1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device, and particularly to a method of manufacturing a non-volatile memory.
2. Description of Related Art
When semiconductor technology enters deep sub-micron manufacturing process, sizes of devices are gradually decreased, which means decreased memory cell size with respect to memory device. On the other hand, as data which information electronic products (such as computer, mobile phone, digital camera and personal digital assistant (PDA)) have to handle and store is increasing, the memory capacity required by these information electronic products becomes larger and larger. In the case of decreased device size and increased memory capacity demand, a common goal in the field is how to manufacture memory devices having decreased size and high integration while maintaining good qualities.
A non-volatile memory is capable of safeguarding stored data even after the power supplied to the non-volatile memory is cut off, and therefore the non-volatile memory has been extensively applied to personal computers and electronic equipments.
A typical non-volatile memory cell has a memory gate and a control gate made by doped polysilicon. A dielectric layer is disposed respectively between the memory gate and a substrate, and between the control gate and the substrate.
However, the manufacture of the above-mentioned non-volatile memory cell requires forming a plurality of polysilicon layers and a plurality of dielectric layers. During the manufacturing process, several photomasking steps are carried out, which not only lengthens the manufacturing process but also incurs more manufacturing cost.
A conventional NOR type non-volatile memory cell formed by two transistors connected in series includes a select transistor and a memory gate transistor. For this type of memory cell, there is no need to form a plurality of polysilicon layers. Hence the manufacturing process of such non-volatile memory cell can be integrated with the manufacturing process of a complementary metal oxide semiconductor transistor.
Generally, the non-volatile memory consists of a plurality of memory cells located in a memory cell region and a plurality of logic devices (such as input/output transistor, core transistor, etc.) located in a periphery circuit region. The select transistor and the input/output transistor in the periphery circuit region are manufactured in the same process. A gate dielectric layer of the input/output transistor is usually thicker for withstanding a higher operating voltage. However, in a situation where the sizes of devices are decreased due to increased integration of an integrated circuit, the size of the memory cell is decreased as well. If a thickness of a gate dielectric layer of the select transistor is equal to the thickness of the gate dielectric layer of the input/output transistor in the periphery circuit region, during operation of the memory, a larger voltage needs to be applied to a gate of the select transistor, with the result that a driving capability of a non-volatile memory device is reduced. Therefore, it will be an important issue that how to enable the non-volatile memory device to have a better driving capability.


The preparation of diazaspirodecan-2-ones, in particular, 8-[{1-(3,5-Bis-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl)-ethoxy}-methyl]-8-phenyl-1,7-diaza-spiro[4,5]decan-2-ones, for example, (5S,8S)-8-[{(1R)-1-(3,5-Bis-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl)-ethoxy}-methyl]-8-phenyl-1,7-diazaspiro[4,5]decan-2-one (the compound of Formula I) is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,049,320, issued May 23, 2006 (the '320 patent) which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

The novel compounds disclosed in the '320 patent are classified as Tachykinin compounds, and are antagonists of neuropeptide neurokinin-1 receptors (referred to herein for convenience as “NK-1 receptor antagonists”).
The compounds described in the '320 patent are classified as tachykinin compounds, and are antagonists of neuropeptide neurokinin-1 receptors (herein, “NK-1” receptor antagonists). Other NK-1 receptor antagonists and their synthesis have been described, for example, those described in Wu et al, Tetrahedron 56, 3043-3051 (2000); Rombouts et al, Tetrahedron Letters 42, 7397-7399 (2001); Rogiers et al, Tetrahedron 57, 8971-8981 (2001) and in each of the following publications: published international application no. WO05/100358; U.S. Pat. No. 5,760,018 (1998); U.S. Pat. No. 5,620,989 (1997), and international publication nos. WO 95/19344 (1995), WO 94/13639 (1994), and WO 94/10165 (1994), each of which are incorporated herein in their entirety by reference.
“NK-1” receptor antagonists have been shown to be useful therapeutic agents, for example, in the treatment of pain, inflammation, migraine, emesis (vomiting), and nociception. The novel NK-1 compounds disclosed in the above-mentioned '320 patent include the compound of Formula I, which is useful in the treatment of nausea and emesis associated with chemotherapy treatments (Chemotherapy-induced nausea and emesis, CINE). Emesis and nausea have been a problem in the provision of chemotherapy. Chemotherapeutic agents, for example, cisplatin carboplatin and temozolomide have been associated with both acute and delayed onset nausea and vomiting. It is known to administer chemotherapeutic agents with an anti-emetic, for example, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,939,098, which describes coadministration of temozolomide and with ondansetron, however such therapy is not effective in preventing delayed onset nausea and vomiting.
As reported in the '320 patent, the compound of Formula I was characterized by TLC and by GC/MS techniques. The procedures described in the '320 patent yielded the compound of Formula I in the form of an amorphous white foam. Repeated attempts to crystallize the free base have not provided a crystalline material.
In general, compounds which have been identified as having therapeutic activity must be provided in a highly pure form for pharmaceutical use. Moreover, it is desirable to provide compounds intended for pharmaceutical use in a form such that it is handled easily for incorporation into a medicament, and when incorporated into a medicament the compound possesses a sufficiently robust character that it is resistant to chemical degradation, and thereby imparts a long shelf life to the medicament.


Lithium ion secondary batteries have been used in recent years as a power supply with ability of charge and discharge of electricity which is incorporated in cellular phones or portable electric devices. Moreover, for example, batteries using a solid-like unfluidized electrolyte as the electrolyte without danger of liquid leakage are also known. There are various outside forms of such a lithium ion secondary battery, and the batteries, generally used for notebook type or pocketbook type portable electric devices and cellular phones, are flat type in many cases. In such a flat type lithium ion secondary battery, in order to produce electric current continuity between a main body of a secondary battery cell and the exterior, board-like electrodes are respectively located on the positive pole/terminal and the negative pole/terminal.
The pole/terminal of positive electrode is generally formed with thin aluminum or an aluminum base alloy having a thickness of about 0.07-0.1 mm by the press cut or the like, in order to satisfy the structural limitations in a part connected to the main body of the secondary battery cell, restrain and reduce the thickness of the whole secondary battery, and ensure high conductivity, and a metal plate (the so-called tab) further connected with the exterior terminal lead is welded to the tip portion in many cases. As the metal plate, materials with low electric resistance, excellent mechanical strength, and excellent weather resistance such as a nickel base alloy are used suitably in order to electrically and mechanically (based on strength of material) ensure the connection with the exterior. Moreover, the plate thickness is set, for example, to 0.1 mm or more in many cases.
The metal plate and the electrode are generally welded by the electric resistance welding or the ultrasonic welding, and the sure welding is strongly needed so that the metal plate may not be separated nor omitted from the electrode, while using the secondary battery or the like.
However, there is a problem that poor welding occurs in the case of the electric resistance welding between the above electrode and the metal plate.
The first reason for the difficulty of the electric resistance welding is the difference between aluminum and nickel melting points. That is, the pole/terminal of positive electrode is formed with aluminum or the aluminum base alloy, so the melting point is 660-700° C. On the other hand, the metal plate is formed with the material with both high mechanical strength and a comparatively high melting point, so the melting point is, for example, 1400-1455° C. in the case of the nickel base alloy. Therefore, the difference between the electrode and the metal plate melting points reaches about 800° C. Moreover, the boiling point of aluminum is 2486° C., the boiling point of nickel is 2731° C., and the boiling points also differ greatly.
The second reason for the difficulty of the electric resistance welding is the existence of an oxide film (aluminum oxide) formed on the surface of the aluminum plate. The melting point of aluminum oxide is as high as 2050° C., and in the case of the electric resistance welding between the aluminum plate and the nickel plate, it is necessary to dissolve the thin oxide film under the temperature of the weld part of about 2050° C. or higher. Here, the aluminum oxide film on the aluminum surface is generally called alumina, and the chemical formula thereof is Al2O3.
Thus, if a welding condition is set up so that the welding temperature may reach the melting point or more of the metal plate made of the nickel base alloy or the like, in the case of welding a pile of one electrode and one metal plate by the conventional general electric resistance welding process, aluminum or the aluminum base alloy of the electrode dissolves completely over a large area to the extent that the plate thickness is penetrated exceeding the size of a normal/regular nugget. Accordingly, the dissolved metal is spilt out, aluminum evaporates and scatters around violently after the aluminum plate of the weld part reaches the boiling point, or the like phenomenon occurs, which causes generation of a hole in the part and poor welding without the sure welding.
Moreover, when the welding temperature is adjusted under the melting point of the metal plate, such as the nickel base alloy, in order to avoid such a complete broad dissolution of the electrode, the poor welding such as the hole generation in the electrode or the spill of the dissolved metal does not occur. However, since the nickel base alloy on the metal plate surface does not fuse, the normal nugget of both the nickel base alloy and the aluminum base alloy is not formed, only the trace of the aluminum base alloy melting is left on the cross section surface after the welding, and the poor welding of the unsure welding occurs. Consequently, for example, the peeling test reveals that the electrode and the metal plate separate easily under very lower power than the specific tensile proof stress.
Then, it is desired that various conditions of the electric resistance welding are set in order to generate a distribution of the welding temperature in which the normal nugget can be formed from the junction surface between the metal plate and the electrode to the peripheral part. However, such a condition setup unavoidably becomes very delicate, since the difference between the metal of the metal plate such as the nickel base alloy and metal of the electrode such as the aluminum base alloy melting points, is too large. Moreover, the tip of the electrode pole is degraded and deformed as the welding is continued, so it is very difficult to continuously maintain the setup of the above preferable delicate welding conditions in the actual mass production process, and therefore it is difficult to reduce the occurrence rate of the poor welding.
In addition, if the positive electrode terminal strip is composed of a nickel plate like the negative electrode terminal strip, the electric resistance welding can be carried out. However, if the nickel plate composes the positive electrode terminal strip, the nickel plate may react electrically in the inside of the battery and dissolve, and thus it is not preferable.
As described above, it is technically difficult to perform the electric resistance welding of the thin aluminum plate and the nickel plate, and particularly, the welding of the positive electrode terminal strip and a wiring board is conventionally performed by the ultrasonic welding.
However, there have been the following problems in the ultrasonic welding. First, the setting ranges of oscillating strength and amplitude time of the ultrasonic welding are small, and it is difficult to maintain the optimum conditions of the welding. Secondly, it is difficult to stabilize the welding strength, and the poor welding may occur at a certain rate in the mass production process for manufacturing the products in large quantities. Because, in the ultrasonic welding, only a very thin alloy layer is produced at the interface between the electrode and the metal plate, both are in the weakly connecting state only on the surface in many cases due to increasing the roughness of both the surfaces, and it is difficult to accomplish the demanded electrically and mechanically sure welding state for the welded surface. Moreover, the natural oxide film generated on the surface of the metal plate made of aluminum or the aluminum base alloy presents obstacles, and the weak welding action by the ultrasonic welding tends to be still weaker. And if the electrode and the metal plate are welded weakly as described above, the electric resistance becomes high in the part thereof, with such unfortunate consequences as the voltage which can be transferred from the secondary battery cell outside through the electrode and the metal plate decreases or the electric current can be limited.
Thirdly, ultrasonic welding devices are more expensive than resistance welding devices, and the equipment expenses for mass production becomes high. Fourthly, the ultrasonic welding devices are larger than the resistance welding devices, and a larger floor space is required. Then, developments in the technique for welding the thin aluminum plate and the nickel plate by the electric resistance welding have been demanded.
It is necessary, for example, to weld for long time using the supersonic wave with still stronger energy density or the like in order to produce the still stronger welding state by such ultrasonic welding. However, if the welding is performed with such strong supersonic wave for long time, the electrode, made of the aluminum base alloy with the thin thickness and the lower melting point, dissolves in the range exceeding the size required for welding like the case of the above electric resistance welding, and the advantages of the ultrasonic welding itself cannot be employed efficiently. For example, if too strong ultrasonic welding is performed, a part of the electrode made of the aluminum base alloy is cut.
Moreover, although the utilization of the soldering method is also considered as a method of electrically and mechanically fixing the metal plate to the electrode other than the welding, the natural oxide film (alumina) as described above is generated on the surface of the electrode made of the aluminum base alloy, and therefore presents obstacles to the wettability and attachment of the solder, and the soldering becomes difficult. It is thought that the treatment of pre-applying powerful flux or the like to the surface of the electrode for processing the natural oxide film of the surface before the soldering is effective to overcome the above obstacles. However, the inevitable result is that the component of such a strong flux remains on the electrode or the metal plate after soldering, so there are unfortunate consequences that the remaining component may remarkably degrade the durability of the connection part between the electrode and the metal plate. For example, the remaining components may gradually corrode the electrode during the period of using the secondary battery, which would eventually be damaged, dropped out, or the like. Moreover, soldering the positive electrode terminal strip and the wiring board is not preferable, since the thin aluminum plate composing the positive electrode terminal strip is brought to high temperature, and the inside temperature of the battery also becomes high, resulting in the battery degradation.
The present invention has been achieved in view of the above problems. It is an object of the invention to provide a method of manufacturing a battery comprising the step of welding an electrode made of aluminum, an aluminum base alloy, or the like, and a metal plate made of a nickel base alloy or the like, in a polymer lithium ion secondary battery or the like, by means of an electric resistance welding process comprising an electric resistance welding step of securely welding the electrode and the metal plate, with eliminating the problems of poor welding such as hole generation or scattering to the surroundings due to the spilled metal in a welding part, and a battery with high reliability and durability in which a metal plate and an electrode are securely welded by such method.
It is another object of the invention to provide a method of manufacturing a weldment in which two or more objects being welded which made of a different material are easily welded by the electric resistance welding with high reliability, and a pedestal used for the method.


Field of the Invention and Related Art Statement
The present invention relates to an automatic analyzer comprising a reaction line along which a number of reaction vessels each containing respective test liquids are transported and photometering means for effecting the photometry for the test liquids in the reaction vessels by transmitting light beams through the reaction vessels.
An automatic analyzer of single-line and multi-item type has been proposed in which a plurality of test items, i.e. a plurality of substances in samples are analyzed by means of a single reaction line. In such an automatic analyzer, test liquids contained in reaction vessels have to be photometered with the aid of light beams having different wavelengths corresponding to respective test items.
FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a known photometering apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 65-21,303. The photometering apparatus comprises a light source 1 emitting white light, i.e. light including whole wavelength components, a condenser lens 2 for collecting the white light and making it incident upon reaction vessels 4 transported along a reaction line 3. Light transmitted through a test liquid contained in a reaction vessel 4 is made incident upon a spectroscope 6 via a slit 5 and is divided into a plurality of light beams having different wavelengths. These light beams are then made incident upon a plurality of light detectors 8-1, 8-2, . . . 8-n, respectively by means of a slit 7 having a plurality of holes 7a. One or more output signals supplied from the light detectors 8-1, 8-2, . . . 8-n are selected in accordance with test items to be measured for respective samples.
FIG. 2 is schematic view illustrating another known photometering apparatus described in Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication, Kokai Sho 60-117,118. In this known apparatus, white light emitted from a light source 11 is evenly made incident upon incident ends of a plurality of optical fibers 13 via a condenser lens 12. Exit ends of optical fibers 13 are secured at positions which are predetermined in accordance with wavelengths of measuring light beams emanating from a diffraction grating 14. In opposition to the exit ends of optical fibers 13 there is arranged a rotary disc 19 which is rotated by a motor 17. As shown in FIG. 3, the rotary disc 19 has formed therein a plurality of sector slits 18 corresponding to the positions at which the exit ends of optical fibers 13 are arranged. The motor 17 is driven such that any one of slits 18 in the disc 19 can be positioned opposite an exit end of an optical fiber in accordance with a test item destined for a test liquid contained in a reaction vessel 16 which is just indexed at a measuring position defined by slit 20. Therefore, a light beam having a desired wavelength is made incident upon the reaction vessel 16 from the diffraction grating 14, and the light transmitted through the reaction vessel is received by a light detector 21. The reaction vessels 16 are transported along a reaction line 15 through the measuring position.
In the known photometering apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1, since the white light has a large amount of energy and is made incident upon the test liquid, some substances in test liquids might be decomposed or altered, so that in practice it is difficult to carry out the measurement precisely.
This problem could be removed by the known apparatus illustrated in FIG. 2, because only a slight flux having a desired wavelength corresponding to a test item is made incident upon a test liquid. However, in this known apparatus, in order to select the wavelength it is necessary to rotate the slit disc 19, and therefore a long time period may be necessary for measuring test items, thereby reducing the processing ability of such systems. Moreover, the white light emitted from the light source 11 is divided into a plurality of light beams with the aid of the optical fibers and thus weaking the intensity of respective light beams. And as a result, noise can affect the weakened photometered signals thus decreasing the accuracy of the photometry.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,528,159, issued on July 9, 1985, discloses another known automatic analyzer comprising a light source emitting white light, first and second filter wheels arranged rotatably, and first and second light guides arranged between a cuvette and the filter wheels, respectively. Light emitted from the light source is evenly made incident upon filter elements of the first filter wheel, and a light flux emanating from a filter element is made incident upon a cuvette containing a test liquid via the first light guide. A light flux transmitted through the cuvette is made incident upon a light detector by means of the second light guide and a filter element of the second filter wheel. This known photometering apparatus is principally the same as the known apparatus shown in FIG. 2, and thus it requires a rather long time period to rotate the first and second filter wheels so as to index desired filter elements thereof into the measuring optical path in accordance with a test item to be measured.


Commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 5,448,430 is incorporated for its showing of a track following servo system for following servo track edges of dissimilar servo signals, commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 5,844,814 is incorporated for its showing of an independent position sensor in a head positioning system, and commonly assigned U.S. Patent Application (Ser. No. 09/413,327) is incorporated for its showing of a servo position detector and a method for detecting and following an index servo position displaced with respect to an edge of a servo track.
This invention relates to recording system track following servos, and, more particularly, to the initialization and calibration of indexed servo positions displaced from servo track edges.
Advancements in technology in the data storage industry often include increases in the data storage capacity of given data storage media. One means of increasing the data storage capacity of data storage media, such as magnetic tape cartridges or magnetic tape cassettes, is to increase the track density of the data storage media.
In a typical magnetic tape, data is recorded in a plurality of parallel, longitudinal data tracks. A tape head may have a plurality of data heads which have fewer numbers of read/write elements than tracks. The data tracks are divided into groups, typically interleaved, and the tape head is indexed laterally with respect to the tracks to access each group of data tracks. In order to properly register the read/write elements with the data tracks, prerecorded servo tracks are provided which are parallel to the data tracks. A servo head located at an indexed position with respect to the read/write elements reads the servo tracks. The servo tracks provide lateral positioning information which, when read by the servo head, can be detected by a servo detector to indicate whether the servo read head is correctly positioned with respect to the servo tracks. Thus, the servo head can be moved laterally to a desired position with respect to the servo tracks so as to properly register the read/write elements with respect to a desired group of data tracks. Then, the servo head can follow the servo tracks as the media and the head are moved longitudinally with respect to each other, so that the read/write elements maintain registration with the data tracks. Typically, the servo head follows servo tracks at an edge, an edge comprising an interface between two dissimilar recorded servo signals.
The incorporated (Ser. No. 09/413,327) application utilizes existing servo tracks having edges, but increases the data track density by employing index servo positions displaced from the edges. Effectively, the index servo position is the lateral position on the tape at which the center of the servo read head is located, and this position is laterally displaced from an edge. The edges are easily tracked in the conventional servo systems by tracking the point at which both the dissimilar signals are sensed by a servo detector as balanced, in effect relying on the photolithography of the recording elements that generated the servo track edges. An example of a servo track following system for tracking edges is illustrated by the incorporated ""430 patent.
As pointed out by the incorporated (TU999049) application, tracking at a displacement from an edge is much more difficult. The index position is at a predetermined displacement distance in a lateral direction from an edge. The servo system servo detector determines the ratio between the two dissimilar recorded servo signals read by the servo head, with the ratio, the ratio representing the lateral position of the servo head with respect to an edge. The servo system then moves the servo head laterally to follow the index position, with the servo detector indicating a ratio of the two dissimilar recorded servo signals that is at an offset from the balanced ratio, the ratio representing the desired index servo position. To track follow at a displaced index position requires a high resolution servo detector that can interpolate the dissimilar recorded servo signals. The dissimilar servo signals are prerecorded onto the media, but are subject to variation in amplitude and possibly placement from one data storage media to the next.
Initializing and calibrating the servo detector to provide a correct interpolation of the recorded dissimilar recorded servo signals therefore becomes difficult.
An object of the present invention is to provide an initialization and calibration sequence that enables a more precise track following alignment of a servo head for following an index servo position displaced laterally from an edge.
Disclosed are a servo system and method for initializing and calibrating at least one index servo track following position substantially parallel to the edges and displaced a predetermined displacement distance in a lateral direction from one of the edges, in accordance with the present invention. A servo head is moveable in the lateral direction with respect to the recording medium and a servo detector is coupled to the servo head for determining a ratio related to the two dissimilar recorded servo signals as read by the servo head, the ratio representing the lateral position of the center of the servo head with respect to one of the edges. A servo track follower is coupled to the servo detector for moving the servo head laterally, the servo track follower, once initialized and calibrated, following an index ratio of the two dissimilar recorded servo signals representing the index servo position. An independent position sensor is provided for determining the mechanical lateral position of the servo head with respect to the recording medium.
In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, logic, coupled to the servo detector, the servo track follower and the independent position sensor, responds to the servo detector and operates the servo track follower to nominally align the servo head at a lateral position at which the servo detector provided ratio represents one of the edges. The logic measures the mechanical lateral position of the independent position sensor at the nominal alignment of the servo head. The logic then responds to the independent position sensor, operating the servo track follower to reposition the servo head laterally the predetermined displacement distance from the nominal alignment as determined by the independent position sensor. The logic measures the servo detector provided repositioned ratio of the servo signals at the displaced distance, the logic initializing and calibrating the servo track follower to employ the provided repositioned ratio as the index ratio. Thus, track following at the provided index ratio insures that the servo head is at the correct displacement from the edge.
Additionally, if the servo system comprises a plurality of servo heads having the same alignment as a plurality of the prerecorded servo tracks, the nominal alignment of the servo heads at the corresponding edges comprises aligning the servo heads at a lateral position at which the servo detector provided ratio comprises the average of the provided ratios from the plurality of servo heads, the average representing the corresponding edges of the servo tracks. Then, the measurement of the repositioned ratio of the servo signals comprises measuring the average of the servo detector provided repositioned ratios from the plurality of servo heads.
In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, a check on the edge measurement may be made during the initialization and calibration of index servo positions displaced substantially equidistant in opposite lateral directions from one of the edges. The servo head is again repositioned in the opposite lateral direction from the repositioning step, to the predetermined displacement distance from the nominal alignment as determined by the independent position sensor. The logic measures the again repositioned ratio of the servo signals. Thus, the repositioned ratio represents the displacement at one side of the edge, and the again repositioned ratio represents the displacement at the other side of the edge. The logic determines a midpoint between the repositioned ratio and the again repositioned ratio, compares the midpoint to the nominally aligned ratio, and determines whether the compared ratios are within a predetermined range. If so, the nominal alignment was correct, and the logic initializes and calibrates the servo detector to employ the provided repositioned ratio and the again repositioned ratio as the index ratios for the oppositely displaced index servo positions.
The repositioned locations can also be checked in accordance with the present invention. As a check, the servo head is further repositioned laterally in opposite directions from the repositioned displacement, the further repositioning comprising a substantially equal displacement in the opposite directions, the displacement a fraction of the predetermined displacement distance as determined by the independent position sensor. The logic measures the servo detector provided ratios of the servo signals at the further repositioned displacements, and determines a further midpoint between the opposite further repositioned ratios. The logic compares the further midpoint to the repositioned ratio, determining whether the compared ratios are within a predetermined range of each other. If so, the repositioned ratio is correct, and the logic conducts the initializing and calibrating step.
Hence, the present invention provides an initialization and calibration sequence that enables a more precise track following alignment of a servo head for following an index servo position displaced laterally from an edge.
For a fuller understanding of the present invention, reference should be made to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.


1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to electronic memories such as may be used for data processors and signal processors.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The prior art uses many different types of memories such as magnetic memories, integrated circuit memories, magnetostrictive delay line memories, and optical memories. Magnetic memories include magnetic core memories and plated wire memories. Integrated circuit memories include shift registers, charge transfer devices (CTDs), and random access memories (RAMs). Bubble memories are magnetic in nature and are implemented with integrated circuit processes. These memories are used with digital systems, where digital information is stored as a single digital bit per memory cell. Hence, a digital word having a plurality of digital bits is stored in a plurality of memory cells storing a single digital bit per memory cell. In analog systems such as analog computers or analog signal processors, analog signals are stored in analog signal form with memories such as potentionmeters and CCD memories. Digital systems do not store digital information in analog signal form, such as interfacing an analog memory to a digital processor with a digital to analog converter at the input to the analog memory and an analog to digital converter at the output from the analog memory interfacing to the processor. Main memories for stored program computers are implemented with digital memories, not analog memories.
The prior art is further represented by the art of record in the instant application and in the ancestor applications. Transform processor art and frequency domain processor art is cited in the ancestor applications and is taught in the Rabiner and Gold reference cited hereinafter; in the Goodman, Rabiner and Radner and Bulter and Harvey references cited in ancestor U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,209,853 and 4,209,852; in the Oppenheimer and Schafer reference cited in ancestor U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,209,843 and 4,486,850; and in the Brigham reference cited in ancestor U.S. Pat. No. 4,486,850. Transform processor art and frequency domain processor art is further discussed in the Description Of The Prior Art in ancestor U.S. Pat. No. 4,486,850.
The prior art is further defined in the art-of-record of the related applications in the chain of continuing applications including U.S. Pat. No. 3,356,989 to Autry; U.S. Pat. No. 3,613,771 to Quay; U.S. Pat. No. 3,618,052 to Kwei; U.S. Pat. No. 3,643,106 to Berwin; U.S. Pat. No. 3,652,499 to Smith; U.S. Pat. No. 3,662,351 to Ho; U.S. Pat. No. 3,775,738 to Quay; U.S. Pat. No. 3,753,242 to Townsend; U.S. Pat. No. 3,755,793 to Ho; U.S. Pat. No. 3,757,313 to Hines; U.S. Pat. No. 3,761,901 to Aneshansely; U.S. Pat. No. 3,771,148 to Aneshansley; U.S. Pat. No. 3,774,177 to Schaffer; U.S. Pat. No. 3,787,852 to Puckette; U.S. Pat. No. 3,801,967 to Berger; U.S. Pat. No. 3,826,926 to White; U.S. Pat. No. 3,852,745 to Le Bail; U.S. Pat. No. 3,873,958 to Whitehouse; U.S. Pat. No. 3,876,989 to Bankowski; U.S. Pat. No. 3,889,225 to Gosney; U.S. Pat. No. 3,891,977 to Amelio; U.S. Pat. No. 3,895,342 to Mallet; U.S. Pat. No. 3,909,806 to Uchida; U.S. Pat. No. 3,912,748 to Barton; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,942,034 to Buss and including the article by Dennard, IBM Technical Disclosure Bulletin, Vol 14, No. 12, May 1972, pages 3791-3792; the article by Altman, Electronics Magazine, Feb. 28, 1972, pages 62-71; and the article by Baertsch, Electronics Magazine, Dec. 6, 1971, pages 86-91 which references are all incorporated herein by reference.


The present invention pertains to a commissioning device with essentially vertical product storage units, in which products of the same type are stacked, and with at least one conveying means arranged under the product storage units, especially a conveyor belt, for the removal of selected or commissioned products, wherein the product of a selected product storage unit, which product is the lowermost product of the stack, can be pushed out of the product storage unit by an upwardly directed product stop of the conveying means in the direction of conveying of the moving conveying means and can be deposited on a positioned product field of the conveying means.
A commissioning device of the above-mentioned type has been known from EP 0 960 836 A2. The lowermost product of the stack is removed by the product storage unit being lowered with a continuously driven conveyor belt, which has product stops arranged at spaced locations from one another at the top, to the extent that the product stop or stud moving by carries with it the lowermost product of the column. The drawback of this embodiment is that the weight of the entire product column must be moved to push out a product, which leads to a complicated guide mechanism.
The object of the present invention is to provide a commissioning device of the type mentioned in the introduction, which makes possible the reliable and efficient commissioning of at least the lowermost products of stacks of a selected product storage unit by means of simple measures.
The essence of the present invention is that the product storage units are arranged lying above the plane of the conveying means, preferably at equally spaced locations from the said plane, and the product stop of the moving conveying means passes through freely under the product storage unit in case of non-commissioning of the lowermost product of the stack and is raised by a lifting means for a lateral engagement with at least one lowermost product of the stack in case of commissioning. Consequently, the entire product storage unit with its full weight is not moved in the direction of the conveyor belt or the product stop to push the product that is the lowermost product of the stack out of the product storage unit, as is done according to the state of the art, but the product stop of the moving conveying means is briefly raised. The product stop can be raised with or without the conveying means. The moving masses are always small, which makes possible a rapid cycling and consequently rapid and reliable commissioning. The moving conveying means may be a conveyor belt, a link conveyor, two toothed belts, V-belts or chains. The advantages of the system according to the present invention are the mechanical simplicity and especially the fact that due to the products being carried with the stop or stud, the products come to lie on the conveying means in an accurately positioned manner, which is favorable, e.g., for automatic labeling. It is also possible to form stacks of products on the conveying means between two adjacent product stops located at spaced locations from one another without an additional effort.
Provisions are made, in particular, for the conveying means to be raised by the lifting means together with the product stop rigidly connected to the conveying means directly in front of and after the product of a product storage unit, which is the lowermost product of the stack, and to be lowered again into the plane of the conveying means after pushing out.
The lifting means are preferably a cycled, vertical lifting drive, which is provided under the conveying means in the area of an associated product storage unit and is operated especially pneumatically or electrically.
The lifting means may also include an oblique stationary ramp with a wedge-shaped lifting body and be provided under the conveying means in the area of an associated product storage unit, the lifting body, which is displaceable or can be moved by means of rollers, being able to be adjusted in height along the ramp.
As an alternative, the conveying means may be, in principle, longitudinally movable, but not adjustable in height, and the pushing out of a product that is the lowermost product of the stack may also be pushed out of the selected product storage unit by the product stop connected to the conveying means being raised by lifting means without the conveying means directly in front of and after the product of a product storage unit, which product is the lowermost product of the stack and is to be commissioned, and being again lowered into the plane of the conveying means after pushing it out.
The product stop is preferably connected in this case to the conveying means by means of a conveying means tab, which is subjected to tensile load, and the product stop is adjustable in height by means of literal stationary ramps in the area of the lateral edge of the conveying means or by a means arranged above the conveying means at the product storage unit when commissioning is to be performed.
The lateral ramps advantageously have an adjustable, cycled switch each, which is preferably a laterally displaceable part of the ramp. If the switch is inactive, a transverse connecting rod of the product stop can be moved in the direction of conveying in a lateral longitudinal groove of the lateral ramps at the same level as the conveying means. If the switch is set, the longitudinal groove is blocked by slides, the transverse connecting rod passes through a predetermined elevated path corresponding to the preset ascent of the ramp, the saddle of the ramp and the decline of the ramp and consequently also corresponding to the product stop, which will then laterally engage a lowermost product of the stack and pushes out this product in the course of its forward movement and positions same on the product field in front of the product stop on the conveying means.
Instead of a preferably central product stop, two lateral product stops of identical design may also be provided for a single product of a product storage unit, which is the lowermost product of the stack, in order to reliably prevent jamming from occurring during the pushing out in all cases.
The product storage units may be preferably slightly sloped relative to the vertical in the direction of conveying of the conveying means. The pushing-out operation is facilitated by the slope.
The product storage units of a conveying means may be arranged in a row and spaced equally from one another.
In particular, the distance between the product storage units is smaller than the width of the product storage unit in order to ensure the compact design of the overall system. The distance between two product storage units can be bridged over by a protective plate in order to minimize the risk for injury to a user. A high product stop moving forward may possibly represent a safety hazard.
The product storage units may also be sloped, preferably slightly, relative to the vertical at right angles to the direction of conveying of the conveying means.
Provisions may be made, in particular, for the product storage unit to be a vertical, doubly sloped angle sheet iron with a positioning angle for products picked up in the product storage unit. Differently configured cubic objects can also be stacked in an aligned manner in such a storage unit and handled and especially ejected correspondingly reliably.
The product storage units may have a lateral ejection slot located in the direction of conveying for products to be given out, where the width of the slot is selected or the slot can be adjusted in width in the vertical direction such that two or more stacked products can be deposited simultaneously as a small stack of products on a single product field of the conveying means. It is obvious that the height of the product stop must be selected correspondingly in this case. A product stop may be optionally moved in height on two different lateral ramps or on a single lateral ramp, which ramp will now have two switches of different heights.
In particular, an ejection slot that is broad in the vertical direction may be formed in the product storage unit, which has a maximum vertical extension for pushing out, e.g., two or three products at the same time, with a brush being fastened horizontally in the upper horizontal edge area of the ejection slot such that the bristles of the brush extend downward and end under the top edge of the product of the product storage unit, which product is the lowermost product in the stack, and a product falling after is reliably retained. If only the product that is the lowermost product of the stack is commissioned in the case of such a design, this product can be pushed out practically freely with the product stop touching the bristles only slightly. If two (or three) products are being commissioned, and the raised product stop has a correspondingly high engagement position, the second lowest (or possibly also the third lowest) product of the product stack is also pushed out of the product storage unit together with the lowermost product of the stack. The elastic bristles of the brush are correspondingly deflected in this case by the second lowest (and possibly the third lowest) product during pushing out. It is obvious that another elastic member, e.g., leaf spring tongues, which performs the same function, may also be provided instead of the brush.
Instead of the brush or the elastic member, it is also possible to provide a plate slide, which releases the entire vertical width of the ejection slot in a raised position, so that, e.g., two or three products can be pushed out simultaneously. If only the lowermost product of the stack is to be pushed out or commissioned, the height-adjustable slide is correspondingly lowered in order to release only the width [necessary] for the lowermost product of the stack. The plate slide is correspondingly actuated now by an electronic control means, which is part of the electronic control unit of the commissioning device, just as the product stop for its height adjustment.
The overall system of a commissioning device may have different designs depending on the capacity, the intended use and the local conditions. In particular, a plurality of conveying means with associated product storage units may be provided in the same plane and/or in different planes, whose conveying end is in connection with a cross belt or the like, and oblique intermediate conveyor belts or the like, which can be bridged over in height, may be provided.
A plurality of pushed-out products, which have been taken from one or more product storage units, may be preferably stacked in a single product field.
One or more product storage units may be designed as drawers or as roller-mounted drawers displaceable at right angles to the conveyor belt. The product storage unit is now pulled out laterally for filling. The position of the drawer is scanned by means of a sensor or scanner. Pushing out is prevented by the product storage unit control for the time of refilling. If a product is needed from the blocked product storage unit during this time, the product storage unit control reports the error or the refilling operation to the control computer.
The drawer may have a plurality of product storage units next to one another (parallel channels). The unused product storage units can be filled during the operation. A full product storage unit is then brought into the push-out position by displacing the drawer, and the empty product storage unit can again be refilled. The pushing out must be prevented in this case only for the duration of the channel change. The product storage unit can be correspondingly enlarged at equal overall height by the automatic or manual pushing on of a drawer with a plurality of parallel, channels.
Consequently, a stack of products (product column) is present according to the present invention in the product storage unit. The product storage units are always arranged vertically or sloped (at right angles to the direction of conveying) above a lifting device located under the conveyor belt).
The studs or product stops have such a height that they can pass through under the magazines with the lifting device withdrawn and the belt moving. If a product is to be removed, the conveyor belt is raised with the belt moving at the moment at which a stud is located directly in front of the front edge of the product storage unit. The conveyor belt is raised to the extent that the stud carries the lowermost product of the product column in the direction of conveying and as a result pushes it out of the product storage unit. The pushed-out product will then be located on the conveyor belt in a discrete field, whose size is determined by the distance between the studs.
A plurality of products can be pushed out of different product storage units with the same studs. As a result, a product stack is formed, which can be taken over at the end of the conveyor belt.
The advantages of the system are the mechanical simplicity and the fact that due to the products being carried with the studs, the products lie on the belt in an accurately positioned manner (which is favorable, e.g., for automatic labeling), and product stacks can be formed without an additional effort.
Especially in the area of E-commerce, where an order consists, in general, of a small number of products only, a complete order requires only one product window if the height of the stack does not exceed the height of the stud. A drastic increase in the throughput of the system is achieved as a result.
The raising of the conveyor belt, or the like can be accomplished in many ways. One possibility is to push a plastic wedge over a ramp recessed in the material handling equipment. Any method for generating a lifting movement is possible, in principle (lifting magnet, vertically installed cylinder with roller, lateral cylinder with lifting mechanism, etc.).
Control:
The control computer receives an order consisting of a plurality of products. If the height of the stack is smaller than the height of the stud, the entire order can be stacked into a discrete field (product window=distance between two studs). If an order requires a plurality of product windows, the order is split. Due to the arrangement of the product storage units with lifting mechanism above the materials handling equipment, each storage unit has a defined three-dimensional distance from the end (in the direction of conveying) of the materials handling equipment. A pulse generator coupled with the materials handling equipment provides the information on the position of the product window. The product windows needed for an order are first reserved. If the product window is then located under a product storage unit, from which a product is to be pushed out, the corresponding lifting mechanism is activated.
To save space, a plurality of planes are connected one over another and/or by a curve and/or are arranged one behind the other, but also next to one another. To again reach a product window after a curve, the velocity of the conveyor belts of this plane must be equal, and the phase position of the product windows of the plane must remain constant to one another, i.e., it must be able to be configured. Finally, all the planes located one on top of another and one behind the other and optionally also next to one another are brought together onto one section. To reach the product windows of the collecting belt during this operation, the velocity and the phase position of the converging sections must also be constant or able to be configured. The belt synchronization control is necessary only in the case of curves and to optimize the throughput.
As an alternative, the raising of the stud may also take place according to another principle. Instead of raising the conveyor belt, a conveyor belt or the like with a tab, strip, small plate or the like, arranged on the conveying side, may be used. The tabs or the like are fastened at the conveyor belt at right angles to the direction of conveying and have a stud at the loose end, which stud acts as a push-out means. Together with the stud, a rod, which projects over the lateral edge of the conveyor belt, is mounted at right angles to the direction of conveying. A ramp with a switch is located under each product storage unit on both sides next to the conveyor belt. If a product is to be pushed out, the switch is activated as soon as the tab belonging to the product window is located under the product storage unit. The product storage units are sloped in the direction of conveying. In addition, the product storage units may also be sloped at right angles to the direction of conveying in order to make possible the simple filling of the product storage unit, because the products are automatically in contact with the rear side due to the force of gravity, and the front side (seen at right angles to the direction of conveying) can be left open. The rod at the end of the tab runs up onto the ramp and is raised as a result. After overcoming the ascent, there is a gradient, which corresponds to the slope of the product storage unit. The knob raised by the rod now carries the lowermost product with it out of the product storage unit. The slope of the product storage unit is selected to be such that the pushed-out product can be pushed under the next channel. As a result, the distance between consecutive product storage units can be minimized. If the switch is not activated, the rod passes through under the ramp along a groove.
A combination of the two possibilities is also conceivable: A higher stud with a rod at right angles to the direction of conveying is raised over a ramp only to the extent that the top edge of the stud pushes the lowermost product out of the product storage unit. The possibility of forming stacks is thus preserved. However, the ramp may also be part of the product storage unit, and projections on the stud are used to raise the stud.
Overall system:
The system may comprise a plurality of planes located one on top of another and rows located next to one another. A container handling equipment is arranged at right angles to the rows. The products are transferred at the end of the materials handling equipment either directly in each plane into containers waiting in front of it, or the planes are converged onto one level with transfer of the products into containers in one level.
The various features of novelty which characterize the invention are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and specific objects attained by its uses, reference is made to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which preferred embodiments of the invention are illustrated.


Unless otherwise indicated herein, the materials described in this section are not prior art to the claims in this disclosure and are not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.
A news production system (NPS) may facilitate the production of a news program in the form of a media stream. In one example, an NPS may include multiple media sources and a production switcher, where outputs of the media sources are connected to inputs of the production switcher. This may allow the production switcher to switch between and/or combine multiple media streams output by the media sources, thereby outputting the news program in the form of another media stream.
There are various types of media, including for example, audio, video, or a combination thereof. As such, in one example, an NPS may output a news program in the form of an audio stream. In this instance, the NPS may transmit the audio stream to a radio-broadcasting system for broadcast. As another example, a media stream may take the form of a video stream or a combined audio and video stream. In such instances, the NPS may transmit the video stream or the combined audio and video stream to a television-broadcasting system for broadcast.
A media source may take a variety of forms. For example, a media source may take the form of a media server. A media server is a device configured for retrieving a media file, converting the retrieved media file into a media stream, and outputting the converted media stream.
As another example, a media source may take the form of a media effect engine. A media effect engine is a device configured for retrieving a media effect (sometimes referred to as a “page”), and running the media effect thereby outputting a corresponding media stream. A media effect may be stored as a file that includes instructions and other data (e.g., media) related to the media effect. By running the media effect, the media effect engine may generate and output a media stream based on those instructions. Media effects are commonly used as a means to generate animations, graphics, or other visual effects in the form of a media stream that can be overlaid on another media stream. For instance, in the context of a news program, a “lower third” media effect may be used to overlay a graphic over a lower third portion of a media stream.
As such, in one example NPS, a media server may output a first media stream while a media effect engine outputs a second media stream, and a production switcher may combine the two media streams (e.g., by overlaying the second media stream over the first media stream) to output the news program in the form of a third media stream. The production switcher may then transmit the third media stream to a broadcasting system (e.g., a television-broadcasting system) for broadcast.
A media effect engine may be controlled in a variety of ways such that it may perform the steps of retrieving a media effect and running the media effect. For instance, a user may control a media effect engine by providing it a suitable instruction via a user-interface. However, for a variety of reasons, this manner of controlling the media effect engine may be undesirable. Among other things, this process may be time-consuming for the user. In addition, it may be difficult for the user to ensure that the media effect engine performs such steps at appropriate times during production of the news program.
As another example, a controller device may control a media effect engine by providing it a suitable instruction in accordance with one or more application programming interfaces (API) that may be made publically available by the provider of the media effect engine or another entity. However, again for a variety of reasons, this manner of controlling the media effect engine may be undesirable. Among other things, it may be time-consuming for a user to configure the controller device to provide such a suitable instruction.
This approach may be particularly time-consuming given that different instructions may need to adhere to different APIs. For instance, an instruction requesting the running of one type of media effect may need to adhere to a different API than another instruction requesting the running of another type of media effect. In addition, it may be difficult for the user to configure the controller device such that it causes the media effect engine to retrieve and run a particular media effect at an appropriate time during production of the news program.


A. Field of Invention
The present invention relates generally to methods of constructing and controlling moving telescoping boom sections of an aerial lift or other device and a telescoping boom constructed in accord with the method, and more particularly to a new and improved method of constructing and controlling moving telescoping boom sections of an aerial lift or other device, each of the boom sections being extended or retracted by a hydraulic cylinder and a new and improved telescoping boom apparatus constructed in accord with said method, having, for each moving section, a rigidly affixed hydraulic cylinder.
B. Description of Related Art
Many types of aerial lifts, cranes and similar telescoping boom devices have been provided. Further, many of these use a hydraulic actuator to extend or retract the boom. However, it is not believed that any of these devices use an individual hydraulic actuator for each moving section, such lifts instead conventionally using chains, cables, or the like in pulley systems to achieve the extension and retraction of the boom sections. Nor do conventional lifts have rigidly mounted hydraulic actuators or sliding supports on the hydraulic actuator piston rods.


A transparent electrode is generally used for: a liquid crystal display, an electroluminescent display, a plasma display, an electrochromic display, a solar battery, a touch panel, and an electronic paper.
An organic EL element (it may be called as an organic-field light-emitting element), which utilizes electroluminescence (hereinafter, it is abbreviated as “EL”) of an organic material, has a configuration of interposing a light emitting layer containing an organic compound between a pair of opposed electrodes. Emission light generated in the light emitting layer passes through the electrode and it is extracted to the outside. Therefore, at least one of the two electrodes is composed of a transparent electrode.
As for a transparent electrode, oxide semiconductor materials, such as indium tin oxide (SnO2—In2O3: or abbreviation name ITO), are generally used. The transparent electrode made of ITO is usually produced with a sputtering method. The transparent electrode produced with a sputtering method only will have a large sheet resistance, and it exhibits remarkable voltage decrease from the power supplying point.
In order to decrease a sheet resistance, it was investigated a method of laminating an ITO layer and a silver layer for reducing resistance (for example, refer to Patent documents 1 and 2).
Patent document 1 discloses a transparent electrode having a structure of laminating an ITO film and a silver film. Patent document 2 discloses a transparent electrode having a structure of interposing a silver film with ITO films. However, when the used silver film was made thin to an extent of not inducing loss of light transmittance, the resistance did not sufficiently decrease. Therefore, it was required to combine with a metal oxide such as ITO. Since ITO employs a rare earth metal In, the cost of material is high. In addition, it is required to perform an annealing treatment at a temperature condition of around 300° C. for decreasing the resistance. It was difficult to use a resin substrate at such temperature condition. When silver was employed, high electric conductivity is obtained. On the other hand, it has a problem of trade-off between resistance and light transmittance.
Patent document 3 proposes the structures for replacing a metal oxide such as ITO. One structure contains a thin film metal material such as silver having high electric conductivity. The other structure contains a mixture of silver with aluminum. This mixture enabled to achieve higher electric conductivity with a thinner film than silver. However, a transparent electrode composed of silver and aluminum having high electric conductivity had slightly insufficient sheet resistance. A metal thin film is usually is required to have a large thickness to increase sheet resistance. Consequently, light transmittance will be deteriorated. As described above, the resistance property and the light transmittance are in a trade-off relationship. It was difficult to achieve sufficient conductivity and light transmittance at the same time. Further, in a silver-aluminum alloy, aluminum has a property of easily oxidized. It has a problem of increasing the resistance by oxidization. Therefore, it has been required a transparent electrode enabling to achieve both resistance (conductivity) and light transmittance.


1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a control system for an automatic transmission.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a conventional automatic transmission, rotation from the engine is transmitted to a speed change unit through a hydraulic power transmission, and speed changes are effected in the speed change unit. A first clutch (an input clutch) is arranged between the hydraulic transmission and the speed change unit for change between a neutral range and a forward driving range by engaging/disengaging the first clutch.
In the automatic transmission, a neutral control is performed by disengaging the first clutch based on a hydraulic pressure modulated by a linear solenoid valve when the forward driving range is selected, an accelerator pedal is released, a brake pedal is depressed and the vehicle is in a "vehicle stopped state" defined as a vehicle speed of almost 0. Fuel consumption is improved by such neutral control because the load on the engine is reduced and vibration of the engine is prevented.
Within the neutral control, a hill-hold function is provided so that the vehicle will not move backward when the brake pedal is released for starting, after the vehicle has been stopped on an incline and facing up-hill. To provide the hill-hold function, when it is detected that the vehicle is in the "vehicle stopped state", a hill-hold output is output to establish a hill-hold state in the speed change unit by, for example, engaging a first brake and locking a designated one-way clutch.
However, in the conventional automatic transmission, when the first brake is engaged very shortly after the hill-hold output, the hill-hold state is established while engaging the first clutch. In this case, the automatic transmission is rotated to a small degree, in one direction around an input shaft, by a reaction force received before the hill-hold state is established and held. When the first brake is engaged before disengaging the first clutch in this state, the automatic transmission is held in a state wherein the automatic transmission receives the reaction force. The engine, connected to the automatic transmission, is thereby held in the same state. As a result, the neutral control is performed in a state wherein the engine is under a load. Therefore, the load on the engine increases accompanying the change in the conditions of the neutral control. As a result, the fuel consumption is not improved and vibration of the engine is not reduced to the extent that it cannot be felt in the driver's seat.


The present invention relates to a device and a method for dispensing a substance, for example, in one use or application, for self-administering a product fluid, e.g., insulin.
The invention also relates to a container for a substance, in particular a product fluid to be self-administered, and to a device for administering a substance.
Devices for dispensing substances wherein the device is adapted and used for a specific application or use, such as insulin treatment, at a particular dose, are known. In such cases, due to the specific application modalities, it is necessary to produce different dispensing devices for different areas of application having different task specifications.
Some devices for administering product take the form of portable infusion and injection devices, some of which are used in insulin treatment. Generally, such devices, including those used in insulin treatment, involve containers filled with the substance to be administered which are coupled to an administering device in order to dispense the substance contained in the container via the administering device to a patient. There are a multitude of substances which can be administered in this way, such as preparations comprising insulin for diabetes, growth hormones (hGH; human Growth Hormone) for disturbed growth, erythropoietine (Epo) for renal insufficiency or general lack of red blood corpuscles, alpha-interferone for hepatitis or cancer treatment, or potency-stimulating agents. Such containers, which are often geometrically identical, are often filled with different concentrations of the substance to be administered.
In order to reduce the danger of confusing containers having different substances, variously formed administering devices are known into which the respectively corresponding containers can be inserted.
A container is known from WO 98/00187 comprising a color coding which can be attached to it, consisting of a number of variously colored fields, wherein a property of a container or its contents can be identified by means of an optical sensor system.


The present invention relates to exercise equipment, and more particularly to exercise treadmills, and still more particularly to suspension systems for supporting the deck of the exercise treadmill above an underlying frame structure.
Exercise treadmills are widely used in spas, exercise clubs and also in individual residences to enable users to walk, jog or run indoors. This is especially useful during inclement weather and also at night or at other times when exercisers do not desire to run outdoors. Most exercise treadmills include first and second roller assemblies that are transversely mounted at the ends of a frame. An endless belt is trained about the roller assemblies. The upper run of the belt is supported by an underlying deck positioned between the belt and the frame.
Efforts have been made to reduce the impact on the user""s limbs and joints when jogging or running on a treadmill. One method of reducing the impact on an exerciser""s body is disclosed by U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,974,831 and 4,984,810. In the treadmills disclosed by these patents, the rear end of the deck is pivotally mounted to the frame, with the forward end of the deck supported by a suspension system. In the ""831 patent, the suspension system consists of a fairly complicated lever arm assembly and cooperating shock absorbers. Striding on a deck results in pivoting of the lever arms and extension of the shock absorbers, thereby to dampen the impact of the user""s feet. A drawback of this shock absorption system is its complex nature, rendering it costly to manufacture.
In the ""810 patent, the forward end of the treadmill deck was supported by a conventional compression spring and separate shock absorber. Placement of the spring and shock absorber at the very front of the deck imposes considerable bending stress on the deck.
Other conventional treadmills have utilized rubber blocks positioned between the deck and the underlying frame to absorb impact. One such conventional treadmill is disclosed in French Patent No. 2,616,132. A treadmill deck is mounted above the frame members on a plurality of flexible pads. Bushings are inserted into the top and bottom of each pad, and bolts depending downwardly from the deck and upwardly from frame are received within the corresponding bushings. The bolts serve to position the flexible pads between the deck and frame for shock absorption.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,336,144 and 5,454,772 disclose a deck supported above a frame by a plurality of cup-shaped elastomeric springs. The elastomeric springs reversibly deform during downward deflection of the deck toward the frame. The elastomeric springs have side walls of tapering thickness. As a result, the resistance to the downward travel of the deck provided by the elastomeric springs is proportional to the degree of deflection of the deck toward the frame. One drawback of this particular treadmill construction is that the elastomeric springs are fixed in place and individually define a rather small bearing area.
The present invention provides an exercise treadmill having a frame, first and second roller assemblies rotatably mounted on the frame, and an endless belt trained about the first and second roller assemblies. The exercise treadmill also includes a deck disposed between the frame and the upper run of the belt. A pivot connection pivotally connects the rearward end portion of the deck to the frame. Elongate elastomeric spring members are disposed between the frame and the deck at a location intermediate the ends of the deck to support the deck spaced above the frame. The elastomeric springs reversibly deform to resist a deflection (downward movement) of the deck toward the frame when the exerciser strides on the endless belt. The resistance provided by the elastomeric spring members is proportional to the extent of deflection of the deck.
In a further aspect of the present invention, the elastomeric spring members are mounted on the side rails of the frame and underlie marginal side portions of the deck.
In another aspect of the present invention, the elastomeric springs include a base portion and a bulbous body portion extending upwardly from the base portion. The body portion is domed or crowned at its top to define an outwardly convex shape. The interior of the elastomeric spring between the base portion and the body portion is hollow or partially hollow. As a result, the body portion deflects downwardly under the force imposed on the deck by the exerciser.
In an additional aspect of the present invention, the wall thickness of the body portion of the elastomeric spring is greater at the intersection of the body portion with the base of the elastomeric spring. The wall thickness of the body portion decreases in the direction away from the base portion, reaching a minimum thickness at the top of the domed body portion. As a result, when the deck imparts a downward load on the elastomeric springs, the top central portion of the body portion of the elastomeric spring deflects downwardly into the hollow interior, rather than the body portion deflecting sideways, which could occur if the elastomeric spring was of solid construction. Also, the resistance imposed on the deck by the elastomeric spring increases as the deck deflects downwardly, thereby providing a variable rate spring.
In another aspect of the present invention, the spring may be constructed so that its rate of deformation may be selectively altered. In this regard, a compressible insert is sized and shaped to be selectively insertable to a desired degree into the hollow body portion of the spring. In cross-section, the insert may correspond to the cross-sectional shape of the hollow body portion of the spring. Also, the spring may be tapered along its length. In another configuration, the body portion of the spring may be adapted to receive a compressible fluid thereby serving as a bladder. In a more specific aspect of the present invention, the compressible fluid may be composed of air, with the air being supplied to the bladder by an air pump. Also in a more specific aspect of the present invention, a valve or other means may be provided for discharging the compressible fluid from the bladder.
In a further aspect of the present invention, the pivot connection at the rearward end of the deck includes a spindle mounted on the frame side member to engage with a hinge bracket mounted to the underside of the deck. By this construction, the rearward end portion of the deck is pivotally attached to the frame about an axis extending transversely to the length of the deck.


1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a predistortion compensation apparatus for performing distortion compensation processing in advance to a transmission signal before amplification.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, high-efficient digital transmission has been adopted in the radio communication field. When multilevel phase modulation is adopted in the radio communication, a technique for reducing adjacent channel leak power becomes important, in which nonlinear distortion is restrained by linearizing the amplification characteristic of a power amplifier on the transmission side.
Also, to improve power efficiency even in case an amplifier having a degraded linearity is used, a technique for compensating nonlinear distortion for the degraded linearity is necessary.
FIG. 1 shows an exemplary block diagram of transmission equipment in the conventional radio equipment. A transmission signal generator 1 outputs a digital serial data sequence. Also, a serial-to-parallel (S/P) converter 2 converts the digital data sequence into two series, in-phase component (I-component) signals and quadrature component (Q-component) signals, by alternately distributing the digital data sequence on a bit-by-bit basis.
A digital-to-analog (D/A) converter 3 converts the respective I-signals and Q-signals into analog baseband signals, and inputs the signals into a quadrature modulator 4. This quadrature modulator 4 performs orthogonal transformation and outputs signals by multiplying the input I-signals and Q-signals (transmission baseband signals) by a reference carrier wave 8 and a carrier wave phase-shifted therefrom by 90°, respectively, and adding the multiplied results.
A frequency converter 5 mixes the quadrature modulation signals with local oscillation signals, and converts the mixed signals into radio frequency. A transmission power amplifier 6 performs power amplification of the radio frequency signals output from frequency converter 5, and radiates the signal to the air from an antenna 7.
Here, in the mobile communication using W-CDMA, etc., transmission equipment power is substantially large, becoming as much as 10 mW to several tens of mW, and transmission power amplifier 6 has a nonlinear input/output characteristic having a distortion function f(p), as shown by the dotted line in FIG. 2. This non-linearity causes a non-linear distortion. As shown by the solid line (b) in FIG. 3, the frequency spectrum in the vicinity of a transmission frequency f0 comes to have a raised sidelobe from the characteristic shown by the broken line (a). This leaks to adjacent channels and produces adjacent interference. Namely, due to the nonlinear distortion shown in FIG. 2, leak power of the transmission wave to the adjacent frequency channels becomes large, as shown in FIG. 3.
An ACPR (adjacent channel power ratio) is used to indicate the magnitude of leak power. ACPR is a ratio of leak power to adjacent channels to the power in the channel of interest, in other words, a ratio of the spectrum area in the adjacent channels sandwiched between the lines B and B′ in FIG. 3 to the spectrum area between the lines A and A′. Such leak power affects other channels as noise, and degrades communication quality of the channels concerned. Therefore, a strict regulation has been established to the issue of leak power.
The leak power is substantially small in a linear region of, for example, a power amplifier (refer to a linear region I in FIG. 2), but is large in a nonlinear region II. Accordingly, to obtain a high-output transmission power amplifier, the linear region I has to be widened. However, for this purpose, it becomes necessary to provide an amplifier having a larger capacity than is actually needed, which causes disadvantage in apparatus cost and size. As a measure to solve this problem, a distortion compensation function to compensate for transmission power distortion is added to radio equipment.
FIG. 4 shows the block diagram of transmission equipment having a digital nonlinear distortion compensation function by use of a DSP (digital signal processor). A digital data group (transmission signals) transmitted from transmission signal generator 1 is converted into two series, I-signals and Q-signals, in S/P converter 2, and then the two series of signals are input to a distortion compensator 9.
As shown in the lower part of FIG. 4 in enlargement, distortion compensator 9 includes a distortion compensation coefficient storage 90 for storing a distortion compensation coefficient h(pi) corresponding to the power level pi (i=0-1023) of a transmission signal x(t); a predistortion portion 91 for performing a distortion compensation process (predistortion) onto the transmission signal, using the distortion compensation coefficient h(pi) corresponding to the transmission signal power level; and a distortion compensation coefficient calculator 92 for comparing the transmission signal x(t) with a demodulation signal (a feedback signal) y(t) demodulated in the quadrature detector which will be described later, and calculates and updates the distortion compensation coefficient h(pi) so that the difference between the transmission signal and the demodulation signal becomes zero.
The signal to which distortion process is performed in distortion compensator 9 is input into D/A converter 3. D/A converter 3 converts the input I-signal and Q-signal into analog baseband signals, and inputs the converted signals into quadrature modulator 4. Quadrature modulator 4 performs quadrature modulation by multiplying the input I-signal and Q-signal by a reference carrier wave 8 and a carrier wave being phase-shifted from carrier wave 8 by 90°. Quadrature modulator 4 then adds and outputs the multiplied result.
A frequency converter 5 mixes the quadrature modulation signal with a local oscillation signal, and performs frequency conversion. A transmission power amplifier 6 performs power amplification of the radio frequency signal output from frequency converter 5, and radiates the signal to the air by an antenna 7.
A portion of the transmission signal is input to a frequency converter 11 via a directional coupler 10, and input into a quadrature detector 12 after being converted by the above frequency converter 11. Quadrature detector 12 performs quadrature detection by multiplying the input signal by a reference carrier wave, and by a signal which is phase shifted by 90° from the reference signal, respectively. Thus, the baseband I-signal and Q-signal on the transmission side are reproduced, which are then input into an analog-to-digital (A/D) converter 13.
A/D converter 13 converts the input I-signal and Q-signal into digital signals, and inputs into distortion compensator 9. Through the adaptive signal processing, using an LMS (least-mean-square) algorithm, in distortion compensation coefficient calculator 92 of distortion compensator 9, the pre-compensated transmission signal is compared with the feedback signal being demodulated in quadrature detector 12. Then distortion compensator 9 calculates the distortion compensation coefficient h(p1) so as to make the above difference zero. Then, distortion compensator 9 updates the above-obtained coefficient which has been stored in distortion compensation coefficient storage 90. Through the repetition of calculations above, nonlinear distortion in transmission power amplifier 6 is restrained, and adjacent channel leak power is reduced.
By way of example, in the PCT International Publication WO 2003/103163, such a configuration as shown in FIG. 5, in which distortion compensation is performed using the adaptive LMS algorithm, is described as an embodiment of distortion compensator 9 shown in FIG. 4.
In FIG. 5, a multiplier 15a corresponds to a predistortion section 91 shown in FIG. 4, in which a transmission signal x(t) is multiplied by a distortion compensation coefficient hn-1(p). Also, a distortion device 15b having a distortion function f(p) corresponds to a transmission power amplifier 6 shown in FIG. 4.
Further, as to the portion in FIG. 4 including a frequency converter 11, a quadrature detector 12 and an A/D converter 13, in which the output signal being output from transmission power amplifier 15b is feedbacked, a feedback system 15c is shown in FIG. 5.
Moreover, in FIG. 5, a look-up table (LUT) 15e constitutes a distortion compensation coefficient storage 90 shown in FIG. 4. A distortion compensation coefficient calculation section 16 constitutes a distortion compensation coefficient calculation section 92 shown in FIG. 4, which generates an update value of the distortion compensation coefficient stored in look-up table 15e.
In the distortion compensation apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 5, look-up table 15e has a distortion compensation coefficient for canceling the distortion produced in transmission power amplifier 6, namely, distortion device 15b, in a two-dimensional address location corresponding to each discrete power value of the transmission signal x(t).
When the transmission signal x(t) is input, an address generation circuit 15d calculates the power p (=x2(t)) of the transmission signal x(t), and generates an address of one dimensional direction, for example the X-axis direction, which uniquely corresponds to the above-calculated power p (=x2(t)) of the transmission signal x(t). At the same time, address generation circuit 15d obtains a difference ΔP of the power P1 (=x2(t-1)) of the transmission signal x(t-1) of the previous time point (t-1) having been stored in address generation circuit 15d, and generates an address of the other dimensional direction, for example, the Y-axis direction, which uniquely corresponds to the above difference ΔP.
Thus, from address generation circuit 15d, a store location in look-up table 15e, which is specified by the address P in the X-axis direction and the address ΔP in the Y-axis direction, is read out. The readout address is output as address designation information (AR).
Then, a distortion compensation coefficient hn-1(p) stored in the above readout address is read out from look-up table 15e, so as to be used in the distortion compensation processing performed by multiplier 15a.
Meanwhile, an update value for updating the distortion compensation coefficient having been stored in look-up table 15e is calculated in a distortion compensation coefficient calculation section 16. Namely, distortion compensation coefficient calculation section 16 is constituted of a conjugate complex calculation section 16 and multipliers 15h-15j. A subtractor 15g outputs a difference e(t) between the transmission signal x(t) and the feedback demodulation signal y(t). Multiplier 15i multiplies the distortion compensation coefficient hn-1(p) by y*(t), so as to obtain an output u*(t) (=n-1(p)y*(t)). Multiplier 15h multiplies the difference e(t) being output from subtractor 15g by u*(t). Multiplier 15j multiplies the output of multiplier 15h by a step size parameter μ.
Next, an adder 15k adds the distortion compensation coefficient hn-1(p) to the output μe(t)u*(t) being output from multiplier 15j, and obtains an update value of look-up table 15e. This update value is to be stored in a write address (AW), consisting of the X-axis direction address and the Y-axis direction address, being specified by address generation circuit 15d as the address corresponding to the transmission signal power p (=x2(t)).
Here, the aforementioned write address (AW) is the same address as the readout address (AR). However, because of a calculation time, etc. needed to obtain the update value, the readout address is used as the write address after the readout address is delayed in a delay section 15m.
Delay portions 15m, 15n, 15p add to the transmission signal x(t), the delay time D, which is the period from the input of the transmission signal x(t) to the feed back decoded signal y(t) input to the subtractor 15g.
The delay time D being set by the delay portions 15m, 15n, 15p is determined so as to satisfy D=D0+D1, where D0 is the delay time in transmission power amplifier 15b, and D1 is the delay time in feedback system 15c.
Using the above configuration, the following calculations are performed.hn(p)=hn-1(p)+μe(t)u*(t)e(t)=x(t)−y(t)y(t)=hn-1(p)×(t)f(p)u*(t)=x(t)f(p)=hn-1(p)y*(t)p=|x(t)|2 Here, x, y, f, h, u, e are complex numbers, and * denotes a conjugate complex number.
Through the above calculation processing, the distortion compensation coefficient h(p) is updated so as to minimize the differential signal e(t) between the transmission signal x(t) and the feedbacked demodulation signal y(t). Finally, the value converges to an optimal distortion compensation coefficient, so that the distortion of the transmission power amplifier is compensated.
Now, in the above calculation, the step size parameter μ determines a degree of effect of an error component e(t) between the transmission signal x(t), i.e. the reference signal, and the feedback demodulation signal y(t), i.e. the feedback signal, on the update value of the distortion compensation coefficient. In the conventional system, the value of the step size parameter μ is set to a fixed value.
In the configuration of the distortion compensation apparatus shown in FIG. 5, the inventor of the present invention has observed the output of the distortion compensation apparatus by inputting the outputs of transmission power amplifier 15b, the distortion device, into a spectrum analyzer with sweep frequencies. FIGS. 6A through 7B are the results obtained at those times. In the examples shown in FIGS. 6A through 7B, the observations have been made with different transmission signal levels in four frequency bands (channels).
FIGS. 6A, 6B represent the output spectrum waveforms of the spectrum analyzer when the transmission signal level is large (43 dB). FIG. 6A shows the spectrum waveform when the step size parameter μ is set to 1/1024, while FIG. 6B shows the spectrum waveform when the step size parameter μ is set to 1/16.
Also, FIGS. 7A, 7B represent the output spectrum waveforms of the spectrum analyzer when the transmission signal level is small (27 dB). FIG. 7A shows the spectrum waveform when the step size parameter μ is set to 1/1024, while FIG. 7B shows the spectrum waveform when the step size parameter μ is set to 1/16.
From these FIGS. 6A through 7B, it has been found out that the relation between the transmission signal level and the step size parameter μ produces an effect on the distortion compensation coefficient. In FIGS. 6A, 6B, if the step size parameter μ is set larger when the transmission signal level is large (refer to FIG. 6B), external disturbance (phase rotation, quantization error in an A/D converter, etc.) affects greater, resulting in a larger number of rise pulses being produced. By this, the compensation coefficient tends to diverge at the time of calculating the error.
On the contrary, if the step size parameter μ is set smaller when the transmission signal level is small, a minute error having been detected is canceled, which produces a problem of preventing proper update of the compensation coefficient (refer to FIG. 7A).


This invention relates to artificial kidney systems; and more particularly, to a proportioningtype dialysis machine for use in such systems.
In an artificial kidney system, a dialysis machine delivers dialysis solution under carefully controlled conditions to a dialyzer or artificial kidney. There are two basic types of dialysis machines. One is known as a batch-type machine and the other is a proportioning or continuous feed machine.
In both types of machines dialysis concentrate is mixed with water to provide the dialysis solution which is delivered to the dialyzer. Both machines also include means for sterilizing the machine, a heater system for maintaining the dialysis solution at body or physiological temperature (about 37.degree. C.), a device for removing gas and minimizing gas in the dialysis solution, and means for controlling the pressure and flow rate of the dialysis solution in the dialyzer. Furthermore in proportioning machines, provisions are also made for continuously preparing the dialysis solution by mixing or proportioning the water and dialysis concentrate and for controlling the composition of the dialysis solution.
Proportioning machines are generally more compact and smaller in size than the batch-type machine. For this reason, among others, the proportioning machines have experienced increased popularity.
Existing proportioning machines generally include the required gas removers, heaters, pressure controls, etc., but have been found to be deficient in certain respects. For example, one type of gas removal system, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,738,382, includes a heater for heating the water to a high temperature and a debubbling chamber for removing gas from the heated water at atmospheric pressure. This system does not effectively degass the water and the heating of the water caused dissolved minerals to precipitate and clog passageways within the dialysis machine.
A second type of gas removal system is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,528,550. In this system water is fed to a degassing chamber which is maintained at a pressure below atmospheric pressure by a venturi through which dialysis solution flows. Thus the pressure in the degassing chamber is directly related to the dialysis solution flow rate through the venturi. The venturi only applies a moderate negative pressure to the degassing tank and thus does not effectively degass the water.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide an effective degassing system, and particularly for use in a proportioning dialysis machine.
In the degassing system shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,528,550, the degassing chamber pressure may vary with dialysis solution flow rate, which, in turn, may vary with dialysis conditions, such as patient size, etc. Variations in degassing chamber pressure may affect gas removal.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a degassing system which functions independently of the dialysis solution flow rates.
During dialysis it is desirable to control the dialysis solution pressure in the dialyzer. However, changes in the dialysis solution flow rate through the dialyzer cause the dialysis solution pressure to vary.
It is also an object of this invention to provide means for controlling the dialysis solution pressure in the dialyzer as the dialysis solution flow rate changes.
These and other objects of this invention will become apparent from the following description and appended claims.