Each of mobile terminals and base stations in a mobile communication system detects the file size of multimedia data from normal command file and calculates the communication costs based on the file size and unit price of the call type, and selects either a packet switched call or a circuit switched call for transmitting the multimedia data file based on the communication costs involved.

(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a data transfer system capable of selecting a low-cost call type and, more particularly, to a data transfer system suited to a mobile communication system which transfers data either by a packet switched call or by a circuit switched call.
(b) Description of the Related Art
The number of users accessing the internet by using a mobile terminal, such as a cellular phone, has been remarkably increased in these years. The internet service providers offer a variety of services for e-mail, games, shopping, stock transaction and so on. Among others, the services now attracting the attention of an increasing number of users include those services for allowing e-mails or web sites to transmit or exhibit multimedia data such as including photographs and moving pictures.
The data communications performed by the cellular phone systems generally use packet switched calls. The packet switched call is considerably superior to the circuit switched call so long as only the characters, which generally have a relatively smaller amount of information, are used in the data communication. However, if the transmission data in the mobile communication system include a moving picture having a larger file size, there is a problem in that the packet switching system often involves a larger communication cost compared to the circuit switching system.
In addition, the time length needed for the transmission of a data file has been increased together with the increase of the amount of data in the data file, which raises a problem with respect to the man-machine interface. The increased time length also involves another man-machine interface problem in that the user is restricted for its operation of the mobile terminal during the increased time length for receiving the data file.
In the circumstances as described above, there are some proposals for improving the utilization efficiency of the communication links or reducing the communication cost. Patent Publication JP-A-2000-174770 describes a technique for switching the data paths in a multi-link radio communication network based on the information of the current status of the links monitored, to thereby maintain a constant communication rate irrespective of the current status of the links.
JP-A-2000-253180 describes a technique for automatically selecting one of the links in a network based on the contents to be transmitted, in order to efficiently acquire contents of the information such as multi-media data or text-base data.
JP-A-2000-307660 describes a radio data communication system for improving the utilization efficiency of the communication links by using either the packet switching communication link or the circuit switching communication link. It is described therein that the circuit switching network now used for data transmission is switched to the packet switching network for achieving continued data transmission, if it is difficult to maintain the communication using the circuit switching network or if the amount of data being transmitted by the circuit switching network is reduced.
JP-A-2001-282677 describes a data transfer system which is capable of efficiently using the resources in the system upon transferring to a mobile communication terminal a multi-media data mail including a variety of data such as audio data and/or picture data in addition to the text data. In the described technique, by transmitting transfer assist data to the mobile terminal of the mail destination by using a mail server based on the control data and allowing the multi-media data to include the control data, the mobile terminal can deliver a request of data transfer based on the transfer assist data to prevent, an unnecessary data transmission. This efficiently utilizes the memory resources in the mobile communication terminals without increasing the traffic of the mobile communication network.
JP-A-2001-320424 describes a mobile terminal which is capable of adequately selecting networks based on the types of data to be transmitted/received through the networks. This is achieved by selecting the communication paths suitable to additional data, such as audio data or picture data, based on the additional data acquired by a main data acquisition block and added to the main data, thereby achieving the data transmission at a lower communication cost.
Neither of the conventional techniques as described above, however, teach the concrete technique which enables a mobile terminal in the data transfer system to select by itself a low-cost communication link based on the type of calls while considering a variety of current statuses of the communication links as a whole.

Data transfer system capable of selecting a low-cost call type


A chip type resistor includes terminal electrodes having main upper electrodes, extensions or enclaves of a resistive film formed on left and right sides of the upper surface of main upper electrodes, and auxiliary upper electrodes formed on upper surfaces of extensions or enclaves. Therefore, step between the upper surface of terminal electrodes at opposing ends of resistive film and an upper surface of cover coat covering the resistive film can be reduced or eliminated at a low cost.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a structure and manufacturing method of a chip type resistor having a resistive film and terminal electrodes positioned at opposing ends of the resistive film, formed on a chip type insulating substrate.
2. Description of the Background Art
In a conventional chip type resistor such as described in Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 60-27104, an upper surface of a cover coat covering a resistive film formed on an upper surface of a chip type insulating substrate is protruded from a surface of terminal electrodes positioned at opposing ends of the resistive film, so that there is a considerable step between the upper surface of the cover coat and the upper surface of the terminal electrodes. Therefore, it often suffers from the problem that when the chip type resistor is soldered on a printed board with the side of the resistive film facing the printed board, one side of the chip type resistor rises or floats, preventing secure soldering of terminal electrodes at the opposing ends.
In view of the foregoing, Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 4-102302 discloses a structure of a chip type resistor in which terminal electrodes 3 are formed at opposing ends of a resistive film 2 on left and right end portions of a chip type insulating substrate 1 such that the terminal electrodes 3 each includes a main upper electrode 3a formed on the surface of insulating substrate 1 and conductive to resistive film 2, an auxiliary upper electrode 3b formed heaped up on the surface of main upper electrode 3a, a side electrode 3c formed on either side of insulating substrate 1, and a metal plate layer 3d formed over the surfaces of auxiliary upper electrode 3b and side electrode 3c, as shown in FIGS. 28 and 29. This laid-open patent application proposes, by this structure, to reduce or eliminate the step between the upper surface of terminal electrode 3 and the upper surface of cover coat 4 using auxiliary upper electrode 3b.
Cover coat 4 has a three-layered structure including an undercoat 4a directly covering resistive film 2, a middle coat 4b covering undercoat 4a, and an overcoat covering middle coat 4b, or a two-layered structure with under coat 4a or middle coat 4b omitted.
The chip type resistor disclosed in Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 4-102302 is manufactured through the following steps.
Step 1. On an upper surface of the insulating substrate 1, main upper electrodes 3a are formed and thereafter resistive film 2 is formed. Alternatively, resistive film 2 is formed first and thereafter main upper electrodes 3a are formed.
Step 2. Undercoat 4a of glass is formed on resistive film 2. Thereafter, resistive film 2 and undercoat 4a are engraved to form a trimming groove by laser beam irradiation, for example, while resistance value of resistive film 2 is measured by a conductive probe which is brought into contact with main upper electrodes 3a so that the resistance value of resistive film 2 is within a prescribed tolerable range.
Step 3. Middle coat 4b of glass is formed on the surface of undercoat 4a to fill the trimming groove. Thereafter, overcoat 4c of glass or a synthetic resin is formed covering resistive film 2, part of the main upper electrodes 3a, undercoat 4a and middle coat 4b.
Step 4. On the upper surface of main upper electrodes 3a, auxiliary upper electrodes 3b are formed. Thereafter, side electrodes 3c are formed on end surfaces of insulating substrate 1, and surfaces of auxiliary upper electrodes 3b and side electrodes 3c are subjected to metal plating, whereby a metal plate layer 3d is formed.
In the above described chip type resistor, auxiliary electrodes 3b are formed on the upper surfaces of the main upper electrodes 3a by directly applying the conductive paste by screen printing. Therefore, in order to reduce or eliminate the step between upper surfaces of terminal electrodes 3 and cover coat 4, auxiliary electrodes 3b must be made thick.
In order to increase thickness of auxiliary upper electrode 3b, the number of application of the conductive paste for the auxiliary upper electrodes 3b must be increased. Therefore, amount of conductive paste used is increased, resulting in considerable increase in manufacturing cost of the chip type resistor.

Chip type resistor and manufacturing method thereof


An fire-fighting system for arresting a fire in a flammable or combustible liquid storage vessel comprising a portable discharging apparatus and a portable installation apparatus. The portable discharging apparatus receives a fire-fighting agent from a supply hose and applies the fire-fighting agent to arrest a fire in a storage vessel. The portable discharging apparatus can be attached to a distal end of the portable installation apparatus so that the portable discharging apparatus can be mounted on a storage vessel. Furthermore, a plurality of portable discharging apparatuses can be mounted on a single storage vessel, using the same portable installation apparatus, to provide a large amount or a variety of fire-fighting agents or to provide fire-fighting agents at a specific location on the storage vessel. The portable installation apparatus can be extended to a variety of lengths so that it can mount a portable discharging apparatus on a variety differently sized storage vessels.

Traditional fire-fighting methods for fighting fires in storage vessels containing flammable liquids may require the application of a plurality of fire-fighting agents issued from one or more discharging apparatuses. These methods include:                a) Long range fire-fighting methods including fixed, semi-portable or portable systems that discharge fire-fighting agents from a position located afar from the storage vessel. These include fixed monitors, semi-portable monitors, fixed cannons, vehicle mounted cannons, hand held nozzles, etc.        b) Fixed systems permanently installed on the storage vessel. These include fixed foam chambers mounted on the roof of the storage vessel, circumferential discharge system or seal area protection systems on floating roof tanks, sub-surface injection systems, etc.        c) Portable systems that are used for mounting discharging apparatuses on the storage vessel.Each of these traditional fire-fighting methods possess certain limitations that can include one or more of the following:
their effectiveness in the application of the fire-fighting agent;
the operating system requirements;
the costs associated with the acquisition of the fire-fighting equipment and necessary peripheral equipment;
the costs associated with the operation of the equipment, namely the volume of fire-fighting agent consumed;
the time required to extinguish the fire and resume normal operations; and
the associated damages related to property, plant, equipment and lost production.
The limitations of long range fire-fighting methods discussed in a) above, include the following:                a significantly higher minimum system pressure is required for the fire-fighting agent to reach the surface of the flammable liquid in the storage vessel;        the costs are significantly higher in acquiring, maintaining and operating fire-fighting equipment operating at these higher pressures;        the radial component in the stream velocity is allowed more time to develop, hence dispersing the fluid flow, thereby increasing the cross-sectional impact area of the fire-fighting agent, thus decreasing the concentration of the fire-fighting agent, and finally reducing the effectiveness of the fire-fighting agent in arresting the fire;        the atmospheric winds surrounding the vessel and the convective gases arising from the fire also contribute significantly to the dispersion of the fire-fighting agent thereby reducing the effectiveness of the fire-fighting agent in arresting the fire; and        the longer trajectory of the stream of the fire-fighting agent from the discharge point to the target area increases the amount of air dragged into the stream of the fire-fighting agent and onto the surface of the flammable liquid thereby increasing the oxygenation of the fire.The Industry has generally sought to address the above performance limitations in arresting the fire by increasing the rate of application of fire-fighting agents from 3,000 GPM to 5,000 GPM to 10,000 GPM, using a "surround and drown" approach. This method significantly increases the amounts of fire-fighting agents consumed and thereby the costs associated with extinguishing the fire.
The limitations of fixed systems that are permanently installed on storage vessels, discussed in b) above, include the following:                the foam chambers permanently installed on the roof of storage vessels, traditionally the first line of defense in the event of a fire, are highly vulnerable and are frequently rendered entirely inoperable in the initial phase of the conflagration when violent explosions may occur; and        the Sub-surface injection systems can be rendered inoperable due to the effects of an explosion and more often due to clogging of the system.
The limitations of portable systems that are used for mounting discharging apparatuses on the storage vessel, discussed in c) above, can include one or more of the following:                they operate only with pre-mixtures of foam concentrate and water;        they do not include apparatus for mixing the fire-fighting agents with a conveying media;        they are designed to discharge only one type of fire-fighting agent, for example foam;        the foam discharge device is not detachable from the installation apparatus and therefore the installation of each discharge device requires its own installation apparatus; and        they do not include an apparatus for the transportation of the entire system.
In view of the limitations of the traditional fire-fighting methods discussed above, the applicants have developed a portable system for extinguishing fires in storage vessels containing flammable liquids that seeks to complement the positive performance aspects of these methods while addressing many of their core performance limitations.
There is therefore a need in the art for low-cost fire-fighting equipment that can be used to extinguish fires on or within a flammable substance in storage vessel. There is also a need for a system that is not permanently installed on the storage vessel so that the fire-fighting equipment is not damaged or destroyed by the explosions or conflagrations often associated with the initial stage of a fire. There is also a need for a portable fire-fighting apparatus that does not attempt to spray fire-fighting agents from a remote position. In addition, there is a need for a fire-fighting apparatus that does not utilize costly high-pressure equipment.

Method and apparatus for extinguishing fires in storage vessels containing flammable or combustible liquids


A method for suppressing the optical proximity effect bias within a wafer by compensating the optical proximity effect within the wafer includes the steps of: Firstly, performing a first exposure step with a first exposure parameter setup to transfer a pattern from a photomask to a first die of the wafer. Secondly, performing a second exposure step with a second exposure parameter setup to transfer the pattern from the photomask to a second die of the wafer, wherein the first and second exposure parameter setups are adjusted according to the local optical proximity effect bias of the dies within the wafer. The exposure parameter setup can be numerical aperture setup, partial coherence setup, exposure energy setup, exposure time setup, exposure light intensity setup, or best focus setup. The light source used in the exposure steps can be an I-line, G-line, KrF laser, ArF laser, X-ray, or e-beam.

The present invention is generally related to a method for suppressing the optical proximity effect (OPE) bias within a wafer, and more particularly to a method for compensating the optical proximity effect bias within a wafer such that the OPE result is fixed from die to die within the wafer.
With respect to the semiconductor fabrication processes, the lithography process occupies a decisive factor in the performance of the manufactured semiconductor device. The result of the lithography process may seriously affect the integration level of the manufactured semiconductor device. The lithography process is to utilize the exposure principle of optics to transfer the pattern from the photomask onto the surface of semiconductor wafer, and then an etch process is performed according to the transferred pattern so as to manufacture the desired semiconductor device.
Nonetheless, the occurrence of the well-known optical proximity effect (OPE) is an inevitable concern during semiconductor fabrication process. OPE is resulted from the absence of higher-order diffraction order during the image formation process, and it will negatively affect the accuracy and resolution of the transferred pattern. Consequently, OPE will result in a severe change of critical dimension and make the profile of the semiconductor structure formed thereby out of shape. Moreover, because the properties, such as thickness, type, reflectivity of the substrate film and/or the type, thickness of the selected photoresist material, are not uniform, it will cause the OPE result to be different from die to die within a wafer and thus the performance is different from chip to chip.
In convention, the exposure process is carried out in an exposure equipment, such as a stepper. The exposure process is carried out in a manner known as xe2x80x9cstep and repeatxe2x80x9d. The exposure parameters and exposure condition setup in every exposure step, however, is fixed. Please refer to FIG. 1 showing the reflectivity of the silicon nitride film across a wafer. It will be understood that the reflectivity is increased gradually from the center region of the wafer to the edge region of the wafer. If the properties, i.e. thickness, reflectivity etc., are not uniform, the OPE result will differ from die to die within the wafer and the quality of manufactured semiconductor device will be affected.
There arose a need to suppress the optical proximity effect bias within a wafer by compensating the optical proximity effect bias from die to die within the wafer.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a method for suppressing the optical proximity effect bias within a wafer by compensating the optical proximity effect bias from die to die within the wafer.
It is further an object of the present invention to provide a method for producing chips with the same quality and performance control.
According to the present invention, the method for suppressing the optical proximity effect within a wafer includes the following steps: Firstly, performing a first exposure step with a first exposure parameter setup to transfer a pattern from a photomask to a first die of a wafer. Secondly, performing a second exposure step with a second exposure parameter to transfer the pattern from the photomask to a second die of the wafer, wherein the first and second exposure parameter setups are adjusted according to the local optical proximity effect bias of the dies within the wafer.
In accordance with the present invention, the wafer is further coated with a silicon nitride substrate film.
In accordance with the present invention, the exposure parameter setup is a numerical aperture setup.
In accordance with the present invention, the exposure parameter setup is a partial coherence setup.
In accordance with the present invention, the exposure parameter setup is an exposure energy setup.
In accordance with the present invention, the exposure parameter setup is an exposure time setup.
In accordance with the present invention, the exposure parameter setup is an exposure light intensity setup.
In accordance with the present invention, the exposure parameter setup is a focus setup, more preferably, a best focus setup.
In accordance with the present invention, the light source used in the exposure steps is an I-line.
In accordance with the present invention, the light source used in the exposure steps is a G-line.
In accordance with the present invention, the light source used in the exposure steps is an KrF laser.
In accordance with the present invention, the light source used in the exposure steps is an ArF laser.
In accordance with the present invention, the light source used in the exposure steps is a X-ray.
In accordance with the present invention, the light source used in the exposure steps is an e-beam.
In accordance with the present invention, the exposure steps are performed by an exposure equipment, such as a stepper or a scanner.
Now the present invention may best be understood through the following descriptions with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Method for suppressing optical proximity effect bias within a wafer


A curb stop structure having a supporting base, an upstanding body having an open top, the body including at least one horizontal slit and one vertical slit intersecting the horizontal slit.

The present invention is related to curb stop construction and more specifically, to alignment, sealing and protective structures for curb stop valves. Curb stop valves are water service shutoff valves that are typically located underground in the water supply piping between the water main and a building. Curb stop valves are used to control the flow of water and other fluids through underground piping and to regulate the flow of water to the building. The valves are buried in the ground and are normally enclosed in a curb stop box that protects the valve during use and further allows access to the underground valve, should the need arise. Proper alignment of the valve in the curb box is important during installation and subsequent use to ensure that the valve remains in good operating order and is easily accessible for maintenance, if needed. The present invention provides a curb stop structure that is easy to use while providing accurate alignment and protection of the curb stop valve. The present structure further limits infiltration of liquids or other debris into the curb stop valve area while also providing secure positioning and alignment of the curb stop valve.


Provided are a retainer ring for polishing a wafer and a method of manufacturing the retainer ring, in which an outer circumferential surface of the wafer is retained during an operation of polishing a wafer by using a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) method.

1. Field
One or more embodiments of the present invention relate to a method of manufacturing a retainer ring for polishing a wafer, and more particularly, to a method of manufacturing a retainer ring for retaining an outer circumferential surface of a wafer during a process of polishing a wafer by using a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) method.
2. Description of the Related Art
The manufacture of a semiconductor device essentially includes a polishing process for planarizing a surface of a semiconductor wafer.
As the polishing process, a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) method is mainly used. According to the CMP method, a surface of a wafer coated with tungsten or oxide or the like is polished by mechanical friction and also by using a chemical abrasive. In the CMP method, a wafer fixed to a carrier is pressed against a polishing pad and rotated so that a surface of the water is polished by friction between the polishing pad and the surface of the wafer. In addition, the surface of the wafer is chemically polished by a slurry which is supplied between the polishing pad and the wafer as a chemical abrasive.
FIG. 1 is a schematic view to explain a process of polishing a wafer by using a CMP method. A polishing pad 2 is installed on a turntable 1, and a wafer W is placed on the polishing pad 2. The wafer W is contacted to a lower surface of a carrier 3 that accommodates the wafer W, and then, the wafer W is supported by using a retainer ring 9 so that the wafer W is not separated from the carrier 3 which operates by using a driving unit 4, during polishing. By supplying a slurry 6, which is an abrasive, between the wafer W and the polishing pad 2 through a nozzle 5, while pressurizing the wafer W accommodated in the carrier 3 against the polishing pad 2 with a predetermined pressure, the wafer W is polished both chemically and mechanically by rotation of the polishing pad 2.
The retainer ring 9 for polishing a wafer, according to the conventional art, includes a frame ring 7 and a polishing ring 8. The frame ring 7 is formed of a metal, and the polishing ring 8 is formed of a synthetic resin material. The frame ring 7 and the polishing ring 8 are coupled to each other by using an adhesive. Referring to FIG. 1, the polishing ring 8 is rotated while being pressurized against the polishing pad 2, and is worn away together with the wafer W due to friction. That is, the polishing ring 8 is a consumable component which is worn away and is reduced in height when used for a long period of time. When the lifespan of the polishing ring 8 ends, the polishing ring 8 is cut away from the frame ring 7 by using a cutting tool, and another new polishing ring 8 is contacted to the frame ring 7 for use.
However, since the frame ring 7 and the polishing ring 8 are coupled to each other by using an adhesive, when cutting the polishing ring 8 from the frame ring 7 by using a cutting tool, not just the polishing ring 7 which is formed of a synthetic resin is cut but a portion of the frame ring 8 is also cut. Thus, when a polishing ring is replaced regarding a frame ring several times, dimensions and a shape of the frame ring are changed and the frame ring becomes unusable in the end. This shortens a replacement period of the frame ring, and the costs of the CMO method are also increased.
In addition, the frame ring 7 and the polishing ring 8 may be separated from each other as an adhesive force of the adhesive in the CMP process is weakened, and this may damage a wafer and cause a great loss in the CMP method.
In addition, a polishing ring is manufactured using a resin such as polyether ether ketone (PEEK), polyethylene (POM), polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), polyamide imide (PAI), or polyether imide (PEI), which are high-functional resins having resistance to polishing and are thus highly expensive. As a retainer ring is replaced although just a small portion of the polishing ring is worn, an expensive polishing ring resin is consumed unnecessarily, increasing the total manufacturing costs.

Method of manufacturing retainer ring for polishing wafer

Abstract: In detail, a retainer ring may be manufactured at relatively low costs.

Abstract: In addition, a method of manufacturing a retainer ring for polishing a wafer, which may be produced at relatively low costs, may be provided.


A customized installation, e.g. of Linux software, is created by allowing a user to select packages that the user is interested in installing. During the process, the user is informed if two of the packages that were selected will not be interoperable at run-time. The user is then given an opportunity to resolve the conflict. The user is also informed if selected packages depend on other packages that were not selected in order to run properly, and given the opportunity to include those needed packages in the installation. Once the selected packages have been validated that they will interoperate and all dependencies are satisfied, the system can install the installation.

Software distributions are typically built into an installation program and stored on a compact disc (CD), to be purchased by the customer. Such distributions usually include at least one program file and a number of other packages that work with the program file to provide additional functionality and features. These CDs are prepackaged and designed to include features that the company selling the software thinks will be desired by customers.
Manufacturers of such software products recognize that a "one size fits all" mentality often does not work for all clients. Thus, manufacturers sometimes produce multiple different versions of a software package. For example, application suites are very popular products today. Most versions include a word processor and a spreadsheet program. But some versions might include a database package, whereas other versions might include a slideshow generating program. Still other versions might include stripped-down versions of the products, priced to sell to students and educators. By offering different versions of the product, the manufacturer hopes that as many customers as possible will be satisfied by the different versions, thereby maximizing the manufacturer's sales.
This approach to building pre-packaged software installations is used not just with application software, but also with operating systems. For example, in selecting a Linux® distribution, a customer must choose between different packages of distributions that have been released and are available in off-the shelf combinations. (Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds.) A customer typically chooses a Linux distribution by first selecting a vendor who sells Linux distributions, and then identifying a particular distribution available from the vendor that has the most features that the customer is looking for. But if a customer wants a finer level of control in selecting the structure of the Linux distribution, the customer is usually left wanting.
Accordingly, a need remains to allow a user to create a customized software installation, including only packages that the user wants, verifying that the installation will be operable at run-time, and including any required package dependencies.

System for creating a customized software installation on demand


A method and an apparatus and for transmitting downlink Hybrid Automatic Repeat request (HARQ) information in a wireless communication system are provided. In the method, at least one Physical Resource Block (PRB) for transmitting a Physical HARQ Indicator Channel (PHICH) signal is set among all PRBs forming an available frequency band. A PHICH resource is determined within the set at least one PRB. A PHICH signal is transmitted using the determined PHICH resource.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wireless communication system. More particularly, the present invention relates to a technology for transmitting downlink Hybrid Automatic Repeat request (HARQ) information in a wireless communication system supporting an HARQ technique.
2. Description of the Related Art
A wireless communication system applies an HARQ technique as one of technologies for improving data reception performance. As a representative example, a Long Term Evolution (LTE) system which is the next generation mobile communication system of an asynchronous cellular mobile communication standard organization 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) uses an HARQ technique for downlink and uplink data transmission.
FIG. 1A illustrates an ACK/NACK transmission structure in an LTE system according to a conventional art.
Referring to FIG. 1A, a subframe 100 having a length of 1 ms, which is a basic unit of downlink transmission in an LTE system consists of two slots 101 of 0.5 ms. Assuming a general Cyclic Prefix (CP) length, each slot consists of seven Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols 102. Also, a Physical Resource Block (PRB) 103 consists of 12 subcarriers in the frequency domain, and as a resource allocator corresponding to one slot, the PRB consists of a resource element 104 corresponding to one subcarrier and one OFDM symbol in the time domain. Here, FIG. 1A illustrates an ACK/NACK transmission structure assuming that a base station cell supports two antenna ports and a control region has been set to three OFDM symbol sections. A PRB illustrated to the left illustrates an ACK/NACK transmission structure for a first antenna 105, and a PRB illustrated to the right illustrates an ACK/NACK transmission structure for a second antenna 106.
As described above, a resource region for downlink in an LTE system is roughly divided into a control region and a data region. First, the control region means a communication resource including a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for transmitting control information for each terminal, and a Physical HARQ Indicator Channel (PHICH) for transmitting ACK/NACK information for uplink data. The control region may be freely allocated within a first OFDM symbol section to a third OFDM symbol section. Next, the data region means a series of communication resources including a data channel (Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH)) for transmitting data such as voice and a packet transmitted to each terminal. Also, the LIE system allows all terminals inside a cell to estimate a downlink channel by transmitting a Common Reference Signal (CRS) via each of the data region and the control region.
A conventional LTE system allocates a PHICH for transmitting ACK/NACK information for uplink data to the control region, and performs dispersion transmission throughout available frequency band. That is, the conventional LTE system generates an ACK/NACK signal for each terminal as a BPSK symbol, and then spreads it to four symbols by means of a Walsh code, and maps the four symbols to four successive resource elements. Therefore, one ACK/NACK signal is mapped to the four successive resource elements, and the four successive resource elements to which one ACK/NACK signal has been mapped are referred to as a Resource Element Group (REG). Additionally, an IQ multiplexing scheme may be applied, so that eight PHICH ACK/NACK signals may be multiplexed per REG at the maximum. The REG configured in this manner is generated repeatedly three times, and the repeatedly generated three REGs are scattered with a distance from one another on a frequency within the control region of all PRBs forming an available frequency band. At this point, a resource index for a Walsh code allocated for PHICH transmission for each terminal and an REG, etc. is determined by a function that uses a plurality of parameters such as a lowest index value among PRB indexes allocated during Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) transmission, a circulation transition field value of a Demodulation RS (DM RS) within a PDCCH including a most recent uplink DCI format, etc. as an input. Therefore, a terminal may implicitly discriminate a PHICH related resource for the terminal itself using the above-described plurality of parameters.
As described above, the conventional LIE system transmits ACK/NACK information for uplink data using all PRBs forming a frequency band. However, since it is considered that a method of transmitting a PHICH using all PRBs forming a frequency band consumes a resource seriously because it should transmit a Reference Signal (RS) over an available entire frequency band, a PHICH transmission technology capable of reducing resource consumption is required. Furthermore, to obtain more improved PHICH reception performance, a PHICH transmission scheme suitable for various multi-antenna transmission techniques needs to be provided. Also, for more swift PHICH transmission in a PHICH transmission scheme applying a multi-antenna transmission technology, a feedback method needs to be provided.

Method and apparatus for transmitting downlink hybrid automatic repeat request information in wireless communication system


Modeling of propagation delay and output transition time by use of fitting functions comprised of standard Taylor series and inverse powers is disclosed. These components are used as a basis for generating an equation that predicts circuit performance over a wide range of input transition and output capacitive loads. The present invention includes a computer implemented method for adding functions to the fitting functions or removing functions from the fitting functions until an acceptable error limit has been reached.

In integrated circuit design, circuits for commonly used functions, such as AND gates, OR gates, etc., are often combined into "cells," and a model is created for each cell. These models are used in circuit simulation to provide a simpler model of the cell than would be provided by simulating each of the components within a cell. Typically, the model is used to determine the delay of a signal through the cell, the transition time of the output signal, the input capacitance and power dissipation values for the cell.
IBM Corporation (IBM is a registered trademark of International Business Machines Corporation) has used an early timing estimator (ETE) equation for modeling the delay of a signal through a cell. This equation was optimized for multistate circuit designs over a limited operating range of input transition and output capacitive loads. For a detailed description of ETE see EDS manual 3325 "Early Timing Estimator (ETE) User's Guide and Reference." This equation has been outdated by advances in submicron silicon technologies and faster cycle times (greater than 150 megahertz). With the increased speed of submicron integrated circuits, the current ETE equation has led to unacceptable errors, e.g., errors that are often as large as the total delay between gates. What is needed is a method for generating an improved model for evaluating the operation of an integrated circuit design. It is an object of the present invention to improve the accuracy of the ETE equation by generating a high performance delay/transition equation which reduces the average propagation delay error and provides more consistent accuracy over a wider operating range.

Method for generating an improved model for evaluating the operation of an integrated circuit design


An improved cell layout for a C3MOS circuit with inductive broadbanding positions the inductor at a distance from the active region to improve isolation and aligns the edges of the resistor, inductor, and transistor regions near the common edge of adjacent cells to decrease the length of the cell-to-cell interconnect lines.

The design of an integrated circuit (IC) requires that a layout be designed which specifies the arrangement of the various circuit components on the major surface of a semiconductor substrate, for example a silicon crystal.
Since many circuit elements are repeatedly utilized, these circuit elements are reduced to cells. The layout can be generated by arranging the cells and connecting them using conductive interconnects. Layout is usually performed utilizing sophisticated software tools well-known to persons of skill in the art.
The layout of the interconnects is a complex geometrical problem. However, in high frequency ICs the layout must also account for electromagnetic effects, which cause parasitic resistance and capacitance which can degrade the performance of the IC.
FIG. 1 depicts the standard design of a cell 10, a layout of two cells, and the interconnection of the cells where each cell 10 includes an inductor region 12, a resistor region 14, and a transistor region 16. An example of such a circuit is disclosed in the aforementioned application.
In FIG. 1 a first set of conductive lines 18 couples the inductor region 12 to the resistor region 14 and a second set of conductive lines 20 connects the resistor region 14 to the transistor region 16. A set of cell to cell signal interconnects 22 couples the output nodes of the first cell to the inputs of the transistor region of the second cell. All the regions 12, 14, and 16 are rectangular and have a characteristic lateral dimension: DI for the inductor region 12, DR for the resistor region 14, and DT for the transistor region. As is apparent from FIG. 1, the lateral dimension of the cell 10 is about equal to the dimension of the largest circuit element, in this case the inductor, and is about equal to DI. Because of the symmetrical design of the inductor, resistor regions, and transistor regions, the regions tend to be aligned and the length of the conductive lines connecting the regions minimized. The length of the cell-to-cell interconnects, which transmit high frequency signals, is thus very long because of the large lateral dimension of the inductor compared to the other regions.
In very high frequency applications, the interconnect parasitic resistors and capacitors form an RC network that plays a very important role. This RC network attenuates the high frequency clock and creates Inter-Symbol Interference (ISI) jitter on the data. These effects become even more important for C3MOS cells with inductive broadbanding. (The presence of the inductors in these cases changes the RC networks to RCL networks). As described above and in the referenced patent, the load here includes an inductor in series with a resistor. Since the physical size of the inductor is typically an order of magnitude bigger than the physical size of the resistor, these cells require a small area for transistors and resistors and a very large area for inductors. As depicted in FIG. 1, this makes the cell-to-cell interconnects 22 very long. Since the length of the interconnects is directly proportional to their parasitic resistance and capacitance, whatever speed improvement is gained through inductive broadbanding can be lost due to these additional parasitic effects if the layout is not done carefully. Moreover, if the inductors are close to metal or active areas, magnetic coupling further degrades the speed improvement.

Layout technique for C3MOS inductive broadbanding


A hydrogen rich fuel gas for a gas turbine ballasted with nitrogen and steam can be produced and superheated to a temperature above its dew point. The fuel gas may have a minimal or reduced content of CO2 or fuel components CO and CH4 which contain carbon so that when combusted in a suitable gas turbine there may be minimal or reduced emissions of CO2 to the atmosphere. These example methods may result in a capture of the bulk of the carbon present in the total natural gas feed as CO2 compressed to pipeline delivery pressure for sequestration.

Natural gas and hydrocarbons are a major fuel source for electrical power generation using combined cycle gas turbine/steam turbine systems. There is an urgent need to develop means to capture CO2 for sequestration in geological formations to avoid emitting CO2 in the gas turbine exhaust to the atmosphere where it will contribute to temperature rise and overall global warming. In order to produce power from natural gas fuel with CO2 capture, it is necessary to first convert the natural gas to a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide synthesis gas (H2+CO) using partial oxidation (POX) or catalytic steam/natural gas reforming (SMR) or autothermal reforming (ATR). This is followed by catalytic shift conversion of CO with steam to CO2 and H2. The reactions (based on methane) are:2CH4+O2=2CO+4H2 CH4+H2O═CO+3H2 CO+H2O═CO2+H2
CO2 is removed from the synthesis gas by scrubbing with a physical or chemical solvent or by other means producing a substantially pure CO2 product stream and a substantially pure H2 stream with a minimum content of CO and CH4 and CO2. The H2 product is preferably then mixed with a maximum quantity of N2 from the air separation unit to produce an H2+N2 stream which can then optionally be preheated to give an optimum fuel for the gas turbine.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Generating power from natural gas with carbon dioxide capture


A work station (40) for a packaging line having an apparatus (4) for executing a simultaneous action on packages (10) of an alignment of packages with a tool (46); and a transfer mechanism (31) for the simultaneous transport of an alignment of packages to be processed (10b) to the apparatus (4) and of an alignment of processed packages (10c) from the apparatus (4). The alignments are arranged parallel to each other and the transport direction of the packages are perpendicular to the alignments, the transfer mechanism (31) thus having a first and a second transport group (31a, 31b), one of which hangs from two movable parts (60) of the transfer mechanism (31) which are movable on respective parallel planes of movement and which do not interfere with the vertical projection of the tool (46). A packaging line (101, 102, 103) with modular construction having such work stations.

At present, there are multiple options for implementing a packaging line, the characteristics of which vary widely according to the typology of the packages and the operations which are required to complete the packaging. Thus, for example, the use of rotary work stations which operate continuously to manipulate and carry out operations on bottles on packaging lines for childcare products such as infant milks or follow-on milks is usual; and the use of lines with intermittent advance for manipulating and carrying out operations on tray type packages intended to contain various food products.
These examples have in common the need to use tools which are arranged above the level of the packages, whether in the form of bottles or trays, in order to execute, for example operations such as filling and closing the packages.
A type of packaging line of food products in plastic trays or similar material is one in which the product to be packaged is deposited on the trays and the trays are subsequently closed with a covering film or sheet which is fixed to the cited tray by thermosealing, achieving a hermetic closure, it being possible to previously apply an inert gas different from air in the interior of the tray such as nitrogen or carbon dioxide. In order to apply the film, a tool arranged above the trays in a thermosealing station is used.
In this type of line, the trays run via conveyor means in a row, one behind the other and aligned according to the forward direction of the conveyor means which drive them to the thermosealing station in which a lower mold is arranged and an upper countermold (provided with heater means for thermosealing) between which a band of thermosealable sheet is interposed which will be applied respectively on the upper edges of the trays for the hermetic closure of the food content. The lower mold is provided with a determined number of consecutive cavities arranged in a row according to the same alignment which the trays follow on the conveyor means in order to house in each cavity one respective tray prior to proceeding to cover it with the sheet and to applying pressure and heat coming from the movement of the upper countermold when it fits over the lower mold in each work cycle.
What is notable is that in order to place a determined number of open trays from the conveyor means and deposit them in the corresponding cavities, the thermosealing station is provided with consistent transfer means in parallel crossbeams which are situated one at each side of a section of the row of trays arranged on the conveyor means, there being in each section as many trays as there are cavities in the lower mold. In order to transfer the trays to the lower mold, the crossbeams approach each other until they secure the group of trays and are displaced together in the same direction which the conveyor means follow, taking the trays with them until they deposit them in the respective cavities of the lower mold, the crossbeams then separating to release the trays and so as not to interfere with the closing of the upper countermold on the lower mold. While the trays are closed, the crossbeams return to locate the following group of trays.
This manner of proceeding has the drawback that the higher the number of trays to be closed simultaneously, the greater the length of the crossbeams has to be and more time will be used in the transfer of the trays to the thermosealing station. Sometimes it is not feasible to increase the speed of the transfer means to reduce the transfer time since some food products housed in the trays may release liquids (such as meat) or paste products and these may end up spilling over the upper edge of the trays which subsequently prevents the trays from closing correctly by thermosealing since residues remain between the upper edge of the tray and the plastic sheet to be applied.
Another drawback is related to the supply of the film used to close the trays by thermosealing. The more trays that it is desired to close in unison, the greater the transport distance of the film from the standby position thereof to the operating position thereof will be since the film is fed in the forward direction of the packages.
In order to overcome these and other drawbacks, machines have been developed equipped with various thermosealing devices working in parallel, by means of which all the trays pass through a product filling device in a row, after which the path is divided into various paths each one of which drives a series of trays to a corresponding thermosealing station. Consequently, these machines are very complicated and costly due to the increase of the sealing devices, of having to provide a distributor for the diversion of trays through different paths and the need for a considerable volume for the installation of the packaging machine.
Another alternative consists of the conveyor means of the trays being already compartmentalized, each compartment executing the function of lower mold to cooperate with an upper mold in the thermosealing station. In this case, the compartmentalization may be in a matrixed manner in the conveyor means and consequently the upper mold in the thermosealing station may be arranged transversal to the forward direction of the conveyor means to work during each machine stroke on a column of trays. This alternative rapidly loses interest for being poorly versatile. For example, it requires a very high number of lower molds of which the majority will be returning empty, in addition to requiring the replacement of all the molds if the format of the trays changes.
In the packaging of bottles, the packaging lines which use rotary type machines are common in which the bottles follow a circular path and advance in an intermittent manner from one station to the next, said stations being distributed static along the circular path; or in which the bottles advance in a continuous manner, in this case the stations being mounted in the machine such that they accompany the packages in the path thereof. In this last case, the stations may be prepared for carrying out more than one operation on the package or associated packages. Alternatively, it is necessary to transfer the packages from one rotary machine to another by means of transfer wheels or similar when it is necessary to change the operation to be executed on the packages. In any case, it is evident that these lines are not versatile and that they cannot be easily adapted when the format of the packages changes, i.e. from bottles; when it is necessary to increase the capacity of the line or add/change the operations which have to be carried out on the packages. In addition to the foregoing, the layout of these types of lines or the space required for the implementation thereof is a drawback added to the poor versatility which the lines offer.

Work station for a packaging line and a packaging line comprising at least two of said work stations


The invention is directed to an arrangement for monitoring an electric consumer in a motor vehicle. The consumer can be actuated by at least one pulse-shaped control signal formed by a control unit with this actuation taking place via a switching device. This arrangement includes a device for detecting electric variables in the region of the consumer and a device for comparing these variables to pregiven limit values as well as a device for recognizing a fault on the basis of this comparison. The device for recognizing faults evaluates the comparison result for recognizing a fault condition pursuant to the actuating state of the electric consumer.

An arrangement of the kind recited in the title of the invention is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,951,188. In this patent, an electric consumer, which can be switched off in a two-pole manner, is monitored on the basis of electric variables which are detected in the region of the drive element. The consumer can, for example, be an electric motor which is actuated by at least one pulse-shaped control signal via at least one drive element. Means for recognizing faults such as short circuits in the area of the consumer or of the drive element actuating the consumer are detected by a comparison to limit values.
A disadvantage of this known arrangement is the very substantial complexity with respect to electronic components.

Arrangement for fault monitoring an electric consumer in a motor vehicle to detect short circuits and interruptions in the region of the consumer


A planographic original plate requiring no fountain solution, in which a layer allowing adhesion thereof with a silicone rubber layer to decrease through transforming a laser beam into heat and the silicone rubber layer of an addition type containing 10 to 20% by weight of organohydrogenpolysiloxane based on solid content are laminated to a support in this order, thereby providing a planographic original plate requiring no fountain solution which is capable of heat mode recording due to a laser beam and is excellent in image reproducibility and resistance to scratching.

Conventional printing systems requiring a fountain solution are difficult to adjust subtle balance between the fountain solution and ink, resulting in emulsifying ink or mixing the fountain solution with ink, which causes unstable ink concentration, scumming, and broke. The no water-planographic original plate, in contrast, has various advantages stemming from requiring no fountain solution.
On the other hand, recent rapid progress in output systems such as prepress systems, image setters, and laser beam printers enables printed images to be converted into digital data. With such progress, systems to prepare printing plates according to novel platemaking processes such as a computer-to-plate process or a computer-to-cylinder process come to be proposed, and new types of printing materials pertinent to these printing systems has been expected and developed. Of these systems, examples of processes for making the no water-planographic printing plates by write with a laser beam include those described in JP-B-42-21879 (The term "JP-B" as used herein means an "examined Japanese patent publication"), JP-A-50-158405 (The term "JP-A" as used herein means as an "unexamined published Japanese patent application"), JP-A-5-94008, JP-A-6-55723, JP-A-6-186750, JP-A-7-314934, U.S. Pat. No. 5,353,705, and WO-9401280. For performing printing without using the solution, it is stated in these specifications that an ink-repellent silicone rubber layer is provided on a layer transforming light into heat (hereinafter referred to as a "light-heat transforming layer") which comprising a laser beam-absorbing agent such as carbon black and a self-oxidative binder such as nitrocellulose, or on a metal deposition layer, and that a part of laser beam-irradiated areas of the silicone rubber layer is removed so that the removed areas become ink-receptive.
In this process, the removal of the silicone rubber layer however relies on abrasion of the light-heat transforming layer due to the laser beam irradiation, and therefore, printed images are inferior in linearity of fine lines and roundness of halftone dots, so that improvements therein are fully expected. Further, inherently poor adhesion between the light-heat transforming layer and the silicone rubber layer often causes the printing plate to suffer damage on handling or during printing, and the damaged areas are inked to form undesired images in these portions, which is a fatal drawback to the printing plate. Although it is described in some specifications that a silane coupling agent is added to the silicone rubber layer to compensate for this drawback, this is insufficient to increase the adhesion of the light-heat transforming layer with the silicone rubber layer, and also has little effect on improvement in resistance to scratching.

Planographic original plate requiring no fountain solution


Provided is an inflatable lamp, which includes a first flexible housing, a second flexible housing connected with the first flexible housing to cooperatively form a receiving cavity, a power supply assembly arranged on the first flexible housing, a light strip received in the receiving cavity, and a sealing assembly. The power supply assembly has a mounting element arranged on the first flexible housing and a power supply received in the mounting element. One end of the light strip is arranged on the mounting element and electrically connected with the power supply. The sealing assembly includes a first sealing element sealingly connected with an inner side of the first flexible housing. The first sealing element is configured to airtightly seal and cover the light strip, the mounting element, and the power supply. The inflatable lamp of the present disclosure is easy to carry and store.

There are various lamps currently on the market, but these lamps are not suitable for outdoor activities. Some lamps cannot be folded for store and carry; some lamps are too small in size, resulting in a poor light diffusion and a small illumination area; some lamps are not waterproof and cannot float on the water surface. Further, the existing inflatable lamps are designed to have a certain small size for carry, and the LED light sources in the existing inflatable lamps are rigid lamp panels. In order to expand the illumination area, the rigid lamp panels should be enlarged, which may cause the the inflatable lamps are not convenient to carry.


A system for monitoring a patient and treating the malfunctioning heart of the patient, either in an automatic mode or in a semiautomatic mode, includes means which derive at least one physiologic signal from or related to the patient's circulatory system representative of hemodynamic status. A feedback loop is implemented in a biventricular implant, in order to automatically or selectively optimize the patient's clinical hemodynamic status. Accordingly, the biventricular implant will be programmed to go through a series of AV delay, RV-LV timing and heart rate sequences which scan a preselected range of programmable values and apply those values to the patient's heart. Hemodynamic patient measurements will be recorded and preferably graphed over those applied values. The optimal AV delay, RV-LV timing sequence and pacing rate can then be selected either manually by a technician, physician or other operator, or automatically via the implant in order to secure the best personalized timing sequence for the patient. Preferably, the implant will also be capable of automatically recording hemodynamic information and adjusting intervals, in order to optimize hemodynamics without third party intervention. Also preferably, the automatic adjusting feature can be selectively programmed on or off using the device programmer, to control manual or automatic intervention.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains generally to biventricular implants, and more specifically to methods of operating those implants in order to manually, semi-automatically, or automatically optimize their operation.
2. Description of the Related Art
Deaths from cardiovascular diseases ("CVD") is a very serious problem in the United States and throughout the world. Since 1900, CVD has been the No. 1 killer in the United States for every year (except for 1918).
The CDC estimates that each year around 400,000 people die of heart disease in an emergency department or before reaching a hospital; this accounts for a very large percentage of all cardiac deaths. A significant number of these deaths are not first events, but subsequent to first diagnosis and treatment of CVD. Consequently, there is much impetus to developing improved techniques for the care and management of CVD.
One such approach of recent vintage has been the integration of electrical and electronic devices into the care and management of CVD. As is evident in modern society, electronic devices have become ubiquitous. Everywhere we travel, we do so with the assistance and convenience afforded by these microminiaturized wonders. Watches, personal digital assistants, laptop computers, and cellular telephones are all recognizable and commonplace devices carried about by persons. However, as technology has permitted, these devices are not the only ones which may be carried with a person.
Many modern microelectronic devices are integrated or concealed within other devices or even within people. Pacemakers, hearing aids, automatic medication dispensers, bone growth stimulators, biological recorders and alarms, and even personal safety and alerting devices have become very prevalent within, on, or transported by people. It is extremely commonplace for many mechanical and even chemical devices to additionally include microelectronic devices, the electronics performing such diverse roles as timers, monitors, sensors, controls and a myriad of other functions. These functions may simply be more economical than a mechanical or chemical counterpart, but will often provide functions that would otherwise be impractical or impossible to achieve.
In recent years, substantial progress has been made in pacemakers and in the development of cardioverting and defibrillating techniques for effectively treating various heart disorders and arrhythmias. Past efforts have resulted in the development of implantable electronic pacemakers and standby cardioverters-defibrillators which, in response to the detection of an abnormal cardiac rhythm, discharge sufficient energy via electrodes connected to the heart to depolarize and restore it to normal cardiac rhythm. An early example of this cardioverting and defibrillating technique is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,942,536 of Mirowski et al, the teachings which are incorporated herein by reference. The Mirowski et al technique involves responses to a sensed peak right ventricular systolic pressure dropping below a fixed predetermined level and not returning above the predetermined level for a given period of time.
Efforts have also been directed toward developing techniques for reliably monitoring heart activity in order to determine whether cardioversion and defibrillation are desirable or necessary. Such techniques include monitoring ventricular rate or determining the presence of fibrillation on the basis of the probability density function (PDF) of an electrocardiographic signal. A system using the PDF technique statistically compares the location of points of a cardiac waveform with the expected locations of points of the normal waveform. When the waveform becomes irregular, as measured by its probability density function, an abnormal cardiac function is suggested. The latter technique is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,184,493 and 4,202,340, both by Langer et al, the teachings which are incorporated herein by reference. In the Langer et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,202,340, probability density function is defined as "the fraction of time, on the average, that a given signal spends between two amplitude limits." It has been noted that the probability density of an ECG changes markedly between ventricular fibrillation and normal cardiac rhythm. Accordingly, VF can be detected by providing a mechanism for generating a probability density function, or portion thereof, or approximately one or more points on the function. The entire probability density function need not always be developed; rather, it is sometimes sufficient to develop only particular values of the function at certain sampling points.
A more recent system, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,475,551 of Langer et al and also incorporated herein by reference, utilizes both the PDF technique to determine the presence of an abnormal cardiac rhythm and a heart rate sensing circuit for distinguishing between ventricular fibrillation and high rate tachycardia (the latter being indicated by a heart rate above a predetermined minimum threshold), on the one hand, and normal sinus rhythm or a low rate tachycardia (indicated by a heart rate falling below a pre-determined minimum threshold), on the other hand.
Still further research in this area has resulted in the development of a heart rate detector system which accurately measures heart rate from a variety of different electrocardiogram (ECG) signal shapes. One such system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,393,877 of Imran et al, the teachings which are also incorporated herein by reference.
An apparatus and method for treating tachyarrhythmias wherein the presence of a patient tachyarrhythmia is detected and a first anti-tachyarrhythmia therapy (anti-tachycardia pacing) is given at a first energy level has been proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,895,151 by Grevis et al, the teachings which are incorporated herein by reference. The hemodynamic condition of the patient is measured and a length of time to therapy switchover is continually derived during the application of the first anti-tachyarrhythmia therapy. The length of time to switchover is a function of the hemodynamic condition of the patient. When the time following detection of the patient tachyarrhythmia exceeds the length of time to switchover, a second anti-tachyarrhythmia therapy (a high energy shock) at a second energy level is provided. The average cardiac cycle length may be used as an indicator of the hemodynamic condition. Only a single hemodynamic parameter is utilized, at one time, in the Grevis et al apparatus, cardiac cycle length being the parameter illustrated.
An implantable cardiac stimulator that integrates the functions of bradycardia and anti-tachycardia pacing-type therapies, and cardioversion and defibrillation shock-type therapies, is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,830,006 of Haluska et al, the teachings which are incorporated herein by reference. The stimulator is programmable to provide a multiplicity of hierarchical detection algorithms and therapeutic modalities to detect and treat classes of ventricular tachycardia according to position within rate range classes into which the heart rate continuum is partitioned, and thus according to hemodynamic tolerance, with backup capabilities of defibrillation and bradycardia pacing at the higher and lower regions of the rate continuum outside the range of the ventricular tachycardia classes. Aggressiveness of the therapy is increased with elapsed time and increasing heart rate and detection criteria are relaxed with increasing heart rate and thus with increasing hemodynamic intolerance of the tachycardia.
A method for detecting and treating ventricular tachyarrhythmias of a patient's heart is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,002,052 of Haluska, the teachings which are incorporated herein by reference, which includes the steps of selectively dividing the heart rate continuum into regions including at least two classes of tachycardia, contiguous to each other and of progressively higher heart rate ranges, the lowest and highest of the tachycardia classes being bounded respectively by a sinus rate region and a fibrillation region of the continuum. The boundaries between the tachycardia classes and between the lowest and highest of those classes are selectively adjusted and the respective sinus rate and fibrillation regions to correspondingly adjust the rate ranges of the classes selectively detecting cardiac events anywhere within the continuum and distinguishing between normal and abnormal tachycardias. Treating a detected abnormal tachycardia with any of a multiplicity of therapy regimens of differing degrees of aggressiveness, toward terminating the detected tachycardia is proposed.
A process and apparatus for patient danger recognition and forecasting, particularly for the intensive medical care of the patient has been proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,197,854 to Kasa, the teachings which are incorporated herein by reference. The Kasa invention uses various variables to set up a danger function that represents the probability of occurrence of a danger condition, forms average values of the danger function throughout subsequent time periods that are shorter than the time required for a medical intervention. Formed average values with levels of increasing sequences of threshold values are compared providing an indication associated with the highest exceeded threshold value. The average values are used to set up a regression function which approximates the sequence thereof. A subsequent extrapolated value of the function is determined for the next time period that represents a forecast average value of the danger function. The extrapolated value is indicated, provided it is higher than a predetermined level. Preferably three threshold values are used in the comparing step, with magnitudes of 40, 60 and 80% of the danger function, respectively.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,770,177 of Schroeppel, the teachings which are incorporated herein by reference, discloses a pacer which paces a heart in accordance with the heart pacer rate needed to produce a required cardiac output while a person is exercising or undergoes emotional stress, in response to changes in venous blood vessel diameter. The pacer is adapted to be implanted in a human body and has a pulse generator and control circuitry, which may be realized by a microprocessor. A pacing lead adapted to be implanted in a heart has a tip electrode adapted to engage and supply pacing pulses to a right ventricle of a heart. A piezoelectric sensor determines changes in a diameter of a vein in the human body. Computing circuitry, including the control circuitry, relates the changes in venous blood vessel diameter with the required pacing rate needed to supply a desired cardiac output, and causes the pacer to pace the heart at the required rate when the heart is not naturally paced. The pacer of Schroeppel is not combined with any cardioverter and defibrillator.
Currently anti-tachycardia systems detect arrhythmias primarily by sensing rate and perform inadequately in the differentiation of hemodynamically stable from unstable rhythms. These devices, for example, may fire during a stable supraventricular tachycardia (SVT), inflicting pain and wasting energy. Damage to the heart may result.
A commonly used implantable anti-tachycardia device is the automatic implantable cardioverter and defibrillator which is commercially available. These devices continuously monitor myocardial electrical activity, detecting ventricular tachycardia (VT) and ventricular fibrillation (VF), and delivering a shock to the myocardium to terminate the arrhythmia. This cardioverter and defibrillator has been shown to reduce the mortality rate in patients with malignant arrhythmias with initial studies at Johns Hopkins Hospital and Stanford Medical Center demonstrating a 50 percent decrease in the anticipated total incidence of death, as reported by Mirowski et al, "Recent Clinical Experience with the Automatic Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator, Medical Instrumentation, Vol. 20, pages 285–291 (1986). Arrhythmias are detected by (1) a rate ® wave) sensor and (2) the probability density function (PDF) of an EKG signal which defines the fraction of time spent by the differentiated electrocardiogram between two amplitude limits located near zero potential. Presently, the functional window of the PDF is wide to permit the detection of both VT and VF, and therefore, this device functions essentially as a rate-only sensing system. As reported by Mirowski, "The Automatic Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator: An Overview", JACC, Vol. 6, No. 2, pages 461–466, (August, 1985), when an arrhythmia fulfills either the rate or PDF criteria, the device delivers Schuder's truncated exponential pulse of 25 Joules some 17 seconds after the onset of the arrhythmia. The device can recycle as many as three times if the previous discharge is ineffective with the strength of the second, third and fourth pulses being increased to 30 Joules. After the fourth discharge, approximately 35 seconds of nonfibrillating rhythm are required to reset the device.
Closed loop intravenous drug delivery systems have been developed and are undergoing evaluation for the treatment of heart failure. Such systems may also be incorporated into an implantable device to permit the delivery of electrical therapy (pacing/cardioversion/defibrillation) as well as drug therapy, to correct a malfunctioning heart.
In addition to the standard automatic implantable cardioverter and defibrillator characterized by the above-noted dual detection algorithm, a variant of the device which features a sensing system that relies only on the analysis of heart rate is also available. This "rate-only" version of the known cardioverter and defibrillator preferred by some investigators, is more sensitive than the dual detection version unit and theoretically less likely to miss ventricular tachycardias with narrow QRS complexes. It is believed that the "rate-only" system, on the other hand, may be too sensitive, delivering cardioverting and defibrillating pulses too often or too soon, no hemodynamic parameter having been taken into consideration.
One drawback with many current systems is that they function primarily as a rate-only or single-hemodynamic-parameter driven systems and may fire for nonmalignant as well as malignant tachycardias. These firings are not benign; potentially endangering myocardium, wasting energy and inflicting pain on the conscious patient, all distinct shortcomings and disadvantages. Furthermore, these devices operate in a single mode; that is, such systems apply therapy, such as cardioverting and defibrillating pulses to the myocardium automatically, without the option or opportunity for confirmation or intervention by medical personnel.
External ST segment monitoring systems are also commercially available. These systems compare the normal or baseline ST segment of an ECG to that during normal exercise or activity to determine whether the change is significant and indicative of ischemia. Such monitoring systems are currently worn on the patient's waist or over the shoulders, and no active treatment is offered, since ischemia is only identified after the recording is complete, and the tape is scanned. It is possible that this information can be acquired in real time, such that appropriate drug therapy could be delivered to correct the ischemia.
The present inventor has developed practical systems and methods designed to in large measure overcome or ameliorate the deficiencies of the prior art. These patents, the teachings of each which are incorporated herein by reference, include U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,774,950; 4,899,751; 4,899,752; 4,967,748; 4,967,749; 4,984,572; 4,986,270; 5,014,698; 5,027,816; 5,054,485; 5,085,213; 5,119,813; 5,156,148; 5,163,429; 5,269,301; 5,330,505; and 5,417,713.
As but one example, a system for and method of treating a malfunctioning heart based on hemodynamics at a single site in a circulatory system was the subject of above referenced U.S. Pat. No. 4,774,950 by the present inventor and granted Oct. 4, 1988. Therein, the dynamics of mean arterial pressure (MAP) mean right atrial pressure (MRAP), mean right ventrical pressure (MRVP), mean left atrial pressure (MLAP), mean left ventrical pressure (MLVP) or mean central venous pressure (MCVP) were respectively proposed as the single-site or single-parameter basis for cardioversion and defibrillation, and both apparatus and method were disclosed. These aforementioned patents also disclose the incorporation of pharmacological therapies in further combination with cardioversion and defibrillation. As disclosed for exemplary purposes in U.S. Pat. No. 5,014,698 by the present inventor, the malfunction correcting circuits will produce malfunction correcting electrical output signals, which are delivered to the patient as required. Among these are signals which in turn control drug delivery devices, which may consist of a number of pumps or other drug delivery devices, such as gravity operated delivery systems supply medications to the patient in an effort to overcome or correct the malfunction. These output signals and/or drug(s) and/or the pumping assist are provided to effect termination of, or at least treat in an effective manner, singly or in combination stable SVT, unstable SVT, stable VT, unstable VT, stable atrial fibrillation, unstable atrial fibrillation, ventricular fibrillation, asystole, stable bradycardia, unstable bradycardia, ischemia, early infarction and both stable and unstable heart failure.
Although pharmacological and pacer therapy have ameliorated symptoms and improved the survival of patients with chronic heart failure (CHF) and other cardiovascular disorders, CHF remains a progressive disease causing incremental morbidity and early mortality. More recently, the results of the COMPANION trial demonstrated improved mortality and hospitalization in patients with heart failure who have an intraventricular conduction delay, through cardiac resynchronization achieved with atrial-synchronized biventricular pacing. Left bundle branch block in structurally normal hearts results in loss of synchrony of ventricular contraction and impairs both regional and global left ventricular systolic function. In hearts with good overall left ventricular systolic function this has very little clinical effect. But in patients with ischemic or idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy it further impairs already poor systolic function and may have a major clinical impact. The prevalence of conduction delay in patients with heart failure has recently been estimated to approach 30%, and this has led to rapid development of biventricular pacing in an attempt to restore synchronous ventricular contraction and so improve left ventricular function. As an added benefit, based upon further recent studies, cardiac resynchronization seems to reduce the risk of clinical deterioration during follow up, with the combined risk of a major clinical event, defined as death or admission for worsening heart failure, being reduced by 40%. The number of patients requiring admission for heart failure also appear to involve a reduced number of total hospital days for management of heart failure.
Since the publication of the COMPANION results, there has been an exponential increase in biventricular cardioverter-defibrillator implants. These devices have a right atrial lead as well as a right and left ventricular lead. Two timing intervals, the atrioventricular (AV) delay and the RV to LV delay, can typically be manually programmed while measuring the patient's hemodynamic, either via echocardiography or via invasive hemodynamic monitoring or via transthoracic impedance. Exemplary of these devices and methods, and of varying relevance, are U.S. Pat. No. 5,584,868 by Salo et al; U.S. Pat. No. 5,836,987 by Baumann et al; U.S. Pat. No. 6,238,420 by Bakels et al; U.S. Pat. No. 6,567,700 to Turcott et al; U.S. Pat. No. 6,597,951 by Kramer et al; U.S. Pat. No. 6,606,516 by Levine; and U.S. published applications 2001/0031993 by Salo etal; 2002/0151938 by Corbucci; 2003/0018363 by Dinget al; 2003/0060851 by Kramer et al; 2003/0083700 by Hill; 2003/0100925 by Pape et al; 2003/0130702 by Kramer et al; 2003/0144703 by Yu et al; 2003/0199936 by Struble et al; and 2003/0204212 by Burnes et al, the teachings of each which are incorporated herein by reference.
As will be recognized from the substantial body of art incorporated herein above by reference, including numerous patents assigned to the present inventor and others, the electrical and mechanical arrangements necessary for the incorporation of technically advanced and flexible pacers and defibrillators is known in the art. However, successful implementation of the physical and electronic technologies for the ever broader effective clinical application has been somewhat more elusive. Among the various challenges faced are the varying underlying causes of a malfunctioning heart, the complexity of diagnosis and myriad of devices which may presently be required for appropriate application to a given root cause, the difficult set-up of these prior art devices for operation, and the risk of undesirable inappropriate functioning of the device.

Hemodynamic optimization system for biventricular implants


System and methods performed by a server for determining weighted influence in social networks, including: determining posts related to the topic; characterizing each post as one or more of: a reply post, a mention post, and a re-posting; generating a group of user accounts comprising any user account that authored a posting to which is replied, being mentioned in the mention post, that posted content being re-posted, and/or that authored one or more posts that are related to the topic; representing each of the user accounts as a node in the group in a connected graph and establishing an edge between one or more pair of nodes when there is a follower-followee relationship between the nodes; and for each edge between nodes, determining a weighting that is a function of one or more of: a number of mention posts, a number of reply posts, and a number of re-posts.

In recent years social media has become a popular way for individuals and consumers to interact online (e.g. on the Internet). Social media also affects the way businesses aim to interact with their customers, fans, and potential customers online.
Some bloggers on particular topics with a wide following are identified and are used to endorse or sponsor specific products. For example, advertisement space on a popular blogger's website is used to advertise related products and services.
Social network platforms are also used to influence groups of people. Examples of social network platforms include those known by the trade names Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Tumblr, and Pinterest. Popular or expert individuals within a social network platform can be used to market to other people. Quickly identifying popular or influential individuals becomes more difficult when the number of users within a social network grows. Furthermore, accurately identifying influential individuals within a particular topic is difficult. The experts or those users who are popular in a social network are herein interchangeably referred to as "influencers".

Systems and methods for dynamically determining influencers in a social data network using weighted analysis


A method for renal replacement therapy includes priming a fluid circuit and recirculating the sterile fluid during priming to permit gas to float out of the sterile fluid into a fluid reservoir. The fluid is preferably either warmed during circulation or vibrated to promote the removal of gas.

Patients undergoing hemofiltration, hemodialysis, hemodiafiltration, ultrafiltration, or other form of renal replacement therapy need replacement fluid, dialysate, or infusate which is free of biological contaminants. Given the large amount of purified fluid needed by such therapies and the current method of spiking multiple bags of replacement fluid, dialysate, or infusate, there is a risk of touch contamination resulting in the introduction of biological contaminants into the fluids. Making the appropriate connections, then filtering the fluid greatly reduces this risk to the patient. It would be advantageous if the same equipment used in renal replacement therapy, such as hemofiltration, could be reconfigured for on-line decontamination of prepackaged solutions such as dialysate to produce the large volumes of purified replacement fluid required for the therapy.
Presently methods to produce volumes of dialysate from tap water are known, but require complex water purification/standardization equipment, since impurities and cleaning additives such as chlorine vary greatly in tap water from municipality to municipality and within a municipality over time. (See Twardowski U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,146,536 and 6,132,616.)
Moreover, dialysate solution, whether prepared online or prepackaged, while of the proper concentration for use as a purified replacement fluid, is not deemed to be sufficiently free of pathogenic contaminants to allow the injection of such a fluid into a patient. In hemodialysis, the dialysate never enters the patient's body, but instead flows past a semipermeable membrane that permits impurities in the blood to osmose through the membrane from the higher concentration blood to the lower concentration dialysate. Thus dialysate, intended for extracorporeal use only, is less expensive than solutions prepared as replacement fluids, which will be injected into a patient.
Attempts to render dialysate sufficiently purified for use as a replacement fluid in hemofiltration and hemodiafiltration have focused on a continuous sterilization process that requires a separate dialysate filtration/purification apparatus that must be periodically purged and verified to provide sufficient constant flow of purified replacement fluid required for hemofiltration. (See Chavallet U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,039,877 and 5,702,597.) Such devices are necessarily complicated and require separate pumping systems for the sterilization process.
At least one prior art reference U.S. Pat. No. 6,280,632B1 shows purified replacement fluid being created during dialysis treatment by filtering the dialysate online. However, the technique shown requires a filter for this purpose. Since it is desirable, for safety reasons to make as much of the purified part of the fluid circuit used in blood treatment disposable and since filters are expensive, the need for an additional filter is a cost concern.

Fluid, circuits, systems, and processes for extracorporeal blood processing


Disclosed is a controlling method for minimizing a temperature deviation in a refrigerator by optimally varying a pausing period of a defrosting operation based on a present temperature in the refrigerator and the pressure of the discharging outlet of a compressor. A controlling section removes frost formed at the evaporation of a freezing compartment during the common operation of the refrigerator and stops the operation of a heater for the defrosting operation. In order to stabilize the temperature in the refrigerator, the controlling section compares the temperature in the refrigerator with the operating temperature of the compressor during the pausing period. When the temperature in the refrigerator is not less than the operating temperature of the compressor, the controlling section compares the pressure of the discharging outlet of the compressor with the operating pressure of the compressor. When the pressure at the discharging outlet of the compressor is not less than a reference pressure, the controlling section drives the compressor to transform the operation of the refrigerator into a common operation. Accordingly, the temperature deviation in the refrigerator can be minimized and the food stored in the refrigerator can be maintained in an its optimal fresh state. Further, the consuming power of the refrigerator can be reduced.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for controlling a pausing period of a defrosting operation for minimizing a temperature deviation in a refrigerator through the optimum variation of the pausing period of the defrosting operation based on the present temperature in the refrigerator and the present pressure of the discharging outlet of a compressor.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Generally, a refrigerator includes a heater for a defrosting operation for removing frost formed around an evaporator. When the accumulated operating time of a compressor is a first predetermined time (for example, 8 hours) or over, a controlling apparatus for the refrigerator selects a defrosting mode without any condition and carries out the defrosting operation. In addition when the accumulated operating time of the compressor is a second predetermined time (for example, 5 hours) or over, the controlling apparatus for the refrigerator reads the accumulated time for a door opening, the operating ratio of the compressor, etc. and carries out the defrosting operation.
When the defrosting mode is selected, the controlling apparatus for the refrigerator operates the heater for the defrosting operation and detects the temperature around the evaporator through a defrosting sensor. When the detected temperature is a predetermined restoring temperature for the defrosting operation (for example, 13.degree. C.) or over, the operation of the heater for the defrosting operation (i.e. a heat generating operation) is stopped. Meanwhile when the detected temperature is the restoring temperature for the defrosting operation or below, the heater for the defrosting operation is operated for a predetermined time (for example, for 90 minutes) and then the operation thereof is stopped.
After the operation of the refrigerator at the defrosting mode as described above, the temperature in the refrigerator is usually -10.degree. C. or over. If the refrigerator is commonly operated, the temperature in the refrigerator is about -16.degree. C..about.-20.degree. C. After the defrosting operation and during the pausing period of the defrosting operation, which is fixed as a predetermined time interval (for example, 4.about.7 minutes), the temperature in the refrigerator can be further increased.
In order to lower the increased temperature in the refrigerator to the temperature in the refrigerator during the common operation, the operating time of the compressor should be increased. This will increase the consuming power of the refrigerator. In addition, the temperature in the refrigerator at the common operating mode of the refrigerator is different from the temperature in the refrigerator at the defrosting mode. Therefore, it is difficult for food stored in the refrigerator to keep in an optimally fresh state.
Accordingly, the method for controlling the defrosting operation as described above fixes the pausing period of the defrosting operation irrespective of the temperature in the refrigerator after the defrosting operation and induces the increase in the temperature of the refrigerator.
A method for automatically controlling the operation of the refrigerator is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,228,300 (granted to Shim). In this patent, the operations of the compressor and a fan motor are delayed after the completion of a defrosting cycling for minimizing the increase of the temperature in the refrigerator. And in the controlling method, the temperature setting of a chamber, the defrost cycling and the operation of a compressor and a fan motor are automatically controlled according to the the door open/close frequency and open time. According to the present state of a temperature adjusting apparatus and the mean temperature of the refrigerator, the temperature in the refrigerator is lowered and the defrosting cycling is operated for a predetermined time interval or an auxiliary time interval according to the utilization number of the refrigerator and the opening time of the door before the defrosting cycle. The operations of the compressor and the fan motor are delayed so that the temperature in the refrigerator is not increased after the completion of the defrosting cycling to minimize the temperature variation in the refrigerator and to protect the stored food.
However, after the defrosting operation, the method for controlling the defrosting operation as described above could not actively cope with the increase in the temperature in the refrigerator and with the increase in the consuming power of the refrigerator. Therefore, the pausing period of the defrosting operation could not be optimally varied.

Method for controlling a pausing period of a defrosting operation of a refrigerator


A method for producing a distance map of scene distance values for a digital image captured by a digital camera includes capturing a first digital image of a scene under a first illumination condition, wherein the first digital image includes a plurality of pixels and the scene includes a plurality of scene objects located at different distances from the digital camera, capturing a second digital image of the scene under a second illumination condition that is different from the first illumination condition, and using the first and second digital images to produce a distance map having a plurality of scene distance values, wherein each scene distance value relates to the distance between the digital camera and the corresponding scene object.

Scene object geometry, i.e. the geometric distribution and relationship, for natural scene photography is valuable information that can be used to process digital images produced by digital cameras. In particular, knowing the separation distance between the camera and scene object along the line-of-sight from camera to object can be used to calculate the separation distance from object to object within the scene.
There are examples of semi-manual and automatic prior art in this field. In "Multiple View Geometry in Computer Vision Second Edition," Cambridge University Press, March 2004, R. Hartley, et al. disclose several methods for determining 3D information (and hence distance information) from a 2D image. One method is accomplished by taking several captures of a scene from different viewing angles. Through user intervention of assigning geometric structures to certain features in the image, the Euclidean 3D geometry of the scene can be derived. According to Hartley, by using techniques of projective geometry, it is possible in many instances to reconstruct scenes from a single image. This cannot be done without some assumptions being made about the imaged scene (e.g. the physical distance between at least two imaged points should be known). It is not yet possible for such techniques to be fully automatic. However, projective geometric knowledge can be built into a system that permits user-guided single-view reconstruction of a scene. A further method described by Hartley requires that all points of the scene are visible in all images.
A significant problem with existing distance measurement methods is that they require considerable processing to determine distance. These methods often require user intervention as well as specific setups for the capture of the image. In addition, these methods are often very computationally intensive and complex.

Determining scene distance in digital camera images