A cap assembly for a battery has a cap cover in which a gas discharge hole is formed. A cap is installed on the upper end of the cap cover to contain a rubber member disposed between the upper and lower ends of the cap and block the gas discharge hole. The rubber member is hat shaped in the form of a quadrilateral head.

The present invention relates to a cap assembly of a battery, and more particularly, to a cap assembly of a battery which can effectively discharge a gas generated within the battery.
FIG. 1 is an example of a conventional battery having a hexahedral rubber member. The battery has a cylindrical case 20 in which a roll of anode and cathode plates 21 and 22 having a separator 23 intervened therebetween is placed. The separator 23 insulates the plates 21 and 22. A cap assembly 10 including a cap 12 having a rubber member 14, and a cap cover 11 is installed on the upper portion of the anode and cathode plates 21 and 22. A gasket (not shown) is installed around a portion where the cap 12 contacts the cap cover 11 such that the anode and cathode are insulated and an electrolytic solution is prevented from leaking, to thus protect the battery.
The battery generates electricity through a chemical reaction which causes electrons to flow from the cathode to the anode. When an overcharge occurs, a gas is greatly generated which sharply increases the internal pressure of the battery.
The increase of internal pressure in the battery may cause the case 20 to explode. The cap assembly 10 including the rubber member 14 is installed to prevent the explosion. When the pressure inside the case increases to a predetermined level, the rubber member 14 covering a gas discharge hole 13 of the cap cover 11 becomes separated from the cap cover 11, thereby opening the gas discharge hole 13 to discharge the gas, which prevents the case 20 from exploding.
FIGS. 2, 3 and 4 show different types of conventional rubber members for the cap assembly of the battery shown in FIG. 1, wherein (a) is a sectional view and (b) is a plan view.
FIG. 2 shows a hexahedral rubber member, FIG. 3 shows a hat-shaped rubber member having a cylindrical head, and FIG. 4 shows a rubber member assembly constituted by a spring, a steel plate, and a rubber element.
The rubber member inclines while being inserted into the cap assembly. At this time, if the rubber member inclines to one direction in the cap assembly, a deviation of pressure applied to the bottom portion is generated. Thus, it is natural that, a portion to which less pressure is applied, is more easily lifted. Accordingly, more gas is discharged through the portion to which less pressure is applied.
Such a phenomenon causes a reduction in the durability of the battery by partially curing the rubber member. When the partial cure of the rubber member and the reduction of the battery life become serious with the increase in the deviation of pressure, an appropriate adjustment of pressure deviation is very important to improve the quality of the battery.
In general, it is preferable that the deviation of pressure applied to the bottom surface of the rubber member should be adjusted within the range of 15.+-.2 kgf/cm.sup.2.
However, in the case of the hat-shaped rubber member having a cylindrical head or the hexahedral rubber member, a force is not applied uniformly to the bottom surface because of the inclination generated when inserted into the cap assembly, so that the pressure deviation problem becomes more serious.
That is, as shown in FIG. 5(a), if the hexahedral rubber member is biased toward the left side while being inserted into the cap assembly, a force is prone to concentrate only on the lower surface of the left side. This tendency is represented by an arrow.
Also, as shown in FIG. 5(b), if the hat-shaped rubber member having a cylindrical head is biased toward the left side, a force is applied toward the left side, not uniformly applied to the bottom surface of the rubber member. This phenomenon is represented by an arrow.
If a force is biased toward one side, a great amount of gas is discharged through the other side to which relatively less force is applied. Thus, a portion through which a lot of gas is discharged starts being cured earlier than the other portion.
Meanwhile, there is no inclining problem in the rubber member assembly composed of the spring, steel, and rubber element shown in FIG. 4. However, since the above rubber member assembly should be assembled using three different components, it takes many steps and much cost to manufacture the rubber member assembly. Furthermore, the above rubber member assembly is not suitable for a cap assembly of a high voltage battery which generates a lot of gas, due to the elastic limit of the spring.


A wet type dust collector for air purifying according to an embodiment of the present invention can efficiently cool polluted air and remove sludge because it is designed to be able to continuously cool polluted air from the outside with cooling water, which is cooled and circulated, and to remove sludge and foreign substances.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wet type dust collector for air purifying.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, a dust collector is a device that separates and collects dust and mist from a process gas. The dust collector includes pre-processing and accessory equipment for the function. Further, the dust collector is divided into various types such as a gravity dust collector, an inertial dust collector, a centrifugal dust collector, sonic dust collector, a scrubbing dust collector, a filter dust collector, and an electric dust collector in accordance with the effective force for collecting dust, such as gravity, inertia force, centrifugal force, attractive force, hydrophilic force, and electric force which are applied to particles. In those dust collectors, one with a function of removing the collected dust with water or other liquid is called a wet type dust collector.
A wet type dust collector, one of those dust collectors, which has an improved purifying function for primarily removing dust by spraying small waterdrops, secondarily removing the remaining dust by supplying water again, and finally completely removing the dust through a multistep filter has been disclosed in Korean Patent Publication NO. 10-2012-0013771.
A dust collector that includes fabric filter which receives air inside, has a filtering unit that filters inflow air, and discharges the air through the filtering unit, and an ammonia sprayer which sprays ammonia to the air flowing into the fabric filter, and that can simultaneously process dust and fine particles in burned air and sulfur oxides by changing them into ammonium sulfate and filter them with the filtering unit has been disclosed in Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2011-0108971.
Such a wet type dust collector has a problem in that it cannot efficiently cool polluted gases or air at a high temperature.
Further, there is a problem in that water or liquid sprayed for removing pollutants cannot efficiently remove the pollutants.

Wet type dust collector for air purifying


A linkage mechanism for a wet shaving razor is provided. The linkage mechanism is pivotally connected to and suspended from the handle at one end and pivotally and removably attached to the cartridge carrier at an opposite end allowing the cartridge carrier to pivot about a virtual pivot axis located below the shaving plane and into the skin. The linkage mechanism provides flexibility in positioning the virtual pivot axis since it is not limited to the physical constraints of the cartridge. As a result, the shaving razor cartridge has a flatter contact with the skin throughout the shaving stroke providing shaving comfort with reduced nicks and cuts.

This invention relates to a wet shaving razor comprising a cartridge that includes a shaving blade with a cutting edge which is moved across the surface of the skin being shaved by means of an adjoining handle. Conventional safety razors have a blade unit connected to a handle for a pivotal movement about a pivot axis which is substantially parallel to the blade or the blade edge. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,197,825 and 5,787,586 disclose such a razor having a blade unit capable of a pivotal movement about a pivot axis substantially parallel to the blade(s). The pivotal movement about the single axis provides some degree of conformance with the skin allowing the blade unit to follow the skin contours of a user during shaving. Such safety razors have been successfully marketed for many years. However, the blade unit can fail to remain flat and often disengages from the skin during shaving due to the blade unit's limited ability to pivot about the single axis combined with the dexterity required to control and maneuver the razor handle. The combination of these deficiencies can affect the glide and overall comfort during shaving.
There have been various proposals for mounting a cartridge on a handle to enable movement of the cartridge during shaving with the aim of maintaining conformity of the skin contacting parts of the cartridge with the skin surface during shaving. For example, many currently marketed razors include pivoting mechanisms which enable the cartridges to remain flat throughout the shaving stroke by providing a pivot axis in the center of the cartridge extending parallel to the cutting edges of the elongate blades incorporated in the cartridge. A razor including pivot axis 3 in the center of the cartridge 20 is illustrated in FIG. 1B. As shown in FIG. 1B, as the centrally pivoted cartridge approaches a bump in the skin 2, the blades 16 are compressed into the skin 2 increasing the risk of nicks and cuts which can potentially impact product safety. As a result, pivoting razor cartridges have progressed to forward pivot axis cartridges as illustrated in FIG. 1A having the pivot axis 3 beneath the guard 15 in order to produce a guard heavy cartridge 20. As the forward pivoting razor cartridge traverses the bump shown in FIG. 1A, the blades 16 are free to rotate away from the skin 2 reducing the risk of nicks and cuts. However, the forward pivoting cartridge has its drawbacks in that the guard heavy cartridge impacts the contact that the cartridge makes with the skin as well as the corresponding pressure distribution both of which are important to shaving efficacy and feel.
Throughout the development of razors, the cartridge to skin angle, or CTSA, has been a key measure to better understand contact between the cartridge and the skin. As illustrated in FIG. 1C, CTSA is the angle α between the skin tangent line 4 and the cutting plane 6 which is tangent to the guard 15 and cap 18. A flat CTSA α is desired for optimal cartridge to skin contact and pressure distribution throughout the shaving stroke.
Studies have revealed that CTSA is dependent on the cartridge pivot axis location. It has been found that designing a shaving razor cartridge that can pivot about virtual pivot axis located below the shaving plane and into the skin can provide a flat cartridge to skin angle throughout a shaving stroke. However, pivoting mechanisms are often restricted by the constraints of the cartridge which limit the capability for providing a desirable virtual pivot axis location. For instance, shell bearings are a commonly used pivot mechanism in razor design known to produce virtual pivot axis. An example of a shell bearing capable of producing a virtual pivot axis is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,661,907. However, shell bearings can rattle and bind leading to poor functionality and a low quality feel. These characteristics are extenuated as the radius of the shell is increased which is also limited to the constraints of the cartridge. Therefore, shell bearings are somewhat limited in their ability to produce virtual pivot axis. Thus, there is a need for a pivoting mechanism for a wet shaving razor capable of producing an optimal virtual pivot axis location that can maintain a flat CTSA throughout the shaving stroke with minimal nicks and cuts. There is also a need for a pivoting mechanism for a wet shaving razor capable of producing an optimal virtual pivot axis location that is not limited to the physical boundaries of the cartridge.


A control signal value, such as a duty cycle value for a Pulse Width Modulated (PWM) generator output, for controlling and/or powering a fan may be calculated using an autofan function configured with dynamic hysteresis control (DHC). As part of the DHC, the PWM duty cycle value may be determined by applying a hysteresis component at every point of the autofan function relating the PWM duty cycle to temperature. The PWM duty cycle value may be computed based on two functions, each function relating the PWM duty cycle to temperature, the first function applied when the temperature is increasing, and the second function applied when the temperature is decreasing. When a newly computed PWM duty cycle value falls within a range of duty cycle values defined by the hysteresis value, the current duty cycle of the PWM generator output may remain unchanged, minimizing noise resulting from the fan changing speed.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to cooling equipment for electronic systems, e.g., fans, and more particularly, to controlling the rotational speed of a fan.
2. Description of the Related Art
Fans are often used to evacuate warm air from enclosures in which electronic systems are contained. For example, most computer systems include one or more cooling fans to aid in circulating the air inside the enclosures and for maintaining the temperature inside the enclosures within an acceptable range. The increased airflow provided by fans typically aids in eliminating waste heat that may otherwise build up and adversely affect system operation. Employing cooling fans is especially helpful in ensuring proper operation for certain central processing units (CPUs), memory units, and other elements with relatively high operating temperatures.
Control of fans in a system typically involves a fan control unit executing a fan control algorithm. A fan control algorithm may determine the method for controlling one or more fans that are configured to evacuate warm air from a system enclosure. For example, the fan control algorithm may specify that a fan's speed should be increased or decreased dependent upon a detected temperature. Such control algorithms may also involve turning off a fan if the temperature is deemed cool enough to do so.
For detecting the temperature, a temperature sensor may provide to the fan control unit a signal indicative of the present temperature of a particular temperature zone in the electronic system. Fan drive systems often use a signal generator that provides a Pulse Width Modulated (PWM) signal to either directly drive the fan or drive an external circuit that controls the voltage between the power and ground interfaces of the fan, which in turn controls the speed of the fan. Signal generators that provide PWM signals are useful because they provide a digital control for the pulse width of a signal. The fan is typically powered only for the duration of the pulse. Between pulses power to the fan is turned off, although the fan is typically still spinning during this time. The duty cycle of the PWM pulse train presently being provided to the fan determines the fan's speed.
One problem in fan control has been to quiet the acoustical effects of a fan when the fan is changing speed. In general, present cooling solutions revolve around identifying and approaching a quiescent thermal operating point where the temperature and fan speed become stable. While in theory this may be considered an adequate and workable solution, in reality the fan speeds and zone temperatures typically do not reach this point, requiring the fan speed to be constantly readjusted, potentially increasing system noise. Consequently, most cooling solutions today typically attempt to minimize the change in PWM but generally don't prevent the PWM duty cycle from changing when the temperature begins to stabilize and is oscillating around the quiescent thermal operating point. In fact, even subtle changes in the PWM duty cycle may be perceived by the user.
Other corresponding issues related to the prior art will become apparent to one skilled in the art after comparing such prior art with the present invention as described herein.


A device for thermally actuating a deformable mirror includes a monolithic block that includes a mirror plate having a front face forming or configured to support a mirror, a base, and a one-dimensional array of thermally expandable actuators. The thermally expandable actuators mechanically connect a rear face of the mirror plate to the base such that shape, tilt, and/or location of the front face depend on temperature of the thermally expandable actuators. The mirror plate, base, and thermally expandable actuators are defined by slits that span between opposite-facing top and bottom surfaces of the monolithic block. The monolithic block may be made of a metal and may be manufactured at relatively low cost by wire eroding the slits in a metal block, using a wire that passes through the metal block between its top and bottom surfaces.

Adaptive optics systems are used to manipulate the wavefront of a light field. Adaptive optics systems include one or more adaptive optical elements that can be adjusted to change the wavefront of a light field. For example, a deformable mirror may be deformed to impart a desired wavefront change on the reflected light. Similarly, a deformable lens may be deformed to impart a desired wavefront change on the transmitted light. Although open-loop operation is sufficient in some scenarios, adaptive optics systems typically incorporate an active-feedback loop wherein one or more adaptive optical elements are adjusted repeatedly according to measurements of the resulting wavefront.
Adaptive optics systems were originally developed to correct for wavefront distortion caused by atmospheric turbulence, and many of the world's largest telescopes are equipped with adaptive optics to remove such wavefront distortion. Since their initial development, adaptive optics systems have found other uses. Adaptive optics systems are used to correct for time-varying wavefront distortion caused by imperfections in optical systems and/or environmental factors. Adaptive optics systems are also used to achieve wavefront properties that cannot, even under ideal circumstance, be achieved with conventional optical elements. Currently, adaptive optics systems are employed in a diverse range of technology fields including microscopy, retinal imaging, shaping of femtosecond laser pulses, optical communication, and astronomical imaging.
Deformable mirrors may be continuous or segmented. In a segmented deformable mirror, the mirror surface consists of separate segments. Each such mirror-surface segment is non-deformable but with individual actuation of each mirror-surface segment, the overall mirror surface is deformable. In a continuous deformable mirror, the mirror surface is continuous and has some degree of flexibility. An actuator array is positioned between the backside of the continuous mirror surface and a support substrate, to enable deformation of the continuous mirror surface. Continuous deformable mirrors with actuators that travel up to a few microns are commercially available.
Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology has been used to manufacture continuous deformable mirrors. Such MEMS-based continuous deformable mirrors are typically assemblies of many separate parts, including an array of separate actuator structures that are controlled electrostatically or magnetically. In another category of continuous deformable mirrors, a piezoelectric wafer is attached to the backside of the mirror surface, and an array of electrodes controls local thicknesses of the piezoelectric wafer. Both MEMS-based and piezoelectric-wafer-based continuous deformable mirrors, designed for laser-beam wavefront correction, are now commercially available. These commercially available devices have a high number of actuators, typically tens of actuators or even more, arranged in a two-dimensional array to offer general-purpose and high-resolution wavefront control.
Nonlinear crystals are routinely used to frequency-doubling, frequency-tripling, and otherwise frequency convert, to achieve laser light at a desired frequency. This is particularly true in the case of ultraviolet (UV) laser systems. Since high-power, reliable laser sources are available in the near-infrared range, frequency-conversion of near-infrared laser light to reach the UV range is generally more effective than direct generation of UV laser light.

Devices for thermally actuating deformable mirror, and associated manufacturing methods


The head slider in accordance with the present invention comprises a thin-film magnetic head including a magnetoresistive device and an electromagnetic transducer, and a heater adapted to generate heat upon energization. At least one of a reproducing bump, a recording bump, and a heater bump includes a bypass layer extending in a direction intersecting a bump extending direction, a first bump portion positioned closer to a pad-forming surface than is the bypass layer, and a second bump portion positioned on the side of the bypass layer opposite from the first bump portion. The first and second bump portions are displaced from each other in the bypass layer extending direction.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a head slider provided with a thin-film magnetic head, a head gimbal assembly, a hard disk drive, and a method of manufacturing a head slider.
2. Related Background Art
Recently, as the recording density of hard disks increases, the gap between the thin-film magnetic head and the hard disk (recording media), i.e. head flying height, has decreased to 10 nm, which currently seems to be the limit.

Head slider and manufacturing method thereof


A mobile station in a wireless communication network registers periodically with the network by sending a registration message to the network on a control channel. After a predetermined consecutive number of registration attempts are made by the mobile station without a registration response from the base station, the mobile station leaves the current control channel and searches for a new control channel on which to acquire service. After acquiring service on the new control channel, the mobile station can register with the network to recover service.

The present invention relates generally to the field of digital radio communication systems and, more particularly, to the periodic registration procedure in a digital radio communication system used to identify and update the location and activity status of mobile radio communication devices within said system.
In a cellular communication network, the geographic area covered by the network is divided into a plurality of cells. Each cell has a base station for communication with the mobile stations within that cell. The base station serves as an interface between the mobile stations in the cell and the network. To maintain communications with the mobile station, the network needs to track the location of the mobile station as it travels from one cell in the network to another cell. Tracking the location of the mobile station is accomplished by requiring the mobile station to periodically register with the network. During the registration procedure, the mobile station sends a registration message to the network. The network notes the location of the mobile station that is recorded in the network""s home location register (HLR) or visitor location register (VLR).
The HLR includes a database for storing subscriber information such as the subscriber""s international mobile subscriber identification (IMSI), the subscriber""s phone number from the public network, the subscriber""s permitted supplementary services, and information related to the subscriber""s current location. The HLR provides the MSC with the necessary subscriber data when a call originates from the public network. Much of the same information is also stored in the VLR. The VLR, however, stores more detailed information about the current location of the mobile station than the HLR. The VLR provides the MSC with the necessary subscriber data when a call originates from the mobile station.
When a mobile station is active (i.e., powered on), it periodically sends a registration message to the network which notes the location of the mobile station and updates the information in the HLR and VLR concerning the mobile station""s location and activity status. When the network fails to receive a registration message from the mobile station after a long period of time, the network may assume that the mobile station is out of service, either because the mobile station is turned off or because it is no longer present in the network. In such cases, the network may update the HLR and VLR to indicate that the mobile station is inactive. Thereafter, if a call is addressed to the inactive mobile station, the network, instead of paging the mobile station, will simply send a message to the caller advising the caller that the mobile station is out of service.
IS-136 is a communication protocol for a TDMA wireless communication system that employs a digital control channel (DCCH). IS-136 is published by the Telecommunications Industry Association. Mobile phones implementing this protocol are required to register periodically on a DCCH. After sending a registration message to the base station, the mobile station enters a registration proceeding state and waits for a response from the base station. If the base station does not respond within a predetermined period of time, the mobile station resends the registration message up to a maximum of five times. After six registration failures, the mobile station will return to camping on the last used DCCH.
One shortcoming with the registration method described in IS-136 is that the mobile station remains camped on an obviously dysfunctional control channel. Since the base station does not respond to the registration messages from the mobile station, it is also unlikely to respond to any attempts by the mobile station to originate a call. Moreover, if the mobile station has failed at six consecutive registration attempts, the network may modify its HLR and VLR to indicate that the mobile station is inactive. Any person attempting to call the mobile station would likely receive a message indicating that it is no longer in service. Also, messages such as short text messages, message waiting indications, etc., would not be forwarded to the mobile station.
The present invention relates to registration procedures used by a mobile station which is locked onto a D-AMPS digital control channel (DCCH). In particular, the present invention relates to a method for re-establishing service on a digital control channel after a predetermined number of registration attempts have failed.
The term registration refers to the steps taken by a mobile station to identify itself to a base station as being active in the system. To register with the network, the mobile station sends a registration message to the base station and then enters the registration proceeding state. Upon entering the registration proceeding state, the mobile station starts a registration timer. If a response is received from the base station prior to the expiration of the timer, the mobile station takes action according to the response and it returns to camping on the current DCCH. On the other hand, if the registration timer expires without a response from the base station, the mobile station sets a re-registration timer and returns to camping on the DCCH. When the re-registration timer expires, the mobile station re-attempts registration on the current DCCH. After six consecutive attempts at registration have been made without a response from the base station, the mobile station assumes that the current DCCH is dysfunctional and searches for a new control channel on which to acquire service. If a suitable control channel is found, the mobile station will attempt to register on the new control channel. Thus, the mobile phone is prevented from camping on a dysfunctional control channel.
The present invention can also be applied to any DCCH scanning and locking algorithm. After a predetermined number of attempts to register have been made without a response from the base station, the mobile station would leave the current DCCH and continue the scan for another control channel.

Method for recovering service after registration failure in a cellular system


The present invention provides a positioning apparatus capable of performing six-axis micro adjustment of an optical element in an exposure apparatus with high accuracy, and the exposure apparatus. The positioning apparatus of the present invention includes a first measurement unit for measuring a position/inclination of a moving part having an optical element while being kept from contact with the moving part, and a driving unit capable of driving the moving part in directions of six axes with respect to a fixed part while being kept from contact with the moving part, based on the result of measurement by the first measurement unit.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a precise adjustment drive apparatus, particularly an apparatus for finely adjusting postures of optical elements (lens, mirror, etc.) of an exposure apparatus for use in steps of producing a semiconductor or liquid crystal device. More specifically, the posture adjustment is performed for obtaining a more correct relation of image formation when an image of an original plate (e.g. mask or reticle) is projected and exposed on an object (e.g. wafer) with optical elements.
2. Related Background Art
A semiconductor exposure apparatus is an apparatus transferring an original plate (e.g. reticle) having a large number of different types of patterns to a silicon wafer (substrate). For fabricating a circuit having a high integration degree, it is essential to improve not only a resolution performance but also superimposition accuracy.
Superimposition errors in the semiconductor exposure apparatus are classified into an alignment error, image deformation and a magnification error. The alignment error can be alleviated by adjustment of a relative position between the original plate (reticle) and the substrate (wafer). On the other hand, the image deformation and the magnification error can be adjusted by moving some of optical elements of an optical system. If some optical elements are moved in a direction other than a desired direction of movement, or the optical element is decentered or inclined when some optical elements are moved, a desired optical performance (optical performance with image deformation and the magnification error corrected) cannot be obtained. For example, if it is necessary to move the optical element along the optical axis, parallel decentering and inclination decentering error components should be prevented from growing.
As an optical element movement apparatus for semiconductor exposure apparatus, an apparatus with a mechanism using a parallel plate has been devised (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-357651). FIGS. 15A and 15B are a top view and a sectional view, respectively, of the conventional optical element moving apparatus.
As shown in these figures, in the conventional optical element moving apparatus, a ring-like flat spring 11 having a moving table 1 holding an adjustment lens 7 for adjusting a magnification, an aberration and the like of an optical system and a cell 8 supporting the adjustment lens 7, and a fixed table 2 is fixed on both end faces of the moving table 1 and the fixed table 2 in a sealed manner. The moving table 1 has a cylindrical shape, but the outer diameter of the upper face is unequal to the outer diameter of the lower face. Furthermore, similarly, the fixed table 2 also has a cylindrical shape, the inner diameter of the opening of the upper face is unequal to the inner diameter of the opening of the lower face. The fixed table 2 has at least one hole, and can change the position of a moving part by a change in pressure or volume of a driving fluid.
Other examples of the conventional technique include an optical element micro adjustment apparatus described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,986,827, but in the structure thereof, adjustment is limited to micro adjustment of three axes, and adjustment within the optical element surface cannot be performed, and therefore the apparatus is not sufficient for applications precise adjustment of positions and postures of optical elements.
Furthermore, another example of the conventional technique is an apparatus described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-131605, but it utilizes a contraction mechanism using a long lever (long distance between support point and power point or action point), and is therefore expected to have a low specific frequency. The low specific frequency is disadvantageous for applications requiring precise adjustment of positions and postures because vibrations from outside the apparatus are transferred to a moving part. Furthermore, the low specific frequency is disadvantageous when high-speed drive is required.
In Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-357651, other parallel decentering and inclination decentering components associated with optical elements depend on guidance accuracy of a flat spring guide. Furthermore, the initial position and posture of the optical element depend on assembly accuracy of apparatus. However, as semiconductor device patterns have become more precise, higher position and posture accuracy than ever and drive positioning accuracy for correction of aberrations and the like have been required for the optical element. Thus, the apparatus driving only one axis or three axes, described in Japanese Patent Application 2000-357651 or U.S. Pat. No. 5,986,827 is not sufficient, and an apparatus capable of adjusting total six axes of orthogonal three axes in the translational direction and three axes about the translational axes is desired.
Furthermore, for alleviating a positional shift of the optical element due to vibrations from outside the apparatus, a six-axis adjusting mechanism provided therein a mechanism for preventing transfer of external vibrations to the optical element is desired.
Further, in recent years, as semiconductor patterns have become more precise, an exposure apparatus using light having a short wavelength (e.g. light having a wavelength of 10 to 15 nm, such as EUV light) has been devised. For obtaining a relation of image formation required for the exposure apparatus using EUV light, higher position and posture accuracy than ever and drive positioning accuracy for correction of aberrations and the like have been required for the optical element. However, if means for measuring a position from a basic structure can measure only a relative displacement with a moving part, a positioning sensor for positioning the moving part with respect to a reference (e.g. fixed part) is required. If the moving part is positioned with respect to the fixed part based on the result of detection by the positioning sensor, an imposition error of the fixed part and a measurement error of the positioning sensor appear as a positioning error of the moving part.
Alternatively, for obtaining the required relation of image information, an apparatus capable of controlling a relative position between moving parts including different optical elements.
Furthermore, the optical element is expected to have an elevated temperature due to exposure heat to cause thermal distortion. If the optical element is thermally distorted, the exposure apparatus no longer satisfies the required relation of image formation, and therefore it is necessary to cool the optical element. Particularly, positioning accuracy in the order of nanometers is required for the optical element of the EUV exposure apparatus, and therefore cooling means transferring no vibrations to the optical element should be used.
Furthermore, since EUV light is easily absorbed by a material, the amount of light decreases if a contamination (hydrocarbon compound generated from the wafer) occurs. Further, there arises a problem such that EUV light reacts with the contamination to deposit carbon and the like on the surface of the optical element, thus reducing a reflectivity of the optical element. Thus, the partial pressure of contamination in a body tube space through which EUV light passes should be kept at a low level.
Thus, the exemplary object of the present invention is to provide a positioning apparatus capable of performing positioning control of optical elements in directions of six axes with high accuracy, and an exposure apparatus.

Positioning apparatus, exposure apparatus, and method for producing device


Disclosed herein are methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on computer storage media, for blockchain-based service processing. One of the methods includes receiving a service processing request by a first service processing platform from a first user. The first service processing platform is one of a plurality of service processing platforms that access a blockchain network, and service data of the first user is shared between the plurality of service processing platforms over the blockchain network. In response to a determination that the service processing request involves a second service processing platform of the plurality of service processing platforms, it is determined whether the service processing request is permitted to be executed. In response to determining that the service processing request is permitted to be executed, the service processing request is executed over the blockchain network.

With the rapid development of computer and Internet technologies, more services can be processed by using online service processing platforms. In addition, for various types of services, there are more platforms available for service processing. For example, a plurality of platforms relating to risk management services are available for users to handle the same type of risk management services. For example, a plurality of financial institution platforms are available for users to manage financial matters. However, for service platforms relating to risk management, the service platforms are all independent platforms, that is, data cannot be shared between these service platforms. However, when a user performs the same type of services on the service platforms, the user may need to perform same operations, such as risk assessment. As such, the same user may need to repeat some operations when performing services on the service platforms, leading to a problem of time-consuming and inefficient service processing.
Therefore, it is urgent to propose a technical solution to implement data sharing between different service platforms.

Blockchain-based service processing methods, apparatuses, devices, and storage media

Alipay (Hangzhou) Information Technology Co., Ltd.


A driving circuit according to an embodiment of the invention includes: a switching unit for sequentially switching between a first operation of applying a positive gray-scale voltage to odd-numbered data lines and applying a negative gray-scale voltage to even-numbered data lines and a second operation of applying a negative gray-scale voltage to odd-numbered data lines and applying a positive gray-scale voltage to the even-numbered data lines; a plurality of short-circuit switches for short-circuiting a pair of adjacent odd-numbered data lines and a pair of adjacent even-numbered data lines to produce a plurality of pairs of short-circuited data lines in a switching period between the first operation and the second operation; and a plurality of common node-connected switches corresponding to the plurality of data line pairs and short-circuiting a corresponding one of the data line pairs to a common node.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a driving circuit and a driving method for a display device having plural electrodes such as a liquid crystal display device, and to a display device using the same.
2. Description of Related Art
Along with recent development of advanced visual and information society and widespread of a multi-media system, flat display devices such as a liquid crystal display device have become more and more important. The liquid crystal display devices have been widely used as display devices for portable devices because of advantages of low power consumption, slimness, and lightweight.
The liquid crystal display device includes a liquid crystal panel for displaying an image, and a driving circuit for driving the liquid crystal panel. An active-matrix type liquid crystal panel includes a device substrate, a counter substrate, and a liquid crystal filled in between the two substrates. Scanning lines are formed in a horizontal direction on the device substrate, and data lines are formed in a vertical direction thereon, and pixel electrodes are formed between the scanning lines and the data lines. Active elements such as TFTs (Thin Film Transistors) are formed around intersections between the scanning lines and the data lines. Gate electrodes of the TFTs are connected with scanning lines, source electrodes are connected with data lines, and drain electrodes are connected with the pixel electrodes.
The scanning lines are connected with a scanning line driving circuit, and the data lines are connected with a data line driving circuit. When the scanning line driving circuit sequentially drives the scanning lines, an output voltage of the data line driving circuit is applied to pixel electrodes through the TFTs. On the other hand, a common electrode opposite to the pixel electrode is formed on the counter substrate. The common electrode is applied with an appropriate level of voltage by a common electrode driving circuit. As a result, a voltage corresponding to a potential difference between the pixel electrode and the common electrode is applied to the liquid crystal. The liquid crystal display device changes a voltage level applied to the liquid crystal to change the orientation of liquid crystal grains and transmittance and thus produces gray scales.
In general, a polarity of a voltage applied to pixel electrode from the data line through the TFT (hereinafter referred to as "pixel voltage") is inverted at predetermined intervals in order to prevent deterioration of displayed image quality. To that end, for example, an AC driving method such as a dot-inversion driving method that changes a polarity of the pixel voltage from one pixel to another has been adopted. With such an AC driving method, the pixel electrode is alternately applied with a positive voltage and a negative voltage, so a large amount of power is consumed. As a countermeasure against this, there has disclosed a technique of setting a voltage of a data line to an intermediate level at the time of inverting a polarity to thereby save power consumption (see Japanese Patent Translation Publication No. 9-504389 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 11-95729, for instance).
Japanese Patent Translation Publication No. 9-504389 discloses a driving circuit where a data line is short-circuited to a common node by a multiplexer upon the polarity inversion, and a potential of the data line is kept at an intermediate level (common electrode potential) by an external storage capacitor connected with the common node. Further, this publication also discloses a driving circuit that dispenses with the external storage capacitor and connects all data lines to a common node by a multiplexer to set the potential of each data line to about an intermediate level in the case of line-inversion driving.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 11-95729 discloses a driving circuit where adjacent data lines are temporarily short-circuited upon the polarity inversion and their potentials balance each other out and average out to around the intermediate level. Further, this publication also discloses a driving circuit where all data lines are short-circuited and connected with a common electrode voltage source to keep the potentials of all the data lines to the intermediate level.
However, the above driving circuits have the following problems. That is, in the driving circuit as disclosed in Japanese Patent Translation Publication No. 9-504389, a voltage of the data line is set to an intermediate level upon the polarity inversion by means of the external capacitor. This leads to a problem in that an additional external part is required and costs high. Meanwhile, if the external capacitor is not provided, there are on-resistances corresponding to two switches on a path where the data lines are short-circuited, so a time constant increases and it takes much time to set a voltage of the data line to around the intermediate level. As a result, it is impossible to efficiently set the voltage of the data line to the intermediate level, leading to an increase in power consumption. In the case of short-circuiting the data lines, heat is generated from the on-resistances corresponding to the two switches.
Meanwhile, in the driving circuit as disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 11-95729, a pair of adjacent data lines is short-circuited upon the polarity inversion to average the voltage levels to about the intermediate level. Thus, an average voltage is determined depending on a pixel voltage of a pair of adjacent data lines. Accordingly, an average voltage may vary from one pair of adjacent data lines to another. It is feared that display characteristics deteriorate like variations of the brightness. Further, although an ideal average voltage is a common electrode voltage, in the case of averaging voltage values every data line pair as mentioned above, an average voltage varies depending on individual voltage values of the adjacent data lines, so an average voltage is not always around the common electrode voltage. If the average voltage deviates from the common electrode voltage, a voltage range of a writing voltage is increased, and power consumption increases. This leads to heat generation in the worst case. If adjacent ones of all the data lines are short-circuited through switches and connected with the common electrode voltage source, as many on-resistances as the switches are used, resulting in a problem in that a time constant increases and it takes much time to set the voltage of the data line to the intermediate level.

Driving circuit, display device, and driving method for the display device


A display driving method, a display driver and a display device are provided. The display driving method includes acquiring a first grayscale of at least one to-be-displayed sub-pixel, performing a first compensation manner to compensate the first grayscale and acquire a second grayscale, determining whether the second grayscale is less than a critical value; if yes, performing a second compensation manner to compensate the second grayscale and acquire a third grayscale, and acquiring a data voltage based on the third grayscale to control the sub-pixel to emit light and display, and if no, acquiring a data voltage based on the second grayscale to control the sub-pixel to emit light and display. The problem of displaying color deviation when the display panel is displayed at a low grayscale can be avoided.

With the development of science and technology, more and more display devices are widely used in people's daily life and work, which brings great convenience and becomes an indispensable and important tool for people today.
A main component of a display device to realize a display function is a display panel. Currently, an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display panel is one of the mainstream display panels. Due to advantages of high contrast, ultra-thin and flexible, the OLED display panels are more and more widely used in various display devices.
The OLED display panel has a problem of uneven display brightness (that is, mura), and thus display compensation needs to be performed when an image is displayed.

Display driving method, display driver, and display device


The filter includes at least one acoustic track formed on a piezoelectric substrate. At least one SAW input transducer and at least one SAW output transducer are arranged in each track. Each track has a RSPUDT structure and thus a distributed excitation. The excitation function includes sources arranged in a main lobe and a tail function including at least one tail lobe. A fine and precise approximation to the desired continuous excitation function is obtained by decreasing the excitation strength in the tail function by a factor of at least 2.

Transducers of the type RSPUDT are known, e.g., from an article of J. M. Hode, et al., "SPUDT-Based Filters: Design Principles and Optimization", 1995 IEEE ULTRASONICS SYMPOSIUM, pages 39-50. RSPUDT transducers are used in transversal filters. Filters using such transducers have a low insertion loss.
Designing an RSPUDT filter having a desired transfer function needs an optimization of the distribution of sources and reflectors over the length of a transducer. The piezoelectric substrate material is chosen to achieve a desired bandwidth which is dependent on the coupling factor of the material. Suppression of triple transit signals and a high out-of-band rejection is a question of sufficient resonant structures and the length of the transducer.


Pedicle screws are secured in two columns, one along each side of the spine. Cross support rods have ends connected to pedicle screw heads. A longitudinally extending rod is supported on the cross supports and recessed in the cavity created by removal of portions of spinous processes, providing a reduced profile of the installed construct. Several types of cross supports are shown such as: arms from the screws inward to rings or yokes connecting the longitudinal rod; cross rods with ends connected to the screws and having centrally-located yokes for the longitudinal rod; cross rods with articulating longitudinal rod portions fixed or swiveled to them. These cross rods may have end portions angled posterior toward anterior to accommodate lateral positioned pedicle screws, but shorter cross rods without angled end portions enable medialized pedicle screw orientation.

Spinal fixation systems may be used to correct and stabilize the position of vertebral segments within a patient's spine. Such correction may be necessary as a result of accidents, degenerative diseases, etc. Typical spinal fixation systems in use today include pedicle screws attached to the posterior of a patient's vertebrae in a vertical column along either one or both sides of the spine. A rod is connected to the heads of each pedicle screw in a column to provide support for the spine. Examples of such prior art devices may be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 5,741,255 entitled "Spinal Column Retaining Apparatus" to Krag et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 6,187,005 entitled "Variable Angle Spinal Fixation System" to Brace et al.
Unfortunately, when the above prior art systems are inserted in a patient, the pedicle screws are typically positioned such that the head of each pedicle screw angles outward away from the center of the spine (i.e., in a lateral orientation). Because of this screw angle and the fact that the support rods are mounted at about the same height as the pedicle screw heads, there is a significant amount of trauma to the back muscles when this system is installed. This, in turn, leads to a significant amount of pain after the surgery as well as a long recovery time.
Another spinal fixation system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,628,740 entitled "Articulating Toggle Bolt Bone Screw" to Mullane. This spinal fixation system is designed for anterior attachment to a patient's spine and includes two columns of screws on either side of the spine with a single support rod therebetween attached to the screws by clamps, as may be seen in FIG. 5 of the patent. However, while such anterior spinal fixation systems may not cause as severe trauma to back muscles (since they are installed on the opposing side of the spine from the back muscles), it may not be possible to install such devices at certain positions on the spine.
Another limitation of the above systems is that their support rods are typically formed as a unitary piece. Even though such support rods typically have some degree of flexibility, they may not be able to accommodate spines that require correction in multiple directions.

Spinal fixation system and related methods


A light emitting device made of semiconducting materials. The device has an optical microcavity which supports a resonant mode of predetermined photon energy. Within the cavity is a quantum well of predetermined thickness and energy depth. The quantum well is designed such that it forms bound electron, exciton, lower polariton, and hole energy states of predetermined energy. The energy of an exciton state is set to equal the predetermined photon energy of the microcavity mode such that polariton states are created. A means is provided for resonantly tunneling electrons into a quantum well energy state. In a first embodiment, electrons resonantly tunnel into an electron energy state. In a second embodiment, electrons resonantly tunnel into an exciton energy state, during which tunneling the electrons simultaneously fuse with holes to form excitons. In the first embodiment, the electron state to lower polariton state transition energy is made equal to the energy of a longitudinal optical (LO) phonon of the quantum well material. This energy equivalence facilitates the rapid thermalization of resonantly tunneled electrons to combine with holes and form polaritons resonant with the cavity mode. Thermalization is rapid because it only requires the scattering of a single LO phonon. The photon component of the polariton is then emitted through the leaky cavity reflector. The second embodiment sets the exciton to polariton transition energy equal to the LO phonon energy to facilitate rapid thermalization to the polariton state. Photons are then emitted through the leaky Bragg reflector in the same manner as the first embodiment.

The development of high-speed, high-efficiency light sources is important in many applications. Optical data transmission, for example, can benefit from light emitting devices with increased speed and high quantum efficiency.
Quantum efficiency is defined as the ratio of the number of photons emitted in a desired direction to the number of charge carriers injected.
The performance of any light emitting device is judged by the speed and efficiency of the device. While the efficiency can be improved by better device design and/or better material growth processes, the speed is often limited by fundamental material properties. The speed of a device made of a given material is limited by the radiative lifetime of the charge carriers (electrons and holes), i.e., how fast the electrons and holes can recombine (across the band gap) to form a photon. The GaAs-AlGaAs system, for example, has a radiative lifetime of approximately 1 nanosecond.
In most light emitting devices, the electrons and holes must `thermalize` before they can radiatively recombine, i.e., emit light. Thermalization is the process of charge carriers losing excess momentum and energy in the form of heat (phonons) to the surrounding crystal lattice. Excess energy or momentum in the charge carriers can prevent radiative recombination. Conventional thermalization allows charge carriers to lose an arbitrary amount of energy through the scattering of multiple acoustic phonons of arbitrary energy. This process is generally slow and is often a greater speed limitation than the radiative lifetime.
Solid state lasers have been used extensively as light sources, particularly where high speed is required. Such lasers have the disadvantage of having an emission threshold. The emission threshold is the result of the necessity of having a population inversion in the lasing medium. An emission threshold results in energy loss and nonlinear behavior which can complicate device operation. Therefore, it would be advantageous to have a light source with the speed of a solid state laser without the emission threshold.
In recent years, researchers have been investigating the use of quantum well (QW) semiconductor structures in optoelectronic devices such as light emitting devices.
QW structures are small regions in a semiconductor crystal with a different composition than the surrounding crystal. Quantum wells are planar. The QW has a different band-gap structure than the surrounding material and so can confine electrons or other particles (e.g., holes) within it. When confined to such a small region of space, particles can exhibit strongly wavelike properties. Most significantly, a confined electron can only have certain, discrete energies. These energies are determined by the physical dimensions of the QW and the intrinsic properties of the QW material and the surrounding material. Other particles or combinations of particles such as holes or excitons (bound electron-hole pairs) can be similarly affected by a QW. Proper selection of the QW geometry and material composition (of both QW and surrounding material) allows one to build QW structures with predetermined energy states for electrons, excitons, holes, and other particles.
Electrons and holes can be manipulated to travel between these energy states and therefore emit and detect photons of certain, predetermined energies.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,588,015 to Yang discloses light emitting devices based on electronic transitions between electron energy states in two closely spaced quantum wells (QWs). Electrons traveling from a first QW emit light as they step down to the lower energy state of the second QW. This invention requires two closely spaced QWs to operate. Also, the QWs must be made of dissimilar materials such that the conduction band edge of the first QW is lower in energy than the valence band edge of the second QW. Electrons are injected to the first QW using the well known technique of resonant tunneling.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,610,413 to Fan et al discloses a light emitting device exploiting electronic transitions in at least one QW and preferably multiple quantum wells separated by multiple barrier layers. The device of Fan requires that the energy of QW-bound excitons exceeds the energy of longitudinal optical phonons. This condition enables the excitons to exist at room temperature and also enables higher photon production (light output). It is notable that this invention does not tune the confined electronic energy states to match the energy of longitudinal optical phonons. Also, it is notable that this invention does not use a micro-optical cavity. The thermalization process exploited in this invention is relatively slow, and therefore slows the light emission of the device.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,023,879 to Wang et al discloses an optically pumped QW IR light source. This invention uses an asymmetric stepped QW to provide at least three electron energy states. The energy state transition energies are selected such that certain nonradiative recombinations are fast (via optical phonon scattering) and certain nonradiative recombinations are slow (via acoustic phonon scattering). Specifically, faster transition rates are facilitated by transition energies larger than the optical phonon energy of the QW material. Transitions with energies lower than the optical phonon energy have slower recombination rates due to their dependence upon acoustic phonon scattering. This difference in recombination rates facilitates the production of a population inversion in the QW, which allows for lasing. This device is necessarily optically pumped, which greatly increases the complexity and expense of an operating device.
None of these prior art devices provide a QW light emitting device with the speed and quantum efficiency that is possible with QW structures.

Quantum well exciton-polariton light emitting diode

Japan Science and Technology Corporation


In an embodiment of the present invention, users with the appropriate permission can launch a function inside a system in order to anonymize and export the currently loaded study or studies, or one or more studies identified by a search criteria. The data from the studies that were identified is then anonymized on the system. In an embodiment of the present invention, the data from selected studies is anonymized on a server, and only then transmitted to another network device. In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, the data from selected studies is anonymized on a server, and only then stored to a hard disk or other media.

In modern medicine, medical diagnosis reports are often digitized and contain information relating to the patient. Medical diagnosis reports include reports from clinical software systems such as in the field of radiology, where images are increasingly acquired and processed digitally. Picture Archiving and Communications Systems (PACS), Radiology Information Systems (RIS) and similar computer systems are used to process and store the image data, as well as the patient information related to the images. The related information includes patient demographics, location and time of acquisition and other acquisition parameters. This non-pixel information is referred to as meta-data.
The meta-data is important for data management, e.g. for searching or identifying a particular data set relating to a particular exam, and it provides important information about the examination, which is relevant for the diagnostic interpretation of the images. Part of the meta-data (the Patient Identifiable Information (PII) and the Protected Health Information (PHI)) relate to the particular patient and allows identification of the patient.

Method and apparatus for anonymized display and data export


An organic light emitting diode display device includes a plurality of organic light emitting diode elements that are arranged in a matrix; a plurality of protective layers, each of the protective layers covering at least one of the organic light emitting diode elements; and a stress relaxation layer that is formed between the protective layers, for relaxing a stress caused by the protective layers. The stress relaxation layer may surround the protective layer. Moreover, the stress relaxation layer may be made of a shading material, and serve as a mask for forming the organic light emitting diode elements.

1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an organic light emitting diode display device including organic light emitting diode elements as light emission elements, and each of the organic light emitting diode elements is covered with a protective layer. More specifically, the present invention relates to the organic light emitting diode display device having a stress relaxation layer for relaxing a stress caused by the protective layer, and a method of manufacturing the organic light emitting diode display device.
2) Description of the Related Art
Organic light emitting diode displays are now attracting attention as candidates for flat display devices instead of liquid crystal displays. The organic light emitting diode displays differ from the liquid crystal displays in that organic light emitting diode elements generating light are employed. In other words, the organic light emitting diode displays do not require backlight which the liquid crystal displays need. An organic light emitting diode element has high speed response, high contrast, and high visibility. Further, an organic light emitting diode display using the organic light emitting diode element has a relatively simple structure, which is advantageous in view of manufacturing cost.
FIG. 8 is a sectional view of a display cell of a conventional organic light emitting diode display. A thin film transistor 102 serving as a switching element, a thin film transistor 103 serving as a driver element, and a conductive layer 110 are formed on a substrate 101. A planarizing layer 104 is formed to cover the substrate 101, and the thin film transistors 102 and 103. An organic light emitting diode element 105, and conductive layers 106 and 107 are formed on the planarizing layer 104 so that the organic light emitting diode element 105 is located between the conductive layers 106 and 107. The conductive layer 107 is electrically connected to the thin film transistor 103 via conductive layers 108 and 110. The organic light emitting diode element 105 is electrically connected to and controlled by the thin film transistors 102 and 103. A protective layer 109 is deposited on the uppermost layer as shown FIG. 8. Such a protective layer is disclosed in, for example, "A 13.0-inch AM-OLED display with top emitting structure and adaptive current mode programmed pixel circuit", T. Sasaoka et al, SID Tech. Dig., 2001, pp. 384 to 387.
The organic light emitting diode element 105 has a structure similar to that of a light emitting diode, including at least one of a hole transport layer and an electron transport layer, and an emitting layer. These hole transport layer, the electron transport layer, and the emitting layer are made of organic materials such as diamine compounds, quinolinol aluminum complex, and phthalocyanine. Some carbon-carbon conjugated bonds of these materials are easily separated by moisture or oxygen. Separating of the carbon-carbon conjugated bonds causes electrical conductivity to decrease. Therefore, the organic light emitting diode display has a sealing structure for protecting the surface of the organic light emitting diode elements from air.
To date, for such a sealing structure, the organic light emitting diode display is protected from air with a glass substrate separated from the surface of the organic light emitting diode elements by spacers. However, the glass substrate causes various problems such as occurrence of optical loss. For example, light emitted from the organic light emitting diode element is reflected by the glass surface, and weight and thickness of the organic light emitting diode display increases in addition to an increase in the cost of the glass substrate. Therefore, using the protective layer 109 made of silicon nitride (hereinafter, "SiNx") having excellent light transmission characteristics, instead of the glass substrate, is desired.
However, the protective layer has a problem in which the protective layer located on the surface of the organic light emitting diode display causes a tensile stress. The tensile stress causes separation of the protective layer or substrate crack.
The material of the organic light emitting diode element is weak against a high temperature, and the glass transition occurs at a temperature as low as about 120 degrees centigrade. Therefore, depositing the protective layer requires the temperature condition not higher than the glass-transition temperature, more specifically, from about 80 to about 120 degrees centigrade.
Generally, it is common to deposit SiNx at a temperature of from 250 to 300 degrees centigrade, and preferably about 280 degrees centigrade. The SiNx layer deposited under a temperature of from about 80 to about 120 degrees centigrade has a lower density. The lower density leads to strong interatomic force. As a result, an influence of stress to the organic light emitting diode elements increases as compared with the normal layer structure.
Further, in order to protect the organic light emitting diode elements from air sufficiently, the protective layer needs to have a certain thickness, specifically, a thickness of from 1 to 3 micrometers. Generally, since the stress increases with an increase in the layer thickness, the tensile stress on the surface of the organic light emitting diode elements becomes a serious problem.
The protective layer, not limited to the SiNx layer, potentially has the problem of the stress. Therefore, in the general organic light emitting diode display which has the sealing structure with the protective layer, it is desired to decrease the stress caused by the protective layer.

Organic light emitting diode display device and method of manufacturing the same


The present invention is a book having (a) a front cover, a back cover and a spline, forming an outer portion of a book; (b) a plurality of pages affixed within the outer portion of the book and containing a plurality of words constituting a text; (c) at least one page being a three-dimensional hollow frame structure with its front being at least partially made of see-through material. The frame structure is divided into an upper section and a lower section, separated by a wall having at least one connecting orifice, and containing a trap mechanism at each of said at the connecting orifice, and including a lever functionally connected to the trap mechanism. There is also a plurality of bead-like structures contained within the upper section of said frame structure, having a sufficient shape and size to flow via gravity through the connecting orifice of the upper section to the lower section when a user actuates the lever with the book in a substantially upright position.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to toy books for children which have been developed to enhance play, education and manual skills. More specifically, one or more pages includes a frame structure with bead-like structures which may be released from an upper section to create an image.
2. Information Disclosure Statement
The following prior art patents are representative of bead-like structure containing toys:
U.S. Pat. No. 1,174,068 to Elizabeth T. Hincks describes a sand toy consisting of a flexible bag shaped to simulate a distinctive object, having a slit at the top, a flexible funnel attached to the margin of the slit, and co-extensive therewith, its flexibility adapting it for external and internal arrangement, for holding the object in upright position and for opening the slit, and for forming a closure therefor.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,275,997 to Milton D. Adler describes a toy comprising a card of suitable sheet material having a design cut therein, a backing sheet having an adhesive surface, a quantity of comminuted material sufficient to fill the design to the depth and thickness of the card whereby a replica of the design may be formed on said backing with the comminuted material by filling the design with the material and removing the surplus with the card.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,299,274 to Andrew H. Wehling describes in a toy, the combination with a substantially closed rectangular receptacle having sand therein and having a transparent face, a U-shaped frame having the connecting element from the arms thereof secured in the receptacle, a disk having a shaft journaled in bearings between the arms of the said U-shaped member, said disk having peripheral slits, blades inserted in said slits, a funnel-shaped member secured in the corner of the inner wall of the receptacle opposite that to which the U-shaped member is connected and designed to deliver the sand therefrom to the blades of the wheel, and said funnel-shaped member, at the upper and outer edge thereof being provided with a transverse opening forming an inlet for the receptacle.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,363,570 to Catherine L. Cotter describes an animal toy comprising a container for mobile material, such as water or sand, having two upright side members respectively corresponding to opposite sides of an animal, a transverse member connecting said side members and formed so as to cooperate therewith to hold said material, the transverse member at a place corresponding to the mouth of the animal having a discharge spout, each side member having a supporting foot corresponding to a foot of the animal, the transverse member being doubled upon itself to form a closed top having a filling opening, and a cover hinged to one end of said transverse member, in the closed position resting on the other end of said transverse member for closing said filling opening.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,752,725 to Robert K. Unsworth describes in a device of the character described, a pair of compartments, an elongated hollow connecting member between said compartments, a body of liquid within said compartments and said member having a predetermined density and a plurality of movable objects in said liquid, said elongated member having therewithin a coaxially aligned tubular member, one end which is outwardly flared and the other end of which is outwardly flared and then inwardly flared.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,117,394 to Richard Wenger describes in a display device or toy, a base housing having an opening in its top, a drawer disposed within the housing and means for withdrawing the drawer, the housing having a flat top, four posts extending upwardly from the base for supporting an overhead sand hopper and from which a gravitational flow of granular material is had, the hopper at its bottom being provided with a tubular outlet, a valve for closing the outlet, the valve being provided with a downwardly projecting lip and also with an upwardly extending wing portion, the wing portion adapted to engage an inverted U-shape spring member that is attached to the wall of the hopper, means for adjusting the tension of the spring whereby to limit the movement of the valve, the valve being normally closed, a swinging lever below the hopper, a hod carried at one end of the lever, the lever being balanced so that when the hopper is empty the hod bearing end of the lever will be elevated and the hod will be positioned adjacent to the bottom of the outlet of the hopper, the lever being pivotally supported upon a post, adjustable means disposed upon the post and whereby to limit a downward movement of the lever, an end of the lever having is articulated connection with a simulated operator, a pivoted dumping receptacle that is supported upon the top of the housing and arranged in the path of downward swing of the lever so that the hod deposits its contents into said receptacle during such downward swing, the receptacle being in the form of a barrow, the barrow being pivoted in a U-shape bracket to the top of the wall of the housing, the barrow being limited in its loading position by a spring stop, the barrow being provided with an adjustable weight whereby to secure the correct balance for the barrow and to vary the amount of material necessary to overbalance and dump the barrow, the barrow having a yoke-shaped handle that is pivotally connected to an articulated linkage and with the linkage being pivotally connected to the arms of a simulated workman, said adjustment of the movement of the valve serving to vary the quantity of granular material flowing from the hopper to the hod.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,169,323 to Robert W. Engel describes a sand art hobby craft kit which includes a plurality of substantially transparent tubes which preferably are parts of a unitary structure. The combination also includes a plurality of supplies of differently colored flowable media, preferably sand. There is the outline on the front face of the structure of a design that defines areas to be colored differently. The combination also includes means such as a base for supporting the tubes in vertical position with their upper ends open and for closing the lower ends of the tubes. A color indicia chart indicating the colors for each area also is provided. Color bearing flowable media other than sand may be provided, if desired. The color indicia chart may be a colored print of the final design such as a picture, or it may have each area of the picture color coded to the supplies of color bearing media.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,320,157 to Gunther von Hagens describes a method for preserving a large section of biological tissue with a curable polymer such as an acrylic resin by impregnating the large section with the polymer and pressing the impregnated large section between flat plates. These plates are is further separated near their edges by an elastomeric material, thereby providing a flat cell in which the opposing cut surfaces of the impregnated large section abut the inner surfaces of the cell plates. Thereafter the cell is filled up with uncured polymer. The polymer is then cured, the plates moving toward each other due to the polymer shrinkage during curing. Finally, the plates are removed. The resulting plastinated sheet is a permanently-preserved large section of biological tissue whose tissue water is completely replaced by a cured polymer, the sheet having a uniform thickness and smooth, even surfaces.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,662,846 to Alessandro Quercetti describes an apparatus for mechanically composing a mosaic pattern formed by balls, which comprises an inclined composition table subdivided by uniformly spaced protruding guides into a number of columns extending along the direction of the lines of maximum slope, each column having a width slightly larger than the diameter of a ball and a length several times larger than said diameter, a store of differently colored balls to be disposed into columns, situated at a level higher than that of the composition table, a reservoir for discharged balls, situated at a level lower then that of the composition table, a launching and column forming device actuable to direct each ball arriving from the upper store towards a preselected column of the composition table, a rejection device opening into the lower reservoir, a retaining device situated at the lower end of the columns of the composition table normally retain the balls contained in these columns and, on command, to let them roll down towards the lower reservoir, and a passage for the transfer of balls from the lower reservoir to the upper store.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,667,848 to Arthur Gold describes a machine for dispensing granular confectionery, such as gumballs, peanuts, and the like, which includes a housing, a container globe seated on the housing, a cap seated on the globe and a vertical standard extending interior of the housing and globe and including a threaded end. A retainer ring is seated on the globe with a gasket interposed. The inlet to the globe carries opposing deformations in the form of notches in the perimeter of the entrance opening of the globe. The retainer ring carries depending lugs seatable in the notches. The cap can be tightened onto the globe with the lugs seated in the notches so as to prevent relative rotation between the retainer ring and globe during tightening of the cap and thereby prevent possible damage to the globe, such as breaking or cracking it.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,673,813 to Douglas Raymond Russell describes a candy dispensing device uses an impeller to impart centrifugal force to a mass of candies held in the dispenser's housing. The swirling mass of candies may be a source of amusement to the user and may be used to dispense the candies through a spout. In one version of the invention, the dispensing device includes a handle and is sized to be portable by the user. The dispensing device uses a combination cap with two cap portions, one to cover the fill mouth, and the other to cover the spout.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,704,789 to Chie-Te Yang describes a bead drawing kit includes a plurality of beads and a drawing board. A bead setting tool having a container for holding a supply of beads and having a push rod for ejecting the beads may be used to set beads on the drawing board. The drawing board includes a base member, a holding plate, a positioning plate and a base cover. The base member has a looped upright surrounding wall and a horizontal base plate disposed in the surrounding wall. The base plate has a periphery connected to the surrounding wall and is formed with a plurality of lower holes that are arranged in rows and columns for passage of the beads therethrough. The holding plate is made of a resilient material and is provided on the base plate. The holding plate is formed with a plurality of slits, each of which is aligned with a respective one of the lower holes in the base plate and forms at least two resilient fins on the holding plate for holding releasably one of the beads. The positioning plate is secured to the base plate such that the holding plate is clamped between the base plate and the positioning plate. The positioning plate is formed with a plurality of upper holes that are aligned with the slits in the holding plate to permit entry of the beads into the slits. The base cover has a bottom plate and a looped peripheral wall which extends from the bottom plate and which engages removably the surrounding wall of the base member.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,730,293 to Michael J. Kelly, Brynda L. Kelly, Kari M. Kelly describes a product for use in creating sculpted shapes and features comprises a dry quantity of granular sand which is treated to retain its cohesiveness when submerged in water. A compressible receptacle contains the granular sand in a hollow interior thereof, and this receptacle includes a longitudinally extending sidewall surrounding the interior, a closure forming an upstream end of the receptacle and a dispensing nozzle disposed at a downstream end. The nozzle has a mouth sized to be larger than the granular size of the sand and in fluid communication with the interior. The sidewall is fabricated from a material having sufficient flexibility to allow the receptacle to be squeezed with enough force to cause a cohesive mass of the sand to be forcibly extruded out of the mouth when the nozzle is immersed within a volume of water. A sculpting kit is also provided which further includes a container sized and adapted to include items such as the filled receptacle, an ensemble of tools, a refilling implement and a filter.
U.S. Pat. No. 380,960 to Roger D. Blotsky describes an ornamental design for a bottle in the shape of a letter of the alphabet.
Notwithstanding the prior art, the present invention is neither taught nor rendered obvious thereby.


The invention relates to an apparatus for receiving a multitude of programs which may be classified by a first and a second attribute. For example, a program may be classified by a channel name and a program category. The apparatus is capable of defining one or more user profiles which comprise ratings for some or all combinations of values of the first and the second attribute. Thus, a user can supply preferences in a very precise way. The user profile influences the behavior of various components, such as the zap function and the electronic program guide.

The invention relates to an apparatus for receiving a multitude of programs, said programs being classified by at least a first and a second attribute, the apparatus comprising user-operable profiling means for defining a subset of said multitude of programs constituting a user profile.
The invention also relates to a method of establishing a subset of a multitude of programs, said programs being classified by at least a first and a second attribute, the method comprising a step of defining a user profile.
An apparatus as defined above is widely known. For example, a TV receiver receives TV programs which can be classified by various attributes, such as the channel name, e.g. CNN, BBC, and the program category (e.g. news, sports, movies). The development of, in particular, digital television will dramatically increase the number of programs which can be received simultaneously, making it more difficult for viewers to select a suitable program. Recently, features have been introduced to help the user make a choice, e.g. by filtering the received programs in accordance with user-supplied preferences. For example, some known TVs enable a user to enter a xe2x80x98favorite channel listxe2x80x99 for limiting, in a particular mode of the TV, the number of programs which are to be selected in a zap-circle or are included in an electronic program guide (EPG). When the user operates the zap keys, channels which are not included in the favorite channel list are skipped. The EPG will present only information related to programs which are broadcast through the channels in the favorite channel list. It is also known to limit the information presented by an EPG to programs of a specific category. Information about a program""s category may be supplied by the content provider, e.g. included in a dedicated teletext page or as part of the service information (SI) of a digital broadcast stream.
It is an object of the invention to provide an apparatus having more accurate means for filtering received programs in accordance with user-supplied preferences. To this end, the apparatus according to the invention is characterized in that the user profile comprises a rating for a value combination of at least a value of the first attribute and a value of the second attribute, the rating determining whether a program classified by said value combination is a member of said subset. Rating individual value combinations, e.g. by means of like/dislike markers, enables dependencies between attributes to be taken into account. For example, the user profile may contain a positive rating for news reports on particular channels, e.g. CNN and BBC, and a negative rating for news reports on all other channels. For other program categories, e.g. movies, another set of preferred channels may be specified. In such a way, a very detailed user profile can be established, allowing an accurate estimation of those programs that will be appreciated by the user. Other attributes may be used as well, e.g. the time of day or the duration could be a further factor in determining whether a program will be appreciated by the user. Other factors may be language, presence of subtitles, bilingual broadcasting, black and white programs, etc.
In an embodiment of the invention, the user profile determines which programs are included in a zap-circle. For example, when the user operates the channel-up or channel-down keys, only programs having a value combination with a positive rating will be selected. Other programs will be skipped automatically.
In a further embodiment of the invention, the user profile determines which programs are presented in an electronic program guide (EPG). For example, when the user requests an overview of the programs to be broadcast in the next few hours, only programs having a value combination with a positive rating are presented, or alternatively, made more prominent in comparison with other programs.
A further embodiment of the invention according to the invention is characterized in that the profiling means are arranged to simultaneously assign the same rating to all value combinations which contain a specific value of a specific attribute. For example, a user may assign a positive rating to all BBC programs at once, irrespective of their category or further properties, or assign a negative rating to all sports programs, irrespective of the channel or further properties. A user profile comprising ratings for combinations of two attributes may easily be represented as a matrix, e.g. having a row for each program category and a column for each channel. A rating can be assigned to any individual cell in the matrix, or alternatively to a whole row or column, thereby overruling previous actions. For large matrices, fish-eye techniques, or focus and context techniques, may be used to maintain overview, while presenting part of the matrix in sufficient detail to be inspected and processed. Such techniques are known per se.
In an embodiment of the invention, multiple profiles may be stored in the apparatus, enabling a plurality of persons to access their own personal profile. In a preferred embodiment, one of said profiles is a default one, and selected automatically at power on. The default profile preferably assigns a positive rating to all value combinations, in other words, all programs received are available in the zap-circle and the EPG. The default profile could be taken as a departure for creating a personal profile, requiring the user to enter disliked value combinations only. Alternatively, a profile comprising only negative ratings could be taken as a departure, which is more appropriate for creating a very selective profile. As another alternative, users may be allowed to choose from among a series of predefined stereotype profiles. If necessary, the users could further refine these stereotype profiles in accordance with their own interests.
A further embodiment according to the invention is characterized in that the profiling means are adapted to present at least a part of the value combinations of a user profile on the display screen, and to indicate which of the presented value combinations correspond to a program which is being received simultaneously. For example, the TV screen may be utilized to present the user profile as a matrix, enabling the user to edit the ratings of cells, rows and columns. In this embodiment the same matrix representation is used to provide a quick overview of those programs, i.e. value combinations, that are currently broadcast. Various graphic techniques may be applied to convey the information, e.g. different background colors for positive and negative ratings and icons to indicate actual reception.
The invention is particularly suitable for television or radio receivers, set-top boxes and video recorders.
These and other aspects of the invention are apparent from and will the elucidated, by way of a non-limitative example, with reference to the embodiment(s) described hereinafter.


A method for performing access management to facilitate a user to access applications in a single sign-on enabled enterprise solution is provided. A challenge token and a response token are transmitted between a server and a client. The challenge token and response token comprises one-way hashed data. The response token is verified at the server and the client to authenticate the user. Further, a request for service token is transmitted between the server and the client. The request for service token is encrypted at the client and decrypted at the server using a unique session key negotiated between the server and client. A service token is generated and transmitted between the server and the client. The service token is encrypted and decrypted at the server using a secret key to verify the service token. Based on the verification, the requested applications are rendered on client based user interface.

With the advent of technology, a user accesses multiple applications to avail different kinds of services provided by various vendors. To access such applications the user has to login using different login sessions. The login sessions include different user interfaces with different user credentials such as usernames and passwords for identification and authentication of the user to access various applications. The user is therefore required to enter separate user credentials for logging into each application. This causes difficulty to users as the user has to remember and maintain different login details.
Conventionally, single sign-on tool exists that enables authorized users to perform single initial sign-on to access a variety of applications across multiple nodes. For example, the single sign-on tool may include a web-based single sign-on tool. The user logs in once and gains access to multiple web applications without being prompted to log in again to access each application. However, a user accesses multiple applications using different web-based user interfaces via uniform resource locators (URLs) which are associated with each application. A single sign-on solution that provides a unified view of multiple integrated applications and facilitates the user to access multiple applications using same user interface does not exist. Further, there is no provision for one application to access a common context in another application in a seamless manner using same user interface.
In light of the above, there is a need for a system and method which facilitates a unified view of multiple applications integrated in single sign-on enterprise solutions. Also, there is a need for a system and method that facilitates managing access to multiple applications using a unified user interface during user's logged in session, without requiring to access the different applications via different interfaces. Further, there is a need for a system and method which facilitates using common features across multiple applications without the need for modifying client device settings. Also, there is a need for a system and method that provides a secured single point of authentication and authorization for accessing multiple applications.

System and method for accessing integrated applications in a single sign-on enabled enterprise solution


A graphic structure having a root block with a root, and at least two branch blocks each with an end effector, is manipulated from an initial configuration towards a goal configuration. The manipulation derives, in a succession of iterations, an update configuration positioning the end effectors closer to corresponding goal positions than in a prior configuration, and in one iteration, derives an update configuration by reducing the effect of a root block on an end effector of a branch block.

This invention relates to manipulation of graphic structures.
FIGS. 1a and 1b illustrate examples of graphic structures. Kinematics is an approach to structure manipulation, construing a structure (or a portion of a structure) as having a recursive branching arrangement, beginning with a root joint 110a and 110b branching off to zero or more joints 111a and 111b each of which, in turn, may branch off to zero or more joints 112a, 120b, 130b, and 160b and so on, with each branch eventually terminating in an end effector 114a, 122b, 141b, 151b, and 162b.
Graphic structures are used in fields such as computer animation. For example, FIG. 2 shows a graphic structure 200 representing the upper body of a human, with a root joint representing the torso 210, joints representing the shoulders 220 and 230, elbows 221 and 231, and wrists 222 and 232, and end effectors representing the hands 223 and 233.
Forward kinematics addresses the problem: "Assuming a stationary root joint and given specific joint angles at the structure's joints, find the position of the end effectors." Using the upper body example 200, kinematics determines the positions of the hands 223 and 233, given the position of the torso 210 and the angles at the shoulders 220 and 230, elbows 221 and 231, and wrists 222 and 232. Only one configuration of the structure satisfies these conditions, and is readily determined by starting at the root joint 210 and positioning the joints 220, 221, 222, 230, 231, and 232 based on the given joint angles until the positions of the end effectors 223 and 233 are determined.
Inverse kinematics addresses the reverse problem: "Assuming a stationary root joint and given specific goal positions for the structure's end effectors, find the configuration of the structure that positions the end effectors at the goal positions." Again using the upper body example 200, inverse kinematics determines angles at the shoulders 220 and 230, elbows 221 and 231, and wrists 222 and 232 to place the hands 223 and 233 at specified goal positions.
Unlike forward kinematics, inverse kinematics addresses a problem that may have multiple solutions, as multiple sets of joint angles may satisfy the placement requirement of the end effectors.

Manipulation of branching graphic structures using inverse kinematics


A combustion convection oven has improved energy efficiency. The oven includes a moveable exhaust damper that selectively closes off the exhaust plenum so as to inhibit the escape of heated air from the oven's cooking cavity. The exhaust damper is open when the oven is in a heating mode with the burners on, but closed when the oven is in a heated mode where the burners are off. Thus, airflow through the oven is significantly reduced or eliminated when the burners are off. The damper may have a degree of openness that is controlled to be inverse to the speed of the oven's fan.

This application is directed to an approach for improved energy efficiency in combustion heated convection ovens.
Commercial combustion convection ovens utilize combustion of a gas to supply the heat to the cooking cavity to heat the food therein. As such, these ovens are sometimes referred to as "gas-fired" convection ovens. Such ovens also employ fans to forcibly circulate the air in the cooking cavity so as to improve thermal transfer to the food. Some designs of commercial combustion convection ovens are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,655,511 to Prabhu, and/or sold under the TRUVECTION and MARATHONER GOLD names by the Southbend division of Middleby Marshall, Inc. of Elgin, Ill.
While such ovens have been commercially successful, such designs may not be entirely energy efficient. For example, such ovens allow for the flow of air through the oven, from the air intake upstream of the burners, through the combustion chamber and cooking cavity, and out the exhaust, both while the burners are on and while the burners are off. The flow through the oven is advantageous while the burners are on, so that sufficient fresh air is supplied to the burners so that they may safely operate. However, while the burners are off, airflow through the oven, and particularly the cooking cavity, has the undesirable effect of removing heat unnecessarily from the cooking cavity, in the form of the heated exhaust air. In addition, such ovens may have multi-speed fans, but be designed to ensure sufficient airflow under worst case conditions, which may result in unnecessarily large amounts of airflow through the oven under better conditions. Once again, this may result in unnecessarily large amounts of heat being extracted from the cooking cavity, with a resulting loss in efficiency. As such, there remains a need for alternative approaches to combustion cooking ovens.

Combustion convection oven with variable exhaust damper