Abstract: Serial neighborhood image processing stages, preferably arranged in a pipeline, are used to layout conductor paths on circuits such as printed circuit boards and integrated circuit devices. Pixels associated with areas on the circuit corresponding with source, target, free and blocked cells are encoded with preselected pixel values. The circuit image is then transmitted to the neighborhood transformation stages in a raster scan line format. The stages analyze the pixel values in each neighborhood and transform free cells into digital representations of conductor paths between the source and target.

Abstract: The invention pertains to the method and apparatus for the confining of a stream of fusible positive ions at values of density and high average kinetic energy, primarily of tightly looping motions, to produce nuclear fusion at a useful rate; more or less intimately mixed with the fusible ions will be lower-energy electrons at about equal density, introduced solely for the purpose of neutralizing the positive space charge of the ions. Ions under high kinetic energy are introduced into an annular reaction chamber having a primarily axial strong magnetic field and an essentially radial electric field and assume in the chamber a quasi-trochoidal motion in which the kinetic energies in their small diameter looping components of motion are greater by at least an order of magnitude, than the kinetic energies in the relatively slow crossed field advance motions with which the ions circulate circumferentially around the axis of the annular reaction chamber.