Methods and systems are provided for improving security, efficiency, access control, administrative monitoring, reliability as well as integrity of data transmission and remote application sharing over a network. Secure, stable network connections and efficient network transactions among multiple users are supported by an improved client-server architecture. A datagram schema is provided, which enables dynamic datagram switching in support of a multitude of applications and network services. Mobile intelligent data carriers are provided, allowing for the implementation of an authentication and encryption scheme. They may be used to target deliver applications to authorized user, thereby controlling the access to not only data but also applications. Biometrics and other suitable authentication methodologies may be employed in delivering the pervasive, user-centric network security solutions disclosed. The methods and systems of this disclosure maybe advantageously implemented in any enterprise network environment to support a wide spectrum of business, research, and administrative operations.

1. Field of the Embodiments
The present disclosure relates in general to digital network communications. Specifically, the present disclosure relates to secure data transmission and secure provision of remote application services in an open or closed network setting. More specifically, methods and integrated systems are provided in various embodiments for improving security, efficiency, access control, administrative monitoring, and reliability as well as integrity of data transmission and remote application sharing over a network. The disclosed methods and systems employ a datagram schema that enables dynamic datagram switching in network transactions that supports a multitude of applications and network services. Mobile intelligent data carriers are provided in various embodiments that allow for implementation of an authentication and encryption scheme that is transparent to a user. The pervasive, user-centric network security enabled by the disclosed methods and systems may be advantageously deployed in, among other things, the financial and banking environment, the national security and military information technology (IT) systems, the healthcare management networks, the IT infrastructure for legal and other professional consultation services, and various online commercial transaction systems. The systems and methods according to this disclosure may be implemented in connection with biometric and other suitable authentication means.
2. Description of the Related Art
The digital revolution, accompanied by globalization, is transforming people's life in an unprecedented way. The growth and evolution of the Internet fuels the expansion of the existing businesses while fostering the emergence of new enterprises cross nation lines. In today's global economy, the viability of a business or research institution turns in a large part on its efficiency in processing and managing information. Data transmission and management is thus playing an increasingly vital role in a variety of industries. Not unexpectedly, engineers and business visionaries have been faced with a significant challenge to institute secure network systems that enable stable and efficient data transmission, effective access control, and remote sharing and management of application resources among distributed computers in service to multiple users.
Various network configurations have been in use in institutional IT infrastructures. Ethernet, token ring, and client-server architecture, for example, are widely adopted. Related technologies for data encryption and compression are similarly known and have been utilized to facilitate secure data transmission. However, the existing network systems frequently suffer from such problems as interception of data transactions and loss of network connections, among other things. Often, once a connection is lost, it is difficult to quickly restore it, let alone to accurately reestablish the parameters of the lost connection thereby ensuring the integrity of the reconnection. Inevitably in these situations, data may be lost and data transmission will need to start over. And yet, sometimes, the loss may be permanent if one cannot trace and gather a threshold level of information to allow rescue. This lack of stability greatly compromises the fidelity of data transmission and thus poses a fatal problem for distributive data processing and management. Significant costs are incurred in coping with such failure in an institutional setting. In fact, an entire industry can be disadvantaged by such a problem, as manifested in the difficulties encountered in the recent years by on-line electronic businesses.
The problem of instable—hence unreliable—network communications is compounded by a want of comprehensive, robust, user-friendly, and cost-efficient network security solutions for safeguarding information dissemination and application management in a distributive enterprise IT environment. Consequently, the private businesses and public institutions alike suffer significant financial losses from security breaches and uncoordinated information and application management. A great deal of money is also wasted on inefficient IT security solutions.
Drawbacks of the current network security solutions are manyfold. In the main, four aspects are noteworthy: First, there is lacking an integrated system that can secure an entire network without severely limiting business growth. Organizations are forced to employ a multiplicity of products from different vendors to fulfill different security functions. Each of these products only solves a discreet aspect of the overall network security needs. For example, a firewall does not encrypt data being transmitted across the Internet; an Intrusion Detection System (IDS) cannot validate and ensure that the person who enters an authorized login name and password to open a Virtual Private Network (VPN) connection is in fact the intended user; and, a VPN doesn't help an IT department monitor user rights and access policies. Thus, no existing system or method is capable of singularly protecting every aspect of a network. Resorting to multiple security products from competing vendors, public and private enterprises alike are faced, at the minimum, with the problem of incompatibility. Maintaining a fluctuating number of peripheral security devices and software packages can also be extremely complex and overly expensive. And, on the whole, such patchwork solution is less than effective in protecting institutional IT framework.
Secondly, the existing focus is on securing devices and data. Such system-centric approach fails to safeguard the point of access from individual users who use the devices. This inherent problem with the current approach will become more and more conspicuous as the number of devices and degree of user mobility increases—an inevitable as the world is transitioning into pervasive computing.
To appreciate the inherent flaws in the system-centric systems, one can consider the various scenarios of cyber-crimes. It is understood by an ordinary Internet user today that every single form of cyber-crime involves the attempt of the attacker to disguise its identity, whether masquerading as someone else or covering its trail over the routings. One reason why such attack too often succeeds is because the techniques used to establish and verify the user's identity today are fallible. For example, most passwords are easy to break; they are often too obvious or are stored on a device that can be easily compromised. The existing infrastructure supporting digital certificates and public/private keys is also relatively easy to abuse. Therefore, the existing ways for identifying the users of a network device and securing the device vis-à-vis these users—hence system-centric—presents inherent security liabilities. A high level of security can never be achieved when the identity of those who attempt to access the protected network cannot be effectively pinpointed. A major paradigm shift thus seems warranted for better network security. That is, the focal point needs to shift from protecting the devices and data to protecting the users. A true user-centric scheme for establishing and validating user identities—thereby enabling mobile access and event-based, user-centric security—is desirable.
Third, the existing IT security solutions are too complex for ordinary users. Average users are expected to perform complicated security procedures, which often result in errors and security lapses in the enterprise IT environment. For example, VPNs are not plug'n'play straightforward to install, operate, or maintain. Encrypting emails involves extra work so very few ever bother to do it. Even selecting and remembering a good password is too much trouble for most average users. Relying on people who are not IT experts to perform complicated security procedures simply doesn't work. An ordinary user may find ways to bypass the security procedures or outright ignore them. Further, for many IT departments, maintaining and operating a deluge of software patches may drain the available resources and exceed their capacities. Therefore, an effective yet simple security paradigm is in need.
And finally, like in any other fields, certain inertia exists in the IT security industry. Changes and new methodologies to some extent are resisted. The existing way of doing things prevails and dominates the market of network security solutions, both on the provider and the consumer side. In this regard, the VPN is a useful example. Originally it was designed to provide a secure tunnel between two secure environments. The technology was then modified to meet the needs of remote or mobile users. It now relies on non-technical users to execute complex IT security procedures. Consequently, although the VPN still creates secure tunnels through the Internet, the client end can be easily—and frequently is—compromised. Such adherence to the existing technologies—and the band-aid approach connected thereto—leaves the users with dissatisfactory solutions and at the same time significantly sets back the development of true innovative systems and methods for securing network communications.
For the aforementioned reasons, there is a need for a new network security paradigm that delivers the desired reliability, efficiency, and user-friendliness. The kind of security solution that can sustain the needs of distributive IT framework and support pervasive computing and information processing must address the fallacies of the existing systems. A skilled network engineer or a learned user of business IT networks will be able to appreciate the importance of better IT security solutions. To that end, a brief review of the history of institutional computing and IT networks will be useful.
The first computers were mainframes. These complex monolithic devices required a protected environment to function properly. They could only be operated by skilled technicians who were charged with highly specialized knowledge. Access to them was limited and they offered limited connectivity with other devices. As a result, they were easy to secure.
The advent of the personal computer (PC), the evolution of networking technology and, particularly, the recent explosive growth of the Internet transformed the way people use and relate to computers. The size of the computer devices decreased. These machines became easily moveable. The user-friendly graphical interfaces made it possible for non-technical individuals to operate them. The computers were connected to create computer networks, allowing for fast and easy information and application sharing. The Internet brought the network connectivity to its acme—the true global connectivity that is affordable to the mass. In addition to the desktop and laptop PCs, personal digital assistant (PDAs), Tablet PCs, and mobile phones grew popular with people who need network access while not in their home or office.
The rapid advance of technologies and expansion of business needs as such presented an unprecedented challenge for the IT departments around the world. An ever-increasing amount of data—accessible from a vast number of devices—needs to be protected. And, such protection must be instituted against the backdrop of the broadband "always-on" connections. Also noteworthy is the regulatory initiative in various countries addressing privacy and information ownership concerns over the Internet. Clearly, a network security solution that is technically robust and comprehensive business-wise is needed, especially in view of the next inevitable phase of the IT evolution, one marked by pervasive computing. All analog devices are being and will be replaced by digital counterparts. Televisions, telephones, CDs and DVDs, cameras, video cameras, and computer game platforms alike will—if not already—all support Internet access. As data access becomes possible everywhere and all the time, the need for protecting proprietary corporate data and sensitive private information becomes more pressing and, the level of difficulty in meeting such needs correspondingly elevates.
In sum, reflecting on the evolution of the organizational IT infrastructure and the current deficiencies in secure network communications, one of ordinary skilled will appreciate the need for systems and methods that improve the security, stability, efficiency, and flexibility of network data transmission and, connected thereto, the need for a new network paradigm for secure and reliable enterprise information management and application sharing.

Pervasive, user-centric network security enabled by dynamic datagram switch and an on-demand authentication and encryption scheme through mobile intelligent data carriers


In one embodiment, a programmable voltage regulator stores data representing a programmable configuration of the regulator. The regulator is configured to verify the validity of the stored data before using it to control the operation of the programmable voltage regulator.

The present invention relates, in general, to electronics, and more particularly, to methods of forming semiconductor devices and structure.
In the past, the semiconductor industry utilized various methods and structures to form semiconductor devices that had programmable functionality. In some cases, it was desirable to be able to program the functionality after the semiconductor device was assembled into a semiconductor package. The prior methods of programming functionality into a packaged semiconductor device generally required dedicating one or more pins or terminals of the package and the corresponding inputs of the semiconductor device to be used for the programming. Using package pins and semiconductor device inputs required that the semiconductor device and the package have additional inputs thereby increasing the cost of the programmable semiconductor device.
Additionally, once the functionality was programmed into the semiconductor device, it was possible that a malfunction could cause the programming information to be changed. As a result, the semiconductor device could operate with undesired functionality.
Accordingly, it is desirable to have a programmable semiconductor device that minimizes the number of pins utilized for programming the device, that minimizes the impact of changes in the programmed information, and that has a low cost.
For simplicity and clarity of the illustration, elements in the figures are not necessarily to scale, and the same reference numbers in different figures denote the same elements. Additionally, descriptions and details of well-known steps and elements are omitted for simplicity of the description. As used herein current carrying electrode means an element of a device that carries current through the device such as a source or a drain of an MOS transistor or an emitter or a collector of a bipolar transistor or a cathode or anode of a diode, and a control electrode means an element of the device that controls current through the device such as a gate of an MOS transistor or a base of a bipolar transistor. Although the devices are explained herein as certain N-channel or P-Channel devices, a person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that complementary devices are also possible in accordance with the present invention. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the words during, while, and when as used herein are not exact terms that mean an action takes place instantly upon an initiating action but that there may be some small but reasonable delay, such as a propagation delay, between the reaction that is initiated by the initial action.

Method of forming a programmable voltage regulator and structure therefor

Semiconductor Components Industries, LLC


Described herein are an immunogenic peptide containing the sequence of CLDSLGQWN (SEQ ID NO:2) and a method of using the peptide for treating cancer.

Tumor associated antigen L6 (TAL6) is a cell surface protein of the transmembrane-4 superfamily (TM4SF), also known as TM4SF1. TM4SF proteins are over-expressed in different types of human cancers including lung, breast, colon, prostate and liver cancer. TM4SF1-, TM4SF4- and TM4SF5-specific monoclonal antibodies can inhibit colon cancer growth, indicating that TM4SF proteins are crucial targets for cancer therapy. TAL6 is over-expressed in more than 80% of human lung, breast, colon and ovarian tumors but not normal tissues. Recently, TAL6 was found to play critical roles in cancer cell motility, invasion, metastasis and angiogenesis. It was previously demonstrated that an HLA-A2-restricted CTL epitope, A2-5, of TAL6 is capable of inducing CTL responses against cancer cells that express TAL6. In addition, the induced-CTL responses can be adoptively transferred to inhibit human lung cancer growth in immunocompromised mice.

Immunogenic peptide containing a b cell epitope of tumor associated antigen L6


A broadband network for providing broadband signals, such as cable television signals, to a subscriber location includes a network interface device installed at the subscriber's end of the broadband network. The network interface device includes circuitry that provides for the selective provisioning of services to the subscriber location from the broadband network and a test circuit that can be selectively connected for testing signals appearing on the broadband network.

1) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the cable television field and, more particularly, to methods and devices for testing and provisioning a cable television system.
2) Background Art
The cable television (CATV) industry has evolved over the years from just providing remote areas with television signals, to a full-fledged industry providing entertainment to the home. During this evolution, technology has increased in complexity with reverse channel capability and bandwidth growing from 400 MHz to 750 MHz, and now to 1 GHz. The quality of signals has also improved with the deployment of fiber optic systems which drive the signals deep into each neighborhood. From there the signal is carried on coaxial cable, and tapped for the customer drop. Even with the evolution of the technology in signal quality and channel carrying capacity, there are a number of routine testing and provisioning activities which still require a costly dispatch to handle.
Testability of the coaxial signal quality at the customer interface is still an on-site type of test procedure. While trunk and feeder coaxial signals have been capable of remote monitoring for years, tests on the coaxial cable drop today are usually a manual function requiring a technician to visit the customer and perform diagnostics using portable test equipment. This is undesirable from a service standpoint since it can take a protracted amount of time for a technician to be dispatched, identify the trouble and repair it if required. From a network operator's standpoint, the customers' coaxial cable drops may represent over 50% of the deployed miles of coaxial cable in a newer broadband delivery system, which makes these drops a prime target for testability.
In previous methods for measuring the quality of the CATV signals, many alternatives have been proposed. One such example is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,207,431. In this patent, centralized monitoring of a CATV system is proposed using monitoring points in the network and sending a signal back to a central location using the reverse channel transmission capability within the CATV system itself. This patent, however, does not disclose circuitry for monitoring the output of a communications system and transmitting such output over either the telephone network or the broadband network.
Provisioning issues associated with the chum rate of customers and illegal connections to the system are a major concern. Even with a small monthly percentage of churn, the number of dispatches required for disconnects and reconnects equates to a sizable annual maintenance and administrative expense. Additionally, the lost monthly revenue associated with illegal connections to the CATV system can amount to a significant lost profit potential. Even with a low churn rate and a small percentage of illegal connections, these costs can amount to millions of dollars per year.
In the past, to achieve activation and deactivation of signals in a CATV system, many systems have been proposed. One such example is the television signal distribution exemplified in U.S. Pat. No. 3,968,327. This patent describes a centralized system for remotely enabling or disabling the viewing of special transmitted signals in a coaxial cable distribution system using the telephone network for communications. This apparatus allows the display of selected channels on selected receivers, but does not interfere with the other nonselected transmitted channels. This patent, however, does not disclose circuitry for enabling and disabling the entire transmit and receive capability of a coaxial delivery system to selected subscribers.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for the provisioning of signals on a broadband coaxial network to customer equipment from a remote location utilizing one or a combination of the broadband network and a telephone network.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for testing one or a combination of the broadband network and customer equipment from a remote location utilizing one or a combination of the broadband network and the telephone network.

Coaxial testing and provisioning network interface device


An atomic force microscope and method for detecting photo-induced force using the atomic force microscope utilizes light from a photonic source at a tip-sample interface that results in photo-induced force gradient, which is detected by measuring a resonant frequency of a vibrational mode of a cantilever of the atomic force microscope.

As is well known, atomic-force microscopy (AFM) detection of forces and force gradients via changes in amplitude of a cantilever resonant mode have slow (albeit very sensitive) response in vacuum because of low air damping and high mechanical Q in vacuum.
Conventional Photo-induced Force Microscopy (PiFM) relies on amplitude sensing. The laser light is modulated at a frequency to either directly excite a cantilever resonance, or via mixing with a first excited resonance to excite a second resonance. Either way, the signal is derived from the amplitude of the response, and the speed of response is limited by the Q. In vacuum, the high Q can result in a response time which is slower than desired. For a description of conventional PiFM, see for example Nowak et al., "Nanoscale chemical imaging by photoinduced force microscopy," Science Advances 2, e1501571 (2016), which is incorporated herein by reference.

Frequency modulation detection for photo induced force microscopy


A localized accident notification system includes an accident detector that detects a crash of a vehicle and an external alert system to provide an external alert by the vehicle that can be noticed by any people in the vicinity of the crash. Upon an indication of a crash from the accident detector a controller can direct the external alert. The external alert can have special notification properties. The accident detector may only operate if the vehicle ignition is on to discriminate between a theft alarm. The accident detector can include accelerometers, air bag detectors, or tilt sensors.

It is important to provide prompt assistance to vehicles involved in accidents and serious crashes. In more severe crashes, a crash victim typically is unable to call for assistance. Moreover, in some cases, vehicles can not be immediately located after a crash, which prevents the immediate rendering of aid. For example, vehicles that crash in the dark, off the roadway, into a ditch, a ravine, water, or heavy brush, may not even be noticed by passers-by.
Some of this problem has been solved with the advent of cellular technology, wherein a vehicle within an onboard Telematics system, such as General Motor's OnStar™ system, can automatically call for assistance when airbags are triggered, for example. However, even in this case, help may not arrive immediately. Passers-by can render assistance sooner, but only if the vehicle is observable. In addition, not all vehicles have such onboard Telematics systems. In particular, motorcycles are particularly vulnerable to this accident scenario as these vehicles do not come equipped with onboard Telematics systems or air bags, they are more easily lost off a roadway, and there is a much higher likelihood that a driver would be injured and unable to call for help.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a simpler approach that overcomes most, if not all, of the preceding problems. In particular, it would be beneficial if a simple, low-cost system could be supplied to provide a localized accident notification wherein passers-by could notice a vehicle after an accident and render immediate assistance.


A concentrate for producing a cooling and release agent for reusable casting dies such as a steel casting die, or a cooling and lubricating agent for machining with an active substance dissolved in water. The concentrate comprises 10 to 50 wt.-% of a protein based on the weight of the concentrate.

While the use as a cooling and release agent in reusable casting dies is of particular interest in the context of steel casting dies for die casting purposes or forming tools for hot forming purposes, the use as a cooling and lubricating agent is found in the field of machining, for example, in drilling, milling, grinding, cutting, lathing, sawing or thread cutting of cast iron alloys, steel alloys, nickel base alloys, cobalt base alloys, non-ferrous metals and plastic materials, as well as in the field of cold forming.
Such cooling and release agents or cooling and lubricating agents are known from prior art. They serve to cool used casting dies and machined parts. When used as a release agent, a layer is applied at the same time to improve the demolding of the cast product from the die, whereas when used as a lubricating agent, an additional lubrication of the parts and tools is affected that increases their durability.
For example, when casting work pieces on the basis of aluminum, magnesium and zinc or alloys of these metals in a die cast or a squeeze cast method, water-emulsified polymers, such as waxes, silicones or modified polysiloxanes, are used as cooling/release agent. Prior to their use at the die casting tool, the emulsions delivered as a concentrate are diluted to the working concentration required for obtaining a sufficient effect. Typically, dilutions are used that contain 0.12% by weight to 2.5% by weight of dry substance in the cooling and release agent.
The casting die is supplied, for example, under pressure with an alloy melt of 560-740° C. After the solidification of the melt, the cast part is removed from the casting die that is about 450-580° C. hot, and the die is cooled down to about 120-350° C. by spraying a cooling and release agent thereon, it is cleaned if necessary and is again supplied with a melt. The water contained in the cooling and release agent serves to cool the die as well as to free the die from possible residues which, after demolding, remain on the die due to the cooling and release agent used. The release agent is effective in that, depending on the temperature conditions, the polymers themselves form a release layer by being pyrolytically decomposed as the die is filled with the metal to be cast and by subsequent densification.
The use of the known cooling and release agents yields satisfactory results; however, it has some drawbacks.
For example, the cooling and release agent often settles on portions of the die, such as at the die frame and die parting lines, that are not contacted with the metal to be cast and on contours that are less subjected to high temperatures, since the temperature at these portions is insufficient to pyrolytically decompose the cooling/release agent. Instead, the cooling and release agent dries because of the heat still present and can no longer be completely emulsified in water. With repeated spraying operations, this leads to the build-up of a layer resulting in problems of dimensional accuracy of the cast piece and in sealing problems at the die so that casting quality decreases. Insufficient pyrolytic decomposition of the release agent may also cause accretions in the cavity area, which also compromise the casting quality. Residues may be deposited in the surface of the cast piece, for example, in turbulence zones.
The stability and the disposal of these emulsions are also problematic. Longer times of rest after emulsification often result in an inhomogeneous distribution of the active substance in the emulsion, whereby a wetting of surfaces with these cooling and release agents is non-uniform.
The washed-off residues of the known cooling and release agents must also be supplied to a separate waste water treatment since they are not easily biodegradable. Their gaseous residues, which are formed as a result of pyrolytic decomposition during their application, are also hazardous to humans and the environment.
Residues containing wax or silicon often remain on the surface of the cast piece. These are hard to remove so that an increased cleaning effort is required. The removal of these water repellent residues therefore requires the use of strong acids, bases or other solvents.
With known cooling/lubricating agents for machining purposes, the pressure during the chip removal sometimes leads to the forming of built-up edges at the cutting tool and oftentimes causes a bluish discoloration in the machined region of the work piece. The built-up edges reduce the service life of the cutting tool. When the built-up edges become welded on, they can also deteriorate the work piece quality if, for example, parts of the built-up edge come loose and are pressed into the work piece surface. Cooling/lubricating agents moreover sometimes contain mordants as additives that can damage alloy elements in the work piece alloy. The chips produced in machining often have to be freed from cooling/lubricating agents clinging thereto, using multi-stage complex processes, such as filtering and washing, so that the cooling/lubricating agent can be reused in the cycle. The chips themselves often must be disposed of as hazardous waste, since a recycling thereof is not feasible because of the cooling/lubricating agent clinging thereto.

Concentrate for producing a cooling and release agent or a cooling and lubricating agent and such cooling and release agents and cooling and lubricating agents


A photonic integrated circuit apparatus is disclosed. The apparatus includes a photonic chip and a lens array coupling element. The photonic chip includes a waveguide at a side edge surface of the photonic chip. The lens array coupling element is mounted on a top surface of the photonic chip and on the side edge surface. The coupling element includes a lens array that is configured to modify spot sizes of light traversing to or from the waveguide. The coupling element further includes an overhang on a side of the coupling element that opposes the lens array and that abuts the top surface of the photonic chip. The overhang includes a vertical stop surface that has a depth configured to horizontally align an edge of the waveguide with a focal length of the lens array and that vertically aligns focal points of the lens array with the edge of the waveguide.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to photonic integrated circuits, and, more particularly, to optical couplings to photonic integrated circuits.
2. Description of the Related Art
Photonic chips are part of an emerging technology that uses light as a basis of operation as opposed to an electric current. Photonic chips are expected to be a fundamental building block of interconnect networks in future computers that offer faster processing speeds with low power consumption. Furthermore, photonic circuits could be directly incorporated into processor chips to achieve tight integration of electronic and photonic circuits. An advantage of using light as a basis of circuit operation is that its energy cost for high-speed signal transmission is substantially less than that of electronic chips. Thus, efficient coupling between photonic chips and other optical devices, such as fibers, that maintains this advantage is an important aspect of photonic integrated circuits.

Lens array optical coupling to photonic chip

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION


A pair of discharge rollers is provided at a position most downstream in a conveying direction of a sheet conveying path defined by guide surfaces. The discharge rollers discharge a sheet from the sheet conveying path. A discharge chute portion, including upper and lower discharge guides, guides the discharged sheet toward a discharge tray. An elastic support piece is provided in the discharge chute portion and elastically urges a trailing edge of the discharged sheet toward the upper discharge guide. The pair of discharge rollers is arranged such that a direction in which the drive roller contacts the follower roller is inclined toward upstream in the conveying direction with respect to a direction of a normal line of a lower one of the guide surfaces that is located in the sheet conveying path at a position the most downstream in the conveying direction.

Conventionally, in an apparatus such as a copying machine, a scanner, a printer, and a multi-function device having a plurality of functions for serving as such apparatuses, there is known a configuration being provided with an ADF (Auto Document Feeder) that conveys a sheet (an original document) from a feed tray to a discharge tray along a sheet conveying path. Examples of such configuration are proposed in JP-A-2005-247575 (counterpart U.S. patent application is published as US 2005/0212195 A1) and JP-A-2005-253013 (counterpart U.S. patent application is published as US 2005/0194731 A1). The ADF disclosed in JP-A-2005-247575 and JP-A-2005-253013 is schematically shown as ADF 130 in FIG. 23. A simple overview of the mechanism and operation of the ADF 130 will be described below.
The conventional ADF 130 shown in FIG. 23 has a sheet feeding mechanism 131 that separates a plurality of sheets (hereinafter, referred to as a "stack of sheets") placed on a feed tray 132 and sequentially feeds the stack of sheets to a sheet conveying path 138. The sheet feeding mechanism 131 is configured such that a feed chute portion 133 is formed monolithically from the feed tray 132, and a feed roller 134, a feed nip piece 135, a separation roller 136, and a separation nip piece 137 are arranged in the feed chute portion 133.
The feed roller 134 is rotatably arranged on a lower guide surface of the feed chute portion 133. The feed nip piece 135 is arranged on a portion of an upper guide surface of the feed chute portion 133 in a position facing the feed roller 134, such that the feed nip piece 135 is contactable with the teed roller 134. The feed nip piece 135 is urged toward the feed roller 134 to be in Contact with the feed roller 134 by an urging member that is not shown.
The stack of sheets placed on the feed tray 132 are urged toward the feed roller 134 by the feed nip piece 135 and a bottommost sheet of the stack of sheets that contacts the feed roller 134 is fed in a sheet feeding direction due to the rotation of the feed roller 134. In the configuration shown in FIG. 23, the sheets are placed on the feed tray 132 with its right face (face to be scanned) facing downward.
The separation roller 136 is rotatably arranged on the lower guide surface of the feed chute portion 133 to be spaced from the feed roller 134 in the sheet feeding direction. The separation nip piece 137 is arranged on the upper guide surface of the feed chute portion 133 that is a position facing the separation roller 136, such that the separation nip piece 137 contacts the separation roller 136. The separation nip piece 137 is urged toward the separation roller 136 to be in contact with the separation roller 136 by an urging member that is not shown. A sheet fed by the feed roller 134 is nipped between the separation roller 136 and the separation nip piece 137 and conveyed in the sheet feeding direction by the rotation of the separation roller 136.
The sheet conveying path 138 is configured to have a substantially U-lettered shape when viewed from a side of the ADF 130 and is provided at a position downstream with respect to the feed chute portion 133 in the sheet feeding direction. A conveying roller 139 is arranged on the sheet conveying path 138 and three pinch rollers 140 (140a, 140b, and 140c) are arranged on an outer circumference of the conveying roller 139. Each of the pinch rollers 140 are urged toward the conveying roller 139 by an urging member, which is not shown, to be in contact with the conveying roller 139.
A sheet fed to the sheet conveying path 138 by the sheet feeding mechanism 131 is conveyed along the sheet conveying path 138 while being nipped between the pinch roller 140a, which is disposed immediately upstream of a platen glass 142, and the conveying roller 139. The sheet is guided by a guide member 141 and conveyed onto the platen glass 142. At this time, an image formed on the sheet that is conveyed above the platen glass 142 is scanned by an image sensor 143 arranged below the platen glass 142.
The sheet having been scanned is conveyed upward while being nipped between the pinch roller 140b, which is disposed immediately downstream of the platen glass 142, and the conveying roller 139. At this time, the sheet is guided by a curved guide surface, which is not shown, and conveyed to perform a U-turn along an outer circumferential surface of the conveying roller 139.
The pinch roller 140c is arranged on the sheet conveying path 138 at a position most downstream. As shown in FIGS. 24A-24C, the pinch roller 140c is disposed vertically above the conveying roller 139 and supported by an outer guide 147 with the pinch roller 140c being urged toward the conveying roller 139 by a coil spring 146. A sheet is conveyed while being nipped between the pinch roller 140c and the conveying roller 139, to thereby be discharged to a discharge tray 144 from the sheet conveying path 138 through a discharge chute portion 145.
In the ADF 130 configured as described above, sheets are fed one by one from the stack of sheets placed faced down on the feed tray 132. The fed sheets are sequentially conveyed to the discharge tray 144 disposed above the feed tray 132. Accordingly, the sheets are stacked on the discharge tray 144 in an order (hereinafter, referred to as "reverse order") reverse to an original order initially being stacked. In order to prevent the sheets from being thus discharged in reverse order, the conventional ADF disclosed in JP-A-2005-247575 and JP-A-2005-253013 is provided with, as shown in FIG. 24, a plate spring piece 148 that lifts up the discharged sheet from a nip position that is configured between the pinch roller 140c and the conveying roller 139.
According to this configuration, the sheet S2 (hereinafter, referred to as a "subsequent sheet") that is discharged by the pinch roller 140c and the conveying roller 139 subsequent to the discharged sheet is guided such that a leading edge of the subsequent sheet S2 is placed, by the plate spring piece 148, beneath a trailing edge of the preceding discharged sheet S1 (hereinafter, referred to as a "preceding sheet") . Then, the subsequent sheet S2 is further conveyed, to thereby be discharged to slide beneath the preceding sheet S1. Accordingly, the sheets discharged onto the discharge tray 144 will be stacked in the original order.
According to the ADF 130 having the plate spring piece 148, the order of the discharged sheets is not reversed as described above. However, in the conventional ADF 130, concerns arise about the possible occurrence of an event that due to an amount of the preceding sheets stacked on the discharge tray 144, or an aged deterioration of the roller surface of the pinch roller 140c, the subsequent sheet may not be placed beneath the preceding sheets stacked on the discharge tray 144 and may be discharged between the stacked sheets or on the top of the stacked sheets.
For example, when the amount of sheets discharged on the discharge tray 144 increases, as shown in FIG. 25, a subsequent sheet S3 is prevented from advancing by the preceding sheets S1 and S2 that are already being discharged, and thus, the subsequent sheet S3 is immediately stopped after a conveying force applied by the nip roller 140c and the conveying roller 139 is lost. At this time, a trailing edge of the sheet S3 remains near the nip position. The trailing edge remaining near the nip position may be scraped upward by the pinch roller 140c, however, when the roller surface of the pinch roller 140c is in a slippery condition due to an aged deterioration, the trailing edge of the sheet S3 may not be scraped upward. When another subsequent sheet S4 is discharged with the trailing edge of the sheet S3 remaining near the nip position, the subsequent sheet S4 is discharged at a higher position than the preceding sheet S3, causing a problem that the order of the discharged sheets may not be the original order. In addition, the subsequent sheet S4 may collide with the trailing edge of the preceding sheets, thereby causing a jam of the sheets (paper jam).

Sheet conveying device and image scanning apparatus


Aspects of the present disclosure involve an intelligent and immediate response security system configured to provide continuous and immediate security data to requesting users in the event of a threat, potential threat, and/or the like. Additionally aspects of the present disclosure involve systems capable of initiating and performing various security commands to ensure the personal safety of individuals located within a certain type of facility, venue, location, etc.

The use of security and surveillance systems in modern society is becoming ubiquitous. For example, surveillance cameras and related monitoring devices are generally used in many facilities to prevent criminal and/or otherwise undesirable activity, as well as provide safety and security for those within the facility. However, when high-risk situations such as shootings, hostage situations, or natural disasters occur, conventional monitoring systems may not provide relevant information to the appropriate authorities, and further, may not provide such authorities with immediate and efficient access to the monitored facilities. Moreover, the security of a facility, such as an elementary school or office building, may in part be dependent on preventing persons in possession of harmful objects, such as weapons and explosives, from entering the facility. Alternatively, in the case in which persons with harmful objects are already located inside the facility, the security of the facility may depend on a security system's ability to continuously locate, monitor, or otherwise contain such persons within the facility. Conventional monitoring systems are incapable of making such detections and/or determinations.
It is with these concepts in mind, among others, that various aspects of the present disclosure were conceived.


A computer-implemented method for securing data at third-party storage services may include (1) receiving, at a server-side computing system, a request to provide a user with access to a file that is encrypted, (2) determining, in response to the request, whether a transitory symmetric key of the user is available to encrypt a decryption key with which the file may be decrypted, (3) encrypting the decryption key with the transitory symmetric key of the user if the transitory symmetric key of the user is available or encrypting the decryption key with the public key of an asymmetric key pair designated for the user if the transitory symmetric key of the user is unavailable, and (4) storing the encrypted decryption key. Various other methods, systems, and computer-readable media are also disclosed.

Organizations and consumers increasingly use third-party services to store data. Third-party storage services may provide a number of benefits to customers, including flexibility, low capitalization requirements, add-on services, data sharing, and centralized access to data. When using third-party storage services, many customers want or need their data to be stored in an encrypted state due to privacy concerns or in order to ensure compliance with internal or external data-protection requirements, such as governmental laws and regulations, partnership agreements with other organizations, etc.
While some conventional third-party storage services may store customer data in an encrypted state, the mechanisms used by such conventional third-party storage services may present unwanted limitations. For example, some conventional third-party storage services may enable customers to encrypt their data prior to submitting the same. Unfortunately, encrypting data prior to submission may interfere with the ability of third-party storage services to efficiently share the data with other customers where directed. Other conventional third-party storage services may encrypt data submitted by customers using cryptographic keys that are stored at the third-party storage services even when the customers are not logged in. In these situations, the customers' data may be vulnerable to being accessed by unauthorized parties (e.g., intruders and/or administrators of the third-party storage services) even when the customers are not logged in. Accordingly, the instant disclosure identifies and addresses a need for additional and improved systems and methods for securing data at third-party storage services.

Systems and methods for securing data at third-party storage services


A refillable product dispenser includes a housing having a frame and a front cover with open and closed positions relative to the frame, a receptacle associated with the housing, and a pushbutton configured to be at least partially received by the receptacle in one of alternative unlocked and locked orientations. The dispenser further includes a dispensing system with a product container having a spout disposed at a first dispensing angle, a nozzle disposed at a second dispensing angle and a dispensing lever configured to activate the spout when force is applied to the lever.

Liquid dispensers of various sorts are generally known. Such dispensers are usually placed in public and private restrooms for dispensing cleansing soap or the like to a person's hand. Some applications include a dispensing nozzle that ejects product at some point along the dispenser so that a person must use two hands to receive the soap (e.g. one hand to pump the dispenser and another hand to receive the soap). Other applications include levers located at the bottom of the dispenser configured to supply soap when a person pulls the lever toward themselves so that only one hand need be used. An issue arises with such dispensers in that the stream of liquid exiting the dispenser is often uncontrolled or at an inconvenient angle or placement, lending to user frustration, waste and mess. More specifically, previous dispensers merely provide a sometimes hidden or unpredictable exit for the liquid. As a result, soap will fall to the floor if a person's hand is not in an exact position for receiving the same thereby wasting soap and creating a mess on the floor.
Another issue with previous dispensers is that they are generally manufactured for either private or public places, but not both. For example, if a dispenser is to be placed in a public location (i.e. road side washroom) it would be preferred that the dispenser be locked to prevent tampering, but allow for a technician, with the appropriate key to unlock the dispenser to refill the liquid product or maintain the dispenser. On the other hand, if a dispenser is to be placed in a private location (i.e. small business restroom or home) it would be preferred that anyone, such as employees, homeowners, or the cleaning crew, have free access to the contents within the dispenser to replace or maintain the same as needed. Accordingly, should a facility incorporate public and private areas, or a retailer sell to both businesses and private users, it would need to provide two separate dispensers.
As such, there is a desire for a dispenser configured to optimally supply liquid to a hand in a reliable, predictable and ergonomically convenient manner, and that is further configured to be selectively locked for placement in a public and/or a private location.


Systems and Methods are disclosed for the detection and imaging of ultrasonic energy. Embodiments of the invention utilize an array of ultrasonic sensors where data from each of the sensors are processed by RMS-to-DC conversion. In addition, embodiments of the invention output a contour map based on detected ultrasonic energy and blend at least one feature of the contour map with a feature of a visible image so that a blended image can be displayed to an operator. Furthermore, embodiments of the invention provide a system and method for repositioning an array of ultrasonic sensors with respect to target area or Unit Under Test (UUT) to facilitate a thorough and repeatable test.

A practical application for the detection and imaging of ultrasonic energy is to locate, by inference, ultrasonic energy sources. Such sources may be, for instance, a gas or fluid escaping from a pressurized container (in other words, a leak). Alternatively, ultrasonic energy may be caused by a mechanical vibration, such as that caused by an excessively-worn bearing or by missing teeth on a gear drive assembly.
Piezoelectric and other detectors are known for detecting ultrasonic energy emissions. Known systems and methods utilizing such detectors have many disadvantages, however. For instance, because of the signal frequencies involved, known systems may utilize very high-speed sampling rates that increase the expense of data acquisition hardware. Furthermore, known detection systems do not provide user-friendly outputs. For example, such systems may not support imaging at all. And known systems that do provide imaging of the ultrasonic energy may not sufficiently relate the detected source of ultrasonic energy to the surrounding environment in a way that allows for a targeted response to the detection event. Moreover, known detection systems and methods may be limited to a narrow Field-Of-View (FOV) without a structured way to fully screen a Unit Under Test (UUT) that occupies an area that is many times the size of the detector's FOV. Known hand-held detection systems and methods are exemplary of this latter problem, relying on an operator to wave the hand-held detection system with respect to the UUT in an effort to provide an effective screen.
What is needed are systems and methods for detecting ultrasonic energy that reduce the cost of data acquisition, provide more useful outputs to a test operator, and enable more complete and repeatable ultrasonic energy detection over a broad target area.

System and method for ultrasonic detection and imaging


An insert for forming an end connection in a uni-axial composite material, and an end connection comprising at least one insert, is disclosed. The insert comprises a sleeve which comprises a plurality of fibers having a multi-axial arrangement. At least a portion of the interior surface of the sleeve comprises a thread formation. A method of forming an end connection in a uni-axial composite material is also disclosed. The method comprises providing a sleeve comprising a plurality of fibers having a multi-axial arrangement and providing a thread formation on at least a portion of the interior surface of the sleeve. The sleeve is positioned and secured within the uni-axial composite material.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an insert for forming a high load carrying end connection in a uni-axial composite material. The present invention also relates to a method of forming an end connection in a uni-axial composite material using the insert. The present invention is exemplified by an insert for a root end of a wind turbine blade. However, the insert is also suitable for use in other applications and with other materials.
Description of the Related Art
In large horizontal axis wind turbines the wind turbine blades are connected to the rotor hub by a number of bolt attachment points. The hub end of the wind turbine blades (the root) is cylindrical in section and typically has a diameter of 1500 mm to 3000 mm. Approximately 60 to 80 bolts connect the blade to a radial pitch bearing within the rotor hub. The bolts are typically M30 to M40 size and each is required to withstand a pullout force of the order of 200 to 400 kN. The bolts are arranged circumferentially around the root.
The female part of the connection must be located in the root part of the blade so that the male bolts can be accessed for maintenance from the hub side when in service to ensure that there is no failure in the connection.
The root of the blade is typically manufactured from fibre reinforced plastic, typically glass fibre in epoxy, vinylester or polyester resin. The predominant fibre orientation in the root structure is uni-axial with the fibres running parallel to the axis of the blade/root cylinder, with very few fibres in the radial direction. The uni-axial orientation of fibres in the root structure presents a problem for the formation of the female part of the hub connection. This is because, if a female thread is cut directly into the "end grain" type uni-axial laminate of the root, the fibres will be cut resulting in a low pull out strength equal only to the shear strength of the resin. This is illustrated in FIG. 1 which shows that the uni-axial threads have been cut in the vicinity of the female thread such that only the resin provides structural integrity to the thread formation.
To overcome this problem long metallic female threaded inserts have been used. The metallic inserts are designed provide a large bond area so that, when the inserts are bonded into the uni-axial composite structure of the root, a bond having a sufficient pull out strength is achieved. The male bolts thread into the female threaded inserts to form the connection.
The metallic inserts are either added after the composite root structure has been cured, or when the root structure is being laminated/infused. In the first method, holes for the inserts are drilled into the root and the inserts are then bonded into position. This method requires specialist adhesive and equipment. In the alternative method, the inserts are placed into the uncured laminate during "lay-up" and are then cured into the structure when the root composite is cured.
Although the use of metallic inserts solves the problem of cutting female threads directly into the uni-axial "end grain" of the root structure, they have their own problems. For example, structural problems can be caused by the thermal mismatch between the metallic inserts and the surrounding composite material, which have different thermal expansion coefficients. In addition, the metallic inserts have a higher stiffness than the surrounding composite material leading to problems with flexural mismatch in service.
One way of countering these problems is to provide the metallic inserts with a tapered, more flexible, (sometimes referred to as carrot shaped) configuration to minimise the effect of material stiffness mismatch. In addition, the composite laminate in the region of the connection is made very thick, and hence stiffer, to further reduce the effect of the material stiffness mismatch. A typical schematic example of a prior art metallic insert 1 embedded in a uni-axial composite material 2 is shown in FIG. 2. In practice approximately one third of the length of the insert is tapered. The taper of the inserts used in the current art can also be made by tapering down the amount of metallic material on the inside of the insert.
As wind turbines have got larger, the extra composite material required at the root end to compensate for the structural mismatch between the metallic inserts and the composite laminate has become very significant. The additional material contributes greatly to the overall mass, and hence cost, of the blade. For a 40 m wind blade, the wall thickness of the composite laminate at the root end is in the order of 80 mm and, for a 350 mm metallic insert, the wall thickness must be maintained for approximately 500 mm before it can begin to reduce. Because of the need for large amounts of composite material in the root structure, the cost of using more expensive materials, such as carbon fibre composite as required for larger blades, becomes prohibitive.

Insert for forming an end connection in a uni-axial composite material


A positive electrode active material for a lithium battery is provided which offers high-temperature storage property and battery properties and comprises manganese dioxide having a crystal structure that exhibits an X-ray diffraction pattern in which peaks having a peak intensity ratio of not less than 0.05 with respect to the peak at 2θ=37.3°±0.5° are present at positions of 2θ=18.2°±0.5°, 19.5°±0.5°, 28.6°±0.5°, 56.6°±0.5°, 59.1°±0.5°, and 65.1°±0.5°, or further at 2θ=22.0°±1.0°, the X-ray diffraction pattern being obtained using a powder X-ray diffraction device (XRD) that uses CuKα1 rays.

Manganese dioxide, fluorocarbon, and the like are typical of positive electrode active materials for lithium primary batteries and have already become practical. In particular, manganese dioxide has the advantages of good storage property and being inexpensive. Much effort has thus been made to use manganese dioxide as a positive electrode active material (see Patent Documents 1 and 2).
The following are also known: a manganese dioxide formed by treating, with an acid, an orthorhombic lithium-manganese composite oxide obtained by low-temperature firing at 350° C. to 450° C. (Patent Document 3), a manganese dioxide obtained by treating spinel type LiMn2O4 (Patent Document 4) with an acid, and a manganese dioxide obtained by treating LiMn2O4 with an acid and then firing the treated material (Non-Patent Document 1).
Furthermore, Patent Document 5 discloses manganese dioxide obtained by firing λ type manganese dioxide at a temperature of 250° C. to 400° C. Patent Document 6 discloses a manganese dioxide obtained by firing λ type manganese dioxide at a temperature of 150° C. to 450° C. Patent Document 7 discloses a composite oxide obtained by treating a spinel type composite oxide with an acid and then thermally treating the treated material at a temperature of 200° C. to 400° C.    Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 3-80120 (claims and others)    Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 3-254065 (claims and others)    Patent Document 3: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 3-122968 (claims and p. 2 and 3 and others)    Patent Document 4: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 58-34414 (p. 1 and 2 and others)    Patent Document 5: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61-17424 (p. 3 and others)    Patent Document 6: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-231270 (claims and others)    Patent Document 7: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-273900 (claims and others)    Non-Patent Document 1: Thackeray, "Understanding MnO2 for lithium batteries" (material for the lecture at IBA Inuyama Meeting, Oct. 28 and 29, 1991), pp. 33, 35, 36

Positive electrode active substance for lithium cell


An SCBA backpack for air cylinders includes a chassis with a cradle receiving arrangement and a tank cradle for holding at least one air cylinder, wherein the tank cradle is removably secured to the chassis. Such an arrangement permits a variety of different tank cradles that may secure one or more cylinders but that are still compatible with a common backpack chassis.

Field of the Invention
The invention relates to self-contained breathing apparatus and, more particularly, to a coupling between the tank cradle and backpack for a self-contained breathing apparatus.
Description of Related Art
FIG. 1 illustrates an existing self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) 10 made up of a backpack 15 having a chassis 20 with an air cylinder 25 mounted thereto by way of a cradle 30. Straps 35 secure the backpack 15 to a user, while hoses 40 are connected to a face mask which provides air to a user. However, in different circumstances, it is desired to use a twin pack comprised of two air cylinders or a plurality of air cylinders, rather than a single cylinder. Currently, this requires the use of separate chassis and cradles and, therefore, each different configuration requires the use of an entirely different backpack. When multiple air cylinder configurations are needed, providing separate backpacks for each configuration may be inefficient.
Therefore, there is a need to provide a single backpack that can accommodate a number of different air cylinder configurations. There is a further need to provide such an arrangement in a configuration that is simple and easy to use.

Modular tank cradle and backpack for self-contained breathing apparatus


A steering wheel attachable table including a tray portion having a generally rectangular configuration. The tray portion has an upper surface, a lower surface, and an upwardly extending peripheral lip. The peripheral lip has a front edge, a back edge, and opposed side edges. The back edge of the peripheral tray has a track extending a length thereof. A pair of support arms extend between the tray portion and a steering wheel. A pair of clamping members are slidably coupled with the track of the tray portion for removably coupling with the steering wheel above the pair of support arms.

The present invention relates to a steering wheel attachable table and more particularly pertains to allowing a person occupying a vehicle to hold items in a secure manner.
The use of vehicle accessories is known in the prior art. More specifically, vehicle accessories heretofore devised and utilized for the purpose of enhancing the interior of a motor vehicle are known to consist basically of familiar, expected and obvious structural configurations, notwithstanding the myriad of designs encompassed by the crowded prior art which have been developed for the fulfillment of countless objectives and requirements.
By way of example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,749,161 to Falcone discloses an automobile steering wheel table comprised of centrally hinged panels fastened to the wheel with hooks. U.S. Pat. No. 5,749,305 to Jacovelli and U.S. Pat. No. 5,845,585 to Meeus disclose steering wheel attached tray assemblies.
While these devices fulfill their respective, particular objective and requirements, the aforementioned patents do not describe a steering wheel attachable table for allowing a person occupying a vehicle to hold items in a secure manner.
In this respect, the steering wheel attachable table according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in doing so provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of allowing a person occupying a vehicle to hold items in a secure manner.
Therefore, it can be appreciated that there exists a continuing need for a new and improved steering wheel attachable table which can be used for allowing a person occupying a vehicle to hold items in a secure manner. In this regard, the present invention substantially fulfills this need.
In the view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of vehicle accessories now present in the prior art, the present invention provides an improved steering wheel attachable table. As such, the general purpose of the present invention, which will be described subsequently in greater detail, is to provide a new and improved steering wheel attachable table which has all the advantages of the prior art and none of the disadvantages.
To attain this, the present invention essentially comprises a tray portion having a generally rectangular configuration. The tray portion has a central fold line. The tray portion has an upper surface, a lower surface, and an upwardly extending peripheral lip. The peripheral lip has a front edge, a back edge, and opposed side edges. The front edge of the peripheral lip and the tray portion have a pair of arcuate recesses extending inwardly thereof. The back edge of the peripheral tray has a track extending a length thereof. The upper surface of the tray portion has a cup receiving recess formed therein. A pair of support arms extend between the tray portion and a steering wheel. The pair of support arms have upper ends secured to the lower surface of the tray portion. The pair of arms have angularly disposed segments extending outwardly from the upper ends. The angularly disposed segments have free outer ends. The free outer ends each have a pliable clip disposed thereon. The pliable clips are engagable to a lower portion of the steering wheel. A pair of clamping members are slidably coupled with the track of the tray portion for removably coupling with the steering wheel above the pliable clips of the pair of support arms. The pair of clamping members each have opposed arms with free outer ends. The free outer arms receive the steering wheel therebetween. The free outer arms have corresponding locking means with a release button whereby pressing the release button will disengage the locking means allowing the removal of the clamping members from the steering wheel.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are, of course, additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.
As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved steering wheel attachable table which has all the advantages of the prior art vehicle accessories and none of the disadvantages.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved steering wheel attachable table which may be easily and efficiently manufactured and marketed.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a new and improved steering wheel attachable table which is of durable and reliable construction.
An even further object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved steering wheel attachable table which is susceptible of a low cost of manufacture with regard to both materials and labor, and which accordingly is then susceptible of low prices of sale to the consuming public, thereby making such a steering wheel attachable table economically available to the buying public.
Even still another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved steering wheel attachable table for allowing a person occupying a vehicle to hold items in a secure manner.
Lastly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved steering wheel attachable table including a tray portion having a generally rectangular configuration. The tray portion has an upper surface, a lower surface, and an upwardly extending peripheral lip. The peripheral lip has a front edge, a back edge, and opposed side edges. The back edge of the peripheral tray has a track extending a length thereof. A pair of support arms extend between the tray portion and a steering wheel. A pair of clamping members are slidably coupled with the track of the tray portion for removably coupling with the steering wheel above the pair of support arms.
These together with other objects of the invention, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the invention, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there are illustrated preferred embodiments of the invention.


A subscriber of a telecommunication system has a plurality of associated telecommunication devices which are each contactable via a device-shared identification address. A first device can communicate with a telecommunications network. A second device can communicate with a packet-switched network and a circuit-switched network. A control system receives an incoming telecommunication request associated with an incoming telecommunication request directed to the address, which has been routed to the control system based on the address. A first control phase is initiated where a first outgoing telecommunication request is transmitted over the telecommunications network to the first device and an operation is performed to at least attempt to transmit a second outgoing telecommunication request over the packet-switched network to the second device. If the operation is deemed to be unsuccessful, a second control phase is initiated where a third outgoing telecommunication request is transmitted over the circuit-switched network to the second device.

Telecommunication systems can transfer telecommunication data such as voice calls, video, music, multimedia, text messages, email messages, multimedia messages, facsimiles and/or data. Telecommunication systems transfer telecommunication data between terminals over a telecommunications network. A terminal is a device that can transmit and/or receive telecommunication data. A terminal may be a fixed-line device or a mobile device. Telecommunication data may be transmitted over a telecommunications network using circuit-switching technology or packet-switching technology.
A telephony device is a telecommunication terminal that is suitable for transmitting and receiving voice calls over a telephone network. The telephony device may be a fixed-line telephony device that has a fixed location and communicates over a fixed-line telephone network. The telephony device may be a mobile telephony device that is portable and communicates over a wireless telephone network. The telephony device may transmit and receive the voice call over a circuit-switched telephone network or a packet-switched telephone network.
A Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) device is an example of a telephony device that communicates over an Internet Protocol (IP) network, such as the internet. In addition to voice calls, a VoIP device may provide short messaging, video conferencing, facsimile, voice mail, multimedia messaging and/or email. Although a number of different signalling protocols are available, a telephony device communicating over a packet-switched network typically uses Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) as a signalling protocol.
Subscribers have long had to deal with a proliferation of terminals through which third parties may contact them. For example, a business user might have multiple telephony devices including a fixed-line telephone for use in the office and a mobile telephone for use at other locations. Each telephony device has associated advantages; whilst a mobile telephone provides the user with mobility, a fixed-line telephone typically provides less costly call services, no need to recharge a battery, and also better service in areas where there is poor signal strength such as inside a building.
To avoid confusing calling parties with telephone dialling numbers for each of the telephony devices of a subscriber, a one-telephone dialling number telephony service allows a subscriber to publish a single telephone dialling number on which they can be contacted. Thus, when the single telephone dialling number is called, all of the subscriber's telephony devices will ring, for example simultaneously. The subscriber is then able to answer the call at the telephony device of his choosing.
One known attempt to provide one-telephone dialling number telephony services requires each physical telephony device to be assigned a unique telephone number. Hence, when a subscriber's published telephone dialling number is called, the terminating telephony system providing the one-telephone dialling number service will ring each device by establishing separate call legs using each device's unique telephone number. This type of one-telephone dialling number service is commonly referred to as a "SimRing" service.
Another known attempt to provide one-telephone dialling number telephony services can be found where all the telephony devices communicate over a packet-switched network using SIP. Each SIP-compliant telephony device registers contact information, such as IP address, against a common 'address of record' which typically maps to the subscriber's telephone number. When the subscriber's number is called, the terminating telephony system sends (or 'forks') the call to each telephony device using standard procedures found in SIP.
A further known attempt to provide one-telephone dialling number telephony services can be found where each telephony device is supported by a different telecommunications network. In this case, the one-telephone dialling number service uses multiple mechanisms to direct the calls over the different networks. For example, the one-telephone dialling number service may use SIP procedures to fork a call to a SIP compliant telephony device over a packet-switched network and use SimRing procedures to establish a call leg to a mobile telephone over a conventional wireless circuit-switched network using the mobile telephone's unique telephone number.
Following recent developments, telecommunication devices can now be multi-network devices that are configured to communicate with different types of network. For example, the latest generation of mobile telephony devices can now communicate over a packet-switched network in addition to the traditional circuit-switched network. This is achieved by using a "soft client" (a software programme) to establish calls over the packet-switched network. The soft client typically establishes calls over a packet-switched network using SIP as the signalling protocol.
It may be preferable for telephony data to be transferred over the packet-switched network rather than the circuit-switched network. Hence, when the soft client registers against the subscriber's address of record, the subscriber's one-number service will transfer any calls to the mobile telephony device over the packet-switched network, as well as to any other telephony device the subscriber has registered.
However, there may be occasions when the soft client is unreachable (for example, when the mobile telephony device has left the coverage of the WiFi hot spot). Nevertheless, since the mobile telephony device is a multi-network device, the circuit-switch network is usually still available for the transmission of calls.
In principle, a SimRing service could be used simultaneously to ring the mobile telephony device via a circuit-switched network just in case the soft client is unreachable. However, a consequence of this is that whenever the soft client is reachable the mobile telephony device receives the same incoming call via two completely independent paths. This can cause a number of undesirable problems, particularly when the soft client is not tightly integrated with the circuit-switched software. For example:                a conflict can occur between the soft client and the circuit-switched software as they both try to alert the subscriber of an incoming call. Depending on the mobile telephony device, this could result in a confusing user experience, or perhaps one will always "win" (for example, the circuit-switched software may take precedence, denying the user the opportunity to answer the call over the packet-switched network).        differences in the signalling delay paths may mean that the call is received over one path several seconds before it is received over the other path. During this time, the user may have already answered or chosen to ignore the call (for example, by silencing the ringing). However, when the call arrives via the other path, the mobile telephony device starts ringing again.
An "unavailable call forwarding" service is known which could be used instead of the SimRing service—the unavailable call forwarding service could be set up to forward an incoming call to a mobile telephony device when the subscriber doesn't have any telephony devices which are currently reachable. However, the unavailable call forwarding service has limited application because it would fail to ring the mobile telephony device if the subscriber has any other reachable telephony devices registered to the service.
Embodiments of the present invention seek to address or overcome at least some of the above-mentioned problems associated with conventional telecommunication services.


A sealing shaft (23) with a conical male surface (48) is seated in a female conical valve seat (15). Sealing shaft (23) is attached to a pole piece (13) which, when energized by a solenoid coil (30), causes the sealing shaft to be pulled away from valve seat (15), resulting in release of fuel. A hollow ultrasonic horn actuator assembly (54), having a tapered part (11), includes a plurality of crystal actuators (14) to generate and amplify ultrasonic vibrations and to disperse and atomize the fuel as it passes through a narrow opening (45) in ultrasonic horn actuator assembly (54). Tapered part (11) and a compression member (12) are held together by a threaded stud (19). Horn actuator assembly (54) is centered about a sealing shaft (23) for flow of the fuel around the sealing shaft and inside the horn actuator assembly for release to an intake manifold of an engine through small opening (45).

This invention relates to fuel injection and injectors used in combustible engines. Fuel injectors may be defined as fuel supply devices which provide an intermittent supply of fuel to an intake manifold or cylinder of an engine. Conventional fuel injectors do not generate uniformly sized and distributed drops of fuel. The size and distribution of the fuel drops is significant to ensure complete mixing of air and fuel and, thereby to ensure efficient combustion in a cylinder of an engine. A nonuniform fuel to air mixture, as resulting from conventional fuel injection systems, induces reduced combustion efficiency and degradation of exhaust purification efficiency, both being factors in increasing fuel consumption and increased amounts of exhaust. This invention relates to devices which use ultrasound in dispersing fuel during injection in order to achieve a better dispersion of fuel and more even fuel air mix, resulting in greater efficiency and cleanliness of an engine.


A method of forming an integrated circuit with a semiconductor substrate is provided. A gate dielectric is formed on the semiconductor substrate, and a gate is formed on the gate dielectric. A metallic layer is formed on the semiconductor substrate, and the metallic layer is reacted with the semiconductor substrate to form an early phase of silicide. Implanted shallow source/drain junctions are formed immediately beneath the silicide. A final phase of the silicide is formed. An interlayer dielectric is deposited above the semiconductor substrate, and contacts are then formed to the silicide.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to semiconductor technology, and more specifically to siliciding and shallow junction formation in semiconductor devices.
2. Background Art
At the present time, electronic products are used in almost every aspect of life, and the heart of these electronic products is the integrated circuit. Integrated circuits are used in everything from airplanes and televisions to wristwatches.
Integrated circuits are made in and on silicon wafers by extremely complex systems that require the coordination of hundreds or even thousands of precisely controlled processes to produce a finished semiconductor wafer. Each finished semiconductor wafer has hundreds to tens of thousands of integrated circuits, each wafer worth hundreds or thousands of dollars.
Integrated circuits are made up of hundreds to millions of individual components. One common component is the semiconductor transistor. The most common and important semiconductor technology presently used is silicon-based, and the most preferred silicon-based semiconductor device is a Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor ("CMOS") transistor.
The principal elements of a CMOS transistor generally consist of a silicon substrate having shallow trench oxide isolation regions cordoning off transistor areas. The transistor areas contain polysilicon gates on silicon oxide gates, or gate oxides, over the silicon substrate. The silicon substrate on both sides of the polysilicon gate is slightly doped by ion implantation of boron or phosphorus impurity atoms into the surface of the silicon substrate, thereby becoming conductive. These lightly doped regions of the silicon substrate are referred to as "shallow source/drain junctions", which are separated by a channel region beneath the polysilicon gate.
A curved silicon oxide or silicon nitride spacer, referred to as a "sidewall spacer", on the sides of the polysilicon gate allows deposition of additional doping to form more heavily doped regions of the shallow source/drain ("S/D") junctions, which are called "deep S/D junctions". The shallow and deep S/D junctions together are collectively referred to as "S/D junctions".
To complete the transistor, a silicon oxide dielectric layer is deposited to cover the polysilicon gate, the curved spacer, and the silicon substrate. To provide electrical connections for the transistor, openings are etched in the silicon oxide dielectric layer to the polysilicon gate and the S/D junctions. The openings are filled with metal to form electrical contacts. To complete the integrated circuits, the contacts are connected to additional levels of wiring in additional levels of dielectric material to the outside of the dielectric material.
In operation, an input signal to the gate contact to the polysilicon gate controls the flow of electric current from one S/D contact through one S/D junction through the channel to the other S/D junction and to the other S/D contact.
As transistors have decreased in size, it has been found that the electrical resistance between the metal contacts and the silicon substrate or the polysilicon has increased to the level where it degrades the performance of the transistors. To lower the electrical resistance, a transition material is formed between the metal contacts and the silicon substrate or the polysilicon. The best transition materials have been found to be cobalt silicide (CoSi2), nickel silicide (NiSi2), platinum silicide (PtSi), and titanium silicide (TiSi2).
The silicides are formed by first applying a thin layer of the transition material (e.g., cobalt, nickel, platinum, or titanium) on the silicon substrate above the S/D junctions and the polysilicon gates. The semiconductor wafer is subjected to one or more annealing steps at temperatures above 700° C. and this causes the transition material to selectively react with the silicon and the polysilicon to form the metal silicide. The process is generally referred to as "siliciding". Since the shallow trench oxide and the sidewall spacers will not react to form an early phase of silicide, the silicides are aligned over the S/D junctions and the polysilicon gates so the process is also referred to as "self-aligned siliciding", or "saliciding".
Salicidation technology is vital for improving the operating speed of modern semiconductor devices with sub-micron feature sizes. The salicide technology is widely use to increase the packing density of integrated circuits and to reduce the circuit interconnect resistance for high-speed operation. With the continuous decrease in device sizes (transistors becoming narrower and thinner and transistor channels becoming shorter), product yields and reliability continue to suffer from salicidation problems like junction punchthrough, current leakage, and elevated contact resistance.
In general, salicidation of shallow S/D junctions can lead to high junction leakage due to silicide penetration through the junction into the silicon substrate beneath. The silicide forms "spikes" that punch through the junction to cause the current leakage.
Residual metal from the salicidation process can also cause leakage. The silicide across the sidewall spacers may not be totally removed after the salicidation. The residual metal can cause a bridge between adjacent circuit features, like the gate and the S/D regions, causing current leakage.
Nevertheless, as device dimensions continue to be scaled to smaller and smaller dimensions, it is necessary to scale down extension junction depths as well. Furthermore, shallow junctions are increasingly needed to control adverse charge-sharing effects (two dimensional short channel effects) in advanced devices such as metal oxide field effect transistors. Extended ultra-shallow S/D junctions can improve such negative effects, can suppress the short channel effect, and can improve device operating speeds.
However, existing shallow S/D junction fabrication technologies, such as ion implantation followed by rapid thermal annealing, have not succeeded in solving all the problems related to fabricating increasingly shallow S/D junctions.
Solutions to these problems have been long sought but prior developments have not taught or suggested any solutions and, thus, solutions to these problems have long eluded those skilled in the art.

Method of eliminating source/drain junction spiking, and device produced thereby


An apparatus having a memory cell, a ground control circuitry coupled to the memory cell to programmably control a voltage at a first ground, a first circuitry coupled to the memory cell to provide a first voltage to the memory cell during a first period, and a second circuitry coupled to the memory cell to provide a second voltage to memory cell during a second period, is described. In various embodiments, the first voltage is reference to the first ground; and the second voltage is referenced to a second ground which is different from the first ground.

1. Field of the Invention
This disclosure relates to integrated circuit design, and, more particularly to memory design.
2. Description of the Related Art
To obtain higher performance and increased integration levels in today's circuit designs, feature sizes are becoming ever smaller. These smaller feature sizes have lead to reduced gate oxide thickness and reduced threshold voltages. The reduced gate oxide thickness and reduced threshold voltages have resulted in increases in both gate leakage and sub-threshold leakage currents. This, in turn, has resulted in an increase in power consumption in circuits utilizing these smaller feature sizes.


An air conditioner has a heat source refrigerant circuit, utilization refrigerant circuits, a pressurizing circuit, and a cooler. The heat source refrigerant circuit is configured by an interconnection of a compression mechanism, a heat source heat exchanger, and a heat source expansion valve that reduces a pressure of refrigerant condensed in the heat source heat exchanger. The pressurizing circuit is disposed in the heat source refrigerant circuit and causes high-pressure gas refrigerant compressed in the compression mechanism to merge with a refrigerant having a pressure that is reduced in the heat source expansion valve. The refrigerant is sent to the utilization refrigerant circuits. The cooler cools the refrigerant having the pressure that is reduced in the heat source expansion valve.

Conventionally, there has been a refrigerating apparatus disposed with a vapor compression-type refrigerant circuit including a heat exchanger configured such that refrigerant flows in from below and flows out from above as an evaporator of the refrigerant (e.g., see Japanese Patent Application Publication No. S63-204074). In order to prevent refrigerating machine oil from accumulating inside the evaporator, the refrigerating apparatus is configured to extract, from the vicinity of the surface of the refrigerant, the refrigerating machine oil accumulating in a state where it floats on the surface of the refrigerant as a result of the refrigerating machine oil and the refrigerant separating into two layers because the specific gravity of the refrigerating machine oil is smaller than that of the refrigerant, and to return the refrigerating machine oil to the intake side of the compressor.
Further, as an example of a refrigerating apparatus disposed with a vapor compression-type refrigerant circuit, there is an air conditioner disposed with a vapor compression-type refrigerant circuit including: a heat source refrigerant circuit including plural heat source heat exchangers; and plural utilization refrigerant circuits connected to the heat source refrigerant circuit (e.g., see Japanese Patent Application Publication No. H03-260561). In this air conditioner, heat source expansion valves are disposed so that the flow rate of the refrigerant flowing into the heat source heat exchangers can be regulated. Additionally, in this air conditioner, when the heat source heat exchangers are caused to function as evaporators during a heating operation or during a simultaneous cooling and heating operation, for example, control is conducted to reduce the evaporating ability by reducing the openings of the heat source expansion valves as the overall air conditioning load of the plural utilization refrigerant circuits becomes smaller. Moreover, when the overall air conditioning load of the plural utilization refrigerant circuits becomes extremely small, control is conducted to reduce the evaporating ability by closing some of the plural heat source expansion valves to reduce the number of heat source heat exchangers functioning as evaporators or to reduce the evaporating ability by causing some of the plural heat source heat exchangers to function as condensers to offset the evaporating ability of the heat source heat exchangers functioning as evaporators.
Further, in the aforementioned air conditioner, when the heat source heat exchangers are caused to function as condensers during a cooling operation or during the simultaneous cooling and heating operation, control is conducted to reduce the condensing ability by increasing the amount of liquid refrigerant accumulating inside the heat source heat exchangers and reducing the substantial heat transfer area by reducing the openings of the heat source expansion valves connected to the heat source heat exchangers as the overall air conditioning load of the plural utilization refrigerant circuits becomes smaller. However, when control is conducted to reduce the openings of the heat source expansion valves, there is the problem that there is a tendency for the refrigerant pressure downstream of the heat source expansion valves (specifically, between the heat source expansion valves and the plural utilization refrigerant circuits) to drop and become unstable, and control to reduce the condensing ability of the heat source refrigerant circuit cannot be stably conducted. In order to counter this problem, control has been proposed to raise the refrigerant pressure downstream of the heat source expansion valves by disposing a pressurizing circuit that causes high-pressure gas refrigerant compressed by the compressor to merge with refrigerant whose pressure has been reduced in the heat source expansion valves and is sent to the utilization refrigerant circuits (e.g., see Japanese Patent Application Publication No. H03-129259).


Methods and apparatus for secure communications. The techniques feature receiving over the first connection a login credential for the server, generated by the server without the use of any information identifying a computer user. The techniques further feature establishing a second secure connection with the server using a secure protocol and the login credential provided by the server.

This invention relates to communications between computers on a network, and more particularly to the security and privacy of those communications.
With the rapid growth of the Internet, as well as the proliferation of portable notebook computers and other portable computing devices, such as personal digital assistants (PDAs), there is a great demand for Internet connectivity any time, at any place. One way in which users can connect to the Internet is over wireless access points, such as IEEE 802.11 hotspot networks. Although wireless access points can be installed anywhere there is a wired connection to the Internet, including in homes and offices, there are a growing number of wireless access points installed in public facilities, such as hotels, libraries, and coffeehouses. Notebook computers and other portable computing devices that contain the necessary hardware can connect to the Internet through one of these wireless access points.
One concern with the use of public wireless access points is the security and the privacy of the communications between the user and the wireless access point. These communications occur over radio waves, which means that anyone with appropriate equipment can receive these communications. A common solution is to encrypt the communications between the user and the wireless access point, so that even if a third party managed to receive the communications, the third party is unable to determine the content of the communications.
Traditional encryption schemes either require that both parties know a common encryption key, or the use of a certificate-based public/private key system. Although a shared encryption key is acceptable in a home or office environment, where the users of a wireless access point are known in advance, such a system is not secure when used in conjunction with publicly accessible wireless access points. Even if it is possible to supply the same encryption key to every potential user, the security of the encrypted communications is compromised, since multiple users have access to the encryption key and can decrypt the communications. On the other hand, a public/private key system requires every user be given a certificate, and it is computationally intensive to encrypt and decrypt large volumes of data.
Besides the concern of wireless communication between the user and the access point, another concern with the use of a public access point is the credibility of the access point's provider, i.e., whether the provider is trustworthy or not. For example, a malicious provider may install a "rogue" public access point and sniff user's packets at the access point. In this case, user's data privacy is compromised even if the wireless communication itself is secure.
To solve the above-mentioned problem, a user may connect to a virtual private network (VPN) server at a trusted organization, such as the user's corporate headquarter. All data communication to the VPN server is encrypted from the user to the VPN server, and therefore a malicious access point provider cannot overhear the content of the communication. In a traditional corporate VPN scenario, the user and the VPN server must know each other and have established a shared username and password in advance.

Secure login credentials for substantially anonymous users