A direct backlight device including a light source arranged on the rear surface of a light-guiding plate and a liquid crystal display apparatus including the backlight device are provided, in which light extracting efficiency from the light-guiding plate is improved and luminance can be prevented from lowering or can be improved. The backlight device includes a light source arranged on the rear surface opposite to a light-emitting surface, and a reflective-angle modified portion, for example, a concave-convex portion formed by sandblast to modify a reflective angle of light emitted from the light source is provided at least on the light-emitting surface and/or the rear surface. A light reflective angle equal to or smaller than the critical angle is modified to improve the light extracting efficiency from the light-emitting surface.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a backlight device particularly suitable for being applied to a transmissive liquid crystal display apparatus, and to a liquid crystal display apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, a considerably thin display device such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), PDP (Plasma Display Panel) and the like is proposed to be commercially available as the display device replacing a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) for a television receiver. Particularly, since an LCD apparatus using an LCD panel is capable of being driven by low power consumption and a large-sized LCD panel has become capable of being manufactured at low costs, the LCD apparatus using an LCD panel is widely used and the technical research and development is advanced.
The above LCD apparatus mainly uses a backlight system in which a color image is displayed by a backlight device that illuminates from the rear side the whole rear surface of the transmissive LCD panel including a color filter.
A CCFL (Cold Cathode Fluorescent Lamp) which emits white light by using a fluorescent tube and an LED (Light Emitting Diode) are considered to be promising as a light source of the backlight device (refer to Patent Reference 1, for example).
Particularly, with development of a blue LED, respective LEDs of emitting red light, green light and blue light that are three primary colors in light are prepared, and white light with high color purity can be obtained by mixing red light, green light and blue light emitted therefrom. Therefore, with those LEDs being a light source of the backlight device, color purity through an LCD panel becomes high and so color reproduction range can be greatly expanded in comparison with the range of a CCFL. Further, luminance of the backlight device can greatly be improved by using an LED chip of high power.
As described above, in the case where an LED is used as a light source of a backlight device, when the LED is arranged directly under a light-emitting surface, namely, when a direct type LED is employed, uneven luminance and uneven chrominance may be caused, because the LED is a point source of light.
As a method to solve the above problem, it is conceivable to enlarge the distance between the LED and a diffusion plate. However, if the distance is enlarged, the thickness of the backlight may be extremely large in comparison with the backlight using a CCFL. It is desirable for an LCD apparatus to be further lightweight and shaped thin, and so it is also desirable for the backlight to be thinner.
Then, as a method to reduce the thickness, a structure is proposed in which a light-guiding plate is used to reflect light emitted from a light source arranged at a part of the plate multiple times so that a surface light source is obtained.
In the structure, a critical angle formed by the difference in refractive index between the light-guiding plate and air around the plate is used to confine light with an incident angle larger than the critical angle, thereby making light uniform. Typically, a reflective film or diffuse reflective sheet is formed covering the surface of the light-guiding plate to improve efficiency in using light.
[Patent Reference 1] Japanese Published Patent Application No. H8-136917
[Patent Reference 2] Japanese Published Patent Application No. 2004-265646

Backlight device and liquid crystal display configured for uniform light distribution through reflection


A telescoping cable trough section is provided including first and second U-shaped trough sections which are slideably received with each other. One trough section includes slots, and the other includes flanges received in the slots for mating the two trough sections together to form the telescoping cable trough section.

This application relates to a system for the management and routing of optical fiber cables and other telecommunications cables. Particularly, this application relates to a trough member for use with other troughs, couplings, and fittings.
In the telecommunications industry, the use of optical fibers for signal transmissions is accelerating. With the increased utilization of optical fiber systems, optical fiber cable management requires industry attention.
One area of optical fiber management that is necessary is the routing of optical fibers from one piece of equipment to another. For example, in a telecommunications facility, optical fiber cables may be routed between fiber distribution equipment and optical line terminating equipment. In buildings and other structures which carry such equipment, the cable routing can take place in concealed ceiling areas or in any other manner to route cables from one location to another.
When routing optical fibers, it is desirable that a routing system will be easy to assemble, readily accessible and adaptable to changes in equipment needs. Accordingly, such routing systems include a plurality of trough members such as troughs and couplings for forming the cable routing paths. The trough system members are joined together by couplings. U.S. Pat. No. 5,067,678 to Henneberger et al dated Nov. 26, 1991 concerns a cable routing system that includes a plurality of troughs and fittings. The ""678 patent further discloses a coupling (element 250 in FIG. 1 of the ""678 patent) for joining trough members and fittings. With best reference to FIGS. 6-7 of the ""678 patent, a plurality of hardware is disclosed for joining the trough members. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,316,243 and 5,752,781 show additional examples of couplings.
Several concerns arise with cable routing systems, including the ease of installation of the troughs, couplings, and fittings. A further concern is removing components at a later date, such as to substitute different functional elements into the system. Rigid systems provide adequate fiber support and protection. However, such prior art systems can be somewhat difficult to install, and modify later.
The present invention relates to a telescoping cable trough section for a cable routing system. The cable trough section includes first and second U-shaped trough sections extending in a longitudinal direction and each including a terminal end and a receiving end. The receiving ends are slideably mated for sliding movement along the longitudinal direction. The terminal ends can be joined to other system components, including couplings for joining to other trough sections or fittings in the cable routing system.
Preferably, the terminal ends of the first and second trough sections include ends shaped to mate with the same coupling. Preferably, the terminal ends define the same coupling profile.
In one preferred embodiment, each of the first and second trough sections includes two upright walls. One of the first and second trough sections includes longitudinal slots formed in the upright walls. The other of the first and second trough sections includes longitudinal flanges on the upright walls which are slideably received in the longitudinal slots of the other trough section.
In one preferred embodiment, a retention system retains the first and second trough sections together so that the parts do not slide apart before installation in the system.
FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of a portion of a cable routing system, including a telescoping trough in accordance with the present invention, and a horizontal trough section, and a fitting as exemplary components used with the telescoping trough;
FIG. 2 is a top perspective view of the telescoping trough of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a bottom perspective view of the telescoping trough;
FIG. 4 is a side view of the telescoping trough;
FIG. 5 is a top view of the telescoping trough;
FIG. 6 is a bottom view of the telescoping trough;
FIG. 7 is a top perspective view of the telescoping trough in a retracted state;
FIG. 8 is a side view of the telescoping trough of FIG. 7;
FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional end view of the telescoping trough, taken along lines 9xe2x80x949 of FIG. 8;
FIG. 10 is a top perspective view of the first trough section of the telescoping trough;
FIG. 11 is a side view of the first trough section;
FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional end view of the telescoping trough, taken along lines 12xe2x80x9412 of FIG. 11;
FIG. 13 is a top perspective view of the second trough section of the telescoping trough;
FIG. 14 is a bottom perspective view of the second trough section;
FIG. 15 is a side view of the second trough section;
FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional end view of the second trough section, taken along lines 16xe2x80x9416 of FIG. 15.


The techniques described herein relate to a Radio Frequency (RF) communication module for a hand-held mobile electronic device. The Radio Frequency (RF) communication module includes a circuit board and a plurality of antennas disposed on a top side and bottom side of the circuit board. The plurality of antennas comprise a first subset of antennas comprising end-fire antennas and a second subset of antennas comprising broadside antennas. The first subset of antennas and the second subset of antennas also have a bandwidth of approximately 40 percent. The Radio Frequency (RF) communication module also includes a shielded area comprising circuitry coupled to the circuit board for controlling the antennas.

The number of integrated wireless technologies included in mobile computing devices is increasing. These wireless technologies include, but are not limited to, WIFI, WiGig, mmWave, and Wireless Wide Area Network (WWAN) technologies such as Long-Term Evolution (LTE). The small size and the limited battery power available in such devices presents challenges when incorporating several antennas with suitable performance characteristics.
The same numbers are used throughout the disclosure and the figures to reference like components and features. Numbers in the 100 series refer to features originally found in FIG. 1; numbers in the 200 series refer to features originally found in FIG. 2; and so on.

Compact radio frequency (RF) communication modules with endfire and broadside antennas


Ferrous metal briquettes made from ferrous metal particles and an alkaline metal silicate, for adding to ferrous melts to recycle the particles.

Many methods of processing ferrous metal materials (iron and steel), such as crushing, grinding, cutting, polishing, machining, screening and melting ferrous metal parts, produce large amounts of fine ferrous metal particles. It is desirable to recover and reprocess these partides. The ferrous metal has significant value if it can be remelted by a foundry, smelter or steel making operation. It is also environmentally preferable to melt existing metal scrap instead of extracting new metal from the earth as ore.
Unfortunately, particles of ferrous metals will oxidize (rust) rapidly at ambient temperature, particularly in humid weather. When such ferrous particles are added to a hot melting furnace, they are likely to be oxidized so rapidly that they will bum before melting. Additionally, fine, light particles of ferrous metal are often blown out of the melt bath and into the atmosphere by heat convection or by the air blast from a cupola furnace. Finally, the iron in such iron oxide partides that do not bum and are not blown away are nevertheless difficult or inefficient to recover by melting, and often end up being lost into the slag produced as a byproduct of the melting process. Thus, most of the ferrous metal partides produced in ferrous metal processing are so problematic to recycle, that they are regarded as practically non-recyclable. They therefore are often placed in landfills and lost forever. A method of forming these fine ferrous metal particles into compacted masses or briquettes that resist oxidation and can be simply and efficiently re-melted in foundries, smelters or steel making operations, would constitute an important improvement in the current state of the art.
The present invention is directed to ferrous metal masses or briquettes bonded by a glassy binder coating and to a method of making those masses and using them in recycling ferrous metal particles.
The ferrous metal masses (iron and steel) comprise a mixture of at least 80% by weight ferrous metal particles and preferably over 90% by weight ferrous metal particles. They also include an alkali metal silicate. Forming the particles into briquettes makes it possible to conveniently and efficiently recycle the particles by adding them to a ferrous metal melt.
In carrying out the method of the present invention, ferrous metal particles and an alkali metal silicate are mixed together in any convenient manner, and shaped into masses or briquettes, preferably compacted, and caused to cure or harden by gelation and/or dehydration. After curing, the mixture should be at least 80%, and preferably at least 90% by weight of ferrous metal with the balance being an alkali metal silicate and other inorganic impurities, such as silica sand.
The ferrous metal particles are recovered from ferrous metal processing, including crushing, grinding, cutting, polishing, and machining operations. The particles may range in size from fine powders to coarse grains. Particles in the range of about 100 mesh to about 10 mesh are preferred. However, larger and smaller particles can also be utilized. It is desirable to ensure that the ferrous metal particles are kept free from rust prior to being combined with the silicate. Various liquid alkaline alkali metal silicates may be used in the practice of the invention, including sodium silicate, potassium silicate, and lithium silicate. Among these, sodium silicate is preferred. Additionally, one or more silicates may be combined in the mixture. The silicate should be used in the form of an aqueous solution containing from about 20% to 50% by weight solids preferably 35% to 45% by weight solids, and most preferably about 38% by weight solids, with the balance water. Where the ferrous metal particles are provided in a form which already includes water, the alkali metal silicate may be provided, in whole or in part, in dry form so that the already present water supplies some or all of the water in the alkali metal solution.
Curing of the briquettes is believed to proceed by causing the alkali metal silicate solution to form a gel, which contracts and forces the water out of the ferrous metal/silicate mixture, thereby hardening the final product. Thus, during the curing of the briquettes, the moisture in the alkaline metal silicate solution is given up to the atmosphere.
Also, it is preferred that the gelling of the silicate be accelerated by adding an appropriate amount of an accelerant. For example, the following materials can be used as curing accelerants for this purpose: calcium silicate, aluminates such as calcium aluminate, sodium aluminate, magnesium aluminate, potassium aluminate and lithium aluminate; acetic acid esters such as ethylene glycol diacetate, ethylene glycol monoacetate, glycerol triacetate, glycerol diacetate, and glycerol monoacetate; carbonic acid esters such as ethylene carbonate and propylene carbonate; formic acid esters such as methyl formate and ethyl formate; lactic acid esters; adipic add esters; glutaric acid esters and succinic add esters. Injecting carbon dioxide gas into the mixture is another method of accelerating the curing process. Heating is yet another way to accelerate the curing, and may be used either alone or in combination with any of the other accelerants. Indeed, any known method used to cause the curing of the alkali metal silicates solutions may be utilized to harden the ferrous metal particles fines into convenient shapes.
In the absence of the addition of accelerants or the use of heating, the briquettes may be hardened by simply permitting them to dehydrate until hardened.
The mixture of ferrous metal particles and liquid alkaline alkali metal silicate solution is compacted into appropriately sized forms corresponding to the size and shape of the mass desired before allowing the mixture to cure, either slowly at ambient temperature, or more rapidly by adding accelerants as described above. The briquettes may be of any practical size convenient for melting in the particular furnace being used. For example, briquettes of about 2xe2x80x3xc3x972xe2x80x3xc3x972xe2x80x3 up to 10xe2x80x3xc3x9710xe2x80x3xc3x9710xe2x80x3 in size have been made and used in accordance with the invention in induction furnaces and in an Iron foundry cupola. Briquettes less than about 2xe2x80x3xc3x972xe2x80x3xc3x972xe2x80x3 in size are less desirable because of the danger that they will be blown out of the melt bath.
Surprisingly, although one would expect the exposed ferrous metal particles to rust on the surface of the final briquette produced, this does not occur. Rather, the silicate forms a glassy coating on the ferrous metal partides, preventing the briquettes from rusting, even under humid conditions. Furthermore, porosity of the briquette would also be expected which would produce rusting that works its way through the briquette, weakening the briquette and reducing its reuse value. Again, surprisingly, this is not found not to be the case.
The melting point of the metal particles fines is controlled by their chemistry. When the briquettes are added to a hot melting furnace maintained at a temperature sufficiently high to cause melting of the metal particles fines, the entire briquette breaks up, releasing the iron into the melt, while the silicates float up to the surface to become part of the slag. For example, it has been found that many such briquettes will melt at a temperature of at least about 2400xc2x0 F., and up to about 3000xc2x0 F. This occurs with little or no loss of metal due to high temperature oxidation, and certainly no blow out of fine metal particles. Indeed, it is believed that the glassy coating of the ferrous metal particles by the silicate continues to remain in place at the high melting temperatures, until after the ferrous metal particles melt into the furnace bath, whereupon the sodium silicate becomes a part of the slag floating on top of the molten metal.
The following examples are intended to be illustrative of the present invention and to teach one of ordinary skill how to make and use the invention. These examples are not intended to limit the invention or its protection in any way.

Method of making and using ferrous metal particle briquettes


Apparatus and methods are described as relating to a variable angled guide plug holder for use in interventional procedures. In an exemplary embodiment, a variable angled guide plug holder for use in interventional procedures is provided, including a guide plug holder for receiving an angular determination fixture, the guide plug holder movable relative to the angular determination fixture between a plurality of positions, each position providing a different angle of insertion relative to a point of origin on the angular determination fixture, and plate plug engaged with the angular determination fixture wherein the plate plug is insertable into a guide plate aperture of a guide plate for use in an interventional procedure.

In medical or health procedures, use of guides improves the accuracy of instrument placement into tissue. In addition, imaging systems provide visual guidance based on measurements from various imaging formats. These imaging formats (such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), sonographs (ultrasound), fluoroscopy, X-ray, and the like) can locate an interventional device in relation to treatment or therapy-targeted tissue, such as MRI-detected target tissue. These imaging formats can generate imaging data that may be used to determine the appropriate positing of the interventional device or instrument.
As an example, MRI may be used to detect faint nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) signals limited by protons in the presence of a string magnetic field after excitation by a radio frequency signal, such as by way of antenna(e) termed "coils". The detected signal can then be analyzed to produce an image of the internal structure of tissue within the patient being imaged.
For purposes of example, when attempting to examine breast tissue, the tissue of interest may be compressed or held in position between two immobilization plates, which may hold the breast in a medial-lateral direction such that it is immobilized during acquisition of an MRI image. These immobilization plates may further consist of a number of apertures, and with a plurality of apertures such that a grid, or other co-ordinate positioning system, can be formed. These apertures may also allow interventional devices to pass through the immobilization plate to access the tissue. Immobilization plates having a large number of apertures in a grid pattern sized to support and guide interventional devices, can tend to be cumbersome as, for example, a new plate may be required for interventional devices having different diameters. This may require the use of a different immobilization plate for each intervention guide being used. This also may prevent the ability to use interventional devices of different diameters without multiple scans. Furthermore, this may cause shifting in the tissue being immobilized when plates are being exchanged or moved. Immobilization plates, therefore, may alternatively have apertures larger than the interventional devices, into which an adaptor, guide, block or plug may be inserted. These can be generically referred to as guide plugs, which may have one or several holes for assisting in positioning an interventional device to a target. The guidance may be provided by, for example, a grid of holes, which may be perpendicular to the immobilization plate, through the plug. Alternatively a plug may be provided with a non-grid pattern of holes, perpendicular to the immobilization plate, in various parts of the plug where the plug may be movable to multiple positions, for example by removing the plug and re-inserting the plug into the immobilization plate in a different orientation, to align one of the holes as close as possible with the target region of the tissue. As a consequence, the positioning capability of any interventional device is limited.

Variable angle guide holder for a biopsy guide plug


A guide pin for aligning fiber optic ferrules includes an elongated cylindrical element with a proximal end, a distal end, a longitudinal axis therethrough, and a diameter. The distal end has a configuration to be insertable into a first ferrule to align the fiber optic ferrules. The proximal end is configured to be inserted into and retained in a guide pin opening in a second ferrule, the guide pin opening in the second ferrule having a diameter, the proximal end of the elongated cylindrical element having a first portion having a profile that is related to an arc with radius equal to or smaller than the diameter of the guide pin opening and a second portion having a profile defined by a line associated with the arc, the second portion being proximal relative to the first portion.

Traditionally, multi-fiber push on (MPO) fiber optic connectors are designed so that guide pins are permanently mounted in a pin clamp within the fiber optic connector. After the fiber optic ferrule has the optical fibers secured therein and the end face is polished, the guide pins (for the male version of MPO connectors) are inserted into the guide pin holes from the back end of the fiber optic ferrule. When assembling a fiber optic connector in this manner, there is little chance for damage to the front end face of the fiber optic ferrule. The MPO style fiber optic connectors are designed to mate to the opposite pin gender: a male connector mates to a female connector. During installation of MPO connectors in the field, there are occasions when there are either 2 male or 2 female connectors in the layout that need to be mated together. Changing the gender of an MPO fiber optic connector in the field is next to impossible, unless the fiber optic connector has removable guide pins. Even then, when attempting to change the gender through the front face of the fiber optic ferrule in the field, such as illustrated in FIG. 1, it is possible to cause damage to the fiber optic ferrule's guide pin holes as the guide pins are either removed or inserted. The geometry of the groove end of the guide pin and the angle of the guide pin relative to the guide pin hole as it is removed from the fiber optic ferrule determine the degree of damage sustained by the front end face of the fiber optic ferrule. If the damage is severe, a lip can be created on the front end face around the perimeter of the guide pin hole. If the lip is large enough to prevent physical contact of the optical fibers in the mating fiber optic connectors, there can be an impact on the performance of the connection. In order to prevent significant damage to the ferrule guide pin holes at the front end face, it is desirable to control the geometry of the groove end of the guide pin and the removal angle. Ideally the guide pins would be removed from and inserted into the fiber optic ferrule perfectly straight i.e., at an angle of 0°. However, in actual use, the guide pins are removed at a slight angle. Using the tooling described in Applicant's copending patent application Ser. No. 15/801,490 entitled "Fiber Optic Guide Pin Changer and Field Tool with Adapter," the contents of which are incorporated by reference herein, the alignment of the guide pin relative to the guide pin hole is held at an angle less than 10° during insertion and removal of the guide pins through the front face of the fiber optic ferrule.
In order to prevent the guide pins from skiving and damaging the fiber optic ferrule, applicant has changed the proximal end of the guide pins to prevent the fiber optic ferrules from catching the fiber optic ferrules on the front face and in the guide pin holes within a range of insertion/removal angles.

Non-ferrule damaging field removable guide pin


In a digital video system, high availability distribution is provided using spare modules such as an integrated receiver decoder, multimedia transcoder and streaming module in support of the primary modules. The primary modules multicast status messages which are monitored by the spare modules. When failure of a primary module is detected, the spare module takes over the role of the failed module, for example by joining the same multicast groups as the failed module and taking over processing of the streams of the failed module. Multiple redundancy schemes are described.

Digital video systems allow TV content to be provided to mobile devices such as mobile phones, palm devices, etc as well as wireline devices using IP protocols. An issue with providing live TV feeds is that carriers seek high availability for their systems.
A solution to providing high availability is to use a central entity that monitors the health of the active modules ("primaries") in the system. The central entity may query the active modules or the modules may send a heartbeat signal. When a failure occurs, the central entity activates a spare to replace a failed module. However, if the central entity fails, the entire system is vulnerable to failures. In addition, queries or the heartbeat signals may get lost and the failure may go undetected. This solution can also have unmanageable complexity and cost because it must scale to support hundreds of channels.
An alternative solution is to use a device that monitors the output of the primaries. Upon detecting a failure, it activates a spare. Monitoring the output of a module works well when the output can be easily verified. However, corrupted output may appear valid unless it is completely decoded. In addition, monitoring a large number of outputs may not be practical and adds cost and complexity to the system.
What is required is a system, method and computer readable medium for providing high availability in a digital video system.

System, method and computer readable medium for providing redundancy in a media delivery system


A memory circuit comprising a memory cell which has a resistance memory element and is connected between a ground terminal and a capacitor has a reference memory cell with a reference resistor which is connected between the ground terminal and a reference capacitor, in which case, during the reading operation of the memory cell, the memory cell and the reference memory cell are switched on in order to charge or discharge the capacitor and the reference capacitor, and an evaluation device evaluates the difference between the electrical potentials of the capacitor and the reference capacitor at a predetermined instant after the switching-on of the memory cell and the reference memory cell.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a memory circuit comprising memory cells having a resistance memory element, and an evaluation circuit for reading out the memory content of such memory cells. In this case, the resistance memory element can be switched back and forth between a high-resistance state and a low-resistance state by means of electrical pulses.
2. Description of the Related Art
The development of semiconductor memory technology is essentially driven by the requirement for increasing the performance of the semiconductor memories in conjunction with miniaturization of the feature sizes. However, further miniaturization of the semiconductor memory concepts based on storage capacitors is difficult in particular owing to the large quantities of charge that are required for writing to and reading from the storage capacitors and lead to a high current demand. Therefore, thought is increasingly being given to new cell concepts that are distinguished by a significantly lower quantity of charge for the writing and reading operation. Semiconductor memories comprising a resistance memory element are one such promising circuit architecture.
One possible memory concept comprising a resistance memory element is the so-called CBRAM (conductive bridging RAM) cell, in which the resistance memory element comprises an inert cathode electrode, a reactive anode electrode and a porous, highly resistive ionically conductive carrier material in between. Through application of electric fields between the two electrodes, it is possible to produce a conductive path through the carrier material and to clear it away again. Depending on the polarity of the electrical pulses applied between anode electrode and cathode electrode, the reactive anode electrode is dissolved electrochemically and, by means of the metal ions released, an electrically conductive connection between the electrodes is produced or this conductive connection is interrupted again, the metal ions in the carrier material depositing on the anode electrode. CBRAM memory cells can be switched back and forth between a high-resistance state and a low-resistance state, the different resistance values each being assigned a logic state.
In addition to CBRAM memory cells, further resistive memory cell concepts are currently being investigated, such as the phase change memory (PCRAM), for example, in which a metal alloy is heated by means of electrical pulses and switched back and forth between an amorphous phase state and a crystalline phase state in the process. The two states are distinguished by a great difference in their conductivity, which can be utilized for the electrical read-out of the memory cell. A further resistive memory concept is the perovskite memory cell, in which, in a perovskite layer, a structure transition between a high-resistance state and a low-resistance state is produced by means of charge injection. Amorphous silicon continues to be used as carrier material in a resistance memory element of a resistive memory cell; said amorphous silicon, after a forming step, can be switched back and forth between a high-resistance state and a low-resistance state by means of electrical pulses. Consideration is also being given to memory concepts having a polymer layer or an organic storage layer in which states having different conductivities can be produced in the carrier layer on the basis of charge transfer complexes that are influenced by electrical pulses.
During the read-out of a resistance memory element, generally the procedure is such that a capacitor is charged or discharged via the resistance memory element and the electrical potential of the capacitor is then evaluated after a predetermined instant in order thus to determine the logic state of the memory cell comprising the resistance memory element. In this case, the electrical potential of the capacitor or discharged via the resistance memory element is preferably compared with a reference potential and the potential difference is determined.
On account of the relatively small voltage swing which results during the charging or discharging of a capacitor via a memory cell comprising a resistance memory element and which lies in the range of 100 mV to 200 mV e.g. in the case of CBRAM cells, it is necessary, for reliable evaluation of the electrical potential of the capacitor charged or discharged via the resistance element, to set the reference voltage for evaluating the difference between the potentials as exactly as possible between the read voltage for the state "0" and the state "1" of the resistance memory cell. Such precise reference voltage setting can be achieved in principle by means of a voltage regulator. It is advantageous, however, to implement the reference voltage for evaluating the charge state of memory elements with the aid of precisely such memory elements, since this affords the possibility of largely compensating for manufacturing fluctuations or fluctuations in the operating conditions in the memory.
In the case of memory concepts based on the magnetotunnel effect (MRAM) reference voltage generation is known in which two additional memory elements, in the case of which one memory element is set to the state "0" and the other is set to the state "1", are connected in parallel with one another and the average resistance of these two memory cells is used for generating the reference potential. Such reference voltage generation, as is known from WO 2004/051665 A1, presupposes, however, that the difference between the resistance values of the memory elements for the state "0" and the state "1" amounts to only a few 10%. Averaging of the resistance values for the state "0" and the state "1" generally cannot be used for forming a reference voltage in resistance memory elements, however, since, in resistance memory elements, a large change in resistance usually occurs between the state "0" and the state "1". This holds true for CBRAM cells, for example, in which the state "0" defined by a carrier material layer without a conductive path has a resistance of 1010Ω, whereas the state "1" defined by a carrier material layer with a conductive path has a resistance of 104Ω. On account of the six orders of magnitude smaller resistance value of the CBRAM cell in the state "1", upon averaging the resistance values for the state "0" and for the state "1", the average value would practically correspond to the resistance value for the state "1". As a consequence, the reference voltage generated with such an average resistance value would then essentially be the read voltage for the state "1" of the CBRAM cell.

Memory with resistance memory cell and evaluation circuit


A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell, a first combustor, a second combustor, a first heating gas return channel, a second heating gas return channel and a gas supplier. The fuel cell includes a solid electrolyte cell with an anode and a cathode. The first combustor supplies a heating gas to the cathode. The second combustor supplies a heating gas to the anode. The first heating gas return channel is arranged to mix at least some exhaust gas discharged from the cathode with the heating gas from the first combustor. The second heating gas return channel is arranged to mix at least some exhaust gas discharged from the cathode with the heating gas from the second combustor. The gas supplier is connected to the first heating gas return channel for supplying the exhaust gas from the cathode to mix with the heating gas of the first combustor.

Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a fuel cell system and a control method for raising the temperature of a fuel cell used in the fuel cell system.
Background Information
A fuel cell system is an electric power generation system in which hydrogen (serving as fuel) and air (serving as oxidizer) are supplied to a fuel cell to allow electrochemical reaction to take place in the fuel cell to generate electric power. One example of this type of fuel cell system is disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 2005-166439. The fuel cell system disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 2005-166439 uses a solid electrolyte fuel cell in which an anode is provided on one side of a solid electrolyte, while a cathode is provided on the other side. Air is supplied as oxidizing gas to the cathode while fuel gas is supplied to the anode. Power is generated by reacting the fuel gas with the air. The fuel cell system is configured having a startup combustor for reforming or partially combusting fuel gas introduced from the exterior during startup and supplying the resulting gas as a reducing gas to the anode. An exhaust gas combustor is provided for burning the anode off-gas discharged from the anode side, while a heat exchanger is provided for heating air with the heat produced from the exhaust gas combustor.

Fuel cell system and control method thereof


A computer includes a processor and a memory, the memory storing instructions executable by the processor to identify a failure in one of a first, second, or third vehicle power networks and to instruct one of a first display controller connected to the first vehicle power network or a second display controller connected to the second vehicle power network to provide a message to displays respectively connected to the first vehicle power network or the second vehicle power network.

Power networks in vehicles provide electricity from power sources to components. For example, a battery can supply power to a human-machine interface (HMI) display on which a display controller can provide a message, such as an identification of a fault, to a vehicle occupant. Upon failure of one of the power networks, one or more components connected to the failed power network can fail to operate properly or at all.


A portable device for receiving a liquid from a floor via a squeegee or another scraping implement includes a container having a bottom and an opening that is distanced from the bottom, a ramp that extends from the opening of the container to a position generally levelled with the bottom, the ramp being adapted to receive the squeegee in a scraping movement thereon, and a handle portion that is more distanced from the bottom of the container than the opening thereof. The handle portion is adapted to receive a blade portion of the squeegee in order to move the device therewith.

Many devices and implements are known in the field of cleaning. Regarding floor caring, the use of a dustpan is known for a very long time to receive and carry to a trashcan dust and small debris. However, neither the dustpan nor a broom that should be used therewith is suitable to collect water on a floor. Conventionally, either a wet vacuum cleaner or a bucket with a mop is used for such purposes. However, both are unsuitable to collect a large quantity of liquid on a floor; the former is slow and unpractical in many applications, considering among other things that it needs to be plugged, and the latter is too slow when it comes to collect a large quantity of liquid.
A device that allows collecting a large quantity of liquid on a floor and that is also portable is therefore desired.

Portable device for receiving a liquid from a floor surface or the like using a squeegee


The present invention provides a mixture for liquid crystal medium and a liquid crystal display using the same. The mixture for liquid crystal medium comprises: at least one anisotropic liquid crystal material and a polymerizable monomer which will polymerize under UV irradiation. The weight percentage of the polymerizable monomer accounts for 0.1% to 1% of the total mixture for liquid crystal medium. In the mixture for liquid crystal medium and a liquid crystal display using the same according to the present invention, by using a polymerizable monomer which will polymerize under UV irradiation and the appropriate content ratio, the polymer bump with small size and good uniformity can be obtained within the mixture for liquid crystal medium after the polymerization, which avoids the bad liquid crystal alignment and the light spot occurred at the dark state of the liquid crystal panel, and then increases the response rapid of the liquid crystal panel to obtain high contrast ratio and stable mass production.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of liquid crystal display technology, and in particular to a mixture for liquid crystal medium and a liquid crystal display using the same.
2. The Related Arts
The liquid crystal used for twisted nematic (TN) or super twisted nematic (STN) liquid crystal display is positive-type liquid crystal. The long axis of the liquid crystal molecules is parallel to the surface of the substrate when the power is off. The alignment direction of the liquid crystal molecules on the surface of the substrate depends on the rubbing direction of alignment layer, which material usually is polyimide. The alignment directions of the surface of both substrates are perpendicular to each other. Hence, the molecules within the liquid crystal layer maintain in continuous twisted alignment state from the surface of one substrate to the surface of the other substrate. After the voltage is applied, the long axis of the liquid crystal molecules will tend to be aligned along the direction of the electric field. The drawback of the TN/STN type liquid crystal display is that it has small viewing angle, brightness difference and significant chromatic aberration under large viewing angle, which needs to be improved by the compensation film and thereby increases the manufacturing cost of the display.
Multi-domain vertical alignment (MVA) TFT-LCD using negative type liquid crystal and vertically aligned film material has solved the restrictions of the viewing angle of TN/STN display. When no voltage is applied, the long axis of the liquid crystal molecules is perpendicular to the surface of the substrate. When the voltage is applied, the liquid crystal molecules will topple down and the long axis of the liquid crystal molecules will tend to be aligned along the vertical direction of the electric field. In order to solve the problems of the viewing angle, a sub-pixel is divided into multiple regions, so that the liquid crystal molecules can topple down in different direction, which makes the views of the display seen in different directions tend to be the same. There are several ways to allow the liquid crystal molecules in the different regions to be oriented in different directions in one sub-pixel. The first one is to build a bump at the upper and lower substrates of the LCD by exposure and development, so that the liquid crystal molecules around the bump can produce a certain pre-inclined angle and topple down toward the fixed direction. The second one is to form predetermined pattern of indium tin oxide (ITO) pixel electrodes at the upper and lower substrates, which will generate an electric field with a certain inclined angle to control the toppling direction of the liquid crystal molecules in the different regions. This is called as patterned vertical alignment (PVA) technology. The third one is to form ITO slits at the TFT side of the LCD substrate and full ITO at the other side. And then add the polymerizable monomer into the liquid crystal medium. First, make the liquid crystal molecules topple down by an electric field, at the same time, irradiate the monomer with ultraviolet light to polymerize and form the polymer particles which can guide the toppling direction of the liquid crystal molecules. The polymer particles deposited on the surface of the substrate play the role of the alignment. This is called as polymer stabilized vertical alignment (PSVA).
The reaction rate of the polymerizable monomer, the size and the distribution of the polymer, the surface uniformity of the substrate, and the strength of the alignment force have major impacts on the optical properties of the panel and the stability of the production. In addition to the process conditions, these factors are mainly dependent on the molecular structure of the polymerizable monomer which directly determines the speed of the light reaction, the characteristics of the polymer and the strength of the alignment force to the liquid crystal. Because the conventional liquid crystal medium comprises alkenyl compound, it is beneficial to obtain a low rotational viscosity to improve the response of liquid crystal medium. The alkenyl compound within the liquid crystal medium will affect the polymerization reaction of the polymerizable monomer easily and then the alignment of the liquid crystal medium. Hence, in general, single polymerizable monomer is very difficult to make the factors mentioned above in a favorable situation. The actual situation often attends to one thing and loses track of another, such as good uniformity of the polymer accompanied with low alignment force, or strong alignment force accompanied with slow reaction rate and so on.

Mixture for liquid crystal medium and liquid crystal display using the same

Shenzhen China Star Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd.


An amplifier circuit includes a first amplifier operable to turn on at a first power level, a second amplifier operable to turn on at a second power level below the first power level and a third amplifier operable to turn on at all power levels. A first power combiner is operable to combine an output of the third amplifier with an output of the second amplifier at a first power combining node to form a first combined amplifier output. A second power combiner is operable to combine the first combined amplifier output with an output of the first amplifier at a second power combining node to form a second combined amplifier output. An impedance transformer is operable to transform a load impedance of the amplifier circuit to a transformed impedance at the second power combining node, the transformed impedance matching an impedance of the first and second power combiners.

RF (radio frequency) power architectures within the telecommunications field focus on achieving high DC-to-RF efficiency at significant power back off from Psat (the average output power when the amplifier is driven deep into saturation). This is due to the high peak to average ratio (PAR) of the transmitted digital signals such as W-CDMA (wideband code division multiple access), LTE (long term evolution) and WiMAX (worldwide interoperability for microwave access). The most popular power amplifier architecture currently employed is the Doherty amplifier. The Doherty amplifier employs a class AB main amplifier and a class C peaking amplifier, and efficiency is enhanced through load modulation of the main amplifier from the peaking amplifier. However, if high efficiency at a high output backoff (OBO) is required, a highly asymmetric ratio between the main and peaking amplifiers is required.
The Doherty architecture has an inherent degradation in the efficiency between the peak OBO point and the peak power point. To overcome this, a three way Doherty architecture can be used, in which the main class AB amplifier is replaced with a Doherty amplifier and load modulation is provided to the first peaking amplifier between the peak OBO point and the peak power point. However, the main amplifier is connected to the external load impedance (typically 50 Ohms) through a series of three ¼λ (quarter wavelength) transmission lines prior to any device impedance matching. This can lead to the amplifier being narrow band in nature due to the band-limiting characteristics of the ¼λ transmission lines. As such, three way Doherty amplifiers are typically designed for a specific band of operation used for wireless communication applications like WCDMA, LTE, WiMAX, etc. Such bands of operation are 1805-1880 MHz, 1930-1990 MHz, etc.

Wideband Doherty amplifier circuit with impedance combiner


The marking system for musical instrument reeds uses one or more marks placed (e.g., printed, engraved, embossed, etc.) on the blunt end of a musical instrument reed, opposite the thin, vibratory portion of the reed. These markings indicate the grade or relative stiffness of the reed, i.e., its resistance to vibration when the instrument is played. The markings of the system correspond to the conventional Arabic numeral system used to indicate the grade of reeds, but the present markings are placed upon the blunt end of the reed where they are visible when the reed is installed in the instrument mouthpiece or when the reed is in storage in a typical reed holder. One or more marks are placed toward one side of the blunt end of the reed to represent integers, while a single mark is placed to the opposite side (when required) to indicate half values.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to musical instrument reeds, and more particularly to a non-numerical system for indicating the grade of a particular reed.
2. Description of the Related Art
Wind instruments, particularly woodwinds, utilize one or more reeds disposed at an opening in the mouthpiece of the instrument. Single reed instruments, such as clarinets and saxophones, utilize a relatively large, single reed disposed over a single mouthpiece opening. The reed is shaped with a very thin, free edge oriented toward the mouth of the player, which vibrates or resonates due to the airflow thereover as the instrument is played. It has been found that reeds cut with different thicknesses along their free edges produce different sound qualities and require different amounts of air or "wind" from the player of the instrument. The differentiation of these reeds has developed to the point that certain numerical values are assigned to different thicknesses of reeds, with thinner, more flexible reeds having lower numbers and thicker, stiffer reeds requiring greater "wind" having higher numbers.
Reed numbers generally range between one and five in increments of one half, with the Arabic numeral being applied to the flat or lower surface of the reed (as it is installed within the mouthpiece of the musical instrument). As the number of the reed is disposed directly against the flat surface or "lay" of the mouthpiece, it is concealed from view when the reed is installed in the mouthpiece of the instrument.
Reeds are generally stored in reed holders, which are configured to hold the reed flat in order to keep it from warping as it dries after use. As in the case where the reed is installed in the mouthpiece of the instrument, the flat surface of the reed having the number thereon is held securely and directly against a flat surface in the reed holder. Unless the reed holder is transparent, the reed number cannot be viewed through the flat back surface of the holder.
Many musicians use a few different reeds during play, depending upon the particular piece of music, their musical skills, the "voice" of the instrument (e.g., alto or soprano clarinet, etc.), and perhaps other factors as well. A musician may have occasion to change reeds during a rest occurring in a musical performance, but may have only a few bars to make the change. Reeds can be damaged or become warped during play as well, requiring the musician to change the reed as soon as possible. A musician may play more than a single instrument during a performance, e.g., a baritone and an alto saxophone, with the two instruments requiring different reeds. Where a musician uses various reeds of different grades and numbers and/or different instruments, it can be confusing to pick out a given reed grade and number, particularly if the musician may not remember specifically which reed number he or she was using in a given instrument beforehand and the reed number is concealed.
The present inventor is aware of a number of different reed configurations having different patterns of grooves, composite construction of different materials, etc. Most of these different reed configurations are intended to affect the vibratory frequency or resonance of the reed in some manner, with others having various non-standard configurations providing for attachment to the mouthpiece of the musical instrument in some non-standard manner. However, the present inventor is not aware of any other reed which includes a grade marking system which is visible when the reed is installed in the mouthpiece of the instrument, or when the reed is stored within a conventional reed holder having an open end.
Thus a marking system for musical instrument reeds solving the aforementioned problems is desired.


A method of preparing lignocellulosic fiber aggregates from a densified mass of lignocellulosic fiber, such as densified bales, for use in manufacturing high performance, recyclable and moldable lignocellulosic fiber and thermoplastic composites, or articles made of the high performance, recyclable and moldable lignocellulosic fiber and thermoplastic composites is provided. The method includes: (a) feeding densified forms of lignocellulosic fiber into a size reduction device; and size reducing the lignocellulosic fibers so as to produce dense lignocellulosic fiber aggregates having an average size profile suitable for use in manufacturing high performance, recyclable and moldable lignocellulosic fiber and thermoplastic composites, or articles made of the high performance, recyclable and moldable lignocellulosic fiber and thermoplastic composites. The density of the lignocellulosic fiber is generally maintained throughout the method. A system for preparing lignocellulosic fiber in accordance with the method is also provided.

Lignocellulosic/thermoplastic composites are materials that combine thermoplastic polymers with lignocellulosic materials, which are used as either reinforcements or fillers. The advantages of such composites are well documented in prior art such as in Canadian Patent Application No. 2,527,325 (Sain et al.).
There are numerous sources of lignocellulosic materials that may be used as thermoplastic composite fillers or reinforcements. Such sources may include both wood and non-wood based materials. Non-wood based materials may include bast and leaf fibres taken from agricultural crop such as hemp, flax, wheat, and sisal.
There are also various mechanically or chemically processed forms of supplying such lignocellulosic materials depending on the source. Such forms include: powders or particulates including wood flour and sawdust, chopped fibres or strands, continuous rovings, woven and non-woven mats, and pulp.
Pulp fibres are generally a product of lignocellulosic materials that have been processed through a combination of chemical and/or mechanical pulping processes. Such processes including Kraft and Mechanical pulping are well known within the pulp and paper industry. Although lignocellulosic pulp can be produced from agricultural fibre sources, by far the largest source of pulp in the world is wood for use in papermaking, paperboard, and absorbent products applications.
Most lignocellulosic pulps are densified and packaged into a baled form, which represents a low-cost method of storing and transporting such raw materials. More specifically, bales of commercially available wood pulp represent a large and relatively reliable supply of lignocellulosic fibres for use in thermoplastic composites applications.
There are numerous conventional processes that are used to combine lignocellulosic materials with thermoplastics, most of which are well known to those skilled in the art of plastics processing. Such processes include extrusion, compounding, compression molding, injection molding, and combinations or variations thereof.
To date, the majority of conventional and commercially available lignocellulosic-thermoplastic composites use lignocellulosic materials that are supplied in the form of powders such as wood flour. As such, feeding difficulties into such manufacturing processes are reduced, as powders are better flowing than fibrous materials. The other major category of conventional lignocellulosic/thermoplastic composite materials includes compression-molded parts, however in this case feeding issues are diminished as the fibres are typically placed into an open mold and are supplied in various forms of mats.
The feeding of fibrous materials into plastics molding or compounding machines such as extruders are well-known challenges in the thermoplastic composites field. If the bulk density of the material is too low, or if the fibre lengths are too long, "bridging" occurs. "Bridging" refers to a case where the material does not flow, and is in effect clogging transition points in the process, such as at the feed throat of an extruder.
In the fields of both glass and lignocellulosic fibre reinforced thermoplastics, numerous approaches have been used to solve problems of feeding and bridging. Many solutions to feeding fibrous materials are also linked with other technical requirements, including mechanical performance.
An increased fibre length is often desired in thermoplastic composite applications to maximize mechanical properties. However, the flowability of fibrous materials decreases with increasing fibre lengths. One solution to this problem is to change the nature of the process and provide fibrous material in the form of yarns or continuous rovings. In this case the rovings are "pulltruded" and subsequently cut and mixed through an extruder. The disadvantage of such a process is that producing rovings or yarns increases the raw material costs.
Barlow et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 6,743,507 (2004) describe a process in which lignocellulosic pulp is first converted into a densified pellet using a water-soluble binder for ease of feeding. It requires that the fibres in sheet form be first broken into discrete bundles, which in turn are pelletized with the binder. The addition of both these steps and the use of binding chemicals would add cost to the process. Another embodiment of the invention involves capturing and pelletizing the pulp at the mill before it is formed into sheets. This embodiment does not allow for the use of commercially available market pulp.
Dezutter et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 6,811,879 disclose a new form of flake pulp having a specific size, density and wet dispersibility, that may be metered in specified quantities when adding to cementitious products due to the fact that bulk quantities of the flakes flow well in conduits and other enclosed containers. Dezutter et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 6,837,452 further discloses a process for dewatering liquid pulp stock to produce singulated pulp flakes. Such flakes may be sent to a baler for packaging.
Dezutter and Hansen in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,201,825 and 7,306,846 disclose a process for making discrete particles of cellulosic material that are flowable and meterable. Such particles comprise singulated cellulose fibres that have been densified.
Process aids may be added to assist in the flow of fibrous materials. Khavkine et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 6,883,399 (2004) incorporate a blend of flax bast fibres and shives for improved flowability. Shimada et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,087,518 (1992) combine a mixture of glass flakes and fibres to provide for a free-flowing reinforcing material in thermoplastic resins.
Despite the numerous sources and forms of lignocellulosic materials available, and the existing techniques of feeding fibrous materials, there is a need for a process capable of supplying densified lignocellulosic pulps into a variety of thermoplastic composite manufacturing processes. The process should meet the particular requirements of such composite manufacturing processes including supplying pulp without any feeding difficulties, and should enable precise control of the feed rates.
The present invention meets the aforementioned requirements and is capable of delivering lignocellulosic pulp into composite manufacturing processes without any bridging effect. It allows for the use of conventional market pulp, is readily scalable, and is capable of integrating directly into any thermoplastics composite manufacturing process, whether operating in continuous or batch modes.

Method and system for preparing densified lignocellulosic pulp for use in thermoplastic composite manufacturing processes


Some embodiments provide a method for a network controller. The method receives network configuration data including an association of an entity configuration profile to a logical entity group that references at least two logical network entities. The entity configuration profile includes a set of configuration settings to apply to logical network entities with which the entity configuration profile is associated. The method associates the entity configuration profile with the logical network entities referenced by the logical entity group. Based on the associations of the entity configuration profile with the logical network entities, the method determines multiple host machines that require the configuration data for the entity configuration profile. The method distributes the entity configuration profile to the host machines.

Configuration management is a key feature of software defined networking (SDN) in a datacenter. For a typical network management system, many types of entities require configurations and there are many types of configurations for these entities (e.g., security configurations, feature-specific configurations, forwarding configurations, etc.). Because there are so many entities in a typical SDN, changing the configuration settings for a large group of entities (e.g., hundreds of logical ports) can be a time- and resource-intensive process, both on the front-end (the administrator making these changes) and the back-end (the network management system propagating all the changes to the appropriate physical hosts).

Application of setting profiles to groups of logical network entities


A transmission node for use in a wireless communication network includes a first CPRI unit for transmitting auxiliary data to a second CPRI unit in the transmission node. A memory unit stores control word data of the auxiliary data. A memory write block is connected between the first CPRI unit and the memory unit for writing the control word data to the memory unit based on a first set of frame timing signals received from the first CPRI unit. A memory read and merge block is connected to the memory unit for reading the control word data stored in the memory unit based on a second set of frame timing signals, merging the control word data with IQ data, and transmitting the merged auxiliary data to the second CPRI unit.

The present invention relates to a wireless communication method and apparatus, more particularly, to a method of synchronizing and forwarding control information between two adjacent nodes in an uplink path of a system having a daisy chain via Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI).
CPRI is an industry standard aimed at defining a specification for the interface of base stations between Radio Equipment Controllers (REC) and Radio Equipment (RE). FIG. 1 shows a topology of a chain 100 including several nodes (102a-102d) connected via the CPRI interface. Node 102a is a REC node, node 102d is a RE node, nodes 102b and 102c can be either a REC node or a RE node. As shown in the node 102b, in order to support a CPRI daisy chain configuration, each node has a pair of CPRI units 104a and 104b connected through their auxiliary interfaces 106a and 106b. The chain 100 can be located in one transmission node, e.g., an eNodeB or a relay node, or across more than one transmission node.
In downlink transmission, a timing flow 108 including sync word, basic frame number and hyper frame number is propagated across the chain 100 and a downlink data flow 110, including IQ data and control words, follows the time flow 108, whereas in uplink transmission, the timing flow 108 is transmitted from one node to another in a point to point fashion, and an uplink data flow 112, including IQ data and control words, does not follow the timing flow 108 when being transmitted from one CPRI unit to another CPRI unit within one REC or RE node. Therefore, e.g., in the REC or RE node 102b, there is a timing difference between the two CPRI units 104a and 104b in uplink transmission, which causes a problem to seamlessly forward the control words coming from the downlink node 102c to the uplink node 102a.
It is therefore desirable to synchronize the control words with the timing flow in uplink transmission before forwarding the control words to the next node in the chain.

Wireless communication apparatus and method


A lighter includes a casing with liquid gas received therein and an igniting member is located in the casing for igniting the gas released from a light hole in a top of the casing. An activation piece is pivotably connected between two walls of the casing and a cap is connected to the activation piece and engaged between the two walls of the top of the casing. A stop is located at an edge of the cap and contacts an edge of the casing to prevent the cap from being pushed before it is slid to skip the stop from the edge of the casing.

The present invention relates to a switch assembly for a lighter and includes an activation piece which is pulled backward first before ignition.
A conventional lighter generally includes a roller which is connected to a flint and liquid gas is received in the casing of the lighter. The gas is ignited by rolling the roller which scraps on the flint so as to generate a spark which fires the gas particles when a valve control lever is pressed. The gas particles becomes a flame which continues by the gas particles coming out from the light hole on the top of the casing while the vale control lever is pushed. The roller includes rough surface which hurts the user""s thumb and it could be jammed after being used a period of time.
An improved lighter employs an electric switch which includes a button and the user simply pushes the button to ignite the gas. Nevertheless, it involves an inherent shortcoming which is that the lighter can be used by any child because there is no safety device to prevent any unintentional operation of the button and this is dangerous.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,817,691 discloses a lighter that has a manupulatable body 11 which is pressed as shown by the arrow in FIG. 1 of U.S. Pat. No. 3,817,691 and the striker 21 is then pivoted to push the igniter 2. It is noticed that this mechanism for driving the striker involves a complicated mechanism and a lots of small parts. The relative position relationship between the pin member 26 and the cam lever 31 changes within a wide range of distance, and this includes a potential risk of disorder of the parts. Besides, the manupulatable body 11 does not have a safety feature to prevent from unintentionally push.
The present invention intends to provide a switch assembly for a lighter wherein the activation piece has to be pulled backward and then pushed down to ignite the gas.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a lighter which comprises a casing having a tank for receiving liquid gas therein and an igniting member is located in the casing. A light hole is defined in a top of the casing and communicates with the space.
An activation piece is pivotably connected between two walls of the casing and a cap is slidably connected to the activation piece and engaged between the two walls of the top of the casing. A stop is located at an edge of the cap and contacts an edge of the casing.
The primary object of the present invention is to provide a lighter that has a cap which can only be pushed after the cap is slid aside so as to prevent any unintentional operation.

No. 13, Alley 36-1, Lane 210, Sec. 1, Jush Rd.


A pressure sensor, which detects a pressure in a space close to an inner side of an exterior member of a vehicle, and an occupant protecting device, which protects an occupant inside a vehicle are provided. An electronic control unit determines an occurrence of collision in the case where the pressure and a change per unit time of the pressure each satisfy a collision condition, and then makes the occupant protecting device operate. At this time, the collision condition is set to restrict the determination indicative of an occurrence of collision unless the change per unit time of the pressure is larger with lowering the pressure.

A conventional vehicle includes an occupant protecting system. The occupant protecting system includes a collision sensing device, which senses a vehicle collision, and an occupant protecting device, which protects the occupant in a cabin at the time of the vehicle collision. A known occupant protecting device includes a so-called airbag that deploys at collision. For example, Patent Literature 1 discloses a collision sensing device that detects air pressure of a space in a side door using an air pressure sensor. In the case where the collision sensing device detects sudden rise of the air pressure, the collision sensing device determines a side collision and deploys an airbag. A technique disclosed in Patent Literature 2 includes an air tank and a pressure sensor, which detects an internal pressure of the air tank, in a vehicle door. While a rising speed of the internal pressure is approximately proportional to a crushing speed of a vehicle-door outer panel, the maximum value of the internal pressure is approximately proportional to an amount of crush of the vehicle-door outer panel. In view of this, the technique measures a temporal change of an output signal from the pressure sensor so as to detect the rising speed of the internal pressure and the maximum value of the internal pressure. The technique consequently deploys an airbag when the rising speed and the maximum value exceed the respective threshold values.
A technique disclosed in Patent Literature 3 calculates a mass of a collision object based on a pressure on a bumper and a vehicle speed. Then, the technique corrects the mass based on the pressure and a temporal change of the pressure. The technique in turn determines whether or not the collision object is a pedestrian based on the corrected mass.

Collision sensing device and occupant protecting system


Single tube Coriolis flowmeter with floating intermediate section including an elongated upstream inlet conduit section, an elongated downstream outlet conduit section laterally offset from the inlet conduit section, an inlet-outlet plate rigidly connecting the inlet and outlet conduit sections together at their proximate ends, and a continuous and generally helically wound length of conduit (approximately a 720-degree coil), the ends of which are respectively continuations of the inlet and outlet conduit sections. The helically wound length of conduit includes an upstream metering loop section and a downstream metering loop section joined together by a "floating", unsupported intermediate conduit section. The upstream ends of each metering loop section are coupled by a first connecting plate, while the downstream ends of each metering loop section are coupled by a second connecting plate. The otherwise unsupported intermediate conduit section extending between the first and second connection plates connects the upstream metering loop section outlet to the downstream metering loop section inlet. The intermediate section and the inlet-outlet plate are not connected to each other and are free to move relative to one another. The driver-oscillator device(s) is mounted between the two loop sections to impart equal and opposite exciting forces to the loop sections and the sensors are mounted between the loop sections to detect Coriolis force induced responses to the excited loop motions.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to Coriolis type mass flowmeters and more particularly to an improved single tube flowmeter which is substantially insensitive to external pipeline vibrations, and is substantially insensitive to external pipeline stresses and distortions. The flowmeter includes an intermediate section of conduit which functions to prevent mechanical coupling of the Coriolis response to the external piping and provides dynamic counterbalancing of internally generated Coriolis forces, The flowmeter does not require the use of a support structure.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
There is a continuing need for more accurate and efficient meters for determining the mass flow rate of fluids and/or liquid-solid slurries flowing through a pipeline or conduit. Coriolis-effect type mass flow rate meters used for this purpose are well known in the prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,127,028 to Cox et al. discloses a mass flowmeter comprised of a pair of generally U-shaped tubes that are spaced apart in parallel with the inlet and outlet ends of each U-tube fixedly cantilever-mounted and with the corresponding bight ends free to move relative to one another. The tube's bight ends are connected by a drive mechanism which oppositely reciprocates the tubes like the tines of a tuning fork. A sensor is placed at the corresponding side leg of each U-tube.
Micro Motion.RTM. Model DL Mass Flowmeter Information and Specification Manual discloses a Coriolis type mass flowmeter similar to the '028 Cox device wherein a pair of generally U-shaped tubes are spaced apart with the inlet to the upstream U-tube and the outlet from the downstream U-tube fixedly mounted and with the corresponding bight ends free to move relative to one another. The Micro Motion.RTM. device and the '028 Cox device differ in that in the Cox device the connecting linkage between the upstream U-tube and the downstream U-tube are fixedly mounted to the device base fixture. In the Micro Motion.RTM. device, the tubes are formed from what appears to be a continuous length of conduit, the ends of which are fixedly mounted to the support structure.
U.S. Patent No. Re. 31,450 to Smith discloses a Coriolis type mass flowmeter similar to the Micro Motion.RTM. and Cox devices but is comprised only of a single U-shaped tube fixedly attached to a support in a cantilever fashion with the bight end free to move. At Smith '450, col. 3 lines 44-51, the function of the cantilevered beam-like mounting of the U-shaped tube is stated:
"The cantilevered mounting of the "U" shaped conduit is of more than passing significance. In the instance in which distortion is measured, such mounting provides for the distortion resulting from the Coriolis forces to be offset substantially entirely by resilient deformation forces within the conduit free of mechanical pivot means other than flexing of the conduit."
U.S. Pat. No. 4,957,005 to Yard discloses a Coriolis type mass flowmeter which is comprised of a series of loops formed in a single length of tubing with no joints. The loops, arranged in order, include an inlet isolation loop, an upstream metering loop, a downstream metering loop, and an outlet isolation loop. The junction between the inlet isolation loop and the upstream metering loop, the junction between the two metering loops, and the junction between the downstream metering loop and the outlet isolation loop are all rigidly mounted to a single bracket. The bracket is free to move relative to a support structure for the meter, thereby isolating the double loop structure from external forces and vibrations.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,020,375 to Back-Pedersen et al. discloses a Coriolis type mass flowmeter comprised of an upstream measuring tube loop, a downstream measuring tube loop, an upstream or inlet final tube, a downstream or outlet final tube, a first block, a second block, an inlet connecting tube, and an outlet connecting tube. The two measuring loops are formed in a single length of tubing bent several times. The transition point between the two measuring loops, the inlet to the upstream measuring loop, and the outlet from the downstream measuring loop are all captured in the second block. An end of the inlet connecting tube is connected to the inlet to the upstream measuring loop, and this connection is captured in the second block. In a similar manner, an end of the outlet connecting tube is connected to the outlet from the downstream measuring loop and this connection is also captured in the second block. The opposite ends of the inlet and outlet connecting tubes are captured in the first block as are one end of each of the upstream and downstream final tubes. The connecting tubes are attached to their corresponding final tube sections.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,660,421, 4,711,132, and 4,984,472 to Dahlin et al. disclose a Coriolis type mass flowmeter that is comprised of a single tube length formed into at least one helically shaped loop, wherein the inlet and outlet ends of the tube are fixedly mounted to a support and disposed at opposing ends of the flowmeter.
A significant disadvantage with prior art flowmeter devices such as those mentioned above is that the support or base of the meters must be mounted in a rigid and secure manner. The prior art devices are thus very sensitive to pipeline stresses, pipeline distortions and to the mounting configuration of the meter and will give inaccurate readings if the device is improperly mounted or supported. In other words, the prior art devices have a high mounting sensitivity. For example, the Micro Motion.RTM. Model DL meter is very sensitive to the mechanical coupling of the meter to the outside world. (Refer to Micro Motion.RTM. Model DL Information and Specification Manual, Section 2.4.) If the mounting is changed, the response motion and the excitation motion can couple to the external environment resulting in flow rate errors caused by zero-flow offset shifts and calibration shifts. This coupling sensitivity of the meter to the external environment is evident in the Cox, Dahlin, and Yard devices. Although attempts have been made in the design of these prior art devices to enhance the isolation capability of their meters by using support structures that are heavy and/or rigid, such structures materially add to the cost of the device and complicate the installation.
Another disadvantage of the prior art metering devices is that stresses in the flowmeter support or base are readily transmitted to the metering tubes resulting in inaccurate mass flow rate readings. For example, the Cox type of prior art mass flow meter is highly sensitive to external vibrations which may interfere with accurate measurement. In order to isolate the meters from the outside environment, attempts are made to make the tubing support structure as rigid as possible. This also results in massive and/or expensive supports that are still sensitive to mounting and piping support configurations and accommodations.
Also, some prior art devices, specifically the Yard and the Back-Pedersen et al. devices, attempt to isolate the external vibrational environment by physically decoupling the metering tube section from the mounting section. In the Yard device, as described earlier, a continuous double loop metering section is mounted at these points to a rigid bar that "floats" with respect to the support structure of the metering device itself. In the Back-Pederson et al. device, a continuous tube, double loop metering section is tied into a block in hydraulic communication with another block which is used to attach the metering device to the external system piping or tubing. In both devices the metering section of the flowmeter is isolated, to some extent, from the external vibrational environment. Also, in both devices, the inlet and the outlet from the metering tube loops, and the junction between the upstream and downstream metering loops are all tied together in one rigid block structure. A problem with these configurations is that they do not cancel, or dynamically counterbalance, the forces that result during excitation and response of the sensing tubes thereby resulting in inaccurate flow rate readings.
Yet another disadvantage of the '028 Cox and the Micro Motion.RTM. devices is that the oscillatory drive motion creates significant bending stresses at the attachment points of the U-tubes, leading to a danger of failure due to stress-induced cracking and corrosion.

Single tube coriolis flow meter with floating intermediate section


The present invention relates to a method of producing a protective gas consisting of 0.0010-0.100 percent by volume nitric-oxide, 0-90 percent by volume helium, 0-5 percent by volume hydrogen, 0-50 percent by volume carbon dioxide, and the remainder argon. The invention also relates to a gas mixture for producing the productive gas. The method of producing the protective gas is characterized by dissolving nitric oxide in condensed argon to a concentration of 0.0010-0.100 percent by volume, calculated on gas phase, vaporizing the resultant solution and mixing remaining constituents in the vaporized solution in such proportions as to obtain a protective gas of the predetermined composition. The gas mixture used for producing the protective gas is characterized in that it consists of 0.0010-0.100 percent by volume nitric oxide in condensed argon, calculated on gas phase, and is preferably held under an overpressure.

The present invention relates to a method of producing a protective gas consisting of 0.0010-0.100 percent by volume of nitric oxide, 0-90 percent by volume helium, 0-5 percent by volume hydrogen, 0-50 percent by volume carbon dioxide and the remainder argon, and also to a condensed gas mixture for the production of said protective gas.
In electric gas-arc welding processes there is often used a protective gas in the form of a gas mixture consisting of or comprising argon and nitric oxide. The protective gas mixture or protective gas may also include carbon dioxide, helium and/or hydrogen. To large consumers of protective gases, these gases containing nitric oxide, there is at present delivered a gas pre-mixture, a master gas, consisting of a nitric oxide in argon under high pressure, this gas being delivered in conventional steel bottles. The proportion of nitric oxide present is normally from 1-5 percent by volume, for instance 1.8 percent by volume. The desired protective gas is then produced by mixing the various gases with the gas pre-mixture to the composition desired. The amount of nitric oxide present in the final protective gas is normally at most 0.030 percent by volume.
Since nitric oxide is a poisonous gas, it is desirable to use lower proportions of nitric oxide in the master gas than those used hitherto. This results in higher transportation costs, since it is necessary to transport to the consumer more gas bottles containing master gas at unchanged protective gas consumption.
Another drawback with the master gas is that when preparing a protective gas it is necessary to supply additional argon in order to reach the desired final concentration of argon in the protective gas produced.

Method of producing a protective gas and a gas mixture therefor


A point detection system is provided for use in a typical switch machine with a typical indication system, wherein a point detector bar is slidably captivated within a point detector sleeve, and wherein a target that is integrally engaged with the point detector bar is sensed by at least one sensing device, thereby to detect movement of the point detector bar. The point detector sleeve is supported by a track side bearing affixed to a track side wall of the switch machine, and by a field side bearing affixed to an opposing wall of the switch machine. The point detector bar extends outside the switch machine from only the track side bearing, thereby eliminating the bearings and the pinch point between the hand throw lever and the two piece point detector bar that otherwise extended from the related art switch machine. The sensing device may be mounted upon a slide mechanism to adjust the sensing device relative to the target. Use of the sensing device eliminates the need for cams to monitor in order to detect movement of the point detector bar, as well as eliminates moving parts between the cams and the mechanical linkages. Further, at least one other sensing device detects a normal and reverse locked position of a lock bar assembly and lock box of the switch machine.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an electric motor driven switch machine for switching railroad tracks so that trains may switch from one track to another. More particularly, the present invention relates to a captive point detection system of a switch machine, for detecting, with a single switch position target, whether a railroad track has been properly switched, in order that such detection may indicated by indication means positioned locally at the switch machine or at a remote location.
2. Description of the Related Art
As is known in the art, a common method for switching a train from one railroad track to another is to install an electric motor driven switch machine next to a switching point of the track. Since modern versions of these switch machines are usually operated from a remote location, it is essential that a remote operator be able to determine that the switch has, in fact, been thrown as requested. Moreover, because switch point closure is imperative to safe railroad train operation, Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) rules and regulations mandate not only that the position of the switch points be mechanically locked to prevent the points from opening during train traffic, but also that the locked position of the switch points be continuously monitored to detect any undesirable movement. A circuit controller that includes a point detection system as an integral part of either a mainline switch machine or a stand-alone unit is used to accomplish this type of switch point monitoring, detection and subsequent indication to the switch machine or remote location.
A related art point detection and indication system is described by U.S. Pat. No. 5,669,587, issued Sep. 23, 1997 in the name of Van Alstine et al, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. In the Van Alstine et al. reference, there is provided an electric motor driven switch machine for positioning a railroad track at a switching point having rail point detection and indication mechanism. In particular, the detection and indication mechanism has a latch out mechanism that identifies a latch out condition when the railroad tracks are not at, or near, their proper positions before or after switching the railroad tracks. The detection and indication mechanism includes a four bar linkage which comprises a point detector bar, two cam followers, and a link arm assembly. The cam followers, supported in part by the link arm assembly, are connected to two point detector switches, so that the switch machine is operating when either one of these switches is closed or the railroad tracks are being switched.
Referring now to FIG. 1 herein, there is shown an overhead planar view of a typical related art point detection and indication system 100 housed within a portion of a switch machine 105, wherein a cover (not shown) of the switch machine 105 has been omitted from the figure. As is commonly known, the switch machine 105 is located adjacent to a set of stock rails having a set of switching rails situated therebetween (not shown). The general structure and positioning of switch machines relative to railroad tracks is known in the art and therefore, is not described in detail.
In the related art, a hand throw lever 110 (partially shown in phantom) is connected to a gear box (not shown) and is utilized typically for manual operation of the switch machine 105. Of the various components of the switch machine 105, only the base 115 of the switch machine 105 and the elements relevant to the operation of the related art detection and indication system 100 are shown. The basic design of the related art detection and indication system 100 typically includes a point detector bar 120 and adjacent normal and reverse cam followers 125, 130, respectively, which are generally each physically connected to mechanical linkages 135.
As is known in the art, the point detector bar 120 is a long cylindrical rod positioned perpendicular across the longitudinal axis of the switch machine 105 such that movement by the point detector bar 120 corresponds to movement by switching rails relative to the position of stock rail on either side (not shown). The point detector bar 120 typically passes through a wall 122 and a wall 124 of the switch machine 105. In FIG. 1, the wall 122 faces toward the railroad track (not shown) on a track side 140 and the wall 124 faces away from the railroad track on a field side 145. Typically, the point detector bar 120 is held in place with threaded adjustment bushings 150, 155, and a movable adjustment sleeve 160 that extends outwardly from the wall 122 and the wall 124 into the track side 140 and the field side 145, respectively. The point detector bar 120 is capable of moving in two opposing directions: a normal direction 165 and a reverse direction 170. When the point detector bar 120 is moving upward in FIG. 1 toward the railroad tracks (not shown) on the track side 140 of the switch machine 105, the bar is moving in the reverse direction 170; when the point detector bar 120 is moving downward in FIG. 1 toward the field side 145 of the switch machine 105, the bar is moving in the normal direction 165. Typically, a reverse cam 175 is defined at a fixed position on the point detector bar 120 and a normal cam 178 is defined by the movable adjustment sleeve 160 such that the detection and indication system 100 of the related art can identify movement by the switching rails by monitoring the position of the reverse cam 175 with the reverse cam follower 130 and the normal cam 178 with the normal cam follower 125.
A common problem in the related art electro-mechanical type point detection and indication systems is slack or lost motion in the mechanism that results due to wear over time. Related art point detection and indication systems of an electro-mechanical type typically detect the position of the point detector bar and related locking device using mechanical linkages to operate mechanical contacts, micro-switches, rotary switches, or a similar device. Over time, the mechanical linkages wear, thereby creating slack or lost motion in the mechanism. With undesired slack or lost motion, if the point detector bar should move unintentionally, thereby indicating unsafe switch point movement, the mechanical linkages detecting the internal point detector bar must move a given distance to take up or absorb the lost motion before the mechanical contacts or similar devices are actuated. The result is decreased sensitivity in switch point monitoring, which ultimately may cause an undesirable safety hazard.
Another problem with related art point detection and indication systems is that their design commonly requires the point detector bar to protrude out both sides of the switch machine. The protrusion of the point detector bar typically causes interference with the manual hand throw lever on dual controlled mechanisms. Interference between the hand throw lever and the protrusion of the internal point detector bar creates a pinch point 180 for a manual operator's hands, which is a safety hazard.
Another problem with related art point detection and indication systems is the complex manner that is required for adjusting a two-piece point detector bar that is connected to the switch machine and the track. As shown in FIG. 1, the two-piece point detector bar comprising point detector bar 120 and movable adjustment sleeve 160 typically passes through and is held in place by the bearings 150, 155. The point detector bar 120 is located on the track side 140 of the switch machine 105, and the movable adjustment sleeve 160 is located on the opposing track side 145 of the switch machine 105. The point detector bar 120 must be adjusted first at the fixed independent field side 140 of the switch machine, and then the movable adjustment sleeve 160 must be adjusted, thereby to align the cam followers 125, 130 and the mechanical linkages 135 to detect properly the normal cam 178 and the reverse cam 175, respectively. The complexity associated with adjusting the related art point detection systems requires a certain level of highly skilled and mechanically-inclined personnel to work on these devices. Maintaining a staff of highly skilled people is very costly to the railroads, and train operations typically become jeopardized by high personnel turnover rates and unavailability of personnel.
Consequently, a need exists for a point detection system that may be utilized with indication means, such as a related art circuit controller, for instance, wherein the point detection system minimizes the problems associated with: the slack or lost motion that results due to wear over time in the related art electro-mechanical type point detection systems; the point detection bar that protrudes from both sides of the switch machine; and the complex manner of adjusting related art two-piece point detection bars in a specified sequence.

Captivity point detection system with single switch position target