An active pixel sensor comprises a photodiode providing a photodiode output current indicative of an intensity of light incident the photodiode and an integrator circuit electrically coupled to the photodiode. The integrator circuit is configured to provide a pixel voltage representing an integration of the photodiode output current when the photodiode is exposed to light and dark leakage current through the photodiode when the photodiode is not exposed to light. The integrator circuit is configured to set a reverse bias voltage on the photodiode and respond to at least one control input to set the reverse bias voltage to a first level. The active pixel sensor comprises a feedback loop configured to receive the pixel voltage and control the integrator circuit to adjust the reverse bias voltage to substantially reduce the dark leakage current through the photodiode to a desired level.

One type of imaging sensor utilizes Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) active pixels. Active Pixel Sensors (APSs) are utilized in various CMOS imaging devices, such as light sensors, telescopes, digital cameras, and video recorders. An APS captures an image of a scene of interest or detects light by converting incident light from the scene into electrical signals in an analog form.
A typical APS has an array of pixels or discrete regions, each pixel containing a light-sensitive element. The light-sensitive element can be a variety of elements including a photodiode, phototransistor, or other suitable device. Each light-sensitive element in a pixel generates a separate electrical current, which is proportional to the intensity of the incident light on that element. The varying magnitude of this electrical current is used as a basis for conversion into a stream of digital image data by an analog-to-digital converter (ADC). The digitized image data from all the pixels can then be displayed in a variety of formats, such as a composite image on a monitor or printed onto a sheet of paper. The digitized image data can also be analyzed for information concerning the properties of objects in the scene.
Many imaging sensors currently being designed include pixels having a photodiode. Photodiodes have certain limitations that must be accounted for when they are used in pixels in an APS. All photodiodes typically suffer from dark current, which is a leakage current from the photodiode when no light is striking the photodiode. Dark current occurs at any temperature above absolute zero and is temperature sensitive. As the temperature of the photodiode increases, the dark current increases as well. The amount of dark current also depends upon the material used to make the photodiode. In some APSs in certain light conditions, the dark current can be of the same order of magnitude as the current induced by photons striking the photodiode, thereby making the current induced by the photons indistinguishable from the dark current.
For example, because of dark current limitations, APSs for sensing infrared light are typically manufactured using indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs). InGaAs is typically used because it has a relatively high quantum efficiency and a relatively low dark current, but InGaAs has several disadvantages. InGaAs is relatively expensive compared to other semiconductor materials, such as germanium. InGaAs is also not as readily available as other semiconductor materials. In addition, use of InGaAs produces a relatively low yield. In the past, materials such as germanium and others, which are less expensive, readily available, and result in higher yields than InGaAs, have not been used to manufacture APSs for certain applications, such as for sensing infrared light. The excessive leakage current at room temperature of sensors made from these materials would render the sensors useless for sensing infrared light.
Therefore, there is a need for APSs that can compensate for leakage current in photodiodes.

Dark reduction via feedback control of photodiode bias


An electronic faucet including a spout hub and a pullout wand removably coupled to the spout hub. The pullout wand is touch sensitive when docked to the spout hub, and is not touch sensitive when undocked from the spout hub.

The present invention relates generally to electronic faucets. More particularly, the present invention relates to capacitive sensing systems and methods for operating a faucet.
It is known to provide faucets with pullout sprayheads or wands fluidly connected to flexible water supply tubes and releasably coupled to a delivery spout. Such pullout wands often provide multiple delivery modes including a spray mode and a stream mode. In the spray mode, water is discharged from a plurality of outlets in a spray pattern. In the stream mode, water is discharged in a single, relatively concentrated stream.
It is also known to provide electronic faucets to control water flow. Some electronic faucets provide capacitive sensing to control water flow where a capacitive sensor is coupled to the delivery spout and/or a manual valve handle. For example, an illustrative capacitive sensing faucet permits a user to turn water flow on and off by merely tapping the spout. The faucet may distinguish between a tap on the spout to turn the water flow on and off, and a longer grasping or grab of the spout, for example, to swing it from one basin of a sink to another. Such a faucet may also utilize the manual valve handle for touch control, which illustratively distinguishes between a grasping or grab of the handle to adjust water flow rate and/or temperature, and merely tapping the handle to toggle water flow off or on. Such an illustrative faucet is detailed in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2010/0170570, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated by reference herein.
According to an illustrative embodiment of the present disclosure, an electronic faucet includes a spout hub, a manual valve handle operably coupled to the spout hub, and a pullout wand removably supported by the spout hub. A passageway conducts water through the hub to the pullout wand. An electrically operable valve is fluidly coupled to the passageway, and a manual valve is fluidly coupled to the passageway in series with the electrically operable valve, wherein the manual valve handle controls the manual valve. A controller controls operation of the electrically operably valve and is electrically coupled to the manual valve handle of the faucet. The spout hub is capacitively coupled to the manual valve handle, and the pullout wand is capacitively coupled to the spout hub when docked with the spout hub. As such, the pullout wand is touch sensitive when docked with the spout hub.
According to another illustrative embodiment of the present disclosure, an electronic faucet includes a spout hub and a pullout wand removably supported by the spout hub. The pullout wand is movable from a docked position coupled with the spout hub and an undocked position removed from the spout hub. A manual valve includes a handle and is operably coupled to the spout hub. An electrically operable valve is in fluid communication with the manual valve. A tube is slidably received within the spout hub and fluidly couples the pullout wand to the electrically operable valve. A capacitive sensor is in electrical communication with the pullout wand when in the docked position. A controller is in electrical communication with the capacitive sensor. The pullout wand is touch sensitive when in the docked position and is not touch sensitive when in the undocked position.
According to a further illustrative embodiment of the present disclosure, an electronic faucet comprises a delivery spout including a receiver. A pullout wand is movable from a docked position coupled with the receiver of the delivery spout and an undocked position removed from the receiver of the delivery spout. A wand capacitive coupling is provided between the pullout wand and the delivery spout when the pullout wand is in the docked position. A capacitive sensor is in electrical communication with the pullout wand through the wand capacitive coupling.
According to another illustrative embodiment of the present disclosure, an electronic faucet includes a delivery spout including a receiver. A pullout wand is movable from a docked position coupled with the receiver of the delivery spout and an undocked position removed from the receiver of the delivery spout. A capacitive sensor is operably coupled to the pullout wand. The output from the capacitive sensor provides an indication of at least one of touching the pullout wand when in the docked position, and a change between the docked position and the undocked position of the pullout wand. Water flow through the pullout wand is controlled based upon the output from the capacitive sensor.
Additional features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the following detailed description of the illustrative embodiment exemplifying the best mode of carrying out the invention as presently perceived.

Faucet including a pullout wand with a capacitive sensing


An ECU in an electric power generation control system obtains a vehicle state containing a battery state and a driving state of a motor vehicle. The ECU calculates charging parameters necessary for maintaining a residual charge of a battery and vibration suppression parameters necessary for suppressing vibration of a vehicle. An exciting current setting section as a function of the ECU determines an exciting current flowing in an excitation winding of an alternator on the basis of the charging parameters and the vibration suppression parameters.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to electric power generation devices and systems, mounted on motor vehicles comprised of internal combustion engines, which control a generation of electric power by an alternator driven by an internal combustion engine and a supply of the generated electric power to a battery.
2. Description of the Related Art
There is a known device regarding such a type of the electric power generation control devices. For example, a patent document, Japanese patent No. JP 4483985, has disclosed a device to adjust a driving torque of an alternator to suppress various vibrations of a motor vehicle. In general, various types of vibrations are caused in a motor vehicle, for example, twisting vibration, pitching vibration, vibration of an internal combustion engine, etc. The twisting vibration is caused by twisting a crank shaft and/or a drive shaft of the internal combustion engine mounted to the motor vehicle. The pitching vibration is caused in a pitching direction by a driving force or a brake force.
By the way, in general such an electric power generation control device performs a feedback control of an exciting current flowing in an excitation winding of an alternator by a voltage regulator in order to adjust an electric power generated by the alternator within a predetermined reference voltage. In order to achieve this control, the electric power generation control device disclosed in the patent document No. JP 4483985 adjusts an output current of the alternator by adjusting an exciting current in order to change an amount of generated electric power. However, in order to perform the control of adjusting an exciting current, the conventional electric power generation control device is required to add a specific device.
That is, when a battery having a large electric resistance (charging/discharging resistance), which is generated during electric charging/discharging operation, is mounted to a motor vehicle, it becomes difficult to correctly perform a control of a generation amount of electric power by directly adjusting an output current of the alternator, as previously described, because a charging/discharging resistance is greatly changed according to an amount of a residual capacity (i.e. a residual charge) of the battery. In order to avoid this problem, it is for example necessary to replace the battery with a new battery having a small charging/discharging resistance.

Electric power generation control device and electric power generation control system


A vehicle seat for use by an occupant in a vehicle, for example an automobile. The vehicle seat comprises a seat base (12) coupled to a support structure (6) of the vehicle. A back frame (40) including side members (41, 43), the back frame further includes a second transverse member (46) coupled to the first and second side members, wherein the side members each have a lower end pivotably coupled to the seat base. A compliant back (60) is operably connected at an upper end to the second transverse member (46) and operably connected at a lower portion proximate the lower ends of the side members, and may include a biasing mechanism. The seat may also include a tuberosity pivot (54) coupled to the back frame (40) and the seat base (12), which pivot may be motorized.

The present invention relates generally to the field of automotive seats and more particularly relates to an automotive seat having a seat back having a flexible member.
Outside of the automotive seat industry, it is known to provide a chair having a compliant seat back pivoted to a seat back frame, assembly in at least two vertically spaced-apart locations for providing a controlled curvilinear flexure support. For an example of the above, see U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,871,258; 5,909,923; 5,975,634; 5,979,984; 6,079,785; 6,086,153; 6,220,661 the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
It is known to provide an automotive seat having a reclineable back. It is also known to provide an automotive seat having a reclineable back and an independently movable seat base. It is also known to provide an automotive seat having an adjustable lumbar consisting of a flexible member having a first end anchored and a second end moved with respect to the first end to cause the flexible member to vary its shape to provide adjustable support within the lumbar region of an automotive seat. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,397,164; 5,498,063; 5,626,390; 5,775,773; 6,003,941; and 6,254,187, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
Notwithstanding the known devices, there remains a significant need to develop an automotive seat which is capable of better supporting an occupant of the seat. In particular, there remains a need to provide an automotive seat which is capable of providing continuous support for a plurality of sizes of seat occupants. Further, there remains a need to provide an automotive seat that includes a flexible seat back that automatically adjusts to an occupant's unique shape and posture including being able to adjust to the occupant's changing shape and posture. Further, there remains a need to provide an automotive seat having a seat back that is capable of providing an occupant with individualized support and which is capable of permitting back and spinal motion.
There also remains a need to provide an automotive seat having a seat back that can pivot more naturally in relation to an occupant and which is capable of better keeping the a lumbar support in contact with the occupant.
It is desirable to provide an automotive seat that provides one or more of these or other advantageous features. Other features and advantages will be made apparent from the present description. The teachings disclosed extend to those embodiments that fall within the scope of the appended claims, regardless of whether they accomplish one or more of the aforementioned needs.


Apparatus for photometric analysis of the coagulation behavior of blood, blood plasma or like fluids includes a cuvette container with at least one receptacle for receiving a cuvette, with the receptacle having a lower end provided with a discharge opening which is downwardly continued by a well. Arranged in the receptacle is a leaf spring for retaining the cuvette in position during photometric analysis. After photometric measurement a further cuvette is inserted in the receptacle, with the previous cuvette being simultaneously ejected.

The present invention refers to an apparatus for photometric analysis of coagulation behavior of blood, blood plasma or like fluids, and in particular to a cuvette container for holding a plurality of cuvettes which contain test samples for photometric measurement.
For photometric analysis of the coagulation behavior of blood or blood plasma or like fluids, it is generally known to use a cuvette container which is provided with a plurality of holding members adapted for receiving cuvettes which are of transparent material and contain a test sample. Suitably, the holding members have a cross section which corresponds to the usually rectangular cross section of the cuvettes. The photometric measurement is carried out by a photometer which includes a transmitter in form of a light source arranged in proximity of one narrow side of the cuvettes and a receiver in form of a light detector located in proximity of the other opposing narrow side of the cuvettes.
After completing the photometric analysis, the cuvettes are generally pulled out of the holding member, either manually, which is less desirable because of the obvious risk of contacting the cuvette content, or through suitable supply and discharge mechanisms by which the cuvettes are automatically fed and removed from the pertaining holding members. Regardless as to whether the removal is done manually or automatically, a withdrawal of the cuvettes requires an additional working step which usually takes a relatively long period so that extended pauses are experienced between successive photometric measurements. In particular, in case of analyzing a large number of test samples, as generally encountered in medical laboratories, the occurrence of such extended pauses is disadvantageous as it impedes an optimal utilization of the apparatus. Such drawbacks are compounded when using particular means such as gripper arms for automatically withdrawing the cuvettes because the gripper arm after picking up the cuvette has to travel back to an appropriate position for depositing the cuvette. This adds further to the actual discharge period.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,406,547 describes an apparatus for effecting photometric measurements by using a turntable which holds a number of cuvettes and rotates step by step for positioning the cuvettes for subsequent photometric measurement. Each cuvette is of particular design and includes at its upper periphery a supporting flange by which the cuvette is retained in position in a complementary holding member. After completing measurement, each cuvette is removed by a separate ejector which includes an L-shaped arm and a solenoid. When the solenoid is energized, the arm pulls the cuvette into an opening through which the cuvette can then fall down into a waste tank. An analyzer of this type is disadvantageous because it requires a relatively complicated ejector for removing the cuvettes, and because it is not suitable for use with conventional cuvettes; rather, the cuvettes as employed in this prior art are of particular design in order to allow proper positioning within the holding members.


A color-coded restoration splice block is formed to match the coloring of the individual fibers within a standard ribbon cable. Thus, during the splicing operation, the proper pairs of fibers will be mated and laid within the same fiber-holding groove, eliminating the problem of xe2x80x9ccrossingxe2x80x9d fibers from one ribbon to another as they are spliced together. In a preferred embodiment, the entire groove is colored to match the sheath color of the pair of fibers disposed in the groove.

The present invention relates to a quick restoration splice block for use in splicing fiber optic ribbon cables and, more particularly, to a color-coded splice block to ensure that the proper fibers within each cable are mated to each other.
Quick restoration of optical signal paths is essential when failures occur in an optical fiber network. The failures ranges from cable breaks due to contractor xe2x80x9cdig upsxe2x80x9d to environmental damage (such as lightning strikes and cable burn). To repair these types of failures, a communication field technician must find and isolate the damaged section of fiber cable, dig up the cable, and splice the fibers back together. Restoration splicing consists of using a quick, temporary splice that will optically couple the fibers back together.
Most conventional fiber optical cables consist of one or more ribbons, where a single ribbon comprises twelve separate fibers that are bonded transversally to form a single structure, each ribbon thus treated as a single unit within the cable, with a unitary sheathing structure formed to surround the ribbon. In order to mechanically splice a pair of ribbons back together, the sheathing must be removed and the ends of the fibers cleaved and cleaned (to form the best possible endface surface for fusion splicing of the mating fibers). A standard ribbon cable is manufactured in accordance with a standard color code (i.e., fiber No. 1 is xe2x80x9cbluexe2x80x9d, fiber No. 2 is xe2x80x9corangexe2x80x9d . . . , and fiber No. 12 is xe2x80x9caquaxe2x80x9d; each intermediate fiber is also associated with a readily-definable color). This color code will be repeated for each ribbon within the cable. For example, a cable housing 216 fibers will be formed as 18 individual ribbons, with the same color code used in each ribbon. When splicing a pair of ribbons together, it is important that the color code be followed (e.g., the xe2x80x9cbluexe2x80x9d fibers spliced together, the xe2x80x9corangexe2x80x9d fibers spliced together, etc.). In a conventional arrangement, the blue fibers are inserted in the top opening of the splice housing and the aqua fibers are inserted in the bottom opening.
If one fiber ribbon is improperly placed in the splice housing (i.e., xe2x80x9cupside downxe2x80x9d), with the aqua fiber on the top and the blue fiber on the bottom, the signal lines will be xe2x80x9ccrossedxe2x80x9d and communication will not be restored. However, since light will still be coupled from one ribbon to another, the splice would appear to be working properly and the repair technician may not be able to discover the mistake. It would, therefore, be desirable and advantageous to provide a splice element that would eliminate the possibility of xe2x80x9ccrossingxe2x80x9d the fibers in a ribbon cable splice.
The need remaining in the prior art is addressed by the present invention, which relates to a quick restoration splice block for use in splicing a fiber optic ribbon cable and, more particularly, to a color-coded splice block to ensure that the proper fibers within each cable are mated to the fibers in the other cable.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a splice block whose fiber-holding grooves are colored to follow the conventional color-coding scheme in a ribbon cable. That is, the xe2x80x9ctopxe2x80x9d groove in a splice block is coated with a blue layer, the next groove is orange, and so on, with the xe2x80x9cbottomxe2x80x9d groove being colored aqua. In this manner, the repair technician needs only to follow the coloring scheme in the splice block to ensure that like fibers within a pair of ribbon cables are spliced together.
In an alternative arrangement, the coloring may be disposed at the entrance of each groove along the splice block, instead of coloring a portion of each groove. In any embodiment, however, each fiber-holding groove is associated. with one (and only one) of the specific fiber colors of the ribbon and the risk of xe2x80x9ccrossingxe2x80x9d fibers in the splice block is essentially eliminated.
Other and further embodiments of the present invention will become apparent during the course of the following discussion and by reference to the accompanying drawings.


In accordance with the present invention, lyocell products can be made with unbleached pulps resulting in products with high amounts of hemicellulose and high amounts of lignin as compared to conventional lyocell products. The lyocell products of the present invention are advantageously less expensive to produce but retain the desirable strength of conventional lyocell products.

Cellulose is a polymer of D-glucose and is a structural component of plant cell walls. Cellulose is especially abundant in tree trunks from which it is extracted, converted into pulp, and thereafter utilized to manufacture a variety of products. Rayon is the name given to a fibrous form of regenerated cellulose that is extensively used in the textile industry to manufacture articles of clothing. For over a century, strong fibers of rayon have been produced by the viscose and cuprammonium processes. The latter process was first patented in 1890 and the viscose process two years later. In the viscose process, cellulose is first steeped in a mercerizing strength caustic soda solution to form an alkali cellulose. The cellulose is then reacted with carbon disulfide to form cellulose xanthate, which is then dissolved in a dilute caustic soda solution. After filtration and deaeration, the xanthate solution is extruded from submerged spinnerets into a regenerating bath of sulfuric acid, sodium sulfate, zinc sulfate, and glucose to form continuous filaments. The resulting viscose rayon is presently used in textiles and was formerly widely used for reinforcing rubber articles such as tires and drive belts.
Cellulose is also soluble in a solution of ammonia copper oxide. This property forms the basis for the production of cuprammonium rayon. The cellulose solution is forced through submerged spinnerets into a solution of 5% caustic soda or dilute sulfuric acid to form the fibers, which are then decoppered and washed. Cuprammonium rayon is available in fibers of very low deniers and is used almost exclusively in textiles.
The foregoing processes for preparing rayon both require that the cellulose be chemically derivatized or complexed in order to render it soluble and therefore capable of being spun into fibers. In the viscose process, the cellulose is derivatized, while in the cuprammonium rayon process, the cellulose is complexed. In either process, the derivatized or complexed cellulose must be regenerated and the reagents used to solubilize it must be removed. The derivatization and regeneration steps in the production of rayon significantly add to the cost of this form of cellulose fiber. Consequently, in recent years attempts have been made to identify solvents that are capable of dissolving underivatized cellulose to form a dope of cellulose from which fibers can be spun.
One class of organic solvents useful for dissolving cellulose are the amine N-oxides, in particular the tertiary amine N-oxides. For example, Graenacher, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,179,181, discloses a group of amine oxide materials suitable as solvents. Johnson, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,447,939, describes the use of anhydrous N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide (NMMO) and other amine N-oxides as solvents for cellulose and many other natural and synthetic polymers. Franks et al., in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,145,532 and 4,196,282, deal with the difficulties of dissolving cellulose in amine oxide solvents and of achieving higher concentrations of cellulose.
Lyocell is an accepted generic term for a cellulose fiber precipitated from an organic solution in which no substitution of hydroxyl groups takes place and no chemical intermediates are formed. Several manufacturers presently produce lyocell fibers, principally for use in the textile industry. For example, Acordis, Ltd. presently manufactures and sells a lyocell fiber called Tencel® fiber.
Currently available lyocell fibers are produced from wood pulps that have been extensively processed to remove non-cellulose components, especially hemicellulose, and lignin. These highly processed pulps are referred to as high alpha (or high α) pulps, where the term alpha (or α) refers to the percentage of cellulose. Thus, a high alpha pulp contains a high percentage of cellulose, and a correspondingly low percentage of other components, especially hemicellulose and lignin. The processing required to generate a high alpha, low lignin pulp significantly adds to the cost of lyocell fibers and products manufactured therefrom.
Furthermore, the wood chips are pretreated with an acid before the pulping stage, since it is not possible to obtain acceptable high alpha pulps for lyocell products otherwise through the Kraft process. A significant amount of material, primarily hemicellulose on the order of 10% or greater, of the original wood substance is solubilized in this acid phase pretreatment. Thus process yields are significantly diminished. Omitting the acid phase pretreatment will result in a high hemicellulose pulp. The disadvantage of conventional high alpha pulps is the reduction of yield by eliminating hemicelluloses from the pulp.
Conventional high alpha pulps are also bleached. Bleaching refers to the removal of lignin in a process subsequent to the pulping process. Removing lignin also reduces the overall yield of the original wood material.
In view of the expense of producing lyocell products from high alpha pulps that have small amounts of hemicellulose and lignin, it would be desirable to have alternatives to high alpha, low lignin pulps for making lyocell products.
Thus there is a need for relatively inexpensive, low alpha, high yield, high hemicellulose, and high lignin pulps that are useful for making lyocell products.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,210,801, fully incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, high hemicellulose containing pulp is described that is useful for lyocell products. The pulp is made by reducing the viscosity of the cellulose without substantially reducing the hemicellulose content, followed by reducing the copper number.
While the methods described in the '801 patent are effective at reducing the viscosity of cellulose without substantially decreasing the hemicellulose content, a further need existed for a process that did not require a separate copper number reducing step, and that was readily adaptable to pulp mills that have oxygen reactors. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,331,354, fully incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, a high hemicellulose, low viscosity pulp is described that is useful for making lyocell products that does not require an additional copper number reducing step. The pulp is made from an alkaline pulp by treating the alkaline pulp with an oxidizing agent in a medium to high consistency oxygen reactor to reduce the viscosity of the cellulose, without substantially reducing the hemicellulose or increasing the copper number of the pulp.
Further efforts to reduce the cost of making lyocell products are described in U.S. application Ser. No. 09/842,274, fully incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. In the '274 application, the pulps are made from sawdust and other low length fiber wood. These pulps are high in hemicellulose and low in viscosity, and are composed of short fibers suitable for producing lyocell products.
However, until now, all of the prior art dissolving pulps for producing lyocell products are low in lignin content. It would be advantageous to develop a high lignin pulp that is useful for making lyocell products as an alternative to the highly refined low yield high alpha pulps.

Method of making a modified unbleached pulp for lyocell products


A process in which a 2-aminopyridine derivative of the general formula II is obtained from open-chain nitrile precursor I or III by reaction with a nitrogen compound in a cyclization reaction is described.

Pyridines are important structural elements in a multitude of products in the chemical and pharmaceutical industry, and very many different processes for preparation are described in the literature. These can be divided roughly into processes in which the pyridine ring is built up, and those in which substituents are introduced (for example by electrophilic or nucleophilic substitution on the aromatic) or modified.
When 2-aminopyridine derivatives are required, they are usually prepared by introducing the amine substituent into a pyridine ring which is already present. Examples of such reactions are the Chichibabin reaction, i.e. the reaction of pyridines with sodium amide with elimination of sodium hydride, or the reaction of 2-halopyridines with nitrogen compounds (see, for example, Chem. Ber. 1936, 69, 2593 for the conversion of 3-amino-2-chloropyridine to 2,3-diaminopyridine).

However, these reactions have the disadvantage that either quite drastic conditions are needed (Chichibabin reaction, reaction of 2-halopyridines with aqueous ammonia), or that expensive noble metals and ligands are required for the conversion in the more recent catalytic variants (e.g. Org. Lett. 2001, 3, 3417).
A further disadvantage of the reactions described is the fact that the corresponding precursors must be available for the synthesis of pyridines with difficult substitution, which is often not the case. Moreover, for the introduction of the desired substituent into the desired position, an industrially performable process has to be available, which allows the conversion of the precursor beyond the laboratory scale.
This is often not the case especially when perfluoroalkyl groups (usually trifluoromethyl groups) are to be introduced into the pyridine ring. Some reactions here are described in the literature, such as the reaction of iodopyridines with (trifluoromethyl)trimethylsilane
or the conversion of methyl groups to trifluoromethyl groups by the action of chlorine and hydrofluoric acid.

However, all processes known to date have disadvantages which make use for the preparation of the aminopyridines sought unattractive, or rule it out. For instance, the aminopyridines are unstable under the drastic conditions of the conversion of methyl to trifluoromethyl groups. It would thus first be necessary to prepare other pyridine derivatives, for example halopyridines, and to perform the conversion of halogen to amine in a separate step, which results in complex and expensive processes. Owing to the high costs of the starting materials, the introduction of a trifluoromethyl group by conversion of an iodopyridine with the aid of (trifluoromethyl)trimethylsilane is likewise hardly attractive for the industrial scale.
It was accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a process with the aid of which the desired 2-aminopyridine derivatives can be prepared with high flexibility with regard to the substitution pattern and with which it is possible to prepare especially perfluoroalkyl-substituted, preferably trifluoromethyl-substituted, 2-aminopyridines.
A similar process has already been described for 2-halopyridines (WO2007/000249, whose United States equivalent is United States Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0214825 A1). In this process, a nitrile is first metallated and then reacted with a suitable carbonyl compound to give the hydroxynitrile. The final ring closure is then effected under strongly acidic conditions with HX (HCl, HBr, HI) or inorganic esters of these substances (e.g. SOCl2, POCl3, PCl5, PBr3 etc.) under very strongly acidic conditions. This reaction is illustrated by way of example for the synthesis of 4-trifluoromethyl-2-chloropyridine.

In order to be able to prepare the corresponding 2-aminopyridine proceeding therefrom, however, a further reaction with ammonia is needed, which proceeds only under severe conditions (see EP-B-0 228 846, whose United States equivalent is U.S. Pat. No. 4,762,928, or Dunn et al. in J. Fluor. Chem 1999, page 153) and requires high temperatures and high pressure.

Process for preparing 2-amino-4-(haloalkyl) pyridine derivatives by cyclizing suitable nitrile precursors with nitrogen compounds


A drive apparatus and a XY drive apparatus on which it is equipped that accomplishes highly accurate driving and positioning of a driven object by absorbing deflection of a nut in the radial direction while employing a simple construction.. Deflection of a nut is absorbed by deflection of flexible portions as a result of said nut being supported by an intermediate member having said flexible portions able to deflect in a radial direction perpendicular to the shaft center of a feed screw.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a drive apparatus for moving a certain object (driven object) in a desired direction, and an XY drive apparatus on which said drive apparatus is equipped.
2. Description of the Prior Art
An example of the prior art having this type of drive apparatus is the XY drive apparatus indicated in FIG. 1.
As indicated in FIG. 1, said XY drive apparatus is composed of X table 1 installed on the floor or a mounting frame in a workshop, and Y table 2, that is supported and moved by said X table 1 and arranged to be intersecting with said X table 1. Furthermore, since X table 1 and Y table 2 mutually have nearly the same constitution, the following detailed explanation will be provided with respect to X table 1 only, and an explanation of Y table 2 is omitted. However, those constituent members of Y table 2 that correspond to the constituent members of X table 1 are indicated using the same reference numerals.
As indicated in FIGS. 1 and 2, X table 1 has a long, roughly rectangular plate-shaped base 13, and side plate 14 is provided on both sides of said base 13. Mounting member 15 is attached to one end of base 13, and motor 16 and sensor connector 17 are mounted on said mounting member 15. In addition, stationary bearing mechanism 18 is provided on the other end of base 13, and ball screw 19 is supported by said stationary bearing mechanism 18. In addition, the torque of motor 16 is transmitted to ball screw 19 through coupling 20. Furthermore, as is well known, ball screw 19 is composed of a feeding screw in the form of male screw 21, and a female screw in the form of nut 22 that screws onto male screw 21 by means of a ball (not shown), and moves as a result of rotation of said male screw 21.
As indicated in FIG. 2, one end of male screw 21 is supported by bearing 18a equipped on stationary bearing mechanism 18 while allowing to rotate freely. The other end 21a is formed to be narrower than the threaded portion, and is supported by bearing 23a equipped on bearing unit 23 while allowing to rotate freely. In addition, the gap in the axial direction between this other end 21a and bearing 23a is eliminated by tightening of bearing nut 24 resulting in regulation of movement in the axial direction by male screw 21, and the torque of motor 16 is transmitted as a result of being linked to coupling 20.
On the other hand, nut 22 is fastened by bolts (not provided with reference numerals) to the end of moving table 27 having a roughly T-shaped cross-section as indicated in FIG. 3. This moving table 27 is formed of a size that allows it to be contained within the width of side plate 14, and two table projections 27a are formed in parallel on the upper surfaces of both its left and right sides, that protrude above the upper surface of side plate 14. Above-mentioned Y table 2 is attached to these table projections 27a with bolts (not shown). Furthermore, as indicated in FIGS. 1 and 3, cover 28, acting to prevent entrance of dust and debris, is arranged to be positioned to the inside of both of these table projections 27a. In addition, as indicated in FIG. 3, stopper 29, having a prescribed length, protrudes from one end of moving table 27. This stopper 29 is for restricting movement of moving table 27 to the end position in the axial direction of said moving table 27.
As indicated in FIGS. 2 and 3, moving table 27 is supported by a pair of sliding members 31. These sliding members 31 are formed to have a cross-section roughly in the shape of a "U", and slide along guide rails 32 mounted on mounting surfaces 13a of base 13. A guiding device that guides moving table 27 in the direction in which is to drive (X) by these sliding members 31 and guide rails 32. Furthermore, two grooves 13b are formed in parallel with the above-mentioned mounting surfaces 13a on base 13, and sensors 34, for detecting the stroke limit and origin position of moving table 27, are mounted at the prescribed locations of said grooves 13b.
The following provides an explanation of the operation of the XY drive apparatus composed of the above-mentioned constitution.
Firstly, electrical power is supplied to each motor 16 of X table 1 and Y table 2.
When an electrical power voltage is applied to motor 16 of X table 1, said motor 16 turns resulting in torque being transmitted to male screw 21 of ball screw 19 through coupling 20 and so forth. As a result of this rotation of male screw 21, moving table 27 mounted to nut 22 moves linearly in the X direction along guide rails 32. Accordingly, Y table 2 mounted on said moving table 27 also moves in the X direction.
On the other hand, since Y table 2 is composed in the same manner as the above-mentioned X table 1 so moving table 27 (see FIG. 1) equipped on it linearly moves independently in the Y direction, by controlling the operation of said X table 1 and Y table 2 by a control circuit not shown, workpieces in the form of electronic components placed on moving table 27 of Y table 2 can be moved two-dimensionally as desired.
As described above, in the drive apparatus of the prior art, a driven object in the form of moving table 27 is driven by ball screw 19. However, the generation of deflection within those surfaces of nut 22 perpendicular to the shaft center of male screw 21, or in other words, in the radial direction, accompanying rotation of said male screw 21, cannot be avoided in ball screw 19. Thus, the electronic components and so forth on moving table 27 are subjected to pitching and yoking resulting from this deflection of nut 22, thus resulting in the shortcoming of having a detrimental effect on straightness and other factors related to accuracy of positioning or orientation of said electronic components and so forth.

Drive apparatus and XY drive apparatus on which it is equipped


An analog-to-digital converter (ADC) includes a first comparator, a second comparator, and a decision timing comparison logic unit. The first comparator is configured to output a first output voltage and the second comparator is configured to output a second output voltage during a same binary algorithmic iteration of the ADC. The decision timing comparison logic unit is configured to identify a first polarity of the first output voltage and a second polarity of the second output voltage and, if the first polarity is equivalent to a second polarity, to insert at least one redundant capacitor for a next binary algorithmic iteration of the ADC.

Analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) convert analog input signals into digital representations. Many ADCs operate using a successive approximation register (SAR) technique. A SAR ADC sequentially compares an analog input voltage to various reference voltage levels generated by a digital-to-analog converter (DAC). For example, during a first clock cycle, a first bit decision relating to the most significant bit (MSB) is made based on whether the analog input voltage is greater than half the reference voltage. During the next clock cycle, another bit decision relating to the second most significant bit (MSB-1) is made based on whether the analog input voltage is greater than one quarter or three quarters of the reference voltage. The conversion procedure continues accordingly, and the DAC's output converges successively to the analog input voltage while evaluating one bit during each clock cycle.
Some SAR ADCs use a charge redistribution technique with an array of capacitors. A charge stored on the capacitors is manipulated to perform the conversion from the analog domain to the digital domain. Some SAR ADCs also include a least significant bit (LSB) capacitor that is connected to a resistor network. Various tap points along the resistor network are coupled to the LSB capacitor to generate additional bit decisions.
Because SAR ADCs typically include capacitors and resistors, voltages generated based on a reference voltage take some amount of time to settle before bit decisions can be made. The settling time of an ADC can therefore detrimentally affect its performance. Also, SAR ADCs often fix the input voltage and sequentially vary the reference voltage, which can lead to errors. Many SAR ADCs use a redundant capacitor approach for error correction, but there is no way of knowing the point where a comparator has to make a critical decision for a given input (and thus no way of knowing for the given input where to apply a redundant capacitor).

Dual comparator-based error correction scheme for analog-to-digital converters


A process for producing food grade wax which contains exceedingly low levels of nitrogen, sulfur and aromatic compounds. A waxy feedstock is firstly hydrotreated in a first hydrogenation zone to reduce the level of contaminants such as sulfur, nitrogen and aromatic compounds, and the resulting effluent from the first hydrogenation zone is introduced into a hot, high pressure stripper and contacted with a hot, hydrogen-rich stripping gas to remove ammonia and hydrogen sulfide. The stripped, hot liquid hydrocarbons are removed from the bottom of the hot, high-pressure stripper to further reduce the concentration of aromatic compounds by being hydrogenated in a second hydrogenation zone containing a platinum or palladium catalyst.

The field of the art to which this invention pertains is the production of food grade wax from a feedstock containing wax. Hydrocarbon feedstocks containing wax is used to produce wax and particularly food grade wax which is in commercial demand. These feedstocks contain sulfur, nitrogen and aromatic compounds and must be refined and separated to produce food grade wax which meets stringent purity specifications. Hydrotreating is utilized to react a hydrocarbonaceous feedstock and a hydrogen-rich gaseous stream with a hydrotreating catalyst to remove sulfur and nitrogen, and to saturate aromatic compounds. This is accomplished by contacting the particulate catalyst with a hydrocarbonaceous feedstock under conditions of elevated temperature and pressure and in the presence of hydrogen so that the sulfur components are converted to hydrogen sulfide, and nitrogen components to ammonia. Hydrotreating is typically employed to reduce the concentration of nitrogen and sulfur in feedstocks: A typical hydrotreating catalyst contains hydrotreating metals and/or other promoters on a porous refractory oxide support. Hydrotreating metals usually include Group VIB and/or Group VIII active metal components supported on a porous refractory oxide support such as alumina.
Although a wide variety of process flow schemes, operating conditions and catalysts have been used in commercial activities to produce purified wax, there is always a demand for new and more advantageous methods. The present invention is able to produce food grade wax from petroleum-derived feedstocks.


A MOSFET structure utilizing strained silicon carbon alloy and fabrication method thereof. The MOSFET structure includes a substrate, a graded SiGe layer, a relaxed buffer layer, a strained silicon carbon alloy channel layer, a gate dielectric layer, a polysilicon gate electrode (or metal gate electrode) and a source/drain region.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to a structure of MOSFET. In particular, the present invention relates to a strained silicon carbon alloy MOSFET structure and fabrication method thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the present technology for fabricating metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET), strained silicon is formed on the relaxed SiGe layer to generate tensile strain. It had been confirmed that hole and electron mobility thereof are improved. Intel Corporation has implemented strained silicon technology into 90 nm process technology. The present technology, however, has the drawback of asymmetrical speed increasing between PMOS and NMOS even under the same Ge content. Theoretically, when using carbon doping to increase strain of the strained silicon channel, a highly increased current driving force and device speed of PMOS, and therefore improved symmetry of the CMOS, is anticipated, in addition, since carbon has a higher phonon energy than that of silicon, when adding carbon into a strained Si channel, the carrier saturation speed in the strained silicon carbon alloy channel exceeds that in the strained silicon channel as phonon energy increases. Furthermore, the added carbon can reduce outdiffusion of boron and phosphorous, so that the source/drain junction and channel has an abrupt doping distribution, preventing short-channel effect and minimizing device dimensions.

Strained silicon carbon alloy MOSFET structure and fabrication method thereof

Industrial Research Technology Institute


A printed circuit board (PCB) assembly provides a two layer capacitive trackpad sensor in which an EMI ground grid is interposed among the sensor's capacitive elements on each of its layers. The EMI grid on each of the two layers is electrically coupled via, typically, vias. The described arrangement of sensor elements (capacitor plates) and EMI ground grid traces may be incorporated into a PCB having additional layers (e.g., a four, six or eight layer PCB). If used in this manner, additional vias are provided on the PCB which permit electrical coupling between these “additional layers” and which are electrically isolated from, and shielded by, the EMI ground grid.

The invention relates generally to computer system input devices and, more particularly, to a trackpad input device having low electromagnetic interference characteristics.
A trackpad is a touch-sensing planar digitizer input device used instead of, or in conjunction with, a mouse, trackball or joy stick. During use, an operator places a finger on the trackpad and moves the finger along the touch-sensing planar surface. The trackpad detects the movement of the finger and in response provides motion signals to a computer. Typically, a trackpad software program converts the detected movement pattern into specific cursor control signals (e.g., location, direction and magnitude of motion).
There are two common types of trackpad sensor devices: resistive and capacitive. A resistive trackpad sensor is a mechanical sensor that uses two layers of material that are typically separated by air. Pressure from a finger pushes the top layer (generally a thin, clear polyester film) so that it touches the bottom layer (generally glass). The voltage at the contact point is measured and the finger's location is computed and transmitted to a host computer system. After the finger is removed, the top layer "bounces back" to its original configuration. A capacitive touchpad sensor, in contrast, is a solid-state sensor made using printed circuit board ("PCB"), flex circuit of glass substrate technology. A finger on, or in close proximity to, a top grid of conductive traces changes the capacitive coupling between adjacent traces. This change in capacitance can be measured and finger position computed.
Like virtually all electronic circuits, the computer system (e.g., notebook or other personal computer, workstation or server computer) in which a trackpad (i.e., a trackpad sensor and its associated electronics) resides generates electromagnetic interference ("EMI"). It will be recognized that such interference can cause damage or a malfunction in other computer system devices or circuits. In the past, the problem of computer EMI has generally been addressed by enclosing the computing environment (e.g., the computer system's motherboard) in a shielded volume (typically referred to as a Faraday cage) and placing the trackpad outside this volume. Often, because the trackpad must be electrically coupled to the computer system, the trackpad itself is partially enclosed in a second shielded container.
Referring to FIG. 1, for example, trackpad sensor 100 and associated circuitry 105 (collectively, the trackpad) is often partially enclosed in shielded (e.g., metal) well 110. Because volume is a critical resource in portable computers, well 110 is as small as possible—often requiring hole 115 be cut therein to permit trackpad circuitry 105 to protrude. This, unfortunately, permits EMI to escape well 110. To combat this problem, circuitry 105 and hole 115 may be covered with a copper foil pad or blanket.
Referring to FIGS. 2A and 2B, another prior art approach to combating trackpad EMI is to provide a single copper pour on the trackpad sensor's PCB. In one embodiment, trackpad sensor PCB 200 has metal layer 205 applied to its bottom surface (i.e., away from the surface providing touch-sensing). In another embodiment, trackpad sensor PCB 210 has internal metal layer 215 beneath its touch-sensing elements. A drawback to the shielding approaches of FIGS. 2A and 2B is that metal layers 205 and 215 introduce large parasitic capacitances. As one of ordinary skill in the art will recognize, such parasitic capacitances decrease the touchpad's operational signal-to-noise ratio which, in turn, can lead to lower performance and/or require additional design responses to mitigate.
It would be beneficial, therefore, to provide a touchpad sensor with low EMI characteristics without introducing large unwanted capacitances or the need to employ additional design techniques to offset the side-effects of the reduced EMI design.


A sensor circuit includes a first magnetoresistor. The first magnetoresistor has a first resistance transfer function. Furthermore, the sensor circuit includes a second magnetoresistor. The second magnetoresistor has a second resistance transfer function. The second resistance transfer function is different from the first resistance transfer function. The first magnetoresistor and the second magnetoresistor are connected in series between a first supply terminal of the sensor circuit and a second supply terminal of the sensor circuit.

Magnetoresistive effects are based on numerous different physical phenomena. All of these phenomena have in common that an electrical resistance of a resistive element is alterable by a magnetic field penetrating the resistive element. Technologies utilizing magnetoresistive effects are sometimes referred to as "xMR technologies", whereby the "x" indicates that a multitude of effects may be addressed here, like the Giant Magneto-Resistive (GMR) effect, the Tunnel MagnetoResistive (TMR) effect, or the Anisotropic Magneto-Resistive (AMR) effect, to mention just a few examples. The xMR effects may be applied in a variety of field-based sensors, for example for measuring revolution, angles, etc.
External effects, such as high magnetic field strengths, imposing on the sensors can however cause inaccuracies in measurements performed by the sensors and can make the sensors operate less reliably. This can be critical especially in applications relevant to safety. Hence, there is a demand to improve the operational reliability and/or the accuracy of magnetic sensors. Such a demand can be covered by embodiments according to this disclosure.

Magnetic sensor circuits and systems and methods for forming magnetic sensor circuits


A developing device having a toner carrier for feeding a toner through pressure contact with a latent image carrier on which an electrostatic latent image pattern has been formed. The toner carrier comprises a foam member having a foam portion and a solid surface layer portion. The foam portion and the solid surface layer portion comprise an identical material and are continuous with each other substantially without the presence of any interface therebetween. The foam member has a density gradient in the direction of the thickness. The developing device of the present invention enables soft pressure contact development to be stably conducted, has advantageously low production and operation cost, and can form an image having a high resolution without a significant variation in the density.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for forming an image through the use of an electrophotographic process. More particularly, the present invention is concerned with a developing device wherein a toner carrier is brought into pressure contact with a latent image carrier to develop an image.

Roller member for an electrophotographic device


Movable louvered window shutters embody a construction and a process for their fabrication that results in a shutter having a high quality, functionally and aesthetically. The shutters use a hardware arrangement including two types of louver pins, a compression spring and a tensioning mechanism to adjust the frictional drag on the shutters. The hardware facilitates a procedure in which the frame and louvers of the shutter are fabricated and finished separately and then assembled. The same kit of hardware can be used to make virtually any size window shutter having movable louvers. The tensioning mechanism includes a threaded insert that enables adjustment of the frictional drag on the louvers without causing deterioration or damage to the shutter frame.

A common technique to make a wood window shutter with movable louvers, particularly a shutter intended to be marketed as "low-cost" or "economy" grade, is to fabricate and assemble the entire shutter and then paint it as an assembled unit. Paint tends to collect, however, in the pivotal joints by which the louvers are mounted to the frame of the shutter resulting in reduced function and aesthetic appeal. Consequently, with such a shutter manufacturing technique, it is common to increase the clearance to reduce the risk of freezing or binding of the joint with hardened paint. That tends to result in loose, uneven joints. While it has been suggested, as in Briggs U.S. Pat. No. 4,887,391, that these difficulties may be avoided by forming and finishing the frame and the louvers separately, and then attaching the louvers to the frame, there is a need for a simplified, yet effective, arrangement by which the pivoted position of the louvers, when adjusted, is maintained. The aforementioned Briggs patent describes an arrangement in which a magnetically engageable ganging bar is connected to each of the louvers between one of the stiles of the frame and the ends of the louvers adjacent that stile, coupled with magnets mounted to the frame for engaging the ganging bars and securing them in an adjusted position. A common arrangement that has been employed, particularly in preassembled louvered shutters is to drive a wood screw into and through the frame of the shutter so that its end bears against the end of a louver pin at the end of the louver. By tightening the screw, the other end of the louver can be urged against the opposite side of the frame to develop sufficient friction that will tend to retain the louvers in an adjusted position, a technique that is referred to as "tensioning". Over time, the threaded engagement of the screw directly with the wood of the frame and the pin at the end of the shutter can be expected to become worn from periodic adjustments of the louvers and other causes. The Briggs patent refers to other approaches in which a heavy spring is applied against either or both ends of each louver to maintain what is referred to as "axial tension" on the louver. Briggs explains that such movement action, however, is "somewhat jerky".
Also among the diffculties that may be encountered with some movable louvered shutters is that the hardware that is associated with the shutter may differ from one shape or configuration of shutter to another. In such instances, it may become necessary for a substantial inventory of components to be maintained for each of the different size or configuration of shutter. For example, it may be necessary to maintain an inventory of a variety of springs, pins or the like in different sizes for use with different sized shutters or configurations. Not only does that present inventory difficulties but it also presents an opportunity for assembly mistakes to be made, as by putting the wrong hardware item in a particular shutter.
There is a need for a movable louvered shutter and technique for its fabrication in which the shutter components fit closely, function properly and reflect aesthetically, a high degree of craftsmanship and further in which the arrangement for maintaining the louvers in an adjusted, aligned position is simple, inexpensive and will not result in damage to the frame or the louver from repeated adjustment of the tension on the louvers. There also is a need for a movable louvered shutter that requires relatively few hardware components and which those components can be used to fabricate a wide variety of such shutters of virtually any size.


It is an object to prevent a liquid refrigerant from being drawn into a compressor. A heat pump apparatus includes a refrigerant circuit in which a refrigerant circulates, and which is configured by sequentially connecting a compressor, a first heat exchanger, an expansion valve, a second heat exchanger, and a third heat exchanger, and connecting a bypass flow path bypassing the third heat exchanger between the second heat exchanger and the compressor. The heat pump apparatus also includes a water circuit in which water circulates, and which is configured by sequentially connecting the third heat exchanger, the first heat exchanger, and a tank. In the heat pump apparatus, if there is a risk of the liquid refrigerant being drawn into the compressor, a three-way valve is controlled such that the refrigerant flows through the third heat exchanger to be heated by water and evaporated.

There is a heat pump apparatus that heats water using heat absorbed from ambient air. There is a heat pump water heater that heats water in a tank using the water heated by the heat pump apparatus, and there is a heat pump heating apparatus that performs a heating operation using the water heated by the heat pump apparatus.
In the heat pump water heater, when the temperature of the water in the tank reaches the target temperature, the operating frequency of a compressor included in the heat pump apparatus is lowered to reduce power consumption. Likewise, in the heat pump heating apparatus, when the temperature of a room to be heated reaches the target temperature, the operating frequency of the compressor included in the heat pump apparatus is lowered to reduce power consumption.
When the operating frequency of the compressor is lowered, this reduces the flow volume of a refrigerant circulating in a refrigerant circuit included in the heat pump apparatus. With the reduced flow volume of the refrigerant, the pressure of the refrigerant cannot be lowered much even if the opening degree of an expansion valve included in the heat pump apparatus is set to a minimum degree. When the pressure of the refrigerant cannot be lowered, this means that the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant cannot be lowered. Therefore, when the ambient air temperature is low, the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant may not be able to be lowered sufficiently compared to the ambient air temperature.
When the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant cannot be lowered sufficiently compared to the ambient air temperature, the refrigerant cannot sufficiently absorb heat from the ambient air. As a result, the refrigerant cannot be completely evaporated, and the liquid refrigerant is drawn into the compressor. When the liquid refrigerant is drawn into the compressor, a lubricating oil present in the compressor is brought out of the compressor, so that lubricity is reduced and the compressor fails to operate properly.
Conventionally, when the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant cannot be lowered sufficiently compared to the ambient air temperature, the operating frequency of the compressor is increased, thereby increasing the flow volume of the refrigerant circulating in the refrigerant circuit, so as to prevent the liquid refrigerant from being drawn into the compressor (see Patent Literature 1).

Heat pump water heater apparatus and heating and defrost operation, thereof


A manufacturing method of a semiconductor device, includes: a stacking process of forming an electrode by stacking a plurality of electrode layers on a semiconductor layer; and a anneal treatment process of treating the electrode. The stacking process including processes of forming a first electrode layer mainly made of aluminum (Al) as one of the plurality of electrode layers; forming a second electrode layer mainly made of a conductive material that has a higher melting point than that of aluminum (Al) and reacts with aluminum (Al) at 450° C. or higher temperature, as one of the plurality of electrode layers, on the first electrode layer; and forming a third electrode layer mainly made of palladium (Pd) as an electrode layer most distant from the semiconductor layer among the plurality of electrode layers, on the second electrode layer.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device and a manufacturing method of the same.
2. Related Art
In known techniques of manufacturing a semiconductor device, there is a technique for forming an electrode having ohmic characteristics (ohmic electrode) on a semiconductor layer (for example, JP H07-45867A and JP 2010-212406A). In general, the ohmic electrode formed on the semiconductor layer is required to reduce the contact resistance while ensuring the adhesion to the semiconductor layer.
JP H07-45867A describes formation of an electrode having stacked structure of titanium (Ti) and aluminum (Al), in order to ensure the ohmic characteristics of the electrode. JP 2010-212406A describes formation of an electrode having stacked structure of three metal layers, in order to improve the resistance of the electrode to acid corrosion and alkali corrosion.

Manufacturing method of the semiconductor device electrode having three metal layers


The device comprises a pipe (1), in which a shaft (20) of a marking component (2) can be moved. The pipe (1) has a soil anchor (4) at the bottom. The component (2) has a head (21) at the top and can be lifted from a lowered position, in which the head (21) lies next to the top face (14) of the pipe (1) into the lifted position shown against the force of a spring (3). In the lifted position, the component (2) can be stopped by means of a bayonet lock. The device is inserted into the ground vertically at a measuring, e.g., on a soccer field, such that in the lowered position, the top (25) of the head (21) is flush with the ground surface. If the markings on the field need to be renewed, the corresponding components (2) are lifted and stopped. A cord is stretched between two components (2), along which cord a straight line can be marked, or a circle can be drawn with a cord around one of the components (2). The marking of the field can thus be rationalized and expensive re-measuring can be avoided.

The markings on soccer fields, consisting of straight lines and curves, must be renewed periodically. This is done by driving stakes into the ground at certain measuring points and stretching a cord between two stakes, along which cord a straight-line marking is applied to the grass, or by fastening a cord to a stake and inscribing a circle around the stake with the end of the cord. The stakes are then removed. Since the markings can shift on the grass over time, or since they are occasionally washed away, the measuring points for insertion of the stakes must be remeasured periodically, which is expensive.


In a gear drive for a motor vehicle comprising a first gear, a second gear in engagement with the first gear, an oil sump arranged below the second gear such that the second gear is partially immersed in the oil sump, and an oil collection structure disposed at a level higher than the oil sump for collecting oil carried by the gears out of the oil sump, the second gear is provided at least at one side thereof with an oil guide element which extends at the side of the first gear over the engagement area thereof with the second gear and carries oil upward for collection in the oil collection structure.

The invention resides in a gear drive for a motor vehicle including a first gear engaged with a second gear which is immerged into an oil-collecting sump disposed below the second gear of the gear drive.
DE 3 743 671 A1 discloses a gear drive which includes an oil collection arrangement for collecting splash oil. The splash oil is generated by the rotation of gears which are partially immersed into the oil sump. The oil collection arrangement supplies the oil to transmission components which are not directly supplied with lubricant since they are arranged above the oil sump. For filling the oil collection arrangement the gears must reach a minimum speed since below that speed the centrifugal forces are so small that the oil flows down from the gears immersed into the oil sump and does not reach the oil collection arrangement. Particularly when the oil collection arrangement has run empty because of an extended standstill of the gear drive a reliable lubrication of the components disposed outside the oil sump is not ensured.
It is the object of the present invention to provide a gear drive which provides for a safe lubrication of all components of the gear drive even at low gear speeds.


A method for synthesizing a lane image is proposed in the present application. This method includes the following steps. M continuous image frames are retrieved at a frame rate f from a video image capture device. A quantity N for image mapping is determined based on a dash length L of a dashed line and a distance S between two dashes of the dashed lines. A frame interval for mapping image frames is determined based on the dash length L, the distance S, the velocity v, and the frame rate f. At least N image frames are retrieved from the M continuous image frames at the frame interval. The at least N image frames are synthesized to obtain the lane image using an image synthesizing device.

Traditionally, a Lane Departure Warning (LDW) System is a set of active safety-assistance-systems for a vehicle, in which a video image capture device shoots the scenes of roads and then detects the locations of the lane lines to determine whether the vehicle is shifting from the center of the lanes by a driver. Whenever the vehicle is judged to be shifting from the center of the lanes, the LDW system will pop up a warning message and suggest that the driver drive back to the center of the lanes.
But in most road scenes, there are often cases with dashed lines of the lane in an image. In addition, if the LDW system is installed on a driving record for the vehicle, its hood often blocks a part of the road in the image, and thus it makes the lane lines more narrowly rendered in a frame. In these cases, the distance of dashed lines would cause a poor success rate for lane detection.
However, many lane lines in the road are not completely straight lines or solid lines. Please refer to FIG. 1, which illustrates two frames 13 and 15 taken from a video image capture device 10 installed on a moving vehicle 11, which moves in an upward direction from the lower location P11 to the upper location P12 shown in this figure. When the moving vehicle 11 is located at the lower location P11, frame 13 is captured; and when the moving vehicle 11 is located at the upper location P12, the frame 15 is captured.
Please focus on the region of interest (ROI) within the rectangles surrounded by pairs of dashed lines shown in frames 13-16, which are all labeled with two dashed lines. In addition, frame 14 includes a portion the same as that in frame 13 of the shot; frame 16 includes a portion the same as that in frame 15 of the shot; and frames 13-16 together illustrate the LDW system applied in the scenario of distances between dashed lines of lanes 17-19. Obviously, it would be difficult to detect a lane line 19′ in the ROI of frame 16 rather than detecting a lane line 17′ in the ROI of frame 14.
Please refer to FIG. 2, which illustrates 12 frames (Frames 2A-2L) retrieved from a video image capture device in a given time under the condition that the 12 frames are captured with a frame rate of 30 frames per second (FPS) and the velocity of a vehicle is equal to 85 kilometers/hour (km/hr). It can be seen that there are spaces between the dashed lines shown in individual frames during the period. For example, white spaces lie between a solid line 21 and a dashed line 22 and the dashed line 22 and another solid line 23 in Frame 2A. Thus there is less than a 33% possibility to detect a well-defined lane among these frames (referring to Frames 2A, 2B, 2C and 2L out of the 12 frames).
By referring to the lane detection in the prior art, Kim et al. (US patent application No. 20120154588) disclose a method for detecting different kinds of lanes, say a solid line, a dashed line and the colors of the lane, and then determining whether to prompt a warning or not based on the lane type and its color. More specifically, the lane departure warning system includes an image sensing unit, an edge extracting unit, a lane recognizing unit, a lane type determining unit, a lane color detecting unit, a lane pattern generating unit, and a lane departure determining unit. The image sensing unit senses a plurality of images. The edge extracting unit emphasizes the edge components necessary for lane recognition. The lane recognizing unit detects straight line components. The lane type determining unit determines a type of the lane. The lane color detecting unit detects a color of the lane from an image signal value. The lane pattern generating unit generates a lane pattern. The lane departure determining unit determines lane departure in consideration of the type and the color of the lane and a state of a turn signal lamp.
Although Kim et al. can determine whether the lane line is a dashed line, it is only applied in the scenario of the lanes under a condition that the lane line feature occupies most of the area in the frame; that is to say, there need to be more than two dashed lines in the ROI.
Although one can still determine the kinds of the lane, the scope of lane lines may be too narrow in the image to detect more than two dashed lines under some settings, such as the LDW system being installed on the front part of the vehicle with the hood blocking the essential information on the road. This could cause a mis-judgment of the kind of the lane, or even fail to detect.
Masato Imai et al. (US patent application No. 20120212612) propose a lane departure warning apparatus capable of preventing false warnings and the absence of a warning regarding lane departure which is attributed to special road geometries such as junctions and tollgates. The lane departure warning apparatus for that outputs a warning signal when determining the departure of a vehicle from a lane, performing the steps of: when one dividing line in a vehicle width direction of the vehicle is non-detected, estimating a position of the one dividing line based on a position of the other dividing line as a first estimated dividing line; estimating a position of the non-detected dividing line based on a position of the one dividing line prior to non-detection as a second estimated dividing line; and comparing the first estimated dividing line with the second estimated dividing line to determine lane departure.
However, Masato Imai et al. should determine whether the estimated dividing line is correct before a next detection happens, and one can not judge any displacement between the intervals of the two detections. In addition, this algorithm will fail in cases where the two sides near the vehicle are both dashed. If there is noise in the distance of dashed lines, this would impact the assessment the estimated dividing line and the problem of dashed lines will not be solved. In addition, this technology cannot be used in the case of the driving record configured on the front part of the vehicle and it will increase the system's loading.
Kazuyuki Sakurai (U.S. Pat. No. 8,655,081) discloses a method to improve the problem of lane line detection, especially for dashed line detection. This method can improve the lane recognition accuracy by suppressing noises that are likely to be generated respectively in an original image and a bird's-eye image. The lane recognition system recognizes a lane based on an image. The system includes: a synthesized bird's-eye image creation module which creates a synthesized bird's-eye image by connecting a plurality of bird's-eye images that are obtained by transforming respective partial regions of original images picked up at a plurality of different times into bird's-eye images; a lane line candidate extraction module which detects a lane line candidate by using information of the original images or the bird's-eye images created from the original images, and the synthesized bird's-eye image; and a lane line position estimation module which estimates a lane line position based on information of the lane line candidate.
Kazuyuki Sakurai installs the system on the back part of the vehicle. However, this requires a more sophisticated theory, such as Bird's eye transformation algorithm. In addition, it also needs to detect two frames simultaneously to perform a lane detection and judgment, which also increases the system's loading.

Method and system for synthesizing a lane image


The inventive device is a connector for mounting a vertical exhaust pipe to a truck cab. In one embodiment, the connector includes a bracket, a resilient member, a rigid bushing, a rod, and a clamp. The bracket is mountable to the cab in the proximity of the exhaust pipe. The resilient member is coupled to the bracket, and the bushing is coupled to the resilient member. The rod has an upper end and a lower end, and it is positioned through the bushing. The clamp has a brace attached to an end of the rod and a clasp that is attachable to the exhaust pipe. The rod is moveable axially through the bushing to correspond to vertical displacement between the cab and the exhaust pipe, but the rod is substantially prevented from moving laterally with respect to the cab to substantially prevent lateral displacement between the exhaust pipe and the cab. The resilient member is made from a material that dampens vibrations from the exhaust pipe to reduce noise in the cab.

Truck exhaust pipes are commonly mounted to extend vertically next to the cab to conform to regulations for hauling certain loads and to enhance the aesthetics of the vehicle, Trucks for hauling food products, for example, must expel the exhaust at a point that is positioned above the load to prevent the exhaust from contaminating the food products. Truckers also like to have bright, shiny chrome exhaust pipes next to the cab to enhance the appearance their trucks. Thus, it is generally desirable to mount exhaust pipes to extend vertically next to the cab.
When trucks have an air cab suspension, however, several problems arise in connection with vertically mounted exhaust pipes. A significant amount of vertical and lateral displacement occurs between vertically mounted exhaust pipes and the cab because the exhaust pipes are mounted to the frame of the vehicle while the cab is mounted to a separate air suspension system. The largest displacement between an exhaust pipe and a cab happens when frame "racking" occurs such that one frame member is displaced with respect to the other. Racking can cause up to 3.0" of vertical displacement between the pipes and the cab. A lesser amount of displacement occurs when the truck goes over bumps or potholes in the road surface. Accordingly, the upper end of vertical exhaust pipes should be secured to the outer wall of the cab to prevent damage to the pipes and cab.
Conventional mounting systems do not adequately secure vertical pipes to the cab. In securing the upper end of a vertical pipe to the cab, lateral displacement should be limited because it causes torsional stresses in the exhaust pipe and the exhaust pipe may bang against the cab in extreme conditions. Vertical displacement, on the other hand, should be freely allowed because restricting vertical displacement causes too quality of the ride in the cab. Conventional U-bolts and Fabreeka tethers do not adequately limit lateral displacement between the pipes and the cab. Conventional brackets that are fixedly attached to the cab and the pipe do not allow for sufficient vertical displacement. Accordingly it would be desirable to develop a connector for mounting a vertical exhaust pipe to a cab that adequately limits lateral displacement while allowing sufficient vertical displacement between the pipe and the cab.
Most conventional systems also transmit an excessive amount of noise to the cab. U-bolts and fixed brackets provide a highly conductive path for transmitting exhaust noise and engine vibrations from the exhaust pipe to the cab. Therefore, it would be desirable to develop a connector for mounting a vertical exhaust pipe to a cab that minimizes the transmission of vibrations from the exhaust pipe into the cab.

Connector system for mounting an exhaust pipe to a truck cab


A multi-layered tunnel junction structure adapted to be disposed between two light emitting structures includes an n-type doped insulation layer, as well as an n-type heavily doped layer, a metal atom layer, a p-type heavily doped layer, and a p-type doped insulation layer which are disposed on the n-type doped insulation layer in such sequential order. A light emitting device having the multi-layered tunnel junction structure and a production method of such light emitting device are also disclosed.

Application of facial and iris recognition to mobile devices has been prevailing. It is expected that 2 billions of mobile devices equipped with a recognition component having an infrared light emitting diode (LED) will be reached in 2020. Therefore, the production value of facial and iris recognition components having infrared LEDs will reach 250 million USD at the time, rendering infrared LEDs promising. Commercial iris recognition components generally employ infrared LEDs (700 nm to 900 nm) to assist cameras in capturing images of iris with a desired depth of field and intended three-dimensionality.
The aforesaid iris recognition components are required to have infrared LEDs with a satisfactory lighting power. To this end, muti-junction LEDs are connected in series. Specifically, during epitaxial growth, LED components are connected in series by virtue of tunnel junction structures. The tunnel junction structures formed through epitaxial growth have a high peak current density and the following characteristics. The tunnel junction structures should be satisfactorily thin and highly doped to be in ohmic contact which causes no voltage drop, and are characterized as follows. First, two sides of the p-n junction have a sufficiently high doping concentration (about 1019 cm−3), so that a degenerate semiconductor is provided. Secondly, the distribution of the impurity concentration of the p-n junction should be as steep as possible so as to prevent impurity interdiffusion which leads to impurity compensation. Thirdly, the thickness of the p-type and n-type zones of the tunnel junction structures should be as small as possible (less than 15 nm).
In order to achieve a sufficiently high peak tunneling current, the material selection, dopant selection, doping concentration, and growth manner for the tunnel junction should be taken into consideration. Furthermore, during the subsequent growth process, dopant memory effect and diffusion (or other action) of doped impurities should be prevented from adversely affecting the quality of the p-n junction, thereby maintaining the quality of the component.
The diode current can be calculated using the following equation (I):Idiode=Ido×(exp(V/(η×Vt))−1)  (I)where Ido is the reverse saturation current and will be very high in the tunnel diode compared to in the PN junction diode due to high doping concentrations, V is the voltage applied across the diode, Vt is the voltage equivalent of temperature, and η is the correction factor. Due to the parasitic tunneling via impurities, the excess current will be developed and is an additional current by which the valley point can be determined. Moreover, the tunneling current can be calculated using the following equation (II):Itun=(V/R0)×exp(−(V/V0)m)  (II)where V is the voltage applied across the diode, V0 ranges from 0.1 to 0.5 volts, m ranges from 1 to 3, and R0 is the tunnel diode resistance.
Furthermore, it can be observed that the peak tunneling current is most relevant to the doping concentration, and is also relevant to the bang gap of the material for the tunnel junction. Specifically, the higher the doping concentration, the larger the peak tunneling current is. The smaller the band gap of the material for the tunnel junction, the larger the peak tunneling current is. For instance, when GaInAs, which has a relatively low band gap, is used to prepare a tunnel junction having a size of 4 inches, such tunnel junction has a peak tunneling current density (Jpeak) larger than 1 kA/cm2.
Regarding the practical application of muti-junction LEDs, with increasing demand of large size products having a satisfactory lighting power (for example, vehicle lamps, stage lights, iris recognition components, etc.), the injection current is required to be larger, and the peak tunneling current density of the tunnel junction is required to be more satisfactory (e.g. Jpeak is required to be larger than 100 A/cm2). However, since the tunnel junction having a small band gap might absorb light, the lighting power of the lighting device having such tunnel junction might be adversely affected. Thus, reducing the band gap of semiconductor materials for tunnel junctions is an unsatisfactory way to enhance the peak current density.

Multi-layered tunnel junction structure, light emitting device having the same, and production method of such device


A sintered cubic boron nitride (cBN) compact for use in a tool is obtained by sintering a mixture of (i) cubic boron nitride, (ii) aluminum oxide, (iii) one or more refractory metal compounds, and (iv) aluminum and/or one or more non-oxide aluminum compounds. The sintered bodies may have sufficient strength and toughness to be used as a tool material in solid, i.e. not carbide supported, form, and may be useful in heavy machining of cast irons.

The hardness of cubic boron nitride (cBN) is greater than every known material other than diamond. cBN, however, is less reactive with ferrous materials than diamond. Consequently, it has become widely used in material removal applications on ferrous workpieces. Sintered polycrystalline cubic boron nitride (PCBN) materials are well known in the art and widely used in ferrous machining applications.
PCBN compacts can be divided into two broad classes of materials. The first class, which is characterized by the relatively high volume percentage of cBN of greater than or equal to 70%, is widely used in cast iron machining applications. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,743,489, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, describes a tough cBN sintered body with direct bonding between cBN grains and metallic binders filling intergranular spaces. The second class is characterized by a lower cBN volume percentage (less than 70%) that is dispersed in a ceramic binder phase. An example of this second type, which is widely used in turning of hardened steels, can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,334,928 to Hara et al, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. The ceramic binder phase can comprise carbides, nitrides, and/or borides of the metals of Groups IVa and Va of the periodic table. Both types of PCBN are commercially available in a solid unsupported form and in tungsten carbide supported form for the fabrication of cutting tools and tool inserts.
Despite the advances of the prior art, some varieties of cast irons, and in particular white irons, remain very difficult and costly materials to machine. In heavy machining operations on massive white iron castings, very large depths of cut are used, up to and exceeding 0.10 inches. These extreme machining conditions require exceptionally tough and wear resistant tool materials. The situation is further complicated by chemical and adhesive wear mechanisms between the tool and workpiece. Many cast irons contain elements that are more reactive than iron against cBN. For example, chromium is found in many white cast irons at levels up to 34 weight-%. This chemical wear mechanism places even more demands upon the tool material.
Currently, high cBN content PCBN in solid form is the most successful class of PCBN material used in heavy machining of cast irons. A commercially available example of such a material is AMB90 (available from Element Six). This material is comprised of about 90 volume-% cBN with 9 μm average grain size in an aluminum ceramic binder. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 4,666,466 to Wilson, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, describes material prepared from a mixture of metallic aluminum and cBN powder reacted under high pressure and temperature conditions to form a sintered body with AlN and AlB2 interspersed between cBN grains. This approach provides a material with relatively good toughness and abrasive wear resistance, but it does not adequately address the need for chemical and adhesive wear resistance that would be required in a truly optimal material for heavy machining of cast irons.
There are a number of references teaching various methods for improving the chemical wear resistance of high cBN content PCBN materials through modification of the binder phases. U.S. Pat. No. 4,343,651 to Yazu et al., incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, describes a PCBN composition with 80-95 volume-% cBN with a particle size of less that 10 μm sintered with a binder phase containing at least one binder material selected from the group consisting of a carbide, a nitride, and a carbonitride of a Group IVb and Vb transition metal in the periodic table, mixtures thereof and their solid solution compounds; and aluminum compounds, wherein the content of aluminum in the matrix is 5 to 30 weight-%, and wherein the particles in the matrix are of a size of less than one micron. U.S. Pat. No. 4,389,465 to Nakai et al., incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, describes a sintered compact consisting essentially of 20-80 volume-% cBN with a particle size less than 5 μm and the residual part consisting of Al2O3. U.S. Pat. No. 4,619,698 to Ueda et al., incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, describes a PCBN material with 75-97 weight-% cBN in a binder phase comprised of 1 to 20 weight % of TiC and/or TiCN and 1 to 20 weight-% of a compound selected from the group consisting of CoAl, NiAl, and (Co, Ni)Al.
As further examples, U.S. Pat. No. 4,911,756 to Nakai et al., incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, describes a sintered compact obtained by sintering a mixture containing about 50 to 75 percent by volume of cBN and about 25 to 50 percent of a binder that contains 20 to 50 weight-% of Al and 4 to 40 weight-% tungsten, with the remainder made up of carbides, nitrides, and carbonitrides of Groups IVa, Va or VIa of the periodic table.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,034,053 to Nakai et al., incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, describes a PCBN material containing 45-75% volume-% of cBN in a binder phase consisting of 5-25 percent by weight of Al and a remainder of at least one species of compounds represented by (H1-ZMz) C, wherein M is an element selected from the group consisting of Groups IVa, Va and VIa of the periodic table except for Hf, and wherein the condition 0<=z<=0.3 is satisfied. U.S. Pat. No. 5,041,399 to Fukaya et al., incorporated herein by reference in its entirety describes a PCBN material obtained by sintering powder mixture containing 20-70 volume-% cBN and a binder powder comprised of 2-20 weight-% of aluminum, 2-20 weight-% of tungsten, and a remainder formed of one or more Ti compounds selected from a group consisting of TiNz, Ti(C,N)z, TiCz, (Ti,M)Nz, (Ti,M)(C,N)z and (Ti,M)Cz, where M represents a transition metal element or elements belonging to any one of the Groups IVa, Va and VIa of the periodic table excluding Ti, and wherein z is within the range of 0.1 to 0.4, the binder further containing the Al in the form of at least one of Al and a compound of Al and Ti, and the W in the form of at least one of W, WC and a compound of W and Ti, wherein the atomic ratio of the Ti to a transition metal element or metal elements belonging to any one of the Groups, VIa, Va and VIa of the periodic table including Ti is at least ⅔ and not more than 97/100, and wherein cBN crystals are bonded to each other through bonding phases formed by the binder in said sintered body.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,328,875 to Ueda et al., incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, describes a PCBN material wherein cBN grains are dispersed in a binder phase that consists of 20-48 volume-% of a decomposed reaction phase derived by the reaction of cBN and one or more of Ti2-3AlC, Ti2-3AlN, and Ti2-3AlCN including oxygen, the decomposed reaction phase comprising one or more of TiC, TiN, TiCN and one or more of Al2O3 and AlN, and TiB2, and wherein the crystal grain size in the bonding phase and cBN is less than 1 micron.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,830,813 to Yao et al., incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, describes a method for making a PCBN material comprising the steps of: forming a mixture of cBN crystals, a refractory material powder selected from the group consisting of titanium carbonitride and titanium aluminum carbonitride, a source of cobalt and a source of aluminum; treating at least a portion of the ingredients of the mixture with ammonia at a temperature in the range of 1100° to 1250° C.; and sintering the mixture under high temperature, high pressure conditions.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,331,497 to Collier et al., incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, describes a cutting tool comprising a body of polycrystalline cBN with cBN grain size of 10 to 17 μm and a binder phase comprising 2 to 15 weight-% of a material selected from the group consisting of titanium diboride, aluminum diboride, titanium carbide, titanium nitride, titanium carbonitride, titanium aluminum carbonitride, and (TixMy)CN, wherein the alloying metal M may be one or more of silicon, chromium, cobalt, tungsten and tantalum and the proportion of alloying metal to titanium, y/x, is in the range of from 0.05 to 0.3; an infiltrant containing aluminum and/or silicon; and diamond more than stoichiometric with the silicon in the infiltrant for forming silicon carbide.
JP Patent Publication No. 07-082031, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, discloses a cBN sintered compact consisting of 10-70 volume-% cBN in a binding phase consisting of 5-30 volume-% of alumina (aluminum oxide) with particle diameter of 1 micron or less, 3-20 volume-% of aluminum nitride/boride; 10-40 vol. % of Ti carbide/nitride, and 3-20 volume-% of Ti boride. This sintered compact is reported to be superior to conventional products with longer service life, i.e., improved fracture toughness, thermal shock resistance, chipping resistance, and oxidation resistance.
In JP Patent Publication No. 08-126903, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, another cBN sintered body with improved wear resistance is disclosed. This cBN sintered body comprises 20-40 volume-% of Ti carbide/nitride, 1-5 volume-% of aluminum nitride, 3-7 volume-% of Ti boride, 3-15 volume-% of aluminum oxide, with the residual consisting of cBN, and wherein at least 60% of the area of the cBN grains are mutually bonded.
JP Patent Publication Nos. 2000-247746A and 2000-218411A, incorporated herein by reference in their entirety, disclose a PCBN material with 30-90 volume-% of a cBN with grain size below 1 μm, 10-70 volume-% of cBN with an average grain size of 2-10 μm, and 4-65 volume-% of a binder phase comprised of AlN, Al2O3, a boride of the metals of Groups IVa, Va, and/or VIa, a non-boride compound from the same groups of the periodic table, and at least one element from Group VII of the periodic table. Although the cBN mixture contains a portion of coarser particles, the volumetric average grain size of the final compact must be around 1 μm.
JP Patent Publication No. 08-109070A, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, discloses a PCBN material with >85% being comprised of cBN and Al2O3, 30-80 volume-% cBN, and the remainder a binder phase comprised of titanium nitride, aluminum nitride, and unavoidable impurities. The cBN content in the final compact is between 30 and 80 volume-%.
JP Patent Publication No. 59-153851A, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, discloses a PCBN material obtained by high pressure and temperature sintering of a mixture comprised of 50-70 weight-% cBN, 10-20 weight-% Al2O3, 8-18 weight-% TiN, 8-10 weight-% aluminum powder, and 2-4 weight-% silicon powder.
Thus, while improvements have been realized by the foregoing approaches, there is still a need for an optimized cutting tool material for heavy machining of iron castings. Described below is a PCBN material that has shown improved performance in machining cast irons.