The present disclosure relates to a method performed in a network node of a communication network, for facilitating downlink transmission in a shared cell served by a group of at least one Listen Before Talk (LBT) capable Transmission Point (TP). The method comprises determining, for each TP of the group, whether an LBT procedure is to be performed before signal transmission by said TP. The method also comprises, based on the determining, controlling the use of LBT procedures in the shared cell.

LAA. Unlicensed Spectrum, and Frame Structure Type 3 (FS3)
License Assisted Access (LAA) or operation based on frame structure type 3 (the frame structure type 3 is specified in the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Technical Specification (TS) 36.211), which was introduced in Long Term Evolution (LTE) Release 13 (Rel-13), refers to the User Equipment (UE) operation on at least one carrier in unlicensed spectrum such as Band 46 also used for Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN). e.g. WiFi, access. For instance, a UE can be configured with carrier aggregation with the Primary Cell (PCell) in Band 1 (licensed spectrum) and Secondary Cell (SCell) in Band 46 (unlicensed spectrum). An evolved Node B (eNB) operating in the unlicensed band only transmits signals which may be used for UE measurements using so called Discovery Reference Symbols/Signal (DRS). Unlike release 8 CRS (Common Reference Symbols), DRS is not transmitted in every subframe, and is instead transmitted periodically (e.g. every 160 milliseconds, ms). Moreover, the eNB may perform so called Listen Before Talk (LBT) procedures to check that no other node (such as another eNB or a WiFi access point, AP) is transmitting in the unlicensed spectrum before it transmits DRS. This means that from a UE perspective, the eNB may be unable to transmit any particular DRS transmission. In certain regions, LBT functionality is required from a regulatory point of view to ensure fair coexistence of different radios and access technologies on the unlicensed band.
In LTE Rel-14, in addition to the Downlink (DL) operation in the unlicensed spectrum as described above, also Uplink (UL) operation is being introduced. This means that a UE may be configured with UL transmissions on one or more SCells in the unlicensed spectrum and perform UL LBT if needed.
Listen-Before-Talk
According to the LBT procedure, the transmitter in unlicensed spectrum (e.g. comprised in a base station in case of DL or the user terminal or UE in case of UL) needs to listen on the carrier before it starts to transmit. If the medium is free the transmitter can transmit (referred sometimes as LBT being successful). If the medium is busy, e.g. if some other node is transmitting, the transmitter cannot transmit (referred sometimes as LBT being unsuccessful or fails) and the transmitter can try again at a later time. Therefore, the LBT procedure enables a Clear Channel Assessment (CCA) check before using the channel. Based on the CCA, if the channel is found to be clear then then LBT is considered to be successful. But if the channel is found to be occupied then the LBT is considered to be failure also known as LBT failure. The LBT failure requires the network node not to transmit signals in the same and/or subsequent subframes. Exact subframes and also the number of subframes where transmission is forbidden depends on specific design of LBT scheme.
Due to LBT, a transmission in an unlicensed band may be delayed until the medium becomes free again. And in case there is no coordination between the transmitting nodes (which often is the case) the delay may appear random.
In a simple form, LBT is performed periodically with a period equal to certain units of time. As an example, one unit of time duration i.e. one Transmission Time Interval (TTI), one time slot, one subframe etc. The duration of listening in LBT is typically in the order of few to tens of microseconds (μs). Typically for LBT purpose, each LTE subframe is divided into two parts. In the first part, the listening takes place, and the second part carries data if the channel is seen to be free. The listening occurs at the beginning of the current subframe and determines whether or not data transmission will continue in this subframe and a few next subframes. Hence, the data transmission in a subframe P until subframe P+n is determined by the outcome of listening during the beginning of subframe P. The number n depends on system design and/or regulatory requirements.
Shared Cell Deployments
A shared cell is a type of downlink Coordinated Multi-Point (CoMP) where multiple geographically separated Transmission Points (TPs) dynamically coordinate their transmission towards the UE. A unique feature of a shared cell is that all transmission points within the shared cell have the same Physical Cell Identifier/ID (PCI). This means that the UE cannot distinguish between the TPs by the virtue of the PCI decoding. The PCI is acquired during a measurement procedure e.g. cell identification etc. A TP may comprise one or more antenna ports. The TP can be uniquely identified by a unique identifier also known as TP ID.
The shared cell approach can be implemented by distributing the same cell specific signals on all points (within the macro point coverage area). With such a strategy, the same physical signals such as Primary Synchronization Signals (PSS), Secondary Synchronization Signals (SSS), Cell Specific Reference Signals (CRS), Positioning Reference Signal (PRS) etc. and the same physical channels such as Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH), Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) containing paging and System Information Blocks (SIBs), control channels (Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), Physical Control Format Indicator Channel (PCFICH), Physical channel Hybrid-ARQ Indicator Channel (PHICH) etc.) are transmitted from each TP in the DL. Tight synchronization in terms of transmission timings between the TPs within a shared channel is used e.g. in order of ±100 nanoseconds (ns) between any pair of nodes. This enables the physical signals and channels transmitted from M points to be combined over air. The combining is similar to what is encountered in Single-Frequency Networks (SFN) for broadcast.
Each TP may also be configured to transmit Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) signals which are unique to each TP. Therefore the CSI-RS enables the UE to uniquely identify a TP within a shared cell. The UE may also use the CSI-RS for performing measurement (e.g. CSI-RSRP. Reference Signal Received Power) which in turn enables the UE to determine the strongest TP within a shared cell.
Cell Portion
A TP may be associated with a cell portion. A cell portion is a geographical part of a cell, e.g. shared cell. A cell portion is semi-static and identical for both the UL and the DL.
Within a cell, a cell portion may be uniquely identified by its Cell Portion ID. TP ID and cell portion ID may be interchangeably used.

Method for controlling LBT in a distributed system


The present disclosure relates to a portable golf swing plane training device having a base support, alignment rods, and a golf club insert member for receiving a golf club. The golf club, when applied to the golf club insert member, acts as a weight and support member to stabilize and firmly hold the portable golf swing plane training device to a golf playing surface.

Golf training aids are widely available and often useful tools for helping golfers improve the golf swings and techniques. However, when golfers practice on their own at the driving range, they often fail to make progress because the lack feedback. Without proper feedback, they will continue to reinforce bad golf training habits. A common and undesirable habit many golfers face is having an improper golf stroke and swing plane, which can cause several faults such as a slice, hook, shank, as well as poor golf swing techniques. There are many golf training aid devices on the market that can help golfers with teaching them proper swing plane techniques. However, most of these golf training aid devices are too large, heavy, require too much equipment, or not portable. Therefore, it would be highly desirable to have a small, lightweight, and extremely easy-to-use golf training aid device with minimal equipment that a golfer could easily take with them to the golf driving range to improve their golf swing.


A display module having both a wire holder that holds lead wires for the display module and a rib that is aligned with the wire holder. The wire holder is coupled to a bottom cover using a protrusion on the bottom cover that mates to a slit in the wire holder. The rib extends from one side portion of a main frame and contacts the wire holder when the display module is assembled. The wire holder and the rib prevent the wire from directly contacting a top frame and a bottom cover, and also increase the flexibility of the wires in the display module. Thus, the wire holder and rib reduce or prevents wire damage.

This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 2000-18337, filed on Apr. 7, 2000, which is hereby incorporated by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to display devices. More particularly, it relates to protecting the wires of a display back-light device.
2. Description of the Related Art
There are many types of flat panel display devices available, including plasma display panels (PDP), field emission displays (FED), and the widely used liquid crystal display (LCD). While the principles of the present invention are generally applicable to all such displays, it will be discussed with respect to a LCD that is used in a portable computer.
Referring now to FIG. 1, a general portable computer typically includes a system body 1 and a liquid crystal display (LCD) device assembly 4 that is coupled to the system body 1 via a hinge mechanism 19. Thus, the general portable computer includes one case connected to another case using a hinge. The liquid crystal display device assembly 4 has a liquid crystal display module 2 and a case 6 that supports the module 2. The system body 1 includes an input device 12 such as a keyboard.
The case 6 has a top portion and a bottom portion. A back-light device having an illuminating section (reference the subsequent discussion related to FIG. 2) is included in the liquid crystal display module 2. An inverter power supply circuit 22 for driving a lamp (not shown in FIG. 1) in the back-light device, usually either a cold cathode fluorescent lamp or a hot cathode fluorescent lamps, is installed in either the liquid crystal display module 2 or in the system body 1.
FIG. 2 shows an illuminating section 26 of a back-light device, including a lamp 30. As shown, the illuminating section 26 includes the lamp 30, a lamp housing 34, wires 27, a connector 7, and a lamp holder 32. The lamp housing 34 condenses and reflects light emitted from the lamp 30. The wires 27 include a power wire 27a and a ground wire 27b that are connected to the connector 7 at one end and are soldered to the lamp 30 at the other. The lamp holder 32 covers the solder joint between the lamp 30 and the power wire 27a. Although not shown in FIG. 2, the connector 7 is connected to the inverter power supply circuit (reference element 22 of FIG. 1) such that the wires 27 supply power to the lamp 30.
FIG. 3A is an enlarged partial view of the wire exit portion of the LCD device assembly 4. As shown, a thermal shrinkage tube 10, the lamp holder 32 over the power wire 27a, the power wire 27a, and the ground wire 27b exit the right bottom side of the LCD device assembly 4. Since the length of the power wire 27a from the lamp 30 is shorter than that of the ground wire 27b, the power wire 27a is subject to more tensile forces. Therefore, the thermal shrinkage tube 10 and the lamp holder 32 cover and protect the power wire 27a. On the other hand, since the ground wire 27b is substantially longer, a thermal shrinkage tube and a lamp holder 32 are not need to protect the ground wire 27b.
Still referring to FIG. 3A, a top frame 70 and a main frame 60, which are beneficially press molded, guide the wires 27. If the wires 27 are strongly pulled when connecting the connector 7 (see FIG. 2) to the inverter power supply circuit (reference element 22 of FIG. 1), the wires 27 can be damaged by the top frame 70 and the main frame 60. This is because the top frame 70, which is metal, has an edge portion, while the main frame 60 has burrs generated during press molding. The edge and the burrs can damage the coated material of the wires 27, the thermal shrinkage tube 10, and the lamp holder 32, and can cause an open-circuit in the wires 27. Moreover, the tensile forces which occur during the fabricating process, such as connecting the connector 7 (see FIG. 2) to the inverter power supply circuit, during the conveying process, and during the packaging process, can also cause an open-circuit in the wires 27.
FIG. 3B is a sectional view taken along line Axe2x80x94A of FIG. 3A. As shown, the power wire 27a, which is connected to one end of the lamp 30, directly exits the LCD assembly 4. The ground wire 27b, which is connected to the other end of the lamp 30, goes through a space that is formed between the main frame 60 and the top frame 70 and then exits the LCD device assembly 4. Since the power wire 27a is shorter and is covered with the thermal shrinkage tube 10 and with the lamp holder 32, the power wire 27a is not easily bent when assembling the LCD assembly 4 and when connecting the LCD assembly 4 to the system body (reference 1 of FIG. 1). Thus, the power wire 27a touches the bottom case of the system body (reference 1 of FIG. 1) such that an assembly defect can occur.
Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a display module of the type used in a portable computer that substantially obviates one or more of the problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.
An object of the present invention is to prevent an open-circuit occurring in the wires that supply power to a back-light device.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a liquid crystal display module having wires that is easily bent when connecting wires to an inverter power supply.
Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description that follows, and in part will be apparent from that description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention will be realized and attained by the structure particularly pointed out in the written description and claims hereof as well as shown in the appended drawings.
To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the present invention, as embodied and broadly described, the present invention provides a liquid crystal display (LCD) module, including: a liquid crystal display panel having a display area; a back-light device having a lamp, wherein the lamp is connected to a power wire and to a ground wire; a first frame having first and second portions, wherein the first portion covers a top peripheral surface of the display area, and wherein the second portion covers side surfaces of the liquid crystal display panel; a second frame connected to the first frame; a bottom cover supporting the second frame and having an elongated-shape along the lamp, and a protrusion on a side wall; a wire holder guiding the power and ground wires, the wire holder coupled with the bottom cover through the protrusion; and a rib extended from the second frame and aligned to the wire holder.
The bottom cover has a first portion, two second portions, and a third portion. The first portion is parallel to the second frame and is elongated along the lamp. The two second portions are perpendicular to the first portion and are located at right and left ends of the first portion, and the third portion is perpendicular to the first and second portions and elongates along the lamp. The wire holder is in the third portion and protrudes about 10 millimeters from the third portion. The wire holder is beneficially made of PC (poly carbonate) and includes guide openings that guide the wires. Each guide opening beneficially has a U-shape.
The third portion has a protrusion that is coupled with the wire holder. The height of the protruded portion is lower than that of the third portion of the bottom cover.
Moreover, the wire holder has a slot at its central bottom portion that serves to attach the wire holder to the protrusion of the third portion of the bottom cover. The wire holder slot is formed along the third portion of the bottom cover. Beneficially, the slot is half of the height of the wire holder.
The second frame is located between the bottom cover and the first frame. The second frame has a first side portion that is parallel to the bottom cover. The second frame also has a rib that aligns to the wire holder and that extends over the wires. The rib of the second frame is beneficially made of the same material as the second frame and beneficially contacts the wire holder.
Moreover, the first frame and the bottom cover are beneficially made of a metal, possibly stainless steel (SUS).
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.

Structure for preventing wires from being damaged


Worm gear mechanism is provided which includes a worm, a torque-transmitting worm wheel and an auxiliary worm wheel. In order to secure a sufficient face width of the torque-transmitting worm wheel, a pitch diameter of the auxiliary worm wheel is set to be greater than a pitch diameter of the torque-transmitting worm wheel. Thus, undesired backlash can be eliminated by the auxiliary worm wheel meshing with the worm with a different meshing phase from the torque-transmitting worm wheel.

The worm gear mechanisms are transmission mechanisms which include a worm wheel meshing with a driving worm so that torque can be transmitted from the worm via the worm wheel to a load side (i.e., load-side component). In the field of such worm gear mechanisms, various techniques have been developed for reducing undesired backlash (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-open Publication Nos. 2001-355700 and 2002-37100). The worm gear mechanism disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open Publication No. 2001-355700 is outlined in FIGS. 19A to 19C, and the worm gear mechanism disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open Publication No. 2002-37100 is outlined in FIGS. 20A and 20B.
FIG. 19A shows the worm gear mechanism 200 connected to an electric motor 201, FIG. 19B is a sectional view of the worm gear mechanism 200, and FIG. 19C shows how a worm 202 and worm wheel 204 mesh with each other in the worm gear mechanism 200.
In the worm gear mechanism 200 of FIG. 19A, the driven worm wheel 204, connected to an output shaft 203, meshes with the driving worm 202 connected via a worm shaft 205 to the electric motor 201. As seen from FIGS. 19A to 19C, the worm wheel 204 includes a hub 206 fixedly mounted on the output shaft 203, and first and second gears 207 and 208 resiliently secured on the outer periphery of the hub 206 via a ring-shaped resilient member 209.
Namely, in the worm wheel 204 meshing with the worm 202, the two (first and second) gears 207 and 208 are separated from each other, via the resilient member 209, along an axial direction of the output rotation shaft 203 in phase-shifted relation to each other, and the resilient member 209 allows the two gears 207 and 208 to be slightly rotated relative to each other in a rotational direction of the worm wheel 204 and then resiliently rotated back to their original relative rotational positions after the rotation. In this worm gear mechanism 200, a tooth 202a of the worm 200 is held at its opposite surfaces by teeth 207a and 208a of the first and second gears 207 and 208, so as to minimize undesired backlash.
FIG. 20A shows the worm gear mechanism 300 disclosed in the 2002-37100 publication which is connected to an electric motor 301, and FIG. 20B is a sectional view of the worm gear mechanism 300.
In the worm gear mechanism 300 of FIG. 20A, a driven worm wheel 304, connected to an output shaft 303, meshes with a driving worm 302 connected via a motor shaft 305 to the electric motor 301. As seen in FIG. 20B, each tooth 311 of the worm wheel 304 has a meshing region 312 (shaded portion in the figure) that meshes with a tooth 302a of the worm 302. The worm wheel 304 has an annular holding groove portion 313 that is formed in one side of the tooth width, i.e. face width, (extending in a left-and-right direction of FIG. 20B) of each tooth 311 and located outwardly of the meshing region 312 of each tooth 311, and a rubber O-ring 321 is fitted in and secured to the annular groove portion 313. The rubber O-ring 321 is slightly deformed by contacting a top land (i.e., tooth top surface) 302b of the worm 302, and its resilient restoring force imparts a preload to meshing tooth regions to thereby reduce backlash.
However, in the conventional worm gear mechanism 200 shown in FIGS. 19A to 19C, where the worm wheel 204 comprises the two gears 207 and 208 separated from each other along the axial direction of the rotation shaft, the area of contact, with the tooth 202a of the worm 202, of each tooth of the worm wheel 204 is less than one-half the contact area in the traditional worm wheel having an integral (non-divided) gear. When the worm 202 is rotated in a forward direction, the torque is transmitted from the worm 202 to the teeth 207a of the first gear 207, while, when the worm 202 is rotated in a reverse direction, the torque is transmitted to the teeth 208a of the second gear 208. Particularly, the area where the first and second gears 207 and 208 are separated from each other (i.e., the middle portion of the width of the worm wheel in the illustrated example of FIG. 19B) is just where contact pressure, against the worm 202, of the worm wheel 304 becomes greatest. Therefore, further consideration or improvement has to be made for enhanced durability, wear resistance in particular, of the worm gear mechanism 200.
Further, in the conventional worm gear mechanism 300 of FIGS. 20A and 20B, where the annular holding groove portion 313 is formed in one side of the face width of each tooth 311 and located outwardly of the meshing region 312 of each tooth 311, bending rigidity in a tooth-thickness direction would differ between the opposite sides of each face width, which would make the contact pressure uneven between the opposite sides of the face width. Therefore, in this worm gear mechanism 300 too, further consideration or improvement has to be made for enhanced durability of the worm gear mechanism 300.
Besides, in the worm gear mechanism 300, considerable frictional force is produced by the rubber O-ring 321 held in rubbing contact with the top land 302b of the rotating worm 302. In addition, the worm wheel 304 has a relatively great radius from its rotation center (or rotation axis) to the rubbing contact surface of the rubber O-ring 321. Therefore, there would be produced a great friction torque. It is preferable that such a great friction torque be minimized in order to enhance a torque transmitting efficiency of the worm gear mechanism 300. Further, because the rubber O-ring 321 rubs the top land 302b with a great frequency, further consideration or improvement has to be made for enhanced durability of the O-ring 321.
If the worm gear mechanism 200 of FIGS. 19A to 19C or the worm gear mechanism 300 of FIGS. 20A and 20B is employed in an electric power steering apparatus, it is also required to minimize impinging or hitting sound that would be produced between the teeth as the steering wheel is operated by a vehicle driver, so as to minimize noise sound in a vehicle compartment.
Furthermore, because, as well known, the electric power steering apparatus is constructed to add steering assist torque of an electric motor to a steering system via the worm gear mechanism 200 or 300, it is highly preferable to eliminate the backlash in order to achieve an enhanced steering feel; this is due to the fact that, when the steering wheel is turned back by the driver after being turned in a given direction, presence of the backlash would undesirably delay the steering assist torque transmission from the worm gear mechanism 200 or 300 to the steering system.
For the foregoing reasons, there has been a demand for a technique which can reduce hitting sound between the teeth of the worm and worm wheel, which can enhance durability of the worm gear mechanism and which can maintain appropriate meshing between the worm and the worm wheel.

Worm gear mechanism and electric power steering apparatus equipped with the worm gear mechanism


Disclosed is a novel scanning-probe type atomic force microscope wherein false deflection of the probe is reduced. The probe of the scanning-probe type atomic force microscope moves in both the horizontal direction and the vertical direction during the scanning, while the sample is kept in order to reduce the false deflection brought to the probe due to the scanning motion, two approaches are adopted. The first is to have a focused laser spot tracking an invariant point on the probe's cantilever, which moves three-dimensionally during the scanning. The second approach is to have the laser beam, which is reflected from the moving cantilever, hitting an invariant point of the PSD, when the sample is distanced from the probe and induces no deflection. A beam tracking system wherein the scanning probe is located approximately at the focal point of an objective lens and he optical system including a laser source, an optical module, a feedback module and the probe are driven by an approach mechanism to move in synchronization.

The atomic force microscope (AFM) may be used to produce three-dimensional images of a surface with the resolution of the nanometer level. There are two types of AFM. One is the "scanning-sample type" atomic force microscope and the other is the "scanning-probe type" atomic force microscope. In a scanning-sample type AFM, the sample is moved when it is scanned and the probe is kept stationary. Problems in moving or positioning the sample arise when the sample is large or heavy. In addition, temperature control, such as heating or cooling, of the sample may also affect the performance of the piezoelectric scanner of the AFM, which is provided beneath the sample. For samples in liquid cell, such as biomolecules, it is difficult to obtain correct images by using a scanning-sample type AFM, since samples move during the scan.
The scanning-probe type, or stationary sample type, AFM in which the probe scans the sample while the sample is kept stationary, is designed to solve the above problems. In order to achieve such a goal, one approach is to let the whole optical detecting system move along with the probe. However, the optical detecting module, including the laser diode (LD), the photo sensing device (PSD), the alignment mechanism and the frame structure that supports the optical configuration, is often too bulky and too massive to move with the scanner. Moving the whole module to scan the sample is proved not ideal. Many experts have tried to solve this problem by reducing the weight of the optical detecting module.
Another approach is the "tracking lens method" presented by Jung et al. See Jung et al., "Novel stationary-sample atomic force microscope with beam-tracking lens", Electron. Lett., Vol. 29, No. 3, pp. 264-266, 1993. Under such a design, however, the tracking error will limit the resolution of the microscope. For an ideal optical tracking system, when the laser beam emitted by he stationary laser diode perfectly tracks the moving probe, signals picked up by the photo sensing device shall reflect only the deflection of the probe, not the scanning motion. If the PSD signal varies during the scanning while deflection of the probe is null, false deflection or optical tracking error is generated.
In order to reduce the false deflection, a one-dimensional beam tacking method that makes the PSD move synchronously with the probe was introduced by Kwon et al. See Kwon e al., "Atomic force microscope with improved scan accuracy, scan speed and optical vision", Rev Sci. Instrum., Vol. 74, No. 10, pp. 4378-4383, 2003. Another solution was proposed by Hansma et al. to position a convex lens before the PSD to reduce false deflections. See Nansma et al., "A new, optical-level based atomic force microscope", J. Appl. Pys., Vol 76, No. 2, pp. 796-799, 1994. In these systems, however, the tracking function applies to false deflections in the horizontal directions but not in the vertical direction. A three-dimensional beam tracking system provided with tracking mirrors was later proposed by Nakano to compensate the false deflection. See K. Nakano, "Three-dimensional beam trucking for optical lever detection in atomic force microscope", Rev. Sci. Instrum., Vol. 71, No, pp. 137-141, 2000. In that system, the working distance from LD to the reflection point, of the probe changes during the scanning. However, the intensity signal of the beam varies if some portions of the beam fall-off the probe due to defocusing of the laser spot on the probe, whereby the shape of the reflected beam will be warped on the PSD and the PSD position signal will he adversely affected.
In addition, a special type of twist-probe was proposed, wherein a large mirror portion is provided to reduce the fall-off. Under such a design, its installation will readily limit one dimension of the image size. Another disadvantage of the twist-probe rests in that its distance to the PSD varies during the scanning, whereby constant relation between the probe deformation and the PSD signal can not be guaranteed.

Beam tracking system for scanning-probe type atomic force microscope


The present invention relates to a method for finding design weakness and potential field failure of a PCB assembly which includes components, comprising the steps of: (a) creating a model of the PCB assembly by which natural frequencies and mode shapes of the PCB assembly can be determined; (b) performing a natural frequencies simulation for determining natural frequencies and mode shapes of the PCB assembly; and (c) analyzing said determined natural frequencies and mode shapes and identifying local dominant oscillations of components, components identified as having a local dominant oscillation in at least one of said determined mode shapes are identified as components having a relatively high potential of field failure.

The issue of reliability and durability, in terms of failure rate and life span is one of the most important factors involved in the development of electronic equipment. There is a continuously growing need in the electronic industry for efficient tools for optimizing hardware design, in terms of reliability and durability.
Almost any mechanical or electronic equipment is subjected to varying environmental conditions, such as random vibrations, shakes, dynamic shocks, temperature variations, etc. Such varied conditions may lead to functional failures of the equipment. The designer, manufacturer, supplier and customer strive to avoid such failures for obvious reasons. For the purpose of determining the durability and reliability of equipment, and in order to forecast and eliminate future failures, various tests of the equipment (also referred herein as "product") are conventionally performed during the design and manufacturing cycles. These tests may apply a variety of dynamic and thermal loads on the tested equipment, such as random vibrations, dynamic shocks, etc., in order to identify vulnerable components that may fail.
One important and most accepted reliability test is known in the art as the Highly Accelerated Life Testing (HALT). The HALT test simulates and stimulates complex aspects of fatigue by means of applying random stresses in the form of random vibrations and varying temperature conditions. The stresses which are applied on the equipment during a HALT test typically exceed the most extreme expected field conditions, and are intended to reveal design vulnerabilities within a short period of time and before shipment of the product to the customer. While the traditional pass/fail testing approach does not always provide an adequate reliability safety margin, HALT provides a different approach: its philosophy is to enforce failure, not to pass a test.
The use of a HALT test effectively increases the operation margin of the product, creating a wider gap between the specified limits and the actual operational limits. The HALT test is performed in a chamber which applies vibration and thermal loads. Vibrations are the basis of most HALT procedures. The vibration approach which is used by HALT is special. Unlike traditional vibration testing techniques which use a single axis acceleration or excitation at a given time, the HALT exposes the product, which is mounted on a chamber table, to random vibrations in six degrees of freedom simultaneously, i.e., three translational directions and three rotational directions all at the same time. In addition to vibrations, some of the HALT test stages may apply other loading procedures such as hot-cold thermal transitions. As said, the purpose of HALT is to explore potential design weaknesses before introducing the product into real life operation. By simulating and accelerating the product aging, the HALT test reveals the product true reliability, and identifies time-related defects or design problems that may otherwise lie dormant for months or years. When the HALT test reveals faults in the tested product, design modifications are required and generally performed, followed by repetition of the HALT test, this time with the modified product. Such repeated tests and design modifications may occur several times, until satisfactory results are obtained.
Many types of laboratory tests are simulated using computer software. The performance of a computer simulation saves significant time and costs in comparison with a physical laboratory test, which requires expensive testing equipment, staff, and a significant amount of time for pre-test set-up, and for the test itself. In addition, obviously, a laboratory test requires a physical prototype, while a computer simulation is preferably carried out early in the design cycle, during the initial design process, and before a prototype is available. There are several typical procedures for performing such computer simulations. One of the most common procedures is the finite element technique, which can analyze the tested equipment behavior under various dynamic regimes of vibrations and thermal loads. The finite elements analysis technique can handle several dynamic regimes, including: (a) shocks in which the force or acceleration vary with time; (b) dynamic frequency or harmonic response where the model is analyzed in the frequency domain; and (c) dynamic random response where the model is subjected to a single-axis random vibration which is defined in terms of PSD. The term PSD stands for Power Spectral Density, or more particularly, to the power of random vibration intensity in mean-square acceleration per frequency unit (g2/Hz).
As said, the HALT laboratory test has been accepted in the art as one of the most reliable test for forecasting future failures. However, a simulation for a HALT test has not been provided yet. As noted, the HALT test applies simultaneous vibrations in six degrees of freedom, while all prior art finite elements solutions, including PSD finite element analysis, operate on a single axis dynamic regime at each given time. The art has not yet provided a simulation for a HALT test, or for other simultaneous-multi-axes loading tests for the purpose of forecasting failures in electronic or mechanical equipment.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a simulation for reliability, robustness, or fatigue test, which can be performed without any need for physical testing facilities and without a need to have the physical tested object (i.e., the tested product itself).
It is another object of the present invention to provide a simulation for a HALT test, which can be performed without any need for physical testing facilities and without a need to have the physical tested object.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a simulation for a simultaneous multi axes loading test, which can be performed without any need for physical testing facilities and without a need to have the physical tested object.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a simulation for a reliability test designed to explore operational margins of a tested product, or to reveal the weakest components of the tested product, which can be performed without any need for physical testing facilities and without a need to have the physical tested object.
It is still an object of the present invention to provide such a simulation which can be performed as early as during an initial development stage of the product, for example, during the layout or initial design stages, or when a physical prototype of the tested product is not yet available.
It is another object of the present invention to save time and costs, by enabling the elimination of future failures at the early stages of the product development, and by eliminating or reducing the need of physical laboratory tests including HALT or any other laboratory test.
It is a particular object of the present invention to enable using the simulation for analyzing the reliability and robustness of the design of electronic boards and related equipment in the PCB industry.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent as the description proceeds.

Reliability simulation method for a PCB assembly


A mapping or navigation device comprises or is connectable to position determining apparatus, the position determining apparatus being operable to determine one or more locations of the mapping or navigation device, the one or more determined locations forming at least one route, wherein the mapping or navigation device is configured to determine at least one portion of the at least one route, where the at least one portion is determined according to at least one property associated with at least one location comprised in the portion, and the mapping or navigation device is configured to form at least one anonymized route from the at least one determined route, wherein the at least one anonymized route does not include the at least one portion of the at least one route.

Portable computing devices, for example Portable Navigation Devices (PNDs) that include GPS (Global Positioning System) signal reception and processing functionality are well known and are widely employed as in-car or other vehicle navigation systems.
In general terms, a modern PND comprises a processor, memory (at least one of volatile and non-volatile, and commonly both), and map data stored within said memory. The processor and memory cooperate to provide an execution environment in which a software operating system may be established, and additionally it is commonplace for one or more additional software programs to be provided to enable the functionality of the PND to be controlled, and to provide various other functions.
Typically these devices further comprise one or more input interfaces that allow a user to interact with and control the device, and one or more output interfaces by means of which information may be relayed to the user. Illustrative examples of output interfaces include a visual display and a speaker for audible output. Illustrative examples of input interfaces include one or more physical buttons to control on/off operation or other features of the device (which buttons need not necessarily be on the device itself but could be on a steering wheel if the device is built into a vehicle), and a microphone for detecting user speech. In one particular arrangement, the output interface display may be configured as a touch sensitive display (by means of a touch sensitive overlay or otherwise) additionally to provide an input interface by means of which a user can operate the device by touch, for example by using soft keys.
Devices of this type will also often include one or more physical connector interfaces by means of which power and optionally data signals can be transmitted to and received from the device, and optionally one or more wireless transmitters/receivers to allow communication over cellular telecommunications and other signal and data networks, for example Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Wi-Max, GSM, UMTS and the like.
PNDs of this type also include a GPS antenna by means of which satellite-broadcast signals, including location data, can be received and subsequently processed to determine a current location of the device.
The PND may also include electronic gyroscopes and accelerometers which produce signals that can be processed to determine the current angular and linear acceleration, and in turn, and in conjunction with location information derived from the GPS signal, velocity and relative displacement of the device and thus the vehicle in which it is mounted. Typically, such features are most commonly provided in in-vehicle navigation systems, but may also be provided in PNDs if it is expedient to do so.
The utility of such PNDs is manifested primarily in their ability to determine a route between a first location (typically a start or current location) and a second location (typically a destination). These locations can be input by a user of the device, by any of a wide variety of different methods, for example by postcode, street name and house number, previously stored "well known" destinations (such as famous locations, municipal locations (such as sports grounds or swimming baths) or other points of interest), and favourite or recently visited destinations.
Typically, the PND is enabled by software for computing a "best" or "optimum" route between the start and destination address locations from the map data. A "best" or "optimum" route is determined on the basis of predetermined criteria and need not necessarily be the fastest or shortest route. The selection of the route along which to guide the driver can be very sophisticated, and the selected route may take into account existing, predicted and dynamically and/or wirelessly received traffic and road information, historical information about road speeds, and the driver's own preferences for the factors determining road choice (for example the driver may specify that the route should not include motorways or toll roads).
In addition, the device may continually monitor road and traffic conditions, and offer to or choose to change the route over which the remainder of the journey is to be made due to changed conditions. Real time traffic monitoring systems, based on various technologies (e.g. mobile phone data exchanges, fixed cameras, GPS fleet tracking) are being used to identify traffic delays and to feed the information into notification systems.
PNDs of this type may typically be mounted on the dashboard or windscreen of a vehicle, but may also be formed as part of an on-board computer of the vehicle radio or indeed as part of the control system of the vehicle itself. The navigation device may also be part of a hand-held system, such as a PDA (Portable Digital Assistant), a media player, a mobile phone or the like, and in these cases, the normal functionality of the hand-held system is extended by means of the installation of software on the device to perform both route calculation and navigation along a calculated route.
Route planning and navigation functionality may also be provided by a desktop or mobile computing resource running appropriate software. For example, the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) provides an on-line route planning and navigation facility at http://www.rac.co.uk, which facility allows a user to enter a start point and a destination whereupon the server with which the user's computing resource is communicating calculates a route (aspects of which may be user specified), generates a map, and generates a set of exhaustive navigation instructions for guiding the user from the selected start point to the selected destination. The facility also provides for pseudo three-dimensional rendering of a calculated route, and route preview functionality which simulates a user travelling along the route and thereby provides the user with a preview of the calculated route.
In the context of a PND, once a route has been calculated, the user interacts with the navigation device to select the desired calculated route, optionally from a list of proposed routes. Optionally, the user may intervene in, or guide the route selection process, for example by specifying that certain routes, roads, locations or criteria are to be avoided or are mandatory for a particular journey. The route calculation aspect of the PND forms one primary function, and navigation along such a route is another primary function.
During navigation along a calculated route, it is usual for such PNDs to provide visual and/or audible instructions to guide the user along a chosen route to the end of that route, i.e. the desired destination. It is also usual for PNDs to display map information on-screen during the navigation, such information regularly being updated on-screen so that the map information displayed is representative of the current location of the device, and thus of the user or user's vehicle if the device is being used for in-vehicle navigation.
An icon displayed on-screen typically denotes the current device location, and is centred with the map information of current and surrounding roads in the vicinity of the current device location and other map features also being displayed. Additionally, navigation information may be displayed, optionally in a status bar above, below or to one side of the displayed map information, examples of navigation information include a distance to the next deviation from the current road required to be taken by the user, the nature of that deviation possibly being represented by a further icon suggestive of the particular type of deviation, for example a left or right turn. The navigation function also determines the content, duration and timing of audible instructions by means of which the user can be guided along the route. As can be appreciated a simple instruction such as "turn left in 100 m" requires significant processing and analysis. As previously mentioned, user interaction with the device may be by a touch screen, or additionally or alternately by steering column mounted remote control, by voice activation or by any other suitable method.
A further important function provided by the device is automatic route re-calculation in the event that: a user deviates from the previously calculated route during navigation (either by accident or intentionally); real-time traffic conditions dictate that an alternative route would be more expedient and the device is suitably enabled to recognize such conditions automatically, or if a user actively causes the device to perform route re-calculation for any reason.
It is also known to allow a route to be calculated with user defined criteria; for example, the user may prefer a scenic route to be calculated by the device, or may wish to avoid any roads on which traffic congestion is likely, expected or currently prevailing. The device software would then calculate various routes and weigh more favourably those that include along their route the highest number of points of interest (known as POIs) tagged as being for example of scenic beauty, or, using stored information indicative of prevailing traffic conditions on particular roads, order the calculated routes in terms of a level of likely congestion or delay on account thereof. Other POI-based and traffic information-based route calculation and navigation criteria are also possible.
Although the route calculation and navigation functions are fundamental to the overall utility of PNDs, it is possible to use the device purely for information display, or "free-driving", in which only map information relevant to the current device location is displayed, and in which no route has been calculated and no navigation is currently being performed by the device. Such a mode of operation is often applicable when the user already knows the route along which it is desired to travel and does not require navigation assistance.
Devices of the type described above, for example the 920T model manufactured and supplied by TomTom International B.V., provide a reliable means for enabling users to navigate from one position to another. Such devices are of great utility when the user is not familiar with the route to the destination to which they are navigating.
As mentioned above, the memory of the PND stores map data and other data such as road information and historical information about road speeds which may be used by the PND to calculate routes and provide necessary navigation instructions to users.
Although route specific information such as the maximum legal speed for a road may be used to calculate the expected vehicle speed for a section of road, in practice, factors such as congestion or road features such as a series of sharp bends may alter the actual speed achievable on particular sections of roads and/or at particular times. Physical traffic flow monitoring systems may be in place on some roads in order to determine the average speed of traffic. However, such systems are expensive to install and coverage may not be widespread.
Another option for collecting more accurate mapping and route planning data is by utilising trace data stored in individual navigation devices. Trace data represents a route or journey and typically comprises a plurality of location and time data points, which may be used to determine information such as vehicle speed. Such trace data may optionally be stripped of some personal identifying data, such as user name or device identifier, and transmitted to a central server whereupon it may be aggregated with similar data provided by other navigation devices to provide aggregated or average actual "real life" journey data for particular locations and times. As such data can be averaged over a great many users and for extended periods of time, it may provide a much more accurate and representative representation of journey data such as typical speeds. In addition, it may be used to provide improved mapping and navigation logic by comparing actual routes with predicted or expected routes.
However, issues of personal privacy are often of great importance to users and therefore providers of such navigation devices. In this regard, even when personal identifying data such as user name or device identifier has been removed from the data provided by a navigation device, it may still be possible to trace the trace data back to particular users, for example by cross referencing it with other data sources. For example, journeys taken by users often start and/or finish in locations associated with the user, such as the user's home, the user's work place or the user's friends or family. In this case, the start and finish locations of the routes stored in the trace data may be compared with address listings in order to determine address listings at or around the start and finish points and thereby the people who live there which may, in some cases, allow the user of the device to be identified from the route trace. It will be appreciated that statistical methods may be used to enhance this process.
However, the data at locations such as start or end points may be particularly useful, for example, for determining the location and/or availability of parking spaces.
At least one object of at least one embodiment of the present invention is to overcome or mitigate at least one problem in the prior art. At least one object of at least one embodiment of the present invention is to provide improved privacy to users of portable navigation and/or mapping devices and/or increase the amount of data that may be extracted from such devices whilst maintaining privacy. At least one object of at least one embodiment of the present invention is to improve the usefulness of location data that may be obtained from navigation or mapping devices or the amount of useful data that may be stored by such devices.

Mapping or navigation apparatus and method of operation thereof


One embodiment of the present invention is a thin film transistor, including: an insulating substrate; a gate electrode, a gate insulating layer and a semiconductor layer including an oxide, these three elements being formed over the insulating substrate in this order, and the gate insulating layer including: a lower gate insulating layer, the lower gate insulating layer being in contact with the insulating substrate and being an oxide including any one of the elements In, Zn or Ga; and an upper gate insulating layer provided on the lower gate insulating layer, the upper gate insulating layer comprising at least one layer; and a source electrode and a drain electrode formed on the semiconductor layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to a thin film transistor, the transistor being able to be used for a driving device of various image display devices, a logic device of various logic circuits or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
Currently, the main stream of general flat panel displays (FPD) is an active matrix type which is driven by a field-effect transistor using an amorphous silicon or a polycrystal silicon for a semiconductor.
Further, in recent years, the use of a plastic substrate instead of a glass substrate has been tried for the purpose of further improvement in making a FPD thinner, lighter, and improving impact resistance and flexibility of a FPD.
However, manufacturing a thin film transistor using the above-mentioned silicon for a semiconductor requires a heating process of a high temperature. Therefore, it is difficult to adapt manufacture of the thin film transistor which uses silicon for a semiconductor to a plastic substrate having a low heat resistance.
Therefore, a field-effect transistor having an oxide which can be formed at a low temperature as a semiconductor has been actively developed. (Patent document 1)
Further, for example, inorganic materials such as silicon oxide, silicon nitride, aluminium oxide and yttria are used for a gate insulating layer of a field-effect transistor having the oxide semiconductor.
However, as for these gate insulating layers, since adhesion to a substrate is low, the gate insulating layer can easily peel from the substrate. Thereby, there was a problem in that a thin film transistor having good transistor characteristics could not be obtained.
[Patent document 1] JP-A-2006-165532


A silver-based alloy composition which is soft and workable in an annealed condition, is hardenable through heat treatment, and is tarnish resistant. The preferred embodiment of the composition of the present invention includes a small percentage of palladium and a reduction from typical percentages of copper found in a sterling silver alloy. In one embodiment the silver-based alloy includes no copper at all.

The classic sterling silver as we know it since medieval times comprises 92.5% silver and 7.5% copper by weight. It is known to be an easily tarnishable alloy. Its hardness in a soft annealed condition is known to be about 60 Vickers, and can be reversibly increased by age hardening typically up to about 110 Vickers. It is known that classic sterling silver age hardens due to a silver-copper miscibility gap. It is also known that silver-copper alloys show practically no age hardening when the concentration of copper is below about 5% by weight. It is not unusual for the modern sterling silver alloys to contain certain other base metals besides copper including tin, zinc, and indium. There are numerous sterling silver alloys that are commercially available and are described in literature. Some of these alloys are designed to improve casting characteristics such as form-filling and fluidity. Some of these alloys claim such features as higher as cast hardness, ability to be hardened by heat treatment (reversible hardenability) and high tarnish resistance.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,810,308 and 4,869,757 teach alloys with the small additions of tin and lithium that increase the aged hardness of sterling silver up to about 156 Vickers. The tarnish behavior of such alloys, however, is similar to that of classic sterling silver.
The resistance to tarnish of sterling silver alloys can be improved by lowering the copper content and adding other elements as shown in the examples below. The annealed hardness of these alloys lies within the range between 60-80 Vickers. Some of these alloys may be age hardened up to 135 Vickers.
Other relevant U.S. patents include:                U.S. Pat. No. 4,973,446 teaches low copper alloys that have an improved tarnish resistance. These alloys are soft and can not be age hardened.        U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,037,708 and 8,136,370 describe low tarnish silver alloys that contain from 4% to 15% by weight palladium. These alloys also contain from 0.5% to 1.75% by weight indium and/or zinc. Although, these patents do not teach such alloys with age hardening characteristics, they are most likely age hardenable due to Pd—Cu order-disorder transformation. A fairly high content of palladium significantly increases the cost of these alloys.        U.S. Pat. No. 5,039,479 describes palladium-free low tarnish alloys. These alloys typically do not show an appreciable age hardening.        U.S. Pat. No. 5,171,643 teaches electrical contact silver material that contains from 0.1% to 1.0% palladium by weight. Additions of palladium in these alloys are small, and do not contribute to age hardening.        U.S. Pat. No. 5,558,833 teaches silver-indium based alloys that are palladium-free and soft.        U.S. Pat. No. 5,817,195 describes high zinc, and low copper and nickel silver alloy compositions where nickel is within the range 0.25%-0.5% by weight. Such levels of nickel may cause allergenic skin reactions.        U.S. Pat. No. 5,882,441 palladium-free low tarnish alloy that is soft due to low copper content.        U.S. Pat. No. 6,406,664 describes palladium-free alloys. The resistance to tarnish in these alloys is achieved by additions of germanium. The hardness of these alloys is similar to that of the classic sterling silver.        U.S. Pat. No. 6,726,877 teaches another germanium-containing alloy that is palladium-free.        U.S. Pat. No. 6,841,012 describes anti-tarnish silver alloy with the additions of numerous elements except palladium.        U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,860,949 and 7,118,707 teach tarnish resistant platinum containing silver alloys. The hardness of such alloys is expected to be similar to that of the classic sterling silver. These alloys contain no palladium.        U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,128,871 and 7,128,792 teach another palladium-free silver alloys with low copper content. These alloys are soft and may not show reversible age hardening.        U.S. Pat. No. 7,198,683 describes tarnish resistant and age hardenable alloy. It contains no palladium.

Reversibly age hardenable, palladium containing tarnish resistant sterling silver alloys


A method for providing improved coverage of data acquisition in a crowd sourced data acquisition environment including determining respective locations of mobile devices within an area wherein data acquisition is desired; requesting transmission of desired data captured by sensors in the mobile devices within the area; comparing locations of mobile devices currently transmitting desired data to a desired coverage map of mobile device location to produce a map showing missing coverage; prioritizing acquisition of mobile devices in locations of missing coverage; and aggregating the transmitted desired data and providing the aggregated data to an entity.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to crowd sourced data acquisition, and in particular, to a computer implemented method for dynamically prioritizing acquisition of mobile devices in desired locations for managing crowd sourced data acquisition.
2. Description of Related Art
With the proliferation of mobile devices, the amount of data being collected by individuals has increased exponentially. This includes images and video as well as other types of data collection such as traffic congestion, weather information, gas prices, etc. Collectively, this data collected by users on their mobile devices can be utilized for a variety of purposes such as for mapping congestion on roadways. This uploaded data may be stored in centralized servers in discrete bundles or across multiple servers (and often locations) as cloud storage managed by a hosting company. This allows the uploaded data to be handled collectively from a centralized system.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION


A fuel cell sealing structure has a power generating body, and first and second separators arranged in both sides in a thickness direction of the power generating body. On a surface in one side in a thickness direction of the first separator, formed integrally first and second sealing protrusions respectively brought into close contact with an outer peripheral portion of the power generating body and the second separator in an outer peripheral side of the first sealing protrusion, and a short circuit prevention rib protruding in line with the first and second sealing protrusions by an electrically insulating rubber-like elastic material. On a surface in another side thereof, formed integrally a third sealing protrusion brought into close contact with a surface in an opposite side to the power generating body in the second separator, by the electrically insulating rubber-like elastic material.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sealing structure for circulating each of a fuel gas, an oxidizing agent gas, a cooling medium and the like by an independent flow path, in a fuel cell.
2. Description of the Conventional Art
A fuel cell is provided with a sealing structure for circulating each of a fuel gas, an oxidizing agent gas, a cooling medium and the like by an independent flow path. FIG. 11 is a partly cross sectional view showing a fuel cell sealing structure in accordance with a prior art in a separated state, and FIG. 12 is a partly cross sectional view showing the same in a laminated state.
In these FIG. 11 and FIG. 12, reference numeral 110 denotes a power generating body obtained by laminating and integrating gas diffusion layers (GDL) 112 and 113 each of which is constructed by a porous body in both sides in a thickness direction of a membrane electrode assembly (MEA) 111 which is constructed by an electrolyte membrane and catalyst electrode layers provided in both surfaces thereof. Further, separators 120 and 130 each of which is constructed by a carbon or a conductive metal are laminated in both sides in a thickness direction of the power generating body 110, whereby a fuel battery cell 100 is constructed.
In each of the fuel battery cells 100, an outer peripheral portion of the membrane electrode assembly 111 in the power generating body 110 is pinched between a sealing protrusion 121 for an anode which is integrally formed in one separator 120 by a rubber-like elastic material (a rubber or a synthetic resin material having a rubber-like elasticity), and a sealing protrusion 131 for a cathode which is integrally formed in another separator 130 by the rubber-like elastic material.
Further, a fuel gas flow path 100a is defined by the sealing protrusion 121 for the anode between one catalyst electrode layer (an anode) in the membrane electrode assembly 111 and the one separator 120 which is opposed thereto, and an oxidizing agent gas flow path 100b is defined by the sealing protrusion 131 for the cathode between another catalyst electrode layer (a cathode) in the membrane electrode assembly 111 and the another separator 130 which is opposed thereto. Further, a sealing protrusion 122 for a cooling medium is integrally formed by the rubber-like elastic material on a surface which is opposed to the sealing protrusion 121 for the anode in the one separator 120, and a cooling medium flow path 100c is defined by the sealing protrusion 122 for the cooling medium between the separators 120 and 130 of the adjacent fuel battery cells 100 and 100.
In other words, this kind of fuel cell is structured such that a fuel gas (a hydrogen) circulating in the fuel gas flow path 100a is fed to the anode side of the membrane electrode assembly 111 via the gas diffusion layer 112, an oxidizing agent gas (an air) circulating in the oxidizing agent gas flow path 100b is fed to the cathode side of the membrane electrode assembly 111 via the gas diffusion layer 113, and an electric power is generated on the basis of a reverse reaction to an electrolytic process of a water, that is, a reaction for creating the water from hydrogen and oxygen, in each of the fuel battery cells 100. Further, an electromotive force by each of the fuel battery cells 100 is low, however, a necessary electromotive force can be obtained by laminating a lot of fuel battery cells 100 so as to connect electrically in series (refer, for example, to Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2005-222708).
However, in accordance with the conventional fuel cell sealing structure, it is necessary to integrally form the sealing protrusion 121 for the anode and the sealing protrusion 122 for the cooling medium in the one separator 120, and integrally form the sealing protrusion 131 for the cathode in the another separator 130.
Further, if the separators 120 and 130 become liable to be deformed by being thinned, end portions of the separators 120 and 130 in both sides of the power generating body 110 in the fuel battery cell 100 come into contact with each other so as to be electrically short circuited, and there is a risk that a power generating efficiency is lowered.


A server computer system performs a first set of operations for a first transaction. The first transaction pertaining to data stored in a file system. The server computer system delays a second set of operations for the first transaction and identifies a second transaction pertaining to the data. In response to identifying the second transaction, the server computer system cancels the second set of operations for the first transaction, and cancels a first set of operations for the second transaction.

Data may be stored as unstructured data, for example, in files and directories in a file system. A distributed file system may store multiple copies of a file and/or directory on more than one storage server machine to help ensure that, in case of a hardware failure and/or system failure, the data should still be accessible. Typically the protocol for replication in a distributed file system involves multiple operations for each transaction (e.g., write transaction). Generally, when there is a request for a transaction to write to a file, the protocol involves five operations (1) lock, (2) pre-operation change log, (3) operations (e.g., write), (4) post-operation change log, and (5) unlock. Some transactions may overlap in time, and may result in unwarranted and/or inefficient operations. For example, a file that is locked for Transaction-1 may be unlocked when Transaction-1 is completed and may be locked again for Transaction-2.

Reducing transaction operations using deferred operations


A laser-beam-scanned optical disc includes an information recording area and an information management area. The information management area stores recording management information having portions corresponding to respective integer multiples of a normal velocity relating to scanning of the disc. Each of the portions of the recording management information contains a first information piece representative of a recording strategy for recording of information on the information recording area and a second information piece representative of a recording laser power for recording of information on the information recording area.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an optical disc. In addition, this invention relates to an apparatus for recording and reproducing information on and from an optical disc. Furthermore, this invention relates to a method of recording and reproducing information on and from an optical disc.
2. Description of the Related Art
Optical discs are of a read only type (a playback only type), a recordable type (a write once type), and a rewritable type. A CD (Compact Disc), a VCD (Video CD), and a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) are optical discs of the read only type. A CD-R and a DVD-R are optical discs of the recordable type. A CD-RW, a DVD-RAM, and a DVD-RW are optical discs of the rewritable type.
Optical discs of the rewritable type have thin recording films which are reversibly changed between two or more different states in accordance with conditions of laser beams applied thereto. Rewritable optical discs include magneto-optical discs and phase change discs.
In the case of a phase change optical disc, while a recording film is scanned by a laser beam, the recording film is reversibly changed between an amorphous state and a crystalline state by varying conditions of the laser beam in response to a signal to be recorded. Thus, the signal is recorded on the recording film as a pattern of amorphous portions and crystalline portions of the recording film. The signal is reproduced from the phase change optical disc as follows. The surface of an amorphous portion of the disc and the surface of a crystalline portion thereof are different in reflectivity with respect to a laser beam. While the phase change optical disc is scanned by a laser beam, a change in reflectivity of the disc surface with respect to the laser beam is optically detected so that the signal is reproduced from the disc.
The phase change optical disc is similar to a read only optical disc and a recordable optical disc in the point that the signal reproduction is implemented by detecting a change in the disc surface reflectivity with respect to a laser beam. The signal overwriting on the phase change optical disc can be performed by use of only one laser beam when the laser power is modulated between an erasing level and a recording level. Therefore, the structure of a drive device for the phase change optical disc can be simple.
A PWM (pulse width modulation) system is used to record a signal on a rewritable optical disc at a high density. According to the PWM system, the positions of the front and rear edges of every recording mark on the disc correspond to "1" in a digital signal.
Conditions of a rewritable optical disc, such as the composition of material for the disc, an additive to the material, and a film thickness in the disc, depend on the maker which has produced the disc. Accordingly, an optimal recording power of a laser beam applied to a rewritable optical disc, an optimal erasing power of the laser beam, a desired width of a front end pulse in a pulse group, a desired width of intermediate multiple pulses in the pulse group, and a desired width of a rear end pulse in the pulse group vary from disc maker to disc maker. In general, information about an optimal recording power, an optimal erasing power of the laser beam, and desired pulse widths which vary from disc maker to disc maker is recorded on each rewritable optical disc as pre-pits.
In the PWM system, the width of every recording mark represents information. Thus, a desirable shape of the recording mark is free from distortion. Specifically, it is desirable that the shapes of the front and rear halves of the recording mark are symmetrical with each other. During the PWM-based recording of a signal on the disc, the disc is exposed to a laser beam while being rotated and moved relative thereto. In addition, the intensity of the laser beam is changed between strong and weak levels in response to the signal to be recorded. Recording marks are formed on portions of the disc which are exposed to and heated by the stronger laser beam. Regarding every recording mark, the heat accumulation effect causes the stronger-beam-application ending point on the disc to be higher in temperature than the stronger-beam-application starting point on the disc. As a result, the rear end of the recording mark is wider than the front end thereof. Thus, the shape of the recording mark is distorted.
A known drive apparatus for a rewritable optical disc records a signal on the disc by use of a laser beam while driving and rotating the disc relative to the laser beam at a constant linear velocity which can be selected from a predetermined normal velocity and a predetermined high velocity. The normal velocity is equal to, for example, 3.49 m/s. The high velocity is equal to, for example, twice or four times the normal velocity.
Since the recording of a signal on a rewritable optical disc by a laser beam is based on heating, recording conditions change in accordance with the velocity (the speed) at which the disc is driven and rotated relative to the laser beam. Accordingly, an optimal recording power of the laser beam, an optimal erasing power of the laser beam, a desired width of a front end pulse in a pulse group, a desired width of intermediate multiple pulses in the pulse group, and a desired width of a rear end pulse in the pulse group depend on the drive speed of the disc relative to the laser beam.
A desired width of a front end pulse in a pulse group, a desired width of intermediate multiple pulses in the pulse group, and a desired width of a rear end pulse in the pulse group are time information referred to as strategy. It is known that information about an optimal recording power of a laser beam, information about an optimal erasing power of the laser beam, and strategy for a normal disc drive speed (a normal disc scanning speed) are recorded on a rewritable optical disc as pre-pits. On the other hand, it is not known to record laser-power information and strategy for a high disc drive speed (a high disc scanning speed) on a rewritable optical disc as pre-pits.
In the case of a rewritable optical disc having pre-pits representing only laser-power information and strategy for a normal disc scanning speed, it takes a long time to find optimal recording conditions for a high disc scanning speed and then start the recording of a signal on the disc under the optimal recording conditions.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,404,713 B1 corresponding to Japanese patent application publication number P2001-209940A discloses a first apparatus for recording and reproducing an information signal on and from an optical disc. The first apparatus includes a memory. The information signal is written into the memory. The information signal is read out from the memory. An optical head generates a laser beam in response to the readout information signal, and applies the laser beam to the optical disc to record the readout information signal on the optical disc. A test signal is recorded on a position of the optical disc near a recording position thereof via the optical head during the writing of the information signal into the memory. The test signal is reproduced from the optical disc. The reproduced test signal is evaluated to generate an evaluation result. An intensity of the laser beam is optimized in response to the evaluation result.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,404,713 B1 also discloses a second apparatus for recording and reproducing an information signal on and from an optical disc. The second apparatus includes a memory. The information signal is written into the memory. The information signal is read out from the memory. An optical head generates a laser beam in response to the readout information signal, and applies the laser beam to the optical disc to record the readout information signal on the optical disc. A power of the laser beam is changed among a plurality of different levels. The laser beam is measured to generate measurement result values during the change of the power of the laser beam among the plurality of the different levels. An intensity of the laser beam is optimized in response to the measurement result values.

Optical disc adaptable to be scanned at multiple speeds, and related apparatus and method therefor


A waste toner conveying device for conveying waste toner removed from an image carrier to a waste toner container includes a waste toner conveying path including at least a falling and conveying path for letting the waste toner fall under its own weight; a toner bridging prevention member configured to move in the falling and conveying path to prevent bridging of the waste toner; a drive source configured to drive the toner bridging prevention member; a drive transfer member configured to transfer a driving force from the drive source to the toner bridging prevention member; and a toner adhesion prevention member configured to prevent the waste toner from adhering to the drive transfer member.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a waste toner conveying device, and an image forming apparatus using the waste toner conveying device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional image forming apparatuses with image carriers such as a photosensitive element and an intermediate transfer element, include a cleaning device that collects residual waste toner on the image carriers. Waste toner collected by the cleaning device is conveyed to a waste toner container by a waste toner conveying device provided in the apparatus main body separately from the cleaning device.
Some of waste toner conveying devices conveys toner through a conveying path including a falling and conveying path for falling waste toner under its own weight. However, in such a waste toner conveying device, in particular in hot and humid conditions, waste toner having passed through the falling and conveying path is prone to adhere to the inner wall of a housing constituting the falling and conveying path, and over time the waste toner coagulates and gradually accumulates. Thus, the accumulated waste toner gradually clogs the falling and conveying path, that is, so-called toner bridging occurs, which interferes with collection of waste toner.
Japanese Patent No. 3893232 suggests a waste toner conveying device in which a thin plate-like swing member is provided along one side surface of inner wall surfaces of a housing constituting a falling and conveying path. In the waste toner conveying device, swinging of the swing member swings prevents occurrence of a toner bridging state in which toner adheres to and grows in the interior of the housing constituting the falling and conveying path. The swing member is swung by a rotational drive shaft and a drive transfer unit formed by an eccentric cam rotating integrally with the rotational drive shaft. The lower end portion of the swing member abuts the eccentric cam, and the rotation of the eccentric cam swings and drives the swing member. At that time, the drive transfer member formed by the eccentric cam is laterally separated from the falling and conveying path at the lower end portion of the swing member. This makes it possible to prevent that toner is sandwiched between the abutment part of the swing member and the eccentric cam, and prevent that the toner is pressed and heated by sliding of the swing member and the eccentric cam, and thus coagulate into lumps.
However, if there is any limitation imposed on the size of a waste toner conveying device, the waste toner conveying device may need to be reduced in size. In such a case, if the swinging drive transfer unit is to be separated from the falling and conveying path as described in Japanese Patent No. 3893232, the falling and conveying path need to be made narrower accordingly. Thus, when the waste toner conveying device is reduced in size, it is difficult to reliably prevent occurrence of toner bridging in the falling and conveying path even if the toner bridging prevention member is disposed in the falling and conveying path.
Therefore, there is a need to provide a waste toner conveying device that, if being reduced in size, reliably prevents occurrence of toner bridging and coagulation in the falling and conveying path of the waste toner conveying path, and an image forming apparatus using the waste toner conveying device.

Waste toner conveying device and image forming apparatus using the same


An image file is created, such as by scanning a document in a digital sending device. A corresponding text file is created, such as by optical character recognition. Both are stored where they are retrievable through use of URLs. Miniaturized versions of both files are created. A message is created including miniaturized versions of the files and URLs addressing the originals. The message is sent to a wireless web-enabled device user. The message recipient can display the miniaturized versions of files and thus determine whether to view the corresponding full versions using the also enclosed URLs.

Modern businesses rely on being able to transfer document images from one location to another. With the adoption of Group 3 digital standards in 1980 by the Comité Consultatif International Téléphonique et Télégraphique (CCITT) (or the International Telegraph and Telephone Consultative Committee), facsimile (FAX) devices have become extremely prevalent in offices. Facsimile devices typically operate by scanning a document line by line to detect light and dark areas. These light and dark areas are then converted into binary digits. A representation of these light and dark areas is then transmitted across a telephone line to a receiving unit that in turn uses the received representation to generate dots on paper. The result is a reasonably good copy of the original document. Originally, facsimile printers typically utilized thermal paper imaging. More recently, laser and ink jet printing of incoming facsimile copies has become common. Also, many computer modems support the Group 3 digital standard and thus allow computers to operate both to send and to receive facsimile copies of documents.
Facsimile transmission of copies of documents works reasonably well. However, a number of problems have been identified. One problem that has been identified is that facsimile copies often do not provide the level of image resolution that some applications require. Another problem is that facsimile transmissions typically consume more transmission bandwidth than may be necessary. This is compounded by the problem that, in most cases, facsimile transmissions utilize an entire circuit-switched connection, as contrasted to sharing of circuits as is found in packet-switching solutions.
One solution to these problems that has been found arose naturally from the use in many instances of computers on both ends of facsimile transmissions. On the one end of a connection, a computer emulates a facsimile transmitter, and on the other end, another computer emulates a facsimile receiver. Standard computer scanners can be utilized to scan in documents. Similarly, standard computer printers can be utilized to print out received documents. In between, digital images of the documents are converted to the required Group 3 standard format before transmission and then converted from the Group 3 standard to a standard computer output format before being printed.
One solution is termed "Digital Sending". Digital sending eliminates the conversions from and to the Group 3 standard. Instead, a document is scanned into a standard internal computer image format, such as Portable Document Format (PDF) from Adobe Systems Incorporated, Tagged Image File Format (TIFF), Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) format, Bit-Map (BMP) format from Microsoft Corporation, etc. The document is then transmitted to a receiving system in the specified internal computer image format, where it can be manipulated, stored, or printed, as desired. While a transmission can be over a circuit-switched network, it is more frequently done over a packet-switched network, such as the Internet, or a corporate intranet. Typically, documents are transmitted as e-mail file attachments.
Originally, digital sending mirrored the typical e-mail environment. An e-mail message with one or more attached documents would be sent from one computer to another. However, as the cost of processing power continues to decline, it has become cost effective to utilize commodity processors in some auxiliary or peripheral devices such as printers and scanners. At the same time, these auxiliary devices are frequently being connected directly to networks instead of computers in order to more easily provide sharing of such among multiple computers and computer users. One result of this is that these auxiliary devices can now support functions such as e-mail that previously were limited to computers.
The incorporation of e-mail capabilities within auxiliary devices such as printers and scanners allows these devices to be utilized in digital sending. A scanner can be used to scan a document into a specified format and then to transmit that document as an e-mail attachment to a recipient. Similarly, a printer can receive an e-mail containing a document in a particular format and print it out. Especially useful for digital sending are all-in-one or multifunction devices that provide scanning and printing, and even facsimile transmissions. Some current examples of stand-alone devices capable of digital sending and/or receiving are the 9100C digital sending device and the LaserJet 8150 multifunction device from Hewlett-Packard Company of Palo Alto, Calif.
One problem that remains is that of delivering scanned documents to digital receiving devices that have either limited display area or limited bandwidth. Some examples of these are web-enabled cellular telephones, two-way pagers, and personal data assistants (PDAs). All of these devices have both problems. First, they have very limited display space. It is typically possible to only display a small portion of a scanned page at a time with these wireless, portable, web-enabled digital receiving devices.
Secondly, the wireless networks used to communicate with them typically have very limited bandwidth. One problem with wireless networks today is that scanned documents are typically relatively large. One reason for this is that computer readable image files typically require either bits or vectors to represent their contents. Transmitting a scanned document across a wireless network to a web-enabled digital receiving device can conceivably consume the entire wireless network bandwidth for a substantial period of time.
It would be advantageous to provide a mechanism for a wireless device with limited display area or limited bandwidth to be able to act effectively as a digital receiving device.

Transmitting miniature versions of files to receiving devices

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.