Abstract: The invention proposes a method of locally colouring a part made of ceramic material of the metallic oxide type mainly including the following steps of taking a support for the part and a laser, able to move relative to each other in an XY plane, performing a plasma treatment of the part using a gas containing one element selected from among nitrogen an carbon, so as to convert a surface layer of metallic oxide, into a substantially stoichiometric ceramic chosen from among metal nitrides and carloides, locally illuminating the part with the laser beam so as to provide sufficient energy to cause a local change in colour by altering the stoichiometry of the surface layer, and scanning the surface of the part using the laser beam so as to form a determined pattern.

Abstract: A copper alloy consists essentially of Cu: 69 to 88 mass %, Si: 2 to 5 mass %, Zr: 0.0005 to 0.04 mass %, P: 0.01 to 0.25 mass %, and Zn: balance; has relation of, in terms of content of element a, [a] mass %, f0=[Cu]?3.5[Si]?3[P]=61 to 71, f1=[P]/[Zr]=0.7 to 200, f2=[Si]/[Zr]=75 to 5000, and f3=[Si]/[P]=12 to 240; has a metal structure containing ? phase and, K phase and/or ? phase, and has relation of, in terms of a content of phase b, [b]%, in an area rate, f4=[?]+[?]+[K]?85 and f5=[?]+[K]+0.3[?]?[?]=5 to 95; and has an average grain diameter of 200 ?m or less in a macrostructure when melted and solidified.

Abstract: A method of fabricating a semiconductor device having a three-dimensional stacked structure by stacking semiconductor circuit layers on a support substrate, including the steps of: forming a trench in a semiconductor substrate; filling inside the trench with a conductive material to form a conductive plug; forming an element or circuit in an inside or on a surface of the semiconductor substrate where the conductive plug was formed; covering the surface of the semiconductor substrate where the element or circuit was formed with a second insulating film; and fixing the semiconductor substrate to the support substrate or a remaining one of the semiconductor circuit layers by joining the second insulating film to the support substrate or the remaining one of the semiconductor circuit layers through a wiring structure; selectively removing the semiconductor substrate to expose the first insulating film; and selectively removing the first insulating film.

Abstract: The invention concerns a timepiece movement that includes first and second energy sources, wherein the first energy source is coupled to an oscillating weight by a first kinematic chain for automatically winding the movement, and the second energy source is coupled both to an activating device, and to a vibrating element by a second kinematic chain, to form a vibrating alarm mechanism that can be activated at a predetermined time. In addition, for the timepiece movement, the vibrating element of the vibrating alarm mechanism is the oscillating weight.

Abstract: A cutting point calculation step defines the cell complex that contains the boundary data, and calculating a cutting point where the boundary data cuts an edge or vertex of the rectangular parallelepiped cell of the cell complex. A cycle formation step classifies the rectangular parallelepiped cells into a boundary cell having the cutting point and a nonboundary cell having no cutting point, acquiring a cutting segment between a cell surface and boundary data for each boundary cell, and forming a cutting segment cycle closed by connecting the cutting points and the cutting segments alternately in sequence. A cycle internal division step divides the inside of the cutting segment cycle into cycle inner triangles sharing an adjacent side, for each boundary cell. A simplification step of unifying a plurality of cutting points on each edge, and registering the cycle inner triangles in the cell, for each boundary cell.

Abstract: The invention concerns a corrector device for a timepiece for correcting a piece of information provided by an indicator mechanism (46), the timepiece comprising a case (1) delimiting a volume (8), the device being characterised in that it includes a control lever (14) located outside the volume (8) of the case (1) and able to be actuated by a user, and an actuating lever (16) located inside the volume (8) of the case (1) and cooperating with the indicator mechanism (46) providing the information to be corrected, the control lever (14) and the actuating lever (16) being connected to each other by a stem (20).

Abstract: In the invention, stator blades are arranged in such a manner that respective intervals between the adjacent stator blades (SV) become unequal at least partly. If the stator blades are arranged as mentioned above, there are formed wave fronts having different moving directions and phases, and these wave fronts are interfered with each other so as to be attenuated. Accordingly, an interference noise is reduced. Therefore, in accordance with the invention, it is possible to reduce an interference noise without enlarging a rotor stator blade interval as well as reducing a used amount of a sound absorption material.

Abstract: In order to check the hermeticity of a closed cavity of at least one micrometric component, said component includes a structure made over or in one portion of a substrate, a cap fixed to one zone of the substrate to protect the structure, and an indicator element whose optical or electrical properties change in the presence of a reactive fluid. The indicator element may be a copper layer for an optical check or a palladium resistor for an electrical check. The micrometric component is placed in a container which is then hermetically closed. This container is filled with a reactive fluid under pressure, which is oxygen for the optical check and hydrogen for the electrical check. The component in the container is subjected to a reactive fluid pressure higher than 10 bars for a determined time period, and to thermal (T>100° C.) or optical (?<500 nm) activation. After this time period, an optical or electrical check of the indicator element determines the hermeticity of said cavity.

Abstract: The coupled resonator comprises a first low frequency resonator, such as a balance spring (1) and a second higher frequency resonator, such as a tuning fork (2), the two resonators (1 and 2) including permanent mechanical coupling means. Application to the regulating system of a timepiece.

Abstract: Large-scale table format data on a common memory is sorted in parallel by a plurality of processors. A record to be processed is divided and assigned at first to the processors. Next, each processor counts the number of local appearances of item value numbers related to the record to be processed. Next, the number of local appearances of the item value numbers counted at the processors is converted into the global accumulation of item value numbers, i.e., the accumulation to be commonly used between the processors. Finally, each processor utilizes the global accumulation as a pointer to change the order of the assigned records.

Abstract: A compound semiconductor is placed in a reaction vessel (12) of which the inner gas is subjected to replacement with a low-vapor-pressure gas (2) whose equilibrium vapor pressure at the melting point of the compound semiconductor is 1 atm or lower. The low-vapor-pressure gas is urged to flow along the surface of the compound semiconductor while keeping the internal pressure of the reaction vessel at a value not lower than that equilibrium vapor pressure. The surface of the compound semiconductor is irradiated with a pulsed-laser light (3) whose photon energy is higher than the band gap of the compound semiconductor. Thus, only that part of the compound semiconductor which is located at the pulsed-laser light irradiation position is instantly heated and melted while keeping the atmospheric temperature of the low-vapor-pressure gas at a room temperature or a temperature equal to or lower than the decomposition temperature.

Abstract: The invention proposes a liquid crystal (38) display device (12) including a liquid crystal (38) cell (30), a control unit (26), and a backlighting module (48) including at least a first (50) and a second (52) light source of different colours which transmit light rays (Rr, Rb) inside a light guide (54), characterized in that the light guide (54) includes a plurality of prisms (64, 66) which deflect the light rays (Rr, Rb) towards the display face (28), a first series (S1) of prisms (64, 66) being orientated towards the first light source (50) and a second series (S2) of prisms (52) being orientated towards the second light source (52), and in that the prisms (64, 66) are distributed in zones of the light guide (54) which are located underneath the electrodes (40). The invention also proposes a timepiece (10) fitted with this device (12).

Abstract: There is disclosed a timepiece (40) including optical means for forming a decorative pattern, in the form of a figurative image, in response to an action by the user. The optical means forming a figurative image include an optical guide (1, 51) having two large faces (10, 11) and at least one lateral face (12). Optical extractors (19) each having at least one light reflective surface (20) are arranged in at least one of the large faces (11). A light source (8, 8a, 8b, 8c) is arranged so as to emit light in the direction of the reflective surfaces (20), via the lateral face (12) of the optical guide. Thus, each of the reflective surfaces causes a reflected light beam to form in a well defined direction, the set of light beams forming a figurative image in that direction, which can typically be selected as the normal with respect to the mid-plane of the watch.

Abstract: The free-cutting copper alloy according to the present invention contains a greatly reduced amount of lead in comparison with conventional free-cutting copper alloys, but provides industrially satisfactory machinability. The free-cutting alloys comprise 71.5 to 78.5 percent, by weight, of copper, 2.0 to 4.5 percent, by weight, of silicon, 0.005 percent up to but less than 0.02, by weight, of lead, and the remaining percent, by weight, of zinc.

Abstract: There is disclosed a timepiece (40) including optical means for forming a decorative pattern, in the form of a figurative image, in response to an action by the user. The optical means forming a figurative image include an optical guide (1, 51) having two large faces (10, 11) and at least one lateral face (12). Optical extractors (19) each having at least one light reflective surface (20) are arranged in at least one of the large faces (11). A light source (8, 8a, 8b, 8c) is arranged so as to emit light in the direction of the reflective surfaces (20), via the lateral face (12) of the optical guide. Thus, each of the reflective surfaces causes a reflected light beam to form in a well defined direction, the set of light beams forming a figurative image in that direction, which can typically be selected as the normal with respect to the mid-plane of the watch.

Abstract: A circuit-connecting material for interposing between circuit electrodes facing each other and electrically connecting the electrodes, after curing by heat and pressure, either by direct contact or via conductive particles present in the material. The circuit-connecting material features the following essential components: (1) a curing agent capable of generating free radicals upon heating, (2) a phenoxy resin having a weight average molecular weight of 10,000 or more, and that is chemically modified by a carboxyl-group-containing elastomer, and (3) a radical-polymerizable substance.

Abstract: Table-formatted data is divided into information blocks, each including a value list where item values are arranged in order of item value number corresponding to the item value of each item, and a pointer array where pointer values, each indicate an item value number, are arranged in order of unique record number. A part of records is selected as a subset, and in response to the selection, an ordered set array including the record numbers of the subset is created. Each record number in the ordered set array indicates the position of one of the pointer values in the pointer array, which are arranged in the item value number array correspondingly to positions where the record numbers are arrayed. With reference to values in the item value number array, a second pointer array wherein position elements are arranged, and a second value list wherein value elements are arranged, are generated.

Abstract: Timepiece device for simultaneously resetting to zero two time counters, particularly for a chronograph mechanism, each of the two time counters pivoting about an arbour secured to a cam (6b, 8b), the simultaneous zero reset device (1) including a lever (4) with two hammers (6, 8), which are applied against the respective cams (6b, 8b) when the two time counters are reset to zero, at least one pin (10, 12) used to guide the lever (4) with two hammers (6, 8) being secured to said lever (4) and moving in a shaped aperture (24, 26) made in a bridge (28), characterized in that a ring (16a, 16b, 16c) is mounted to rotate freely about the pin (10, 12) and is inserted between said pin (10, 12) and the shaped aperture (24, 26) in which said pin moves.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a radio-frequency identification tag (10) and a related method of operation, whereby the tag comprises an antenna (12) being adapted to draw a voltage from an externally applied RF field having a first frequency, and further comprises a tunable antenna resonant circuit (16) comprising a default resonance frequency and having tuning means (18) for shifting the resonance frequency to the first frequency, whereby non-volatile storage means (22) for storing frequency related data are provided, that are accessible at a reduced voltage level, which is below a “power-up” voltage level of the tag's operating unit (14).