Author: claimsbot

1. A color registration apparatus to independently form images of predetermined respective colors and to compensate a mis-registration between overlapped images of respective colors employed in an image forming apparatus, comprising:
a detecting unit to detect contour form and position information of respective test patterns for each color image formed on an image transfer path by the image forming apparatus proportional to a corresponding format of a printing medium where a color image will be transferred; and
a controller to compensate a mis-registration between the overlapped images of respective colors based on data detected by the detecting unit,
wherein each test pattern comprises a first edge corresponding to a top edge part of the printing medium and a second edge corresponding to one side edge of the printing medium.
2. The color registration apparatus of claim 1, wherein the detecting unit comprises:
a light source to radiate a light; and
a plurality of light receiving elements aligned to have a length larger than a maximum width of the printing medium permitted by the image forming apparatus, the plurality of light receiving elements extending across the image transfer path in a width direction of the test patterns, and
wherein interference of each test pattern is detected by the plurality of light receiving elements to determine a contour form of the printing medium, a skew quantity and a shift quantity of each test pattern.
3. The color registration apparatus of claim 2, wherein the color patterns are separately formed on opposite side edges along the image transfer path; and
the detecting unit includes two spaced apart sub-units separately formed and positioned to correspond with the separated test patterns on the opposite side edges along the image transfer path.
4. The color registration apparatus of claim 2, wherein the plurality of light receiving elements have a same size and are separated from each other by a constant interval.
5. The color registration apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a discriminating unit which discriminates whether there is a mis-registration and an extent of the mis-registration based on the data detected by the detecting unit.
6. The color registration apparatus of claim 5, wherein the discriminating unit comprises:
a memory to store the contour form information of the respective test patterns; and
a counter to calculate a transfer time between the respective test patterns, and
wherein the discriminating unit determines the color registration between the respective test patterns through comparing information of the respective test patterns detected by the detecting unit and the counter and information of the respective test patterns stored in the memory.
7. The color registration apparatus of claim 6, wherein each test pattern comprises:
a first test pattern corresponding to a leading edge and opposites side edges at the leading edge of the printing medium; and
a second test pattern corresponding to a trailing edge and opposites side edges at the trailing edge of the printing medium.
8. A method of a color registration that independently forms images of predetermined respective colors and compensate a mis-registration between overlapped images of respective colors employed in an image forming apparatus which forms a color image by overlapping images of respective colors, the method comprising:
forming respective test patterns for each color image on an image transfer path proportional to a corresponding a format of a printing medium where the color image will be transferred;
detecting contour form information of each test pattern; and
compensating the color mis-registration based on the detected contour form information of the fed printing medium,
wherein the detecting of the contour form of each test pattern comprises:
radiating a light;
receiving the radiated light by a plurality of light receiving elements which are aligned to have a length longer than a maximum width of the printing medium permitted by the image forming apparatus, the plurality of light receiving elements extending across an image transfer path of the printing medium;
at predetermined times during an existence of the respective test patterns, outputting a signal corresponding to the radiated light received by the plurality of light receiving elements; and
recognizing the contour form of the respective test patterns using the output signal.
9. The method of the color registration of claim 8, further comprising determining whether there is a mis-registration and an extent of the mis-registration based on the contour form of the respective test patterns.
10. The method of the color registration of claim 9, wherein determining whether there is a mis-registration comprises
determining sizes of the respective test patterns;
determining skew quantities of the respective test patterns; and
determining shift quantities of the respective test patterns.
11. The method of the color registration of claim 10, wherein determining the sizes of the respective test patterns comprises:
calculating widths of the respective test patterns using an arithmetic operation having as variables a pass time of the respective test patterns, a location of individual light receiving elements of the detecting unit and a predetermined moving speed of the image transfer path.
12. The method of the color registration of claim 11, wherein the determining the sizes of the respective test patterns comprises:
determining a moving direction of the respective test patterns;
calculating widths of the respective test patterns with the output signal;
storing formats of the respective test patterns; and
comparing the widths of the respective test patterns and preset formats.
13. The method of the color registration of claim 12, wherein calculating the widths of the respective test patterns with the output signal satisfies the following equations:
Pwidth=\u221aX2+Y2
X=ABS(i\u2014ccw\u2212i\u2014cw)\xd7(w+d)+m
Y=f\xd7V\xd7T

where, for the respective test pattern, ABS means absolute value of, i_cw is an index number of the light receiving element disposed at a location which first meets a vertex of the respective test pattern and i_ccw is an index number of the light receiving element disposed at a location which meets an opposite vertex of the respective test pattern, w is the width of the light receiving element, d is a width of the interval between the light receiving elements, m is a margin that compensates to consider when the edge of each test pattern covers one light receiving element or the interval, f is a number of counts counted during an entering of the test pattern from the first entering of a vertex of the test pattern till the last entering of the other vertex of the test pattern, V is a moving speed of each test pattern, and T is a detecting period of the light receiving element.
14. The method of the color registration of claim 10, wherein the plurality of light receiving elements are separated from their adjacent light receiving elements by a predetermined interval, and
determining the sizes of the respective test patterns further comprises determining the position of at least one vertex of a leading edge of the respective test pattern within an interval between the adjacent light receiving elements when the at least one vertex of the respective test pattern enters the interval between the adjacent light receiving elements.
15. The method of the color registration of claim 14, wherein determining the position of at least one vertex of a leading edge of the respective test patterns within an interval between the adjacent light receiving elements comprises:
storing a relationship of a skew quantity and an output pattern of a transition of an output of the light receiving elements in a lookup table;
periodically storing sensed output values of the light receiving elements;
determining the skew quantity using the sensed output values of the light receiving elements and the relationship stored in the lookup table;
calculating a first line extending along the leading edge of each test pattern and a second line extending along a side edge of each test pattern; and
calculating the position of the at least one vertex of the leading edge of each test pattern from an intersection point of the first line and the second line.
16. The method of the color registration of claim 10, wherein determining the skew quantities of the respective test patterns comprises for each test pattern:
storing a count counted from a time when the test pattern is first detected until two opposite side edges of the test pattern is detected;
deciding whether the test pattern is skewed according to which light receiving element among the plurality of light receiving elements first detects the respective test patterns;
storing index values of the light receiving elements disposed at locations which first meet the first two vertexes of the test pattern; and
calculating the skew quantity based on the count and the stored index values.
17. The method of the color registration of claim 16, wherein, the skew quantities are determined in accordance with the following equations:
Skew quantity=arctan(YX)
X=ABS(i\u2014cw\u2212i\u2014ccw)\xd7(w+d)+m
Y=f\xd7V\xd7T

where, for the respective test pattern, ABS means absolute value of, i_cw is an index number of the light receiving element disposed at a location which first meets a vertex of the test pattern and i_ccw is an index number of the light receiving element disposed at a location which meets the opposite vertex of the test pattern, w is the width of the light receiving element, d is a width of the interval between the light receiving elements, m is a margin that compensates to consider when the edges of the respective test patterns cover one light receiving element or the interval, f is a number of counts counted during an entering of the test pattern from the first entering of a vertex of the test pattern till the last entering of the other vertex of the test pattern, V is a moving speed of the respective test patterns, and T is a detecting period of the light receiving element.
18. The method of the color registration of claim 17, wherein determining the skew quantities of the respective test patterns further comprises:
determining whether the skew quantities continue to change while continuing to transfer the respective test patterns; and
estimating the skew quantities at a predetermined target location if the skew quantities are determined to continue to change.
19. The method of the color registration of claim 10, wherein determining the shift quantities of the respective test patterns comprises:
determining which light receiving elements among the plurality of the light receiving elements are located at left and right portions of the leading edge of the respective test pattern.
20. The method of the color registration of claim 19, the shift quantities satisfies following equation:
shift quantity=(i\u2014cw+i\u2014ccw)2\u2212i\u2014cnt\xd7(w+d)+m

where, for the respective test pattern, ABS means absolute value of, i_cw is an index number of the light receiving element disposed at a location which first meets a vertex of the test pattern and i_ccw is an index number of the light receiving element disposed at a location which meets the opposite vertex of the test pattern, w is the width of each light receiving element, d is the width of an interval between each light receiving element, m is a margin and i_cnt is an index number of the light receiving element expected to be located at the center of the light receiving element.
21. The method of the color registration of claim 20, wherein determining the shift quantities of the respective test patterns further comprises, for a respective test pattern:
determining whether the shift quantity continues to change while transferring the respective test patterns; and
calculating the shift quantity at a predetermined target location if the shift quantity of the respective test pattern is determined to continue to change.
22. An image forming apparatus that independently forms images of predetermined respective colors and forms a color image by overlapping the images of respective colors, comprising:
an image forming unit to form respective test patterns for each color image on an image transfer path proportional to a corresponding format of a fed printing medium where the color image will be transferred; and
a color registration apparatus to independently form images of predetermined respective colors and to compensate a mis-registration between overlapped images of respective colors, including a detecting unit to detect a contour form and position information of respective test patterns for each color image formed on the image transfer path, and
a controller to compensate a mis-registration between overlapped images of respective colors based on data detected by the detecting unit,
wherein each test pattern comprises a first edge corresponding to a top edge part of the printing medium and a second edge corresponding to a side edge of the printing medium.
23. The image forming apparatus of claim 22, wherein the detecting unit comprises:
a light source to radiate a light; and
a plurality of light receiving elements aligned to have a length larger than a maximum width of the printing medium permitted by the image forming apparatus, the plurality of light receiving elements extending across the image transfer path in a width direction of the test patterns; and
wherein interference of each test pattern is detected by the plurality of light receiving elements to determine a contour form, a skew quantity and a shift quantity of the test patterns.
24. The image forming apparatus of claim 23, wherein the plurality of light receiving elements have a same size with each other and are separated from each other by a constant interval.
25. The image forming apparatus of claim 23, wherein the plurality of light receiving elements have a same size with each other and are separated from each other by a constant interval.
26. The image forming apparatus of claim 22, further comprising a discriminating unit to discriminate whether there is a mis-registration and an extent of the mis-registration based on data detected by the detecting unit.
27. The image forming apparatus of claim 26, wherein the discriminating unit comprises:
a memory to store the contour form information of respective test patterns; and
a counter to calculate a transfer time between the respective test patterns;
wherein the discriminating unit determines the color registration between the respective test patterns through comparing information of the respective test patterns detected by the detecting unit and the counter and information of the respective test patterns stored in the memory.
28. The image forming apparatus of claim 27, wherein each test pattern comprises:
a first test pattern corresponding to a leading edge and opposites side edges at the leading edge of the printing medium; and
a second test pattern corresponding to a trailing edge and opposites side edges at the trailing edge of the printing medium.
29. The image forming apparatus of claim 22, further comprises a user interface unit to inform a user whether sizes of the respective test patterns accord with preset formats.
30. A method of creating an image by an image forming apparatus that independently forms images of predetermined respective colors and forms a color image by overlapping the images of respective colors, the method comprising:
forming respective test patterns for each color image on an image transfer path proportional to a corresponding format of a printing medium where the color image will be transferred;
detecting contour form information of each test pattern;
creating an image having color registration compensated based on the detected contour form information of the fed printing medium,
wherein the detecting of the contour form information of each test pattern comprises:
radiating a light;
receiving the radiated light by a plurality of light receiving elements which are aligned to have a length longer than a maximum permitted width of the printing medium permitted by the image forming apparatus, the plurality of light receiving elements extending across an image transfer path of the printing medium;
at predetermined times during an existence of the respective test patterns, outputting a signal corresponding to the radiated light received by the plurality of light receiving elements; and
recognizing the contour form information of the respective test patterns using the output signal.
31. The method of image outputting of the image forming apparatus of claim 30, further comprising determining whether there is a mis-registration and an extent of the mis-registration based on the contour form of the respective test patterns.
32. The method of image outputting of the image forming apparatus of claim 31, wherein the determining whether there is a mis-registration comprises
determining the sizes of the respective test patterns;
determining the skew quantities of the respective test patterns; and
determining the shift quantities of the respective test patterns.
33. The method of image outputting of the image forming apparatus of claim 32, wherein the determining the sizes of the respective test patterns comprises:
calculating widths of the respective test patterns using an arithmetic operation having as variables a pass time of the respective test patterns, a location of individual light receiving elements of the detecting unit and a predetermined speed of the image transfer path.
34. The method of image outputting of the image forming apparatus of claim 33, wherein the determining the sizes of the respective test patterns comprises:
determining a moving direction of the respective test patterns;
calculating widths of the respective test patterns from the output signal; and
wherein the method further comprises comparing the determined size of the text pattern with an expected size.
35. The method of image outputting of the image forming apparatus of claim 34, wherein the calculating the widths of the respective test patterns with the output signal satisfies following equation:
Pwidth=\u221aX2+Y2
X=ABS(i\u2014cw\u2212i\u2014ccw)\xd7(w+d)+m
Y=f\xd7V\xd7T

where, for the respective test pattern, ABS means absolute value of, i_cw is an index number of the light receiving element disposed at a location which first meets a vertex of the test pattern and i_ccw is an index number of the light receiving element disposed at a location which meets an opposite vertex of the respective test pattern, w is the width of the light receiving element, d is a width of the interval between the light receiving elements, m is a margin that compensates to consider when the edge of each test pattern covers one light receiving element or the interval, f is a number of counts counted during an entering of the test pattern from the first entering of a vertex of the test pattern till the last entering of the other vertex of the test pattern, V is a moving speed of each test pattern, and T is a detecting period of the light receiving element.
36. The method of image outputting of the image forming apparatus of claim 32, wherein the plurality of light receiving elements are separated from their adjacent light receiving elements by a predetermined interval, and
determining the sizes of the respective test patterns further comprises determining the position of at least one vertex of a leading edge of the respective test pattern within an interval between the adjacent light receiving elements when the at least one vertex of the respective test pattern enters the interval between the adjacent light receiving elements.
37. The method of image outputting of the image forming apparatus of claim 36, wherein the determining the position of at least one vertex of a leading edge of the respective test pattern within an interval between the adjacent light receiving elements comprises:
storing a relationship of a skew quantity and an output pattern of a transition an output of the light receiving elements in a lookup table;
periodically storing sensed output values of the light receiving elements;
determining the skew quantity using the sensed output values of the light receiving elements and the relationship stored in the lookup table;
calculating a first line extending along the leading edge of each test pattern and a second line extending along a side edge of each test pattern; and
calculating the position of the at least one vertex of the leading edge of each test pattern from an intersection point of the first line and the second line.
38. The method of image outputting of the image forming apparatus of claim 32, wherein determining the skew quantities of the respective test patterns comprises for each test pattern:
storing a count counted from a time when the test pattern is first detected until two opposite side edges of the test pattern is detected;
deciding whether the test pattern is skewed according to which light receiving element among the plurality of light receiving elements first detects the respective test patterns;
storing index values of the light receiving elements disposed at locations which first meet the first two vertexes of the test pattern; and
calculating the skew quantity based on the count and the stored index values.
39. The method of image outputting of the image forming apparatus of claim 38, the skew quantities satisfy following equations:
Skew quantity=arctan(YX)
X=ABS(i\u2014cw\u2212i\u2014ccw)\xd7(w+d)+m
Y=f\xd7V\xd7T

where, for the respective test pattern, ABS means absolute value of, i_cw is an index number of the light receiving element disposed at a location which first meets a vertex of the respective test pattern and i_ccw is an index number of the light receiving element disposed at a location which meets the opposite vertex of the test pattern, w is the width of the light receiving element, d is the width of the interval between the light receiving elements, m is a margin that compensates to consider when the edges of the respective test patterns cover one light receiving element or the interval, f is a number of counts counted during an entering of the test pattern from the first entering of a vertex of the test pattern till the last entering of the other vertex of the test pattern, V is a moving speed of the respective test patterns, and T is a detecting period of the light receiving element.
40. The method of image outputting of the image forming apparatus of claim 39, wherein the determining the skew quantities of the respective test patterns further comprises:
discerning whether the skew quantities continue to change while continuing to transfer the respective test patterns; and
estimating the skew quantities at a predetermined target location if the skew quantities are determined to continue to change.
41. The method of image outputting of the image forming apparatus of claim 32, wherein determining the shift quantities of the respective test patterns comprises, for a respective test pattern:
determining which light receiving elements among the plurality of the light receiving elements are located at left and right portions of the leading edge of the respective test pattern.
42. The method of image outputting of the image forming apparatus of claim 41, the shift quantities satisfies following equation:
shift quantity=(i\u2014cw+i\u2014ccw)2\u2212i\u2014cnt\xd7(w+d)+m

where, for the respective test pattern, ABS means absolute value of, i_cw is an index number of the light receiving element disposed at a location which first meets a vertex of the test pattern and i_ccw is an index number of the light receiving element disposed at a location which meets the opposite vertex of the test pattern, w is the width of each light receiving element, d is the width of an interval between each light receiving element, m is a margin and i_cnt is an index number of the light receiving element expected to be located at the center of the light receiving element.
43. The method of image outputting of the image forming apparatus of claim 42, wherein determining the shift quantities of the respective test patterns further comprises, for a respective test pattern:
determining whether the shift quantity continues to change while transferring the respective test patterns; and
calculating the shift quantity at a predetermined target location if the shift quantity is determined to continue to change.

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 fabricating an integrated circuit comprising the steps of:
forming a plurality of CMOS polysilicon gate structures over a semiconductor body;
forming a gate dielectric on said semiconductor body prior to forming the plurality of CMOS polysilicon gate structures such that said gate dielectric is located between said semiconductor body and said plurality of CMOS polysilicon gate structures;
forming a layer of nickel over said semiconductor body including over said plurality of CMOS polysilicon gate structures;
forming a capping layer over said layer of nickel, said capping layer comprising a material with an affinity for boron;
then, annealing the semiconductor body to completely convert sold CMOS polysilicon gate structures into NiSi gate electrodes; and
removing said capping layer and unreacted portions of said layer of nickel, wherein said capping layer attracts a significant amount of boron away from an interface with said gate dielectric in a PMOS transistor but does not attract a significant amount of arsenic away from an interface with said gate dielectric in an NMOS transistor during sold annealing step.
2. A method for fabricating an integrated circuit, comprising the steps of: providing a semiconductor body having a plurality of polysilicon gate structures formed there on, wherein a first subset of said plurality of polysilicon gate structures are doped with boron dopant and a second subset of said plurality of polysilicon gate structures are doped with arsenic dopant;
forming a nickel layer over said semiconductor body including over said plurality of polysilicon gate structures;
forming a capping layer over said nickel layer, said capping layer comprising a transition metal nitride with an affinity for boron;
then, annealing the semiconductor body to completely convert said polysilicon gate structures to NiSi gate electrodes by reacting portions of said nickel layer with said polysilicon gate structures, wherein boron is redistributed during the annealing step with portion of the boron diffusing into said capping layer; and
removing said capping layer and unreacted portions of said layer of nickel.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein said transition metal-nitride comprises TiN.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein said annealing step is performed at a temperature in the range of 400\xb0 C. to 600\xb0 C.

1. A domestic equipment group, comprising:
a plurality of free standing domestic electrical appliances, at least two of said appliances being for the preparation of foodstuffs,
each appliance having a different respective function and comprising an outer housing having an upper surface, side surfaces extending downwardly from the upper surface and a front surface extending between the side surfaces,
each housing being shaped so that the appliances can be juxtaposed with contiguous side surfaces on a horizontal support surface with substantially flush adjoining portions of the upper surfaces and substantially flush adjoining portions of the front surfaces.
2. The domestic equipment group of claim 1, wherein the upper surface of each housing is generally rectangular in shape.
3. The domestic equipment group of claim 1, wherein the front surface of each housing is generally rectangular in shape.
4. The domestic equipment group of claim 1, wherein at least one of the upper surface and the front surface of each housing is flat.
5. The domestic equipment group of claim 1, wherein each housing comprises a rear surface opposite the front surface, each housing being shaped so that the appliances can be juxtaposed with contiguous side surfaces on a horizontal support surface with substantially flush front surfaces and substantially flush rear surfaces.
6. The domestic equipment group of claim 1, wherein edges between the surfaces of each housing are chamfered, each chamfer having a radius of less than 5 mm.
7. The domestic equipment group of claim 1, wherein each housing comprises a control panel for controlling the function of the appliance.
8. The domestic equipment group of claim 7, wherein the control panel is located in a recessed portion of the upper surface of the housing, the control panel having an upper surface which is substantially flush with the upper surface of the housing.
9. The domestic equipment group of claim 1, wherein the appliances are juxtaposed and connected together so that adjoining portions of the front surfaces and adjoining portions of the upper surfaces of the housings are substantially flush.
10. The domestic equipment group of claim 1, wherein each appliance comprises a base connected to the lower surface of the housing.
11. The domestic equipment group of claim 10, wherein the base comprises a connector for connecting the appliance to one of the other appliances so that both adjoining portions of the front surfaces and adjoining portions of the upper surfaces of the housings are substantially flush.
12. The domestic equipment group of claim 11, wherein the connector is moveable between a stowed position and a deployed position in which it is connectable to the base of one of the other appliances.
13. The domestic equipment group of claim 12, wherein the base comprises a retainer for retaining a deployed connector of one of the other appliances.
14. The domestic equipment group of claim 13, wherein the retainer comprises a profiled portion of the base which is shaped to receive a deployed connector of one of the other appliances.
15. The domestic equipment group of claim 1, wherein the appliances are portable.
16. The domestic equipment group of claim 1, wherein at least one of the appliances has a function which is other than for the preparation of foodstuffs.
17. The domestic equipment group of claim 16, wherein said at least one of the appliances comprises an audiovisual appliance, a television, a display screen, a radio, a DVD player or a CD player, a clock, a loudspeaker, a steriliser or a drinks cooler.
18. The domestic equipment group of claim 1, comprising a water tank for supplying water to at least one of the appliances, wherein the water tank comprises an outer housing having an upper surface, side surfaces extending downwardly from the upper surface and a front surface extending between the side surfaces, the housing of the water tank being shaped so that the water tank can be juxtaposed with a said appliance on a horizontal support surface with contiguous side surfaces and with substantially flush adjoining portions of the front surfaces and substantially flush adjoining portions of the upper surfaces.
19. The domestic equipment group of claim 1, wherein said appliances comprise at least two of a juice extractor, a toaster, a beverage maker, a hot water dispenser, a kettle, and a coffee grinder.

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 determining network topology of a bus system having a number of bus subscribers arranged on mutually connected bus segments of a bus line, comprising:
sending each bus subscriber an initiating measurement message;
responding to the initiating measurement message by a diagnosis repeater, having a measurement device for reflection measurement and connecting a number of bus segments, with a data message containing a segment identifier;
responding to the initiating measurement message by other bus subscribers with a response message;
sending a measurement signal from the diagnosis repeater to a responding bus subscriber;
reflecting the measurement signal at the responding bus subscriber; and
determining a distance between the responding bus subscriber and the diagnosis repeater based on a time interval between said sending of the measurement signal and detection of the measurement signal by the diagnosis repeater after said reflecting.
2. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:
incrementing a cascading identifier of a received data message by the diagnosis repeater; and
passing the cascading identifier on a segment-specific basis.
3. The method as claimed in claim 2, further comprising storing the distance to the responding bus subscriber in a topology table associated with the diagnosis repeater.
4. The method as claimed in claim 3, further comprising storing a segment identifier for the responding bus subscriber in the topology table.
5. The method as claimed in claim 4, further comprising storing a status identifier for the responding bus subscriber in the topology table.
6. The method as claimed in 5, further comprising determining a fault location of a line fault between two bus subscribers by the measurement device using the topology table.
7. An apparatus for determining network topology of a bus system having a number of bus subscribers arranged on bus segments of a bus line, comprising
at least one measurement initiator, connected to the bus line, to send a measurement message to the bus subscribers, to which every other bus subscriber responds with a response message; and
diagnosis repeaters, connecting the bus segments to one another, each of said diagnosis repeaters having a segment-specific measurement device for reflection measurement and responding to the measurement message by sending a data message which has a segment identifier, identifying each responding bus subscriber, sending a measurement signal to the responding bus subscriber, and determining a distance to the responding bus subscriber based on a time interval between transmission of the measurement signal and arrival of a reflection signal.
8. The apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein each diagnosis repeater further includes a topology table, in which the distance to each bus subscriber is entered, and which is identified by an associated bus segment.
9. The apparatus as claimed in claim 8, wherein addressed bus subscribers in the topology table of each diagnosis repeater are associated with at least one of
a status field for identifying the responding bus subscriber,
a subscriber-specific bus segment field for association of a bus segment connected to said diagnosis repeater,
a distance field for entering the distance to the responding bus subscriber,
a type field for identifying a type of bus subscriber, and
a repeater-specific bus segment field for identifying an adjacent diagnosis repeater on a segment-specific basis.
10. The apparatus as claimed in claim 9,
wherein each diagnosis repeater includes at least two measurement devices for reflection measurement, with each bus segment having only one associated measurement device, and
wherein said at least one measurement initiator includes at least one measurement initiator arranged on at least one bus segment.