A ferric stainless steel consists by weight of less than 0.03% carbon, less than 1% silicon, less than 1% manganese, less than 0.04% phosphorus, less than 0.03% sulphur, from 15% to 25% chromium, less than 0.03% nitrogen, from 3% to 6% aluminum, from 0.1% to 4% molybdenum. A small amount of rare-earth elements and yttrium of from 0.01% to 0.15% are added in the steel.

The present invention relates to a high-aluminum-containing ferritic stainless steel which is used at high-temperature such as a catalyst in an emission control system for motor vehicles, a heating device, and others.
The high-aluminum ferritic stainless steel has a high oxidation resistance at high temperature so that it is extensively used for materials in heating devices such as a stove pipe, and electric heater elements.
Ceramics have heretofore been used as a catalyst carrier of a catalytic converter provided in an emission control system for motor vehicles, and ferritic stainless steel is now beginning to be used instead. One of the defects of the ceramic is that the ceramic is vulnerable to thermal shock. Another is that the ceramic has a high heat capacity. Consequently, when the ceramic is used for a catalyst carrier, a long time is required to be heated to a catalyst reacting temperature. A metallic carrier made of high-aluminum ferritic stainless steel has not such defects as the ceramic.
The stainless steel is formed into a sheet of foil having a thickness of about 50 .mu.m to be used as a catalyst carrier for catalytic converters. Since abnormal oxidation is liable to occur on the foil and the converter is used in an atmosphere of exhaust gases which is severe oxidization conditions, the foil must have extremely resistive characteristics against high-temperature oxidation. To meet the requirements, a high-aluminum-containing ferritic stainless steel including 20Cr-5Al as a base, rare-earth elements and yttrium is used. However, such a stainless steel does not have sufficient high-temperature oxidation resistance, so that an extended use of the steel causes abnormal oxidation.
In addition, from the point of global warming and public nuisance, stricter limits have been imposed on emission control. To comply with the standards, it is necessary to quickly heat the catalyst to the catalyst reacting temperature after the start of the engine. To this end, the temperature of exhaust gas is elevated, or the converter is positioned directly under an exhaust manifold. On the other hand, the power of the engine tends to be increased in recent years, which causes also increase of the temperature of the exhaust. These conditions enhance oxidation and corrosion of the catalyst carrier. Therefore, it is imperative to provide a high-aluminum-containing ferritic stainless steel having improved high-temperature oxidation resistance.
In order to improve the resistance of the high-aluminum-containing ferritic stainless steel against high-temperature oxidation, contents of chrominum, aluminum, rare earth elements and yttrium are increased, which is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open 63-45351. However, slabs and hot-rolled plates made of such a stainless steel are poor in toughness and hence, in productivity. More particularly, increase in chromium and aluminum contents causes not only rise in the cost of the component material, but also decreases productivity due to poor toughness. As a consequence the yield of the stainless steel decreases, thereby extremely increasing the manufacturing cost, or the production becomes altogether impossible. Alternatively, the rare-earth elements and yttrium are added to promote high-temperature oxidation resistance. However, excessive quantity of these elements rather decreases the high-temperature oxidation resistance, and causes deterioration in toughness.
In addition, the ferritic stainless steel foil of the catalytic converter is subjected to heat cycles where heating and cooling are repeated, thereby causing deformation of the foil. Thus, the catalyst carrier must have high heat resistance.

High-aluminum-containing ferritic stainless steel having improved high-temperature oxidation resistance


A control system for a power steering system is provided. The control system includes an amplitude calculation module and a command module. The amplitude calculation module receives a compensation command. The amplitude calculation module determines a command amplitude that is based on the compensation command. The command module generates a command to the power steering system. The command is based on the command amplitude.

The present invention relates to methods and systems of a power steering system, and more particularly to methods and system for calculating a command signal for a power steering system.
Electric power steering systems may be tuned for steering feel during product development. Steering feel may be based on a given set of operating conditions. However, an inconsistent steering feel may be created in some circumstances such as, for example, external disturbances, variations in different products, and driving conditions. Specifically, in one example, a compensation command is included as part of a signal that the electric power steering system monitors, where the compensation command may alter the steering feel. The compensation command typically acts to reject some types of disturbances or to compensate for some types of issues that may occur in the electric power steering system. One example of a compensation command includes rejecting a portion of the effects of road wheel imbalance.

Steering system having compensation command calibration

STEERING SOLUTIONS IP HOLDING CORPORATION


A method for labeling acyl carrier protein (ACP) fusion proteins with a wide variety of different labels is disclosed. The method relies on the transfer of a label from a coenzyme A type substrate to an ACP fusion protein using a holo-acyl carrier protein synthase (ACPS) or a homologue thereof. The method allows detecting and manipulating the fusion protein, both in vitro and in vivo, by attaching molecules to the fusion proteins that introduce a new physical or chemical property to the fusion protein. Examples of such labels are, among others, spectroscopic probes or reporter molecules, affinity tags, molecules generating reactive radicals, cross-linkers, ligands mediating protein-protein interactions or molecules suitable for the immobilization of the fusion protein.

Progress in understanding complex biological systems depends on characterizing the underlying interactions of biomolecules, in particular proteins. While the DNA sequencing of an increasing number of organisms has identified their open reading frames (ORF), the possibilities to characterize the corresponding proteins in vivo and in vitro are limited. Most strategies that aim at realizing this objective are based on the construction of a fusion protein that either allows the purification of the fusion for in vitro applications or allows following the protein in vivo. Examples for such tags include the 6xHis tag, glutathione S transferase, maltose binding protein, epitope tags, yeast-two hybrid system, O6-alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase, split-ubiquitin, and green fluorescent protein (GFP) fusion proteins. However, all these techniques have various limitations or disadvantages.
Gehring et al. (1997) and Lambalot and Walsh (1995) describe the use of E. coli holo acyl carrier protein synthase (ACPS) to catalyze the posttranslational modification of apo-acyl carrier protein (apo-ACP) by attaching the cofactor 4′-phosphopantetheine (P-pant) to a conserved serine residue in vitro, yielding holo-ACP. The source of P-pant is coenzyme A. Gehring et al. (1997) demonstrate furthermore that, by using coenzyme A analogs, which are modified in the P-pant part but still able to serve as substrates for ACPS, holo-ACP's with modified P-pants as cofactor are obtained.
Isolated phosphopantetheinyl transferases such as ACPS are described in International Patent Application WO 97/13845.
A method of transferring a label to O6-alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase (AGT) fusion proteins, and the use of this method for the detection of AGT fusion proteins is described in International Patent Application WO 02/083937.

Methods for protein labeling based on acyl carrier protein

EPFL-Ecole Polytechnique Federale De Lausanne


A sensing unit is constructed of a heater element and a temperature sensing element. The sensing unit is arranged in a region, in which measurement air, which flows into the inflow passage through the bypass inlet, bends at the substantially right-angle and contracts in flow. Alternatively, the sensing unit is arranged in a region immediately after an area, in which the measurement air flowing through the bypass inlet bends at the substantially right-angle. The lengthwise directions of the heater element and the temperature sensing element are respectively arranged to be in parallel with both thickness-wise side faces of the measurement body. Thereby, even when a flow rate of measurement air changes, an influence due to the change can be restricted from being exerted. Therefore, the maximum flow rate can be measured within the lengthwise range of the heater element from a low flow rate to a high flow rate.

An air flow rate measuring device disclosed in JP-A-9-287985 measures an intake amount of air flowing in an internal combustion engine. As shown in FIGS. 11A, B, the air flow rate measuring device includes a bypass passage 100, through which intake air partially flows. The air flow rate measuring device includes a sensing unit in the bypass passage 100.
The bypass passage 100 has an inlet 110, which opens in a direction opposite to a flow direction of intake air. Besides, as shown by an arrow in FIG. 11B, the bypass passage 100 is in a shape, in which air flowing from the inlet 110 turns at a substantially right angle. A bent portion is provided midway the bypass passage 100. The bent portion changes air in flow direction. A passage on the upstream side with respect to the bent portion is partitioned by a partition 120 from a passage on the downstream side with respect to the bent portion.
The sensing unit includes a heater element 130 to measure a flow rate of air. The heater element 130 is arranged in the passage on the upstream side relative to the bent portion of the bypass passage 100. However, as shown in FIG. 11A, the heater element 130 is arranged in a direction such that the lengthwise direction of the heater element 130 becomes perpendicular to both side faces forming the bypass passage 100. Here, both the side faces are perpendicular to the flow direction of air. The heater element 130 is arranged lengthwise in the horizontal direction in FIG. 11A. As referred to FIG. 11B, the heater element 130 is arranged in a position, which is biased, i.e., displaced to the side of the partition 120 with respect to the center in the bypass passage 100.
In the above air flow rate measuring device, air flowing from the inlet 110 bends at a substantially right angle in flow direction. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 12B, as flow velocity of air flowing into the bypass passage 100 becomes high, the maximum flow velocity is biased to the side of the partition wall 120 in a flow velocity distribution X shown by the solid line in the passage on the upstream side of the bent portion. That is, flow velocity of air is stabilized while being biased to the side of the partition 120 relative to the center of the passage on the upstream side with respect to the bent portion. Therefore, the heater element 130 is arranged in a position, which is biased to the side of the partition 120 with respect to the center pf the passage, so that measurement accuracy is enhanced.
The above conventional structure is effective when an intake amount of air is large, i.e., a flow velocity of air is high. However, as shown in FIG. 12A, the flow velocity distribution X is formed around the center of the bypass passage 100 on the upstream side of the bent portion in a low flow rate condition, in which an intake amount of air is small.
Accordingly, when a flow rate is low, the flow velocity distribution X becomes in a parabolic shape in the bypass passage 100. Accordingly, when the heater element 130 is arranged in a position eccentrically biased to the side of the partition 120, a flow rate is measured in a region, in which flow velocity is low in the flow velocity distribution X. As a result, measurement accuracy is degraded when a flow rate is low, and a dynamic range of flow measurement becomes small.

Air flow rate measuring device having sensing unit


The present invention is related generally to analysis of polynucleotides, particularly polynucleotides derived from genomic DNA. The invention provides methods, compositions and systems for such analysis. Encompassed by the invention are arrays of polynucleotides in which the polynucleotides have undergone multiple rounds of amplification in order to increase the strength of signals associated with single polynucleotide molecules.

Large-scale sequence analysis of genomic DNA is central to understanding a wide range of biological phenomena related to states of health and disease both in humans and in many economically important plants and animals, e.g., Collins et al (2003), Nature, 422: 835-847; Service, Science, 311: 1544-1546 (2006); Hirschhorn et al (2005), Nature Reviews Genetics, 6: 95-108; National Cancer Institute, Report of Working Group on Biomedical Technology, "Recommendation for a Human Cancer Genome Project," (February, 2005); Tringe et al (2005), Nature Reviews Genetics, 6: 805-814. The need for low-cost high-throughput sequencing and re-sequencing has led to the development of several new approaches that employ parallel analysis of many target DNA fragments simultaneously, e.g., Use of water/buffer-in-oil emulsions to carry out enzymatic reactions is well known in the art, particularly carrying out PCRs, e.g., as disclosed by Drmanac et al., Scienta Yugoslavica, 16(1-2): 97-107 (1990), Margulies et al, Nature, 437: 376-380 (2005); Margulies et al, Nature, 437: 376-380 (2005); Shendure et al (2005), Science, 309: 1728-1732; Metzker (2005), Genome Research, 15: 1767-1776; Shendure et al (2004), Nature Reviews Genetics, 5: 335-344; Lapidus et al, U.S. patent publication US 2006/0024711; Drmanac et al, U.S. patent publication US 2005/0191656; Brenner et al, Nature Biotechnology, 18: 630-634 (2000); and the like.
Such approaches reflect a variety of solutions for increasing target polynucleotide density in planar arrays and for obtaining increasing amounts of sequence information within each cycle of a particular sequence detection chemistry. Most of these new approaches are restricted to determining a few tens of nucleotides before signals become significantly degraded, thereby placing a limit on overall sequencing efficiency.
Another limitation of traditional high-throughput sequencing techniques is that arrays with a high density of single molecules often suffer from a poor signal to noise ratio, due to overlap of signals between different molecules. Most traditional sequencing techniques are not effective in the analysis of arrays of single molecules, because the signal associated with single molecules are often not intense enough to overcome noise inherent in such systems.
In view of such limitations, it would be advantageous for the field if arrays could be designed to strengthen the signals associated with single polynucleotide molecules disposed on such arrays.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Efficient arrays of amplified polynucleotides


A method of establishing a datum reference frame for a manufactured detail part used in an assembly comprises establishing a primary datum reference plane, identifying first and second mating surfaces of the part, identifying first and second functional features of size on the first and second mating surfaces, using a coordinate measuring machine (CMM) probe to identify a first point at an intersection of a centerline of the first feature and the first surface, using the CMM probe to identify a second point at an intersection of the centerline of the second feature and the second surface; and establishing a secondary compound datum reference plane through the intersection points and perpendicular to the primary datum reference plane.

ASME Y14.5-2009 is a standard that establishes uniform practices for stating and interpreting dimensioning, tolerancing, and related requirements for use on engineering drawings and in related documents. Section 4 of the standard relates to datum reference planes. Datums are theoretically exact points, axes, lines, and planes. A datum reference frame is formed by three mutually perpendicular intersecting datum planes. Section 4 establishes datum features for establishing relationships imposed by geometric tolerances and for constraining degrees of freedom. Section 4 also sets forth criteria for establishing datums and the datum reference frame.
Companies engaged in design and manufacture of mechanical parts utilize probes and coordinate measuring machines to perform dimensional inspection of mechanical parts. The dimensional inspection of a manufactured part includes sampling features of size on the part to establish a datum reference frame, and using the datum reference frame as the basis of measurements of the manufactured part. The datum reference frame may be used by machinists, toolmakers, and quality control inspectors to ensure that the manufactured part agrees with a product definition of the part.
Section 4 of ASME Y14.5-2009 standard does not address the situation where secondary or tertiary datum features of size are non-orthogonal to the other datum planes or non-orthogonal to other datum features. When sampling holes, for instance, an inspector makes assumptions as to where to sample the holes. These assumptions lead to ambiguity, since different inspectors make different assumptions. If datums are ambiguous, repeatability is compromised. As a result, some parts will pass inspection while identical parts will not.

Datum reference frame for mechanical parts


The method of producing O2 from water, that includes subjecting water to electrolysis, to produce H2 and O2, returning H2 to a water storage zone, drying the produced O2, using air as a drying agent, flowing a stream of that drying agent air to the cathode side of fuel cell, flowing a stream of produced hydrogen to the anode side of the fuel cell, for reaction with O2 in the agent air to produce water electrical energy and heat, and using electrical energy produced by fuel cell in the electrolysis.

This invention pertains to the methods and devices capable of generating oxygen from water, and more particularly to the generation of oxygen by electrolysis to supplement an otherwise deficient condition, such as when a patient in a hospital is unable to breathe properly, or where the ambient atmosphere is deficient in oxygen, such as at high altitudes.
In hospitals, nursing homes, private homes, and other locations in which sick or elderly patients are cared for, or in aircraft traveling at high altitudes, a source of pure or high concentration oxygen is often necessary to assist in the breathing process. Because sick or elderly patients are sometimes unable to draw enough air into their lungs, the patient""s breathing process is supplemented by the addition of pure oxygen. Because air is only 21% oxygen, the provision of pure or nearly pure oxygen greatly reduces the effort required on the part of the patient to acquire the requisite oxygen for life.
In the past, such oxygen has been supplemented through the use of pressurized tanks and/or liquid oxygen systems. While the tanks have been suitable for their intended purpose, they require pick-up, refilling, and delivery when the initial supply is depleted. In some environments, they also pose a fire hazard.
Some devices have been developed to separate, concentrate, or generate oxygen from ambient air. Many of these devices are based on nitrogen adsorption systems which concentrate oxygen from air to deliver a maximum of 95% O2 by removing nitrogen from ambient air. U.S. Pat. No. 4,449,990 describes one such apparatus. Such devices require a parasitical purging of one tank by pure oxygen from another tank in order to maintain effectiveness. Further, moisture can be damaging to the nitrogen adsorption material.
To overcome the foregoing deficiencies in the art, there is need for a lightweight, quiet, inexpensive device which can generate pure oxygen in quantities small enough to be cost effective for single patient use.
The present invention contemplates a new and improved oxygen generating system which overcomes many of the foregoing difficulties and others while providing better and more advantageous overall results.
Basically, the invention relates to method and a device producing oxygen at ambient temperature from water on demand. The hydrogen which is a by-product of an electrolytic reaction is used in a hydrogen/air fuel cell to produce electrical power water and heat. Condensed water is returned to the water tank for further electrolysis and the produced electrical energy is used in the electrolysis process.
The basic and preferred method of the invention includes the steps:
a) subjecting water to electrolysis, to produce H2 and O2,
b) returning H2 to a water storage zone,
c) drying the produced O2 using air as a drying agent,
d) flowing a stream of that drying agent air to the cathode side of a fuel cell,
e) flowing a stream of produced hydrogen to the anode side of the fuel cell, for reaction with O2 in the agent air to produce water electrical energy and heat,
f) and using electrical energy produced by the fuel cell in said electrolysis.
The method may include: providing a gas dryer through which said O2 and dryer agent air are passed; providing a water storage tank from which water is supplied to the electrolysis; providing a water condenser for receiving the stream of air from the fuel cell, for condensing water from that stream; and/or providing a control system for monitoring electrical power produced by the fuel cell and used in such electrolysis.
Further, the method preferably includes removing water from a stream of air removed from the fuel cell and returning that removed water to the water storage zone, for return to said electrolysis.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention, as well as the details of an illustrative embodiment, will be more fully understood from the following specification and drawings, in which:

Electrochemical oxygen generator and process


Exemplary embodiments of the present invention provide a lighting unit including a lamp device adjusted by a general-purpose measuring device at high working efficiency, and yet allowing efficient utilization of light from a light source. In a light source device, since a first fly's eye has a concave entrance surface having a predetermined curvature, luminous flux entering the first fly's eye optical system and passing through the entrance surface is collimated to be parallel with an optical axis. Accordingly, illumination lights entering respective liquid crystal light valves are precisely superposed while allowing the angles of incidence of respective partial luminous fluxes entering the respective liquid crystal light valves to fall within a predetermined angle range, thereby enhancing utilization efficiency of the illumination lights.

1. Field of Invention
Exemplary embodiments of the present invention relate to a lighting unit suitable for illuminating a spatial light modulation device such as a liquid crystal light valve and a projector including the lighting unit.
2. Description of Related Art
The related art includes a lighting unit for a liquid crystal projector which includes splitting and superposing devices to split a luminous flux from a lamp device having a lamp and a parabolic mirror into a plurality of partial luminous fluxes and to superpose those on an illuminated area. According to the lighting unit of this type, the splitting and superposing devices additionally contain such a device as an afocal optical system to narrow a width of luminous flux. The afocal optical system decreases an angle of incidence of each partial luminous flux which reaches the illuminated area to enhance utilization efficiency of illumination light, as disclosed in related art document JP-A-11-212023.

Lighting unit and projector including the same


An internal impedance of an electrical storage device is measured by using a signal of a frequency which ions in the electrical storage device are difficult to follow (e.g., a frequency equal to or higher than 10 kHz), and an internal temperature of the electrical storage device is calculated from a measured value of the internal impedance.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of measuring the temperature of an electrical storage device, and particularly relates to an electrical storage device temperature measuring method for accurately measuring the internal temperature of an electrical storage device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Electrical storage devices such as a lithium ion secondary battery and an electric double layer capacitor have been used for various applications, and have been widely applied to, for example, battery packs for mobile phones, batteries for PCs, and batteries for vehicles. In such a case, it is a very important matter to detect a state of an electrical storage device such as a deterioration state (SOH; state of health) or a remaining capacity (SOC; state of charge). In particular, with regard to a vehicle, detection of the state of an electrical storage device in an energy-conservation vehicle performing an idling stop, a hybrid vehicle, an electric vehicle, or the like is deeply associated with travelling of the vehicle and thus is drawing attention as being very important.
In a generally well-known method for detecting the state of the electrical storage device, the voltage, the current, and the temperature of the electrical storage device are measured to calculate the deterioration state (SOH), the remaining capacity (SOC), or the like of the electrical storage device. In the method, the temperature of the electrical storage device is an important measurement parameter since it has a great effect on deterioration of the electrical storage device.
As the related art of a method of measuring the temperature of an electrical storage device, a method is generally known in which a temperature detection element is put on or connected to the electrical storage device to directly measure the temperature as in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 6-260215. Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 6-260215 states that a Zener diode is used as the temperature detection element and connected to a plus terminal of the electrical storage device, whereby the temperature transmitted from the plus terminal of the electrical storage device can be accurately measured. However, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 6-260215 (related art example 1), due to self-heating of an internal resistor of the electrical storage device or the like, a great difference may be produced between the temperature of a temperature detection point of the temperature detection element (the plus terminal of the electrical storage device in the related art example 1) and the internal temperature of the electrical storage device, and thus the temperature of the electrical storage device cannot be accurately recognized.
Meanwhile, an apparatus that detects the temperature of an electrical storage device by a temperature detection element such as a thermocouple, obtains the internal impedance of the electrical storage device, and determines a deterioration state (SOH) of the electrical storage device (e.g., see Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2010-67502), and an apparatus that obtains the internal impedance of an electrical storage device without using a temperature detection element and determines the internal temperature of the electrical storage device (e.g., see International Publication No. WO01/16614), have been proposed.
According to Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2010-67502 (related art example 2), the apparatus includes a temperature adjustment means for adjusting the temperature of the electrical storage device, an impedance calculation means for calculating the internal impedance of the electrical storage device, and a deterioration determination means for determining the deterioration state of the electrical storage device on the basis of the calculated internal impedance. In a state where the electrical storage device is adjusted to a temperature within a predetermined range by the temperature adjustment means, on the basis of the voltage of the electrical storage device, and the temperature of the electrical storage device, and a value of the internal impedance calculated when the electrical storage device is charged or discharged with an alternating current of a predetermined frequency (not lower than 10 Hz and not higher than 1 kHz), the deterioration state can be determined by referring to a map of internal impedances that are set so as to be associated with temperatures of the electrical storage device and voltages of the electrical storage device.
In addition, according to International Publication No. WO01/16614 (related art example 3), the apparatus for determining the internal temperature includes an electrical excitation circuit for providing time-varying electrical excitation to the electrical storage device, a response detection circuit for detecting a time-varying electrical response to the electrical excitation, and a calculation circuit for determining the internal temperature by using voltage and current signals derived from the inputted excitation and the response signal. Time-varying electrical excitation is provided in different frequencies (5 Hz, 70 Hz, and 1 kHz in the example), the measured impedance is assigned to an equivalent circuit, and the internal temperature of the electrical storage device is calculated from a specific element value of the equivalent circuit.
However, in the related art example 2, the internal impedance is measured in a low frequency (not lower than 10 Hz and not higher than 1 kHz in the related art example 2) which is influenced by the behavior of ions in an electrolyte of the electrical storage device. Thus, for accurately measuring the internal impedance, the measurement is conducted in a state where the electrical storage device is adjusted to a temperature within the predetermined range by the temperature adjustment means, in order to not be influenced by temperature. In this method, even when it is attempted to estimate the internal temperature of the electrical storage device on the basis of the measurement of the internal impedance, a measured value of the measured internal impedance is different depending on the deterioration state of the electrical storage device. Thus, the internal temperature of the electrical storage device cannot be accurately obtained.
In addition, in the related art example 3, it is suitable to use, for the measurement, a frequency that is less changed with respect to a remaining capacity (SOC). However, similarly to the related art example 2, the internal impedance is measured in a low frequency (5 Hz, 70 Hz, and 1 kHz in the related art example 3) which is influenced by the behavior of ions in an electrolyte of the electrical storage device. Thus, a measured value of the measured internal impedance is different depending on the deterioration state of the electrical storage device, and the internal temperature of the electrical storage device cannot be accurately obtained.

Electrical storage device temperature measuring method


A bearing provides a first ring and a second ring capable of rotating concentrically relative to one another, and at least one seal provided with at least one sealing lip. The bearing further includes a sealing module providing a carrier reversibly secured to the first ring, the seal being mounted radially into contact with the carrier, a friction ring reversibly secured to the second ring, the sealing lip of the seal coming into contact with the friction ring, and at least one spacing element axially interposed between the friction ring and the second ring.

Such large-diameter bearings may be used for example in marine applications, for example in a tidal or marine turbine power station, or in a tunnel boring machine, or in a mining extraction machine or in a wind turbine.
A large-diameter bearing generally comprises two concentric inner and outer rings, and at least one row of rolling elements, such as rollers or balls, arranged between the rings. The bearing also comprises seals disposed between the inner and outer rings to define a closed space inside which the rolling elements are arranged.
Large-diameter rolling bearings are generally used in aggressive environments and in particular marine applications. Seals prevent exterior elements, such as dust, abrasive particles, water, and marine species, for example plankton and algae, from getting inside the bearing and damaging its components. Those exterior elements may also alter the seal itself, leading to a reduction in the seal service life.
Typically, seals are fixed to one of the inner and outer rings and comprise a sealing lip in sliding contact with a running surface of the other ring. Generally, a plurality of adjacent seals is provided on the bearing front side, which is directly in contact with the aggressive environments, for example with the saltwater. For example, it is possible to refer to the patent application DE102018213357 (SKF).
After several months or years of use, the seals running surface wears. The inner or outer ring of the rolling bearing including such running surface must be changed. This increases the maintenance costs of the rolling bearing.
Indeed, the rings of rolling bearings used in slewing bearings or bearings for tunnellers for example are quite expensive, due to the material used for those rings that has to be corrosion resistant as well as hard to limit wear.
Otherwise, maintenance operations are expensive and required the associated machine to be shut down for a long period of time.
One aim of the present invention is to overcome these drawbacks.


An active sound effect generating apparatus includes a controller (a fourth acoustic adjuster and a fifth acoustic adjuster) which determines the amplitude of a control signal by adjusting the amplitudes of reference signals (intermediate signals) depending on an engine rotational frequency change [Hz/second] calculated by an engine rotational frequency change calculator and an accelerator opening [%] detected by an accelerator opening sensor.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an active sound effect generating apparatus for generating a sound effect based on the rotational frequency of an engine on a mobile body such as a vehicle or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
Heretofore, there have been proposed active sound effect generating apparatus (also referred to as "ASC (Active Sound Control) apparatus") for detecting an action made by the driver of a vehicle to accelerate or decelerate the vehicle and generating a sound effect based on the detected level of acceleration or deceleration in the vehicle cabin through a speaker in the vehicle cabin (see Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 54-008027 and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0215846).
According to the proposed ASC apparatus, when the engine rotational speed increases based on an accelerating action, the speaker generates a sound effect having a high frequency and a large sound volume depending on the increase in the engine rotational speed, producing an enhanced staged sound atmosphere in the vehicle cabin.
According to U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0215846, a preferred sound effect is generated by changing the sound pressure level (gain) depending on a change (Hz/second) in the engine rotational frequency per unit time (hereinafter referred to as "rotational frequency change") (see FIG. 14 of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0215846).
The ASC apparatus disclosed in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0215846, which changes the sound pressure level depending on the rotational frequency change, may generate an actual sound effect whose sound pressure level is not commensurate with the driver's action on the accelerator pedal, making the driver feel odd about the sound effect. For example, while the vehicle is running uphill, even if the driver presses the accelerator pedal strongly, the rotational frequency does not change greatly because of the increased hill-climbing resistance, and hence the sound pressure level does not increase commensurate with the increase in the depression of the accelerator pedal. Conversely, while the vehicle is running downhill, since the hill-climbing resistance drops, a large sound effect is generated even if the driver presses the accelerator pedal lightly. The above response that does not commensurate with the driver's action may possibly be caused when the vehicle runs not only on slopes but also on different types of roads and under different road conditions.

Active sound effect generating apparatus


A lens barrel comprises a fixed cylinder, a driving gear to which torque from a driving member is transmitted, and external gear to be engaged with the driving gear, a rotary cylinder which rotates itself to advance and retreat in the direction of the optical axis with respect to the fixed cylinder, and a lens holding cylinder which is set inside the inner periphery of an end of the rotary cylinder and holds a photographing lens shifted forward and backward in the direction of the optical axis by the rotary cylinder, wherein the driving gear moves forward and backward, which depends on the directions of its own rotation, in the same direction as the rotary cylinder.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a lens barrel which is preferable with respect to thinning a camera body of a camera provided with a shifting lens holding cylinder such as a collapsible barrel type camera.
2. Related Background Art
By collapsing and containing a lens barrel in a camera body, a camera can be thinned when not used. The shifting amount of the lens barrel, however, can not be made greater than the thickness of the camera body. Accordingly, there has been known a camera whole lens barrel is collapsed by two stages in order to further thin the camera body.
FIG. 5 shows a longitudinal section of a conventional lens barrel of zoom lens of two groups type.
In this lens barrel, a gear 106 is provided around the periphery of an intermediate helicoid 106. When torque from a gear 108 connected with a drive motor is transmitted to the gear 106a, the intermediate helicoid 106 is shifted forward and backward according to the lead of a fixed cylinder 107, and at the same time, a lens holding cylinder 105 which holds a photographing lens 101 is shifted forward and backward according to the lead of the intermediate helicoid 106.
In the above-mentioned conventional lens barrel, however, as the shifting amount of the intermediate helicoid 106 in the direction of the optical axis increases, the gear length A of the gear 106a has to be made longer in order to meet the increased shifting amount.
Therefore, if the shifting amount of the intermediate helicoid is increased too much on purpose to thin the camera body without changing the rest of the constitution, the gear 106a can not be contained in the camera body. So, the camera body can not be thinned very much only by increasing the shifting amount of the intermediate helicoid 106 even when the lens barrel is collapsed by two stages.


A flattening device, a display substrate and a method for manufacturing the display substrate are provided. The method includes providing a base substrate, forming a pixel definition layer on the base substrate and forming an uncured sub-pixel material in a plurality of sub-pixel regions defined by the pixel definition layer, and flattening the uncured sub-pixel material by a flattening device. The flattening device includes a main body and a plurality of protrusions on a surface of the main body. A size of a protrusion surface of each protrusion facing away from the main body is not greater than that of each sub-pixel region. The sub-pixels are flattened by using the flattening device, so a sub-pixel material layer with a flat surface may be obtained, which improves the structure of the sub-pixels and improves the display performance of the display substrate.

With the development of display technologies, organic electroluminescent displays have been widely used due to their excellent performances such as self-luminosity, rapid response, wide angle of view and high brightness. An organic electroluminescent device usually comprises an organic light-emitting layer. The organic light-emitting layer is usually formed by allowing ink droplets to flow into sub-pixel regions defined by a pixel definition layer.

Manufacturing method for display substrate and flattening device


During the manufacture of milk of lime by the suspension of lime hydrate which has a large specific surface and was manufactured with the use of organic solvents and/or organic additives, a stable foam forms which can cause problems in the equipment. This foaming can be prevented during the suspension of the modified lime hydrate in water by the presence of finely-powdered activated cokes.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a process for the manufacture of milk of lime.
2. Background Information
Milk of lime is generally manufactured by quenching burnt lime with a large excess of water. The term "burnt lime" is used to designate both burnt limes (calcium oxide, CaO) and burnt dolomite limes (calcium/magnesium oxide, CaO/MgO).
In special applications, lime which has been quenched to powder or dolomite lime in the form of a dry lime hydrate (calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH).sub.2) or dolomite lime hydrate (calcium/magnesium hydroxide, Mg(OH).sub.2 /Ca(OH).sub.2) can also be suspended in water. The lime hydrates manufactured by the conventional quenching processes, which are designated normal hydrates, typically have a characteristic specific surface of 15 to 22 m.sup.2 /g.
Milk of lime can be used, among other things, to clean gases and exhaust gases, e.g. according to the spray sorption principle, by spraying milk of lime into the current of exhaust gas, and then removing the dry residue by means of appropriate filters.
For certain applications, e.g. for cleaning gases and exhaust gases according to the spray sorption principle, milk of lime on the basis of hydrates which have a specific surface greater than 22 m.sup.2 /g can have significant advantages. Such hydrates with increased specific surface can be manufactured, for example, according to the process disclosed in German Patent No. 34 33 228, which corresponds to U.S. Pat. No. 4,636,379, or WO 92/09528. Alcohols such as methanol, ethanol, propanol and butanol, and ketone, ether and aldehyde, for example, can be used as organic solvents. Amines and glycols can be used as organic additives, e.g. ethylene glycol, diethylene glycol, triethylene glycol, monoethanolamine, diethanolamine, triethanolamine and mixtures of these products. The characteristic specific surface is typically greater than 30 m.sup.2 /g.
Compared to normal milk of lime manufactured from burnt lime, milk of lime manufactured by suspending lime hydrate which has a large specific surface in water, can reduce the lime consumption in the spray sorption process, e.g. as used in a waste incinerator, by about 40% while still achieving essentially the same cleaning action. There is also about 30% less residue from the cleaning of the exhaust gas. The use of normal milk of lime can present significant problems in conventional exhaust gas cleaning systems due to the stoichiometric ratios which must be maintained. The use of milk of lime manufactured from hydrate which has a large specific surface can make it possible to comply with the environmental requirements for waste gas cleaning essentially without any problem, for a normal composition of the exhaust gas.
One disadvantage which has been identified is that during the suspension of these lime hydrates which have been quenched with the addition of organic solvents and/or organic additives, a stable foam can be formed, which foam can lead to problems in the equipment which is part of the gas cleaning system.

Process for the manufacture of milk of lime


An improved structure of and a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device which comprises a semiconductor substrate of a first conductivity type, a gate region formed on one surface of the substrate and including a first gate insulating film, a first gate electrode, a second gate insulating film and a second gate electrode laminated in that order, source and drain diffusion layers formed on the one surface of the substrate with the gate region disposed between the source and drain diffusion layers, the source and drain diffusion layers having a second conductivity type different from the first conductivity type, and a diffusion layer of the first conductivity type formed in a selected region of the substrate including at least a part of an intermediate region disposed between the source and drain diffusion layers, the diffusion layer of the first conductivity type having an inclined impurity concentration higher than that of the substrate such that the concentration gradually decreases in the direction from the drain diffusion layer toward the source diffusion layer.

1. Filed of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device and more particularly, to a non-volatile MOS semiconductor memory device such as EPROM or flash EPROM and a method of manufacturing the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
As a non-volatile MOS semiconductor device, there are EPROM (ultraviolet erasable and electrically programmable ROM) and flash EEPROM (flash electrically erasable and programmable ROM). In EPROM, data writing is conducted by electrical programming whereas data erasing is conducted by ultraviolet rays. In flash EEPROM, both data writing and data erasing are conducted by electrical programming.
As shown in FIG. 3, an EPROM has a source diffusion layer 22 and a drain diffusion layer 23 formed in a semiconductor substrate 21. Between these layers, the EPROM also has a first gate insulating film 24, a first gate electrode (floating gate) 25, a second gate insulating film 26, and a second gate electrode (control gate) 27. Thus the EPROM has a MOS structure of double-stack gate type. Data writing is conducted by applying a high voltage to the control gate and simultaneously applying a high voltage to the drain so that hot electrons generated in a portion of the channel near the drain are injected into the floating gate thereby to bring the threshold voltage as seen from the control gate into a high state. Data erasing is conducted by irradiating the EPROM by an ultraviolet ray to release electrons contained in the floating gate thereby bringing the threshold voltage into a low state. Such an EPROM is disclosed, for example, in Yoshikawa, et al., "16 EPROM cell technique" NIKKEI MICRODEVICES, January 1990, pages 94-100.
There are various different types of flash EEPROMs depending on the data erasing method. As shown in FIG. 4, one type has a structure almost the same as that of the above described EPROM. Data are written into this flash EEPROM in the same way as the EPROM. Due to a tunnel effect caused by making the first gate oxide film very thin, data erasing is conducted by applying a high voltage to its source to release electrons from its floating gate to its source diffusion layer. Such a flash EEPROM is disclosed, for example, in Umezawa, et al., "A 5 V-Only 0.6 .mu.m Flash EEPROM with ROW Decoder Scheme in Tripple-Well Structure" SDM92-2, ICD92-2, pp. 7-11.
In recent years, the higher integration and higher density have been realized in semiconductor memory devices to make larger the storage capacity thereof. Therefore, there arises a problem such that it takes a long time to write and erase data in EPROM or flash EEPROM. Thus, higher speed of data writing and erasing is demanded.

Semiconductor device and method of manufacturing the same


The invention relates to a HVAC drainage system. There is a need for an HVAC drainage system which operates well in a vehicle which moves over rough terrain. An HVAC unit is mounted at a central portion of an inner roof panel over an air inlet opening. A collection recess is formed by the panel and surrounds the air inlet opening. Concentric walls formed by the inner roof panel in the collection recess surrounding the HVAC unit. Each wall has one or more gaps formed therein. The gaps in adjacent walls are mis-aligned with respect to each other so that fluid is prevented from flowing in a straight line through gaps in adjacent walls. Drainage ports are formed in the inner roof panel. Drainage grooves formed in the inner roof panel communicate the collection recess with corresponding drainage ports.

It is known to place heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems in the roof of a vehicle, such as a tractor. Such a roof-mounted HVAC system for a tractor is shown in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/518,050 filed 8 Sep. 2006 and assigned to the assignee of this application. Such an HVAC system will include an evaporator which condenses water as a byproduct of cooling the air moving through it. Most HVAC units have a drain pan under the evaporator, to collect this water, which is connected to a hose to port it out of the vehicle.
With such a roof mounted HVAC system condensed water from the evaporator sometimes can leak out of its containment area to soak the headliner and drip on the operator's head. Also, with hot coolant overhead there needs to be an efficient way to drain it in the event of a heater coil failure. Upon failure, a heater coil may send several gallons per minute of hot coolant into the roof over the operators head. Most drain systems cannot handle such a failure.
When a vehicle runs for a long time on a steep slope it may lose containment of the water, or if the drain lines do not carry the water away, the water can collect until the attitude of the vehicle changes. This is a very common problem when working on steep slopes and gravity prevents the drain lines from draining the water away. Under these circumstances, the water can collect until the attitude of the vehicle changes, causing spillage.
A drain line can also become plugged by mud, insects, and debris.
There is a need for a drainage system to solve such problems, and to help assure that all condensation is routed to proper drains, despite the vehicle tilting, rolling or bouncing over rough terrain.


A two-terminal nonlinear element for a liquid crystal display device, which is connected to a corresponding one of pixel electrodes of the liquid crystal display device, includes: a lower electrode connected to a signal line formed on one substrate of the liquid crystal display device; an insulating film formed on a surface of the lower electrode; and an upper electrode formed to face the lower electrode via the insulating film and connected to the corresponding one of the pixel electrodes. The insulating film has a first portion interposed between the upper electrode and the lower electrode and a second portion surrounding the upper electrode and having a thickness larger than that of the first portion, and the first and second portions of the insulating film are made of a same metal oxide produced by anodization.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a two-terminal nonlinear element used for a liquid crystal display device, and a method for fabricating the same. More particularly, the present invention relates to a two-terminal nonlinear element having a layered structure of metal-insulator-metal (MIM structure), and a method for fabricating the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, liquid crystal display devices having the features of being thin, lightweight and having low power consumption have been used as display devices for personal computers, wordprocessors, terminals of office automation systems, TV sets, and the like. In these applications, demands for further increasing the capacity and enhancing the image quality of the display have increased.
Conventional liquid crystal display devices generally adopt a single matrix driving method in a TN (twisted nematic) mode or STN (super twisted nematic) mode, such as an averaged voltage driving method. In this method, however, the contrast ratio of the display lowers as the number of scanning lines increases. This method is therefore inappropriate for large-capacity display.
To overcome the above problem, an active matrix driving method has been developed where switching elements are provided for individual pixels constituting a display screen. Thin film transistors or two-terminal nonlinear elements are used as the switching elements for the active matrix driving method. In particular, liquid crystal display devices using two-terminal nonlinear elements as the switching elements are promising because the structure is simple and the production cost is low. Among other types of the two-terminal nonlinear elements, MIM elements having an MIM (metal-insulator-metal) structure have already been commercialized.
The MIM element has nonlinear voltage/current characteristics, where the resistance of the element becomes high when the voltage of an input signal applied to the element is low, and becomes low when the voltage of the input signal is high enough to drive the pixel. The liquid crystal display devices provided with such MIM elements utilize the nonlinear voltage/current characteristics of the MIM elements for on/off switching.
FIG. 10 is a plan view of a liquid crystal display device 50 using conventional MIM elements.
In FIG. 10, a substrate 2, on which MIM elements and signal line terminals 15 connected to the MIM elements are formed (hereinbelow, such a substrate is referred to as a "device-formed substrate"), is located on the back side, and a substrate 3, on which counter electrodes and counter terminals 16 connected to the counter electrodes are formed (hereinbelow, such a substrate is referred to as a "counter substrate"), is located on the front side of the liquid crystal display device 50. The device-formed substrate 2 and the counter substrate 3, which are typically made of glass, are attached to each other with a sealing material 17 interposed therebetween.
The liquid crystal display device 50 is a reflection type monochromatic display device having a so-called H-VGA pixel arrangement of 480 dots (H).times.320 dots (V).
FIG. 11 is a plan view of one pixel formed on the device-formed substrate 2 at an arbitrary position A in a display region 30 of the liquid crystal display device 50 shown in FIG. 10. FIG. 12 is a plan view of the portion of the counter substrate 3 corresponding to the portion of the device-formed substrate 2 shown in FIG. 11. FIG. 13 is a sectional view of the liquid crystal display device 50, taken along line B-B' of FIG. 11.
As shown in FIG. 11, each pixel includes a pixel electrode 7, a signal line 5, and an MIM element 4 formed on a surface 2a of the device-formed substrate 2. A plurality of such signal lines 5 are actually disposed on the device-formed substrate 2 in parallel with each other, and connected to the respective signal line terminals 15 (see FIG. 10) formed at an end of the device-formed substrate 2.
As shown in FIG. 12, a plurality of counter electrodes 9 are formed on a surface 3a of the counter substrate 3 in a stripe shape in a direction perpendicular to the signal lines 5. The counter electrodes 9 are connected to the respective counter terminals 16 (see FIG. 10) formed at an end of the counter substrate 3. The liquid crystal display device having the pixels with the above configuration is driven by applying signals having waveforms, which are determined in accordance with an image to be displayed, to the signal line terminals 15 and the counter terminals 16.
Referring to FIG. 13, each MIM element 4, which is shown as a hatched portion in FIG. 11, is a two-terminal nonlinear element Including a lower electrode 5a as an extension of the signal line 5, an insulating film B formed to cover the lower electrode 5a, and an upper electrode 6 facing the lower electrode 5a via the insulating film 8.
The lower electrode 5a is made of tantalum (Ta), for example, and the upper electrode 6 is made of titanium (Ti), aluminum (Al), or chromium (Cr). The insulating film 8 is made of tantalum oxide (TaO.sub.x), for example.
Referring to FIGS. 14A to 14E, the fabrication process of the MIM element 4 having the sectional structure as shown in FIG. 13 will be described.
A Ta thin firm is first formed on the surface 2a of the device-formed substrate 2 made of glass by sputtering. The Ta thin film is then patterned into a predetermined shape by photolithography to form the signal lines 5 and the lower electrodes 5a. In FIG. 14A, only one lower electrode 5a formed on the surface 2a of the device-formed substrate 2 is shown.
As shown in FIG. 14B, the insulating film 8 made of TaO.sub.x is then formed to cover the patterned signal lines 5 and lower electrodes 5a made of the Ta thin film by anodizing the Ta thin film, for example.
Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 14C, for the formation of the upper electrodes 6, a Ti thin film 6a, for example, is formed on the device-formed substrate 2 covering the lower electrodes 5a and the insulating films 8. A resist 18 made of a photosensitive resin having a shape corresponding to the pattern of the upper electrodes 6 to be formed is applied to the Ti thin film 6a, exposed to light, and developed.
The Ti thin film 6a is then etched to remove the portions thereof which are not covered with the resist 18. The resist 18 is subsequently removed to obtain the upper electrodes 6 having the predetermined shape as shown in FIG. 14D.
A thin film (not shown) made of a transparent conductive material such as ITO (indium tin oxide) is then formed on the resultant substrate covering the upper electrodes 6. The ITO thin film is then patterned into a predetermined shape by photolithography to form the pixel electrodes 7 as shown in FIG. 14E. The pixel electrodes 7 are connected to the upper electrodes 6.
Thus, the MIM elements 4 each having the upper electrode 6 and the lower electrode 5a vertically facing each other via the insulating film 8 are formed.
In the above fabrication process of the MIM elements 4, a total of three photomasks are required to pattern the components into the respective predetermined shapes. These three photomasks are: the photomask used to form the lower electrodes 5a by patterning the Ta thin film; the photomask used to form the upper electrodes 6 by patterning the Ti thin film 6a; and the photomask used to form the pixel electrodes 7 by patterning the ITO film.
Referring back to FIG. 13, an alignment film 10 made of polyimide or the like is formed over the device-formed substrate 2 made of glass with the MIM elements 4 formed thereon, and rubbed in a first direction. Likewise, an alignment film 11 is formed on the counter substrate 3 made of glass with the counter electrodes formed thereon, and rubbed in a second direction which is twisted by 90.degree., for example, from the first rubbing direction of the alignment film 10 on the device-formed substrate 2. The formation and rubbing of the alignment films 10 and 11 are performed to control the orientation of liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer 14 to be injected in a space between the substrates 2 and 3 after these substrates are attached to each other.
The device-formed substrate 2 and the counter substrate 3 are disposed so that the alignment films 10 and 11 formed thereon face each other, and are attached to each other via the sealing material 17 (see FIG. 10) so that the gap therebetween is kept at about 10 .mu.m. The liquid crystal material is injected in the space between the device-formed substrate 2 and the counter substrate 3 to form a liquid crystal layer 14. Then, the substrates 2 and 3 are sealed to form a liquid crystal cell. Polarizing plates 12 and 13 are disposed on the outer surfaces of the liquid crystal cell, so that the polarizing axes of the polarizing plates 12 and 13 are displaced from each other by 90.degree.. Thus, the liquid crystal display device 50 having the MIM elements 4 for the respective pixels is obtained.
Since the liquid crystal display device 50 is of the reflection type, the polarizing plate 12 disposed on the device-formed substrate 2 is provided with a reflector. Alternatively, a transmission type liquid crystal display device can be obtained by using a transmissive polarizing plate and a backlight. A color display is also possible by forming color microfilters of the counter substrate 3.
The above conventional reflection type liquid crystal display device 50 displays images by reflecting light incident from outside the device. With no backlight required, a thin and lightweight liquid crystal display device with low power consumption can be realized. This type of liquid crystal display device is therefore expected to be commercialized as a display for a portable information terminal, for example. To realize such a display, a reflection type liquid crystal display device with high resolution and large capacity and capable of providing so-called paper-white bright display is required.
However, the reflection type liquid crystal display device is disadvantageous in that, since incident light is partially absorbed by the polarizing plate, the reflectance is normally only 50% or less and thus the brightness is not satisfactory.
To overcome the above disadvantage, there is proposed a liquid crystal display device which has no polarizing plate to effectively use all the incident light. One example of such a liquid crystal display device is a phase transition guest-host type liquid crystal display device.
FIG. 15 is a plan view of a device-formed substrate 2 of a liquid crystal display device 70 of the phase transition guest-host type; FIG. 16 is a plan view of a counter substrate 3 of the liquid crystal display device 70; and FIG. 17 is a sectional view of the liquid crystal display device 70, taken along line C-C', of FIG. 15.
The liquid crystal display device 70 has the HVGA pixel arrangement and the plan view of the liquid crystal display device 70 is basically the same as that of the liquid crystal display device 50 shown in FIG. 10. The description thereof is therefore omitted here. The components of the liquid crystal display device 70 corresponding to those of the liquid crystal display device 50 shown in FIGS. 10 to 14E are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the detailed descriptions thereof are omitted here.
As shown in FIG. 17, the liquid crystal display device 70 has color microfilters 22 formed on the counter substrate 3. Each color microfilter 22 is composed of a cyan microfilter 22a and a red microfilter 22b each of which corresponds to one picture element. Therefore, two picture elements, one for the cyan microfilter 22a and one for the red microfilter 22b, constitute one pixel. Therefore, the number of signal line terminals 15 required for this device is double the number of pixels. Specifically, for a 480 dot display, a total of 960 signal line terminals 15 are disposed on the device-formed substrate 2.
Further, in the liquid crystal display device 70, each pixel electrode 7 serves as a reflector. In other words, the liquid crystal display device 70 has a reflector formed inside the liquid crystal cell, not on the outer surface of the liquid crystal cell as in the liquid crystal display device 50 described above. Aluminum may be used as the material of the pixel electrodes 7 which serve as the reflectors.
In the liquid crystal display device 70, the pixel electrodes 7 are formed on an organic insulating layer 23, unlike the liquid crystal display device 50. As shown in FIG. 17, the surfaces of the portions of the organic insulating layer 23 on which the pixel electrodes 7 are to be formed are made uneven (in FIG. 15, such uneven portions are shown by large and small solid circles). The uneven surfaces of the insulating layer 23 a effects the pixel electrodes 7 which are disposed on the insulating layer 23, making the surfaces of the pixel electrodes 7 uneven. These uneven surfaces of the pixel electrodes 7 serve as light-diffusing and reflective surfaces with high reflectance, which effectively improve the brightness and contrast of the resultant liquid crystal display device. The upper electrodes 6 of the MIM elements and the pixel electrodes 7 are electrically connected via contact holes 19 formed through the organic insulating layer 23.
As shown in FIG. 17, a guest-host liquid crystal layer 40 containing liquid crystal molecules 20 and dichromatic dye molecules 21 is formed between the device-formed substrate 2 and the counter substrate 3. The on/off functionality of the display is performed by applying a voltage across the pixel electrodes 7 formed on the device-formed substrate 2 and the counter electrodes 9 formed on the counter substrate 3 to control the orientations of the liquid crystal molecules 20 and the dichromatic dye molecules 21 contained in the guest-host liquid crystal layer 40.
More specifically, the dichromatic dye molecules 21 orient themselves along the liquid crystal molecules 20. When a voltage is applied, therefore, the liquid crystal molecules 20 and the dichromatic dye molecules 21 orient themselves in a direction substantially perpendicular to the surfaces of the substrates 2 and 3. This allows light incident on the counter substrate 3 to pass through the guest-host liquid crystal layer 40 without being absorbed by the dichromatic dye molecules 21. The light is then reflected by the pixel electrodes 7 serving as reflectors, passes again through the liquid crystal layer 40, and is output from the counter substrate 3.
On the contrary, when no voltage is applied, the liquid crystal molecules 20 and the dichromatic dye molecules 21 are arranged randomly in the liquid crystal layer 40. The incident light is therefore blocked by being absorbed by the dichromatic dye molecules 21.
Thus, a bright display (white display) is obtained when incident light is reflected, while a dark display (black display) is obtained when incident light is blocked. Since no polarizing plate is used, a bright display screen is obtained.
The above conventional liquid crystal display devices have the following disadvantages. The insulating film 8 within each MIM element 4 is as thin as 500 to 700 .ANG.. Since the withstanding voltage of such a thin insulating film is low, breakdown can easily occur due to static electricity generated during the fabrication process. Once such breakdown occurs, the upper electrode 6 and the lower electrode 5a of the MIM element 4 are short-circuited, making the MIM element 4 inoperative as a switching element. The pixel corresponding to such a defective MIM element 4 manifests itself as a point defect, thereby lowering the display quality. If such a defect occurs often, the production yield of the liquid crystal display device decreases undesirably.
In particular, in liquid crystal display devices used as portable information terminals which require high resolution and large capacity, the number of pixels and thus the number of MIM elements to be formed is huge. Further, in the color display, the number of MIM elements to be formed is larger than that required for the monochromatic display with the same number of pixels since, in the color display, each pixel is composed of a plurality of picture elements corresponding to respective color microfilters. Moreover, with the color microfilters, point defeats are colored, making them more conspicuous and thus further lowering the quality of the displayed images. It is therefore important to suppress such point defects.
To prevent the generation of static electricity which is a cause of point defects, various types of environmental control are performed during the fabrication process of liquid crystal display devices, including thorough control of humidity in the fabrication process, grounding of workers, and installation of an ion shower. However, the breakdown of MIM elements due to the generation of static electricity has not been completely eliminated.
To overcome the above problem, improving the resistance of the MIM elements has also been examined.
In the conventional MIM element, not only the portion of the insulating film formed on the top flat surface of the lower electrode, but also the peripheral portion thereof formed on the periphery of the lower electrode are used to constitute the MIM element. Such a peripheral portion of the insulating film tends to intensively receive the electric field. Also, the insulating film may fail to cover the periphery of the lower electrode completely due to its insufficient step coverage. Due to these reasons, the breakdown of the insulating film may easily occur at the periphery of the lower electrode, making the MIM element inoperative.
To overcome the above problem, the peripheral portion of the insulating film may be covered with an intermediate insulating layer. With this additional formation of the insulating layer, only the portion of the insulating film formed on the top flat surface of the lower electrode is used to constitute the MIM element, so that the possibility of insulation breakdown of the MIM element can be reduced. Such a MIM element is disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication Nos. 1-270027, 1-283524, and 3-296024, for example. The MIM elements disclosed in these publications are all formed by forming a lower electrode, an insulating film, an intermediate insulating layer, and an upper electrode in that order. Alternatively, the intermediate insulating layer may be formed prior to the formation of the insulating film.
The insulating film and the intermediate insulating layer may be made of the same material or different materials. When they are made of different materials, impurities may enter the insulating film from the intermediate insulating layer, resulting in a degradation of the MIM element.
When the insulating film which constitutes the MIM element and the intermediate insulating layer are made of different materials or formed in different processes, the adhesion between the intermediate insulating layer and the underlying film decreases, which may cause a peeling of the intermediate insulating layer from the underlying film. For example, when an SiO.sub.2 film is formed as the intermediate insulating layer on the periphery of the lower electrode made of Ta, and then the insulating film is formed on the top flat surface of the lower electrode by anodic oxidation, the previously-formed SiO.sub.2 intermediate insulating layer may peel off partially. This makes it difficult to form the complete intermediate insulating layer as a protection film.
Accordingly, the intermediate insulating layer is preferably formed after the formation of the insulating film. Also, the insulating film and the intermediate insulating layer are preferably made of the same material.
However, when the intermediate insulating layer is formed after the formation of the insulating film, the characteristics of the already-formed insulating film may be degraded if a high temperature is used in the formation of the intermediate insulating layer. This results in degrading the characteristics of the resultant MIM element. More specifically, the intermediate insulating layer made of an oxide or a nitride is generally formed by plasma CVD or reactive sputtering. These film formation techniques generally involve a heating process requiring a comparatively high temperature of about 300.degree. C. Such a high temperature degrades the characteristics of the already-formed insulating film and thus adversely affects the resultant MIM element, causing abnormalities in the characteristics of the MIM element.
FIG. 18 is a graph showing an example of the degradation in the characteristics of an MIM element due to heating. In other words, how the baking temperature, which is performed later than the formation of the insulating layer of the MIM element, influences the voltage/current characteristics of the resultant two terminal nonlinear element is shown. In this graph, curves 1-4 shows the characteristics of the MIM element due to heating when the MIM element was baked at different temperatures after the formation of the upper electrode. Curve 5 shows the characteristics of the MIM element obtained when the baking treatment was not performed.
In general, the voltage/current characteristics of a two-terminal nonlinear element conforms to the Poole-Frenkel current represented by equation (1) below: EQU ln (I/V)=ln A+B.sqroot.(V) (1)
wherein I denotes the current and V denotes the voltage. Coefficient A denotes the electric conductivity of the MIM element and Coefficient B denotes the nonlinearity of the resistance of the MIM element. As coefficient A increases, the resistance of the MIM element is smaller and as coefficient B increases, the steepness of the voltage/current characteristics at and around the threshold voltage is larger, allowing the resultant liquid crystal display device to obtain high contrast. That is, it is desirable to increase coefficient B to enhance the image sharpness.
As shown in FIG. 18, however, coefficient B becomes small when the MIM element is baked after the formation thereof, and further decreases as the baking temperature increases. This decrease in coefficient B is undesirable in the characteristics of the MIM element.
It is preferable, therefore, to form the intermediate insulating layer at a temperature as low as possible. This formation of the intermediate insulating layer at a low temperature is also required when a plastic material having a low heat resistance is used as the substrate.

Two-terminal nonlinear element and method for fabricating the same


A weight-adjusted underwater toy is disclosed having a somewhat lower specific gravity than water, and having its center of gravity located below and somewhat behind the volumetric center of the toy. The toy has a streamlined shape, like a fish, a sea animal, a swimmer, or a submarine. The model will follow a long glide curve similar to an approximately upside down ballistic path when flung into the water, and will always rotate into a position with its back up and its abdomen down. When rising, the location of the center of gravity will provide an inclined forward/upward position for the model, and horizontal side wings (fins or other details) will prevent a purely vertical rising movement by providing a forwardly directed momentum during a buoyancy movement. The weight adjustment takes place either by forming the model from a material which is heavier than water and is divided in two parts along a horizontal center section with an excavation in the top part in front of the center of the section surface, in such a manner that when joining the parts together, a sealed air pocket is formed, or by forming the model from a material which is lighter than water and has a heavier weight imbedded below and somewhat behind its volumetric center.

The invention relates to a toy with an elongate, stream-lined shape, preferably fish or sea animal models for use in the sea, in a bathtub or in a swimming pool. The models are shaped and weight-adjusted with regard to providing a long glide curve underwater when flung down below the surface. The models are unmotorized and thus suitable for active play and for playing together. The center of gravity is in a low position, so that the models will find a correct swimming position in the water.
The ordinary unmotorized water toys in the form of models of fish and sea animals are unsuited to be flung and achieve a long movement path in water. Some of them will sink immediately. Others are light and not suited to do much more than floating on the surface.
There has also been manufactured weight-adjusted toy models of inter alia submarines with various devices, most often a motorized propulsion device, providing an automatic underwater movement for these toy models. Because the propulsion of the toy models is more or less independent of the active participation of the users, it will often turn out that these toys after some time will provide less motivation for active play.
GB 2,084,032 discloses an invention consisting of fish models in a transparent water container. The floating position of the models is determined by means of a weight in the abdomen and an air chamber thereabove. The specific weight is somewhat larger than water, however the models are prevented from sinking to the bottom by a magnet in the model abdomen, which is repelled by a magnet plate in the container bottom. The models are set in motion by a motor-operated pump which creates a changing water pressure inside the container.
The pressure variations create a movement in an elastic air chamber in the model body, which via a mechanical connection causes propulsive wagging of the model's tail. Because this invention presupposes a container with an attached pump, it cannot be used for free and active play outdoors.
GB 1,337,034 shows a toy shaped like a fish having elastic skin. A weight in the model abdomen provides a low center of gravity and a correct floating position. Propulsion is created by a motor inside the head of the fish model, which motor puts a built-in, wave-shaped rod into rotation around the axis of the wave-rod in the longitudinal direction of the model, in such a manner that it is rendered a "serpentine wriggling" movement.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,580,227 shows a previously known invention concerning creating attention for advertisement printed on models of fish, submarines or other objects which are submerged in a transparent container filled with a liquid. The specific weight of the models is adapted to keep them floating at a desired depth level in a given, clear liquid. A correct floating position is secured by means of a weight on the underside and an air compartment on the top to provide a low center of gravity for the model. Propulsion for the model can be provided by bringing an upward directed flow, possibly air bubbles, into the container from below. The vertically directed stream will engage inclined grooves or corrugations in the side surfaces of the model and thus cause a forwardly directed momentum. However, if used as a toy, this model will be unsuitable for active play in the sea, in a bathtub or in a swimming pool. The inclined grooves will, if the model is flung into the water, at first create a brief downward movement. If the toy exhibits buoyancy, the grooves will thereafter provide a momentum in the rearward direction.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,471,885 shows an unmotorized water toy where the main point is that models of e.g. fish or submarines are provided with a specific gravity similar to the specific gravity of water in order to stay afloat at a given depth. This can be achieved by manufacturing the model from a material which is lighter than water, however with a weight-adjusted heavier lower part, which will also ensure a correct floating position. An exact adaptation of the specific gravity of the model can also be made if the elastic skin of the model is filled with a material which will draw more or less water when squeezed together and thereafter released. From a stable depth level the model can possibly be rendered a rising movement by providing vertical water streams or air bubbles from below. However, when using this model, one will miss the possibility of user contribution to a natural, forward movement. Even though the model can be pushed somewhat in a forward direction, its shape and center of gravity are not adapted with consideration to a long glide curve in the water.


A silicone gel composition comprising: (A) 100 parts by weight of an organopolysiloxane containing at least two alkenyl groups per molecule and having a viscosity of 0.01 to 100 Pa.s at 25.degree. C.; (B) an organopolysiloxane containing at least two silicon-bonded hydrogen atoms per molecule and having a viscosity of 0.001 to 10 Pa.s at 25.degree. C. in an amount sufficient to provide from 0.2 to 5 moles of silicon-bonded hydrogen atoms per one mole of alkenyl groups in component (A); (C) 0.01 to 15 parts by weight of a silica powder having a specific surface area of at least 50 m.sup.2 /g; (D) 0.0001 to 1.0 part by weight of a diamine compound represented by the following general formula: R.sup.1.sub.2 N--R.sup.2 --NR.sup.1.sub.2 wherein each R.sup.1 is independently a hydrogen atom or an alkyl group having 1 to 4 carbon atoms, and R.sup.2 is an alkylene group having 2 to 4 carbon atoms; and (E) a hydrosilylation catalyst in a catalytic quantity; wherein the weight ratio of component (D) to component (C) in said gel composition is from 0.0005 to 0.05; and the silicone gel composition cures to form a silicone gel having a loss elastic modulus at 25.degree. C. and at a shear frequency of 0.1 Hz of from 1.0.times.10.sup.2 to 1.0.times.10.sup.4 Pa, and a complex modulus of elasticity less than 1.0.times.10.sup.5 Pa.

Since after being cured, silicone compositions form silicone gels that are characterized by excellent stress-buffering properties, electrical properties, resistance to heat, and weather-proof properties, they find application for sealing and filling various electrical and electronic components (see Japanese Patent Publications [Kokai] No. 59-204259, No. 61-48945, and No. 62-104145). For example, Japanese Patent Publication [Kokai] No. 48-17847 describes a composition comprising a branch-chained vinyl-containing organopolysiloxane having a viscosity of 0.01 to 10 Pa.s at 25.degree. C., a linear diorganopolysiloxane having silicon-bonded hydrogen atoms, and a hydrosilylation catalyst; Japanese Patent Publication [Kokai] No. 58-7452 discloses a silicone gel composition comprising a branched vinyl-containing organopolysiloxane and a hydrosilylation catalyst; and Japanese Patent Publication (Kokoku) No.3-19269 discloses a silicone gel composition comprising a branched vinyl-containing organopolysiloxane having a viscosity of 0.02 to 10 Pa.s at 25.degree. C., a linear diorganopolysiloxane with both molecular-chain terminals sealed with vinyl groups, a linear diorganopolysiloxane having silicon-bonded hydrogen atoms only at both molecular-chain terminals, and a hydrosilylation catalyst.
However, when the aforementioned silicone gel compositions are used for sealing or filling electrical and electronic components of complicated structure, heat cycles during the operation of these components may cause formation of air bubbles and cracks in the silicone gel used for sealing or filling, whereby reliability of the aforementioned electrical and electronic components is decreased. It can be assumed that air bubbles and cracks occur in the silicone gel that fills aforementioned electrical and electronic components because such components have very narrow spaces between electrodes, electrical elements, electrical elements and the package, etc., as well as because silicone gel material itself is subject to expansion and shrinkage.
Furthermore, in order to make a judgment about the quality of silicone gel used for sealing and filling electrical and electronic components, it is required that this silicone gel be transparent or semitransparent. However, the transparent or semitransparent silicone gel has poor combustion-resistance properties and therefore it is not applicable for sealing or filling those electrical or electronic components which are designed for long-term use under elevated temperatures.

Silicone gel composition for use as a sealant and a filler for electrical and electronic components and a gel prepared from this composition


Disclosed is a pouch-type secondary battery having a sealing margin for improved durability, including a sealing area formed by melting sealing layers of an upper pouch film and a lower pouch film along edges of a pouch casing, characterized in that a sealing margin is greater than a movement distance of a sealing residue flowing out of the sealing area, the sealing margin being a distance measured from an intersection point of a first straight line and a second straight line to a boundary line of the sealing area, the first straight line extending horizontally from a surface of the sealing area, when viewed in cross section of the secondary battery, and the second straight line corresponding to a tangent line having an average gradient among possible tangent lines at each point on a cross-sectional slope line of the pouch casing adjacent to the sealing area.

With the growing use of portable electric products such as video cameras, mobile phones, portable computers, and the like, significance of secondary batteries being mainly used as their energy sources are rapidly increasing.
A lithium secondary battery has a high energy density per unit weight and allows quick charging, when compared to other conventional secondary batteries such as a lead storage battery, a nickel-cadmium battery, a nickel-hydrogen battery, and a nickel-zinc battery, and thus, its use is on an upward trend.
As opposed to a disposable primary battery, a secondary battery is rechargeable and is being studied very actively in high-tech fields, for example, digital cameras, cellular phones, laptop computer, power tools, electric bikes, electric vehicles, hybrid vehicles, high-capacity energy storage systems, and the like.
For example, a secondary battery may include a nickel-cadmium battery, a nickel-metal hydride battery, a nickel-hydrogen battery, a lithium secondary battery, and the like. Among them, a lithium secondary battery has an operating voltage higher than or equal to 3.6V, and is used as a power source of portable electronic appliances or high output devices such as electric vehicles, hybrid vehicles, power tools, electric bikes, energy storage systems, and uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) by connecting a plurality of secondary batteries in series. A lithium secondary battery has three times higher operation voltage than that of a nickel-cadmium battery or a nickel-metal hydride battery and an excellent characteristic of energy density per unit weight, and thus, is being increasingly used.
A lithium secondary battery may be classified into a lithium ion battery using a liquid electrolyte and a lithium ion polymer battery using a solid polymer electrolyte, based on a type of an electrolyte. Also, a lithium ion polymer battery may be divided into an all-solid-state lithium ion polymer battery containing no electrolyte liquid and a lithium ion polymer battery using a gel polymer electrolyte containing an electrolyte liquid, based on a type of a solid polymer electrolyte.
A lithium ion battery using a liquid electrolyte is generally used in a shape of a cylindrical or prismatic metal can used for a container that is sealed hermetically by welding. A can-shaped secondary battery using a metal can as a container has a fixed shape, which has limitations on design of an electric product using this as a power source and its volume reduction. Accordingly, a pouch-type secondary battery fabricated by putting a cell assembly and an electrolyte into a pouch casing made from films and forming a seal has been developed and is being used.
The pouch casing is a flexible casing including a metal substrate, and has a structure in which a sealing layer made from a polymer is laminated onto a surface facing the cell assembly to be sealed by heat and pressure. Accordingly, the cell assembly is put in the pouch casing, and heat and pressure is applied along a periphery of the pouch casing to hermetically seal the pouch casing by melting the sealing layer.
Meanwhile, when sealing the pouch casing, heat and pressure is applied along the edges of the pouch casing as close as possible to the cell assembly within an allowable range. In this instance, after a sealing material constituting the sealing layer melts at a portion to which heat and pressure is applied, the sealing material flows in a direction perpendicular to a direction in which the pressure is applied, that is, a direction in which the cell assembly is disposed. Thus, usually, the melted sealing material comes in contact with the cell assembly. In this case, there is an advantage that a location of the cell assembly within the pouch casing can be securely fixed within the pouch casing. That is, the melted sealing material acts as an adhesive to fix the cell assembly. Accordingly, in case the secondary battery is used in a portable terminal such as a mobile phone or a laptop computer, durability of the secondary battery may be further improved using a flow phenomenon of the sealing material.
However, surprisingly, the Inventors of this application discovered the fact that such flow phenomenon of a sealing material is a durability degradation factor of a secondary battery depending on a usage field of the secondary battery.
That is, a sealing material solidified (hereinafter referred to as 'sealing bridge') after coming in contact with the cell assembly during sealing of the pouch casing serves as a bridge that physically connects the sealing layer of the pouch casing to the cell assembly. Accordingly, when the cell assembly waggles due to an external impact, stress is applied to an area in which the sealing bridge is formed. This stress causes cracking in the sealing layer near the sealing bridge. The resulting crack exposed through the metal substrate of the pouch casing causes a corrosion reaction of the metal substrate in the presence of the electrolyte solution, thereby resulting in life reduction of the pouch casing and insulation degradation of the pouch casing.
Accordingly, a structure for solving the problem resulting from a sealing bridge needs to be introduced to a pouch-type secondary battery used in an environment in which vibrations and impacts of various strengths are continuously applied thereto, for example, an electric vehicle or a hybrid vehicle.

Pouch-type secondary battery having sealing margin for improved durability