Author: claimsbot

1. An apparatus for automatically stuffing a tubular food casing with food product, the apparatus comprising:
a stuffing horn through which food product flows into a tubular food casing the stuffing horn including an input end interconnected with a pressurized source of food product;
a clipping device for closing with a clip the food casing after being stuffed, the clipping device comprising a slot for guiding the clip and an entry into the slot, wherein the entry comprises an aperture in the clipping device;
a tape holding lengths of flexible string having end portions secured together to form flexible string loops, and
a source of compressed gas adapted to direct a flow of gas onto a string loop, the tape being directed toward the clipping device and the compressed gas impinging on the string loop so that the string loop is transferred into the entry and into the slot in the clipping device so that a first portion of the string loop protrudes through the entry into the slot while a second portion of the string loop is held simultaneously to the tape,
wherein the entry is positioned in the slot and the tape is positioned relative to the entry so that when the food casing is being closed with the clip, the clip draws the loop to the casing and holds the loop between the clip and the food.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 comprising a plurality of rolls including a tape supply roll, a drive roll, a takeup roll and at least one intermediate roll which is proximate the entry so that the secured together end portions of a string loop project from the tape into the entry into the slot as the tape passes around the intermediate roll.
3. The apparatus of claim 2 comprising means for driving the drive roll to pull the tape from the supply roll around the intermediate roll.
4. The apparatus of claim 3 comprising an edge for catching secured together end portions of a string loop as the string loop passes around the intermediate roll to cause the secured together portions of the string to protrude from the tape into the entry to the slot and to assist in removal of the string loop from the tape.
5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the secured together portions are secured together by a knot.
6. The apparatus of claim 1 comprising means for radially compressing the food casing after being stuffed to cause a restricted location along a stuffed food casing length, said clipping device being configured to clip the casing at the restricted location.
7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the clipping device is of sufficiently light weight and is driven by a sufficient power source to obtain a clipping cycle time of less than 3 seconds.
8. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein a conveyor is provided to remove stuffed food product from the vicinity of the clipping device after a stuffed food casing is closed, said conveyor comprising:
a conveying belt defining a conveying surface having a variable length; and
one or more movable slacker idler rollers over which the conveying belt travels, wherein the one or more slacker idler rollers are movable to, permit the length of the conveying surface to be extended and retracted, the idle rollers adapted such that a space between the clipping device and the conveying surface may be enlarged and reduced by retracting and extending the conveying surface length.
9. The apparatus of claim 8 comprising:
gatherers to gather a stuffed food casing to form a radial restriction in the stuffed food casing; and
a conveyor drive cylinder to cause the conveyor conveying surface length to retract to increase the space when the gatherers are operating and to cause the conveying surface length extend to reduce the space and place the conveying surface near the clipping device when the gatherers are dormant.
10. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the compressed gas is air.
11. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the clip holds the loop to the food casing at two or more points along the loop.
12. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein end portions of the lengths of string have been secured together in knots to form string loops and wherein the first portion of the string loop that protrudes through the entry into the slot comprises a knot.
13. A method for automatically stuffing tubular food casing with food product comprising:
passing food product through a stuffing horn into a tubular food casing where an input end of the stuffing horn is interconnected with a pressurized source of food product;
after the food casing is stuffed, closing the food casing with a clip using a clipping device; and
transferring a flexible string loop from a tape into an entry to a slot in the clipping device so that when the food casing is closed with the clip, the clip draws the loop to the casing and holds the string loop to the food casing at two or more points along the string loop, wherein the string loop includes a knot and during the transfer of the string loop, a first portion of the string loop including the knot protrudes through the entry into the slot while a second portion of the string loop is held simultaneously to the tape.
14. The method of claim 13 comprising causing secured together end portions of a string loop as it passes around an edge to protrude from the tape into the entry to the slot and to assist in removal of the string loop from the tape.
15. The method of claim 13 comprising blowing the secured together end portions of the string loop into the entry to the slot using a gas; and capturing two or more portions of the string loop between the clip end and the casing.
16. The method of claim 15 wherein the gas is air.

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

1. A method for verifying the content of a reply manually initiated by a recipient to an offer to enter an agreement, the offer transmitted over a network and through a server displaced from a recipient, comprising:
receiving a message from a sender, the message containing an offer by the sender to enter an agreement with the sender;
registering the message by the server;
transmitting the registered message from the server to the recipient;
generating a manually initiated reply to the registered message at the recipient, the manually initiated reply including an indication of acceptance or rejection of the offer contained in the registered message;
transmitting the manually initiated reply to the server;
registering the manually initiated reply by the server;
transmitting the registered manually initiated reply to the sender by the server.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein registering the message by the server includes storing a copy of at least a portion of the message in a memory associated with the server.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein registering the message by the server includes adding a clickable link to the message transmitted from the server to the recipient, the clickable link allowing the recipient to view the at least a portion of the message stored in the memory by manually clicking on the link included in the registered message.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein clicking on the clickable link transmits a command to the server to display at least a portion of the message to the recipient.
5. The method of claim 2, wherein registering the message by the server includes adding a notification to the recipient of the message that at least a portion of the message is stored in the memory.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein registering the message by the server includes
assigning a unique identification to the message; and
storing the unique identification of the message in a database.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the registered manually initiated reply to the sender includes transmitting proof of the content of the manually initiated reply to the sender.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein the indication of acceptance or rejection of the offer contained in the message is an indication of the recipient altering the content of the registered message.
9. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the registered manually initiated reply to the sender includes transmitting a copy of the message and the indication of acceptance or rejection of the offer.
10. A method for verifying the content of a reply manually initiated by a recipient to an offer to enter an agreement, the offer transmitted over a network and through a server displaced from a recipient, comprising:
receiving a message from a sender, the message containing an offer by the sender to enter an agreement with the sender;
recording the message by the server;
transmitting the recorded message from the server to the recipient;
generating a manually initiated reply to the recorded message at the recipient, the manually initiated reply including an indication of acceptance or rejection of the offer contained in the recorded message;
transmitting the manually initiated reply to the server;
recording the manually initiated reply by the server;
transmitting the recorded manually initiated reply to the sender by the server.
11. The method of claim 10, wherein recording the message by the server includes storing a copy of the message in a memory associated with the server.
12. The method of claim 11, wherein recording the message by the server includes adding to the message a clickable link to the copy of the message stored in the memory allowing the recipient to view the message stored in the memory by manually clicking on the link included in the transmitted message.
13. The method of claim 12, wherein clicking on the clickable link transmits a command to the server to display the message to the recipient.
14. The method of claim 11, wherein recording the message by the server includes adding a notification to the recipient of the message that the message has been recorded.
15. The method of claim 10, wherein recording the message by the server includes
assigning a unique identification to the message; and
storing the unique identification of the message in a database.
16. The method of claim 10, wherein transmitting the recorded manually initiated reply to the sender includes transmitting proof of the content of the manually initiated reply to the sender.
17. The method of claim 10, wherein the indication of acceptance or rejection of the offer contained in the message includes an indication of the recipient altering the content of the registered message.
18. The method of claim 10, wherein transmitting the recorded manually initiated reply to the sender includes transmitting an original copy of the message and the indication of acceptance or rejection of the offer.
19. A system for verifying the content of a reply manually initiated by a recipient to an offer to enter an agreement, the offer transmitted over a network and through a server displaced from a recipient, comprising:
a server configured by programming commands to receive a message from a sender, the message containing an offer by the sender to enter an agreement with the sender,
register the message at the server,
transmit the registered message from the server to the recipient,
receive a manually initiated reply to the registered message from the recipient, the manually initiated reply including an indication of acceptance or rejection of the offer contained in the registered message,
register the manually initiated reply at the server, and
transmit the registered manually initiated reply to the sender.
20. The system of claim 19, wherein the server is configured by programming commands to store a copy of at least a portion of the message in a memory associated with the server.
21. The system of claim 20, wherein the server is further configured by programming commands to add a clickable link to the copy of the message stored in the memory to the message transmitted from the server to the recipient.
22. The system of claim 21, wherein the server is configured by the programming commands to receive a command resulting from clicking on the clickable link in the message to display the at least a portion of the copy of the message stored in the memory to the recipient.
23. The system of claim 20, wherein the server is further configured by programming commands to add to the transmitted message a notification to the recipient of the message that at least a portion of the message is stored in the memory.
24. The system of claim 19, wherein the server is further configured by programming commands to assign a unique identification to the message and to store the unique identification of the message in a database.
25. The system of claim 19, wherein the server is further configured by programming commands to transmit proof of the content of the manually initiated reply to the sender.
26. The system of claim 19, wherein the indication of acceptance or rejection of the offer contained in the message is an indication of the recipient altering the content of the registered message.
27. The system of claim 19, wherein the server is further configured by programming commands to transmit a copy of the message and the indication of acceptance or rejection of the offer to the sender.

1. A fixing device, comprising:
a main body, comprising a bolting structure for bolting with a component element;
at least two sliding location elements, disposed on one side of the main body opposite the bolting structure, each sliding location element comprising a connecting portion and an extending portion, the connecting portion being connected to the main body, the extending portion being connected to the connecting portion and to being substantially parallel to the main body, and a spacing being kept between the main body and the extending portion for clamping and fixing a printed circuit board; and
at least one location element, extended from the main body and being substantially parallel to the extending portion, the at least one location element being disposed between the at least two sliding location elements and the bolting structure for fixing the printed circuit board.
2. The fixing device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the extending portions and the at least one location element extend substantially towards a same direction.
3. The fixing device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the extending portions and the at least one location element extend substantially along opposite directions.
4. The fixing device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the main body further comprises a set of elastic manipulator structures disposed between the at least two sliding location elements and the bolting structure.
5. The fixing device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the main body further comprises a conductive and elastic element for providing a grounding function.
6. The fixing device as claimed in claim 1, wherein a width of the spacing is not less than a thickness of the printed circuit board.
7. An electronic apparatus, comprising:
an component element;
a printed circuit board; and
at least one fixing device, fixed to the printed circuit board, each fixing device comprising:
a main body, comprising a bolting structure for bolting with the component element;
is at least two sliding location elements, disposed on one side of the main body opposite the bolting structure, each sliding location elements comprising a connecting portion and an extending portion, the connecting portion being connected to the main body, the extending portion extending from the connecting portion and being substantially parallel to the main body, and a spacing being kept between the main body and the extending portion for clamping and fixing the printed circuit board; and
at least one location element, extended from the main body and being substantially parallel to the extending portion, the at least one location element being disposed between the at least two sliding location elements and the bolting structure for fixing the printed circuit board.
8. The electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein the extending portions and the at least one location element extend substantially towards a same direction.
9. The electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein the extending portion and the at least one location element extend substantially along opposite directions.
10. The electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein the main body further comprises a set of elastic arm structures disposed between the at least two sliding location elements and the bolting structure.
11. The electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein the main body further comprises a conductive and elastic element for providing a grounding function.
12. The electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein a width of the spacing is not less than a thickness of the printed circuit board.
13. The electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein the printed circuit board comprises at least one set of slots, and each set of slots comprises at least two sliding slots corresponding to the at least two sliding location elements and at least one location slot corresponding to the at least one location element.
14. The electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 13, wherein a length of each sliding slot is not less than a length of the extending portion.

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

1. A method of crystallising a semiconductor film deposited on a supporting substrate comprising the steps of:
(a) with a laser, exposing each of a series of discrete regions of the semiconductor film to one or more laser beam pulses (an exposure);
(b) monitoring the energy output of the laser; and
(c) if the energy output of the laser during an exposure of a discrete region exceeds a predetermined threshold (an over-exposure), reexposing that discrete region to one or more laser beam pulses (a re-exposure).
2. A method according to claim 1 wherein each exposure is intended to heat a discrete region to a near-melt-through condition.
3. A method according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the predetermined threshold is set at between 105% and 115% of the energy intended for an exposure.
4. A method according to claim 3 wherein the predetermined threshold is set at between 107% and 110% of the energy intended for an exposure.
5. A method according to any claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the predetermined threshold is set at or above the energy output required to heat a discrete region to a near full-melt-through condition.
6. A method according to claim 5 wherein in the event of an over-exposure of a discrete region, that discrete region is allowed to completely solidify prior to re-exposure.
7. A method according to any preceding claim wherein at least some of the discrete regions of the semiconductor film overlap.
8. A method according to any preceding claim wherein the laser produces a long thin laser beam capable of being scanned over the semiconductor film in a stepped fashion, thereby defining the discrete regions of the semiconductor film.
9. A method according to claim 8 wherein the laser beam is stepped over the semiconductor film, sequential exposing discrete regions of the semiconductor film wherein in the event of an over-exposure of a discrete region, that discrete region is re-exposed prior to stepping to an adjacent discrete region.
10. A method according to claim 8 wherein the laser beam is stepped over the semiconductor film, sequentially exposing discrete regions of the semiconductor film wherein in the event of an over-exposure of a discrete region, that discrete region is re-exposed prior to exposing an adjacent discrete region.
11. A method of crystallising a semiconductor film as hereinbefore described with reference to accompanying FIGS. 1A to 1C.
12. A semiconductor film crystallised by a method according to any preceding claim.
13. A method of manufacturing a thin film transistor (TFT) comprising source and drain electrodes joined by a semiconductor channel, a gate insulating layer and a gate electrode, wherein the semiconductor channel was formed from a semiconductor film crystallised by a method according to claims 1 to 11.
14. A method of manufacturing a thin film transistor (TFT) substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying figures.
15. A TFT manufactured by a method according to claim 13 or claim 14.
16. An active matrix device comprising a row and column array of active elements wherein each element is associated with a switching TFT according to claim 15 connected to corresponding row and column conductors.
17. Apparatus for crystallising a semiconductor film comprising a supporting substrate for receiving a semiconductor film; a laser for exposing each of a series of discrete regions of the semiconductor film to one or more laser beam pulses; and a control unit for monitoring the energy output of the laser apparatus.
18. Apparatus for crystallising a semiconductor film by a method according to claims 1 to 11 comprising a supporting substrate for receiving a semiconductor film; a laser for exposing each of a series of discrete regions of the semiconductor film to one or more laser beam pulses; and a control unit for monitoring the energy output of the laser apparatus.