereto a polymeric pendant group was disclosed. However, the polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine complex cannot be melt extruded alone. See, e.g., WO 2000064264.
Polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine complex is a water-soluble brown powder with a melting point of about 300° C. with decomposition. The heat and shear of melt extrusion results in thermal degradation. Thus, polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine complex by itself is not sufficiently thermally stable to extrude. While absorption of water lowers the extrusion temperature of polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine complex significantly, the presence of water during thermal extrusion is undesirable, causing a number of problems such as volatiles, film bubbles, etc.
Films containing polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine complex have only been made by solution casting. The solution-cast film can then be "graft-polymerized by radiation" to one side (or potentially both sides) of a film from which products such as bags or pouches can be fabricated. If bags are to be made by melt sealing the laminated film conventionally, the polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine complex may be restricted to the outside of the bag only.
It is desirable to extend and simplify the inclusion of the polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine complex into a polymer or copolymer to provide melt-extrudable composition. Films, fibers, and other shaped articles with microbiocidal properties could be provided by melt blending the polymer or copolymer with the polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine complex followed by extrusion. Melt extrudable films provide a significant economic improvement over solution-cast films. The invention provides such compositions, processes, and products.

Shaped articles containing poly(vinylpyrrolidone)-iodine complex


This invention relates to a vacuum cleaner filter having an outer textile fabric material laminated to a non-woven composite material. The composite material comprises an inner and an outer cover layer of a spun-bonded, non-woven web material, with at least one electrostatically charged intermediate meltblown layer sandwiched therebetween.

A variety of vacuum cleaner filters utilizing non-woven components are known. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,813,596 discloses a disposable vacuum cleaner dust container that has a strong, porous wrapper of sheet material able to filter dust particles from an air stream and a liner that includes plies of creped, cellulosic wadding.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,498,031 relates to a vacuum cleaner bag containing a reinforcing and auxiliary filter insert of felt-like material, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,540,625 is concerned with a flexible composite useful in fabricating filters and having a fiber mass of a randomly oriented mixture of non-woven substrate fibers and organic polymer fibers intertwined therewith and containing solid sorptive microscopic particles disposed against the non-woven fibers to form a flexible, air permeable, absorbent fiber filter. Other examples of filters using non-woven components will be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,535,855 and 4,257,791, which is a division of U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,164,400, 4,397,907 and 4,522,876.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,589,894 describes a disposable filter for a vacuum cleaner having a microfiber filter layer sandwiched between first and second outer support layers of highly porous fabric formed of synthetic fibers.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,350,727 describes a textile composite having a knitted fabric material bonded to a non-woven needled fabric material.
Corona treated meltblown materials are known in the art, particularly in the manufacture of surgical face masks. A typical corona treating system is essentially comprised of a high voltage electrode separated by an air gap from a dielectrically covered ground electrode. A meltblown web is corona treated by exposing it to a corona created by a voltage buildup which ionizes the air in the air gap through which the meltblown web is passed. In "The Evolution Of Corona Treating Electrodes" by D. Markgraf (Enercon Industries Corp.), numerous methods of corona treatment that are known in the art, such as those employing wire electrodes, threaded rod electrodes, bar electrodes, segmented metal electrodes, driven electrode rolls, quartz electrodes and ceramic electrodes are disclosed.
Although corona treated meltblown webs are known, they have not ever been employed in a vacuum cleaner bag in the manner described in the present invention.

Vacuum cleaner bag with electrostatically charged meltblown layer


Disclosed is a pulse detector that uses four samples of an analog signal to detect a pulse as soon as one sample beyond the time of the peak of the signal level at the pulse. The pulse detector can detect pulses by sampling at the center of a peak of the pulse or by sampling at either side of the peak of the pulse. The pulse detector detects pulses while tracking data, and it uses an alternate detection system for detecting pulses while acquiring timing and gain lock on a signal having a known data pattern. The detector uses either the sampled signal levels directly, or a moving average of two samples to perform the detection.

In a computer data storage device, data is typically stored on magnetic media by reversing the magnetic flux at each "one" bit location, and maintaining the same flux direction at each "zero" bit location, called NRZI recording. When these flux reversals pass a read head they cause a voltage change in the read head. The voltage from the various flux reversals along a data track appears as a varying signal level on the output of the read head, with the voltage caused by each flux reversal appearing as a positive or negative voltage pulse. These pulses must be detected by the electronics connected to the read head, typically by detecting the peak of each pulse to determine the pulse location.
Similarly, the voltage from a data transmission line appears as a varying signal level on the input to a data communication device, such as a modem, with the voltage of each bit change often appearing as a positive or negative voltage pulse.
In order to separate the voltage pulses from noise in the signal, the voltage may be compared to a predetermined threshold, and only peaks whose magnitude exceeds the threshold are considered to be possible pulses. If the peaks are too small with respect to the threshold, the signal gain must be adjusted higher, and if the peaks are too high the gain must be adjusted lower. To properly determine the gain setting, pulses must be detected so that the gain adjustment can maintain the proper level for a pulse peak.
Because the rotational speed of a disk may vary, a phase locked loop is used to synchronize a detector to the times of the pulses. The peaks of the pulses caused by bit transitions must be detected in order to correct for any timing deviations.
Several methods have been used to detect the pulses and thus the transitions within the data. In the prior art, peak detection circuitry has ordinarily been analog in nature, while digital detectors have ordinarily been sequence detectors such as those implementing the Viterbi method, disclosed in application Ser. No. 07/852,015, filed Mar. 16, 1992, of Richard T. Behrens, Kent D. Anderson and Neal Glover, entitled "Method and Apparatus for Reduced-Complexity Viterbi-Type Sequence Detectors", which is incorporated herein by reference for all that is disclosed and taught therein. However, most digital pulse detectors analyze the context of the pulses, and do not detect a pulse until several samples have been taken beyond the peak of the pulse. This latency in detecting pulses is a disadvantage when the location of a pulse needs to be known in order to make timing and/or gain corrections.
It is thus apparent that there is a need in the art for an improved apparatus which digitally detects pulses at the earliest possible time after the peak of the pulse occurs. The present invention meets these and other needs.


A method for manufacturing a memory device may include obtaining a substrate structure that includes a substrate, an oxide material layer positioned on the substrate, a polysilicon material layer positioned on the oxide material layer, a first control gate and a second control gate positioned on the polysilicon material layer, and an offset oxide layer positioned between the first control gate and the second control gate. The method may further include the following steps: removing, using the offset oxide layer as a first mask, a portion of the polysilicon material layer for forming a polysilicon structure that includes a first step structure; forming a masking oxide layer on the offset oxide layer; removing, using the masking oxide layer as a second mask, a portion of the polysilicon structure for forming a floating gate polysilicon member that includes the first step structure and a second step structure.

The present invention is related to a flash memory device and a method for manufacturing the flash memory device.
A non-volatile memory device may be implemented using split-gate flash technology. In performing a programming operation on a split-gate flash memory device, a high positive bias may be applied to the control gate (CG), such that hot electrons may be injected from the source through an oxide layer into the floating gate (FG). In performing an erasing operation on a split-gate flash memory device, a high negative bias may be applied to the control gate, such that hot electrons in the floating gate may take advantage of Fowler-Nordheim tunneling to travel through a sidewall oxide layer into the erase gate (EG). Because of Fowler-Nordheim tunneling effect, for a split-gate flash memory device, an erasing operation may require substantially longer time than a programming operation. The efficiency of erasing operations of a split-gate flash memory device may be unsatisfactory.

Flash memory device and related manufacturing method

SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING INTERNATIONAL (SHANGHAI) CORPORATION


A vehicle warning device comprises a visual indicator activated by a deceleration sensor upon emergency deceleration of the vehicle. The visual indicator is powered by a base inserted into a vehicle lamp socket. In the preferred embodiment, the base is part of an adapter comprising an adapter socket for receiving the vehicle lamp. The adapter allows installation of the warning device by simply plugging the adapter into the vehicle lamp socket without wiring or mounting changes to the vehicle. The preferred embodiment comprises a stroboscope for providing a highly visible indication of an emergency braking state.

The present invention relates to safety devices for automobiles and, more particularly, to visual indicators of emergency braking of a vehicle.
Every year people are killed and injured in automobile accidents. In the United States alone, 43,900 people are were killed in 1995 and 6,025,000 people were injured according to the Insurance Institute. Economic loss totaled $115,625,000.
Many accidents result when vehicles are traveling in the same direction and the "following" vehicle crashes into the "lead" vehicle. The driver in a following vehicle often does not realize the lead vehicle is stopping quickly. The driver in the following vehicle fails to respond in enough time to avoid a rear-end collision.
If the lead vehicle were equipped with a device that indicated very rapid deceleration, the driver in the following vehicle would have the maximum warning and many accidents could be averted.
The present invention relates to a deceleration warning device for vehicles. Although deceleration warning devices have been disclosed in the past, the prior devices suffer limitations which have prevented widespread use.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,309,141 discloses an emergency deceleration warning device comprising an enclosed decelerometer for enabling a flasher-operating circuit. The device is mounted in the auxiliary brake light position of an automobile. Such a unit requires the installation of wiring to obtain power and brake light indication when installed as a retrofit in an existing automobile. Locating the device in the vicinity of the rear window would require special mounting considerations.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,442,333 discloses an urgent braking device which incorporates a power modulating means connected in parallel with an inertial switch. The switch opens when the vehicle is decelerating in excess of a predetermined rate, activating the power modulating means and flashing the brake lights. The device requires wiring modification of the vehicle in order to install as a retrofit in an existing automobile. The device also requires attaching to a structure of the vehicle.
These and other devices disclosed to warn following vehicles of an emergency braking action require various degrees of wiring and/or structural modification in order to install the units as a retrofit to existing vehicles. Time and costs of installing the devices may be prohibitive.


The invention relates to a method and an apparatus using smart antennas in a frequency division duplex code division multiple access mobile communication system and for solving the limitations of smart antenna use due to asymmetric propagation of uplink electric wave and downlink electric wave. In the wireless base station, there are transmitting and receiving smart antenna arrays and associated transmitters and receivers, respectively, and a common baseband signal processor. In the method, the main path direction is determined by signal direction of arrival, obtained from receiving signal; in the downlink beam forming, an expected transmitting beam form is based on the main path direction. The system can obtain advantages of smart antenna, improve cell coverage, increase system capacity and reduce cost.

1. Field of the Technology
The present invention relates generally to Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) cellular mobile communication system, and more particularly to a smart antenna technology applied in a Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) CDMA cellular mobile communication system.
2. Description of Related Art
Smart antenna technology is one of the most important technologies in modem wireless communications. Especially, when smart antenna technology is used in a CDMA cellular mobile communication system, there are advantages, such as greatly increasing system capacity, increasing the cover range of a wireless base station, decreasing system cost and raising system performance, etc. Therefore, smart antenna technology has become an important technology concern all over the world.
At present, smart antenna technology is mainly used in time division duplex (TDD) CDMA wireless communication systems including cellular mobile communication systems, wireless subscriber loops and wireless local area networks, etc. The main reason is that in a TDD system, a transmitting channel and a receiving channel use the same frequencies and the electric-wave propagation characteristics of uplink (receiving) and downlink (transmitting) are the same. Therefore, parameters of receiving signal beam forming obtained from the uplink can be again used for downlink beam forming. Consequently, the advantages of smart antenna technologies are brought into full play.
Nevertheless, in present cellular mobile communication systems, an FDD wireless communication system is the most popular one. In a FDD wireless communication system, uplink and downlink use different carrier frequencies and the electric-wave propagation characteristics of uplink and downlink are totally different. The result is that the parameters of receiving signal beam forming obtained from the uplink cannot be again used for downlink beam forming, so the advantages of smart antenna technology cannot be brought into full play.
In a base station of a FDD wireless communication system, when using smart antennas the receiving link and the transmitting link work simultaneously with different frequency bands, so one set or multiple sets of smart antenna arrays can be used for receiving and transmitting, respectively. A working method and principle of the receiving link smart antenna using smart antenna technology in a TDD wireless communication system can be referenced in Chinese Patent ZL 97 1 04039.7 titled: "A Time Division Duplex Synchronous CDMA Wireless Communication System With Smart Antenna." However, the beam forming of the transmitting downlink cannot simply use the parameters obtained from the receiving uplink beam forming associated with every antenna unit. This is determined by unsymmetrical electric-wave propagation characteristics of uplink and downlink in a FDD wireless communication system.

Apparatus and method using smart antenna in FDD wireless communication system

China Academy of Telecommunications Technology


An output characteristic of a fuel cell is estimated by detecting an output current of the fuel cell and a voltage between terminals of the fuel cell, and then estimating the output characteristic of the fuel cell on the basis of the detected output current and the detected voltage between the terminals, and a basic output characteristic of the fuel cell.

1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to a fuel cell output characteristic estimation apparatus and an output characteristic estimation method, a fuel cell system and a vehicle having the same, and a fuel cell output control method and a data storage medium that stores a program to implement the method. More particularly, the invention relates to an output characteristic estimation apparatus that estimates an output characteristic of a fuel cell and an output characteristic estimation method for estimating an output characteristic of a fuel cell, a fuel cell system having a fuel cell and a vehicle having the fuel cell system, and a fuel cell output control method for controlling an output of the fuel cell and a data storage medium that stores a computer-readable program that causes a computer to function as a fuel cell output characteristic arithmetic unit and/or a control unit for the fuel cell system.
2. Description of Related Art
There has been proposed a fuel cell system provided with a commercial power supply or other power generating device that supplies electric power to and receives the electric power from the fuel cell in case of short or excessive supply of the output generated by the fuel cell (see, for example, JP-A-3-80316). In this system, when a power consumption of a load is within a predetermined range of the power that can be supplied by the fuel cell, all the power consumption of the load is covered by the power generated by the fuel cell. When the power consumption of the load exceeds the predetermined range, the excessive part of the power requirement is covered by a DC power obtained by rectifying the power supplied by a commercial power supply or other power generating device. As a result, the fuel cell is ensured to be effectively used.
In the aforementioned type of the fuel cell system, however, owing to a change in the output characteristic of the fuel cell as it has been used for an extended period of time, it may happen that the entire power consumption of the load cannot be covered by the fuel cell even when it is determined that the power consumption of the load is within the predetermined range of the power supplied by the fuel cell. An energy efficiency of the fuel cell also changes at different operation points depending on an output characteristic. Therefore, the output characteristic has to be taken into account when an overall energy efficiency of the entire system is considered.
The applicant of the invention has proposed a system that determines a fuel cell output by taking account of the output characteristic of the fuel cell for the purpose of enhancing an energy efficiency of the fuel cell system (see JP-A-2000-12059).

Fuel cell output characteristic estimation apparatus and output characteristic estimation method, fuel cell system and vehicle having the same, and fuel cell output control method and data storage medium


An organic light emitting display, suitable for a high quality and high resolution display device, rapidly charges a data voltage using a voltage programming technique, after compensating for a deviations in the threshold voltage and mobility of a driving transistor using a current programming technique. The organic light emitting display includes: a data line supplying a data signal; a scan line supplying a scan signal; a first switching element, electrically coupling its control electrode to the scan line, transferring the data signal supplied from the data line; a driving transistor, electrically coupling its control electrode to the first switching element, controlling a driving current of a first voltage line; a first capacitive element electrically coupled between the first switching element and the control electrode of the driving transistor; an Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED), electrically coupled between the driving transistor and a second power voltage line, displaying an image by a current supplied from the driving transistor; and a fourth switching element compensating for deviations of characteristics of the driving transistor by supplying a current of the first current line to the driving transistor.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an organic light emitting display, and more particularly, the present invention relates to an organic light emitting display suitable for a high quality and high resolution display device, by rapidly charging a data voltage using a voltage programming technique, after compensating for deviations, such as a threshold voltage and a mobility of a driving transistor, using a current programming technique.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, a conventional organic light emitting display electrically excites a phosphor or a phosphorescent organic compound and emits light, which displays an image by driving N×M organic emitting cells. The organic light emitting cell of FIG. 1 includes an anode of Indium Tin Oxide (ITO), an organic thin film and a cathode (metal). The organic thin film is a multilayer structure including an EMitting Layer (EML), an Electron Transport Layer (ETL) and a Hole Transport Layer (HTL), and may further include an extra Electron Injection Layer (EIL) and Hole Injection Layer (HIL).
Techniques for driving the organic light emitting cell include a simple matrix technique and an active matrix technique using a Thin Film Transistor (TFT) or a MOSFET. The simple matrix technique drives a light emitting cell by forming an anode to intersect with a cathode and selecting a line. The active matrix technique connects the TFT and a capacitor to respective Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) pixel electrodes to maintain a voltage by the capacity of a capacitor. The active matrix technique is divided into a voltage programming technique and a current programming technique according to the form of a signal supplied to the capacitor for maintaining the voltage.
Organic light emitting displays using voltage and current programming techniques are respectively explained below with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3.
FIG. 2 is a pixel circuit of a voltage programming technique for driving an Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) and representatively illustrates one of N×M pixel circuits.
Referring to FIG. 2, a driving transistor (M1) is coupled to the OLED so as to supply a light-emitting current. The amount of current of the driving transistor (M1) is controlled by a data voltage supplied through a first switching element (S1). A first capacitive element (C1) for maintaining the supplied voltage for a fixed period of time is coupled between a gate and a source of the driving transistor (M1). A first electrode of the first switching element (S1) is coupled to a data line (Data[m]), and a control electrode thereof is coupled to a scan line (Scan [n]).
When the first switching element (S1) is turned on by a scan signal supplied to the control electrode of the first switching element (S1), a data voltage is supplied from the data line (Data[m]) to the control electrode of the driving transistor (M1). As a result thereof, a current (IOLED) corresponding to a voltage (VGS) charged between the gate and the source of the driving transistor (M1) by the first capacitive element (C1) flows to the drain of the driving transistor (M1) and the OLED emits light according to the current (IOLED).
The current flowing to the OLED is obtained by Equation 1.
                                                                        I                OLED                            =                                                β                  2                                                                                (                                                                  V                        GS                                            -                                              V                        TH                                                              )                                    2                                                                                =                                                β                  2                                                                                (                                                                  V                        SG                                            -                                                                                                V                          TH                                                                                                              )                                    2                                                                                =                                                β                  2                                                                                (                                                                  V                        DD                                            -                                              V                        DATA                                            -                                                                                                V                          TH                                                                                                              )                                    2                                                                                Equation                                                  1
In Equation I, IOLED is a current flowing to the OLED, VGS is a voltage between the gate and the source of the driving transistor (M1), and a VTH is a threshold voltage of the driving transistor (M1), a VDATA is a data voltage, and β is a constant.
As shown in Equation 1, according to the pixel circuit shown in FIG. 2, the current corresponding to the supplied data voltage is supplied to the OLED, and the OLED emits light corresponding to the supplied current.
In the pixel circuit of the voltage programming technique discussed above, the luminance is non-uniform due to deviations in mobility and threshold voltage of a TFT caused by non-uniformities in the manufacturing process.
On the contrary, the pixel circuit of the current programming technique may obtain a uniform display characteristic, even though the driving transistor in the respective pixels has a non-uniform voltage-current characteristic, if a current source supplying a current to the pixel circuit is uniform on all of the data lines.
FIG. 3 is a pixel circuit of a current programming technique for driving the OLED, and representatively illustrates one of N×M pixel circuits.
Referring to FIG. 3, the driving transistor (M1) is coupled to the OLED so as to supply a light-emitting current, and the amount of current of the driving transistor (M1) is controlled by a data current supplied through the first switching element (S1).
When the first and second switching elements (S1 and S2) are turned on due to a selection signal outputted from the scan line (Scan [n]), the driving transistor (M1) is connected in a diode configuration, a voltage corresponding to a data current (IDATA) from the data line (Data [m]) is stored in the first capacitive element (C1), the current (IOLED) corresponding to the voltage stored in the first capacitive element (C1) flows to the drain of the driving transistor (M1), and the OLED emits light corresponding to the current (IOLED). The current flowing to the OLED is obtained by Equation 2.
                              I          OLED                =                                            β              2                                                                  (                                                      V                    GS                                    -                                      V                    TH                                                  )                            2                                =                      I            DATA                                              Equation                                                  2
In Equation 2, IOLED is a current flowing to the OLED, VGS is a voltage between the gate and the source of the driving transistor (M1), VTH is a threshold voltage of the driving transistor (M1), IDATA is a data current, and β is a constant.
As shown in Equation 2, in accordance with the current programming pixel circuit discussed above, the current (IOLED) flowing to the OLED is the same as the data current (IDATA), so that a programming current source may obtain a uniform characteristic on all of the panels. However, the current (IOLED) flowing to the OLED is a minute current, and the pixel circuit is controlled by the minute current (IDATA), so that it has a problem in that it takes a considerable amount of time to charge the data line. For example, if a load capacitance of the data line is 30 pF, several milliseconds are needed to charge a load of the data line with a data current of several tens to several hundreds of nA. Therefore, there is a problem in that there is not sufficient time to charge the load of the data line, considering a line time of several tens of μs.


A method of broadcasting a succession of contents through a computer network from a broadcasting source (S) to a plurality of receiver terminals able to receive from the source. The method includes, for each content, sending data units conveying the content from the source through the computer network, and supplying the receiver terminals with an indication enabling them to identify each transition between two successive contents, thus enabling the receiver terminals to determine the time of a transition between successive contents more precisely. The data units to be broadcast are marked by modifying the marking of the data units of the successive contents separated by a single transition. The receiver terminals (T) are supplied with marking information enabling them to distinguish between data units belonging to different contents (Cn, Cn+1) with the aid of their marking.

Certain television stations broadcast a succession of contents such as television shows, films, and other programs in real time on the Internet from a broadcasting source S. The broadcasting mode used most often is the multicast mode, enabling the source S to broadcast each content to a plurality of receiver terminals in a single sending. The source S sends units of data conveying the content to be broadcast, in this instance IP data packets also known as IP datagrams. These packets are duplicated in cascade by routers situated at nodes of the network in order to be routed to the various receiver terminals. To receive a content, each terminal first recovers a session description protocol (SDP) file associated with the source S, for example by downloading it from an access portal via the Internet. The structure of the SDP file is defined by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) and is described in the document RFC 2327. The file conveys the information required to enable the receiver terminals to begin to receive contents broadcast by the source S. A main SDP file contains all the information required to begin to receive from the source S, regardless of the content that is being broadcast. Other SDP files, specific to the contents (TV show, film, conference, etc.) broadcast by the source S, contain only the information necessary for receiving those particular contents. To receive a content broadcast by the source S, a terminal sends a request to acquire that content to the source via the Internet using the Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP). The first Internet router to receive this request when it is already receiving IP data packets sent by the source S duplicates the IP data packets and routes them either to the terminal or to another router closer to the terminal.
The various contents broadcast successively by the source S have configuration characteristics that may vary from one content to another (resolution, frequency, 4/3 or 16/9 format, coding, for example MPEG4, MPEG2, audio in different languages, scrambling, or other parameters). To take account of such changes, the receiver terminals must be able to identify transitions between successive contents. To this end, it is known in the art, in particular in the field of MPEG2 satellite or cable television broadcasting, to communicate to the receiver terminals a temporal indication of the time at which the transition is scheduled. However, that solution is not totally satisfactory, for the following reasons: firstly, the temporal indication of the time of the transition is usually inaccurate and, secondly, that solution necessitates knowing the time of the transition accurately in advance, which may prove extremely difficult, if not impossible, in certain circumstances. Examples of such circumstances that may be cited are unscheduled interruptions of programs in order to broadcast a newsflash and live coverage of a tennis match, whose duration cannot be known in advance.

Method for broadcasting a series of contents from a source to receiver terminals, through a computer network, related signal, broadcasting source and terminal


Provided is a directional-microphone system, as well as a method for signal processing in such a directional-microphone system, wherein a particularly controllable second-order directional-microphone pattern is ensured while the number of figure-of-eight microphones required to generate such pattern is minimized.

Directional microphones are an effective way to facilitate the comprehension of voice in an environment full of interfering sound since they have a sensitivity depending on the direction of the incidence of sound (directional pattern) and, thus, produce a spatial suppression of interfering sounds.
Directional pattern or directional effect describes the ratio of the sensitivities of a microphone to sound sources impinging on the microphone from all directions of one plane and essentially depends on the construction of the microphone. Known directional patterns are spherical or omnidirectional, figure-of-eight or bidirectional, cardioid, supercardioid, hypercardioid and lobe pattern.
The spherical pattern is distinguished by the fact that the sound is picked up with the same strength from all directions. A microphone having a spherical pattern is, for example, the "pressure transducer", the diaphragm of which, only the front of which is exposed to the sound field, picks up all pressure fluctuations located in the sound field regardless of the direction from which they come. Since this microphone does not have a preferred directional effect, it has a spherical pattern and is frequently called a "spherical microphone".
A figure-of-eight pattern is distinguished by the fact that the sound is picked up with particular intensity from two selected directions which are opposite to one another. Microphones having a figure-of-eight pattern, also called "figure-of-eight microphones", have been developed for, among other things, the M/S stereo method and enable the stereo base to be subsequently influenced right up to mono.
A microphone having a figure-of-eight pattern is, e.g., the "pressure-gradient transducer" or "pressure-difference transducer" which is designed in such a way that the sound reaches the diaphragm both from the front and from the back, which requires two sound entry openings so that the diaphragm is not deflected when sound arrives from the side and a "figure-of-eight" directional pattern is guaranteed.
A further possibility of achieving a figure-of-eight pattern which, moreover, is more flexible than the purely mechanical arrangement of the pressure-gradient transducer, is an arrangement of two simple spherical microphones which are slightly offset in space (array). The directional effect is obtained by electronically subtracting the spherical-microphone signal at the front (from the point of view of the incident sound) from the delayed signal of the spherical microphone at the rear. The precise shape of the directional pattern is defined by the microphone spacing and the internal electrical delay.
The pressure-difference or pressure-gradient transducer supplies a signal proportional to cos(α) with a sound incident at an angle α and is, therefore, a directional microphone having a first-order directional pattern.
Dispensing with close-talking microphones in telephones, in video conferences or in automatic voice recognition leads to reverberation and background noises becoming superimposed on voice. These unwanted signal components are compensated for by using a directional microphone having one of the patterns mentioned above, particularly via a controllable (directional-) microphone array, the main lobe of which is focused on the speaker, typically automatically.
In this context, "controllable" refers to the direction (orientation) of the main lobe, which is determined by an angle (φ) which is preset or automatically orientated toward a speaker by methods of localization and voice detection (i.e., is variable), being adjustable by, in particular digital, signal postprocessing of the received signals generated by the directional microphones from an incident sound.
Therefore, a controllable first-order directional microphone is obtained in a familiar manner when a signal generated by a first-order directional microphone (e.g., pressure-difference transducer) is postprocessed via signal processing so that a desired direction (φ) of the main lobe is imparted to the signal and, finally, a signal results which is proportional to cos(φ+α).
However, directional-microphone arrangements with a second-order directional pattern, particularly controllable directional-microphone arrangements, are not known.
An object of the present invention is, therefore, to specify a system and a method which ensure a, particularly controllable, second-order directional-microphone pattern.

Directional-microphone and method for signal processing in same


A bistable MEMS switch for use in selectively opening or closing electrical circuits included in an implantable medical device system is provided. The switch includes a central movable beam having a movable contact; a suspension system for supporting the movable beam and generating a contact force; an actuator for displacing the beam upon application of an activation signal, and a fixed contact for interfacing the movable contact when the switch is in a closed state. The switch is fabricated from a Si/SiO2/Si wafer using photolithography, DRIE and sacrificial oxide etching followed by metalization of electrical contact points with a wear-resistant metal or alloy. An actuation layer may be fabricated from the silicon substrate layer of the wafer and the signal layer may be fabricated from the top silicon layer. The actuation layer and signal layer are thereby electrically decoupled and mechanically coupled by the intervening SiO2 layer.

Many implantable medical devices (IMDs) include circuits for delivering electrical stimulation to tissue. For example, implantable pacing, defibrillation, and cardioversion devices are designed to deliver electrical stimulation to the heart via electrodes that are in contact with cardiac tissue. Other types of implantable devices such as neuro-stimulation systems are known for delivering electrical stimulation to muscle, nerve, or other types of tissue within a patient's body.
IMDs that deliver electrical stimulation generally include output switching networks to selectively couple stimulation energy to cardiac, muscular, or neurologic tissue from batteries and/or capacitors under supervisory control of algorithms or firmware resident in the device. In the prior art, these switches are generally implemented in CMOS technology using CMOS Field Effect Transistors (FETs). These transistors can be readily implemented in silicon devices using three to five-micron, or larger, CMOS technology. However, as the feature size of the CMOS FETs is decreased below three microns, the breakdown voltage of the FETs is also decreased. If the breakdown voltage decreases to a voltage that is at, or near, the voltage that will be applied across a FET, stimulation pulse parasitic leakage will occur, causing ineffective stimulation, increasing battery current drain, and potentially resulting in damage to the integrated circuit.
One proposed mechanism for solving the above-described problem involves implementing all switching circuitry in at least a three-micron technology in a first integrated circuit, while implementing all other circuitry for the IMD in another integrated circuit employing smaller-sized gates. This type of approach is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,833,710 to Jacobson. This proposed solution adds an additional integrated circuit to the design, increasing system size and cost.
Moreover, this method requires the addition of hybrid circuit interconnects to couple the multiple integrated circuits. These interconnections are costly to manufacture and are prone to failure. Also, interconnections on the hybrid circuit level generally consume more current than interconnections contained within a single integrated circuit.
Another solution to the problem involves employing several FET transistors in series in place of a single FET to implement a switching function. This allows a given voltage drop to be shared by multiple transistors such that the likelihood of circuit damage and/or leakage is decreased. However, this solution has the disadvantage of greatly increasing the amount of silicon area required to implement each switch. Additionally, the design is complicated because the multiple FETs implementing a single switch must be enabled in a predetermined order to prevent the full voltage drop from being experienced by a single FET even for a very brief period, since this could damage the circuit or cause large leakage currents. The implementation of this design approach therefore generally results in the use of a significantly increased silicon die area.
Yet another approach is discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,097,830 to Eikefjord, et al. This patent describes an external defibrillator that incorporates transfer relays to deliver the defibrillation pulse to a patient. This design consumes a relatively large amount of space.
While the above discussion focuses on switching networks used within output circuitry of an IMD, those skilled in the art will recognize that other switches in an IMD are associated with problems similar to those discussed above. What is needed, therefore, is an improved switching system and method for use in implementing a switching function within an IMD or associated lead that can be robustly implemented using a substantially smaller die area and/or meet the low power requirements needed to conserve battery energy in an implanted device.

MEMs switching circuit and method for an implantable medical device


An anisotropic conductor and a method of fabrication thereof. The anisotropic conductor includes an insulating matrix and a plurality of nanoparticles disposed therein. A first portion of the plurality of nanoparticles provides a conductor when subjected to a voltage and/or current pulse. A second portion of the plurality of the nanoparticles does not form a conductor when the voltage and or current pulse is applied to the first portion. The anisotropic conductor forms a conductive path between conductors of electronic devices, components, and systems, including microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices, components, and systems.

Electronic devices including two or more parts or components require an electrical connection between at least two of the parts. While such electrical connections are well understood and dependably achieved, electrical connections between parts or components of miniaturized devices, such as those constructed by semiconductor fabrication techniques, require increasingly sophisticated techniques to electrically connect one part to another part. For the fabrication of MEMS devices, the electrical connection between parts becomes particularly critical since MEMS devices include both electrical and mechanical components having sizes of between 1 to 100 micrometers (i.e. 0.001 to 0.1 mm) where a completed MEMS device generally ranges in size from twenty (20) micrometers (20 millionths of a meter) to a millimeter (i.e. 0.02 to 1.0 mm).
In a MEMS device having distinct vertically oriented layers, typically composed of a substrate such as silicon, one or more local electrical contacts are formed between the two vertically oriented and distinct layers. Because the layers are separated, a connection is typically made between the two layers by depositing one or more metallic films on a surface of a first substrate which interfaces with a surface of a second substrate or a second vertical layer on the same substrate. The one or more metallic films are deposited on the substrates or devices and are patterned in order to provide locally conductive areas, electrically separated from each other.
The formation of the metallic films, which become conductors, involves several process steps, including the deposition of a first layer of metallic film, patterning the first layer, and then depositing additional layers and further patterning if required. Each layer which is to be connected requires its own conductor and consequently, the location of the conductors on each layer is critical to form a component or device. This multi-step process increases cost and requires a certain safety margin between two horizontally neighboring contacts.
In one type of conductor formation process, an anisotropic material is first deposited on a base substrate, such as silicon. This formation can be accomplished be using a lamination process by the deposition of a film. The material is then patterned if necessary. A second substrate is then placed in position over the base substrate and the two substrates are pressed together. In some instances, a small amount of heat is applied to cause the two interfacing substrates to adhere to one another.
Once the two substrates are mated, the two substrates are bonded by heating with temperatures that can be as high as 100° C., where the heat is applied for a relatively short period of time, on the order of one second or less. Temperatures, heat application times, and pressures applied vary depending on the type of substrates and the anisotropic materials being used.
In another type of conductor formation process, a first conductive layer is formed on a substrate followed by the deposition of an isolation material. The dielectric material is etched away in locations, where a connection is to be made. Then, a second conductive material is deposited and makes a connection to the first layer in the selected regions.
Consequently, there is a need for reducing the complexity of the processes used to form conductive layers on devices, components, and substrates.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Anisotropic conductor and method of fabrication thereof


The invention relates to a digital camera comprising at least a memory unit for saving pictures and a control unit that is adapted to control the operation of the camera and to form a trigger tone on the basis of the state of the camera. The trigger tone indicates the triggering of the camera and the current state of the camera. The invention also relates to a method and a computer program product for forming an information tone of a digital camera.

In classical film cameras the user can recognize the operation of the camera by hearing a shutter sound. In many digital cameras there is no mechanical sound when taking pictures. Therefore in some digital camera applications a shutter sound is generated by a separate sound source when an image is captured.
Usually digital cameras comprise some kind of a user interface (UI) that comprises said sound source and a display. In the display it is possible to show a great deal of information. This information can relate to the functions of the camera, for example to the memory or to the settings for image quality. Digital cameras often contain several settings for image quality. Through the settings a user can control the resolution and compression level of the final image.
In practice the user often takes pictures in a situation, where all attention is required. The user is not able to look at the display of the device. The display may also be turned off or the user interface elements may be hidden, so the information of the functions of the camera cannot be displayed. The settings may be different than the user would prefer in this situation, which may cause a negative user experience.
If the user is taking pictures with a digital camera without looking into the display or by using a mode where the image quality setting indication is not visible, the user may continue shooting pictures with the wrong settings for a long period of time. A similar problem exists if the user is taking pictures with a digital camera without looking into the display or by using a mode where memory indication is not visible; the user is not aware of running out of memory while shooting pictures.
Therefore in some digital cameras warning tones (or sounds) are used, such as beeps, to note that there may be some problems in the operation of the camera. For example the memory is running out, the battery is almost empty, or some settings are wrong.


A laser light quantity control device includes a semiconductor laser element having a plurality of light emitting portions and a light quantity detector for detecting light quantities of the individual light emitting portions. Currents supplied to the individual light emitting portions are controlled by a light quantity adjusting section on the basis of outputs from the light quantity detector. The light quantity adjusting section performs light quantity adjustments of the individual light emitting portions at predetermined time interval.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a laser light quantity control device for controlling a multi-beam semiconductor laser having a plurality of light emitting portions for emitting laser beams, and an image forming apparatus for performing image formation using the light quantity control device.
2. Related Background Art
Conventionally, a laser element is controlled by a light quantity control device. In light quantity adjustments using a multi-beam semiconductor laser (laser element) having a plurality of light emitting portions for producing a plurality of laser beams in an image forming apparatus such as a laser beam printer, after light quantity adjustments for one light emitting portion are complete, adjustments for the next light emitting portion are performed.
That is, after the light quantity of one light emitting portion has reached a target light quantity and adjustments are complete, the adjustments for the next light emitting portion are started.
However, in such conventional method, light emitting portions which are subjected to adjustments later have larger influences of heat produced by light emitting portions that have been already adjusted. In general, the output light quantity of a semiconductor laser element decreases as its temperature rises even when the laser current remains the same. For this reason, the laser current of a light emitting portion which has undergone light quantity adjustments in a high-temperature state consequently becomes large. In particular, in a laser element of a multi-beam semiconductor laser, the output light quantity of a light emitting portion which has undergone light quantity adjustments last in a high-temperature state under the influence of heat from other light emitting portions is different from that of a light emitting portion which has undergone light quantity adjustments first in a low-temperature state without having any influence of heat from other light emitting portions, when they are made to emit laser beams simultaneously.


An electrical linear actuator employs a reversible motor driving a helical wire spring. The coils of the spring engage a follower that moves along the axis of the spring with rotation of the motor to provide linear motion. This actuator may be used as a linear drive in an appliance lock.

Low-cost, electric, linear actuators are used in a variety of consumer products, including home appliances and automobiles, to move various components, including lock bolts, valve plates and the like, on the occurrence of an electrical signal.
Common linear actuators include solenoids, wax motors, and DC motors driving gear trains or screw threads. In a solenoid, a metal plunger loosely surrounded by a coil of wire is moved under the influence of a magnetic field produced by an electrical current in the coil. A wax motor employs an electrical current to heat wax contained in a closed volume so that the expanding wax drives a piston out of the volume.
Conventional solenoids and wax motors use a return spring to return the plunger or piston to its unactuated state, and thus require continued power to retain their actuated state. In contrast, small DC (direct current) motors, driving a rack-and-pinion gear or screw and nut, can be reversed by changing the polarity of the driving current, avoiding the need for a return spring and allowing the actuator to retain its actuated state after power is withdrawn.
One problem with DC motor linear actuators is friction in the gear train or screw and nut, particularly when the latter become contaminated during use. The high mechanical advantage typically present in a screw and nut design can cause jamming of the screw and nut at the end of travel under the momentum of the motor.

Appliance lock using a motor driven linear actuator with helical spring drive


In accordance with one embodiment, a failure prognostic package includes a substrate having a first surface and an opposite second surface. An electronic component trace is coupled to the first surface. An electronic component is electrically coupled to the electronic component trace. A prognostic trace is coupled to the first surface of the substrate and is electrically isolated from the electronic component. A failure zone of the failure prognostic package includes a plurality of sides and a plurality of corners, wherein the prognostic trace is weaker at the failure zone than the electronic component trace. Failure of the prognostic trace does not cause failure of the failure prognostic package. However, failure of the prognostic trace provides advanced notice of failure of the failure prognostic package.

1. Field of the Invention
The present application relates to the field of electronics, and more particularly, to methods of forming electronic component packages and related structures.
2. Description of the Related Art
Abrupt unavailability of an electronic device such as a cell phone or laptop computer is often catastrophic for the user, resulting in lost data or, at a minimum, inconvenience to the user. Generally, it is preferable to have advanced notice of the unavailability of the electronic device so that the user can take appropriate measures to minimize the disruption.
For example, cell phones and laptop computers typically provide a notification, e.g., an audible beep, that the battery is about to go dead thus allowing the user to take appropriate measures before the cell phone or laptop computer becomes unavailable. For example, the user may back up important data on a laptop computer or finish the conversation on a cell phone.
However, in the case of hardware failure of an electronic device, there is typically no advanced notice of the failure, which is undesirable.

Package failure prognostic structure and method


The application discloses an optical imaging system. The system sequentially comprises the following components from an object side to an image side along an optical axis: a first lens having refractive power, an image side surface of which is a convex surface; a second lens having negative refractive power; a third lens having refractive power, the image side surface of which is a concave surface; a fourth lens having refractive power; a fifth lens having refractive power, the object side surface of which is a convex surface; a sixth lens with positive refractive power, the object side surface of which is a convex surface; a seventh lens having refractive power; an effective focal length f of the optical imaging system and an entrance pupil diameter EPD of the optical imaging system meet the condition that f/EPD is less than 2; the effective focal length f of the optical imaging system, an effective focal length f1 of the first lens, and an effective focal length f2 of the second lens satisfy 0.1<f/|f1+f2|<1.5.

In recent years, with the upgrading of portable electronic products and the development of image software functions and video software functions on the portable electronic products, the market demand for optical imaging systems suitable for the portable electronic products has been gradually increased.
In order to meet the demand for miniaturization and meet the demand for imaging, there is a need for an optical imaging system capable of achieving miniaturization, high pixel, high resolution, and bright field of view.

Optical imaging system comprising seven lenses of +−−+−+−, +−++−+−, +−−−++−or +−−+++−refractive powers


The inkjet apparatus for double-side recording includes liquid ejection heads which are disposed on either side of a recording medium and face each other across the recording medium, the liquid ejection heads ejecting liquid onto recording surfaces of the recording medium; conveyance devices which hold the recording medium in such a manner that a normal of each of the recording surfaces is substantially horizontal, and convey the recording medium in a horizontal direction in such a manner that the recording surfaces face ejection surfaces of the liquid ejection heads; and end supporting devices which support an upper end and a lower end of the recording medium, as the conveyance devices convey the recording medium in a horizontal direction while holding the recording medium in such a manner that the normal of each of the recording surfaces is substantially horizontal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image recording apparatus and an inkjet apparatus for double-side recording, and more particularly, to an image recording apparatus which seeks to stabilize ejection from an ejection head that ejects ink in a horizontal direction, and to an inkjet apparatus for double-side recording which can perform double-side recording by using this image recording apparatus, onto a rigid plate-shaped recording medium which is hard, heavy, and unbendable.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, an inkjet recording apparatus (inkjet printer) that includes an inkjet head having an arrangement of a plurality of nozzles for ejecting ink, is known. Such an inkjet recording apparatus forms images on a recording medium by ejecting ink from the nozzles while causing the inkjet head and the recording medium to move relatively to each other.
Many inkjet recording apparatuses of this kind record images only on one side of a recording medium. However, inkjet recording apparatuses capable of double-side recording are demanded because of saving recording media or other reasons.
In view of such circumstances, various inkjet recording apparatuses for double-side recording have been proposed, which are capable of recording onto both sides of a recording medium that is a flexible medium, such as paper, resin sheet, cloth, or the like.
For example, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-182094 discloses an apparatus in which one or a plurality of recording heads are disposed on each side of a recording medium, the recording heads facing the sides of the recording medium. The recording heads can substantially simultaneously print on both sides of the recording medium, and images can be substantially simultaneously printed onto both recording surfaces of the recording medium, in a sequence of operations. In this way, the recording time can be shortened and the apparatus can be reduced in size.
Furthermore, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2004-181871 discloses an apparatus that has a recording medium reversal mechanism for recording on both sides of a medium. In this apparatus, after recording on one side of the medium, the recording medium is reversed with respect to the recording surface by means of the reversal mechanism, the medium is then conveyed while the recording medium is kept to faces the ejection openings of the recording head, and then recording is performed on the other surface of the recording medium. In this way, double-side recording and high-speed recording can be achieved.
Moreover, for example, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2004-216680 discloses an apparatus in which two rotating drums provided with recording heads are disposed in series on a conveyance path of a recording medium. In this apparatus, firstly, the recording medium is wound up onto the first rotating drum and recording is performed on one surface of the recording medium, whereupon the recording medium is wound up onto the second rotating drum and recording is performed on the other surface of the recording medium, so that images are recorded onto both sides of the recording medium. In this way, double-side recording can be achieved at high-speed by means of the compact apparatus.
Furthermore, for example, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2001-310458 discloses an apparatus capable of borderless recording and simultaneous recording onto both surfaces of a recording sheet. As one example of the apparatus, an apparatus is known in which an ink acceptance device and a wiping device are disposed on each side of the recording sheet and each ink acceptance device is disposed across a recording sheet from the wiping device. In this apparatus, the recording device, the ink receiving apparatus, and the wiping apparatus can reciprocate in a perpendicular direction with respect to the conveyance direction.
In an inkjet apparatus for double-side recording, in order to achieve both high-speed recording and double-side recording, it is important to shorten the recording time by recording on both sides of a recording medium substantially simultaneously, and to shorten the conveyance time by shortening the conveyance path for the recording medium.
Furthermore, in these days, there are requirements for double-side recording onto various types of recording media, and in particular, there is a requirement to perform double-side recording onto rigid plate-shaped recording media that are thick, hard, heavy, and unbendable, such as glass plates, iron plates, cardboard sheets, wooden sheets, and the like. In addition, desirably, recording can be adapted to a plurality of thicknesses.
However, the double-side recording technology described above has a possibility that it cannot meet requirements of these kinds.
For example, in the technology described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-182094, images can be simultaneously recorded onto both surfaces of a recording medium. However, since the recording medium is conveyed in a downward perpendicular direction with respect to the recording head, it is difficult to convey the recording medium stably if the recording medium is heavy. Furthermore, the distances between the recording heads and the recording surface are almost uniform, and the rollers of the conveyance device have no mechanism for adapting to change in the thickness of the recording medium. Hence, it is difficult to adapt to a plurality of types of recording media having different thicknesses.
Moreover, in the apparatus described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2004-181871, since it is difficult to bend rigid plate-shaped recording media as described above, such a medium cannot be reversed with the reversal mechanism (switch back mechanism). Hence, it is difficult for the apparatus to perform the double-side recording onto the rigid plate-shaped bodies as described above. Furthermore, it is difficult to adapt to a plurality of types of recording media having different thicknesses.
Moreover, in the apparatus described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2004-216680, similarly, since it is difficult to bend rigid plate-shaped recording media as described above, it is difficult to perform the double-side printing. Furthermore, in this case, it is difficult to adapt it to a plurality of types of recording media having different thicknesses.
Moreover, in the apparatus described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2001-310458, if ink is ejected onto the end sections of a recording medium or sections where no recording medium is present when the recording medium is thick, then the liquid droplets ejected from the head of which the ejection direction is the vertically upward direction, falls back onto and adheres to the nozzle surface, giving rise to ejection defects. Furthermore, even if an ink receiving apparatus is used for an apparatus that ejects ink horizontally, then it is difficult to gather the ink accurately in the ink receiving apparatus because the ink droplets drop under the effects of their own weight. As a result of that, soiling of the interior of the apparatus may occur, and consequently the quality of the recorded image may decline.
Moreover, if double-side recording is carried out while the recording medium is held vertically and conveyed in a horizontal direction, then the negative pressure balance at the ejection openings can be disrupted due to the arrangement of the print head. Hence, leakage of liquid from the ejection openings, loss of ejection stability, or the like may occur.

Image recording apparatus and inkjet apparatus for double-side recording


A package body holding an acceleration sensor circuit therein has signal electrodes and four dummy electrodes insulated from the signal electrode on a mounted surface thereof. The signal electrodes are electrically connected to the sensor circuit element. The mounted surface of the package body has chamfered portions on verge portions thereof, and auxiliary electrodes are formed on the chamfered portions to be integrally connected to the signal electrodes. The thus constructed package body is mounted on a circuit board by a reflow method using a solder paste so that the signal, dummy, and auxiliary electrodes are connected to a wiring pattern on the circuit board through solder portions. In this process, the solder paste on the dummy electrodes in a fused state generate an internal pressure to retain a clearance between the package body and the circuit board. As a result, the thickness of the solder portions between the package body and the circuit board can be secured, and reliability at a mounted state is improved.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a surface mount type package unit including a package body with a signal electrode directly connected to a wiring pattern formed on a circuit board through solder, and a method for mounting the package body on the circuit board.
2. Related Arts
In recent years, a lead-less type packaging structure utilizing solder bumps has been adopted to a surface mount type package unit for a semiconductor device and the like in place of a lead-type packaging structure utilizing leads (Gullwing leads, J-leads, and the like) to comply with a requirement for a high packaging density. In the lead-less type packaging structure, a package body usually has signal electrodes on the bottom face thereof to be directly connected to a wiring pattern on a circuit board. Accordingly, a packaging density on a circuit board is increased, and, for example, as in a ball grid array (BGA) package unit, it becomes possible to significantly increase a number of electrodes on the package body. In addition, design flexibility of the circuit board can be improved.
However, in such a packaging structure, a size of the package body itself has increased due to high density integration of semiconductor devices, necessity of mounting a transducer for sensing, and the like, resulting in increase of the self-weight of the package body. As a result, the following problem is caused. That is, the package body is bonded to a circuit board through solder portions (bumps). The solder portions are generally subject to thermal stress caused by a difference in thermal expansion coefficient between the package body and the circuit board to have thermal fatigue failure therein. Further, it is generally known that increasing the thickness of the solder portions (height of the bumps) is effective to prevent the thermal fatigue failure of the solder portions.
However, in the case where the self-weight of the package body is large, the thickness of the solder portions is decreased during a fused process for mounting the package body on the circuit board. As a result, the thermal fatigue failure of the solder portions are likely to occur, resulting in deterioration of reliability at a mounted state. This problem makes the surface mount type package unit difficult to be adopted to a device such as an electric control unit for a vehicle, because such a device is used in hard environmental conditions including large change in temperature, large amount of vibrations, and the like.
On the other hand, in the lead-less surface mount type package unit, there is another problem such that it is difficult to check the bonding state of the package unit by solder from the appearance thereof. In the case where the bonding state of the package unit is checked only by an electric characteristic test, it is difficult to prevent increase of percent defective of the package unit at the mounted state. As a result, the reliability of the mounting performance of the package unit deteriorates.

Surface mount type package unit and method for manufacturing the same


A hybrid lens collimates light emitted by a light source via refraction and reflection. A folded optic element of the lens comprises an outer reflective surface, a lens output surface, and a hollow core comprising a sidewall having a curved profile, a core output boundary, and a core input opening through which the light emitted by the light source enters the hollow core. A reflector of the lens receives the light emitted by the light source, reflects a first portion of the light into the hollow core of the folded optic element, and directly transmits a second portion of the light into the hollow core without reflection by the reflector. In one example, the lens output surface has a diameter of 65 millimeters, the lens has a thickness (between the light source and the lens output surface) of about 13.5 millimeters and provides substantially collimated light with a beam divergence angle of 12 degrees or less.

Conventional luminaires, including downlights and spotlights, often include optical elements to focus light emitted by a light source. Optical elements may also be included in luminaires to improve the light coupling efficiency, defined as the ratio of 1) the luminous flux radiated out of the lighting system to the surrounding environment and 2) the luminous flux generated by the light source. The design of a luminaire that exhibits relatively high light coupling efficiency typically requires larger optics, which generally lead to a larger size, greater weight, and higher costs. Furthermore, built environments, such as a multi-family housing or a commercial office, also typically have limited ceiling or wall space available for the installation of luminaries, which can constrain the size and thus the performance of luminaries.

Folded optics methods and apparatus for improving efficiency of LED-based luminaires