Author: claimsbot

1. A method of monitoring an area, comprising the steps of:
periodically detecting an image of the area;
identifying and tracking a moving object in a succession of the detected images;
automatically selecting a portion of a single image of the succession of detected images for each identified moving object using selection criteria;
saving the selected portion of the single image of the succession of detected images for each identified object; and
discarding and not saving detected images of the succession of the detected images other than said single image of each identified object.
2. A method according to claim 1, wherein said step of automatically selecting is carried out by using image selection criteria which are intended to lead to the selection of an image in which the face of a detected person is visible and large.
3. A method according to claim 2, wherein said step of automatically selecting includes the steps of:
saving one of the detected images as a reference image;
carrying out said step of identifying by evaluating images detected subsequent to the reference image in order to identify therein each change region where the evaluated image differs from the reference image;
determining a bounding box subset of the single image for a given change region in each image of a set of images in which the given change region appears; and
selecting the selected portion of the single image for the given change region by discarding images from the set in which a lowermost side of the bounding box is higher than in other images of the set, and by selecting from the remaining images of the set an image in which a size of the bounding box is larger than in the other remaining images of the set.
4. A method according to claim 1, wherein said step of automatically selecting is carried out using image selection criteria which cause a current image to be selected over a prior image if a lowermost point of a detected change region is lower in the current image than in the prior image.
5. A method according to claim 4, wherein said step of automatically selecting is carried out using image selection criteria which cause a current image to be selected over a prior image if a detected change region has increased in size relative to a prior image.
6. A method according to claim 1, wherein said selecting step is carried out in response to detection of the absence of a previously detected object.
7. A method according to claim 1, wherein said selecting step is carried out in response to detection of a situation in which an object has remained within a predefined region of the area for a specified time interval.
8. A method according to claim 1, wherein said selecting step is carried out in response to a determination that a previously moving object has become stationary.
9. A method according to claim 1, wherein said selecting step is carried out in response to a determination a previously stationary object has started moving.
10. A method according to claim 1, wherein said saving step is carried out by determining a bounding box subset of the single image just large enough to completely contain a corresponding detected object and saving a portion of a detected image corresponding to the bounding box.
11. A method according to claim 10, including the step of saving one of the detected images as a reference image at a first resolution, and wherein said step of saving the selected portion of the single image is carried out by saving the bounding box enclosing the selected portion of the single image at a second resolution which is higher than the first resolution.
12. A method according to claim 1, including the step of saving one of the detected images as a reference image having a first resolution, wherein said step of saving the selected portion of the single image is carried out by determining a bounding box subset of the single image just large enough to completely contain a corresponding detected object and saving at a second resolution the bounding box enclosing the selected portion of the single image, the second resolution being greater than the first resolution, and including the step of displaying the reference image at the first resolution, displaying the bounding box enclosing the selected portion of the single image within the reference image at the first resolution, and displaying the bounding box enclosing the selected portion of the single image separately from the reference image and at the second resolution.
13. An apparatus for monitoring an area, comprising:
a detector which is operative to periodically detect an image of the area; and
an image processing section which is responsive to the detector, said image processing section being operative to:
identify and track a moving object in a succession of the detected images;
automatically select a portion of a single image of the succession of detected images for each identified object utilizing selection criteria;
save the selected portion of the single image of the succession of detected images for each identified object; and
discard and not save detected images other than said single image of the succession of detected images for each identified object.
14. An apparatus according to claim 13, wherein:
said image processing section being further operative to:
use image selection criteria which are intended to lead to the selection of an image in which the face of a detected person is visible and large.
15. An apparatus according to claim 14, wherein:
said image processing section being further operative to:
save one of the detected images as a reference image;
identify a moving object by evaluating images detected subsequent to the reference image in order to identify therein each change region where the evaluated image differs from the reference image;
determine a bounding box subset of the selected image for a given change region in each image of a set of images in which the given change region appears; and
select the selected portion of the single image for the given change region by discarding images from the set in which a lowermost side of the bounding box is higher than in other images of the set, and by selecting from the remaining images of the set an image in which a size of the bounding box is larger than in the other remaining images of the set.
16. An apparatus according to claim 13, wherein:
said image processing section being further operative to:
automatically select an image using image selection criteria which cause a current image to be selected over a prior image if a lowermost point of a detected change region is lower in the current image than in the prior image.
17. An apparatus according to claim 16, wherein:
said image processing section being further operative to:
automatically select an image out using image selection criteria which cause a current image to be selected over a prior image if a detected change region has increased in size relative to a prior image.
18. An apparatus according to claim 13, wherein:
said image processing section being further operative to:
select an image in response to detection of the absence of a previously detected object.
19. An apparatus according to claim 13, wherein:
said image processing section being further operative to:
select an image in response to detection of a situation in which an object has remained within a predefined region of the area for a specified time interval.
20. An apparatus according to claim 13, wherein:
said image processing section being further operative to:
select an image in response to a determination that a previously moving object has become stationary.
21. An apparatus according to claim 13, wherein:
said image processing section being further operative to:
select an image in response to a determination a previously stationary object has started moving.
22. An apparatus according to claim 13, wherein:
said image processing section being further operative to:
save said selected portion of the single image by determining a bounding box subset of the single image just large enough to completely contain a corresponding detected object and saving a portion of a detected image corresponding to the bounding box.
23. An apparatus according to claim 22, wherein:
said image processing section being further operative to:
save one of the detected images as a reference image at a first resolution; and
save the selected portion of the single image by saving a bounding box enclosing the selected portion of the single image at a second resolution which is higher than the first resolution.
24. An apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising:
a display device; and
wherein said image processing section being connected to the display device and being further operative to:
save one of the detected images as a reference image having a first resolution;
save the selected portion of the single image by saving a bounding box subset of the single image enclosing a corresponding detected object at a second resolution which is higher than the first resolution;
display via said display device said reference image at the first resolution and said bounding box enclosing the selected portion of the single image within said reference image at said first resolution, and
display via said display device said bounding box separately from said reference image at said second resolution.
25. A method of monitoring an area, comprising the steps of:
periodically detecting an image of the area;
identifying and tracking a moving object in a succession of the detected images;
automatically selecting a portion of single image of the succession of detected images for each identified object using selection criteria;
saving the selected portion of the single image of the succession of detected images for each identified object; and
discarding and not saving detected images other than said single image of the succession of detected images for each identified object; and
automatically saving a series of Cartesian coordinate pairs which identifies the path of movement of the object, said information being retained after the object is no longer present in newly detected images.
26. A method according to claim 25, including the steps of saving an identification of an event associated with the detected object, saving one of the detected images as a reference image, displaying the reference image, displaying on the reference image the path of movement of the object, and displaying on the reference image the identification of the event at a location on the reference image corresponding to a location of the event.
27. An apparatus according to claim 25, further comprising:
a display device;
wherein said image processing section being connected to said display device and being further operative to:
save an identification of an event associated with said detected object;
save one of the detected images as a reference image; and
display via said display device said reference image, said path of movement of the object within said reference image, and said identification of said event on said reference image at a location on the reference image corresponding to a location of the event.
28. An apparatus for monitoring an area, comprising:
a detector which is operative to periodically detect an image of the area; and
an image processing section which is responsive to the detector and which is operative to:
identify and track a moving object in a succession of the detected images;
save the selected portion of the single image of the succession of detected images for each identified object; and
discard and not save detected images other than said single image of the succession of detected images for each identified object;
automatically save a series of Cartesian coordinate pairs which identifies the path of movement of each moving object, and to retain the information after the moving object ceases to be present in current detected images.

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

What is claimed is:

1. A method that is machine performed by a first-hop node of a wide area network (WAN), for managing on-demand Quality of Service (QoS) assured pre-set path transmission of data from a source machine to a destination machine through the WAN, said method comprising the steps of:
managing a node-path database providing links between QoS assured pre-set paths through the WAN and identification of a last-hop node of each QoS path;
thereafter, receiving a message that includes identification of a specific request for a QoS assured pre-set path and the identification of the last-hop node that is coupled to the destination machine;
thereafter, searching the node-path database for QoS assured pre-set paths linked to the identified destination machine, and selecting and extracting a QoS path based upon the identification of the last-hop node that is coupled to the destination machine; and
thereafter, informing the source machine as to the status of the request.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein:
said receiving receives the message as an application level signal that identifies the signal as originating with the source machine.
3. The method of claim 2, further including:
prior to said step of receiving, transmitting to the source machine an application level signal that identifies the last-hop node that is coupled to the destination machine of the request and identifies the signal as originating from one of the last-hop node and the destination machine.
4. The method of claim 3, further including:
prior to said transmitting, sending an application level signal to the destination machine inquiring as to the identity of the last-hop node that is coupled to the destination machine of the request and identifying the signal as originating from the source machine.
5. The method of claim 1, further including:
forwarding data from the source machine to the destination machine over the selected path.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein:
said managing a node-path database provides, for each QoS path, information on network resources upon which the QoS of the paths depend.
7. The method of claim 1, further including:
prior to said step of receiving, transmitting over the WAN, an inquiry addressed to the destination machine requesting identification of the last-hop node that is coupled to the destination machine.
8. A storage media having computer readable code physically implementing the method of claim 1.
9. A storage media having computer readable code physically implementing the method of claim 3.
10. A storage media having computer readable code physically implementing the method of claim 4.
11. A storage media having computer readable code physically implementing the method of claim 6.
12. A storage media having computer readable code physically implementing the method of claim 7.
13. A method that is machine performed by a last-hop node of a wide area network (WAN), for managing on-demand Quality of Service (QoS) assured pre-set path transmission of data from a source machine to a destination machine through the WAN, said method comprising the steps of:
managing a terminal-port database providing links between ports of the last-hop node and machines connected to the ports;
thereafter, in response to an application level message from the destination machine, and transmitting identification of the last-hop node to the destination machine;
thereafter, in response to a message from the first-hop node that identifies flow information for the QoS assured pre-set path and identifies the destination machine, extracting from the terminal-port database the port linked to the destination machine and updating a flow-port table linking ports of the last-hop node to flows of QoS assured pre-set paths; and
thereafter, transmitting an acknowledgement to the first-hop node that the flow-port table has been updated.
14. The method of claim 13, wherein:
the message from the first-hop node identifies the message as originating with the source machine.
15. A storage media having computer readable code physically implementing the method of claim 13.
16. A storage media having computer readable code physically implementing the method of claim 14.
17. A method that is machine performed by a source machine coupled to a first-hop node of a wide area network (WAN) and running an application that is optimized by an on-demand Quality of Service (QoS) assured pre-set path transmission of data from the source machine to a destination machine through the WAN, said method comprising the steps of:
at an application level, requesting to and receiving from the destination machine an identification of a last-hop node that is coupled to the destination machine;
sending a message to the first-hop node that includes identification of a request for a QoS assured pre-set path, identification of the destination machine and identification of the last-hop node that is coupled to the destination machine;
thereafter, receiving an acknowledgement of establishment of the QoS assured pre-set path as requested; and
in response to the acknowledgement, sending the data to the first-hop node with a link to the QoS assured pre-set path.
18. A storage media having computer readable code physically implementing the method of claim 17.
19. A machine that is one of a first-hop node and a last-hop node of a wide area network (WAN), for managing on-demand Quality of Service (QoS) assured pre-set path transmission of data from a source machine to a destination machine through the WAN, said machine comprising:
a computer readable node-path database providing links between QoS assured pre-set paths through the WAN and identification of a last-hop node of each QoS path; and
means for associating the last-hop node and destination terminal for pre-set paths only after there is a request for a QoS path involving the destination terminal.
20. The machine of claim 19, further comprising:
a computer readable node-path database providing links between QoS paths, the last-hop node of each path, and information on network resources upon which the QoS of the paths depend; and
a computer readable flow-port table linking ports of the last-hop node to flows of QoS assured pre-set paths.

1. A process for making a high iron content ferric chloride solution, comprising:
oxidizing a hydrochloric acid and iron containing pickling liquor to form a ferric chloride solution having an iron content of about 15 weight percent or less;
evaporating water and free hydrochloric acid from the ferric chloride solution to increase the iron content to about 23 to 26 weight percent; and
reconstituting the ferric chloride solution having the iron content of about 23 to 26 weight percent by diluting the ferric chloride solution having the iron content of about 23 to 26 weight percent to a desired iron content with water.
2. The process of claim 1, further comprising reconstituting the ferric chloride solution having the iron content of about 23 to 26 weight percent by diluting the ferric chloride solution having the iron content of about 23 to 26 weight percent to a desired iron content with water and hydrochloric acid.
3. The process of claim 1 wherein the iron containing pickling liquor comprises Fe2+ and Fe3+ ions; and oxidizing the iron containing pickling liquor is effective to oxidize the Fe2+ ions to the Fe3+ ions.
4. The process of claim 1, wherein evaporating the water and the free hydrochloric acid comprises evaporating the ferric chloride solution.

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 semiconductor device comprising:
a semiconductor substrate;
a first insulating film that is formed over the semiconductor substrate;
a capacitor that is formed over the first insulating film and is formed by sequentially stacking a lower electrode, a capacitor dielectric film, and an upper electrode;
a second insulating film that is formed over the capacitor and has a hole including the entire region of the upper electrode in plan view; and
a conductor plug that is formed in the hole and contains tungsten.
2. The semiconductor device according to claim 1,
wherein the center of gravity of the hole and the center of gravity of the upper electrode coincide with each other in plan view.
3. The semiconductor device according to claim 1,
wherein the shape of the hole is similar to the shape of the upper electrode in plan view.
4. The semiconductor device according to claim 1,
wherein the hole is larger than a lower surface of the upper electrode in plan view.
5. The semiconductor device according to claim 1,
wherein the conductor plug includes a tungsten film having a recess in an upper surface of the tungsten film, and a copper wiring is formed in the recess.
6. The semiconductor device according to claim 5, further comprising:
a third insulating film that is formed over the second insulating film and has a wiring groove on the hole, the wiring groove being continuous to the recess,
wherein the copper wiring is formed in the recess and the wiring groove.
7. The semiconductor device according to claim 6,
wherein the wiring groove has a width larger than a width of the recess.
8. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, further comprising:
an opening that is formed in the first insulating film under the capacitor and includes the entire region of the lower electrode in plan view, and
a conductor that contains tungsten and is embedded in the fast opening.
9. The semiconductor device according to claim 8, further comprising:
an element isolation insulating film that is formed in the semiconductor substrate,
wherein the opening is formed on the element isolation insulating film.
10. The semiconductor device according to claim 8, further comprising:
an antioxidation insulating film that is formed over the conductor and the first insulating film and suppresses oxidation of the conductor, and,
wherein the capacitor is formed on the antioxidation insulating film.
11. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, further comprising:
an impurity diffusion region that is formed in the semiconductor substrate;
a contact plug that is embedded in the first insulating film over the impurity diffusion region and is electrically connected to the impurity diffusion region;
an interlayer insulating film that is formed over the first insulating film and has an opening on the contact plug, the opening including the entire region of the lower electrode in plan view; and
a conductor that is embedded in the opening, the conductor containing tungsten and being electrically connected to the contact plug and the lower electrode of the capacitor which is formed on the conductor.
12. The semiconductor device according to claim 11, further comprising:
a conductive film that is formed on the conductor so to fill the opening,
wherein the conductor is formed up to a halfway position of the opening in a depth direction, and
the capacitor is formed on the conductive film.
13. The semiconductor device according to claim 12,
wherein the conductive film has a first upper surface right under the capacitor, a side face that is connected to the first upper surface and is flush with a side face of the lower electrode, and a second upper surface connected to the side face and extending in a parallel to a surface of the substrate.
14. The semiconductor device according to claim 1,
wherein a plurality of the capacitors and a plurality of the conductor plugs are provided, and
a radioactive ray coming toward the capacitor dielectric film right under the upper electrode of one of the capacitors is blocked by the conductor plug on the other capacitor.
15. The semiconductor device according to claim 14,
wherein among radiation that is incident on the capacitor dielectric film without being blocked by the conductor plug on the other capacitor, the radiation having the maximum incident angle has a tangent of the incident angle, the tangent being equal to a value (a\u2212d)(2(b\u2212e)), where a represents a distance between lower surfaces of the upper electrodes of adjacent capacitors, b represents a distance between the lower surface of the upper electrode and an upper surface of the conductor plug, d represents a distance between lower surfaces of adjacent conductor plugs, and e represents a distance between the upper surface and the lower surface of the conductor plug.
16. The semiconductor device according to claim 15,
wherein the tangent is represented by (c+d)(2e) where c represents a distance between the upper surfaces of the adjacent conductor plugs.
17. The semiconductor device according to claim 1,
wherein another conductor plug containing tungsten is provided in the second insulating film on a side of the capacitor, and
radiation coming toward the capacitor dielectric film right under the upper electrode is blocked by the another conductor plug.
18. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, further comprising:
a blocking body formed above the second insulating film and containing tungsten,
wherein radiation coming toward the capacitor dielectric film right under the upper electrode is blocked by the blocking body.
19. The semiconductor device according to claim 1,
wherein the semiconductor substrate has a cell region where a plurality of the capacitors are formed, and
a conductor ring containing tungsten, the conductor ring having a height at least reaching the upper surface of the second insulating film and surrounding the cell region in plan view, is provided on the semiconductor substrate.
20. A method for producing a semiconductor device comprising:
forming a first insulating film on a semiconductor substrate;
forming, on the first insulating film, a capacitor by sequentially stacking a lower electrode, a capacitor dielectric film, and an upper electrode;
forming a second insulating film that covers the capacitor;
forming a hole in the second insulating film by pattering the second insulating film, the hole including the entire region of the upper electrode in plan view; and
forming, in the hole, a conductor plug that is electrically connected to the upper electrode and that contains tungsten.