A semiconductor memory device includes a memory cell having a first resistance state and a second resistance state, a bit line connected to the memory cell, a reference cell fixed to the first resistance state, a reference bit line connected to the reference cell, and a generation circuit configured to generate a reading voltage and a reference voltage. The generation circuit includes a constant current source connected to a first node, a first replica cell connected between the first node and a second node and fixed to the first resistance state, a second replica cell connected between the second node and a third node and fixed to the second resistance state, a first resistance element connected between the first node and a fourth node, and a second resistance element connected between the fourth node and the third node.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to semiconductor memory device and, more particularly, to a semiconductor memory device comprising a variable resistance element which varies in resistance based on stored data.
2. Description of the Related Art
A magnetic random access memory (MRAM) is known as a kind of variable resistance memory. An MRAM is a device which performs memory operations by storing "1" or "0" data in a memory cell using the magnetoresistive effect, and is considered a candidate for a universal memory device characterized by non-volatility, high integration, high reliability, low power consumption, and high-speed operation.
There have been reported a great number of MRAMs using elements that show the tunneling magnetoresistive (TMR) effect among the magnetoresistive effects. A commonly used TMR effect element is a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) element which has a stacked structure including two ferromagnetic layers and a nonmagnetic later interposed therebetween, and uses change in magnetoresistance caused by a spin-polarized current. An MTJ element can assume either a low-resistance state or a high-resistance state according to the magnetization alignment of the two ferromagnetic layers. The low-resistance state is defined as "0", and the high-resistance state is defined as "1".
Data is read from an MRAM using an MTJ element by a method of determining a resistance of the MTJ element by applying a predetermined reading voltage to the MTJ element, and comparing an output signal current with a reference current. Alternatively, the data reading is performed by a method of determining a resistance of the MTJ element by applying a predetermined reading voltage to the MTJ element and comparing an output signal voltage with a reference voltage.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,385,109 discloses a method of generating a reference voltage at which an intermediate current between a "0" memory cell current and a "1" memory cell current upon application of a certain reading voltage is controlled to flow through a reference cell. However, since the method disclosed in the above-described document requires many operational amplifiers for generation of the reference voltage, the problems of increase in power consumption and circuit area are caused.


Methods for measuring laser light transmissivity of a specific position in a work piece prior to the work piece undergoing laser welding at the specific position with a laser beam having a specific welding wavelength. To obtain a baseline measurement reading, a laser light source projects a laser beam at the welding wavelength directly into a detector. Thereafter, the work piece becomes suspended between the laser light source and detector whereby an output of the detector now corresponds to a work piece measurement reading. Differences between the two readings reveal whether the work piece will yield a satisfactory weld at the specific position when later welded by a laser beam at the welding wavelength. Preferred work pieces include inkjet printhead lids and bodies.

The art of measuring light transmissivity in a work piece is relatively well known. In general, light from a source passes from a front side of the work piece to the backside where a detector collects it. The difference between the light irradiated towards the work piece and the light that actually passes through the work piece, as collected by the detector, corresponds to the work piece transmissivity.
Problems arise, however, because the light source, often a white light source, illuminates the front of the work piece with multiple wavelengths while the detector only collects light at its tuned wavelength. This can unnecessarily limit measurement of multiple wavelengths to incorporating multiple detectors. Additionally, typical commercial transmissivity measurement devices lack sufficient irradiation power to penetrate work pieces and project light to backside detectors when the work pieces embody other than visibly clear compositions. Traditional visibly clear compositions include glass, quartz, polycarbonate, polystyrene, and the like. They usually also lack sufficient power to project light through work pieces, such as high impact polystyrene and polyester having typically low transmissivity characteristics.
Accordingly, the arts for measuring light transmissivity desire solutions for overcoming the aforementioned and other problems.
Numerous reasons exist for understanding light transmissivity in a work piece. For example, consider instances when two work pieces undergo laser welding. As background, first and second work pieces become welded to one another by way of a fixed or sweeping irradiated beam of laser light. As is known, the beam passes through the first work piece, which is transparent to laser light, where it gets absorbed by the second work piece, which is laser light absorbent. As the beam irradiates, the weld interface heats-up which causes the adjoining surfaces of the work pieces to melt. Upon cooling, the two work pieces meld together as one.
Yet, if the first work piece prevents sufficient amounts of laser light from reaching the weld interface, poor welding (underweld) results. Further, if the first work piece absorbs too much energy, the first work piece may overheat and/or suffer material degradation potentially causing poor weld appearance or unsatisfactory welds. Numerous parameters contribute to the absorption and transmission characteristics of a work piece including, but not limited to, laser wavelength, incident angle of the laser beam during welding, surface roughness of the work piece, temperature of the work pieces, thickness/dimensions of the work piece, composition of the work piece and, in instance when work pieces comprise plastics, additives such as flame retardants, plasticizers, fillers and colorants.
When the material properties and laser properties become fixed in a given system, however, the transmission rate of the laser through a work piece follows the well known Beer-Lambert Law, specifically: I/Io=e(−sx); where Io is the intensity of the light source incident on the work piece, I is the intensity of the light after passing through the work piece, x is the thickness of the work piece, and s is the total extinction coefficient which, in turn, is the work piece light scattering coefficient plus the work piece light absorption coefficient. Accordingly, the transmissivity of the work piece constitutes an important variable (underscored by the ratio I/Io) in light transmission rates.
As such, those skilled in the laser welding arts will appreciate that having an ability to assess, predict or otherwise identify a laser light transmissivity characteristic of a work piece before the piece undergoes welding will likely significantly decrease failure weld-rates in to-be-welded work pieces.
Accordingly, a need exists in the laser welding arts for efficaciously predicting and identifying laser light transmissivity in to-be-welded regions of a work piece.
Regarding the technology of inkjet printing, it too is relatively well known. In general, an image is produced by emitting ink drops from an inkjet printhead at precise moments such that they impact a print medium, such as a sheet of paper, at a desired location. The printhead is supported by a movable print carriage within a device, such as an inkjet printer, and is caused to reciprocate relative to an advancing print medium and emit ink drops at such times pursuant to commands of a microprocessor or other controller. The timing of the ink drop emissions corresponds to a pattern of pixels of the image being printed. Other than printers, familiar devices incorporating inkjet technology include fax machines, all-in-ones, photo printers, and graphics plotters, to name a few.
A conventional thermal inkjet printhead includes access to a local or remote supply of color or mono ink, a heater chip, a nozzle or orifice plate attached to the heater chip, and an input/output connector, such as a tape automated bond (TAB) circuit, for electrically connecting the heater chip to the printer during use. The heater chip, in turn, typically includes a plurality of thin film resistors or heaters fabricated by deposition, masking and etching techniques on a substrate such as silicon.
To print or emit a single drop of ink, an individual heater is uniquely addressed with a small amount of current to rapidly heat a small volume of ink. This causes the ink to vaporize in a local ink chamber (between the heater and nozzle plate) and be ejected through and projected by the nozzle plate towards the print medium.
During manufacturing of the printheads, a printhead body gets stuffed with a back pressure device, such as a foam insert, and saturated with mono or color ink. A lid welds to the body via ultrasonic vibration. This, however, sometimes causes cracks in the heater chip, introduces and entrains air bubbles in the ink and compromises overall integrity.
Even further, as demands for higher resolution and increased printing speed continue, heater chips become engineered with more complex and denser heater configurations which raises printhead costs. Simultaneously, the heater chips become smaller and flimsier to save silicon costs. Thus, as printheads evolve, a need exists to control overall costs and to reliably and consistently manufacture a printhead without causing cracking of the ever valuable heater chip.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Measuring laser light transmissivity in a to-be-welded region of a work piece


A plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition process for depositing a titanium nitride film on a polymeric substrate is provided, the process including placing the polymeric substrate within a chemical vapor deposition chamber evacuated to a pressure within a range of from about 0.1 Torr to about 10 Torr, heating the polymeric substrate to a temperature within a range of from about 150.degree. C. to about 250.degree. C., introducing a vaporized organometallic compound and ammonia gas into the chamber, generating a plasma within the chamber, and, maintaining the polymeric substrate within the chamber for a time sufficient for a layer of titanium nitride to deposit upon the polymeric substrate.

Since at least the early 1960's, liquid crystalline polymers have been used to produce high strength fibers. Well known examples of these types of fibers include aramid fibers made from highly-oriented rod-like polymers of poly(paraphenylene terephthalamide), well known as KEVLAR.RTM. aramid fibers commercially available from E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, Wilmington, Del. or Twaron fibers, commercially available from Akzo Nobel NV, Netherlands. These aramid fibers provide exceptional tenacity and a high tensile modulus. Breaking strengths of 2.3-3.4 gigapascals (GPa) with a modulus of 55-143 GPa are typical for these fibers. This, combined with their low specific gravity and thermal stability, has resulted in improved performance in many structural applications such as aircraft, boats, sporting goods, missiles and armor. However, a major drawback of these types of fibers has been their relatively poor flexural rigidity and compressive properties. Compressive force along the fiber axis causes buckling, which results in fiber breakdown. Fibers yield at low values of stress on the order of 400 megapascals (MPa) with the formation of kink bands.
In order to alleviate this difficulty, much effort has gone into attempts to cross-link the polymer in the filaments, but to date there has been little success. Another approach has been to coat the fiber with a sufficiently high modulus material to, in effect, "girdle" the filament and prevent buckling. Early work by McGarry et al., SAMPE Quarterly, p. 35, July 1992, demonstrated the effectiveness of this approach with vapor deposited alumina coatings. Other coatings for KEVLAR.RTM. aramid fibers with potential for improving the mechanical properties of the fibers have been explored. Recently, enhanced properties have been reported for diamond-like carbon (DLC) coatings on KEVLAR.RTM. aramid fibers.
Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) involves the reaction of gas phase species with a heated surface, resulting in a thin coating of a solid material. This process allows for greater dispersion of the chemicals to provide uniform coatings on complex shapes. One of the limitations of CVD is the high surface temperatures (>600.degree. C.) required for depositions. Temperature sensitive substrates like polymeric fibers such as Kevlar.RTM. aramid fibers may be damaged under these conditions.
Thus, an object of the invention is to provide a process for the chemical vapor deposition of thin coatings on polymeric fibers.
Another object of the invention is to provide a process for the chemical vapor deposition of thin coatings of TiN on polymeric fibers and particularly onto polymeric fibers such as Kevlar.RTM. aramid fibers.
Another object of this invention is to provide an thin film coated polymeric article such as a TiN coated polyaramid fiber.

Plasma enhanced OMCVD of thin film coating for polymeric fibers

The Regents of the University of California

now by change of name from Lauren M. Atagi


An electric connector is comprised of: a housing; a clamper for clamping a multicore cable formed with a plurality of sheathed cable elements bound by an outer jacket, a predetermined length of the outer jacket at an end thereof being removed; and a contact holder accommodated and held in the housing, a portion of the contact holder projecting from the housing being adapted to be inserted into a mating connector. The clamper includes a clamper body for clamping the outer jacket and a wing-like portion projecting radially from the clamper body. Contacts are fitted in the contact holder in such a manner as to be respectively connected to tips of core wires which are exposed with portions of respective sheaths of the plurality of sheathed cable elements removed. The housing is constituted by two split housing portions to allow the housing to be split into two at a plane including the axis of the multicore cable or a plane parallel with that plane, and the wing-like portion of the clamper is accommodated in a retaining groove formed in one of the split housing portions. The two split housing portions can be coupled with each other as a hook-like retaining leg formed on one of the two split housing portions in such a manner as to project from a splitting plane is retained at a retaining through hole formed in the other.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electric connector with a cable, and more particularly to an electric connector for securing a cable to a housing and to an electric connector whose housing is of a split type.
2. Description of the Related Art
As an electric connector with a cable of this type, such as the one shown in FIG. 4 is known. The electric connector shown in the drawing comprises the following: a soft resilient sleeve 51 which is easily deformable and is exteriorly fitted over an end of an outer jacket of a cable with contacts (not shown); a contact holder 52 for accommodating and holding the contacts of the cable with contacts and adapted to be inserted into a mating connector in an opening of a housing; a coupling metal fitting 53 for coupling together the resilient sleeve 51 and the contact holder 52; and a housing 54.
An annular groove is formed in a outer peripheral surface of each of the resilient sleeve 51 and the contact holder 52. Meanwhile, the coupling metal fitting 53 has finger-like retainers 53A, 53C which are made to undergo elastic deformation in an annular shape with respect to these annular grooves to retain the resilient sleeve 51 and the contact holder 52, as well as a coupling portion 53B for coupling the proximal portion of the retainers 53A, 53C. The coupling portion 53B is provided with a threaded hole for a fixing screw 55, and is fixed by means of the housing 54 and the screw 55.
When such a conventional electric connector with a cable is used, after the resilient sleeve 51 is first exteriorly fitted over an outer-jacket portion of the cable with contacts, each contact is fitted in the contact holder. Subsequently, after the retainers 53A, 53C of the coupling metal fitting 53 are held in the respective grooves in the resilient sleeve 51 and the contact holder 52, the retainers 53A, 53C are crimped into an annular shape. Since the resilient sleeve 51 is soft, as the retainer 53A is crimped, the cable in the resilient sleeve is also securely tightened. Thus, the cable is secured to the contact holder 52 via the coupling metal fitting 53. Furthermore, after the housing 54 is exteriorly fitted over the assembly, the coupling metal fitting 53 and the housing 54 are secured by means of the screw 55. As a result, the cable is also secured to the housing, so that even if the cable is pulled in the longitudinal direction thereof, the cable is prevented from being drawn out easily, and an undesirable external force is prevented from being imparted to connecting portions of the cable with respect to its contacts.
With the above-described conventional electric connector of the type in which the cable is fixed, its structure becomes large-scaled because the retainers are provided at opposite ends of the coupling metal fitting, and because it is necessary to provide the coupling portion for connecting them and having the threaded hole for fixing. In particular, its dimension in the longitudinal direction of the cable becomes large. This is undesirable for the electric connectors which are required to be compact in size. Such being the case, however, if the coupling metal fitting is made excessively small, the screw becomes small and the strength becomes insufficient, so that the function of the coupling metal fitting becomes insufficient. Furthermore, since the number of component parts used increases, resulting in higher manufacturing costs and making it impossible to improve the operating efficiency.
In addition, as for the electric connector, there are cases where the cable, which is connected to the connectors embedded in the housing, needs to be reconnected because of an erroneous connection, short-circuiting, or disconnection.
To meet this requirement, an electric connector is known in which the housing is made capable of being disassembled at a plane including the axis of the cable. This known electric connector is arranged such that two-split housing portions permitting disassembly are connected together by means of a screw to form a housing. Another electric connector of this type is arranged such that a resilient sleeve is exteriorly fitted over the housing.
With the above-described known electric connectors, however, although the cable after being once connected can be disassembled and reconnected, the disassembly of the housing and connection are quite troublesome. Furthermore, since a space for the threaded hole and an extra, necessary minimum wall thickness for securing the strength of the threaded hole portion are required, the housing becomes disadvantageously large-sized. In the case of a small connector, in particular, the screw itself becomes small in diameter and becomes quite inconvenient to handle, and it is difficult to secure the aforementioned space for the threaded hole and the wall thickness of the surrounding portion.


The present disclosure provides a device to device (D2D) synchronization method that is applicable to a user equipment and a user equipment (UE) using the same method. In one of the exemplary embodiments, the D2D synchronization method includes receiving detected signals from a receiver, obtaining from the detected signals a first signal having a first timing information and a second signal having a second timing information, determining whether to forward the first timing information or the second timing information based on an upper bound power restriction of the first signal and the second signal and a power difference between the first signal and the second signal, and determining whether to transmit a third timing information that is inherent of the UE based on whether the first signal and the second signal are below power thresholds.

Device to Device (D2D) communication may refer to a communication method in a wireless communication system for a user equipment (UE) to directly communicate with another UE. Conventionally, whenever a UE transmits a message to another, a base station or an evolved Node B (eNB) in the case of LTE would relay the message in between the two UEs. But for the D2D communication, the involvement of the eNB has been minimized as user messages of the two UEs could be delivered directly from the one UE to the other.
However, in order to for D2D devices to be synchronized to a network or to another peer device, D2D synchronization information may be delivered either from the network or from a peer device to each individual UE. Hence, a synchronization source (SS) could be utilized to transmit a D2D synchronization signal (D2DSS) to enhance the network synchronization. When a network implements synchronous D2D communication as opposed to asynchronous D2D communication in which a device would blindly search for another device, all D2D devices could be required to be aligned to the network timing according to a synchronization signal.
Therefore, at least two different types of apparatuses could serve as a synchronization source. Conventionally, an eNB may serve as a synchronization source by periodically transmitting system information in which a primary synchronization signal (PSS) and a secondary synchronization signal (SSS) are located. When the PSS/SSS have been received, a D2D UE may align its timing with the timing of the eNB. Also, another peer device could also serve as a synchronization source. In particular, any D2D UE may transmit a D2DSS that can be received by another D2D UE as a synchronization source.
In order to design a D2D synchronization scheme, several issues would need to be considered. First, a D2D device may simultaneously receive several synchronization signals at once. In that case, a D2D device would be considered with whom the D2D device would synchronize itself to. If the D2D device chooses the wrong device to follow, the timing of the D2D device could be misaligned. Also, there could be a timing confusion in the case when a D2D device receives two or more timing references that are different. In that case, the D2D device would not know which timing reference it should follow. Secondly, after a D2D device selects a timing reference, the D2D device may not necessarily have to forward the timing reference as selected.
In any case, a D2D synchronization method could be designed to ensure the reliability of network timing and to minimize potential timing confusions.

Device to device synchronization method applicable to user equipment and user equipment using the same

Industrial Technology Research Institute


The present invention relates to a method for assessing the purity of vegetable oils by means of THz time-domain spectroscopy, comprising the steps of: measuring the THz time-domain spectra of standard vegetable oils to establish a spectral database; measuring the THz time-domain spectrum of vegetable oil to be detected; analyzing the purity of the detected vegetable oil based on the pre-built database. The present invention also relates to an apparatus for assessing purity of vegetable oil by means of THz time-domain spectroscopy, comprising: spectrum measuring device for measuring time-domain waveforms of THz pulses before and after transmitting the vegetable oil held in a container by transmission approach, or directly measuring time-domain waveforms of THz pulses before and after reflecting from the vegetable oil by reflection approach; and data processing device for extracting physical parameters of the vegetable oil in THz region according to the time-domain waveforms. Compared with the prior art, the method according to the present invention is easy, rapid and quantitative.

The present application claims priority of Chinese patent application Serial No. 200610171613.7, filed Dec. 31, 2006, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to terahertz time-domain spectroscopy analysis, and more particularly, to a method and an apparatus for assessing the purity of vegetable oils by mean of terahertz (hereinafter referred as "THz" for short) time-domain spectroscopy.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Edible vegetable oils are necessary to people, but the prices thereof vary greatly dependent on the categories and nutritive values. In recent years, some illegal producers incorporate some low-cost vegetable oils into high-cost vegetable oils to enlist profits, and thus some categories of adulterated vegetable oils appear in the market. It is a problem to be solved in the quality supervision that how to assess the truth of the vegetable oils and analyze the category of the adulterated vegetable oils and the adulterated amount. Therefore, an easy, quick and reliable assessment is needed in order to protect legal producers and customers.
The conventional method to assess vegetable oils is mostly dependent on the physical chemistry characteristics such as solidifying point, refractive index, degree of unsaturation and iodine value, but it is only roughly qualitative detection method. Currently, the technology that can make quantitative assessment on adulterated vegetable oils mainly includes chromatographic analysis and spectroscopic analysis methods.
Document 1 (WEI Ming, etc., A New Adulteration Detection Method on Edible Vegetable Oils by Gas Chromatography, Food Science, 2003, 24(12), 103-106) discloses a method for assessing the vegetable oil adulteration by measuring composition and content of fatty acid in the vegetable oil through gas chromatography. Gas chromatography is a physical separation method, and the principle thereof is that different substances have different distribution coefficients in a system composed of two phases, i.e., stationary phase and mobile phase. When these two phases move relative to each other, these substances move along with the mobile phase, and distribute between these two phases repeatedly. Therefore it is possible to make the substances whose distribution coefficients have tiny difference have greatly different moving speeds, so that respective components are completely separated. Vegetable oils mainly are some categories of glyceride made of fatty acid such as palmitic acid, stearic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid and the likes, and composition and content of the fatty acid of different categories of vegetable oil are different, thus the composition and content of fatty acid will change after adulteration. The purpose of discriminating the category of adulterated oil and computing the adulterated amount can be achieved by assessing composition of the fatty acid by means of gas chromatography, and comparing with that of a category of pure oil.
However, when gas chromatography is used to assess composition and content of fatty acid, it is necessary to methyl-esterify the fatty acid first. Currently, a vitriol-methanol or potassium hydroxide-methanol system is used to perform methyl-esterification under normal temperature or warmed condition. However, this procedure takes some time (generally 20˜30 minutes), which does not meet the requirement of practical application for rapidly detecting batch of samples. Furthermore, this method is a destructive method, that is to say, this method changes the composition of the detected sample, and so the sample can not be reutilized.
Document 2 (E. C. López-Díez, et al. Rapid quantitative assessment of the adulteration of virgin olive oils with hazelnut oils using Raman spectroscopy and chemometrics. <Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry>, 2003, 51(21):6145-6150) discloses a rapid quantitative assessment of the adulteration of olive oils using Raman spectroscopy and chemometrics. Raman spectroscopy is a kind of molecular vibration spectroscopy, and the physical basis is Raman scattering effect induced by inelastic scattering of molecules to incident light. Position of Raman spectral line reflects the molecular structure characteristic and can be used in qualitative analysis because difference chemical bonds or radicals have different vibrations; intensity of Raman spectral line is in proportion to the intensity of incident light and concentration of sample molecules, and can be used as basis of qualitative analysis. Document 2 utilized a dispersive instrument employing a laser to measure Raman spectra of high quality virgin olive oils and refined hazelnut oils first, and discriminated these two vegetable oils whose chemical properties are very close by using the spectra data as eigenvectors. The model of the Raman spectra data of virgin olive oils adulterated with hazelnut oils in different concentrations was constructed through the Partial Least Squares algorithm, and the purity of the olive oils was predicted by the constructed model.
As stated above, Raman spectrum, which is considered as a fingerprint of a given oil, can reflect the structure characteristic of molecules, and can make rapid quantitative assessment of the adulteration of vegetable oils in combination with chemometrics. This method will not change the composition of the sample, and neither preliminary treatment of the sample nor complicated sample preparation procedure is needed. However, the disadvantage of Raman spectroscopy is in that the efficiency of Raman scattering is low and the scattered light is so weak as to be overwhelmed by the fluorescence generated by the sample or the impurity in the sample, whereby the detection accuracy will be affected.
THz technology is an advanced technology that is newly developed, which relates to generation, detection and application of THz radiation (commonly refers to electromagnetic waves with a frequency range of 0.1-10 THz. THz-TDS is one of the most important technologies of terahertz radiation applications, and the basic idea is to obtain absorption and dispersion spectrum of the sample in THz region by measuring the waveforms of THz pulses before and after transmitting the sample. Many organic molecules have strong absorption and dispersion in THz frequency range due to vibrational and rotational transition of dipoles. THz spectra of different substances often reveal specific features, and provide unique identification information fingerprint) for the molecule conformation, by means of which the substance components can be discriminated. Therefore, this technology can be widely used in various fields such as quality control and security inspection

Method and apparatus for assessing purity of vegetable oils by means of terahertz time-domain spectroscopy


A compact foundation unit kit and a method of making a foundation unit from the kit. The kit comprises at least three elongated, generally flat truss rails, four generally flat end caps and a plurality of generally flat cross slats, with the truss rails, end caps and cross slats oriented together with their longitudinal dimensions aligned in a generally parallel orientation and with their flat sides in contact. A binding maintains the truss rails, end caps and cross slats in that orientation. The method includes providing the kit, opening the kit and orienting the truss rails in a parallel, spaced position, then affixing one of the end caps to each end of the truss rails, inverting the partially formed foundation, and affixing the last two end caps to opposite ends of the truss rails, then finally affixing the cross slats to the truss rails in a spaced, parallel orientation. The foundation can then be finished in a conventional fashion.

This invention relates to foundation units, and in particular to a compact foundation unit kit and a method of erecting a foundation unit from the compact foundation unit kit.
Foundation units have been used for years, and are composed of various materials such as steel, wood, combinations of steel and wood, and other materials, which are then provided with an appropriate covering. Examples of foundation units are found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,377,279; 5,346,188 and 5,622,357.
The problem with existing foundation units is shipment. Foundation units typically occupy considerable space, and are not easily shipped in a disassembled form with ready assembly after shipping. Therefore, shipping costs can be quite considerable, limiting the distance which assembled foundation units can be shipped in a cost effective manner.

Compact foundation unit kit and method of making same


A polymerizable composition contains unsaturated urethane shown by Formula (1) given below, vinyl monomer which is copolymerizable with this unsaturated urethane, and an inorganic powder filler at weight ratio of (unsaturated urethane)/(vinyl monomer)=10/90-90/10, the inorganic powder filler being 30-300 weight parts with respect to 100 weight parts of the sum of the unsaturated urethane and vinyl monomer: ##STR1## where R.sup.1 is hydrogen atom or methyl group; X is a residual group obtained by removing isocyanate groups from diisocyanate; Y is a residual group obtained by removing hydroxyl groups from non-radical polymerizable di-ol or tri-ol of a specified kind; Z is an organic group in the form of (R.sup.2 O).sub.m or R.sup.3 O, R.sup.2 being an alkylene group with 2-4 carbon atoms, R.sup.3 being an alkylene group with 2-12 carbon atoms, and m being an integer 2-10; and n is 2 or 3.

This invention relates to polymerizable compositions and in-mold cured products obtained from such compositions (hereinafter referred to simply as "molded products").
Polymerizable compositions containing polymerizable liquid resins are widely in use. For example, molded products of polymerizable compositions containing unsaturated polyester resin, which is a representative example of polymerizable liquid resin, are being used as external panels and accessaries of automobiles. There are a number of molding methods available for obtaining molded products of polymerizable compositions, including the compression molding which uses sheet molding compound (SMC), the injection molding which uses bulk molding compound (BMC), the hand lay-up method whereby polymerizable compositions impregnate a reinforcing fiber mat, textile or strands and are hardened, the pultrusion method, and the resin transfer molding (RTM) and reaction injection molding (RIM) methods whereby a polymerizable composition is introduced into a mold for quick in-mold curing.
As examples of prior art polymerizable compositions containing unsaturated urethane, Japanese Patent Publication Tokkai 57-182312 and Japanese Patent Publication Tokkai 61-225210 have disclosed compositions containing polymerizable liquid resins comprising unsaturated urethane and alkyl (meth)acrylate obtained from polyisocyanate and hydroxyl alkyl (meth)acrylate.
The aforementioned prior art polymerizable compositions, however, have the following disadvantages because of their use of unsaturated urethane obtained from polyisocyanate and hydroxy alkyl (meth)acrylate:
(1) Since unsaturated urethane thus obtained contains many urethane bonds within its molecule, it is inferior in water resistance, like most other kinds of polyurethane liquid resin, as compared to other thermosetting polymerizable compositions. This limits the use of the molded products obtained by in-mold curing; and
(2) Since the density of cross-links is high in such molded products obtained by in-mold curing, shrinkage in hardening is large compared to unsaturated polyester liquid resins. As a result, generation of cracks and appearance of fiber patterns are prominently observed. Low shrinkage agents may be used for preventing such phenomena but they are not very effective.

Polymerizable compositions and in-mold cured products using same


An apparatus for steering a vehicle includes a hand steering device, a road wheel steering device, a steering motor and a connection device. The hand steering device is a device which a driver of the vehicle manipulates for steering road wheels. The road wheel steering device actuates the road wheels. The steering motor, which is attached to the road wheel steering device, produces an assist force for the road wheels. The connection device selectively connects and disconnects the hand steering device and the road wheel steering device. In the apparatus, a ratio of a displacement made by the hand steering device to a displacement generated by the road wheel steering device increases as a speed of the vehicle becomes greater while the vehicle is traveling in a predetermined range of speed, and a gradient of the ratio is adapted to be greater when the speed is lower.

1. Field of the Invention
An apparatus consistent with the present invention relates to an apparatus for steering a vehicle, which is able to establish not only a configuration where a hand steering device and a road wheel steering device are mechanically unconnected to each other during normal traveling, but also establish the configuration these components are mechanically connected so as to facilitate mechanical steering during a system failure such as an electrical malfunction.
2. Discussion of Background Art
An apparatus for steering a vehicle with a steer-by wire method has been equipped with a connection device, which mechanically connects a mechanism for transmitting force to road wheels and a mechanism for transmitting reaction force to a hand steering device so that a reaction force is appropriately applied to the hand steering device. Japanese Published Patent Application 2003-137127 discloses related arts.
FIG. 11 is a sectional view showing a conventional apparatus for steering a vehicle with steer-by-wire method.
As shown in FIG. 11, an apparatus 100 for steering a vehicle with steer-by-wire method has two motors, one motor M1 for generating reaction force and the other motor M2 for generating steering force.
The motor M1 serves as a power source which applies a reaction force to a hand steering device such as a steering wheel (not shown). Through a mechanism 110 for transmitting reaction force, the motor M1 is mechanically connected to an input shaft 130 that is mechanically connected to the hand steering device (not shown).
The motor M2 serves as a power source for applying a force to road wheels W. Through a mechanism 140 for transmitting steering force and a shaft 150, the motor M2 is mechanically connected to an output shaft 160, which has a mechanically indirect linkage with the road wheels W.
The mechanism 110 includes a motor gear M1a, a large gear 111a, a ring gear 111, a plurality of planetary gears 112, a sun gear 113 and the input shaft 130. The large gear 111a is engaged with the motor gear M1a. The ring gear 111 is integrally formed inside the large gear 111a. The planetary gears 112 are engaged with the ring gear 111. The sun gear 113 is engaged with the planetary gears 112. The input shaft 130 rotates in agreement with the sun gear 113. A planetary gear mechanism 114, which is composed of the sun gear 113, ring gear 111, planetary gears 112 and a planetary carrier 146 that rotatably supports the planetary gears 112, is disposed in the mechanism 110.
The mechanism 140 for transmitting steering force includes a worm 141, a worm wheel 142, an intermediate gear 144, an output gear 145, the planetary carrier 146 and the shaft 150. The worm 141 is attached to a shaft of the motor M2. The worm wheel 142, which is engaged with the worm 141, rotates at a reduced speed. The intermediate gear 144 is attached to a shaft 143 to which the worm wheel 142 is also attached. The output gear 145 is engaged with the intermediate gear 144. The planetary carrier 146 is secured to the output gear 145. An end portion of the shaft 150 is secured to the planetary carrier 146.
An electromagnetic solenoid 181, which activates a lock mechanism 180 so as to lock the ring gear 111 relative to a housing 170, is attached to the housing 170. The electromagnetic solenoid 181 applies an electromagnetic force to a plunger 181a so that the plunger 181a is selectively extruded to engage with and restored to disengage from one of a plurality of engagement grooves 111b, which are formed in a top surface of the ring gear 111.
Because the plunger 181a is drawn into the electromagnetic solenoid 181 while it is energized (normal state), the plunger 181a is disengaged from an engagement groove 111b. In this way, the ring gear 111 is permitted to freely rotate. In this case, the input shaft 130 and sun gear 113, which lie at a closer side of the hand steering device, rotate independent of the output shaft 160, the rotational shaft 143 and the planetary carrier 146, which lie at a closer side of the road wheels W. This configuration is called a disconnection state, in which a rotational force generated by the motor M1 of the mechanism 110 that rotates according to an amount of manipulation applied to the hand steering device and the speed of a vehicle is transmitted to the input shaft 130 by an electronic control unit (not shown). On the other hand, a rotational force, which is produced by the motor M2 of the mechanism 140 that rotates according to an amount of manipulation applied to the hand steering device by the electronic control unit, is transmitted to the output shaft 160. In this way, an angle of steered road wheel W is controlled without a mechanical linkage with the hand steering device. A pinion 210 in a steering gear box 200 rotates in unison with the output shaft 160 via a universal joint 400. The pinion 210 engages with a rack 320 with a predetermined gear ratio, which moves in unison with tie rods 300 and the road wheels W.
FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating characteristic curves for steering angle ratio during normal and failure modes, which are achieved by a conventional apparatus for steering a vehicle with steer-by-wire method.
As shown in FIG. 12, the hand steering device of the apparatus 100 for steering a vehicle with steer-by-wire method is adapted to have a steering angle ratio, which is defined as the ratio of an angular displacement of the input shaft 130 to an angular displacement of steered road wheels W. When the speed of a vehicle is higher, the ratio takes a greater value so as to provide less sensitive response to the hand steering device. In contrast, when the speed is lower, the ratio takes a smaller value to provide more sensitive response.
When the apparatus 100 encounters a failure due to an electrical malfunction of the motor M2 for generating steering force, for example, the ring gear 111 falls in a locked condition, because the electromagnetic solenoid 181 is energized. In such a failure, it is impossible that the sun gear 113 and the planetary carrier 146 independently rotate. As the planetary carrier 146 interlocks with the sun gear 113, the input shaft 130 and the output shaft 160 are mechanically connected, so that a rotation of the input shaft 130 is transmitted to the output shaft 160.
Japanese Published Patent Application 2003-137127 discloses the conventional apparatus 100 as shown in FIG. 11. In a case of failure due to a malfunction of the motor M2, because the mechanism 110 and the mechanism 140 are connected in a clutch-like fashion via the planetary gear 112, the rotation of a hand steering device is accordingly transmitted to the mechanism 140 with a predetermined gear ratio.
When the apparatus 100 is in a normal mode on the other hand, the electronic control unit controls the motors M1 and M2 so that an appropriate manipulation of the hand steering device can be achieved.
However, when the apparatus 100 encounters a failure, a characteristic curve K1 for a failure mode is mechanically set to a constant value (constant steering angle ratio), so that a control range R of the steering angle ratio disappears. Because a difference L1 in steering angle ratio between a failure mode and a normal mode, for which a steering angle ratio can be obtained from a characteristic curve J1, results in a greater value, it induces a sudden change in a response for manipulation of a hand steering device. In this way, a driver experiences uneasy feeling in manipulating the hand steering device.
Therefore, it is preferred that an apparatus for steering a vehicle is structurally robust enough to provide the driver with comfortable feeling for manipulation of a hand steering device, even if the apparatus falls in a failure due to a malfunction of a steering motor.


In a method for locating a wall form assembly at an intended position on a floor of a concrete structure, a number of retaining grooves are initially formed in the floor at a boundary of the intended position of the wall form assembly. Thereafter, a number of upright positioning implements are mounted on the floor in the retaining grooves, respectively, before the wall form assembly is hoisted onto the floor such that an outer side of the wall form assembly abuts against the positioning implements to limit deviation of the wall form assembly from the intended position. A positioning implement and a guiding implement for use in the aforesaid locating method are also disclosed.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to wall form assemblies, more particularly to a method for locating a wall form assembly at an intended position on a floor of a concrete structure and to implements for use in the aforesaid locating method.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional modular wall form assembly, such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,544,852, generally includes a plurality of vertical channel pieces coupled detachably side by side to one another, and a plurality of horizontal reinforcement members mounted detachably on inner sides of the channel pieces. The modular wall form assembly obviates the need to fasten together wood panels when forming concrete partition walls, and is reusable to result in cost benefits when applied in the construction of large structures, such as buildings.
In use, the conventional modular wall form assembly is usually assembled into an appropriate multi-sided configuration before being hoisted to an intended position on a floor of a concrete structure. A partition wall is formed when concrete in a pouring space confined by adjacent wall form assemblies hardens. At present, a lot of time and manpower is spent in checking and correcting the relative positions among the wall form assemblies on the floor of the concrete structure.
Referring to FIG. 1, boundaries 11 are marked on the floor 1 of a concrete structure before a wall form assembly 12 is hoisted onto the floor 1. As the wall form assembly 12 is lowered toward the floor 1, a number of people 13 guide the wall form assembly 12 at corners thereof to align the wall form assembly 12 with the boundaries 11.
Some of the drawbacks of the aforementioned conventional method for locating the wall form assembly 12 on the floor 1 are as follows:
1. Since the people 13 should be on the outer side of the wall form assembly 12 when the latter is aligned with the boundaries 11, the presence of a number of the wall form assemblies 12 on the floor 1 will severely limit the available space for movement of the people 13, thereby making the alignment process difficult to perform.
2. Even in the presence of sufficient space for movement of the people 13 on the floor 1, it is still difficult for the people 13 at the corners of the wall form assembly 12 to align the same with the boundaries 11.
3. A grid of reinforcing steel bars is normally embedded in each concrete partition wall. In the event that a large number of partition walls are to be formed on the floor 1, each grid can only be installed after one of the adjacent wall form assemblies 12, which confine the pouring space for the concrete partition wall, has been positioned on the floor 1 due to the limited size of the pouring space. Therefore, efficiency is adversely affected since installation of the grids or the wall form assemblies 12 cannot be completed at one time. In addition, the presence of the grids further complicates the process of aligning the other wall form assemblies with the respective boundaries.

Method for locating a wall form assembly on a floor of a concrete structure, and implements for use in said locating method

Nan-Shing Tsun, Kui-Jen Hsiang,Tainan Hsien


A circuit breaker ON/OFF contact position indicator employs a bell crank assembly interconnecting between the target indicator at the front of the circuit breaker enclosure and the circuit breaker contact closing shaft at the rear thereof to provide accurate real time indication of the ON/OFF condition of the circuit breaker contacts.

Air circuit breakers as described within U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,095,489 entitled "Manual Charging Means for Stored Energy Closing Mechanisms of Electric Circuit Breakers" and 3,084,238 entitled "Ratchet Mechanism for Charging a Closing Spring in an Electric Circuit Breaker" include operating mechanisms that are mainly exposed to the environment. Since the air circuit breakers are rated to carry several thousand amperes of current continuously, the exposure to convection cooling air assists in keeping the operating components within reasonable temperature limits.
Such air circuit breakers are usually provided with a motor operator such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,167,988 entitled "Ratcheting Mechanism for Circuit Breaker Motor Operator" or a manual handle as described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,729,065 entitled "Means for Charging A Stored Energy Circuit Breaker Closing Device" for charging the powerful closing springs contained within the air circuit breaker operating mechanism.
When the circuit breaker closing springs are brought to their fully-charged conditions, it is important that the springs do not become inadvertently discharged while an operator has hold of the charging handle in order to avoid damage to the ratchet mechanism and the associated air circuit breaker contacts. An early arrangement of a latching means to prevent rotation of a closing springs charging handle is found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,475,021 entitled "Air Circuit Breaker".
When the circuit breaker closing springs are completely charged, the holding pawl is removed from the charging gear to allow the charging shaft to rotate in the reverse direction when the circuit breaker closing button is activated, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,883,351 entitled "Ratcheting Mechanism for Industrial-Rated Circuit Breaker" filed on May 27, 1997.
Although the circuit breaker contacts along with the circuit breaker operating mechanism are located in air, the position of the contacts behind the circuit breaker enclosure makes it difficult, if not impossible, to determine the true status of the circuit breaker contacts relative to the ON and OFF conditions
One arrangement to determine the condition of the circuit breaker contacts is to provide a viewing window in the front cover of the circuit breaker and position a target indicator under the window to display the ON/OFF status. The target indicator mechanically links with the circuit breaker closing shaft to accurately position the ON/OFF indicia with respect to the circuit breaker contacts.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,823,3238 entitled "Circuit Breaker Contact Position Indicating Unit" filed on Feb. 3 1997 and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/878,598 entitled "Contact Position Indicator for an Industrial-Rated Circuit Breaker" filed on Jun. 19, 1997 describe such visual contact indication in high-ampere industrial rated type circuit breakers. The components interconnecting between the target indicator and the circuit breaker operating mechanism are designed to meet the high-ampere requirements.
With lower ampere-rated industrial circuit breaker assemblies, the limited space available does not readily lend to the use or application of similar position indication components.
One purpose of the invention, accordingly, is to describe a simple target indication arrangement for use with industrial-rated circuit breakers of lower ampere-rating.

Contact position indicator for an industrial-rated circuit breaker


An organic light emitting display includes: a first shift register which is electrically coupled with a clock line, a negative clock line, and an initial drive line; a first NAND gate which is electrically coupled with the initial drive line, a first light emitting control line which is an output line of the first shift register, and a first clock line; a second NAND gate which is electrically coupled with the initial drive line, the first light emitting control line, and a second clock line; a first pixel part which is electrically coupled with a first scan line which is an output line of the first NAND gate; a second pixel part which is electrically coupled with a second scan line which is an output line of the second NAND gate; a third pixel part which is electrically coupled with the first scan line; and a fourth pixel part which is electrically coupled with the second scan line.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an organic light emitting display.
2. Description of the Prior Art
An organic light emitting display is a display that emits light by electrically exciting a fluorescent or phosphorescent compound and can display an image by driving N×M organic light emitting diodes. The organic light emitting diode includes an anode (ITO), an organic thin-film, and a cathode (metal). The organic thin-film is formed in a multi-layer structure including a light emitting layer EML that emits light when electrons are coupled with holes, an electron transport layer ETL that transports electrons, and a hole transport layer HTL that transports holes. The organic thin-film can also include an electron injecting layer EIL that injects electrons and a hole injecting layer HIL that injects holes.
As a method of driving the organic light emitting diode constructed as above, there are a passive matrix (PM) method and a metal oxide silicon (MOS) thin-film transistor (TFT) active matrix (AM) method. The passive matrix method is a method of driving using an anode and a cathode that perpendicularly cross each other and selecting lines. On the contrary, the active matrix method is a method of driving by connecting a thin-film transistor and a capacitor to each indium-tin-oxide (ITO) pixel electrode and maintaining a voltage using capacitor capacitance.
The organic light emitting display is used as a display device of a personal computer, a cellular phone and a personal digital assistant (PDA) or a display device of various information appliances.
Various light emitting displays having lower weight and volume than a cathode ray tube have been developed, and an organic light emitting display having excellent light emission efficiency, brightness and viewing angle and fast response time is being given attention.
A pixel circuit of an organic light emitting display is formed on a pixel area that is defined by two adjacent scan lines (or light emitting control lines) and two adjacent data lines. Here, if a scan signal (or light emitting control signal) is applied from two adjacent scan lines (or light emitting control lines), then an organic light emitting diode (OLED) of a pixel circuit emits light. Two adjacent scan lines (or light emitting control lines) electrically coupled with the pixel circuit, in case of an nth pixel circuit, can be an nth scan line (or light emitting control line) and an n−1th scan line (or light emitting control line). The scan line (or light emitting control line) electrically coupled with the pixel circuit applies a scan signal (or light emitting control signal) to an organic light emitting diode (OLED) of the pixel circuit, so that the organic light emitting diode (OLED) of the pixel circuit emits light and outputs images of one frame to a panel. However, because the images of one frame emit light concurrently in the organic light emitting display, it is possible to detect a pixel short only when a constant pattern is applied.
In a conventional pixel circuit, the short can be detected by applying a constant pattern to an organic light emitting display panel in a module process. However, a module process operation cost for a defective panel having a short is additionally needed. When a total inspection is not performed during the module process, reliability of the product is lowered because a longitudinal short cannot be detected as a defect during manufacturing, such that the defect is discovered by the end user of the product.


The present invention provides a method and apparatus for use in rapid particle transportation, separation, focusing, characterization, and release. Dielectrophoresis and electro-osmotic driven fluid convection are used independently or in tandem as the driving forces for particle manipulation and on occasion characterization. Although dielectrophoresis has been acknowledged for decades as a powerful technique for particle manipulation and characterization, long processing times and measurement inaccuracies that emerge from using disjointed electrodes have limited its usefulness in diagnostic kits. The present invention provides for a continuous wire that enables fluid flow patterns and dielectrophoretic forces with optimal configurations for rapid and sensitive particle manipulation and characterization.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to microfluidic components for diagnostic kits and, more particularly, to methods and devices for manipulation and characterization of particles with alternating current (AC) electric fields.
2. Related Art
Dielectrophoretic analysis and separation of particles and bioparticles such as cells, viruses, proteins and DNA using alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) electric fields are potentially powerful microfluidic technologies that can be used in medical and environmental diagnostic kits and high-throughput drug screening. Recent development efforts have tried to exploit dielectrophoresis for particle transportation, separation, focusing, characterization and release. For medical and environmental diagnostic kits, the goal would be to rapidly concentrate, identify and determine the viability of pathogens in dilute samples with less than one thousand bioparticles per cc.
A plethora of approaches with disjointed electrode designs have not been able to employ dielectrophoresis with the necessary speed to attain the rapid processing time that chip-based diagnostics require. The greatest challenge is that the velocity imparted on a particle via dielectrophoresis scales as the second power of both the particle radius and the electric field, meaning that high electric fields are necessary for rapid particle manipulation. Unfortunately, even with micro-fabricated electrodes the field is typically less than 100 V/cm. This is because with conventional inter-digitated and disjointed electrode designs the electrode RMS voltage cannot exceed 5V due to Faradaic electrochemical reactions that contaminate samples and lead to bubble generation. Consequently, with disjointed electrodes a typical velocity imparted on a particle via dielectrophoresis is less than 10 microns per second. Therefore, manipulation and characterization must be carried out in extremely small channels (<100 microns) in order to be completed in a reasonable time frame.
The physical limitations of using disjointed electrodes results in long processing times for typical sample sizes and can ultimately lead to errant measurements despite the long wait. The slow dielectrophoretic motion requires the use of confined geometries or waiting tens of minutes to hours for processing a larger volume. The challenges associated with characterizing particles with disjointed electrodes arise from electro-osmotic flow that often occurs near the electrode surfaces. If the device is to measure a property of the particle based upon its dielectrophoretic motion, electro-osmotic flow could camouflage the behavior of the particle that is driven by dielectrophoretic motion alone. Regardless of the chosen application, the key problem that arises is that the throughput for processing steps that make use of dielectrophoresis is limited to the range of picoliters to nanoliters per second when disjointed electrodes are employed. This throughput is inadequate for rapid diagnostic applications of dielectrophoresis, which require rapid (<1 minute) particle manipulation and analysis of realistic sample volumes that range from 0.1 to 1.0 milliliters.

Method and apparatus for rapid particle manipulation and characterization


In the rare earth sintered magnet, the ratio of R2 to the sum of R1 and R2 that are contained in crystal grain boundaries surrounding the crystal grains in the rare earth sintered magnet body is higher than the ratio of R2 to the sum of R1 and R2 in the crystal grains, and the concentration of R2 increases from the central portion of the rare earth sintered magnet body toward the surface of the rare earth sintered magnet body. In addition, the degree of unevenness in residual magnetic flux density on the surface of the rare earth sintered magnet body is smaller than 3.0%.

A rare earth sintered magnet with a composition of R—Fe—B (R is a rare earth element) has excellent magnetic properties. One method for producing such a rare earth magnet includes applying (adhering) a slurry containing rare earths to a sintered body and then subjecting the resultant sintered body to heat treatment. For example, Patent Literature 1 discloses a method for producing a rare earth permanent magnet. The method is characterized in that, with a powder containing a rare earth element including Y and Sc being present on the surface of a rare earth sintered magnet body, the rare earth sintered magnet body and the powder are subjected to heat treatment at a temperature lower than the sintering temperature of the rare earth sintered magnet body in a vacuum or in an inert gas for 1 minute to 100 hours, so that the rare earth element(s) contained in the powder is(are) absorbed into the rare earth sintered magnet body. Patent Literature 1 also describes, as a method for adhering the powder containing the rare earth element to the rare earth sintered magnet body, a method for putting the rare earth sintered magnet body into a slurry obtained by dispersing the powder in water or an organic solvent.


A relative dip angle of a deviated borehole is determined from natural gamma ray measurements. Dip corrected measurements are processed to determine the thickness of thin beds, and the peak gamma ray response in thin beds.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is in the field of gamma ray testing of geological formations. In particular, the invention delineates boundaries of a formation in a highly deviated borehole from recorded spectra.
2. Description of the Related Art
Well logging systems have been utilized in hydrocarbon exploration for many years. Such systems provide data for use by geologists and petroleum engineers in making many determinations pertinent to hydrocarbon exploration. In particular, these systems provide data for subsurface structural mapping, defining the lithology of subsurface formations, identifying hydrocarbon-productive zones, and interpreting reservoir characteristics and contents. Many types of well logging systems exist which measure different formation parameters such as conductivity, travel time of acoustic waves within the formation and the like.
One class of systems seeks to measure incidence of nuclear particles on the well logging tool from the formation for purposes well known in the art. These systems take various forms, including those measuring natural gamma rays from the formation. Still other systems measure gamma rays in the formation caused by bursts of neutrons into the formation by a neutron source carried by the tool and pulsed at a preselected interval. The natural gamma ray log is particularly useful since radioactivity in earth formations is primarily due to potassium in shales and clays, and thus serves as a lithology indicator.
In general, one such method and apparatus, when applied to the field of natural gamma ray well logging, has utilized channels of spectra including those of potassium-40, uranium and thorium. One such technique utilizes these natural gamma ray logs to determine characteristics of shale formations as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,071,755, to Supernaw et al. Unfortunately, it can be difficult to differentiate such shale formations from other formations having relatively high concentrations of uranium, such as uranium-rich sands or formations exhibiting uranium oxide plating as a result of fluid movement.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,612,439 to Chace provides methods and apparatus for evaluating subsurface formations utilizing natural gamma ray spectral logging. A high-resolution, gamma ray spectrometer incorporated in a well logging instrument traverses a borehole, whereby natural gamma radiation strikes a scintillation crystal contained therein. The detected gamma rays striking the crystal cause the crystal to emit photons in the visible energy region, the intensity of which is proportional to the energy lost in the crystal by the incident gamma ray. Light energy from the crystal is optically coupled to a photomultiplier tube where the energy is converted to a proportional electrical pulse signal which is amplified and transmitted to processing circuitry.
There is extensive prior art in the use of resistivity measurements for the detection of bed boundaries and distances to bed boundaries in highly deviated boreholes. See, for example, U.S. RE35386 to Wu et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,308,136 to Tabarovsky et al. teaches a method for interpretation of induction logs in near horizontal boreholes. One of the problems in interpretation of resistivity logs is the shoulder bed effect wherein "horns" develop in the tool response at bed boundaries. Complicated processing has to be done to correct for the shoulder bed effects. U.S. Pat. No. 5,184,079 to Barber discloses dip-dependent filtering that may be applied to induction logs to produce corrected resistivity measurements. All of the methods discussed above have problems with identification of thin beds.
Resistivity measuring devices of the type discussed above are active devices in that an electrical signal is produced by a transmitter on a downhole logging tool and a receiver detects signals that are responsive to the formation properties. It would be desirable to have a passive method and apparatus that may be used for detection of bed boundaries, particularly of thin beds. The present invention satisfies this need.

Method and apparatus for shale bed detection in deviated and horizontal wellbores


An electronic device includes a vibration element having a detection signal electrode and a drive signal electrode, an IC disposed so as to be opposed to the vibration element, a first wiring pattern located between the IC and the vibration element, and electrically connected to the drive signal electrode, and a shield wiring pattern located on the vibration element side of the first wiring pattern, and electrically connected to a constant potential (ground).

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an electronic device, an electronic apparatus, and a moving object.
2. Related Art
In the past, as an electronic device for detecting an angular velocity, there has been known the electronic device described in JP-A-2012-79751 (Document 1). The electronic device described in Document 1 has a semiconductor substrate, a stress relaxation layer disposed on the active surface side of the semiconductor substrate, a wiring disposed on the stress relaxation layer, and a vibration element disposed on the stress relaxation layer so as to electrically be connected to the wiring. By disposing the vibration element on the semiconductor substrate via the stress relaxation layer in such a manner as described above, height reduction of the electronic device can be achieved.
However, in such an electronic device, an electrostatic capacitance occurs between an electrode provided to the vibration element and wiring lines on the stress relaxation layer or between wiring lines on the semiconductor substrate and the wiring lines on the stress relaxation layer, and the noise due to the electrostatic capacitance is generated. Therefore, in the electronic device described in Document 1, there is a problem that the detection accuracy of the angular velocity is degraded.

Electronic device, electronic apparatus, and moving object


A method and system for notifying users of events. Scheduled user activity of a user is monitored, based on user notification information in a storage location. The user notification information pertains to a scheduled event. In response to a detection, from the monitoring, of a change in the user activity, it is ascertained that the change necessitates notifying the user of the scheduled event due to the change impacting whether the user can participate in the scheduled event. The change in the scheduled user activity is independent of the scheduled event. Then the user is notified of the scheduled event. The user notification information in the storage location is modified, based on the detected change in the user activity, in response to receipt of an instruction from the user to change the user notification information in the storage location.

Computer Supported Coorporative Work (CSCW) addresses "how collaborative activities and their coordination can be supported by means of computer systems." On the one hand, many authors consider that CSCW and groupware are synonyms. CSCW is a generic term, which combines the understanding of the way people work in groups with the enabling technologies of computer networking, and associated hardware, software, services and techniques. Groupware can be divided into three categories depending on the level of collaboration—communication tools, conferencing tools and collaborative management (Co-ordination) tools. Electronic communication tools send messages, files, data, or documents between people and hence facilitate the sharing of information. Examples include: email, instant messaging, faxing, voice mail and web publishing. Electronic conferencing tools facilitate the sharing of information, but in a more interactive way. Examples include: Internet forums (also known as message boards or discussion boards)—a virtual discussion platform to facilitate and manage online text messages;
Chatting—a virtual discussion platform to facilitate and manage real-time text messages;
Telephony—telephones allow users to interact;
Video conferencing—networked PCs share video and audio signals;
Data conferencing—networked PCs share a common whiteboard that each user can modify;
Application sharing—users can access a shared document or application from their respective computers simultaneously in real time; Electronic meeting systems (EMS)—a conferencing system built into a room. The special purpose room will usually contain a large video projector interlinked with numerous PCs.
Collaborative management tools facilitate and manage group activities. Examples include: electronic calendars (also called time management software)—schedule events and automatically notify and remind group members; project management systems schedule, track, and chart the steps in a project as it is being completed; workflow systems—collaborative management of tasks and documents within a knowledge-based business process; knowledge management systems—collect, organize, manage, and share various forms of information; extranet systems (sometimes also known as 'project extranets')—collect, organize, manage and share information associated with the delivery of a project (eg: the construction of a building); social software systems organize social relations of groups; online spreadsheets—collaborate and share structured data and information. Collaborative software can be either web based (such as UseModWiki or Scoop), or desktop systems (such as CVS or RCS).
A conference call is a telephone call where the calling party wants to have more than one called party listen in to the audio portion of the call. The conference call may be designed to allow the called party to also talk during the call, or the call may be set up so that the called party merely listens into the call but cannot speak. It is often referred to as an ATC (Audio Tele-Conference). These conference calls are a convenient way for many people to conduct business affairs while being in different physical locations. Even the technology for conference calls has progressed to the point that many users have systems that remind them of scheduled calls and prompt them immediately before a scheduled telephone conference is to occur. Some of these conference notification systems automatically remind the user of a scheduled teleconference.
At certain times, the currently available reminder capability for conference calls or other meetings in collaboration tools (such as Lotus Notes) are insufficient. The basic problem is that they require the user to be using the computer or be near it, in order to be alerted about an upcoming meeting. Consider the following cases where that requirement is problematic for obtaining the alert:                The user has left his/her laptop locked in an office and is collaborating with fellow coworkers on the design of some new architecture in a conference room. Or, as another example, the user is attending a department celebration such as a major project delivery or a coworker retirement, etc. in a conference room and has left his/her laptop in an office.        The user may have been stopped in the hallway and asked about a solution to some problem, and as a result of the ensuing discussion, may have forgotten about an upcoming meeting.        In the user's current time zone, the meeting is scheduled for early afternoon, but because the user has flown to another location to work on another project, the meeting may occur while the user is out at lunch in the new time zone, or early in the morning while the user is still getting dressed for work, for example.        The user may be in a taxi on the way to/from an airport or may be in some other capacity where he/she is not likely to have a laptop open. While the user may not want to take a confidential call in these instances, there are non-confidential calls and non-participatory calls that the user might want to take in these instances, such as an overview of the new features and advantages of a recently released software product from IBM, for example.
These scenarios highlight the problems associated with notifying a user of a conference call when that user is away from his/her computer. There remains a need for a means to connect to or be reminded of a conference call or meeting while the user is away from his/her computer.

International Business Machines Corporation


A method for a sender side assisted flow classification is disclosed. In an embodiment, a method comprises detecting a packet by a network virtualization layer engine implemented in a hypervisor on a sender side of a virtualization computer system; and determining, by the network virtualization layer engine, whether the packet requires special processing. In response to determining that the packet requires special processing, a special processing flag is inserted in a certain field of an outer header of the packet; and the packet is forwarded toward a destination of the packet for a PNIC on a receiver side to process the packet.

In software defined networking ("SDN"), packets may be exchanged between virtual machines ("VMs") on different hosts through tunnels implemented by encapsulating and decapsulating packets using a particular tunneling protocol such as Geneve. In this case, a network virtualization stack implemented on the host might support a flow classification and Geneve encapsulation/decapsulation offload to a physical network interface card ("PNIC"). When a PNIC processes a received packet, the PNIC parses the packet, extracts flow keys (i.e., a five-tuple, a six-tuple, etc.) from, for example, an Ethernet outer header and an IP outer header of the packet and matches the extracted flow keys with the flow keys for which the network virtualization processing has been already pre-programmed. If a match is found, then the PNIC discards, from the packet, the outer headers (for example, an Ethernet outer header and an IP outer header) and copies the remaining inner portion of the packet from the PNIC's memory to a network virtualization stack or directly to a guest virtual machine.
But if a packet requires special processing to be performed by a hypervisor, then a PNIC should execute a different process: instead of discarding an outer headers from the packet and coping only an inner packet from the PNIC's memory to a network virtualization stack or to a guest VM, the PNIC should copy the entire packet to the network virtualization stack, not just the inner packet. This would allow the hypervisor to access the entire packet including the outer header information and perform the special processing on the packet based on that information. Examples of the special processing include a MTEP replication, flow tracing, DHCP snooping, aging MAC addresses learned on a tunnel endpoint, and pre-programing a virtualization processing offload for a packet.
Special processing requested for a packet is usually indicated by including either Geneve specific options in a "variable length options" field in a Geneve header of the packet, or customized options in, for example, a L7 payload of the packet. To be able to recognize the Geneve specific options and/or the customized options in a packet, a PNIC would need to support a packet classifier configured to access such options in the packet. Unfortunately, most of the PNICs support the classifiers that can access only up to the inner L4 headers, but not the Geneve options in the Geneve header or the customized options in the L7 payload. Since, for decapsulation offloading, a typical PNIC decapsulates the packet, discards outer headers (from outer L2 headers to the Geneve header) from the packet, and copies the remaining inner portion of the packet to a network virtualization stack, the inner packet is usually stripped of the Geneve options and other customized special processing options. Thus, if a packet requires special processing, a hypervisor cannot perform the special processing on the packet because the inner portion of the packet that is copied to the hypervisor's network virtualization stack does not include the special processing options.
Therefore, there is a need to provide a method for assisting PNICs in identifying the packets that require special processing and preserving special processing options in such packets.

Sender side assisted flow classification


A two-stage liquid spray device having an outlet region with an island and an exit aperture and a fluidic oscillator, driving said outlet region. The improvement for the spray device is operable at low pressure to achieve full-area coverage with substantially uniform droplets and wherein all of the spray droplets land on the desired work surface and do not bounce. The fluidic oscillator includes an oscillation chamber, a power nozzle for introducing a jet of liquid from a source into the oscillation chamber. The oscillation chamber is configured to produce a pair of alternating control vortices which substantially preclude wall attachment of said jet traversing said oscillation chamber thus avoiding a heavy endedness in the oscillatory jet. An outlet from the oscillation chamber to the outlet region, whereby the jet rhythmically sweeps in end pulses to each side of the island and form a sheet at the exit aperture. The sheet is rhythmically waved or swept in the ambient air to form the uniform droplets. A transverse slot defines the lateral boundary of the sweeping sheet.

FIG. 1 hereof, from Stouffer U.S. Pat. No. 4,151,955 (incorporated herein by reference), discloses a two-stage fluidic spray device in which a wall attachment, heavy-ended type of fluidic oscillator 10 drives a generally circular outlet region or chamber 11. Outlet region 11 has a substantially concentric island 12 which converts the fluidically swept jet issuing from fluidic oscillator to sweeping sheet. FIG. 2, from Stouffer U.S. Pat. No. 4,508,267 (incorporated herein by reference) discloses a liquid oscillator for producing a unidirectional swept jet for producing a fan spray 16 with resulting liquid droplets of uniform size. The oscillation chamber has sidewalls which are shaped to produce alternating control vortices in the oscillation chamber 17 and preclude the wall attachment effects which make the fluidic oscillator portion or spray shown in FIG. 1 heavy-ended.
We have discovered that a two-stage liquid spray device having an outlet region with an island of the type illustrated in Stouffer U.S. Pat. No. 4,151,955 and a fluidic oscillator of the type shown in Stouffer U.S. Pat. No. 4,508,267 can be operated at low pressure (as from a pumped source or a plastic squeeze container) to achieve full-area coverage with substantially uniform droplets and wherein all of the spray droplets land on the desired work surface and do not bounce. In other words, the liquid droplets stay on the work surface in the desired pattern.
The exit aperture from the outlet stage to ambient is provided with a transverse groove to define the extent of the oscillating liquid sheet forming the spray.
The object of the present invention is to provide a liquid spray device for full area coverage which operates at low pressure and velocity and which produces substantially uniform droplets in the full area coverage spray.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, a two-stage fluidic spray device in which a fluidic oscillator has an oscillation chamber with mirror image sidewalls shaped to produce alternate control vortices that cause the power jet to oscillate back and forth in the oscillation chamber without significant wall attachment effects. The output of the fluidic oscillator drives an island type output region. The exit aperture or opening from the outlet region to ambient is provided with an external transverse groove or slot which defines the lateral boundaries of the spray pattern of liquid and substantially eliminates any drip.

Low pressure, full coverage fluidic spray device


A series arrangement of a deflection coil (Lf) and a series resistor (Rs) is connected between an output of a first output amplifier (1) and an output of a second output amplifier (2) to be driven in a bridge configuration for generating a deflection current (If) through the deflection coil (Lf). Across the series resistor (Rs), a voltage is generated which corresponds to the deflection current (If). A differential amplifier (5) has a first input connected to a first end of the series resistor (Rs). A second input of the differential amplifier (5) is connected to a second end of the series resistor (Rs) via a conversion resistor (Rc). An input current (Ii) is generated through the conversion resistor (Rc). The polarity of the input current (Ii) is selected to obtain a voltage across the conversion resistor (Rc) which has an opposite polarity with respect to the voltage across the series resistor (Rs). The differential amplifier (5) has two outputs connected to respective inputs of the first and the second output amplifiers (1, 2) to drive the two output amplifiers (1, 2) in a feedback loop in such a manner that the voltage across the series arrangement of the conversion resistor (Rc) and the series resistor (Rs) is substantially zero. In this way, the voltage swing between the inputs of the differential amplifier (5) is very low and thus the offset voltage caused will be very low.

The invention relates to a deflection circuit for generating an electron beam deflection current in a deflection coil, the deflection circuit comprising: a first and a second output amplifier, a series resistor arranged in series with the deflection coil, the series arrangement of the deflection coil and the series resistor being coupled between an output of the first output amplifier and an output of the second output amplifier, a differential amplifier having a first input coupled to a first end of the series resistor, and having outputs coupled to corresponding inputs of the first and the second output amplifier, respectively, for driving the first and second output amplifiers in a bridge configuration.
The invention also relates to a picture display apparatus comprising such a deflection circuit, and to an integrated circuit for use in such a deflection circuit.


A method for fabrication of volcano-shaped field emitters forming low-cost, large area manufacturing of ungated and gated vertical field emitter arrays. Gate and emitter thin films are deposited onto a substrate on which arrays of posts have been previously fabricated. These conformal films cover the substrate, the sidewalls of the posts, and the post top surfaces or plateaus. By using chemical-mechanical polishing (CMP), some or all of the thin films are selectively removed, leaving an intermediate structure that, after removing a small portion of the gate-to-emitter insulating film, is suitable for cold electron emission. One embodiment discloses a method of forming these devices without resort to a planarization layer. A second embodiment discloses a methodology employing a planarization layer.

Field emitters hold the promise for realization of related large-scale imaging systems. Ranging in size from thirty to forty inches, such systems would replace existing LCDs and plasma displays and could be used for big screen TVs and billboard signs. The advantages of a field emitter display (FED) are lower power requirements, wider viewing angles and higher quality images. Developing methods for manufacturing such displays has proven difficult, but advances in field emitters have made the production of large-scale FED arrays an important subject of study.
LCDs must reconcile the quality of the image produced with the power required to create the image. Because they do not produce their own light but are backlit, LCDs have high power requirements, but lowering the power for the backlights affects the brightness and contrast of the resulting image. Increasing the size of the image compounds this problem. LCDs also have a limited viewing angle. If the screen is viewed from too great an angle then it appears to go black. (photographic negative) Plasma display panels (PDPs) avoid some of the problems associated with LCDs, but high voltage requirements necessitate the use of expensive driver circuits, and CRT technology still produce a sharper, clear image.
Field emitters are based on existing cathode-ray tube (CRT) technology. Based on thermionic emission, CRTs use heat energy to overcome the work function of electrons so that they are freed from the cathode material and can be accelerated by a positive voltage. The directed electron beam then strikes a phosphorous screen, transferring energy to the phosphorous. The phosphorous then releases the energy in the form of photons which pass through a glass screen creating the image on the display. In field emitters, the CRT high voltage electron gun is replaced by cold electron source arrays.
Most cold electron source arrays consist of conical-shaped conductors or semiconductors that are surrounded by small gates with typical diameters ranging from 0.5 to 1.5 micrometers. Metallic cone emitters are disclosed, for example by C. Spindt in U.S. Pat. No. 3,665,261, and semi-conductive cone emitters are described, for example by H. Busta in U.S. Pat. No. 5,277,699, entitled "Recessed Gate Field Emission," issued Jul. 13, 1993. See Generally:
(1) Presentations by Silicon Video Corporation, Micron Display Corporation and FED Corporation at the ARPA High Definition Systems Information Conference, Arlington, Va., Apr. 30-May 3, 1995. PA1 (2) J. Levine, "Field Emission Displays," American Vacuum Society Test Panel Display Processing and Research Tutorial, June 21, San Jose, Calif. 1995. PA1 (3) J. P. Spallas et. al., "Field Emitter Array Patterning for Large Scale Flat Panel Displays Using Laser Interference Lithography," Technical Digest Eighth Intern. Vacuum Microelectronics Conf., Portland, Oreg., p. 103, 1995. PA1 (4) J. E. Pogemiller, H. H. Busta, and B. J. Zimmerman, "Gated Chromium Volcano Emitters," J. Vac. Sci. Technology B 12 (2), p. 680, 1993.
To form these cone arrays, typical photolithographic processing tools, as they are used in the manufacture of integrated circuits on eight inch diameter wafers, are employed. Such processing tools include UV light optical steppers and electron beam exposure systems. For arrays that can be fabricated on eight inch diameter substrates, these tools are perfectly adequate. However, for FEDs having principal dimensions of 12 to 20 inches and larger, adequate photolithographic tools do not yet exist for exposing these small(micron and submicron) gate diameters. See in this regard:
Fortunately, different field emitter structures exist in which the small spacing between the extraction gate and the emitter is obtained by a thin film deposition step and not by lithography. These devices are typically referred to as volcano shaped field emitters or as vertical (thin film ) edge emitters. A production technique has been proposed wherein these devices are employed to fabricate arrays using printed wiring board-type lithography. See the following publication:
Field emitters have been designed which exhibit lower capacitance levels adequate to achieve practical turn-on voltages. These devices have also configured electrode spacing dielectric components to avoid pinhole phenomena thus assuring more stable performance of the device. Such devices are described in co-pending application for U.S. patent Ser. No (Attorney Docket JAC 2-001-3) filed and assigned in common herewith.
To create an array of field emitters, the techniques of spin-on glass and resist etchback are used to remove metal or dielectric layers. While these techniques are widely used in the industry for small displays, they are inadequate for formation of displays which have larger diagonal dimensions, for instance, about twenty inches or greater. Both spin-on glass and resist etchback require the build-up of photoresist on the surface to be removed and such build-up becomes difficult to achieve when forming large displays. In this regard, practical fabrication capabilities essentially preclude photoresist application by spinning, meniscus coating approaches being resorted to. These latter coating procedures, while less expensive to carry out, do not deliver the desired photoresist profiles.

Fabrication of volcano-shaped field emitters by chemical-mechanical polishing (CMP)


A padlock weather shield comprising a preformed sheet of weather resistant material for fully covering and protecting a lock from exposure to weather related conditions such as precipitation. The shield is a patterned sheet member which bends or folds to form a box having front, side and rear panels and a curvilinear and convex roof. In one embodiment, the rear of the patterned shield has a slit to fit over a door handle. In a second embodiment, the rear has a pair of tabs and a slit to snap fit over a staple, the hasp securely anchoring the padlock weather shield in place when installed onto the staple. The roof is convex to allow precipitation and moisture to drain off of the top of the shield and down the box, and acts as a living hinge, permitting the box to be raised to access the protected lock.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to devices for protecting locks from exposure to weather related phenomenon, such as precipitation, that would otherwise harm the lock.
2. Description of Prior Art
A wide variety of locks are used in outdoor locations or other places where the lock will be exposed to weather elements, such as precipitation, that are harmful to the lock. Water invading a lock through a keyhole, or through a shackle interface with a padlock body, can significantly harm the life and performance of the lock. A metal lock often rusts or corrodes after being exposed to water. After the lock rusts or corrodes, a key may no longer fit properly into a lock keyhole, or a key may not turn the lock so as to open. Also, a shackle may not slip off its lock interface once internal rusting or corrosion has taken place. Further, when a lock is exposed to freezing temperatures after being invaded by a liquid such as water, the lock generally freezes shut so that it cannot be opened until its temperature rises past freezing. Sometimes a lock will never open or work properly again after such damaging exposure.
One widely used type of device uses a padlock for securing two relatively movable members, such as doors, when closed. The device consists of a hasp, a portion of which is permanently secured to one of the relatively movable members, and a staple permanently attached to the other relatively movable member such that the staple slidably inserts through a slot in an unsecured portion of the hasp when the movable members are closed upon one another. The padlock is secured through the staple when the staple is mated with the hasp. In addition to the harm described above which affects the padlock, a metal hasp would be susceptible to similar damage due to rust or corrosion. Thus, there is a need for a device that will protect a lock, a hasp, or a staple from exposure to the elements, and particularly from exposure to moisture.
Devices designed to protect a lock have been patented in the past. For example, the following U.S. Patents all show devices that in some way cover or protect a lock: U.S. Pat. No. 547,550, issued to Parazette Hopkins on Oct. 8, 1895; U.S. Pat. No. 1,244,404, issued to Louis B. Ankovitz on Oct. 23, 1917; U.S. Pat. No. 1,248,293, issued to Thomas H. Ellington on Nov. 27, 1917; U.S. Pat. No. 1,581,953, issued to Arthur C. Jackson on Apr. 20, 1926; U.S. Pat. No. 3,916,654, issued to Karl E. Mudge, Jr. on Nov. 4, 1975; U.S. Pat. No. 4,033,155, issued to Jerry S. DeLucia on Jul. 5, 1977; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,003,795, issued to A. Chyril Hoke on Apr. 2, 1991. German Patent Document Nos. 214,138, published on Dec. 22, 1907; 327,538, published on Apr. 8, 1919; and 338,405, published on Aug. 28, 1920 also show devices that cover or protect a lock. Some of these devices also protect a hasp and staple.
Many known devices for protecting a lock fail to completely cover the lock. Because puddles can form below a lock and splash up during a heavy rain shower, or, because raindrops often blow horizontally or at an angle during a rain storm, there is a need for a device that will protect all sides of a lock from exposure to the elements.
Moreover, some outdoor locks are semi-permanently installed and frequent access to the space they secure is not needed. Because many known devices for protecting and covering a lock are inconvenient to remove and replace, there is a need for a device that will protect a lock from exposure to the elements, yet permit easy and convenient access to both the lock and the space secured by the lock.
None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singularly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed. Thus a padlock weather shield solving the aforementioned problems is desired.


Disclosed are a data processing system, a method and an apparatus. The system includes: a first client, a data synchronization terminal, and a second client. The first client is configured to send data indicated by a data sending instruction to a first server cluster in a first server cluster group. The data synchronization terminal is configured to synchronize data in the first server cluster of the first server cluster group to a second server cluster in a second server cluster group. The second client is configured to acquire data from a target second server cluster; determine, in response to that transmission of data with location information currently being acquired from the target second server cluster is interrupted, target second location information from a predetermined target second location information group; and continue to acquire data from the storage location indicated by the target second location information.

Existing data processing systems (such as Kafka distributed publish and subscribe messaging system) usually provide data storage services by using a single server cluster. For example, a producer sends the produced data to the server cluster through a producer client, and a customer acquires data from the server cluster through a consumer client. Therefore, the existing data processing systems have the problems of poor stability and low data processing efficiency.

System, method and apparatus having a redundant cluster for processing data

Beijing Jingdong Shangke Information Technology Co., Ltd.

Beijing Jingdong Century Trading Co., Ltd.