A system for treating the malfunctioning heart of a patient includes means which derive at least one electrical signal from the patient's heart and means which derive at least two physiologic signals from or related to the patient's circulatory system. The physiologic signals, or functions thereof, are weighted and algebraically summed in a central processing unit, which may be a programmable microprocessor, having a RAM and a ROM, receives and responds to the at least one electrical signal and to the at least two physiologic signals. Output means, which may include a heart assist pump, pacers, drug delivery devices and cardioverting/-defibrillating apparatuses, controlled by the central processing unit provides corrective measure(s) to the patient. Heart-rate zone signals and the algebraic sum, at any given time effect selection of a particular treatment modality, if needed. Adjustable or variable baselines, against which a representation of the current, short-term magnitude of the selected physiologic parameter or parameters are provided. The variable baseline(s) is (are) a representation of the selected physiologic parameter(s) determined over a long term of greater duration than the short term over which the current magnitude(s) of the parameter(s) is (are) measured. The system may be used to carry out a method according to a corresponding series of steps.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a system for and method of treating a malfunctioning heart which involves, on the input side, sensing a plurality of physiologic parameters, as well as at least one electrocardiographic signal from the patient, determining the current activity level of the patient, and the weighing of physiologic signals, measured against respective baselines. The invention provides for the cardioverting/defibrillation of a malfunctioning heart, as well as the possibility of overcoming tachycardia and bradycardia manifestations without resorting to either cardioverting or defibrillating the heart.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In recent years, substantial progress has been made in pacemakers and in the development of cardioverting/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/-defibrillating technique is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,942,536 of Mirowski et al., the technique involving 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/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 Langer et al.
A more recent system, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,475,551 of Langer et al. 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.
An apparatus and method for treating tachyarrhythmias wherein the presence of a patient tachyarrhythmia is detected and a first antitachyarrhythmia therapy (antitachycardia pacing) is given at a first energy level has been proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,895,151. 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 antitachyarrhythmia 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 antitachyarrhythmia 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 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 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 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 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.
The U.S. Pat. No. 4,770,177 of Schroeppel 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/defibrillator.
Currently antitachycardia 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 antitachycardia device is the automatic implantable cardioverter-defibrillators which is commercially available under the model designations 1500, 1510 and 1520 from Cardiac Pacemakers, Inc. whose address is: 4100 North Hamlin Avenue, St. Paul, Minn. 55164. 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-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 (R 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. The Mirowski et al., supra, and the Mirowski, supra publications set out, in summary form, background material relating to the defibrillating/cardioverting arts against which the present invention was made to correct the ischemia (in a closed-loop fashion). Closed loop intravenous drug delivery systems have been developed (and are undergoing evaluation) for the treatment of heart failure. Such systems could 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-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-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/defibrillating pulses too often or too soon, no hemodynamic parameter having been taken into consideration.
One problem with many current systems is that they function primarily as a rate-only and/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.
External ST segment monitoring systems are 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. Closed loop intravenous drug delivery systems have been developed (and are undergoing evaluation) for the treatment of heart failure. Such systems could be incorporated into an inplantable device to permit the delivery of electrical therapy (pacing/cardioversion/defibrillation) as well as drug therapy, to correct a malfunctioning heart.
Despite these past efforts and the level of achievement prevalent among prior art systems, there are potential difficulties and drawbacks which may be experienced with such devices. The difficulties and drawbacks may be in large measure overcome or ameliorated by practicing the present invention, in both its system and method aspects, in which weighted multiparameter inputs are used to drive the system of the present invention.

System for and method of treating a malfunctioning heart


The present invention relates to a photosensitive resin composition for a color filter and an application thereof. The photosensitive resin composition includes a pigment (A), an alkali-soluble resin (B), a compound having an ethylenically unsaturated group (C), a photo initiator (D) and an organic solvent (E). The alkali-soluble resin (B) includes a first alkali-soluble resin (B-1), and the first alkali-soluble resin (B-1) is copolymerized by a first mixture. The first mixture at least includes an ethylenically unsaturated monomer having a structure of hindered amine (b1-1), an ethylenically unsaturated monomer having an oxetanyl (b1-2) and an ethylenically unsaturated monomer having a carboxylic acid group (b1-3).

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a photosensitive resin composition for a color filter and a color filter formed by the photosensitive resin composition of liquid crystal display (LCD) device thereof. More particularly, the present invention relates a photosensitive resin composition for a color filter having excellent alkali resistance and voltage holding ratio.
2. Description of Related Art
At present, a color filter has been widely used in the application fields of a color liquid crystal display (LCD), a color fax machine, a color video camera and the like. With the increasing market requirements of office equipments such as the color LCD and the like, the methods of producing the color filter tend to diversity, and methods such as a dyeing method, a printing method, an electrodeposition method, a dispersing method and the like have been developed progressively. Now, the dispersing method is the major technique for producing the color filter.
In the aforementioned dispersing method, the pigment is dispersed in the photosensitive resin composition. Then, the photosensitive resin is coated on a glass substrate, followed by the steps of exposure and development, for obtaining a specific pattern. Next, the aforementioned steps of coating, exposure and development are repeated in three times, resulting in the desired red (R), green (G) and blue (B) pixel color patterns in the pixel color layer of the color filter. Typically, for further improving the contrast of the color filter, a light-shielding layer (or called a black matrix) is disposed between the pixel color layers that are formed by pixels.
In the pigment dispersing method, the pigment is firstly dispersed in a photo curing resin to form a coloring photosensitive resin composition. The resin composition finally is formed to a pixel color layer. More specifically, in the pigment dispersing method, a black matrix formed by metals (such as chrome, chromic oxide and the like) or a light-shielding film of the photosensitive resin is disposed on a transparent supporter such as glass substrates and the like. Next, the photosensitive resin (color photo-resist) with the red pigment dispersed therein is spin coated on the transparent supporter. Then, the transparent supporter is exposed by a mask, and developed after the exposure, so as to obtain a red pixel. And then, pixels of three colors red, green and blue can be respectively formed on the supporter by repeating the aforementioned steps of coating, exposure and development.
Recently, the application of the color LCD device is not limited to personal computers but also applied to color televisions and various monitors (especially large-size color LCD screen), such that requirements for color saturation of LCD device becomes stricter. Therefore, a ratio of the pigment in the photosensitive resin composition must be increased. However, when the ratio of the pigment is increased, a contrast of the color LCD device is decreased. Moreover, due to the increased ratio of the pigment, the amounts of an alkali-soluble resin and a photosensitive monomer is decreased relatively, resulting in the reduction of a cross-linking degree of the photosensitive resin composition after exposure, and problems of poor alkali resistance.
In the disclosure of JP Patent publication No. 2004-138950, a specific alkali-soluble resin is formed to a pixel color layer with flat surface and a color filter with excellent pattern configurations, alkali resistance and brightness. However, a voltage holding ratio of the conventionally photosensitive resin composition is bad, thereby easily causing a defect of retained image when an image is displayed.
Thus, there is a need to develop the photosensitive resin composition for the color filter with excellent contrast, alkali resistance and voltage holding ratio for improving the aforementioned defects of the general color filter.

Photosensitive resin composition for color filter and application thereof


Embodiments of the present invention provide content addressable memory (CAM) arrays that include shared match lines. Other embodiments may be described and claimed.

Content addressable memory (CAM) is a special type of computer memory used in certain high speed searching applications. Unlike standard computer memory (Random Access Memory or RAM) in which the user supplies a memory address and the RAM returns the data word stored at that address, a CAM is designed such that the user supplies a data word and the CAM searches its entire memory to see if that data word is stored anywhere in it. If the data word is found, the CAM returns a list of one or more storage addresses where the word was found (in some architectures, it also returns the data word, or other associated pieces of data). Thus, a CAM may also be referred to as an associative array.
Because a CAM is designed to search its entire memory in a "single" operation, it is much faster than RAM in virtually all search applications. However, there are cost disadvantages associated with CAM. Unlike a RAM chip, which has simple storage cells, each individual memory bit in a fully parallel CAM must have its own associated comparison circuit to detect a match between the stored bit and the input bit. Additionally, match outputs from each cell in the data word must be combined to yield a complete data word match signal. The extra circuitry generally increases power dissipation since every comparison circuit is active on every clock cycle. Energy per search and search speed are two important criteria used to evaluate CAM performance. In general, two types of CAM architecture are used. A not AND (NAND)-type CAM array generally has lower power consumption, but it is generally slower because the match line is charged/discharged through many transistors in series. A not OR (NOR)-type CAM array is generally a faster type of CAM array, but it dissipates a larger amount of power because all high-charged match lines except one are discharged through many transistors in parallel.

Methods and apparatus for content addressable memory arrays including shared match lines


A system, apparatus, and method of terminating an integrated lead suspension (ILS) tail to an arm electronics cable allows plated solder material to be utilized on the ILS pads by providing additional degrees of freedom for the solder pads on the ILS tail. The additional degrees of freedom provide additional compliance between the individual pairs of solder pads that form the solder joints. In addition to a cantilever spring action in the ILS tail, the invention comprises designs that allow each individual pad to move independently out of plane of the tail as well as providing a twist capability about its axis such that each pad has its own gimbal structure.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates in general to an improved hard disk drive and, in particular, to an improved system, apparatus, and method of assembling hard disk drive integrated lead suspensions to arm electronics cables in hard disk drives via additional degrees of freedom at the tail terminations.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, a data access and storage system consists of one or more storage devices that store data on magnetic or optical storage media. For example, a magnetic storage device is known as a direct access storage device (DASD) or a hard disk drive (HDD) and includes one or more disks and a disk controller to manage local operations concerning the disks. The hard disks themselves are usually made of aluminum alloy or a mixture of glass and ceramic, and are covered with a magnetic coating. Typically, one to six disks are stacked vertically on a common spindle that is turned by a disk drive motor at several thousand revolutions per minute (rpm).
A typical HDD also utilizes an actuator assembly. The actuator moves magnetic read/write heads to the desired location on the rotating disk so as to write information to or read data from that location. Within most HDDs, the magnetic read/write head is mounted on a slider. A slider generally serves to mechanically support the head and any electrical connections between the head and the rest of the disk drive system. The slider is aerodynamically shaped to glide over moving air in order to maintain a uniform distance from the surface of the rotating disk, thereby preventing the head from undesirably contacting the disk.
Typically, a slider is formed with an aerodynamic pattern of protrusions on its air bearing surface (ABS) that enables the slider to fly at a constant height close to the disk during operation of the disk drive. A slider is associated with each side of each disk and flies just over the disk's surface. Each slider is mounted on a suspension to form a head gimbal assembly (HGA). The HGA is then attached to a semi-rigid actuator arm that supports the entire head flying unit. Several semi-rigid arms may be combined to form a single movable unit having either a linear bearing or a rotary pivotal bearing system.
The head and arm assembly is linearly or pivotally moved utilizing a magnet/coil structure that is often called a voice coil motor (VCM). The stator of a VCM is mounted to a base plate or casting on which the spindle is also mounted. The base casting with its spindle, actuator VCM, and internal filtration system is then enclosed with a cover and seal assembly to ensure that no contaminants can enter and adversely affect the reliability of the slider flying over the disk. When current is fed to the motor, the VCM develops force or torque that is substantially proportional to the applied current. The arm acceleration is therefore substantially proportional to the magnitude of the current. As the read/write head approaches a desired track, a reverse polarity signal is applied to the actuator, causing the signal to act as a brake, and ideally causing the read/write head to stop and settle directly over the desired track.
In the prior art, the current preferred method of accomplishing the termination of the integrated lead suspension (ILS) to an arm electronics (A/E) cable of the disk drive is to use a solder joint. The solder joint is a right-angle fillet joint, formed between the ILS tail and the A/E cable. The current technology for forming this joint is well documented in U.S. Pat. No. 6,212,046, to Albrecht, et al. Current solder terminations rely upon flattened solder pads on the ILS tail to accommodate height variations of the mating A/E solder pads. The height variations can be due to manufacturing variations in the solder pads on the A/E cable and/or solder pad variations on the ILS tail. Angular displacement of the ILS tail with respect to the A/E solder pads can also create height variations. The flattened solder pads on the ILS tail will increase their height upon heating as surface tension of the molten solder pulls the flattened pads into approximate spheres. This increase in height allows the molten solder on the ILS tail to contact the mating solder pads on the A/E cable and form a joint. Although the current process is fairly robust, it has an associated rework rate due to excessive gaps between mating pads due to aforementioned causes. Another limitation to this process is that the ILS manufacturers are limited to a solder screening process to assure that a sufficient volume of solder is applied.
Referring to FIGS. 1–7, a prior art design for an ILS tail 11 is shown. ILS tail 11 has a single large solid platform 10 (FIG. 6) of steel to support the copper pads 14 (eight shown in FIG. 5), with a single large solid insulator 13 (FIG. 7) or dielectric therebetween. Solder pads 15 are applied to copper pads 14 by a screening process. Ideally, the ILS tail 11 matches and interacts with the solder pads 17 (FIG. 3) on the A/E cable 19 and form a 90-degree fillet joint, as shown in FIG. 4. The ILS tails 11 are oriented horizontally and the A/E cable 19 is oriented vertically and, thus, are oriented at 90-degrees relative to each other. Initially, the ILS tails 11 are biased (e.g., sprung) against each other and restrained in this manner as they are inserted into the angled slots 23 formed in the A/E cable 19. When released, the solder pads 15 of the ILS tails 11 are loaded or biased (see arrows 21) against the solder pads 17 of the A/E cable 19.
As described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,212,046, and as shown in FIG. 5, each ILS tail 11 has a layer of steel 10, a layer of polyimide 13, copper pads 14, and flattened solder pads 15. When heated, the solder pads 15 become molten and increase in height. The molten state of the thick solder pads 15, in conjunction with the spring load of the ILS tail 11, allows the solder pads 15 to accommodate (within certain limits) any gaps or non-mating conditions between the ILS tails and the A/E cable 19. In the prior art, compliance between ILS pads and A/E cables is provided only for all of the pads in unison, which is primarily supplied by the cantilever spring action of the tails. The full laminate thickness of the tails acts as a spring for the tails. However, as shown in FIG. 5, the spring load 21 is unable to overcome all gaps 25 and non-mating conditions between the ILS tails 11 and the A/E cable 19. Although the conventional method described above for terminating ILS tails to A/E cables has been used in production since 1996, the need for rework or "touch-up" has not been overcome and still exists today. For example, at the pad level, the incidence of rework is relatively low (approximately 1.5% or less). However, when the rework rate is calculated at the head stack assembly level, the rework rate is sizable and can exceed 15%.
Although it would be desirable and even preferable to use a plating process on the ILS pads instead of the conventional and thicker solder screening process, the plating process forms pads that are an entire order of magnitude thinner than solder pads. As a result, plated pads produce a smaller volume of solder than what is required and provided by the currently preferred method of screened solder terminations. Consequently, the benefits of the plating process, which include less oxidation, elimination of the toxic material lead (Pb), and a greater choice of solder alloys, cannot be realized. Thus, an improved system, apparatus, and method of terminating ILS tails to A/E cables is needed that would allow the solder pads to be plated onto the ILS tails would be desirable.

System and apparatus for assembling hard disk drive integrated lead suspensions to arm electronics cables via additional degrees of freedom at the tail termination and impedance grooming thereof

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Netherlands B.V.


The present invention relates to a system and method for printing labels on-demand in a manufacturing environment. During initialization, an association is made between a part being manufactured and the work station in which the part is made. The association is stored in a computer application. When a user desires to print a label, the user simply presses a user input device which generates a print request. The print request is interrogated to determine which user input device originated the print request. An indicator may be presented to the operator indicating that a valid print request was received by the data storage device. The computer application searches for information related to the user input device that originated the print request. The data storage device transmits information from the computer application for printing to the associated printer.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a system and method for printing labels on-demand in a manufacturing environment and particularly to a system and method that permits the contents of the labels to be updated until just prior to printing in order to ensure that the information placed on the label is accurate and eliminates the mislabeling of parts and associated packaging.
2. Description of the Related Art
The automotive industry places an ever increasing demand on its suppliers for high quality parts. Quality is not only defined by the actual parts being manufactured and supplied by a particular supplier, but also on the contents of the labels that are used to identify the parts. Mislabeled parts have been a continuous source of quality problems for suppliers. This problem has grown in recent years due to the automotive industry's implementation of a number of "just-in-time" and "sequenced parts delivery" initiatives. These initiatives essentially require suppliers to deliver manufactured parts just-in-time for the parts to be used by the manufacturer and in the proper sequence set forth by the manufacturer. The goal of these initiatives was to maximize the manufacturer's use of floor space, reduce inventory levels and decrease the time consumers' wait for vehicles.
Proper labeling is an essential element of quality and a requirement for an effective sequencing program. In addition to internal supplier labeling requirements, the automobile manufacturer often requires specific labels to be affixed to the supplied parts and/or the container in which the parts are shipped. While the specific requirements for the contents of labels may vary greatly, typical sequenced parts programs require the part (or container which houses the part) to have a barcoded label along with some basic part information, such as a description, sequence number, customer part number, revision number, etc. In many instances, the information is subject to change by the manufacturer until just prior to shipping the part to be supplied.
Suppliers have implemented a variety of ways for manufactured parts to be labeled. In one method, the information technology department prints a batch of labels. The labels are then distributed by a production controller to the appropriate person that packages the part or device into the appropriate shipping package. A disadvantage associated with this method is that there is an overall loss of control over the labeling process. For example, it becomes difficult or impossible to accurately manage inventory and track production. Another disadvantage is that it is difficult to ensure that the right label is placed on the appropriate part or shipping container. Likewise, in many cases, the number of labels will not match the number of parts being manufactured. Therefore, there is a great likelihood of excess labels being produced which leads to expensive waste and possibly to the wrong label being used to identify a part.
Another popular method used by many manufacturers is the "kiosk" model. In the kiosk model, multiple personal computers located on the factory floor have a dedicated label printer or share a common label printer. Workers are required to interact with software, usually in the form of drop down menus to make a variety of selections (e.g., to identify the part numbers, select the quantity of labels needed, etc.). Problems associated with this method include susceptibility to human error, too many labels may be printed thereby resulting in increased waste, and an overall loss of control by management to accurately manage inventory and track production.
When manufacturing customers receive mislabeled parts there can be severe consequences. For instance, mislabeled parts make assembly lines less efficient. In some particular instances, mislabeled parts may even cause a complete shutdown of an assembly line. Such a consequence is particularly likely to occur when a new revision is made to a particular part and the revision is not reflected correctly on the label. An assembly line worker must take additional time to ensure that the correct part is being installed or the assembly line worker could just reject the entire lot of mislabeled parts out of hand. This lost efficiency leads to a significant loss of time and money to both the manufacturer and supplier of the mislabeled part. In addition, mislabeled parts reflect poorly on the supplier that supplied the part to the manufacturer and may result in the loss of a contract to supply parts to the manufacturer in the future.
Accordingly, there exists a need in the art for an improved system and method for properly labeling manufactured parts.

System and method for printing labels on-demand


A workflow defining system comprises a state setting module, an instruction generating module, and a path generating module. The state setting module sets at least a first terminal state, a second terminal state, and a third terminal state. The instruction generating module generates a first instruction, a second instruction, and a third instruction respectively corresponding to the first, second, and third terminal states. The path generating module generates a first path, a second path, and a third path respectively according to the first, second, and third instructions. The first path according to the first instruction points to one of the first, second, and third terminal states. The second path according to the second instruction points to one of the first, second, and third terminal states. The third path according to the third instruction points to one of the first, second, and third terminal states. Furthermore, a workflow managing system is disclosed, and performs workflow management according to a workflow defined by the workflow defining system.

1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to a workflow defining and managing system and, in particular, to a workflow defining and managing system that is capable of establishing flowcharts to control the progress of work or data.
2. Related Art
To improve the work efficiency and to integrate the operation procedures of different departments, one usually designs a workflow to link up all operation procedures in view of actual needs. Then, a flowchart is established for different departments, so that they can execute and control their operation procedures according to this flowchart.
A conventional flowchart for debug operation procedure will be described below with reference to FIG. 1A. As shown in FIG. 1A, a debug report generating department firstly collects bug-related data and forwards them to the manager of a debug department (step S01). In this step, for example, bug-related data could come from the customer service department or the test department, and the bug-related data is then forwarded to the debug report generating department. The debug report generating department then generates a debug request form, and forwards this debug request form to the manager of the debug department along with the bug-related data.
Then, in step S02, the manager of the debug department decides whether to accept this debug request form depending on whether the bug-related data is sufficient. If the manager accepts the debug request form, then jump to step S04. If the manager does not accept the debug report, then jump to step S03.
In step S03, when the manager of the debug department does not accept the debug request form, a rejecting message is returned to the debug report generating department, so that the debug report generating departing can gather the bug-related data again, and forward more sufficient data to the manager of the debug department.
In step S04, when the manager of the debug department accepts the debug request form, the manager forwards the accepted debug request form and the bug-related data to a debug engineer. Then, in step S05, the debug engineer begins the debug operation according to the debug request form and the bug-related data. To this point, the workflow for the whole debug operation procedure is finished. It should be noted that the above-mentioned workflow can be realized by conventional paper documents, or be realized by electronic forms using computers and network systems.
The above-mentioned workflow, however, is not suitable for many reasons when being implemented practically. For example, the debug engineer cannot report to the manager when the debug request form is wrong or when the bug-related data is insufficient. This results in that the debug operation procedure could not be finished smoothly. In addition, when the debug engineer finishes the debug operation procedure, the correctness of the debug operation cannot be confirmed effectively.
Besides, since each step of the workflow shown in FIG. 1A is designed sequentially according to the original request form, one must design another workflow and flowchart all over again when the original workflow is not suitable for practical use. FIG. 1B is an example of the flowchart of a new workflow, which comprises some extra steps. As shown in FIG. 1B, after the manager of the debug department forwarded the debug request form and the bug-related data to the debug engineer (S04), step S06 is performed. In step S06, the debug engineer determines whether to accept the debug request form depending on whether the bug-related data is sufficient. When the debug engineer determines that the bug-related data is insufficient, the workflow jumps back to step S02 so that he/she can return the debug request form to the manager. The manager then can re-confirm whether the bug-related data is sufficient. In addition, when the debug engineer confirms that the bug-related data is sufficient, then the workflow jumps to step S05 to proceed with the debug operation procedure.
Finally, in step S07, the manager of the debug department confirms the completion of the debug operation procedure. The whole debug workflow ends when the manager made a confirmation for the completion of the debug operation procedure. If the manager of the debug department has doubts about the result of the debug operation procedure, the workflow jumps back to step SOI to re-confirm the contents of the bug-related data and to run the whole debug workflow all over again.
As mentioned above, conventional workflow managing method is constituted by a plurality of workflow paths 21 and work stages 22 as shown in FIG. 2. Therefore, when revising the workflow, one must both adjust (e.g. add or delete) the workflow paths 21 and adjust (e.g. add, delete, or modify) relevant work stages 22. For example, steps S05 to S07 are added or deleted step-by-step, and the step order of the workflow is rearrange between these steps. The actions required are difficult and complicated. Furthermore, after the workflow being revised, since the procedures are different, old data often becomes incompatible with new workflow, which results in the missing of the old data when one must start the new workflow and abandon the old one in the middle of the debug operation procedure.
Therefore, it is a subjective to provide a workflow defining and managing system that is capable of establishing flowcharts to control the progress of work or data more effectively and to revise the procedures and integrate all data more easily.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Workflow defining system and workflow managing system


One or more usage models are provided for a database. Each usage model includes a set of rules that are used to analyze database performance. A usage model in one or more usage models is determined. Database information is determined based on the usage model. The database information is then analyzed based on rules associated with the usage model. One or more performance problems are determined based on the analysis.

The present invention generally relates to databases and more specifically to apparatus and methods for providing usage models for diagnosing performance problems in a database.
Enterprise databases continue to grow in size and number resulting in increased system management and administrative complexity. As the size and complexity of database systems increase, the likelihood that performance problems may result also increases. Analysis of the problems thus becomes an important task to properly maintain database systems.
Diagnosing performance problems in a database is a very involved task that makes use of a variety of different metrics and statistics. A database administrator (DBA) needs a great deal of expertise to interpret the statistics and arrive at a reasonable solution. Often, a DBA is alerted of a problem and then works with raw statistics to determine a cause of the problem. A DBA is left with a wealth of raw statistics that the DBA must analyze to determine any performance problems. The type of analysis performed is subjective in that the DBA may subjectively choose statistics to review that the DBA thinks may lead to determining a cause of a performance problem. The raw statistics presented to a DBA are often enormous and require extensive knowledge on the part of a DBA to analyze for problems, if at all possible. Also, even if problems are determined from the statistics, the problems found are often determined based on the subjective analysis performed by the DBA. Thus, the review of statistics may differ between different DBAs.
Moreover, when working proactively to identify problems with different time frames and in different situations, additional complexity and detail are added to the diagnosis of performance problems. It may be harder to find problems rather than solve problems that have been reported. A DBA may not be aware of the time period or statistics that need to be reviewed to determine any performance problems. For example, the type of analysis needed to be performed when a system is delayed, such as when a system's performance has been degraded or is hung, versus what is needed when optimizing the workload of a database as a whole is entirely different. A DBA may not perform the preferred analysis for the situation. Also, the type of analysis that is performed may differ depending on the DBA performing the analysis.
Accordingly, improved methods for diagnosing performance problems are desired.

Automatic database diagnostic usage models


A method includes, in a network, representing a first request from a first user as a first ClientUser, assigning the first ClientUser to a ServerSession, the ServerSession having one or more ClientSessions, each of the ClientSessions allowing a server to have a single session for all first user requests from the server. The method includes, in a client/server network, providing a session that can be common to all connections to a web server by a user.

In a client/server network, session tracking keeps a server from having to ask whether a client (e.g., user) has connected before each time the server receives a request from the user. This is important in, for example, today's electronic commerce (e-commerce) Web applications.
There are generally two types of Internet communication protocols, i.e., statefull and stateless. A server associates a state with a connection. Statefull protocols, such as Telnet and file transfer protocol (FTP), can process multiple operations before closing a connection. The server generally knows that all requests come from a single user.
Stateless protocols, such as hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), open separate connections to a server anytime a client requests a web page, and the server doesn't know a context or scope from one connection to the next connection. Each transaction is a single isolated transaction.


This invention provides a hybrid nano-filament composition for use as an electrochemical cell electrode. The composition comprises: (a) an aggregate of nanometer-scaled, electrically conductive filaments that are substantially interconnected, intersected, or percolated to form a porous, electrically conductive filament network comprising substantially interconnected pores, wherein the filaments have an elongate dimension and a first transverse dimension with the first transverse dimension being less than 500 nm (preferably less than 100 nm) and an aspect ratio of the elongate dimension to the first transverse dimension greater than 10; and (b) micron- or nanometer-scaled coating that is deposited on a surface of the filaments, wherein the coating comprises an anode active material capable of absorbing and desorbing lithium ions and the coating has a thickness less than 20 μm (preferably less than 1 μm). Also provided is a lithium ion battery comprising such an electrode as an anode. The battery exhibits an exceptionally high specific capacity, an excellent reversible capacity, and a long cycle life.

The description of prior art will be primarily based on the list of references presented at the end of this section.
Concerns over the safety of earlier lithium secondary batteries led to the development of lithium ion secondary batteries, in which pure lithium metal sheet or film was replaced by carbonaceous materials as the anode. The carbonaceous material may comprise primarily graphite that can be intercalated with lithium and the resulting graphite intercalation compound may be expressed as LixC6, where x is typically less than 1. In order to minimize the loss in energy density due to this replacement, x in LixC6 must be maximized and the irreversible capacity loss Qir in the first charge of the battery must be minimized.
The maximum amount of lithium that can be reversibly intercalated into the interstices between graphene planes of a perfect graphite crystal is generally believed to occur in a graphite intercalation compound represented by LixC6(x=1), corresponding to a theoretical specific capacity of 372 mAh/g. In other graphitized carbon materials than pure graphite crystals, there exists a certain amount of graphite crystallites dispersed in or bonded by an amorphous or disordered carbon matrix phase. The amorphous phase typically can store lithium to a specific capacity level higher than 372 mAh/g, up to 700 mAh/g in some cases, although a specific capacity higher than 1,000 mAh/g has been sporadically reported. Hence, the magnitude of x in a carbonaceous material LixC6 varies with the proportion of graphite crystallites and can be manipulated by using different processing conditions, as exemplified in [Refs. 1-7]. An amorphous carbon phase alone tends to exhibit a low electrical conductivity (high charge transfer resistance) and, hence, a high polarization or internal power loss. Conventional amorphous carbon-based anode materials also tend to give rise to a high irreversible capacity.
The so-called "amorphous carbons" commonly used as anode active materials are typically not purely amorphous, but contain some micro- or nano-crystallites with each crystallite being composed of a small number of graphene sheets (basal planes) that are stacked and bonded together by weak van der Waals forces. The number of graphene sheets varies between one and several hundreds, giving rise to a c-directional dimension (thickness Lc) of typically 0.34 nm to 100 nm. The length or width (La) of these crystallites is typically between tens of nanometers to microns. Among this class of carbon materials, soft and hard carbons made by low-temperature pyrolysis (550-1,000° C.) exhibit a reversible capacity of 400-800 mAh/g in the 0-2.5 V range [Refs. 1-3]. Dahn et al. have made the so-called house-of-cards carbonaceous material with enhanced capacities approaching 700 mAh/g [Refs. 1,2]. Tarascon's research group obtained enhanced capacities of up to 700 mAh/g by milling graphite, coke, or carbon fibers [Ref. 3]. Dahn et al. explained the origin of the extra capacity with the assumption that in disordered carbon containing some dispersed graphene sheets (referred to as house-of-cards materials), lithium ions are adsorbed on two sides of a single graphene sheet [Refs. 1,2]. It was also proposed that Li readily bonded to a proton-passivated carbon, resulting in a series of edge-oriented Li—C—H bonds. This provides an additional source of Li+ in some disordered carbons [Ref. 5]. Other researchers suggested the formation of Li metal mono-layers on the outer graphene sheets [Ref. 6] of graphite nano-crystallites. The amorphous carbons of Dahn et al. were prepared by pyrolyzing epoxy resins and may be more correctly referred to as polymeric carbons. Polymeric carbon-based anode materials were also studied by Zhang, et al. [Ref. 8] and Liu, et al. [Ref. 9].
In addition to carbon- or graphite-based anode materials, other inorganic materials that have been evaluated for potential anode applications include metal oxides, metal nitrides, metal sulfides, and a range of metals, metal alloys, and intermetallic compounds that can accommodate lithium atoms/ions. In particular, lithium alloys having a composition formula of LiaA (A is a metal such as Al, and "a" satisfies 0<a≦5) has been investigated as potential anode materials. This class of anode material has a higher theoretical capacity, e.g., Li4Si (3,829 mAh/g), Li4.4Si (4,200 mAh/g), Li4.4Ge (1,623 mAh/g), Li4.4Sn (993 mAh/g), Li3Cd (715 mAh/g), Li3Sb (660 mAh/g), Li4.4Pb (569 mAh/g), LiZn (410 mAh/g), and Li3Bi (385 mAh/g). However, for the anodes composed of these materials, pulverization (fragmentation of the alloy particles) proceeds with the progress of the charging and discharging cycles due to expansion and contraction of the anode during the absorption and desorption of the lithium ions. The expansion and contraction also tend to result in reduction in or loss of particle-to-particle contacts or contacts between the anode and its current collector. These adverse effects result in a significantly shortened charge-discharge cycle life.
To overcome the problems associated with such mechanical degradation, composites composed of small, electrochemically active particles supported by less active or non-active matrices have been proposed for use as an anode material. Examples of these active particles are Si, Sn, and SnO2. However, most of prior art composite electrodes have deficiencies in some ways, e.g., in most cases, less than satisfactory reversible capacity, poor cycling stability, high irreversible capacity, ineffectiveness in reducing the internal stress or strain during the lithium ion insertion and extraction cycles, and some undesirable side effects.
For instance, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,007,945 (Dec. 28, 1999) by Jacobs, et al., a solid solution of titanium dioxide and tin dioxide was utilized as the anode active substance in the negative electrode of a rechargeable lithium battery. The density of the negative electrode made was 3.65 g/cm3, and the reversible capacity of the negative electrode containing TiO2—SnO2 in a ratio of 39:61 by weight, was found to be 1130 mAh/cm3. This was equivalent to 309.6 mAh/g, although the obtained rechargeable lithium battery was calculated to have energy density of 207 watt-hour per liter. Furthermore, the nano particles of the anode material react with the electrolyte during the charge-discharge cycles, resulting in reduced long-term utility.
As described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,143,448 (Nov. 7, 2000) issued to Fauteux et al., a composite was formed by mixing carbon with a metal salt in water, followed by evaporation, heating, and further treatment. The process produces a composite with many pores, which are not always preferred. The best achievable capacity was reported to be in the range of 750-2,000 mAh/cm3. With a density of 4 g/cm3, this implies a maximum capacity of 500 mAh/g
In U.S. Pat. No. 7,094,499 (Aug. 22, 2006), Hung disclosed a method of forming a composite anode material. The steps include selecting a carbon material as a constituent part of the composite, chemically treating the selected carbon material to receive nano particles, incorporating nano particles into the chemically treated carbon material, and removing surface nano particles from an outside surface of the carbon material with incorporated nano particles. A material making up the nano particles forms an alloy with lithium. The resulting carbon/nanoparticle composite anodes did not exhibit any significant increase in capacity, mostly lower than 400 mAh/g.
In summary, the prior art has not demonstrated a composite material that has all or most of the properties desired for use in an anode for the lithium-ion battery. Thus, there is a need for a new anode for lithium-ion batteries that has a high cycle life, high reversible capacity, and low irreversible capacity. There is also a need for a method of readily or easily producing such a material.

Hybrid nano-filament anode compositions for lithium ion batteries


A laser light irradiation apparatus for medical treatment of living tissues, a preferred embodiment, comprises a laser light emitter and plurality of optical fibers. The fore end portion of each optical fiber is exposed to form an exposed light emitting core. The exposed cores are surrounded by a clad-material serving as the laser light emitter in order to reduce power loss of the laser light. Also, since there is no space between the emitting face of the optical fiber and the impinging face of the emitter, a cooling fluid is not required to pass through. The laser light is emitted from the emitter to irradiate uniformly against the tissues, and if desired, against the tissues having a broad area. Further, a guide wire and a lead wire detecting a temperature can extend coaxially through the emitter. Therefore, a perforation of a normal part of the blood vessel can be prevented. To provide a more uniform power level distribution of the laser light, the optical fibers at the base portions are twisted.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a laser light irradiation apparatus, which irradiates laser light onto living tissues of an animal such as a human body for use in making an incision, vaporization of the living tissues or a thermal therapy and in case of widening a narrow path of the living tissues such as a stricture part caused by cholesterol formed in the blood vessel of the human body.
2. Prior Art
Medical treatments such as incisions of living tissues of animal organisms by irradiation with laser light are conspicuous due to the ability of such irradiation to provide hemostasis.
It had been the conventional method that the laser light was irradiated from the fore end of an optical fiber which is held out of contact with the living tissues. This method, however causes severe damage to the fore end portion of the optical fiber. Therefore, a method using a contact probe has been utilized as discussed below.
First, laser light is transmitted into an optical fiber, whose fore end portion is adjacent to treated living tissues. Next, the laser light fed out from the optical fiber is fed into an emitting probe, which is brought into or out of contact with the living tissues. Then, the laser light is emitted from the surface of the probe and irradiated against the living tissues. In this case, the probe should be brought into contact with the living tissues (hereafter "living tissue" is sometimes expressed by "tissue" only).
The inventor developed many kinds of contact probes which are utilized for various purposes.
When the contact probe of this type above described was used in the prior art, the fore end of an optical fiber was located so as to be apart from the back end face, that is an impinging face, of the probe. In this case, a physiological salt solution or pure air was passed through a gap formed between the optical fiber and a holder supporting the optical fiber, and through a space formed between the impinging face of the probe and the fore end of the optical fiber. Then, although the laser light having high power level impinged on this impinging face of the probe, this face could be cooled due to the passing of this fluid. Thus the damage of this face was prevented. Further, entry into the gap by pieces of living organism, a blood flow and the like, which might have occurred during a medical operation, could be prevented due to the passing of this fluid.
On the other hand, the inventor proposed, in Japanese Patent Application No. 63-171688, a laser light medical treatment equipment for burning off a stricture part caused by cholesterol formed on the inner wall of a blood vessel.
Before this invention, that is Japanese Patent Application No. 63-171688, for the treatment for the stricture part, a heat wire probe was inserted into the stricture part. Then, since the heat wire probe was heated as a whole, a normal blood vessel other than the stricture part could be damaged. Therefore, in order to prevent the normal blood vessel from being damaged, the laser light medical treatment equipment of this invention was proposed. According to this equipment, a laser light emitting probe is progressed through the blood vessel to a location before the stricture part formed in the blood vessel, and the laser light is emitted so as to irradiate only the stricture part, which is beyond the probe.
Further, lately, a localized thermal therapy is drawing special attention as a carcinostatic therapy. According to this method, cancer tissues are destroyed by keeping the cancer tissues at a temperature of about 42.degree.-44.degree. C. for 10-25 minutes by laser light irradiation. The effectiveness of this method has been reported by the inventors in the bulletin of Japan Society of Laser Medicine, vol. 6, No. 3 (January 1986) pp. 71-76 & 347-350.
On the other hand, considerable attention has been paid to laser-chemical therapies including the method reported in 1987 by Dougherty et al of the United States. According to this method, 48 hours after an intravenous injection of a hematoporphyrin derivative (HpD), weak laser-light such as argon laser or argon pigment laser is irradiated against a target area of the treatment, whereupon oxygen of the primary term which has a strong carcinostatic action is produced by HpD. There have been published various reports in this regard, including one in the bulletin of Japan Society of Laser Medicine, vol. 6, No. 3 (January 1986), pp 113-116. In this connection, it has also been known in the art to use "pheophobide a" as a photo-reactant. Further, recently, YAG laser has been put into use as a laser-light source.
In the above mentioned medical treatment, it is important that the laser light be irradiated uniformly for the cancer tissues and, in case of the thermal therapy, it is particularly important that the cancer tissues are heated uniformly.
Further, for heating the tissues uniformly, the inventor disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-216579 that an apparatus has plural number of laser light emitters and equipment for adjusting the power level of the laser light impinging into the emitters.
If laser light is irradiated against the tissues from an optical fiber directly or through the intermediary of a contact probe, the power level of the laser light irradiated against the tissues is the largest at a center position of an irradiated area on the surface of the tissues. The center position is contacted by the center of the optical fiber or that of the contact probe, then the power level decreases at positions on the surface of the tissues away from the center position.
For example, as shown in FIG. 28, when the laser light is irradiated against the tissues M with a contact probe P, the temperature distribution of this figure shows a distribution which is similar to a normal distribution. If the power level of the laser light is raised, the size of this temperature distribution is also enlarged to be a substantial similar figure. However, if the power level of the laser light is increased to an excess level, the tissues corresponding to the peak of the temperature distribution are damaged seriously. Accordingly, it is impossible that enlarging an irradiation area be carried out by only adjusting of the power level of the laser light.
Therefore, it is difficult to irradiate the laser light uniformly, and particularly more difficult to irradiate the laser light uniformly against the tissues having broad area. Accordingly, within the limit of the predetermined power level of the laser light, laser light irradiation against each small part of the tissues must be repeated many times in order to carry out the irradiation against all of the broad area the treated tissues. As a result, a medical operation can not be carried out quickly.
Under these circumstances, as described before, the inventor proposed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-216579 providing a plural number of probes as the laser light emitters such that the laser light is irradiated from each probe simultaneously.
Although the laser light can be irradiated against the tissues having a broad area to some degree by provision of the plural number of laser light emitting probes, the necessity of the probes causes a problem as discussed below.
For forming the uniform temperature distribution on the irradiated tissues, the probes should be located at precise positions respectively in order to uniformly contact the tissues. Therefore, the medical operation can not be carried out quickly due to difficulty in precisely locating the probes. On the other hand, since each optical fiber should correspond to each probe, the size of the apparatus is large. Accordingly, this apparatus can not be used for a medical treatment in a narrow path in the tissues such as a catheter in a blood vessel.
On the other hand, in case of a treatment for a so-called angioplasty, which means burning off the stricture part formed on the inner surface of the blood vessel to widen the inside of the blood vessel, as described before, the inventor proposed the laser light irradiation probe. In this case, the probe can be used instead of the conventional heat wire probe and is inserted into the blood vessel along the flexible guide wire, which was inserted into the blood vessel previously. Further, in an embodiment of this proposal, in order to prevent the guide wire from being damaged by the laser light irradiation, the guide wire is placed so as to be deflected from the axis of the probe.
As shown in FIG. 29, deflection of the guide wire in relation to the axis of the probe causes the following problem. When a probe P is inserted in the blood vessel until the probe P reaches a bend in the blood vessel, due to the deflection of the guide wire, the probe P should be forced to be progressed further in the blood vessel against the original bending of the vessel. Therefore, the bending manner at this original bending of the blood vessel is changed to another bending manner. In this case, when the laser light is irradiated against the stricture part m, there is the fear of breaking of the wall of the normal part of the blood vessel BV other than the stricture part m or so-called perforation there.
The energy distribution of the laser light irradiation from the probe and the above mentioned temperature distribution shown in FIG. 28 have a common characterization. That is to say, in this energy distribution, there is a peak at its center while the level is gradually lowered at the both sides. Therefore, while the center of the stricture part m is completely burnt off, the inner wall of the stricture part m away from the center often still remains without being burnt off. Accordingly, the power level of the laser light should be raised in order to burn off the whole stricture part completely. However, if a normal part of the inner wall of the blood vessel faces the center of the emitting face of the probe due to the bending of the blood vessel, there is a risk that the normal part is burnt.
On the other hand, in the conventional apparatus where the fore end of the optical fiber is located so as to be apart from the back end face of the probe, there are the following problems:
(1) When the laser light impinges on the back end face of the probe from the fore end of the optical fiber, the impinging face of the probe is heated, thus; the cooling fluid should be supplied as explained before. Then, an equipment for supplying the fluid is necessary, resulting in an expensive apparatus. Further, a path of the fluid should be provided, thus the apparatus can not be designed so freely. The cooling fluid might flow into the tissues of a human body, thus; a bad effect is caused for the human body.
(2) The space formed between the fore end of the optical fiber and the back end face of the probe cause a power loss of the laser light. Accordingly, in order to compensate for this power loss, a large sized laser light generator is required.
(3) The cooling fluid is, as described before, also used for cleaning the fore end face of the optical fiber and the back end face of the probe. However, they are not cleaned sufficiently with the fluid, thus, damage caused by incomplete cleaning can not be prevented completely.


Electron field emission devices (cold cathodes), vacuum microelectronic devices and field emission displays which incorporate cold cathodes and methods of making and using same. More specifically, cold cathode devices comprising electron emitting structures grown directly onto a substrate material. The invention also relates to patterned precursor substrates for use in fabricating field emission devices and methods of making same and also to catalytically growing other electronic structures, such as films, cones, cylinders, pyramids or the like, directly onto substrates.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to electron field emission devices (cold cathodes), vacuum microelectronic devices and field emission displays which incorporate cold cathodes and methods of making and using same. More specifically, the invention relates to cold cathode devices comprising electron emitting structures grown directly onto a growth surface on a substrate material. The invention also relates to patterned precursor substrates for use in fabricating field emission devices and methods of making same and also to catalytically growing other electronic structures, such as films, cones, cylinders, pyramids or the like, directly onto substrates.
2. Description of Related Art
Several publications and patents are referenced in this application within parentheses. These references describe the state of the art to which this invention pertains, and are incorporated herein by references.
Various types of field emitting devices (cold cathodes) have been proposed. Unlike thermal emission devices, which rely on high temperatures to enable a fraction of the free electrons in the emitting material to overcome the barrier of the work function and be emitted, field emission devices rely on a physical phenomenon which has been explained as electrons tunneling from a surface state to a vacuum state when a sufficient electric field is applied to the emitting surface. A typical micro fabricated field emission cold cathode consists of an emitting structure such as a cone with a sharp tip as the electron emitter and an extraction electrode which creates the field that pulls the electrons from the emitting structure. The base of the cone is typically on a conductive surface of the substrate. Usually, the emitting structure is inside a cavity or opening in a dielectric film on the substrate and the extraction electrode is located on top of the dielectric film and proximate to the cavity to produce the field at the emitting surface. The separation between the tip and extraction electrode is on the order of micrometers or less. When the voltage of the extraction electrode is biased sufficiently positively with respect to that of the emitting structure, field emission occurs at the tip without any additional thermal energy.
Some field emission devices are fabricated using technologies developed for microelectronics. The emitter tips are typically fabricated onto a substrate by evaporation, etching or oxidation. Most field emission devices use silicon or molybdenum cones as the electron emitter structures. Field emission devices comprising these cones and also utilizing a gate structure to supply the field potential are usually limited to one emitting tip per gate opening because of the cone structure and methods used for forming these devices.
Manufacture of the cone emitting structures requires sophisticated lithographic and fabrication equipment to form high yield, high-density complex cold cathode structures at low cost. The metal cone emitters are subject to contamination since the surfaces of these cones are reactive. Accordingly, the emitting structures become contaminated in poor vacuums and require cleaning. For example, the metal cone tips become oxidized, and are cleaned by exposing the tips to hydrogen plasma. The metal tip cones also have poor stability of electron emitting yield upon turn-on and require an appreciable "break in" time. Additionally, these materials have high work functions requiring high potentials to attain any given electron emission yield.
An alternative type of cold cathode consists of an electron emitting whisker or fiber, instead of a cone, and an extraction electrode to apply a sufficient electric field to the tip. The tips are made from thin wires (whiskers) of high-melting-point metals, such as tungsten and molybdenum, metal carbides, silicon carbide, or carbon fibers.
Because of the large fiber size and the manufacturing method, these fiber devices typically have large physical dimensions. The electron emitters are first prepared by forming the emitting material into the desired physical geometry, and then mechanically attaching the structure to the substrate. The. separation between the mounted emitter tip and the extraction electrode is on the order of millimeters or larger.
Carbon fibers have been used as field emitting structures. The carbon fibers appear to be more stable than the metal cone structures and do not contaminate easily under normal working conditions. Additionally, certain carbon structures have a low work, function allowing electron emission in low electric fields. Furthermore, carbon fibers also appear to be more robust, i.e. the electron yields over time have a higher stability.
Ex-polymer carbon fibers have been proposed as emitter structures. The ex-polymer carbon fibers are formed from organic precursors. The precursors are extruded into polymeric fibers and the fibers are stabilized by heating in air (200-350.degree. C.), carbonized by heating to about 1000.degree. C., and graphitized by heating to 3000.degree. C. in an inert atmosphere. Among the ex-polymer carbon fibers are PAN fibers which are formed from polyacrylonitrile, a preferred polymeric precursor.
In the above mentioned prior art, the carbon fibers would be formed separately and subsequently attached to the field emission substrate. The prior art carbon fiber emitters typically have diameters of about 7 .mu.m and are usually first sharpened to decrease the radius curvature of the tips and enhance the electric field. The fibers are then mechanically attached to the field emission device. The distance between the carbon fiber emitter tip and the extraction electrode is usually on the order of at least 1 mm (see, for example, J. J. Lambe, U.S. Pat. No. 4,728,851).
Methods proposed for attaching the carbon fibers include mechanically attaching the fiber by partially melting the surface of the field emitting substrate, inserting the fiber and subsequently cooling the structure to secure the fiber. Another method would utilize an adhesive to glue the fibers onto the surface of the field emitting substrate. The adhesive typically comprises epoxy and/or metallic compositions.
The proposed methods of attaching the fibers are highly disadvantageous since each requires the separate steps of forming the carbon fibers and subsequently attaching the fibers to the field emission substrates. For practical reasons, these methods require the use of large carbon fibers since the attachment requires mechanically handling and manipulating the fibers. Since the size of the fibers is large, these field emitting structures often require "sharpening" of the emitting tips to create a field-enhancing morphology. Not only do the steps of mechanically attaching and sharpening the emitter add cost to the production of the cold cathode, they also limit the ability to fabricate dense emitter patterns. Fibers that are too small tend to break during handling and are difficult to manipulate. Accordingly, these fiber cathode devices suffer many disadvantages that limit their usefulness.

Carbon fiber-based field emission devices


According to some embodiments a system may control connected modules within a lighting fixture. The system may comprise a power supply that includes a first input to receive AC power, a second input to receive a control signal, and an output to transmit DC power. A light emitting diode (LED) array may receive DC power from the power supply. A master control unit may receive DC power from the power supply. The master control unit may comprise a first control line to send a control signal to the power supply to control the LED array and a second control line to control one or more modules. The system may further comprises one or more connectors mounted to a circuit board where at least one of the one or more connectors is electrically coupled to the output of the power supply and the second control line.

A lighting system may provide illumination that is based on time (e.g., when a user is present) and may be based on location (e.g., lighting a particular area in which a user is interested in occupying or intends to occupy). For example, the lighting system may primarily light an area of a room where a user is located or an area that a user has selected to occupy. Such targeted lighting may be advantageous because it can greatly reduce power consumption compared to conventional lighting systems.
Many lighting system or luminaires employ light-emitting diodes (LEDs) for at least some of the lighting. LEDs are advantageous because they are generally more energy efficient than incandescent or fluorescent lights. A lighting system may include one or more LED lights, one or more fluorescent lights, one or more incandescent light and a sensor unit. The sensor unit receives light from a light source based on a type of sensor being used and the sensor unit may be affected by false ambient light readings. Accordingly, there is a need for a sensor unit for a luminaire to help eliminate false ambient light readings.

System for efficient communication and control for connected modules in lighting fixtures


A semiconductor device is provided in which each pixel includes an electric circuit (a bootstrap circuit) for generating an electric potential that is higher than a voltage given through capacitative coupling. Also, there is provided a semiconductor device in which a sufficient signal amplitude can be attained by using the electric circuit to set a potential difference between both terminals of a photoelectric conversion element to the same value as the power source potential. Further, there is provided a semiconductor device in which the number of manufacturing steps is reduced by using transistors having a single polarity to constitute each pixel, thereby achieving increased yield and reduced costs.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device having an image sensor function.
2. Description of the Related Art
A semiconductor device having an image sensor function is generally provided with a photoelectric conversion element and one or plural transistors for controlling the photoelectric conversion element.
There are roughly two types of semiconductor devices having an image sensor function: CCD type semiconductor devices and CMOS type semiconductor devices. The CMOS type semiconductor devices are subdivided into those of a passive type with no amplification circuit mounted therein and those of an active type with an amplification circuit mounted therein. An amplification circuit has a function of amplifying an image signal of a subject read by a photoelectric conversion element, making the obtained signal less susceptible to an influence of noise. Accordingly, active CMOS type semiconductor devices provided with amplification circuits find utility in a wide variety of electronic appliances.
A semiconductor device provided with photoelectric conversion elements has a pixel portion as well as a source signal line driver circuit, a gate signal line driver circuit, and a reset signal line driver circuit which are arranged in the periphery of the pixel portion. The source signal line driver circuit includes a bias circuit, a sample hold circuit, a signal output line driver circuit, and a final output amplification circuit. The pixel portion is constituted by x times y pixels arranged in matrix (x and y are natural numbers).
FIG. 11A is a circuit diagram of one pixel 100 arranged in j-th column and j-th row (i and j are natural numbers) of the matrix arrangement. The pixel 100 is arranged within an area defined by one of signal output lines (S1 to Sx), one of power source supply lines (VB1 to VBx), one of gate signal lines (G1 to Gy), and one of reset signal lines (R1 to Ry). The pixel 100 includes an n-channel switching transistor 1120, an n-channel amplification transistor 1130, a p-channel reset transistor 1140, and a photoelectric conversion element 1110. A p-channel-side terminal of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 is connected to a power source reference line 1210.
An explanation of circuit operations is often accompanied by an explanation of transistor operations. An ON-state of a transistor refers to a state where the absolute value of a voltage between the gate and the source of the transistor exceeds that of a threshold voltage for the transistor so that an electrical conduction is established between source and drain regions of the transistor through a channel formation region. On the other hand, an OFF-state of a transistor refers to a state where the absolute value of a voltage between the gate and the source of the transistor is below that of a threshold voltage for the transistor so that no electrical conduction is provided between the source and drain regions of the transistor.
Upon being irradiated with light that is reflected from a subject, the photoelectric conversion element 1110 included in the pixel 100 undergoes a change in its electric potential. More specifically, a potential of an n-channel-side terminal of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 changes. Selecting the gate signal line (Gj) in this state causes the switching transistor 1120 to turn on, whereby the potential of t the n-channel-side terminal of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 is read out in the form of a signal. The signal thus outputted to the signal output line (Sj) is then supplied to the source signal line driver circuit 101.
The term storage time as used herein refers to a period of time from when a photoelectric conversion element arranged in a pixel is initialized until a signal is outputted from the pixel. In other words, it is a period of time during which light is irradiated onto a light receiving portion of the photoelectric conversion element to thereby store the signal to be outputted, and as such it corresponds to a period of time also referred to as exposure time. In addition, the term saturation refers to a state where a potential of the n-channel-side terminal of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 has fallen upon irradiation of extremely bright light and has become equal to a potential of the power source reference line 1210 with no further changes in its value.
An amplitude of a signal inputted to each n-channel transistor is set to Vdd (Hi, H level)−Vss (Lo, L level) regardless of whether the signal is outputted from the reset signal line or the gate signal line. Also, an amplitude of a signal inputted to each p-channel transistor is set to Vss (Hi, H level)−Vdd (Lo, L level) regardless of whether the signal is outputted from the reset signal line or the gate signal line. In the initial state, the respective potentials of the source signal line (Si), the gate signal line (Gj), the reset signal line (Rj), and the power source reference line 1210 are all set to Vss, whereas the potential of the power source supply line (VBi) is set to Vdd.
Next, brief description will be made of connection arrangements for the p-channel reset transistor 1140 as well as how it operates. The source region of the reset transistor 1140 in FIG. 11A is connected to the power source supply line (VBi) and the drain region thereof is connected to the n-channel-side terminal of the photoelectric conversion element 1110. Also, the gate electrode of the reset transistor 1140 is connected to the reset signal line (Rj). Further, in the pixel 100 shown in FIG. 11A, the p-channel-side terminal of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 is connected to the power source line 1210 and the n-channel-side terminal thereof is connected to the source region of the reset transistor 1140.
When the reset signal line (Rj) in the j-th row is selected, a signal of Vss (Hi) potential is inputted to the gate electrode of the p-channel reset transistor 1140. Then, a voltage Vgs between the gate and the source thereof becomes zero or lower, whereby the reset transistor 1140 is turned on. At this time, the potential of the source region of the reset transistor 1140 that is connected to the power source supply line (VBi) is Vdd. Thus, a potential Vpd between the both terminals of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 becomes equal to the potential Vdd of the power source supply line (VBi) (Vpd=Vdd).
Next, description will be made of a relationship between an intensity of light irradiated onto the photoelectric conversion element 1110 and a potential of the photoelectric conversion element 1110, with reference made to FIG. 11B. Referring to FIG. 11B, a solid line indicates the potential Vpd of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 upon irradiation of dark light, a dotted line indicates the potential Vpd of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 upon irradiation of bright light, and a broken line indicates the potential of the reset signal line Rj.
The photoelectric conversion element 1110 stores electric charges generated by light irradiated thereto during storage time. Thus, even when lights having-the same intensity are irradiated, a total amount of charges generated by each light and hence the resulting signal value differ if the storage time is varied. As shown in FIG. 11B, when bright light is irradiated to the photoelectric conversion element 1110, a saturation state is reached with short storage time. On the other hand, when dark light is irradiated to the photoelectric conversion element 1110, longer storage time becomes necessary, but the saturation state is eventually reached nevertheless. That is, the signal to be read out from the photoelectric conversion element 1110 is determined by the product of an intensity of light irradiated thereto and a storage time.
In the pixel 100 shown in FIG. 11A, the reset transistor 1140 is a p-channel transistor and the potential difference Vpd between both electrodes of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 has the same value as the potential Vdd supplied though the power source supply line (VBi), thus making it possible to obtain a sufficient signal amplitude. In other words, the potential of the n-channel-side terminal of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 can be sufficiently raised up to Vdd without causing amplitude attenuation.
Next, description will turn to a case where all the transistors included in the pixel 100 are constituted by n-channel transistors, with reference made to FIG. 12A. Note that a threshold voltage of the n-channel reset transistor 1140 is denoted by a symbol VthN.
A brief explanation will be given with regard to an operation of the n-channel reset transistor 1140 shown in FIG. 12A. When the reset signal line in the j-th row (Rj) is selected, a signal of Vdd (Hi) potential is inputted to the gate electrode of the n-channel reset transistor 1140. At the same time, a potential of the drain region of the reset transistor 1140 which is connected to the power source supply line (VBi) becomes Vdd.
At this time, if the voltage Vgs between the gate and the source of the reset transistor 1140 is larger than VthN, the reset transistor 1140 becomes an ON-state. Conversely, if Vgs is smaller than VthN, then the reset transistor 1140 becomes an OFF-state, so that a voltage supplied through the power source supply line (VBi) does not reach the n-channel-side terminal of the photoelectric conversion element 1110. That is, the potential difference Vpd between both electrodes of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 does not become greater than the value (Vdd−VthN) obtained by subtracting the threshold voltage VthN for the reset transistor 1140 from the potential Vdd of the power source supply line (VBi).
Next, description will be made of a relationship between an intensity of light irradiated onto the photoelectric conversion element 1110 and a potential of the photoelectric conversion element 1110, with reference made to FIG. 12B. As described above, the potential difference Vpd between the both electrodes of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 does not become greater than the value (Vdd−VthN) obtained by subtracting the threshold voltage VthN from the potential Vdd of the power source supply line (VBi). Therefore, the greater the threshold voltage VthN, the greater becomes the attenuation of amplitude, so that a sufficient signal amplitude cannot be attained with respect to the potential difference Vpd between the both terminals of the photoelectric conversion element 1110. That is, the greater the)threshold value VthN becomes, the more difficult it becomes to sufficiently raise the potential of the n-channel-side terminal of the photoelectric conversion element 1110. As a result, changes in the potential of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 become so minuscule that there will be little noticeable difference among signals outputted from the pixel 100. In such a case, it becomes difficult to read information of a subject with precision.
Next, description will turn to a case where all the transistors included in the pixel 100 are constituted by p-channel transistors, with reference made to FIG. 14A. Note that a threshold voltage of the p-channel reset transistor 1140 is denoted by a symbol VthP. In the pixel 100 shown in FIG. 14A, the n-channel-side terminal of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 is connected to the power source line 1210, and the p-channel-side terminal thereof is connected to the source region of the reset transistor 1140.
In the arrangement shown in FIG. 14A, when a signal of Vss (Hi) potential is inputted to the reset transistor 1140, the reset transistor 1140 becomes an ON-state. At this time, the potential of the drain region of the reset transistor 1140 is Vss, while the potential of the source region thereof becomes equal to the value (Vss+|VthP|) obtained by adding together the potential Vss of the power source supply line (VBi) and a threshold voltage thereof. Accordingly, it follows that the potential difference Vpd between the both terminals of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 does not become greater than the value obtained by subtracting the sum (Vss+|VthP|) of the potential Vss of the power source supply line (VBi) and the threshold voltage from the potential Vdd of the power source supply line (VBi). In other words, the potential of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 does not become greater than the value of Vdd−(Vss+|VthP|).
Summarizing the foregoing description, the pixels respectively shown in FIGS. 11A, 12A, and 14A each include: three transistors consisting of the switching transistor 1120, the amplification transistor 1130, and the reset transistor 1140; and the photoelectric conversion element 1110. Thus, the three pixels are identical in configuration. However, conductivity types of the transistors differ among the three pixels, as is manifested in the fact that the reset transistor 1140 is a p-channel transistor in FIGS. 11A and 14A, whereas it is an n-channel transistor in FIG. 12A
As described hereinabove, in the pixel shown in FIG. 11A the reset transistor 1140 is a p-channel transistor and the potential difference Vpd between the both electrodes of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 can be sufficiently raised to the power source potential Vdd. On the other hand, in the pixel shown in FIG. 12A the reset transistor 1140 is an n-channel transistor and the potential Vpd between the both terminals of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 experiences amplitude attenuation whereby it does not become greater than the value (Vdd−VthN) obtained by subtracting the threshold voltage VthN from the power source potential Vdd. Also, in the pixel shown in FIG. 14A the reset transistor 1140 is a p-channel transistor and the potential difference between the both terminals of the photoelectric conversion element similarly experiences amplitude attenuation whereby it does not become greater than the value of Vdd−(Vss+|VthP|).
In a semiconductor device, semiconductor elements such as transistors are typically manufactured on an insulating surface or a semiconductor substrate. The resulting complexity of its manufacture has been the source of reduced yield and increased manufacturing costs. Accordingly, utmost simplification of the manufacturing process is a primary object in achieving increased yield and reduced costs. In view of this, the present inventor has conceived of using transistors having a single polarity (i.e. having the same conductivity type) for the pixel portion and for the peripheral driver circuits (the source signal line driver circuit, the gate signal line driver circuit, and the like).
Incidentally, in the pixel 100 shown in FIG. 12A, all the transistors are constituted by n-channel transistors. Thus, the pixel 100 is constituted by transistors having a single polarity. Likewise, all the transistors included in the pixel 100 shown in FIG. 14A are p-channel transistors, and thus the pixel 100 is constituted by transistors having a single polarity. However, amplitude attenuation occurs in the above-mentioned pixels, thus making it impossible to attain a sufficient signal amplitude.
In the pixel 100 shown in FIG. 11A, the potential difference Vpd between the both electrodes of the photoelectric conversion element 1110 is raised to the power source potential Vdd in order to attain a sufficient signal amplitude. However, the pixel 100 includes transistors having mutually different conductivity types, which adds complexity to its manufacture.
To conclude, when the pixel is constituted by transistors having a single polarity (i.e. having the same conductivity type) with the conventional pixel configuration, although the number of manufacturing steps can be reduced, it becomes impossible to attain a sufficient signal amplitude.

Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.