Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention provide a media drive capable of improving command processing performance by, when a plurality of commands is queued, shortening seek time and rotational latency, and also effectively making use of the shortened period of time. In one embodiment, a HDD includes a queue capable of storing a plurality of commands, and a queue manager for optimizing the execution order of the plurality of commands on the basis of whether or not the execution of each command requires access to a medium. The queue manager determines the execution order so that medium access processing of accessing a disk for execution, and data transfer processing of transferring data between the HDD and a host, are executed in parallel with each other. For example, read processing and transfer processing are executed in parallel with each other. The read processing is adaptive to read out a read command, data of which does not exist in the cache, from the disk into the cache.

Abstract: An image rendering method includes generating pixels in accordance with graphic information, determining a direction of anisotropy of a footprint obtained by projecting the pixel on a texture on which a set of texels are disposed on uv-coordinates, and executing sampling of a MIP map in accordance with the direction of anisotropy, and executing texture mapping for the pixel. The direction of anisotropy is determined by comparing lengths in at least three different directions of the footprint on the texture.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention raise the performance of a HDD by controlling the timing of notifying of command completion. In one embodiment, transmission of command completion notifications to a host is managed by a host interface manager. If two data write addresses respectively for two queued commands are adjacent or near to each other, that is, these addresses on the magnetic disk can be accessed without rotational latency, the host interface manager postpones the transmission of a command completion notification (X) concerning the first write command (X). Two command completion notifications (X) and (Y) are performed at a time after the write data (Y) for the next command is transmitted and its write to the medium is completed.

Abstract: To provide a surface treated electrodeposited copper foil having a smooth M surface with less asperity on the surface instead of an S surface affected by stripes transferred from a surface drum; a surface treatment is performed on the M surface being an opposite surface of a surface which contacted with a drum in an electrodeposited copper foil, wherein Rz is 1.0 ?m or smaller and Ra is 0.2 ?m or smaller on the M surface, electrodeposited copper plating is performed to produce a copper foil under a condition of using a copper sulfate bath, wherein a copper concentration is 50 to 80 g/l, a sulfuric acid concentration is 30 to 70 g/l, a solution temperature is 35 to 45° C., a chloride concentration is 0.01 to 30 ppm, an adding concentration of a total of an organic sulfur based compound, low molecular weight glue and polymeric polysaccharide is 0.

Abstract: A method for image processing includes receiving a first coordinate in first image data which is a set of a plurality of first pixels, the first coordinate corresponding to a second coordinate in second image data which is a set of a plurality of second pixels, and positional information indicative of a positional relationship among n (n is a natural number equal to or greater than 4) of the first pixels, calculating an address of the first pixels corresponding to the first coordinate on the basis of the first coordinate and the positional information, reading the first pixels using the address, and executing a filtering process on the first pixels read from the first memory to acquire a third pixel to be applied to one of the second pixels with the second coordinate. The second coordinate defines a mapping of the first pixels to one of the second pixels.

Abstract: A recording medium causing computer to execute a checklist management program for managing a checklist comprised of a plurality of operation items to be checked, which generates attribute information specifying if the operation item is conducted for each of the operation items, obtains frequency distribution about an evaluation value corresponding to the generated attribute information based on a relationship which is prepared between the attribute information and the evaluation value, and sets an evaluation degree corresponding to the generated attribute information based on a frequency corresponding to an evaluation value that is equal to or greater than a prescribed threshold value in the frequency distribution. The generated attribute information comprises first attribute information obtained by setting t one of the operation items, which are not conducted among input attribute information, to be conducted. An evaluation degree obtained for the first attribute information is set as a priority.

Abstract: Embodiments in accordance with the present invention provide methods to record, in a rotating disk storage device, a data block in the unit of a logical sector on a recording medium on which a physical sector including a plurality of logical sectors is formatted. Extra addresses are acquired in a buffer to record write data blocks transferred from a host device. Data blocks are read from the recording medium in the unit of a physical sector. A skip read section discards data blocks having the same data blocks as the write data blocks by removing them from the read data blocks, and sends the remaining data blocks to the buffer. The buffer stores the data blocks in the order of recording in a physical sector.

Abstract: A computer executable problem information analysis program for the purpose of being carried out by a problem information analysis apparatus, which searches problem information corresponding to a search condition, by referring to a problem information database storing problem information that includes a category, an occurrence condition and a source cause of a problem and a practiced countermeasure therefor, wherein the program makes the problem information analysis apparatus execute the procedure of calculating a degree of difficulty of avoiding a problem, which indicates a difficulty of avoiding a problem, based on the number of source causes of the problem searched from the problem information database, thereby providing a problem information analysis program, a problem information analysis apparatus and a problem information analysis method enabling an appropriate judgment of a degree of difficulty of avoiding a problem based on various causes noted in each problem case information.

Abstract: An image processing device includes a judgement section and a generation section. A latent image, which would be retained or eliminated by photocopying, is to be superposed with machine-readable code images, which are encoded supplementary information, to generate a superposed image. The judgement section judges overlapping of the latent image with the machine-readable code images. The generation section, on the basis of judgement results from the judgement section, determines an arrangement of the machine-readable code images and generates the superposed image.

Abstract: An electric tilt and/or telescopic steering column apparatus comprises a steering shaft having a steering wheel mounted on a rear end thereof, a steering column for rotatably supporting the steering shaft, an electric actuator for adjusting the tilt and/or telescopic position of the steering shaft by driving this steering column, and position detecting means for detecting the position of the steering shaft in a non-contact manner.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus, comprising: a pixel generation unit configured to generate parameters of pixels in stamps based on values of typical pixels in the stamps having a plurality of pixels and derivatives of the parameters characterizing the image; a plurality of calculation processing units, each performing image processing of the stamps different from each other based on the parameters of the pixels generated by said pixel generation unit; and a texture processing unit configured to perform processing related to texture data in accordance with instructions from said plurality of calculation processing units, wherein each of said plurality of calculation processing units has a plurality of calculators which perform image processing of adjacent pixels in the corresponding stamp in parallel; and said pixel generation unit supplies the parameters of the adjacent pixels in the stamp which have no dependence to each other, to said plurality of calculation processing units, respectively.

Abstract: A fuel injection valve includes a soundproofing cover molded out of a rubber-containing soft resin and arranged on the outer periphery of a metal casing. Collision noises and vibrations are absorbed by the soundproofing cover, achieving excellent sound insulation. Moreover, the rubber-containing soft resin is lower in cost, and can be shaped by injection molding, resulting in a reduction in manufacturing cost of the valve.

Abstract: An image rendering device disclosed herein comprises a fragment generator configured to generate a set of fragments including pixels in different positions based on inputted pixel data; and a pixel processor configured to sequentially process the pixel data contained in the fragment generated by the fragment generator.

Abstract: An optical fiber sensor in which the insertion efficiency of a plastic fiber is improved, the potential danger of rupture of a mold member is decreased, the operation of the sensor in a low load area and the linearity of output of the sensor are improved. Plastic fiber for detection is inserted in insertion hole of molded member, and filler is filled in a gap between the plastic fiber for detection and the molded member.

Abstract: An image rendering method includes generating pixels in accordance with graphic information, determining a direction of anisotropy of a footprint obtained by projecting the pixel on a texture on which a set of texels are disposed on uv-coordinates, and executing sampling of a MIP map in accordance with the direction of anisotropy, and executing texture mapping for the pixel. The direction of anisotropy is determined by comparing lengths in at least three different directions of the footprint on the texture.

Abstract: A rendering apparatus includes a rasterizer, pixel processing units and memories. The rasterizer generates pixels corresponding to graphics. The pixel processing units execute rendering operations for the pixels generated by the rasterizer. The pixels rendered by the same pixel processing unit are positioned substantially equidistantly and isotropically within a rendering area. The memories are provided in association with the respective pixel processing units and store data of the pixels rendered by the associated pixel processing units.

Abstract: An insulation film on a substrate is subjected to a plasma treatment using a gas containing at least either of a CH-based gas and a CO-based gas, whereby variations in the dielectric constant of the insulation film and adsorption of water onto the insulation film can be suppressed.

Abstract: An upper portion of a second clad layer and a contact layer are provided with grooves so as to form a ridge therebetween. An electrode is formed on the ridge. An insulation film is formed to extent on side surfaces of the ridge, on the inside of the grooves, and those portions of the contact layer which are located on the outside of the grooves. The thickness of those portions of the insulation film which are located on the contact layer in the areas on the outside of the grooves is set to be greater than at least the thickness of the electrode. Besides, a pad electrode is formed to cover the electrode and to extend on the insulation film on the upper side of the areas on the outside of the grooves. The upper surfaces of those portions of the pad electrode which are located on the upper side of the areas on the outside of the grooves are set to be above the upper surface of that portion of the pad electrode which is located on the upper side of the ridge.

Abstract: To avoid degradation of performance of a storage apparatus even when access biased to writing or reading of data is performed in a buffer memory that adopts a dual ring buffer system as a data structure. A sector buffer for caching an access request is provided in a DRAM of the storage apparatus. The sector buffer has a first ring buffer (BUF_W) that temporarily holds an external write request for a recording medium in advance of its process to the recording medium, and a second ring buffer (BUF_R) that retains data read from the recording medium according to an external read request for the recording medium. An MPU of the storage apparatus shifts a BPAGE of the BUF_R or BUF_W according to external access patterns to the recording medium to thereby change the buffer sizes of the BUF_R and BUF_W.

Abstract: A network system capable of easily, if a communication abnormality occurs at an application level, troubleshooting a cause of the abnormality, includes a plurality of monitoring target computers, a network monitoring device and a plurality of network devices for relaying TCP communications, wherein each monitoring target computer sends, if the on-performing TCP communication comes into an abnormal status, a fault notifying message showing a content of this abnormal status to the network monitoring device, and the network monitoring device has a function of displaying the content of the received fault notifying message.