text:
SO u were commenting in the air all this time? Wow! By the way, did u travel with Singapore Airline?
Bienvenu en France de Montesquieu
High Priest just called the fake profile out big time. For once he said something constructive. Bravo!
I want to learn spanish from julian now, Catherine.^^ haha
@Jennny & King, that's not Spanish but French. Swag can teach u also
hahahaha I bet someone will think i didn't know that Catherine 's words is French , but i can't image is you , haha HP ,since such a long time , you even can't tell what can people have ? Swag is your friend?
What do people have Jenny? Everyone on this site, those who like and u dislike HP are my friends. I forgot to mention Saintro also, she can teach u too coz, I saw them writing in French here sometime.
haha thanks for adverice anyway , i already have the one who can really teach me well, so i don;t need to bother others .
haha By the way , people have what they have.
language is a beautiful thing.
and i want to have a HP computer.......it is better to use MIc,phone.....
saibo, why not Barcelona..................?
Jenny, u serioulsly u like the Mic? That's a nice one, how big is the micphone u like? SO u like also singing then I guess?
I need the MIc to talk ,,,,,,,,,,,sing sucks......
yeap, i may do it for you >>>>>><<<<<<
HAhahahaha now you know how diffcult is chinese can be .........................


text:
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
|Publication number
|Publication type
|Application number
|Publication date
|Oct 12, 1982
|Filing date
|Nov 14, 1978
|Priority date
|Nov 14, 1978
|Publication number
|Charles E. Flickinger, Richard C. Born
|Original Assignee
|Cutler-Hammer, Inc.
|Export Citation
|BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan
|Patent Citations (11), Referenced by (41), Classifications (11)
|External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, Espacenet
The present invention relates to a communications terminal which provides a means for interconnecting a plurality of programmable controllers into a large programmable controller network permitting communication of control information between remotely located programmable controllers. Each programmable controller is associated with a communications terminal, and the communications terminals are connected in a communications loop to form a distributed control system.
An integrated circuit programmable controller which can be readily interfaced with the communications terminal disclosed herein is described in a commonly assigned co-pending application Ser. No. 841,431, filed Oct. 12, 1977.
A programmable controller is a special purpose computer which functions to compute the logic status represented by interconnected contacts, where the contacts are either external (such as relay contacts, limit switches and pushbuttons) or internal. Internal contacts are those controlled by internal coils. The end result of a logic combination is then either placed into an internal coil to energize or de-energize it or is transmitted to the outside to control such external devices as solenoids.
The programming basis of the programmable controller disclosed in the above-identified co-pending application may be termed wire-number programming. That form of programming commences with the assignment of wire numbers to each of the wires connecting nodes in a ladder diagram representation of the electromechanical relay logic. The instructions written by the programmer define the logic connected to each wire number. The programmable controller then determines the status of each wire number and maintains a complete record in an internal memory for that purpose. As shown in that application, the programming method is relatively simple since the result of every logic operation is in memory and the programmer need not keep track of what has and has not been stored. The continuous maintenance of wire number status permits trouble shooting by checking wire numbers in memory. It also permits interconnection of programmable controllers utilizing the communication terminal disclosed herein.
As in the case of conventional programmable controllers, the programmable controller used with the present invention is intended to be located in the vicinity of the external contacts providing input to it and also in the vicinity of the devices being controlled by the programmable controller such as solenoids.
Although fairly large programmable controllers having significant computation capacity can be produced by adding additional elements to the prior art controllers, such large centrally located programmable controllers are relatively inconvenient for use in controlling the operation of a process which involves a number of geographically dispersed external contacts and coils. Using the prior art techniques separate conductor pairs are required to be run from the central programmable controller to each of the remote contact coils.
The communications terminal disclosed herein provides a relatively simple means for providing for the interconnection of a plurality of programmable controllers into a looped distributed control system. The attributes of the communications terminal are such that it can be interfaced with the programmable controller by plugging it into an input/output module slot in a programmable controller. The preferred embodiment shown can be directly plugged into any one of the input/output module slots of the programmable controller disclosed in the above-identified co-pending application Ser. No. 841,431.
The communications terminal disclosed herein is also particularly desirable since its use with a programmable controller is "transparent" to users, meaning that the user of the system generally continues to be able to program the individual programmable controllers as if they were free standing and not interconnected in a looped distributed control system.
The user is able to set up the distributed control system by inserting a communications terminal module in any one of the input/output slots of a programmable controller. After communications terminals have been interfaced with a plurality of programmable controllers, the programmable controllers can in turn be interconnected in a loop using a shielded, twisted pair cable.
Each programmable controller/communications terminal unit, which is referred to herein as a "box" is programmed with an identification number. One of the boxes is designated as a "master" during the initialization and start up of the system. It is necessary that one box function as a master and the remainder of the boxes function as slaves, to provide a smooth automatic start up of the system. After the system has been started up and is running, the master-slave relationship is not necessary, and each of the units functions with the same authority.
One object of the present invention is to provide a novel communications terminal for use with a conventional programmable controller to permit interconnection of multiple programmable controllers utilizing similar communications terminals into a distributed control system to greatly increase the computational capacity of the programmable controllers while significantly reducing the need for large numbers of wires between the programmable controller and remotely located controlled devices and remotely located sensors and switches.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a distributed control system employing the novel communications terminal described in the above object.
The above, as well as the other objects of the invention, will become apparent when reading the following description of the drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a distributed system showing the interconnection of multiple programmable controllers using communications terminals according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the communications terminal.
FIG. 3 is a chart showing the frame formats for the data handled by the communications terminal.
FIGS. 4A through 4H are a detailed schematic diagram of a communications terminal, and FIG. 4 shows their arrangement.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the interconnection of four programmable controllers in a loop using communications terminals according to the present invention. Each of the programmable controllers 10, 11, 12, and 13 is associated with a communications terminal 14, 15, 16, and 17, respectively. The communications terminals are interconnected in a loop with two conductor cables 21, 22, 23, and 24, which may each be up to several thousand feet in length.
Although FIG. 1 shows only four programmable controllers and communications terminals in the loop distributed system, the preferred embodiment shown herein can accommodate up to 40 boxes in the loop without modification, and an even larger number of boxes can be interconnected with a modified terminal without departing from the spirit of our invention.
The combination of each programmable controller and its associated communications terminal is referred to below as a "box". As indicated in FIG. 1, the combinations of programmable controllers 10 through 13, and communications terminals 14 through 17 are designated as boxes 1 through 4, although the system could function equally as well if they were designated as boxes 10, 30, 20, and 35, respectively, for example. The box designations are externally applied and the boxes are not required to be interconnected in any particular numerical sequence.
Communication between the communications terminals and programmable controllers are shown in the simplified block diagram of FIG. 1 as occuring through conductors or channels 28, 29, 30, and 31, respectively, although the specific interconnections between the communications terminals and the programmable controllers are discussed more comprehensively below in connection with the detailed schematic of FIG. 4A through 4H.
Although the preferred embodiment of the communications terminal disclosed herein can be directly plugged into any input/output module slot of the programmable controller disclosed in co-pending application Ser. No. 841,431, the communications terminal can be modified without departing from the invention to be interfaced with other presently available programmable controllers using wire number programming to provide the same communications and interconnection advantages.
FIG. 1 also shows a computer 35 interfaced with communications terminal 17 of box 4 through a connector 36. One or more computers can be interfaced with communications terminals in the distributed loop control system. The terminal shown in the detailed schematic of FIG. 4A through 4H cannot be interfaced with both a programmable controller and a computer as shown, unless the capacity of the T/R Buffer of FIG. 4C is increased, but such a modification can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. It is not necessary to include a computer in the system however, since the programmable controller network will operate without any computer being present in the interconnected system.
FIG. 2 is a simplified block diagram of communications terminal 17 of FIG. 1 which is associated with programmable controller 13 to comprise BOX 4 in the loop system. Communications terminal 17 holds up to 60 bits of input information for use by the programmable controller 13. This input information always resides in buffer memory 42, which is shown in FIG. 2 and additionally identified as "THIS BOX" buffer memory. When programmable controller 13 needs a remote input bit, it accesses buffer memory 42 and takes the particular information bit in real time.
In order to fully understand the transfer of information between the communications terminal and the programmable controller, it is first necessary to discuss briefly the organization of information in the programmable controller and the internal timing of the programmable controller.
FIG. 13 of co-pending application Ser. No. 841,431 shows the timing wave forms of the programmable controller. The F0, F1, F2, and F3 signals all correspond to identically phased signals used in the communications terminal 17. The F0, F1, F2, and F3 periods are the four segments of the programmable controller cycles.
One additional timing signal, WSP, is generated to provide a pulse in the last half of the F3 interval for strobing data into the slot rams and for strobing the box ID into the INPUT PORT on the communications terminal. The WSP pulse is generated in the communications terminal and is a pulse which occurs approximately in the middle of the last half of the F3 interval.
There are two special command words necessary in the programmable controller to permit it to be used with the communications terminal for intercommunication in a loop system. The first necessary special command word is the "remote word" command, causing the value of the contact specified by the F2 field in the programmable controller to be transmitted to the box specified by the two least significant characters in the F3 field and, in turn, to the specified box's output coil specified by the F1 field. The wire numbers 900-939 in the F3 field of the programmable controller are reserved for the "remote word" command. A detailed discussion of the programming of the programmable controller appears in the co-pending application Ser. No. 841,431, previously identified.
The other special command word which must be available in the programmable controller permits the programming of the box identification in the programmable controller. To accomplish this, the wire numbers 940-979 in the F3 field in the programmable controller are reserved for the "box identification" command. Specifically, numbers 940-979 define box addresses 00-39, respectively, to characterize each of the boxes in a communications system having up to 40 boxes. Thus, in order to program the programmable controller with the information that its box address is 16, the user of the programmable controller would enter the digits 001 in both the F1 and F2 fields, and the number 956 in the F3 field to designate the box as box address 16. Further circuitry discussed in detail in connection with FIGS. 4A through 4H receives the box identification command and generates the box identification byte for use in the communications terminal.
As shown in FIG. 3, there are four types of fourteen byte data frames that can be transmitted between the communications terminals. In the first column of FIG. 3 is the general description of the data frames. The particular types of frames are the synch frame, the box frame, the fault frame, and the computer frame as shown in the second through fifth columns of FIG. 3.
The box frame is the basic frame used in the system for communication of data between programmable controllers. The box frame contains data in bytes 3 through 11. The first byte identifies the particular box with which the frame is associated and for which the data is intended. Thus, as each frame is received in terminal 17, the first determination made by the terminal is whether the frame is intended for box 4. If the received frame is associated with box 4, the data in the data bytes will be used as remote inputs to its associated programmable controller 13. The remote data was transmitted from other boxes 1, 2, and 3 in the system, having been processed by one of the remote programmable controllers 10, 11 or 12.
The other situation occurs when the box frame received in box 4 does not have an identification which corresponds to the box identification of the box receiving it. In those circumstances, box 4 merely adds its data, where necessary, to predetermined data locations in the frame for use in the box corresponding to the box identification of the frame. The data supplied to the box frame by the terminal is that data from terminal 17 for input to the particular remote programmable controller identified in the initial or box byte.
An additional frame type is the fault frame shown in FIG. 3. The fault frame occurs when there has been an error in the data received. Each data frame is checked for validity by the communications terminal as it is received through a parity check scheme carried out in the loop UART 50. If an error is detected, a fault frame characterized by unique first, second, thirteenth and fourteenth bytes as shown in the fourth column of FIG. 3 is substituted for the frame having the erroneous data. Since the fault frame, by definition, does not carry a box identification byte in the first location, the data frame carrying the erroneous data has been removed from the system. In other words, a frame is present in the system which does not specifically belong to any particular box. Since the frame that was removed had previously been identified with one of the boxes in a system, the removal of that frame results in a situation where one box in the system no longer has an associated box frame. After the fault frame has traveled around the loop to reach the box which no longer has a box frame carrying its box identification, the fault frame will be picked up by that box by means described in more detail below.
A fourth type of frame is the frame shown in the fifth column of FIG. 3 for computer interface so that one of the stations in the loop can be a computer. The provision of a special frame for the computer permits the computer to modify information in the distributed system in a programmable way or permits the computer to monitor information being circulated in the system. The first byte is used to identify the particular computer with which it is associated. The computer frame can be configured to command a particular box to permit examination of the status of each of its remote I/O's and the box would supply that information and retransmit it within the computer frame so that the computer frame, when it again reached the terminal to which the computer is connected, could extract the information to monitor it or use it as information input for further processing prior to transmitting new command information out to other boxes. Although the provision for a computer frame and for communication with a computer is shown in this hardware, the details of its operation are not yet fully worked out and are therefore not disclosed in detail herein.
The synch or synchronizing frame shown in the second column of FIG. 3 is used during the initialization and start up of the system. As shown in FIG. 1, box 1 comprised of programmable controller 10 and communications terminal 14 is designated as a master. As indicated previously, this designation of one of the units as a master and the other units as slave can be accomplished by setting a switch (or inserting a jumper) on the communications terminals in each box. The single master unit in the loop communications system initiates the operation of the system by transmitting a synch frame having the specific configuration shown in FIG. 3.
The purpose of the synch frame is to establish communication between the terminals within the loop. The master station transmits the synch frame and awaits receipt of the synch frame after it has been received and retransmitted by each of the terminals in the loop. The master then replaces the first synch frame that it receives back with its box frame. Then as each slave station receives the master box frame it will retransmit it and then grab the next synch frame for its box frame. Each slave station treats the synch frame received as its box frame and transmits it on the line with its box identification placed in the first byte of the frame. The slave also transmits all zeros in its data bytes 3 through 12. Subsequent synch frames received after a box has transmitted its own box frame are transmitted without alteration. After the start up has been completed, there is no longer any distinction between the master and slave boxes. Also, there should not be any synch frames left on the loop.
The box frames shown in the frame format chart of FIG. 3 all carry a first byte or box byte with the ID for the box (or the computer in the case of the computer frame). The second byte is a control byte which is used as a counter which is reset to 0 each time the frame is transmitted from the box identified in the box byte. Each time the box frame is received at the next box in the loop, the control byte is indexed a single count before it is retransmitted. Since the maximum number of boxes in a loop is 40, the indexing of the count in the control byte of the frame beyond 39 indicates the existence of a problem since the control byte was not updated by the box identified in the box byte. Thus, the control byte is set to 0 by the box whose ID corresponds to the BOX byte and is incremented by one count by each other box in the system as it moves around the loop. Once the count in the control word gets to 40, it is no longer incremented. The meaning of a box frame in the system with a control count of 40 or more is, for example, suggestive of a situation where a box has been removed from the loop during the processing of a box frame associated with a different box. Such an occurance would initially take the frame associated with the other terminal out of the sequence of data frames being transmitted while its own box frame remained in the loop. Since its own frame would never be reset to 0, the count in the control byte of that frame would eventually reach 40. Receipt of that box frame with a control byte having a count of 40 would indicate to the first box receiving it which requires a new frame that the frame is open and can be utilized.
An open frame corresponds to a fault frame. In other words, once the count in the control byte reaches 40, the first station to detect that condition will substitute a fault frame for the detected box frame, and the first box which no longer has its associated frame circulating around the loop senses that condition by counting the number of frames it has received without receiving its own box frame and takes the first fault frame received and converts it to its own frame by putting its box identification in the first byte and setting the control byte to 0. Thus, at any given time the number of box frames in the loop system corresponds to the number of boxes in the system, and the system automatically deletes transmission of data frames associated with boxes which have been removed from the system.
As indicated in FIG. 3, the data is carried in bytes 3 through 12 of the frame. Each byte has two initial zeroes followed by six data bits. Thus, it is possible to transmit 60 remote I/O bits per box. In other words, remote boxes of the system can pass up to 60 remote I/O bits to a particular box for use by its programmable controller. Using the terminology in co-pending application Ser. No. 841,431, the data is organized in six possible "slots" and 10 "elements" per slot. As indicated in FIG. 3, in the first data byte, there occur all of the element 0 bits for slots 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. Thus, the numbering is 0-5 for the slots. The next data byte has the data for all of the element one slots. The two initial zeroes shown in the data bytes of the box frame of FIG. 3 could be utilized as data bits also. This would increase the capacity from 60 to 80 remote I/O bits per box. Additional data bytes would be necessary to expand the capacity beyond 80 remote I/O bits per box.
The final bytes in the frame format are the error check byte and box byte, as shown in FIG. 3. Thus, the first and last bytes of the frame are always the same and are checked for that condition as received in each box. The entire 14 bytes of the frame are loaded byte-by-byte into receive buffer 40 after their parity is checked in loop UART 50. Before any use is made of the information in the terminal 14, the first and final bytes are checked by control logic 64 to verify that they correspond. If they fail to correspond, a fault frame is generated.
The thirteenth byte, the error check byte, serves as a check byte over the previous 12 bytes. Thus, the error check byte is a check sum of the first 12 bytes. Again, as the frame is received in each terminal, it is checked by using control logic 64 to independently form a check sum for the first 12 bytes received. That check sum is then compared to the transmitted check sum in the 13th byte received with the frame. If they fail to correspond, a fault frame is generated.
In addition to the checking for agreement between the first and last bytes, and performing the comparison of the computed check sum to the transmitted check sum, the terminal checks individual bytes as they are received to ascertain that they have the correct parity. A ninth bit is transmitted with each byte, but is not specifically shown on the frame formats of FIG. 3. That ninth bit is the parity bit. Each box receiving data bytes checks their parity in UART 50, as received vs. the parity transmitted. Where the parity of the received byte does not compare to the parity transmitted, the initial zeroes of such data bytes can be reset to a 01, for example, to indicate the detection of an error in that particular byte.
As indicated in FIG. 2, terminal 17 contains three memories, 40, 42, and 44, in addition to the memory registers associated with control logic 64 and UARTs 50 and 62. The transmitter-receiver buffer memory 40 is connected via data bus 46 and control bus 48 to the remainder of the elements in the terminal. Transmitter-receiver buffer 40 stores the data frame received by terminal 17 from the loop UART or universal asynchronous receiver and transmitter 50 which in turn receives its input from receiver 52 which is connected to an input conductor 23 in FIG. 1 and is connected through a transmitter 54 to a 2-conductor cable 24.
In box 4 in the block diagram of FIG. 1, an auxiliary computer 35 is shown connected via input bus 37 and output bus 36 through receiver 58 and transmitter 60 to auxiliary UART 62, which is identical in its operational aspects to the loop UART 50. The auxiliary UART 62 permits communication between the auxiliary computer 35 and communications terminal 17, and through that terminal, to the other communications terminals 14, 15, and 16 in the loop of FIG. 1.
UART 50, in FIG. 2, receives data from conductors 23 and passes the data frame to transmitter-receiver buffer memory 40 via data bus 46. As data is being received from conductors 23 into loop UART 50 and transferred to appropriate locations in the transmitter-receiver buffer memory 40, the UART may be simultaneously transmitting on conductors 24 a frame which was stored in appropriate locations in transmitter-receiver buffer memory 40 for retransmission to the loop. Thus, UART 50 is capable of both transmitting and receiving at the same time. Loop UART 50 receives data in bit serial form. After receipt of a byte of information, the byte is transferred on data bus 46 into the receiver portion of buffer 40. The transmitter portion of buffer 40 is used to store the frames being transmitted under control of control logic 64.
After receipt of an entire frame in the receiver-buffer memory 40, several checks of the frame are performed by control logic 64. The initial and final bytes of the frame are checked to determine whether it corresponds to the box I/D of the terminal receiving it. If it does correspond, and if there are no parity errors and the check sum is correct, the data is then loaded into the THIS BOX buffer memory 42, which is the buffer memory used for storage of remote I/O data for programmable controller 13 associated with the terminal 17. It is the remote I/O memory 42 which is constantly being read by the programmable controller 13 by way of device address bus 66, which addresses particular locations in the remote I/O buffer memory 42 to deliver a particular data byte to bit selector 68' by the way of data bus 70. In such situations, the programmable controller has priority over communications within the communications terminal. Whenever the programmable controller requires a byte from the communications terminal 17 it will interrupt communications in that box and read out the byte that it needs from the I/O buffer memory 42 and receive the selected bit on its internal bus 69.
If the data frame received has a box ID in the first byte which does not correspond to the identification of the particular box 17 receiving it, that received frame is held in the receiver buffer and updated in appropriate locations with data intended for that box by the programmable controller 13 associated with terminal 17. Data from programmable controller 13 associated with each of the remote programmable controllers has previously been stored in the remote boxes buffer memory 44 after being loaded therein through conductor 68 from the programmable controller. Loop UART 50 then retransmits the data frames having box IDs not corresponding to the box ID of terminal 14 after taking the information stored in the receiver portion of buffer memory 40 and updating it with the information intended for the box identified in the box ID for that frame.
In order to achieve a configuration for the terminal circuitry which will permit the programmable controller to always have priority over the communications within and between terminals, FIG. 2 shows tri-state gates 70, 72, 74, 76, and 78, associated with the programmable controller device address bus 66, the programmable controller input bus and the control logic address bus. The individual tri-state gates function as follows. Gate 78 is used to enable the reading out of the remote bytes from the remote I/O buffer memory 42 at the correct time in the timing sequence. This is denoted by the function F2 used to actuate the gate. The functions F1, F2, and F3 are specific timing functions discussed above and shown in detail in FIG. 13 of co-pending application Ser. No. 841,431, identified more fully above. The remaining tri-state gates 70, 72, 74, and 76 are utilized to resolve any conflicts which would occur between the control logic 64 of terminal 17 and programmable controller 13 and to assure programmable controller access to the communications terminal.
The timing signals function as follows. During interval F1, control logic 64 is permitted access to memory elements 42 and 44. During timing intervals F2 and F3, the programmable controller may need access to memory elements 42 and 44 and tri-state gates 70, and 72 block control logic 64 from gaining access to memories 42 and 44 except during interval F1. Thus, the possibility of contention between control logic 64 of the communications terminal and the associated programmable controller is resolved by giving the programmable controller exclusive access to the memory buffers 42 and 44 during time intervals F2 and F3 of the programmable controller operating cycle. The programmable controller, therefore, has access to the memories in the communications terminal during each complete cycle of programmable controller operation, whether the access is needed or not. Also, on every programmable controller cycle, the F1 portion of the cycle is also dedicated for use by the communications terminal control logic 64. Since the programmable controller cannot use information from the communications terminal during that segment of the programmable controller's cycle, there is no delay of the operation of the programmable controller due to the allocation of a specific period for the operation of the terminal functions.
Although the block diagram of FIG. 2 is adequate for description of the operation of the communications terminal, some of the features of the system can best be understood by reference to the detailed schematic diagram in FIGS. 4A through 4H. The detailed schematic shows a number of commercially available functional circuits shown in block form with the pin designations specified by the manufacturer. Unless otherwise specified, the circuits are designated by their RCA designations although functionally equivalent circuits may be available from Hughes and others under different identification numbers.
In the detailed schematic, the various multiple conductor busses are shown with only two conductors explicitly shown. The address bus is an eight conductor bus with its various conductors designated A0, A1, A2, etc. The data bus is an eight conductor bus whose various conductors are designated D0, D1, D2, etc.
In addition to the explicit identification of pin numbers on the commercial circuit elements, one or more alpha numeric characters describing the function of those terminals are also indicated within the outlines of the circuits. The alphanumeric descriptive terms generally correspond to those used by the manufacturers of the circuits.
The various input signals to the circuit elements may also be labelled with alphanumeric characters. Those characters which are enclosed in a circle or a box indicate that the particular signal either originated in or is to be delivered to the programmable controller. Those input signals which are not enclosed originate within the communications terminal. The inter-connection of most, but not all, of those signals is explicitly shown.
Turning now to the detailed schematic of FIG. 4, and turning specifically to FIG. 4A, receiver 52 is shown receiving its input from conductor pair 23 through reed switch RR1, and having its output connected to data input terminal 20 of the loop UART. The data output terminal 25 of the loop UART is connected to the input transmitter 54, which delivers its output through reed switch RR2 to conductor pair 24. In an entirely analogous manner, receiver 58 and transmitter 60 are connected to the computer UART which corresponds to the so-called auxiliary UART 62 shown in FIG. 2. Both the loop UART and computer UART are CDP 1854 UARTs manufactured by RCA. The UARTS are operated in mode 1 as described in the RCA Cosmac Micro-Processor Product Guide, MPG 180, published by RCA Corporation in 1977. The mode 1 operation of the UARTs makes them suitable for direct interface with control logic 64 as shown in FIG. 2. As indicated previously, the terminal shown in FIGS. 4A through 4H is to be connected to a programmable controller or to a computer but not to both simultaneously.
The control logic 64, or micro-processor, as shown in FIG. 4A is an eight bit CDP 1802 micro-processor.
Although FIG. 4A shows mechanization of control logic 64 in the form of a micro-processor, it will be realized that the control logic could alternatively be mechanized with conventional logic elements without departing from the spirit of the invention.
Both the loop and computer UARTs receive at their terminals 17 and 40, the receive and transmit clock signals, which are generated by a clock generator 90, which is driven by an inverter 91, which is in turn driven by a clock generating circuit comprised of a crystal 92, a pair of capacitors 93 and 94, and a resistor 95 connected in parallel across crystal 92. The serial data entering the UART on terminal 20 is received in an internal shift register and transferred to an internal receiver holding register. A multiplex circuit is then utilized on command to transfer the data in parallel to the data bus positions D0-D7 from the receiver buffer terminals designated RB0 through RB7 in FIG. 4A. In a similar manner, data received in the loop UART from data bus positions D0-D7 connected to transmitter buffer terminal designated TB0 through TB7 on the loop UART is loaded into the transmitter holding register in the UART and is then passed to the transmitter shift register where a parity bit is added and the byte is shifted out of the UART from terminal 25 through transmitter 54 to conductor 24 and the loop.
The control logic of the communications terminal is provided by the CDP 1802 micro-processor and its control program which is stored in the 2 K by 8 PROM memory shown in FIG. 4B. The clock for the micro-processor is provided by crystal 92, which is connected to the XTAL and clock inputs at terminals 38 and 1, respectively, of the micro-processor. The clock generator 90 is a circuit used to divide down the crystal frequency used by the micro-processor to supply the correct clock frequency to the UART. The clock frequency for the micro-processor is 2.4576 megahertz, as established by the crystal 94. The frequencies available from clock generator 90 allow operation of the UART at frequencies such as 4.8 kilobaud, 9.6 kilobaud, 19.2 kilobaud, and 38.4 kilobaud, depending upon the distances desired between boxes and other similar matters of design choice. The clock generator also provides on conductor 100, a clock input to silence timer 101, shown in FIG. 4A, which is used in the preferred embodiment to generate a two millisecond period of silence between successive data frames, so that at the end of a received frame, and before the commencement of the transmission of a new frame, the communications terminal and its programmable controller have time to process the frame previously received.
The silence interval also is an efficient time to switch new boxes into the system so that a minimum of interference will be generated to the data frames in the loop as a new box is added to the loop. This is accomplished by enabling the receiver of the box to be inserted on the line, and determining whether the silence interval is being received and, if it is, inserting the new box on the loop during the silence interval by immediately closing the switch RR2 between the transmitter and the loop communication line. This is performed under the supervision of control logic 64.
FIGS. 4B through 4G show a number of memory elements forming the memories 40, 42, and 44 of FIG. 2. When it addresses a memory unit, the micro-processor generates out a 16 bit address which is multiplexed onto the memory address bus. In the preferred embodiment shown, at the beginning of each micro-processor cycle, part of the top eight address bits, are latched into the CDP 1859 latch decoder shown in FIG. 4B, where the bits are stored and transmitted onto lines A8 and A9 when the low order address bits from the micro-processor are delivered to busses A0 through A7.
The 2 K and 8 PROM memory shown in FIG. 4B is used to store the control program for the micro-processor control logic and is part of the control logic 64 shown in FIG. 2.
The designation of a particular controller as either master or slave in the loop communication shown in FIG. 1 is accomplished by means of a switch as shown in FIG. 4C. Terminal 22 of the input port, a CDP 1852 I/O port is connected to the VDD, or approximately 6 volts if the terminal is to function as a slave unit, and is connected to zero volts if it is intended to function as a master unit. As explained above, the master-slave terminology only has relevance in connection with the initialization or start up of the loop communications system. After the loop is in operation, there is no operational distinction between master and slave terminals.
The box identification for each of the terminals is stored in the memory of the programmable controller. Thus, when the programmable controller is coded, it must include a special command word identifying the box in the system. Thus, in terms of FIG. 1, the programmable controller 13 designated as number 4 will have coded in its memory a box ID of 4. Similarly, programmable controllers 10, 11, and 12, will be coded as boxes 1, 2, and 3, respectively. The input port is gated by the WSP, or write strobe pulse, the box word or BW logic signal, and D6 from the programmable controller. The BW logic command is generated by the circuitry shown at the lower right hand corner of FIG. 4H. The BSC1 signal shown corresponds to the C1 signal shown in application Ser. No. 841,431, and BCS3 corresponds to C3. The box identification word is read from the programmable controller onto the communications terminal data bus and into an internal data register in the micro-processor for later use in comparing the box ID to the first byte of a received frame to determine whether the received frame is intended for the box receiving it, or is intended for another box.
Turning now to FIG. 4C, the 32�8 T/R buffer is the transmit and receive buffer corresponding to element 40 in FIG. 2. The buffer utilizes an RCA CDP 1824 32�8 RAM memory, as does the remote I/O ram or buffer shown in FIG. 4D, which corresponds to the buffer memory 42 of FIG. 2. As indicated previously, the remote I/O memory 42 is the memory that holds the remote outputs for any given box or for the programmable controller forming a part of that box. The information stored in this memory is the data to be passed to programmable controller 13 from the remote boxes in the looped communication system, and is taken from the "THIS BOX" buffer memory in real time by the programmable controller at the point in the programmable controller operating cycle when the data is needed. Sixty bits of such data are stored in the embodiment shown.
Referring briefly now to FIG. 3, showing the data frame format, the data in bytes 3 through 12, designated in the first column as D1 through D10, is stored in the remote I/O RAM of the FIG. 4D in the same format. Namely, the byte designated D1 is stored in word zero, the first word, so that if the programmable controller associated with the terminal wanted to read out bit zero of slot three, it would have to provide a slot address and a byte or an element address. The element address in this case would be zero. If the slot address were a three and the element address a zero, the terminal would read out word zero from the remote I/O RAM into the analog multiplexer shown at the bottom of 4D, a type 4067 16 channel analog multiplexer/demultiplexer manufactured by Fairchild Semiconductor and others. Thus, the entire six bits of data for the selected byte would be read out and the analog multiplexer would be used to select one of those six bits for use in the programmable controller.
When the local programmable controller requires a bit, it supplies the element and slot address. The data byte for the element is read out of the remote I/O RAM to the analog multiplexer and selection of the slot address is made by the analog multiplexer. The output of the analog multiplexer at pin 1 is delivered to a bus driver amplifier indicated in FIG. 4D and onto what is designated as the PC, or programmable controller, B bus, a data bus internal to the programmable controller. The bit is then utilized by the programmable controller in exactly the same manner as if it had been in the programmable controller internal memory or was from a local input.
The analog multiplexer corresponds to bit selector 68', shown in FIG. 2, while the bus driver corresponds to the gate 78 and receives its control signal from gate 102 on FIG. 4D, which receives an F2 timing signal input, as well as the programmable controller control signal BCS 3. Access to the communications terminal by the programmable controller for a needed bit of data is made in real time, with the programmable controller having priority over the operations in the terminal.
FIGS. 4E, 4F, and 4G each contain two one thousand bit (type 1821, having 1024 bit capacity) random access memories which store the remote data supplied by box 4 for some other box in the system. Thus, the programmable controller 13 associated with box 4 must be able to write into these RAMs the data which is to be transmitted to other programmable controllers in the system. Periodically the values stored in these RAMs will be read out by the micro-processor and put into the data frame for the programmable controller for which they are intended by the 32�8 T/R, or transmit-receive buffer, shown in FIG. 4C. The 6-bit data byte that is being updated is read out of the six slot RAMs, designated slot zero through 5 in FIGS. 4E through 4G, then put into a frame that has been received. The actual updating of the received data frame takes place during the two millisecond silence interval which occurs between data frames. At any particular point in time when programmable controller 13 reaches a point in its program where it is required to update a data byte, it has access priority to the RAMs during periods F2 and F3, and is able to do so without waiting for other processing to be completed in the terminal. Thus, the micro-processor in the terminal is required to do its operation on the slot RAMs during the F1 period when the programmable controller does not require data or have data for transmission to a remote programmable controller.
The data is stored in the RAMs according to a particular format. The remote bytes for the box designated as box 1 are stored in words 16-25, for example. For each of the boxes 0-39, there is a corresponding section in the RAM memory for the storing of its associated data. Each box has, in fact, a reserved section of 16 words, only 10 of which are normally used, and those 10 words, being six bits each in length, give 60 bits of information for each box. In actual application, many of the byte locations are not used because the particular box or more specifically, the particular programmable controller associated with the terminal may only supply a few remote inputs for the remainder of the system. If a box supplies only two remote bits for the whole system, it uses only two bits in the entire array of slot memories. Each time those locations are checked by the programmable controller, it will update their status in the slot RAMs.
If programmable controller 13 and its communications terminal 17, shown in FIGS. 4A through 4H, is designated as box 4 and it supplies remote signals to box 1, the receipt of a box 1 frame in box 4, causes the values supplied by box 4 to be read out of the slot RAM and inserted into the frame for box 1. The information is read out of the slot RAM and into the transmit-receive buffer shown in FIG. 4C for transmission in the data frame.
The updating is accomplished by taking the data for the remote location from the slot RAM and loading it into the receive buffer in the proper locations during the silence period between frames. Thus, if the terminal is box 4 and has the box 1 frame in the receive buffer, that frame is updated by whatever remote I/O information the programmable controller 13 associated with that terminal has stored for transmission to box 1. After the updating is done during this silence interval, the frame is transmitted to the next box with updated values from box 4.
The latch/decoder shown in FIG. 4E is a 4515 commercially available circuit which selects one of the six slot RAMs for writing at any particular time since only one bit is to be updated at a particular time. Thus, a decision must be made during updating as to the identification of the RAM in which the desired bit is located and also the location within the RAM. This is accomplished by selecting the proper slot RAM using the latch/decoder. The latch/decoder receives input signals from the programmable controller designated D7, D6, D5, and D4, shown as inputs to the latch/decoder at the bottom of FIG. 4E. These four signals permit selection of the desired one of the six RAMs to be accessed.
Selection of the area in the memory of a particular slot corresponding to a particular box is done by the programmable controller with the six bits, D0 through D5, from the programmable controller, and shown as inputs in FIG. 4H. Those six bits select the box I/D area. In recalling that the box I/Ds can reach from 0-39, it is noted that six bits are all that are necessary to characterize a box I/D. Thus, the top six bits of the ten bit address for the slot RAMS are defined by D0 through D5 to define the area unique to the box and within that area unique to the box, the output of a 4076 latch receiving programmable controller inputs D3, D2, D1, and D0, selects the particular element. If we were attempting to locate element zero of box 30, the circuitry would select the area corresponding to box 30 and go to the word zero within that area.
The micro-processor has a similar capability to select bytes from the RAMs. It can select bytes in much the same way as the programmable controller, but only during the F1 protion of the programmable controller timing sequence where the programmable controller does not require access to the slot RAMs. It reads out all six bits at once, by selecting the same word and the same bit in all six slot RAMs.
|Cited Patent
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|Aug 24, 1962
|Jan 9, 1968
|Sperry Rand Corp
|Data processing system
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|Burroughs Corp
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|Oct 8, 1970
|Jul 25, 1972
|Bell Telephone Labor Inc
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|Nov 9, 1970
|Aug 29, 1972
|Burroughs Corp
|Digital data communication system providing a recirculating poll of a plurality of remote terminal units
|Oct 27, 1971
|Dec 19, 1972
|Interface multiplexer
|Feb 15, 1972
|Dec 25, 1973
|Terminal interface for a serial loop communications system having store and forward capability
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|Apr 23, 1974
|Polling mechanism for transferring control from one data processing system or subsystem to another
|Mar 1, 1974
|Apr 22, 1975
|Rca Corp
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|May 6, 1975
|Dec 28, 1976
|Burroughs Corporation
|Data communication system having a large number of terminals
|Jun 30, 1975
|Feb 8, 1977
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Data sharing computer network
|Jul 26, 1976
|Jul 25, 1978
|International Business Machines Incorporated
|Method and apparatus for allocating bandwidth on a loop system coupling a cpu channel to bulk storage devices
|Citing Patent
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|Mar 26, 1982
|Aug 28, 1984
|International Business Machines Corporation
|Method of purging erroneous signals from closed ring data communication networks capable of repeatedly circulating such signals
|Feb 24, 1982
|Oct 16, 1984
|Allen-Bradley Company
|Communications network for programmable controllers
|Jun 5, 1979
|Dec 4, 1984
|Fmc Corporation
|Synchronous time-shared data bus system
|Apr 1, 1982
|Jan 22, 1985
|Hitachi, Ltd.
|Method and system of loop transmission
|Jan 6, 1983
|Feb 11, 1986
|Omron Tateisi Electronics Co.
|Input/output device for programmable controller
|Nov 29, 1982
|Aug 26, 1986
|Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
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|Oct 28, 1986
|Hitachi, Ltd.
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|Jun 25, 1984
|Dec 16, 1986
|Allen-Bradley Company, Inc.
|I/O scanner for an industrial control
|Sep 21, 1982
|Oct 6, 1987
|Xerox Corporation
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|Oct 27, 1987
|Calabrese Frank A
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|Jun 7, 1988
|Allen-Bradley Company, Inc.
|I/O scanner for an industrial control
|Nov 12, 1986
|Jun 14, 1988
|Akihiro Yamada
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|Sep 20, 1988
|International Computers Limited
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|Apr 30, 1996
|Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.
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|Jun 25, 1996
|Steelcase Inc.
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|Jul 16, 1996
|Sgs-Thomson Microelectronics S.A.
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|Dec 3, 1996
|Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha
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|Goldstar Information & Communications, Ltd.
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|Nov 4, 1997
|Steelcase Inc.
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|Aug 14, 1997
|May 25, 1999
|Steelcase Inc.
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|Aug 14, 1997
|Aug 24, 1999
|Steelcase Inc.
|Communications network for identifying the location of articles relative to a floor plan
|Apr 16, 1999
|Oct 17, 2000
|Steelcase Development Inc.
|Furniture unit having a modular communication network
|Apr 16, 1999
|Apr 3, 2001
|Steelcase Development Inc.
|Communications network for identifying the location of articles relative to a floor plan
|Oct 17, 2000
|Jul 23, 2002
|Steelcase Development Corporation
|Furniture unit having a modular communication network
|Nov 20, 1998
|Oct 1, 2002
|Hyundai Electronics Industries Co., Ltd.
|Semiconductor system having a master device and a slave device
|Mar 2, 2005
|Apr 20, 2010
|Smart Matics International Corp.
|Collision avoidance method for home automation devices using an ethernet hub
|Dec 7, 2006
|Oct 5, 2010
|Integrated Device Technology Inc.
|Common access ring system
|Dec 7, 2006
|Oct 12, 2010
|Integrated Device Technology, Inc.
|Common access ring/sub-ring system
|Jul 16, 2001
|Jan 16, 2003
|Oscar Mora
|Collision avoidance method for home automation devices using an ethernet hub
|Mar 2, 2005
|Jun 23, 2005
|Oscar Mora
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|Integrated Device Technology, Inc.
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|Jan 10, 1986
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|Toshiba Kikai Kabushiki Kaisha
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|Jan 10, 1986
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|Toshiba Kikai Kabushiki Kaisha
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|Alcatel Cit
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|U.S. Classification
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|International Classification
|Cooperative Classification
|European Classification


text:
Iacmcolor.org was registered on new dream network, llc dba dreamhost web hosting on 01 October 1999. The site is almost absent on social networks. It has 0 google plus ones.
The website has a good alexa rank of 19,677,160 and its pagerank stands at 5.
The site is hosted in United States by Rackspace. The webmasters of the website can be contacted at . The domain for the website was purchased through new dream network, llc dba dreamhost web hosting on 01 October 1999 (18 years ago) and will expire in 1 year 1 month.
Domain Name: IACMCOLOR.ORG Domain ID: D10922581-LROR WHOIS Server: Referral URL: Updated Date: 2015-10-02T01:36:01Z Creation Date: 1999-10-01T20:38:44Z Registry Expiry Date: 2016-10-01T20:38:44Z Sponsoring Registrar: New Dream Network, LLC dba DreamHost Web Hosting Sponsoring Registrar IANA ID: 431 Domain Status: ok ID: d9db34878c804f25 Registrant Name: Registrant Organization: Verto Solutions Registrant Street: 1101 17th Street, NW Registrant Street: Suite 700 Registrant City: Washington Registrant State/Province: District of Columbia Registrant Postal Code: 20036 Registrant Country: US Registrant Phone: +1.2022935800 Registrant Phone Ext: Registrant Fax: Registrant Fax Ext: Registrant Email: Admin ID: d9db34878c804f25 Admin Name: Admin Organization: Verto Solutions Admin Street: 1101 17th Street, NW Admin Street: Suite 700 Admin City: Washington Admin State/Province: District of Columbia Admin Postal Code: 20036 Admin Country: US Admin Phone: +1.2022935800 Admin Phone Ext: Admin Fax: Admin Fax Ext: Admin Email: Tech ID: d9db34878c804f25 Tech Name: Tech Organization: Verto Solutions Tech Street: 1101 17th Street, NW Tech Street: Suite 700 Tech City: Washington Tech State/Province: District of Columbia Tech Postal Code: 20036 Tech Country: US Tech Phone: +1.2022935800 Tech Phone Ext: Tech Fax: Tech Fax Ext: Tech Email: Name Server: NS2.RACKSPACE.COM Name Server: NS.RACKSPACE.COM DNSSEC: unsigned "For more information on Whois status codes, please visit Access to Public Interest Registry WHOIS information is provided to assist persons in determining the contents of a domain name registration record in the Public Interest Registry registry database. The data in this record is provided by Public Interest Registry for informational purposes only, and Public Interest Registry does not guarantee its accuracy. This service is intended only for query-based access. You agree that you will use this data only for lawful purposes and that, under no circumstances will you use this data to(a) allow, enable, or otherwise support the transmission by e-mail, telephone, or facsimile of mass unsolicited, commercial advertising or solicitations to entities other than the data recipient's own existing customers; or (b) enable high volume, automated, electronic processes that send queries or data to the systems of Registry Operator, a Registrar, or Afilias except as reasonably necessary to register domain names or modify existing registrations. All rights reserved. Public Interest Registry reserves the right to modify these terms at any time. By submitting this query, you agree to abide by this policy.
|Apache/2.2.15 (Red Hat)
|Sun, 10 Jul 2016 21:11:48 GMT
|text/html; charset=UTF-8


text:
Would you like to see some of the top class acts in the world of rock today and not have to pay a penny?
Then maybe you would like to volunteer at this year's Kaliakra Rock Festival.
We are looking for a group of volunteers to undertake a range of duties this coming summer and in return, we can give you access to all the acts that are playing for free and a space to camp in.
You will also make friends for life and have unbeatable memories of the event. We cannot pay you, but we will be able to supply you with promotional materials and other items such as corporate gift bags and branded pens etc which have the official festival logo on them, as well as other promotional materials belonging to the various bands that participate in the festival. If you have a favourite band that is playing we may be able to throw in a t-shirt or promotional mugs if they are going spare too!
So if you want to apply to volunteer this summer, here's what we need from you.
Basic Requirements for Volunteers
- You Must Be over 18+
We're sorry but you have to be over the age of eighteen on the 23rd August 2017 in order to volunteer at Kaliakra 2017.
- You Must Have Your Proof of ID
We need to see some proof of ID or residency. Ideally this would be a passport, driving licence or other form of photo ID card.
- Be In Good Physical Health
You must be physically capable of completing at least three four hour shifts in the open air, regardless of weather conditions.
We ask that you are in a good condition for work, when you show up for a shift and can let us know in advance if you can't make it.
- Be Polite and Helpful At All Times
You don't need any qualifications to volunteer at our festival, all we ask is that you be polite and helpful at all times and bring a good attitude with you!
- Dress Sensibly and In The Clothes Provided
Although there is no uniform for this role, we ask that you wear sensible shoes – so no sandals or flip flops as it could get muddy! Also to bring warm clothing and plenty of spares, because things will get dirty!
In return we can provide some promotional materials such as Kaliakra Festival t shirt and branded sweat shirt.
- Bring Enough Money/Food For You
The festival lasts for five days and our volunteers are required to attend for one day before the festival begins and to finish one day after it ends. So that is a full seven days.
You will need to ensure that you have enough money, clothing, food and drink and anything else that you might need to last you through this time.
Getting on and off the site could prove difficult, so the more you bring, the easier it will be on you. Of course, there are shops and food stalls available, but this may be rather costly for you over the whole seven day period.


text:
"I love how easy this recipe is to make. It takes just a few things that I usually have on hand, and they are fun to make with the kids. My mom made these cookies when we were little and they never lasted long! Don't worry if you run out of cherries before you run out of dough. You can make a ball, put a thumbprint in it, and fill with a peanut butter cup. Delicious."
Chocolate-Covered Cherry Cookies
0 recipe photos
READY IN:33mins
YIELD:36-48 cookies
Ingredients Nutrition
- 1 (10 ounce) jar maraschino cherries, drained
- 4 tablespoons maraschino cherry juice
- 1⁄2 cup butter
- 1 1⁄2 cups flour
- 1 cup sugar
- 1⁄2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 egg
- 1⁄4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1⁄4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1⁄2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1⁄3 cup sweetened condensed milk
- Preheat your oven to 350°.
- Separate your cherries from the jar, saving the juice for later.
- In an electric mixer, beat butter till soft.
- Add 3/4 cup of flour and mix. Then add sugar, cocoa powder, egg, baking soda, and 1 teaspoon of the cherry juice. Be sure to scrape the sides or you will have tough cookies.
- Add the remaining 3/4 cup of flour.
- Taking a regular breakfast spoon, fill barely with the dough. Flatten in your hands, and place a cherry in the middle. Form the dough around the cherry, making sure there are no cracks because the cookies will dry out.
- Place on a nonstick baking sheet about an inch or so apart.
- Wash your fingers occasionally because the dough will start to gather on your fingertips and will make it very hard to not rip the dough up.
- Before you bake, prepare your frosting.
- In a small saucepan, stir together chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk.
- Cook over low heat until the chocolate is melted. Remove from heat and add reserved cherry juice, 1 tablespoon at a time, just until it is smooth enough for you to spread. (Should it get cold and you need to reheat it, do it over low heat and add another tablespoon of the cherry juice, stirring constantly until it is warm.).
- Bake in preheated oven for about 8 to 10 minutes. They start to dry out on the top when they are done.
- Remove from sheet and place on a cooling rack right away.
- Frost your cookies right away while they are warm.
- Delicious warm, but also wonderful cool. Keep covered in the fridge to keep the consistency.
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text:
Friends of Andalusia are individuals, corporations, and organizations dedicated to the financial support of the Andalusia Foundation. Membership gifts help to fund the preservation of the house, grounds, and gardens, as well as the development and enrichment of all Andalusia programs. All Friends of Andalusia participate in the maintenance of the Andalusia House Museum through their contributions, thus preserving the house for future generations of visitors.
The Friends are invited to the annual Friends of Andalusia Open House Day and various events throughout the year. All Friends also receive our newsletter, The Column, twice a year.
The levels of memberships for Friends of Andalusia are inspired by the Doric columns of the Big House. These levels include:
The Andalusia Foundation is a 501 (c)(3) charitable institution. Membership gifts are fully tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
To join the Friends of Andalusia, and to support the restoration and ongoing preservation of this National Historic Landmark, please mail your check payable to The Andalusia Foundation to:
P.O. Box 158, Andalusia, Pennsylvania, 19020
Please include your name/company name, address, phone number, and e-mail address with your payment. Unfortunately, we do not accept credit cards at this time.


text:
We often think of DOGS having more problems with cars–maybe because they tend to ride more often than the kitties, too. Magical-Dawg thinks the car belongs to him! But both dogs AND cats are at risk when temperatures soar. This … Continue reading
Tag Archives: petfinder.com
It's Woof Wednesday and today I'm writing about less adoptable pets. We want our fur-kids to be a match made in doggy heaven for them and for us, and the less adoptable pets may get short shrift. In the "bad … Continue reading
I live just north of Dallas, Texas where the greatest number of West Nile cases are being reported. It's scary–people have died. Horses at least have a preventative vaccine to help protect them. But what about dogs and cats? Apparently … Continue reading
Stranger Danger Getting hissy with strange cats is a NORMAL cat behavior. In the wild, the feline that's too friendly with a weird interloper risks getting eaten. Cats identify safe people (or other pets) by their familiar smell. A fresh-from-the-shelter … Continue reading
Jodi is the dog I grew up with. She was 6 months younger than me, so we had her as long as I can remember. Half beagle, half who-knows-what, she was the pick of her litter and the best dog … Continue reading


text:
The Unity Yoga Thai Massage Troupe will be ON THE DRIVE for this years Healing Garden close to Britannia Pool at the corner of Commercial and Napier for this year's Commercial Drive Days this Sunday, June 15th!
Swing by and enjoy a BY DONATION Thai Massage by one of our qualified and trained practitioners or watch a Partner Yoga demo!
Enjoy a cup of fresh brewed Herbal Tea and take a look at what's coming up at Unity Yoga Teahouse and Unity Retreats.
Start your Sun Salutations now so we have a sunny day for our street party!


text:
Johannesburg - The polar research vessel SA Agulhas has made its final voyage after arriving at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town on Friday, the environmental affairs department said.
"This was the last voyage of the SA Agulhas. Its replacement, the SA Agulhas II, arrived on 3 May," said Henry Valentine, director of the department's Antarctic program.
"We now have the advantage of both ships being next to one another at the Waterfront."
The ship travelled to South Africa's Antarctic base, Marion Island in the Indian Ocean and the UK's Gough Island in the Atlantic Ocean, where South Africa has a permanent presence, to conduct research.
The SA Agulhas was 34 years old and this necessitated its replacement by the SA Agulhas II.
"Thirty years is a long time for a polar ship. We had to replace it. Since we had the opportunity, we put the most sophisticated equipment in the new ship," said Valentine.
"It will be a much better scientific platform than the old one because climate change is happening, and the Southern Ocean is key to understanding this phenomenon, and it's on our doorstep."
Valentine said the SA Agulhas II would initiate an exciting period of oceanic research, as this was in South Africa's national interest.
"It's a sad day that the SA Agulhas is retiring, but it is being replaced by the latest in oceanic technology."
The SA Agulhas would now be used as a training vessel.
Now that is sensible spending. The weapons deal.... not so much.
I was privileged to be the leader of Marion 35, the team who went on the maiden voyage of the Arugulas in April 1998 with Herr Funck as Captain, to Marion. Sadly he died before he was able to bring us back in May 1979
Dr. Simon Geldenhuys
It must have been an amazing experience for you. Dr Geldenhuys. Treasure your memories. I am sure many would like to follow in your footsteps.
Hello Simon, great to read your comment. I was the medic of Marion 30th and Gough 21st and of course I knew Cpt. Ernst Funk very well; I visited him and his wife at their home in Tygervalley Str. in Parrow quite a number of times. After the Agulhas I had arrived in CT from her delivery voyage from Japan on the 28th of February 1978, Cpt. Funk gave me a grand tour of the ship of which he was very proud. Funk was the first officer of the old RSA from 1963 and its captain since 1976.
Best regards from Germany,
Edgar K. Haberer
I remember the review we did on the SA Agulhas on her maiden call in Cape Town for the SA Shipping News. I remember particularly the quality of the welding used in her construction: It was real work-of-art stuff. It's hard to believe she's retired now...


text: On Wed, 2005-09-28 at 15:21 -0700, Matt Taggart wrote: > I propose that our etch goal be LSB 3.x. There are still some issues to fix > but we're as close to implementing 3.0 as we are any other version. There's a > 3.1 in plan for later this year, it mostly bug fixes and other stuff that > shouldn't affect our compliance so we should be able to target it. I concur with this. AJ: > > I think it's pretty telling that in spite of their PR position on staying > > 100% Debian and contributing all enhancements to Debian, that Progeny's > > working on making their product support LSB 3.0, while leaving Debian > > to stick with LSB 1.3 due to lack of interest. Slight aside: It was my understanding that Debian would prefer that the proposed LSB updates for sarge be well-tested and actually able to bestow compliance on sarge before considering them for inclusion. Perhaps I was mistaken on that front. Of course, uploading a broken dynamic linker hack to stable-proposed-updates and then adding a fixed one to DCC would not be considered fodder for conspiracy theories either, I suppose. :-) > It's not clear if such an approach would be appropriate for a sarge point > release. I *think* it would be OK as it doesn't change any existing system > ABI. About the only objection I can think of is that it would require changing > the lsb package in order to add in the new linker hack. That would change > existing behavior, but since it's changing it to fix compliance I think that > could be considered a critical bug fix worthy for a stable update. What do you > think? This was my expectation. For what it's worth, the dynamic linker hack libraries do not affect the rest of the packages shipped by Debian; these would continue to use ld-linux.so.2, and thus the standard libraries they use now. The lsb-core package would have to be changed to not create the dynamic linker symlinks if they already exist, and a dependency on the proper LSB libraries would have to be added somewhere. > As to the people suggesting that we "steal the patches" that Progeny is using > to implement the fixes (to their special packages, but are still relevant for > unstable), yes. But the issue hasn't been about the patches, those have been > obtainable from the other LSB implementors for a while now, Jeff just did the > job of gather them all in one place and making them consumable for Debian > (good work, we _should_ use it). The issue has been that Debian was unwilling > to accept some of the patches because upstream had refused them. This has been > an ongoing battle between various Debian maintainers, their upstreams, and the > LSB project. The primary problem with sarge and the LSB has to do with glibc issues. These issues are the reason I did the dynamic linker hack. Basically, the "solution" to the glibc problems is to upgrade to glibc 2.3.4 or later. I doubt that's going to be acceptable for a stable point release. There are two other problems, which I discuss below. All other test failures in sarge have been waived. > The LSB's charter is to document existing practice. If an interface change > isn't acceptable to the maintainer of the canonical implemantion, then the LSB > should drop it. We need to push back on these sorts of things. (It hasn't > helped that other distros just accepted the patches and effectively forked, > making Debian the only one willing to do the right thing) Pushback has already been done on the primary example of this (the i18n patches to diff and coreutils), and those issues are waived for LSB 3.0. I am told that they will continue to be waived until the LSB gets its patches accepted upstream. > Jeff, > Do you have a nice collection of patches used posted somewhere that we could > review and either accept in the upstream package or push back and get removed > from upstream/LSB? Sarge has precisely three LSB problems at this time: - glibc (already discussed) - a bug in pam_unix (see bug 323982, already fixed in sid) - a typo in the XFree86 headers misdefining an i18n character There is also a problem that does not affect LSB status, but does affect testing: the xvfb in XFree86 dies during the running of the vsw4 test suite. I have it on good authority, however, that we do not need to use the shipping xvfb to run the tests, since the specification does not require xvfb; thus, the x.org xvfb (with a one-line patch to fix a new bug) can be used to certify sarge. The other XFree86 bug also affected x.org; a pointer to the problem and how to solve it is in x.org's BTS: https://bugs.freedesktop.org/show_bug.cgi?id=658 Here's the patch I'm using for pam: --- pam-lsb-0.76.orig/Linux-PAM/modules/pam_unix/pam_unix_sess.c +++ pam-lsb-0.76/Linux-PAM/modules/pam_unix/pam_unix_sess.c @@ -1,5 +1,5 @@ /* - * $Id: pam_unix_sess.c,v 188.8.131.52 2001/04/29 04:17:39 hartmans Exp $ + * $Id: pam_unix_sess.c,v 1.1 2001/04/29 04:17:39 hartmans Exp $ * * Copyright Alexander O. Yuriev, 1996. All rights reserved. * Copyright Jan R<EA>korajski, 1999. All rights reserved. @@ -44,6 +44,7 @@ #include <unistd.h> #include <syslog.h> #include <fcntl.h> +#include <ctype.h> #include <sys/types.h> #include <sys/stat.h> @@ -77,7 +78,7 @@ ctrl = _set_ctrl(pamh, flags, NULL, argc, argv); retval = pam_get_item(pamh, PAM_USER, (void *) &user_name); - if (user_name == NULL || retval != PAM_SUCCESS) { + if (user_name == NULL || !isalnum(*user_name) || retval != PAM_SUCCESS) { _log_err(LOG_CRIT, pamh, "open_session - error recovering username"); return PAM_SESSION_ERR; /* How did we get authenticated with @@ -108,7 +109,7 @@ ctrl = _set_ctrl(pamh, flags, NULL, argc, argv); retval = pam_get_item(pamh, PAM_USER, (void *) &user_name); - if (user_name == NULL || retval != PAM_SUCCESS) { + if (user_name == NULL || !isalnum(*user_name) || retval != PAM_SUCCESS) { _log_err(LOG_CRIT, pamh, "close_session - error recovering username"); return PAM_SESSION_ERR; /* How did we get authenticated with


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January 08, 2015 | by Nada Allam
Topshop's Faux Fur Mittens for Freezing Weather
It looks like it's freezing globally, and we're all wearing every fluffy layer we own. However, it is just not enough sometimes, which is why faux fur mittens are a great investment. Just looking at them gives you a warm feeling, and you can even warm up your cheeks every now and then by rubbing the soft fur against them. As from a fashion perspective, faux fur is truly the best winter statement accessory you can add to your look. Too much fur is not the way to go, you don't want to look like a polar bear. With faux fur pieces less is more, so always go for one item, for example, a fur vest with an all black outfit, or in this case, faux fur mittens with a casual jeans and coat look. Have I convinced you to go out and look for the Topshop faux fur mittens to keep your hands oh-so-warm in this freezing winter?
Available at Topshop.


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LL loved her trip and almost didn't come home at all. Gasp! She would have sent for me- I'm sure.
Here are her top 10 reasons for contemplating abandoning me and leaving me as an orphan with only BM to look after my care and feeding.
(She is totally joking, I'm sure. "Right ma? MA...? Right?" *Silence.* "MA! NOT funny!")
2. The beauty.
3. The group of amazing women who were all trying something for the first time. (LL is holding the blue and yellow board.)
2. This one's not too bad either.
1. I think BM has this one in the bag. Awwwww. Look what was waiting for LL at the airport. So sweet!
Thanks for enduring LL's vacation pictures! I look forward to visiting you all soon and seeing what you have been up to.


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John Sinclair – Mohawk CD release coming soon on Iron Man Records
October 29, 2013
John Sinclair – "Mohawk" cd
Released Monday 24th March 2014 by Iron Man Records
John Sinclair, the renegade poet, scholar and cultural revolutionary releases his new album on Monday 24th March 2014. John, has been described as an Archetype of the 1960's art, music and literary synthesis, and who today, is still kicking with both feet on his trajectory for cultural transformation. His new record features ten tracks from his book of verse: always know: a book of monk. Twenty poems planted firmly in a single-shot session, and carefully trimmed down to ten exhibits for this album. Beatnik poems, great odes and personal reflections of the Be-Bop jazz persuasion, all flowering together.
First conceived of in Detroit City, spring 1982, and developed throughout the 1980s with streaks of fresh edits leading right up to the session itself, John navigates some of these texts for the first time in over twenty years, free-styling his energized sincerity and attention to every word, transforming the text on the page into his unique unmistakable spoken word.
The music was written and arranged by Steve Fly who mirrored John's poems in the music by initially combing the tempo of the original songs recorded by John 'Dizzy' Gillespie, Charlie 'Bird' Parker and Thelonious Monk.
Steve The Fly is a native of Stourbridge UK, now an Amsterdam resident who plays drums, spins vinyl, writes novels and literary and cultural commentary. He also maintains a flock of websites and works in various other art forms without visible restraint. His other music projects have included New Flesh, Garaj Mahal, Temple Dragon band, of course he is now full time with John Sinclair.
These songs are further utilized by John's poetic method so that each title and the rhythm of his poetry can piggy-back upon the same song title, and rhythm, of an original composition set in history, for extra rooting. Steve put down drums, turntables, cello-bass, flute, and glockenspiel, shooting to play around the vocal lead lines and diverse expressions from John.
"to take the hair off
the sides of the head
& leave just a strip
along the top,
scalping pretense
for the baldness of statement
building a new music
on the bones of the old"
— John Sinclair from the title track "Mohawk"
The album was recorded diligently by Tim Egmond at Ei Studios, Amsterdam and passed along to Simon Reeves at Framework Studios, Birmingham for mastering.
Tim Egmond is a music producer, engineer and studio whizz, based in Amsterdam, who has worked with scores of international and locally based artists on a wide variety of projects.
Simon Reeves has completed many projects for Iron Man Records already and he has been described as one of Birmingham's finest independent studio engineers who has worked with bands from Napalm Death to Police Bastard, and a host of other brutal metal and punk bands.
All artwork was cradled and visualized by the post-industrial imagination of CHU; The Black Country, tech savvy, rule-breaking, progressive wordsmith and thinker – an ardent advocate of aerosol painting and its vanguard for over 30 years with global public works and murals, 3D perspective illusions and many group shows, under his Walsall leather belt. CHU's work has included projects with Banksy and Jamie Hewlett among many others, and he has been described as the 'Escher of UK street art' and founder of Graffiti Bastards.
The album is to be released by Birmingham based Iron Man Records whose releases have included The Nightingales, Howard Marks, P.A.I.N (Propaganda And Information Network), and Police Bastard, amongst others.
The album will be beautifully packaged in a double gatefold cd wallet with artwork by CHU in full colour and a ten page booklet. John Sinclair will be appearing in November through to March to promote the new album. Mohawk illustrates the kind of care and attention a John Sinclair record deserves. After all, he kinda helped start this underground art explosion.
All Press Enquiries Sean Newsham: email@example.com
CHU talks about his artwork for John Sinclair – Mohawk here: http://www.schudio.co.uk/blog/2014/mohawk-by-john-sinclair/
John Sinclair – Mohawk CD released on Iron Man Records 24th March 2014
Listen to: The John Sinclair Freedom Rally: John Sinclair Radio Show 526
Watch the short film:
WHITE PANTHER: A Legacy Interview with John Sinclair – https://ironmanrecords.net/2013/10/white-panther-a-legacy-interview-with-john-sinclair/
ARTIST: John Sinclair
TITLE: Mohawk
LABEL: Iron Man Records
FORMAT: CD Double Gatefold Sleeve / Digital Release to follow
RELEASE DATE: 24th March 2014
FILE UNDER: Rock
Cat No: IMB6022
Police Bastard – Confined CD available to pre-order from Iron Man Records
October 21, 2013
Police Bastard – Confined – CD Album (Iron Man Records) Pre-Order here
Police Bastard – Confined CD Cover Art by Mark "skinny" Orton
Ten new songs recorded in early 2013 and released through Iron Man Records, Birmingham.
Digital release of the album available from September 30th and on CD from November 23rd 2013 Buy it here
Police Bastard band photo by Andy Ward 2013
Members of Police Bastard on this recording are: (from left to right…)
Mark Badger – Guitar, Chris Crass – Bass, Simon Roe – Drums, John Doom – Vocals / Guitar, Seano Porno – Guitar, Stu-Pid – Vocals
Presskit for Reviewers / Podcast / Radio people here: http://www.sonicbids.com/PoliceBastard
The Curse Of The Cross, Brought To Our Knees, Sick Sick System, Humanimal, Cries From The Earth, Binary Thinker, Words Confined, Bite The Hand, We Are The Dead, Fortress.
Play song samples from the album here on Amazon: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Confined-Explicit/dp/B00F57UUM6
All Lyrics: Pid and John
All Music: Police Bastard
Layout: John Doom
The album was Recorded, Mixed, Produced and Mastered by Simon Reeves at Framework Recording Studios.
Label: Iron Man Records
Catalog#: IMB6021
Format: CD
Country: England
Released: 2013
Genre: Rock
Style: Punk
IMB6018 Police Bastard: It's Good To Hate…..CDEP with DVD 2010 Buy it here
Police Bastard / War Plague – Attrition Vinyl split album Buy it here (Vinyl version of It's Good To Hate with an extra track)
Police Bastard – T-shirts and other items of interest Buy here
IMB6020 Police Bastard – Dead to the world CD Album (Discography of everything from Gulf War Syndrome onwards with 7 never released new songs. Should be released next…..)
IMB6021 Police Bastard – Confined – CD Album Buy it here
More Police Bastard info here: Police Bastard, Twitter, Facebook
some additional words:
Police Bastard are back with a new album on Iron Man Records called "Confined." The band have been influenced by many different sounds ranging from the likes of Discharge and Chaos UK to Amebix, Rudimentary Peni, Celtic Frost, Black Sabbath, The Cardiacs and Killing Joke. The band emerged from the ashes of some of Britain's well known hardcore thrash bands: Doom, Sore Throat, Filthkick, English Dogs, Sensa Yuma and Contempt. Police Bastard started in 1994 and the new album is possibly the best record the band have made so far.
"Confined" was recorded at Framework Studios, Birmingham and will be released as a digital download from 30th September 2013. The album will follow on 23rd November as a full CD release on Iron Man Records. The track listing for Confined includes: The Curse Of The Cross, Brought To Our Knees, Sick Sick System, Humanimal, Cries From The Earth, Binary Thinker, Words Confined, Bite The Hand, We Are The Dead, Fortress. All the lyrics were written by Pid and John, the music was written, arranged and performed by Police Bastard and the CD layout was done by John Doom. "Confined" was recorded, mixed, produced and mastered by Simon Reeves at Framework Recording Studios with cover art by Mark "Skinny" Orton. Members of Police Bastard on this recording include Mark Badger – Guitar, Chris Crass – Bass, Simon Roe – Drums, John Doom – Vocals / Guitar, Seano Porno – Guitar, Stu-Pid – Vocals
Digital release September 30th. CD release on Iron Man Records November 23rd.
Press kit for Reviewers / Podcast / Radio people here: http://www.sonicbids.com/PoliceBastard
Police Bastard will be playing FearFest at The Asylum 2 on Friday 4th October.
Label: Iron Man Records / Catalog#: IMB6021 / Format: CD / Country: England / Released: 2013 / Genre: Rock / Style: Punk
All Press enquiries: email@example.com (tel: 07974 746810)
John Sinclair – Viper Madness 24th November 2013 Cannabis Cup Party Amsterdam
October 20, 2013
Ceres Seeds and The John Sinclair Foundation proudly present:
Sunday 24th November 2013
Viper Madness 2013 Amsterdam Cannabis Cup Party
Live onstage:
John Sinclair and his Vipers
with Esther
Cerise Noire
Baba Israel
Sunday November 24th
Doors 9:30pm
Nieuwezijds Kolk 25
1012 PV Amsterdam
4 min from central station
4 min from Dam square
buy tickets at www.ceresseeds.com and in the hempshopper stores in Amsterdam and at the door
First 100 guests get a free beverage
WHITE PANTHER: The Legacy of John Sinclair
October 11, 2013
WHITE PANTHER: The Legacy of John Sinclair – a short film by CHARLES SHAW featuring JOHN SINCLAIR music by THELONIUS MONK
John Sinclair is best known as the Sixties "marijuana" activist who was sentenced to 10 years in prison for giving two joints to an undercover policewoman. he was eventually freed when John Lennon and Yoko Ono spoke out on his behalf
Less understood is his role as the founder and chairman of the radical anti-war group, The White Panther Party, an offshoot of the Black Panthers. The Black Panther Party was a militant political organization formed after the brutal murders of Martin Luther King, Malcolm X and Robert Kennedy.
The Nixon Administration and the FBI launched a secret program called COINTELPRO to disrupt and ultimately destroy the Black Panthers and the Anti-War movement. As part of this program, John Sinclair was set up and imprisoned on marijuana charges. When the government could no longer justify denying him a bond over two joints, they falsely charged him with a Federal conspiracy to blow up a CIA station, in order to make him disappear.
You can find John Sinclair Books, CDs and other interesting stuff here: http://ironmanrecords.bigcartel.com
The Nightingales – October Tour Dates 2013
October 2, 2013
Tues 22 Oct – WOLVERHAMPTON, Slade Rooms, supporting The Wedding Present
& the following gigs with our mate & special guest TED CHIPPINGTON
Thurs 24 Oct – LONDON, Guided Missile Club @ Buffalo Bar, 'John Peel Night' w/ King Champion Sound + Dream Themes
Fri 25 Oct – SCARBOROUGH, The Spa, 'John Peel Night' benefit for www.mind.org.uk w/ Crumplehorns
Sat 26 Oct – PRESTON, Pavilion Cafe (Avenham Park), 'John Peel All Dayer' w/ Lovely Eggs, The Primitives, The Wolfhounds & others
Sun 27 Oct – BIRMINGHAM, Hare & Hounds (Kings Heath), w/ The Courtesy Group + support TBC
For London & Preston ticket info see the Nightingales Facebook page
A new Nightingales album was recorded in early September at Faust Studio for release in early 2014
Ted Chippington 10″ vinyl EP 'Blues Fan' available via http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Iron-Man-Shop
Crumplehorns 7″ vinyl single 'Simon Says' b/w 'Harold's Eye' on Big Print to be released on October 24


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Growth organization advisory services help professional service firms create an environment that facilitates growth. People, processes, structure and resources all must align and work together to provide an environment where entrepreneurial practice leadership thrives.
At the Catalyst Group, we help leading regional and national professional service firms organize for growth. Our growth organization audits focus on understanding and clarifying management objectives and assessing the ability of the current growth organization to support organizational growth.
Our future state advisory services take short-term and long-term management objectives and build a blueprint for the future growth structure of the firm. Marketing audits focus specifically on analyzing and improving the effectiveness of the marketing function within a firm.
Our Growth Organization Advisory Services include:
Growth Organization Audits
Growth organization audits are scoped to determine the effectiveness of a firm's growth organization and Go-to-Market structure. As a result of the process, firms will identify weaknesses and areas for improvement that will impact ROI and organizational growth.
At the conclustion of the project, you will receive a management report providing a detailed assessment of the current state of your firm's growth organization and an assessment of your current ability to meet your future objectives.
Growth Organization Future State Advisory
High growth professional service organizations need the right people, resources, processes and structure to encourage and faciliate entrepreneurial growth at both the firm and practice levels. The growth strategy and organizational objectives of your firm will be best served with an growth organization built to fit your firm's specific needs.
We help leading firms clarify firm objectives and practice-level market strategies, business development and marketing departments to facilitate high value processes. If you are leading a rapidly growing and evolving professional service firm, there's no better time than now to set the stage for future growth.
A future state advisory engagement provide you with both a blueprint for your high growth organization of the future and a step by step roadmap to manage the change process.
Firm Go-to-Market Facilitation
Successful deployment of sales and marketing resources is contingent upon a clear mandate and a firm-wide plan for growth. During annual strategic growth planning, we help our clients identify and prioritize areas of growth opportunity. During our growth planning process we will plan for new client acquisition, strategic market/service/industry identification, cross-selling strategies, new service introductions, strategic acquisitions, and other growth initiatives. The annual strategic growth plan provides direction for go-to-market efforts and the deployment of sales and marketing resources.
Marketing Audit
A marketing audit will provide a comprehensive assessment of the effectiveness and capabilities of your marketing department. A marketing audit always starts with management, ensuring that the objectives and expectations of the department are clearly defined, communicated and in alignment with organizational objectives. From there, we take a deep dive into the leadership, operations, resources and alignment of the department in order to identify opportunities for operational improvement.
A marketing audit will help firms that desire greater effectiveness from their deparment. We conduct marketing audits on behalf of firm management, growth management and marketing management teams.


text:
Support and FAQ
AT&T Next
Usually, no. However, some buyers will only qualify for AT&T Next or AT&T Next Every Year with a 30% down payment.Close | Back to Top
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Generally, from your phone's main menu:
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