A dual type drying machine includes a main drying unit, a main unit door configured to open and close a front side of the main drying unit, an auxiliary drying unit positioned vertically above the main drying unit and defining a laundry accommodation space, an auxiliary unit door configured to open and close a top surface of the laundry accommodation space, a cabinet that accommodates the main drying unit and the auxiliary drying unit, the cabinet defining an exterior of the drying machine, and an operation panel disposed at a front side of the auxiliary drying unit. When the auxiliary unit door is closed, top surfaces of the cabinet and the auxiliary unit door define a top exterior surface of the drying machine.

A drying machine is an apparatus that can dry clothes and remove moisture from the clothes by supplying dried hot wind to the clothes.
In general, the drying machine can include a hear source such as an electric heater, a gas heater, and a heat pump. Thus, the drying machine can be classified according to the type of a heat source.
In addition, the drying machine can be also classified into various types according to the shape of a laundry accommodation unit. A drying machine including a drum-shaped laundry accommodation unit that rotates around a horizontal shaft, is referred to as a horizontal shaft drum type drying machine, and a drying machine including a drum-shaped laundry accommodation unit that rotates around a vertical shaft, is referred to as a vertical shaft drum type drying machine. Also, a drying machine including a laundry accommodation unit fixed to an inside of a cabinet is referred to as a cabinet drying machine or refresher.
FIGS. 1-4 describe a conventional heater drying machine and a conventional heat pump drying machine.
FIG. 1 is a conceptual view schematically illustrating an example of a conventional heater drying machine.
As illustrated in FIG. 1, the example heater drying machine includes a drum 10 and an air circulation unit 20 that can circulate air through the drum 10. The air discharged from the drum 10 through the air circulation unit 20 flows into the drum 10. Thus, the air circulates through the air circulation unit 20. A drying fan 50 is provided for circulation of air. The drying fan 50 is provided inside the air circulation unit 20 for generating the air flow.
The air circulation unit 20 may include an additional flow path (duct), and a part of the flow path may be formed at a base 70 (see FIG. 2) of the heater drying machine. Furthermore, the drum 10 may also be a part of the air circulation unit 20.
In order to dry laundry in the drum 10, the air is heated by a heater 60, for example, an electric heater. The heated air flows into the drum 10, and moisture of the air can be removed from the laundry.
The air of which temperature and humidity increase by removing moisture from clothes, may be discharged from the drum 10 and flow into a condenser 40. In some cases, a filter 30 for removing foreign substances such as lint in the air, may be provided between the drum 10 and the condenser 40. The moisture of the high-temperature high-humidity air may be condensed by the condenser 40, and the high-temperature high-humidity air may change into dried air. The condenser 40 enables the high-temperature high-humidity air to be heat-exchanged with external low-temperature air. In this case, the moisture in the high-temperature high-humidity air is condensed and removed.
A cooling fan 45 may be provided with the condenser 40 so that the external low-temperature air can flow in the drum 10 and can be discharged from the condenser 40 via the cooling fan 45. The cooling fan 45 may be positioned in a cooling flow path 46.
The cooling flow path 46 is provided so that the external air is supplied to the condenser 40 and then is discharged to the outside of the heater drying machine.
The low-temperature dried air discharged from the condenser 40 may be heated by the heater 60 and changed into high-temperature dried air. The high-temperature dried air flows into the drum 10.
Thus, the air circulates via the drum 10, the condenser 40, the drying fan 50, and the heater 60, and drying may be performed through heating and condensation of the circulating air.
The drying machine illustrated in FIG. 1 may also be a blower type drying machine, because it blows the air into the drum 10 from the rear of the drum 10, and the right side of the drum 10 corresponds to the front side of the drying machine, and the left side of the drum 10 corresponds to the rear side of the drying machine. Thus, in this case, the air for drying flows into the rear of the drum 10 and then is discharged to the front of the drum 10.
FIG. 2 is a plan view of an example arrangement of main components and a base 70 of the conventional drying machine illustrated in FIG. 1.
The drum 10 and the heater 60, which are not directly mounted on the base 70, are omitted from FIG. 2. An upper portion of the base 70 illustrated in FIG. 2 corresponds to the rear side of the drying machine, and a lower portion thereof corresponds to the front side of the drying machine.
The condenser 40 is provided at the left side of the base 70, and the cooling fan 45, a motor 55, and the drying fan 50 are provided at the right side of the base 70. The motor 55 is provided to drive the drying fan 50.
In some cases, the drying fan 50 may be provided in front of the drying machine and below the drum 10. The drying fan 50 may also be disposed between the filter 30 and the condenser 40, unlike in FIG. 1.
Referring to FIG. 2, the drying fan 50 may be a suction type drying machine, because it can suction the air in the drum 10 from the front of the drum 10.
According to the relationship between the drying fan 50 and the drum 10 or the heater 60, the drying fan 50 may be classified into a suction type drying machine and a blower type drying machine depending on whether the location of the drying fan 50 is a front end or rear end of the drum 10.
An example air flow will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.
The air that flows into the drum 10 is discharged through the front of the drum 10, descends and flows into the condenser 40. The air discharged from the condenser 40 ascends and flows into the drum 10 via the rear of the drum 10. Additional ducts may be provided in the air circulation unit 20 for ascending and descending of the air. These ducts are connected to the drum 10 or base 70 to constitute air circulation unit 20.
The external air may flow into the drying machine via the cooling flow path 46 from the rear of the drying machine and be supplied to the condenser 40.
The external air supplied to the condenser 40 is heat-exchanged with the circulating air inside the condenser 40 and then is discharged in a lateral direction of the drying machine. That is, as the cooling fan 45 is driven, the external air flows into the drying machine and then is discharged via the cooling flow path 46. In some cases, the flow direction of the circulating air and the flow direction of the external air in the condenser 40 may be perpendicular to each other.
FIG. 3 is a conceptual view schematically illustrating an example of a conventional heat pump drying machine.
As illustrated in FIG. 3, the heat pump drying machine may include the drum 10, and the air circulation unit 20 that circulates the air via the drum 10. The air discharged from the drum 10 through the air circulation unit 20 flows into the drum 10 again after undergoing condensation and heating. In this case, the air circulates through the air circulation unit 20.
For circulation of the air, the drying fan 50 may be provided. The drying fan 50 may be positioned inside the air circulation unit 20 and generate the flow of the air.
In order to dry the clothes in the drum 10, the air is heated and cooled by a heat pump system 80. The heat pump system 80 may be a one refrigerating cycle system using a refrigerant. In this case, the heat pump system 80 includes a refrigerant pipe 82, an evaporation heat exchanger 81, a compressor 83, a condensation heat exchanger 84, and an expansion unit 85.
In detail, the refrigerant may flow and circulate through the evaporation heat exchanger 81, the compressor 83, the condensation heat exchanger 84, and the expansion unit 85 via the refrigerant pipe 82.
The refrigerant in the evaporation heat exchanger 81 may absorb heat and be evaporated. That is, evaporation heat exchanger 81 cools the circulating air and condenses moisture through heat-exchanging between the refrigerant and the circulating air. Thus, in terms of the circulating air, the evaporation heat exchanger 81 may be considered as a condenser corresponding to the condenser 40 of the heater drying machine.
The refrigerant in the condensation heat exchanger 84 may dissipate heat and be condensed. That is, the condensation heat exchanger 84 heats the circulating air through heat-exchanging between the refrigerant and the circulating air. Thus, in terms of the circulating air, the condensation heat exchanger 84 may be considered as a heater corresponding to the heater 60 of the heater drying machine.
In this case, condensation and heating of the circulating air may be performed through the heat pump system 80. The circulation air flows into the drum 10. In some cases, a filter 30 for removing foreign substances such as lint in the air may be provided between the drum 10 and the evaporation heat exchanger 81.
Referring to FIG. 3, the right side of the drum 10 corresponds to the front side of the drying machine, and the left side of the drum 10 corresponds to the rear side of the drying machine. Likewise, the drying machine illustrated in FIG. 3 may be a blower type drying machine, because the drying fan 50 is placed behind the drum 10 and blows the air into the drum 10. Another example drying machine illustrated in FIG. 4 may be a suction type drying machine, as described above.
FIG. 4 is a plan view of an example arrangement of main components and the base 70 of the conventional drying machine of FIG. 3. The drum 10 that is not directly mounted on the base 70 is omitted from FIG. 4. An upper portion of the base 70 in FIG. 4 corresponds to the rear side of the drying machine, and a lower portion thereof corresponds to the front side of the drying machine.
The evaporation heat exchanger 81 and the condensation heat exchanger 84 are provided at the left side of the base 70, and the expansion unit 85, the compressor 83, the motor 55, and the drying fan 50 are provided at the right side of the base 70.
An example air flow will be described below with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.
The air inside the drum 10 may be discharged from the drum 10 through the front of the drum 10 due to a suction force of the drying fan 50. While the discharged air descends and passes through the evaporation heat exchanger 81 and the condensation heat exchanger 84, moisture of the air is removed and the air is heated. Subsequently, the heated air ascends and flows into the drum 10 through the rear of the drum 10.
The heat pump drying machine may not have the cooling fan 45 or the cooling flow path 46 of the heater drying machine, because cooling and heating of the circulating air is performed by the heat pump system 80.
Filtering, condensation and heating of the circulating air of the heat pump drying machine may be the same as those of the above-described heater drying machine. However, the method of heating and condensation may be different from each other. The heater 60 and the condenser 40 of the heater drying machine may correspond to the condensation heat exchanger 84 and the evaporation heat exchanger 81 of the heat pump drying machine, respectively. The heater 60 and the condensation heat exchanger 84 are configured to heat the circulating air and thus may be considered as a heater. The condenser 40 and the evaporation heat exchanger 81 are configured to condense the circulating air and thus may be considered as a condenser.
As described above, the air circulation unit 20 of the conventional heater drying machine and heat pump drying machine may perform similar function. Their drying mechanisms and structures may also be similar to each other.
Recently, the supply of a dual type washing machine including two washing units in one washing machine has been increased.
The dual type washing machine may include a large-capacity washing unit and a low-capacity washing unit having a relatively small capacity, which are provided in a single washing machine.
In the dual type washing machine, one washing unit may be used according to the weight or type of laundry, or two washing units may operate simultaneously according to the type of laundry.
The present disclosure relates to a dual type drying machine that may be used as a pair with a dual type washing machine.


An improved automatic lateral guidance control system for guiding moving vehicles is provided which includes a sensing subsystem for viewing an area in front of a vehicle, a plurality of energy radiating or energy reflective devices disposed adjacent a predetermined length of road, an apparatus for translating the radiated or reflected information from the viewed area into coordinate data representing an approximation of the predetermined path along the road, and a vehicle controller for determining the vehicle's heading with respect to the approximated path and providing an output control signal to correct the vehicle's heading with respect to the approximated path.

1. Field Of The Invention
The present invention generally relates to an automatic lateral guidance control system for controlling the direction of a moving vehicle along a predetermined path, and more particularly, to an improved vehicle controller for use in an automatic lateral guidance control system for controlling the direction of a motor vehicle on a highway. So-called "Automated Highways" are presently being contemplated which will include vehicular-based systems that will automatic control the motor vehicle's speed, steering and braking, in order to substitute for the driver as a prime source of control over the vehicle. The expected advantages of such systems will be to improve the overall flow of traffic and increase highway safety. The present invention is directed to such a vehicular-based system for automatically controlling vehicle direction.
2. Description Of The Prior Art
A variety of conventional guidance systems are used for controlling the movement of vehicles travelling along a predetermined path such as, for example, robotic material handling guidance systems. In some applications, a "robotic vehicle" for moving materials between separate points in a warehouse or storage area without human intervention, is provided with an automated steering control system that utilizes an inductive sensor mounted near the bottom of the vehicle in order to sense a current passing through a thin wire disposed either at or below the surface of a predetermined pathway. The inductive sensor senses the magnetic field radiated from the wire and, using conventional phase-detection techniques, produces an output signal which indicates the extent to which the vehicle has drifted laterally from the desired course. The output signals from the sensor are provided to a vehicle control circuit that typically converts the sensor's output signal into control error signals which are used to direct the vehicle back on course.
These inductive types of lateral guidance control systems have experienced some success in relatively slow-moving, industrial materials handling applications. However, these systems are considered to have serious drawbacks when they are contemplated for controlling motor vehicles moving at appreciable speeds on a highway. For example, the magnetic field radiated by a current-conducting wire disposed in the surface of the road may be distorted by metallic structures along the roadway or by stray magnetic fields from nearby powerlines. Such inductive sensors are highly prone to sensing spurious signals radiated by other electromagnetic sources. In addition, such a system requires the installation and maintenance of power cables, transformers and power supplies along the road, which adds an appreciable cost to such a system. Furthermore, the performance of such a system is severely limited because the inductive sensor cannot "look-ahead" as a human driver does. Inductive sensor systems can only react to the magnetic field received from the roadway immediately beneath the vehicle. Consequently, without a "look-ahead" capability, the reaction times of the inductive sensor control systems are very slow in comparison with those of a driver.
In order to overcome the above-discussed disadvantages of the inductive sensor type vehicle guidance control systems, a number of automatic guidance systems have been proposed which use optical sensors to detect reflected beams of light energy from a reflector, reflective stripe or other light reflective medium disposed at the side of the road or applied to the road's surface. The vehicle's position and direction is then determined with respect to the reflector. An example of such a "look-ahead" technique is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,049,961 to Marcy. Marcy discloses an automatic guidance system for a motor vehicle which includes an optical laser transmitter/receiver assembly. A series of spaced-apart responders (i.e., light reflective devices) are disposed in a single row parallel to the centerline of the roadway, or in a pair of rows on opposite sides of the centerline, for reflecting radiant energy from the laser transmitter back to the receiver. As shown in Marcy, the laser transmitter radiates two overlapping beams which are amplitude-modulated by sine waves that are 180 degrees out of phase. The receiver merges the two reflected beams into a single beam that is subject to a cyclic translatory shift in amplitude. The amplitude shift is translated into a voltage whose amplitude varies in accordance with the position of the vehicle. In other words, a comparison of the phase differences between the transmitted and reflected beams provides a determination of the vehicle's location with respect to the reflectors. However, the use of such a system typically requires the use of a high powered laser transmitter, which can have a prohibitively high cost. More significantly, however, the conventional laser-controlled, automatic guidance systems have limited tracking performance or accuracy with respect to controlling the vehicle's direction, because such systems do not take into account the vehicle's speed. For example, the reaction time needed to steer the vehicle in response to sensed changes in the direction of the road increases as the vehicle's speed increases. Thus, although the conventional automatic guidance systems for motor vehicles may be considered "look-ahead" systems, the reaction time for the conventional systems is still limited at the higher vehicle speeds. Nevertheless, the present invention provides a novel arrangement for a "look-ahead" automatic lateral guidance control system that accounts for the speed of the vehicle and thereby increases the tracking performance and accuracy of the system.

Automatic lateral guidance control system


Reduced size images may be generated by separating dimensions that span the original image into a plurality of groups so that data in each group of one or more dimensions may be processed differently from data of other groups. For example, for two-dimensional images, pixels of selected lines may be completely discarded or skipped while pixels of remaining lines may be processed along the x-dimension to obtain data of the reduced size image. The main advantages include very fast and efficient implementation, minimal storage requirements, and good image quality.

1. Field of Invention
This invention is directed to reduced size image.
2. Description of Related Art
Reduced size images such as thumbnails are commonly used for conveniently viewing images without expending resources for supporting display of all the image data. Further improvements in generating reduced size images are needed.

Method and apparatus for reduced size image


In a virtualized computer system, gray applications that are selected to be executed in a first virtual computing instance are executed and monitored in a second virtual computing instance that is a clone of the first virtual computing instance, and classified according to their monitored behavior. This process is conducted in real-time, in response to a notification that a gray application has been selected for execution in the first virtual computing instance. The execution of the gray application in the first virtual computing instance is delayed until the first virtual computing instance receives a notification from an application admission control manager that the gray application is safe to be executed in the first virtual computing instance. Although the execution of the gray application in the first virtual computing instance is delayed, all other processes running in the first virtual computing instance continue to their execution so that a user accessing the first virtual computing instance will not experience any downtime.

Organizations of all sizes struggle to protect their endpoints from a constant barrage of cyber attacks like malware. Traditional defense mechanisms like anti-malware solutions may employ a blacklisting strategy where every executable (also referred to herein as "application") is allowed execution privilege except for some well-known malicious executables. However, such blacklisting strategies are not effective as new forms of malware emerge frequently, thus making it hard for system administrators to identify and combat these threats before it is too late. In summary, blacklisting based approaches simply cannot keep pace with the sheer volume of malware that newly emerge.
An alternative approach known as whitelisting, where only well-known applications are given execution privileges, has been gaining momentum. The main challenge with adopting a whitelisting strategy is that as new applications emerge, many of their runtime behavior remain unknown. Before such unknown applications, which are referred to as "gray" applications, can be added to the whitelist, their runtime behavior needs to be first examined and classified as being safe by the system administrator. However, as the number of gray applications continue to increase with the rapid development of new applications, it is difficult for the system administrator to keep pace.

Monitoring application execution in a clone of a virtual computing instance for application whitelisting


A fusing apparatus having a segmented external heater is provided. The fusing apparatus includes a rotatable pressure roller, a rotatable heated fusing member having an external surface forming a fusing nip with the pressure roller, and a rotatable segmented external heater mounted in heating nip contact with the external surface of the fusing member for heating the external surface of the fusing member, the rotatable segmented external heater having (a) an endless rotatable shell defining an interior surface and an exterior surface, a first end, a second end, and an axis of rotation; (b) a plural number of heating elements each having an end-to-end length and being arranged end-to-end in series and parallel to the axis of rotation; and (c) a controller connected to the plural number of heating elements and to the rotatable heated fusing member controlling the temperature of the external surface the fusing member.

One type of electrostatographic reproducing machine is a xerographic copier or printer. In a typical xerographic copier or printer, a photoreceptor surface, for example that of a drum, is generally arranged to move in an endless path through the various processing stations of the xerographic process. As in most xerographic machines, a light image of an original document is projected or scanned onto a uniformly charged surface of a photoreceptor to form an electrostatic latent image thereon. Thereafter, the latent image is developed with an oppositely charged powdered developing material called toner to form a toner image corresponding to the latent image on the photoreceptor surface. When the photoreceptor surface is reusable, the toner image is then electrostatically transferred to a recording medium, such as paper, and the surface of the photoreceptor is cleaned and prepared to be used once again for the reproduction of a copy of an original. The paper with the powdered toner thereon in imagewise configuration is separated from the photoreceptor and moved through a fuser apparatus to permanently fix or fuse the toner image to the paper.
Typically, a fuser apparatus of the type provides a combination of heat and pressure to fix the toner image on the paper. The basic architecture of a fuser apparatus is well known. Essentially, it comprises a pressure roll that forms a fusing nip against a rotatable heated that is heated internally or externally as disclosed for example in U.S. Pat. No. 6,895,207 issued May 17, 2006. A sheet of paper carrying an unfused or powder toner image is passed through the nip. The side of the paper having the unfused or powder toner image typically faces the fuser roll, which is often supplied with a heat source, such as a resistance heater, at the core thereof. The combination of heat from the fuser roll and pressure between the fuser roll and the pressure roll fuses the toner image to the paper, and once the fused toner cools, the image is permanently fixed to the paper.
Conventional fusing apparatus ordinarily only having single or dual heating elements and thus suffer from lack of precise axial thermal uniformity, particularly in fusing apparatus being required to run at relatively higher and higher throughput speeds, and those using copy sheets or media of various sizes. The problem is even more pronounced in color image fusing apparatus that include fusing members having relatively thicker silicone or rubber outer layers for providing the conformance and dwell time necessary for the increased toner pile heights of color images. In such fusing apparatus, the axial thermal uniformity of the fusing member will get worse as the rubber thickness increases and also as the lengths of jobs vary. In addition, if a paper is run that is more narrow than the heater element, hot spots on the outboard edges are formed resulting in inconsistent fix and gloss.
Examples of conventional fusing apparatus can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 6,895,207 issued May 17, 2006 as mentioned above, and in U.S. Pat. No. 6,407,366 issued Jun. 18, 2002 and entitled "Image heating apparatus having a plurality of heat generating elements". For the purpose of having only a small number of semiconductor switching elements, this reference discloses long heating elements that are treated similar to lamps in that they are multiple long elements parallel to the long axis, and turned on and off like lamps depending on whether the job runs on letter size or legal size sheets.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,734,397 issued May 11, 2004 and entitled "Heater having at least one cycle path resistor and image heating apparatus therein" discloses a heater, or an image heating apparatus including a heater that has a substrate, heat generating resistors formed at least in a cycle path on the substrate, and current supply electrodes provided at electrical ends of the heat generating resistors, wherein plural heat generating resistors are connected in parallel to at least one of the current supply electrodes. Thus there can be obtained a heater having excellent heat generating characteristics even in a compact dimension and an image heating apparatus utilizing such heater.

Fusing apparatus having a segmented external heater


Methods and systems herein provide better downlink (DL) data throughput for cell-edge stations (CE STAs). The systems enable protection from a third-party collision during a wideband DL data transmission to the cell edge STA, when the wideband control frame, such as clear-to-send (CTS) or acknowledge (ACK), transmission from a cell edge STA cannot reach the AP. This process can be achieved by designing a new wideband control frame comprising: a legacy preamble sent over the primary 20 MHz channel that can be decoded by the legacy STAs, a new preamble sent over the primary 20 MHz channel that can be used to identify the new wideband control frame (this new preamble has the total signal bandwidth information for the rest of the packet following the new preamble); and duplicate legacy control packets set over the total bandwidth indicated in the new preamble (the legacy control packets can be decoded by the legacy STAs).

Wireless networks transmit and receive information utilizing varying techniques and protocols. For example, but not by way of limitation, two common and widely adopted techniques used for communication are those that adhere to the Institute for Electronic and Electrical Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards such as the IEEE 802.11n standard, the IEEE 802.11ac standard and the IEEE 802.11ax standard.
The IEEE 802.11 standards specify a common Medium Access Control (MAC) Layer which provides a variety of functions that support the operation of IEEE 802.11-based Wireless LANs (WLANs) and devices. The MAC Layer manages and maintains communications between IEEE 802.11 stations (such as between radio network interface cards (NIC) in a PC or other wireless device(s) or stations (STA) and access points (APs)) by coordinating access to a shared radio channel and utilizing protocols that enhance communications over a wireless medium.
IEEE 802.11ax is the successor to IEEE 802.11ac and is proposed to increase the efficiency of WLAN networks, especially in high density areas like public hotspots and other dense traffic areas. IEEE 802.11ax also uses orthogonal frequency-division multiple access (OFDMA), and related to IEEE 802.11ax, the High Efficiency WLAN Study Group (HEW SG) within the IEEE 802.11 working group is considering improvements to spectrum efficiency to enhance system throughput/area in high density scenarios of APs (Access Points) and/or STAs (Stations).
IEEE 802.11ac supports high physical data rate using a wider channel bandwidth (i.e. 80 MHz or optionally 160 MHz). However, due to the propagation loss, a STA at the edge of the coverage area of a basic service set (BSS) cannot support 80 MHz transmission/reception. Therefore, the physical data rate to a cell-edge STA (CE STA) can be much lower than that to the non-cell-edge STA (non-CE STA). For example, in an environment with four access points (APs) located at the four corners of a large 40 m×40 m room, a STA will follow the rules defined in IEEE 802.11 specification to connect with the nearest AP. The physical data rate to the STA in the middle of the room is much lower than that for a second STA near one of the four corners, where the STA is closer to the AP.
Further, to save power, the transmit power of the battery STA can be much lower than that of the AP. As a result, when the STA is in the 80 MHz transmission range of the AP, the AP may be only in the 20 MHz transmission range of the STA. In deployment scenarios where collision protection through use of request-to-send/clear-to-send (RTS/CTS) is needed, the AP can transmit duplicate RTSs in the primary channel and secondary channels, and the intended STA can transmit duplicate CTSs in primary and secondary channels. However, if the 80 MHz transmission range of the STA is limited, even if the STA supports wide bandwidth transmission, the STA's wideband CTSs will not reach the AP, and thus, the AP will not send 80 MHz downlink (DL) data packets to the STA. Usually, wider channel bandwidth can provide higher data rate than narrow channel bandwidth with the same transmit power.

Processes and methods to enable downlink data transmission over wide bandwidth for the cell edge station


A method for cutting an elastomer cable into ultra-precise, defect-free segments of consistent length, and an apparatus to perform the same. The invented apparatus comprises cable advancement, cable clamping and cable shearing systems. The cable advancement system comprises rollers with a groove substantially matching the diameter of the cable. The cable clamping system comprises a pair of dies with a preferably conical feed hole and a clamping hole substantially matching the diameter of the cable. The cable shearing system comprises a preferably extra keen coated cryo treated movable razor blade that is held at an adjustable angle against the face of the clamping dies and slides in a linear path at a low sawing angle. In one embodiment, a second razor blade for nicking the cable prior to shearingxe2x80x94on substantially the opposite side of the cable from where shearing beginsxe2x80x94is used to prevent tears in cable slices. The invented apparatus can be manually operated, or it can be motorized.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention pertains to the field of cutting. More particularly, the invention pertains to a method and apparatus for precision cutting of filamentary substances to predetermined lengths.
2. Description of Related Art
Electronic devices such as printed wiring boards are often connected so that data can pass from one device to the other. As the trend toward electronic component miniaturization continues, the volume of such data continues to increase. This requires that the contacts between the electronic devices be of a high density.
Often, electronic components are interconnected by a system of contacts referred to as a Land Grid Array (LGA), which typically contains electrical interposers to provide an effective connection medium. LGA interposers, in turn, contain inserted conductive xe2x80x9cbuttons.xe2x80x9d The manufacturing of such buttons entails defect free cutting of a conductive elastomer cable medium into ultra-precise segments. The elastomer cable consists of a number of thin metallic filamentary materials that conduct electricityxe2x80x94i.e., wires, embedded in an elastomeric body, that is, a body made out of an elastic material resembling rubber. The ultra-precise segments of the cable become buttons once they are inserted into the LGA carrier.
The manufacture of ultra-precise segment buttons such as those described above poses unique problems, as the cable-slices must be precisely and cleanly cut, of consistent length, and possessing of no surface defects, such as distorted conductors or torn elastomer. Among the chief challenges are ensuring that the elastomer cable is not damaged during cuttingxe2x80x94which would result in defects that would raise the contacts resistance beyond that of industrial standardsxe2x80x94and ensuring that the buttons are of extremely short and consistent length. In sum, there is a need to slice a thin cable into ultra precise slices of consistent length with no defects in the resulting segments.
In the prior art, several techniques were developed to perform this high-precision cutting job. These techniques include laser, water jet, X-ACTO knife, scissors, wire cutters and razor blade methods. The water jet and laser approaches were expensive, while the other methods resulted in cuts of poor quality. Accordingly, there remains a need in the industry for an inexpensive, yet highly effective, method of slicing elastomeric cable into ultra-precise, undamaged segments of consistent length.
The invention discloses a method of cutting an elastomer cable into ultra-precise segments of consistent length with a high level of confidence that the top and bottom of the segments will be smooth and otherwise free of defects. The invention also discloses an apparatus, called a xe2x80x9ccutter,xe2x80x9d for performing such cuts. The cutter is an elastomer cable slicer with adjustable feed, clamping die and sawing razor action. The cutter uses one or more single-edge razor blade(s) for sawing purposes; such blade(s) transverse the surface of a die that holds the elastomer cable. A clamp holds the cable in place during cutting and a mechanical feed mechanism advances the cable to provide accurate and adjustable feed lengths. The cutter of the present invention can be reliably integrated into a high throughput rate manufacturing process.


The present invention provides a cover body for airbag device that is capable of easily mounting an emblem that is provided with an emblem body having a narrow portion while ensuring its related mounting strength. A lock pin is protruded at a main body portion with a relatively large width of the emblem body. A hook pin is protruded at a narrow portion with a relatively small width of the emblem body. The lock pin is inserted into a first door portion and then is inserted into a thorough hole of a back plate on a rear face side. The hook pin is inserted into the first door portion, and is hooked therewith.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cover body for airbag device, provided with a decorative member mounted on a door portion that is formed by a cover main body portion cleaving at the time of deployment of an airbag.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, an airbag device provided at a lock portion of a steering wheel of a vehicle such as an automobile has been employed. This airbag device is provided with: a baggy airbag; an inflator configured to supply a gas to this airbag; and a cover body for airbag device configured to cover and house the airbag at the time of non-expansion. In addition, this airbag device is configured in such a manner that if a vehicle receives an impact exerted by a collision or the like, for example, a gas is supplied from the inflator to the airbag, whereby the airbag inflates, and due to the inflation of this airbag, the cover body breaks along a predetermined break line, that is, along a tear line and then a plurality of door portions are formed and further these door portions respectively expand around a hinge portion, whereby the airbag expands to an occupant side to thereby constrain and protect the occupant.
With respect to such a cover body for airbag device, there has been known a construction to mount an emblem (an ornament) that serves as a decorative member on a substantial neutral part of the cover main body portion. In this construction, for example, a lock pin protruding on a back side of an emblem body is inserted into the cover main body portion, and this lock pin is locked with the back side of the cover main body portion by means of thermal caulking such as welding (refer to Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-272458 and Japanese Patent Gazette No. 3833428, for example).
However, in this construction, there is a need for the mounting step such as welding of a lock pin, and fine resin shavings drop from a deformed lock pin at the time of welding and then it is unavoidable that there occurs an increase in manufacturing cost due to an increase in the number of working steps such as there being a need for the work process for removing these resin shavings.
Therefore, for example, there has been known a construction in which a lock portion provided at a tip end of a lock pin that protrudes on a back side of an emblem body is inserted into, and is locked with, an insert hole as a lock receptacle portion provided at a mounting member that is disposed on a back face side of a cover main body portion, whereby an emblem is locked while the cover main body portion is sandwiched between the emblem body and the mounting member to thereby reduce the number of working steps of mounting the emblem (refer to Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-255361 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-56101, for example).
However, in this construction, in the case where the emblem body has a narrow portion such as a frame shape, for example, it is not easy to set a lock pin with a sufficient strength at this narrow portion, and in addition, there is a need to separately provide a mounting reinforce structure of this narrow portion, thus causing an increase in manufacturing cost.
As described above, there is a demand for a construction that is capable of easily mounting an emblem provided with an emblem body having a narrow portion to a cover main body portion, the construction being capable of ensuring its related mounting strength.
The present invention has been made in view of such a circumstance, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a cover body for airbag device that is capable of easily mounting a decorative member provided with a decorative member having a narrow portion to a cover main body portion while ensuring its related mounting strength.


The method involves drying down dye-conjugated reagents in separate locations in a reaction vessel so that the dyes don't non-specifically interact with each other during drying. This invention thus improves multiplex binding assays by eliminating erroneous results caused by dyes' being non-specifically attached to each other when dried down together.

Biological assays are important for detecting or quantifying certain molecules or analytes of interest. These analytes may be important for medical diagnosis or for some other research purposes. The assay can be an enzymatic or a binding assay, such as an immunoassay. Assays typically require a labeled reagent to visualize the target or analyte of interest. When using a label, it is important that the label remains associated with a single reagent to accurately measure the specific target.
Biological assays, such as immunoassays, typically use biological reagents, such as antibodies or other proteins to detect and optionally quantitate the target analyte. Binding of the analyte to the biological reagent can be detected and measured using a label attached to the reagent, such as a fluorescent dye, non-fluorescent dye, or an enzyme.
Multiplexed assays allow simultaneous detection of multiple analytes in a single assay. For immunoassays, multiplexed assays involve a cocktail of antibodies, each labeled with a different dye. Each antibody binds to a specific analyte in the sample. In this way, the different analytes can be differentiated and quantitated based on the different dyes.
For convenience, multiplex assay reagents can be supplied as a premixed cocktail of individual binding molecules, such as antibodies. Other reaction components may be included in the cocktail, such as buffer, salt, surfactant, etc. Most convenient is a cocktail containing all necessary components (a unitary assay reagent). In this case, the assay can be performed by simply adding sample to a reaction vessel containing the cocktail.
It is convenient to provide a stable assay reagent, particularly a reagent that is stable at room temperature. This allows shipment and storage of the reagent without refrigeration. This is especially important for assays performed in rural areas where resources, including electricity, may be limited.
In prior art, stable reagents are provided by drying down aqueous solutions of the reagent, or by lyophilization. But a problem exists with some labeled reagents. These reagents become cross-linked during the drying process. They remain cross-linked after resuspension in liquid solution, so that the labels are no longer associated with individual molecules, causing erroneous results. This can be especially problematic, for example, in the field of flow cytometry, in which a plurality of polymeric dyes are used to create 10 or more fluorescent channels by using only one wavelength for excitation. The chemical nature of these polymeric dyes, however, prevents the storage of formulations of multiple dyes in the same solution. It has been observed that the polymeric entities bind with each other (potentially a hydrophobic bond) in solution. This results in either erroneous compensation settings or anomalous cell populations that cannot exist in reality. Hence antibodies conjugated to these dyes are typically stored separately and formulated prior to the experiment. When running multi-parameter, multisite studies, this introduces additional variability. Further, since reagents formulated cannot be stored for a long period of time, it can also result in wastage.

Dry-down processes for dye-conjugated reagents


A composition for application to hair or scalp comprises (A) at least one compound selected from the group consisting of (i) forskolin and derivatives thereof and (ii) peptides having a basic skeletal structure represented by the following general formula (I): EQU -P-Glu-His-Q-Arg-Trp-Gly-Lys- (I). (wherein P represents an L-norleucine or L-methionine residue; Q represents a D- or L-phenylalamine residue; and Glu, His, Arg, Trp, Gly and Lys are L-glutamic acid, L-histidine, L-arginine, L-tryptophan, glycine and L-lysine residues respectively); or the component A and (B) at least one compound selected from the group consisting of aliphatic acids, alcohols and derivatives thereof having an odd number of carbon atoms. The composition for hair or scalp exhibits excellent effect of preventing graying of the hair and restoring grayed hair to its natural color upon externally applied to the scalp and is highly safe as regards to the possibility of causing skin damage. Therefore, the composition can be widely used in various forms capable of being externally applied to the scalp.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a composition for application to hair or scalp in the manner of a hair tonic, a hair cream or the like, which, upon application to the scalp, activates melanocytes of the radix pili and improves the melanin synthesis function thereof, thereby preventing graying of the hair and restoring grayed hair to its natural color.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Graying of the hair is a universal aging phenomenon. While hair dyes are commonly used to dye grayed hair, the use of such dyes is troublesome and sometimes causes side-effects such as a rash. Therefore, many users find hair eyes to be an unsatisfactory solution. There has thus been a great need for developing a pharmaceutical agent or a costmetic composition for hair capable of essentially preventing graying of the hair and restoring grayed hair to its natural color.
In accordance with such needs, for instance, Japanese Patent Un-examined Publication (hereunder referred to as "J.P. KOKAI") Nos. 60-174705, 61-165310, 62-45527, 62-63509 and 62-63510 propose some solutions therefor. However, the cosmetic compositions proposed therein are not practically acceptable because of the low stability of their active components and insufficient safety.

Composition for application to hair or scalp


Exemplary embodiments provide automatic injection devices in which a shroud is automatically deployed to protectively sheath a needle after an injection is performed. Exemplary embodiments also provide shroud deployment assemblies including a shroud and a syringe carrier that, when cooperatively configured in an automatic injection device, ensure that the shroud is automatically and completely deployed after an injection is performed using the automatic injection device. Exemplary embodiments are also configured to ensure that, once the shroud is deployed to an extended position to sheath the needle, accidental forces applied to the shroud do not succeed in subsequently retracting the shroud to a retracted position in which the needle would become exposed.

Automatic injection devices offer an alternative to manually-operated syringes for delivering therapeutic agents into patients' bodies and allow patients to self-administer injections. Automatic injection devices have been used to deliver medications under emergency conditions, for example, to administer epinephrine to counteract the effects of a severe allergic reaction. Automatic injection devices have also been described for use in administering anti-arrhythmic medications and selective thrombolytic agents during a heart attack (See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,910,260; 4,004,577; 4,689,042; 4,755,169; and 4,795,433). Various types of automatic injection devices are also described in, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,941,130; 4,261,358; 5,085,642; 5,092,843; 5,102,393; 5,267,963; 6,149,626; 6,270,479; and 6,371,939; and International Patent Publication No. WO/2008/005315.
Conventionally, an automatic injection device includes a housing that houses a syringe and, when operated, causes the syringe to move forwardly within the housing and a needle to project from the housing so that a therapeutic agent contained in the syringe is ejected into a patient's body. An automatic injection device typically includes a plunger with a distal end that is seated on a firing body before firing. In order to fire the device, a patient depresses a firing button which disengages the distal end of the plunger from the firing body and allows the plunger to move the syringe forwardly. An automatic injection device may include a lockout shroud that is deployed during or after an injection to provide a protecting covering over the needle and to thereby prevent accidental needle stick injuries to the user.
Certain conventional automatic injection devices experience problematic shroud deployment including, but not limited to, complete failure in shroud deployment, incomplete shroud deployment, and complete or incomplete shroud deployment after an unacceptably long delay, and the like. Each of these problematic shroud deployment patterns may be referred to as shroud deployment failure or failure in shroud deployment. Shroud deployment failure is undesirable in automatic injection device as they can introduce the risk of accidental needle stick injury caused by an exposed needle.

Shroud deployment in automatic injection devices


A method for removing a paraffin wax based binder containing a fatty acid from a green article, wherein the article is made of material selected from the group consisting of ceramic powders and metallic powders, which comprises heating the article in a non-oxidizing atmosphere in a furnace by raising the temperature at a rate of about 0.5.degree. C. to 1.0.degree. C. per minute to a first temperature of about 50.degree. C. to 80.degree. C. and thereafter maintaining the first temperature for about 30 to 90 minutes to essentially completely melt the binder, raising the temperature from the first temperature at a rate of about 0.5.degree. C. to 1.0.degree. C. per minute to a second temperature of about 200.degree. C. to 225.degree. C. and thereafter maintaining the second temperature for about 30 to 90 minutes to essentially completely vaporize the paraffin wax, raising the temperature from the second temperature at a rate of about 0.5.degree. C. to 1.0.degree. C. per minute to a third temperature of about 260.degree. C. to 300.degree. C. and thereafter maintaining the third temperature for about 30 to 90 minutes to essentially completely vaporize the fatty acid, and raising the temperature from the third temperature at a rate of about 0.5.degree. C. to 1.0.degree. C. per minute to a fourth temperature of about 430.degree. C. to 480.degree. C. and thereafter maintaining the fourth temperature for about 30 to 90 minutes to insure complete vaporization of essentially all of the binder.

This invention relates to a method to remove hydrocarbon wax based binders from green articles, especially those made from ceramic powder or tungsten carbide powders. The method makes use of a specific heating schedule which when followed results in the articles having the binder removed without cracking or distortion of the article.
Several unacceptable binder removal techniques are available to the ceramic and powder metal injection molding industries. They usually involve relatively long periods of time, for example, about 2 to 5 days or the use of setter sand (fine grain alumina). They can result in parts cracking and the wax binder being allowed to remain in the part.
It would be very desirable therefore to have a method to completely remove binders from such articles in a reasonably short period of time without cracking or deformation of the articles. The present invention provides such a method.

Method for removal of paraffin wax based binders from green articles


An object is to provide a highly effective segmented process apparatus for a microplate using a standard microplate without increasing the scale of the apparatus, as well as a method for processing a microplate. The apparatus includes: a predetermined microplate provided with a number of wells are set in array; one or more nozzle heads provided with a number of nozzles set in array; a suction and ejection mechanism for sucking and ejecting a gas via the nozzles; and a moving means which allows relative movement between the microplate and the nozzle heads, wherein tips of all of the nozzles provided on each nozzle head are provided in such a manner that the tips can be inserted into the wells in a portion of the microplate all together, and the row intervals and column intervals of the nozzles in array are respectively same as the row intervals and column intervals of the wells in array.

Microplates are provided with a number of wells arranged in a matrix form (in array) which can contain a liquid, and 12 rows×8 columns (96 wells, row intervals and column intervals of 9 mm), 24 rows×16 columns (384 wells, row intervals and column intervals of 4.5 mm), 48 rows×32 columns (1536 wells, row intervals and column intervals of 2.25 mm) and the like are known, and tend to be standard internationally. Here, row intervals are the distance between the center of a well or the center line of the row in which the well is provided and the center of a neighboring well in the column direction or the center of the row along which the well is provided in the column direction, and the column intervals are the distance between the center of a well or the center line of the column in which the well is provided and the center of a neighboring well in the row direction or the center line of the column in which the well is provided in the row direction.
In the case where a simultaneous process is carried out using a number of types of liquids together using such a microplate, a dispenser apparatus having one nozzle head on which nozzles or nozzles for attachment of which the number is equal to the total number of wells in the microplate on which a dispenser tip is mounted is used, and all of the nozzles are inserted into the wells together for each microplate, where the same type or same amount of solutions or suspension liquids is sucked up and ejected, is used (Patent Document 1).
In the case where a sequence of processes is carried out by making a number of types of reagents react with a great number of test substances sampled from a great number of specimens to be processed in sequence, for example, the same number of microplates having wells of which the number is in accordance with the number of the specimens, which of microplate is the same as the number of steps or types of necessary reagents in the process, is prepared in order to contain reagent solutions, specimens and magnetic particle suspension liquids which are necessary for the process. The apparatus, which can make the magnetic particles adsorbed in the inner walls of the dispenser tips corresponding to the nozzles, is used so that magnetic particles are moved to the wells of a number of microplates in sequence, and a process for inducing reaction through suspension within the wells is carried out in sequence (Patent Documents 1 and 2).
Thus, when a great number of types of reagents are used for the process, the number of microplates is great, because one microplate is allocated for each type, and thus, the area for work becomes large. In addition, the distance over which the nozzle heads move corresponds to the distance over which the nozzle heads move when passing through all of the microplates of which the number of types of reagents required for the process, and therefore, when the number of microplates is great, the distance over which the nozzle heads move becomes great, and thus, there is a problem, such that there is a risk that it may not be possible to carry out the process quickly and efficiently.
In addition, in the case where the number of specimens is not so great and microplates of which the number corresponds to the number of specimens and the number of process steps are prepared, it is necessary to use a nozzle head where nozzles are aligned with row intervals and column intervals corresponding to the row intervals and column intervals of the wells arranged in the microplate, and thus, it is necessary to prepare other nozzle heads in accordance with the number of specimens.
Meanwhile, in the case where microplates with which cases of a great number of specimens can be dealt with are used when the number of specimens is small, and in the case where the liquids used in the process steps are aligned in one column or one row, and a nozzle head having nozzles aligned in one corresponding column or row is used, the maximum number of specimens is limited to the number in one row or column, and thus, in the case where the number of specimens exceeds the number in one row or column, there is a problem, such that there is a risk that it may be difficult to handle.
In particular, in the case where the number of specimens exceeds the number of nozzles in one row or column but the number is a divisor of the total number of the wells, and the divisor is a multiple of two numbers, there is a possibility that one microplate may be segmented so that the process can be completed without waste.
When the number of processes carried out in parallel is great, the number of wells in the microplates is great, making integration more necessary, and in addition, it is necessary to provide nozzles so as to be closer together, and therefore, the intervals between dispenser tips are small and the area occupied by the dispenser tips is small, and thus, there is a problem, such that there is a risk that the built-in function of the dispenser tips deteriorates.    [Patent Document 1] International Unexamined Patent Publication WO99/47267    [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent No. 3115501

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Segmented process apparatus for microplate and segmented process method for microplate


A system, method, and techniques for dynamically probing a method are provided. An example method includes identifying a target method to probe in an application. The method also includes modifying the target method to include a call to a helper method that passes a rulename to a native method in a shared object library. The native method includes a marker associated with a probe point inserted in the application at a location relative to the target method, and the rulename identifies the marker associated with the probe point. The method further includes during execution of the application on a computing device, detecting when the target method is invoked. The method also includes when the method is invoked, passing the rulename to the native method in the shared object library.

An integrated development environment (IDE) provides a set of tools such as editing and debugging software for programmers. These tools are used to create and debug software programs. The IDE supports software development by providing a windowed system for source file editing, project management, and file interdependency management and debugging. Many types of programming tools exist that are not part of an IDE and are used on a stand-alone basis.
An example of a stand-alone tool is Systemtap. Systemtap is an instrumentation system that provides a scripting language and command line interface for monitoring system performance.

Dynamic per-method probing during runtime


There is provided a reconfigurable autonomous and user-input proning bed. The proning bed includes controllers and at least one of: a head position system (HPS) to detect a position of the head of the patient configurable and reconfigurable to be automatically positioned; an arms position system (APS) to detect the presence of the arms of the patient and change a level and inclination of APS upper sections and APS lower sections; a legs position system (LPS) to detect the presence of the legs of the patient and change a level and inclination of LPS upper sections and LPS lower sections; and a body position system (BPS) to detect the presence of the torso of the patient and change a level and inclination of a BPS upper section and a BPS lower section. The proning bed can include an integrated entertainment position system and side rail position system.

Patients with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) face life-threatening lung conditions where the air sacs (alveoli) collect fluids affecting the amount of oxygen reaching the lungs. Thus, causing difficulties in breathing and lack of oxygen supply to the body. It is common for ARDS patients to be directed to the prone position, where it is recommended to lay on the patient's front, i.e., facing down, with the head down or to the side, instead of the common supine position. The benefit of the prone position is that it generally reduces the ventral-dorsal trans-pulmonary pressure difference, reduces lung compression, and improves lung perfusion resulting in better oxygenation and breathing. However, conventional patient beds do not provide sufficient support, comfort, and/or configurability to allow the patient to assume the prone position for extended periods of time.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a reconfigurable proning bed, and a method for reconfiguring a prone bed for helping in the treatment of acute respiratory distress syndrome, in which the above disadvantages are obviated or mitigated, and attainment of desirable attributes is facilitated.

Autonomus and user-input reconfigurable proning bed and method for reconfiguring proning bed in the treatment of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS)


The present invention provides a checkout system which comprises an item accumulation (bagging) area which is partitioned into two or more sections using a flexible divider. The flexible divider extends from the entry zone of the accumulation area to a point on the boundary of the accumulation zone, but is longer than required to achieve this. When items are introduced into one section of the bagging area, if the items push against the flexible divider, for example due to weight of numbers, the divider flexes into the other section thereby making more space available in the current section for the items. Optionally the flexible divider is movable between two positions in the entry zone such that it further acts as a diverter for diverting items into one or other of the two sections and preferably a motor is used to automatically perform the movement.

In a scan and pass checkout system the goods/items of a customer are first scanned in a scanning area and then moved to a bagging or accumulation area, often by means of a endless conveyor belt. However, it is both undesirable to mix the goods of a first customer with the goods of a second customer in the bagging area and to wait for a first customer to remove all of their goods from the bagging area before serving the next customer. As a result, a problem exists in how to prevent the mixing of goods whilst maintaining an acceptable throughput of customers.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,569,711 to Allan D. Foster discloses using a rigid divider with a hingedly attached rigid deflector. The divider partitions the bagging area into roughly to equal sections and the deflector is manually moved between two positions to deflect goods from an endless conveyor to one or other partition of the bagging area.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,690,411 to Werner Potrafke discloses a checkout stand with three fixed accumulation areas. Goods are moved to two of the areas using a conveyor belt and inclined slide table, and to the third area using just an inclined slide table
U.S. Pat. No. 5,706,912 to Leon King Manufacturing Co., Inc., discloses a checkout stand with primary and secondary accumulation zones, primary and secondary endless conveyors, and a diverter. Goods placed on one side of the primary conveyor are moved to the primary accumulation area whilst goods place on the other side of the primary conveyor are deflected onto the secondary conveyor by the diverter and moved to the secondary accumulation area.
Two other known solutions are a carousel bagging area, and a dividing "stick" which is placed between the goods of different customers.

Item accumulation area divider for a checkout counter

International Business Machines Corporation


A turbine airfoil used in a gas turbine engine includes a plurality of cavities opening in a direction facing the airfoil surface, each cavity having cooling holes communicating with an internal cooling fluid passage of the airfoil, and the airfoil surface above the cavity being a thermal barrier coating and having a plurality of cooling holes communicating with the cavity, where each cavity is filled with a porous metal or foam metal material. Heat is transferred from the airfoil surface to the porous metal, and a cooling fluid passing through the porous metal attracts heat from the porous metal and flows out the holes and onto the airfoil surface to cool the airfoil.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an airfoil for use in a gas turbine engine, either as a blade or a vane, in which the airfoil includes a plurality of porous metal filled cavities with a thermal barrier coating applied over the porous metal, the porous metal allowing cooling air to flow through it onto the TBC producing a cooling air film to cool the airfoil.
2. Description of the Related Art Including Information Disclosed under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98
Prior art airfoils use a variety of ways to cool the airfoil using cooling air passing through and over the surface of the airfoil. U.S. Pat. No. 4,629,397 issued to Schweitzer on Dec. 16, 1986 shows an airfoil (FIG. 4) having a plurality of unobstructed cooling ducts 3 and lands 5 enclosed by an inner layer of metal felt 4 and an outer layer of heat insulating ceramic material 6 which partially penetrates into the metal felt 4 to form a bonding zone between the felt 4 and the ceramic material 6. Thus, any heat passing through the ceramic layer 6 is introduced into the large surface area of the metal felt 4 enabling the latter to efficiently introduce the heat into a cooling medium flowing in the ducts 3, thereby preventing thermal loads from adversely affecting the metal core to any appreciable extent.

Airfoil having porous metal filled cavities


A device for varying the relative angle position of a camshaft with respect to a crankshaft of an internal combustion engine. A circlip fixes the valve housing in a positively locking manner. The circlip has at least one radially extending circumferential portion which is designed to engage into an annular groove arranged in the camshaft or in the rotor in the axial end region of said camshaft or rotor, wherein the circlip has at least one axially extending retaining portion, wherein the control piston has, in one of the face regions thereof, an annular groove which is designed for the engagement of the at least one axially extending retaining portion, and wherein the valve housing has, in one of its face regions, at least one hook-shaped portion for engaging behind at least one radially extending circumferential portion of the circlip.

Camshaft-adjusting devices, particularly those that work hydraulically, are mainly used in internal combustion engines. Insofar as the camshaft adjuster works hydraulically, as is typical, it exhibits an impeller, in which blades are incorporated or arranged. The blades are located in hydraulic chambers, which are incorporated in a drive element (also referred to as an external rotor or stator). Through the corresponding application of hydraulic fluid to the respective side of the hydraulic chambers, the internal rotor (connected to the camshaft) may be adjusted relative to the external rotor between an "early limit stop" and a "late limit stop". The flow of hydraulic oil in this case is controlled by an electrically actuated directional valve. The transmission of the rotational movement of the crankshaft to the external rotor mainly takes place via a gear-wheel, to which the external rotor is connected in a non-rotatable manner. A camshaft adjuster and also a control valve of the aforementioned kind is disclosed in DE 102 11 468 A1, for example. In this solution, the device has a vane-type design. Other variants are also known, however, such as axial piston adjusters from DE 42 18 082 A1, for example.
The camshaft is mounted in a cylinder head of the internal combustion engine by means of a plurality of camshaft bearings. Hydraulic fluid is supplied to a hydraulic fluid channel formed in the camshaft via one of the camshaft bearings, which hydraulic fluid can be conducted into the pressure chambers via the control valve, which is arranged in a receiving part of the camshaft.
The control valve comprises a valve housing and a control piston contained in the valve housing in an axially displaceable manner. The control piston may be positioned by means of an electromagnetic actuator against the force of a spring element in an axial direction relative to the valve housing and thereby control the hydraulic fluid flows.
A circlip may be used to fix the valve housing. In this case, a form-fit fixing of the valve housing in the camshaft or in the rotor is achieved by means of the circlip. A solution of this kind is disclosed in DE 10 2009 039 085 A1 and DE 10 2009 039 384 A1.

Device for varying the relative angle position of a camshaft with respect to a crankshaft of an internal combustion engine


There is provided a thin film magnetic head, with letting a distance of a portion, where a width of a track portion in an upper magnetic pole changes, from a flying plane from a medium be Ly, and letting a distance of a portion, where a distance between right and left of a surface portion in a lower magnetic pole in a track width direction is wider than the width of the upper magnetic pole in the track width direction, from the flying plane from a medium be Tp, by creating a thin film magnetic head that is equipped with a recording head that has a relation of Tp≦Ly, it becomes possible to reduce a needless leakage magnetic field in the track width direction with securing magnetic field strength.

The present invention relates to a thin film magnetic head used for a magnetic disk unit, and in particular, to an induction type thin film magnetic head as a recording head.
Recently, in magnetic heads used for magnetic disk units, high density and high efficiency of recording media have been pursued, and miniaturization and high accuracy in shape of the heads have been promoted.
In order to cope with these requirements, a thin film magnetic head is required to have a large magnetic field at a point of a magnetic pole that contributes to magnetic recording, and the narrowing and high accuracy of a track width. In order to solve this problem, various examinations have been performed, that is, high Bs material has been adopted for a magnetic pole edge so as to enlarge a magnetic field of a thin film magnetic head, and head structure has been improved so as to improve the accuracy of the track width. One structure of a thin film magnetic head by the prior art is shown in FIG. 6. In the magnetic head with the structure in FIG. 6, it is intended to decrease the influence of a step of a coil 9 and non-magnetic insulating film 10 to an upper magnetic edge layer 7 that defines the track width by separately forming a magnetic core in an upper portion from a gap 4 to achieve the narrowing and high accuracy of the track width.
Nevertheless, even in the thin film magnetic head with the structure shown in FIG. 6, it becomes difficult to accurately form the upper magnetic edge layer 7 and a lower magnetic edge layer 1 in predetermined track width.
In addition, as the narrowing of track width and the high coercivity of a medium has been advanced, a recording magnetic field that has been required for a recording head has become large.
In order to improve the recording magnetic field of a recording head, it is effective to bring a track width spreading position Ly of the upper magnetic edge layer 7, which is shown in FIG. 6 as 20, closer to the side of an ABS 30 as a flying surface. However, in this case, although the magnetic field is improved, there is a possibility that effect track width may become large since a leakage magnetic field toward the track width also becomes larger. In addition, there is a non-magnetic insulating film 13 that defines gap depth Gd as 40 in the head structure in FIG. 6, and this non-magnetic insulating film 13 has a step of about 1 μm or so. Since the upper magnetic edge layer 7 that defines the track width is formed on the non-magnetic insulating film 13, there is a possibility that the accuracy of the resist pattern that forms the upper magnetic edge layer 7 is deteriorated because of being affected by a resist film thickness distribution and halation as the track width becomes narrower.
The invention aims at providing a thin film magnetic head, which solves these difficulties and enables high-density record and reproduction, and a production method thereof, and, a magnetic disk unit using this thin film magnetic head.

Thin film magnetic head having magnetic pole edge layer for achieving both improvement of recording magnetic field and reduction of unnecessary leakage magnetic field, and method of manufacturing same

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Japan, Ltd.


Disclosed is a balun circuit using defected ground structure. The balun circuit using a defected ground structure includes: a substrate; a ground surface formed on one surface of the substrate, the ground surface being formed with defect structure in a previously set shape; and two transmission lines formed on the other surface of the substrate opposing the ground surface, and separated from each other, and the defect structure of the ground surface is configured to have open circuit impedance characteristics, and one of the two transmission lines is grounded. An even mode signal is removed by using the defect ground structure having the open circuit impedance characteristics, and termination of total reflection characteristics is performed by using the grounding of one of the transmission lines. Accordingly, a balun circuit can be obtained which is small in size, has little loss at high frequency, and shows little change in characteristics due to the process error.

Recently, system products using millimeter wave band such as 24 GHz and 77 GHz car radar, 60 GHz radio near field communication and 94 GHz RF-imaging are being actively researched.
Such system products using millimeter wave band are configured by combining various types of individual circuits. As millimeter wave band circuit, a single end type circuit is generally used. However, in case of a mixer circuit, a "Gilbert Cell" type circuit which is operated in a differential mode is mainly used due to advantage that LO-IF interference and even-order distortion are reduced.
According to recent research on an amplifier circuit having a high operation frequency, a virtual ground can be utilized, and a differential mode amplifier capable of improving noise characteristics compared with a single mode amplifier, is being much utilized.
As a single mode circuit is generally used, a balun circuit for effectively converting between signals of two modes is required in the entire system.
Due to enhanced performance of an active device together with development of semiconductor processes, operation frequency of millimeter wave band products gradually shifts to a high frequency band. At a high frequency band, degree of integration of products can be enhanced due to decrease in size of a passive circuit. However, compared with a case of a low frequency band, problem such as change in circuit performance due to loss increase and a process error may occur.
As a method for converting a signal into a differential mode using a single-end feed, a transformer may be used at a low frequency band of 3 GHz or less. The transformer, which uses a coil type inductor therein as an integrated circuit (IC), has a problem that great loss occurs at millimeter wave band.
A circuit such as a Marchand balun or a Rat Race is mainly used for conversion between a single mode signal and a differential mode signal at millimeter wave band.
FIG. 1 shows a view illustrating a circuit diagram (a) of a Marchand balun used to form a differential mode signal, and a Marchand balun substantially fabricated in an integrated circuit (IC) chip in accordance with the conventional art.
As shown in FIG. 1, the Marchand balun is implemented by using coupling of two transmission lines having ¼ wavelength, and the Rat Race is also implemented by using long transmission lines having ¾ wavelength.
Such circuits may occupy a large area in an IC chip, and may cause great loss at a high frequency of millimeter wave band. Especially, the Marchand balun is frequently used in designing an IC, due to broad bandwidth characteristics. However, the Marchand balun may cause great change in characteristics due to process error, because it is sensitive to coupling change between two transmission lines.

Balun circuit using a defected ground structure

KOREA UNIVERSITY RESEARCH AND BUSINESS FOUNDATION


The address information of DVD-R or DVD-RW discs should be identified more accurately. Therefore, the detector is implemented with a sample/hold device for storing a reference value to be used for a sampling window. An optional integrator is used for comparing the integrated signal with a reference value to decide on the presence of a land pre-pit. The timing for controlling both the sample/hold device and the integrator is derived from a phase locked loop that is locked to the incoming groove wobble signal (TWin) by performing a clock multiplication with a predetermined factor. Advantageously, no band pass filter has to be included, which would need to be tuned according to the variations of the disc speed. Furthermore, the proposed land pre-pit detector is less affected by variations of the input amplitude, as no limiter is used.

In the known ECMA-279 standard for DVD-R ("ECMA—Standardizing Information and Communication Systems: 80 mm (1.23 Gbytes per side) and 120 mm (3.95 Gbytes per side) DVD-Recordable Disk (DVD-R)") and the ECMA 338 standard for DVD-RW ("ECMA—Standardizing Information and Communication Systems: 80 mm (1.46 Gbytes per side) and 120 mm (4.70 Gbytes per side) DVD Re-recordable Disk (DVD-RW)") the address information to identify a position on an unrecorded disc is stored in the so-called land pre-pits (LPP). These pre-pits are situated in the lands, which are the areas that separate the recording grooves, i.e. the tracks, from each other. Both the grooves as the recordable area and the lands holding the land pre-pits are formed during the mastering process of the disc, i.e. they are available on an unrecorded/blank disc.
The grooves are circles or spirals with a small radial sine wave shaped deviation called track wobble as shown in FIG. 1. A respective track wobble signal can be detected using a track error signal such as the push-pull signal. Additionally, some filtering or AC-coupling is applied. As well, the land pre-pits are detected by using the push-pull signal, as this signal also shows the reflectivity change on the outer edges of the groove, i.e. the neighbouring lands.
The land pre-pits, which belong to the groove that is actually read or recorded, are always situated on one side of the groove. According to ECMA-279, they are embossed on a predetermined position versus the track wobble modulation of the track. The groove wobble is regarded as a sine wave and the phase relation between the groove wobble and the land pre-pit signals (PWP) is defined to be −90°±10°. Thus, the PWP value is measured as the phase between the largest point of the LPP-signal and the average zero crossing point of the wobble. The LPP search can accordingly be triggered by detecting the PWP value.
Furthermore the track wobble signal can be used for controlling the rotational speed of the optical recording medium during recording or playback. To create a reliable recording medium speed signal, a phase locked loop (PLL), which is locked to the track wobble, is typically used. The clock output of this PLL can be used to close a recording medium rotational speed loop. If this PLL is locked to the track wobble, also timing signals to control the land pre-pit detection block can be derived.
A simple detection system (FIG. 2) is proposed in ECMA-279 (Annex Q). As already mentioned the land pre-pit signal as well as the track wobble frequency is derived from the Push-Pull signal 1. The signal algebra to generate the Push-Pull signal is (A+B)−(C+D), wherein A, B, C and D are the four signals of a four-quadrant detector (not shown here) for detecting the position of the reflected laser beam. The push-pull signal is fed to a limiter 2, which cuts spikes which are above the typical push-pull amplitude, and is then processed by a band pass filter 3, which cuts off frequency components higher or lower than the nominal track wobble frequency. Then a voltage V1 is added. The result of this signal processing is compared with the original signal by a first comparator 4. A PLL (not shown) locks on the track wobble frequency. The PLL creates a locked sine wave signal having the same frequency and phase as the track wobble frequency. The PLL's output signal is compared with a second reference voltage V2 by a second comparator for creating a detection window. The outputs of the two comparators 4, 5 are combined via a noise gate 6, which typically performs a logical AND-operation.
A corresponding signal diagram is shown in FIG. 3. The curves A in FIG. 3 are the signals applied to the first comparator 4. The push-pull signal PPS has the typical sine wave form superimposed by some noise. At point P1 the PPS signal shows a distortion. At point P2 the PPS signal is deformed due to a land pre-pit. The second curve BPF+V1 in FIG. 3A represents the PPS signal filtered by the band pass filter 3 and shifted downwards by a constant voltage V1. The comparator 4 detects that the signal PPS is below the signal BPF+V1 at the points P1 and P2. The resulting comparator signal is given in FIG. 3B. In parallel the second comparator 5 compares a PLL signal having the same frequency as the PPS Signal with a constant voltage signal V2 as shown in FIG. 3C. As a result a second comparator 5 outputs a gate signal as depicted in FIG. 3D. An AND-operation of the signals of FIG. 3B and 3D leads to the signal shown in FIG. 3E. Thus, the comparator signal produced by the distortion at point P1 is eliminated by this AND-operation and a usable land pre-pit signal is obtained.
In the ECMA-279 system, the signal created by the land pre-pit pulse does not have a constant amplitude. Furthermore, it can be influenced by HF components due to imperfect common mode cancellation through the subtraction (A+B)−(C+D).
Also, influences on both track wobble amplitude and land pre-pit amplitude will occur caused by the neighbouring tracks. In case of the track wobble amplitude the effect is called wobble beat.
The land pre-pit detector proposed in ECMA-279 is based on the comparison of the limited and band passed signal compared with the original signal. If the amplitude of the track wobble signal rises above or falls significantly below the limiter values, the first comparator 4 might fail to detect the existing land pre-pits. Also, if the playback or recording speed is changed, as for example in a CAV mode, the BPF 3 needs to be tuned accordingly. A further drawback of the standard detector circuit is that the PLL (not shown) must create a synthesized sine wave of constant amplitude to enable the creation of a reliable noise gate signal.
In this connection the document EP 1 184 850 A2 discloses a recording and reproducing apparatus capable of detecting a land pre-pit on an optical disc securely with a high precision. One of the signals output from a split detector is multiplied with a predetermined coefficient, which is changed depending on an error rate upon decoding of land pre-pits, a lens shift amount of an objective lens, and the levels of the land pre-pits signal and a wobble signal relative to a data signal.

Method and device for detecting land pre-pits


A method of call control in which a first communications network, detecting calls directed to a destination in the first network; redirects at least some of the calls to a destination in a second network (e.g. on no answer from the destination in the first network). The first network then operates in two phases. In a first phase, for a group of calls redirected to the second network, the time delay before the call is answered in the second network is recorded. When a number of time delays have been recorded, a delay period is set to a value less than the maximum value of the recorded time delays. In a second phase, for a second group of calls redirected to the second network subsequent to the calls of the first group, when a call of the second group is not answered in the second network within the delay period, the call is redirected to a message service associated with the first network.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to the field of telephony networks in general and to the control of calls in telephony networks in particular.
2. Related Art
An increasing number of telephone subscribers have more than one telephony account, benefiting from the increased flexibility and improved accessibility that multiple accounts can provide. For example, a subscriber may have a first, Wi-Fi telephony account and a second, GSM telephony account (a list of acronyms is provided at the end of the description). In such a telephony system, the Wi-Fi account can often be out of operation either because the Wi-Fi handset is switched off or is out of range of the nearest Wi-Fi access point (or "hotspot"). It is, therefore, convenient for the user, when their Wi-Fi telephony account is unavailable, for calls directed to the user at their Wi-Fi account to be redirected to a second telephony account, e.g., one provided via the GSM networks. A problem arises in the case of such re-directed calls when the call is not answered at the handset operating on the second network to which the call has been redirected. The default behavior of a telephony system in this situation would be for the call to be forwarded to a messaging service, e.g.: voicemail service, associated with the handset in the second network, to which the call has been diverted. This behavior, however, can lead to confusion for the user with messages, which should be associated with, and directly accessible from, their Wi-Fi handset, being instead associated with their GSM handset. The default behavior can also result in extra cost to the user where the user is liable to pay the mobile operator for a second diversion from the mobile network back to the redirecting network. Similar problems can occur with other combinations of telephony accounts, such as GSM with PSTN, where calls to the user may be redirected to the PSTN, when the user's GSM handset is switched off or out of range of a GSM transmitter.
The behavior described above may be less of a problem where both handsets are provided by the same service provider. Published patent application US 2007/0070976 describes a telecommunication system in which a service provider provides both a mobile network and a VoIP network interlinked via a PSTN backbone. Both networks provide telephony services to a user. According to this telecommunication system, calls to the user directed to a terminal on the fixed network may be delivered to a terminal associated with that user on the mobile network. If the call is not completed to the second terminal on the mobile network, the mobile network is able to detect this and to return the call to the fixed network, where it is forwarded to a messaging service on the fixed network.
The telecommunication system of U.S. Pat. No. '976 should work for users who have dual accounts from the same service provider. For example, "TruPhone" from Software Cellular Network, London, England is a service that provides a software application for mobile phones. This application provides end-users with a second Voice-over IP account, which works alongside an existing mobile phone account. In practice, not all users will have dual accounts from the same service provider and not all networks will be set up like the second network of U.S. Pat. No. '976. In a situation where the user has a first account with a first service provider operating a first network and a second account with a second service provider operating a second network, the above system may not work if, as is likely, there is no overall, control mechanism that allows the second network to be aware that an incoming call has been redirected from another network or to be alert to the need to return the call, if unanswered, to a messaging service in the other network.


A cooling apparatus for heat generating devices such as semiconductor chips comprises a parallel disk fan in the middle of a set of heat sink fins. The parallel disk fan has radial elements placed between the disks to efficiently create air flow without turbulence. Cooling efficiency is further enhanced when heat dissipation through the parallel disks of the fan is introduced.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to cooling devices for devices that generate heat such as semiconductor chips, and particularly, to an apparatus that improves the capability and reliability of cooling devices for semiconductor chips. The invention is in the field of heat transfer and cooling of semiconductor chips used in computers and telecommunication equipment.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As the power of semiconductor chips increases, more efficient cooling device for semiconductor chips is therefore required. Current known cooling solutions have drawbacks in providing an adequate cooling to chips in small spaces and, drawbacks in lowering acoustic noise. For instance, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,297,617, 5,309,983, and 5,445,215 each describe methods of using miniature "muffin fans" with multi-bladed propellers that drive cooling air toward heat collector fins at the periphery. These muffins fans tend to be nosier because the air is stirred up and pushed to the heat collector fins. U.S. Pat. No. 5,419,679 teaches a method using parallel disks to create air flow to draw air through an opening in an attached chassis for cooling electronic devices. U.S. Pat. No. 5,335,143 teaches a method using parallel disks between fins of a heat exchanger to provide cooling of chips. The arrangement is rather bulky, however, with only a small portion of a disk pumping air at any given time. U.S. Pat. No. 5,794,687 teaches a method of placing parallel disks in close fitting slots formed in a heat conducting housing. Methods of ducting incoming and outgoing air are additionally described.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,388,958 describes a "bladeless impeller" consisting of a plurality of disks and introduces a mechanism to transfer heat to the impeller shaft. However, the device needs to be positioned adjacent to an element to provide a complimentary surface to the disks to define a space in which pressure drop would occur on the operation of the impeller. U.S. Pat. No. 6,503,067 teaches a method using parallel disks to create laminar air flow for intake into an Internal combustion engine.
It would be highly desirable to provide a cooling apparatus for heat generating devices such as semiconductor chip devices that obviates the aforementioned deficiencies in the prior art.

Cooling apparatus for heat generating devices


A storage system for elevating objects from a surface, such as storing a bicycle off the ground, the storage system including a first mounting plate coupled to a wheel; a second mounting plate spaced from the first mounting plate and coupled to a plurality of wheels; a first wheel assembly spaced from the first mounting plate; a second wheel assembly spaced from the second mounting plate; a cable operatively engaging each of the wheels; and a coupler extending from the first wheel assembly and a second coupler extending from the second wheel assembly. Each of the mounting plates may be made from a unitary piece of material, and each plate may include a plurality of arched channels for rotatably adjusting the mounting plates, e.g., to provide for generally linear alignment of pulley wheels when installing the system.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a system for storing objects such as bicycles.
2. Description of the Related Art
Bicycle racks come in various configurations, depending on how the bicycle is to be stored. For example, some racks are floor stands that accommodate the front or rear wheel to hold the bicycle in place. These racks may require substantial floor space to accommodate the bicycle, and bicycles still may be susceptible to falling over if the wheels are not held adequately.
Other racks may allow for bicycles to be stored parallel to a wall and stacked vertically with respect to one another. While occupying less floor space protruding into the room, these racks still reduce the amount of floor space available to the user.
Still other storage solutions involve hanging bikes on hooks installed either in a wall or a ceiling support. However, these racks require the user expend energy to lift the bikes, and it may be awkward to the user to have to position the bike on the hook, which may result in the user becoming fatigued and/or dirty, e.g., if the user accidentally grabs the greased chain to support the bike.
What is needed is a storage solution that avoids the drawbacks of these traditional racks, hooks or other systems.