Various aspects of the present disclosure are directed toward utilizing pulsed laser light to melt and displace material along a surface. As may be consistent with one or more embodiments, material at respective regions of a surface is melted and displaced using pulsed laser light. The melting and displacement at different ones of the regions is carried out to facilitate different displacement at each region. Such an approach may be used by varying characteristics, such as fluence, of the pulsed laser light at each region. In this contexts, surfaces can be smoothed, and structures can be formed on the surface.

Machining, forming, and otherwise manipulating surfaces has been important for a variety of applications. For instance, various applications benefit from different surface topographies (e.g., topologies, or micro-scale surface structures), such as smooth surfaces, rough surfaces, and structured surfaces. Components including metal-based materials involve such an application that benefits from the control of surface topography, to suit particular applications.
As related to the above, polishing surfaces, or generating surface structures for various components can involve expensive tooling, complex machinery, and complex processes. It can be particularly challenging to polish and reduce/remove large features such as those that may exhibit waviness along the surface (e.g., structures that are classified as waviness). It can also be challenging to generate surface structures on a very small scale. In addition, complex steps often need to be taken in order to plan and implement manufacturing processes for generating such structures. These and other matters have presented challenges to the design and manufacture of a variety of components, for a variety of applications.


A method of conducting secure electronic payments to a payment acquirer using a credit card payment unit, comprising of a smart card, a portable card reader device, a mobile phone, a stand-alone PIN entry device and a payment server. The method is based on eliminating the unsecure keyboard in a mobile phone used for entering personal identification information, and instead use a separate secure PIN entry device which fulfills the EMV Level specification. Since all sensitive payment information, communicated to the payment server from the card reader and the PIN entry device, is encrypted using unique encryption keys an unsecure mobile phone may be used for relaying the communication between the card reader device and the PIN entry device to and from the payment server.

Every day an incredible number of credit card payments are made around the world, and the number of payments are steadily increasing. The majority of credit card payments are either made in stores using a point-of-sale (POS) terminal where you insert or swipe your credit card and identify yourself with a PIN code, or on the Internet using a computer where you enter your credit card details and in some cases also a security code. However, using your credit card to make payments in a POS terminal or on the Internet comes with a risk of having your credit card information hijacked and abused. In recent years there have been several reports of false or tampered with POS terminals used in restaurants and in shops where the customer's credit card information has been hijacked. Credit card information theft on the Internet is often accomplished using everything from advanced eavesdropping programs to fake websites designed to look legit, but with the sole purpose of hijacking your credit card information. Another drawback with the today's credit card payment systems is that it is almost impossible to make a direct person-to-person payment.
A much safer and easier way to make payments would be to own your own POS terminal which you could make all your transactions with. Unfortunately, a POS terminal is very expensive to purchase and to use since you have to pay a fee for each transaction, it is also too bulky to carry around with you, so in reality only a place of business can afford owning one.
A more practical solution would be if a credit card payment could be conducted using a well-known, non-bulky and commonly used device such as a mobile phone. However, an ordinary mobile phone does not have a built-in card reader where you could swipe your credit card, and even if that particular problem could be overcome, there is still an issue regarding the level of security a mobile phone provides. It is well known that for instance a spy program could infiltrate the mobile phone and hijack credit card information and identification information, such as the PIN code entered into the mobile phone via the mobile phone's keyboard when conducting a credit card payment, without the user even knowing about it.
In light of the above, a standard mobile phone is generally not considered to be a secure device, and thus not suitable for making credit card payments with. Thus, finding a way to make secure credit card payments with a mobile phone is highly sought after.

Stand-alone secure PIN entry device for enabling EMV card transactions with separate card reader


A pulse tube refrigeration system includes a pressure wave generator generating continuous pressure wave of a working fluid: a regenerator having a low temperature end and a high temperature end connected to the pressure wave generator; a cold head connected at one end thereof to the low temperature end of the regenerator and producing a very low temperature; a pulse tube having a high temperature end and a low temperature end connected to the other end of the cold head; and a phase shifter adjusting a phase difference between a pressure oscillation and a displacement of the working fluid and transmitting an expansion work of the working fluid to the high temperature end of the regenerator in mechanical mode which is performed at the high temperature end of the pulse tube.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a pulse tube refrigerating system which serves for generating very low temperatures and in particular to an efficiency-improved system of such a type.
2. Discussion of Background
As is well-known, a conventional pulse tube refrigerating system is constructed such that a pressure wave generator, a regenerator, a cold head and a pulse tube are connected in series in this order. Between the pressure wave generator and the pulse tube, there is formed a closed operating space which is filled with a working fluid such as helium gas. When the pressure wave generator is turned on, an alternating mass flow of the working fluid is caused, which results in an establishment of a phase difference between pressure oscillation and displacement of the working fluid. This leads to that in the regenerator a heat flow is generated from a cold head to the pressure wave generator and the cold head is cooled down to a very low temperature.
In order to obtain the maximum cooling ability or heat transfer ability at the cold head, it is well known that setting the phase difference at about 90 degrees is effective. This fact can be known from a thesis, for example, reported in Advances in Cryogenic Engineering, Vol. 35, P1191/1990). On the basis of this, an improved pulse tube refrigerating system has been proposed in a report (Proceedings of the fifth International Cryocooler conference P127/1988). In the improved system, a phase shifter is employed in order to establish a suitable phase difference of about 90 degrees between pressure oscillation and displacement of the working fluid.
As shown in FIG. 3, a conventional pulse tube refrigerating system 103, which is equivalent to the foregoing improved pulse tube refrigerating system, includes a pressure wave generator 1, a regenerator 2, cold head 3, and a pulse tube 4 which are connected in series in this order. The pulse tube has a high temperature end 44 which is in connection with an expansion piston system 6. The expansion piston system 6 includes a cylinder 61, a piston 62 reciprocally fitted in the cylinder 61, a spring 58, a wire coil 59 wound around the cylinder 61, and a resistor (not shown) connected to the wire coil 59 in series. In the cylinder 61, there are formed a space 63 and a space 64 at opposite ends of the piston 62. The spring 58 serves for supporting the piston 62 and is connected at its upper end to the cylinder 61 and at its lower end to a back end of the piston 62. A clearance seal is constructed between an axial outer surface of the piston 62 and an inner end wall of the cylinder 61.
The piston 62 is in the form of a permanent magnet and establishes an electromagnetic induction system by cooperating with the coil 59. The expansion piston system 6 has an eigenfrequency which depends on a mass of the piston 62, a spring constant of the spring 58 and a gas spring constant of the space 64. Induction currents created while the piston 62 is reciprocated are supplied to the resistor and an amount of heat is generated at the resistor. The resulting heat is rejected or radiated, as Joule heat, to the surroundings. Due to such a heat generation, a damping force is applied to the piston 62. In addition, a compulsory force is applied to piston 62, whose magnitude is a multiplication of a cross-section area of the piston 62 and a pressure difference between the space 63 and 64. Thus, the expansion piston system 6 is constituted as a damped and compulsory force system.
In the expansion piston system 6, if the eigenfrequency thereof is in coincidence with the operating frequency of the pressure wave generator 1, when the piston 62 under movement away from the high temperature end 44 of the pulse tube 4 passes through the center point of the oscillation of the piston 62, the speed of the piston 62 takes its maximum value and the absolute value of current induced at the wire coil 59 becomes maximum. Thus, the compulsory force applied to the piston 62 becomes maximum which is obtained by subtracting the pressure in the space 64 from the pressure in the space 63. This means that the maximum setting efficiency of the system 6 is established by setting a phase difference of 90 degrees between the maximum pressure in the space 63 and the farthest position of the piston 62 relative to the high temperature end 44 of the pulse tube 4. On the other hand, due to the volume of the pulse tube 4, at a low temperature end 43 of the pulse tube 4 the phase difference at the low temperature end 43 of the pulse tube 4 is less than the foregoing phase difference of 90 degrees by tens of degrees.
In light of this, in the expansion piston system 6, the eigenfrequency thereof is set to be less than the operating oscillation frequency of the pressure wave generator 1 in order to maximize the compulsory force applied to the expansion piston 62, which is defined by the subtraction of the pressure in the space 64 from the pressure in the space 63, before the piston 62 passes through the center of oscillation thereof This means that a phase difference of above 90 degrees is set between a time when the pressure in the space 63 becomes maximum and a subsequent time when the piston 62 takes the farthest position relative to the high temperature end 44 of the pulse tube 4. This establishes a substantial 90 degrees in phase difference at the low temperature end 43 of the pulse tube 4, resulting in an improvement of producing very low temperature or cold at the cold head 3.
However, in the foregoing pulse tube refrigeration system 103, an amount of expansion work performed by the expansion piston system 6 is rejected to the surrounding as a heat, which brings that an amount of compression work to be done at the pressure wave generator 1 becomes large and an efficiency of producing very low temperature is not better than expected. The following is an analysis of such a phenomena. Approximately, the work Wexp which is rejected to the surroundings from the system 6 can be represented as the following equation. EQU Wexp=.pi.A P.sub.o .xi..sub.o sin .THETA.
where A is a cross-section area of the expansion piston 62,
P.sub.o is an amplitude of the pressure oscillation in the space 63, PA1 .xi..sub.o is an amplitude of the displacement of the expansion piston 62, PA1 .THETA. is the phase difference between the maximum pressure in the space 63 and the farthest position of the expansion piston 62 relative to the high temperature end 44 of the pulse tube 4 when the piston 62 is under movement away from the high temperature end 44 of the pulse tube 4. PA1 TH is a radiating temperature at the pressure wave generator 1, PA1 TC is a temperature produced at the cold head 3. PA1 A ratio of Wexp/Wcomp is given as follows. EQU Wexp/Wcomp=(1-Wp/Wcomp)TH/TC.
On the other hand, the Wcomp which is done by the pressure wave generator 1 can be represented as the following formula or equation. EQU Wcomp=Wp+(TH/TC)Wexp
where Wp is a work loss which is done as a result of pressure drop at the regenerator 2,
As an example, substituting 0.2, 80K, and 320K for Wp/Wcomp, TH, and TC, respectively, the ratio of Wexp/Wcomp becomes 0.2. This means that 20 percent of the work performed at the pressure wave generator 1 is rejected at the expansion piston system 6 to the surroundings as a heat. In addition, if the value of TC is approximately the same as the value of TH, the ratio of Wexp/Wcomp approaches 1, which indicates that most of the work performed at the pressure wave generator 1 is rejected at the expansion piston system 6 to the surroundings as a heat.


Bending machine for profiles in the form of bars sheared to size, including at least a drawing assembly, shearing apparatus and bending apparatus. At least part of the drawing assembly is movable between a first loading position, wherein it is upstream of and remote from the bending apparatus to take at least one of the bars sheared to size from an accumulation site, and a second drawing position, wherein it is upstream of and in proximity with the bending apparatus to draw/feed at least one bar towards the shearing apparatus and the bending apparatus and to cooperate with the shearing apparatus and the bending apparatus in performing the bending cycle.

There are known bending machines for profiles already sheared to size, such as round pieces for reinforcement purposes or suchlike, individual or in bundles, wherein the drawing assembly is stationary and positioned in proximity with the shearing means, such as for example a shears, and bending means, such as for example a rotary bending disk including at least a bending pin and at least an axial contrasting pin.
The nearness of the drawing assembly to the bending means is due to the fact that, among other reasons, the sheared to size straight bars have longitudinal tensions and torsions which are released with the action of bending, making the bar rotate on its longitudinal axis as it advances. This has a negative effect on the quality, precision and planarity of the bends themselves and on the final products obtained.
It is therefore extremely advantageous to limit to a minimum the segment of bar not gripped between the drawing assembly and the shearing or bending means.
At the same time the nearness of the drawing assembly to the bending means makes the operator responsible for loading the machine more exposed to the danger of accidents and injury; in fact, in order to load the profiles into the drawing assembly, for example by removing them from a bundle, the operator has to be very near the shearing means and the bending means, with the risk of being hit by shavings, fragments or the profile itself during the bending step.
Moreover, since the torsions of the bar are released as it advances and is bent, the bent portion can rise up for quite a large amount from the ideal bending plane, with the risk of hitting the operator.
Documents EP-A-0.258.109, GB-A-1.413.143 and FR-A-2.553.314 all refer to shearing and/or bending machines which work metal bars from a coil; they comprise a drawing element movable with alternate motion, with continuous backwards and forwards movements, to unroll on each occasion a desired segment of said metal bars which are wound in a coil and to feed them to the relative machine.
In the machines described in these documents, there is always a straightening assembly between the feeding coil and the drawing assembly; thanks to the action of the straightening assembly, the problems of longitudinal tensions and torsions, which are found in the bending of pre-sheared bars, are largely eliminated.
The Applicant is not aware of bending machines which work pre-sheared profiles and which have at least part of the drawing assembly movable from a first loading position cooperating with an accumulation site for the profiles to a second drawing position wherein they cooperate with the bending unit and with the shearing assembly in order to perform the bending cycle.
The Applicant has devised and embodied the present invention to overcome this shortcoming of the state of the art and to obtain further advantages.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Bending machine for profiles and relative bending method

M.E.P. Macchine Elettroniche Piegatrici SpA


A push-pull converter including a primary-side input converter circuit with a plurality of primary-side switching devices in a full-bridge circuit including a transformer being designed to receive the first AC voltage on a primary-side winding and to generate a second AC voltage on a secondary-side winding. The push-pull converter includes a secondary-side output converter circuit to convert the second AC voltage into an output DC voltage, including a first semi-bridge circuit, said semi-bridge circuit including a first secondary-side switching device, a second secondary-side switching device, and a first center tap connected to a first connection of the secondary-side winding. The secondary-side output converter circuit includes a second semi-bridge circuit which includes a first secondary-side diode, a second secondary-side diode, and a second center tap connected to a second connection of the secondary-side winding, said second semi-bridge circuit not including a switchable component.

The invention relates to a push-pull converter and a modulation method for controlling a push-pull converter.
Electric vehicles frequently have a device besides the drive system for charging the battery. Such a charging device facilitates in a simple way the charging of the electric energy storage of the electric vehicle at any power outlet. To this end, the charging device produces a DC voltage for charging the fraction battery from the public low voltage network.
An option for the embodiment of a charging device 10 for a vehicle with an electric drive is shown in FIG. 1. The charging device 10 has a power factor correction 2 (PFC) which is connected to an outer conductor 1a and a neutral conductor 1b of a public low voltage network. The power factor correction 2 is designed to extract sinusoidal currents from the supply network and to transfer said currents to a DC converter 4 via an intermediate circuit comprising an intermediate circuit capacitor 3 for smoothing the pulsating power extracted from the AC power supply. The DC converter 4 is designed to provide an appropriate DC voltage for charging the battery 5 of the vehicle with an electric drive.
For reasons of safety, a galvanic isolation between the public supply network and the vehicle is required for the charging device 10. To this end, the DC converter 4 is often embodied as a push-pull converter 4 in order to create said galvanic isolation.
An option for configuring a push-pull converter is schematically depicted in FIG. 2. The push-pull converter 4′ in FIG. 2 is a galvanically isolating, bidirectional DC converter comprising a so-called dual-active bridge topology. A full-bridge circuit consisting of the switching devices 131, 132, 133, 134 is thereby implemented in a primary-side input converter circuit, said switching devices transferring via a smoothing capacitor an input DC voltage to an output converter circuit by way of a transformer 139. The output converter circuit is likewise configured as a full-bridge circuit comprising the switching devices 135, 136, 137, 138 and can provide an output DC voltage 143 via a smoothing capacitor 141.
In order to control the push-pull converter 4′, different modulation methods exist, among others the trapezoidal modulation method, with which a battery charging capacity can be adjusted across a broad power range from approximately 400 W to 3300 W. In the trapezoidal modulation method, the current Ip takes on a trapezoidal waveform by means of the transformer 139, wherein a power transmission to the output converter circuit can take place in the plateau phases of the trapezoidal waveform as well as in a subsequent phase of a decreasing signal flank. The power to be transferred can thereby be adjusted via the height of the plateau.
Such push-pull converters 4′ and corresponding modulation methods for controlling the push-pull converters are, for example, described in the publications Krismer, F., Round, S., Kolar, J. W., "Performance Optimization of a High Current Dual Active Bridge with a Wide Operating Voltage Range", "Proceedings of the 37th Power Electronics Specialists Conference, Jeju, Korea, Jun. 18-22, 2006" and Krismer, F., Biela, J., Kolar, J. W., "A Comparative Evaluation of Isolated Bi-directional DC/DC Converters with Wide Input and Output Voltage Range, Conference Record of the 2005 IEEE Industry Applications Conference, 40th IAS Annual Meeting (IAS'05), Hong Kong, Oct. 2-6, 2005".
Power losses resulting from switching processes, which in each case are implemented in a half of the input or output bridge, can occur in the trapezoidal modulation method. A suitable and complex control method comprising time-critical current detection is thereby necessary to minimize the switching losses.

Push-pull converter and modulation method for controlling a push-pull converter


An aircraft comprises a wing assembly, a pod, and a pylon attaching the pod to the wing assembly. The pylon has a swept pylon flap, which is configured to unload the pylon and pod during flight of the aircraft, and also to create downward flow that counters a vortex trailing the pod.

Aerial refueling systems aboard tanker aircraft are used to transfer fuel to receiver aircraft during flight. One type of aerial refueling system includes a hose and drogue. To perform refueling with this type of system, the tanker aircraft slows down from cruise speed to a lower refueling speed, and extends the hose and drogue. The drogue stabilizes the hose in flight and provides a funnel to aid insertion of the receiver aircraft's probe into a hose fuel coupling.
The hose and drogue are typically stored in a pod that is attached by a pylon to a lower outboard section of the tanker aircraft's wing. When deployed, the hose and drogue trail the pod.
During flight, airflow creates vortices trailing the pod. Vortex flow is circular in a vertical plane and has an upward velocity component which can lift the hose and drogue, thereby causing instability for the hose and drogue during extension and retraction. For older tanker aircraft, existing aerodynamic mitigation designs (e.g., chines and Gurney flaps) can counter low strength vortices across narrow regions of the refueling envelope.
A new class of tanker aircraft is being designed to operate at higher maximum speeds. The pod and its pylon may be designed to minimize buffet at maximum operating speed, but minimizing the buffet will cause higher side loads, which result in stronger vortices at refueling speeds. The existing mitigation designs are not effective for addressing significantly higher vortex strengths across the entire flight envelope.


A catalyst that includes cerium oxide having a fluorite lattice structure is provided. The cerium oxide includes cerium atoms in mixed valence states of Ce3+/Ce4+, in which the ratio of Ce3+/(Ce3++Ce4+) in the lattice ranges from 40% to 90% at 20° C. The valence states Ce3+ and Ce4+ are reversible in reduction and oxidation reactions, and the cerium oxide maintains catalytic ability at temperatures at least up to 450° C.

Catalysts can be used to change the rates and control the yields of chemical reactions to increase the amounts of desirable products from these reactions and reduce the amounts of undesirable ones. For example, cerium(IV) oxide (CeO2) (also referred to as ceria) can be used in catalytic converters for reducing carbon monoxide emissions in exhaust gases from motor vehicles. Cerium exists in both trivalent state (+3) and tetravalent (+4) state and may switch between the two in reduction and oxidation reactions. Cerium(IV) oxide can be reduced by carbon monoxide to cerium(III) oxide:2CeO2+CO→Ce2O3+CO2,and cerium(III) oxide can be oxidized to cerium(IV) oxide:2Ce2O3+O2→4CeO2.Cerium oxide is also useful in three-way catalysis, petroleum cracking, water gas shift reaction, fuel cells, and synthetic organic chemistry. It has been proposed that the catalytic traits of cerium oxide can be attributed to two properties of ceria: (i) the high mobility and storage capacity of oxygen within the lattice, and (ii) the ease with which cerium changes between Ce3+ and Ce4+ states to allow the high oxygen mobility within the oxide lattice. These properties, combined with the abundance of cerium on earth, make ceria a low-cost and effective alternative to noble metal catalysts.

Cerium oxide having high catalytic performance


An aluminum gate for a thin film transistor is fabricating by implanting ions into the exposed surface of the aluminum gate. The ions are preferably selected from the group consisting of nitrogen, carbon, oxygen and boron ions. A composite layer of aluminum and the implanted ions thereby formed at the exposed surface of the aluminum layer. Gates for thin film transistors, including an aluminum layer and a composite layer of aluminum and another element at the surface thereof can suppress hillocks in the aluminum gate which may be caused by compressive stresses during subsequent fabrication steps. The composite layer can have a low resistance and can allow a direct contact with an indium tin oxide conductive layer.

Thin film transistor-liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) panels are widely used flat panel display devices. As the integration density and size of the TFT-LCD panels increase, it may become increasingly important to provide low resistivity gate lines and data lines for the panel. Accordingly, aluminum is being widely investigated for the gate lines and data lines of the TFT-LCD panels.
Currently, 22" diagonal size panels may be obtained from 370.times.470 mm.sup.2 mother glass panels. It has been confirmed that aluminum can be used for these panels without degradation of display quality. See the publication entitled "Limitation and Prospects of a-Si:H TFTs", by W. E. Howard, Journal of the SID, Vol. 3, No. 3, p. 127 (1995). In this publication, it is estimated that pure aluminum can be used for up to 30" diagonal size panels. This suggests that aluminum metalization can be used for even larger size panel fabrication, such as third generation mother glass panels of 550.times.650 mm.sup.2 in size.
Unfortunately, pure aluminum may have problems which may limit its suitability for TFT-LCD panels. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, when a pure aluminum layer 3 is deposited on a substrate 1, for example a transparent substrate for a TFT-LCD, using sputtering, the grains 3a of pure aluminum may grow in a columnar grain structure. During subsequent fabrication steps, subsequent layers or subsequent fabrication conditions may place the aluminum layer 3 under compressive stress, as shown by arrows 4. As a result of the compressive stress, grains 3a may extend from the planar surface of the pure aluminum layer 3 and may thereby form hillocks thereon.
Moreover, in subsequent processing, the pure aluminum layer 3 may be subject to a wet etch of an indium tin oxide (ITO) layer, which is generally used as a transparent conductive layer in a TFT-LCD. This etch may cause a chemical attack on the pure aluminum layer. Moreover, since the pure aluminum layer has a strong affinity for oxygen, electrochemical corrosion may occur between the pure aluminum layer and the ITO layer. Accordingly, the pure aluminum layer should not directly contact the ITO layer. One or more of these shortcomings can therefore degrade the quality and yield of the TFT-LCDs. As such, pure aluminum is often not used, despite the potential advantages thereof.
In order to obviate one or more of the above shortcomings, it is known to carefully select the gate insulator that overlies the aluminum layer. Generally, the gate insulator includes a double insulator structure to protect the surface of the aluminum layer. The double insulator structure is generally formed of a first gate insulator of anodized aluminum and a second insulator of a chemical vapor deposited nitride film.
FIGS. 2A through 2F, illustrate a conventional method for fabricating a TFT-LCD in which an anodization is used. As shown in FIG. 2A, a transparent substrate 1 for a TFT-LCD, such as a glass substrate, is provided. Thereafter, a pure Al layer 3 is deposited on the substrate 1 to a predetermined thickness by sputtering. The deposition of the pure Al is followed by respectively patterning the pure Al layer 3 to form a TFT gate pattern 3b, a gate line pattern and a first contact pattern 3c in a gate pad area. It will be understood that the gate pattern 3b and the first contact pattern 3c are interconnected by the gate line pattern to form a TFT-LCD body.
Thereafter, a photoresist layer 5 that serves as an anodized mask layer is formed only on the first contact pattern 3c of the gate pad area by a conventional photo-imaging process, as shown in FIG. 2b. An anodized layer 7 of Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 is formed to a thickness ranging from 1500.ANG. to 2000.ANG. only on the surface of the gate pattern 3b and on the gate line by anodizing. The anodization layer 7 is used for the first gate insulator.
As shown in FIG. 2C, after removing the photoresist layer 5, amorphous nitride 9 that is used for the second gate insulator, amorphous silicon 11 and n.sup.+ amorphous silicon 13 are successively deposited on the substrate using CVD. Thereafter, photolithography is used to form the active layer only on the gate pattern 3b, which includes an amorphous silicon layer 11 and an n.sup.+ amorphous silicon layer 13. As a result, only the amorphous nitride 9 is left on the contact pattern 3b.
As shown in FIG. 2D, the amorphous nitride 9 on the first contact pattern 3c is then patterned to leave only an inner portion thereof, using a photolithographic process. As a result, the outer portion of the first contact pattern 3c, from which the amorphous nitride is removed, is exposed.
As shown in FIG. 2E, a metal layer 15, such as a chrome layer, is deposited to a predetermined thickness by sputtering. The metal layer 15 is patterned to form a data line pattern 15a and a second contact pattern 15b on the n.sup.+ amorphous silicon layer 13 and on the first contact pattern 3c, respectively, using photolithography. This divides the data line pattern 15a into a source line pattern and a drain line pattern. The surface of the n.sup.+ amorphous silicon layer 13 between the divided patterns of the data line pattern 15a is exposed. The second contact pattern 15b of chrome comes into direct contact with the first contact pattern 3c of Al.
Thereafter, the exposed area of the n.sup.+ amorphous silicon layer 13 is etched. The amorphous silicon 11 may also be etched to a predetermined depth.
As shown in FIG. 2F, a protective layer 17, such as a nitride layer, is deposited on the substrate 1 by CVD. A contact hole 18 is then formed in the protective layer 17 by a photolithographic process. Upon completion of the contact hole 18, an ITO layer 19 or other transparent conductor is deposited on the protective layer 17. Thereafter, the transparent conductor 19 is patterned by photolithography to form a pixel electrode pattern. As a result, the transparent conductor 19 comes into direct contact with the data line pattern 15a through the contact hole 18.
The resultant TFT-LCD has a thick and dense anodized layer 7 such as an Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 ceramic insulator having a thickness ranging from 1500.ANG. to 2000.ANG. on the surface of the gate pattern 3b. This anodized layer can suppress hillock formation.
However, if the Al layer of the contact pattern of the gate pad is anodized during the anodization process, the Al layer may not directly contact the ITO layer in the contact pattern. An additional photolithography process may be required to prevent the Al layer of the contact pattern from anodizing, which can complicate the fabrication process and can result in increased cost. Moreover, the anodized layer may have a relatively high resistance.
Accordingly, to simplify the process of the gate line formation for TFT-LCD, the use of double layered gate metals having an Al-alloy and a refractory metal is being considered. Al-Zr, Al-Ta and/or Al-Ti can be used for the Al-alloy, and Mo, Cr, Ta and other refractory metals can be used. The double layered gate metals are nearly hillock free and can have resistance of approximately 10.mu..OMEGA.Cm after annealing at 400.degree. C.
However, the double layered gate metals may have more than three times the resistivity of pure Al, and are especially chemically vulnerable against photoresist stripper and ITO etchant. Moreover, a so called "splash" problem may produce alloy clusters in the deposited Al-alloy film. Thus, double layered gate metals are capable of suppressing hillock formation in an Al gate line to some extent, but may not be suitable for the next generation TFT-LCD panels.

Aluminum gates including ion implanted composite layers


A method for forming a device, comprising providing a first substrate carrying a first set of components disposed in a first encapsulating layer over the first set of components, providing a second substrate carrying a second set of components disposed in a second encapsulating layer over the second set of components, bonding the first and second substrates and functionally interconnecting at least one of the predefined components in the first set of components with at least one of the components in the second set of components.

There is an increasing drive to integrate more devices with disparate capabilities into a single vanishingly-small package. This trend is driven by both consumer electronics and government applications, in which robust, long-life systems must perform continuous monitoring in hostile environments in order to supplement scarce human intelligence resources.
For example, electronic systems such as portable wireless communication devices or portable clinical diagnostic kits may require the integration of multiple capabilities, such as robust computational power, accurate imaging, guidance and navigation, biochemical detection, and robust and secure communications into a single package.
Traditionally, system and packaging design largely decouples the system components and addresses their development in parallel. This results in larger than optimal and power-inefficient systems. These are typically packaged individually into separate modules, wherein a module generally refers to a single substrate, interposer, or other support structure, with one or more components disposed thereon, with functional interconnections that couple the components to other devices.
In certain instances, multiple components may be packaged into a single module, but these components are typically all of the same technology type (i.e. all are digital integrated circuits, all are memory chips, etc.), all of the same material (i.e. a silicon communication layer stacked with a silicon imaging layer), or consist of a limited number of active devices (<5) packaged with a small number of passives (<10).
In order to approach the theoretical maximum component density and power efficiency for arbitrary materials, large numbers of components, and arbitrary interconnection paths (e.g. horizontal and vertical), the specification and design of the constituent subsystems must be conducted in a highly optimized and coupled manner. Additionally, the integration method must overcome the host of thermophysical incompatibilities encountered when interconnecting the platforms into a single device.

Systems and methods for high density multi-component modules


In summary, one aspect of the present invention is directed to a method for a shared memory queue to support communicating between computer processes, such as an enqueuing process and a dequeuing process. A buffer may be allocated including at least one element having a data field and a reserve field, a head pointer and a tail pointer. The enqueuing process may enqueue a communication into the buffer using mutual exclusive access to the element identified by the head pointer. The dequeuing process may dequeue a communication from the buffer using mutual exclusive access to the element identified by the tail pointer. Mutual exclusive access to said head pointer and tail pointer is not required. A system and computer program for a shared memory queue are also disclosed.

Many techniques for supporting network processing are known. Such techniques include generic memory management, interrupt scheduling, state machines, computer program code generation, and multi-protocol interfaces. The foundations of such processes are generally understood but in many cases their practical realization has fallen short of the desired results or they are incapable of providing the desired results.
Today many computer programs are intended to be processed in multi-processor and/or multi-threaded environments. The term processing is typically associated with executing a process (such as a computer program or set of computer instructions) and is generally considered to be an operating system concept that may include the computer program being executed and additional information such as specific operating system information. In some computing environments executing a computer program creates a new process to identify, support, and control execution of the computer program. Many operating systems, such as UNIX, are capable of running many processes at the same time using either a single processor and/or multiple processors. Multiple processors can perform tasks in parallel with one another, that is, a processor can execute multiple computer programs interactively, and/or execute multiple copies of the same computer program interactively. The advantages of such an environment includes a more efficient and faster execution of computer programs and the ability of a single computer to perform multiple tasks concurrently or in parallel.
A multiprocessor system, such as for example a network processor system, may include a number of system-on-chip components, that may be optimized for specific processing, such as for example optimized for processing packet input-output and packet modification. According to the one embodiment, a packet may include data, a packet destination address, and a packet sender address. Support for processing a high volume of packets may be provided by a multiprocessor system that requires improvements in common operating system functions. In part due to the high volume of packets, a multiprocessor system is particularly susceptible to inefficient processing techniques that may otherwise be effective with a single processor system.
Communication between computer programs typically includes the use of the buffer. A first computer program may request mutually exclusive access to the buffer and enqueue a communication. Subsequently, a second computer program may request mutually exclusive access to the buffer and dequeue the communication. Ideally, mutual exclusive access to the buffer and/or any buffer attributes are minimized to enhance the overall performance of the buffer. Unfortunately, conventional buffering systems provide mutual exclusive access to the buffer and any associated buffer attributes.
Therefore conventional processing of communication may not be efficient and there remains a need for a system, method, computer program, and computer program product for a shared memory queue in processing communications. What is needed is an ability to buffer communications without requiring unnecessary mutual exclusive access. Further, a need exists for an ability to further reduce the communication overhead associated with communication between two computer programs by eliminating any unnecessary mutual exclusive access, and that overcomes the above and other disadvantages of known communication processing.

System, methods, and computer program product for shared memory queue


The present invention relates to immunogenic immune complexes, related compositions, and related methods.

The immune system defends the human body against pathogen infection, cellular transformation, and physical/chemical damage. Immunization enables an individual's immune system to become fortified against an agent (known as the immunogen). The basis of immunization, under which vaccination resides, is to generate protective titers of blood-borne antibody as well as memory B-cells that can protect against infectious disease. Typically, vaccines contain agents that resemble a disease causing microorganism and elicit a humoral and/or cellular immune response against the microorganism. These agents can be made of killed microbes, parts of a microbe, or its toxins. All of these immunogens, upon injection, can provide a protective response in a subject. An immunogen, thus, stimulates the body's immune system to recognize exposure to the entire pathogen upon prior exposure to the immunogen itself, and then destroy the pathogen. Generation of a proper vaccine, which is contingent upon finding the proper immunogen that will generate a sufficient protective antibody and memory B-cell response, is a continuing challenge to vaccine development. There remains a continuing unmet need to develop a vaccine which can reliably provide sufficiently immunogenic epitopes and elicit a protective immune response in a subject.


A golf practice device consisting of a series of interlocking tubes (13a through 13d) which are supported and raised by end stands. The end stands consist of an anchor ball (11a and 11b) supported by two supporting legs (10a through 10d). The tubes are connected to each other by pins (14a through 14c) inserted into the ends of the tubes, and to the anchor balls by insertion into a hole in the equator of each anchor ball. The legs are angled toward the device at such an angle that the weight of the anchor ball and of the legs serves to remove any sag from the length of interconnected tubes, and to hold and support the length of tubing straight or in several different curvatures. Hollow balls (12a through 12j) are inserted onto and evenly spaced along the length of interconnected tubes to serve as aids to development of visualization skills. The device is used to practice golf putting and chipping mechanical skills and visualization skills.

1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to practice devices to improve golf putting mechanical skills and mental image visualization skills.
2. Description of Prior Art
Putting and short shots around the putting greens comprise nearly 60 percent of all the strokes taken in a round of golf. Through the years, various devices and methods for teaching people to become more proficient at putting, chipping, and pitching have been developed in an attempt to improve golfers skills and lower their scores. A search of the U.S. patent literature has disclosed a number of such aids, including the following:
U.S. Pat. No. 2,869,875 (Steenson, Jan. 20, 1959), discloses what is called a "golf practice game". This patent provides two "U" shaped wickets, which can be positioned apart from one another, and a cord or string is stretched between the two wickets at a location possibly several inches or a foot above the ground surface. This cord serves as an alignment guide for the person practicing the putt or possibly a short chip shot.
U.S. Pat No. 3,604,711 (Hansburg, Sep. 14, 1971), shows an upright post which may be secured in the putting green at the position of the ball, the post rigidly mounting a reel at its lower end which carries a cord or tape which may be extended and secured at the edge of the golf hole, the tape serving as an alignment guide for the golfer.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,953,865 (Coombs and Anderson, Sep. 4, 1990), shows a pair of spaced rows of pegs which extend upwardly from an elongated, planar base, which are used as guide through which to aim a putted ball toward a hole.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,273,284 (Montgomery, Dec. 28, 1993), shows a putting device that has a pair of guide rods so that the person can align his or her putting stroke.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,624,326 (Hohl and Bidleman, Apr. 29, 1997), shows a system of stakes stuck into a putting green with a raised cord tied between the stake at the putting location and the stake placed at the putting cup. The golf ball is placed beneath the raised cord at the putting location, and the putting stroke is executed to putt the ball from the putting location (at least initially) along the target line, visually utilizing the initial portion of the cord for alignment of the putting stroke.


An apparatus for air-laying of a material in the form of fibers or granules onto a running band. The apparatus includes at least one delimited space arranged at a first surface on an at least partially air-permeable endless running band. A vacuum exists in the space during operation and the band runs successively over the space. This takes place concurrently with air being sucked through the band into the space. At least two rotatable support elements are placed in the space in order to counteract down-bending of the running band. The support elements have a rotational direction generally coinciding with the running direction of the band.

Absorbent articles of the kind mentioned above, are known in a number of forms. Conventionally, the absorption core in such articles is produced by dry-defibration of cellulose pulp in the form of, for instance, rolls, bales or sheets and is converted in a fluffed form into a pulp web, sometimes with the admixture of so-called superabsorbents which are polymers having the ability to absorb several times their own weight of water or body fluid. The pulp core is often compressed, on the one hand to increase its fluid wicking capability and on the other hand to reduce the bulk of the absorbent core in order thereby to obtain an absorbent article which is as compact and demands as little space as possible.
In the technical field in question, it is common to use a vacuum pressure in order to deposit fibrous material onto a so-called forming wire, i.e. a kind of air permeable transport band, by supplying a mixture of air and absorption material to the wire wherein the air flows through the wire, thereby depositing its content of absorption core material onto said wire. Due to the fact that the layers of deposited material are air permeable per se, in this manner it is possible to deposit successive layers of material onto the forming wire, until the absorption core is formed.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,675,144 shows an apparatus for the formation of absorption cores, wherein a fibrous web is formed on an endless air-permeable band, a so called forming wire, as described above. Absorbent cores are then cut out from the formed fibrous web.
Further examples of apparatuses which employ the above mentioned technique are U.S. Pat. No. 4,739,910 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,690,853 which show a transport and folding device which utilise an air-permeable transport band, or a wire onto which absorption material is deposited, whereafter absorption cores are formed by means of a profiled, rotating brush.
When producing absorbent articles in accordance with the above mentioned method, it is usual to feed an air-permeable nonwoven material onto the forming wire such that the nonwoven material constitutes a carrier for the fibrous material which is deposited onto the forming wire. The nonwoven material, which may be elastic, will later constitute the sheet of material which is positioned closest to a wearer of the article. Further, in the technical field in question, it is known to use air-permeable, endless transport bands for pure transportation of different components, for instance between different manufacturing steps. One example of this is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,666,647.
A further example of a previously known technique is given in the Swedish patent application SE 9604803-8. This publication describes an apparatus for air-laying of a material in the form of fibres or granules onto an air-permeable, endless band wherein a second endless band is placed beneath the first band. The second endless band is designed with transverse bars which, on the one hand, define temporarily delimited spaces wherein vacuum exists, and on the other hand, provide a supporting force to the first endless band.
One problem with the use of all different types of air-permeable transport bands and forming wires is the relatively high friction which arises between the forming wire and the so called suction box. The suction box is the space, or spaces, at one of the surfaces of the forming wire, from where the evacuation of air takes place, whereby a vacuum pressure is created in the suction box. The suction box usually consists of a number of defining elements, such as wall elements and funnel-like evacuation elements. In addition, the suction box is delimited by the air-permeable endless band, i.e. the forming wire, which during operation is continuously moved past the suction box. Hereby, a certain amount of friction is created between the forming wire and its contact surfaces against the suction box, wherein the amount of friction depends, to a certain degree, on the size of the vacuum pressure which exists in the suction box. Neither is it unusual that small particles of absorption material which pass through the apertures in the air-permeable band are deposited onto the above-mentioned contact surfaces, whereby the friction is further increased.
The friction which arises, not only creates an increased energy consumption but also brings about an increase in temperature and a risk of operational problems due to an increased load on different components.
Furthermore, with the described type of equipment, it is necessary that the material which constitutes the transport band has a certain stiffness in order to counteract down-bending caused by the vacuum pressure which exists in the suction-box. This is normally solved by designing the transport band with a certain thickness and by placing a support plate, provided with a large number of holes, under the band which, accordingly, will slide on the plate. Another way is to substitute the support plate with supporting bars as in the above-mentioned Swedish patent application SE 9604803-8 which, however, requires a second endless band to carry the bars.

Apparatus for air-laying of fibrous material or granules


A problem of this invention is to satisfy both of securement of visibility of a display unit and suppression of noises at the time of a telephone call etc. using a receiver and a microphone. In a portable terminal apparatus which relates to the invention, a control unit (16) judges whether a handsfree device (20) is connected or not, on the occasion that a telephone call operation is carried out by an operation unit (18) and a voice telephone call operation by a telephone call circuit (11) and a transmission/receiving unit (12) is started, and in case that the handsfree device (20) is not connected, it is judged that a user is making a telephone call by use of a receiver (13) and a microphone (14) in an apparatus main body in such a state that he puts an apparatus casing to his ear part, and at least one of a drive system, drive frequency of a display unit (19) which comprises a liquid crystal display is changed, and a drive operation giving priority over acoustic characteristics is carried out. On one hand, in case that the handsfree device (20) is connected, a drive operation with high picture quality giving priority over optical characteristics of the display unit (19) is carried out without changing the drive system etc.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a portable terminal apparatus which includes a liquid crystal display unit, such as a portable telephone and a portable information terminal (PDA).
2. Description of Related Art
Multifunction of a portable communication terminal apparatus such as a portable telephone has been progressed, and a product, which carries out data communication such as an electronic mail etc. in addition to voice telephone call, and which can browse information by accessing to various information providing servers, is in widespread use.
In case of carrying out voice telephone call by use of the suchlike portable communication terminal apparatus, a user puts his ear to a telephone receiving unit in which a receiver is disposed, and hears received voice of the other party in telephone call, and on the occasion of talking to the other party in telephone call, the user produces a sound to a telephone microphone unit in which a microphone was disposed. Also, in case of browsing data such as electronic mails and various information, a user has a housing, keeping it off from the body, and tries to take a look at various information such as characters and images which are displayed on a display unit.
In a portable communication terminal apparatus, disposed is a liquid crystal display unit having a liquid crystal display as a display unit in a general way. If the liquid crystal display unit is driven for the purpose of information display, there is such a case that a glass panel etc., which is disposed on a front face, vibrates depending on a drive system and drive frequency, to generate noises. Particularly, in recent days, miniaturization and thin-shaping of an apparatus has been progressed, together with size growing of the liquid crystal display unit, and also, there are many cases that high picture quality display is carried out, and therefore, heightened is such a possibility that vibration noises of the liquid crystal display unit and resonance noises of the housing are generated.
As described above, in the portable terminal apparatus including the liquid crystal display unit, there is such a case that a glass panel etc., which is disposed on a front face, vibrates depending on a drive system and drive frequency, to generate noises, and in particular, along with size-growing of the liquid crystal display unit, miniaturization and thin-shaping of the apparatus, high picture quality display and so on, a possibility that noises are generated is heightened. In a portable terminal apparatus having a voice telephone call function like a portable telephone, on the occasion that a user put his ear to a telephone receiver unit, the user worries about vibration noises of the liquid crystal display unit and resonance noises of the housing, so that there is such a fear that it poses a problem for a telephone call.
The invention is made in view of the above-described circumstance, and its object is to provide a portable telephone apparatus which is capable of satisfying both of securement of visibility of the display unit and suppression of noises at the time of telephone call etc. by use of a receiver and a microphone.

Portable terminal apparatus having an improved display drive controller

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A projectile launcher having a pair of band securement elements each configured to secure the ends of a band and a pair of members disposed a distance from the pair of securement elements and located to permit the band to wrap about each of the pair of members passing the medial portion of the band between the pair of members to stretch the band toward the drawn condition of the projectile launcher.

The basic configuration and mechanics of slingshots have remained substantially constant over time. Conventional slingshots comprise a handle and a pair of arms extending divergently upward from the handle. The ends of an elastic band couple to the arms. A pouch designed to hold a projectile is coupled at the center of the elastic band. The pouch containing a projectile can be pulled away from the arms and stretching the elastic band. The pouch upon release allows the elastic bands to return toward the original unstretched condition releasing the potential energy of the elastic band as kinetic energy which transfers to the projectile through the pouch. The projectile is launched out of the pouch as the elastic band returns to the original unstretched condition.


A pseudo-substrate (1, 11) for use in the production of semiconductor components, having a carrier substrate (2, 12) with a crystalline structure and a first buffer (3, 13), which is arranged on a surface of the carrier substrate (2, 12), if appropriate on further intervening intermediate layers, wherein the first buffer (3, 13) is embodied as a single layer or as a multilayer system and includes, at least at the surface facing away from the carrier substrate (2, 12), arsenic (As) and at least one of the elements aluminum (Al) and indium (In). The invention is characterized in that a second buffer (4, 14) is additionally arranged on a side of the first buffer (3, 13) facing away from the carrier substrate (2, 12), if appropriate on further intervening intermediate layers, said second buffer being embodied as a single layer or as a multilayer system, wherein the second buffer (4, 14) is embodied such that it includes, at a first surface facing the first buffer (3, 13) arsenic and at least one of the elements aluminum and indium and comprises, at a second surface facing away from the first buffer (3, 13) antimony (Sb) and at least one of the elements aluminum and indium, and wherein the second buffer is embodied with a decreasing proportion of arsenic and with an increasing proportion of antimony in each case proceeding from the first surface towards the second surface. The invention furthermore relates to a method for producing a pseudo-substrate (1, 11).

The invention relates to a pseudo-substrate for use in the production of semiconductor components, and to a method for producing such a pseudo-substrate.
Semiconductor components, in particular for telecommunications and for high-speed applications, are typically produced by applying various layers onto substrates.
One essential criterion for the substrates used is in this case the lattice constant, which should be matched to the lattice constant of the layers to be applied. Often, however, corresponding substrates having the desired lattice constant are not available, or are not available with a sufficient quality, size or cost.
It is therefore known to employ pseudo-substrates for the crystal growth of layers for producing semiconductor components. In this case, commercially available substrates are typically used, for example Si or GaAs substrates, on which non-lattice-matched (metamorphic) and therefore defect-richer layers are deposited. With suitable process management and a sufficient layer thickness, a low-defect surface is thereby formed with a lattice constant different to that of the substrate. This newly generated surface is then used as a substrate for the growth of the layers of the actual component. For example, the use of GaAs substrates on which a metamorphic buffer layer consisting of indium, gallium and arsenic is applied in order to match the lattice constant is known, and described in Kenneth E. Lee, Eugene A. Fitzgerald, "High-quality metamorphic compositionally graded InGaAs buffers", Journal of Crystal Growth 312 (2010) 250-257.
The aforementioned pseudo-substrates are employed particularly in the production of HEMTs (High Electron Mobility Transistors) and MMIC (Monolithic Microwafe Integrated Circuits). To this end, a use of the aforementioned buffer layers for producing a pseudo-substrate has already been described in A. Leuther, A. Tessmann, H. Massler, R. Loesch, M. Schlechtweg, M Mikulla, O. Ambacher, "35 nm Metamorphic HEMT MMIC Technology", Proc. 20th Int. Conf. On Indium Phoshide and Related Materials, May 2008, paper MoA3.3″ and A. Leuther, R. Weber, H. Dammann, M Schlechtweg, M Mikulla, M Walther, G. Weimann, "Metamorphic 50 nm InAs-channel HEMT", Proc. 17th Int. Conf On Indium Phoshide and Related Materials, 2005, p. 129-132.
Since pseudo-substrates in principle have flaws and therefore defects inside the buffer layers, the risk arises that undesired electrical or optical properties, which restrict or exclude usability of the pseudo-substrates, will be induced in the event of an excessively high defect density. For example, in the event of a large lattice mismatch and a high defect density resulting therefrom, defect bands may be formed which influence the electrical and optical properties of the semiconductor component. In particular, an electrical conductivity resulting from the defect bands can render the pseudo-substrate unsuitable for radiofrequency applications.

Pseudo-substrate for use in the production of semiconductor components and method for producing a pseudo-substrate

Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V.


A sealing frame for a breathing mask is provided that can be adapted to the contours of the face of a mask user in a simple manner. The sealing frame (1), includes a soft plastic material (5) with embedded metal strips (6).

Persons who need respiratory support or breathing air supply frequently obtain the breathing gas via a breathing mask that is in contact with the face. Such breathing masks are used in the area of occupational safety or in medical applications. The breathing gas is fed in such a case to the user of the mask either breath by breath, or a gas flow is provided, which is discharged continuously via an expiration valve and continuously flushes the interior space of the mask with fresh breathing gas.
The wearing comfort of a breathing mask, which is pressed onto the mask user's face by means of a strap, is determined by a contact line in the form of a sealing frame between the mask body of the breathing mask and the face of the mask user. To adapt the breathing mask to different face shapes, it is known that masks can be offered in different sizes, namely, "small,", "medium" and "large." The individual shape of the face is adapted by a more or less flexible sealing lip. Since the sealing lip must undergo deformation in a relatively large area, it may happen that zones with different pressing pressures will develop on the face.
A sealing frame made of a plastic material for a breathing mask has become known from DE 39 35 890 A1. The sealing frame has a circumferential sealing part, which consists of a special, deformable material. To adapt the sealing part to the shape of the face of the mask user, the material is heated to a relatively low temperature of about 40° C. to 65° C., which does not appear to be too hot to the user of the mask on contact with the skin. The material is selected such that it will harden again at room temperature. During the shaping of the sealing part, the heated and softened material is placed over the face of the mask user and molded corresponding to the contours of the face. The drawback is that a separate heat source must be available.
A breathing mask for positive pressure respiration, in which the sealing frame consists of an inflatable sealing bead, is known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,971,051. A separate hand pump, which must be steadily available for filling in more air, is necessary to inflate the sealing bead.

Breathing mask with individual adaptation to the shape of the face


A signal transfer system for regulating operation of an internal combustion engine includes a shaft that is rotatably driven within an engine. A sensor is responsive to the rotation of the shaft and generates a data signal based on the rotation. A communications bus receives the data signal and generates a replicated data signal based. A first control module receives the replicated data signal and regulates operation of the vehicle based on the replicated data signal.

A vehicle engine includes components that work together to generate drive torque. These components include, but are not limited to, a crankshaft, cylinders, pistons, fuel injectors and sparkplugs. An engine or powertrain control module regulates engine operation based on engine operating parameters including, but not limited to, a rotational position of the crankshaft and a rotational position of a camshaft.
A sensor monitors the crankshaft position and generates a crankshaft position data signal based thereon. Another sensor monitors the camshaft position and generates a camshaft position data signal based thereon. The signals may be used by multiple control modules that regulate vehicle operation. Distribution of the signals to the multiple control modules results in degeneration or weakening of the signals. As a result, noise and other imperfections are generated in the signals, decreasing signal and control accuracy.

Signal transfer system for distributing engine position signals to multiple control modules


Compositions and methods relating to the diagnosis and treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorders, and bipolar disorders are disclosed. Also provided are methods for screening therapeutic agents having efficacy for the treatment of such disorders.

Several publications and patent documents are cited throughout the specification in order to describe the state of the art to which this invention pertains. Each of these citations is incorporated herein by reference as though set forth in full.
Schizophrenia is a serious neuropsychiatric illness estimated to affect 1.3% of the adult population in the United States (Report of the Surgeon General on Mental Health, 1999). The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-IIIR and IV (DSM-IIIR and DSM-IV) criteria used to diagnose schizophrenia are well known to the skilled artisan. Age of onset is typically between age 15 and 25 for men, and between age 25 and 35 for women. The symptoms typically develop over weeks to months, with a prodromal period preceding the onset of acute psychotic symptoms. The disease is chronic, characterized by episodes of worsening symptoms with active psychosis, followed by periods of relative recovery marked by significant residual impairment. Current treatment is purely symptomatic, with no cure.
The lifetime risk for schizophrenia is 1.5 percent. Risk factors for schizophrenia include a history of schizophrenia in first-degree relatives, birth during the late winter months, and birth trauma. Patients with schizophrenia have substantial amounts of physical and psychological disability, as well as occupational difficulties, with disability equivalent to quadriplegia during periods of worsened symptoms (Report of the Surgeon General on Mental Health, 1999).
Schizoaffective disorder is a related syndrome characterized by the same disability and psychotic symptoms, but with the added feature of prevalent symptoms of mood disturbance. DSM-IIIR and DSM-IV diagnostic criteria are also available to assist in diagnosing this disorder. The lifetime prevalence of schizoaffective disorder is 0.5 to 0.8 percent.
A genetic component for schizophrenia has long been suggested. Family, twin and adoption studies have demonstrated that schizophrenia is predominantly genetic, with a high heritability (McGuffin et al., Br. J. Psychiatry 164:593, 1994). Segregation analyses have failed to clearly support a single model of inheritance, with the suggestion of at least several, possibly interacting, susceptibility loci (Risch, Hum. Genet. 46:222, 1990). Schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder are often observed within the same family, suggesting that the two disorders may share a common genetic etiology.
Bipolar disorder, another type of neuropsychiatric disorder, is also known as manic-depressive illness and is also described and characterized in DSM-IIIR and DSM-IV. It involves cycles of mania and depression. Signs and symptoms of mania include: extreme irritability and distractibility; excessive euphoric feelings; a sustained period of behavior that is different from the usual behavior; increased energy activity, restlessness, racing thoughts and rapid talking; decreased need for sleep; unrealistic beliefs in one's abilities and powers; uncharacteristically poor judgment; increased sexual drive; abuse of drugs, particularly cocaine, alcohol and sleeping medications; obnoxious, provocative or intrusive behavior and denial that anything is wrong. Signs and symptoms of depression include: persistent sad, anxious or empty mood; feeling of hopelessness or pessimism; feeling of guilt, worthlessness or helplessness; loss of interest or pleasure in ordinary activities; decreased energy, a feeling of fatigue or of being "slowed down"; difficulty concentrating, remembering and making decisions; restlessness and irritability; sleep disturbances; loss of appetite and weight, or weight gain; chronic pain or other persistent bodily symptoms that are not caused by physical disease; and thoughts of death or suicide. Most people with manic-depressive illness can be helped with treatment. However, manic-depressive illness, which is currently diagnosed by symptoms alone, is often not recognized by the patient, relatives, friends and even physicians. If left untreated, bipolar disorder tends to worsen, and the person experiences episodes of full-fledged mania and clinical depression.
Neuropsychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia, attention deficit disorders, schizoaffective disorders, bipolar disorders and unipolar disorders, differ from neurological disorders in that anatomical or biochemical pathologies are readily detectable for the latter but not the former. Largely as a result of this difference, drugs which have been used to treat individuals with neuropsychiatric disorders, including lithium salts, valproic acid and carbamazepine, have not been predictably effective in treatment regimens across a variety of patients. Treatment regimens are further complicated by the fact that clinical diagnosis currently relies on clinical observation and subjective reports. Identification of the anatomical or biochemical defects which result in neuropsychiatric disorders is needed in order to effectively identify these disorders and to allow the design and administration of effective therapeutics for these disorders. Indeed, there is growing evidence that the episodes of severe psychotic symptoms may lead to irreversible decrements in long-term functioning. Current clinical trials have begun to treat individuals in the prodromal phase, with hopes of limiting the ultimate disability caused by these illnesses. Unfortunately, the diagnosis of neuropsychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia, attention deficit disorders, schizoaffective disorders, bipolar disorders and unipolar disorders, cannot be accurately made during the prodromal phase. Additionally, the treatments carry a significant risk of serious side effects thus currently limiting this early intervention strategy to individuals known to be at extremely high risk for developing one of these disorders.
Identification of genes associated neuropsychiatric disorders would greatly facilitate the diagnosis and treatment of these illnesses. It is an object of the present invention to provide materials, methods and kits which will aid the clinician in diagnosing and treating such mental disorders. It is still an object of the present invention to provide materials, methods and kits which will advantage the identification of pharmaceuticals useful in treating neuropsychiatric disorders.

Methods and compositions for the diagnosis and treatment of schizophrenia

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey


A light emitting diode structure includes a first contact electrode, a first insulating layer, a second contact electrode, a second insulating layer, a first barrier layer, a second barrier layer, a first illuminant epitaxial structure, and a second illuminant epitaxial structure. The first contact electrode includes a first protruding portion. The first insulating layer covers the first contact electrode and exposes a top of the first protruding portion. The second contact electrode is located on the first insulating layer and includes a second protruding portion. The second insulating layer covers the second contact electrode and exposes a top of the second protruding portion. The first barrier layer is located on the second insulating layer and is electrically connected to the second contact electrode. The second barrier layer is located on the second insulating layer.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a light emitting diode structure.
2. Description of Related Art
Light emitting diodes become more widely used in products. In applications of signal sources, indicator lights, LCD backlights, lighting, and projectors, light emitting diodes have gradually replaced traditional light bulbs. The currents required by these products are increased with the increasing usage demands of consumers. Therefore, manufacturers may electrically connect the light emitting diodes in series or in parallel to improve the luminous power of the light emitting diodes.
A conventional way of electrically connecting the light emitting diodes in series or in parallel is wire-bonding process. However, the wire-bonding process has a risk of failure. The wire-boning process may cause various product defects, such as peeling, breaking, etc.
Hence, how to provide a light emitting diode structure electrically connected in series or in parallel without using the wire-bonding process becomes an important issue in the industry.

Light emitting diode structure and light emitting diode module


Atmospheric conditions and environmental impact of swine rearing facilities re improved by adding alum (aluminum sulfate) in a swine manure processing system. In an embodiment, alum is added to flush water used to flush away manure which has temporarily collected on at least a portion of a floor of the facility, such as in a flushing trough. The flushed manure and water are drained and delivered to a holding pond. Preferably, the flush water is then recycled from the holding pond for subsequent flushing. In another method, alum is added to a manure slurry in a manure collection pit disposed under a slatted floor on which the swine reside. In either method, alum is added in an amount sufficient to substantially inhibit ammonia volatilization and to decrease soluble phosphorus present to provide a healthy and environmentally safe swine rearing facility and an improved agricultural fertilizer.

The present invention relates to a new and improved method of manure processing to enhance conditions in a facility for raising swine (sus scrofa domesticus) and to improve environmental effects from the swine manure generated at these facilities. More specifically, the present invention relates to controlling ammonia volatilization and odors in a swine rearing facilities, as well as controlling non-point source phosphorus runoff originating from swine lagoon effluent or liquid hog manure.
Different construction designs are known for rearing facilities on swine farms. One conventional type includes a floor which includes a grate or slatted section. Manure from the swine falls through the grate into a manure collection pit. The manure must be periodically cleaned out from the pit. Another more modern type of facility includes a floor, such as a concrete floor, which has at least one flushing trough or channel defined in the floor. Manure temporarily collects on a portion of the floor, e.g., in the trough, but the trough is periodically flushed with flush water to wash the manure down through the trough to an anaerobic lagoon or holding pond. In this latter type of facility, a typical flushing system removes all of the accumulated manure every 8 to 12 hours.
Most large-scale hog rearing facilities are totally roofed confinement systems in which no absorbent bedding material is used, permitting the manure to be efficiently handled as a slurry or as a liquid. Liquid manure is significantly diluted with water to assist in transporting and applying the manure, but relatively little water is added to the excreted manure and urine in a slurry manure system.
In the aforementioned types of facilities, the accumulation of manure results in the production of ammonia gas from ammonia volatilization. This atmospheric ammonia can be produced in relatively high quantities. The water used for flushing swine facilities is typically recycled from waste storage ponds or lagoons. Nitrogen in swine lagoon effluent is mostly in the form of NH.sub.4, with little of the NO.sub.3 form present. The remainder of the nitrogen present is bound in organic forms. Ammonia concentrations of 350 mg/l and greater are common in lagoon effluent. In addition, swine lagoon pH values are commonly in the alkaline range (pH>7.0), so ammonia (NH.sub.3) is favored over NH.sub.4, resulting in conditions favorable for ammonia volatilization. When this high pH water is used for flush water, large quantities of ammonia are volatilized, causing elevated levels of ammonia gas in the atmosphere.
Studies reveal that high atmospheric ammonia levels in swine rearing facilities substantially impede feed consumption and average daily weight gain in pigs. High levels of atmospheric ammonia in swine rearing facilities have been shown to aggravate swine respiratory problems, increasing their susceptibility to micro-organisms responsible for such respiratory problems. It has been found that ammonia also increases the susceptibility of four week old pigs to conceal atrophy. Likewise, it has also been shown that high ammonia levels in swine facilities may play a significant role in the development of atrophic rhinitis. For these reasons, it is desirable to reduce the amount of ammonia gas generated within hog rearing facilities.
Ammonia (NH.sub.3) volatilization from hog manure is also detrimental to the environment due to its effect on acid rain deposition. Studies indicate that atmospheric ammonia pollution plays an important role in acid rain pollution. In Europe, the dominant source of atmospheric ammonia has been found to be livestock wastes, with long-term trends showing a 50% increase in ammonia emissions in Europe between 1950 to 1980. Ammonia raises the pH of rainwater, allowing more SO.sub.2 to dissolve in it, eventually forming ammonium sulfate, which releases nitric and sulfuric acid in soils upon oxidation. Experts believe that this produces two to five times the acid input to soils previously described for acid atmospheric deposition, resulting in extremely low pH values (2.8-3.5) and high levels of dissolved aluminum in non-calcareous soils.
Ammonia volatilization also greatly increases atmospheric N fallout, which contributes to eutrophication. Nitrogen deposited by wet fallout tripled in Denmark between 1955 to 1980 and corresponded to N losses from agriculture during the same period. Rising levels of N in the fallout have also been shown to be highly correlated to the NO.sub.3 form nitrogen content in Danish streams.
Atmospheric ammonia can also result in the formation of ammonium nitrate particles in the air. These particles, which are usually less than two microns in size, contribute greatly to small airborne particles referred to as PM.sub.10 's (particulate matter less than 10 microns).
Swine production is a growing industry in the United States, and the industry is building increasing numbers of the above-described swine rearing facilities in watersheds susceptible to eutrophication. As a result, various groups have expressed concern over eutrophication problems associated with traditional handling of swine manure.
In particular, modern swine rearing facilities often have high numbers of animals, but many have a relatively limited land base over which the manure may be applied. This leads to an over-application of nutrients, especially phosphorus, to the soil. Phosphorus is considered to be the primary element of concern with respect to eutrophication of freshwater systems. The threat of eutrophication due to phosphorus runoff has resulted in limits being placed on the amount of animal units produced per area of land in The Netherlands.
Accordingly, new facilities and methods are needed for rearing animals under conditions which reduce ammonia volatilization, to prevent nitrogen losses in order to improve the fertilizer value of manure to be used as an agricultural fertilizer, and to reduce the soluble phosphorus content of the manure to prevent phosphorus runoff from fields fertilized by swine manure.

Swine rearing facility and method for reducing ammonia and odors therein

Trustees of the University of Arkansas and the United States of America


A terminal acquires a network prefix of a network connected thereto, and determines whether that network prefix is identical to an initial network prefix. When the terminal determines that the two prefixes are different, the terminal reads the network prefix of each of a destination address and a source address in a received packet. When the read network prefix is different from the initial network prefix, the terminal substitutes the initial network prefix for the read network prefix, thereby generating a pseudo header. The terminal authenticates the received packet using the generated pseudo header.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for processing information, a storage medium and a software program and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for processing information, a storage medium and a software program for assuring movement transparency at an upper layer without modifying an existing protocol.
2. Description of the Related Art
As mobile computers become ubiquitous, users frequently carry computers with them. The user not only carries a mobile computer, but also connects the computer to a network at a destination of the user to receive a variety of services through the network.
In today's mobile computing environment, a node, i.e., a device (a computer) to receive service through a network, is required to be mobile. Such a node, if moved in the location thereof, must continuously remain communicable.
Based on the IP V6 (Internet Protocol Version 6), Mobile IP V6 has been proposed as a protocol to assure movement transparency at the network layer by IETF (the Internet Engineering Task Force). Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-000560, assigned to the assignee of this invention, also discloses a technique (hereinafter referred to as VIP V6) based on the IP V6.
In accordance with the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-000560, the least significant 64 bits of an IP V6 address are set to be unique to assure movement transparency at the IP layer.
Movement transparency cannot be assured in a session at an IPsec (Security Architecture for Internet Protocol) layer or an upper layer (TCP/UDP (User Datagram Protocol)) without modification in an existing protocol.
A technique is contemplated to assign a predetermine fixed value to a network prefix, which is the most significant 64 bits of the IP V6 address. In this case, however, standardization is must be achieved to use a particular fixed network prefix to the VIP V6 protocol in accordance with the foregoing Patent Application No. 2000-000560.
Upon receiving a packet, a receiver node needs to determine whether to perform a session at the Ipsec layer or the upper layer (TCP/UDP) or an ordinary session using a source address contained in the received packet. To this end, the receiver node describes an ID (Identification) identifying a node in the least significant 64 bits of the IP V6 address, or indicates a "fixed value+node identification ID" to a domain name server to check whether the address is registered.
In this arrangement, however, at least one network prefix is dedicated to a session at the Ipsec layer or the upper layer. The address is thus consumed in vain.

Method and apparatus for processing information, storage medium, and software program


A display device comprises an array of pixels arranged in rows and columns, each pixel comprising a current-driven display element, for example an electroluminescent display element. Driver circuitry is provided for producing current signals for driving the display elements. The driver circuitry generates a voltage function and supplies it to the input of a binary weighted capacitor network, each capacitor of the network being connected in series with a respective switching transistor. An input word to the driver circuitry controls the switching of the switching transistors, such that the output current of the driver circuitry is a function of the voltage function and of the combined capacitance of the capacitors of the network for which the associated switching transistor is closed. The output current is supplied to a selected pixel of the array. The rate of change of voltage across the capacitors is independent of the voltage drop across the switching transistors so that non-uniformity between different switching transistors will be of no consequence.

The invention relates to a current source, which may, for example, be used as part of the control circuitry for display devices, and particularly display devices having current-driven pixels, for example active matrix electroluminescent display devices. Such display devices comprise an array of electroluminescent display pixels arranged in rows and columns, and the invention also relates to display devices using such current sources.
Matrix display devices employing electroluminescent, light-emitting, display elements are well known. The display elements may comprise organic thin film electroluminescent elements, for example using polymer materials, or else light emitting diodes (LEDs) using traditional III-V semiconductor compounds. Recent developments in organic electroluminescent materials, particularly polymer materials, have demonstrated their ability to be used practically for video display devices. These materials typically comprise one or more layers of a semiconducting conjugated polymer sandwiched between a pair of electrodes, one of which is transparent and the other of which is of a material suitable for injecting holes or electrons into the polymer layer.
The polymer material can be fabricated using a CVD process, or simply by a spin coating technique using a solution of a soluble conjugated polymer. Organic electroluminescent materials exhibit diode-like I-V properties, so that they are capable of providing both a display function and a switching function, and can therefore be used in passive type displays. Alternatively, these materials may be used for active matrix display devices, with each pixel comprising a display element and a switching device for controlling the current through the display element. Examples of an active matrix electroluminescent display are described in EP-A-0653741 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,670,792, the contents of which are incorporated herein by way of reference material.
A problem with display devices of this type arises from the fact that they have current driven display elements. Conventional supply circuitry for supplying a controllable current to the display elements can suffer the drawback that the current varies as a function of the electrical characteristics of the switching transistors used in the supply circuitry. For example, a current controlling transistor may be provided as part of the pixel configuration, with the gate voltage supplied to the transistor determining the current through the display element. Different transistor characteristics give rise to different relationships between the gate voltage and the source-drain current. Such an arrangement is described in EP-A-0653741.
The current controlling circuitry may either comprise part of the pixel configuration, as described above, so that a pixel voltage is supplied to the pixels, or else the current controlling circuitry may comprise separate circuitry provided at the periphery of the display area, so that a pixel current is supplied to the pixels. In either case, if the current controlling circuitry is integrated onto the same substrate as the display pixels, it typically comprises thin film switching elements such as thin film transistors. The uniformity across the substrate of the electrical characteristics of the switching elements may be poor, which gives rise to unpredictable variations in the pixel currents and therefore the pixel outputs.
According to the invention, there is provided a display device comprising:
an array of pixels arranged in rows and columns, each pixel comprising a current-driven display element;
driver circuitry for generating signal currents corresponding to desired outputs from the display elements, characterised in that the driver circuitry comprises means for generating a predetermined voltage function, the voltage function being supplied to the input of a binary weighted capacitor network, each capacitor of the network being connected in series with a respective switching transistor, an input word to the driver circuitry controlling the switching of the switching transistors, such that the output current of the driver circuitry is a function of the voltage function and of the combined capacitance of the capacitors of the network for which the associated switching transistor is closed, the output current being supplied to a selected pixel of the array.
The current output of this arrangement depends upon the voltage across the capacitors of the network, and the combined capacitance. In particular, the current through each capacitor is a function of the rate of change of voltage across the capacitor. The currents through each capacitor having a closed switch are summed to provide the current output. The voltage across each capacitor depends on the voltage function, and can be substantially independent of the characteristics of the switching transistors. In particular, the voltage across the switching transistors (i.e. the source-drain voltage) will become constant once the transistors have saturated, so that the rate of change of voltage across the capacitors is then independent of the voltage drop across the switching transistors. Therefore, non-uniformity between different switching transistors will be of no consequence.
The voltage function may comprise a ramp function, so that a constant current through the capacitors results (after an initial settling period). However, other functions may be used, which may be selected to give an output current which itself has a desired function over time.
The display device preferably further comprises row addressing circuitry for addressing rows of the array in turn, and the driver circuitry comprises a binary weighted capacitor network for each column of the array, and provides a respective signal current to each column during a row addressing period.
Each pixel may comprise first and second switching means, and may be operable in a first mode in which the input current is supplied by the first switching means to the second switching means, a control level being stored for the second switching means corresponding to the input current, and in a second mode in which the stored control level is applied to the second switching means so as to drive a current corresponding to the input current through the display element. The display element is preferably an electroluminescent display element. By using the current supplied by the driver circuitry to configure the pixel, this pixel is made to mirror the input current.
The second switching means may then comprise a TFT, and the gate-source voltage of the TFT at an operating point in which the source-drain current is the input current is stored on a capacitor as the control level.
The output current may be sampled to control a current source, rather than being supplied directly to the pixel. The current source then supplies the current to the selected pixel of the array. This avoids the need to apply a constantly increasing voltage as the voltage function for the full duration of the row address period.
The invention also provides a current source for providing a current output based on a binary input control word, comprising:
a binary weighted capacitor network; and
means for generating a predetermined voltage function, the voltage function being supplied to the input of the binary weighted capacitor network,
wherein each capacitor of the network is connected in series with a respective switching transistor, the binary input word controlling the switching of the switching transistors, such that the output current of the driver circuitry is a function of the voltage function and of the combined capacitance of the capacitors of the network for which the associated switching transistor is closed, the output current being supplied to an output of the current source.
This current source may be used in the display device of the invention, but it may also be used in other applications requiring a constant current input.

Current source and display device using the same


The present invention relates to a method for preparing a glycidyl ester compound which comprises performing a reaction under reduced pressure without using a reaction solvent.

Glycidyl esters are mainly used as diluents for epoxy resins with high boiling point, and they also are used to produce resin compositions of various compositions such as epoxy resin, ester resin, alkyd resin and acrylic resin by reacting with acrylic acid, polyol, polyacid, etc.
Among them, the olefin-derived glycidyl ester having a C5 to C10 alkyl group such as neodecanoic acid glycidyl ester itself is usefully used as a reactive diluent for the preparation of thermosetting acrylic acid, epoxy polyester, urethane paint and coatings.
The glycidyl ester and the method thereof are prepared by the reaction of alkali salt of carboxylic acid and epichlorohydrin, and at this time, the reaction is carried out at from 50 to 150° C. in the presence of a catalyst, an alkali salt and water. This method produces a large amount of unreacted materials with the final products and also generates a large amount of intermediates or by-products during the reaction, so that the separation of the final products was not easy.
In this connection, WO1997/044335 has proposed that the yield of glycidyl ester can be increased by removing water and by-product through vacuum distillation method. However, the vacuum distillation method has a problem that since the amount of glycidyl ester removed to obtain high purity glycidyl ester is too large, it is not preferable from the viewpoint of productivity.
As an alternative to this, Korean Patent Laid-open Publication No. 2001-0090503 discloses that the glycidyl ester can be prepared with a yield of about 90% by dissolving monocarboxylic acid and epichlorohydrin in a mixed solvent containing water and then adding a catalyst such as metal hydroxide and then reacting them.
Although the method disclosed in the above patent publication has an advantage that the glycidyl ester can be produced at a high yield, since the reactant and the solvent are used at a weight ratio of 1:1, and the amount of reactant introduced into the reactor is limited due to the solvent used, there is a limit to increase the unit output of the final glycidyl ester-based compound.

Glycidyl ester compound preparation method