In a process for fabricating a printed circuit board assembly carrying a chip on board type microcircuit package, aluminum wires are bonded to the aluminum pads on the microcircuit and to bare copper connector pads on the printed circuit board to form the electrical connection between them. The microcircuit, aluminum wires, and copper connection pads are then encapsulated with a material such as low stress liquid encapsulant having a thermal expansion coefficient approximately equal to that of the printed circuit board substrate material. Preferably the process includes steps of mounting the microcircuit and forming the copper connector pads on a printed circuit board laminate comprising cellulose epoxy mat such as CEM-1.

It is well known that microcircuits are intricate and delicate articles whose performance depends on maintaining the functions provided by extremely small circuit features. Reliable operation depends on protecting the entire microcircuit from environmentally caused harm arising from sources such as mechanical damage, corrosion caused by moisture and airborne chemical vapors, and particulate contamination. This invention provides for lower manufacturing cost of printed circuit board assemblies using a known type of structure for protecting individual microcircuits from damage arising from environmental sources after manufacturing is done. The invention does not compromise either the level of protection or the operating characteristics.
Microcircuits are most frequently formed on a silicon wafer by photolithographic processes. Typically there will be hundreds of individual microcircuits formed on the wafer by a series of photolithographic steps. After the photolithographic process steps are completed and the microcircuits have been formed, the wafer is sliced by a diamond saw to form a number of small rectangular dice, each carrying (usually) a single microcircuit. In the manufacturing process, small connection pads around the periphery of the actual circuit are formed as a part of the microcircuit's conductors, and these are present on the individual dice. Thin wires are bonded to these connection pads and to other pads off the die itself for connecting the microcircuit to other devices which provide signals and power to the microcircuit, or use the signals which the microcircuit generates. As is well known of course, microcircuits are usually mounted on and electrically connected to a printed circuit board. Depending on its type there will be as many as several hundred individual connections from a microcircuit to the circuit board on which it is mounted.
The need to protect individual microcircuits from external damage was mentioned above. This protection can be provided by enclosing the microcircuit within a package of some type. When such a package is used, it will have external pins or pads of some kind which are internally connected to the microcircuit, and by which the microcircuit makes its external connections. These connections can take a variety of forms. Pins or legs extending from the package surface can be connected to printed circuit wiring either by soldering or by mounting in a permanent socket mounted on the printed circuit board. External connection pads are usually placed around the outer edge of the package; these also can either be soldered to properly positioned pads on the printed circuit board, or the entire package can be inserted in a socket which has spring contacts which press against the pads. A socket is used where it may be desirable to remove the microcircuit from the circuit board at a later time.
While pre-packaging microcircuits in individual packages during the initial manufacturing process makes them easy to ship and mount, there are some disadvantages. In the first place at least one extra connection for each microcircuit pad is required. Secondly, additional area on a printed circuit board must be allotted for each microcircuit package, which is a problem if space constraints are important. Thirdly, the additional steps in the mounting process may add to the cost. That is, other things being equal, the microcircuit mounting part of the process involves additional steps in mounting the individual microcircuit in the package, and then mounting the package itself on the printed circuit board. Each of these process steps is likely to add cost and reduce yield/reliability. Eliminating any of these steps has the potential to reduce cost and increase yield. Accordingly, there has been motivation to develop a means of microcircuit connection which omits as a part of the microcircuit manufacturing process, the step of packaging individual microcircuits.
This alternate type of microcircuit connection has been realized in the process known as chip-on-board (COB) surface mounting. Briefly, in this process a die cut conventionally from a wafer and carrying a completed microcircuit with exposed connection pads is mechanically attached to a printed circuit board, typically with an adhesive. Then leads are attached between the microcircuit's connection pads and the corresponding pads on the circuit board. Lastly, some type of mechanical protection for the microcircuit and the leads is applied. The COB process as presently practiced mounts a microcircuit in perhaps 30-50% less area on the printed circuit board than the same microcircuit when mounted as pre-packaged component. This is an important advantage because the application may not permit a larger printed circuit board and in any case, a smaller board is cheaper.
There is a definitive discussion of the COB process in the publication ANSI/IPC-SM-784, Guidelines for Chip-on-Board Technology Implementation, dated November 1990, and available from the Institute for Interconnecting and Packaging Electronic Circuits, 7380 N. Lincoln Ave., Lincolnwood, Ill. 60646 (hereafter "the Guidelines"). The remainder of this disclosure assumes the reader to be familiar with the Guidelines.
The printed circuit board used in COB mounting may be made either from an inorganic material such as a ceramic, or from an epoxy or other organic material. Because organic printed circuit boards are cheaper, it is preferred to use them unless some special factor requires use of inorganic printed circuit boards. Of the organic materials used for printed circuit boards, cellulose epoxy mat (CEM) is among the least expensive, but is also among the most sensitive to heat. A designation for a type of generic CEM board material is CEM-1 . 100% epoxy mat is a more expensive board material that has advantages where conductor paths on both sides are necessary. FR-4 is a generic term for 100% epoxy mat. Because of its low price and generally good performance, CEM is usually preferred if compatible with the manufacturing processes required and the usage expected. CEM and 100% epoxy mat boards have a foil layer from which are etched the conductors which electrically connect the components carried on the board. Most often, the foil layer is formed of copper because of its outstanding electrical and heat conductivity. Areas of the foil conductors form connection pads to which the wires from the microcircuits are attached.
The Guidelines describe three different connection processes for electrically connecting the die's connection pads to the printed circuit board pads. These are thermocompression, thermosonic, and ultrasonic wire bonding. These processes rely on at least one of pressure, heat and vibration to form a bond between individual wires and pads. The Guidelines explain these processes and their advantages and disadvantages. Briefly, which of these processes to use in a particular situation depends on a number of factors, such as the number of interconnections to be made, the reliability required, the type of use to which the printed circuit board will be put, the density of the microcircuits on the board, etc.
Ultrasonic bonding, also called wedge bonding, is often preferred because it is overall the cheapest, under the proper conditions it makes a very satisfactory connection, and it does not rely on external heating of the parts. Wedge bonding uses a wedge-shaped bonding tool to press the wire strongly against the pad. High frequency acoustic energy without external heat is then applied to the bonding tool which vibrates the wire against the pad to form a mechanical and electrical bond between the wire and the pad. Aluminum wire is customary for use when wedge bonding as usually forming both cheaper and better bonds than gold, the other wire commonly used for chip connection.
Wedge bonding of aluminum wire to the aluminum die pads formed during the photolithographic steps of microcircuit manufacture is a widely accepted technique. The pads on the printed circuit board to which the die pads are electrically connected are part of the copper foil which is etched to form the printed circuit conductor paths on the board. It is known to be quite difficult to consistently form acceptable bonds between aluminum wire and copper pads. For this reason, the Guidelines, p. 11, specify that the copper foil on the printed circuit board must have a gold over nickel coating to create a surface to which the aluminum wire will form an acceptable bond. Even though most of the copper foil and the gold layer on it is removed during the etching process, it is customary to plate the nickel and gold layers on the foil before it is attached to the printed circuit board. The use of the nickel and gold layers allows a good electrical and mechanical connection between the aluminum wire and the copper foil, but the cost of the gold plating on the copper foil is a disadvantage of COB mounting.
I am not familiar with the metallurgical factors which influence those skilled in art to apply the gold and nickel layers to the copper foil before the bonding step. I suspect that yields may suffer and even that longevity of the bond may decrease when the gold and nickel layers are not present. Transactions on Components, Hybrids, and Manufacturing Technology, vol. CHMT-7, No. 4, December, 1984, Effects of Ambient Atmosphere on Aluminum-Copper Wirebond Reliability, by Dennis R. Olsen et al. discusses a mechanism by which the wedge bonded interface between an aluminum wire and a bare copper surface deteriorates over time in a vacuum, but appears to have a relatively long life in the presence of air. The received wisdom with respect to wedge bonding of aluminum wires to the copper pads on printed circuit boards is that a gold layer must be present on the copper surface for high yield and a long-lived bond.
Since the conductor pattern on a printed circuit board is formed by etching a copper foil which is attached to the substrate insulating sheet, this means that the gold layer must be originally applied to the entire printed circuit board surface. It is possible to recover at least some of the gold from the etchant but these steps add cost to the process. In any case, gold remains on the exterior surface of the entire conductor pattern, creating added material cost of the final printed circuit board. Accordingly, there is economic motivation to omit the gold plating on copper surfaces preparatory for wedge bonding aluminum wires to them if bond quality does not suffer.
Mechanical protection of the microcircuit and the connections to it is usually provided by encapsulating or enclosing the entire die and surrounding board with a self-hardening liquid, typically either silicone or epoxy, see the Guidelines, p. 33. Such encapsulation provides excellent protection against mechanical damage and particulate contamination. And while these materials are not completely hermetic, they do limit substantially the amount of air and water vapor which can reach the individual connections between the printed circuit board and the circuitry on the die itself.
To summarize, the apparent present state of the art regarding the processes used for bonding aluminum wire to a copper surface such as in the COB chip mounting process, is to plate a nickel layer on the copper surface, plate a gold layer on the nickel layer, and then wedge bond the aluminum wire to the gold layer surface.

Chip-on-board printed circuit manufacturing process using aluminum wire bonded to copper pads


A system is provided that strongly inhibits infection and spread of computer viruses. Valid executable software files and supporting files, even files provided by mass-released commercial software, are associated with a numeric key that is unique to each individual computer running the software. For a file to be processed by the central processing unit (CPU) of the computer, the presence of a valid key must first be verified. Every valid executable file, including files relating to the operating system and application layer code, is provided with a unique key. Thus, viruses that attempt to gain access to the CPU to perform unauthorized actions, including replication, are prevented due to lack of a valid execution key. Execution keys are generated locally on each individual computer using a variety of methods. Execution keys can be regenerated if the security of a computer system has been compromised, or appears to have been compromised.

Many products today include embedded computing systems, from the space shuttle to hand-held gaming pods, and therefore operate according the same underlying principles. A series of computing instructions, called a "program", an "application", or an "executable", are read into a memory device of the computing system, and then executed by one or more computational processing units (CPUs). As a result of executing these computing instructions, the computing system will perform a series of actions on behalf of the user, such as display a web page on a home computer, or auto-dial a phone number on a cell phone, for example.
The computing instructions are known as "software", and are executed using the components of the computing system, known as "hardware". Many embedded computing systems, such as the embedded computing systems incorporated in microwaves, have a predetermined set of instructions, running the same program repeatedly. This type of program is fixed, and consequently does not allow the user of the system to change the manner in which it functions by re-programming or adding additional functions/applications. Other products, such as personal computers and mainframes, allow the creation and installation of a variety of programs.
One of the most important advances in computing was the segregation of system function software and application software. The software that relates to system functions is called the Operating System (OS). This set of instructions is responsible for creating a steady-state computing environment within which a variety of application programs can be executed. This segregation of Operating Systems and applications has enabled the development of thousands of programs which can be installed on millions of computing systems around the world. Some programs, such as operating systems (OS), become standardized and are mass-distributed in identical form to millions of users. The most common example of a standard OS is the Windows® operating system developed by Microsoft®. Other typical examples of operating systems with similar flexibility include Linux®, MacOS®, and PalmOS®—each having the capacity to run a variety of custom applications.
Numerous software development companies mass-produce software, frequently releasing new and updated applications to the public. Large software engineering firms develop and release complex applications for use on millions of computing systems. Months are spent developing and testing new applications until a level of quality and functionality is reached, whereupon development is "frozen". Then, the application (or upgrade), potentially containing millions of lines of code, is written onto distribution media and released for sale. All purchasers of this particular software release will receive an identical copy of the new application for their own use.
Distribution of identical copies of software enables software development companies to more easily support and train high volumes of customers, because each copy of the application software has known and consistent behavior—the exact same multi-million lines of code are on every system. However, the same computing logic flaws that create computer security vulnerabilities are also the same on every system. Examples of replicated computer security vulnerabilities can be found in every operating system and application on the market. Malicious and resourceful programmers, called "hackers", find the flaws in computing logic, and using such knowledge, gain unauthorized access to the computing resources of large numbers of computers. With unauthorized access, the hackers then can perform unwanted and malicious functions. A hacker can totally disable a computing system, or just silently perform unauthorized functions. Unauthorized functions include, but are not limited to, data modification, remote control of computing resources, and theft of personal information (identity theft).
One of the more popular hacking techniques is to release a "computer virus"—a program which replicates itself much like the common cold. A computer virus exploits the logic flaws inherent in software, enabling it to spread from one computer to another, infecting each along the way. The result is mass replication and spread to many other computing systems that also run the same software and have the same computer security vulnerability, resulting in lost time, lost data, and lost productivity. For example, in 2003 the economic impact of computer viruses in the United States was said to be over $55 Billion.
In an attempt to control such breaches in computer security, numerous software companies create "security patches" and "anti-virus software" intended to seal holes in the computing logic applications ranging from Operating Systems to Internet Browsers, are all now subject to constant software updates as a means of removing these flaws. Once a logic flaw or a new computer virus is discovered, software companies release modifications (i.e. patches or inoculations) to the application in an attempt to correct the flaw or "plug the hole", or to remove the new virus from computing systems. Unfortunately, after a logic flaw has been found, for example, due to the spread of a computer virus, some damage has already been done to many computing systems that run the vulnerable software. For many the effort is too little, too late.
Even after a new security patch is released, or after a new revision of anti-virus software has been distributed, millions of computing systems still get infected by computer viruses. This happens because many computer users never install the new security patch, or do not obtain the new revision of anti-virus software. Some computer users do not have anti-virus software at all, and those that do have antivirus software may not patch their applications in time to stop the infection. All in all, this reactive approach to controlling computer viruses means that infection of some computing systems is inevitable. Since 1986, Microsoft has release over 350 patches to their applications. Symantec, a leading antivirus software company, has released over 66,000 "inoculations" as of April, 2004. Nevertheless, computer viruses are still a serious threat to computers all over the world, continuing to cause unacceptable levels of economic damage.
Operating systems from the top three development companies, Microsoft, Apple and Sun, are widely known to comprise 30, 20 and 15 million lines of code respectively, not including the code contained in numerous patches that are frequently released. The shear complexity and enormity of these applications inevitably results in logic flaws and vulnerabilities. Most software companies work diligently to reduce the occurrence of software flaws and vulnerabilities, but the size of the code base makes it impossible to release perfect applications all the time. Knowing this, hackers continually look for flaws and vulnerabilities so as to exploit them, confident that a weakness in one system means a weakness in the millions of computer systems that are running identical software.
As code size and complexity increases, the likelihood of introducing logic flaws and security vulnerability also increases. Extrapolating these trends suggests that hackers will increasingly have an advantage for the foreseeable future. Even though the major software vendors continue to patch and inoculate computer systems, the industry continues to find itself one step behind the hackers, because the flaws and vulnerabilities must first be exposed by successful hacker attacks, with the attendant cost and inconvenience. Only after potentially expensive damage has been done can a fix be developed and manufactured, and then distributed to at least some of the millions of vulnerable users.
Present day antivirus strategies include detecting the digital footprint of a virus, and then sequestering it until an end-user can decide on a course of action. The digital footprint of a virus is determined by examining known viruses to determine how they function, and how they affect computing systems. There are numerous ways in which a virus might try to infect a computing system, such as placing new files on a system, changing existing files (e.g., by addition, modification, or deletion of contents), or forcing a system to act contrary to it's programming (e.g., buffer overflow).
These antivirus strategies are based upon the same flawed principles—they all require the actual existence of a virus, infection by the virus, and observation of the harmful effects of the virus, to determine a footprint. Consequently, many systems are infected before a defense against the virus can be devised. Also, such known anti-virus strategies demand repeated scanning of all or most of the files on a computing system by anti-virus software, even though most of the files on an infected computing system are harmless, thereby collectively wasting enormous amounts compute power. Further, known anti-virus strategies require the widespread distribution of updates to antivirus software to in order to counteract new viruses, costing users millions of dollars in service contracts, as well as even higher losses accrued as a result of the negative impact on systems which do not contain antivirus software.
Further, known anti-virus strategies are so ineffective that additional security resources must also be employed to decrease risk of cyber-attack, at yet further cost. These additional security resources may include a device called a "firewall", which attempts to detect and remove malignant code before it reaches a computing system, or renders a system less "visible" in an attempt to protect it from probing by hackers. Owners and managers of computing systems may also be forced to turn off resources such as certain Internet service ports in order to protect vulnerabilities in flawed logic.
Nevertheless, current methods and equipment, alone or in combination, have failed to stop the infection and spread of computer viruses.

Pre-emptive anti-virus protection of computing systems


A sweeping machine has two circular brooms at the front region of a housing rotating towards the inside in opposing directions. Inside the housing and adjoining a sweeper plate across which the circular brooms sweep, a cylinder broom sweeping in a direction towards the front region is arranged. The cylinder broom picks up the refuse swept by the circular brooms and sweeps up dusty refuse in particular from the ground and throws both of these together backwards into the housing into a refuse container.

This application claims the priority of German application 196 17 986.6 filed in Germany on May 4, 1996.
The invention relates to a sweeping machine, with a housing incorporating a refuse collection container, which has at its front area, rotating in opposite directions towards the inside and about forwardly inclined rotatable axles, two circular brooms sweeping across a sweeper plate inside the housing which extends back up to the refuse collection container.
Manually operated sweeping machines of this type (German Patent Document DE 41 01 888 A1) have the merit of being simple in construction and they operate efficiently. They offer considerable advantages, particularly when sweeping up coarse rubbish and leaves.
Manually operated or push-operated sweeping machines are also known which have a cylinder broom, or two arranged one behind the other, extending transversely across the width of the sweeping machine. If two cylinder brooms are provided, the two cylinder brooms are so driven that the first one sweeps away from the front region and the second one sweeps in the opposing direction, whereby the second one hurls the sweepings into a refuse collection container arranged thereafter. With this type of sweeping machine, another known system is to arrange a circular broom on one or both sides in the front region of the housing in front of the cylinder broom or brooms, sweeping inwards so as to carry the rubbish to be picked up to the area which is being swept by the cylinder brooms.
An underlying objective of the invention is to provide a sweeping machine of the type outlined above, which sweeps more efficiently and can be used for all purposes, in particular for sweeping finer refuse.
This objective is achieved according to preferred embodiments of the invention by the fact that a cylinder broom sweeping in the direction towards the front region is arranged behind the circular brooms and the bristles thereof adjoin the sweeper plate and a refuse collection container is arranged on the side facing away from the sweeper plate.
In the sweeping machine of the invention, the circular brooms pick up the coarser refuse in the central area where these collide or where a only short distance is retained between them, and sweep it across the sweeper plate towards the interior of the housing. Finer sweepings, for example fine, dry dust, are swept into the central region and then picked up by the cylinder broom arranged behind. The cylinder broom arranged behind the circular brooms therefore takes control of the rubbish swept by the circular brooms across the sweeper plate towards the inside, accelerating it such that it is thrown upwards and backwards into the refuse collection container. This system therefore also offers the possibility of being able to carry coarse rubbish and leaves, for example, far back into the refuse collection container, which means that a high-volume refuse collection container can be used which can be filled "from the back forwards". The capacity of the refuse collection container is improved as a result.
The design of preferred embodiments of the invention is such that an essentially part cylindrical guide wall is provided for the cylinder broom, the upper end of which adjoins the end of the sweeper plate facing towards the cylinder broom. In conjunction with the bristles of the cylinder broom, this guide wall forms a relatively narrow passage of a few millimeters so that the risk of the dust swept up by the cylinder broom being swirled or blown away is relatively low.
In another aspect of preferred embodiments of the invention, the end of the sweeper plate facing towards the cylinder broom is provided with an upwardly bent end portion, oriented somewhat at a tangent to the external circumference of the bristles of the cylinder broom. By dint of this end portion, the sweepings conveyed by the circular brooms across the sweeper plate do not penetrate the cylinder broom too deeply and can be readily released therefrom.
In yet another aspect of preferred embodiments of the invention, the circular brooms and their bristles extend out beyond the end of the sweeper plate into the region of the bristles of the cylinder broom. Consequently, the cylinder broom fulfills another function, namely that of cleaning the bristles of the circular brooms.
Another aspect of preferred embodiments of the invention is a design configured so that the axial length of the cylinder broom is smaller than the distance between the rotatable axles of the circular brooms, preferably about 30% smaller. On the one hand, a cylinder broom of this type is not as expensive to provide and, on the other, it is perfectly adequate for picking up any refuse, particularly fine, dry dust, left behind between the circular brooms and not yet picked up thereby. In these embodiments, cross-walls are provided in the region of the two end faces of the cylinder broom extending in the longitudinal direction of the housing, each of these being located above a circular broom. The effect of these cross-walls is that the greater proportion of the sweepings moved by the circular brooms reaches the area of the cylinder broom, where they are picked up and accelerated thereby. The cross-walls offer an additional advantage in that, together with the respective external walls of the housing, they form an air passage which conveys air forwards towards the circular brooms which then push it back into the housing. A large proportion of the air is therefore fed back into the housing by means of the circular brooms, so that the risk of dry dust escaping to the exterior or being blown out by the sweeping machine is very greatly reduced.
Another aspect of preferred embodiments of the invention is a design configured so that the bristles of the cylinder broom consist of several tufts of bristles. Between them, the tufts of bristles form pockets, in which the sweepings from the circular brooms are picked up, carried along with a short portion of the circumference and then flung off.
In another aspect of preferred embodiments, the tufts of bristles are so designed that they are respectively formed by sets of at least two portions, inclined with respect to an external contour of the cylinder broom, which meet more or less in the center of the cylinder broom. This arrangement ensures that the bristles of the cylinder broom are well distributed across the circumference of the cylinder broom so that more or less the same number of bristles is always in contact with the floor being swept.
In another aspect of preferred embodiments of the invention, the housing is provided with wheels in the region facing away from the circular brooms, and these provide the driving motion for the cylinder broom. With this system, the broom is driven by the directional movement of the sweeping machine, which means that there is no need to provide a drive motor or similar drive device.


To provide a paper guide roller on which freshly printed ink does not smear while, still, the roller has a surface which is sufficiently rough so that it can be rotated by frictional engagement with a paper web passing thereover, the roller is formed with a base body, typically of steel or cast iron, on which a jacket (3) is placed. In accordance with the present invention, the jacket (3) has two layers, a first layer (4) of ultra-high molecular plastic material, for example polyethylene or polytetrafluorothylene, and a second layer (5) thereover, which has glass balls or beads (6) mixed therein. The material of the second layer can be the same as the first, or different; the glass balls or beads project by a distance of about 20% of their diameter from the second layer. A suitable thickness for the first layer is about 0.3 mm, and the glass balls or beads may have diameters of between 0.2 to 1 mm. The roller is easy to clean since the surface of the glass balls or beads (6) as well as the surface between the glass balls or beads is ink-rejecting or ink-repellent.

Paper guide rollers are used in order to guide paper in predetermined paths. Freshly printed paper webs frequently must be guided in such a way that the freshly printed surface contacts a guide roller. It is difficult to prevent smearing of the freshly printed subject matter as it passes about the guide roller. Typically, such guide rollers are not independently driven but, rather, are carried along by frictional engagement with a paper web passing thereover.
The German Utility Model G 73 45 259 describes a system in which a cylindrical base body, forming a paper guide roller, has a coating thereon, applied by a flame spray process. The coating is a single layer of adjacently positioned droplets projecting from the carrier material. Tiny, essentially funnel-shaped depressions remain between the projecting droplets. These projections, with the funnel-shaped depressions therebetween, furnish a rough surface, so that slip between the frictionally driven roller and the paper web which runs over the roller is effectively avoided. The friction is sufficient to carry along the paper guide roller.
The droplets contain a high percentage of chromium. Thus, the effect is ink repellent. The paper guide roller, however, has a rather coarse, rough surface, and the projecting droplets have sharp edges. Thus, folds or creases in the web rolling off around the roller cannot be compensated. The coarse roughness of the surface of this roller additionally causes difficulties in cleaning.
It has been proposed to use a rubber-like carrier layer and embed glass balls therein, to form a surface cover layer for a guide roller. Such coatings have been referred to as sphere coatings. The glass balls or glass beads form a hard surface which, further, is ink repellent, or oleophobic. Such micro-coated layers can be used only with driven rollers, however, since the surface is too smooth, and does not permit drive of the roller merely by friction with the engaging web. The packing density of the glass balls must be sufficient so that no ink will deposit on the surface of the roller between the glass balls, since the rubber layer has oleophilic characteristics.

Paper web guide roller, particularly for use with a rotary printing machine, to guide a freshly printed paper web


A needle assembly with a needle holder, a needle sleeve movable over the needle holder, and an interlocking member. The needle sleeve encloses a needle holder and is manually extendable and retractable in a telescopic manner to enclose or expose respectively the distal sharp portion of a needle without the aid of a spring or spring-like device. An interlocking member that clamps or slips into the needle holder locks or releases the needle sleeve from the needle holder. In this assembly, the needle is attached to a protruding body to prevent movement of the needle during use. At the proximal end of the needle assembly is a connector for communicating the needle assembly to a hypodermic syringe or other fluid delivery device.

The present invention relates to a needle assembly with a sliding needle sleeve to shield the sharp distal end of a needle. The needle assembly of this invention is similar to the inventor's previously patented needle assembly, U.S. Pat. 5,643,220. While maintaining the same concept of operation, this invention provides an alternative construction and design. This needle assembly, can be mounted on the forward end of a syringe body or other fluid delivery systems or reservoirs. A syringe utilizing this needle assembly offers protection to the user from unintended, accidental puncture.
It is well known that used syringe needles may cause serious illness or untimely death if a person gets accidentally scratched by a needle previously used on an infected individual. Paramedic and health care personnel in Emergency Room or in an emergency situation are particularly susceptible to receiving a scratch from a contaminated needle dislodged by the thrashing of an accident victim. Further, there has been a growing awareness of the danger of contracting AIDS, hepatitis or other known and unknown viral infections from improperly discarded hypodermic needles.
The needle covers currently used in the medical field employ a conventional needle that is completely shielded by a removable plastic cover. The plastic cover is manually removed before an injection and manually recapped after use. For example, to recap after an injection, the user has to retrieve the needle from the patient before covering the needle with the plastic cover. Consequently, accidental puncture can occur while the user retrieves the needle from a patient before the needle can be covered for protection. Accidental removal of the plastic cover is also possible when a covered needle is discarded which can prick or scratch a user or bystander.
There has been a number of attempts to design a needle cover with varying degrees of success. Most of these devices known in the art, apart from the invention filed by the same inventor, basically consist of two cylindrical components, with one sliding over or inside the other in a telescopic manner aided by a spring mechanism for automatic shielding and exposure of the needle. These needle covers differ in their locking mechanism. These covers are either hard to assemble due to the complexity of the mechanism or are expensive to manufacture.
It is a prime object of the present invention to provide a needle assembly which can protect the sharp tip of the needle from exposure prior to and during the mounting of the needle into the syringe body, between injections and after the needle has been discarded.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a needle assembly that is simple in design, utilizing less plastic material and easy to manufacture.
It is a further object of the invention to provide an inexpensive needle assembly that can be offered as a disposable product.


Concentration by cytology personnel, i.e. users, is induced during scanning and marking of cytology slides, by electronic recognition of parsed voice inputs that are spoken by the users, electronic generation of selected voice output alerts that are heard by the users, and electronic processing of the voice inputs and voice outputs, for semi-automatic development of a cytology report.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to cytology, the study of individual cells, and, more particularly, to screening collections of cells that have been taken from a medical patient for the purpose of medical diagnosis.
2. The Prior Art
Ordinarily, such a collection of cells, after being acquired by biopsy or aspiration, are spread on a glass slide, stained and preserved, and examined under a microscope by a cytologist, i.e. a cytotechnologist or a cytopathologist. One such procedure is called a pap smear, which is a screening test for uterine cancer. This procedure usually involves wiping the cervix of a patient to collect cells, smearing the cells onto a glass slide, and sending the resulting specimen to a laboratory. At the laboratory, a cytologist stains the specimen and examines the cells under a microscope for evidence of morbidity. The microscopic examination consists of moving the slide under the microscope in a series or raster of sequential scans. During scanning and while under the microscope, atypical cells are marked with ink dots or other symbols for later identification. This scanning procedure must be performed with unremitting attention, lest the cytologist miss cells with significant abnormalities. Because distances between cells and gradients between scans are microscopic, any interruption in or distraction from the screening process may result in omissions during a scan or in confusion between scans.

Interactive process and system for screening cytological specimens


A semiconductor logic circuit apparatus which include a first switching element consisting of a field effect transistor for changing holding data, an inverter circuit whose input is connected with one end of the first switching element, a feedback circuit whose input and output are connected with the output and input of the inverter circuit, and a second switching element connected between the output of the feedback circuit and first or second potential. The second switching element is effective for enabling and disabling the feedback circuit.. The first and second switching elements are opened/closed in reverse phase to each other. Feedback of the feedback circuit is prevented until the inverter circuit is driven from its "0" to its "1" holding state, so that driving of the inverter circuit becomes easy and operational stability and operating speed are enhanced.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor logic circuit apparatus, especially to a semiconductor logic circuit apparatus which is capable of holding past input data and of changing the held data according to a switching means.
2. Description of Related Art
FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram showing one construction example of a conventional semiconductor logic circuit apparatus (in the following, to be called a logic circuit apparatus) which is capable of holding past input data and of changing the held data according to a switching means, especially an example in which, as shown, a ratio latch circuit is constructed.
In FIG. 1, the logic circuit apparatus is provided with inverter circuits 1a and 1b, especially the inverter circuit 1b comprising a P-type field effect transistor (hereinafter to be called FET) 1c and an N-type FET 1d. The input terminal of the inverter 1a and the output terminal of the inverter 1b are connected to a node 2a, and the input terminal of the inverter 1b and the output terminal of the inverter 1a are connected to a node 2b. One end of an N-type FET 3 is connected to the node 2a and the other end thereof is connected to a data input terminal 5. A gate of the FET 3 receives control signal through a control terminal 6. The node 2b is also connected to a data output terminal 7.
Next, explanation will be given on the operation of the conventional logic circuit apparatus shown in FIG. 1.
Referring to FIG. 1, explanation will be given, at first, on the operation, for example, of the time when the logic circuit apparatus changes its state from a "0" holding state to a "1" holding state. In this case, a control signal "1" is applied to the gate of the FET 3, the FET 3 becomes conductive, so that the data input terminal 5 and node 2a are electrically connected. The signal at the node 2a is initially "0". The value of input data input from the input terminal 5 is "1", the value at the node 2b is initially "1" and the FET 1d is on until the output of the inverter 1a is changed. Therefore, corresponding to ratio of the FET 3 and FET 1d, the electric potential of the node 2a rises. But, since the FET 3 is N-type and FET 1d is on an electric potential is applied to the input of inverter 1a that is lower that the source potential at input terminal 5 by the threshold Vth of the FET 3. When the electric potential at the node 2a rises until it exceeds the logical threshold of the inverter 1a, the output of the inverter 1a changes to "0", the FET 1a is turned off, and the FET 1c is turned on. As a result, the electric potential of the node 2a rises until it reaches the source potential. After that, when the control signal changes from "1" to "0" and the FET 3 becomes non-conductive, the nodes 2a and 2b hold respective values in the state existing immediately before the change of the control signal at the gate of the FET 3. The data output terminal 7 continues to output the value of the node 2b until the FET 3 is again made conductive.
Next, FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram showing another example of the conventional logic circuit apparatus, especially an example of a ratioless latch circuit.
As shown in FIG. 2, an input terminal of an inverter 1a, one end of an N-type FET 3a and one end of a P-type FET 3b are connected to a node 2a. An input terminal of an inverter 1b and the output terminal of the inverter 1a are connected to a node 2b. The other end of the P-type FET 3b and the output terminal of the inverter 1b are connected to each other. The other end of an N-type FET 3 is connected to a data input terminal 5. A control signal is applied to the gates of the FETs 3a and 3b through a control terminal 6. The node 2b is connected to a data output terminal 7.
Referring to FIG. 2, explanation will be given of operation, for example, at a time when the logic circuit apparatus changes from a "0" holding state to a "1" holding state.
In this case, when control signal "1" is applied to the gates of FETs 3a and 3b, the FET 3a becomes conductive and 3b becomes non-conductive. The data input terminal 5 is electrically connected to the node 2a. The node 2a is electrically disconnected from the output of the inverter 1b. Initially the signal at the node 2a is "0". The new signal of "1" is input to the node 2a from the data input terminal 5. The electric potential of the node 2a rises. Since the FET 3a is N-type, the electric potential at the node 2a only rises to a value lower than the source potential by the threshold Vth of the FET 3a. Even when the electric potential of the node 2a exceeds the logical threshold of the inverter 1a, since the FET 3b is non-conductive as above mentioned, the electric potential of the node 2a does not exceed the value which is lower than the source potential by the threshold Vth of the FET 3a. When control signal changes from "1" to "0", the FET 3a becomes non-conductive and 3b conductive. The nodes 2a and 2b hold their respective values in the state just before the change of the control signal, and the data output terminal 7 continues to output the value of the node 2b until the FET 3 again becomes conductive.
Next, FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram showing another example of a conventional logic circuit apparatus, especially an example of a ratio latch circuit.
The difference between the circuit shown in FIG. 3 from the one shown in FIG. 1 is that ends of an N-type FET 3a are connected respectively with ends of a P-type FET 3b. Complementary signals are connected to the gates of FETs 3a and 3b from control terminals 6a and 6b respectively.
Referring to FIG. 3, explanation will be given of operation when the logic circuit apparatus changes its state from, for example, a "0" holding state to a "1" holding state.
When control signals "1" and "0" are applied to control signal input terminals 6a and 6b respectively of FET 3a and 3b, FETs 3a, 3b become conductive, and the data input terminal 5 is electrically connected to the node 2a. This operation is the same as that of the logic circuit apparatus shown in FIG. 1. Although the FET 1d is on until the output of the inverter 1a changes state, the electric potential of the node 2a rises to a value little lower than the source potential since the FET 3b is P-type. When the electric potential of the node 2a exceeds the logical threshold of the inverter 1a, the output of inverter 1a changes to "0". The FET 1d is turned off and the FET 1c is turned on. The resulting condition is the same as the logic circuit apparatus in FIG. 1. That is, the electric potential of the node 2a rises to the source potential. Also operation when the control signal changes from "1" to "0" is the same as the circuit shown in FIG. 1.
Next, FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram showing a further example of a conventional logic circuit apparatus, especially an example of a ratioless latch circuit.
The difference between the logic circuit apparatus shown in FIG. 4 and the one shown in FIG. 2 is that ends of an N-type FET 3a and ends of a P-type FET 3c are connected respectively to each other. Also, ends of a P-type FET 3b and an N-type FET 3d are connected to each other. A control signal from the control terminal 6a is connected in common to the gates of the FETs 3a and 3b. The control signal from the control terminal 6b is connected in common to the gates of the FETs 3c and 3d. The signal from the control terminal 6a is complimentary to that from 6b.
Referring to FIG. 4, explanation will be given of the operation at a time, for example, when the logic circuit apparatus changes its state from a "0" holding state to a "1" holding state.
When the control signal "1" is applied to the FETs 3a and 3b from the control signal input terminal 6a and the control signal "0" is applied to the FETs 3c and 3d from the control signal input terminal 6b, the FETs 3a and 3c become conductive, and FETs 3b and 3d become non-conductive. While the data input terminal 5 is electrically connected to the node 2a, the node 2a is disconnected from the output of the inverter 1b. The operation is the same as that of the logic circuit apparatus shown in FIG. 2. Since the FETs 3b and 3d are non-conductive and the FET 3b is P-type, the electric potential of the node 2a rises to the source potential. Also the operation when the control signal is changed from "0" to "1" is the same as that shown in FIG. 2.
Conventional semiconductor logic circuit apparatus constructed as above have exhibited the following problems.
In the case of FIG. 1, a change of state from a "0" holding state to a "1" holding state cannot be carried out normally when the source potential is low. That is to say, when the FET 3 becomes conductive by receiving the control signal "1", the electric potential at the node 2a rises according to the ratio of the FET 3 and the FET 1d as above-mentioned. The FET 1d remains on until the output inverter 1a changes from "1" to "0". Here, the electric potential of the node 2a only rises to a value which is lower than the source potential by the threshold voltage Vth because the FET 3 is N-type and the FET 1d is on. Since the source potential dependency of the electric potential of the node 2a is larger than that of logical threshold of the inverter 1a, the electric potential at the node 2a cannot exceed the logical threshold of the inverter 1a when the source potential is low, thereby the inverter 1a cannot operate to produce a "0" output.
In the case of the embodiment of FIG. 2, when the logic circuit apparatus changes its state from "0" holding state to "1" holding state, or when the "0" holding state is prolonged, a feed-through current passes through the inverter 1a. That is to say, when a "1" control signal is applied to the FETs 3a and 3b, the FET 3a becomes conductive and the FET 3b becomes non-conductive. The electric potential of the node 2a rises. Since the FET 3a is N-type and the FET 3b is off, the electric potential at the node 2a only rises to a value which is lower than the source potential by the threshold voltage Vth of the FET 3a. Accordingly, while the node 2a changes its value from "0" to "1", DC feed-through current flows through the inverter 1a. When a "0" holding state is prolonged, the FET 3 b becomes non-conductive to permit the electric potential of the node 2a to float easily from the ground potential of the node 2a. As a result, the electric potential of the node 2a rises to the absolute value of the threshold of the FET 3b, that is, .vertline.Vth.vertline. electric potential, there being the possibility that feed-through current flows through the inverter 1a until the FET 3b becomes conductive.
Next, referring to FIG. 3, explanation will be given on the operation of the time when, for example, the logic circuit apparatus changes its state from a "0" holding state to a "1" holding state. Although the FET 1d is on until the output inverter 1a changes from "0" to "1", the electric potential at the node 2a rises to a value which is a little lower than the source potential since the FET 3b is P-type. Therefore, compared with the example shown in FIG. 1, the inverter 1a is more easily driven. But the FETs 3a and 3b require two kinds of control signals. Moreover, when this first switching means is constructed as part of a group of switching means, the larger the group, the more the number of switching elements increases.
The logic circuit apparatus shown in FIG. 4 has more stability in operation than the ones respectively shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 2 and FIG. 3. However, its use of two, the FETs 3a and 3c two switching means FETs 3b and 3d as CMOS circuits, still requires two kinds of control signals. In addition, when the first switching means consists of a group of switching means, the larger the number thereof, the more the number of the switching elements increases.


An apparatus, including a pump body having an internal shaft, and a piston disposed within the shaft and having a piston head that includes a first ferromagnetic element. The apparatus also includes a motor coupled to drive a reciprocal longitudinal motion of the piston within the shaft, and a pump chamber configured to be removably attached to the pump body and having a rigid wall defining a fluid inlet, a fluid outlet, and an aperture. The apparatus additionally includes a flexible diaphragm fixed across the aperture and having a second ferromagnetic element, which engages the first ferromagnetic element when the pump chamber is attached to the pump body so that the reciprocal longitudinal motion of the piston causes alternating stretching and contraction of the flexible diaphragm, thereby modifying a volume of the pump chamber.

Various therapeutic procedures such as cardiac ablation use an invasive medical probe that is inserted into a patient's body. However, during an ablation procedure on a heart, there may be local overheating of the heart surface being ablated, as well as of the heart tissue underlying the surface. The surface overheating may be manifested as charring, and the overheating of the underlying tissue may cause other damage to the tissue, even leading to penetration of the tissue. To prevent the tissue from charring, an infusion pump may deliver, via the medical probe, irrigation fluid to the region being ablated.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,834,408 to Baker et al., whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes an irrigation and/or aspiration device having a base with a removable head, and adapted for partial or complete separation of the irrigation and aspiration functions. The device includes a reservoir that is removable, replaceable and refillable.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,445,535 to Mayfield et al., whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes an infusion device that provides a precise infusion rate of a liquid medication into a body. The infusion device includes a permanent portion and a disposable portion which includes a reservoir filled with a liquid medication that is to be dispensed, and a pump for pumping the medication from the reservoir into the body.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,856,340 to Garrison, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes a pressure diaphragm for a medication infusion system. The pressure diaphragm can be installed in a disposable cassette for use on a main pump unit, and can be configured to enable pressure downstream of a fluid pump to be measured with a high degree of accuracy.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,540,568 to Rosen et al., whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes a single module that includes a head, a rolling diaphragm filling unit, and intake and discharge ports. The rolling diaphragm filling unit may be fixed or removably attached to the head. The head module, including the intake and discharge ports, and the attached rolling diaphragm, may be configured as a disposable module that includes all of the pump surfaces that come into contact with the fluid product.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,749,587 to Flaherty, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes a single module that includes a head, a disposable rolling diaphragm filling unit, and intake and discharge ports. The rolling diaphragm filling unit may be fixed or removably attached to the head.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,749,587 to Flaherty, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes a modular infusion device for delivering fluid that includes a disposable assembly having an exit port assembly, and a reusable assembly having a control portion. The assemblies are adapted to be removably attached, and a power source is contained in the disposable assembly for providing power to the reusable assembly upon attachment of the reusable assembly and the disposable assembly.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,427,281 to Uber, III, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes an injection apparatus for delivering fluid to multiple patients. The apparatus includes a first fluid source, a second fluid source, and a fluid path disposed between the first and second fluid sources and a patient. The fluid path includes a mixing device, a reusable portion for delivering fluid to multiple patients and a per-patient disposable portion removably connected to the reusable portion.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,753,880 to Malackowski, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes a tool system for operating an irrigation pump that includes a fixed pump head driven by a pump motor and a removable tube set.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,827,945 to Baker et al., whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes irrigation and/or aspiration devices that may be configured to aspirate and irrigate alone, sequentially, or concurrently. The devices may include reservoirs for aspirant and irrigant that are removable, and/or replaceable, and/or refillable, and easily cleanable.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,915,879 to Smith et al., whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes an ambulatory infusion pump that can dispense medicament from a single-dose cartridge.
U.S. Patent Application 2016/0235913 to Smith et al., whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes ambulatory infusion pumps and reservoir assemblies that include dynamic and static seals, plus related components as well as component combinations.
Documents incorporated by reference in the present patent application are to be considered an integral part of the application except that to the extent any terms are defined in these incorporated documents in a manner that conflicts with the definitions made explicitly or implicitly in the present specification, only the definitions in the present specification should be considered.
The description above is presented as a general overview of related art in this field and should not be construed as an admission that any of the information it contains constitutes prior art against the present patent application.

Disposable pump chamber for an infusion pump


A vertical diffused metal oxide semiconductor (DMOS) field-effect transistors (FET) comprises a substrate of a first conductivity type forming a drain region; an epitaxial layer of the first conductivity type on said substrate; first and second base regions of the second conductivity type within said epitaxial layer, spaced apart by a predefined distance; first and second source regions of a first conductivity type arranged in said first and second base regions, respectively, wherein said first and second base region is operable to form first and second lateral channels between said source region and said epitaxial layer; a gate structure insulated from said epitaxial layer by an insulation layer and arranged above the region between the first and second base regions and wherein the gate structure comprises first and second gate regions, each gate region only covering the first and second channel, respectively within said first and second base region.

Power metal oxide semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFET) are generally used to handle high power levels in comparison to lateral transistors in integrated circuits. FIG. 6 shows a typical MOSFET which uses a vertical diffused MOSFET structure, also called double-diffused MOSFET structure (DMOS or VDMOS).
As shown, for example, in FIG. 6, on an N+ substrate 415 there is a N− epitaxial layer formed whose thickness and doping generally determines the voltage rating of the device. From the top into the epitaxial layer 410 there are formed N+ doped left and right source regions 430 surrounded by P-doped region 420 which forms the P-base. The P-base may have an out diffusion area 425 surrounding the P-base 420. A source contact 460 generally contacts both regions 430 and 420 on the surface of the die and is generally formed by a metal layer that connects both left and right source region. An insulating layer 450, typically silicon dioxide or any other suitable material, insulates a polysilicon gate 440 which covers a part of the P-base region 420 and out diffusion area 425. The gate 440 is connected to a gate contact 470 which is usually formed by another metal layer. The bottom side of this vertical transistor has another metal layer 405 forming the drain contact 480. In summary, FIG. 6 shows a typical elementary cell of a MOSFET that can be very small and comprises a common drain, a common gate and two source regions and two channels. Other similar cells may be used in a vertical power MOSFET. A plurality of such cells may generally be connected in parallel to form a power MOSFET.
In the On-state, a channel is formed within the area of regions 420 and 425 covered by the gate reaching from the surface into the regions 420 and 425, respectively. Thus, current can flow as indicated by the horizontal arrow. The cell structure must provide for a sufficient width d of gate 440 to allow for this current to turn into a vertical current flowing to the drain side as indicated by the vertical arrows.
Such structures have a relatively high gate source capacitance due to the necessary width of the gate which is undesirable, in particular, in high frequency switching applications such as switched mode power supplies.


A network in a memory device for selecting a bit line during a data read or a data write. The network includes a first bit line in communication with a bitcell and a second bit line in communication with the bitcell. A charger is in communication with the first and second bit lines, and the charger is configured to charge the first bit line to a first charged level and the second bit line to a second charged level before a data read or a data write. A sensor is connected to the first and second bit lines. The bitcell drives one bit line up and the other bit line down during a data read. The sensor senses a difference between the first and second bit lines to select one of the first and second bit lines during a data read.

A typical semiconductor memory device includes a plurality of memory cells or bitcells arranged in arrays, and a memory cell selector means for enabling the selection of a particular memory cell to facilitate the reading of data from, or the writing of data to, that particular memory cell.
For example, a high density dynamic random access memory (DRAM) includes a plurality of core cell blocks, and each core cell block contains several memory cells. The memory cells are metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs), and each MOSFET acts as a switch. To this end, each pair of MOSFETs is connected to a pair of bit lines (an input/output or I/O port), and the capacitance of each MOSFET can be charged by data. While one of the bit lines is the data itself, the other bit line is the complement data.
A bit line sense amplifier is provided in communication with a pair of bit lines corresponding to a set of memory cells. Each bit line sense amplifier amplifies the data which is read from the corresponding memory cell through the bit line pair or I/O port.
To select a memory cell, a memory column and row address is provided to the DRAM from outside the DRAM. A column decoder decodes this column address which is received from outside the DRAM, and then provides a signal to the corresponding bit line sense amplifier which selects the proper bit line pair therefore selecting the corresponding memory cell which corresponds thereto.
Before a typical read or write cycle, both bit lines of a memory cell are precharged to a relatively high level. Then, during the data read, the memory cell drives the bit lines. As one of the bit lines goes down, the other bit line remains relatively stable. As the one bit line falls, the bit line sense amplifier compares the two bit lines and senses which bit line has a higher charge. The time it takes to determine which bit line has the higher level is the sense time.
It is desirable to provide that the bit line sense amplifier can quickly determine which bit line has the higher level and therefore select the correct bit line or data value. As a result of being able to quickly determine which bit line has the higher charge, data sense time is minimized. When a data read is performed, the bit line which loses charge often falls slowly. This can, for example, be due to high capacitance in the memory array (often caused by a high row count) and the low drive of the memory cell due to its relatively small size. As a result of the falling bit line not falling quickly and the bit line sense amplifier attempting to sense a difference between a stable bit line and a slowly falling bit line, the time in which it takes the bit line sense amplifier to select the correct data value is not minimized. As a result, data sense time is not minimized.

Sense time reduction using midlevel precharge


A cover is inserted into a housing of a fuel pump. Then, a housing-side engaging portion of the housing, which is located at a peripheral edge of an opening of the housing, is heated with a heating means. Thereafter, the housing-side engaging portion is swaged by a punch toward the cover to fix the cover to the housing.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for manufacturing a fuel pump.
2. Description of Related Art
With reference to FIG. 20, a known fuel pump includes a tubular housing 11, an impeller (not shown) and a cover 22. The housing 11 has an opening 11a and receives the impeller, and the cover 22 covers the opening 11a of the housing 11. The impeller is received in a pump chamber 22a, which is formed on one axial side of the cover 22 that is opposite from the opening 11a of the housing 11. In a case of the fuel pump recited in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication 2005-207320 (corresponding to US2005/0163605A1), a housing-side engaging portion 11y, which includes a bending portion 11b and a cylindrical portion 11c, of the housing 11 located along a peripheral edge of the opening 11a, is radially inwardly swaged, i.e., is bent against the cover 22, so that the cover 22 is fixed to the housing 11.
A clearance between the cover 22 and the impeller has a large influence on fuel flow characteristics in the fuel pump. Therefore, the manufacturing of the fuel pump is highly controlled to make this clearance to a predetermined clearance.
Specifically, the bending portion 11b of the housing-side engaging portion 11y may spring back (see an arrow SB in FIG. 20) right after the swaging. Thus, in such a case, the cover 22 may not be insufficiently urged against the housing 11. When the cover 22 is not sufficiently urged against the housing 11, an urging force (hereinafter, referred to as an axial force F1), which limits removal of the cover 22 from the housing 11, may become insufficient. In such a case, the bending portion 11b may be deformed away from the cover 22, and the cover 22 may be moved away from the impeller. Therefore, the above described clearance may be increased to deteriorate the fuel flow characteristics in the fuel pump.
In order to address the above disadvantage, the inventors of the present application have worked on a new manufacturing method by, for example, increasing a swaging load, which is applied to the housing-side engaging portion 11y of the housing 11, in view of the springing back of the bending portion 11b (see a previously proposed product A in FIG. 4). However, when an excess swaging load is applied to the housing-side engaging portion 11y and the cover 22, an undesirable deformation occurs in the bending portion 11b and the cover 22, so that the above-described clearance is significantly changed. Thus, it is not possible to control the clearance with the high degree of precision, and thereby the deterioration in the fuel flow characteristics in the fuel pump is inevitable.
Also, the inventors of the present invention have tried another method. In this method, recesses 22b (see FIG. 20) are formed on a surface of the cover 22. After the swaging of the housing-side engaging portion 11y along all around the housing 11, opposed portions of the bending portion 11b, which are axially opposed to the recesses 22b, are pressed against the recesses 22b (see a previously proposed product B shown in FIG. 4). This swaging process can substantially limit the springing back of the bending portion 11b described above, so that the sufficient axial force F1 can be exerted by the housing-side engaging portion 11y. However, the removal forcer which acts on the cover 22 to remove the cover 22 from the housing 11, is concentrated on the depressed, opposed portions of the bending portion 11b, which are opposed to and depressed against the recesses 22b. Therefore, the opposed portions are deformed away from the cover 22. As a result, the cover 22 is moved away from the impeller to increase the clearance between the cover 22 and the impeller. Thus, it is not possible to control the clearance with the high degree of precision, and thereby the deterioration in the fuel flow characteristics in the fuel pump is inevitable.

Method and apparatus for manufacturing fuel pump


The present invention relates to a method in a camera for determining a camera setting when using pulsed flash is provided. The camera comprises a source of light. The source of light is adapted to emit light to illuminate an object. The object is further illuminated by ambient light. The method comprises the steps of: Capturing a first image data of the object when the object is illuminated by light emitted by the source of light and by the ambient light, capturing a second image data of the same object when the object is illuminated by the ambient light but not by light from the source of light, creating a difference image data by subtracting the second image data from the first image data. The method comprises the further step of determine a camera setting based on the created difference image data. The determined camera setting is to be used when capturing a third image of the object, using emitted pulsed flash by the source of light to illuminate the object.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to a camera and a method in a camera. In particular it relates to the determination of camera settings when using pulsed flash.
2. Description of Related Art
Camera phones usually have a white Light Emitting Diode (LED) for illumination of an object in dark environments. The light output from an LED is very low which makes it necessary to use long exposure times. Long exposure time is a problem as hand shake of the user results in blurred images. Recent technical progress has made more powerful LEDs available. These LEDs can produce a good amount of light even at short pulses. It is also possible to reach higher light levels with short pulses as power dissipation limits the efficiency of an LED
The brightness of an object depends on both ambient light and the light coming from the LED. The effect of the LED varies depending on the distance to the object and the reflectivity of the object. Hence it is difficult to adjust the camera for correct exposure as these conditions are normally not known.
The camera automatically adjusts the exposure settings when a continuous lighting LED is used. This is possible since the camera can capture several image frames when the LED is lit and adjust accordingly. This method is not possible to use with a pulsed LED as the brightness of the object will come as a total surprise.
One way to solve this problem is to regulate the LED power the same way a Xenon flash is regulated. A light sensor integrates the reflected light from the object and an electronic circuit turns off the flash when a predefined light flux is reached.
There are however some disadvantages with this solution. The predefined flux must be set at a level low enough to ensure enough flux at the maximum desired range of the device. The effect will be that we only take full advantage of the LEDs capabilities when it is used at its maximum working range. This would be to waste performance in most cases.
For example, if the maximum working range is set to 2 meters, only 25% of the LEDs potential will be used at 1 meter.
Yet another problem has to do with white balancing. A typical indoor environment is illuminated by tungsten bulbs having a colour temperature of about 2800 K (very reddish compared to daylight). A typical white LED has a colour temperature of about 7000 K. White balancing becomes very difficult as we don't know to what extent the LED contributes to the total illuminating of the scene.
Ideally the LED should always be used at maximum power and the camera exposure setting (gain and exposure time) should be adjusted to match the circumstances.


After applying an ultraviolet ray hardening resin composite 30 on a print pattern 22 of dry state and also permeating the resin composite through the print pattern to thereby reproduce the adhesion of the print pattern 22, the print pattern 22 is transferred under water pressure onto the surface of article 10 to form the decoration layer 22D on the surface of the article 10. Then, the preliminary irradiation of ultraviolet ray permeating only near the surface of this decoration layer 22D is performed to form a fine surface height variation portion 23 by shrinkage of ink in the surface of the ink printing portion of the decoration layer 22D. Thereafter, the complete irradiation of ultraviolet ray permeating through the total thickness of the decoration layer 22D is performed to completely harden the total thickness of the decoration layer 22D while maintaining the surface height variation portion 23. This enables the matting of the decoration layer in a controlled state without applying a topcoat.

In general, the water pressure transfer method is a method for supplying and floating on a surface of water flowing in a transfer tub a transfer film having a predetermined print pattern of non-water solubility applied on a water-soluble film of polyvinyl alcohol, making wet the water-soluble film of the transfer film with water, immersing an article (an object to be pattern-transferred) into the water in the transfer tub while contacting the transfer film, and transferring the print pattern of the transfer film onto the surface of the article using the water pressure to form a decoration layer.
The transfer film used for this water pressure transfer method is obtained by printing the print pattern on the water-soluble film by gravure printing method etc., but since this transfer film is kept in a dry state after the print pattern is formed, when the water pressure transfer should be performed, the ink of the print film is activated from the dry state to the state where it has an adhesion and thereafter the print pattern of the transfer film is transferred underwater in the state where the adhesion is reproduced.
The applicant has proposed a method of applying a non-solvent type ultraviolet ray hardening resin composite on the print pattern in order to activate the dried print pattern to permeate the non-solvent type ultraviolet ray hardening resin composite into the print pattern whereby an adhesion of the ink of the print pattern is reproduced by a photo-polymerization monomer of the non-solvent type ultraviolet ray hardening resin composite, transferring under water pressure the thus adhesion reproduced print pattern to a surface of an article and thereafter irradiating an ultraviolet ray onto the print pattern having the ultraviolet ray hardening resin composite permeated therein to harden the print pattern (see Patent Documents 1 through 3).
This method is advantageous because the print pattern is hardened and also a physically and chemically excellent characteristic is imparted to the print pattern by hardening the ultraviolet ray hardening resin composite permeated into the print pattern.
On the other hand, after the print pattern is transferred under water pressure onto the surface of the article, there have been tried various methods for matting a decoration layer formed by the print pattern. One of the methods is the method in which a topcoat layer is applied on the print pattern transferred under water pressure on the surface of the article to thereby matte the print pattern. However, this method is not preferable because two steps of water pressure transfer and application of the topcoat are required. Furthermore, since this method imparts the matting effect all over the surface of the print pattern, there cannot be imparted a partial matting in which the matting effect is applied only to the design (pattern) at its predetermined portions.
Another method is a method of blending a matting agent with the activating agent to thereby matte the print pattern together with the water pressure transfer of the print pattern. Although this method can carries out the matting together with the water pressure transfer, since this method presupposes the use of the conventional solvent type activator, this method cannot be applied to the case where the print pattern is activated by the ultraviolet ray hardening resin composite and it is disadvantageously difficult to adjust the state of matting control because the matting is controlled by the blend of the matting agent. Furthermore, in this method, the activator lies on the back of the design (pattern), that is between the article and the pattern, there is a problem that sufficient matting effect cannot be obtained.
Further method is disclosed in Patent Documents 4 and this method is a method for imparting a gloss, but not the matting effect. This method has two hardening steps. In the first hardening step, an unevenness is never produced on the surface by an irradiation of an activity energy ray as an irradiation amount of 40% or less, more particularly of 0.1 through 25% and the whole surface is hardened sufficiently not to leave water washing marks by removing a carrier film by water flush etc. to thereby obtain a feeling of gloss (see paragraph 0037 of Patent Document 4).
Another matting method is disclosed in Patent Document 5 and in this method, a rate of water absorption of the hardening resin formation layer is 0.5 mg/cm2 or more and activity energy ray of 1% or more of the amount of irradiation required for a complete hardening is irradiated just after a print layer is transferred onto an object to be transferred whereby the matting effect can be imparted without the blend of any matting agent (see paragraphs 0009 through 0012 of Patent Document 5).
However, since the methods disclosed in Patent Documents 4 and 5 were the method in which the matting effect was imparted all over the surface, the matting could not be controlled so as to partially matte the design at predetermined portions. Furthermore, these methods substantially differ from an idea of obtaining the matting effect by forming fine wrinkles on the design surface.
On the other hand, in the method of irradiating the ultraviolet ray onto the print pattern having the ultraviolet ray hardening resin composite permeated as disclosed in Patent Documents 1 through 3, in case where the water pressure transfer is performed mainly on a three-dimensional article, an ultraviolet ray is irradiated all over the surface of the article for hardening the print pattern by the irradiation of the ultraviolet ray. Especially, in the technical art of forming fine wrinkles (fine unevenness) on the design surface to produce a gloss difference, since formation of these fine wrinkles utilizes the hardening shrinkage by the irradiation of the ultraviolet ray, when the water pressure transfer is performed on the three-dimensional object, there occurs an uneven formation of the wrinkles by the hardening shrinkage unless the ultraviolet ray is irradiated with the irradiation amount and the irradiation time of ultraviolet ray very strictly set. As a result, there is totally arranged no gloss difference, which causes a gloss non-uniformity to occur at all the portions of the three-dimensional article and therefore the stable matting design cannot be obtained. The non-uniformity of formation of wrinkles is especially remarkable in the case where the irradiation amount and the irradiation time of the ultraviolet ray greatly differs on the forward and backward faces of the conveyance direction of the three-dimensional article, such as the case where the ultraviolet ray is irradiated while the article is conveyed by an automatic conveyor used for a mass-production line.

Method and product of hydraulic transfer


This invention relates to methods and devices for motor speed control. The invention has particular application in the control of motors over packet networks. In embodiments of the invention, phase-locked loop principles are used to remotely control the speed of an electric motor over a packet network. The setpoint for the motor is supplied by arriving timestamps from a speed-mapped variable frequency source. The shaft speed of the motor is measured with a tachometer with its output proportional to the motor speed. Any deviation of the actual speed from the setpoint is amplified by the power amplifier whose output drives the motor. Speed control over packet networks allow smoother operation of a process, acceleration control, different operating speeds for each process recipe, compensation for changing process variables, slow operation for setup purposes, adjustments to the rate of production, accurate positioning, and control torque or tension of a system.

Industrial networks play a big role in industrial automation, manufacturing, process control, and other industrial related businesses. Until recently, industrial processes and equipment would communicate with each other using one of several possible specialized open or proprietary protocols, such as Modbus, HART, Profibus, CANopen, DeviceNet, FOUNDATION Fieldbus, PROFINET IO, etc [1][2]. These are all specialized networking technologies tailored for industrial automation, manufacturing, process control.
Currently, it is not uncommon to see a manufacturing facility, for example, having multiple parallel networks as depicted schematically in FIG. 1: a control network 1 (for automation, manufacturing, process control), a voice network 2 (for traditional voice communication), and a data or Information Technology (IT) network 3 for normal IT networking (that is, for interconnecting computers, servers, printers, etc.). It is clear that there are significant disadvantages to this arrangement:                Each network requires its own network administration and management.        Each network requires its own set of maintenance and support staffs with the right skills.        Each network requires its own set of spares parts, inventory, etc.        Provisioning redundancy in the network results in a higher cost of network design and installation.        The overall footprint of the networks can be very large—taking up significant physical space. As space is normally at a premium (or at least costly) for most businesses this can be an additional cost or problem.
However, many industrial networks are currently migrating from legacy industrial protocols to packet based technologies like Ethernet and IP. Ethernet has emerged as a viable alternative to the traditional industrial protocols simply because it is much cheaper, readily available, and proven to be effective for networking.
As such, there is growing interest in the industrial community to use available "data-centric" protocols such as Ethernet as the transport protocol for industrial networks (as shown schematically in FIG. 2 where a single integrated packet network 4 connects all functions of the business). Consolidating all industrial business processes on a common packet network offers the following benefits:                By using a computer network, various services such as control messaging, voice, video, and data can be multiplexed, switched, and transported together under a universal format.        Consolidation of separate control, voice and data (IT) networks offers significant savings in both capital and operational expenditure.        Full integration results in simpler and more efficient network administration and management.        Full integration will also reduce redundant hardware, communications facilities, and support staffs.        The higher bandwidth of fiber optics technologies, and the advent of high-speed network elements (e.g. routers and switches) are major drivers of the current trend towards network consolidation.        With a common network transport format, new services (e.g., video conferencing, collaborative computing, pervasive computing, etc.) can easily be introduced into the system.
Ethernet is a major carrier for other networking protocols; Ethernet can pretty much carry any other protocol whether open or proprietary. The benefits of adopting packet technologies like Ethernet are as follows:                Increased speeds from 10 Mbit/s up 10 Gbit/s (and even more with 40 and 100 Gbit/s Ethernet now being developed) compared to 9.6 Kbit/s with RS-232.        Ability to work over copper (e.g., Category 5e, Category 6, etc) cables, optical fiber and wireless medium (e.g., IEEE 802.11 protocols).        Increased distance especially when using Ethernet over optical fiber.        Ability to use standard networking equipment and software (e.g., access points, routers, switches, hubs, etc.), cables and optical fiber, which are much cheaper and offer greater flexibility than the equivalent serial-port and industrial bus based devices.        Ability to deploy more than two nodes (multiple nodes) on a link, which was possible with RS-485 but not with RS-232.        Ability to deploy and configure peer-to-peer architectures rather than the master-slave ones common in traditional industrial networks.        Better interoperability and connectivity since all one needs is to equip the nodes on the network with Ethernet interfaces.
The current trend shows that the industry has embraced Ethernet as the protocol of choice for industrial networking. However, there are certain difficulties in using Ethernet for industrial processes, most of which require real-time processing. Ethernet was initially developed as a data oriented protocol and was not designed with the inherent real-time and loss-less data transport capabilities found in many traditional industrial protocol.
These limitations of Ethernet often call for adding special functionalities in an Ethernet (or other packet) network to address the special needs of automation, manufacturing, process control processes.
One such situation is the remote control of an electric motor over a packet network as illustrated schematically in FIG. 3. Remote motor control plays a major role in automation, manufacturing, process control.
The area of control applications over IP (packet) networks has recently gained significant interest in the research community [6][7][8]. Due to the complex nature of control over IP packet-based networks, several researchers have devised different approaches to deal with the stochastic nature of the packet delay variations. In order to deal with the packet delay variations, many approaches attempt to replace practical controllers that exist in industrial applications such as the proportional-integral (PI) controller with other controllers [9][10][11]. This replacement is in general expensive and requires extensive amount of time to replace all the existing controllers.
In [12] a methodology to improve the widely used PI controller over IP networks was proposed. Specifically the optimal PI controller gains are scheduled in real time in accordance to the monitored IP network traffic allowing for a more dynamic approach to control system implementation.
In [13] a networked control system over Wireless LAN (WLAN) based on the separation principle of Linear Quadratic Gaussian (LQG) control with random delays and packet loss in the feedback loop improves the performance.
A method to control the speed of the DC motor through IP networks with packet loss has been also introduced in [14]. The method is tested through speed control experiments of a commercial DC motor. The effectiveness of reducing the negative influences of packet loss is demonstrated by adopting a PI controller with a Smith compensator.
In [15] an approach that modifies and enhances conventional systems is achieved through adopting a model-based networked predictive control scheme based on round-trip time delay measurements.
In [16] a technique to provide means to transfer time-critical information between devices over Ethernet-IP network was proposed for large industrial control or automation solution. The technique is at the protocol/application layer and does not address the critical issue of harnessing synchronization to control motors.
Another technique that deals with motor control over packet networks was proposed in [17] where an applet-based system is implemented to enable control mechanism between a client and a server. Although this approach addresses the application layer of control over packet, it lacks relevance and practical implementation of control algorithms at the physical layer.
Accordingly, the present invention seeks to provide a new technique for remote control of a motor (particularly a DC motor) over a network (such as a packet network). Some applications of speed control over packet networks in process control and energy conservation are to allow smoother operation of a process, acceleration control, allow different operating speed for each process recipe, compensate for changing process variables, allow slow operation for setup purposes, adjust the rate of production, allow accurate positioning, and control torque or tension of a system.

Method and system for motor speed control

Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research


The specification discloses an insecticidal bait composition for cockroaches and a related method of its use for the control of cockroach infestations. In general, the composition contains boric acid in an amount of from about 15 to about 40 weight percent together with attractant foodbaits for attracting the roaches to the composition so they will consume it. A preferred composition effective for use by persons such as typical homeowners who are not specially trained in the use of insecticides contains between about 15 and 20 weight percent boric acid along with foodbait attractants. Compositions according to the invention containing unconventionally low amounts of boric acid combined with masking foodbait attractants promote control of cockroach infestation by encouraging direct ingestion of the insecticide, and also have an initial surface-adherent paste or gel-like consistency which enables the material to be applied to cracks and crevices where it hardens and remains for long periods of time for prolonged effectiveness in controlling infestations.

This invention relates generally to means and methods for controlling cockroach infestations in homes, buildings and other structures, and relates more particularly to an insecticidal bait composition and method of its application for controlling such cockroach infestations.
Boric acid powder, i.e., sodium tetraborate, is known to be an effective agent in cockroach control. Commonly, boric acid powder compositions, typically containing about 99 weight percent boric acid, is placed in target areas in which roaches are known to frequent so that roaches are apt to walk through the powder. A roach whose body collects a sufficient amount of boric acid upon walking through the powder soon dies from the poisonous effect which the boric acid has upon the roach.
Compositions with high concentrations of boric acid are unlikely to be directly consumed by roaches. Instead, the compositions kill roaches by an indirect route as a result of the powder adhering to the roach's body. Compositions high in boric acid also present health hazards in buildings and homes occupied by people, and the powdered compositions due to their fugacity contribute to these hazards and to their limited effectiveness over time.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an effective insecticide bait composition utilizing boric acid powder for direct consumption by cockroaches.
Another object of the present invention is to provide such an insecticide bait composition which is effective in operation and fast-acting.
An additional object of the invention is to provide an insecticide bait composition which avoids draw-backs associated with previous insecticide compositions containing relatively high boric acid concentrations.
This invention relates to an insecticidal bait composition for cockroaches comprising boric acid generally within the range of about 10 to about 40 weight percent, preferably from about 15 to about 20 weight percent, together with an amount of attractant foodbaits for attracting roaches to the composition so they will consume it.
When placed adjacent an area frequented by roaches, the foodbaits of the composition attract the roaches to the composition where it is ingested by the roaches. Thus, the effectiveness of the composition is not as dependant on its placement within the path of roaches or its collection on the bodies of the roaches as is the case with insecticide compositions utilizing a high concentration of boric acid powder. Moreover, the significantly lower concentration of boric acid powder of the composition of this invention makes the composition less toxic to humans than compositions possessing high concentrations of boric acid powder.

Insecticidal bait composition for cockroaches


A case sealing device is disclosed. The case sealing device conveys a cardboard box and simultaneously closes a flap group provided on edges of opening of the cardboard box. The case sealing device includes a folding member, a drive unit, and a control unit. The folding member contacts a flap of the flap group that extends along a conveyance direction of the cardboard box and folds the flap. The drive unit moves the folding member. The control unit controls the drive unit. In operation of folding the flap, a longitudinal direction of the folding member is inclined with respect to the conveyance direction such that the folding member contacts a front edge of the flap in the conveyance direction before other portions of the flap.

In recent years, devices that convey cardboard boxes and at the same time automatically close the flaps and tape them have become widespread. For example, JP-A No. H06-171614 discloses a case sealing device where a first-approaching front flap comes into contact with and is folded by a member provided in a predetermined position, a rear flap is folded by a swinging member from behind, and, after the front and rear flaps have been folded, left and right flaps (extending along the conveyance direction) are folded by rod-shaped folding members.