The invention relates to a direct printing device for applying a circumferential print onto containers with at least one container seam, comprising a printhead which is configured to print directly onto a container, a detection device which is adapted such that at least one predetermined feature of the container is detected, a computing device which is configured to determine whether and possibly how the container is to be oriented in order to be moved from an actual container orientation to a predetermined target container orientation, and an orientation device which is configured to orient the container to the target container orientation on the basis of the determination by the computing device. The target container orientation is predetermined such that the container seam is oriented relative to the printhead such that a print seam, which is produced during the application of a circumferential print, substantially coincides with the container seam.

Many containers, in particular bottles, have container seams for reasons of production. Often these are press seams, where a container then typically has two oppositely disposed container seams running in the longitudinal direction. Container seams are particularly pronounced in glass containers, but plastic containers still have visible container seams as well. Container seams typically run along the longitudinal axis of the containers and extend over the entire length of the container.
If a print is to be applied onto containers by way of direct printing, the print will always be depicted with reduced quality in the region of the container seams. However, with a circumferential print, i.e. a print that is applied all the way around the container, it is not possible to avoid that the print runs over the container seams. This inevitably results in imperfections in the appearance of the print.
The circumferential print entails a further problem, namely that, even with highly optimized printing processes, there is always a visible seam, overlap, or connection point where the circumferential print begins and ends. Therefore, the appearance of the print is also reduced there. FIG. 1a schematically shows such an impaired appearance of the print.
The invention is based on the problem of providing a direct printing device and a direct printing method for applying a circumferential print onto containers with container seams which allow for improved appearance of the print with fewer imperfections.
This problem is solved by the subject matter of the independent claims.
The direct printing device for applying a circumferential print onto containers comprises a printhead, in particular a printhead operating according to the drop-on-demand principle, which is configured to print directly onto a container, a detection device which is adapted such that at least one predetermined feature of the container is recorded, for example a marking, a relief, an embossing, the container seam or any other feature that is in a defined angular relationship to the container seam, a computing device which is configured to determine based on the at least one feature whether and, if so, how the container is to be oriented in order to be moved from an actual container orientation to a predetermined target container orientation, and an orientation device which is configured to orient the container to the target container orientation on the basis of the determination by the computing device. The target container orientation is predetermined such that the container seam is oriented relative to the printhead such that a print seam which is produced during the application of a circumferential print substantially coincides with the container seam.
A device adapted in such a manner allows for the unavoidable print seam to optically not represent an additional point of imperfection. Since the print seam is very narrow anyway and coincides with the container seam, the print seam itself is not noticeable. This improves the appearance of the print by reducing the number of visible seams.
A circumferential print refers in particular to a print that runs around the entire circumference of the container or, in other words, by 360° (possibly with slight deviations, for example, due to inaccuracies when printing).
The at least one feature can comprise, for example, at least one, in particular exactly one or exactly two markings. Alternatively or in addition, the at least one feature can comprise a container seam, in particular exactly one or exactly two container seams.
The use of features of the container is advantageous because it can be comparatively elaborate in terms of computing to detect the entire container and calculate the orientation therefrom. In most cases, one feature or very few features are already sufficient to reflect the container orientation very precisely and the computational effort is greatly reduced. In addition, it is conceivable that a container has two container seams. Then it can perhaps not be possible to unambiguously determine the container orientation without using other features (for example for symmetry reasons, e.g. if the container seams are exactly opposite each other). Such unique determination is possibly also not necessary at all, because it is crucial that one of the container seams is at the suitable position for direct printing.
The orientation device can be adapted such that, after orientation of the container, the container seam is arranged at the location where the circumferential print begins and/or ends during operation. Where the print begins or ends arises, for example, from the geometry of the transport path, the arrangement of the printhead or printheads, and optionally other parameters of the printing device. The respective location can be calculated, for example, for the respective parameters and/or be empirically determined and then stored in a storage device.
The location where the print begins (and also ends since it is a circumferential print) is the one where the print seam is created. Therefore, such an orientation ensures particularly reliably that the print seam substantially coincides with the container seam.
The computing device can be adapted such that it determines the actual position of the at least one feature and that, based on the actual position of the at least one feature and a predetermined target position of the at least one feature, it determines whether and, if so, how the container is to be oriented.
As already explained, the use of a feature is particularly suitable for detecting the container orientation. If an actual and a target position of the feature are used to determine whether and, if so, how the container is to be oriented, it is not necessary to perform an actual spatial determination of the container orientation (and associated therewith, possible recognition of the container geometry), which may be complex and computationally intensive. A comparatively simple comparison of individual features is instead sufficient. As an example, it can suffice that a marking on the container or a container seam, which can be detected comparatively easily, is detected and that it is then determined at which position they are actually to be located. For example, a difference value can be formed from this. It can then either be calculated based on this value how the container must be oriented. Some other form of determining how the container is to be oriented is also possible. For example, corresponding instructions or values for the respective difference values can already be stored on a storage device and describe how the container is to be oriented if a certain difference value is given. For example, a set of parameters can be stored for a specific difference value and set the orientation device to orient the containers.
The computing device can be adapted such that it determines the actual position of the at least one feature and that it determines the actual container orientation based on the actual position of the at least one feature and that it determines, based on the actual container orientation and the target container orientation, whether and, if so, how the container is to be oriented.
It is conceivable, for example, that the orientation device requires the container orientation as input values and that a difference value as described above does not suffice. Alternatively, it is conceivable that the container orientation is needed anyway for other process steps, so that it is suggested to determine it also for determining whether and how the container is to be oriented.
The detection device can be adapted such that the at least one feature is detected optically, and the computing device can be adapted such that an or the actual position of the at least one feature is determined by means of image recognition. It is then possible to use visible light for optical detection. Alternatively, however, it is also conceivable to use optical detection in other wavelength ranges.
Optical detection is advantageous for the reason that optical features can be applied particularly easily or for the reason that the container seams are already optically recognizable and for the reason that optical measuring methods, for example with a camera, are advantageous and uncomplicated. It can even be possible to respectively adapt existing systems, for example, for optical quality control.
The detection device can comprise a camera which images at least one partial region of the container, where the at least one partial region is selected in such a way as to ensure that the at least one feature is located in the at least one partial region, regardless of the actual container orientation.
Cameras are cheap and comparatively small and simple components that nevertheless provide very accurate results. It is conceivable to image only a partial region of the container, i.e. not the entire container. For example, it is conceivable that the container has at least two features, for example, both the container seam as well as a marking and/or two container seams and/or two markings, which are arranged such that it is sufficient to image only a partial region of the container, for example opposite each other. For example, panning the camera or providing multiple cameras or orienting the container in several steps can be dispensed with, since there is always at least one feature in the field of view.
The orientation device can be configured to rotate the containers about their own axis. In particular, when the containers are transported in a guided manner, it can already suffice to only rotate them for suitable orientation.
The orientation device can be adapted such that an angle by which the containers are rotated during the orientation depends at least on the actual container orientation and the predetermined target container orientation. A transport path of the containers remaining between the orientation device and the printhead can possibly also be taken into account, especially if it does not run in a straight line but, for example, on a circular trajectory.
The invention also provides a direct printing method.
With the direct printing method for applying a circumferential print onto containers with at least one container seam, at least one predetermined feature of the container, for example, a marking or the container seam, is recorded by way of a detection device, it is determined by way of a computing device based on the at least one feature whether and, if so, how the container is to be oriented in order to be moved from an actual container orientation to a predetermined target container orientation, the container is oriented to the target container orientation based on the determination by the computing device, and the container is printed on by way of a printhead after the container has been oriented. The target container orientation is predetermined such that the container seam is oriented relative to the printhead such that a print seam, which is produced during the application of a circumferential print, substantially coincides with the container seam.
The orientation of the container can be effected in such a way that the container seam is arranged, after the container has been oriented, at the location where the circumferential print begins and/or ends.
The direct printing method can comprise that the actual position of the at least one feature is determined and that, based on the actual position of the at least one feature and a predetermined target position of the at least one feature, it is determined whether and, if so, how the container is to be oriented.
The direct printing method can comprise that the actual position of the at least one feature is determined and the actual container orientation is determined based on the actual position of the at least one feature and that it is determined based on the actual container orientation and the target container orientation whether and, if so, how the container is to be oriented.
The direct printing method can comprise that the at least one feature is detected optically, in particular by way of at least one camera, and a or the actual position of the at least one feature is determined by means of image recognition.
The direct printing method can comprise that at least one partial region of the container is imaged, where the at least one partial region is selected in such a way as to ensure that the at least one feature is located in the at least one partial region, regardless of the actual container orientation.
The direct printing method can comprise that the container is rotated about its own axis for orienting the container, in particular about an angle that depends at least on the actual container orientation and the predetermined target container orientation.
It is understood that the features and advantages mentioned in the context of the device are also applicable to the method.

Direct printing device for applying a circumferential print


An array of micro-sized converging light transmissive channels is positioned between a lenslet array and an array of pixel detectors. The result is that the detectors are substantially smaller than upper portions of the channels and non-optical components may be positioned between the detectors. The side walls of the channels are reflective and have a hyperbolic or parabolic shape to maximize the acceptance angle of rays entering the device for maximum efficiency. A method of producing the channels employing a micro-sized machine bit is also disclosed.

The present invention relates to the field of image sensors.
Focal plane arrays for sensing light images have been traditionally constructed such that each tiny picture element or pixel detector was as close to its adjacent detector as practicable in order to sample as much of the input scene as possible. This is known as a high fill factor, where the fill factor is defined as the ratio of detector area over the total area of the array. Past emphasis in design was focused on creating greater than ninety percent fill factor arrays.
Recently there has been interest in creating arrays that perform certain low level operations on-chip such a placing transistors or cooling devices on the chip between the image sensing detectors. One approach for achieving this goal is to use a low fill-factor device, i.e., increase the separation between the detectors to accommodate placement of the transistors or cooling devices between the detectors and place a light collecting device such as a micro-lens array in front of the detector array. There are three traditional approaches to collecting light for use with a focal plane array. The most simple is to use a one-to-one imaging system to image the scene upon the array. The disadvantage of this approach is that any part of the image that does not impinge on the detector will be lost. A second approach is to magnify the image. Although this approach is viable, it requires that the magnified image be limited to the size of the total array. Thus the size of the input image is restricted to 1/M times the size of the array where M is the magnification factor.
A third approach utilizes micro-lens arrays. The problem with this approach is that if the lens arrays are diffractive in nature, then higher orders add to the cross talk. In addition, even if they are not diffractive, off-axis rays could be focussed on adjacent detectors, again increasing the cross talk between adjacent detectors.

Micro non-imaging light concentrators for image sensors with a lenslet array

The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Air Force


A de-interleaver has a TTI frame buffer storing a TTI frame before de-interleaving, a P bit information table storing P bit information containing the size and added position of P bits to be added to the TTI frame before de-interleaving, and a permutation rule table storing permutation rules of de-interleaving. The de-interleaver performs de-interleaving on the data stored in the TTI frame buffer based on the P bit information stored in the P bit information table and the permutation rules stored in the permutation rule table.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a de-interleaver used for error correction at a receiver in radio communications, a de-interleaving method, and a mobile communication terminal having the de-interleaver.
2. Description of Related Art
Interleaving is performed in radio communications in order to spread burst errors generated by phasing or the like. When transmitting encoded data, a transmitter performs interleaving that reorders a data stream to be transmitted. Then, a receiver performs de-interleaving that rearranges the received data stream back in the original order and decodes the data stream after that. This process converts burst errors into spread random errors, thereby increasing the error correction capability.
Interleaving process within wideband code division multiple access (W-CDMA) is defined in 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP)-TS25.212. It specifies that a transmitter performs first interleaving on a data stream where one transport channel (TrCH) has been encoded. The first interleaving process changes the order of data bits in a transmission time interval (TTI) frame, which is a unit of transmission over a TrCH. Further, TS25.212 specifies to perform rate matching prior to first interleaving and to segment the TTI frame into radio frames (10 ms), which is a unit of radio transmission, after first interleaving.
Rate matching involves the process to reduce the number of bits contained in a TrCH. The processing mode for reducing the number of bits is called compressed mode. The compressed mode is to turn off transmissions temporarily to create transmission gaps when transmitting data from a transmitter (e.g., a base station) to a receiver (e.g., a mobile communication terminal). The transmission idle time obtained by the transmission gaps is used to measure the frequency of a handover target channel upon handover to a different frequency.
One method for creating transmission gaps in the compressed mode is called compressed mode by puncturing. Puncturing creates transmission gaps by decimating data bits on a TrCH. If rate matching specifies the implementation of puncturing, a process to remove data bits corresponding to a transmission gap from a TrCH is performed.
The first interleaving process that is performed on the TrCH after puncturing is performed as follows. First, the process inserts redundant bits (P bits) of the same number as the bits reduced by puncturing into a TTI frame which is not interleaved. Then, it interleaves the data stream where the P bits are inserted. The P bits are inserted so that they are positioned at the beginning of radio frames when the interleaved TTI frame is segmented into radio frames.
After first interleaving, the process segments the TrCH into radio frames, subsequently performs multiplexing which is specified in TS25.212, and then transmits the radio frames to a receiver. The P bits positioned at the beginning of the radio frames are removed prior to the transmission so that transmission gaps are created between the radio frames to be transmitted.
On the other hand, when performing de-interleaving in a receiver, it is necessary to implement the reverse process to the first interleaving process performed in the transmitter. This process is called first de-interleaving. FIG. 8 shows a configuration example of a conventional first de-interleaver 800 when puncturing is implemented. The first de-interleaving operation is described with reference to FIG. 8. Specifically, a radio frame concatenation and P bit insertion section 82 reads received radio frames from a radio frame buffer 81 and inserts a P bit at the beginning of the radio frame.
When inserting the P bit, the number of P bits to be inserted into the TTI frame is read out from a P bit information table 86. The number of P bits to be inserted is the same as the number of P bits inserted in the first interleaving process at a transmitter. The number is notified by a base station in the transmitter and stored in the P bit information table in advance.
Then, a de-interleaving section 83 performs de-interleaving on the frame data to which the P bit has been inserted according to permutation rules set by a permutation rule table 87. The permutation rule table 87 retains the permutation rules predetermined according to the length of the TTI frame. The de-interleaving section 83 performs de-interleaving according to the permutation rules stored in the permutation rule table 87 and stores the de-interleaved frame to a TTI frame buffer 84.
After that, a P bit removal section 85 removes all the P bits from the data stored in the TTI frame buffer 84 and sends the data to a decoding block in a subsequent stage.
De-interleavers and de-interleaving methods which reduce the memory buffer capacity required for de-interleaving have been proposed. They are described in Japanese Patent No. 3239872 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2004-147240, for example.
However, the present invention has recognized that, in the conventional first deinterleaver 800 described with reference to FIG. 8, the TTI frame buffer 84 that stores de-interleaved TTI frames requires as much capacity as storing all the TTI frames where P bits are added. It is therefore necessary to have a buffer memory of a large capacity to store P bits, which are merely redundant bits.

De-interleaver, mobile communication terminal, and de-interleaving method


Ethylene-containing feed gas to a cryogenic ethylene recovery system is cooled and condensed, prior to fractionation, by an improved method which utilizes a combination of one or more partial condensers followed by one or more dephlegmators. The improved method simplifies heat exchange equipment and reduces capital cost, and is particularly suited for processing a pressurized precooled feed gas from ethane cracking which contains less than about 1 mole % of propane plus propylene.

The recovery of ethylene from crude light hydrocarbon gas mixtures is an economically important but highly energy intensive process. Cryogenic separation methods are commonly used which require large amounts of refrigeration at low temperatures, and the continuing development of methods to reduce refrigeration power is important for olefin recovery in the petrochemical industry.
Ethylene is recovered from light gas mixtures such as cracked gas from hydrocarbon crackers which contain various concentrations of hydrogen, methane, ethane, ethylene, propane, propylene, and minor amounts of higher hydrocarbons, nitrogen, and other trace components. Refrigeration for condensing and fractionating such mixtures is commonly provided at successively lower temperature levels by ambient cooling water, closed cycle propane/propylene and ethane/ethylene systems, and work expansion or Joule-Thomson expansion of pressurized light gases produced in the separation process. Numerous designs have been developed over the years using these types of refrigeration as characterized in representative U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,675,435, 4,002,042, 4,163,652, 4,629,484, 4,900,347, and 5,035,732.
An improvement to the cryogenic separation methods described above is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,002,042 wherein the final cooling and condensing of the feed gas between about -75.degree. F. and -175.degree. F. is performed in a dephlegmator type heat exchanger. This provides a much higher degree of prefractionation as the ethylene-containing liquids are condensed from the cold feed gas, since the dephlegmator can provide 5 to 15 or more stages of separation compared to the single stage of separation provided by a partial condenser type of heat exchanger. As a result, significantly less methane is condensed from the feed gas and sent to the demethanizer column and refrigeration energy requirements for both feed cooling and demethanizer column refluxing are reduced. This improved process combines a dephlegmator with a demethanizer column to achieve energy savings in both the cryogenic separation and cold fractionation sections of the ethylene plant.
Further improvements to the cryogenic separation and cold fractionation sections of the conventional process are described in U.S. Pat. 4,900,347. In these improvements, all feed gas cooling for ethylene recovery below about -30.degree. F. is carried out in a series of at least two dephlegmators, for example, a warm dephlegmator and a cold dephlegmator, and the demethanizer column is split into a first (warm) demethanizer column and a second (cold) demethanizer column, both operating at high pressure. Some feed cooling above -30.degree. F. may also be done in a dephlegmator. The warm dephlegmator condenses and prefractionates essentially all of the propylene and heavier hydrocarbons remaining in the -30.degree. F. feed gas along with most of the ethane and this liquid is sent to the warm demethanizer column. Reflux for the warm demethanizer column is typically provided by condensing a portion of the overhead vapor using propylene or propane refrigeration at -40.degree. F. or above. The bottom liquid from the warm demethanizer column is sent to the de-ethanizer column where the C.sub.3 and heavier hydrocarbons (C.sub.3.sup.+) are recovered as a bottom product. The C.sub.2 hydrocarbon overhead from the de-ethanizer column is sent to the ethylene/ethane splitter column. The cold dephlegmator condenses and prefractionates the remaining ethylene and ethane in the cold feed gas and this liquid is sent to the cold demethanizer column. Reflux for the cold demethanizer column is typically provided by condensing a portion of the overhead vapor using ethylene refrigeration at about -150.degree. F. The ethylene-rich bottom liquid from the cold demethanizer column contains essentially no propylene or propane and is sent directly to the ethylene/ethane splitter column as a second feed, thus bypassing the de-ethanizer column.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,035,732 describes a variation of the process described above wherein the second (cold) demethanizer column is operated at low pressure conditions, 175 psia or less. Reflux for the low pressure cold demethanizer column is provided by condensing a portion of the cold demethanizer column overhead vapor or the cold dephlegmator overhead vapor, using expander and/or other process stream refrigeration below -150.degree. F.
The improved processes of U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,900,347 and 5,035,732 combine multiple dephlegmators with a multi-zone demethanizer column system to achieve energy savings in the cryogenic separation section of the ethylene plant, and to achieve both capital and energy savings in the cold fractionation section of the ethylene plant. Compared to the conventional process:
1) the dephlegmators require less refrigeration energy than conventional partial condenser type heat exchangers because significantly less methane is condensed; PA1 2) the multi-zone demethanizer column system is cheaper than the conventional single-column demethanizer system because the warm column utilizes less expensive materials and the cold column, which uses more expensive materials, is smaller than the conventional single-column (cold) demethanizer; PA1 3) the multi-zone demethanizer column system requires less refrigeration energy for refluxing because less methane is condensed and sent to the columns and also because the warm column utilizes warmer, low energy intensive refrigeration and the cold column uses less cold, high energy intensive refrigeration than the conventional single-column (cold) demethanizer; PA1 4) the de-ethanizer column is smaller and requires less separation energy due to the smaller quantity of liquid which must be processed in the column; and PA1 5) the ethylene/ethane splitter column is smaller and requires less separation energy due to the preseparation provided by the two feed streams to the column.
The improved processes described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,002,042, 4,900,347 and 5,035,732 can be used to recover ethylene from feed gas produced by cracking of ethane, ethane/propane, or heavier hydrocarbons such as LPG, naphtha or gas oil.
Thus the use of a multi-zone demethanizer system is an efficient and preferred mode of operation for recovering ethylene from ethylene-containing feed gases. Further improvements to such a system are desirable, and such improvements are realized for ethylene-containing feed gases from ethane and ethane-propane cracking by the invention described in the following specification and defined by the appended claims.

Precooling for ethylene recovery in dual demethanizer fractionation systems


A magnetic component and a method for manufacturing a low profile, magnetic component. The method comprises the steps of providing at least one sheet, coupling at least a portion of at least one winding to the at least one sheet, and laminating the at least one sheet with at least a portion of the at least one winding. The magnetic component comprises at least one sheet and at least a portion of at least one winding coupled to the at least one sheet, wherein the at least one sheet is laminated to at least a portion of the at least one winding. The winding may comprise a clip, a preformed coil, a stamped conductive foil, or an etched trace using chemical or laser etching. The sheet may comprise any material capable of being laminated and/or rolled, including, but not limited to, flexible magnetic powder sheets.

Typical inductors may include shaped cores, including a shield core and drum core, U core and I core, E core and I core, and other matching shapes. The inductors typically have a conductive wire wrapped around the core or a clip. The wrapped wire is commonly referred to as a coil and is wound on the drum core or other bobbin core directly. Each end of the coil may be referred to as a lead and is used for coupling the inductor to an electrical circuit. Discrete cores may be bound together through an adhesive.
With advancements in electronic packaging, the trend has been to manufacture power inductors having miniature structures. Thus, the core structure must have lower and lower profiles so that they may accommodate the modern electronic devices, some of which may be slim or have a very thin profile. Manufacturing inductors having the low profile has caused manufactures to encounter many difficulties, thereby making the manufacturing process expensive.
For example, as the components become smaller and smaller, difficulty has arisen due to the nature of the components being hand wound. These hand wound components provide for inconsistencies in the product themselves. Another encountered difficulty includes the shape cores being very fragile and prone to core cracking throughout the manufacturing process. An additional difficulty is that the inductance is not very consistent due to the gap deviation between the two discrete cores, including but not limited to drum cores and shielded cores and U cores and I cores, during assembly. A further difficulty is that the DC resistance ("DCR") is not consistent due to uneven winding and tension during the winding process. These difficulties represent examples of just a few of the many difficulties encountered while attempting to manufacture inductors having a miniature structure.
Manufacturing processes for inductors, like other components, have been scrutinized as a way to reduce costs in the highly competitive electronics manufacturing business. Reduction of manufacturing costs is particularly desirable when the components being manufactured are low cost, high volume components. In a high volume component, any reduction in manufacturing cost is, of course, significant. It may be possible that one material used in manufacturing may have a higher cost than another material, but the overall manufacturing cost may be less by using the more costly material because the reliability and consistency of the product in the manufacturing process is greater than the reliability and consistency of the same product manufactured with the less costly material. Thus, a greater number of actual manufactured products may be sold, rather than being discarded. Additionally, it also is possible that one material used in manufacturing a component may have a higher cost than another material, but the labor savings more than compensates for the increase in material costs. These examples are just a few of the many ways for reducing manufacturing costs.
It has become desirable to provide a magnetic component of increased efficiency and improved manufacturability without increasing the size of the components and occupying an undue amount of space, especially when used on circuit board applications. It also has become desirable to lessen the amount of manual manufacturing steps involved and automating more of the steps in the manufacturing process so that more consistent and reliable products may be produced.


A system implementing a method for determining smear tendency of a sheet of print media to reduce smearing on future media sheets of a similar type. The method includes creating an image on the sheet of print media. The sheet of print media is reversed to allow at least one upstream roller to contact and smear the image and create smear marks on the sheet of print media. Reference marks are created over the smear marks and at unsmeared areas of the sheet of print media. To determine the smear tendency, the reference marks over the smear marks are compared to the reference marks at the unsmeared areas. The smear tendency indicates future corrections to an imaging device to reduce smearing on the future media sheets when used by the imaging device.

The art of printing images with micro-fluid technology is relatively well known. Inkjet printing devices utilize consumable inkjet cartridges or ink tanks in fluid communication with a permanent or semi-permanent ejection head, also known as printhead, to record text and images on a print media. The printhead typically moves on a carriage relative to the media path and a control system activates the printhead to selectively eject ink droplets onto the print media in a pattern of pixels corresponding to images being printed.
When images are printed on the print media, ink typically requires a length of time to dry, known as dry time. When inkjet printed images are contacted by another surface before the ink dry time expires, i.e., the ink is still wet on the surface of the media being printed on, smearing can occur. For example, when a first printed media is disposed on a media output area after a printing operation and a subsequent printed media is disposed on top of the first media while ink on the first media is not yet dry, ink on the first media may smear and/or some portion of the ink may transfer to the back of the subsequent media. In another example, smearing may occur during a duplex printing operation when rollers located along the media path engage images printed on a first side of the print media as the media is brought back into the printer to print images on its second side while the ink on the first side is not yet dry. Ink left on the rollers may also transfer to the second side or to media sheets used in subsequent printing operations, further causing print defects. As is evident, smearing compromises print quality.
Different approaches have been adapted to eliminate or at least mitigate ink smear problems. In some methods, inks are formulated with additives that reduce dry time and/or make them more resistant to smear. In other methods, the type of media is determined prior to printing so that the printer can properly set printing parameters according to the indicated type of media so as to optimize printer performance. These methods, however, have drawbacks in terms of reliability. For example, certain types of ink formulation have poor fixation properties for certain types of recording media which results in at least some level of ink smear problems. Meanwhile, knowing the type of media in advance may not be reliable at all times as there is still variability even in smear tendency between lot numbers of the same type of recording media.
Accordingly, a need exists in the art to more effectively determine smear tendency of a recording media. Further needs contemplate a printing system which performs actual measurement on a recording media for use in printing. Additional benefits and alternatives are also sought when devising solutions.

Ink smear measurement in an imaging apparatus


A method for operating a semiconductor power device by in a forward conducting mode instead of an avalanche mode during a voltage fly-back during an inductive switch operation for absorbing a transient energy with less stress. The method includes a step of clamping the semiconductor power device with a Zener diode connected between a gate metal and a drain metal of the semiconductor power device to function as a gate-drain (GD) clamp diode with the GD clamp diode having an avalanche voltage lower than a source/drain avalanche voltage of the semiconductor power device whereby as the voltage fly-back inducing a drain voltage increase rapidly reaching the avalanche voltage of the GD clamp diode for generating the forward conducting mode.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the cell structure, device configuration and fabrication process of power semiconductor devices. More particularly, this invention relates to a novel and improved cell configuration and processes to manufacture MOSFET device with an improved drain-gate clamping diode for avalanche protection by providing the GD clamp diode with lower avalanche breakdown voltage than the trenched MOSFET.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional technologies still have technical difficulties in providing effective avalanche protection for the semiconductor power devices. Several circuit structures by implementing Zener diodes for clamping the gate-source and gate-drain voltage for avalanche protection are disclosed. But these circuits and methods still have their disadvantages and limitations.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,079,608 a the lateral N+/P Zener diodes disposed between the gate and drain of a planar MOSFET are implemented as voltage clamp diodes for avalanche protection. FIG. 1A is a circuit diagram and FIG. 1B is a side cross sectional view for showing the device implemented with the G-D clamp diodes. The clamp diodes have avalanche voltage lower than that of the drain/source of the MOSFET device. When the drain/source voltage rises above the avalanche voltage of the drain/gate diodes, a current flows through the claim diodes. The current develops a voltage across the gate/source resistor and the voltage serves a function to turn on the MOSFET. The gate/source voltage continues to increase until the MOSFET transmits all of the stored inductive energy. The G-D clamp diodes however are built as part of the floating ring structure and such structure is not suitable of MOSFET device implemented with the field plate in the termination area.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,631,187 discloses a planar MOSFET that includes N+/P polysilicon Zener diodes formed between the gate and drain as the voltage clamp diodes. A shunt resistor is further formed between the gate and source for avalanche protection. FIG. 1C is a circuit diagram and FIG. 1D is a side cross sectional view for showing the device implemented with the G-D clamp diodes with the shunt resistor connected between the gate and the source. The protection circuit as disclosed in this invention however suffers from a high leakage current between the gate and source due to the resistor shunt connected between the gate and the source of the MOSFET.
Therefore, there is still a need in the art of the semiconductor device fabrication, particularly for trenched power semiconductor design and fabrication, to provide a novel cell structure, device configuration and fabrication process that would resolve these difficulties and design limitations. Specifically, it is desirable to provide effective over-voltage protection to reduce a likelihood of device damages caused by avalanche. In the meantime, it is also desirable to eliminate the problems and limitations as that encountered in the conventional protection circuits. Additionally, it is desirable to overcome the problems caused by the weak spot due to the presence of a thin oxide layer disposed underneath the Zener diode.

Trenched MOSFETS with improved gate-drain (GD) clamp diodes


When warming-up of a battery is in progress (S12), a battery charge state at the warming-up start time of the battery is set to a battery hold capacity SOChold (S14, S15), and a charge power for the battery is controlled so that a battery charge state SOC is kept at SOChold. When a present time is in a timer charge reservation time (S11), the charge power for the battery is controlled so that SOC becomes a full charge state SOCfull (S17). Even if SOC has a tendency to temporarily decrease due to a rapid increase of heater consumption power just after start of warming-up of the battery, by keeping SOC at SOChold (SOC=SOChold), SOC can reach a full charge state as intended during the timer charge reservation time. A proportion of charge using low-priced midnight power is increased to a maximum then running cost can be suppressed.

As such system having the battery and the power load, as disclosed, for instance, in Patent Document 1, it is a battery warming-up system having a battery of an electric vehicle and a heater that controls a temperature of the battery by warming up the battery when the battery is unused.
It is conceivable that the battery mounted in the electric vehicle is used in a cold district, and a battery electrolyte might freeze while the battery is unused.
When the temperature of the battery lowers, although a battery charge state SOC does not lower, a usable input/output power for the battery decreases due to an increase of an internal resistance. Further, when the battery electrolyte freezes, the usable input/output power of the battery finally becomes 0 (zero), then in a case of the electric vehicle that uses the battery as a travelling energy source, the electric vehicle gets into a travel-impossible state.
Thus, a battery temperature control device, which controls the battery temperature by warming up the battery by the heater before the battery temperature lowers to a temperature that causes a state in which such problem of the usable input/output power of the battery occurs, is required.
The battery warming-up system disclosed in Patent Document 1, for example when controlling the battery temperature by warming up the battery by the heater for such sake, performs the control as follows.
That is, when the battery temperature lowers below a predetermined temperature, the battery warming-up system warms up the battery by operating the heater. However, at the same time as this warming-up, if the battery charge state is less than a predetermined value, the battery warming-up system further performs charge of the battery, and the battery is warmed up also by heat generated by this battery charge.
In the case of a technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, however, when the battery temperature lowers below the predetermined temperature, if the battery charge state is less than the predetermined value, the battery charge is also performed. Because of this, at this time, as long as the battery temperature is lower than the predetermined temperature, the battery is continuously charged until the battery charge state is equal to or greater than the predetermined value.
Here, regarding the charge of the battery, it is preferable to charge the battery using low-priced midnight power (late-night off-peak electricity) from the viewpoint of reduction of a running cost. For instance, in order to respond to such request, or in order that the battery is in a fully charged state at a departure time, it is desirable that a time of the battery charge can be designated or nominated.
In a case where the battery warming-up system of Patent Document 1 is applied to the vehicle in which the time of the battery charge can be designated, the following problems arise.
That is, as described above, since the battery warming-up system of Patent Document 1 is a system that, when the battery temperature lowers below the predetermined temperature and also the battery charge state is less than the predetermined value, charges the battery so as to increase the battery charge state, the battery charge for increasing the battery charge state is carried out at a time except the above battery charge designated time.
When the battery charge for increasing the battery charge state is carried out at the time except the battery charge designated time, for instance, such problems that the battery charge using the low-priced midnight power is not performed and at least relatively great proportion of a charging amount of the battery is covered by high-priced power other than the midnight power then the running cost increases arise.


A formation breaking apparatus with increased wear-resistance is disclosed. In one aspect of the invention, the apparatus has an assembly attached to an end of an articulated arm. The assembly has an actuator in mechanical communication with an axially guided penetrator. The penetrator may have a body intermediate a proximate end and a distal end; the proximate end being adapted to communicate with the actuator, and the distal end comprising a hard material with a hardness of at least 63 HRc.

Formation breaking assemblies, such as rock breakers, are often used to break hard materials such as rocks, cement, or other hard materials. These assemblies often comprise a steel shaft with an end adapted to contact the formation. These formation breaking assemblies are often mounted to a vehicle or are some times permanently installed in quarries where rocks are brought to the breaking assembly.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,944,117 to Burkholder et al., which is herein incorporated by reference for all that it contains, discloses an improved fluid actuated percussive impact tool of the valveless type adapted for down hole drilling. The impact tool includes a casing, a back head, a distributor located at a first end of the casing, and an impact receiving device located at a second end of the casing. A chamber is located between the distributor and the impact receiving device. A cylinder sleeve is located in the chamber adjacent to the distributor. A first pressurized fluid passage is located between the casing and the cylinder sleeve for passing pressurized fluid from the distributor to the chamber. A piston is located in the chamber for reciprocating axial movement. Axially extending ports are located on at least one of the piston, the cylinder sleeve and the casing in the chamber for alternately supplying pressurized fluid to upper and lower chamber portions. An exhaust bore is provided in fluid communication with the chamber which selectively exhausts pressurized fluid from the upper and lower chamber portions to thereby reciprocate the piston between a first position wherein the first end of the piston is in contact with the impact receiving device and a second position wherein the second end is in proximity to the distributor to impart blows on the impact receiving device. The piston has an elongated generally cylindrical body and a reduced diameter neck forming a first lifting surface which is offset a first distance from the first end of the piston. A first axially extending port is located on the piston between the first and second sealing surfaces. The intersection of the first sealing surface and the first axially extending port defines a port opening timing location located a second distance from the first end of the piston. The first distance on the impact receiving device is at least 40% of second distance such that the frequency of blows per minute is increased by at least 10 percent.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,857,482 to Comarmond, which is herein incorporated by reference for all that it contains, discloses an apparatus comprising a body wherein a piston is mounted sliding alternately driven by an incompressible fluid under pressure, said body containing part of a tool which is guided in translation in a wear sleeve, the end of the tool located inside the body being subjected to the repeated impacts of the piston, while the other end projects beyond the body and is designed to be supported on the rock or analogue to be destroyed, the tool being retained in the body by at least a transverse key. One of the keys retaining the tool passes through aligned holes provided in the body, into the wear sleeve, and overlaps inside the inner cylindrical space of the sleeve, the tool having a transverse groove for the key to pass through.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,759,412 to Brazell, II, which is herein incorporated by reference for all that it contains, discloses a rock breaking device adapted to be coupled to the lifting arms of a tractor or similar vehicle is disclosed, the device having an upstanding guide tube with a hammer, chisel, and anvil disposed therein. The hammer can be raised within the guide tube by frictional engagement with a drive member and is then allowed to fall by gravitational force to impact the chisel and/or the chisel and anvil, thereby driving the chisel into the surface to be broken. The device has a shock absorber to minimize the force of impact and as a safety feature, cannot be made operational until actually positioned on the surface to be broken.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,470,440 to Thor, which is herein incorporated by reference for that it contains, discloses an impact producing tool that has a longitudinal axis with an impacting working head member rigidly connected to the end of a housing. An elongated handle is floatingly connected to and extends from the impacting head member and out of an opening disposed an end cap portion at the other end of the housing. A positioning member is located on the impacting head member and has a structural configuration effective to maintain the elongated handle at a predetermined position with respect to the impacting working head member. A hammer element is movably disposed on the elongated handle and is effective to apply a striking force on the impact receiving end of the housing. The impacting working head member has a structural configuration effective to act on a workpiece or work surface when the striking force is applied to the impact receiving end of the housing. The floating connection between the elongated handle and the housing overcomes a basic problem of structural deficiencies associated with handles rigidly connected to a housing element. A particular feature of the invention is the interchangeability of working head members which accomplish various functions with respect to the impact producing tool.


A method and system for measuring remotely the surface temperature of a silicon wafer and layers, without the need to know the surface emissivity. The surface temperature is measured in-situ and in real-time during a high-temperature process, in a vacuum system, by using the linear polarization property of radiation. A blackbody source is heated to various, known temperatures, and provides radiation that impinges on the silicon surface and is reflected from it together with a self-emitted component. This combined reflected radiation is polarized and filtered to an appropriate wavelength, and observed with an imaging camera. Pairs of orthogonally polarized images of the surface are obtained for a set silicon surface temperature and for each blackbody temperature. The pairs of images are analyzed, pixel by pixel, to obtain a null polar level indicative of the surface temperature. The system is provided with means for rapid variation of the blackbody temperature, thus allowing measurement of rapidly changing silicon surface temperatures.

The determination of true surface temperature of Silicon (Si) during the various processes encountered in the fabrication of a microelectronic chip is an important parameter that determines the quality of the manufactured product. One of the methods used in determining the surface temperature is based on remotely sensing the radiation from the silicon surface. If the surface emissivity is known, one can deduce the surface temperature from the remote measurement. However the surface emissivity is usually not known accurately enough, and moreover it is a function of temperature and the surface treatment the silicon is subjected to.
The total radiation from a surface is composed of a self-emitted part and a reflected part. At high temperatures the self-emitted radiation from a Si surface at a given viewing angle has a certain degree of linear polarization as determined by its complex refractive index. If in addition a known source of radiation is reflected from the surface, then this reflected component has a degree of polarization (DOP) that is in opposition to that of the emitted component. As shown previously in an article by one of the present inventors, Balfour L. S. (Leslie Salem), "Infrared polarization thermometry using an imaging radiometer", QIRT 94, Eurotherm Series 42-EETI ed., Paris 1995 pp. 103-105, one can obtain a null value for the DOP when the sources of the reflected and emitted components are at the same temperature. This forms the basis for an accurate surface temperature determination, without the need to know the surface emissivity.
The method described in the QIRT 94 reference above measured a painted copper surface in ordinary atmospheric surroundings, which affect the heat loss processes occuring on the surface. In contrast, silicon-processing systems are typically vacuum systems, in which both the access to the measured surface and the heat transfer between the Si surface and the surroundings are more complicated. In the QIRT94 reference, no consideration was given to the rate of change of temperatures, neither of the source nor of the examined surface. All measurements were carried out under steady state conditions, which are irrelevant to measurements of silicon surfaces in which there are rapid variations in the surface temperature, e.g. in Rapid Thermal Processing (RTP). RTP is characterized by two different aspects: fast heating rates (up to a few hundred degrees Celsius per second) and short holding times at a constant temperature (down to 1 second per process). Consequently, there are no known instances in which the method described in the QIRT reference was applied to temperature measurements of silicon surfaces, probably due to the inherent difficulties and complications involved.
The use of reflected linearly polarized light for real time, Si surface temperature detection is known, as disclosed for example in U.S. Pat. No. 5,313,044 to Massoud et al. However, the method disclosed therein suffers from a number of disdvantages, including a requirement for a-priori knowledge of the temperature dependence of the Si wafer refractive index. This temperature dependence is derived under steady state conditions, in which the silicon wafer is at equilibrium with its surroundings at elevated temperatures. In typical silicon thermal processing conditions, and in particular under RTP, the wafer is far from thermodynamic equilibrium. It is safe to assume that under such conditions the refractive index versus temperature curve is different from that in steady state. This can lead to major errors in wafer temperature estimation.
Hence, a remote temperature measurement system and method for silicon thermal processing, particularly RTP, that requires no a-priori knowledge of parameters such as described above, and is independent of emissivity, is highly desirable.

Emissivity-independent silicon surface temperature measurement

Electro-Optics Research & Development Ltd.


Interactive and educational containers that include a body and a band slidingly mounted to the body. The body defines a cylinder and an opening and includes a base and a sidewall that extends around the perimeter of the base. The sidewall includes an exterior face and a first set of indicia disposed on the exterior face of the sidewall at a plurality of radial positions around the sidewall. The band has an exterior face and a second set of indicia disposed on the exterior face of the band in a plurality of radial positions around the band. The band rotates around the sidewall to a plurality of radial positions where the first set of indicia and the second set of indicia align. The first and second sets of indicia are selected to have educational significance when aligned in selected combinations.

The present disclosure relates generally to educational tools. In particular, interactive and educational containers are described.
Education is a central concern to parents, society, and to national prosperity. Early education is recognized as a highly important concept to build a strong foundation for later educational initiatives in the classroom and other sources. Core educational concepts that are important for children to be introduced to at a young age include basic concepts in mathematics, spelling, and color characteristics. Unfortunately, many children lack access to educational tools that can enable their educational development in these and other areas.
Known educational tools are not entirely satisfactory for the range of applications in which they are employed. For example, existing educational tools fail to provide a fun, interactive experience to children. Parents and educators alike recognize that interactive and fun activities are effective ways to maintain children's focus and interest. Maintaining a child's focus and interest is essential to conveying core educational concepts.
Many existing educational tools do not give children and parents sufficient opportunity to interact with the tool, which causes children to lose interest in the tool and the educational concepts involved. Physically manipulating and exploring items is inherent to children, and tools are needed that facilitate those natural physical instincts of children to hold their attention.
Existing educational tools also suffer from being too complicated in some contexts. For example, computerized educational tools are prone to being too complicated or too abstract to meet children's needs. Computerized tools may allow interaction with a mouse or touch screen, but such interaction is not as inherent to children as is manipulating and exploring physical items with an optimum number of interactive degrees of freedom.
A particular limitation of convention al educational tools is their failure to bridge gaps between abstract concepts and concrete realities more readily understood by children. For example, educational tools directed to mathematics are often limited to symbolic representations of numbers without providing tangible items to give context to the mathematical concepts involved. Educational tools attempting to teach children letters and spelling often lack reinforcing items that help children see hose letters interact to form words. Tools attempting to explain colors and how they interact to form blended colors often rely on discrete color displays that can not be physically combined to demonstrate how colors combine to form blended colors.
Another limitation of conventional educational tools is that they are not configured to contain, store, and transport items that contribute to the educational experience. It is well known that children enjoy interacting with toys, cards, paint, markers, crayons, books, and other items. It is also well known that toys and the like will end up everywhere or get lost without a convenient place to store them. Educational tools that could effectively accommodate items to supplement the educational experience into a self-contained system would provide numerous advantages over conventional educational tools.
Thus, there exists a need for educational tools that improve upon and advance the design of known educational tools. Examples of new and useful educational tools relevant to the needs existing in the field are discussed below.
Disclosure addressing one or more of the identified existing needs is provided in the detailed description below. Examples of references relevant to educational tools include U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,459,999; 2,932,909; D394878; D395675; D651649; 3,419,973; 3,783,531; 3,762,071; 3,200,517; 3,199,227; 4,634,385; 4,389,193; 3,289,324; 1,671,758; 4,643,680; 7,354,070; 4,313,727; 3,248,809; 6,869,286; and 7,938,282. Also relevant is the current inventor's copending U.S. application Ser. No. 14/755,281, filed on. Jun. 30, 2015, which is hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes. The complete disclosures of the above patents and patent applications are herein incorporate by reference for all purposes.


An apparatus is provided for bathing body parts, such as the feet. The apparatus includes a bath chamber for containing fluid, such as water, and receiving the body part therein. The bath chamber includes a bottom surface and a wall structure extending upwardly therefrom. A pump is disposed adjacent to the bottom surface of the bath chamber, and a bubble egress tube is provided in communication with the pump and the bath chamber bottom surface. The bubble egress tube has a continuous configuration which traverses a surface area of the bath chamber bottom surface having a width dimension greater than the width of the egress tube. Air from the pump is directed into the bath chamber through egress holes formed in the bubble egress tube, thereby generating air bubbles in the fluid contained in the bath chamber.

This invention relates to an apparatus for bathing body parts, such as the feet or hands.
Most people experience foot problems at some time in their lives. This is not surprising, considering that many people are employed in jobs that require them to be on their feet all day. In fact, even an average day of walking can exert force equal to several hundred tons of pressure on the feet.
In an attempt to alleviate a variety of podiatric problems, bathing of the feet has become a recognized therapeutic method. For example, soaking soothes the feet and aids in recovery from fatigue. Bathing of the feet also stimulates the circulation of blood therethrough, which results in increased metabolism and excretion. In addition, foot bathing facilitates the removal of painful growths such as calluses, bunions, and corns.
Many types of foot baths have been utilized as therapeutic devices for the feet. Typically, foot baths provide heated water for which the temperature is maintained via electrical means. In addition, current foot baths often provide massage to the feet through vibration of the foot bath. Vibratory massage enhances the therapeutic results achieved with soaking alone by further increasing circulation, as well as relaxing and massaging the muscles.
While heat and vibration applied to the feet in an overall manner is helpful, conventional foot baths are not designed with the capability to target specific areas of the feet. For example, it is common for a user to wish to concentrate treatment to a specific part or parts of his/her feet such as the ball, heel, or arch. Therefore, a need exists for a bath apparatus with the capability to focus heat and/or massage at specific locations of the body. Such a bath apparatus would not only allow users to tailor therapy regimens to their individual needs, but would also increase the speed at which therapy can be accomplished, thereby increasing the convenience for the user.
In addition to heat and vibratory massage, some foot baths are also capable of creating air bubbles in the water contained in the bath chamber. Contact of the air bubbles with a user""s feet provides an additional type of massage therapy. However, current foot baths typically release bubbles only in limited areas of the foot bath, and therefore have only limited direct contact with the feet and few total bubbles produced. Accordingly, a further need exists for a bath apparatus with the capability of producing a greater number of bubbles and providing those bubbles over a greater portion of the bath chamber in order to increase contact with the user.
Therefore, it is an object according to the present invention to provide a bath apparatus for bathing body parts that is capable of providing targeted therapy, including heat and massage, to the body parts.
It is another object according to the present invention to provide an improved bath apparatus capable of creating a greater number of air bubbles within the bathing fluid for additional massage therapy.
It is a further object according to the present invention to provide an improved bath apparatus which provides air bubbles in direct contact with a greater portion of the bathed body parts.
Accordingly, an apparatus is provided for bathing body parts, such as the feet or hands. The bath apparatus includes a bath chamber for containing fluid, such as water, and receiving the body part therein. The bath chamber includes a bottom surface and a wall structure extending upwardly therefrom. The bath apparatus further includes a pump disposed adjacent to the bottom surface of the bath chamber, and a bubble egress tube in communication with the pump and the bath chamber bottom surface. The bubble egress tube has a continuous configuration which traverses a surface area of the bath chamber bottom surface having a width dimension greater than the width of the egress tube. A plurality of egress holes are formed in the bubble egress tube through which air from the pump is directed into the bath chamber in order to generate air bubbles in the fluid contained therein.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the bubble egress tube is disposed below the bath chamber bottom surface such that the egress holes are flush with the bottom surface. In an alternative embodiment, the bubble egress tube protrudes at least partially above the bath chamber bottom surface such that the egress holes are raised above the bottom surface. In this latter embodiment, the plurality of bubble egress holes can be positioned at multiple axial locations along the egress tube. In a preferred embodiment, the bottom surface has a first side and a second side, and first and second bubble egress tubes are disposed within the first and second sides of the bottom surface, respectively. The bubble egress tube can have a continuous curvilinear configuration, such as a serpentine or generally U-shaped configuration, or can include a continuous configuration of linear segments, such as a sawtooth or square-wave configuration.
In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the wall structure includes a contact area adapted to be uncovered by fluid contained in the bath chamber. A heating member is preferably provided on the contact area for providing heat to the body part when the body part is placed on the contact area. In a preferred embodiment, the heating member uses infrared rays. In addition, a heater is provided in communication with the bath chamber for maintaining the heat of the fluid contained therein. Preferably, the heater includes a rope heating element provided underneath the bottom surface of the bath chamber. Furthermore, the bath apparatus includes a vibration assembly in communication with the bath chamber for imparting vibration to the bath chamber. The vibration assembly includes a motor affixed to an underside of the bath chamber, an output shaft rotatably driven by the motor, and a counterweight affixed to the output shaft.
In further accordance with the present invention, the bath apparatus includes at least one massage attachment adapted to be received on the contact area for massaging the body part when the body part engages the massage attachment. The massage attachment can be stationary, or can be manually rotatable by a user. Alternatively, rotation of the massage attachment can be motorized. In this embodiment, a motor is disposed on the underside of the bath chamber, and the massage attachment is adapted to be received on an output shaft that is rotatably driven by the motor and adapted to be accessible through the contact area. Optionally, the motorized rotation of the massage attachment can be activated by applied pressure of the body part on the massage attachment.
According to the present invention, an outer housing is provided to encase the bath chamber. Preferably, the bath chamber is generally U-shaped and the contact area is generally peninsular, such that the contact area is centrally disposed within the bath chamber. The bath chamber preferably includes a plurality of raised nodes provided on its bottom surface. Additionally, the bottom surface of the bath chamber can include rollers provided thereon, wherein the rollers can be detachable from the bottom surface. The bath apparatus can also include a lid adapted to be attached to the wall structure to at least partially cover the bath chamber.
The above objects and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention are readily apparent from the following detailed description of the best mode for carrying out the invention when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.


The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a component of austenitic TWIP or TRIP/TWIP steel. A flat product (1) is deformed by achieving at least one indentation (16) on at least one surface of the flat product (1) in order to have in the deformed product (5) areas of a high strength steel embedded in a matrix of a ductile material. The invention also relates to the use of the component where areas of a high strength steel embedded in a matrix of a ductile material are required in the same component.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a component of austenitic TWIP or TRIP/TWIP steel. The indentations are achieved by deforming a flat product of steel in that area of the steel material desired for the utilization of the component.
Description of Related Art
Before manufacturing components for transport systems such as cars, trucks, busses, railway or agricultural vehicles, it shall be calculated how much strength and material thickness is needed for fulfilling the safety requirements. But when there are components which have a higher material thickness than needed, it is described as "overdesigned". Therefore, it is used arrangements to have the right material at the right place. Normally, the calculation is made with a homogeneous material in point of mechanical-technological values (yield and tensile strength, elongation, hardness).
The WO publication 2014/096180 relates to a method for manufacturing profiled metal strips, in which a metal strip with a predefined material thickness consisting, in particular, of stainless steel is wound up on a coil and guided through a rolling stand containing several rolls. At least a part of the rolls that effectively interact with the metal strip are provided with a predefined topography, by means of which profiles with profile depths more than 250 micrometer can be produced on both sides of the metal strip depending on the geometry of the topography of the rolls. The metal strip is subsequent to its profile wound up on a coil and, if so required, subjected to a thermal post-treatment. The object of the WO publication 2014/096180 is thus just to achieve a predefined topography on both sides of a metal strip having the predefined strip thickness. Further, the WO publication 2014/096180 does not teach anything how to bypass the traditional conflict to create high strength together with high elongation

Method for manufacturing a component of austenitic TWIP or TRIP/TWIP steel


A medical imaging apparatus includes a detector unit, a patient-receiving area at least partially surrounded by the detector unit, and a motion capture unit. The motion capture unit includes at least one first motion capture sensor for capturing patient monitoring data relating to a motion of the patient, and at least one second motion capture sensor for the capture of further motion data relating to a motion of the first motion capture sensor.

For medical imaging examinations (e.g., magnetic resonance examinations), medical imaging apparatuses (e.g., magnetic resonance apparatuses) include a motion capture sensor, by which patient monitoring data for capturing a motion and/or of a change of position of the patient during the medical imaging examination is captured. Captured patient monitoring data is used to correct the image data captured during the medical imaging examination with respect to a motion of the patient. The captured patient monitoring data may also be used for a prospective correction of a data acquisition, such as, for example, during a magnetic resonance examination, to track gradients.
If, in this case, the motion capture sensor is arranged on a moving component of the medical imaging apparatus, the motion capture sensor arranged on the component also moves together with the component and/or vibrates together with the component due to vibrations of the component. This may result in unwanted errors on the capture of the motion and/or on the capture of the change of position of the patient.

Determining a position and/or a motion of a patient during a medical imaging examination


A drilling machine for drilling ground in a vertical direction, the machine including: an anchor module having front and rear faces, the anchor module including an anchor device having front and rear anchor pads that are deployable in a deployment direction, to bear against walls of the excavation to hold the anchor module stationary in the ground. The anchor module further includes: a frame carrying the front and rear anchor pads, the frame supporting the drilling module; and an actuator device to which the front and rear anchor pads are fastened, the actuator device being movable relative to the frame in a movement direction that extends transversely to the longitudinal direction; whereby the assembly constituted by the front anchor pad, the rear anchor pad, and the actuator device is movable in the movement direction relative to the frame and the drilling module.

The present invention relates to the field of drilling in ground, in particular for the purpose of constructing foundations, such as for example continuous screens constituted by juxtaposed concrete wall elements.
The invention relates more precisely to a drilling machine for excavating in ground in a drilling direction that is substantially vertical, and more particularly in hard soil.
More particularly, the invention relates to a machine having both a bottom portion provided with cutter members and also a top portion, the drilling machine presenting a longitudinal direction extending between the top portion and the bottom portion of the drilling machine, the drilling machine comprising:
an anchor module having a front face and a rear face, the anchor module comprising at least one anchor device having at least one front anchor pad arranged on the front face and at least one rear anchor pad arranged on the rear face, the front and rear anchor pads being deployable in a deployment direction that extends transversely to the longitudinal direction of the drilling machine so as to bear against walls of the excavation in order to hold the anchor module stationary in the ground; and
a drilling module carrying the cutter members, the drilling module co-operating with the anchor module.
That type of drilling machine is generally used for drilling in hard soil, e.g. in granite. The movement device serves to exert additional thrust on the drilling tools, for the purpose of facilitating excavation.
Such a machine is described in particular in EP 0 811 724. It can be understood that the anchor module serves to hold the drilling machine stationary in the excavation. Nevertheless, that drilling machine does not make it possible effectively to correct the drilling path. Correcting the drilling path of the drilling machine requires its position in the trench to be modified. After modifying its position, the drilling machine is generally no longer centered in the excavation but is closer to one of the larger walls than it is to the opposite wall. Also, deploying anchor pads has the effect of recentering the drilling machine in the excavation, thereby modifying the position of the machine, and consequently once more skewing the drilling path.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Drilling machine equipped with an anchoring device allowing the horizontal movement of the drilling module in the anchored position


A method of designing a gas turbine engine includes locating purge openings in fluid communication with a first stage cavity. At least one of a cover plate or a rotor disk is positioned adjacent the first stage cavity and radially inward from the purge openings. A portion of a rotor blade is positioned radially outward from the purge openings. A mass flow rate of cooling air through the purge openings is selected based on a radial location of the purge openings to create an air barrier between a radially inner side of the purge openings and a radially outer side of the purge openings.

A gas turbine engine typically includes a fan section, a compressor section, a combustor section, and a turbine section. Air entering the compressor section is compressed and delivered into the combustion section where it is mixed with fuel and ignited to generate a high-speed exhaust gas flow. The high-speed exhaust gas flow expands through the turbine section to drive the compressor and the fan section.
One challenge in the design of gas turbine engines, is that the hot gases in the area of the turbine can move radially inward into an inner cavity. The occurrence of hot gases entering the inner cavity is generally referred to as ingestion and is undesirable. Ingestion of hot gases into the inner cavity can lead to increased corrosion of components in the inner cavity. Purge air is directed into the inner cavity at an interface between the turbine rotor and an associated transition housing to resist this flow of hot gas. Utilizing large amounts of purge air can lead to lower component efficiencies and higher thrust specific fuel consumption. This leads to higher fuel consumption for any given flight condition. Furthermore, uncaptured purge air can result in higher combustion exit temperatures and potentially reduce turbine component life. Therefore, it is desirable to reduce the amount of purge air needed to resist the ingestion of hot gases into the inner cavity.

Method of cooling a gas turbine and apparatus


Methods and apparatus for allocation of resources for handover related measurements in a communications system including user equipment (UE) devices, a macro base station and small base stations (e.g., femtocells) are described. Some embodiments are well suited for systems where the number of femtocells may equal or outnumber the number of UE devices. In some embodiments a macro base station allocates periodic communications resources for transmission of pilots by UEs or femtocells. The macro base station configures either femtocells or active UEs to transmit pilots using the allocated communications resources based on the relative number of femtocells to active UEs in the coverage area of the macro base station, devices which are lower in number transmitting the pilots. Transmitters (UE devices or femtocells) transmit pilots along with identification information using the allocated resource(s) and receivers measure the pilot signals. The pilot signal measurements may be used to make handover decisions.

In cellular systems normally the base-stations transmit wideband pilots, e.g., in every sub-frame, for channel estimations as well as for RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indication) measurements. The handover related measurements are traditionally done by the User Equipment (UE) devices, e.g., wireless terminals such as cell phones. In normal cellular systems, UEs perform measurements on the received pilot signals and report the RSSI measurements of a candidate base station for handover to the serving base station. The working assumptions of such designs are that the base stations are deployed in a planned fashion, the base stations are always transmitting, and that the number of UEs is much larger than the number of base stations. However with the deployment of small base stations (also referred to as small cells) in various systems such assumptions are not always valid.
It is envisioned that the future cellular systems will have a dense and unplanned deployment of the small cells. With dense and unplanned deployment of small base stations with small coverage areas, it is not efficient that the small cells transmit pilots in each sub-frame as it causes pilot pollution (e.g., interference between pilot signals). Pilots of the small cells interfere with each other and are interfered by traffic from active small cells and macro cells. This may result in erroneous RSSI measurements made by UEs.
When the number of UEs in a region is comparable to or less than the number of small cells, many small cells are often not in communications with a UE, i.e., many small cells will not have a UE attached to them most of the time. The pilot transmissions by such small cells can cause interference to active small cells' transmissions, e.g., the transmissions by small base stations which have active UEs attached to them. Furthermore, the pilot transmissions also increase power consumption of the small cells as compared to the amount of power which would be required if such transmission did not have to be made.
While under some conditions, the number of small cells in an area may outnumber the number of UE's in an area, this may not always be the case and may change with time.
From the above discussion, it should be appreciated that there is a need for methods and/or apparatus for dynamically allocating resources for pilot transmissions which results in efficient utilization of resources for pilot signal transmissions.

Communications methods and apparatus for allocation of resources and handover related measurements


There are provided a micro mixer capable of efficiently mixing at least two types of liquids in a simple structure and a microfluidic chip provided with the micro mixer. In order to achieve the object, the micro mixer includes a minute passage through which first and second liquids are caused to flow respectively, and a mixing vessel in which a liquid injecting port caused to communicate with the minute passage is provided in a bottom part, and the liquid injecting port is provided in a shifted position from a center of the bottom part in the bottom part. Moreover, the liquid injecting port may be provided in a shifted position from a center line of the mixing vessel.

Conventionally, there is known a microfluidic chip for supplying a plurality of liquids to a minute passage, thereby mixing the liquids and causing this to react.
In the minute passage, a width and a depth have small size of several micrometers to several hundred micrometers. In addition, a flow rate of the liquid is also reduced in the minute passage. For this reason, in the minute passage, Reynolds number of a fluid is equal to or smaller than several hundreds and the same turbulent flow control as that in the conventional reacting device cannot be obtained but a mode for a laminar flow control is obtained.
Under the laminar flow control, different types of liquids are mainly mixed by a molecular diffusion over a contact interface between the respective liquids. A behavior of the mixture in the liquids is defined by a thickness in a diffusing direction of the liquid (a distance at which the different types of liquids are to be diffused to obtain a uniform concentration=a diffusion distance), and furthermore, a long time is required for the mixture.
Therefore, there is proposed the technique in which two types of liquids are divided into a plurality of flows respectively and the flows are alternately arranged and supplied so that a contact area between the liquids of the different types is increased to promote a mixture of the liquids (for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-43617 and the like). Moreover, there is proposed the technique in which different types of fluids are introduced from a lower part of a cylindrical mixing vessel so as to generate a rotational flow, thereby promoting a mixture of the fluids (for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-167600 and the like).


A motorized vehicle capable of fault detection and of operation after a fault has been detected. The vehicle has a plurality of control components coupled to a motorized drive and a comparator for comparing the output of each of the control components with outputs of other control components so that failures may be identified. The vehicle may have multiple processors coupled to a plurality of control channels by means of a bus and a decision arrangement that suppresses the output of any processor for which a failure has been identified.

Personal vehicles, such as those used by handicapped persons, for one example, may be self-propelled and user-guidable, and, further, may entail stabilization in one or more of the fore-aft or left-right planes, such as when no more than two wheels are in ground contact at a time. More particularly, such a vehicle is depicted in FIG. 1 where it is designated generally by numeral 10. Vehicle 10 for transporting subject 12 or other payload, may include one or more wheels 16 or clusters 14 of wheels 16, with each wheels and/or clusters being motor-driven, in coordination or independently. Such vehicles are among those described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,701,965 and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,971,091 which are each incorporated herein by reference. Vehicles of this sort may be more efficiently and safely operated when they employ system architectural features supplementary to those described in the prior art.

Fault tolerant architecture for a personal vehicle