In a thumbnail screen, categories and category thumbnails are disposed and displayed in the depth (Z-axis) direction and in the horizontal (X axis) direction, respectively. When focus is given by a focus to any of upper and lower category thumbnails, which are displayed on the most front side, and a category name display part, the row (layers) of the thumbnails scrolls in the horizontal direction. When the right and left direction keys of a remote controller are operated while the category name display has focus, the scroll in the depth direction is performed, thus enabling the specification of a desired category. This three-dimensionally displays the thumbnails and facilitates the operation for viewing information.

Conventionally, in an apparatus with thumbnail display, in order to enable selectively viewing the contents (information) of various categories, such as, for example, television programs, pictures, video-recorded information, still frames or the like, thumbnails, which are reduced specific images, have been created for each content of those categories, and simultaneously displayed on the screen as a content menu screen (i.e. thumbnail screen). Therefore, in the apparatus with thumbnail display, it has been able to display and view the desired content on the screen by selecting the thumbnail of the desired content from the thumbnail screen.
In an exemplary apparatus with thumbnail display, the display screen is divided into sections for a TV program, a library, and the Internet starting from the top. In the TV program section, thumbnails for TV channels are arranged and displayed. In the library section, thumbnails for files for each content stored in folders registered in the library of a hard disc (e.g. video-recorded program file, moving image video file, still image file, voice file, Internet data file or the like) are arranged and displayed. In the Internet section, thumbnails for Internet data introduction information are arranged and displayed. (Reference may be made to JP-A-2004-221672 for example.
In this apparatus with thumbnail display, since each thumbnail is displayed with a space between each, it is possible to clearly identify the thumbnail. Furthermore, the thumbnails arranged in these TV program, library, and Internet sections always scroll on the display screen from right to left. Therefore, even if there are too many thumbnails to be displayed on one screen, they are sequentially and repeatedly displayed on the screen. Thus, it is possible to select a desired thumbnail from among the displayed thumbnails by pointing and clicking it with a cursor, and then to view the content of the selected thumbnail.
In such a thumbnail screen, the library section is also divided into each file, such as a video-recorded program file, a moving image file, or the like, mentioned above. Therefore, it should be noted that the type of each content, such as each file in the TV program and library, Internet data introduction information, or the like, is referred to as a category in the following sections.
A data display method of the apparatus with thumbnail display has been proposed as another example. In the data display method, thumbnails for respective categories are arranged in an XYZ coordinate space, and the thumbnails are visible from various viewpoints, thus making it possible to select the thumbnail of a desired content. Reference may be made to JP-A-10-187743 for example.
In this data display method, the Z-axis in the depth direction is configured to be a coordinate axis for indicating date and time, and along the Z-axis a calendar model for indicating date and time is displayed. The X axis, parallel to the display screen and in the horizontal direction, is configured to be a coordinate axis for indicating the type of categories, and a category model for indicating the name of categories, such as "document", "image" or "planning conference", is arranged and displayed in the X direction. Moreover, for each category model, thumbnails belonging to the category are arranged in the Z-axis direction.
The thumbnails, which are arranged in a three dimensional (3D) space, are visible from a different viewpoint in accordance with instructions to change the viewpoint given by an input unit. When the viewpoint is brought closer to a thumbnail, the display of thumbnail is enlarged accordingly. When a desired thumbnail is specified and clicked, the thumbnail is selected, with its content being displayed.


The present invention relates to an aluminum alloy brazing sheet (1) for a heat exchanger improved in a life including a fatigue in a plastic area and an aluminum alloy heat exchanger tube (11) using the brazing sheet, which is composed of: a core material (2) of an Al—Mn series alloy; a skin material (3) of any one of an Al—Zn series alloy, an Al—Zn—Mg series alloy, an Al—Si—Mn—Zn series alloy, and an Al—Si—Mn—Mg—Zn series alloy clad on one side of the core material; and a brazing material (4) of an Al—Si series alloy clad on the other side of the core material, and is adapted so that an X-ray diffraction intensity ratio of the aluminum alloy brazing sheet satisfies a relational expression of I200/(I111+I200+I220+I311)≧0.4.

A common automobile heat exchanger is configured, as shown in FIG. 4, so that a heat radiation fin 112 processed like a corrugation is integrally formed between planular tubes 111 provided plurally like a radiator 100 and so that both ends of the tubes 111 are respectively opened to a space configured with a header 113 and a tank (not shown).
The radiator 100 of such the configuration sends a refrigerant of a high temperature from a space of one tank to that of the other tank through each inside of the tubes 111 and again circulates the refrigerant that becomes a lower temperature by exchanging heat between the tubes 111 and the heat radiation fin 112.
In the tubes 111, as shown in FIG. 4, cladding one side of a core material 102 with a skin material (also called a sacrificial electrode material) 103, forming an aluminum alloy brazing sheet 101 (see FIG. 5), where the other side of the core material 102 is clad with a brazing material 104, like a planular tube by such a forming roll, and performing electric resistance welding or heating and brazing, whereby the aluminum alloy brazing sheet 101 itself is brazed and liquid paths of the tubes 111 are formed.
Meanwhile, in the core material 102 is used an Al—Mn series alloy such as alloy No. 3003 specified in JIS H 4000 from a view point of an anticorrosion and a strength; in the skin material 103 always contacting a refrigerant are used alloy No. 7072, and Al—Zn series and an Al—Zn—Mg series alloy such as Al-2 to 5% Zn-2 to 4% Mg, and in the brazing material 104 is used an Al—Si series alloy such as alloy No. 4045 of a lower melting point.
The radiator 100 is integrally assembled by brazing, using the tubes 111 configured above, the radiation fin 112 where corrugated processing is performed, and other members. As a brazing method can be cited such a flux brazing method and a Nocolok brazing method of using a noncorrosive flux; and brazing is performed, heating the members described above at a high temperature of approximately 600 degrees Celsius.
In the radiator 100 thus assembled, specifically in the tubes 111, a refrigerant of a high temperature to a low temperature and a high pressure to a normal pressure results in always passing and circulating. In other words, because a repetitive stress is loaded to the tubes 111, a fatigue characteristic for enduring this is requested.
It is generally known that the fatigue characteristic relates to a static tensile strength, and a material where Cu is added is proposed in order to improve the tensile strength of a raw material also in a heat exchanger (for example, see Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. H10-53827 (claims 1 to 4 and paragraph 0013).

Aluminum alloy brazing sheet and aluminum alloy tube for heat exchanger


An outdoor light fixture that receives power from an external power source through an insulated wire and that has an angular displacement connector with conductive prongs that pierce the wire insulation in order to achieve a conductive contact.

The present invention relates to light fixtures and more particularly low voltage outdoor light fixtures that receive current through wires connected to an external power source.
Low voltage outdoor light fixtures are widely known. Such fixtures typically are used to illuminate gardens, outdoor walkways, driveways, patios and other areas or to spotlight sculptures, trees, structures and other objects. Typically, low voltage outdoor light fixtures are constructed of metal or plastic, and have a power source, a stake suitable for being inserted into the ground and for supporting the other components of the light fixture, a light bulb, and a globe that protects the light bulb, diffuses light emitted from the light bulb and provides decoration. In some fixtures, the power source includes solar panels that are used to generate electricity to power the light bulb. In other fixtures, a low voltage power supply provides typically about 12 volts AC through a wire that runs--e.g., underground--from the low voltage power supply to the light fixtures.
Generally, more than one fixture may be connected to a single low voltage power supply in the known type of power arrangement. In such cases, the wire carrying current from the power supply typically is laid underground such that it emerges from the ground to connect to a light fixture and then runs further underground until it emerges to connect to the next fixture and so forth until all of the desired light fixtures are wired to the power supply.
Various apparatus are known for connecting the wire running from the power supply to a light fixture. A commonly used connection scheme is a sliding connector, which is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,774,648. The connector incorporates a stake that has a top with a hooked groove, which includes a pair of upwardly protruding L-shaped guides suitable for slidably receiving laterally protruding legs near the bottom of the assembly used for mounting the bulb and the globe (bulb/globe assembly). In such a scheme, the wire is looped over the top of the stake and nestles in the groove between upwardly extending guides, then the bulb/globe assembly--which has downwardly protruding pointed conductive prongs--is slid into place such that, when a connection is successfully made, the pointed conductive prongs pierce the wire's insulation and provide a conductive contact.
Other types of sliding connectors are also known. For example, another known sliding connector has hooked guides protruding either directly from the bulb/globe assembly or from a post extending from the bulb/globe assembly. The hooked guides are adapted to receive the top of the stake and the conducting prongs are situated between the hooked guides. In this scheme, the wire is looped through the hooked guides and then the top of the stake, or a retaining tab, is slid onto the bulb/lens assembly between the guides.
In another known scheme for connecting the wire to a fixture the wire terminates at the light fixture and a pair of contacts is crimped to the end of the wire. Such a crimped connector is discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,814,961.
Sliding connectors possess a number of known disadvantages. Difficulty in making a conductive connection is one such disadvantage. Often in installation of light fixtures using sliding connectors, the pointed conductive prongs do not adequately pierce the insulation of the wire, so a conductive contact is not made. The installer therefore must slide the connector components apart, re-align the wire and then slide the components back together. This process must be repeated until a conductive contact is made.
A further disadvantage of sliding connectors is that a longitudinal incision may be made in the wire's insulation as the contacts are slid into place. This incision is longer than necessary to make a conductive contact. A further related disadvantage is that each time the installer must repeat the sliding process--if multiple attempts to form a conductive contact are required--the damage to the insulation may be increased.
A still further disadvantage of sliding connectors is that a shearing force can be applied by the pointed conductive prongs.
Yet another disadvantage is that the wire insulation may be damaged by the incision, which increases the risks of short circuits, sparking and other known disadvantages inherent in exposed wiring.
Crimped connectors also possess a number of known disadvantages. One such disadvantage is that connections to multiple light fixtures cannot be achieved with one uninterrupted wire because the wire must be cut so the crimped connection can be made at the loose end.
A further disadvantage of crimped connectors is that installation is relatively complicated and time consuming.


An OLED device includes a substrate, electrode layers and organic layers arranged on the substrate and at least one metal foil on top thereof. The first metal foil is electrically connected to one of the electrode layers. An enclosure of at least the organic layers is provided by the metal foil in conjunction with a sealant 113. Thus, the metal foil plays a major role in forming an OLED package. In addition, the metal foil provides a low ohmic external connection, which for example can be used for applying a driving current to the OLED.

OLED devices require a moisture and oxygen free environment in order to protect the organic layers and ensure a long lifetime of the device. Consequently the OLEDs must be hermetically enclosed. A typical packaging method is disclosed in the patent application US 2004/0108811, where a cap is arranged above the OLEDs and is sealed against the substrate. Such a conventional package is cheap and easy to build, while causing the package to be relatively thick and rigid. Additionally such a conventional package suffers from mechanical problems. In particular large area packages that are exposed to low ambient pressure and temperature fluctuations are prone to failure. Additionally, the conventional package does not support electrical current transport towards the device.


An integrated EMI/RFI Filter Magnetic has differential and common mode inductors wound about an I-Core. The I-Core is juxtaposed with an E-Core, with the end surfaces of the E-Core legs facing the I-Core. The magnetic has a substantially closed magnetic path for the differential inductors and the common mode inductors.

Electronic circuits produce electromagnetic interference (EMI) and radio frequency interference (RFI). The noise can interfere with the operation of televisions, radios, telephones and similar equipment. The electrical noise can conduct through the power lines or radiate through power line or through output leads.
An electronic ballast or any other electronic circuit for powering fluorescent lights is affected by EMI/RFI noise and also produce EMI/RFI noise. A filter is therefore needed to reduce the EMI/RFI noise produced by the ballasts and to filter the EMI/RFI noise from the lines powering the ballasts.
Additionally, a filter for an electronic ballast should filter any power line transients, as well as decrease THD (total harmonic distortion).
There are two types of EMI/RFI noise. Differential noise is interference generated between the power line and the return line. Common mode noise is interference between both the power line and the return line and ground.
In some electronic ballasts, an inductor is placed in series in the power line to eliminate differential noise. Elimination of common mode noise is done by way of two inductors wound on the same core. One of the two inductors is in series with the power line and the second inductor in series with the return line.
Use of one component for the differential inductor and another component for the common mode inductor increases the cost of the ballast. The cost is high. There is difficulty in manufacturing the magnetics as well as assembly of the magnetics into the circuit board. Additional space is required on the board.

Integrated common mode and differential mode inductor device


A display brightness control circuit of a liquid crystal display device includes a logarithmic-linear converting circuit for converting an illuminance signal having a logarithmic relationship with incident light into a linear signal. When an output of an external light sensor is a logarithmic signal, the logarithmic signal is converted into a linear signal through the logarithmic-linear converting circuit, and when an output of the external light sensor is a linear signal, the logarithmic-linear converting circuit is not involved. The logarithmic-linear converting circuit corresponds to an exponential circuit which is an inverse function of a logarithm log. Further, when even the same logarithmic output illuminance sensor is different in input-output characteristics, setting of the abovementioned exponential circuit can be changed.

Most liquid crystal displays installed in a mobile device typified by a mobile phone are of a transmissive type or a semi-transmissive type that require backlight. In the transmissive or semi-transmissive liquid crystal display, however, it has been known that display image information is negated by intense external light, for example, under high illuminance environment such as sunlight and the visibility thereof is lowered. On the other hand, in a reflective liquid crystal display which has good visibility under sunlight, the amount of light to be the basis of the display image information is insufficient under low illuminance environment, for example, indoors and the visibility thereof is lowered.
As a technique for improving the visibility in a transmissive or semi-transmissive liquid crystal display, there is a method disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2001-265463. In this method, means for controlling display brightness of a display device in accordance with illuminance information obtained by measuring and detecting environmental illuminance by an external light sensor and means for controlling backlight illuminance of a keyboard are provided. In the control described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2001-265463, for example, under intense illuminance environment such as sunlight, in order for display image information not to be negated by external light, the amount of backlight is increased to improve visibility of a liquid crystal display. On the other hand, under low illuminance environment such as indoors, since the amount of backlight is relatively large and there are few factors by which display image information is negated, the amount of backlight is not increased or is reduced. By theses controls, it becomes possible to increase the amount of backlight outdoors to give priority to visibility and reduce the amount of backlight indoors to give priority to power consumption. By this means, both of low power consumption and high visibility of a liquid crystal display can be realized.
Incidentally, there are mainly two types of external light sensors. One is a linear output illuminance sensor in which an output illuminance signal has a linear relationship with the amount of incident light, and the other is a logarithmic output illuminance sensor in which an output illuminance signal has a logarithmic relationship with the amount of incident light. Since a relationship between incident light illuminance and output current is linear in a photodiode used for a light sensor, the former linear output illuminance sensor was mainstream previously. In recent years, however, the logarithmic output illuminance sensor capable of detecting illuminance difference finely in a low illuminance range has appeared, and the current situation is that these two types of illuminance sensors are present in a mixed manner. Further, in the aforementioned logarithmic output illuminance sensor, it has been known that input-output characteristics of the sensors are different among manufacturers or products.
The targets to be achieved by the present invention are to make it possible to control the amount of backlight in accordance with an output of a sensor even in various types of external light sensors such as a linear output illuminance sensor and a logarithmic output illuminance sensor and further to make it possible to perform similar control of the amount of backlight even when the same type of sensor different in input-output characteristics is used.
An object of the present invention is to provide a display device such as a liquid crystal display with good visibility and low power consumption by combining backlight control means and various types of external light sensors.


Methods for processing speech data are described herein. In one aspect of the invention, an exemplary method includes receiving a text sentence comprising a plurality of words, each of the plurality of words having a part of speech (POS) tag, generating a POS sequence based on the POS tag of each of the plurality of words, detecting a prosodic phrase break through a recurrent neural network (RNN), based on the POS sequence, and generating a prosodic phrases boundary based on the prosodic phrase break. Other methods and apparatuses are also described.

In general, there are three key modules in a text to speech (TTS) system: the text analysis, the prosodic model and the speech synthesis. One of the important stages in the process of turning unmarked text into speech is the assignment of appropriate phrase break boundaries. The phrase break boundaries are important to later modules including accent assignment, duration control and pause insertion. A number of different algorithms have been proposed for such a task, ranging from the simple to the complex. These different algorithms require different information such as part of speech (POS) tags, syntax and even semantic understanding of the text. Obviously these requirements come at different costs and it is important to trade off difficulty in finding particular input features versus accuracy of the model.
Some of the languages, such as Chinese and Japanese, do not have space between the words. The first step of text analysis for such language processing is word segmentation. Because of the difficulty of syntactic parsing for these languages, most of the conventional TTS systems segment the words in the text analysis procedure, and limit the average length of the words after the segmentation at about 1.6 syllables, through the intrinsic properties of the words. Thus a small pause will be inserted every 1.6 syllables during the speech synthesis if there is no other higher level linguistic information, such as prosodic word, prosodic phrase and intonational phrase. As a result, the speech is not fluent enough. Native speakers tend to group words into phrases whose boundaries are marked by duration and intonational cues. Many phonological rules are constrained to operate only within such phrases, usually termed prosodic phrases. Prosodic phrase will help the TTS system produce more fluent speech, while the prosodic structure of the sentence will also help improve the intelligibility and naturalness of the speech. Therefore placing phrase boundaries is very important to ensure a naturally and sounding TTS system. With correct prosodic phrases detected from text, high quality prosodic model can be created and the acoustic parameters can be provided, which include pitch, energy, and duration, for the speech synthesis.
A lot of methods have been introduced to extract prosodic phrase boundaries from English text, such as statistic model, CART (Classification and Regression Tree), FSA (Finite State Automata), MM (Markov Model), and so on. Some approaches use the language information to parse the text, and then map from the syntactic structure to prosodic structure, some methods make use of POS to extract prosodic phrase from the text. However, these methods tend to have limited quality and complex procedures to accomplish their goals. It is desirable to have an improved method and system for detecting prosodic phrase break.

Method and apparatus for detecting prosodic phrase break in a text to speech (TTS) system


A method of printing electronic circuits uses pattern recognition to detect locations of interconnects on electronic components oriented on a substrate such that the interconnects face away from the substrate, the interconnects having ramps between the interconnects and the substrate, adjusts routing paths as needed based upon a difference between an intended placement and an actual placement of the electronic components, and generates a new image file for printing with adjusted routing paths. A device has at least one electronic component having interconnects, a ramp from a surface of the substrate to the interconnects, wherein the ramp is formed of one of either a polymer or an adhesive, a printed, conductive path on the ramp providing electrical connection to at least one of the interconnects.

The ability to print electronic circuits has several advantages. It is generally faster and less expensive to print the features than to perform the repeated steps of depositing, masking and etching layers to form the connections on a conventional printed circuit board (PCB). Image files can be used to direct the printing of the circuits, rather than reticles used in forming the masks. Printers may also be less expensive than photolithography steppers and other equipment needed to form the circuits by more conventional methods.
Currently, printed circuits are combined with discrete components, such as integrated circuit chips, memory chips, batteries, connectors, logic chips, etc., by mounting the discrete electronics on a conventionally manufactured printed circuit board and then connecting the printed electronic circuit substrate, such as flexible tape, etc. For purposes of this discussion here, all of the discrete electronics will be referred to as 'chips.' This process may involve heating, ultrasonic agitation and underfill. The bonding process may also involve the use of anisotropic conductive tape and a pressure bond.
Generally, in current electronic circuit architectures, the interconnects for the discrete electronic components, such as integrated circuit chips, reside on the printed circuit board (PCB), and the chips are 'flip-chip' mounted, such that the interconnects face downward towards the board. To combine the discrete electronics with printed electronic circuits, the chips are mounted with their interconnects facing upwards, and then the lines are printed to connect the chips together for operation. Interconnects may include solder balls, such as ball grid arrays used to connect chips to conventional printed circuit boards.


A photodetector includes a semiconductor substrate having first and second main surfaces opposite to each other. The photodetector includes at least one trench formed in the first main surface and a first anode/cathode region having a first conductivity formed proximate the first main surface and sidewalls of the at least one trench. The photodetector includes a second anode/cathode region proximate the second main surface. The second anode/cathode region has a second conductivity opposite the first conductivity. The at least one trench extends to the second main surface of the semiconductor substrate.

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a photodetector, and more particularly, to a photodetector array using positive-intrinsic-negative (PIN)/negative-intrinsic-positive (NIP) diodes having a continuous anode/cathode from front side to back side.
A photon detector or photodetector converts radiant power directly into electrical current; also called a photodiode. PIN/NIP diodes or PIN/NIP photodiodes are generally known in the art. A PIN/NIP diode is a form of photodetector.
A PIN diode is a type of photodiode with a large, neutrally doped intrinsic region sandwiched between p-doped and n-doped semiconducting regions. The PIN diode's name comes from the layering of these materials positive, intrinsic, negative (PIN). Broadly speaking, a photodiode is a semiconductor device that converts light to electrical current. A PIN diode typically exhibits an increase in its electrical conductivity as a function of the intensity, wavelength, and modulation rate of the incident radiation.
A PIN diode is also a semiconductor device that operates as a variable resistor at radiofrequency (RF) and microwave frequencies. The resistance value of the PIN diode is determined only by the forward biased direct current (DC) current. At high RF frequencies when a PIN diode is at zero or reverse bias, it appears as a parallel plate capacitor, essentially independent of reverse voltage.
Photoconductor arrays are groups of a plurality of photodetectors, such as PIN/NIP diodes, arranged together on a substrate or wafer.
It is desirable to provide a photodetector array using PIN/NIP diodes having a continuous anode/cathode from front side to back side.

Front lit PIN/NIP diode having a continuous anode/cathode


A catalyzed exhaust system for an outboard motor engine rotates its catalyst device in a catalyst housing above an adapter plate which supports the engine and separates it from the driveshaft housing. The exhaust gas is directed initially in an upwardly direction and then is turned downwardly to provide space for location and easy access to the catalyst device. A coolant, such as water drawn from a body of water, is reversed in direction of flow several times in order to advantageously fill certain cooling channels in an upward direction. In addition, various coolant channels are vented to remove potential pockets of air in their upper regions.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally related to a marine propulsion device and, more particularly, to an outboard motor with a catalyzed exhaust system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Those skilled in the art of marine propulsion devices are familiar with many different types of structures and systems provided to direct the flow of exhaust gas from the engine of the marine propulsion device, such as an outboard motor. In addition, those familiar with marine engines are aware of many different types of engine cooling systems which direct a coolant, such as water, to flow in thermal communication with portions of the engine and its components that receive heat from the internal combustion process. Those familiar with marine propulsion devices are also aware of many different arrangements for catalyzing the exhaust from marine engines.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,772,236, which issued to Takahashi on Sep. 20, 1988, describes an exhaust gas purifying device for a marine engine. An outboard motor with an improved catalyst system for treating the exhaust gases regardless of whether they are delivered to the atmosphere through an above the water exhaust gas discharge or a below the water exhaust gas discharge is described.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,378,180, which issued to Nakayama et al. on Jan. 3, 1995, describes an exhaust system for an outboard motor. A catalyst is positioned in the exhaust system downstream of the point where the exhaust pipe terminates in the expansion chamber so as to preclude interference with the exhaust timing. The catalyst bed is removable for ease of servicing without necessitating removal of the outboard motor from the attachment to the associated water path and a trap device is provided for precluding water from entering the engine through its exhaust port.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,556,311, which issued to Fujimoto on Sep. 17, 1996, describes an outboard motor exhaust cooling system. A catalytic exhaust system for an outboard motor is described wherein the catalyst is positioned in the driveshaft housing to remove the force of heat from the powerhead. However, the catalyst is contained within a field compartment in the driveshaft housing lower unit. In order to protect the catalyst from water, a trap section is positioned in the powerhead and this is water cooled by a source of water which has not passed through the engine for its cooling prior to delivery to the trap section.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,911,610, which issued to Fujimoto on Jun. 15, 1999, describes an outboard motor exhaust system. A catalytic exhaust system for an is outboard motor having an engine positioned in a cowling is described. The exhaust system leads from an exhaust port of the engine to a discharge from the motor. A catalyst is positioned in the exhaust system for catalyzing exhaust gases. A first port is positioned in the exhaust system downstream of the catalyst through which an exhaust gas probe may be selectively extended for obtaining an exhaust gas sample.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,632,110, which issued to Kato on Oct. 14, 2003, describes an exhaust catalyst for an outboard motor engine. The catalyst assembly for an outboard motor includes a branched passage connecting the main exhaust passages with a catalyst device. The outboard motor can include various exhaust passages and features for controlling and discharging the flow to and from the catalyst device.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,662,555, which issued to Ishii on Dec. 16, 2003, describes a catalyzer arrangement for an engine. It includes an improved construction that does not require a large space for furnishing a relatively large volume catalyzer. The engine is surrounded by a protective cowling. A cylinder body of the engine has a plurality of cylinder bores spaced apart from each other. The engine also has an exhaust manifold to gather exhaust gases from the respective cylinder bores. An exhaust passage is coupled to the manifold and extends, at least in part, within a space defined between a side surface of the cylinder body and the protective cowling. At least one catalyzer is disposed in the exhaust passage.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,216,638, which issued to Burk et al. on May 15, 2007, discloses a control of exhaust gas stoichiometry with inducted secondary air flow. A method for operating a marine engine uses four valves to control the flow of secondary air that is inducted into each of the cylinders of an engine. An oxygen sensor is disposed in an exhaust passage downstream from the cylinders and upstream from a catalytic converter. A carburetor is calibrated to provide a richer than stoichiometric air/fuel ratio so that inducted secondary air through the valve associated with each cylinder can result in a stoichiometric ratio of air flowing into each cylinder. The cylinders are each provided with their own valve in order to allow the air/fuel ratios to be equalized for each cylinder regardless of the configuration and geometry of the intake manifold and its associated circuits.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/966,699, which was filed on Dec. 28, 2007 by Ito et al., describes an exhaust system for an outboard motor. An outboard motor includes a multi-cylinder engine which includes cylinders longitudinally oriented and vertically parallel in a cylinder block, a cylinder head arranged at a rearward position of the cylinder block, and a crank case arranged at a forward position of the cylinder block, the cylinder head having an outlet of an exhaust port at one side thereof. An exhaust system for the outboard motor includes an exhaust manifold which communicates the outlet of the exhaust port with an exhaust outlet opening, the exhaust manifold including a first exhaust gas passage extending in a vertical direction for gathering exhaust gas discharged from the outlet of each exhaust port and a second exhaust gas passage extending in a vertical direction adjacently to the first exhaust gas passage, and a catalyst unit is provided on the way of the second exhaust gas passage.
The patents described above are hereby expressly incorporated by reference in the description of the present invention.

Exhaust system with a catalyst for a marine propulsion device


Methods and devices receive, into a graphical user interface of a computerized device, an instruction to print an item. Such methods and devices automatically identify one or more blank signature lines within the item using a processor of the computerized device, and automatically output an option on the graphical user interface to print only one or more pages of the item that contain the blank signature lines. Upon selection of the option through the graphical user interface, these methods and devices automatically print only the pages of the item containing the blank signature lines using a printer operatively connected to the computerized device.

Systems and methods herein generally relate to printing devices and systems, and more particularly to methods and systems that automatically print only pages of a document containing blank signature lines.
There are many workflows today that can benefit from just printing the signature page of a multipage document, have it signed and scanned back to append with the document before sending it out to next person on the signature cycle. For example, one workflow can include review processes for documents that instruct business managers, purchasing managers, and legal personnel to all sign the same document. Many legal workflows present similar scenarios. In many environments, even though reviewing of documents happens electronically, final acknowledgement and approval still require actual signatures on paper documents.

Automatically printing only pages containing blank signature lines


A first abutting surface, a first welding surface, a first facing surface are formed in a differential case. A second abutting surface, a second welding surface, and a second facing surface are formed in a differential ring gear. In an installing step, the first abutting surface and the second abutting surface are inserted, positions of the differential case and the differential ring gear are determined in an axial direction, a separation portion that spaces the first welding surface and the second welding surface away from each other and that has a non-linear portion is formed, and a void is formed between the first facing surface and the second facing surface. In a welding step, a laser is irradiated to the separation portion and the first welding surface and the second welding surface are welded.

Conventionally, a differential device is installed in a vehicle etc. so as to absorb a rotational difference between left and right wheels when turning or to absorb a rotational difference between front wheels and rear wheels, for example. In general, the differential device is configured to input a rotation output from a transmission mechanism to a differential ring gear, transmit the rotation from the differential ring gear to a differential case that houses a differential mechanism, and transmit the rotation to a pair of output members while absorbing a differential rotation of the output members with the differential mechanism.
When manufacturing the above differential device, the differential case and the differential ring gear are formed separately and then the two are integrally fixed. If the differential case and the differential ring gear are fastened by a bolt etc., the size is increased to ensure the strength, which prevents the size from being reduced. Thus, a method of fixing the differential case and the differential ring gear by welding is often used. When fixing the differential ring gear to the differential case by welding, the welding strength needs to be ensured while a good position accuracy of the differential ring gear with respect to the differential case is maintained, that is, the welding needs to be performed with thermal deformation and welding quality in consideration.
There is know a press-in portion in which the differential ring gear is pressed in the differential case, a clearance of a prescribed distance is provided in a welding portion, and welding is performed by laser welding while a welding wire is inserted in the clearance (see Patent Document 1). In the invention of Patent Document 1, a void is provided between the press-in portion and the welding portion and it is possible to discharge gas generated during welding while releasing the gas in a circumferential direction without confining the gas. It is thus possible to prevent the generated gas from dissolving in the welding portion and the welding quality is improved.

Manufacturing method of differential device


The collision of a vehicle with a pedestrian is detected based on the response of bend sensor segments affixed to a vehicle body panel such as a bumper fascia. The sensor data is processed to identify the location of an object impacting the body panel, and is correlated with calibration data to determine the shape and mass of the object. Impacts with pedestrians are discriminated from impacts with other objects based on the determined shape and mass.

A vehicle can be equipped with deployable safety devices designed to reduce injury to a pedestrian struck by the vehicle. For example, the vehicle may be equipped with one or more pedestrian air bags and/or a device for changing the inclination angle of the hood. Since these devices are only to be deployed in the event of a pedestrian impact, the deployment system must be capable of reliably distinguishing pedestrian impacts from impacts with other objects. However, equipping a production vehicle with the required sensors can be both costly and difficult. Accordingly, what is needed is a way of detecting pedestrian impacts that is more practical and cost-effective.

Method and apparatus for detecting a pedestrian impact


A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device is disclosed in which a metallic deposit is stably formed on the anode side with small variation in film thickness, and plating is prevented on the cathode side without carrying out any additional processing on the cathode side. The processed anode side causes no interference in subsequent processing. Insulator films are used to cover a scribe line, as well as a field plate or an open electrode provided on a surface of a silicon substrate before Ni electroless plating of an aluminum electrode is performed to form a metallic deposit on the electrode.

A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device in which method an electrode is formed by an electroless plating method on a semiconductor device as a rectifying element such as a diode.
B. Description of the Related Art
In an electric power converter device for converting direct current to alternating current or vice versa such as an inverter or a converter, a rectifying element formed of a single element semiconductor chip is used as a free wheeling diode in being connected to a power semiconductor element in inverse parallel for current free wheeling.
A cross section of a unit cell structure of the diode is shown in FIG. 8. In FIG. 8, on one of surfaces of N-type silicon substrate 1, P-type diffused layer 2 is selectively formed. Around a perimeter of the surface, insulator film 3 such as an oxide film is formed so as to surround P-type diffused layer 2. On the surface of P-type diffused layer 2, aluminum electrode 4 is formed as an anode electrode so that an aluminum wire is easily bonded thereto. Furthermore, in a planar structure easily complying with a wafer on a trend toward an enlarged diameter, a plurality of ring-like P-type guard ring regions are formed on a wafer so as to surround respective P-type diffused layer 2 in active regions. In contact with each of the guard ring regions, a metal layer is formed as a voltage withstanding structure which layer is a field plate spreading toward the perimeter on the insulator film. The metal layer in the voltage withstanding structure section becomes open electrode 5 that is connected to no external circuit. Moreover, on the other surface, a cathode electrode is formed. The electrode is generally formed of a plurality of films made up of Ti layer 6, Ni layer 7 and Au layer 8 in the order from the silicon substrate side so that soldering is easily carried out on the surface. In addition, on the anode side surface of the silicon substrate, scribe lines are scored in a lattice for separating the silicon substrate into chips of rectifying elements after the rectifying elements are formed. Each of the scribe lines is provided on P-type diffused layer 2 and further reaches P-type diffused layer 2 through open electrode 5 to be at a potential of the anode.
The diode is operated as follows. An applied potential to the anode side as being higher than that to the cathode side brings the diode into conduction, and in reverse, the applied potential to the anode side as being lower than the cathode side brings the diode out of conduction, which makes the diode operated as being a rectifying element.
For streamlining a process when manufacturing the rectifying element, there is a requirement of forming the metal film on the electrode by soldering that can treat large numbers of electrodes at one time. Furthermore, for streamlining a process when assembling the rectifying element into a module or a molded package, there is also a requirement of carrying out connection of a lead terminal to the electrode on the anode side by soldering instead of wire bonding. When soldering the lead terminal to the electrode on the anode side, it is necessary to apply Ni also to the aluminum face on the anode side, since solder will not adhere to the aluminum face. One such Ni application method entails selectively forming an electrode by electroless plating (see JP-A-2000-216410, JP-A-11-17197, JP-A-5-291186, and JP-A-5-335600).
A cross sectional view of a unit cell structure of a diode with electrodes formed by such a method is presented in FIG. 9. In FIG. 9, on a surface of aluminum electrode 4 as an anode electrode, Ni metallic deposit 9 is formed. In general, however, in order to prevent Ni metallic deposit 9 from being oxidized, Au metallic deposit 10 is further formed thereon.
Since the metallic deposits are formed on metal electrodes, the metallic deposits also may form on a surface of open electrode 5 and the bottom surface of the cathode besides the surface of aluminum electrode 4 to be the anode electrode. The metallic deposits formed also on the surface of open electrode 5 and the bottom surface of the cathode cause the metal electrode films to be thickened. This increases the effect of the difference in coefficient of thermal expansion between the metal electrode film and N-type silicon substrate 1, causing an increased amount of warping of the wafer.
Moreover, as shown in a cross sectional view in FIG. 10, there is further requirement of stably forming Ni metallic deposit 9 and Au metallic deposit 10 on not only the anode electrode side but also the cathode electrode side. In this case, between Ni metallic deposit 9 and N-type silicon substrate 1, a metal electrode such as aluminum electrode 4 intervenes.
Furthermore, a plurality of diode regions are formed on a silicon substrate and connected to external circuits except diode regions with faulty characteristics (see JP-UM-B-5-47479 and JP-B-5-57744).
Vapor deposition can be also be used to form the metal electrode. In vapor deposition, a barrier can be provided on Ni as a substrate to make it possible to stop growth of an alloy of Ni and applied solder in Ni metallic deposit 9. Therefore, Ni metallic deposit 9 can be as thin as about 0.7 μm. However, from the standpoint of ease of formation of a metal electrode film onto a face with a complicated form having steps or from the standpoint of mass productivity, vapor deposition is incomparably inferior to electroless plating. Thus, electroless plating is desirable for formation of electrodes from the view point of cost reduction by mass production. In spite of this, Ni metallic deposit 9 formed by electroless plating is inferior in its ability to prevent growth of an alloy of Ni and applied solder as compared with vapor deposition, so that Ni metallic deposit 9 must have a thickness of as much as about 3 μm. Therefore, when electroless plating is used, plating on the bottom surface of the silicon substrate, or other areas where plating is not desired, produces a thick metallic deposit that increases the effect of a difference in coefficient of thermal expansion between the thick metallic deposit and the silicon substrate. This results in an increase in an amount of warping of the wafer to produce a problem of breaking the silicon substrate due to resulting stress in the worst case.
In order to prevent the increase in stress, an oxide film is left on the bottom face of the silicon substrate or the bottom face is covered with a tape to keep the bottom face free from adhesion of Ni. This, however, results in extra process steps by the additional step of removing the oxide film or stripping the tape, as well as possible lack of strength of the silicon substrate at tape stripping, and furthermore, degradation in film quality due to film contamination by an adhesive of the tape dissolved into plating solution.
In electroless plating of Ni, metallic ions Ni+ positively charged in plating solution adhere to material to be plated due to slight electric potential difference between the metallic ions and the material to be plated, and grow as metallic Ni. In a rectifying element in which a P—N junction is formed, a P-type section is negatively charged and an N-type section is positively charged by a diffusion potential at the P—N junction. Therefore, the metallic ions tend to adhere easily onto an anode electrode of P-type to form a metallic deposit. Observation of situation of adhesion of a metallic deposit reveals that the metallic deposit grows only on the surface of the anode side in an early stage in which no short circuit is formed between the anode side and the cathode side. At this time, the metallic deposit also grows on a scribe line at the same potential as that of the anode. After a while, as the metallic deposit grows on the scribe line and then also on the perimeter of the wafer, the anode and the cathode are short-circuited by the metallic deposits grown via the perimeter of the wafer, and the metallic deposit grows immediately also on the cathode side. This immediately grown metallic deposit results in a very unstable film of metallic deposit with a variation in film thickness.
The present invention is directed to overcoming or at least reducing the effects of one or more of the problems set forth above.

Method of manufacturing semiconductor device

Fuji Electric Device Technology Co., Ltd.


A tabular holding jig has a plurality of holding holes whose side walls are made from an elastic material. When electronic parts are inserted into the holding holes of the holding jig, deflection of the holding jig is prevented by (a) disposing an intermediate plate between the holding jig and a base plate, or (b) using a base plate having a stepped portion with a raised surface that covers an area of the holding jig where the plurality of holding holes is formed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for applying a conductive paste to electronic parts and a device for applying conductive paste used in the method.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a fabrication process of an electronic component, such as a laminated ceramic chip capacitor for example, a method has been widely used in which a conductive paste is applied to the electronic parts and is then cured in order to form external electrodes on electronic parts.
To apply the conductive paste for external electrode formation to the electronic parts, a tabular holding jig 51, shown in FIG. 1, and a guide plate 61, shown in FIGS. 2 and 11, are typically used to cause conductive paste 60 to stick to electronic parts 55, as shown in FIG. 4. As shown in FIG. 1, the holding jig 51 is made from an elastic material (such as rubber) 57, which covers metal core materials 56, shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, and has a plurality of holding holes 52 whose side wall is composed of the elastic material (rubber) 57. On the periphery of the holding jig 51, a reinforcing metal frame 58 is attached. As shown in FIGS. 2-4, the holding jig 51 holds electronic parts 55 by using a guide plate 61, and then dips ends of the electronic parts 55 protruding from holding holes 52 of the holding jig 51 into the conductive paste 60 formed on a surface plate 54.
In this method, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the guide plate 61 is aligned with the holding jig 51 such that the center axes of the through-holes 62 are respectively aligned with the center axes of the holding holes 52. The through-holes 62 of the guide plate 61 accommodate the electronic parts 55. With center axes of a plurality of press pins P aligned with the center axes of the holding holes 52, these press pins P simultaneously push the electronic parts 55 held in the through-holes 62 of the guide plate 61 into the holding holes 52 of the holding jig 51, one side of which is in contact with a base plate 53 covering the entire area defined by the outer periphery of frame 58. After the holding jig 51 holds the electronic parts 55, the conductive paste 60 held on the surface plate 54 sticks to the ends of the electronic parts 55 which protrude from the holding holes 52 of the holding jig 51, as shown in FIG. 4.
However, this method causes elastic deformation of the elastic material (rubber) 57 of the holding jig 51 due to pushing pressure when the plurality of press pins P push the electronic parts 55 into the holding holes 52 of the holding jig 51. In particular, the center portion of the holding jig 51 is compressed and, thus, the holding holes 52 generate an inward pressing force. Therefore, the electronic parts 55 are not inserted deeply. In addition, since the entire holding jig 51 is deformed to be convex upward, the protrusion distances (protrusion heights) of the electronic parts 55 from the holding holes 52 in the center portion disadvantageously become longer.
With such unequal protrusion distances, the electronic parts 55 having a long protrusion distance press the conductive paste 60 more strongly that those having a short protrusion distance when the electronic parts 55 are dipped in the conductive paste 60 on the surface plate 54, thus strongly pushing the conductive paste 60 in the transverse direction. Accordingly, when the electronic parts 55 are pulled up from the conductive paste 60, only a small amount of the conductive paste 60 flows in between the electronic parts 55 and the surface plate 54, and therefore, the thicknesses of the conductive paste 60 applied to the ends of the electronic parts 55 disadvantageously become thinner.
To solve these problems, as shown in FIG. 5, the guide plate 61 is aligned with the holding jig 51 underneath the guide plate 61 such that the center axes of the through-holes 62 of the guide plate 61 are aligned with the center axes of holding holes 52 of the holding jig 51. The through-holes 62 accommodate the electronic parts 55. With the center axis of a press pin P aligned with the center axis of the holding hole 52, the press pin P pushes up one of the electronic parts 55 held in the corresponding through-hole 62 into the holding hole 52. Upon completion of the insertion, the press pin P moves to the center of the adjacent holding hole 52 (i.e. the center of the adjacent through-hole 62) and pushes up another electronic part 55 in the same manner. This operation is repeated until all the electronic parts 55 are inserted into the holding holes 52 (refer to, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 9-22854).
Since the insertions of the electronic parts 55 into the holding holes 52 of the holding jig 51 are performed for each holding hole one at a time in this method, the holding jig 51 receives a smaller stress compared to the known method in which all the insertions into the holding holes 52 are simultaneously performed. Accordingly, curvature deformation of the holding jig 51 when holding the electronic parts 55 can be decreased.
However, this method increases the time for holding a large number of electronic parts and, thus, the productivity is disadvantageously decreased.
Another method for a holding jig to hold electronic parts has been proposed in which the conductive paste can be uniformly applied to the electronic parts even when the protrusion distances of the electronic parts from the holding jig are unequal (refer to, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 5-182879).
In this method, as shown in FIGS. 6A to 6D, when ends of the electronic parts 55 are held by the holding holes 52 of the holding jig 51 and the protrusion distances of the electronic parts 55 from the holding holes 52 are unequal, as shown in FIG. 6A, the other ends of the electronic parts 55 protruding from the holding holes 52 are urged onto the surface plate 54, with the holding jig 51 parallel to and distant from a flat surface of the surface plate 54 as shown in FIG. 6B, to align the protrusion distances. That is, since parts of the elastic material 57 around the holding holes 52 simultaneously receive a uniform elastic strain, the protrusion distances become substantially equal and, thus, vertical positions of the electronic parts 55 are aligned, as shown in FIG. 6B.
Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 6D, the ends of the electronic parts 55 protruding from the holding holes 52 of the holding jig 51 are dipped into the conductive paste 60, shown in FIG. 6C, which is developed in a predetermined thickness on the surface plate 54. Thus, the conductive paste 60 is applied to the ends of the electronic parts 55.
However, since the ends of the electronic parts 55 protruding from the holding holes 52 are urged onto the surface plate 54 with the holding jig 51 parallel to a flat surface of the surface plate 54 as shown in FIG. 6B to align the protrusion distances in this method, an extra step is required and, therefore, the fabrication process is disadvantageously complicated and costly.
Also, since this method still causes the elastic deformation of the elastic material (rubber) 57, the protrusion distances cannot be exactly equal, which is a problem.

Method and device for applying conductive paste


The present invention discloses a pixel circuit and a driving method thereof, a display panel, and a display device, so as to improve brightness uniformity. The pixel circuit in the present invention comprises a control sub-circuit, a compensation sub-circuit, a driving transistor and a light emitting device. The present invention enables the driving current that drives the light emitting device to emit light to be uncorrelated with the threshold voltage of the driving transistor, so as to improve display uniformity of the panel.

With the rapid progress of multimedia technology, related technology, such as semiconductor element and display technology, have also progressed accordingly.
The Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) display has advantages over previous technology, including lower power consumption, high brightness, lower cost, wide view, faster response speeds. Because of these advantages, OLED and has been widely applied in the field of organic light emitting technology.
A number of issues may occur in the production of an OLED display device. There is non-uniformity in structure, non-uniformity in electrical performance, and lack of stability during fabrication of the driving transistor. The threshold voltage (Vth) of the transistor may produce drift, resulting in the current flowing through the light emitting device to be different with changes in the voltage, thereby causing the brightness of the display panel to vary between positions. This results in non-uniformity in brightness of the display, as well as non-uniformity in other aspects.

Pixel circuit and driving method thereof, display panel, and display device


In view of the above, a radio player is provided. In an example implementation, the radio player includes a radio signal receiver configured to receive a radio broadcast corresponding to a tuner setting on a tuner. The radio signal receiver is configured to retrieve an air radio program from the radio broadcast corresponding to a radio station identified by the tuner setting. A digital stream radio receiver is connected to a data network. The digital stream radio receiver is configured to establish a data connection with a radio station identified by a radio station network identifier to receive a streamed radio program. A source selector selects between either the air radio program or the streamed radio program to play at an audio output when the air radio program and the streamed radio program are broadcast from the same radio station.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to radio receivers, and more particularly to radio receivers that receive radio signals streamed over data networks.
2. Related Art
Radio programming has long been available only via radio signals broadcast through the air to antennas on radio receivers. The radio programming is broadcast by transmitters at fixed locations and received by receivers close enough to receive the signals. The quality of the signal reception depends on many factors. One is the power of the radio transmitters. Other factors include the sensitivity and other performance capabilities of the radio's antenna, atmospheric conditions, geographic and man-made obstructions, and many other factors. In general, the quality of the signal received varies throughout the area served by the radio transmitters.
Data network connectivity has grown in bandwidth, capability, and accessibility such that radio programming is now available as data streams over the Internet. Radio programmers may now offer both on-air broadcasts as well as digitally streamed broadcasts. Users of personal computers, smartphones, MP3 players, handheld media players (such as the iPod), and other computer-controlled devices with the ability to connect to the Internet may connect to streamed broadcasts of radio programming. The sound quality of the digitally streamed broadcasts may also be consistently better than the quality of over-the-air broadcasts.
Radio listeners now have the option of receiving radio programming over the Internet, or over the air. However, each requires a different type of receiver. Over the air reception requires a traditional radio receiver with an antenna. Digital streaming reception requires a computer platform configured to operate according to the data packet-based communication protocols used over the Internet.
There is a need for radio receivers capable of receiving both over-the-air radio programming at an antenna as well as digitally streamed radio programming over a data packet network. There is also a need for a radio receiver having a user interface that does not require a user to distinguish between different radio signal sources.

Harman International Industries, Incorporated


Disclosed herein is a method of forming a multi-layered metallic part. The method comprises forming a plurality of ductile layers made of a metallic material having a first ductility. The method also comprises forming at least one high-strength powder layer made of a powdered metallic material having a second ductility higher than the first ductility. The method further comprises assembling the plurality of ductile layers and the at least one high-strength powder layer in an alternating and stacked formation to form a multi-layered metallic assembly. The method additionally comprises oscillating a crystallographic phase of the powdered metallic material of the at least one high-strength powder layer between a first crystallographic phase and a second crystallographic phase.

High-strength materials, such as hardened steel, are used in a variety of applications. In one application, high-strength steel plates are used as armor for vehicles, weapons, personnel, structures, and the like. Desirably, high-strength steel plates are thick and strong in order to withstand powerful impacts, which makes the formation of such steel plates into desired shapes difficult.

Method and apparatus for forming multi-layered metallic armor


A controller implemented on computing equipment may be used to control switches in a network. End hosts and service devices may be coupled to the switches in the network. The controller may generate a virtual network topology of virtual switches and virtual routers. The controller may control the virtual routers and/or virtual switches to perform service insertion. The controller may perform service insertion by controlling the virtual routers and/or virtual switches to redirect network traffic through one or more selected service devices. The controller may determine which network traffic is to be redirected to which service devices based on a service insertion policy that identifies network traffic and services to be performed on the network traffic.

This relates to communication networks, and more particularly, to communications networks having network switches that are controlled by a controller.
Packet-based networks such as the Internet and local data networks that are connected to the internet include network switches. Network switches are used in forwarding packets from packet sources to packet destinations. The packets may be sometimes referred to as frames. For example, data is forwarded over layer 2 of the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model as frames (e.g., Ethernet frames), whereas data is forwarded over layer 3 of the OSI model as packets (e.g., Internet Protocol packets).
It can be difficult or impossible to configure the switches of one vendor using the equipment of another vendor. This is because the switch equipment of one vendor may use a different operating system and set of control procedures than the switch equipment of another vendor. To address the challenges associated with controlling different types of switch platforms, cross-platform protocols have been developed. These protocols allow centralized control of otherwise incompatible switches.
Cross-platform controller clients can be included on the switches in a network. The controller clients are able to communicate with a corresponding controller server over network paths. Because the controller clients can be implemented on a variety of switch hardware, it is possible for a single controller to control switch equipment that might otherwise be incompatible.
Networks may include service devices that perform services such as firewalling and packet monitoring on network packets that pass through the service devices. Typically, a network administrator is required to manually configure switches in the network to forward network packets through desired service devices. This process can be time-consuming, tedious, and increasingly challenging, especially with increasing network complexity.

Systems and methods for performing network service insertion


A disc drive includes a drive mechanism 60 having an operative gear 65 rotated by a motor. The operative gear 65 carries out a first operation which moves a disc tray between a disc loading position and a disc eject position with a cam mechanism being held at the first position, when the operative gear is engaged with a first rack of the disc tray, and the operative gear carries out a second operation which displaces the cam mechanism between the first position and the second position when the operative gear is engaged with the second rack, thereby displacing a mechanism unit 42 provided with a turntable between a raised position and a lowered position. By constructing in this way, it is possible to provide a disc drive which has a simple structure formed form a small number of parts and which can be assembled with fewer steps. The mechanism unit is formed from a base frame 43 and a support member 44 which is supported on the base frame through three elastic members arranged at predetermined positions, thereby enabling to prevent vibrations generated by the rotation of the disc from being transmitted to the base frame, the chassis and the casing.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a disc drive for playing back or recording and playing back a disc such as an optical disc or the like.
2. Description of the Prior Art
One example of a disc drive for playing back an optical disc such as a CD-ROM or the like is disclosed in an application (Japanese Utility Model Application No. HEI-5-69414). FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view which shows the structure of the disc drive of this application.
As shown in this drawing, a disc drive 1B is constructed from a main body 2, a disc tray 5 which moves backwards and forwards with respect to the main body 2 to enable the disc tray 5 to be insertable into and ejectable out of the main body 2, a circuit substrate assembly 12 arranged below the main body 2, and a casing 10 which houses all these elements.
The casing 10 is constructed from a bottom plate 11 and a case 14 which covers the top of the main body 2. The bottom plate 11 and the case 14 are made from metal plates which have undergone a bending process to form a desired shape.
The case 14 is constructed from a top plate 14a, side walls 14b, 14c which face each other through the main body 2, a rear wall 14d which connects the rear edges of the side walls 14b, 14c, and a front plate portion 14e at the front thereof.
Formed in the front plate 14e of the case 14 is an aperture 141 to allow the disc tray 5 to be passed therethrough. A front panel 13 having an aperture 13a corresponding to the aperture 141 is mounted to the front plate 14e via a cushioning member frame 15.
The main body 2 includes a roughly container-shaped chassis 20 which is provided with a mechanism unit 22 and a displacement mechanism (ascending/descending mechanism) 30. The mechanism unit 22 is arranged within a concave portion formed in the bottom portion 20a of the chassis 20. Further, the main body 2 is fixed to the bottom plate 11 and the case 14 by means of screws 17.
The mechanism unit 22 includes a base 23 which is provided with a spindle motor 25 for rotating a turntable, a turntable 26 which is fixed to a rotation axis of the spindle motor 25, an optical head (optical pick-up) 27, and an optical head moving mechanism 28. Further, a rear end portion (toward the back of the main body 2) of the base 23 is supported by an insulator 29 to enable the base 23 to be freely pivotal with respect to the chassis 20.
The displacement mechanism 30 is constructed from a motor 31 provided at a front portion of the chassis 20, a rotational speed reduction mechanism 32 for reducing the rotational speed of the motor 31, a cam wheel (ascending/descending gear) 33 which is rotated via the rotational speed reduction mechanism 32, and a base ascending/descending member (not shown in the drawing) which is displaced (pivoted) in accordance with the rotation of the cam wheel 33.
The cam wheel 33 includes a lower gear 33a which meshes with a pinion gear of the rotational speed reduction mechanism 32, and an upper gear 33b which meshes with a rack gear (not shown in the drawing) formed on the rear surface of the disc tray 5 in the forward and backward direction thereof. Further, a circumferential cam groove is formed in the outer circumference of the axle portion between the gears 33a, 33b. This cam groove receives a protruding follower (not shown in the drawing) formed on the base ascending/descending member. Consequently, as the cam wheel is rotated, the follower and the base ascending/descending member are displaced, and this causes the base 23 to pivot; namely, the front portion of the base 23 is pivotally moved up or down between a raised position and a lower position.
Further, a disc clamp 38 is provided on a top plate 14a of the casing 10 in a manner that enables the disc clamp 38 to rotate with respect to the top plate 14. Further, the disc clamp 38 is adapted to attach to the permanent magnet provided in the turntable 26 by the attracting force thereof, whereby the optical disc 3 can be held between the turntable 26 and the disc clamp 38.
The disc tray 5 includes a shallow concave disc supporting portion 5a for supporting an optical disc 3, and the rack gear is formed on the rear surface thereof (not shown in the drawing) which meshes with the upper gear 33b of the cam wheel 33. Consequently, as the cam wheel 33 is rotated, the disk tray 5 is moved forward or backward with respect to the chassis 20 between a disc unloading position (eject position) and a disc loaded position (playback position).
When the disc drive 1B is not in use, the disc tray 5 is housed within the casing 10 (at the disk loaded position/playback position). In this state, if an eject operation is carried out, the motor 31 is rotated in a prescribed direction, whereby the cam wheel 33 is rotated in a counterclockwise direction via the rotational speed reduction mechanism 32. This rotation of the cam wheel 33 causes the disc tray 5 to move forward and protrude to a position (the disc unloading position) outside the casing 10 through the apertures 141, 16a.
In this state, a disc 3 is loaded into the disc loading portion 5a of the disc tray 5, and a loading operation is carried out, whereby the motor 31 is rotated in the opposite direction, and this causes the cam wheel 33 to rotate in the opposite direction via the rotational speed reduction mechanism 32. Consequently, the disc tray 5 is moved toward the back of the disc drive, through the apertures 141, 13a, to the disc loaded position. In this way, the loaded optical disc 3 which is placed at a prescribed position on the disc tray 5 is also transported to the disc loaded position of the main body 2.
Further, when the cam wheel 33 begins to rotate in the opposite direction, the follower of the base ascending/descending member moves along the cam groove, and the center of the disc 3 approaches the central portion of the turntable 26, at which time the follower and the base ascending/descending member are displaced, and the front portion of the base 23 pivots about the position of the insulator 29 to go from a lower position to a supported higher position, whereby the base 23 is placed in a roughly horizontal state.
In this way, the center portion (center hub portion) of the turntable 26 is fitted into a center hole 3a of the optical disc 3, and as the center portion of the optical disc is supported in this way, the disc clamp 38 is magnetically stuck to the turntable 26, with the optical disc 3 being held between the turntable 26 and the disc clamp 38. In this state, the spindle motor 25 is operated to rotate the optical disc 3 at a predetermined rotational speed, and then the information recorded on the optical disc 3 is played back using the optical pick-up 27.
If an eject operation is carried out while the rotation of the optical disc 3 is stopped, the operations of each mechanism of the disc drive 1B described above are carried out in reverse order and direction, thereby the disc clamp 38 being released and thereby the optical disc 3 supported on the disc tray 5 being ejected.
In the disc drive 1B having the construction described above, it is possible to smoothly move the disc tray 5 and raise and lower the mechanism unit 22, and it is also possible to reliably and accurately carry out all the basic required operations, such as disc loading, disc recording/playback and disc ejection.
However, in recent years, it has become necessary to reduce the cost of this type of disc drive in order to lower the overall cost of the computer itself. As a result, there is a need for a disc drive having a simpler construction made from fewer parts which can be assembled in fewer steps, but this is very difficult to achieve with the prior art disc drive described above due to the use of the relatively complex construction of the cam wheel, base ascending/descending member and the like.
Further, in recent years, disc drives have been developed to rotate a disc at high speeds, such 8 times speed, 12 times speed and the like, however this has created problems. Namely, when a disc is rotated at such a high speed, the dimensional error and the deviation of the center of mass of the disc will create an eccentric rotation which can generate vibration. If thus generated vibration is transmitted to the chassis and the casing, such transmitted vibration can cause noise to be emitted from the disc drive. Accordingly, in disc drives which rotate a disc at high speed, there is a need to prevent the transmission of vibrations generated by the rotation of the disc.

c/o Mitsumi Electric Co., Ltd. of 8-8-2, Kokuryo-cho, Chofu-shi


A method of manufacture of a base package system includes: forming a substrate strip assembly including: providing a substrate strip having ball lands, mounting an integrated circuit on the substrate strip, and molding a finger structure, having a knuckle region, on the integrated circuit; and singulating a substrate from the substrate strip assembly.

Modern consumer electronics, such as smart phones, personal digital assistants, and location based services devices, as well as enterprise electronics, such as servers and storage arrays, are packing more integrated circuits into an ever shrinking physical space with expectations for decreasing cost. Many technologies have been developed to meet these requirements. Some of the research and development strategies focus on new package technologies while others focus on improving the existing and mature package technologies. Research and development in the existing package technologies may embody a number of different directions.
One proven way to reduce cost is to use package technologies with existing manufacturing methods and equipments. Unfortunately, the reuse of existing manufacturing processes does not typically result in the reduction of package dimensions.
In response to the demands for improved packaging, many innovative package designs have been brought to market. The multi-chip module has achieved a prominent role in reducing the board space used by modern electronics. However, multi-chip modules, whether vertically or horizontally arranged, can also present problems because they usually must be assembled before the component chips and chip connections can be tested. When die are mounted and connected to a substrate, the die and connections can be tested, and only known-good-die ("KGD") free of defects are then assembled into larger circuits.
Other assembly and manufacturing defects may be encountered when the substrate has a package molding compound applied or when the individual devices are singulated from a larger strip containing multiple devices. In some cases, the package molding compound may become extruded onto the surface of the substrate beyond the intended profile. This may contaminate electrical contacts intended for further assembly or test. There may also be complications during the singulation process that can cause a delamination of the package molding compound from the die surface. The delamination can cause the electrical connections between the die and the substrate to break.
Several packaging techniques may stack multiple integrated circuit dice in a single package or form a package-in-package (PIP) stack or a combination thereof. Other approaches include package level stacking or package-on-package (POP). These techniques include stacking of two or more packages to form a single device. Assembly process yields are less of an issue since each package can be tested prior to assembly, allowing KGD to be used in assembling the stack. However, stacking integrated devices, package-in-package, package-on-package, or combinations thereof have assembly process difficulties caused by some packages having contamination on the electrical connections or broken electrical connections due to singulation stresses and delamination.
Thus, a need still remains for a base package system for integrated circuit package stacking providing low cost manufacturing, improved yields, reduction of integrated circuit package dimensions, and flexible integration configurations. In view of the ever-increasing commercial competitive pressures, along with growing consumer expectations and the diminishing opportunities for meaningful product differentiation in the marketplace, it is critical that answers be found for these problems. Additionally, the need to save costs, improve efficiencies and performance, and meet competitive pressures, adds an even greater urgency to the critical necessity for finding answers to these problems.
Solutions to these problems have been long sought but prior developments have not taught or suggested any solutions and, thus, solutions to these problems have long eluded those skilled in the art.

Base package system for integrated circuit package stacking and method of manufacture thereof


A process is provided comprising the steps of contacting a Group VIII metal hydrogenation catalyst residue containing polymer solution with from about 2 to about 50 parts by weight water based on 100 parts by weight of polymer solution, centrifuging the polymer from metal containing particles with a centrifugal force such that the centrifugal force times the time duration of centrifugation divided by the viscosity of the polymer solution equals or exceeds about 50 G-minutes/cp, and recovering a polymer solution comprising less than 10 ppm by weight, based on the polymer, of the Group VIII metal.

The uses of polymeric materials, including diolefin polymers, continue to grow rapidly in such diverse areas as protective paint coverings, wire insulation, structural panels for automobiles, piping and lubricating oil viscosity index improvers. In many of these applications, the stability of the polymer is of paramount importance. Hydrogenation of diolefin polymers greatly improves the stability of these polymers against oxidative, thermal, and ultraviolet degradation. Polymer hydrogenation processes have therefore been studied for many years as a method to prepare novel materials with excellent stability and other desirable properties. Early processes utilized heterogeneous catalysts which were known to be useful for hydrogenation of low molecular weight olefins and aromatics. Nickel on kieselguhr is an example of this type of catalyst. A fine catalyst powder was preferred and large amounts of catalyst were required to complete the hydrogenation in a reasonable time. Such processes were only partially successful, since the reaction requires the diffusion of the polymer molecules into the pores of the catalyst, where the active nickel metal is present. This is a slow process when hydrogenating polymers.
Nickel octoate/triethyl aluminum hydrogenation catalyst systems were then developed which enabled rapid hydrogenation of polymers. The catalyst is utilized as a colloidal suspension in polymer containing solutions. This type of catalyst is referred to as a homogeneous catalyst. Such a process has been used for a number of years to prepare hydrogenated butadiene-styrene polymers that are used as viscosity index improvers in premium motor oils. U.S. Pat. No. 3,554,991 describes an exemplary process. Besides nickel, Group VIII metals in general will function as the active metal in these systems, and in particular, iron, cobalt, and palladium are known to be acceptable.
Pore diffusion is not a limitation with homogeneous catalysts and the hydrogenation process is rapid and complete in minutes. However, removal of the catalyst from the polymer product is necessary because metals, and particularly nickel, which remain with the polymer catalyze degradation of the polymer product. The catalyst is typically removed from the polymer solution by the addition of an ammonium phosphate-water solution and air to oxidize the nickel to a divalent state. The mixed nickel-aluminum phosphate can then be removed from the hydrogenated polymer solution by filtration.
Alternative methods to remove hydrogenation catalyst residues from solutions of hydrogenated polymers include treatment with dicarboxylic acid and an oxidant, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,595,749; treatment with an amine compound wherein the amine is either a chloride salt or a diamine having an alkyl group of 1 to 12 carbon atoms as disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 4,098,991; and treatment of the polymer solution with a non-aqueous acid followed by neutralization with an anhydrous base and filtration, as disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 4,028,485. These processes involve contacting the polymer solution with compounds which contaminate the polymer. Further process steps can be required to remove these contaminants. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,278,506 and 4,471,099 describe processes to remove such contaminants from hydrogenated polymer solutions. Some of these catalyst removal systems are undesirable because those processes require relatively expensive metallurgy due to the corrosive nature of the compounds. Many also require the consumption of a continuous stream of reactants, and produce an acid sludge containing the catalyst and residues of the treatment chemicals.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,531,448; 3,793,306; and 3,793,307 disclose, as comparative examples, processes for removing nickel hydrogenation catalyst residues from polymer solutions by water extraction. In each of these comparative examples fine particles of solids were formed which rapidly plugged a filter when filtration of the solids from the solution was attempted.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a process to remove hydrogenation catalyst residue from polymer solutions. It is a further object of this invention to provide a process to remove hydrogenation catalyst residue from polymer solutions which does not require the treatment of the polymer solution with amine, phosphate or sulfate compounds. In another aspect, it is an object of this invention to provide a process which is capable of removing hydrogenation Group VIII metal catalyst residue from polymer solutions to a level of 10 ppm or less based on the polymer.

Removal of nickel catalyst from polymer solutions by water addition and centrifugation


A checkout station comprises a deactivation system having an antenna for transmitting a signal to the security feature on a product passing over the checkout station to deactivate the security feature and a scale for weighing the product at the checkout station. A composite weigh plate is supported by the scale and includes a metal face plate configured to support the product thereon for weighing the product and a metal sub-frame configured to support the face plate. The face plate and the sub-frame each define a slit so that they do not form a closed electrically conductive loop. An electrically non-conductive bonding agent fixes the metal face plate to the metal sub-frame to maintain the structural integrity of the composite weigh plate in spite of the presence of the slits in the metal components.

The present invention relates to weigh scales used in a checkout system in which products are weighed prior to purchase. More particularly, the invention concerns weigh scales adapted for use with security features of the checkout system.
Checkout terminals have evolved to incorporate components that automatically scan a bar coded price and product identifier and that automatically weigh an item. These checkout terminals may be attended by a cashier or may form part of a self-service checkout facility in which the customer performs the scanning and weighing steps. A typical checkout terminal of this type includes a scanning station that may be in the form of the station 10 shown in FIG. 1. This scanning station includes a vertical scanner assembly 12 with a housing 13 containing the scanning hardware and a window 14 through which the scanning process occurs. The station also includes a horizontal scanner assembly 16 with a housing 17 and window 18 similar to the vertical assembly. Both scanner assemblies 12, 16 include hardware that allows the station 10 to read an identification tag associated with each item being purchased at the station. In a typical case, the identification tag is a bar code that bears encoded information about the item, such as the SKU number and price. In a station like the one shown in FIG. 1, the two scanner assemblies allow the bar code to be read from different angles.
As shown in the view in FIG. 2, the horizontal scanner assembly includes a barcode reader 20 with its own window 21 that coincides with the window 18. A similar reader is mounted within the housing 13 for the vertical scanning assembly.
Incorporated into the scanning station 10 is a weigh plate 24 (FIG. 1) on which items to be purchased are placed to be weighed. The weight plate supports the window 18 so that the barcode reader 20 beneath can operate. The weight plate is carried by support posts 25 (FIG. 2) that project from an electronic scale 26. As is known in the art, the scale may be used to simply weigh produce or may be used to verify a scanned item by comparing the measured weight to an expected weight stored in a database.
Many retail establishments utilize security features associated with certain products. These security features are typically in the form of a tag carried by or affixed to the product. The security tag includes a resonant circuit with an integral capacitor which is effective for activating an alarm at the store exit when detected by corresponding sensing equipment. These types of security tags can be deactivated by transmitting a suitable signal from an antenna that short circuits the capacitor to disable the resonant circuit. Thus, many scanning stations also include an antenna and deactivation system, such as the system 28 and coil 29 shown in FIG. 2. As illustrated, the system and coil 28, 29 are oriented directly below the weigh plate 24 (FIG. 1).
In a typical scanning station, the weigh plate 24 is a stainless steel plate because it is easy to clean and pleasing to the eye. However, the plate may interfere with the function of the deactivation system 28 and its coil antenna 29. In one mode, the weigh plate creates a closed loop that disrupts the eddy currents of the magnetic pulse generated by the deactivation system. This phenomenon attenuates the signal range of the coil 29 so that the deactivation system may work only intermittently, if at all.
In one approach to solving this problem, the metal frame of the weigh plate is split around the window 18 and incorporating a non-metallic, or plastic, structure beneath and supporting the metal plate. However, it has been found that this approach compromises the stiffness of the weigh plate which becomes highly problematic when used with low profile, high-sensitivity weigh scale technology. This scale technology typically utilizes a four load cell planar beam configuration, as represented by the four support posts of the scanning station shown in FIG. 2. The reduced stiffness means that the weigh scale can deflect under the load of an item placed thereon, which ultimately means that the measured weight will be less than the actual weight of the product. Moreover, any deflection of the weigh plate beyond a specified range can cause side loading of the load cells, which also contributes to weighing errors.
There is a need for a weigh plate construction that does not interfere with the optimal performance of the security tag deactivation systems associated with a checkout terminal or scanning station. This need must be satisfied without compromising the performance of the weigh scale, especially for low profile, high accuracy scales such as the four load cell planar beam configurations.

Scale pan designed to pass RF signals with minimal interference


A rear portion is arranged in the rear of a front portion, and has a width smaller than a width of the front portion in a plan view. A wall portion extends from the rear portion outward in a width direction toward the front portion and includes two walls opposed to each other in a fore/aft direction with a gap lying therebetween, in a plan view. Electric components are arranged in the gap and project into an indoor space of a cab from the gap through a through hole formed in the front wall. In a plan view, a foremost portion of the electric components is located in the rear of a foremost normal located foremost among normals to a line connecting a front end and a rear end of a doorway, which intersect with the front wall.

A cab (an operator's compartment) of some crawler dozers has a portion projecting sideward from a body in a plan view.
Such a construction is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent No. 5183822. in some crawler dozers, a fuse box is arranged outside the cab, on a side of the cab or below the cab.


The invention comprises an electrical contact having a body with a crimping section and a base with resilient contact fingers extending forwardly from the base. The base has a tapered cylindrical section. A sleeve is secured over the base and the resilient contact fingers. The sleeve engages the tapered cylindrical section in an interference fit to secure the sleeve thereon.

It is common to provide an electrical contact having resilient contact fingers with a protective sleeve secured around the contact fingers. The protective sleeve provides protection for the resilient fingers against sideways forces and also protects the resilient fingers against overstress during mating with a pin contact. Often this sleeve is secured over a cylindrical base portion of the contact and is secured by crimping a back end of the sleeve around the central cylindrical base portion.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,516,310 shows a socket terminal having a cylindrical base portion with resilient contact fingers and a sleeve secured over the contact fingers. The sleeve has a series of dimples and the base portion of the contact has a series of grooves. The sleeve is received onto the contact so that the dimples are received within the grooves thereby securing the sleeve to the contact.
One problem that occurs in the prior art contact assemblies is that when the sleeve is secured to the contact the resilient fingers can be pushed out of proper alignment during the securing process. Other problems that occur are that the sleeve and the contact fingers are not properly aligned with each other or that the gap between the resilient fingers can be changed. What is needed is a sleeve which can be secured over the resilient fingers to the base of the contact without jarring or moving the resilient fingers thereby insuring that they are properly aligned within the sleeve and that the sleeve is properly aligned with the resilient fingers.


A method for processing received return signals in a visual synthetic aperture radar (ViSAR) system is provided. The method includes receiving a plurality of pulsed radar return signals over a time period corresponding to a plurality of data frames. From this data, processing is performed to generate a SAR image for each single data frame of the plurality of data frames. In parallel, the radar pulses used to form the image frames are buffered into a longer pulse sequence that is used to perform the detection processing, including identifying targets as having characteristics associated with one or more predetermined motion classes according to phase changes sensed between data frames. A visual indication of targets associated with a predetermined motion class is generated, and overlaid onto one of the SAR images.

Remote sensing systems, such as radar systems used to detect the presence, position, speed and/or other characteristics of objects, are vital to both civilian and military operations. These systems utilize electromagnetic (EM) waves to detect, track and classify, for example, precipitation and natural/man-made objects. In operation, these systems typically transmit "beams" or signals toward targets, and process reflected return signals (or echoes) for target identification and characterization. Modern radar systems include phased array radar systems which utilize a plurality of selectively-controlled, parallel-processed, antenna elements making up an antenna. Referring generally to FIG. 1, SAR systems have also been developed which may utilize, for example, a single transmitting antenna element mounted to a moving platform, such as an aircraft 6. The antenna element may be used to form a single beam 8 which is transmitted in pulses, repeatedly illuminating a portion or segment of a target area 9, and receive reflected signals including amplitude and phase data corresponding to illuminated segment of the target area. As the aircraft travels relative to the target area, reflected signals from subsequent segments of the target area are obtained over a given period of time. Using this data, image processing algorithms may generate or reconstruct high-resolution images of the entire target area, electronically simulating an image which could only be obtained by a larger antenna (i.e. an antenna having a length equal to the velocity of the aircraft multiplied by the time period). As illustrated, the flight path 12 of aircraft 6 may be an oval or circular path.
Images generated by SAR systems are often used for detection and tracking of objects that may otherwise be difficult to achieve using known photographic devices that generate imagery using visible or infrared light, especially in adverse atmospheric conditions, such as cloud cover. As currently implemented, however, these SAR systems are prone to distortion in the case of moving targets, as well as an inability to discriminate slow moving objects, such humans walking within a target area. This distortion further inhibits the systems' ability to characterize the type of target detected, as well as predict future movements.
Accordingly, improved systems and methods for providing long-range target tracking, including moving target tracking, as well as improved target characterization in all environmental conditions are desired.

Higher order processing for synthetic aperture radar (SAR)