A crystal resonator area and side electrode shielding/formation blocks thereabout are formed on a crystal substrate through etching with both areas kept separate from each other with a gap. Vapor deposition is diagonally applied through this gap toward the side of the crystal substrate to thereby form an electrode film divided into two portions in the thickness direction of the substrate on the side.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a crystal resonator whereby an ultra-small crystal resonator used as a quartz crystal tuning fork, thickness-shear mode crystal resonator or gyro sensor crystal resonator using a photolithography technology and chemical etching technology.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various electronic products using parts provided with a crystal resonator have an increasing tendency to be implemented as portable devices; becoming smaller in size and being provided with higher functions in recent years. Moreover, not only a frequency signal of vibration output from a crystal resonator is used but a crystal resonator is recently used for a gyro sensor, too. For this reason, there is a limitation to a conventional manufacturing technology in satisfying the above described requirement while maintaining the characteristic of the resonator and further improvements in manufacturing processes are required.
A resonator generally used is an ultra-small crystal resonator such as a quartz crystal tuning fork and thickness-shear mode crystal resonator. One of generally used methods for manufacturing such a crystal resonator is a method using a photolithography technology and chemical etching technology disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-315881. Thus, the method of manufacturing this conventional small crystal resonator (quartz crystal tuning fork) will be explained using FIG. 7 and FIG. 8. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of a tuning fork branching section of a crystal resonator and FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the tip of the tuning fork of the crystal resonator.
First, as shown in FIG. 7(a) and FIG. 8(a), a crystal substrate 51 is cut out of a crystal raw stone at a predetermined angle and subjected to polishing to a predetermined thickness.
Then, a photoresist (not shown) is formed on both sides of the crystal substrate 51 using a spin-coating method. Then, using a predetermined photomask, it is exposed to light using a predetermined photomask, subjected to development processing and the photoresist is patterned. This patterned photoresist is used as an etching mask to carry out etching and as shown in FIG. 7(b) and FIG. 8(b), a metal film 52 made up of laminated films of chromium (Cr) and gold (Au) is formed on both sides of the crystal substrate 51 in a tuning fork shape.
Then, a photoresist is formed over the entire surface of the crystal substrate 51 including the metal film 52 using a spin-coating method, subjected to exposure to light and development processing and a photoresist 53 having an inverted shape of the surface electrode is formed on the metal film 52 as shown in FIG. 7(c) and FIG. 8(c). Furthermore, in the section corresponding to a surface space 54 between the neighboring tuning fork branching sections of the tip of the resonator, the applied photoresist 53 is left through patterning as shown in FIG. 8(c) and a side adjusting resist 59 having a shape which bridges those tuning fork branching sections is formed. As a result, the side adjusting resist 59 functions as a protective film on the inner side close to the end of the tuning fork branching section and no electrode film 56 is formed.
Then, using the photoresist 53 and metal film 52 as masks, the crystal substrate 51 is subjected to etching and a resonator shape is formed as shown in FIG. 7(d) and FIG. 8(d) (these figures only show the cross section of the branching section). At the same time, the part of the crystal substrate 51 coated with the side adjusting resist 59 is also removed through etching. Etching is applied to this part by an etching liquid wrapping around from the side, and therefore it takes more time than other parts.
Then, using the photoresist 53 as a mask, the metal film 52 is subjected to etching and a surface space 54 for formation of an electrode film is formed as shown in FIG. 7(e) and FIG. 8(e). Then, as shown in FIG. 7(f) and FIG. 8(f), an electrode film 56 is evaporated onto the entire surface including the side of the crystal substrate 51 using a vacuum deposition method, etc.
Then, as shown in FIG. 7(g) and FIG. 8(g), the photoresist 53 and the electrode film 56 formed on this photoresist 53 are removed. The photoresist 53 is removed by immersing the photoresist 53 in a heated solvent and dissolving the photoresist 53. This solvent reaches the photoresist 53 through pinholes of the electrode film 56 and dissolves the photoresist 53. At this time, the electrode film 56 formed on the crystal substrate 51 is adhered to the crystal substrate 51 and not peeled away because its adhesion is strong.
Finally, by removing the metal film 52 having the inversed pattern shape of the surface electrode through etching, a surface electrode 57 and a side electrode 58 are formed on the crystal substrate 51 (tuning fork branching section) as shown in FIG. 7(h) and FIG. 8(h). For etching of this metal film 52, the aforementioned etching liquids for gold and chromium are used. At this time, since this electrode film 56 is made of a material not etched by the etching liquids for gold and chromium, titanium and palladium, the electrode film 56 remains without being etched. As a result, each electrode is formed.
Recently, however, a detection side electrode 64 divided in the thickness direction of the resonator is often formed on the side of the resonator. An example of this is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-170272 and this will be explained using FIG. 9. The crystal resonator shown in FIG. 9 comprises a drive tuning fork section 61, a detection tuning fork section 62, a tuning fork support section 63 and a detection side electrode 64. When this resonator is used as a quartz crystal tuning fork for a gyro sensor, it is necessary to lay an electrode on the drive tuning fork section 61 for exciting the resonator and the detection tuning fork section 62 for detecting a signal according to an angular velocity. This electrode is laid along four ridge lines of the crystal branching section in the longitudinal direction of the tuning fork. For this reason, in FIG. 9, bisected electrodes (detection side electrodes 64) extending in the longitudinal direction are formed on the right and left sides of the respective detection tuning fork sections 62.
This bisected detection side electrode 64 is formed by positioning and attaching a metal mask to a crystal substrate and vacuum-evaporating Cr+Au (e.g., an Au film is formed on a Cr film) metal particles onto the crystal substrate from a direction inclined by a certain angle with respect to the direction of the normal thereto.
However, it is not possible to form the bisected side electrode as shown in FIG. 9 using the conventional technology explained with reference to above described FIG. 7 and FIG. 8. That is, according to the manufacturing method shown in FIG. 7, the side electrode 58 is necessarily formed over the entire area of the crystal substrate for reasons related to the nature of the process and when the side adjusting resist 59 is bridged over the surface space 54 as shown in FIG. 8(d), no side electrode 58 is formed.
Furthermore, because the resist functions as an etching stopper, crystal etching right below the side adjusting resist 59 which functions as a bridge is prevented in the thickness direction, that is, the Z-axis direction, and therefore the etching rate is extremely slowed down compared to other locations. Therefore, the situation of progress of crystal etching becomes nonuniform between the tuning fork branching sections and it is difficult to keep the cross-sectional shape constant over the entire area of the branching section, which may cause deterioration of the characteristic of the resonator.
On the other hand, according to the method of manufacturing the crystal resonator shown in FIG. 9, the electrode is formed on the side of the resonator using a metal mask, and therefore the patterning accuracy of the electrode is determined by the machining accuracy of the metal mask body and vapor deposition jig or mechanical mask positioning accuracy of the apparatus. When an ultra-small crystal resonator requiring high precision patterning technology is manufactured, there is a limitation to the accuracy of wiring formation using the mechanical technique using a metal mask jig or apparatus. There is also a disadvantage that the process is complicated.
As is evident from the above described explanations, when an ultra-small crystal resonator is manufactured, the problem is how to make a high-precision crystal shape machining technology and a high-precision electrode patterning technology mutually compatible.
Furthermore, a method of forming an electrode bisected in the thickness direction of the substrate on the side of a thin crystal substrate of the excitation section of the crystal resonator without using any metal mask is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-18371. As shown in FIG. 10, this method performs etching starting from both the upper and lower surfaces of the excitation section (crystal substrate 70) and forms etching grooves 71 with a connection section 73 having a thickness of t2 left in the center in the thickness direction of the crystal substrate 70. Then, as shown by an arrow in FIG. 10, vapor deposition is applied diagonally toward the inner surface of the grooves 71 to form a film on the electrode 72 on the inner surface of the grooves. Then, when the connection section 73 is removed, side electrodes 72 (detection electrodes) divided into upper and lower portions are formed on the sides of the crystal substrate 70.
However, with regard to the grooves 71 formed in the crystal substrate 70 through etching, the shape close to the groove bottom varies greatly depending on the temperature, concentration of the solvent for etching the crystal substrate 70, etching duration and anisotropy of etching of the crystal, and therefore the sectional shape of the grooves 71 does not become rectangular as shown in FIG. 10, but the shape actually becomes narrower near the bottom of the grooves 71 and its cross-sectional shape becomes irregular and no uniform vertical wall is formed up to the bottom of the grooves. Especially the influence of etching anisotropy of the crystal is considerable and while one side of the groove wall becomes substantially vertical, the other wall becomes sloped.
For this reason, when vapor deposition is carried out diagonally toward the inner side of the grooves 71 formed through etching, the width (size in the thickness direction of the crystal substrate 70) of the electrode 72 evaporated on the inner side is not constant. Thus, the cross section of the groove formed through etching is irregular, and therefore even if vapor deposition is applied to the inner surface, it is difficult to predict the size of the electrode to be formed or form the electrode to the same height and the same film thickness with respect to both the right and left inner surfaces.

Method for manufacturing small crystal resonator


A reproduction apparatus providing for selectable image quality and gloss. The reproduction apparatus as disclosed includes a dielectric member adapted to have latent images formed thereon. A development station for the reproduction apparatus includes a plurality of developer units respectively containing marking particles of different colors, at least one developer unit containing black marking particles and another developer unit containing clear marking particles, for selectively developing latent images on the dielectric member with marking particles from the developer units respectively. The developed marking particle images are transferred by a transfer station from said dielectric member to a receiver member. A fuser assembly includes a first fusing device for fusing a marking particle image on a receiver member so as to produce a low gloss image on the receiver member, and a second fusing device for fusing a marking particle image on a receiver member so as to produce a high gloss image on the receiver member. A transport, in juxtaposition with the transfer station, selectively communicates with the first fusing device or the second fusing device. A control selectively activates the developer unit for applying clear marking particles to a receiver member, and the transport to deliver a receiver member from said transfer station to said first or second fusing device dependent upon the desired quality and gloss of an image fused on a receiver member.

In typical commercial electrostatographic reproduction apparatus (copier/duplicators, printers, or the like), a latent image charge pattern is formed on a uniformly charged charge-retentive or photo-conductive member having dielectric characteristics (hereinafter referred to as the dielectric support member). Pigmented marking particles are attracted to the latent image charge pattern to develop such image on the dielectric support member. The developed image is transferred to a receiver member, such as a sheet of paper, transparency or other medium, in an electric field. After transfer, the receiver member bearing the transferred image is transported away from the dielectric support member, and the image is fixed (fused) to the receiver member by heat and pressure to form a permanent reproduction thereon.
Certain reproduction apparatus have been designed to produce multi-color copies. In such reproduction apparatus, multiple color separation images are respectively developed with complementary colored marking particles, and then transferred in superposition to a receiver member. It has been found that fixing of multi-color marking particle images to a receiver member requires substantially different operating parameters than fixing standard black marking particle images to a receiver member. Moreover, the respective operating parameters may in fact be in contradistinction. That is, multi-color images require a high degree of glossiness for a full, rich depth of color reproduction; on the other hand, since glossiness for black marking particle images may significantly impare legibility, a matte finish is preferred.
It is known that the glossiness of a marking particle image is, at least in part, dependent upon the marking particle melting characteristics in the fixing process. In general, the fixing apparatus serves to soften or at least partially melt the marking particles, enabling the marking particles to permeate into the fibers of the receiver member so that the marking particles are fixed to the receiver member to give a glossy image reproduction. For example, the fixing apparatus may include a heated roller which contacts the marking particles and the receiver member. With multi-color marking particle images, the multiple color marking particle images are respectively melted and fixed by the heated roller. If the color marking particle images are not sufficiently melted, light scattering cavities may occur in the copy which degrades the color reproduction. Moreover, if the marking particles on the receiver member do not have a mirror-like surface, incident light is reflected by diffusion from the marking particle surface and is not admitted into the marking particle layers, making the colors on the receiver member appear dark and cloudy. Therefore low melting point marking particles are used. They yield few cavities and a hard flat surface so as to give glossy and vivid colors in the reproduction.
Low melting point marking particles are subject to increased image offset to the heating roller. This can produce undesirable defects in the reproduction or subsequent reproductions. Although image offset can be reduced by application of fuser oil to the heating roller, the use of such oil introduces further complications into the fusing system, such as handling of the oil and making sure that the layer of oil on the roller is uniform. Alternatively, a mechanical arrangement for reducing image offset, without the need for fuser oil, has been found. Such mechanical arrangement provides an elongated web which is heated to melt the marking particles and then cooled to cool the particles and facilitate ready separation of the receiver member with the marking particle image fixed thereto from the elongated web. The nature of operation of the elongated web arrangement also serves to increase the glossiness of the fixed marking particle image. As a result, such arrangement is particularly useful for multi-color image fusing, but is not particularly suitable for black image fusing.
In order to provide for both multi-color image fusing and black image fusing in a single reproduction apparatus, an arrangement has been proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,164,782 (issued Nov. 17, 1992, in the name of Nagayama et al). The fusing arrangement of this patent provides for selective use of a short fusing path for non-glossy fusing, and an elongated path for glossy fusing. However, since the same basic structure is utilized to provide the primary fusing (heating) function, the versatility of the arrangement for selective gloss on different types of receiver members with different physical characteristics is limited.

Reproduction apparatus providing selectable image quality and gloss


A deflection yoke capable of easily adjusting a member having a pair of magnetic pieces by moving the member to a standard state in the case of correcting misconvergence. According to the deflection yoke of the invention, a member having a pair of magnetic pieces disposed in the horizontal deflection direction is attached to an electron gun side of the deflection yoke. The shape of a part of each of ends of the member coincides with a part of the outer shape of the electron gun side of the deflection yoke. The adjusting person can easily set the member into the standard state by adjusting the parts with his/her fingers. By moving the member in the horizontal direction from such a state, misconvergence can be corrected.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a deflection yoke for a color cathode-ray tube and a display using a deflection yoke.
2. Description of the Relative Art
FIG. 1 shows an example of a deflection yoke for use in a computer display.
A deflection yoke 11 comprises a cathode ray tube 1, horizontal deflection coil 2, a vertical deflection coil 3, a magnetic core 4, and other parts.
When a current is passed through the horizontal deflection coil 2, a horizontal deflection magnetic field is generated.
Three electron beams of a color cathode-ray tube 1 are scanned in the horizontal direction by the horizontal deflecting magnetic field.
When a current is passed through the vertical deflection coil 3, a vertical deflection magnetic field is generated and electron beams are scanned in the vertical direction.
A coil 5 is attached to a back cover 10 of the deflection yoke 11.
The back cover 10 is provided with a mechanism for attaching a member 6 having a magnetic substance.
Both the coil 5 and the member 6 are used to correct what is called misconvergence.
The coil 5 corrects the misconvergence by actively generating a magnetic field by the passage of a current from the outside to the coil 5.
On the other hand, the member 6 corrects the misconvergence by passively changing the horizontal deflection magnetic field.
The horizontal deflection magnetic field generated by the horizontal deflection coil 2 is changed by an influence of the magnetic substance attached to the member 6.
The degree of the change in the magnetic field varies according to the position of the magnetic substance of the member 6.
By the change in the horizontal deflection magnetic field, a slight change occurs in the tracks of the electron beams.
The convergence characteristic of the cathode-ray tube accordingly changes.
By adjusting the fitting position of the member 6, therefore, the convergence can be adjusted.
The back cover 10 is attached to the neck portion side of the deflection yoke 11, that is, to the electron gun side of the cathode-ray tube.
As shown in FIG. 2, conventionally, the members 6 each having a magnetic piece 7 are attached independently to the right and left sides of the back cover 10.
Whether or not the member 6 has to be used is determined at the time of manufacture of a computer display.
That is, when the member 6 is unnecessary for the correction of the misconvergence, the member 6 is not used.
On the other hand, when it is determined to be necessary, the member 6 is attached to either the right or left side of the back cover 10.
In the case of manufacturing computer displays of the same kind, a computer display having no member 6 and that having the member 6 mixedly exist.
Between them, due to the existence/absence of the member 6, there is a subtle difference in the convergence characteristic of the whole screen.
In recent years, as the resolution of the computer display becomes higher, the subtle variation in the convergence characteristic has been becoming unignorable.
In order to solve the problem, a method of disposing a member integrally having magnetic pieces on its both sides and simultaneously moving both of the right and left magnetic pieces, thereby correcting misconvergence, has been proposed.
In such a manner, the magnetic pieces are always used.
In an actual use, however, it is necessary to perform positioning, that is, to position both of the magnetic pieces to be symmetrical with respect to the electron gun as a center since this state corresponds to a standard state when the convergence is adjusted.
When the member is move d in the lateral direction from the standard state, the convergence changes according to the movement amount.
The visual positioning has, however, a drawback with respect to the efficiency of the work and reliability.
It is an object of the invention to provide a deflection yoke capable of simply and certainly positioning a member to which a pair of magnetic substances are attached as well as easily correcting misconvergence, and to provide a display having no variations in the convergence characteristic caused by the presence/absence of the member.
A deflection yoke according to the invention comprises a horizontal deflection coil, a vertical deflection coil, and a core.
A member for correcting misconvergence is attached to the neck part of the deflection yoke, that is, on the electron gun side.
The member has an opening, and a pair of magnetic pieces are attached to the member symmetrically with respect to the opening as a center.
The member is attached to the neck side of the deflection yoke so as to be mechanically movable in the horizontal deflection direction of an electron beam.
In such a state, the pair of magnetic pieces are arranged in the horizontal deflection direction.
The shape of each of the right and left ends of the member coincides with the outer shape of the rear part of the deflection yoke to which the member is attached.
According to the structure, by only moving the member so that the part coincides with the rear part of the deflection yoke, the member is set in the so-called standard state position.
To be specific, the pair of magnetic pieces of the member are set in the symmetrical positions with respect to the axis of the deflection yoke.
By moving the member in the lateral direction from the above state, an influence is exerted on a horizontal deflection magnetic field generated by the horizontal deflection coil.
After the deflection yoke is attached to the cathode-ray tube, the neck portion of the cathode-ray tube is inserted through the opening in the member.
When the member is moved in the lateral direction, the pair o magnetic pieces become asymmetrical and the horizontal deflection magnetic field of the neck portion changes.
Thus, by adjusting the movement amount in the lateral direction of the member, convergence can be adjusted.
Since the member is moved only in the lateral direction and always exists, the pair of magnetic pieces are always used.
In a display using the deflection yoke according to the invention, therefore, no subtle variation occurs in the convergence, the variation conventionally caused by the presence/absence of the magnetic pieces.
Thus, variations in the convergence characteristic are reduced in the manufacture of the same kind of displays.

Deflection yoke for color cathode-ray tube


An airborne vehicle (1, 2, 10) which is equipped with an extinguishant container (12) for mist extinguishing is specified for efficient firefighting. A detonator (18) which is located on the extinguishant container (12) can be detonated via a fuze (19). The detonator (18) is attached to the airborne vehicle (1, 2, 10) such that, on firing the extinguishant which is contained in the extinguishant container (12) produces an extinguishant mist.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an airborne vehicle for firefighting, which possesses an extinguishant container, a detonator, and a fuze.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 3,980,139 and FR 1 473 621 disclose a so-called fire extinguishing bomb as an airborne vehicle of the type mentioned initially for firefighting, which comprises a cylindrical gas or plastic container for holding an extinguisher, and an inner container which is arranged concentrically in it, for holding a detonator. The detonator is in this case fired by the external influence of the heat produced by a fire. This has the disadvantage that the extinguishant is not distributed uniformly if the environmental topology is poor. While the flames are extinguished at some points, the fire has time at other points to propagate even more strongly and, possibly, to cause areas that have already been extinguished to burn once again. In the worst case, the fire is fanned out, spread by a certain amount of the extinguishant striking an object whose position is thus changed, and thus itself now causes other objects to burn.
DE 195 00 477 C1 discloses a method and an apparatus for extinguishing forest fires or fires over a larger area. In this case, flexible hoses which are filled with an extinguishant, can be closed at their ends and are provided with a detonator are deployed in front of a fire front. The extinguishant mist is produced by firing the detonator. This results in the periphery of the fire being fought. This means that the outer boundary areas of a burning region can be extinguished, provided that the firefighters can reach them without being endangered. Efficient firefighting is impossible. Those areas which are already burning can be prevented from propagating further, that is to say they can be constrained. However, what is already in flames is generally subject to the destructive effect of the fire until it is completely destroyed, and can no longer be rescued.


A method of manufacturing a golf club head comprises: hot forging a material of a beta titanium alloy into the face plate, slow cooling the forged face plate; and assembling a golf club head from the face plate and other component(s).

The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a golf club head, more particularly to a process of forming a face portion which can improve its durability and the rebound performance of the head.
In order to improve the rebound performance of golf club heads, it is widely employed in wood-type golf club heads in particular to decrease the thickness of the face portion. Such thinning of the face portion decreases the fatigue strength against repetition of impulsive force at the time of hitting a ball. Therefore, as a best suited material having an excellent fatigue strength, beta titanium alloys get a lot of attention.
In general, beta titanium alloys are not bad in workability in cold work. However, in case of a face plate having elaborate geometry, hot forging at over the solid solution temperature and subsequent quenching by water-cooling are usually employed to make the face plate for the working efficiency and accuracy.
It is believed in the art that if heating time of beta titanium alloy is increased, coarsening of beta phase is caused and thereby the strength and toughness are decreased. For this reason, therefore, quenching is employed after the hot forging.
With respect to some of beta titanium alloys, however, the inventor found that fatigue strength is remarkably improved, contrary to expectation, by slow cooling the alloy after hot forging, and thereby the durability of the face plate is remarkably improved because the improvement in the fatigue strength advantageously affects the durability rather than improvement in the tensile strength.


The invention features methods of treating a macrophage-associated neurodegenerative disease such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Alzheimer's disease (AD), or multiple sclerosis (MS) in a subject by administering chlorite in an amount effective to decrease blood immune cell activation. The invention also features methods of monitoring therapy by assessing blood immune cell activation before and after therapy.

Neurodegenerative diseases are generally characterized by a degeneration of neurons in either the brain or the nervous system of an individual. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Alzheimer's disease (AD), and multiple sclerosis (MS) fall within this category. These diseases are debilitating, the damage that they cause is often irreversible, and the outcome in a number of cases is fatal.
ALS is characterized by gradual degeneration of motor neuron cells in the spinal cord and brain, which ultimately leads to progressive weakness and paralysis of muscle and death. ALS occurs in two clinically indistinguishable forms, referred to as a sporadic form and a familial form. The pathogenesis of ALS is incompletely understood, although different hyotheses have been suggested, including mitochondria dysfunction, mutation in the superoxide dismutase gene, and defects in neuronal glutamate transport. Autoimmunity has also been hypothesized to be involved in ALS pathogenesis (Appel et al. 1993. J. Neurol. Sci. 118:169–174). In addition, several recent studies have suggested that the immune system may be actively involved in the disease process of ALS, with observations of activated microglia, IgG deposits, increased FcR expression, and dysregulation of cytokine expression in the spinal cord of ALS patients (Troost et al. 1989. Clin. Neuropathol. 8:289–294; Engelthardt et al. 1990. Arch. Neurol. 47:1210–1216; Schiffer et al. 1996. J Neurol. Sci. 139(suppl):27–33; Hayashi et al. 2001 J. Neurol. Sci. 188:3–7.9–12).
Recent clinical and pathological studies have shown that involvement outside the motor neuron system is relatively common in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) (Hayashi et al. 2001, supra; Obal et al. 2001 Neuroreport. 12:2449–2452; Sola et al. 2002 8. Eur. Neurol. 47:108–112; Ono et al. 2001 J. Neurol. Sci. 187:27–34; Alexianu et al. 2001 Neurology. 57:1282–1289.). Microglia/macrophage activation and nflammatory response have been implicated in ALS disease progression (Appel et al. 1993, supra; Engelthardt et al. 1990, supra; Hayashi et al. 2001 supra; Obal et al. 2001 Neuroreport. 12:2449–2452; McGeer et al. 2002 Muscle Nerve. 26:459–47028, 29). However, few studies to date have explored the status of the systemic immune response in ALS. Despite intensive investigation, ALS has no known cause or effective therapy.
Retroviral infection has recently been implicated in the pathogenesis of an ALS-like syndrome in patients with HIV-associated disease. Moulignier et al. (Reversible ALS-like disorder in HIV infection. Neurology. 57:995–1001) recently reported the outcome of six HIV-1 -infected patients with a neurologic disorder mimicking ALS and all those patients stabilized or improved with antiretroviral therapy. MacGrowen et al. (2001. An ALS-like syndrome with new HIV infection and complete response to antiretroviral therapy. Neurology. 57:1094–10) also reported a dramatic clinical response to antiretroviral therapy in an ALS-like syndrome with new HIV infection.
Approximately one-quarter of individuals with AIDS develop neuropathological symptoms. Infection by HIV-1 causes inflammation within the brain and neuronal degeneration (Power et al. 2001 Adv. Virus. Res. 56:389–433), resulting in HIV-associated dementia (HAD) or the less severe minor cognitive and motor disorders (Janssen et al. 1991 Report of a Working Group of the American Academy of Neurology AIDS Task Force. Neurology. 41:778–785; McArthur et al. 1993 Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study. Neurology. 43:2245–2252; The Dana Consortium. 1996. Clinical confirmation of the American Academy of Neurology algorithm for HIV-1-associated cognitive/motor disorder. The Dana Consortium on Therapy for HIV Dementia and Related Cognitive Disorders. Neurology. 47:1247–1253.).
The mechanisms underlying HIV-associated neuronal injury are incompletely understood. Various studies have suggested that monocytes/macrophage activation may play a significant role in the pathogenesis of many neurological diseases (Smits et al. 2000 Eur. J. Clin. Invest. 30:526–535.; Fiala et al. 2002 Eur. J. Clin. Invest. 32:360–371; Minagar et al. 2002 The role of macrophage/microglia and astrocytes in the pathogenesis of three neurologic disorders: HIV-associated dementia, Alzheimer disease, and multiple sclerosis. J. Neurol. Sci. 202:13–23), including HIV-associated neurologic disorders (Pulliam et al. 1997 Lancet. 349:692–695; Diesing et al. 2002 AIDS Reader. 12:358–368). Indeed, the best pathological correlate for HIV-associated neurologic disorders, especially HAD, is the number of activated mononuclear phagocytes (perivascular and parenchymal blood-derived macrophages and microglia), not the absolute levels of virus in brain per se (Glass et al. 1995 Ann. Neurol. 38:755–762; Adamson et al. 1999 Mol. Med. 5:98–109). Similar findings have been reported for simian AIDS related encephalopathy (SIVE) (Williams et al. 2002 Am. J. Pathol. 161:575–585). Macrophage activation has been reported in spinal cords of patients with ALS disease (Appel et al. 1993, supra; Engelthardt et al. 1990, supra; Obal et al. 2001, supra; McGeer et al. 2002, supra), although the role of macrophage activation in ALS pathogenesis has not been previously determined.
Studies on blood from patients with HAD (Liu et al. 2000 J. Neurovirol. 6(suppl 1): S70–81) and monkeys with SIVE (Williams et al. 2002 Am. J. Pathol. 161:575–585) have shown a direct relationship between the presence of activated blood macrophages and central nervous system (CNS) disease. These activated macrophages are thought to mediate blood brain barrier (BBB) breakdown and directly contribute to CNS pathogenesis.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia among the elderly. Various studies have suggested that macrophage activation may be involved in AD (see, e.g., WO 99/21542). Currently the only definite way to diagnose AD is by post-mortem autopsy to assess the presence of amyloid plaques and tangles in brain tissue. Thus, AD diagnosis is generally a diagnosis of "possible" or "probable" AD. At specialized centers, doctors can diagnose AD correctly up to 90 percent of the time. Several tools are used to diagnose "probable" AD, including medical history, analysis of blood urine, or spinal fluid, to rule out other causes (e.g., thyroid deficiencies, infectious disease, etc.), brain scans, and neuropsychological tests to asses memory, problem solving, attention, counting, and language.
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic disease that is characterized by "attacks," during which areas of white matter of the central nervous system, known as plaques, become inflamed. Inflammation of these areas of plaque is followed by destruction of myelin, the fatty substance that forms a sheath or covering that insulates nerve cell fibers in the brain and spinal cord. Myelin facilitates the smooth, high-speed transmission of electrochemical messages between the brain, spinal cord, and the rest of the body. Damage to the myelin sheath can slow or completely block the transmission of these electrochemical messages, which can result in diminished or lost bodily function.
The most common course of MS manifests itself as a series of attacks, which are followed by either complete or partial remission, during which the symptoms lessen only to return at some later point in time. This type of MS is commonly referred to as "relapsing-remitting MS." Another form of MS, called "primary-progressive MS," is characterized by a gradual decline into the disease state, with no distinct remissions and only temporary plateaus or minor relief from the symptoms. A third form of MS, known as "secondary-progressive MS," starts as a relapsing-remitting course, but later deteriorates into a primary-progressive course of MS.
The symptoms of MS can be mild or severe, acute or of a long duration, and may appear in various combinations. These symptoms can include vision problems such as blurred or double vision, red-green color distortion, or even blindness in one eye, muscle weakness in the extremities, coordination and balance problems, muscle spasticity, muscle fatigue, paresthesias, fleeting abnormal sensory feelings such as numbness, prickling, or "pins and needles" sensations, and in the worst cases, partial or complete paralysis. About half of the people suffering from MS also experience cognitive impairments, such as for example, poor concentration, attention, memory and/or judgment. These cognitive symptoms occur when lesions develop in those areas of the brain that are responsible for information processing.
Despite the progress in the field, there remains a need for a therapy for treatment of ALS and MS, including alleviation of symptoms of these diseases. The present invention addresses this need.
Literature
The following references, as well as those in the Bibliography and cited throughout, may be of interest: Akiyama et al. 2000 Neurobiol. Aging. 21:383–421; Anderson et al. 2002. J. Leukoc. Biol. 72:101–106; Cremer et al. 1976. N. Engl. J. Med. 295:107–108. (Letter); Fischer-Smith et al. 2001. J. Neurovirol. 7:528–541; Giese et al. Cell Immunol. 2004 June;229(2):149–58; Hansen et al. Pharmacol Toxicol. 2001 August;89(2):92–5; Hensley et al. 2002. J. Neurochem. 82:365–374; Hirsch et al. 2003. Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci. 991:214–228; Kemp et al. Pharmacol Toxicol. 2002 June;90(6):346–8; Kemp et al. Transplant Proc. 2000 August;32(5):1018–9; Klaustermeyer et al. 1989. Ann. Allergy. 63:327–330; Kott et al. 1979. Neurology. 29:1040–1044; Lehrich et al. 1974. J. Neurol. Sci. 23:537–540; Marshall et al. 1998. Brain Behav. Immun. 12:297–307; McGeer et al. 1998. Exp. Gerontol. 33:371–378; Morgan et al. 1988. Arch. Dis. Child. 63:771–773; Nottet et al. 1996. J. Immunol. 156:1284–1295; Provinciali et al. 1988. Acta. Neurol. Scand. 78:449–454; Nguyen et al. 2001 Ann. Neurol. 50:630–639; Ostermeyer-Shoaib et al. 1993 Acta Neurol Scand. 87:192–194; Raffanti et al. Infection. 1998 July-August;26(4):202–7; Schempp et al. Arzneimittelforschung. 2001;51(7):554–62; Tikka et al. 2001. J. Neurosci. 21:2580.2588; Veersarn et al. Radiother Oncol. 2004 November;73(2):179–85. and Van Den Bosch et al. 2002. Neuroreport. 13:1067–1070.
See also: McGrath et al. 2002 Curr. Opin. Investig. Drugs 3:365–373; McGrath et al. 1999 Pathobiology. 67:277–81.; McGrath et al. 1998 Transplant. Proc. 30:4200–4204; Giese et al. 2004 June;229(2):149–58; Zhang et al. J. Neuroimmunol. 2005 February;159(1–2):215–24. Epub 2004 Nov. 26.
Also see: U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,725,437; 5,877,222; 6,086,922; and U.S. Publication Nos. 20030175832; 20030158262; 20030130357; and 20030130350.

Chlorite in the treatment of neurodegenerative disease

The Regents of the University of California


The present invention is directed to a current feeding device for the supply of electrical current to a wire electrode traveling in an electro-erosion machine during the machining operation. The current feeding device comprising: a rotary electrically conductive body which is in contact with the wire electrode; at least one bearing for supporting the rotary electrically conductive body at one side; and a brush for electrically contacting the rotary electrically conductive body and for supporting the rotary electrically conductive body at the other side of the body and opposite side to the bearing. The brush is at the rotary axis of the rotary electrically conductive body.

Wire electrical discharge machines (WEDM) use a traveling wire electrode as a tool to cut a desired contour into a workpiece with high accuracy. The workpiece is cut by an electrical discharge process in which electrical discharges occur between the wire electrode and the conductive work piece. This process wears the wire which is thus continuously renewed. The new wire electrode is stored on a wire spool and travels under mechanical tension through a wire circuit of the WEDM. In the machining area the wire electrode is precisely guided by means of an upper and a lower wire guiding head, each wire guiding head comprising a flushing nozzle, several wire guides and at least one current feeder. The current is transmitted to the wire electrode by means of the current feeders.
The current feeders used in practice are stationary, so that the traveling wire slides over the electric contact. Typically the current feeder is made of a hard material such as tungsten carbide, it has a cylindrical, oval or prism shape, with the axis normally being perpendicular to the traveling wire. They can be displaced axially or rotated such as to expose a new unworn area of the current feeder surface. For instance a prism shaped current feeder having four sides, and being axially displaceable 8 times may thus be used at up to 32 different positions. The overall lifetime of the feeder is thus considerable, but due to the wearing the current feeder must be frequently repositioned. Generally, in the upper wire guiding head a first pre-guide is mounted ahead of the current feeder in the wire traveling direction, and a second pre-guide is mounted shortly after the current feeder. These pre-guides are mounted such that in operation the wire is forced against the current feeder due to the wire tension. The stationary current feeders are subject to mechanical friction of the traveling wire which continuously slides over the feeders. The new wire electrode passes through the upper wire guide head where some wear is produced on the current feeder due to friction and the micro-asperities present on the wire surface. The lower current feeder which lies below the machining area is more prone to mechanical wear, because the wire surface is covered with craters, and work piece particles which are removed by the WEDM process may be transferred to the traveling wire, so that the wire becomes abrasive.
During the WEDM process the electrical discharges are supposed to occur between the wire and the workpiece, but undesired discharges due to unstable contact may occur at the interface area between wire and current feeders. In the lower head the wire is laced with craters, roughened by the WEDM process, so that instability in the current transfer to wire may be even worse. Further the energy is transferred impulse-wise over a thin line contact interface area, so that Joule-heating is concentrated in the contact area.
Thus the current feeders are subject to combined thermo-mechanical stress, which wears the feeders and limits the lifetime. Wearing of the current feeder generates a groove in the feeder; the risk of wire breaking increases with the formation of such grooves. In order to keep the machine operational the operator has to reposition the current feeder regularly, or replace it once all positions of the feeder are worn.
Another problem is given by the braking force generated by the sliding friction over the stationary current feeders. The breaking force is proportional to frictional coefficient and to the contact force, which is the force component of the wire tensioning force acting against the current feeders.
Several attempts have been made to solve some of the previously mentioned wearing and related problems. The following references all include a rotary current feeding element through which the machining current is supplied to the wire electrode.
In JP62044320A it has been proposed to use a rotary current feeding element to stabilize the current conduction to the wire. The wire is bended in a wire path formed by a rotary power conduction roller and the pressure contact rollers in order to improve the contact force between wire and current feeder body and to increase the contacting area. A motor drives the power conduction roller which is supported on an axis. A current feeder brush 18 urges laterally against the contact roller.
In US4263116A it has been proposed to use a first rotatable wheel coupled with a second rotatable wheel, and means to urge the first and second rotatable wheel towards each other by which the wire electrode is squeezed between the two rotatable wheels. Here the brush is in contact with the axle of the rotatable wheel to transmit the machining current to the wire electrode.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,422,918A discloses a current feeding assembly comprising a pair of coplanar current feeding wheels rotatable about their respective shafts, and urging towards each other, with the wire electrode pinched in between. A brush is electrically connectable to said wheels for conducting the current to the wire. A casing is provided in which the sliding brush 16 is retained and made to urge laterally against the wheel.
JP60123223A discloses another rotary current feeding assembly, in which a disk shaped conductive block is coupled to a shaft and supported by a plurality of ball bearings. The bearings are separated from the disk shaped conductive block by means of a gasket 56. The machining current is transmitted to the shaft by means of a mercury contact which is nearly frictionless.
Lastly U.S. Pat. No. 4,733,038 discloses a current feeding assembly with a roller type electrical conducting part which is freely rotatable. The roller includes a shaft which extends into a cavity filed with a conductive liquid such as mercury or the like. The machining current is supplied to the wire through said conductive liquid, to the shaft and the roller. The roller shaft is supported by means of sapphire bearing members, i.e. jewel bearings.
The cited documents show possible solutions for a rotary current feeder for use in WEDM's, however with certain of these solutions an unhindered rotation of the roller is not guaranteed, due to the friction of a gasket, or the friction of a badly placed contact brush, or the bearing friction. With certain of these solutions the current flows through a supporting shaft of the rotary current feeder and the bearing is subject to erosion due to discharges occurring in the bearing. Also, during the wire cutting the machining area is exposed to the erosion particles, which may deposit within the wire guiding heads, and may increase the friction and compromise the operability. This problem may occur in particular with fine wires or in general in case of low wire electrode tensioning force. If the continuous rotation is not guaranteed the current supply is unstable and thus unreliable, in which case would be preferable to have a conventional sliding contact. A solution which includes a motor for the rotation of the current feeder would ensure the reliable rotation, but this is not preferable because of the additional means required, costs, and because of the additional space needed.
The current feeder device must be mounted in the wire guiding heads which have a limited size, and the current feeder must be as near as possible to the workpiece, thus a rotary current feeding assembly must be comparably small. Lastly, the current feeder must be easily mountable and dismountable for quick replacement, at its end of life.
A solution including a liquid contact such as mercury is not considered to be viable and thus excluded a priori, because of the technical complication, because of the required space, because of the difficulties in case of the replacement of worn parts and because of the consequences in case of failure.
Thus there is a need for a viable solution which is small enough to be installed in a wire guiding head, which has low wear, which has low friction and is thus reliable, and which is easily mountable and dismountable.

Current feeding device for wire electrical discharge machining


A computerized anonymous permission-based communications system is provided, including a computing device configured to display in a primary GUI network-addressable content served by a server and to receive, via an alignment GUI, a user input indicating a catalog intention for the content. The catalog intention is transmitted to a micro-catalog server to create a user micro-catalog entry. The user micro-catalog entry is indexed by an index value of the content, and includes a programmatically selected subset of content associated with the content. The computing device is further configured to receive, via the alignment GUI, user inputted permissions associated with the user micro-catalog entry. The permissions define permissible third-party communications associated with the user micro-catalog entry. The computing device is further configured to display, in the alignment GUI, the user micro-catalog entry, and present, via the alignment GUI, a third-party communication authorized by the permissions.

The modern Internet is a highly surveilled place. Various user tracking and surveillance technologies including cookies, web beacons, browser/device fingerprinting, WIFI-positioning systems, GPS, embedded scripts, pixel trackers, HTML5 browser web storage, logging of IP addresses and device identifications, etc., have been developed that enable companies, governments, and nefarious groups to generate profiles on users gleaned from their interactions with servers in cyberspace. While the tracking of these interactions may enable convenience for the user in some situations, by, for example, enabling website functionality such as a stateful implementation of an e-commerce shopping cart, such extensive tracking presents a serious risk of becoming an unwanted invasion of the user's privacy. One such area of overreach that has many users concerned is the use of user profiles from surreptitious monitoring of Internet activity for marketing purposes on social media platforms. Doxing or doxxing is another harmful act, which consists of publicly revealing previously private personal information about an individual or organization, primarily by searching publicly available databases and social media websites, hacking, and social engineering.
With the rise of e-commerce and the increase in users shopping via the Internet, the above security and privacy issues are of particular concern. A user may spend several hours searching the Internet for particular information, all the while risking exposing their privacy and identity to unknown organizations and even potential hackers. Such exposure can lead to unwanted targeted advertising, identity theft, or worse. Additionally, even as the cost of customer acquisition continues to rise, e-commerce merchants are finding it a challenge to identify true consumer intentions within all of this Internet activity in order to connect with potential customers who actually intend to purchase a product such as is offered by the advertiser, thus resulting in an overwhelming amount of mistargeted advertising. This mis-targeted advertising bombards the consumer with content they are not interested in, causing an unpleasant experience browsing the Internet and using applications that feature in-app advertisements. As a result, mistrust is generated in consumers, who feel that their Internet activity is being surreptitiously surveilled without their permission. Although hyperlinks and user accounts have enabled users to navigate the digital world of the Internet, these technologies alone cannot keep the public safe from the growing misuses and abuses plaguing modern Internet users' digital lives. In view of the above, technical challenges remain for ensuring privacy, anonymity, and choice for Internet users.

Computerized anonymous permission-based communications system with micro-catalog server enabling permission-based third-party communications


An apparatus for cutting a person's hair, having a comb with a spine, a handle that extends axially from the spine and a plurality of teeth that extends transversely from the spine, and at least one finger that extends transversely from the spine substantially perpendicularly to the plurality of teeth, the at least one finger terminating in a lobe that is shaped to comfortably follow a surface of the person's head and shaped to gently scoop and lift hair away from the person's head.

1. Field
The present invention is directed to devices for cutting hair, and in particular devices for cutting hair in cooperation with a comb.
2. Description of the Related Art
Cutting hair successfully is a challenging art. It is difficult to accomplish a proportionate cut all around the head, and hence it is difficult to achieve predictable and reproducible results. Results can vary unsettlingly between visits to the stylist and between stylists.
In general, high degrees of skill and experience are required to deliver a proportionate cut on a predictable and reproducible basis. Good stylists become adept at manipulating both comb and scissors in one hand: gathering hair with hand and comb, measuring length of cut, and then cutting. To measure out the length of cut, they typically place some combination of their hand, fingers, thumb and comb against the clients scalp.
This traditional process requires a careful eye and practiced dexterity to accomplish a quality cut in an economically efficient amount of time. It has been recognized that new and less-skilled stylists may not be able to deliver quality cuts with these techniques, particularly in an economically efficient amount of time. There has therefore been a need for measurement and cutting aids.
The related art generally teaches a comb combined with some kind of guide that indicates a consistent length of cut. This art tends to suffer from two shortcomings. Some aids are not adjustable, so that they only facilitate one length, angle and kind of cut. Other aids are adjustable as to length of cut, but are sufficiently cumbersome that they provide questionable assistance to a stylist or a person cutting his or her own hair.
What is needed is an aid that is adjustable for length and angle of cut, an aid that not only isn't cumbersome but can accommodate both left-handed and right-handed stylists and people who cut their own hair.


A semiconductor integrated circuit having a reverse engineering protection part that can be easily implemented without additional circuitry or process using a method for protecting against reverse engineering of the semiconductor integrated circuit. The semiconductor integrated circuit includes a logic gate and a reverse engineering protection part. The reverse engineering protection part alters the apparent Boolean functions of a logic gate. Further, the reverse engineering protection part includes at least one PMOS transistor and at least one NMOS transistor. The PMOS and NMOS transistors are constructed to remain in a state of constant on or off irrespective of an input signal applied to their gates. The PMOS transistors and the NMOS transistors are included in transistors forming the logic gate. The PMOS transistors and the NMOS transistors that remain in a state of constant on or off are formed by implanting ions into their gate channels or blocking ion implantation into their gate channels during manufacturing.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a semiconductor integrated circuit, and more particularly, to a semiconductor integrated circuit including a reverse engineering protection part and a method for protecting against reverse engineering of an integrated circuit.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Semiconductor integrated circuits are often reverse engineered for the purpose of extracting circuits embedded in semiconductor devices. To prevent such reverse engineering, a variety of methods have been suggested. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,294,816 discloses a method of using implanted interconnections to replace metal interconnects to connect doped circuit elements. Since such implanted interconnections are not visible to SEM or optical viewing techniques, the purpose or function of the protected circuits are disguised from a reverse engineer. However, conventional methods for preventing reverse engineering require additional circuitry or additional processing.

Semiconductor integrated circuit and methods for protecting the circuit from reverse engineering


To be used with a chat client. A condition DB 3 associates prescribed conditions relating to a message to any channel with processing for such message, and stores this information. An acquisition unit 7, in accordance with a condition and processing, acquires information relating to a channel from a chat client. A determination unit 4, prior to the sending of a message into a channel, determines whether a message meets a condition based on the acquired channel information. An execution unit 5 carries out processing on a message based on determination results and condition, and sends the processed message into a channel via a chat client. An example of a condition is, that message is at least 30 lines or more. An example of processing is, confirming message with a user.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to technology for encouraging conversation among users in a system wherein a plurality of users sharing the same network are able to conduct conversation simultaneously among themselves.
In the present invention, a chat system shall refer to a system comprising a chat server and a plurality of chat clients, such that a plurality of chat clients sharing the same space are able to conduct conversations simultaneously among themselves.
A channel shall refer to a virtual space shared by chat clients in the above chat system.
A channel mode shall refer to an attribute characterizing a channel used in Internet Relay Chat (IRC).
2. Description of Related Art
With the rapid growth of the Internet in recent years, it has become common for users to work together while using separate information terminals. For example, a plurality of users can use a chat system to carry out a conversation within a channel, thereby holding a conference in a channel, i.e., an electronic conference room.
In a chat system, just by inputting what he or she wants to state and then pressing the return key, a user can send a message into the channel in which he or she is participating. Because a user can chat with other users just as if they were having an ordinary conversation, he or she can send messages easily. Furthermore, in a chat system, a message sent by a user will be immediately displayed at the information terminals of other users. Therefore, not just one-to-one dialogues, but conversations involving three or more people are possible, as well as situations where one person is addressing a group of questioners and respondents. Because the conversation is carried out using the transmission of text data, the task of recording the conversation, as in minutes of the meeting, becomes simple. In such a chat system, sometimes a user participates simultaneously in a plurality of channels. Usually, when a user is participating in a plurality of channels, he or she focuses on one of them, and is able to send messages into that channel. This channel is called "current channel" and others are called "sub channel". With regard to sub channels, the messages from other users are displayed on screen, informing the user of what is being chatted on those sub channels. Changing current channels into which the user can send messages is easy. If a user wants to send a message into a different channel, he or she can switch to current channel at any time.
In the above situation, a user who is looking at a conversation in the other sub channel may forget to change the current channel, and end up sending a message intended for one of sub channels into the current channel. As was mentioned above, message inputted by the user will be sent to all users in the channel, in just the manner inputted, when the user presses the return key. This can result in the user sending message that does not match the conversation in the channel. Even if it happens that the content of the message wasn't inappropriate, there's the possibility that the manner of expression was inappropriate, as would be the case when one's superiors or people one doesn't know are participating in the channel, and one sends a message written in a manner of expression used among close friends.
Current chat systems have several other problems in addition to the above, examples of which are given below.
When conversations regarding different topics are taking place within one channel, it is difficult to tell to which message among messages previously sent a message is in response.
When a message is sent after a long interval since the previous one, and the message is sent in the same manner as if it were an immediate reply, this can be confusing to other users.
In a conversation between users who use different languages, a burden is placed on one of the users who has to switch to the language used by the other party, and this is an obstacle to lively conversation.
Certain chat clients can accept the registration of keywords specified by the user. When another user has sent a message that includes a registered keyword, the chat client in some way notifies the user that the keyword has been included in a message. Examples of notification include a chat window that had been closed opening and outputting a message. However, it is often the case that the user sending the message has no desire to provide a stimulus to other users.

Communication assistance method and device


A wireless communications device (2) and an interface unit (3) in a mobile communications system are configured. The interface unit (3) is connected to the wireless communications device (2) according to a wireless communication protocol and to a computing device (1) connected to a communications network (5) via an access point (7) having an address. The computing device (1) is requested to visit a service provider (8) on the network (5), which based on the address of said access point (7) can provide location information regarding said access point (7). In dependence thereof one of a number of stored configuration profiles are determined, and the interface unit (3) is configured accordingly. A configuration request comprising said determined configuration profile is transmitted to the wireless communications device (2), which is then configured accordingly, and a communications link can be established between the interface unit (3) and the wireless communications device (2).

Some wireless communication protocols use radio communication in frequency ranges that are subject to national radio frequency spectrum regulations, which means that e.g. allowed frequency bands and power levels may differ from country to country or from region to region.
One example of such a wireless communication protocol is Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications (DECT) operating in the GHz range. In European countries DECT uses the original DECT frequency range of 1880-1900 MHz with ten carriers and a 250 mW peak transmit power level, while in the US DECT uses the Unlicensed Personal Communications Services (UPCS) frequency range of 1920-1930 MHz with five carriers and a 100 mW peak transmit power level. Other examples are that China uses the frequency range of 1900-1920 MHz, Latin American countries the frequency range of 1910-1930 MHz, while other countries, such as India, do not allow DECT at all.
DECT is, among other applications, used for communication between a headset and a base station or a dongle connected to a computer. The use of Unified Communications (UC), which is an integration of real time communication services such as instant messaging, presence information, telephony, video, data sharing, etc., is growing, and therefore an increase in the use of soft phone applications on personal computers (incl. Apple Mac computers) can also be expected. Such soft phone applications typically use a headset as the audio endpoint, and as mentioned above such headsets may use DECT as the wireless communication profile.
The different national/regional regulations for wireless communication protocols, such as DECT, means that manufacturers of devices using these communication protocols need to produce or configure (and keep in stock) the devices in different versions and to ensure that only the version complying with the regulations of a given country or region is delivered and sold in that country or region, because devices produced or configured to another country or region would probably not be in compliance with the local regulations.
Further, today it is common that people travel all over the world, and it would therefore often occur that a user of e.g. a DECT headset allowed in one region would carry his equipment to another region, where its use is not allowed. For instance, if a DECT headset configured for use in a European country is brought to and operated in the US, it would operate in a frequency band that is reserved for other uses in the US, and it would therefore probably interfere with other devices using that frequency band.
To solve these problems it has been suggested to adapt such devices to be configured to a configuration profile in accordance to its location.
From GB 2 436 187 it is known that a communication device can select a radio access technology in dependence of a location determined by a Global Positioning System (GPS). However, the additional cost and space requirements of integrating a GPS receiver in the device make this solution less suited for use in a headset.
US 2011/0312314 describes a system in which e.g. a DECT device scans the local environment for other DECT signals to determine if its own operating, characteristics are like or different from those in the vicinity of the device. If they are different the device modifies its operating characteristics to correspond to those used in the vicinity. However, this system assumes that devices in the vicinity are operating according to the local regulations, which might not always be the case. For instance, in an airport the devices in the vicinity of a given device could well be other devices that have just been switched on after arrival from a region with different regulations, and in that case the device would adjust to the wrong profile and start transmitting on frequencies that are not allowed in this region.
Another solution is described in US 2012/0051262, in which a mobile communication device configuration unit is adapted to detect region data from a computing device communicating with the mobile communication device and to responsively select a configuration profile from a number of configuration profiles stored in a memory. The use region may be identified using a country code identifier that is stored by the operating system of the computer. The operating system may be a Microsoft Windows™ operating system such as Windows 7™, which stores country code identifiers indicating the country of use. However, these identifiers are a part of the installation of the computer, and they are not changed when the computer is moved from one country to another. Thus the travelling problem mentioned above is not solved by this solution.

Configuring a wireless communications device in a mobile communications system


In the computer system where the plurality of host computers and the plurality of storage apparatuses are interconnected, in order to carry out the data migration between the storage apparatuses transparently to the host computers, the back end server provides the virtual disk to the host computers. From the host computers, at first, the virtual disk looks the same as the old storage subsystem. When migrating the data from the old storage subsystem to the new storage subsystem, at first, the back end server instructs the data migration unit to execute the data migration processing. Subsequently, the back end server switches the setting of the virtual disk, thereby causing the virtual disk to correspond to the new storage subsystem.

The present invention relates to a data access method to a storage apparatus system in an information processing system or the like. More particularly, it relates to a data migration method within the storage apparatus system.
An increasingly prevailing trend is that a plurality of platforms and a plurality of storage apparatuses are connected to each other so that the platforms and the storage apparatuses will be integrated into so-called a single network. Here, the platforms are, for example, a personal computer, a workstation, and a mainframe which employ mutually different architectures and operating systems. This resultant network is generally referred to as "SAN (Storage Area Network)", which is a technical term corresponding to "LAN (Local Area Network)" formed by connecting a plurality of computers by a network such as Ethernet. In SAN, usually, the computers and the storage apparatuses are connected using a communication line referred to as "Fibre Channel" formed of an optical cable or a copper wire.
It has been pointed out that SAN has several advantages. The first advantage is to provide an environment where the storage apparatuses can be accessed from the plurality of computers in common. The second advantage is that the data transfers among the storage apparatuses are made possible by interconnecting the storage apparatuses among themselves. This makes it possible to implement backups or data copies among the storage apparatuses without imposing a load onto the host computers, thereby, at the time of the storage apparatuses' failure, allowing the switching to storage apparatuses included in a secondary system. Thirdly, until now, the individual storage apparatuses have been connected to the individual computers, respectively. As a result, managing the individual storage apparatuses (i.e., monitoring the states of the apparatuses, and modifying the settings thereof) has been possible only from the individual computers connected thereto. In SAN, however, it becomes possible to manage all the storage apparatuses from an arbitrarily specified computer. Also, the conventional SCSI (Small Computer System Interface) could connect only 16 appliances at the maximum. Meanwhile, Fibre Channel can connect 100 or more appliances on-line, thereby making it possible to obtain an easy scalability.
In recent years, a large number of products for implementing SAN have appeared. There exists, however, none of the products that actually make full utilization of the above-described advantages. In the scalability in particular, although the on-line connection of the appliances has been made physically possible, fundamental technologies for taking full advantage of the scalability are lacking. In SAN, for example, when additionally installing a new disk apparatus for the replacement of an existing disk apparatus, the additional installation of the appliance can be carried out on-line. Concerning the data migration, however, the users usually need to explicitly instruct the data migration into the new disk apparatus after switching the connection off-line once. For the users to enjoy the merits by the appliance additional-installation during the on-line, in addition to the mere hardware additional-installation, it is also required to carry out the data migration or the like transparently to the users, i.e., in such a manner that the users are unconscious of the data migration or the like, in accompaniment with the hardware additional-installation.
Concerning the on-line data migration among the disk apparatuses, U.S. Pat. No. 5,680,640 has disclosed its example. The example in U.S. Pat. No. 5,680,640, which describes the data migration where the disk apparatuses designed for a mainframe are assumed, utilizes communication lines for connecting the disk apparatuses, and only disconnects the connections among the hosts and the disk apparatuses for a short time. After that, the example allows the data migration among the disk apparatuses to be implemented transparently to the users.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,680,640 allows the data migration among the disk apparatuses to be implemented unlimitedly transparently to the users. However, this is the data migration method where the for-mainframe-designed disk apparatuses are assumed, and thus this method is inapplicable to SAN. In the for-mainframe-designed disk apparatuses as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,680,640, when replacing an old disk apparatus by a new disk apparatus, the setting on the disk apparatus side makes it possible to make the new disk apparatus look as if it were the old disk apparatus when seen from the host side. This is made possible by manipulating the setting of device numbers or the like of the disk apparatuses.
However, in SAN, especially in the case of, e.g., the Fibre Channel environment, the individual unique IDs assigned to the individual disk apparatuses are determined by the negotiation among the appliances (i.e., the disk apparatuses, and a fibre channel switch) included in the network. Accordingly, the setting made by the users never changes the IDs. This condition, when using the data migration method in U.S. Pat. No. 5,680,640, makes it impossible to make the new disk apparatus disguise the old disk apparatus with respect to the host computers. Consequently, in reality, it is impossible to implement the data migration that is transparent to the hosts and the users.

Computer storage system providing virtualized storage


A degassing process where gas is removed by depressurizing a liquid to be less than atmospheric pressure and a pressurizing process where the liquid is pressurized to be more than the atmospheric pressure are executed at a low cost and taking up less space. There is provided a head configured to eject a liquid from a nozzle, a supply section configured to supply the liquid to the head and including a degassing section in which the liquid supplied to the head is depressurized to be less than atmospheric pressure, and a pressurizing section in which the liquid is pressurized to be more than the atmospheric pressure, and a single pump having an action of depressurizing the degassing section and an action of pressurizing the pressurizing section.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a liquid ejecting apparatus which ejects a liquid such as ink from nozzles of a head, in particular, to a technique where a pressurizing process where the liquid is pressurized and a depressurizing process where the liquid is depressurized are performed and to a method for pressurizing and depressurizing where a supply section which supplies the liquid to the head is pressurized and depressurized.
2. Related Art
In the prior art, a liquid ejecting apparatus, such as a printer, which ejects a liquid such as ink from nozzles of a head, is known. In such apparatuses, there are times when ejecting of the liquids is not appropriately performed due to there being bubbles in the liquid, which leads, for example, to a deterioration in the quality of printing using the liquid. Therefore, for example, a degassing process is executed in the apparatus of JP-A-2010-208186 (Patent Literature 1) by activating a depressurizing pump and depressurizing the liquid after a printing operation is completed.
In addition, since favorable ejecting of the liquid is no longer possible when bubbles, foreign matter, or the like are introduced inside the nozzles, for example, printing quality is deteriorated. Therefore, bubbles and the like are discharged from the nozzles in the apparatus of JP-A-2011-255538 (Patent Literature 2) by pressurizing ink inside an ink supply tube using a pressurizing pump (a pressurizing cleaning process).

Liquid ejecting apparatus and method for pressurizing and depressurizing


According to one embodiment, an image forming system includes a plurality of image forming apparatuses and an information terminal that communicates with the plurality of image forming apparatuses. The information terminal includes a communication unit and a controller. The communication unit communicates with the image forming apparatus. The controller transmits first information relating to a job to the plurality of image forming apparatuses. The controller outputs certification information corresponding to the first information. When transmission start information of the job is received from the image forming apparatus, the controller instructs the image forming apparatus to execute the job. The image forming apparatus includes an input device, a communication unit, a storage unit, and a controller. The input device receives an input. The communication unit communicates with the information terminal. The storage unit stores data. After the first information is received, the controller transmits transmission start information of the job to the information terminal which is a transmission source of the first information. When the certification information is input by the input device, the controller executes the job corresponding to the certification information.

In the related art, a mobile device can instruct an image forming apparatus on the network to perform a job such as printing or scanning. Here, in order to allow the mobile device to designate an image forming apparatus to be an operation target, a complicated work is required. For example, it is required for the mobile device to search the network and to select an image forming apparatus to be the operation target among from a plurality of detected devices. Also in this case, the displayed information is information such as an IP address or a model number of the image forming apparatus in many cases. Therefore, much effort may be required for a user to accurately select an image forming apparatus desired by the user, which becomes a burden to the user with respect to the easiness of the connection.
This problem is not necessarily limited only to a mobile device. Even when an image forming apparatus is designated by a stationary information processing device, the same problem occurs.

Image forming system, image forming apparatus, and information terminal


Disclosed is an image display device comprising: (i) a pair of substrates facing each other, provided that one of the substrates is transparent; and (ii) charged particles placed in a gap between the substrates, wherein each of the substrates has a layer containing a compound having a silicone structure in the molecule on a surface of the substrates faced with another electrode.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an image display device wherein images are repeatedly displayed and deleted by allowing charged particles to migrate in an electric field.
2. Description of Related Art
Heretofore, as a display device substitutable for a liquid crystal display (LCD), new display devices employing technologies such as an electrophoretic method, an electrochromic method, a thermal method, and a dichroic-particles-rotary method have been proposed. Since these technologies have the advantages described below, the applications thereof to the next generation image display devices, such as a display element for use as a personal digital assistance, or an electronic paper, have received attention. That is, the advantages include: excellent image quality close to regular printed matter since a wider viewing angle can be attained compared to a liquid crystal display, lower electrical power consumption, and the so-called "memory performance", which is a characteristic of preserving images after the power is off.
Of these technologies, the image display technology employing the electrophoretic method is such that image display is achieved by disposing a solution comprising dispersed particles in a colored solution between a pair of substrates facing each other, followed by applying voltage of about several tens of volts between the substrates, to result in migration of particles in the liquid phase. As an image display technology employing the electrophoretic method, there have been proposed technologies such that a dispersed solution is contained in microcapsules, which are then disposed between a pair of substrates facing each other (for example, refer to Non-Patent Document 1). This technology is considered to be the most feasible for a practical application. However, it has the problem that maintaining a displayed image circumstances is hard to realize.
Specifically, the problem is the difference in the specific gravity between a colored solution and dispersed particles, that is, when the difference in specific gravity between them becomes excessive, the dispersed particles tend to sediment in the colored solution, resulting in a problem of achieving stable image display. For example, when dispersed particles of a high specific gravity, such as titanium oxide, are used in a colored solution of a low specific gravity, the dispersed particles sediment in the colored solution. Further, the colored solution is usually prepared using dyes which are considered to have drawbacks in preservation properties, so that within one aspect of this technology, it is difficult to maintain a constant level of quality of the displayed image.
On the other hand, an image display technology without use of solutions has been proposed. For example, there exists an image display technology in which charged particles are enclosed in a gas phase, and, by applying voltage, the aforesaid particles are allowed to migrate along a direction of an electric field. Although the aforesaid method had no problem such as sedimentation of particles or inferior preservation properties of colored solution, the aforesaid particles were required to be charged by applying voltage between substrates, and moreover, the charged particles were required to migrate along a direction of an electric field which was formed by the applied voltage. In other words, a technology has been desired which creates such a circumstance between substrates that, even under low applied voltage, particles can be smoothly charged and enabled to migrate. In order to respond to the demands, the so-called driving voltage reducing technology was studied, whereby particles are charged and allowed to migrate under low applied voltage, and then, a technology trying to achieve the reduced driving voltage by coating a fluororesin on the surfaces of substrates with which particles come into contact was studied (for example, refer to Patent Document 1).
However, when an image was displayed, charged particles easily attached to the surface of the above-described substrate whose surface was coated by a fluororesin, and to remove the attached particles, high voltage was required to be applied between the substrates. Further, once the substrate surface was attached by the aforesaid particles, displayed image density decreased and image contrast was lowered, to result in deteriorated image quality. As such, the image display device, whose substrate surface was coated with fluororesin, was hard to perform a stable image display under low applied voltage, and in particular, the device showed a tendency for migration of particles between substrates which became increasingly difficult during repeating use.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No 2003-248247
Non-Patent Document 1: Gugrae-Jo, et al., "New Toner Display Device (I)", The Annual Conference of the Imaging Society of Japan, Jul. 21, 1999, "Japan Hard Copy '99", pp. 249-252

Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.


A method of manufacturing a hollow section grid-stiffened panel comprises providing a tool (10) having a surface (12). The stiffened skin composite panel is preassembled comprising laminating a composite outer skin (14) on the surface, placing a separator outer layer (16) on the composite outer skin (14), and laminating a composite stiffener (20) on the mandrel (18), the mandrel being positioned on the separator layer (16), wherein the separator layer (16) separates the stiffener (20) and the mandrel (18) from the outer composite skin (14). The preassembled outer skin composite panel is cured on the tool. The separator layer (16) and mandrel (18) are removed from the preassembled stiffened skin composite panel. The stiffened skin composite panel is reassembled, comprising applying an adhesive between the composite outer skin (14) and the composite stiffener (20). The reassembled stiffener skin composite panel is cured on the tool to bond the stiffener skin to the outer skin.

Stiffened skin composite panels are frequently used to replace composite skin, honeycomb sandwich panels used for fairings and close-out panels on aircraft or other lightweight structures. One problem with using a stiffened skin composite panel to replace a sandwich panel is weight. In a conventional method of manufacturing a stiffened skin composite panel, structural foam is used as a mandrel over which stiffeners are laminated. The foam mandrel generally remains in place in the finished panel. Inclusion of the foam mandrel results in overall panel weight that exceeds that of a comparable performance sandwich panel. This increased weight is generally intolerable.
One alternative conventional approach to manufacturing a stiffened skin composite panel which results in hollow stiffeners is to produce a tool on which the skin portion of the panel is laminated and another tool on which the stiffener portion of the panel is fabricated. Such tools are expensive and this option for manufacturing is often not economically feasible. Another problem with this approach is the fit between the components after they are fabricated on separate tools. Raw material variability also exacerbates the problems in a production setting. These problems tend to eliminate a stiffened skin composite panel concept in many instances.
Another general problem with composite skin sandwich panel fairings is the eventual accumulation of moisture in the honeycomb cells. The moisture degrades the structural performance of the panels as well as increases the weight of the assembly. Hollow stiffeners with drain holes prevent the accumulation of moisture and all of the associated problems.
The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems discussed above, in a novel and simple manner.

Method of manufacturing a hollow section, grid stiffened panel

General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products, Inc


Each processing unit 110a to 110d has an individual cache memory 100a to 100d. When the cache memories read an instruction from a main storage 5, an instruction field is distributed to the cache memories. Each cache memory is controlled by a common control circuit 20. A compiler operates to schedule the processes so as to focus the processes to be executed on a specific processing unit. According to the scheduled processes, the volumes of the cache memories 100a to 100d are specified according to each execution ratio of the corresponding processing units to the cache memories. In the foregoing arrangement, a processor provides the processing units controlled by a sole program counter and improves processing by improving the efficiency of the cache memory. Further, the processor improves the efficiency of the cache memory by deleting unnecessary codes.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a processor, a coprocessor, and an expansion board having such processors mounted thereon which are used in an information processing apparatus such as a personal computer.
2. Description of the Related Art
Current processor architectures are directed to a reduced instruction sets computer (simply called a RISC system). The RISC system is characterized in that it does not contain complicated instructions and keeps its instructions constant in length. Since each instruction is simple, the RISC system offers a fast processing speed. Since each instruction has a constant length, the RISC system is enabled to read an instruction at one access to memory. These features enhance the processing speed.
In order to improve the processing performance of the RISC processor, the RISC processor employs a super scalar system as a current trend. The super scalar system is arranged so that operation units inside of the processor are dynamically scheduled on hardware when executing the operations. This system has a pro that it can use the conventional software resources without any change, while it has a con that it cannot use so much information for scheduling since the scheduling is done while it is being executed and thereby enhance its parallel level so much.
To achieve a higher performance than the super scalar system, there has been proposed a very long instruction word (simply called a VLIW system). This system is arranged to take the steps of statically scheduling the operation units contained in the processor on software when compiling the program, gathering a group of instructions to be executed in parallel as one instruction set, reading the instruction set at a time when the processor executes the program, and then executing the instruction set. The VLIW system does not need the hardware for the scheduling operation. Hence, it has a pro that the parallel level is increased. On the contrary, it has a con that an instruction length is made larger since plural instructions are gathered as one set.
The super scalar system and the VLIW system are introduced in "VLIW : The wave of the Future?" MICROPROCESSOR REPORT, pages 18 to 21, Feb. 14, 1994.
In general, a program contains a portion of high parallel level and a portion of low parallel level. A simple example of each portion will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. In these Figures, each row represents one process. For example, a first row process 800a shown in FIG. 1 indicates the flow of adding 1 to a content of a variable X0 and substituting the added result for a variable Y0. These processes are executed one by one.
FIG. 1 shows a portion of a high parallel level. In this portion, these processes are independent of one another, so that the processes are executed in parallel. For example, a value of a variable X1 used in a second row process 800b is determined before the execution of the first row process 800a. Hence, the first row process 800a and the second row process 800b are executed in parallel.
On the other hand, FIG. 2 shows a portion of a low parallel level. In this portion, a value for each process is calculated by the one previous process. Hence, until the one previous process is terminated, the current process cannot be started. For example, a value of a variable X1 used in the second row process 810b cannot be defined until the execution of the first row process 810a. Normally, the second row process 810b is not allowed to start before the first row process 810a is terminated.
FIG. 3 shows a VLIW system instruction (simply called a VLIW instruction) transformed from the program shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 4 shows a VLIW instruction transformed from the program shown in FIG. 2. These VLIW instructions enable the execution of the four processes at one time. In these Figures, one row corresponds to one VLIW instruction. These instructions are executed on time from top to bottom. The VLIW instructions shown in FIG. 3 are transformed from a portion of high parallel level (see FIG. 1). In these instructions, one instruction can execute four processes at a time. Hence, these VLIW instructions realize four times the performance of the conventional processor having only a sole processing unit.
On the other hand, the VLIW instructions shown in FIG. 4 are transformed from a process having a low parallel level (see FIG. 2). In these instructions, one instruction enables the execution of only one process at a time. Hence, even the processor employing the VLIW system (simply called a VLIW processor) for executing four processes at a time can realize only the same performance as the processor having only a sole processing unit. Since the instruction length has to be constant even in the portion having no process to be executed, it is necessary to insert a non-operational instruction (simply called an NOP) indicating no operation is provided. Hence, the instruction has a larger size than the content of the actual process.
When the VLIW processor executes a general program, an occupying rate of the NOP is made very high. It means that the NOPs occupy a main storage of an information processing apparatus having a VLIW processor (simply called a VLIW system) or much of an instruction cache memory (simply called a cache memory) located inside of the VLIW processor. The space of the main storage is wasted by the NOPs or the volume of the cache memory is made very large. This results in problems such as the performance of the VLIW processor is not made higher than it is expected, the VLIW system is made too costly, and the VLIW processor chip is overgrown and too much costly.
The problems about the VLIW processor are described in the writing "Basic Arrangement of Reconstructed VLSI Computer based on Execution Delay", Reports of Information Processing Society, Computer Architecture, Nos. 89 to 13, pages 87 to 93, Jul. 19, 1991, Information Processing Society.
The main storage of the VLIW system may be effectively used by avoiding the load of the NOP on the main storage. The technique of saving the memory volume by deleting the NOP from the main storage is briefly described in "A VLIW Architecture for a Trace Scheduling Compiler" IEEE, TRANSACTION ON COMPUTERS, VOL 37, No. 8, pages 967 to 979, August 1988.
In order to reduce the volume of the cache memory contained in the VLIW processor, there has been proposed a technique that takes the steps of compressing the instruction when it is stored in the cache memory, reading the compressed instruction out of the cache memory, and decompressing the instruction. This technique is briefly described in "Phillips Hopes to Displace DSPs with VLIW", MICROPROCESSOR REPORT, pages 12 to 15, Dec. 5, 1994, Micro Design Resources.
The system of deleting the NOP from the main storage makes it impossible to lower the cost and enhance the performance of the processor, because the volume of the cache memory contained in the VLIW processor is unchanged.
Further, the system of compressing the instruction when it is stored in the cache memory located inside the processor and decompressing the instruction when it is read out of the cache memory brings about a problem that a large loss takes place in a branch point. This occurs because the decompressing stage is inserted into a pipeline for executing the instruction and thus is located more deeply in the pipeline processing.
That is, one or two cycles are wasted by the decompression of the instruction together with a wire delay appearing inside of the processor chip. Hence, the pipeline for executing the instruction is extended by one or two stages. If the instructions are executed in proper order, the extension is often negligible. If the execution order of the instructions is changed by a branching instruction, a period when no instruction is executed takes place. In general, as the execution pipeline is deeper, such a period is longer.
This has led to a bigger problem in a processor such as a VLIW processor for executing instructions in parallel. Assuming that a period when no instruction is executed extends over two cycles, the conventional processor for executing only a sole process is disabled to execute only two processes in the worst case. However, the VLIW processor for executing four processes at a time is disabled to execute as many as eight processes in the worst case. As the processes to be executed in parallel are made more numerous, this loss is made worse.
In place of the reduced cache memory, the additional hardware for decomposing the instruction is required.

Parallel processing unit with cache memories storing NO-OP mask bits for instructions