A method for encoding a video sequence comprising an independent sequence of image frames, wherein at least one reference image frame is predictable from at least one previous image frame that is earlier than the previous reference image frame in decoding order. An indication of at least one image frame is encoded into the video sequence, which indicated image frame is the first image frame, in decoding order, of the independent sequence, said at least one reference image frame being included in the sequence. In the decoding phase, the indication of at least one image frame is decoded from the video sequence, and the decoding of the video sequence is started from said first image frame of the independent sequence, whereby the video sequence is decoded without prediction from any image frame decoded prior to said first image frame.

The term 'streaming' refers to simultaneous sending and playback of data, typically multimedia data, such as audio and video files, in which the recipient may begin data playback already before all the data to be transmitted has been received. Multimedia data streaming systems comprise a streaming server and terminal devices that the recipients use for setting up a data connection, typically via a telecommunications network, to the streaming server. From the streaming server the recipients retrieve either stored or real-time multimedia data, and the playback of the multimedia data can then begin, most advantageously almost in real-time with the transmission of the data, by means of a streaming application included in the terminal.
From the point of view of the streaming server, the streaming may be carried out either as normal streaming or as progressive downloading to the terminal. In normal streaming the transmission of the multimedia data and/or the data contents are controlled either by making sure that the bit rate of the transmission substantially corresponds to the playback rate of the terminal device, or, if the telecommunications network used in the transmission causes a bottleneck in data transfer, by making sure that the bit rate of the transmission substantially corresponds to the bandwidth available in the telecommunications network. In progressive downloading the transmission of the multimedia data and/or the data contents do not necessarily have to be interfered with at all, but the multimedia files are transmitted as such to the recipient, typically by using transfer protocol flow control. The terminals then receive, store and reproduce an exact copy of the data transmitted from the server, which copy can then be later reproduced again on the terminal without needing to start a streaming again via the telecommunications network. The multimedia files stored in the terminal are, however, typically very large and their transfer to the terminal is time-consuming, and they require a significant amount of storage memory capacity, which is why a normal streaming is often preferred.
The video files in multimedia files comprise a great number of still image frames, which are displayed rapidly in succession (of typically 15 to 30 frames per s) to create an impression of a moving image. The image frames typically comprise a number of stationary background objects, determined by image information which remains substantially unchanged, and few moving objects, determined by image information that changes to some extent. The information comprised by consecutively displayed image frames is typically largely similar, i.e. successive image frames comprise a considerable amount of redundancy. The redundancy appearing in video files can be divided into spatial, temporal and spectral redundancy. Spatial redundancy refers to the mutual correlation of adjacent image pixels, temporal redundancy refers to the changes taking place in specific image objects in subsequent frames, and spectral redundancy to the correlation of different colour components within an image frame.
To reduce the amount of data in video files, the image data can be compressed into a smaller form by reducing the amount of redundant information in the image frames. In addition, while encoding, most of the currently used video encoders downgrade image quality in image frame sections that are less important in the video information. Further, many video coding methods allow redundancy in a bit stream coded from image data to be reduced by efficient, lossless coding of compression parameters known as VLC (Variable Length Coding).
In addition, many video coding methods make use of the above-described temporal redundancy of successive image frames. In that case a method known as motion-compensated temporal prediction is used, i.e. the contents of some (typically most) of the image frames in a video sequence are predicted from other frames in the sequence by tracking changes in specific objects or areas in successive image frames. A video sequence always comprises some compressed image frames the image information of which has not been determined using motion-compensated temporal prediction. Such frames are called INTRA-frames, or I-frames. Correspondingly, motion-compensated video sequence image frames predicted from previous image frames, are called INTER-frames, or P-frames (Predicted). The image information of P-frames is determined using one I-frame and possibly one or more previously coded P-frames. If a frame is lost, frames dependent on it can no longer be correctly decoded.
An I-frame typically initiates a video sequence defined as a Group of Pictures (GOP), the P-frames of which can only be determined on the basis of the I-frame and the previous P-frames of the GOP in question. The next I-frame begins a new group of pictures GOP, the image information comprised by which cannot thus be determined on the basis of the frames of the previous GOP. In other words, groups of pictures are not temporally overlapping, and each group of picture can be decoded separately. In addition, many video compression methods employ bi-directionally predicted B-frames (Bi-directional), which are set between two anchor frames (I- and P-frames, or two P-frames) within a group of pictures GOP, the image information of a B-frame being predicted from both the previous anchor frame and the one succeeding the B-frame. B-frames therefore provide image information of higher quality than P-frames, but typically they are not used as anchor frames, and therefore their removal from the video sequence does not degrade the quality of subsequent images. However, nothing prevents B-frames from being used as anchor frames as well, only in that case they cannot be removed from the video sequence without deteriorating the quality of the frames dependent on them.
Each video frame may be divided into what are known as macroblocks that comprise the colour components (such as Y, U, V) of all pixels of a rectangular image area. More specifically, a macroblock consists of at least one block per colour component, the blocks each comprising colour values (such as Y, U or V) of one colour level in the image area concerned. The spatial resolution of the blocks may differ from that of the macroblocks, for example U- and V-components may be displayed using only half of the resolution of Y-component. Macroblocks can be further grouped into slices, for example, which are groups of macroblocks that are typically selected in the scanning order of the image. Temporal prediction is typically carried out in video coding methods block- or macroblock-specifically, instead of image-frame-specifically.
To allow for flexible streaming of video files, many video coding systems employ scalable coding in which some elements or element groups of a video sequence can be removed without affecting the reconstruction of other parts of the video sequence. Scalability is typically implemented by grouping the image frames into a number of hierarchical layers. The image frames coded into the image frames of the base layer substantially comprise only the ones that are compulsory for the decoding of the video information at the receiving end. The base layer of each group of pictures GOP thus comprises one I-frame and a necessary number of P-frames. One or more enhancement layers can be determined below the base layer, each one of the layers improving the quality of the video coding in comparison with an upper layer. The enhancement layers thus comprise P- or B-frames predicted on the basis of motion-compensation from one or more upper layer images. The frames are typically numbered according to an arithmetical series.
In streaming, transmission bit rate must be controllable either on the basis of the bandwidth to be used or the maximum decoding or bit rate value of the recipient. Bit rate can be controlled either at the streaming server or in some element of the telecommunications network, such as an Internet router or a base station of a mobile communications network. The simplest means for the streaming server to control the bit rate is to leave out B-frames having a high information content from the transmission. Further, the streaming server may determine the number of scalability layers to be transmitted in a video stream, and thus the number of the scalability layers can be changed always when a new group of pictures GOP begins. It is also possible to use different video sequence coding methods. Correspondingly, B-frames, as well as other P-frames of the enhancement layers, can be removed from the bit stream in a telecommunications network element.
The above arrangement involves a number of drawbacks. Many coding methods, such as the coding according to the ITU-T (International Telecommunications Union, Telecommunications Standardization Sector) standard H.263, are familiar with a procedure called reference picture selection. In reference picture selection at least a part of a P-image has been predicted from at least one other image than the one immediately preceding the P-image in the time domain. The selected reference image is signalled in a coded bit stream or in bit stream header fields image-, image-segment- (such as a slice or a group of macroblocks), macroblock-, or block-specifically. The reference picture selection can be generalized such that the prediction can also be made from images temporally succeeding the image to be coded. Further, the reference picture selection can be generalized to cover all temporally predicted frame types, including B-frames. Since it is possible to also select at least one image preceding an I-image that begins a group of pictures GOP as the reference image, a group of pictures employing reference picture selection cannot necessarily be decoded independently. In addition, the adjusting of scalability or coding method in the streaming server or a network element becomes difficult, because the video sequence must be decoded, parsed and buffered for a long period of time to allow any dependencies between different image groups to be detected.
A further problem relates to detection of image frames from which a decoder can start the decoding process. The detection is useful for multiple purposes. For example, an end-user may wish to start browsing a video file from the middle of a video sequence. Another example relates to starting the reception of a broadcast or multicast video transmission from the middle of the video transmission. A third example relates to on-demand streaming from a server and occurs when an end-user wishes to start playback from a certain position of a stream.

Grouping of image frames in video coding


The invention relates to a paper making process in which improved drainage and retention is obtained by the addition of an effective amount of a cationic dispersion polymer to an aqueous cellulosic paper making slurry prior to shearing the slurry; which cationic dispersion polymer is selected from a group of copolymers consisting of:. i) a copolymer of about 10 mole % DMAEA.BCQ and about 90 mole % AcAm; PA1 ii) a copolymer of about 10 mole % DMAEA.MCQ and about 90 mole % AcAm; and PA1 iii) a copolymer of about 20 mole % DMAEA.MCQ and about 80 mole % AcAm; and PA1 adding to the slurry, after said cationic dispersion polymer is added and the slurry is sheared, PA1 a microparticle selected from the group consisting of. a) copolymers of acrylic acid and acrylamide; PA2 b) bentonite; and PA2 c) dispersed silica.

Retention and drainage are two important properties of a papermaking process that papermakers are always seeking to optimize. The meaning of these two terms is well-known to persons of ordinary skill in the art of papermaking.
One method of improving the retention of cellulosic fines, mineral fillers and other furnish components on the fiber mat is the use of a coagulant/flocculant system, added ahead of the paper machine. To use such a system, a papermaking slurry (or furnish) is created out of a pulp. To this slurry is added a coagulant, with said coagulant being selected from the group consisting of low molecular weight cationic synthetic polymers, starch and alum. The coagulant generally reduces the negative surface charges present on the particles in the slurry, particularly cellulosic fines and mineral fillers, and thereby accomplishes a degree of agglomeration of such particles. The next item added is a flocculant. Flocculants typically are high molecular weight anionic synthetic polymers which bridge the particles and/or agglomerates, from one surface to another, binding the particles into large agglomerates. The presence of such large agglomerates in the slurry as the fiber mat of the paper sheet is being formed increases retention.
While a flocculated agglomerate usually does not interfere with the drainage of the fiber mat to the extent that would occur if the furnish were gelled or contained an amount of gelatinous material, there is a noticeable reduction in drainage efficiency when such flocculated agglomerates are filtered by the fiber web, because the pores thereof are to a degree reduced. Hence, retention usually is increased with some degree of deleterious effect on the drainage.
Another system employed to provide an improved combination of retention and drainage (or dewatering as it is sometime known) is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,753,710 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,913,775, the disclosures of both of these patents being incorporated herein by reference. In brief, such method first adds to the aqueous cellulosic papermaking suspension a high molecular weight linear cationic polymer before shearing the suspension, followed by the addition of bentonite after shearing. The shearing generally is provided by one or more of the cleaning, mixing and pumping stages of the papermaking process. The shearing breaks down the large flocs formed by the high molecular weight polymer into microflocs. Further agglomeration then ensues with the addition of the bentonite clay particles.
Another system uses the combination of cationic starch followed by dispersed silica to increase the amount of material retained on the web by the method of charge neutralization and adsorption of smaller agglomerates. This system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,388,150, inventors Sunden et al., issued Jun. 14, 1983.
In another system, a high molecular weight cationic polymer is added to the slurry before shearing. Then an organic microparticle is added to the slurry after the introduction of shear. The organic microparticle is a medium molecular weight anionic polymer such as the copolymers of acrylic acid described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,098,520, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. Or the organic microparticle can be a medium molecular weight anionic sulfonated polymers such as those described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,185,062, the disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference.
There continues to be a need to identify new additive or additives that when added in specific combinations result in improvement in retention and drainage in a papermaking process.


Methods, systems, and computer program products for automatically populating a signaling-based access control database based on output from a fraud detection application are disclosed. According to one method, a fraud detection application detects fraud based on call information received from monitoring points in a network. The fraud detection application produces output for identifying a calling party making a fraudulent call. The output is used to automatically populate a signaling-based access control database. A signaling-based access control application screens call signaling messages and performs a screening action, such as rerouting a call, using the information received from the fraud detection application.

In telecommunications networks, fraud detection applications exist to detect fraudulent calls. For example, some fraud detection applications include rules-based or artificial-intelligence-based algorithms for detecting the presence of telecommunications network fraud. Once fraud for a given call is detected, the fraud detection application may generate an alarm to the telecommunications network service provider. Another action performed by one conventional fraud detection application is to insert white noise on a voice channel associated with a fraudulent call to disrupt the fraudulent call. One problem with this fraud detection application is it requires probes on all of the voice trunks in a network to insert the white noise. Requiring probes on all of the voice trunks can be expensive in networks with large numbers of voice trunks.
Signaling-based access control applications can also be used to mitigate fraud in telecommunications networks. For example, one conventional signaling-based access control application screens call signaling messages and performs screening actions for the call signaling messages based on information provisioned in an access control database.
One problem with using conventional signaling-based access control applications to mitigate fraud is that these applications are unsuitable for detecting fraud in real time or near real time because the signaling-based access control databases are manually provisioned. That is, once a network operator learns of telecommunications network fraud, the network operator is required to manually provision the appropriate information in the signaling-based access control database to prevent future occurrences of the fraud. However, fraud may continue from the time that the fraud is detected to the time that the database is provisioned. In addition, manually provisioning the database is labor intensive.
Thus, in light of the difficulties associated with conventional fraud detection applications, there exists a need for improved methods for detecting and preventing fraud in telecommunications networks.

Methods, systems, and computer program products for automatically populating signaling-based access control database


An apparatus for the inactivation of airborne pathogens and pathogens on the surface of an object. The apparatus including a housing with an intake region and an exhaust region and an airflow path disposed between the intake and exhaust regions. The apparatus also includes a space within the housing for placement of the object as well as an intake fan and an oxidant generator proximate the intake fan. The apparatus includes an air filter disposed in the airflow path for removing particulates and pathogens and passes the intake air through either or both of an activated carbon filter and a catalyst to convert the oxidant into oxygen.

Disease can spread when people with certain infections cough, sneeze, or talk, spewing nasal and throat secretions into the air. Some viruses or bacteria take flight and hang in the air or land on people or surfaces. When a person breathes in airborne pathogenic organisms, they take up residence inside the person creating a wide range of symptoms. Unsuspecting individuals can also pick up germs when airborne pathogens come to rest on a surface and the person then touches the surface that harbors them. Once the person touches the surface, they often touch their own eyes, nose, or mouth leading to infection of the individual.
Some pathogens are also suspended in biofluids such as blood, mucus, saliva, vomit, liquid feces and related secretions. These contaminated biofluids not only encounter the surfaces of objects and materials but can be transported into the sub-surfaces by capillary forces when the fluids are absorbed through the pores found in porous objects and materials. Pathogens that are resident in sub-surfaces may be shielded from inactivation by chemical disinfectants such as alcohol, hydrogen peroxide and ultraviolet light sterilization processes that are commonly used to inactivate pathogens in the air and on the surface of objects.
Pathogens found in sub-surface pores are protected from inactivation when methods that are only effective for surface treatment are used and often migrate to the surface after such treatment to re-colonize the surfaces, leading to infection of individuals who then encounter the pathogens when they contact the surfaces. Air flowing across the surfaces of previously treated materials containing contaminated biofluids within their sub-surface facilitates the wicking of contaminated biofluids to the surface. The pathogens in the transported biofluids often become airborne after the biofluid in which they were suspended dehydrates in contact with air blowing across the surfaces.
Pathogens that are airborne or are found on the surfaces and within the surfaces of objects and materials create various symptoms that in extreme cases can lead to death, particularly in individuals with compromised immune systems. The common cold is usually caused by a rhinovirus. Influenza consists of many strains and is constantly changing, making it very difficult for the body to develop an immunity. Chickenpox is caused by the varicella-zoster virus and can be spread for a day or two before the infected individual displays the telltale rash. It can take up to 21 days after exposure for the disease to develop.
Mumps is another very contagious disease, particularly in crowded conditions. Mumps can be spread before symptoms appear and for up to 5 days after. Mumps was quite common in the United States, but rates have declined by 99 percent due to vaccination. Measles is a very contagious disease, particularly in crowded conditions. The virus that causes measles can remain active in the air or on surfaces for up to 2 hours. Measles can be transmitted to others up to 4 days before and 4 days after the measles rash appears. Measles is a leading cause of death among children worldwide and was responsible for 140,000 deaths in 2018. It's estimated that the measles vaccine prevented around 23 million deaths from 2000 to 2018.
Whooping cough is a respiratory illness that causes swelling of the airways that results in a persistent hacking cough. Whooping cough is at the height of contagiousness for about 2 weeks after the coughing starts. Worldwide, there are about 24.1 million cases of whooping cough every year, resulting in 160,700 deaths. In 2018 there were 15,609 reported cases of whooping cough.
Tuberculosis is an airborne disease. This is a bacterial infection that does not spread easily and a person generally must to be in close contact with another person who has it for a long time. Tuberculosis can be contracted without becoming ill or transmitting it to others. About 1.4 billion people worldwide have tuberculosis and most are not sick. About 10 million people worldwide have active tuberculosis.
The rapidly spreading coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, and the disease it causes, COVID-19, continue to cause widespread concern as of early 2020. The most common symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, cough, fatigue, and shortness of breath. Coronaviruses are enveloped viruses and are easier to inactivate than non-enveloped viruses. To inactivate or attenuate a pathogen such as a virus means to cause the pathogen to lose disease producing capacity. To inactivate an enveloped virus an appropriate disinfectant product must be utilized.
Viruses that are airborne or that remain on surfaces and within the sub-surfaces of objects and materials create a substantial public health risk that can be lessened by the utilization of an apparatus as disclosed herein. Specifically, the disclosed apparatus for inactivation of such pathogens is capable of scrubbing from airflow particulates as small as 0.3 microns. Researchers have determined that larger inert particulates are often colonized by viruses that may only be 0.10 to 0.15 microns in major dimension. Consequently, there are significant health related benefits to removing larger particulates from airborne circulation.
Devices such as air purifiers or air ionizers are often employed to reduce the amounts of pathogens in air by exposing them to oxidants such as reactive oxygen species (ROS). Such ROS include hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), superoxide (°O2−), hydroxyl radicals (OH°), singlet oxygen (O═O or 1O2), alpha-oxygen (αO), atomic oxygen (°O) and ozone. ROS can be categorized as radicals and non-radicals. Radical ROS include superoxide, hydroxyl radicals and atomic oxygen. Non-radical ROS include hydrogen peroxide, ozone, and singlet oxygen. Most ROS are gases at standard temperature and pressure except hydrogen peroxide, which is a liquid. In many air purifiers or ionizers, a corona discharge generator is used to produce the ROS ozone. Studies have shown that concentrations of ozone of approximately 100 ppm are considered highly effective for inactivating pathogens in air with exposure times of as little as 10 to 15 minutes.
Lower ozone concentrations in the range of 20-25 ppm are also effective, although in the case of lower concentrations additional exposure time is required to inactivate the pathogens. Unfortunately, devices such as these often generate insufficient amounts of ozone to be effective as a disinfectant or can potentially release excess ozone into an environment in which people and animals respire when not equipped with an effective ozone destruction device to treat the exhaust gas. High levels of ozone can cause pulmonary irritation and studies have revealed that maximum safe levels of respired ozone are from 50 ppb to 100 ppb for an eight-hour exposure.
Air purifiers or ionizers also utilize devices that produce ultraviolet light to inactivate pathogens in air and on surfaces. Ultraviolet light has a wavelength spectrum from 100 to 400 nm and is subdivided into four regions: UVA (320 to 400 nm), UVB (280 to 320 nm), UVC (200 to 280 nm) and short wavelength ultraviolet light below 200 nm. UVC has the strongest germicidal effect and is widely used in the form of mercury lamps to inactivate pathogens. Ultraviolet light can also be used to produce ROS when exposed to air while in contact with a photocatalyst such as titanium dioxide, TiO2. Short wavelength ultraviolet light having wavelengths less than 200 nm and preferably around 185 nm is most effective to produce ROS such as ozone and hydroxyl radicals using a photocatalyst. Paradoxically, ultraviolet light having wavelengths between 240-315 nm, preferably around 254 nm, can be used to decompose the ROS ozone into oxygen. Thus, the proper selection of the wavelength emitted by an ultraviolet light emitting source is a critical factor in the design of an effective pathogen destruction device.
Reports of the effectiveness of air purifiers or ionizers are typically based upon the inactivation of airborne pathogens, not pathogens that are embedded in biofilms or within the sub-surfaces of objects and materials. The reaction time for inactivation of pathogens by oxidants or ROS is very fast in air but much slower in fluids. In biofluids the rate of inactivation is governed by the first principles of oxidant concentration and diffusion through the media. Although oxidant concentrations of approximately 100 ppm are considered highly effective for inactivating pathogens with exposure times of as little as 10 to 15 minutes when the pathogens are airborne, much longer exposure times are required at these oxidant concentrations to effectively treat pathogens found in biofilms and sub-surface pores because of the time required for the oxidants to diffuse through the biofilms and sub-surface pores in order to make contact with the pathogens within them. The diffusion of an oxidant is similar to the diffusion of oxygen through a biofilm or subsurface pores, and studies have shown that the rate of diffusion of such gases through such materials follow first order kinetics. As shown by the following equation, the rate of diffusion of an oxidant is proportional to the concentration of the oxidant:Rate of diffusion=k[A]
where k is a constant and [A] is the concentration of the oxidant.
Because the rate of pathogen inactivation is proportional to the amount of oxidant in contact with the pathogen and the rate of diffusion of the oxidant through biofilms and sub-surface pores is proportional the concentration of the oxidant available to diffuse, the rate of inactivation of a pathogen can be seen to increase by increasing the concentration of the oxidant. Consequentially, the residence time for effective inactivation of pathogens in biofilms and subsurface pores can be seen to be greatly reduced by operating a pathogen inactivation apparatus at much higher oxidant concentration than is typically used to inactivate pathogens in air.
Oxidant concentration in the space surrounding a pathogen is achieved by transferring the oxidant into the surrounding space from a concentrated source of the oxidant such as from a pressurized canister of concentrated oxidant or by the production of the oxidant in situ by a chemical or photochemical reaction. Because gaseous ROS are very reactive, unstable, and have a short half-life, it isn't practical to store them in containers typically used for storing liquid oxidants such as hypochlorite or hydrogen peroxide. These oxidants are preferably generated at the time of their use or application. For example, a corona discharge generator produces ozone when an electrical discharge splits a stable oxygen molecule into two oxygen radicals (O°), which then collide with a separate molecule of oxygen (O2) as shown in the following formula:O2+O°→O3
Here rate of formation of ozone follows second order kinetics. As shown by the following equation, the rate of formation of ozone is dependent on how much of each of the reactants is present.Rate of ozone production=k[O2][O°]
where k is a constant and [O2] is the concentration of oxygen and
[O°] is the concentration of oxygen atoms.
From the above equation it is evident that the rate of production of ozone increases in proportion to an increase in the concentration of oxygen. This relationship is also found for another ROS. Consequentially, increasing the oxygen concentration in the air will cause an increase in the production of ROS generated by means of ROS generating devices that produce ROS from oxygen and result in a reduction in the time for effective inactivation by exposure to ROS of pathogens in biofilms and subsurface pores.
There exists a tremendous need for an apparatus or system to "inactivate" or "attenuate" pathogens and particularly viruses that are present in air and on the surfaces and within the sub-surfaces of objects and materials in a safe and effective manner. To render a very high percentage, if not all such pathogens inactive, is the ultimate objective of the apparatus disclosed herein.

Apparatus for inactivation of airborne pathogens and pathogens on the surface of an object


Counterbalance devices are provided for a closure mounted with respect to a container. The devices can include a stationary friction member, an elongated flexible member, and a biasing member. The stationary friction member can be comprised of a mounting portion and a friction portion. An intermediate portion of the elongated flexible member can also slidingly engage the friction surface of the stationary friction member.

Pivoting door systems are known to include conventional counterbalance systems configured to facilitate pivoting of a door between an open and closed orientation. However, conventional counterbalance systems can result in an increase in material and assembly costs due to the complexity of these conventional systems. Moreover, conventional counterbalance systems may have undesirable wear characteristics over time.
Thus, there is a need for reliable counterbalance devices with reduced complexity and assembly costs.


An improved apparatus for viewing agglutination of blood cells in test tubes utilizes magnetic force to hold a magnifying mirror in the desired orientation on the base portion of the viewer. The magnetically held mirror can be adjusted more quickly and easily than mirrors supported by mechanical clamping arrangements, as in previously available agglutination viewers. The improved viewer also includes an illumination source in the form of a lamp head which can be adjusted in position with respect to the base portion and magnifying mirror. In one embodiment, the lamp head is provided with illumination by means of a fiber optic cable enclosed in a flexible gooseneck-type conduit. The fiber optic cable receives light from an incandescent lamp or other light source housed in the base portion of the viewer. In a second embodiment, the lamp head contains an incandescent lamp and can be rotated about two perpendicular axes by means of an articulated structure connected to the base portion of the viewer.

Blood cell agglutination viewers are commonly used in medical laboratories, blood banks, and similar types of facilities. After a test tube containing a blood sample is centrifuged, a laboratory or medical technician "reads" the tube by examining the agglutination of cells in the bottom of the tube. The agglutination viewer includes a light source and a magnifying mirror to assist in this process. By positioning the sample tube between the light source and mirror, any agglutination which has occurred in the bottom of the tube can be visually detected.
In an existing type of agglutination viewer sold by Becton Dickinson and Company, the assignee of the present invention, the magnifying mirror that is used to view agglutination in the sample tube is supported by an adjustable clamp mounted on the base portion of the viewer. Ball joints allow the mirror to be adjusted to the desired orientation, and a thumb screw is used to lock the clamp in the desired position. Although this is an effective arrangement, the mechanical clamp assembly is somewhat difficult to adjust and can become worn after prolonged use.
Another disadvantage of the known agglutination viewer has to do with the nature of the illumination source, which consists of an incandescent lamp and shade assembly that is suspended over the base portion of the viewer by means of a flexible metal gooseneck. Although the flexible gooseneck is advantageous in allowing the light source to be adjusted to any desired position, the incandescent bulb and shade assembly can become hot after an extended period of operation. This is undesirable not only because of the discomfort that may be experienced by the user when adjusting the position of the light source, but also because prolonged high temperatures can lead to heat-induced failures in the lamp socket assembly. The need to provide electrical wiring in a movable part of the viewer (i.e., in the gooseneck and shade assembly), is also disadvantageous since repeated adjustment of the lamp position can cause this wiring to become broken or disconnected.
In view of the foregoing disadvantages and limitations of the prior art, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved agglutination viewer in which adjustments in the orientation of the magnifying mirror can be carried out quickly and easily, without the need to manipulate a mechanical clamping assembly.
A further object of the invention is to provide an improved agglutination viewer in which the source of illumination does not become hot to the touch, so that it can be manipulated without discomfort even after the viewer has been in operation for an extended period of time.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide an improved agglutination viewer in which electrical wiring does not have to be provided in the portion of the illumination source which is moved or manipulated by the user, thereby avoiding problems due to wire breakage and the like.
It is a still further object of the invention to provide an improved agglutination viewer in which the illumination source is lighter in weight and more flexible than in the prior art, so that it can be adjusted more easily and accurately.

Agglutination viewer with fiber optic light pipe and magnetic magnifying mirror


An optical disk device that records and reproduces information on/from a recordable optical disk is provided. The optical disk device comprises a reference clock signal generating unit generating a data-writing reference clock signal used to obtain a data-writing timing upon recording data to the optical disk, a synchronizing signal generating unit generating a predetermined sector synchronizing signal from the data-writing reference clock signal, a data demodulating unit reading address information indicating a position on the optical disk from data recorded on the optical disk so as to demodulate the address information into a predetermined synchronizing signal, a displacement detecting unit detecting a displacement between a phase of the sector synchronizing signal and a phase of the synchronizing signal; and a data-writing control unit controlling a data-writing upon performing an additional recording to the optical disk by controlling a revolution of the optical disk dynamically according to the displacement.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to an optical disk device which records and reproduces information to/from a writable optical disk, and more particularly, to a technology for preventing the occurrence of a buffer-underrun during a data-recording.
2. Description of the Related Art
A writable optical disk has a relatively large unit into which to write data due to characteristics of a recording format. Many of conventional optical disk devices do not cause a data-recording to an optical disk to pause. Therefore, unless data is transmitted from a host computer to the optical disk device at a higher transfer rate than a recording speed of the optical disk device to the optical disk, the data-recording comes to be suspended. When the data-recording to the optical disk is suspended, the data-recording fails because the data cannot be written additionally.
This is called a buffer-underrun. As the recording speed to the optical disk becomes higher, the buffer-underrun is more likely to occur, and the resulting failure of the data-recording poses a serious problem for a user, because a CD-R is a write once type, in which a failure of a data-recording means a loss of an optical disk and a loss of the data already written or to be written.
A method has been contrived for preventing such a buffer-underrun: increasing a capacity of a buffer RAM provided in an optical disk device for temporarily storing data from a host computer so as to absorb the change in a data transfer speed from the host computer during a data-recording. However, increasing the capacity of the buffer RAM is not a good measure, because increasing the capacity of the buffer RAM leads to raising a cost of the optical disk device as a whole. Additionally, the buffer RAM cannot deal with all cases related to the differences in a throughput of host computers.
Another method contrived is detecting in advance that a buffer-underrun is near to occur so as to change the data-recording speed to an optical disk. However, this method involves a complicated structure and control, because the data-recording speed needs to be switched during a data-recording to the optical disk.
Thereupon, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 10-49990 discloses an invention which can prevent a buffer-underrun beforehand regardless of a change in a data transfer speed from a host computer by comprising a means for temporarily stopping a data-recording during the data-recording to an optical disk, and a means for resuming the data-recording from a position at which the data-recording is stopped.
In other words, the Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 10-49990 describes that, when a data-transfer from a host computer cannot keep up with a data-recording to an optical disk, the data-recording operation is temporarily stopped until the data-recording is resumed when a sufficient amount of data to perform a data-recording to the optical disk is secured after the data-transfer is resumed. In this arrangement, a displacement in the joint of the two recordings is made extremely small in terms of positional precision so that the data maintains a continuity by a CIRC demodulation, and an area including the joint can be reproduced without causing a serious problem in terms of data-reproduction. Further, as to a means for forming the above-mentioned precise joint, the invention disclosed in the Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 10-49990 is characterized by comprising a means for accurately detecting an end of data recorded last time when resuming a data-recording, and a means for resuming the data-recording from the end of the data.
Such a recording control as disclosed in the Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 10-49990 involves a possibility that a data-recording operation to an optical disk is frequently stopped and resumed. Normally, data transferred from a host computer is temporarily stored in a buffer RAM, and a predetermined parity, etc. is encoded and added to the data. Thereafter, the data is subjected to processes including an EFM modulation so as to be recorded as recorded data on an optical disk. Currently, in a conventional optical disk device, the capacity of the buffer RAM is approximately from 512 kilobytes (Kbytes) to 2 megabytes (Mbytes).
On the other hand, a recording speed to a CD, for example, is 150 Kbytes at a normal speed, and if a recording speed keeps being increased as it currently is, the recording speed becomes 2.4 Mbytes/sec at a sixteen-fold speed. Therefore, all the data temporarily stored in the buffer RAM is to be recorded on the optical disk in as short a time as approximately 0.8 seconds. Accordingly, unless new data is transmitted from the host computer in this short time and then a predetermined parity, etc. is encoded and added to the data, a buffer-underrun occurs in which the recording operation is temporarily stopped. Even though the capability of a host computer connected to an optical disk device is being improved, a possibility that a data-recording operation is frequently stopped and resumed has to be treated properly in order to guarantee a stable operation in association with any host computer.
However, when performing the above-mentioned control of detecting an ending position of the previous recording and accurately resuming the data-recording from the ending position, under the situation where a data-recording operation is frequently stopped and resumed, a displacement may occur between absolute time information (ATIP absolute time information) and a position of recorded data, and when the displacement actually occurs, the displacement is accumulated. When the accumulated displacement surpasses a certain value, the data-recording operation cannot be resumed. As mentioned above, the amount of data that is transferred from a host computer and can be retained in an optical disk device is equivalent to the capacity of a buffer RAM at most. Therefore, unless another data is transferred from the host computer within a period by the end of recording the data stored in the buffer RAM, the recording operation has to be temporarily stopped.
Further, if a change in revolution of a motor occurs during this period, and if the change cannot be absorbed in a motor revolution control, the ending position of the recording is displaced from the absolute position on the optical disk. Thereafter, upon resuming the recording, the displaced ending position of the previous recording is detected, and the data-recording is resumed from the displaced ending position. Accordingly, the displacement from the absolute position on the optical disk is accumulated. In a control of a recording position for resuming a data-recording as an example, a frame address of the aimed position is first detected by using ATIP absolute time information. Next, the ending position is predicted by switching from information obtained by reproducing data recorded on an optical disk to a sub-code frame synchronizing-signal.
In this control of determining a position for resuming a data-recording, when the above-mentioned accumulation of displacement surpasses one sub-code frame, the data-recording may be erroneously resumed from a position before the ending position of the previous recording. That is, an overlap occurs in the above-mentioned joint of the two recordings in some case, and, in other case, recorded information is reproduced while the recorded information keeps the displacement from the absolute position information on the optical disk. In both cases, there is a possibility that data may not be reproduced accurately. The seriousness of this problem depends on the number of times a data-recording operation is temporarily stopped and resumed which affects the accumulation of displacement, and also depends on a length of a period from a resumption of the data-recording operation until a stop thereof which affects the time to be taken for a motor revolution control to transit from an unstable state to a stable state. In other words, the above-mentioned possibility becomes greater as the capacity of the buffer RAM becomes smaller, and as the recording speed to the optical disk becomes higher.

Optical disk device controlling a revolution of a recordable optical disk according to a displacement between a phase of a sector synchronizing signal generated from a data-writing reference clock signal and a phase of a synchronizing signal obtained from address


The invention is directed to improvement of reliability of a chip size package type semiconductor device in a manufacturing method thereof. A support body is formed on a front surface of a semiconductor substrate with a first insulation film therebetween. Then, a part of the semiconductor substrate is selectively etched from its back surface to form an opening, and then a second insulation film is formed on the back surface. Next, the first insulation film and the second insulation film at a bottom of the opening are selectively etched, to expose pad electrodes at the bottom of the opening. Then, a third resist layer is selectively formed on a second insulation film at boundaries between sidewalls and the bottom of the opening on the back surface of the semiconductor substrate. Furthermore, a wiring layer electrically connected with the pad electrodes at the bottom of the opening and extending onto the back surface of the semiconductor substrate is selectively formed corresponding to a predetermined pattern.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a semiconductor device manufacturing method, particularly, a method of manufacturing a chip size package type semiconductor device.
2. Description of the Related Art
CSP (Chip Size Package) has received attention in recent years as a packaging technology. The CSP means a small package having almost the same outside dimensions as those of a semiconductor die packaged in it. Conventionally, BGA (ball grid array) type semiconductor devices have been known as a kind of CSP type semiconductor devices. In this BGA type semiconductor device, a plurality of ball-shaped conductive terminals is arrayed in a grid pattern on one surface of the package, being electrically connected with pad electrodes of the semiconductor die. When this BGA type semiconductor device is mounted on electronic equipment, the semiconductor die is electrically connected with an external circuit on a printed circuit board by compression bonding of the ball-shaped conductive terminals to wiring patterns on the printed circuit board.
Such a conventional BGA type semiconductor device is manufactured by a following manufacturing method, for example.
First, a semiconductor substrate sectioned by a dicing line is prepared. Electronic devices are formed on a front surface of the semiconductor substrate. Then, pad electrodes connected with the electronic devices are formed on the front surface of the semiconductor substrate. Furthermore, a support body is formed on the front surface of the semiconductor substrate. Then, openings are formed along the dicing line by selectively etching a part of the semiconductor substrate from its back surface. A wiring layer is then formed, being electrically connected with the pad electrodes exposed in the openings and extending from an inside of the openings onto the back surface of the semiconductor substrate. Furthermore, the wiring layer is selectively etched to form a predetermined wiring pattern. Then, a protection layer exposing a part of the wiring layer is formed on the back surface of the semiconductor substrate including on the wiring layer, and conductive terminals are formed on a part of the wiring layer. Finally, the semiconductor substrate is separated into a plurality of semiconductor dies by dicing along the dicing line.
The relevant technology is disclosed in the Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2002-512436.
FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view showing one of processes of a method of manufacturing the above described semiconductor device. As shown in FIG. 14, pad electrodes 52 are formed on a front surface of a semiconductor substrate 50 with a first insulation film 51 therebetween. Furthermore, a support body 54 is formed on the front surface of the semiconductor substrate 50 including on the pad electrodes 52 with a resin layer 53 therebetween. An opening 50w is formed along a dicing line DL.
In the opening 50w formed on a back surface of the semiconductor substrate 50, however, damages, such as cracks 60, occur to a second insulation film 56 on the back surface. These cracks 60 are caused by the stress applied to the opening 50w by the semiconductor substrate 50 that is distorted when the substrate 50 is handled.
When the damage such as the cracks 60 occurs to the second insulation film 56, a solution such as etchant used in subsequent processes infiltrates therein. This causes a problem that the pad electrodes 52 formed near the second insulation film 56 and other portions of the semiconductor substrate 50 corrode away. As a result, the reliability of the semiconductor device lowers.

Semiconductor device manufacturing method


A machine readable description of a new feature of a processor is provided by a processor vendor. Control code executing on a processor, such as a traditional operating system kernel, a partitioning kernel, or the like can be programmed to receive the description of the feature and to use information provided by the description to detect, enable and manage operation of the new feature.

Microprocessor vendors typically develop a family of processors designed around a given processor architecture and then continuously evolve the architecture. For example, Intel Corporation has developed several generations of processors around its x86 architecture, the most recent being the PENTIUM® family of microprocessors. Similarly, Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. has developed families of processors designed around its x64 architecture. Often a processor vendor will add a feature to an existing model or family of processors. Examples of new features that have been added to a processor family include the Physical Address Extension (PAE), MMX instructions, and streaming SIMD extensions (SSE) features added to the PENTIUM® family of processors.
Features that add additional bits to existing registers within a processor, that add new registers to the processor, or that require additional processor state to be saved and restored across processor context switches can be problematic for both processor vendors and developers of operating systems designed to execute on such a processor. In particular, in order for an operating system to use such a feature or to make such a feature available to application programs, the kernel of the operating system must be modified to support the new feature. This is true of both traditional operating system kernels, such as the kernel of the WINDOWS® operating system available from Microsoft Corporation, and so-called partitioning kernels that provide partitioned execution environments for multiple "guest" operating systems. Because these kinds of new features require support in the kernel, the introduction of such a feature by a processor vendor is effectively gated on the release of an updated version of the kernel.
The existence of new features in a processor presents additional problems for partitioning kernels. A partitioning kernel provides a separate, partitioned execution environment for each of multiple "guest" operating systems running on a single computing system. While each operating system runs in a separate partition, it appears to each operating system that it has full control of the underlying processor and other system components. In reality, the partitioning kernel presents one or more separate, virtualized processors to each operating system. It is important in such a system to prevent secrets from leaking between partitions and to prevent one partition from corrupting the state of another partition. However, if a new feature has been implemented in a processor on which the partitioning kernel is running and that feature adds new registers or additional bits to existing registers or adds to the processor state that must be saved during a context switch from one partition to another, the potential to leak secrets between partitions or for one partition to corrupt the state of another exists. Thus, it is particularly important for a partitioning kernel to be aware of any such new feature.
Thus, there is a need for a mechanism by which a processor vendor can make information concerning a new feature of a processor available to a computing system so that the system can detect, enable and manage operation of the new feature. The present invention satisfies this need.

Methods for describing processor features


Methods and apparatus for reducing phase jitter in a multi-tone, e.g., OFDM, receiver are described. A jitter compensation filter is used to process a received signal following timing recovery and/or channel compensation to reduce and/or eliminate the effect of phase jitter. Jitter compensation filter tap weights are updated after filtering the received signal based on one or more signal error measurements. The same received signal is filtered using the updated filter, and error measurements generated from the filtered signal are used to once again update the filter's tap weights. After a fixed number of filter update cycles and/or some other filter updating stop criterion being satisfied, the filter updating process is stopped and the filtered signal is used, e.g., supplied to additional receiver circuitry.

As people become more mobile, the number of portable devices, e.g., notebook computers, personal data assistants, cell phones, etc., continues to increase. The use of wireless communications techniques enables modern portable devices to receive and transmit data from various locations.
With recent advances in the Internet and other data services, users of portable devices are beginning to feel a need to receive and transmit ever increasing amounts of data using wireless communications techniques.
In wireless communications a data signal, e.g., a series of symbols, is frequently modulated on a carrier signal, e.g., a carrier tone, having a particular carrier or tone frequency. In order to increase the amount of data that can be transmitted in a given period of time, a plurality of different carriers may be used to transmit data, e.g., symbols, in parallel. This results in the broadcasting of what is known as a multi-tone signal. When multi-tone signals are used, the bandwidth of the system becomes a function of the number of carrier signals in the multi-tone signal. An OFDM signal is one particular type of multi-tone signal.
As the result of the transmission of a signal through a communications channel and the processing of the received signal, e.g., by a tuner and other circuitry, the transmitted signal may be distorted. For example, the communications channel may introduce amplitude and/or phase distortions. Tuners and other receiver circuitry may introduce time varying phase distortions sometimes call phase jitter. Such signal distortions can make it difficult to recover transmitted data, e.g., symbols, from a received signal.
Communications channel distortions are difficult to avoid particularly in the case of over the air transmissions. Accordingly, attempts at addressing communications channel distortions have focused primarily on compensating for the introduced distortions at some point in the receiver.
Phase jitter, in contrast to communications channel distortions, can be reduced or eliminated by using high quality circuits in the receiver. Accordingly, attempts at addressing phase jitter have been focused on using better quality tuners and other circuits in a receiver than those which introduce unacceptable amounts of phase jitter.
While reducing phase jitter by using high quality receiver components can be effective, it has the disadvantage of requiring the use of high quality components which are usually more expensive than lower quality components, i.e., the components which introduce more phase jitter. In consumer applications, cost is often a major concern. Accordingly, from a cost perspective, in many applications the use of high quality tuners and other comparatively expensive circuitry can be undesirable.
In view of the above discussion, it should be apparent that there is a need for methods and apparatus for increasing the amount of phase jitter which can be tolerated in a receiver, e.g., a multi-tone signal receiver, thereby facilitating the use of relatively inexpensive tuners and/or other receiver circuitry. In addition, from a cost perspective, it is desirable that at least some methods and apparatus for enhancing a receiver's tolerance of phase jitter be relatively straight forward and inexpensive to implement.

Methods and apparatus for implementing multi-tone receivers


A communication device having a jitter buffer, the communication device comprising an interface and a processing system. The interface is configured to receive a session setup message for a session between a near end and a far end wherein the session setup message identifies the far end. The processing system is configured to process the session setup message to determine a jitter buffer setting for the communication device based on the far end, and configure the jitter buffer in response to determining the jitter buffer setting.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to telecommunications, and in particular, to systems, methods, and software for predetermining jitter buffer settings in telecommunication networks.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Jitter buffers are commonly located at the end points of most packet communication paths used for real-time communications. For example, packet voice calls often times originate from a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone running in a packet network and terminate to a plain old telephone service (POTS) phone located on a circuit switched network. Typically, a media gateway is located at the border between the packet network and the circuit switched network to interwork the packet and TDM traffic. In such an example, the entire call path would extend from a SIP phone to a TDM phone. However, the packet communication path would be considered the portion of the call path between the SIP phone and the gateway. In such a case, both the SIP phone and the gateway would be considered end points of the packet communication path. Conventionally, end points employ jitter buffers to reduce the effects of variable latency or delay in the packet communication path.
Given the live nature of real-time applications, jitter buffer operations have a large impact on the quality of real-time applications. For example, an end user could experience either a gap in the operation of or a complete cessation of a real-time application as a result of packet jitter. In addition, jitter buffers can be static or dynamic. Static jitter buffers are configured with a particular size that does not change during operation. When a static jitter buffer becomes congested, packets are simply dropped. Dynamic jitter buffers can be automatically reconfigured to accommodate higher traffic patterns. Dynamic jitter buffers are sometimes referred to as adaptive jitter buffers.
Unfortunately, dynamic current jitter buffers are adapted after the commencement of real-time session traffic. This is problematic because a jitter buffer that is not optimally configured during the initial stages of a real-time session will cause session disruptions, such as session gaps. Furthermore, most end points are configured to use the same buffer adaptation processes, such as buffer threshold metrics or buffer algorithms, for each and every session. Because of these drawbacks, the early stages of real-time sessions often times suffer from the ill effects of poor jitter buffer operation.


Serially transferred data is over sampled with a multiphase clock signal generated as a result of shifting a predetermined frequency clock signal by a predetermined phase each, to obtain over sampling data; generating clock patterns, having mutually different phase states according to a data phase state of the over sampling data. A first phase pattern generated from the over sampling data is compared with a second phase pattern generated from the clock pattern, and the number of bits to extract from the over sampling data is controlled. A phase error of the over sampling data is detected based on the first phase pattern and the second phase pattern. Bits to extract from the over sampling data is selected to restore the data based on the phase state of the clock pattern and the phase error.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a data recovery method and a data recovery circuit for restoring serially transferred data, a data transmitting/receiving apparatus and an information processing apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, along with an increasing demand for a large-size, high-speed data transmission between devices, boards or chips, various high-speed interface such as USB ((Universal Serial Bus), Serial ATA, IEEE1394, 1G/10G Ethernet (registered trademark), InfiniBand, RapidIO, Fibre Channel and PCI Express, have been proposed, put in practical use, and thus, a tendency for a higher transmission speed and a larger transmission data size may increase also in future.
Many of these high-speed interfaces apply a serial transfer way, in which data is transmitted in synchronization with a predetermined frequency clock signal. The clock signal of the frequency is embedded in data to transfer (embedded clock signal), and, on a reception side, the clock signal is extracted from the reception data, and the reception data is restored with the use of the extracted clock signal (for example, see Japanese Laid-open Patent Application No. 2004-128980). A circuit carrying out such operation is called a clock data recovery circuit (simply referred to as CDR: Clock Data Recovery, hereinafter).
In CDR in the related art, PLL (Phase Locked Loop) circuit is commonly used. VCO (Voltage Controlled Oscillator) included in PLL is controlled in such a manner as to be in synchronization with a phase of the reception data, and a reproduction clock signal is extracted. Then, the reproduction clock signal is used as a reference clock signal, the reception data is latched, and thus, the reception data is accurately restored.
However, as a data transfer rate improves for the purpose of achieving recent high speed data transfer (for example, as the data transfer rate exceeding Gbps order), the oscillation frequency of VOC exceeds Gbps order, and, achieving the CDR circuit having a function of restoring such high-speed data may be difficult. Further, negative factors such as increase in the chip size, increase in the power consumption, increase in the costs, and so forth, may occur at the same time.
Further, when the data transfer rate increases, wiring delay may become unignorable. Accordingly, device layout, wiring layout and so forth should be considered more carefully. Thus circuit design may become difficult. Further, since characteristics of devices to actually apply may influence this matter much, re-design of layout may be required for each process (and, also, re-design of the circuit itself may be required). Thus, circuit reusability may degrade, and required development time may increase accordingly.
In order to solve the problem, an over sampling type clock data recovery circuit has been proposed (for example, see B. Kim et al., "A 30-MHz Hybrid Analog/Digital Clock Recovery Circuit in 2-um CMOS", IEEE JSSC, December 1990, pp 1385-1394). FIG. 1 shows a circuit configuration of the over sampling type clock data recovery circuit in the related art. A multiphase clock generating part 200 includes PLL, DLL (Delay Locked Loop) or such, and generates mutually equal interval multiphase clock signals from a reference clock signal RefCLK. Flip-flop devices (which may be simply referred to as FFs or F/Fs, hereinafter) 201 input data to their data terminals, input respective clock signals of the multiphase clock signals from the multiphase clock generating part 200 to their clock terminals, and take the input data upon rising up (or decaying down) of the respective clock signals.
That is, data output from FFs 201 is one obtained from sampling of the input data with the clock signals having phases slightly different from each other. A digital PLL 202 detects change timing of the data provided by FFs 201, selects the multiphase clock signal which is in synchronization with the thus-detected change timing, and restores it as a reproduction clock signal RecCLK. Further, the DPLL 202 selects data with the reproduction clock signal RecCLK and a clock signal having a predetermined phase difference therefrom (for example, an opposite phase), and outputs the same. Upon selecting the reproduction clock signal, a filter is applied to smooth the data change timing. A signal processing part (not shown) operates with the use of the reproduction clock signal RecCLK as a reference clock signal. Such a configuration of the CDR circuit may be made of a digital circuit except the multiphase clock generating part, and thus, such a circuit may be relatively easily achieved.
The multiphase clock signals may previously have equal phase intervals therebetween. FIG. 2 shows one example illustrating a problem occurring when the multiphase clock signals do not have equal phase intervals. Here, description is made assuming 4 phases, as one example. In FIG. 2, it is assumed that a phase of a reproduction clock signal CLK2 thus selected delays by Δ from an ideal state. Respective data in the signal processing part operates in synchronization with the reproduction clock signal CLK2.
When the reproduction clock signal is switched to a phase of CLK1 at a timing Tsw, a period of the reproduction clock signal is reduced further by Δ in addition to the original phase difference locally, a set up time Tsu′ in FF cannot be sufficiently ensured, and, at the worst, malfunction may occur. This is because, even though design is made such that equal phase intervals should be provided from the multiphase clock generating part 100, skew (for example, wiring delay, load or such, may influence this matter) in each clock signal, up to the output end of the reproduction clock signal RecCLK, may cause the problem. Such phenomena may become more remarkable when the data transfer speed increases. In order to avoid the problem, possible delay amounts in the respective multiphase clock signals should be adjusted at respective parts, which may be difficult to actually achieve, and thus, the above-mentioned problem may not be completely solved.
Further, a method of applying a phase interpolator in the multiphase clock generating part to adjust the phase has been proposed (for example, see Japanese Laid-open Patent Application No. 2002-190724). By providing the phase interpolator or such, the phases of the multiphase clock signals can be made to have equal intervals.

Data recovery method, data recovery circuit, data transmitting/receiving apparatus and information processing apparatus


The present invention provides an assembly for mounting to, or forming part of, the stator assembly of a rotating electrical machine. A plurality of component modules are provided at angularly spaced-apart locations around the assembly and contain power electronics components. Electrically conductive toroidal inlet and outlet manifolds are provided to convey coolant fluid (preferably a liquid dielectric such as MIDEL) to and from the component modules. The inlet and outlet manifolds provide a dual function as a coolant circuit for conveying coolant fluid and as busbars.

Electrical machines are widely used in industrial applications for converting electrical energy into rotational or linear movement (in the case of a motor) or for producing electrical energy from rotational or linear movement (in the case of a generator). Known arrangements use busbars to supply power to control circuitry associated with the electrical machine and separate coolant circuits to cool the same.


Disclosed is a method for producing an α,β-unsaturated ether efficiently and stably for a long time. In the method for producing an α,β-unsaturated ether, an acetal is thermally decomposed in the presence of a catalyst containing an apatite represented by any of the following formula (1)-(4)(M)5−y(HZO4)y(ZO4)3−y(X)1−y  (1)(M)5−y(HPO4)y(PO4)3−y(X)1−y  (2)(M)5−y+2n(HZO4)y(ZO4)3−y(X)1−y(SiO4)n  (3)(M)5−y+m(HZO4)y(ZO4)3−y(X)1−y(CO3)m  (4).

Either by homopolymerization or by copolymerization with other substances, α,β-unsaturated ethers are industrially important substances for many types of synthetic resins, adhesives, lubricating oils and as intermediates for drugs, agricultural chemicals, perfumes, etc. Thermolysis of acetals is commonly known as a method for producing α,β-unsaturated ethers. In general, a catalyst is used in the thermolysis reaction.
With respect to such catalysts, patent document 1 discloses sulfates of metals having a higher ionization tendency than hydrogen, and catalysts wherein these metal sulfates are supported on a solid carrier such as alumina or silica gel. The patent document illustrates the supported catalysts by describing catalysts wherein calcium sulfate, manganese sulfate, etc. are supported on alumina, magnesium silicate, etc. Although these catalysts show relatively high catalytic performance in terms of conversion of raw materials, there are cases where the selectivity is inadequate. The document does not consider the life of the catalysts.
There are also disclosed carbonates and molybdates (for example, refer to patent document 2), and oxides or carbonates of alkali metals or alkaline earth metals (for example, refer to patent document 3). These are inadequate in terms of catalytic performances such as degree of conversion and selectivity, and are severely degraded due to coking. Furthermore, the mechanical strength of the catalysts is poor, and there are concerns over problems such as catalyst fragmentation when the catalysts are used in actual plants.
Furthermore, silica/magnesia (for example, refer to patent document 4), niobic acids (for example, refer to patent document 5), magnesium oxide (for example, refer to patent document 6), and base-treated zeolites (for example, refer to patent document 7) are also cited as examples of the reaction catalysts. However, these catalysts too have poor catalytic performances such as conversion and selectivity, and large amounts of coke are deposited to shorten the catalyst life.
A patent wherein a calcium salt of phosphoric acid is used as a catalyst to effect thermolysis of an acetal is also disclosed (for example, refer to patent document 8) In detail, calcium phosphate Ca3(PO4)2, calcium hydrogen phosphate CaH(PO4), etc. are used to catalyze thermolysis reaction of acetaldehyde diisobutyl acetal. However, these catalysts too have inadequate catalytic performances such as conversion and catalyst life.
On the other hand, a method which uses lithium phosphate (for example, refer to patent document 9) as a catalyst is disclosed. Although this catalyst shows relatively high catalytic performance in terms of selectivity and suppresses coke deposition, the degree of conversion is inadequate.
There are also disclosed a catalyst system wherein lithium phosphate is supported on silica (for example, refer to patent document 10) and a catalyst system wherein a salt of an alkali metal or alkaline earth metal is added to a mixture of lithium phosphate and silica sol (for example, refer to patent document 11). However, these catalyst systems have insufficient conversion.
Therefore, there has been a demand for reaction catalysts which simultaneously satisfy both high catalytic performance and long catalyst life, and which can efficiently and stably produce an α,β-unsaturated ether for a long time.
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Examined Patent Application Publication No. S41-5376
[Patent Document 2] Japanese Examined Patent Application Publication No. S49-45382
[Patent Document 3] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. S57-139030
[Patent Document 4] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. H10-175904
[Patent Document 5] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. H09-143117
[Patent Document 6] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. H08-277237
[Patent Document 7] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. S62-87247
[Patent Document 8] Japanese Examined Patent Application Publication No. S54-1683
[Patent Document 9] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. H05-229977
[Patent Document 10] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. S58-32838
[Patent Document 11] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. S57-185232

Method for producing α, β-unsaturated ether


In one embodiment, optimizing inventory includes accessing service level band sets. Each service level band set is associated with a policy group, and includes service level bands. Each service level band of a service level band set has a service level priority with respect to any other service level bands of the same service level band set. An inventory band set is determined for each service level band set. Each inventory band set includes inventory bands, where each inventory band satisfies a corresponding service level band assuming an unconstrained network. Each inventory band of an inventory band set has an inventory priority with respect to any other inventory bands of the same inventory band set. A feasible supply chain plan that satisfies the inventory band sets is generated in order of the inventory priorities until a constrained network is depleted.

1. Technical Field
This invention relates generally to the field of inventory optimization and more specifically to optimizing inventory in accordance with a constrained network.
2. Background
A supply chain supplies products to one or more customers in response to demand. A supply chain may include nodes that store inventory such as the products or components or materials needed to produce the products. The flow of items through the nodes of a supply chain may be subject to feasibility constraints. Some known techniques for determining the amount of inventory to maintain at each node take into account these feasibility constraints. According to one known technique, the amount of demand that may be satisfied with an unconstrained network is calculated, and the demand is then decreased on an ad hoc basis to account for the feasibility constraints. According to another known technique, the flow of items through the supply chain is simulated using assumptions about the feasibility constraints. These known techniques for determining inventory in accordance with feasibility constraints, however, may be inefficient and may fail to provide a desired level of accuracy.

Optimizing inventory in accordance with a constrained network


A helmet in which a subsidiary cap portion hardly pivots forward about an axial support means thereof as a fulcrum to undesirably move upward accidentally when a comparatively large impact acts on the helmet. A subsidiary cap portion locking mechanism which locks the subsidiary cap portion at a lower position includes a lock pin on a main cap portion and a locking recess for a lock lever on the subsidiary cap portion. While the subsidiary cap portion is in a backward state, an angle that a third straight line, which extends in a direction along which the lock pin starts to disengage from the locking recess, forms with a second straight line obtained by extending a first straight line, which extends from the axial support means of the subsidiary cap portion to the lock pin, falls within a range between an angle which is upward from the second straight line by 65° (preferably 40° and more preferably 15°) and an angle which is downward from the second straight line by 85° (preferably 60° and more preferably 35°).

As vehicle helmets worn by a motorcycle rider or the like, a full-face-type helmet and a jet-type helmet are conventionally known. In the full-face-type helmet, a chin cover for covering the wearer's chin is integrally formed with the cap portion. In the jet-type helmet, no chin cover is formed on the cap portion so as to expose the face of the wearer substantially entirely. Another full-face-type helmet (to be referred to as a "full-face-type helmet serving also as a jet-type helmet" hereinafter) is also conventionally known, as is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,226,803 B1. In this full-face-type helmet, the cap portion comprises a main cap portion having substantially the same shape as that of the cap portion of a jet-type helmet, and a subsidiary cap portion attached to the main cap portion to be vertically pivotal so as to selectively cover the wear's chin, so that the helmet can have the functions of both a full-face-type helmet and a jet-type helmet.
In the conventional full-face-type helmet disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,226,803 B1 and serving also as the jet-type helmet, when the subsidiary cap portion is at the lower position (i.e., in the lower state) or backward position (i.e., in the backward state), the subsidiary cap portion serves as a chin cover means. When the subsidiary cap portion is at the upper position (i.e., in the upper state) or forward position (i.e., in the forward state), a large window formed in the main cap portion is opened entirely, and the cap portion accordingly does not have a chin cover means, in the same manner as in the jet-type helmet. When the wearer wearing the full-face-type helmet serving also as the jet-type helmet, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,226,803 B1, is driving a motor cycle at high speed, the helmet is worn with its subsidiary cap portion being lowered to the lower position, in order to prevent a large wind pressure from acting on the wearer's chin and its vicinity. The helmet of U.S. Pat. No. 6,226,803 B1 is also provided with a subsidiary cap portion locking mechanism for locking the subsidiary cap portion at the lower position with respect to the main cap portion, so that a large impact or wind pressure does not undesirably let the subsidiary cap portion move upward during high-speed driving. Furthermore, the subsidiary cap portion locking mechanism in the helmet of U.S. Pat. No. 6,226,803 B1 comprises a release button serving as an unlocking means or unlocking member so as to unlock the subsidiary cap portion locked at the lower position. When the wearer presses the release button for unlocking, the subsidiary cap portion at the lower position is unlocked.
In the full-face-type helmet serving also as the jet-type helmet as described above disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,226,803 B1, while the wearer wears the helmet with the subsidiary cap portion being lowered to the lower position, when a comparatively large impact acts on the helmet in a direction to move the subsidiary cap portion upward, even if the wearer does not press the release button to unlock, the subsidiary cap portion may accidentally move upward. The reason for this will be described with reference to FIG. 15.
FIG. 15 shows the mutual positional relationship, seen from the side direction (that is, the side), among an attaching screw 7, lock lever 83 and lock pin 92 of the cap portion of the helmet of U.S. Pat. No. 6,226,803 B1 with the lower end opening of the cap portion of the helmet being substantially horizontal. Regarding the reference numerals of the respective portions in FIG. 15, portions that are common with those in FIG. 14 of an embodiment of the present invention (this FIG. 14 is a view similar to FIG. 15) are denoted by the same reference numerals. In FIG. 15, the attaching screw (axial support means) 7 attaches a subsidiary cap portion 6 to a main cap portion 5 to be reciprocally pivotal. A rivet 84 pivotally attaches the lock lever 83 to an attaching base (not shown). The lock lever 83 has a locking recess 94. In the state of FIG. 15 (that is, when the subsidiary cap portion 6 is in the lower state), the lock pin 92 engages with the locking recess 94. The lock lever 83 is also provided with a wire attached portion 86 and stopped portion 85. A spherical body 119, having a free end to which a tractive wire portion 75c fixes, attaches to the wire attached portion 86. The stopped portion 85 is inserted in an incision in the attaching base.
In FIG. 15 which shows the helmet of U.S. Pat. No. 6,226,803 B1, reference symbol L1 denotes the first straight line extending from the center of the attaching screw 7 to the center of the lock pin 92. The intermediate portion of the first straight line L1 is omitted. Reference symbol L2 denotes the second straight line obtained by extending the first straight line L1 from the center of the lock pin 92 in a direction opposite to the center of the attaching screw 7 so as to be identical with the first straight line L1. Reference symbol L3 denotes the third straight line extending from the center of the lock pin 92 in a direction along which the lock pin 92 starts to relatively disengage from the locking recess 94 upon forward pivot motion (that is, clockwise pivot motion in FIG. 15) of the lock lever 83 about the center of the rivet (axial support means) 84 as the pivot fulcrum. The third straight line L3 is substantially perpendicular to a fourth straight line L4 which connects the center of the rivet 84 to the center of the lock pin 92 and faces in a direction substantially opposite to the second straight line L2. Hence, an angle θ1 that the third straight line L3 forms with the second straight line L2 is substantially equal to or near 180° (more specifically, an upward angle of about 175°).
In FIG. 15 which shows the helmet of U.S. Pat. No. 6,226,803 B1, the angle θ1 that the second straight line L2 forms with the third straight line L3 is substantially equal to or near 180°. Hence, the pivot direction along which the subsidiary cap portion 6 starts to move upward and the pivot direction along which the lock lever 83 starts to pivot forward about the rivet 84 as the fulcrum so as to relatively disengage the lock pin 92 from the locking recess 94 face substantially the same side (in other words, clockwise in FIG. 15). Therefore, assume that a comparatively large impact that is to pivot the subsidiary cap portion 6 forward from the backward position shown in FIG. 15 acts on the helmet. If the lock lever 83, rivet 84, lock pin 92, or the like deforms elastically or in other manners, the lock pin 92 accidentally disengages relatively from the locking recess 94 of the lock lever 83, and the subsidiary cap portion 6 may pivot forward about the attaching screw 7 as the fulcrum undesirably to accidentally move upward, partly because an elastic biasing means such as a spring biases the subsidiary cap portion 6 in the forward pivot direction.


Embodiments of the invention provide a negative light sensitive resin composition, a color filter and a liquid crystal display device. The negative light sensitive resin composition comprises: an alkaline soluble resin, which is a terpolymer, or a derivative of the terpolymer, made from the following three monomers: styrene, α-pinene, and a carboxylic acid or anhydride containing an unsaturated double bond; a light sensitive resin containing ethylene unsaturated double bonds, which is in a mass ratio of 0.1 to 1.2:1 to the alkaline soluble resin; a photoinitiator, which is in a mass ratio of 0.0001 to 0.001:1 to the composition; a modifying adjuvant, which is in a mass ratio of 0.001 to 0.01:1 to the solid fraction in the composition; and a solvent, which is in a mass ratio of 2 to 20:1 to the solid fraction in the composition. The color filter and the liquid crystal display device comprise a light filter structure formed by the curing of the aforementioned negative light sensitive resin composition.

A negative light sensitive resin composition (also called negative photoresist) is widely used to prepare color filter structures, light sensitive materials in a coating, light shading materials, spacers in a liquid crystal display panel, or used in fields such as photolithography for semiconductor manufacturing processes and the like. A negative light sensitive resin composition may comprises an alkaline soluble resin, a light sensitive resin, a photoinitiator, a modifying adjuvant, a solvent and the like.
The alkaline soluble resin is soluble in an alkaline solution; the light sensitive resin, comprising ethylene unsaturated double bonds and epoxy groups, can undergo curing under light so as to cure and render insoluble the exposed portion (in which the alkaline soluble resin also undergoes reaction), wherein the unexposed portion (in which the alkaline soluble resin still maintains the original state) can be removed by dissolving with an alkaline solution so as to achieve the imaging; the photoinitiator is used to initiator the curing reaction; the modifying adjuvant is used to adjust various properties of the negative light sensitive resin, which may include binding promoters, antioxidants, ultraviolet light absorbent, deflocculating agents, leveling agents and the like; the solvent is used to solve the solid fraction in the negative light sensitive resin composition (that is, all components other than the solvent) so as to liquefy the negative light sensitive resin composition to facilitate spreading.
The negative light sensitive resin composition may also comprise other well known component(s). For example, in certain applications (for example, when used for the light filtering structure of a color filter), the negative light sensitive resin composition may also comprise a pigment.

Negative light sensitive resin composition, color filter and liquid crystal display device