A ladle holder (20) comprises either a releasable spray packing member for ground coffee or a spray recess for pre-packaged coffee blocks, and a filter ladle (10) may be provided as required with either a ground coffee filter or a filter adaptor (70) for coffee blocks. In the latter case, the filter ladle (10) fits into a holder with an upper ejector pin (83) for ejecting used coffee blocks. The holder is hinged to one bearing pin (30) and, when fully inserted, engages an abutment under the other bearing pin (40) by means of a tab. The two bearing pins (30, 40) engage helical projections (11, 12) on the filter ladle (10) to form a bayonet-like attachment and position the filter ladle (10) in engagement with a ladle seal.

There exist at present on the market two kinds of coffee making machines, one using ground coffee, the other prepackaged cakes of coffee.
In the first case, the ground coffee is disposed in a filter of cylindrical shape, mounted on a filter-carrying cup, fixed pivotally in a bayonet system with helicoidal ramps, located below the cup carrier, whilst ensuring, at the end of the path of movement, the squeezing of a joint, called a cup joint, fitted below the cup carrier such that the hot water cannot escape laterally.
The document DE-A-573.054 has for its object a percolation device adapted to coact with an apparatus for the infusion of coffee by means of a connection, so as to prepare coffee-based beverages in small or large quantities; this device is characterized by the fact that a small or large dish, which comprises a sealed bell, is articulated relative to a pivot carried by the connection, itself provided with a sealing packing.
This earlier document defines the state of the art but is unsuitable for use with cakes containing coffee.
In the second case, on the other hand, the use of prepackaged cakes of coffee requires the use of a filter-carrying cup specially designed for this purpose. To obtain the infusion, the filter-carrying cup, on which the cake is disposed, is introduced into a cylindrical recess comprising throats in the form of helicoidal ramps, specially adapted to the filter-carrying cup. Each ramp is open and permits the introduction of the cup according to a limited angular position. The cake of coffee is encased between two sheets of paper, permeable to liquids, welded together forming a collar useful for gripping the cake of coffee after its infusion.
In known devices of this type, the collar of the prepackaged cake of coffee comprises an extra thickness and renders difficult the introduction of the filter-carrying cup into its cylindrical recess. When the infusion of the coffee is finished, and the filter-carrying cup is withdrawn from its recess, it often happens that the infused cake of coffee remains behind, because its edges bear against the walls of the cylindrical recess and in the helicoidal throats.
Under these circumstances, the user manually picks out the infused cake of coffee at the risk of burning himself, because the cylindrical recess is then at a temperature of about 90.degree. C.
Solutions have been proposed to overcome these drawbacks, by using devices specially designed for this purpose.
There are already known different means permitting using a conventional coffee making machine for the infusion of cakes or tablets of prepackaged coffee, such as those described in the patents DE-A-573 054 and EP-A-0 070 403. An adapter, designed to be secured below the hot water dispenser of the machine, in place of the original filter-carrying cup, comprises at its base devices permitting the mounting by a bayonet system of a filter-carrying cup corresponding to that used in machines for prepackaged cakes of coffee.
Such a solution, which requires having recourse to the juxtaposition of subassemblies of different commercial origin, in addition to the fact that it does not facilitate the use of prepackaged cakes of coffee in conventional coffee machines, renders the latter less useful; and in addition it does not resolve the problem raised by the extraction after infusion of the cakes soaked with boiling water.
The document EP-A-0 555 775 provides a sliding system provided with a receptacle with a filter for an espresso coffee making machine, which comprises a cylindrical body with inclined annular surfaces, provided with a handle, the cylindrical body being adapted to turn to raise or lower itself on corresponding inclined surfaces of a structure of box shape. During raising, the cylindrical body raises the receptacle with its filter, without rotation, against a fixed structure, which it faces, said receptacle being thus subjected to a linear movement without rotation. The fixed structure is a toric joint, provided with a lower circular groove and an upper circular groove for better sealing, at the upper edge of the receptacle.
The system for raising or lowering the cylindrical body uses the coaction of several surfaces having inclined surfaces. In addition to problems of production and the cost of production, there is the possibility of very strong gripping during these rising and falling movements; moreover, the introduction of said cylindrical body into the box-shaped structure is not easy.

Device permitting using, on a coffee making machine, ground coffee or prepackaged cakes of coffee


It is determined whether it is necessary to execute processing for automatically measuring a shot compensation parameter. Processing is reduced by performing automatic measurement of the shot compensation parameter only when such measurement is necessary. This is followed by measuring a wafer compensation parameter automatically. Depending upon whether or not automatic measurement of the shot compensation parameter has been performed, it is determined whether to calculate a relative parameter δ between the shot compensation parameter and wafer compensation parameter or to calculate a shot compensation parameter from a stored relative parameter δ and a wafer compensation parameter. This maintains alignment precision. The units comprising the apparatus are driven to perform exposure in accordance with the shot compensation parameter and wafer compensation parameter obtained.

In a semiconductor exposure apparatus such as a stepper, alignment is performed in such a manner that a circuit pattern that has been formed on a reticle (mask) will be overlaid highly precisely on a circuit pattern that has been formed on a wafer (plate) serving as a substrate.
A technique referred to as AGA (Advanced Global Alignment) is known as a method of obtaining an array of circuit pattern areas (shots) that have been formed on a wafer. AGA is a technique that includes the steps of selecting several sample shots from all available shots, measuring amounts of deviation of the positions of these sample shots from a design position and subjecting the results of the measurement to statistical processing to thereby obtain wafer compensation parameters for compensating for the shot array on the wafer. The wafer compensation parameters mentioned here are the following quantities, by way of example:
(1) shift error of wafer center position (amount of translation) (Swx, Swy);
(2) wafer (shot array) rotation error (amount of rotation) (θwx, θwy); and
(3) wafer (shot array) magnification error (amount of linear expansion and contraction) (βwx, βwy).
Further, the difference (θwx−θwy) between the X and Y components of the amount of wafer rotation is referred to as "wafer orthogonality".
In order to improve the precision of alignment, there has recently been proposed a method of applying a correction by obtaining the amount of deformation of a shot per se in addition to finding wafer compensation parameters. It is considered that the causes of shot deformation are device-related, such as distortion of the exposure lens, and process-related, such as deformation of the wafer due to heating. The following quantities can be mentioned as parameters (referred to as "shot compensation parameters") for correcting for shot deformation (i.e., shot shape error):
(1) shot rotation error (amount of rotation) (θsx, θsy); and
(2) shot magnification error (amount of linear expansion and contraction) (βsx, βsy).
The relationship between wafer compensation parameters and shot compensation parameters is illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, in which FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between wafer magnification and shot magnification. In FIG. 1, WafD indicated by the dashed line represents the designed external shape of the wafer, and WafR indicated by the solid line represents, in exaggerated form, the external shape of the wafer in a case where the wafer has undergone expansion and contraction caused by thermal deformation, or the like. Let radial expansion of the wafer in the X and Y directions be represented by βwx and βwy, respectively, in a standard coordinate system (x,y), the origin of which is a reference point on the wafer stage of the stepper. Wafer magnification has an effect upon the shot array. In FIG. 1, the manner in which the center position of each shot deviates in the outward direction from the designed coordinates is indicated by the arrows assigned to the shots. Further, SframeD represents the designed external shape of a shot, and SframeR represents the external shape of the shot brought about when shot magnification error occurs. Shot expansion is represented by βsx, βsy in the standard coordinate system (x,y).
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between wafer rotation and shot rotation. Here WafR represents, in exaggerated form, the external shape of the wafer in a case where the wafer has been rotated relative to the standard coordinate system (x,y) of the stage. Let the amount of rotation of the wafer in the X and Y directions be represented by θwx, θwy, respectively, in a standard coordinate system the center of which is a reference point on the wafer stage of the stepper. FIG. 2 illustrates a case where θwx=θwy holds, indicating the orthogonality (angular deviation) of the wafer and stage is zero. Wafer rotation has an influence upon the shot array. Further, SframeD represents the designed external shape of the shot, and SframeR represents the shape of the shot that has developed an error in orthogonality owing to shot deformation. In FIG. 2, rotation of the axes of the shot in the standard coordinate system (x, y) is represented by θsx, θsy.
With the AGA method, the amount of deviation of the shot reference position (usually the shot center) from the designed value is found by measuring the positions of alignment marks assigned within the shot. In this case, marks to be measured within the shot constitute one set, namely one shot in each of the X and Y directions. FIG. 3A illustrates an instance where marks MX1, MY1 have been disposed in a shot (SHOT).
On the other hand, in a case where a shot compensation parameter for correcting for shot deformation is found, measurement is performed upon disposing a greater number of marks (MX1 to MX3, MY1 to MY3), i.e., greater than the single set of one mark for each of the X and Y directions. A method of finding shot compensation parameters is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 09-266164.
The general shot compensation alignment method will be described with reference to FIG. 4, which is a block diagram illustrating an off-axis wafer alignment system in a semiconductor exposure apparatus. This alignment system includes a reticle 401; a projection exposure optical system 402; an image storing arithmetic unit 403 for subjecting a provided image signal to various image processing and storing the image signal and results of processing; a prealignment unit 406 for adjusting coarse wafer orientation based upon a wafer external-shape reference when the wafer has been sent to the alignment system from a wafer transport apparatus (not shown); a computer terminal 407 for accepting a command input from a user; a wafer 408 that is to be aligned, a microscope 404 for enlarging and observing the image of a pattern formed on a wafer 408; a CCD camera 417 for converting the pattern image of the wafer 408, which has been obtained by the microscope 404, to an electric signal and supplying the signal to the image storing arithmetic unit 403; an XY stage 410 for moving the coordinate position of the wafer 408 in the direction of a plane and in a direction perpendicular to the plane; a wafer chuck 409 for holding the wafer 408 on the XY stage 410; a monitor 411 serving as a display mechanism by which the user checks the image provided by the microscope 404; and a controller 405 for controlling each of the above-mentioned elements. The controller 405 has a memory 420 and a CPU. The microscope 404 and CCD camera 417 are referred to as an off-axis observation optical system. In FIG. 4, it is assumed that the positions of the reticle 401 and projection exposure optical system 402 have been decided accurately by a method such as the FRA method and that the relative positional relationship (base line) among the projection exposure optical system 402 and off-axis observation optical system 404, 417 has already been measured.
As shown in FIG. 3C, measurement sample shots S1, S2 for calculating shot compensation parameters and measurement sample shots S3 to S6 for calculating wafer compensation parameters have been formed on the wafer 408. Alignment marks shown in FIG. 3B have been formed in each of measurement sample shots S1 to S6. In the measurement sample shots S1, S2, marks MX1 to MX3, MY1 to MY3 are the object of measurement for alignment. In the measurement sample shots S3 to S6, marks MX1, MY1 are the object of measurement for alignment.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating processing of the conventional technique for shot compensation alignment. The conventional technique will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 5.
At step S501 in FIG. 5, wafer 408 is carried into the exposure apparatus by a wafer transport apparatus (not shown), the wafer 408 is positioned coarsely by prealignment unit 406, and then the wafer 408 is transported to the XY stage 410. The wafer 408 is held on the XY stage 410 by vacuum suction applied by the wafer chuck 409.
Steps S502 to S505 constitute a procedure for automatically measuring shot compensation parameters.
More specifically, step S502 calls for drive of the XY stage 410 to be controlled in such a manner that the alignment mark MX1, which has been formed in the first measurement shot S1, will enter the field of view of the microscope 404.
Next, at step S503, deviation of the mark position is detected. This deviation is detected as follows: First, the microscope 404 and CCD camera 417 capture the pattern of the alignment mark MX1, which is illuminated by an alignment illumination device (not shown), as an image signal. By using pattern matching, the controller 405 compares the pattern of the alignment mark stored in the image storing arithmetic unit 403 with the image that has been captured by the CCD camera 417 and calculates deviation l×1 from the designed position of the alignment mark MX1.
This is followed by step S504, at which it is determined whether steps S502, S503 have been executed for all sample shots (S1, S2). If an unprocessed shot remains, control returns to step S502. If unprocessed shots do not remain, control proceeds to step S505. Specifically, the remaining alignment marks MX2, MX3, MY1 to MY3 in the first measurement shot S1 are measured through a procedure similar to that for MX1, and positional deviations lxn, lyn (n=1 to 3, where n is assigned based upon the mark number) of each mark in the x and y directions are measured.
If the positional deviation of each mark has been measured ("YES" at step S504) for all sample shots, then the shot compensation parameters are calculated at step S505. A method of calculating shot compensation parameters is as follows:
Shot compensation parameters are found for each shot of the sample shots S1 to S4. The designed position of each mark that resides in the shot is represented by (dxn,dyn) (n=1 to 3), where the center of the shot is taken as the origin. The mark position (dxn′,dyn′) compensated for by the shot compensation parameters is expressed as follows by Equation (1):
                              (                                                                      dxn                  ′                                                                                dyn                  ′                                                              )                =                                            [                                                                                1                      +                                              β                                                                                sx                                                                                -                        θ                                                                                sy                                                                                θ                                                                                sx                                                                                1                      +                                              β                                                                                sy                                                                                ]                                                  (                                                                    dxn                                                                                dyn                                                              )                                +                      (                                                            Ssx                                                                              Ssy                                                      )                                              (        1        )            where Ssx, Ssy represent amounts of shift error of the shot center. Further, the actual position of the measured mark is expressed as follows by Equation (2):
                              (                                                    dxn                                                                    dyn                                              )                +                  (                                                    lxn                                                                    lyn                                              )                                    (        2        )
A compensation residual V is expressed as follows by Equation (3):
                                                        V              =                                                                            1                  m                                                                                ∑                                          n                      =                      1                                        m                                                                                                                                                        (                                                                                dxn                                                                                dyn                                                                                )                                                +                                                  (                                                                                lxn                                                                                lyn                                                                                )                                                -                                                  (                                                                                dxn                                  ′                                                                                dyn                                  ′                                                                                )                                                                                                            2                                                                                =                                                                            1                  m                                                                                ∑                                          n                      =                      1                                        m                                                                                                                                                        (                                                                                lxn                                                                                lyn                                                                                )                                                -                                                                              [                                                                                β                                                                                sx                                                                                -                                      θ                                                                                sy                                                                                θ                                                                                sx                                                                                β                                                                                sy                                                                                ]                                                                                (                                                                                dxn                                                                                dyn                                                                                )                                                                          +                                                  (                                                                                Ssx                                                                                Ssy                                                                                )                                                                                                            2                                                                                (        3        )
Since lxn, lyn, dxn, dyn are already known, it will suffice to obtain {Ssx, Ssy, θsx, θsy, βsx, βsy} by solving simultaneous equations that minimize V. Here it will suffice to use a shot array in which shifts Ssx, Ssy of the shot array have been found as the result of calculating wafer compensation parameters of fth-degree step, and therefore it is not necessary to use the value found here in subsequent compensating drive. As the result of measuring a plurality of sample shots, the number of shot compensation parameters obtained is equivalent to the number of sample shots. By subsequently taking the average of these parameters, therefore, shot compensation parameters of the wafer are obtained.
Steps S506 to S509 constitute a procedure for calculating wafer compensation parameters. This method is the aforementioned AGA technique.
Step S506 calls for the controller 405 to drive the XY stage 410 in such a manner that the alignment mark MX1, which has been formed in the first sample shot S3 for wafer measurement, will enter the field of view of the microscope 404.
Next, at step S507, the mark position is detected. The method of detecting mark position is similar to that of step S503 above. Deviation lxk (k=3 to 6, where k is assigned based upon the sample-shot number) from the designed position of the alignment mark MX1 is calculated at step S507.
This is followed by step S508, at which it is determined whether steps S506, S507 have been executed for all sample shots (S3 to S6). If an unprocessed shot remains, control returns to step S506. If unprocessed shots do not remain, control proceeds to step S509. Specifically, the remaining alignment mark MY1 in the first measurement shot S3 is measured through a procedure similar to that for MX1, and a positional deviation lyk of the mark in the Y direction is calculated. Further, the processing of steps S506, S507 is repeated with regard to all sample shots (S3 to S6), and lxk, lyk (k=3 to 6) are found for every sample shot.
If the positional deviations of each of the marks are found for all sample shots ("YES" at step S508), then the wafer compensation parameters are calculated at step S509. A method of calculating wafer compensation parameters is as follows:
First, deviations (lxk,lyk) of the reference position (usually the position of the shot center) of each sample shot from the designed value are found. Coordinates obtained by adding the measured deviations (lxk,lyk) of the alignment marks to the designed positions of the marks from the center position of the sample shot are the coordinates of the actual mark position.
Deviations (Lxk,Lyk) from the center position of the shot are found by taking the average of these values. The designed position of the center of each sample shot that resides in the wafer is represented by (Dxk,Dyk). A shot-center position (Dxk′,Dyk′) compensated for by the wafer compensation parameters is expressed as follows by Equation (4):
                              (                                                                      Dxk                  ′                                                                                Dyk                  ′                                                              )                =                                            [                                                                                1                      +                                              β                                                wx                                                                                -                                              θ                                                wy                                                                                θ                                            wk                                                                                1                      +                                              β                                                wy                                                                                ]                                                  (                                                                    Dxk                                                                                Dyk                                                              )                                +                      (                                                            Swk                                                                              Swk                                                      )                                              (        4        )
Further, the actual position of the shot center obtained as the result of measurement is expressed as follows by Equation (5):
                              (                                                    Dxk                                                                    Dyk                                              )                +                  (                                                    Lxk                                                                    Lyk                                              )                                    (        5        )
A compensation residual V is expressed as follows by Equation (6):
                                                        V              =                                                                            1                  m                                                                                ∑                                          k                      =                      1                                        m                                                                                                                                                        (                                                                                Dxk                                                                                Dyk                                                                                )                                                +                                                  (                                                                                Lxk                                                                                Lyk                                                                                )                                                -                                                  (                                                                                Dxk                                  ′                                                                                Dyk                                  ′                                                                                )                                                                                                            2                                                                                =                                                                            1                  m                                                                                ∑                                          k                      =                      1                                        m                                                                                                                                                        (                                                                                Lxk                                                                                Lyk                                                                                )                                                -                                                                              [                                                                                β                                                                                wx                                                                                -                                                                          θ                                                                            wy                                                                                θ                                                                                wx                                                                                β                                                                                wy                                                                                ]                                                                                (                                                                                Dxk                                                                                Dyk                                                                                )                                                                          +                                                  (                                                                                Swx                                                                                Swy                                                                                )                                                                                                            2                                                                                (        6        )
Since Lxk, Lyk, Dxk, Dyk are already known, it will suffice to obtain {Swx, Swy, θwx, θwy, βwx, βwy} by solving simultaneous equations that minimize V.
If shot compensation parameters and wafer compensation parameters have been found, each unit of the exposure apparatus is driven (subjected to compensating drive) at step S510 in accordance with these compensation parameters so as to diminish the error between the shot array and shot shape.
Finally, control proceeds to step S511 to carry out exposure.
By repeating steps S501 to S511 for all wafers to be exposed, it is possible to perform the exposure of each shot with a high overlay precision in accordance with the compensated shot array and shot shape.
The minimum required number of marks to calculate the wafer compensation parameters in a shot is one set for X and Y (one X measurement mark and one Y measurement mark, or one X-Y measurement mark).
However, the number of alignment marks that must be measured within a shot in order to find shot compensation parameters is greater than one set for X and Y. In accordance with Equation (3), at least three sets of alignment marks for X, Y must be measured in order to independently calculate all of the shot compensation parameters {θsx, θsy, βsx, βsy, Ssx, Ssy}.
With the conventional alignment method of measuring and compensating for shot compensation parameters automatically, it is necessary to perform measurements at sample shots and alignment marks for calculation of shot compensation parameters on a wafer-by-wafer basis. As a result, measurement is performed at many sample shots and alignment marks for each and every wafer. A problem which results is a decline in throughput.

Exposure apparatus, method of controlling same, method of manufacturing devices, computer-readable memory and program


The present invention provides a method and apparatus for conditioning a polishing pad in which slurry is directed under pressure at the polishing pad. Additionally, energy (i.e., ultrasonic energy) may be added to the slurry as it is directed towards the polishing pad, wherein embedded material in the polishing pad is removed or dislodged.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to a method and apparatus for polishing semiconductor devices and in particular to a method and apparatus used in chemical mechanical polish processing for polishing wafers. Still more particularly, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus for conditioning a polishing pad used in chemical mechanical polishing processing.
2. Description of the Related Art
As circuit dimensions shrink, the need for fine-line lithography becomes more critical and the requirements for planarizing topography becomes very severe. Major U.S. semiconductor companies are actively pursuing Chemical-Mechanical Polishing (CMP) as the planarization technique used in the sub-half micron and below generation of chips. CMP is used for planarizing bare silicon wafers, interlevel dielectrics, metals, and other materials. CMP machines, such as the one shown in FIG. 1, use orbital, circular, lapping, and linear motions. The wafer 116 is held on a rotating carrier 118 while the face of the wafer 116 being polished is pressed against a resilient polishing pad 114 attached to a rotating platen disk 112. A slurry is used to chemically attack and lubricate the wafer surface to make the surface more easily removed by mechanical abrasion. Pad conditioning is done by mechanical abrasion of the pads 114 in order to `renew` the surface. During the polishing process, particles removed from the surface of the wafer 116 become embedded in the pores of the polishing pad 114 and must be removed. Current techniques use a conditioning head 122, also called a "grid", with abrasive diamond studs to mechanically abrade the pad 114 and remove particles to condition the polishing pad. Conditioning arm 124 positions conditioning head 122 over polishing pad 114.
The term "condition" defines the state of the polishing pad surface. The ideal surface of the polishing pad is free of embedded slurry particles and residual polished material. To provide a polishing surface, the condition is two fold. First, the mechanical action of the grid will clean the polishing pad of removed polished materials and old slurry particles embedded into the pad. Second, the abrasive surface of the grid will roughen the polishing pad and expose new pad surface for acceptance of slurry. These actions are used to provide a conditioned polishing pad. The repeated abrasive action of the conditioning will eventually erode enough material from the polishing pad to require replacement of the pad. The pad erosion from the conditioning can have an impact on the uniformity of the wafer. Also, if the slurry has a low pH, the acidic properties will erode metal grids and diamonds dislodged from the grid can cause severe scratching on the polished surface.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to have an improved method and apparatus to reduce the erosion of the polishing pad, enhance control of wafer nonuniformity, and allow the use of low pH solutions.

Subsonic to supersonic and ultrasonic conditioning of a polishing pad in a chemical mechanical polishing apparatus


An image sharpening method and an image processing device are provided. The method includes: obtaining a plurality of pixels in an image; calculating a first weight of a high pass filter and a second weight of a first filter according to the pixels, and the first filter is a convolution of the high pass filter and a low pass filter; generating a sharpening filter according to the high pass filter, the first weight, the first filter and the second weight; and executing a sharpening operation on the pixels according to the sharpening filter. Accordingly, a sharpened image has better vision effects.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an image sharpening method, and more particularly, to an image sharpening method in which a plurality of filters are utilized and weights of the filters can be adjusted, and an image processing device using the same.
2. Description of Related Art
In technical field of image processing, an image sharpening operation is used to highlight edges and textures in an image. Generally, a high pass filter can be used to execute a convolution operation, and a result of the convolution operation can be added back to the original image. Namely, said operation can increase an amplitude of a high-frequency coefficient in the image. However, such operation may also highlight a noise in the image. Or, in case the image includes a high contrast region (e.g., texts), said operation may induce a halo effect, a color ring effect or other effects. Accordingly, how to ensure that the noise in the image can be suppressed while providing a sharpened image with more preferable visual effect during the sharpening operation has became one of the major subjects for person skilled in the art.

Image sharpening method and image processing device


Methods for forming a magneto-resistive memory device and a capacitor in an interconnect structure are disclosed herein. An exemplary method includes forming a first level interconnect metal layer and a second level interconnect metal layer of an interconnect structure. The method further includes simultaneously forming a first plurality of layers in a first region of the interconnect structure and a second plurality of layers in a second region of the interconnect structure, wherein the first plurality of layers and the second plurality of layers are disposed between the first level interconnect metal layer and the second level interconnect metal layer. The first plurality of layers is configured as a magneto-resistive memory device. The second plurality of layers is configured as the capacitor. The magneto-resistive memory device and the capacitor are each coupled to the first level interconnect metal layer and the second level interconnect metal layer.

In integrated circuit (IC) devices, magneto-resistive random access memory (MRAM) is an emerging technology for next generation non-volatile memory devices. A MRAM device is formed from two ferromagnetic plates, each of which can hold a magnetic field, separated by a thin insulating layer. One of the two plates is a permanent magnet set to a particular polarity, and the other's field can be changed to match that of an external field to store memory. This configuration is the simplest structure for a MRAM bit. A memory device is built from a grid of such cells. Reading data is accomplished by measuring the electrical resistance of the cell. Due to the magnetic tunnel effect, the electrical resistance of the cell changes due to the orientation of the fields in the two plates. The MRAM cells are integrated with other IC devices, such as capacitors. However, a capacitor is almost non-shrinkable and cannot be scaled down to small dimensions due to capacitor characteristics. A capacitor takes a significant circuit area penalty. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a structure with MRAM cells and capacitors integrated together and a method of manufacturing thereof absent the disadvantages discussed above.

Integration of magneto-resistive random access memory and capacitor

TAIWAN SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING COMPANY, LTD


A method of producing cis-1,4-polydienes, the method comprising the step of contacting conjugated diene monomer with a lanthanide-based catalyst system in the presence of less than 20% by weight of organic solvent based on the total weight of monomer, organic solvent, and resulting polymer, where the lanthanide-based catalyst system is the combination of or reaction product of (a) a lanthanide compound, (b) an organoaluminum hydride, (c) a trihydrocarbylaluminum, and (d) a halogen-containing compound.

In bulk polymerization (also called mass polymerization), the reaction medium is typically solventless, i.e., the monomer is polymerized in the absence of any solvent, and, in effect, the monomer itself acts as a diluent. Since bulk polymerization involves only the monomer and catalyst, there is a minimum potential for contamination and the product separation is simplified. It also offers a number of economic advantages including lower capital cost for new plant capacity, lower energy cost to operate, and fewer people to operate. The solventless feature also provides environmental advantages with reduced emissions and wastewater pollution.
Nonetheless, bulk polymerization requires very careful temperature control, and there is also the need for strong and elaborate stirring equipment since the viscosity of the polymerization system can become very high. In the absence of added diluent, the cement viscosity and exotherm effects can make temperature control very difficult. Also, cis-1,4-polybutadiene is insoluble in 1,3-butadiene monomer at elevated temperatures. It is therefore preferred to operate bulk polymerization at a low temperature.
Catalyst systems comprising a lanthanide compound, an alkylating agent, and a halogen source are useful for polymerizing conjugated diene monomers. They are highly stereospecific and can produce conjugated diene polymers having high cis-1,4-linkage contents. The resulting cis-1,4-polydienes have a linear backbone structure, exhibit good green strength, and have excellent viscoelastic properties. The linear backbone structure is believed to provide better tensile properties, higher abrasion resistance, lower hysteresis loss, and outstanding fatigue resistance in rubber compounds. Therefore, these cis-1,4-polydienes are particularly suitable for use in tire components such as sidewall and tread.
Commercially useful lanthanide catalyst systems are three-component catalyst systems that comprise a neodymium carboxylate as the lanthanide compound, either a trialkylaluminum or a dialkylaluminum hydride as the alkylating agent, and an alkylaluminum halide as the halogen source. The molecular weight of cis-1,4-polybutadiene produced by these catalysts is mainly influenced by the polymerization temperature, the monomer concentration, the catalyst concentration, and the ratio of the organoaluminum compound to the lanthanide compound. The molecular weight increases with lower polymerization temperature, higher monomer concentration, lower catalyst concentration, and lower ratio of the organoaluminum compound to the lanthanide compound.
Despite many advantages of the lanthanide-based catalysts, when they are employed in bulk polymerization of 1,3-butadiene, the low polymerization temperature and the high monomer concentration combine to give cis-1,4-polybutadiene having an excessively high molecular weight, which gives an excessively high Mooney viscosity and makes processing difficult.
One approach to reducing the molecular weight of cis-1,4-polybutadiene produced with the lanthanide-based catalyst systems is to employ a very high catalyst concentration or a very high ratio of the organoaluminum compound to the lanthanide compound, both of which result in very high catalyst costs. The use of high catalyst levels also necessitates the removal of catalyst residues from the polymer, yet this removal (also referred to as de-ashing) is time-consuming and adds cost.
The molecular weight of cis-1,4-polybutadiene produced with the lanthanide-based catalyst systems can also be reduced by reducing monomer conversion, because these catalyst systems display pseudo-living behavior so that molecular weight increases with monomer conversion. Unfortunately, reducing monomer conversion decreases productivity. In addition, when the monomer conversion is reduced, the amount of polymer produced with a specified amount of catalyst is also reduced.
The use of dialkylaluminum hydride instead of a trialkylaluminum as the alkylating agent also reduces the molecular weight of cis-1,4-polybutadiene produced with the lanthanide-based catalysts. Dialkylaluminum hydrides are better chain transfer agents than trialkylaluminums, and therefore less dialkylaluminum hydride—as compared to trialkylaluminum—is required to obtain a target molecular weight. Therefore, the use of dialkylaluminum hydrides reduces cost. But, the use of dialkylaluminum hydrides in low-temperature bulk polymerization has serious drawbacks. At low temperatures, dialkylaluminum hydrides are known to exist in oligomeric (such as trimeric) forms, which dissociate to the monomeric form only at elevated temperatures. The oligomeric structures of dialkylaluminum hydrides causes low catalyst activity. And, the resulting polymer has a very broad molecular weight distribution and contains a fraction of ultrahigh molecular weight material, which impacts processing and viscoelastic properties. The broad molecular weight distribution generally results in higher hysteresis loss in rubber vulcanizates. The ultrahigh molecular weight fraction causes high compound Mooney viscosity and high solution viscosity. The high compound Mooney viscosity adversely affects the processability and scorch safety of rubber compounds, and the high solution viscosity is disadvantageous if the cis-1,4-polybutadiene is used in the production of high-impact polystyrene. Moreover, during the synthesis of cis-1,4-polybutadiene, the high solution viscosity causes difficulty in stirring and transferring the polymer cement and reduces the capacity for removing the heat of polymerization, which limits the polymer concentration that can be achieved in production.
Therefore, there is a need to develop an improved bulk polymerization process that utilizes a lanthanide-based catalyst system for producing cis-1,4-polydiene having commercially desirable Mooney viscosities without having to employ high catalyst levels.

Bulk polymerization process for producing polydienes


Mold components comprising soluble cores, metal matrix composite articles, and methods of making metal matrix composite articles.

In general, the reinforcement of metal matrices with ceramics is known in the art. Examples of ceramic materials used for reinforcement include particles, discontinuous fibers (including whiskers) and continuous fibers, as well as ceramic pre-forms. Typically, ceramic material is incorporated into a metal to produce a metal matrix composite (MMC) having improved mechanical properties as compared to the metal itself.
Some articles undergo post-formation machining (e.g., the creation of holes, threads, or other elements requiring the removal of material to provide a desired shape). Conventional MMC articles typically contain sufficient ceramic reinforcement material to make the machining impractical or at least undesirable. Typically, the presence of the ceramic material quickly wears the cutting tool away making machining of the MMC undesirable. Hence, it is preferred to produce "net-shaped" or "near net-shaped" articles that require little, or no, post-formation machining or processing. In general, techniques for making net-shaped articles are known in the art (e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,234,045 (Cisko) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,887,684 (Döll et al.)).
In addition, or alternatively, to the extent feasible, the ceramic reinforcement may be reduced or not placed in areas where it will interfere with machining and/or other processing such as welding. For example, metal sleeves and/or inserts may be used in conjunction with the MMC article, with the post-formation machining substantially limited to the sleeves and/or inserts. However, this construction may lead to a weak interface between the MMC casting and the metal sleeve and/or insert.
Another consideration in designing and making MMC articles is the cost of the ceramic reinforcement material itself. Although, the mechanical properties of ceramic materials such as, for example, some continuous polycrystalline alpha-alumina fibers are high compared to low-density metals such as aluminum, the cost of such ceramic oxide materials is typically substantially more than metals such as aluminum. Hence, it is desirable to minimize the amount of ceramic oxide material used, and to try to optimize placement of the ceramic oxide materials in order to maximize the properties imparted by the ceramic oxide materials.
In some embodiments, it is desirable to provide MMC articles having ceramic material in areas of high stress. In another aspect, in some embodiments, it is desirable to form net-shaped MMC articles (e.g., net-shaped, threaded MMC articles).


Methods and apparatus for using a veneer type lathe of compact design for the pellitizing of a log portion directly from the log without intermediate steps. A log saddle with slide guides for the axles of the incisor rolls enables a significant reduction in the complexity of a peripheral drive veneer lathe and permits the use of a single press to clamp, incise and separate the pellets from the log.

The related patent incorporated herein by reference discloses a new concept for making fuel pellets directly from a log by incising the cross section of a desired pellet into the periphery of a log and by cutting/peeling the log in a veneer lathe type apparatus wherein the veneer depth is less than the depth of the incisions in the periphery of the log.
Veneer lathe devices, especially those used for plywood manufacture, are generally large and very expensive precision devices. There is a need for a lathe device which is customized for the manufacture of pellets and which is smaller and very much less expensive.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide methods and apparatus to provide a compact, low cost, veneer lathe type device which manufactures pellet fuel directly from logs at a high rate at low operating cost.
It is a further object to provide a pellitizer which can be transported and operated in the forest to reduce the production costs and the transportation costs of pellets produced thereby.


Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide a method for wireless communications. The method generally includes attempting, by a machine type communication (MTC) device, an attach procedure in order to detect a triggering request from an MTC server.

1. Field
Certain embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to wireless communications and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for triggering a detached machine type communication (MTC) device.
2. Background
Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content such as voice, data, and so on. These systems may be multiple-access systems capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing the available system resources (e.g., bandwidth and transmit power). Examples of such multiple-access systems include Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) systems, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) systems, Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) systems, 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems and Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) systems.
A wireless communication network may include a number of base stations that can support communication for a number of wireless devices. Wireless devices comprise user equipments (UEs) and remote devices. A UE is a device that operates under direct control by humans. Some examples of UEs include cellular phones, smart phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), wireless modems, handheld devices, laptop computers, netbooks, etc. A remote device is a device that operates without being directly controlled by humans. Some examples of remote devices include sensors, meters, location tags, etc. A remote device may communicate with a base station, another remote device, or some other entity. Machine type communication (MTC) refers to communication involving at least one remote device on at least one end of the communication.

Shared circuit switched security context


A deep fat fryer includes a housing having a door and a removable access panel that shields a frypot, one or more gas burners and gas and air regulators. A control panel supports user controls and includes vents for channeling air over the user controls during burner operation. A drain valve for emptying the contents of the frypot extends through an orifice in the access panel and has a handle that prevents closure of the door unless the drain valve is fully closed. The blower version of the gas burner includes a removable restrictor plate for determining the heat characteristics thereof.

This invention relates generally to Deep Fat Fryers and particularly to a novel Deep Fat Fryer design that is useful for different types of fryers and fryer sizes and should consequently prove less costly to manufacture. The design of the fryer makes for easier operation, enhanced cleanability and more efficient operation.
Deep fat fryers, such as those employed in restaurants, are well-known in the art and generally include a frypot for containing a cooking medium, such as oil, one or more wire baskets for supporting foodstuffs in the cooking medium, means for heating the cooking medium and various user controls for establishing different cook cycles. These controls generally comprise a timer, a temperature control, various indicating and status lights and alarms, etc. The fryer also includes a drain to permit removal of the cooking medium when it becomes contaminated. It is common to use gas burners, including atmospheric burners and blower powered gas burners that have infrared (IR) heating elements, in conjunction with microprocessor-controlled gas flow valves, for supplying heat to the cooking medium and providing temperature control for cooking various foodstuffs in the baskets in accordance with the user-established cook cycle. A manufacturer, such as the Assignee of the present invention, Keating of Chicago, Inc., generally produces a line of deep flat fryers that includes fryers of different size and capacity. A fryer with a large frypot may, for example have from three to six heat tubes positioned in the frypot, with a number of burner units for supplying heat, via combustion products, to the heat tubes.
Commonality of parts is a major factor for a manufacturer in controlling costs and production procedures and in one aspect the present invention design incorporates a modular IR burner/blower combination and a replaceable restrictor plate for changing the heat characteristics of the combination and enabling use of one or more of the modular burner/blowers among a variety of different size and capacity fryers.
Burner and heat transfer efficiency are important to both user and manufacturer; an inefficient design costing more in time and energy for the user, and entailing the need for more robust and complex fuel delivery and exhaust systems for the manufacturer. Servicing of the fryers is also an important consideration and a feature of the present invention design, enables service or adjustment of the gas flow valves, burner/blower combinations and air flow control devices to be accomplished with access only to the front of the fryer and without significant disassembly. In a further aspect the fryer is maintained in a clean state, with the air supplied to the burners being filtered and with the internal working parts of the fryer being substantially sealed from the environment. This has a salutary effect on equipment operation, since there is less likelihood of electrical and mechanical breakdown when the equipment is relatively free of grease, dirt, debris, etc.


A process and apparatus for a cleated wheel assembly for aligning and securing a cleat to the outer circumference of a wheel which provides a cleat having attachment apertures which are secured by dowel pins within spaced receptacles, defined within the outer wheel rim, with mated plugs securing the cleat within the spaced receptacles. The assembly comprises a cleated wheel and a second wheel, the two wheels rotating in opposite direction, in order for the cleated wheel to separate a single article from a stack of articles, the second wheel preventing the next sequential article from leaving the stack.

The present invention is directed to a cleated wheel assembly used to bias a single article from a stack of like articles.
Individual cleated wheels are known in the art for biasing articles. U.S. Pat. No. 4,981,235 to Ferrini and U.S. Pat. No. 4,958,825 to Onomoto, et al. disclose the use of a cleated wheel for separating individual items from a stack of items. Onomoto also discloses the use of a frictional member distal to the cleated wheel to prevent the conveyance of the next adjacent article.
Two or more cleated wheels are often used in cooperation to engage and bias a single piece of blank stock. As a result, it is important that the cooperating cleats present uniform surfaces and be installed within narrow tolerances of one another. Even small deviations in the operator technique of installing and replacing cleats upon the outer surface of a wheel can result in inefficient feeding, damaged stock, as well as creating uneven wear of the cleats.
The securing means used to attach cleats to the outer rim of the wheel are themselves subject to wear and require periodic maintenance. Since a cleated wheel is often one of many wheels or rollers carried by a given drive shaft, removal of a cleated wheel has heretofore required removal of numerous other attachments carried by the same axle. Such removal results in extensive and costly machine down time. Thus, there is a need for improvement within the art.

Cleated wheel assembly and method of separating a sheet using a cleated wheel assembly


System and methodology for intrusion detection and prevention is described. In one embodiment, for example, a method is described for detecting and preventing network intrusion, the method comprises steps of: defining intrusion descriptions specifying exploits that may be attempted by malicious network traffic, the intrusion descriptions indicating specific applications that may be targeted by individual exploits; for a particular application participating in network communication, deriving a subset of the intrusion descriptions specifically applicable to that particular application; using the subset of the intrusion descriptions specifically applicable to that application, monitoring network traffic destined for the particular application for detecting an attempted network intrusion; and if a network intrusion is detected, blocking network traffic destined for the particular application determined to comprise an exploit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to computer security and, more particularly, to a system and methodology for detecting and preventing intrusions on a per-application basis.
2. Description of the Background Art
The first computers were largely stand-alone units with no direct connection to other computers or computer networks. Data exchanges between computers were mainly accomplished by exchanging magnetic or optical media such as floppy disks. Over time, more and more computers were connected to each other using Local Area Networks or "LANs". In both cases, maintaining security and controlling what information a computer user could access was relatively simple because the overall computing environment was limited and clearly defined.
With the ever-increasing popularity of the Internet, however, more and more computers are connected to larger networks. Providing access to vast stores of information, the Internet is typically accessed by users through Web "browsers" (e.g., Microsoft® Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator) or other Internet applications. Browsers and other Internet applications include the ability to access a URL (Universal Resource Locator) or "Web" site. In the last several years, the Internet has become pervasive and is used not only by corporations, but also by a large number of small business and individual users for a wide range of purposes.
As more and more computers are now connected to the Internet, either directly (e.g., over a dial-up or broadband connection with an Internet Service Provider or "ISP") or through a gateway between a LAN and the Internet, a whole new set of challenges face LAN administrators and individual users alike: these previously closed computing environments are now open to a worldwide network of computer systems. A particular set of challenges involves attacks by perpetrators (hackers) capable of damaging the local computer systems, misusing those systems, and/or stealing proprietary data and programs.
The software industry has, in response, introduced a number of products and technologies to address and minimize these threats, including "firewalls", proxy servers, and similar technologies—all designed to keep malicious users (e.g., hackers) from penetrating a computer system or corporate network. Firewalls are applications that intercept the data traffic at the gateway to a Wide Area Network ("WAN") and check the data packets (i.e., Internet Protocol packets or "IP packets") being exchanged for suspicious or unwanted activities.
Another security measure that has been utilized by many users is to install an end point security (or personal firewall) product on a computer system to control traffic into and out of the system. An end point security product can regulate all traffic into and out of a particular computer. One such product is assignee's ZoneAlarm® product that is described in detail in U.S. Pat. No. 5,987,611, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. For example, an end point security product may permit specific "trusted" applications to access the Internet while denying access to other applications on a user's computer. To a large extent, restricting access to "trusted" applications is an effective security method. However, despite the effectiveness of end point security products, issues remain in protecting computer systems against attack by malicious users and applications.
One problem that remains is that trusted applications often have known vulnerabilities that make then susceptible to attack or exploitation by hackers and other malicious users. A vulnerability is a feature or a combination of features of a system that allows a malicious adversary to place the system in a state that is both contrary to the desires of the user(s) of the system and increases the risk (probability or consequence) of undesirable behavior. These vulnerabilities may include, for example, coding errors in applications, means for bypassing certain security safeguards, and the like. An example of a vulnerability is a program with a buffer that can be overflowed with data supplied by the invoker. The vulnerability may also prevent the successful implementation of a particular security policy for the system.
In an ideal case, a user or system administrator that is informed that a program (e.g., application) he or she is using has known vulnerabilities will upgrade the program (e.g., apply a patch) in order to address the specific vulnerabilities that have been discovered. However, in many cases, applying a patch or otherwise upgrading an application to address known problems is not practicable. One problem is that certain widely used programs (e.g., for the Microsoft Windows environment) may require frequent application of patches to address security vulnerabilities. The sheer volume of patches that may be required can deter many users from applying them.
Another obstacle is that applying a patch may cause other problems. Users testing patches before applying them sometimes encounter conflicts and incompatibilities with other programs and/or errors in the patches. These conflicts and errors generally result from the fact that patches are released with little or no testing in an attempt to rapidly respond to reported errors and vulnerabilities. Because patches are usually not subjected to rigorous testing (e.g., beta test programs), they may sometimes introduce more problems than they solve. Many users, particularly more experienced users, are reluctant to install patches for this reason.
Users are also deterred from applying patches by the fact that in many cases the patches that need to be applied are quite large (e.g., in the case of operating system patches). In particular, the size of download files may deter users that only have limited bandwidth available for file downloads (e.g., users with a dial-up connection to the Internet). For reasons such as these, many users do not apply all patches and continue to use applications with known vulnerabilities for extended periods of time.
Another alternative for protecting against known system vulnerabilities is to use intrusion detection and/or intrusion prevention solutions. Typically, both intrusion detection and intrusion prevention solutions work by monitoring the traffic on the network, noting which devices they are communicating with, and categorizing the types of traffic interacting with the devices. Traffic patterns are then compared against known attack or exploit signatures. Generally, an attack is an action conducted by an adversary or intruder with a specific objective in mind against a victim. From the perspective of the victim (e.g., a user or administrator responsible for maintaining a system), an attack is a set of one or more events that may have one or more security consequences. An exploit is the process of using a system vulnerability to violate a system security policy. A tool or defined method that could be used to violate a security policy is often referred to as an exploit script. An exploit seeks, in some way, to take advantage of a vulnerability in a system in the pursuit or achievement of some objective. All vulnerability exploitations are attacks, but not all attacks exploit vulnerabilities. For purposes of the following discussion both attacks and exploits will generally be referred to as "exploits" or "intrusions".
Intrusion detection and prevention solutions seek to detect and prevent intrusions (i.e., attacks and exploits). These solutions typically use known signatures to recognize traffic patterns (pattern-matching), similar to the way anti-virus products use known signatures to recognize viruses. The signatures are often based on malicious TCP/IP packets, since hackers commonly try to manipulate those packets to perform a malicious action. Intrusion detection solutions report (i.e., warn the user of) patterns that indicate a possible attack (e.g., based upon certain thresholds and severity levels). Intrusion prevention solutions go further by blocking suspicious traffic, terminating the connection, reconfiguring selected firewalls, or taking other actions in response to the detection of any intrusion.
A problem with current intrusion detection and intrusion prevention solutions (sometimes referred to herein as "IDS") is that these solutions are notorious for reporting a large number of "false positives". A false positive is an event which is incorrectly identified by the IDS as being an intrusion when none has occurred. In other words, current solutions frequently report and/or block innocent traffic. Blocking innocent traffic, in particular, can be problematic as it introduces the possibility of random network failure based on the (incorrect) matching of traffic with signatures of known exploits. On the other hand, if the IDS uses more narrow pattern matching criteria, then it is less effective as the IDS only recognizes common instances of known exploits and may not detect attacks having minor variations from the common case. For example, a personal computer may be subject to an RPC (remote procedure call) exploit because of a vulnerability of the operating system. If the pattern-matching criteria is defined narrowly (e.g., so as to avoid issuance of "false positives"), then the IDS may detect an MS-Blast attack, but not the entire class of RPC exploits to which the computer may be vulnerable. In practice, providing greater security using current intrusion detection/prevention solutions comes at the expense of requiring the user (or administrator) to sort through a larger number of reported attacks that turn out to be false positives.
Another limitation of current solutions is in handling encrypted traffic. Message encryption is a problem, especially for network-based intrusion systems. Encryption makes the practice of looking for particular patterns in packet bodies difficult if not impossible using current solutions. Useful analysis can be performed only after the message has been decrypted on the target host, and this often occurs within a specific application or at a level which cannot be detected by current intrusion detection/prevention solutions.
What is needed is a solution that is able to determine specific exploits that may apply in particular circumstances enabling a more focused examination of whether particular traffic matches the pattern of the exploits that may apply in particular circumstances. Ideally, the solution should enable intrusions to be more accurately detected and prevented, while also minimizing the number of false positives that are generated by the solution. The present invention provides a solution for these and other needs.


A lubrication arrangement includes at least one housing, at least one shaft, at least one bearing system configured to hold the at least one shaft in the at least one housing and to permit the at least one shaft to rotate, lubricant distributed in the at least one housing with the rotation of the at least one shaft, and a lubricant deflector provided in a stationary manner relative to the at least one housing above the at least one shaft. The lubricant strikes against the lubricant deflector and, by action of gravity, the lubricant is conducted to the at least one bearing system of the at least one shaft so that the at least one bearing system is supplied with the lubricant.

The present disclosure relates to a lubrication arrangement for a shaft and the bearing system thereof. The present disclosure further relates to a transmission having such a lubrication arrangement and a harvesting machine having such a lubrication arrangement.
Transmissions and drive devices having transmissions for drivable processing devices on harvesting machines are used in many different forms. Thus, for example, DE 2 745 564 C2 discloses a drive device for a processing device of a combine harvester, having a belt drive and a belt pulley which is arranged on a hollow shaft which is concentric to a main drive shaft. A drive gear is arranged on the hollow shaft and a shifting element is provided. The shifting element is axially displaceable into two positions and selectively connecting the main drive shaft in each case to a gear which has a different rotational direction and which is connected to the drive gear, wherein the shifting element in a first position connects a sun gear of a planetary transmission via planet gears and a second sun gear to the main drive shaft and in a second position connects the sun gear of the planetary transmission via planet gears and a ring gear carrier to the main drive shaft. DE 2 744 344 C3 also discloses a drive device for harvesting machines having a belt drive which has an output pulley rotatably mounted on an output shaft. The belt drive is able to be drive-connected directly, or indirectly via a selectively engageable reduction gear, to an output shaft, for example to an output shaft for a threshing drum.

Lubrication arrangement for a transmission


The present disclosure describes methods, systems, and computer program products for providing secure identity propagation in a cloud-based computing environment. One computer-implemented method includes receiving, from a user, a first security response message, transmitting, to the user in response to receiving the first security response message, a second security response message, wherein the second security response message comprises a Token Granting Token (TGT), receiving, from a cloud application, a Service Token (ST) request, wherein the ST request comprises the TGT, verifying the ST request based on the TGT, generating, in response to the verifying, a ST, wherein the ST is used to validate an access request to access a backend system, and transmitting the ST to the cloud application.

Organizations today use cloud-based services to run their enterprise applications. In many cases, those applications require the integration with internal backend systems that run in the organization's data center, such as an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system. In such a hybrid cloud scenario, the cloud application typically requires the user to authenticate with their credentials, such as a username and password, biometric information, and/or other credentials. Verification of the user's credentials is usually delegated to a trusted identity provider (IDP) that manages the user's account, e.g., a corporate IDP like the organization's user directory. A common and standardized protocol for delegating the authentication to the IDP is the Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML) 2.0.

Secure identity propagation in a cloud-based computing environment


A method of manufacturing terrazzo tiles and tiles manufactured in accordance with the method is described. A resin, curing agent, filler, and pigment are poured into a mold. Stone chips are then poured into the mold to settle with the majority at the bottom of the mold. Thereafter, curing occurs to result in rough tiles which are ground and then polished with the upper surface being the resulting tile surface at which the majority of the stones settle. The tiles are assembled onto a floor with grout lines resulting from spacing of the tiles, one from another. Grout is then poured in and skived, and the floor polished to result in a sealed monolithic surface.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method of manufacturing resin (terrazzo) tiles which are polished to a smooth surface, and to tiles made in that manner. More specifically, the invention also relates to a flooring system using such tiles which will add an appearance and functionality similar to poured in place terrazzo floors.
2. Discussion of Existing Systems
In the past, for most commercial applications, the flooring of choice is what is known as a terrazzo floor. Such floors typically are monolithic floors, i.e., a single surface with no breaks, which are poured in place over a substrate floor surface such as a concrete surface. The manufacture of such floors is well known and dates back for decades.
Typically, in the manufacture of such floors, a concrete surface is prepared and smoothed and then a resin and stone chips are mixed in with a curing agent. The resultant mixture is poured over the entire concrete subsurface. Skilled craftsmen then work the poured surface, much as skilled craftsmen work poured concrete floors in order to ensure a smooth, flat, and uniform surface for the poured terrazzo floor. Thereafter, the floor is allowed to cure and prepared for use. One desirable aspect of terrazzo floors is that the designer can obtain exactly the color desired by selection of an appropriate coloring agent or dye (pigment), and the poured in place floor is "monolithic," i.e., does not have separate and discontinuous sealing inherent between tiles in a tile system.
A problem with poured in place floors, however, is that it is labor intensive and requires highly skilled craftsmen. The poured in place floors hinders adjacent construction and prolongs clean up from the floor finishing process. More specifically, while smoothing of poured concrete is a relatively simple task because the surface need not be particularly smooth, this is not the case with poured in place floors because they are generally used in high human traffic areas and are required to provide an aesthetically pleasing environment. Thus, the skill level of craftsmen working on poured in place floors needs to be very high, and the process is labor intensive, thereby resulting in a relatively high cost.
Past attempts to replace poured in place floors with tile systems have resulted in numerous attempts to manufacture terrazzo floor tile, but all resulted in thick and uneven tiles, and there was no way to provide a monolithic surface with such tiles as is possible with poured in place floors.
Accordingly, the problems of the prior art described with poured in place floors and the attempted substitute with terrazzo tiles are avoided in accordance with the invention which is described in greater detail further herein.

Method of manufacturing terrazzo tiles, terrazzo tiles and flooring system assembled with terrazzo tiles


An optical fibre device, including an optical connector disposed therein, a recess allowing a through connector to be connected to the optical connector, and an engagement mechanism which enables release of the through connector when connected to the optical connector.

The fibre optic communications industry currently uses a number of different optical fibre connector types. The connectors are used to interconnect and disconnect, optical fibres used for light transmission. To provide a satisfactory connection requires optical connectors to be high precision mechanical devices, with tolerances on certain parts being in the order of 1 micron. The connectors are difficult to produce and many years of engineering effort have been required to perfect and develop the various types of connectors, most of which need to be manufactured in large quantities. The different types of connectors are essentially all incompatible, and as the industry evolves, new types are being developed with improved characteristics. Despite the variety of types of connectors which are available, there is a lack of user installable and inexpensive components for adapting between connector types. A number of adaptors for connecting different types of connectors are available but tend to be severely limited in application, either due to excessive cost or limited performance. Some adaptors are used in insets or equipment, but are incorporated into instruments, so an instrument can only be used to connect to one type of connector. The user purchasing the instrument therefore can only make use of it with one type of optical connector.


A waste heat recovery Rankine cycle system has a first Rankine cycle operated with a first working medium and a second Rankine cycle operated with a second working medium having a lower boiling point than the first working medium, the first Rankine cycle has a second scroll type fluid machine as an expander, a second electric generator, a second condenser, a condensing tank, a second condensing pump, a gas-liquid separation device, a heat exchanger, a low rate regulation valve, and a control device. This structure can drive a generator by a waste heat not only in a first Rankine cycle but also in a second Rankine cycle.

Conventionally, a waste heat recovery Rankine cycle system is known in which waste heat radiated from a heat source such as an engine is collected so as to generate steam with high temperature and high pressure, and an expander is driven with the steam as a working medium so as to generate electric power. Among such waste heat recovery Rankine cycle systems, there is a system configured by combining a first Rankine cycle operated with water vapor (water) as a working medium and a second Rankine cycle operated with a material having lower boiling point than the water as a working medium. The steam of the second working medium is generated with the water vapor which is the first working medium as the heat source, and the electric power is generated again with the steam. By reusing the first working medium as the heat source heating the second working medium, efficiency of electric power generation is improved. For example, the art described in the Patent Literature 1 is so.

Waste heat recovery ranking cycle system


A method for generating an electronic message having the appearance of an individual performing a song with a musical artist includes: receiving a selection of a video segment, receiving an image of an individual's face, receiving a recording of the individual signing the song, generating the electronic message from the video segment, receiving information about a recipient of the electronic message, and transmitting the electronic message to the recipient. The video segment includes: a song, a musical artist performing the song, and a character performing the song with the musical artist. Generating the electronic message includes: overlaying the image of the individual's face onto a facial area of the character, simulating movement of one or more facial features of the image, and synchronizing the recording of the individual signing the song with the simulated movement of the facial features.

Messages play an important role in society and business because they offer a way for information to be communicated between individuals and/or entities. Messages have been used throughout history, but the manner of relaying messages has frequently changed with advances in technology and communication. For example, in the past, messages were relayed verbally between individuals or written down on a medium, such as paper, and delivered to a desired recipient of the message. Messages could be delivered over long distances with the development of organized mail delivery systems, such as governmental postal services. Delivery of the such messages increased as advances in technology allowed motorized vehicles, such as cars and planes, to replace horses and other earlier message delivery forms.
The invention of the telegraph provided a new mechanism for delivering messages and allowed messages to be rapidly transmitted over large distances. Similarly, the invention of the telephone allowed individuals or entities to personally delivery messages verbally over large distances. The use of answering machines further allowed messages to be delivered verbally even when a recipient of the message was unavailable to answer a telephone call. The invention of the computer, various networks (e.g., the Internet), wireless devices (e.g., cell phones), and the like have likewise provided new mechanisms for delivering messages that allow rapid delivery and dissemination of information over large distances and/or to multiple recipients. For example, individuals and entities often send and receive electronic messages via email, text messaging (e.g., SMS, MMS, and the like), tweets, social media profile updates, and the like.
Due to the importance of messages in society and business, there is a constant need for new and innovative ways to send messages.


The present invention relates to alpha-glucoside transporters which can promote assimilation of maltose/maltotriose contained in wort, etc., and so on. Especially in relation to glucose-induced inactivation/degradation, the present invention relates to alpha-glucoside transporters which are less susceptible to glucose-induced inactivation/degradation and can take up maltotriose like AGT1, by constructing the hybrid of AGT1 and MAL21. By using, e.g., a yeast expressing the alpha-glucoside transporter of the present invention, the fermentation rate of moromi mash containing oligosaccharides such as maltose/maltotriose can be accelerated.

In the production of malt fermented beverages such as beer, happoshu (low-malt beer), whisky, etc., the major three sugars contained in wort prepared by mashing malt, etc. are glucose, maltose and maltotriose. The ratio of these malt-derived sugars can be somewhat varied depending on the mashing process but does not change significantly without addition of enzyme preparations, glycosylated starch, etc., which may be approximately 1:5:1. Among them, glucose is a monosaccharide and preferentially assimilated as a sugar most favored by yeast. Yeast has numerous genes suppressed in the presence of glucose during the transcription process. This control mechanism is called glucose repression. Several transporters required for uptake of maltose or maltotriose into yeast all undergo this repression. It is known that some of these gene products which undergo the gene repression are further inactivated in the presence of glucose after translation. Maltose transporters are also within this type and known to be rapidly degraded in the presence of glucose. The first step of assimilation of maltose or maltotriose is the uptake into yeast cells by these transporters and, when transporters are degraded, assimilation stops. This is the reason why the expression of transporter is called a rate-determining step.    Non-Patent Literature 1: Brondijk, T. H., van der Rest, M. E., Pluim, D., de Vries, Y. de., Stingl, K., Poolman, B., and Konings, W. N. (1998) J. Biol. Chem., 273 (25), 15352-15357    Non-Patent Literature 2: Medintz, I., Wang, X., Hradek, T., and Michels, C. A. (2000) Biochemistry, 39 (15), 4518-4526    Non-Patent Literature 3: Gadura, N., and Michels, C. A. (2006) Curr. Genet., 50 (2), 101-114    Non-Patent Literature 4: Han E. K., Cotty F., Sottas C., Jiang H., Michels C. A., (1995) Mol. Microbiol., 17(6), 1093-107
Accordingly, when a glucose concentration is high, for example, Agt1p in yeast cannot efficiently function upon incubation since its degradation rate is very rapid in the presence of glucose, which is considered as one of the problems.


The present invention is directed to particular monoclonal antibodies and fragments thereof that find use in the detection, prevention and treatment of Streptococcus pneumoniae infections. In particular, these antibodies may kill Streptococcus pneumoniae or limit the replication of Streptococcus pneumoniae. Also disclosed are improved methods for producing such monoclonal antibodies.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the fields of microbiology, immunology and pathology. More particularly, it concerns the development of human monoclonal antibodies for use in the diagnosis, prevention and therapy of Streptococcus pneumoniae infections.
2. Background of the Invention
Streptococcus pneumoniae is a ubiquitous human pathogen causing a range of clinical infections, such as otitis media, pneumonia, meningitis, and bacteremia. The more serious manifestations are especially virulent in immunocompromised and elderly individuals. Over 90 different S. pneumoniae serotypes have been characterized, each having a different capsular polysaccharide structure. These polysaccharides are immunogenic in adults, and the Pneumovax®23 vaccine consists of a cocktail of 23 of the most common and/or virulent S. pneumoniae strains. The vaccine is recommended for everyone over the age of sixty, as well as all immunocompromised individuals, to ensure seroprotection against these strains.
The serology of the response to Pneumovax®23, as well as the conjugate vaccine Prevnar® (used to immunize children), has been studied in depth with regard to the humoral polyclonal IgG and IgA responses in both sera and saliva (Anttila et al., 1999; Nieminen et al., 1998a; Nieminen et al., 1998b). The memory and antibody secreting cell (ASC) response to these vaccines has also been previously explored on a cellular level with B cell ELISpot assays and flow cytometry Nieminen et al., 1998b; Clutterbuck et al., 2006), and the presence of both responses after vaccination is now well established. However, utilizing ASCs to produce human monoclonal antibodies would provide a novel way to fully elucidate the recall response to pathogen serotypes after vaccination, and even provides a window to explore the evolution of past responses.
Antibodies that cross-react to two or more pneumococcal polysaccharides are present in sera both pre- and post-immunization (Lee et al., 1984; Soininen et al., 2000); however, whether this is due to single antibody specificities that are capable of cross-reacting or rather due to broad polyclonal antibody specificities is not known. Although it has been reported that immunization with Pneumovax®23 in patients with SLE does not induce new auto-specificities (Elkayam et al., 2005), one report has shown that kidney-binding antibodies in a patient with SLE also cross-reacted with pneumococcal polysaccharide (Chowdhry et al., 2005). Thus, it is possible that antibodies produced from B cells in SLE donors may show increased poly-reactivity or auto-reactivity. It is only possible to determine such per-antibody phenomenon by the characterization of human monoclonal antibodies from SLE donors.


A display control device includes a display unit that displays one or a plurality of instruction images to be pressed to input operating instructions, a key press detection unit that detects a press on the instruction image, a key press duration detection unit that detects a duration of the time the key press detection unit continuously detects that the instruction image is being pressed, and a vibration drive unit that starts applying vibration to the display unit in response to a press on the instruction image detected by the key press detection unit and adjusts the amplitude of the vibration based on the type of the instruction image detected as being pressed and the key press duration.

The present disclosure relates to a display control device and an electronic apparatus provided with the display control device, and more particularly to a technique to make users recognize the operation details.
Electronic apparatuses with touch panels have been known conventionally. One of these known electronic apparatuses is, for example, an operation display device with a touch panel mounted on a liquid crystal display (LCD). This operation display device includes a driving member that applies vibration to the touch panel and a buzzer that makes a buzzing sound. If an operator touches an area where touch operation (selecting operation) is inhibited on the operation screen (unselectable area), as is well known, the driving member imparts vibration to the touch panel as well as the buzzer starts buzzing.

Display control device and electronic apparatus


Cold cathode fluorescent tubes of the first group are aligned widthwise in one side of an enclosure which is divided into two areas at a centerline running widthwise. Cold cathode fluorescent tubes of the second group are aligned widthwise in the other side of the enclosure. All of the cold cathode fluorescent tubes are symmetrically-placed with respect to the centerline running widthwise. The cold cathode fluorescent tubes positioned outside widthwise are inclined at θ2 so that the distance between each of the tubes and the aperture plane gradually decreases lengthwise from an edge toward the center of the enclosure. The cold cathode fluorescent tubes positioned inside widthwise are inclined at θ1 so that the distance between each of the tubes and the aperture plane gradually decreases lengthwise from an edge toward the center of the enclosure. The inclined angle θ1 is made greater than the inclined angle θ2.

The present invention relates to planar light source devices used for a backlight unit for a liquid crystal panel, in particular to a planar light source device employing approximately U-shaped cold cathode fluorescent tubes.
Various backlight units employing a cold cathode fluorescent tube have been invented to be used for liquid crystal modules such as liquid crystal televisions.
JP 2005-85689 A discloses a planar light source device of the direct backlight type with approximately U-shaped cold cathode fluorescent tubes arranged parallel to an emission plane. The planar light source device disclosed by JP 2005-85689 A includes the approximately U-shaped lamps in which each of the U-shaped lamps is arranged so that the projection side is positioned parallel to the emission plane.
JP 2004-71576 A discloses a planar light source device provided with a straight cold cathode fluorescent tube oriented along each of widthwise edges of the enclosure. The planar light source device disclosed by JP 2004-71576 A is provided with a backside translucent film for guiding light emitted from the straight cold cathode fluorescent tubes to an emission plane. The backside translucent film is arranged so that the distance between the film and the emission plane gradually decreases as the film stretches from the edges toward the center of the enclosure lengthwise.
JP 2005-195778 A discloses a planar light source device of the direct backlight type provided with straight cold cathode fluorescent tubes arranged parallel to an emission plane. The planar light source device disclosed by JP 2005-195778 A includes cold cathode fluorescent tubes and a chassis. The distance between the tubes and the chassis is greater around the edges of the tubes to which a voltage is applied than around the opposite edges of the tubes.
JP 2005-150056 A discloses a planar light source device of the direct backlight type provided with straight cold cathode fluorescent tubes arranged parallel to an emission plane. The planar light source device disclosed by JP 2005-150056 A includes cold cathode fluorescent tubes which are arranged so that the tubes disposed inside widthwise are positioned closer to the enclosure side, i. e., the side of a reflection plane, than the tubes disposed outside widthwise of the enclosure. The cold cathode fluorescent tubes of JP 2005-150056 A are further arranged so that the distance between the tubes disposed inside widthwise is shorter than the distance between the tubes disposed outside widthwise.
Each of the planar light source devices described above is arranged so as to have a uniform distribution of an irradiation amount on the emission plane. In the meantime, some liquid crystal television devices require higher brightness around the center of the display than around the edges for an improved user-visibility. However, the conventional planar light source devices employing direct-type cold cathode fluorescent tubes have not been able to attain higher brightness around the center of the display widthwise (i. e., in the shorter-side direction) and lengthwise (i. e., in the longer-side direction) at the same time.
The present invention aims to provide a planar light source device of the direct backlight type which achieves a higher brightness around the center of the display than around the edges.