Illustrative embodiments provide a computer implemented method for incremental storage de-allocation during a clean process within a point-in-time copy storage management system. The computer implemented method determines whether to perform the clean process and responsive to a determination to perform the clean process, determines whether a set of discrepant bits is present. Responsive to the determination that the set of discrepant bits is present, the computer implemented method copies each dirty grain for each discrepant bit in the set of discrepant bits to a downstream target to form a set of copied dirty grains and determines whether a particular dirty grain in the set of copied dirty grains has been allocated to a space efficient storage unit. Responsive to a determination that the particular dirty grain was allocated to a space efficient storage unit, the computer implemented method de-allocates the particular grain from an upstream source.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an improved data processing system and more specifically to a computer implemented method, a data processing system and a computer program product for space efficient de-allocation for cascade/multiple target cleaning.
2. Description of the Related Art
In cascade implementations of multiple target FlashCopy® devices, such as that available with the IBM® storage area network (SAN) volume controller, a write to the source disk for an area that has not yet been copied will result in the data being copied to just one of the target disks. For these implementations, a read I/O request submitted to a target disk may require FlashCopy to read data from the source disk, the target disk or another target disk in the cascade, depending on which source or target disks have previously been written to. For further details about cascaded Flash Copy implementations see the user publications for IBM SAN Volume Controller 4.2.0.
A disadvantage of the cascaded implementation over a traditional implementation is that it generates additional dependencies between the target disks. To be able to satisfy read requests from one target disk, a cascaded implementation may have to read data from another target disk in the cascade. Consequently, if a user wishes to stop and delete a Flash Copy mapping that is part of a cascade, it is first necessary to copy all the data that is required by other target disks in the cascade to another target disk. Within SAN volume control this process of copying data is called cleaning. While in this state, the target disk of the map being removed cannot be accessed to guarantee the cleaning operation completes. Only when the target is clean can a map be stopped and then deleted.
In a system where this implementation of multiple target FlashCopy is combined with space efficient disks or also known as, late allocation disks, the fact that this cleaning process must complete before the mapping can be deleted can create a problem. Consider the situation where there are many copies of a source disk and each of these copies is held on a space efficient target disk, for example, in a continuous data protection (CDP) system. As the number of copies increases, the system starts to run out of real storage to use for the space efficient disks. In order to free up storage, the system administrator may want to stop some of the less important copies and delete their target disks. Unfortunately, in order to stop these copies, the cleaning process has to complete. The copying of data may require even more real storage to be allocated. The system may reach a deadlock situation where the cleaning process requires more storage to be allocated, but there is not any storage to allocate until the cleaning process completes and the target disks are deleted.

Space efficient de-allocation for cascade/multiple target flash copy cleaning

International Business Machines Corporation


Polymer articles and processes of forming the same are described herein. The processes generally include providing an ethylene based polymer, blending the ethylene based polymer with a modifier to form modified polyethylene and forming the modified polyethylene into a polymer article, wherein the polymer article exhibits a haze that is at least about 10% less than a polymer article prepared with a similarly modified polyethylene.

Due, at least in part, to polypropylene's crystallization rate, propylene polymers have been nucleated in a variety of applications, such as injection molding, rotomolding, blown film and solid state stretching processes, for example, with demonstrated improvements in processing and the resulting article's properties. For example, solid state stretched articles formed with nucleated propylene polymers may exhibit increased tenacity, reduced shrinkage and increased transparency.
However, nucleated ethylene polymers have been difficult to stretch with solid state stretching process due, at least in part, to polyethylene's high initial crystal growth rate, which may result in the nucleated ethylene polymer's inability to maintain stretchability. Prior attempts to nucleate polyethylene have therefore been focused on the utilization of specific nucleators in combination with linear low density polyethylene. While success (as measured by increasing crystallization rates) has been achieved with linear low density polyethylene, the ability to nucleate other polyethylenes, such as medium and high density polyethylene have not been demonstrated.
Therefore, a need exists to develop polymers and processes exhibiting improved properties.

Articles formed from nucleated polyethylene


A converter device including a voltage converter and means for supplying different currents and/or voltages for at least two different loads, e.g. LEDs or LED groups, wherein the voltage converter provided is a primary converter with resonant circuit, which outputs a variable voltage at an output, said voltage encompassing voltages of from <0V to at least the highest voltage required in the converter device for current outputting, and wherein the means for supplying different currents and/or voltages are formed by at least two secondary converters having output storage units and switching means for the controlled connection of their output storage units to the output of the primary converter.

In engineering, there is often the situation of supplying a plurality of loads with electrical energy using adapted control electronics. In this case, lighting devices, in particular with LEDs (LED—light-emitting diode), are increasingly important, for example; lights of motor vehicles, in particular, are being implemented more and more frequently using LEDs, and in vehicle construction, in particular, there is then the problem that a plurality of different lights must be operated with different electrical characteristic variables, that is to say voltage or current, using the control electronics, in which case a further difficulty is that the voltage supply (on-board voltage) is generally not particularly stable. In addition, it should be borne in mind that different light functions are provided in a very tight space beside one another, for example in a vehicle headlight or in a tail light. It would therefore be desirable, also for reasons of space, for an individual space-saving electronic system to be sufficient.
As far as the implementation of lighting systems with LED lights is concerned, the voltage to be applied to an LED light is known to result from the current to be set; in addition to the brightness, the current also determines the light color; it goes without saying that the voltage also depends on whether there is one LED or whether a plurality of LEDs are connected in series. U1timately, the voltage here is therefore only the result of variables to be set.
It is conventional in practice to use a separate converter circuit for each light function, which circuit generates a stable current for the LEDs from the unstable supply network. However, this is complicated and expensive, and a relatively large amount of space is moreover also required, apart from the relatively high losses in such electronics. In this context, it is also already occasionally common practice to use a voltage converter to generate a central stable voltage from which the corresponding current is then generated for a plurality of LED lights. Only one conversion stage is provided here for a plurality of outputs, in which stage the current is then divided among a plurality of channels; control using a time offset is provided for this purpose, with the result that only one light can ever be switched on for a short period of time (in the microseconds range) or else considerable losses occur in the circuit. This known principle can be used only for low currents where the losses are small on account of the low current intensity.


The invention relates to a method for determining the absolute angular position of a steering wheel (3) of a vehicle, said method involving an initial-estimate step (a) during which a first value (Angle1) indicative of the absolute angular position of said steering wheel (3) is evaluated by a first model based on analyzing a first vehicle running dynamic parameter, such as the speed differential of the wheels of one wheelset, a second-estimate step (b) during which a second value (Angle2) indicative of the absolute angular position of said steering wheel is evaluated by a second model based on analyzing a second dynamic parameter, such as the yaw rate, followed by a checking step (c) during which the difference between the first value (Angle1) and the second value (Angle2) is compared against a predetermined consistency threshold (S) in order to decide, through suitable weighting, whether said values are to be considered or excluded.

This information of angular position of the steering wheel can indeed be necessary for the fulfillment of various embedded functions, such as the automatic return of the steering to the midpoint, the controlling of the indicators of change in direction or the controlling of orientation of directional lamps, the intelligent parking assistance, etc.
As such, it is known, from the patent application FR-2 953 181, filed by the applicant, to use an algorithm which allows to define the multi-revolution instantaneous absolute position of the steering wheel.
According to this algorithm, the relative angular position of said steering wheel is first of all measured, by means of a sensor of the "resolver" type placed on the shaft of the assist motor coupled to the steering column, then is added to this relative measurement, to obtain the absolute position of the steering wheel, a corrective offset value which is calculated as the weighted average of the successively observed differences, gradually with the iterations, between on the one hand the value of the relative angular position measured in the considered iteration, and on the other hand an estimation of the absolute angular position of the steering wheel, obtained indirectly by applying laws involving dynamic running parameters, such as the speed difference between the rear wheels, reported by the anti-lock braking system ABS, or even the instantaneous yaw rate, provided by the trajectory control system ESP.
To these differences are assigned, for calculating the eventually retained offset, weighting coefficients that can be interpreted as a confidence index as to the accuracy of the estimation of the absolute angular position, according to the running conditions and the origin of the parameter used for the calculation.
Such an algorithm, called "angle finding" algorithm, presents undeniable advantages, particularly in that it allows to avoid the presence of an additional sensor that would be intended to directly measure the multi-revolution absolute angular position of the steering wheel, or even the need to make the vehicle run in a sustainable manner under particular conditions, and particularly in a straight line, to allow the initialization of the process of determining said absolute angular position.
However, the accuracy of said algorithm can sometimes, especially in extreme cases, deteriorate due to the fact that one or the other of the used dynamic models have reached their limits of validity.

Method for determining the absolute angular position of the steering wheel of a motor vehicle


The transfer controller with hub and ports (TCHP) performs the task of communication throughout an entire system in a centralized function. A single hub (435) tied to multiple ports (440, 447, 450, 452) by a central pipeline is the medium for all data communications among DSP clusters (455), external devices, and external memory. A transfer request queue manager (420) receives, prioritizes and queues data transfer requests. Each data port includes an identically configured interior interface (901) connected to the hub (435) and an exterior interface (902) configured for a target external memory/device connected to the port. The interior interfaces of all ports are clocked at a common internal frequency, while the exterior interfaces are clocked at the frequency of the external memory/device connected to the port.

This application claims priority under 35 USC xc2xa7119 of British Application Number 99 09196.9, filed Apr. 21, 1999, in the United Kingdom Patent Office.
1. Field of the Invention
General purpose multiprocessors, with a few exceptions, generally fall in a class of architectures which have been classified as xe2x80x98multiple instruction stream, multiple data stream processorsxe2x80x99, sometimes labeled MIMD multiprocessors. This classification can be further divided into two sub-classes. These are:
(1) centralized shared memory architectures illustrated in FIG. 1 and
(2) distributed memory architectures illustrated in FIG. 2.
In FIG. 1, the shared main memory functional block 100 may be accessed by any one of the four processors 101, 102, 103, 104 shown. The external memory interface block 105 includes several possible sub-blocks among which are DRAM controller, SRAM controller, SDRAM controller, external disc memory interface, external ROM interface, RAMBus, or synchronous link DRAM interface and all other external memory devices.
The XDMA (external direct memory access) interface 106 is the interface to fully autonomous external devices. The external I/O interface 107 includes all other external interface: fast serial I/O port controller, parallel I/O interface, PCI bus controller, and DMA (direct memory access interface) controller are examples.
In FIG. 2 in distributed memory multi-processor machine, the main memory is distributed among processor nodes 201, 202, 203, 204, 205, 206, and 207 as shown and all external memory interfaces are accomplished through the interconnection network 210. External direct memory access is centralized at the XDMA port 208 which includes the XDMA control and I/O interface functions. Direct memory access (DMA) is distributed at each processor I/O Node or could be centralized as shown in the DMA functional block 209.
Interchange of data in FIG. 2, from one processor node to another and from any processor node to external devices and memory is exceedingly complex and collisions caused by conflicting data transfer requests are frequent.
Systems having perhaps two to four processors might be of either the centralized shared memory type or the distributed memory type, but as the required processor count increases, the advantages of a distributed memory architecture become prominent. This is because a centralized shared memory 100 cannot support the bandwidth requirements of the larger number of processors.
The complexity of the interconnection network required in a distributed memory multiprocessor is one of elements of the cost of surmounting the bandwidth limitations of the shared memory system. Other elements of cost are addressing complexity and additional coherency and protocol requirements. The disadvantage of a distributed memory system is that this complex interconnection network has a formidable task, the communication of data between each and any pair of processors, which results in higher latency than the single, shared memory processor architecture.
Conventional digital signal processors (DSP) having a single processor typically include direct memory access, a method of memory access not requiring CPU activity, and conventionally this is accomplished by a xe2x80x98DMAxe2x80x99 functional block, which includes an I/O device and a controller function. This functional feature allows interface of external devices with CPU, internal memory, external memory, and other portions of the chip.
Direct memory access is usually the term used for external device interface, but external DRAM memory could be considered as simply another external device which has more demanding throughput requirements and would operate at a somewhat higher frequency than the typical frequency of a simple I/O device. The DMA interface is the communication link which relieves the central processing unit (CPU) from servicing these external devices on its own, preventing with loss of many CPU cycles which would be consumed in a direct CPU-external device interface.
Digital signal processing (DSP) differs significantly from general purpose (GP) processing performed by micro-controllers and microprocessors. One key difference is the typical strict requirement for real time data processing. For example, in a modem application, it is absolutely required that every sample be processed. Even losing a single data point might cause a DSP application to fail. While processing data samples may still take on the model of tasking and block processing common to general purpose processing, the actual data movement within a DSP system must adhere to the strict real-time requirements of the system.
As a consequence, DSP systems are highly reliant on an integrated and efficient DMA (direct memory access) engine. The DMA controller is responsible for processing transfer requests from peripherals and the DSP itself in real time. All data movement by the DMA must be capable of occurring without central processing unit (CPU) intervention in order to meet the real time requirements of the system. That is, because the CPU may operate in a software tasking model where scheduling of a task is not as tightly controlled as the data streams that the tasks operate on, the DMA engine must sustain the burden of meeting all real time data stream requirements in the system.
There are several approaches that may be taken to meet these requirements. The following is a brief summary of the conventional implementations of DMA engines, and their evolution into the unique I/O solution provided by the present invention, the transfer controller with hub and ports (TCHP) architecture.
2. Description of the Related Art
The conventional DMA engine consists of a simple set of address generators which can perform reads and writes of some, or perhaps all, addresses within a DSP system. The address generation logic is normally implemented as a simple counter mechanism, with a reload capability from a set of DSP memory-mapped registers. A typical use of a DMA controller is for the DSP to load the counters with a starting address and a count, representing the amount of data to transfer. The DSP must supply both the source and destination addresses for the transfer. Once this information has been loaded into the counters, the DSP can start the DMA via a memory mapped register write. The DMA engine then begins performing read and write accesses to move the requested data without further DSP intervention. The DSP is free to begin performing other tasks.
As the DMA performs read and writes to the source and destination locations, the addresses are incremented in each counter while the count is decremented. Once the count reaches zero, the transfer is complete and the DMA terminates. Most DMAs include a mechanism of signaling this xe2x80x98donexe2x80x99 state back to the CPU via a status bit or interrupt. In general the interrupt method is preferred because it does not require a polling loop on the DSP to determine the completion status.
The simplest DMAs provide for basic single dimensional linear transfers. More advanced DMA engines may provide multi-dimensionality, indexed addressing, and reverse and fixed addressing modes.
As DSP cores have reached higher and higher performance, applications have opened up which can utilize the increased processing capability. Along with this however, has come the need for higher speed, and higher complexity DMA engines. For example, if a previous generation DSP only had enough processing power for a single audio channel, a single DMA engine might be sufficient. However, when a new DSP architecture is introduced with ten times this performance, now multiple channels of audio could be processed. However, the DSP processing alone is not sufficient to provide the additional channel capacity. The DMA must also be enhanced to provide the data movement functions required for the multiple channels.
There are several features which are becoming increasingly common to DMAs which have attempted to address the issue of providing higher performance. The first is the inclusion of more DMA channels. A single DMA channel basically consists of all the hardware required to process a single direct memory access, and will generally include at least a source and destination address register/counter, a byte count register/counter, and the associated control logic to allow it to perform basic read and write operations.
Depending on the addressing modes which the DMA support additional logic may also be required. In a multi-channel DMA, the logic for a single channel is generally just replicated multiple times to provide increased channel capability. In addition to the multiple instantiations of the channels, a multi-channel DMA must also include some arbitration logic to provide time division access by all the channels to the memory/peripherals which the channels can address.
Conventional DMAs include anywhere from 2 to 16 channels. The advantage of additional channels is that each channel can contain parameters for a specific type of transfer. The DSP sets up each channel in advance, and does not have to reload the DMA registers each time a new transfer has to be done, the way it would have to if only a single channel existed.
A second enhancement to conventional DMA engines is the ability for peripherals to start DMAs autonomously. This function is generally provided in a manner analogous to a DSP interrupt. The DSP is still responsible for setting up the DMA parameters initially, however, the channel performs the reads and writes at the request of a peripheral rather than requiring the DSP to start it off. This is particularly advantageous in systems where there are a large number of data streams to process, and it would not be efficient to have the DSP task switching from one stream to the next all the time. This is also a significant advantage when the data streams may be of significantly different types and speeds. Because each DMA channel can be programmed independently, the parameters for each transfer type can be adjusted accordingly.
The final optimization to be noted here, which highly sophisticated conventional DMA controllers can include, is the option of dynamic reloading. This process allows a DMA channel to reload its own parameters from a set of registers without requiring CPU intervention. In some systems, the reload can even occur directly from memory, which can create a highly powerful DMA mechanisms due to the expanded storage capacity. Because the reload values may be set up by the DSP, many complicated DMAs may be effectively linked to one another. That is, the completion of one DMA parameter set forces the reload of another set, which may be of a completely different type than the first.
Through intelligent setup of the parameters, the DMAs can perform many complex functions not directly supported by the DMA hardware. Dynamic reload is once again very important in systems where many data streams are handled via the DMA, as it removes the requirement from the DSP to reload each of the DMA channels.
While DMAs are a powerful tool in a DSP system, they also have their limitations. The fundamental limitation of a conventional DMA engine is that adding additional channel capacity requires additional hardware (in general, a replication of a complete channel). Some optimizations can be made in this area, such as sharing registers between multiple channels, but in general, the following rule holds: N-channels costs N times as much as a single channel.
This basic principle led to the initial development of the Transfer Controller (TC). The TC is a unique mechanism which consolidates the functions of a DMA and other data movement engines in a DSP system (for example, cache controllers) into a single module.
Consolidation of such functions has. both advantages and disadvantages. The most important advantage of consolidation is that it will, in general, save hardware since multiple instantiations of the same type of address generation hardware will not have to be implemented.
On a higher level, it is also advantageous to consolidate address generation since it inherently makes the design simpler to modify from a memory-map point of view. For example, if a peripheral is added or removed from the system, a consolidated module will be the only portion of the design to change. In a distributed address system (multi-channel DMA for example), all instances of the DMA channels would change, as would the DSP memory controllers.
Fundamental disadvantages of the consolidated model are its inherent bottlenecking and challenge to higher clock rates. Additionally, there is in general an added complexity associated with moving to a consolidated address model, just because the single module is larger than any of the individual parts it replaces.
TMS320C80/TMS320C82 Transfer Controller
The first transfer controller (TC) module was developed for the TMS32OC80 DSP from Texas Instruments. This TC is the subject of the following U.S. Pat. No. 5,560,030 entitled xe2x80x98Transfer Processor with Transparencyxe2x80x99 dated Sep. 24, 1996. This TC consolidated the DMA function of a conventional controller along with the address generation logic required for servicing cache and long distance transfers (this function is referred to as direct external access) from four DSPs and a single RISC (reduced instruction set computer) processor.
The TMS320C80 TC architecture is fundamentally different from a DMA in that only a single set of address generation and parameter registers is required, rather than multiple sets for multiple channels. The single set of registers, however, can be utilized by all DMA requesters. DMA requests were posted to the TC via set of encoded inputs at the periphery of the device. Additionally, each of the DSPs can submit DMA requests to the TC. The external encoded inputs which are xe2x80x98externally initiated packet transfersxe2x80x99 are referred to as XPTs, while the DSP initiated transfers are referred to as xe2x80x98packet transfersxe2x80x99 PTs. The reduced instruction set computer (RISC) processor could also submit PT requests to the TC.
When a PT (or XPT) request is made to the TC, it is prioritized according to a fixed scheme. XPTs are the highest, since they most often require immediate servicing. Nevertheless, PT service involved the TC reading a fixed location in internal memory to determine the point at which to access the parameters for the transfer. This location is termed the xe2x80x98linked list start addressxe2x80x99. Transfer parameters include the basic source and destination addresses, along with byte counts as in a conventional DMA.
However, the TMS320C80 TC was significantly advanced in that it included support for many more transfer modes. These modes totalled over 130 in all, and comprehended up to three dimensions. Options included such features as lookup table transfers, offset guided transfers, walking through memory in an indexed fashion, and reverse mode addressing.
Further enhancements such as parameter swapping between source and destination allowed a single set of parameters to be used for data capture, and then return to the location from which it was originally fetched, a feature found very useful in DSP processing routines. The TMS320C80 TC PT""s also supported an infinite amount of linking such that software linked lists of PTs could be generated up to the available memory in the system.
The TMS320C80 TC additionally provided the main memory interface for the device. A single 64-bit datapath external interface was provided, which could talk to SDRAM, DRAM, VRAM, SRAM, and ROM devices. Programmable refresh control for dynamic memory was also provided by the TC. The external interface provided dynamic page and bus sizing, and single cycle throughput. At 60 MHz, up to 480 MB/s burst transfer rates were achievable. In real applications, a sustainable rate of  less than 420 MB/s was possible.
On the internal side of the TMS320C80 TC, access to the multiple DSP node memories was provided via a large crossbar, which included a 64-bit datapath to all on chip memories. Crossbar access was arbitrated in a round-robin fashion between the DSPs, RISC processor, and TC on a cycle-by-cycle basis. All totaled, the internal memory port could support up to 2.9 GB/s of bandwidth.
Because the TMS32OC80 TC included only a single set of PT processing registers, all PTs had to use them. Once a PT had begun, future requests were blocked until that PT was complete. To deal with this xe2x80x98in-order blockingxe2x80x99 issue, the TC instituted a mechanism known as suspension, where an active PT could be stopped in favor of something of higher priority, and then automatically restarted once the higher priority transfer completed. Because the TC relied on a memory mapped set of xe2x80x98link list pointersxe2x80x99 to manage all PT requests, it was simple for the TC to suspend a transfer by copying the parameters in the TC registers back to that referenced address to perform the suspension. This ability to reuse a single set of registers for all transfers in the system was the single most important difference between the TC and a traditional DMA.
The TMS320C80 TC, despite being very flexible, has a number of deficiencies. The key issue with the architecture are that it was very complex. Over the history of the TMS320C80 TC, the external memory interface changed in four of the five major device revisions. Because the TMS320C80 TC also provided the external memory interface, it was altered significantly from one revision to the next. This inherently opened up new and unknown timing windows with each revision, resulting in a large number of device errata. The internal crossbar was also a key limit to speed.
A final key issue with the TMS320C80 TC was the support of suspension of transfers. This mechanism allowed transfers which were in progress to be halted, their parameters written back to memory, and a new transfer started automatically. While an excellent programming and use model, the process of copying back and rereading parameters was problematic. Many timing windows existed during which transfers needed to be locked out, a virtual impossibility in a real time data streaming system.
The transfer controller with hub and ports TCHP of this invention is an interconnection network which assumes the task of communication throughout the processor system and its peripherals in a centralized function. Within the TCHP, a system of one hub and multiple ports tied together by a common central pipeline is the medium for all data communications among DSP processor nodes, external devices, and external memory. This includes communication between two or more DSP nodes as the DSP node does not have direct access to the memory of each other DSP node.
FIG. 3 illustrates the basic principal features of the TCHP. The TCHP is basically a data transfer controller which has at its front end portion, a request queue controller 300 receiving, prioritizing, and dispatching data in the form of transfer request packets. The request queue controller 300 connects within the hub unit 310 to the channel registers 320 which receive the data transfer request packets and processes them first by prioritizing them and assigning them to one of the N channels each of which represent a priority level. These channel registers interface with the source 330 and destination 340 pipelines which effectively are address calculation units for source (read) and destination (write) operations.
Outputs from these pipelines are broadcast to M Ports (six shown in FIG. 3 as 350 through 355) which are clocked either at the main processor clock frequency or at a lower external device clock frequency. Read data from one port, e.g. port 350, having a destination write address of port 353 is returned to the hub destination control pipeline through the data router unit 360.
The TCHP can be viewed as a communication hub between the various locations of a global memory map. In some systems having multiple DSP processor nodes, each such node has direct access only to its locally allocated memory map. In the system of this invention, any access outside of a DSPs local space is accomplished exclusively by a TCHP directed data transfer.
The various types of data transfers supported by the TCHP are:
1. Direct Memory Access (DMA):
Data Transfer explicitly initiated by a program instruction being executed from a DSP processor node.
2. External Direct Memory Access (XDMA):
Data Transfer explicitly initiated by an autonomous external device.
3. Long Distance Transfer:
Load/Store operations outside of a DSPs local memory space.
4. Data Cache (DC) Transfer:
Data cache miss-fill/writeback request from a DSP processor node.
5. Program Cache (PC) Transfer:
Program cache miss-fill request from a DSP processor node.
In summary, the TCHP of this invention is a highly parallel and highly pipelined memory transaction processor, which serves as a backplane to which many peripheral and/or memory ports may be attached. The TCHP provides many features above and beyond existing DMA and XDMA controllers, including support for multiple concurrent accesses, cycle-by cycle arbitration for low turnaround, and separate clocking of all ports asynchronous to the main processor clock.

Transfer controller with hub and ports architecture


A method for joining dissimilar materials of sensor button for measuring torque is illustrated. The dissimilar materials can be welded together by laser welding. The parts can be cleaned and held together firmly by a fixture and welded with established machine parameters. The method of micro-crack free weld joint can give a robust joint for the life time of the automotive which mandate for the function of torque sensor to facilitate the positive strain transfer from the parent material.

Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) Torque Sensing is an emerging technology for automotive, transportation, rail and other similar industries as used in power train to measure the actual torque on board. Significant research and development efforts enhanced mass-production of SAW torque sensors at a cost-effective price. Certain engine, transmission and driveline can often be controlled more precisely using SAW torque technology. Used in appropriate applications, complex control algorithm and system development, test, evaluation and qualification time can often be significantly reduced with real-time torque sensor measurement that can provide feedback for closed-loop control.
The SAW device consists of two piezoelectric elements which sense the strain in the parent material when the torque is applied. Depending upon the torque applied the parent material surface gets strain in the range of 500 to 2000 microstrain. To measure the accurate strain from the parent material, the sensor button needs to have 100% surface contact with the parent material for effective strain transfer. Apart from this functional requirement, the joining should withstand the automotive harsh and corrosive environment and also the centrifugal force created during the high revolutions per minute (RPM) of the parent part. Adhesives used are failing under dynamic conditions and in salt spray test. Similarly, the assembly cycle time is high increasing the product cost, and the adhesive process is not suitable for high volume production because of the difficulty in automation and time consuming curing process.
Many applications are dependent on dissimilar material joints. Due to the different chemical, mechanical and thermal behaviors of materials, dissimilar materials joining present challenges significantly different than similar materials joining. These methods can work for varying applications. The existing solution uses a custom developed adhesive used mainly for metal to metal attachment for aerospace application such as cynoacrylate based adhesives. The adhesive comes with two solutions and needs to be mixed in a proper ratio as defined by the manufacturer and then applied in drops using a dispensing machine
Such adhesive needs to be cured at high temperature for longer durations, for example the cynoacrylate based adhesive and the assembly needs to be cured in the thermal chamber for about 20 hours at 170 degree C. Before placing it onto the chamber the surfaces of the shaft and button need to be cleaned without any dirt and grease by neutralizer and conditioner. Apart from this the parent material on to which the SAW sensor housing need be mounted such as Flexplate, output shaft, input shaft of transmission system are quite heavy and this needs to be placed in the thermal chamber for curing. This calls for big thermal chambers and storage space resulting high investment. Also the flatness of the parts is very critical to achieve the better contact surface. The other requirement for using dissimilar material for SAW torque application is, to have maximum strain transfer, high yield strength and low hysteresis.
Based on the foregoing it is believed that a need exists for improved joining method by welding of dissimilar materials using laser welding. By using such a methodology, micro-crack free weld joint can provide a robust joint system for the lifetime of any automobile.

Button attachment method for saw torque sensor


A vehicle control apparatus is disclosed, which includes an actuator that is provided on a vehicle and performs a door closing operation of the vehicle; a reservation part; a storage part that stores reservation information; a portable terminal; a communication apparatus that is provided on a vehicle to bi-directionally communicate with the portable terminal; and a controller that causes, when the reservation information is stored in the storage part, the actuator to start the door closing operation when a distance between the communication apparatus and the portable terminal is within a first predetermined range, and causes, during the door closing operation of the door, the actuator to stop the door closing operation when the distance is within a second predetermined range that is adjacent to the first predetermined range.

A configuration is known from Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2012-102585 (referred to as "Patent Document 1" hereinafter) in which a portable machine of a keyless entry system for a vehicle includes: a drive reservation setting part for setting drive reservation for shifting a door of a vehicle to a closed state or an open state by an operation by a user; a delay time generation part for generating predetermined delay time with the point of time of setting the drive reservation as a reference on the basis of the set drive reservation, and a transmission control part that executes control so as to transmit a control signal for shifting the door of the vehicle to the closed state from a transmission part only for a predetermined transmission period after the lapse of the delay time after the drive reservation is set.
In a configuration disclosed in Patent Document 1, shifting the door of the vehicle to the closed state is not performed prior to the lapse of the delay time, even if a user who finishes picking up baggage through the door of the vehicle and thus desires the door of the vehicle to be shifted in closed state prior to the lapse of the delay time. Further, because the door of the vehicle is shifted to the closed state after the lapse of the delay time, the user has to finish picking up the baggage through the door of the vehicle prior to the lapse of the delay time.
Regarding this problem, there may be such a solution, in terms of increasing convenience, that a closing operation of the door by an actuator is started, if reservation information is stored, upon a distance between a portable terminal and the vehicle being greater than or equal to a predetermined distance. According to the solution, the problems that occur in the configuration disclosed in Patent Document 1 can be solved, because the closing operation of the door can be started based on the reservation information upon the distance between the portable terminal and the vehicle being within an appropriate range.
However, according to the solution, once the closing operation of the door is started based on the reservation information, the closing operation of the door is continued afterward regardless of a change in the portable terminal and the vehicle, which leads to the following problems. For example, if the user comes closer to the door that is being closed after the closing operation of the door is started based on the reservation information, there is a probability that the user has an intention to stop the closing operation of the door in progress. In such a case, continuing the closing operation of the door may be against the user's intention. Alternatively, if the user goes away from the door that is being closed after the closing operation of the door is started based on the reservation information, there is a probability that the user does not confirm that the closing operation is completed safely.
Therefore, an object of the disclosure is to provide a vehicle control apparatus that can appropriately stop a closing operation of a door of a vehicle according to a distance between a communication apparatus and a portable terminal.


A bat swing training device for enabling the diagnosis and correction of an individual batter's swing. The training device includes a conventional bat modified to receive a training aid at its distal. The training aid provides a snapping sound if an individual swings the bat at greater than a predetermined speed such that inertial forces overcome magnetic forces acting on a paramagnetic slider and the slider accelerates from a first stop to a second stop producing a snap. The position of the batter's hands at the time of the snap indicates whether the batter's swing is correct.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to instructional devices for improving an individual's bat swing and more particularly to an instructional device that enables an individual to achieve a proper bat swing for improved hitting.
2. Description of Related Art
The prior art is replete with diverse apparatus for improving the quality of an individual's bat swing. Examples are shown in the following United States Letters Patent:
4,274,631(1981)Hayazaki6,050,908(2000)Muhlhausen6,565,462(2003)Gregg6,569,042(2003)LaChance et al.6,949,036(2005)Ciesar et al.7,147,580(2006)Nutter et al.7,297,077(2007)Battaglino7,993,219(2011)Whitney et al.8,118,693(2012)Tande8,187,124(2012)Ciesar et al.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,274,631 discloses a baseball practice bat that emits a hitting sound upon swinging. The practice bat includes a hollow interior or cavity. A pipe in the cavity extends for essentially the entire length of the bat. Guide slits, formed along the length of the pipe, receive a supporting pin attached to a weight that slides along the pipe. A spring extends inside the pipe from the supporting pin to the handle end of the bat. The handle end may attach to an adjustment mechanism for varying the spring's tension.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,050,908 and 6,949,036 and 7,147,580 and 7,297,077 disclose bat simulators used for training. In addition, U.S. Pat. No. 7,147,580 includes a sliding mass that apparently changes the dynamics of the bat but produces no audible sound. None of these references discloses a training aid that has the look and feel of a conventional baseball bat. U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,050,908 and 6,565,462 require that a ball be thrown to the person using the training device. U.S. Pat. No. 6,569,042 provides speed information, but not all the information necessary to provide proper swing information.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,993,219 to Whitney et al. discloses a bat swing training device that enables the diagnosis and correction of an individual batter's swing. The training device includes a conventional bat modified to receive a training aid at its distal end with either an exposed extended assembly or an embedded assembly. The training aid provides a snapping sound as an individual swings a bat at greater than a predetermined speed. The position of the batter's hands at the time of the snap indicates whether the batter's swing is correct. A restraining structure includes a cartridge and a finger that can release a ring from a cocked position. After a swing, the batter manually displaces the cartridge so that a ring can be returned to its cocked position. It has been found that during practice a batter prefers to make repetitive swings without any further adjustments. However, this bat swing training device requires the batter to manually reset the device by displacing an exposed structure at the end of the bat prior to assuming a batting stance.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,118,693 to Tande and U.S. Pat. No. 8,187,124 to Ciesar et al. disclose practice bats with similar structures. In Tande the practice bat includes an elongated shaft with a free sliding region and first and second damping regions. When the practice bat is swung, a slider and a damper slide to the end of the bat where the slider impacts the damper to indicate swing quality. Ciesar discloses a shaft with first and second handles. The first handle accommodates both of the hitter's hands; the second handle accommodates all the fingers on a hand. During a swing the batter simultaneously moves the second handle to a stop position. Neither practice bat has the structure, appearance and look and feel of a conventional baseball bat.
What is needed is a bat swing training device that has the look, feel and weight of a batter's conventional bat and that eliminates the need for any batter action between practice swings to reset the training device.


The clamp circuit of the present invention comprises a low voltage, thin oxide MOS transistor and a trigger element comprising a timing element and at least one inverter. The source and drain of the MOS transistor are connected between a first node and a second node. The timing element comprises a capacitive element and a resistive element connected between the first and second nodes. The inverter is connected between a third node between the capacitive element and the resistive element and the gate of the MOS transistor. Advantageously, one or both of the capacitive element and the resistive element is also implemented in low voltage, thin oxide MOS transistors.

A grounded gate NMOS transistor 10 shown in FIG. 1 is commonly used as a power supply electrostatic discharge (ESD) clamp. NMOS transistor 10 comprises a gate 20, a source 30, and a drain 40. Gate 20 and source 30 are coupled together and connected to ground, Vss. Drain 40 is normally connected to a power supply voltage, Vcc. This device provides ESD protection by switching to the low-impedance "snapback" regime when a large enough voltage appears between Vcc and Vss to cause the drain junction to break down.
The NMOS device is usually implemented as a multi-finger transistor. FIG. 2 shows a layout style used with a self-aligned silicide (salicide) process to provide acceptable ESD performance. The layout of FIG. 2 comprises a gate 120, source diffusions 130, source leads 135, drain diffusions 140, and drain leads 145. Following known practice, the source and drain diffusions 130, 140 are clad in a metal silicide (not shown) to reduce the contact resistance. See, e.g., A. Amerasekera and C. Duvvury, ESD in Silicon Integrated Circuits, pp. 300–304 (Wiley, 2d ed. 2002). The source leads 135 are connected to the source diffusions by contacts 137; and the drain leads 145 are connected to the drain diffusions 140 by contacts 147. A guard ring 160 surrounds the NMOS transistor and is connected to ground, Vss, by leads 165 and contacts 167.
In the example of FIG. 2, gate 120 comprises four polysilicon fingers, but in general the number of fingers may be varied to meet the total transistor width required to achieve the ESD goals. For a grounded gate NMOS ESD power clamp, the gate fingers are connected to Vss directly or through a resistor. The NMOS layout uses a silicide block mask to produce an unsilicided diffusion region between the source/drain contacts and the gate. The unsilicided region has higher resistance than the silicide and acts as a ballast resistance to produce uniform current flow through all legs of the transistor. A large spacing between the source/drain contacts 137, 147 and gate 120 is required to achieve a large enough resistance to provide acceptable ESD performance. This large spacing, however, leads to a large layout area for this structure. Without the ballast resistance, the current during an ESD event tends to flow through only one or a small number of fingers leading to low failure voltage See, A. Amerasekera and C. Duvvury, ESD in Silicon Integrated Circuits, pp. 96, 283. (Wiley, 2d ed. 2002). The ballast resistance can also be implemented using a back-end ballast approach as described in K. G. Verhaege and C. C. Russ, "Wafer Cost Reduction Through Design of High Performance Fully Silicided ESD Devices," in Proc. EOS/ESD Symp., pp. 18–28 (2000) which leads to a more area efficient layout.
A known alternative to the grounded gate NMOS device which avoids the drain junction breakdown and snapback mode of operation is shown in FIG. 3. In this alternative, circuit 300 comprises an NMOS transistor 310 having a gate 320, a source 330 and a drain 340, a timing circuit 370 comprising a capacitor 372 and a resistor 374 connected in series at a node 376 and one or more series connected inverters 380 connected between node 376 and gate 320. Timing circuit 370 and inverters 380 constitute a trigger circuit for NMOS transistor 310. The number of inverters 380 and the position of capacitor 372 and resistor 374 are chosen so that the voltage at the output of the inverters causes transistor 310 to be off during normal operation. Thus, where transistor 310 is an NMOS transistor and the number of inverters is odd as shown in FIG. 3, source 330 and the other end of capacitor 372 are connected to ground, Vss, and drain 340 and the other end of the resistor 374 are connected to Vcc. For an even number of inverters 380, the positions of capacitor 372 and resistor 374 are exchanged so that the capacitor is connected to Vcc and the resistor to ground. See, R. Merrill and E. Issaq, "ESD Design Methodology," in Proc. EOS/ESD Symp., pp. 233–277 (1993); A. Amerasekera and D. Duvvury, ESD in Silicon Integrated Circuits, p. 178 (Wiley, 2d ed. 2002).
The NMOS transistor 310 is wide enough to handle the ESD current in the normal mode of operation with Vd=Vg. Gate 320 is held at 0V during normal operation, and is driven to Vcc when a fast ramp is detected on Vcc. The NMOS transistor does not need to use any special layout since it is operating in the normal mode. However, the width of the gate needs to be much larger than the width for a grounded gate NMOS clamp to allow the transistor to operate in the normal mode. For example, W/L=8000/0.8 for a 0.8 um technology.
The problems with the grounded gate NMOS ESD power clamp such as that shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 are:                a) The large space between the source and drain contacts and the gate results in a large structure area for the silicide block layout approach.        b) It is difficult to guarantee that the ESD power clamp will turn on before other devices connected between Vcc and Vss are damaged.        c) The above problem is exacerbated when the capacitance between Vcc and Vss is small. This leads to a very fast ramp rate of the voltage between Vcc and Vss during an ESD event.
The problems with the non-breakdown alternative shown in FIG. 3 are:                a) The width of the NMOS device must be very large to keep the transistor away from the snapback region.        b) The trigger circuit must be tuned to work for a relatively narrow range of ESD voltage ramp rates on the Vcc bus. Since the ESD voltage ramp rate is dependent on the total capacitance between Vcc and Vss, it may not be possible to guarantee that the structure will work for any possible capacitance.        c) For a large enough capacitance between Vcc and Vss, the ramp rate of the voltage on Vcc during an ESD event may be the same or slower than the ramp rate when the circuit is being powered up during normal operation. In this case, it is impossible for the trigger circuit shown in FIG. 3 to distinguish between a normal power-up ramp and an ESD ramp which could increase to a large enough voltage to damage devices between Vcc and Vss without the ESD clamp ever turning on.


Information to be distributed and a code representing the information are registered in correspondence with each other, and the valid dates of the registered information are set.

Information to be acquired by the user is generally provided by a provider. In many cases, the user does not know the period during which the provider has provided the information. With any of the above-described services, the user cannot know whether the information is valid, i.e., whether he/she can correctly acquire the information or cannot acquire it due to expiration unless he/she tries to acquire it.

System for notifying when printable dates of registered information will expire to a communication terminal


A piezoelectric resonator has a base member formed by laminating a plurality of piezoelectric layers and electrodes. The base member is polarized in different directions at both sides of each electrode. Electrodes are alternately covered by a first insulating film and a second insulating film, respectively, at both sides of a groove formed in the base member. The first insulating film covers electrodes which are not covered by the second insulating film, and vice versa. External electrodes are formed at both sides of the groove on the base member and the internal electrodes are connected to the external electrodes. A support member made from an electrically conductive material is provided at the approximate centers of the external electrodes.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to piezoelectric resonators, manufacturing methods therefor, and electronic components using the piezoelectric resonators, and more particularly, to a novel piezoelectric resonator which maximizes the effective use of the mechanical resonance of a piezoelectric member, a manufacturing method therefor, and electronic components containing the novel piezoelectric resonator, such as an oscillator, a discriminator, and a filter.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 28 is a perspective view of a conventional piezoelectric resonator. A piezoelectric resonator 1 includes a single piezoelectric substrate 2 having, for example, a rectangular plate shape as viewed from above. The piezoelectric substrate 2 is polarized in the thickness direction. On two opposite major surfaces of the piezoelectric substrate 2, electrodes 3 are provided. When a signal is input between the electrodes 3, an electrical field is applied to the single piezoelectric substrate 2 in the thickness direction and the single piezoelectric substrate 2 vibrates in the longitudinal direction.
In FIG. 29, there is shown a piezoelectric resonator 1 in which electrodes 3 are provided on two opposite major surfaces of a single piezoelectric substrate 2 having a square plate shape as viewed from above. The single piezoelectric substrate 2 of the piezoelectric resonator 1 is polarized in the thickness direction. When a signal is input between the electrodes 3 in the piezoelectric resonator 1, an electrical field is applied to the single piezoelectric substrate 2 in the thickness direction and the single piezoelectric substrate 2 vibrates in a square-type vibration mode (in the plane direction).
To produce an electronic component using the piezoelectric resonator 1, the piezoelectric resonator 1 is mounted on an insulating substrate 5 on which pattern electrodes 4 are provided, as shown in FIG. 30. The center of the piezoelectric resonator 1, which serves as a node, is supported by a support member 6 formed on a pattern electrode 4 so as to not interfere with the vibration of the piezoelectric resonator 1. The support member 6 is made from an electrically conductive material and electrically connects a pattern electrode 4 to one electrode 3 of the piezoelectric resonator 1. The other electrode 3 of the piezoelectric resonator 1 is connected to the other pattern electrode 4 via a lead wire 7. A metal cap 8 is placed on the insulating substrate 5. Since the support member 6 supports only the center of the piezoelectric resonator 1, which serves as a node, the vibration of the piezoelectric substrate 2 is not damped and the characteristics of the piezoelectric resonator 1 are prevented from deteriorating.
These piezoelectric resonators are of an unstiffened type, in which the vibration direction differs from the direction of polarization and the electrical field. The electromechanical coupling coefficient of such an unstiffened piezoelectric resonator is lower than that of a stiffened piezoelectric resonator, in which each of the vibration direction, the direction of polarization, and the direction in which an electrical field is applied are the same. An unstiffened piezoelectric resonator has a relatively small frequency difference .DELTA.F between the resonant frequency and the antiresonant frequency. This leads to a drawback in which a frequency-band width in use is narrow when an unstiffened frequency resonator is used as an oscillator or a filter. Therefore, the degree of freedom and flexibility in resonator characteristics design is low in such a piezoelectric resonator and electronic components using the same.
The piezoelectric resonator shown in FIG. 29 uses the first-order resonance in the longitudinal mode. Because of its structure, the piezoelectric resonator of FIG. 29 also generates large spurious resonances in odd-number-order harmonic modes, such as the third-order and fifth-order modes, and in a width mode. To suppress these spurious resonances, some solutions have been considered, such as polishing, increasing mass, and changing the shape of the electrode. These solutions increase manufacturing cost.
In addition, since the piezoelectric substrate has a rectangular plate shape, the substrate cannot be made thinner without sacrificing required strength. Therefore, the distance between the electrodes cannot be reduced and a capacitance between terminals cannot be increased. This makes it extremely difficult to achieve impedance matching with an external circuit. To form a ladder filter by alternately connecting a plurality of piezoelectric resonators in series and in parallel, the capacitance ratio of the series resonator to the parallel resonator needs to be made large in order to increase attenuation. Because a piezoelectric resonator has the shape and structural restrictions described above, however, large attenuation cannot be obtained.
In the piezoelectric resonator shown in FIG. 30, large spurious resonances such as those in the thickness mode and in the triple-wave mode in the plane direction are generated. Since the piezoelectric resonator needs a large size as compared with a piezoelectric resonator using the longitudinal vibration in order to obtain the same resonant frequency, it is difficult to reduce the size of the piezoelectric resonator. When a ladder filter is formed by a plurality of piezoelectric resonators, in order to increase the capacitance ratio between the series resonator and the parallel resonator, the resonators connected in series must have an increased thickness and electrodes are formed only on part of a piezoelectric substrate to make the capacitance small. In this case, since the electrodes are only partially formed, the difference .DELTA.F between the resonant frequency and the antiresonant frequency as well as the capacitance is reduced. The resonators connected in parallel are accordingly required to have small .DELTA.F. As a result, the piezoelectricity of the piezoelectric substrate is not effectively used, and the transmission band width of the filter cannot be increased.
When an electronic component is produced using the piezoelectric resonator, it is necessary to use a lead wire to connect the piezoelectric resonator to a pattern electrode on the insulating substrate. This increases manufacturing steps and production cost. The pattern electrode is formed on the support member and the piezoelectric resonator is secured to the support member. Strict precision is required in placing the center of the piezoelectric resonator on the support member. If the support position shifts, the vibration of the piezoelectric resonator leaks and superior resonator characteristics cannot be obtained.

Piezoelectric resonator, manufacturing method therefor, and electronic component using the piezoelectric resonator


There is described methods and circuits for trimming a temperature coefficient of change of a parameter of at least one electrical component while maintaining a substantially constant parameter value, the method comprising applying a heating cycle to trim said parameter value away from a target parameter value and back to said target parameter value, whereby the temperature coefficient of change is modified after applying said heating cycle.

The trimming (adjustment) of resistors is a widely used procedure in the manufacture of microelectronics and electronic components, and in common design of user circuits, especially where precision calibration is desired. In principle, one trims the resistor until an observable local or global circuit parameter reaches a desired value. Resistor trimming is widespread in both manufacturing of a variety of components and instruments, and in the user community.
The design of any high-precision analog electrical circuit must entail careful consideration of temperature variation. This is especially true when the circuit involves thermally mutable materials such as polysilicon. Beyond static spatial temperature gradients, time variation in temperature is a universal phenomenon in the use of electronic circuits and systems, occurring every time an electronic system is turned on (powered up), and occurring continually as the ambient environment around the circuit changes. Analog chip and system designers devote considerable effort to ensuring robustness in the presence of temperature changes. This is because, in general, the properties of all materials exhibit some changes with temperature. A primary example is that of temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR).
In the calibration of a high precision circuit, it is advantageous to have fine-adjustment control simultaneously over both circuit component parameter values (such as resistance) and their temperature coefficients (such as TCR). Fine adjustment of resistance, while TCR changes in a less-easily-measured manner, is problematic, since the circuit is liable to lose its calibration any time the temperature varies from the temperature at which calibration was executed. This non-ideally under conditions of external temperature fluctuation would become more and more severe for higher precision of adjustment. Indeed the problem of simultaneous control of both resistance and TCR is a great source of difficulty in the analog electronics industry. Because of this, the measurement and control of TCR of resistance elements is very important for high-precision circuits. This is particularly important when one considers circuits and systems which are adjustable to high-precision. The higher the precision of adjustment of an adjustable element (or of an overall circuit or system), the smaller the temperature, variation which can significantly change the calibration of the circuit or system.
For example, consider two resistors having resistance values matched within 10 ppm. If the relative TCR (RTCR) is mismatched by as little as 1 ppm/K, then the resistance will drift by 50 ppm over a 50° C. range, overwhelming the fine adjustment of resistance. This situation is not optimal, since in the calibration of a high precision circuit, one needs fine-adjustment control simultaneously over both resistance and TCR, in order to have the needed control over one's circuit. There is clearly a need for rapid measurement and adjustment of TCR, to high precision, to accompany high-precision adjustment of resistance.

Trimming temperature coefficients of electronic components and circuits


A computing element for use in a quantum computer has at least three coupled quantum dots, and at least one gate for applying an electric field to manipulate the state of said qubit.

As is well known in the art, conventional computers work with binary digits or bits, which can exist in either a logical state 1 or 0. In a quantum computer, the fundamental unit of information (called a quantum bit or qubit), can exist not only in a state corresponding to the logical state 0 or 1 as in a classical bit, but also in states corresponding to a blend or superposition of these classical states. In other words, a qubit can exist as a zero, a one, or simultaneously as both 0 and 1, with a numerical coefficient representing the probability for each state. This qubit property arises as a direct consequence of its adherence to the laws of quantum mechanics which differ radically from the laws of classical physics. A physical realization of a qubit is a spin of an electron.
Quantum computation requires qubits which simultaneously satisfy contradictory requirements of both maintaining coherence and yet allowing for easy contact to perform quantum operations. Feynman, R. P., Quantum mechanical computers, Foundations of Physics 16, 507 (1986); Bennett, C. H. & DiVincenzo, D. P., Quantum information and computation, Nature 404, 247 (2000); Nielsen, M. A., Knill, E., & Laflamme, R., Complete quantum teleportation using nuclear magnetic resonance, Nature 396, 52 (1998); and Vandersypen, L. M., et al., Experimental realization of Shor's quantum factoring algorithm using nuclear magnetic resonance, Nature 414, 883 (2001).
It is known that coherence is well preserved in electron spin while operations are best performed on its charge using gates and voltages. Unfortunately, voltage does not couple to electron spin. The quantum operations on a localized electron spin require either nanoscale magnetic fields or complex g-factor engineering combined with spatial manipulation of electron position using voltage controlled surface gates.
Despite tremendous progress in localizing and controlling single electron spin so far no-one has been able to demonstrate a single-qubit operation for qubits based on electron spin.
An alternative solution to the problem of qubit operations on a single spin was proposed by DiVincenzo and collaborators, DiVincenzo, D. P, et al., Universal quantum computation with the exchange interaction, Nature 408, 339 (2000), who suggested quantum computation with exchange interaction. DiVincenzo's basic idea is to replace the two level system based on single-electron spin with selected levels of a composite object consisting of several spins. The manipulation of selected quantum levels proceeds not through operations on single spins but through the manipulation of the coupling J between neighbouring spins due to exchange interaction. For example, two qubit states |0> and |1> for a single total spin S=½ can be identified with two opposite spin directions (Sz) up and down: |0=|↓ and |1=|↑.

Voltage controlled computing element for quantum computer


A field sequential color display having a display panel and a backlight module is provided. The panel includes a plurality of unit regions, each having a first color unit region and a white color unit region. The panel includes a first substrate, a second substrate, a filter layer and a display medium. The first substrate has a pixel array. The second substrate is disposed opposite to the first substrate. The filter layer is disposed on the second substrate and has a first color filter pattern disposed within the first color unit regions and a white color filter pattern disposed within the white color unit regions. The display medium is between the first and second substrate. The backlight module is disposed at a side of the display panel and has a white light source, a second color light source and a third color light source which are switched in sequence.

1. Field of the Present Invention
The present application generally relates to a display and its driving method. More particularly, the present application relates to a field sequential color display and its driving method.
2. Description of Related Art
Usually, an LCD panel includes a pixel array substrate, a color filter substrate, and a liquid crystal layer. The color filter substrate includes a color filter layer constructed from red, green, and blue photo resistor patterns, allowing the LCD panel to display images of full colors. Because the light from the backlight module must be filtered through the color filter layer, the utility rate of the light source in the backlight module is lower.
Currently, a field sequential color display is developed. The field sequential color display does not require using the color filter layer. The backlight module has red, green and blue light sources, switched in spatial. In other words, the field sequential color display quickly switches the red, green, and blue light sources, and the switch frequency is too faster to be perceived by the human sight. By utilizing the deficiencies in the human eye, the field sequential color display creates a color blending effect. However, since the red, green, and blue images are sequentially transmitted to the human eye, when the human eye shakes, or when the image moves, a color break-up is likely to happen. The color break-up would be improved by increasing the frame rate, however, the limitation of the response time of the liquid crystal molecules, it is not efficient in solving the color break-up phenomenon.

Field sequential color display and driving method thereof


A light display system adapted for mounting on a rotatable member and capable of generating an image visually perceptible in a reference frame fixed relative to the rotatable member. The display system has a base adapted for mounting on the rotatable member for rotation with the rotatable member about an axis of rotation. Plural light arrays are mounted on the base at angularly spaced locations around a center of the base; each light array has a plurality of lamps. A sensor is operable to detect the fixed reference frame and to provide a signal indicative of the fixed reference frame. A controller is operatively connected to the sensor for receiving the signal from the sensor and is operatively connected to the light arrays. The controller is configured for firing the light arrays in predetermined positions relative to the fixed reference frame to form the image visually perceptible in the fixed reference frame.

The present invention relates generally to light display devices and more particularly to a light display system which forms an image when rotated.
Moving objects, such as the wheels of a bicycle, car or other vehicle, inherently attract the attention of the eye because of their motion. A message or design on the moving object which is perceptible to those in a fixed reference frame would call attention to itself. It is known to produce an image on a wheel which appears stationary to persons in a fixed reference frame. An example is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,631,848, which uses reflected light on a wheel cover to form what appears to be a fixed image on the wheel. The cover is formed with multiple (e.g., 4) angularly spaced images which are permanently formed on the cover. The images are formed so that they reflect light only in a predetermined direction. Thus, the images are visible to a person in a certain location when the image is in a certain rotational position. As a result, an image which appears fixed (relative to the rotation of the wheel) is formed. The appearance of the fixed image is a result of the well known "after image" effect in which the brain will fill in the time gaps between the successive appearances of the image when those time gaps become sufficiently small, so that the image is perceived as constant and fixed.
It is thus known to employ reflectors to create a fixed image on a rotating object. However, the image which is formed is not well-defined, and there is no flexibility to change the image without replacing the entire cover. The image is not well-defined because the entire image is displayed at each quarter rotation of the wheel. Thus, a relatively blurry image is produced. The image displayed on the known devices cannot be readily changed by the user because the image is permanently imprinted on the device. Further, there is no possibility for creating an image which appears to move when viewed in a fixed reference frame.


A semiconductor wafer metrology technique comprising performing atmospheric buoyancy compensated weighing of a wafer, in which the wafer is weighed in a substantially upright condition. A vertical or near vertical wafer orientation causes the surface area in the direction of a force (weight) sensor to be reduced compared with a horizontal wafer orientation. Hence, the electrostatic force components acting in the same direction as the wafer weight force component is reduced.

Microelectronic devices are fabricated on semiconductor wafers using a variety of techniques, e.g. including deposition techniques (CVD, PECVD, PVD, etc.) and removal techniques (e.g. chemical etching, CMP, etc.). Semiconductor e.g. silicon wafers may be further treated in ways that alter their mass e.g. by cleaning, ion implantation, lithography and the like. These treatment techniques typically cause a change in the mass at or on the surface of the semiconductor wafer. The configuration of the changes to the surface are often vital to the functioning of the device, so it is desirable for quality control purposes to assess wafers during production in order to determine whether they have the correct configuration.
A number of existing measurement techniques are known. For etching treatment, one known technique is to break a treated wafer and perform a detailed analysis of its cross-section. If the analysis shows treatment to have been successful, it is assumed that the batch of wafers manufactured at the same time as the tested (broken) wafer also have the correct configuration. The disadvantage of this process is that the broken wafers cannot be used and are therefore wasted, and that the process is typically interrupted (i.e. fabrication stopped) every time a wafer from a batch is tested. Continuous production is therefore not feasible.
Other known measurement techniques depend on the type of treatment or the properties of materials created by the treatment. For example, treated wafers can be measured using ellipsometry when they contain dielectrics or wafers can be tested using resistivity probes when conductive metals are deposited thereon.
WO 02/03449 discloses an apparatus and method for investigating semiconductor wafers in which changes in the mass of the wafer are determined to assess various properties of the wafer, e.g. enable fabrication of the wafer to be monitored. A common method of obtaining mass measurements is to use a very sensitive force sensor to measure the force (weight) due to gravity. At medium levels of accuracy this force can be assumed to be due solely to the mass of the wafer. However, if higher levels of accuracy are needed, other forces may need to be taken into account.
One such force (disclosed in WO 02/03449) is caused by atmospheric buoyancy. In semiconductor metrology, a semiconductor wafer is usually measured in an atmosphere (i.e. not a vacuum). The wafer therefore displaces a volume of this atmosphere, which causes an up thrust force. The up thrust force depends on the atmospheric (air) density, which in turn depends on numerous factors including temperature, atmospheric pressure, relative humidity and air composition. The up thrust force reduces the apparent weight of the wafer detected by the force sensor.
WO 02/03449 discloses a method of compensating or correcting for the effect of atmospheric buoyancy. Sensors are provided to monitor temperature, pressure and relative humidity. A processor receives measurements from these sensors and uses them to calculate the air density, which can be used to compensate for buoyancy in a corresponding weight measurement. The processor can calculate buoyancy from the calculated air density, together with the weight measurement and density information about the wafer.

Semiconductor wafer weight metrology apparatus


A deceleration device adapted for gradual dissipation of kinetic energy comprises a spool reel carrying a belt being wound up on the spool reel; an elevating spindle being driven by the spool reel when the belt is being retracted from the spool reel; at least one collet screwed to the elevating spindle; and at least one spring assembly being installed between the collet and a fixed bearing portion of the deceleration device. The at least one collet is screwed towards the fixed bearing portion by retraction of the belt from the spool reel thereby compressing the spring assembly, whereby a reaction load is generated by the spring assembly counteracting the retraction of the belt.

The present invention relates to dissipation of energy. In particular, the present invention relates to a deceleration device which is adapted to gradually dissipate kinetic energy. Moreover, the present invention relates to a cockpit door which is adapted to be connected to the deceleration device as well as to an aircraft being provided with a cockpit door comprising the deceleration device of the present invention.
The cockpit door aboard an aircraft provides the primary means of dissipating pressure from the cabin to the cockpit during a cockpit decompression case. A cockpit decompression case may occur as a minimal opening involving relatively slow bleed of pressure up to a maximum opening (as defined by aviation authorities) involving a rapid loss of pressure. To ensure that the delta pressure build up upon the monuments and structure that form the physical barrier between the cabin and cockpit does not exceed the structural limitations, the cockpit door must release and open to a specific venting area within a short time frame. Delay of the door to provide adequate venting may result in catastrophic structural failure.
The total time frame for the door to provide an effective venting area may be defined as the time [ms] for releasing the door lock and the time [ms] for rotating the door open, for example to an opening angle of more than 80.
To satisfy certain certification requirements defined by aviation authorities, it has to be demonstrated that an aircraft can survive a decompression case without subsequent loss of essential structure/equipment and life. For example, JAR 25.365(e) (2) specifies that the aircraft structure must be able to withstand the depressurisation caused by an instant opening of a predetermined area in the pressurised shell, at any operating altitude.
From the beginning of a cockpit decompression event to the point of door lock release delta air pressure is acting upon the door, as time from the decompression event increases, so the delta air pressure load upon the door increases. The delta air pressure load causes the door to rotate open and accelerate, imparting kinetic energy into the door. In this connection, the resultant kinetic energy is dependant upon the air pressure load over time and the moment of inertia (MOI) of the door. This means that the slower the door is unlocked the higher the delta air pressure load at the point of release and that the higher the MOI of the door the longer the duration of (high) air pressure upon the door. Both factors increase the final kinetic energy of the door. Thus cockpit doors that are compliant with post the 9/11 security rules have a high kinetic energy due to the reinforced construction of the door.
Therefore, the cockpit doors should unlock rapidly and rotate through to a minimum venting area (for example more than 80°) as quickly as possible in the event of a cockpit decompression.
Once the door has rotated open sufficient to provide effective venting it must be decelerated, wherefore the energy present in the door must be dissipated without the door detaching (from its hinges) and without damage to the airframe. In particular, since a seat may be installed in the path of the rotating door, it must be ensured that no injuries will be caused to a flight crew member on that seat. Otherwise, without an effective means of energy dissipation, the door, once it has passed 90 degrees, will collide with the seat causing potential injury to occupant and possible detachment of the seat and/or detach the door from its hinges, causing unacceptable structural/equipment damage and possible crew injury.
The energy present in the door must be absorbed without adversely affecting the cockpit wall pressure difference. Allowing the door to rotate open unhindered to the minimum free venting area would advantageously limit the pressure difference load upon the cockpit wall. However the distance to decelerate the door before impact with the adjacent seat is minimal and amounts to approximately 13° of rotation in A 380 aircraft only. In this case, the resultant equivalent static reaction load applied at the centre of area of the door would be in excess of 4500 daN (4.500 kg), whereby the door as well as the adjacent seat might be damaged.


A collar to which is mounted an illumination source and one or more insets. Each of one or more light-transferring fibers includes a first end coupled for receiving light from the illumination source, and a second end coupled for transmitting light to an inset.

It is often difficult to see domestic or household animals, referred to herein as "pets," at night or in a dimly lit or unlit area. For that reason, pets frequently pose a safety hazard, not only to themselves, but also to people who occupy the same space. For example, people may trip over pets during the night or in a dark room, resulting in potential harm to the person or to the pet, particularly if the person or pet is elderly or recovering from a medical procedure. An elderly person, furthermore, may not be as agile as a younger person, and may be sensitive to an unexpected impact with a pet, and could potentially suffer from an inadvertent or adverse contact with a pet. Likewise, any person with reduced night vision is at a potentially serious health and safety risk from tripping over a pet.
One solution to the foregoing hazards is to provide additional ambient light in unlit or dimly lit areas. However, people have varying sensitivities to light at night, and it is frequently desirable or necessary to maintain minimal, or no, ambient light at night.
Another solution that has been attempted has been to provide pet collars with light-reflecting strips or elements. However, there is often insufficient light to reflect off of such reflective strips or elements, thereby rendering such strips or elements of little or no effect.
To overcome the problem of a lack of light to reflect off of reflective elements of a collar, some collars have been equipped with fluorescent elements which glow temporarily after being exposed to an external light. However, the radiant glow fades quickly and generally does not last through the night, losing virtually all effect, rendering such solution unreliable.
A band of light may be provided on a collar, but that poses a problem to a pet because light may shine such that the animal's eyes are adversely affected, thus impeding that animal's sensory abilities. Additionally, the lights may constitute a distraction and a source of annoyance and discomfort to the pet and people.
Collars may be provided with noise-generating collar elements, such as a bell or chain. The noise generated from such collars may disturb both the animal and person as the pet moves about the house. Additionally, many people may not find noise or sound an adequate indicator of the animal's precise location or direction of motion.
It is apparent that conventional techniques do not satisfactorily address the aforementioned hazards and shortcomings with attempted solutions to the hazards. Therefore, what is needed is a pet safety collar which does not constitute a burden, and is thereby comfortable, to a pet wearing the collar, while providing at the same time a clear, visible warning effective for enabling a person to identify a specific location of a pet, and to thereby assist in avoiding unwanted contact with such a pet in an unlighted environment.


A system and a method are disclosed for discovering widgets for computing devices. A computing device parses data to identify rich content. The computing device searches for widgets supporting the identified rich content in a remote server and retrieves a widget supporting the identified rich content. The computing device executes the widget to process the rich content.

1. Field of Art
The disclosure generally relates to the field of mobile communication, in particular to discovering applications for mobile computing devices.
2. Description of the Related Art
Mobile computing devices such as smart phones have become part of everyday life and their usage is on the increase. As a result, more and more mobile computing device users ("mobile users") treat their mobile computing devices as a major source of information and use them to retrieve, store, process, and/or display information.
Frequently, information on a mobile computing device includes contents that require special handling. For example, content such as a mathematical formula may need special processing for proper presentation. The information may also include contents associated with additional information of the mobile user's interest. For example, a mobile user reading a short message including a movie's name is likely to be interested in show time information for the movie in local theaters. These contents are collectively called rich content. Many widgets have been developed to properly handle (or process) various types of rich content. For example, some widgets are developed to display mathematical formulas in proper format, and some other widgets are developed to provide local information (e.g., weather information) for a given geographic location. These widgets make the mobile computing devices more useful and are desirable to the mobile users. However, there is no easy mechanism for mobile users to discover widgets of interest.
Traditionally, in order to discover a widget suited for certain rich content, mobile users must search for it on Internet search engines, online forums, and/or other similar venues. However, mobile users may not necessarily know where to look for widgets, what widgets they need, or even whether they need any widget at all. Therefore, even though many interesting and useful widgets have been developed and are available for the mobile users, most users do not use the widgets.
From the above, there is a need in the art for a system and method for discovering widgets for mobile computing devices.


A magnetic head which can fly over a surface of a magnetic recording medium comprises a main body fitted into a supporting arm, rail surfaces formed in the main body to serve pneumatic bearings, and projections formed on the rail surfaces and having surfaces opposing a magnetic recording medium. The projections have larger surface roughness than that of the magnetic recording medium, whereby wear-out rate of the projections provided on the magnetic head can be reduced and also the projections can be firmly brought into contact with the surface of the magnetic recording medium.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a slider for a magnetic head and a magnetic recording drive and, more particularly, to a slider for a magnetic head which is able to fly over a surface of a magnetic recording medium and to a magnetic recording drives equipped with the slider for magnetic head.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the magnetic disk drive, a CSS (contact start and stop) scheme in which the slider for magnetic head starts in contact with the magnetic disk and again comes into contact with the magnetic disk at the time of stop has often been adopted.
In the magnetic head flying type magnetic disk drive, higher recording density has been intended to promote miniaturization.
Accordingly, a flying height of the magnetic head (electromagnetic transducer) from the magnetic disk, i.e., a spacing is prone to be reduced. If the flying height is lessened, there is necessity of preventing contact between the magnetic disk and the magnetic head by reducing surface roughness of the magnetic disk.
The slider for magnetic head employing the CSS scheme comes into contact with the magnetic disk when it is stopped while it flies over the surface of the magnetic disk because of operation of air flow caused by the rotation of the magnetic disk, i.e., based on the principle of dynamic kinetic air pressure bearing by fluid lubrication.
In the magnetic disk drive employing the CSS scheme, as unevennesses of the surface of the magnetic disk are reduced to thus lower surface roughness, the slider in the flying state does not come into contact with the surface of the magnetic disk.
However, if the surface roughness is lowered, contact areas between the slider and the magnetic disk are enhanced when the magnetic disk is in the stop state, potentially be causing the slider and the magnetic disk to stick to each other.
If the slider and the magnetic disk are stuck tightly together, a suspension for supporting the slider could be destroyed upon staring rotation of the magnetic disk. Hence, it becomes difficult for the slider to fly over the magnetic disk normally.
In order to reduce such problem, it has been set forth in Patent Application Publications (KOKAIS) 63-37874 and 4-28070, for example, to reduce contact areas between the magnetic disk and the slider by providing a plurality of projections on kinetic air pressure bearing surfaces (rail surfaces) of the slider for the magnetic head opposing to the magnetic disk.
Diameter of the projections of the slider must be lessened to reduce the contact areas between the slider and the magnetic disk as flatness of the surface of the magnetic disk is improved.
However, if diameters of the projections are lessened, pressure applied to a unit area of the projection becomes high. In addition, a situation could readily occur in which a part of plural projections do not come into contact with the surface of the magnetic disk, because of deviation of a center of gravity in the stopped state of the slider causing the rail surfaces to twist.
As a result, since pressure applied to a part of the projections is increased higher than a design value in the stopped state projections are quickly worn-out, and the durability of the magnetic head is decreased.
Still further, although the height of the projections must be selected to a height not to affect the fly of the slider, e.g., be lowered to about 30 nm, the height is selected on the substantially in the same order as a finished crowning amount of the rail surfaces of the slider.
In this case, since rail surfaces positioned at locations other than the projections come into contact with the magnetic disk, the meaning of the projections provided to prevent such stick is lost.

Slider for magnetic head and magnetic memory apparatus


A device is provided to support a medical element over a bed. The device includes a base mountable to the bed, a clamp to hold the medical element, and a rod between the base and the clamp to support the element over the bed. The rod is connected to the base with a universal joint to permit movement of the medical element between use and non-use positions. The rod is adjustable.

Patients in hospital beds, nursing home beds, or other treatment beds often require medical apparatus for introducing or removing fluids from the body. The apparatus typically includes a syringe, tubing and other elements which are positioned close to the patient.
For example, the use of syringes for stomach decompression and for the feeding of infants is a common medical procedure. When providing care to premature infants, normal infants, or any other patient, the precise application of feeding material or other activity ideally requires that the syringe, tubing, conduits, or other medical apparatus to the patient operate undisturbed and unimpeded. Furthermore, because syringes or other medical apparatus' are of different sizes and employ different capacities, the weight of the medical apparatus' employed varies. The tubing or conduits connecting the apparatus to the patient is frequently attached by medical tape or elastic bands. Unfortunately, because radiant warmers are commonly employed to keep a patient warm, the same heat that warms the patient compromises the adhesive qualities of the tape and elastic bands, as well as presenting a separate safety hazard to the patient.
Three problems which frequently arise pertain to: (1) the inadvertent disconnection or interruption of flow of the medical dispensing or accumulating devices with the patient; (2) the hazard posed to the patient from having an apparatus fall against or contact a patient being treated; and, (3) uneven flow of material either into or out of the medical apparatus in the course of operation depending upon the relative position of the apparatus and the patient.
Currently available apparatus' and methods do not satisfactorily address these common problems. Current practice involves the use of tape or rubber bands to hold the medical apparatus, such as the syringe, or the tubes, or the container for the formula being dispensed. However, when a patient moves, the apparatus may be displaced or disconnected. In the case of an infant, it is frequently the case that the frequent movement of the child-patient causes the apparatus' (namely syringes) to be disturbed and the flow of feeding formula to be interrupted. Additionally, the capacity of the tape or rubber bands is frequently exceeded by the weight of the formula being dispensed. With respect to feeding material, it is frequently desirable to have the feeding formula elevated over the patient; open top cribs make such feedings problematic, and without adequate support, poses a danger to the patient. In the context of stomach decompression, it is commonplace for the movement of the patient to cause leakage or spillage of gastric contents being tubally removed from the patient.
Accordingly, a primary objective of the present invention is the provision of a device for supporting a medical apparatus over a bed.
Another objective of the present invention is the provision of a syringe assembly support device which maintains the syringe assembly in a safe, yet functional position for use with a patient in a bed.
A further objective of the present invention is the provision of a support device for a syringe assembly which is adjustably positioned on a bed.
Still another objective of the present invention is the provision of a support device for a medical apparatus which is pivotally connected to the bed for movement between use and non-use positions.
A further objective of the present invention is the provision of a support device for medical apparatus which can be secured beneath a mattress and extend above the mattress to position the apparatus over the mattress.
Yet another objective of the present invention is the provision of a support device for a medical apparatus which can be quickly and easily mounted on a bed and to which a medical apparatus can be quickly and easily connected.
These and other objectives will become apparent from the following description of the invention.

Device for supporting a medical apparatus