Abstract: A word line decoder/driver has a Darlington circuit connected in parallel with word line driver transistors to provide rapid switching thereof. The Darlington circuit receives an input from decoder transistors through a capacitance, such as a diffusion capacitance, which establishes a time constant longer than the nominal access cycle time of the memory. Thus, during the nominal cycle time of the memory, the word line driver transistors merely supplement the pull-up of the word lines, the speed of which is limited only by the switching speed of the Darlington circuit. Therefore, the pull-up of the input to the word line driver transistors is made non-critical and the circuit can be simplified to reduce element count while achieving substantial reduction in power consumption. While the fast collector pull down of the deselected word line is controlled by an adjustable clamp, word line pull-up is maintained well below 1 nsec and chip access time is below 2 nsec and voltage margins are increased.

Abstract: Metallized level is covered with a relatively thick non-conformal oxide layer, such as sputtered quartz (SiO.sub.2). This layer is, in turn, covered with a relatively thin oxide blanket resistant to RIE, such as aluminum oxide (Al.sub.2 O.sub.3) or Yttrium Oxide (Y.sub.2 O.sub.3). A mask, with exposed via opening, is formed in a conventional manner on the aluminum oxide surface and the aluminum oxide in the open areas is removed, for example Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 is etched with BCl.sub.3 and O.sub.2 gases or wet etch with H.sub.3 PO.sub.4. An RIE process is used to form vias.

Abstract: A high temperature ceramic filter is produced from a composition containing refractory cement, aggregate, pore forming additives, and sintering agents. The pore forming additives are synthetic or organic powders or fibers which sublimate, melt, or otherwise disintegrate to produce In situ pores in the cement during the refractory treatment of a cast filter. The filters produced are permeable to high temperature gases commonly found in a coal furnace and can be used to collect particulate matter present in those gases.

Abstract: A shock absorber pad for absorbing shock caused by separation of a perforated sheet mask from a surface on which a pattern of a screened medium has been formed by forcing a viscous material through the mask which includes a plurality of protuberant features which have a separation determined in accordance with a nominal viscosity of the screened medium and a transverse feature dimension based on characteristic stand-off spacing or mask feature size increases pattern quality and extends mask life. Hollow pattern features also improve pattern quality by reducing pad contact area with the mask during separation while allowing the pad features to span mask features. Methodology of shock absorber pad design and adjustment of screened medium viscosity to pad feature spacing are included.

Abstract: Active pull-up circuits for a memory decoder/driver circuit allow standby current in the decoder/driver circuit to be reduced to a low level consistent with high switching speed. A resistor in series with the selection transistors is shunted by an active device when a word line is selected, allowing the resistor to be given a high, current limiting value to reduce power consumed by the decoder/driver circuit when the word line is deselected. The base of the word line selection transistor has a bleed resistor shunted by a feedback transistor of a complementary type to the word line selection transistor, forming a fast switching circuit having positive feedback path. A Darlington connected pull up circuit is also provided in parallel with the feedback transistor which further enhances switching speed. The circuit formed by the word line selection transistor and the feedback resistor are connected in a manner, using a Schottky diode, to stabilize the word line voltage against variations in V.sub.

Abstract: A method of acceleration testing of reliability of an LSI adopting a microprogram is realized simply. In a test mode, a microaddress is progressively incremented "1" by "1" and data processing within the LSI is executed in accordance with a microcode read out from a control memory based on the microaddress. As for a command decoder and an address generator, external data terminals are clamped to a voltage source or to a ground to permit a specific command to be fetched by the LSI under test. In this way, a majority of internal gates within the LSI are activated while the acceleration test is being conducted on the LSI.

Abstract: This redundant binary type digital operation unit is provided with a redundant binary adder which gives a plurality of carry margin digits to the word length of the input redundant binary data on the higher digit side and further gives a protection digit for overflow judgment at the highest position to form the entire operation word length. It is also provided with a fixed value data output circuit to which a carry signal from the redundant binary adder showing whether a carry exists or not is input and which outputs the maximum value data when the carry signal value is "1" and the minimum value data when the carry signal value is a value other then "1", as well as a selection circuit which selects and outputs the output data from the redundant binary adder when the sign bit of the protection digit at the highest position sent from the redundant binary adder is "0", and the maximum or minimum value data from the fixed value data output circuit when the sign bit is "1".

Abstract: A family of compounds has been found to be useful for right-shifting hemoglobin towards a low oxygen affinity state. The compounds are capable of acting on hemoglobin in whole blood. In addition, the compounds can maintain the oxygen affinity in blood during storage and can restore the oxygen affinity of outdated blood.

Abstract: In a dynamic logic circuit, an X decoder and a Y decoder receive a more significant bit portion and a less significant bit portion of an internal address generated by a sequencer, respectively. A precharge signal supplied to the X decoder is generated when the sequencer start signal is applied to the sequencer, or when the more significant bit portion of the address supplied to the X decoder changes or is incremented. Therefore, even when the less significant bit portion of the address supplied to the Y decoder changes or is incremented, the precharge signal supplied to the X decoder is not generated if the more significant bit portion of the address supplied to the X decoder does not change. Thus, the number of the precharge/discharge is reduced, and accordingly, the operating current of the dynamic logic circuit is decreased.

Abstract: An apparatus is provided for positioning a workpiece with high accuracy and repeatably positioning the workpiece with similar accuracy while avoiding further manual alignment operations. Tapered pins, movable axially against a spring, are used to support a registration frame above the workpiece and allow attachment of the registration frame to the workpiece with high accuracy after initial manual positioning of the workpiece. After attachment of the registration frame to the workpiece, the use of similar, spring-loaded, tapered pins assures accuracy of positioning without further manual alignment. The axial motion of the pins is particularly advantageous during alignment of a plurality of workpieces in stacks and for processes requiring two-sided registration. During the alignment operation, a vacuum block is relatively movable on a base block and a workpiece immobilized on the vacuum block by a vacuum selectively applied to a portion thereof.

Abstract: A confocal imaging system utilizes an opaque mask with a slit and a row of pinpoint sensors or utilizes an opaque mask with a skewed pattern of pinholes and an array of isolated pinpoint sensors in a matching pattern in order to obtain sufficient data to provide a complete image for imaging and/or inspecting an object such as electronics in a single one-dimensional scan. The system also simultaneously produces multiple images at different heights in the single one-dimensional scan of the viewed object, and also simultaneously produces images taken in different spectral bands in the same one-dimensional scan of the object to be imaged and/or inspected. The relative height or depth of the different images can be modified by simply adjusting the inclination between the confocal imaging system and a path followed by the object that is to be imaged and/or inspected during the one-dimensional scan.

Abstract: A family of compounds has been found to be useful for right-shifting hemoglobin towards a low oxygen affinity state. The compounds are capable of acting on hemoglobin in whole blood. In addition, the compounds can maintain the oxygen affinity in blood during storage and can restore the oxygen affinity of outdated blood.

Abstract: An electronically controllable resistor (ECR) which functions as a fixed or variable resistor over a wide range of operating conditions. The value of the resistance may be altered in a highly linear fashion by altering a digital input thereto. The ECR utilizes an array of transmission gates, preferably having a uniform inherent resistance and preferably fabricated using CMOS technology which are grouped in commonly controlled groups. Each group preferably contains a number of transmission gates which relates to the numbers of transmission gates in other groups in a binary fashion. The source of digital control signals is preferably provided by a digital memory device which can be integrated with the transmission gate array. An operational amplifier can also be provided on the chip to form a complete neural processing element for inclusion in large neural networks.

Abstract: A microprogram controller advances the initiation of a string of microinstructions for certain macroinstructions to enhance the overall speed of instruction execution. The microprogram controller includes a memory (50) for storing microinstructions and a generator (30) for generating an initial microinstruction of a certain macroinstruction. A selector (60) selects one of a microinstruction read out of the memory and the initial microinstruction from the generator and latches the selected microinstruction in a microinstruction register (70). The initial microinstruction from the generator is first latched into the register and executed while a succeeding microinstruction is read out of the memory.

Abstract: Control of the local environment during pulsed laser removal of thin film circuit metallurgy is used to change the nature of the top surfaces. Interconnecting such laser treated surfaces with LCVD films results in different growth morphologies, dependent on the nature of the surface created and the debris generated during the ablation process. Flowing helium across the surface during the ablation process results in improved growth morphologies for the same laser writing conditions. A low power laser scan is used to induce metal deposition on the substrate without surface damage. This is followed by several scans at an intermediate laser power to deposit the desired thickness of metal (e.g., about 8 .mu.m). Lastly, a high power laser scan is used, either at the points of intersection between the existing metallurgy and the metal repair or across the entire deposit area. Thermal spreading or blooming is reduced by modulating the intensity of the laser source.

Abstract: An automated telephone answering system with plug-in tone responsive unit at each of a plurality of extensions, a central answering unit responds to a caller initiated, telephone company generated, ring signal on the telephone line and establishes a connection with the calling phone. Each of the remote units responds to a different predetermined, selectable tone frequency. When the caller pushes a key on a standard Touch Tone phone key pad to select a specific extension, the responding remote unit generates a ringing signal for that extension. If the telephone line has an on-hook status, the system has means that prevents response to further tone signals.

Abstract: A centrifuge vessel for performing immunoassays, affinity chromatography, and like experiments includes a center tube and an outer waste chamber. A biomaterial is held within the center tube and is capable of binding specific analytes in test samples. In operation the centrifuge vessel is rotated at high speed about its longitudinal axis, thereby causing all fluid within the center tube to be transported into the outer waste chamber while the analyte of interest remains bound to the biomaterial positioned within the center tube In the centrifuge vessel, a cap connected to the outer waste chamber and extending over the center tube includes structure for preventing waste fluid expelled to the waste chamber from re-entering the center tube. In a first embodiment, the cap is either constructed from or the inside surface is coated with a hydrophobic material which repels fluids back into the waste chamber.

Abstract: A polymeric article having isotropic properties is fabricated from anisotropic materials by orienting the polymer, as well as any fillers, in different directions at different planes through the polymeric article. In a first embodiment, molten polymer is passed between movable gate members (32 and 34) into cavity (30) of mold (28). The movable gate members (32 and 34) impart a strain on the molten polymer by moving in opposite directions (33 and 35) while the molten polymer is dispensed into the cavity (30). Reciprocating the movable gate members (32 and 34) yields a herringbone pattern. Having at least one movable gate member (38) have comb-like projections (40) can assure the strain is imparted deeper into the thickness of the polymeric article.

Abstract: A high performance bipolar, field effect transistor (BiFET) logic circuit has minimal power supply requirements, allowing the circuit to be manufactured in higher density devices than current switched emitter follower (CSEF). BiFET logic circuit has a plurality of input lines and first and second output lines. A plurality of FET devices are connected in parallel each having a gate connected to a corresponding one of the input lines. Two bipolar transistors are connected as a differential pair, the parallel connection of said FET devices providing an input to the base of the first bipolar transistor while the base of the second bipolar transistor is supplied with a reference voltage. Output bipolar transistors connected as emitter followers drive the first and second output lines respectively.

Abstract: A register circuit is disclosed which has input/output data lines, a first register having a first flip-flop and a first transfer gate provided between the input/output terminals of the flip-flop and the input/output data lines and connect them in response to a first selection signal, a second register having a second flip-flop and a second transfer gate provided between the input/output terminals of the flip-flop and the input/output data lines and connect them in response to a second selection signal, and a copy control circuit having a first and a second transistors, connected in series between the input/output terminals of the second flip-flop and the power terminals, to which are supplied stored data of the first flip-flop and a copy signal, respectively.