An expandable thermoplastic composition is disclosed for extrusion foaming wherein the composition comprises a polyethylene resin; a blowing agent comprising a blend of about 50% by weight of carbon dioxide and about 50% by weight of either normal butane, isobutane, propane, or a mixture of any two or all three hydrocarbons in admixture with the resin in a ratio of about one part blowing agent to about 10 parts resin; zinc oxide nucleation agent in an amount of from about 0.05 to 0.5 kg per 100 kg of the resin; and glycerol monostearate aging modifier in an amount of from about 0.5 to 5 kg per 100 kg of the resin. A process for extrusion foaming of the composition is also disclosed.

Thermoplastic foam products can be produced by a wide variety of processes, of which extrusion is but one, that are in part responsible for the wide variety of foam products available today. Foams range in consistency from rigid materials suitable for structural use to flexible substances for soft cushions and packaging materials. These foams range in cellular formation from open or interconnecting-cell foams to closed or unicell foams. The cell structure may range from large to fine. Electrical, thermal, mechanical, and chemical properties can be varied within wide limits depending on the thermoplastic resin composition and the method chosen to create the foam. Foamed thermoplastics range in density anywhere from about 10 kg/m.sup.3 to over 1,000 kg/m.sup.3, although the latter perhaps more properly are called microcellular structures. True foams are considered to have a density of less than about 800 kg/m.sup.3.
Many methods have been developed for the manufacture of foamed thermoplastics, which generally can be classified into three groups: 1) methods for adding a gaseous "blowing agent" to the thermoplastic during processing, 2) methods for producing a gaseous blowing agent in the thermoplastic during processing, and 3) methods for forming a thermoplastic mass from granules to obtain a cellular structure. Similar blowing agents sometimes are used in the various methods to produce foams. However, the effectiveness of a particular blowing agent varies considerably depending on the thermoplastic resin composition, the method chosen, the process conditions, the additives used, and the product sought.
Blowing agents work by expanding a thermoplastic resin to produce a cellular thermoplastic structure having far less density than the resin from which the foam is made. Bubbles of gas form around "nucleation sites" and are expanded by heat or reduced pressure or by a process of chemical reaction in which a gas is evolved. A nucleation site is a small particle or conglomerate of small particles that promotes the formation of a gas bubble in the resin. Additives may be incorporated into the resin to promote nucleation for a particular blowing agent and, consequently, a more uniform pore distribution. However, the foam is maintained by replacing the blowing agent in the cells with air. Diffusivity of the blowing agent out of the cells relative to air coming into the cells impacts the stability of the foam over time and whether the cells of the foam may collapse. Additives may be incorporated into the resin and process conditions may be adjusted to assist in controlling the diffusivity of the blowing agent, to promote foam stability, and to limit collapse of the foam to acceptable limits.
Methods for producing a blowing agent in situ usually involve a chemical reaction that evolves gas. Polyethylene, silicone, epoxy, and vinyl foams have all been produced by adding a substance that will produce a gaseous blowing agent chemically. For example, dinitroso compounds and hydrazides, which evolve nitrogen gas on decomposition, and bicarbonates, which evolve carbon dioxide, have been added to thermoplastic resins to produce foams.
Polystyrene foams often are produced by "bead molding," in which partially expanded granules or beads are heated in a mold in the presence of a blowing agent to expand and fuse the particles into a rigid unicellular structure. A volatile organic compound or some other gaseous blowing agent is impregnated into the beads. Heat is applied and the pressure is released to cause the beads to expand and fuse.
There are several methods for adding a blowing agent to a thermoplastic resin during processing to produce a foam. Ureaformaldehyde and polyvinylformaldehyde foams have been produced by whipping air into a heated thermoplastic mass before it sets. Polyolefinic foams have been produced by introducing air or some other gas or volatile solvent into a heated thermoplastic polyolefin mass and then heating the mass or reducing pressure to expand the gas and form pores of a desirable size. One more specific method is to impregnate a thermoplastic resin with blowing agent under heat and pressure in a closed vessel. The pressure is released to expand the blowing agent to form "prefoamed," or partially expanded, beads. Prefoamed beads usually are further expanded in an enclosed vessel such as a mold to produce a molded foam product, such as is discussed hereinabove.
Another more specific method, to which the invention claimed herein relates, is to mix the blowing agent with molten resin under pressure and then extrude the mixture through a forming die into a zone of reduced pressure. Shaped extruded foams can be produced by this method using a forming die of particular configuration. Plank, which can be cut to a desirable shape, and thin foam sheets are produced in this manner.
Many of the halogenated hydrocarbons have been used for several years as blowing agents in various methods for producing foams from thermoplastic resins. The halogenated hydrocarbons include the chlorofluorocarbons ("CFCs") and hydrochlorofluorocarbons ("HCFCs"). CFCs and HCFCs are readily impregnable in thermoplastic resins and are readily expandable under relatively mild conditions. CFCs and HCFCs generally produce foams of high quality with a minimum of processing difficulty. The pore size is controllable, the foam has good stability with minimum tendency to collapse after a period of time, and the surface characteristics of the foam are smooth and desirable. Also, CFCs, HCFCs, and other halogenated hydrocarbons typically are either not flammable or are of low flammability, which greatly reduces the care with which they may be used. These compounds have the further advantage of low toxicity. However, governmental regulation is phasing out use of halogenated hydrocarbons because the halogenated hydrocarbons may be responsible for damage to the earth's ozone layer.
Producers of thermoplastic foam products have been seeking alternatives to CFC and HCFC blowing agents for a number of years to reduce or eliminate altogether the amount of halogenated hydrocarbons used. A number of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have been proposed, although many of these also are somewhat objectionable. VOCs include the light aliphatic hydrocarbons such as propane, n-butane, isobutane, butylene, isobutene, pentane, neopentane, and hexane, to name but a few. The diffusivity of VOCs can be many times faster than that of the halogenated hydrocarbons and harder to control. Foam collapse and stability problems have been encountered, although high quality foams can be produced using VOCs. Also, VOCs typically are flammable, thus presenting handling problems and safety concerns.
Inert gases have also been proposed as blowing agents, although these sometimes do not provide acceptable results, especially for producing extruded foams. Inert gases include nitrogen, argon, xenon, krypton, helium, and carbon dioxide. Nitrogen and carbon dioxide, in particular, have the advantage of being inexpensive, readily available, and of not being flammable, and are not considered to be harmful to the earth's ozone layer. However, inert gases usually are not as readily soluble in thermoplastic resins as CFCs, HCFCs, and VOCs, are of higher volatility, and do not reduce the viscosity of the resin. Lubricants often are added to the resin for extrusion foaming. The range of processing conditions for producing acceptable products is narrower than for CFCs, HCFCs, and VOCs. Mixing the resin with an inert blowing agent and keeping the inert blowing agent in the resin is more complicated than for CFCs, HCFCs, and VOCs. The surface texture of extruded foams sometimes is rough. Extruded low density foams and thick foams are difficult to achieve. The foam sometimes has poor stability and foam shrinkage sometimes is uncontrollable.
As examples of the use of various blowing agents for molding and prefoamed bead production, Kloker et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,120,923 and Yoshimura et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,464,484 disclose the use of the inert gas carbon dioxide as a blowing agent for molded polyolefin foam articles and for polymer beads, respectively. Yoshimura et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,464,484 disclose that a mixture of carbon dioxide and aliphatic hydrocarbons and halogenated aliphatic hydrocarbons, including CFCs and HCFCs, are useful blowing agents for polyolefin beads. Broad ranges of blends of VOCs, CFCs, and HCFCs with carbon dioxide are disclosed and mixtures of butane or dichlorodifluoromethane and carbon dioxide are exemplified.
However, no suggestion is made that any of these blended blowing agents for prefoamed beads would be useful for producing extruded thermoplastic foams. Extrusion and prefoamed bead production are different processes that produce entirely different products and are not processes that can be substituted one for the other. A blowing agent may produce a foam product having desirable characteristics in one process, but not in the other.
Extrusion foaming and prefoamed bead production differ in at least the following respect. Extrusion foaming is a continuous process in which a plasticized thermoplastic resin is cooled and expanded when the resin and blowing agent are extruded into a zone of lower pressure. On the other hand, the process for producing prefoamed beads is a batch process in which a solid resin is impregnated with a blowing agent, typically at a relatively lower temperature than extrusion foaming, and heated to expand the blowing agent.
The conditions at which extrusion foaming and prefoamed bead production occur further illustrate the differences in these processes. In prefoamed bead production, the resin usually is solid and so impregnation with blowing agent can take up to an hour or more. On the other hand, mixing of blowing agent with polyethylene resin for extrusion foaming can take place in as little as few minutes or less because the resin is plasticized. Nucleating and stability control agents typically are used in extrusion foaming, even for CFC and HCFC blowing agents, to control cell formation, diffusivity of the blowing agent, and stability of the foam. Nucleating and stability control agents typically are not used in prefoamed bead production. Also, a medium such as water or glycol typically is used as a dispersion medium for the polymer particles in prefoamed bead production. No such medium is needed or used for extrusion foaming.
As an example of extrusion foaming, Watanabe et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,214,054 disclose numerous volatile organic blowing agents including various CFCs, VOCs, and the use of decomposable gas-releasing chemical blowing agents for producing extruded polyolefin foams from particular resin compositions.
Nakamura et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,649,001 propose preparing long, thin sheets of low density polyethylene foams by extruding a resin mixture of low density polyethylene and linear low density polyethylene. The extruded foam sheet is drawn at a rate faster than the extrusion rate to produce long, thin sheets. Foaming agents are said to include inorganic gases such as carbon dioxide and a number of VOCs and HCFCs. No specific blends of blowing agents are suggested. Nakamura et al. is directed to the problem of producing long, thin sheets from a thermoplastic resin that has produced foams of small elongation and inferior tensile strength, but does not recognize the problems associated with using either carbon dioxide or butane alone as a blowing agent.
Johnson U.S. Pat. No. 3,966,373 proposes a method and apparatus for making relatively dense structural foam profiles having a foam core and a dense skin. A partially expanded extruded thermoplastic polymer composition is conveyed through a chilled shaping passage moving at the same rate as the foam to eliminate friction. The dense skin is formed by the chilled passage while the polymer resin is still expanding. Foaming agents are said to include nitrogen, carbon dioxide, lower molecular weight paraffins such as propane, butane, and methylchloride, lower molecular weight olefins such as ethylene, propylene, and butylene or mixtures of the above. No specific mixtures of foaming agents are disclosed. A preferred thermoplastic composition for extrusion to form tongue depressors or ice cream sticks of 320 to 1000 kilograms per cubic meter is disclosed to include polystyrene beads having a pentane blowing agent integrated therewith.
Kiczek et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,034,171 propose a process for producing extruded thermoplastic foams wherein inert gases including nitrogen, carbon dioxide, and others are used as the sole blowing agent, without blending with CFCs, HCFCs, or VOCs. Inert gases such as nitrogen, carbon dioxide, and others would be particularly preferred blowing agents for extruded polyolefin foams because these gases typically are relatively inexpensive and are not considered harmful to the ozone layer. However, inert gas blowing agents generally have not proved suitable for producing extruded polyolefin foams, as discussed hereinabove.
An alternative blowing agent for extruded thermoplastic foams, a process for producing extruded foams using such a blowing agent, and a thermoplastic resin composition containing such a blowing agent would be desirable that avoid or substantially reduce the impact of the problems typically associated with CFCs, HCFCs, VOCs, and inert gases in producing extruded foams and are capable of producing foams having acceptable pore structure, density, and stability.

Expandable composition and process for extruded thermoplastic foams


An instrument for endoscopic applications, including a tubular member having a handling end portion having a flexible portion and actuating devices located at the other end portion, and longitudinal elements for transferring the movement of the actuating devices to the handling end portion resulting in a change of orientation thereof, whereby the handling end portion includes at least two independent flexible portions, whereby the actuating end portion has a corresponding number of actuating devices, and whereby each actuating device is connected by its own set of longitudinal elements to a part of the handling end portion for effecting a change of orientation of one of the flexible portions.

I. Technical Field
The invention relates to an instrument for endoscopic applications or the like, comprising a tube like member having a handling end portion having a flexible portion and actuating means located at the other end portion, and longitudinal elements for transferring the movement of the actuating means to the handling end portion resulting in a change of orientation thereof.
II. Description of the Related Art
Such an instrument is known from EP-A-1 708 609 and is normally used for applications such as minimal invasive surgery, but it is also applicable for other purposes such as the inspection or reparation of mechanical or electronic installations at locations which are difficult to reach.
In this known instrument a bending movement of the actuating end portion is transferred to a handling end portion by means of the longitudinal elements resulting in a corresponding bending movement of the handling end portion especially of the flexible part thereof. As a result of this construction the bending orientation of the flexible portion is limited to one direction at a time, as a result of which the application of this type of instrument is limited. This is especially true in situations where two endoscopic instruments are used in a parallel fashion located side by side, as in this situation it is not possible to direct the handling end portion to the same point because of the mutual spherical hindrance. Furthermore it is not always possible to use the instrument at defined locations because of some obstacles present in the access road to the point where some action is needed. More specifically there is a need for an instrument for endoscopic applications or the like which offers advanced possibilities in the guidance of the handling end portion of the instrument.

Instrument for endoscopic applications or the like


An image forming apparatus includes an image bearing member and a transferring member for transferring a toner image on the image bearing member onto a recording material in a transferring portion of the image forming apparatus. When the recording material is not present in the transferring portion, a voltage is applied to the transferring member, and on the basis of an electric current then flowing in the transferring member, a voltage applied to the transferring member, when a non-image portion of the image bearing member is in the transferring portion, is controlled.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an image forming apparatus of the electrophotographic type or the electrostatic recording type, and particularly to an image forming apparatus in which a voltage applied to a transferring member disposed in opposed relationship with an image bearing member is controlled.
2. Related Background Art
FIG. 8 of the accompanying drawings schematically shows the construction of a popular image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 8 is a printer of the transfer type utilizing the electrophotographic process.
A drum-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member (photosensitive drum) 1 as an image bearing member is rotatively driven in the direction of arrow R9 at a predetermined peripheral speed (process speed), and image forming process such as electrifying image exposing, developing, transferring and cleaning are applied to this photosensitive drum 1.
That is, the photosensitive drum 1 is rotatively driven and the surface thereof is uniformly electrified to a predetermined polarity and predetermined potential by an electrifying roller (primary electrifier) 2. In the present example, a description will be made of a case where a photosensitive drum minus-electrified is used.
Next, image exposing by image exposing means (such as a scanning exposing apparatus of an image-modulated laser beam) 3 as image information writing means is effected on the electrified surface of the photosensitive drum, whereby the electrifying potential of an exposed light portion is attenuated and an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the exposed image information is formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 1.
This electrostatic latent image is sequentially developed (visualized) as a transferable image) at a developing region N6 by the developing sleeve 4a of a developing device 4.
The thus developed toner image is transferred to a recording material P at a transferring region (transfer nip part) N5 by transferring means. The transferring means in the present example is transferring means of the contact transfer type using a transferring roller (contact transferring electrifier) 9.
The transferring roller 9 is comprised, for example, of a mandrel and an elastic layer of medium resistance formed around the mandrel, and is brought into pressure contact with the photosensitive drum 1 with a predetermined pressure force against the elasticity of the elastic layer to thereby form the transferring region N5. The transferring roller 9 is rotated in a forward direction relative to the rotation of the photosensitive drum 1 in the direction of arrow R9, i.e., the direction of arrow R10, substantially at the same peripheral speed as the peripheral speed of the photosensitive drum 1.
The recording material P is fed from a sheet feeding cassette (feeding means portion) 13 and is subjected to timing adjustment and fed to the transferring region N5 by registration rollers (not shown) disposed at the upstream side of the transferring region N5. That is, the registration rollers feed the recording material P to the transferring region N5 at such timing that just when the leading edge portion of the area of the toner image formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 has arrived at the transferring region N5, the leading edge portion of the recoding material P also arrives at the transferring region N5.
The recording material P fed to the transferring region N5 is nipped and conveyed through the transferring region N5 with its surface kept in close contact with the photosensitive drum 1. Also, during the time from after the leading edge portion of the recording material P has arrived at the transferring region N5 until the trailing edge portion thereof leaves the transferring region N5, a predetermined transferring bias voltage of the plus polarity is applied from a transferring bias application voltage source (not shown) to the mandrel of the transferring roller 9.
In the process of the recording material P being nipped and conveyed through the transferring region N5, the toner image on the photosensitive drum 1 is sequentially transferred onto the recording material P by the action of a transferring electric field formed by the transferring roller 9 and the pressure force at the transferring region N5.
When it leaves the transferring region N5, the recording material P is separated from the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 and is conveyed to a fixing device 12, whereby the transferred toner image thereon is fixed as a permanent image on the surface of the recording material P, whereafter the recording material P is discharged as an image-formed article (a copy or a print).
The photosensitive drum 1 after the separation of the recording material P therefrom has adhering contaminants such as any residual lower and paper dust remaining on its surface removed by the cleaning blade 10 of a cleaner 11, and is used for the next image formation.
As the image forming process, there are, for example, a regular developing process in which the electrified surface of the photosensitive member is exposed correspondingly to the background portion of image information (a background exposing process), and the other non-exposed portion than the background portion is developed, and a reversal developing process in which conversely the electrified surface of the photosensitive member is exposed correspondingly to an image information portion (an image exposing process) and the exposed portion thereof is developed, and these are used with their features utilized efficiently.
During the time from after the recording material P passes through the transferring region N5 until the next recording material P arrives at the transferring region N5, in order to prevent the unevenness of the potential of the photosensitive drum and to quicken the rising of the transferring voltage in the case of the next recording material, a voltage is applied from the transferring bias application voltage source to the transferring roller 9. As this voltage, a voltage (non-sheet passing portion bias) smaller than that during transfer is applied. This is for preventing the flow of an excessive current to the photosensitive drum 1 by a transferring bias voltage equal to that during transfer being applied in the absence of the recording material P and further, preventing the photosensitive drum 1 from being plus-electrified.
Heretofore, this non-sheet passing portion bias has been fixed to one which minimizes the influence upon the photosensitive drum 1, such as the discharge starting voltage of the photosensitive drum 1 or less. This also holds true of an image forming apparatus using, for example, a recording material conveying belt, a recording material conveying drum or the like besides the transferring roller 9.
Now, the above-described transferring roller 9, the recording material conveying belt, the recording material conveying drum, etc. change greatly in resistance. Therefore, in an apparatus wherein the non-sheet passing portion bias is made constant, the amount of plus electrification received by the photosensitive drum 1 may become excessive when the resistance of these members lowers, and even after the photosensitive drum is primary-electrified by the electrifying roller 2, a predetermined amount of electrification cannot be maintained and the electrifying potential may sometimes become small.
In such case, in reversal developing, there is formed an image high in density over a round of the drum from the leading edge of the recording material P, and in regular developing, there is formed an image low in density over a round of the drum from the leading edge of the recording material P.
Further, when DC electrification is used, charges electrified to electrifying potential or higher in DC electrification cannot be eliminated and therefore, when the resistance of the recording material P rises due to an environmental fluctuation or an endurance fluctuation, white spots are created in the reversal developing by the bad charge elimination of an excessively electrified portion, and black spots are created in the regular developing and further, uneven electrification occurs to a halftone image or the like.
In contrast, heretofore, this has been coped with by effecting ante-electrification exposure or an ante-electrification preliminary charging process.
According to this, however, an apparatus (instrument) for effecting the ante-electrification exposure or the ante-electrification preliminary charging process is necessary, and this has led to the problem that the construction becomes correspondingly complicated.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus in which even if an environmental fluctuation or the like occurs, the electrifying potential on an image bearing member is stabilized to thereby prevent the uneven density of an image.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus comprising an image bearing member and a transferring member for transferring a toner image on the image bearing member onto a recording material in a transferring portion, wherein when the recording material is not present in the transferring portion, a voltage is applied to the transferring member, and on the basis of an electric current then flowing to the transferring member, a voltage applied to the transferring member when the non-image portion of the image bearing member is in the transferring portion is controlled.
Further objects of the present invention will become apparent from the following description.

Image forming apparatus with current-controlled transfer voltage feature


A capacitive touch display panel includes a display panel, an outer substrate, and a capacitive touch device. The capacitive touch device is disposed between the outer substrate and the display panel. The capacitive touch device includes a plurality of first transparent electrodes, at least one transparent bridge line, a plurality of second transparent electrodes, at least one non-transparent bridge line, and at least one patterned low reflective layer. The patterned low reflective layer is disposed on an opposite side of the non-transparent bridge line with respect to the display panel. The patterned low reflective layer and the non-transparent bridge line are overlapped to each other in a vertical projective direction.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a capacitive touch display panel, and more particularly, to a capacitive touch display panel with a patterned low reflective layer.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The touch panel has been widely used in the input interfaces of the instruments for its properties such as the great interaction between machines and humans. In recent years, more consumer electronics, such as mobile phones, GPS navigator systems, tablet computers, laptop computers, and personal digital assistances (PDA) are employed with touch display panels.
There are many diverse technologies of touch panel, and the resistance touch technology, the capacitive touch technology and the optical touch technology are the main touch technologies. The capacitive touch technology has become the mainstream touch technology for the high-end and the mid-end consumer electronics, because the capacitive touch panel has advantages such as high precision, multi-touch, better endurance, and higher touch resolution. In the capacitive touch technology, transparent electrodes are used to detect the variations of electrical capacitances around a touch point, and feedback signals are transmitted via connecting lines and bridge lines, which interconnect each of the transparent electrodes, along different axis directions for positioning the touch points. In the conventional capacitive touch technology, the bridge lines, which interconnect each of the adjacent transparent electrodes along an identical axis direction, are made of conductive materials different from the materials of the transparent electrodes. For better signal transmitting performances, the bridge lines are usually made of metals with lower electrical resistance. However, the display performance of the touch display panel may be affected because reflection light may be generated from the metal materials of the bridge line. An anti-reflection sheet may be attached on the touch display panel to reduce the reflection affect generated by the metal bridge lines, but the additional problems are higher manufacturing cost and thicker total thickness.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


A guide pin for mating multi-fiber optical ferrules includes a first end, a second end and a flexile feature adjacent to the second end. The first end has a first end width and the second end has a first engagement width and may change to a second engagement width while engaging a guide pin bore in a ferrule. The change in width permits the guide pin to engage and axially align with guide pin bores of varying diameters to achieve reliable optical mating of optical wave guides.

1. Field of the Disclosure
The disclosure relates to a guide pin for aligning and mating fiber optic ferrules. In particular, the disclosure relates to a guide pin having a flexile feature for aligning and mating multi-fiber optical ferrules that have a large pin-to-bore fit.
2. Technical Field
In mating multi-fiber molded ferrules, guide pins are necessary and accepted devices to achieve a high degree of precision for axially aligning and optically coupling a plurality of optical wave guides. In the past, the quality of the optical waveguide coupling was totally dependent upon a precise friction fit between the metallic guide pin and the guide pin bore of the molded polymer ferrule. This precision was then dependent upon the degree of tolerance between the guide pin bore inner diameter and the guide pin outer diameter, which was at the mercy of temperature fluctuations and changes in relative humidity. Further, tolerance stacking of the various components in the construction of the molded optical ferrules and the metallic guide pins contributed to poor inter-mating performance between the guide pin and the molded optical ferrule, subsequently causing poor optical mating performance between optical wave guides.
Typically, metallic guide pins have a nominal diameter of 0.700 millimeters (mm) More specifically, guide pins usually have a diameter of 0.698 mm to 0.699 mm, with 0.0000 mm to 0.0005 mm cylindricity. Molded polymer multi-fiber ferrules have guide pin bore diameters of 0.6990 mm to 0.6996 mm. Being molded from a polymer, polymer ferrules have issues of parallelism and surface roughness for the guide pin bores that must be accounted for. Guide pins with the smallest diameter mated to the bores with the largest acceptable diameters can experience a so called "sloppy" fit, with unreliable optical performance due to lateral offset and torsion. Guide pins with the largest acceptable diameters mated to ferrules with the smallest acceptable diameters can experience excessively tight fits that can lead to unreliable optical performance due to gaps between polished optical waveguides and, worse, damage to the ferrule itself. Even so called perfectly mated guide pins and bores in the prior art can experience unreliable mating due to excesses in humidity, the presence of debris in the bore, and scoring on the pin shaft, all of which can affect how well the pins mate to the bores.
What is needed is a new guide pin that can adapt to tight or loose pin-to-bore fits, whether unintentional or by design, to ensure consistently reliable optical mating of optical wave guides in molded multi-fiber optical ferrules.

Guide pin for aligning ferrules with enhanced alignment feature


A method of installing cable through material, for example, concrete, wood, masonry, plastic steel, or the like comprising a drill bit with a distal end having a hollow tip with an attachment mechanism for receiving the cable. The drill bit is drilled through the material, and left in place while the cable is attached to the proximal end of the drill bit. There is no need to remove the drill bit from the aperture or material to attach the cable thereto. After attachment to the drill bit, the cable is inserted through the aperture with the drill bit and removed from the drill bit after it passes through the material so it can be attached to a receiver device.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to the field of drill bits and hand tools for installing wires and cables through outside walls, inside walls, floors and ceilings of buildings. More specifically, it is directed to a method of installing wires and cables by using an improved drill bit for forming an aperture in and through building materials for insertion of a wire or cable for installation in a building.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Installing cable in new construction encompasses a variety of methods. Cable can be placed in walls, floors, or ceilings as buildings are being constructed. Cable may be placed underground where it is appropriate. However, installing cables in existing buildings presents problems. There may be structures within walls, floors, and ceilings that interfere with the passage of the cable. Installing cable in an existing building is often a three-step procedure. First, an aperture is made in a wall or barrier through which the cable must pass, for example, an outside wall, inside wall, floor or ceiling. Second, the drill bit used to make the aperture is withdrawn from the aperture in the wall or barrier. Third, after the aperture is made, the cable must be inserted into the aperture and pulled or push out of the wall or barrier so it can be attached to the intended device. The cable may be various wires and cables including TV wiring, Ethernet cables, electrical wire, telephone wires, etc. The wall or barrier is typically wood, plasterboard, concrete, metal, plasterboard, plastic, etc. The drill bit for making the aperture is of sufficient length for the dimensions of the wall or barrier. In practice, a drill bit of the appropriate length is used to make an aperture in the wall. After its removal from the wall or barrier, the cable is guided through the aperture by hand or with the assistance of a guide wire, a firm but flexible device upon which the cable is attached. The wire passes the cable through the aperture and out beyond the opposite side of the wall or barrier. There, the cable can be pulled through the aperture for installation to a device. Further, conduits may be inserted in the aperture serving as a guide for the cable to pass therethrough to the opposite side of the wall or barrier. There may be material, for example, insulation, other structures, pipes, wires, etc., that may interfere with the removal of the drill bit and insertion of the conduit or wire into the aperture. Regardless, both of the above methods involve multiple steps for installing cable.
Improvements can be made in methods for installing cable in existing buildings.

Method and apparatus for installing cable


Technologies are described for simulating requests to backend applications using a generic application programming interface (API). The requests can be received, from frontend web applications, by a simulation service that operates the generic API. For example, the simulation service can receive and process actions to create entries for entities, actions to return entries for entities, actions to delete entries for entities and/or other actions. The simulation service can perform the requested actions and return results. The simulation service can support arbitrary entities and entity and without using definitions of predefined entities or properties.

Developing a modern web application requires a significant amount of testing. In a typical development scenario, a frontend web application is developed separately from the corresponding backend application. However, part of development and testing of the frontend web application involves communication between the frontend web application and the corresponding backend application. This can be difficult if the backend application does not yet exist or is not developed enough to exchange messages with the frontend web application.
In typical development scenarios, testing of the frontend web application proceeds using predefined responses. For example, a particular communication between the frontend web application and the backend application can be tested by providing a predefined response to the frontend web application. While such predefined responses can be helpful during testing of the frontend web application, they suffer from a number of limitations. One limitation is that a predefined response can only test for the specific test case represented by the predefined response. For example, if the data format of an entity of the frontend web application changes, the predefined response may not be usable or may not adequately test the functionality of the frontend web application. Another limitation is that a predefined response is processed faster than a normal response would be (e.g., without having to actually send a message to the backend application, which involves network communication, data storage access, etc.), and therefore may be unable to identify issues that arise in real-world situations (e.g., issues involving loading time, network delays, etc.).

Simulation service providing a generic API endpoint


The present invention relates to a position measuring instrument for, for example, scanning a photoreceiver as a target to be measured, and more particularly to an automatic position detection instrument capable of emitting distance measuring light and tracking light while turning directions of the distance measuring light and the tracking light so that three-dimensional measurement of a light receiving position is performed, and further capable of transmitting measured data to a photoreceiver provided on a target. A light source unit emits measuring light, and then a light receiving unit receives its reflected light. A scanning means emits measuring light in a scanning direction, and leads its reflected light to the light receiving unit. An angle detector detects a rotational position of the scanning means. The measuring light includes distance measuring light expanding in a fan-shaped manner. Its reflected light can be used to measure a distance to a reflector.

The present invention relates to a position measuring instrument for scanning or tracking a photoreceiver as a target to be measured, and more particularly to an automatic position detection instrument capable of emitting distance measuring light and tracking light while turning directions of the distance measuring light and the tracking light so that three-dimensional measurement of a light receiving position is performed, and further capable of transmitting measured data to a photoreceiver provided on a target.
Heretofore, a total station is used for three-dimensional position measurement and settings. The total station has functions of measuring a distance and an angle and then outputting measured values as electric data. When performing the measurement, the total station is first placed at a reference position before placing a target at a point of measurement. Next, the target is collimated by the total station to measure a horizontal angle and an angular height. Then, a distance to a reflecting prism (corner cube) provided on the target is measured, and thereby distance data can be obtained.
Distance and angle data which have been measured are stored in an internal memory of the total station. In addition, the distance and angle data measured are output to an external memory device or a computer as data of survey work as the need arises. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating survey work using a total station. The total station (1000) is placed at a reference position. A target (2000a) is attached to a pole (3000a). The pole (3000a) is placed at a point of measurement by an operator (4000).
The total station (1000) comprises the following: a telescope unit; a stand for freely supporting up and down rotation of the telescope unit; a base for freely supporting horizontal rotation of the stand; and a leveling unit that is provided on the lower part of the base, and that is used to level a slant of a main body of the total station (1000) before securing it to the top of a tripod. It is to be noted that circuits, and the like, used for the distance measurement and the angle measurement are built into the total station (1000).
The operator on the total station (1000) side rotates the telescope unit up and down and right and left to find the target (2000a) at a collimation center, and then obtains a horizontal angle, an angular height, and a distance relative to the reference position.
However, in the survey work where the conventional total station (1000) is used, at least two operators, that is to say, an operator on the total station 1000 side and an operator for placing the target (2000a), are required. The number of operators increases with increase in the number of targets (2000a). However, it is difficult to measure many targets (2000a) in a moment. It is practically impossible. To be more specific, measuring time in response to the number of targets (2000a) is required for the operator to collimate the target (2000a) by use of the telescope unit, and further to perform measurement. As a result, work efficiency cannot be improved to a large extent, which was a problem.
In addition, when carrying out work concurrently in adjacent sites, each of which has a reference coordinate system different from each other, it is possible to carry out the work by use of one total station and a plurality of targets. However, every time a reference coordinate system of a measuring point changes, it is necessary to retry coordinate settings of the total station, or to switch between the coordinate systems. Accordingly, it is practically impossible to carry out the work concurrently.


A boot is provided with an improved sealing effect. The boot has a first and a second fastening region, and a pleated region between them, wherein the first fastening region comprises lobe regions and/or guide regions, and connecting regions and a connector seat region that has a connector seat region surface and an undersurface lying opposite it, wherein there is at least one inner groove in the lobe regions and/or in the guide regions, on the undersurface.

Boots of the generic type are used for sealing joint components, in particular in the drive trains of motor vehicles and utility vehicles of any type. Joints in the form of constant-velocity joints typically have three radial recesses on their exterior circumference in the prior art. The outer contour formed in this manner is referred to as having three lobes, and these joints are referred to in general as tri-lobe constant-velocity joints. The object of the boot is to seal the joint region in order to prevent contaminants and moisture from entering the joint, and to prevent grease from escaping.
The sealing effect is also obtained in that the tri-lobe outer contour of the joint housing is formed in the connection region of a boot by providing a thicker material at the corresponding locations. The bulges formed in this manner compensate for the differences in radii in the tri-lobe outer contour of the joint housing when a fastening region is provided that has a constant radius, such that fastening elements such as clamps or tension straps, connectors in general, can be used therewith.
A generic boot is known from EP 1 182 372 B1 that has at least one slot in tri-lobe regions of the fastening region of the fastening means facing a joint housing, which has a circumferential length, and a radial depth that extends substantially through the entire material of the associated tri-lobe region, such that the tri-lobe region is not robust, wherein the at least one slot of the tri-lobe region extends over the circumference of the boot at a spacing to at least one further slot in an adjacent tri-lobe region.
The disadvantage with this known boot from the prior art is that, due to the bulky design of the fastening region, the connector tends to crack when it is fastened in place, or the seal may fail where the boot borders on a circumferential groove on the outside of the joint housing. If there are numerous parallel slots in the tri-lobe regions as described in EP 1 182 372 B1, an exposed rib is formed between them, which tends to bend when a connector is put in place and fastened, if the material is too soft, or, if the material is too hard, may break the connector when fastening it.

Bellows comprising at least one internal groove


An electronic expansion valve according to the present application includes a housing component and a valve seat assembly, the valve seat assembly includes a first connecting pipe and a second connecting pipe which are in a same straight line; a main valve cavity is formed by the valve seat assembly, and an included angle formed between the main valve cavity and the first connecting pipe is an acute angle; wherein the valve seat assembly is of an integral structure and is fixed to the housing component by welding, and a preset distance exists between the first connecting pipe and an extension line of a welding position of the valve seat assembly and the housing component in a radial direction.

1. Field of the Disclosure
The present application relates to the technical field of valve bodies, specifically to an electronic expansion valve and a manufacture method thereof.
2. Discussion of the Background Art
Reference is made to FIG. 1, which is a schematic view showing the structure of a typical electronic expansion valve.
The electronic expansion valve includes a valve seat assembly, a housing component 64, and a valve rod assembly 130. The valve seat assembly includes a valve seat 24 and a cover 60, a first port 18 and a second port 16 are oppositely provided at a lower end of the valve seat 24, and are used to connect a first connecting pipe 18a and a second connecting pipe 16a respectively, and the first connecting pipe 18a and the second connecting pipe 16a are in a same straight line. A main valve cavity is formed by the valve seat 24, and the main valve cavity is arranged at an acute angle with respect to the first connecting pipe 18a, that is, the valve seat 24 is of a ""-like shape.
A motor 70 of the electronic expansion valve is mounted in the valve seat assembly or the housing component 64. In FIG. 1, the housing component 64 and the cover 60 cooperate to form a complete cavity to accommodate the whole motor 70. The housing component 64 and the cover 60 are connected via threads, and the cover 60 and the valve seat 24 are also connected via threads. In FIG. 1, an end of the valve seat 24 is provided with a connecting portion, and the cover 60 is connected to the connecting portion via threads. When the motor 70 rotates, the motor 70 drives the valve rod assembly 130 to rotate via a gear system 76, to allow a valve needle of the valve rod assembly 130 to block or leave a valve port, thereby cutting off or allowing the communication between the first connecting pipe 18a and the second connecting pipe 16a.
The above technical solution has the following technical problems.
Firstly, multiple components of the electronic expansion valve are connected via threads, for example, the cover 60 of the valve seat assembly is connected to the housing component 64 via threads, the cover 60 is connected to the valve seat 24 via threads, and parts at a top of the housing component 64, such as a top cap, are also connected via threads. During a large scale assembly process, reliable seal cannot be guaranteed, and a reject rate caused by leakage is high. Besides, due to the vibration, corrosion and oxidation during a transport process and a use process, the leakage amount at a threaded connection portion may be sharply increased as the used time increases.
Secondly, in the case that a threaded connection is employed, the strength of the connection portion needs to be ensured, which requires to increase a design thickness and a weight of the material, thus resulting in a high product cost.
In view of this, it is an urgent technical issue for those skilled in the art to improve a sealing performance of the electronic expansion valve.

Electronic expansion valve and manufacturing method therefor

ZHEJIANG SANHUA CLIMATE & APPLIANCE CONTROLS GROUP CO., LTD.


A system and method for controlling an internal combustion engine in a vehicle include controlling the engine to achieve a desired vehicle speed/deceleration when the accelerator pedal is released. A desired vehicle deceleration may be determined based on current transmission gear, vehicle speed, and road grade. Vehicle speed/deceleration is measured using a vehicle speed sensor and/or wheel speed sensor(s) and the engine is controlled to reduce the error between the desired and measured decelerations. Electronically actuated intake and/or exhaust valves, and/or an electronically controlled throttle may be used to achieve a desired vehicle deceleration profile. A selector switch or similar device may be used by the driver to select a desired deceleration profile from two or more available profiles and/or a desired deceleration profile may be automatically selected based on current ambient and/or vehicle/engine operating conditions.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to systems and methods for control of an internal combustion engine to provide vehicle deceleration closed-loop control when the accelerator pedal is fully released or closed.
2. Background Art
Control strategies for vehicles with internal combustion engines often use both closed-loop feedback control and open-loop control for various engine/vehicle functions and operating conditions. Closed-pedal operation of the engine while the vehicle is moving, i.e. when the driver fully releases the accelerator pedal, has traditionally been open-loop with the engine being returned to idle and the vehicle deceleration profile not actively controlled. As such, the vehicle speed/deceleration profile for closed-pedal operation changes as a function of various engine, vehicle, and ambient operating conditions such as engine pumping losses, driveline friction, road load, road grade, vehicle loading, wind speed and direction, etc. For example, if the driver is approaching another vehicle while climbing a hill and releases the accelerator pedal to reduce speed, the vehicle decelerates more rapidly than if the vehicle was descending a hill and the driver released the accelerator pedal.
The present inventors have recognized that a closed-pedal behavior that is less dependent on the operating environment may enhance drivability of the vehicle and that by controlling the closed-pedal deceleration it would be possible to calibrate the vehicle deceleration as a function of vehicle brand image and/or vehicle type, e.g. sports car vs. truck, taking into account the current operating environment, e.g. ambient temperature and pressure, vehicle load, road grade, on-road or off-road operation, etc.


A computer-implemented method of estimating IQ imbalance in a communication system including a transmitter and a receiver. The method includes: defining a system model in which a transmitted signal is affected by TX IQ imbalance, carrier frequency offset (CFO) and RX IQ imbalance; controlling a local oscillator at the transmitter to introduce a known carrier frequency offset (CFO) during a calibration; and estimating unknown parameters in the system model using a pre-defined training sequence to determine the TX IQ imbalance and the RX IQ imbalance.

A practical limitation in radio frequency (RF) wireless communication systems results from a mismatch between an in-phase (I) and quadrature (Q) phase component of a carrier signal, which is known as IQ imbalance. The carrier signal typically carries two independent bit streams, one on each of the in-phase (I) and quadrature (Q) components and these become imbalanced due to hardware imperfections encountered during signal processing. For example, a filter may introduce a phase shift or change in amplitude for one component but not the other. The resulting imbalance must be compensated for in order to achieve good performance. This is especially true for wideband systems, where the IQ imbalance becomes frequency dependent and needs to be carefully estimated in order to be compensated for.
In a communication system, transmitters (TX) and receivers (RX) will each give rise to an IQ imbalance and, in order to compensate for these, both the TX IQ imbalance and the RX IQ imbalance need to be estimated individually. However it is difficult to separate them as a received signal will have been affected by both the TX IQ imbalance and the RX IQ imbalance. This is especially difficult in light of carrier-frequency offset (CFO) which is always present in such systems due to a frequency mismatch between the transmitter and receiver oscillators.
It is known to transmit a particular periodic training sequence such that the RX IQ imbalance and CFO can be estimated and compensated for. After that, the TX IQ imbalance can be estimated from the compensated signal. However, a problem with existing schemes is that if the CFO is small (or zero), there will be a significant noise enhancement and known algorithms will not be able to accurately separate the IQ imbalance coming from the transmitter from that of the receiver.
Arrangements of certain embodiments will be understood and appreciated more fully from the following detailed description, made by way of example only and taken in conjunction with the drawings in which:


Cooler control system for a beverage dispense system 1 having a beverage line (2) extending from a beverage source to a dispense site via a cooler (6). The cooler control system comprises: a controller (51) for adjusting the cooling of the beverage line; a flow rate sensor (41) measuring the flow rate in the beverage line, a temperature sensor (40); and an electronic control unit (31) for receiving a signal from the temperature sensor and/or the flow rate sensor and sending a signal to said controller. Cooler monitoring system comprising: at least one sensor (45) for monitoring energy consumption of the cooler (6); and an electronic control unit for receiving a signal from the at least one energy consumption sensor and for sending a signal to a remote location when energy consumption increases above a predetermined maximum value.

Many beverages including beers, lagers and ciders are beneficially served at low temperatures. If the temperature of the beverage is too high, the quality and the taste of the beverage may be impaired. In addition, recent consumer trends have increased the demand for beverages to be served at a lower temperature, for example, below 3° C. In order to meet consumer expectations, it is desirable to dispense beverages at a consistent low temperature.
Systems are known for dispensing draught beverages. By "draught beverages" is meant beverages which are stored at a point remote from the point of dispensing and transferred on demand to the point of dispensing through a beverage line. Typically the transfer is achieved using gas top pressure and pumping mechanism. For instance, it is common in public houses and bars for beverages to be stored in a cooled cellar or a storage room (typically cooled to a temperature of around 12° C. using a cooling unit) and transferred to the bar area where dispensing occurs at a font using a mechanical pump or a pressurised gas system.
The length of the beverage line between the cellar/storage room and the dispensing site may be many metres (e.g. up to 30 m or more) and there is a tendency for beverage in the beverage lines to increase in temperature during transit. In an attempt to address this problem, it is known to provide a cooler in or near the cellar/storage room to cool the beverage and then to transport the beverage to the dispensing site inside an insulated and cooled conduit known as a "python". The cooler typically comprises an ice bank and a water/coolant bath, the water/coolant in the water/coolant bath being cooled by the ice bank.
The beverage line passes from the cellar/storage room through the water/coolant bath and beverage contained in the beverage line is thus cooled. The cooled beverage then flows through the python to the dispensing site, the python also carrying a cooling circuit through which cold water/coolant from the water/coolant bath is circulated. It is also known to use a glycol cooling medium in the cooler and cooling circuit to effect even greater cooling for beverages which are intended to be served "extra cold".
Problems are associated with the consistency of the beverage temperature at the dispense site. In times of high demand, the flow of beverage through the beverage line within the cooler water bath will increase and thus the amount of time for heat exchange between the beverage and the water bath (and thus the amount of time for beverage cooling) will decrease thus meaning that the beverage dispense temperature can rise during periods of high demand. Conversely, during periods of low demand when beverage may remain within the beverage line immersed in the water bath for extended periods of time, the dispense temperature may decrease.
Furthermore, fluctuations in the temperature within the cellar/storage room and at the dispense site may also affect the ultimate dispense temperature.
It is known to provide the cooler with a controller that controls the growth of the ice bank and the circulation of cooling medium through the cooling circuit based on time of day, day of the week and, in some cases, day of the year e.g. ice bank growth and flow in the cooling circuit is minimised/stopped outside trading hours and increased during trading hours.
However, whilst known cooler controllers adjust cooling based upon predicted requirements determined by time of day/day of week, etc., they do not take account of unpredictable fluctuations in demand and cellar/storage room and dispense site temperature.
There is a desire for information concerning draught beverage dispense systems to be sent to remote locations such as to the beverage outlet head office, to the beverage source supplier (e.g. a brewery), to the provider of the beverage dispense system hardware and to the technicians/engineers responsible for technical support and maintenance of the beverage dispense system. This information can be used for various purposes e.g. to monitor beverage sales and brand performance, to make predictions concerning future supply requirements and to monitor hardware performance with a view to carrying out technical maintenance.
A system known as iDraught provided by the Brulines Group includes temperature sensors provided in the cellar, associated with the remote cooler and in the beverage lines under the bar counter and flow rate sensors in the beverage lines under the bar counter to provide dispense quality and quantity information to a remote location using the mobile phone communications network. Any rises in temperature detected by the temperatures sensors result in an alarm at the remote location. There is no feedback provided to the remote cooler to try and correct the cooling issue and so the cooling issue may persist for a significant length of time until a technician/engineer can attend the site. Furthermore, the iDraught system only triggers action once the temperature rise has occurred and does not allow preventative measures to avoid temperature rises before they occur.
The iDraught system does not monitor the pressurized gas system used to force the beverage from the beverage supply so any faults in the gas system are not alerted to the remote location.
Individuals attending the cellar/storage room, e.g. technicians or engineers responding to alarms generated by the iDraught system, are at risk if there are leakages in the pressurised gas system. Furthermore, for the convenience of individuals attending the cellar/store room and for energy consumption savings, there is a desire to provide responsive lighting in the cellar/storage room.
The present invention aims to address at least some of the issues associated with the prior art.

Beverage dispense systems and beverage coolers


A majority carrier, solid state cathode uses ballistic behavior to provide a highly coherent (and modulated) electron beam, with a large current density and expected efficiencies greater than fifty percent.

1. Field
This invention relates to solid state devices utilizing ballistic electron behavior. It is specifically directed to solid state nonthermionic cathodes.
2. State of the Art
Cathodes are conventionally thermionic in nature. Thermionic cathodes are widely used, and have been the only practical devices available for most applications requiring an electron beam. The design of practical electronic devices has thus been constrained by the power requirements and other limitations inherent in thermionic cathodes.
A great need exists for nonthermionic cathodes with long lifetimes, high current densities, and with the ability for instant "turn-on." A practical solid state cathode could replace the thermionic cathodes in conventional cathode-ray tubes. It could also serve as an electron source for flat-panel displays; as a source of electrons for microwave traveling wave tubes, gyrotrons and free-electron lasers; and as an electron source for vacuum microelectronics.
Current lithographic and crystal growth technologies are capable of constructing compound semiconductors with layers having thicknesses less than the mean free path of electrons in the material. Over distances of this magnitude, an electron can be accelerated to energies not limited by collisions in the material. Electrons behaving in this manner are termed "ballistic electrons." The effects of lattice vibrations (phonon scattering) within a lattice are reduced when electrons travel ballistically.
A barrier to the development of a practical solid state cathode has been the difficulty in overcoming the work function of the emitting material. Though devices based upon field emission or avalanche emission have met with varying degrees of success, they suffer from inherent drawbacks such as short lifetimes, low emission, and low efficiency.
Recently, the phenomenon of ballistic transport in semiconductors has become recognized for its potential in high-speed electronics. The ability to fabricate thin (10-100 nanometer (nm) layers has made it possible for an electron to travel the length of a layer without experiencing the effects of scattering within the lattice, i.e., "ballistically." Under this condition, an electron acts much like a particle in free space with a reduced mass, and it can be accelerated to considerable energies. At high energies, the electron interaction with the periodic lattice potential becomes stronger, and the velocity peaks to a material dependent value (about 10.sup.8 centimeters per second (cm/s) in GaAs). This peak velocity is a design objective for ballistic transistors because it results in the shortest transit times through each semiconductor layer; it corresponds to an electron energy of about 0.36 electron volts (e.V.) in gallium arsenide (GaAs) for example.
This disclosure will use terms in the context and sense generally recognized by those skilled in the art of solid state devices. For clarity, unless some other meaning is clear from the context in which a term is used, the following definitions are adopted for purposes of this disclosure.
Accelerate: To increase the energy of an electron by means of an electric potential. PA1 Active Length: The distance over which an electron travels ballistically. PA1 Ballistic Electrons: Electrons whose travel within a material are not limited by collisions within the material. PA1 Ballistic Injector: A device by which ballistic electrons are introduced into a material. PA1 Ballistic Material: A solid state element or compound in which electrons can be caused to behave ballistically. The currently preferred ballistic materials are semiconductors, but metals and insulators may also be capable of this function and may be considered as ballistic materials in specific instances. PA1 Band Gap: The minimum energy required for a valence electron in a semiconductor to become a conduction electron that can move more freely throughout the material. PA1 Compound Semiconductor: a semiconductor made of a compound of two or more elements (instead of a single element like silicon). For example, to make III-V semiconductors, one or more elements having three valence electrons, such as aluminum, gallium, and indium (those in Group III of the periodic table) are combined with one or more elements having five valence electrons, such as phosphorus, arsenic, and antimony (those in Group V). PA1 Depleted Region: A region in a material that is depleted of charge carriers. PA1 Doping: The introduction of a secondary material to the primary material of a semiconductor to provide an excess of charge carriers (either holes or electrons) in the primary material. PA1 Emitter: The stage of a cathode device which allows electrons to exit from the cathode. PA1 Heterojunction: An interface formed by adjacent layers of materials having different chemical compositions. PA1 Injected Electrons: Electrons which are introduced into the environment, a vacuum or a material from an injector. PA1 Injector: A source device of injected electrons. PA1 Intrinsic: An undoped semiconductor material. PA1 Layer Length: The linear distance through a material layer in the direction of current flow. PA1 Majority Carrier: An electron in an n-type doped material or a hole in a p-type doped material. PA1 Minority Carrier: An electron in a p-type doped material or a hole in an n-type doped material. PA1 Mean free path: The average distance an electron can travel between collisions in a material. PA1 Phonon: A quantum of thermal vibration that propagates through a material. PA1 Semiconductor: A material with electrical properties which are intermediate the electrical properties of metals and insulators, respectively. PA1 Tunneling: The quantum mechanical property of electrons which allows an electron to overcome an energy barrier at an energy below the barrier energy. PA1 Work Function: The energy required to remove an electron from a material into a vacuum.
References to "before," "following," or similar terms are with respect to the direction of electron flow in a device.
It is known that an electron can travel ballistically through a material over distances on the order of the mean free path in the material. Over this distance, ballistic electrons can attain kinetic energies far greater than can electrons traveling non-ballistically.
Ballistic behavior of electrons and proposed devices utilizing ballistic electron behavior are discussed in the article "Ballistic Electrons in Semiconductors," Heiblum and Eastman, Scientific American, February 1987, pp. 102-111. This article is incorporated by reference in this disclosure for its general explanation of ballistic behavior and devices, particularly its explanation of heterojunctions and other types of ballistic electron injectors. Two types of ballistic injectors are described: planar-doped barrier and tunnel barrier injectors.
In a typical planar-doped injector, a thin layer of beryllium atoms represents a potential hill over which electrons cannot climb. Applying a bias potential across the outside semiconductor layers raises the potential on one side of the hill, allowing electrons to cross the beryllium layer and accelerate down the other side of the hill. The electrons exit ballistically. An advantage of the planar-doped injector is that the velocity of the injected electrons can be controlled by the applied bias.
Structurally, the tunnel injector sandwiches an undoped semiconductor layer between outer layers of doped semiconductor. It depends upon the energy differences between different layers to accelerate electrons. A typical tunnel injector has a thin aluminum gallium arsenide layer sandwiched between doped gallium arsenide surfaces. A bias potential applied across the outside layers allows the electrons to tunnel through the thin intermediate region. When the size of the barrier matches a quarter wavelength of the tunneling electrons, a current peak is achieved. An advantage of the tunnel structure is that by biasing the structure to either side of the current peak, the injected electron current can be modulated.
Although both the planar-doped and tunnel injection devices produce a source of ballistic electrons, they cannot function as solid state cathodes because all of the injected electrons are gathered by a collector.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,352,117 discloses a negative electron affinity device constructed in solid state material by providing a semiconductor body with an electron barrier over most of its surface. A small opening in the barrier exposes the semiconductor material. A negative electron affinity material with a work function lower than the energy of excited electrons in the semiconductor material is placed in contact with the semiconductor material in this opening. Electrons migrate non-ballistically to this opening, and are injected into the environment through the lower work function material.


A microelectromechanical (MEMS) accelerometer has a proof mass, a sense electrode, and an auxiliary electrode. The sense electrode is located relative to the proof mass such that a capacitance formed by the sense electrode and the proof mass changes in response to a linear acceleration along a sense axis of the accelerometer. The auxiliary electrode is located relative to the proof mass such that a capacitance formed by the auxiliary electrode and proof mass is static in response to the linear acceleration. A sense drive signal is applied at the sense electrode and an auxiliary drive signal is applied at the auxiliary electrode. The sense drive signal and the auxiliary drive signal have different frequencies. An error is identified based on a portion of a signal that is received from the accelerometer and that is responsive to the auxiliary drive signal. Compensation is performed at the accelerometer based on the identified error.

Numerous items such as smart phones, smart watches, tablets, automobiles, aerial drones, appliances, aircraft, exercise aids, and game controllers may utilize motion sensors during their operation. In many applications, various types of motion sensors such as accelerometers and gyroscopes may be analyzed independently or together in order to determine varied information for particular applications. For example, gyroscopes and accelerometers may be used in gaming applications (e.g., smart phones or game controllers) to capture complex movements by a user, drones and other aircraft may determine orientation based on gyroscope measurements (e.g., roll, pitch, and yaw), and vehicles may utilize measurements for determining direction (e.g., for dead reckoning) and safety (e.g., to recognizing skid or roll-over conditions).
Motion sensors such as accelerometers and gyroscopes may be manufactured as microelectromechanical (MEMS) sensors that are fabricated using semiconductor manufacturing techniques. A MEMS sensor may include movable proof masses that can respond to forces such as linear acceleration (e.g., for MEMS accelerometers) and angular velocity (e.g., for MEMS gyroscopes). The operation of these forces on the movable proof masses may be measured based on the movement of the proof masses in response to the forces. In some implementations, this movement is measured based on distance between the movable proof masses and sense electrodes, which form capacitors for sensing the movement. The sense electrodes of a MEMS accelerometer may receive a signal at a drive frequency, which results in motion of the proof mass relative to the sense electrodes as a result of linear acceleration. In some implementations, the voltage of the proof mass may be measured in order to sense the movement in response to linear acceleration. A resistance within the sense path for the proof mass voltage may be indicative of damage to one or more components of the accelerometer, and may result in errors in the measurement of linear acceleration.

Identification and compensation of MEMS accelerometer errors


A coarse lock detector for a delayed locked loop (DLL) is disclosed. The coarse lock detector includes multiple detection cells. Each detection cell receives a delayed clock phase and an output of a previous detection cell as inputs. To increase time for the output of the previous detection cell to propagate, the detection cells are arranged in groups such that the output from the previous detection cell is generated by a detection cell which is more than one detection cell previous.

1. Field
The described technology relates to a delayed locked loop (DLL), and more particularly, to a coarse lock detector for a DLL.
2. Description of the Related Technology
Generally, a semiconductor integrated circuit operates using clocks to control its operating speed. Accordingly, the semiconductor integrated circuit includes a clock buffer to buffer clocks input from an external source. In some cases, the semiconductor integrated circuit uses a delayed locked loop (DLL) circuit or a phase-locked loop (PLL) circuit to generate and use an internal clock whose phase difference from an external clock has been corrected.
In particular, DLLs are being widely used as zero delay buffers due to their superior jitter characteristics and better stability than PLLs. However, a conventional DLL is likely to have a stuck problem or harmonic lock when operating at high speed.
FIG. 1 illustrates a structure of a conventional DLL including a coarse lock detector 11. Referring to FIG. 1, a plurality of delay elements 15 generates a set of multiphase clocks PH[1] through PH[15] by incrementally delaying an input reference clock CLK_IN. The coarse lock detector 11 receives the input reference clock CLK_IN and a plurality of multiphase clocks. In FIG. 1, some (PH[5], PH[7], PH[9], PH[11], PH[13] and PH[15]) of the multiphase clocks PH[1] through PH[15] generated by the delay elements 15 are input to the coarse lock detector 11. Within one cycle of the input reference clock CLK_IN, the coarse lock detector 11 continuously counts the number of rising edges of the received multiphase clocks and determines whether a phase of the rising edge of each multiphase clock lags behind a phase of the input reference clock CLK_IN, leads the phase of the input reference clock CLK_IN, or is locked to the phase of the input reference clock CLK_IN.
When the coarse lock detector 11 determines that the phase of the rising edge of each multiphase clock lags behind the phase of the input reference clock CLK_IN, phase locking cannot be achieved since a delay chain is too slow. Therefore, the coarse lock detector 11 generates an UP signal indicating a direction in which the frequency should be adjusted. On the other hand, when the coarse lock detector 11 determines that the phase of the rising edge of each multiphase clock leads the phase of the input reference clock CLK_IN, phase locking cannot be achieved since the delay chain is too fast. Therefore, the coarse lock detector 11 generates a DOWN signal. That is, frequency locking can be achieved by adjusting the frequency by using the UP or DOWN signal.
The stuck problem and harmonic lock are considerations that must be taken into account when designing a DLL and can be solved using a coarse lock detector. However, a conventional coarse lock detector that samples multiphase clocks cannot operate at high speed.


The present disclosure relates to a generalized method for producing a vertically oriented block copolymer film, a block copolymer film with controlled orientation obtained thereby, and a method for producing a self-assembled pattern. According to the present disclosure, it is possible to form a crosslinked layer, which is mechanically stable and undergoes no chemical change, by subjecting the block copolymer surface to plasma treatment using a filter. It is also possible to obtain a vertically oriented block copolymer film by annealing the block copolymer film having such a crosslinked layer. The method for producing a vertically oriented block copolymer film according to the present disclosure is advantageous in that it can be applied for general purpose regardless of the chemical structure, type and morphology of a block copolymer, and the method can be applied generally to the conventional directed self assembly process.

A block copolymer means a polymer formed by linear linkage of two or more different monomers. A block copolymer forms a specific nanostructure through annealing, wherein the size and morphology of the nanostructure vary with the type, molecular weight, molar ratio, annealing process, etc. of the block copolymer. Particularly, a block copolymer thin film means a thin film having a thickness of several nanometers to several hundreds of nanometers. In addition, when the orientation of the nanostructure of block copolymer is controlled in such a thin block copolymer film, the nanosturcture may be introduced to the next-generation nano-process through pattern transfer, or the like.
The orientation of block copolymer nanostructure is determined by various factors. In general, when the difference in interfacial energy of polymer blocks forming a block copolymer is large, the nanostructure is oriented generally in parallel with a substrate. However, it is required for the nanostructure to be oriented vertically in order to apply an ultramicro-pattern to metallization.
It is reported that a random copolymer, etc. having neutral interfacial energy is coated on the top or bottom in order to obtain a vertically oriented block copolymer nanostructure. According to the method reported to date, the vertical orientation method is limited to specific types of block copolymers. Moreover, a complicated process is required in order to realize vertical orientation, since a random polymer is synthesized and introduced to each of the top and bottom of a film all the time. Thus, there has been a significant limitation in practical application.
Meanwhile, plasma means a state of material separated into electrons, ions, or the like, under the application of energy to gas. Such plasma causes reactions, such as crosslinking and etching, in a material, and the reactions vary with the type of plasma gas. Plasma also generates ultraviolet rays and vacuum ultraviolet rays, can penetrate a polymer film to a depth of several hundreds of nanometers or more, and causes a chemical change to a relatively deep film.
Various reactive species formed from plasma may be controlled by using introduction of a material, such as glass, or a diaphragm. In addition, it is required to select reactive species in order to selectively modify the surface of a material. Reactive species from plasma generally include ions, radicals, electrons, ultraviolet rays, or the like. Ions, radicals and electrons cause chemical modification to a level of several nanometers from the surface, while ultraviolet rays cause chemical modification to a level of several hundreds of nanometers from the surface. Thus, it is required to inhibit ultraviolet rays selectively to carry out crosslinking on the surface of a block copolymer to a level of several nanometers.

Generalized method for producing vertically oriented block copolymer film, block copolymer film produced thereby and method for producing self-assembled pattern

Korea Institute of Science and Technology


A card destruction system includes a reader to read identification information from a card. A controller is coupled to the reader to receive the identification information and to determine whether the card is to be destroyed. A delivery sensor is coupled to the controller to sense when the aid is delivered to a card destruction device. The controller is also configured to produce a record of the destruction based on a signal from the sensor.

This invention relates generally to the field of item destruction. More specifically, the invention relates to automated systems and methods to verify that an item is intended to be destroyed and to produce an audit record of the destruction.
A variety of organizations issue cards to their customers. For example, such organizations may issue credit cards, debit cards, smart cards, loyalty cards and the like to their customers. Often, such organizations contract with another company to produce and mail such cards to the end consumer. For a variety of reasons, once produced some of the cards may need to be destroyed. For instance, some cards may be returned by the postal service as being undeliverable, the customer""s account may be closed, or the like.
While such cards can be manually destroyed, such a process is time intensive. Further, such a process can make it difficult to produce reliable records of the destruction.
A variety of items other than cards may also need to be destroyed in an efficient and documented manner. For example, an organization may be contractually obligated to destroy certain items provided under the terms of a confidentiality agreement. This destruction may need to be certified or verified in some manner.
Hence, this invention relates to systems and techniques that maybe used to destroy a wide variety of items. Further, the destruction may proceed in an efficient and documentable manner.
The invention provides systems and methods for destroying various types of items in an automated manner. The items may be destroyed after a reader reads some type of identification information that is associated with the item. This information may optionally be used to verify that the item is intended to be destroyed. The item is moved from the reader to a destruction device in an automated manner. Further, delivery to the destruction device is verified and a record is produced that may be used for auditing purposes.
Examples of items that may be destroyed in such a manner include financial instruments, such as charge cards, debit cards, checks, money orders, and the like. Other possible items include any documents, such as business documents, legal documents, financial documents, and the like. Further items may include prototypes, products, weapons, biological materials or samples, pharmaceuticals, medical items, contraband, illegal materials and the like.
A variety of sensing systems may be used to verify destruction of the items. Such sensing systems may include, for example, imaging systems that produce images of the items as they leave the reader and enter into the destruction device. In come cases, the imaging system may also image the associated identification information. The sensing system may alternatively comprise a sensor that senses when an item passes by it, such as by interrupting a beam that impinges on the sensor. Other types of sensing systems may be those capable of weighing the items to ensure that the item to be destroyed falls within an expected range of weights. This may be used in combination with a laser or similar sensor the may be used to indicate when the weight measurement should be taken. As another example, the size of the item may be measured to determine whether it is within a range of expected sizes. If an expected parameter is exceeded, a signal may be sent to a controller to stop the destruction process. Further, a variety of destruction devices may be used, such as shredders, cutters, incinerators, pulverizers, and the like.
In one embodiment, a card destruction system comprises a reader for reading identification information from a card. A controller is coupled to the reader to receive the identification information and to determine whether the card is to be destroyed. A delivery sensor is also coupled to the controller to sense when the card is delivered to a card destruction device. The controller uses the sensed information to produce a record of the destruction. In this way, an automated system is provided to confirm that a card is to be destroyed, to destroy the card, and to confirm that the card was in fact destroyed.
In one aspect, a moving system may be used to move the card through the reader and to the card destruction device. Such a moving system may be constructed of a plurality of rollers that may rotate in opposite directions to move the card through the system. For convenience of manufacture, an AC motor may be used to rotate rollers that are both upstream and downstream of the reader. A DC motor may also be used to rotate rollers that are associated with the reader. In this way, the controller may be used to stop rotation of the reader rollers (by stopping the DC motor) if a card has been read by the reader but a confirmation that the card is to be destroyed has not been received. In this way, the card is prevented from prematurely passing to the card destruction device. Conveniently, sensors may be provided just before and after the reader to track the location of the card as it enters and exits the reader.
In a further aspect, the system may include a feeding mechanism to feed individual cards from a stack of cards and to the moving system. The feeding mechanism may include a cam that is moved based on a signal from the controller to in turn move a card from the stack and into the moving system.
The card destruction system may also include a switch that is disposed along the moving system downstream of the reader to direct the card to the destruction device or to a holding location depending on the determination from the controller as to whether the card should be destroyed. In a further aspect, the record produced by the controller may include information such as the identification information, a time and date of destruction, the operator monitoring the destruction, and the like.
Hence, in use an operator simply needs to place a stack of cards that are to be destroyed into the feeding mechanism. Cards from the stack are then individually fed into the moving system where their identification information is read and checked to confirm that the cards are to be destroyed. If so, the cards are directed to the card destruction device where a sensor confirms their destruction.

Documented item destruction systems and methods


This system comprises a small advertising assembly that can be easily mounted onto the bed of a Low-Speed Electric Vehicle. The assembly includes an advertising display and a frame. The system allows for the advertising display to be attached in multiple positions such as: upright for viewing and stowed flat for transport. The advertising display has an internal light source and removable translucent advertising panels. This Low Speed Electric Vehicle Mobile Advertising System provides an advertising system that is mobile for both on- and off-road conditions, generates little or no noise or air pollution, and operates at pedestrian-friendly speeds to promote maximum exposure of the message being advertised.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a mobile advertising display system. More specifically, it is directed to an advertising system mounted reconfigurably onto the bed of a Low-Speed Electric Vehicle.
2. Related Art
Mobile advertising systems on gasoline or diesel vehicles are known in the art, as are towable illuminated signs. Additionally, cartop, rear, or window mounted signs are known in the art.
The best prior art known to Applicants include U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,481,703; 1,597,112; 1,597,262; 1,633,635; 1,973,276; 2,530,525; 2,753,640; 3,054,205; 3,242,329; 3,305,961; 3,702,033; 3,802,103; 4,052,806; 4,346,529; 4,475,299; 4,557,517; 4,580,361; 4,688,343; 4,756,107; 5,005,893; 5,083,826; 5,084,994; 5,210,970; 5,249,833; 5,339,551; 5,379,540; 5,669,470; 5,887,931; 5,918,924; 6,036,250; 6,145,230; and, 6,421,600. The prior art known to Applicants also include PCT Application #PCT/SE85/00345.
Mobile advertising on vehicles such as trailers, semi-trailers, pick-up trucks, vans, and taxis or cartops has long been available. While advertising billboards mounted on such larger gasoline or diesel powered vehicles are ideal for highways and other roads, their size, speed, and inherent noise and air pollution make them unpractical or unwelcome in many venues. With the increasingly affordable, reliable, and advancing technology of electric vehicles complying with the federal safety standards established in 40 C.F.R. 571.500 for example (interchangeably termed "low-speed vehicles (LSV)," "alternative fueled vehicles (AFV)," "electric vehicles (EV)," or "zero-emission vehicles"), a need exists to effectively utilize such low or zero-emission vehicles for mobile advertising.
An LSV may be any four-wheeled electric vehicle with a top speed of greater than 20 mph but not greater than 25 mph. An advertising system mounted on the bed of such small, quiet, zero-emission utility LSV may be moved easily through areas with posted speed limits of 35 or below. In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a mobile advertising system capable of effectively targeting a wide range of areas such as high-density urban streets, historic districts and areas, conventions, tourist sites, parks, beaches, boardwalks, stadiums, parking lots, campuses, retirement villages, resorts, tradeshows, fairs, and the like.
In addition, the pedestrian speed limits and open design of these LSVs allow close interaction with the public, readily facilitating such activities as information or sample distribution for example, to a degree unparalleled with larger truck, van, or car-mounted advertising. While trucks, vans, and cars can and sometimes are used to distribute samples and information when stationary, they rarely have the leeway and flexibility to actually be driven through an area wherever people may gather and/or to pull off-road at whim responsive to the hail of passersby.
Under pressure of federal and state laws, businesses and government agencies are seeking ways to employ low or zero-emission vehicles in their fleets and daily operations. The combination of its zero-emission motor and neighborhood friendly design makes the Low Speed Electric Vehicle Mobile Advertising System especially amenable for use by government agencies, for example, for public service messages which attract constituents and, as well, allow drivers or passengers to provide information, distribute informational material such as forms and service brochures, or to conduct contemporaneous polls and canvassing efforts.

Low speed electric vehicle mobile advertising system


A medication and identification information transfer system is provided that includes a primary medication container, a secondary medication container, a secondary container label and a medication information transfer apparatus. The medication information transfer apparatus, when coupled to the primary medication container, can transfer information indicative of the contents of the primary medication container to a medication delivery device such as an intelligent injection site. The medication information transfer apparatus has a shape and size enabling it to be connected to an adapter for removal of medication from the primary medication container which enables transfer of the medication to a secondary container while simultaneously transferring information about the medication in the primary medication container to the injection site. In some implementations, the medication injection site can be placed on a fluid delivery line for infusion into a patient. Related apparatus, systems, methods and kits are also disclosed.

The subject matter described herein relates to a medication and identification information transfer apparatus for use with identifying the contents of medication containers such as syringes, vials, cartridges, and medication bags and bottles.
Many health care procedures involve a sequence of medication administrations to complete a specialized protocol. The type of medication and timing of administration are important to record in order to provide healthcare providers real-time information on the conduct of the procedure and the completion of a medical record. Some specialized protocols require quick medication administrations with limited time for documentation and record keeping. As an important part of safe drug preparation of medications into secondary containers healthcare providers should include labeling to reduce errors as recommended by The Joint Commission accreditation program. Pharmaceutical manufacturers produce many types of primary medication containers and include prefilled syringes, prefilled cartridges, vials, ampoules, bottles and bags. The transfer and proper identification of medications from primary containers to secondary containers can be challenging.

Medication and identification information transfer apparatus


Disclosed is an apparatus for generating ultraviolet rays and ozone using microwaves to sterilize water in a swimming pool or potable liquids such as purified water, milk and juice and to eliminate impure organic matters contained in the water. The apparatus includes a housing (10) having an upper liquid inlet (12) and a lower liquid outlet (14), and defining a sterilization chamber (16) therein. The housing (10) includes therein a transparent partition wall (18), which is spaced from a side vertical wall of the housing (10) to serve as a side wall of the sterilization chamber (16). The transparent partition wall (18) is provided with several electrodeless ultraviolet lamps (20). Wave guides (22) are attached to the back faces of the electrodeless ultraviolet lamps (20), respectively, which are widened toward the ultraviolet lamps (20). Microwave generator units (24) are attached to back ends of the wave guides (22), respectively. The sterilization chamber (16) is provided at a bottom thereof with an air inlet pipe (26) and at a top thereof with an air outlet pipe (28).

The present invention relates, in general, to an apparatus for generating ultraviolet rays and ozone using microwaves and, more particularly, to an apparatus for radiating ultraviolet rays and ozone generated by microwaves to potable liquids such as purified water, milk and juice to sterilize the potable liquids and to eliminate organic impurities contained in the potable liquids.
In general, potable liquids such as purified water, milk and juice, which is produced in large quantities to be supplied to consumers, are sterilized in various methods. Among the methods, a method for radiating ultraviolet rays or ozone to potable liquids to sterilize the liquids is well known. However, an apparatus for implementing the method is usually comprised of an ultraviolet radiator and an ozone radiator, both of which are manufactured separately from each other. Though there are combinations of the both radiators being used, ultraviolet lamps, which are employed in conventional ultraviolet radiators to generate ultraviolet rays, are operated by a voltage applied to electrodes, and are complicated in installations and structures thereof.
Moreover, though ozone radiators employ ultraviolet lamps, the ozone radiators have disadvantages in that it is impossible to efficiently penetrate ozone into objects to be treated. In particular, where it is required to sterilize a large amount of water as in swimming facilities, sterilization of water depends on only addition of chemicals because it is difficult to apply ultraviolet rays or ozone sterilization methods. Furthermore, since the chemicals used for sterilization are harmful to the human body, this sterilization method has been regarded as a serious problem.
Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in mind the above problems occurring in the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for generating ultraviolet rays and ozone using microwaves to sterilize potable liquids such as purified water, milk and juice to efficiently sterilize the potable liquids.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for generating ultraviolet rays and ozone using electrodeless ultraviolet lamps, which are activated by microwaves.
A further object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for generating ultraviolet rays and ozone using microwaves, which is adapted to sterilize and purify water in swimming facilities such as swimming pools as well as potable liquids.
In order to accomplish the above objects, the present invention provides an apparatus for generating ultraviolet rays and ozone using microwaves, which includes a housing having an upper liquid inlet and a lower liquid outlet and defines a sterilization chamber therein, comprising: a transparent partition wall disposed in the housing and defining the sterilization chamber; a plurality of electrodeless ultraviolet lamps mounted on the transparent partition wall such that the front faces of the electrodeless ultraviolet lamps face the sterilization chamber; a plurality of wave guides attached to the back faces of the electrodeless ultraviolet lamps, respectively, and widened toward the ultraviolet lamps; a plurality of microwave generator units attached to back ends of the wave guides; an air inlet pipe disposed at a bottom of the sterilization chamber and connected to a fine air bubble generator; and an air outlet pipe disposed at a top of the sterilization chamber.

Apparatus for generating ultraviolet radiation and ozone by using microwave