A clip assembly is used to connect a base member, such as a vehicle bumper, to a fitting member, such as an ornamental plate. The base member includes a plurality of projections, and the fitting member includes a plurality of corresponding through holes. The projections of the base member are inserted through the through holes of the fitting member. The fitting member is secured to the base member by means of the projections which are clamped by a plurality of clips. A plurality of holding members retain the clips in position during installation, and are disposed around the through holes.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a clip assembly, and more particularly to a clip assembly for securely connecting components to a bumper, a garnish or other parts of an automobile.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recent aerodynamic designs of automobiles require that certain openings be made along the bumpers, allowing a see-through view of the components behind the bumpers. The aesthetic appearance of the bumper can be improved by covering the opening with an ornamental plate, without affecting the aerodynamic characteristics of the bumper design.
The ornamental plate could be integrally formed with synthetic resin bumpers. However, when the plate and the bumper require different coloring, the plate must be masked when painting the bumper. This additional masking step would add complexity to the painting operation. Numerous assemblies have been proposed to connect the ornamental plate to the bumper. One such exemplary assembly is illustrated in FIG. 6, and includes a bolt 30, which is partly embedded within the bumper. A recess 32, with a slightly smaller diameter than that of the bolt head, is made at the peripheral edge of an opening 31a (only a portion is shown) in the rear side of a bumper 31. The bolt head is knurled, and the bolt 30 is secured to the bumper 31 by fitting the head into the recess 32. An ornamental plate 34 is secured to the bumper 31 by bolting it with the bolt 30 and a nut 33. Since the bolt is embedded within the bumper, the production of the bumper becomes complicated. Further, since the bolt head requires knurling, the manufacturing cost is increased.
Another exemplary conventional assembly is illustrated in FIG. 7, and includes a T-shaped bolt 35. A groove 36, is T-shaped, and is formed at the peripheral edge of the opening 31a, in the rear side of the bumper 31. The T-shaped bolt 35 is inserted into the groove 36 from the side. The ornamental plate 34 is secured to the bumper 31, via the T-shaped bolt 35 and a nut 37. This design requires a mold for casting the bumper 31 and a slide mold corresponding to the slide groove 36. Therefore, the casting of the bumper 31 becomes complicated, and the manufacturing cost is increased.
Yet another exemplary assembly is illustrated in FIG. 8, and includes a tapping screw 38. A hole 39, having a smaller diameter than that of the tapping screw 38, is formed in the peripheral edge of the opening 31a, in the rear side of the bumper 31. The ornamental plate 34 is secured to the bumper 34 by screwing the tapping screw 38 into the hole 39, for holding the ornamental plate 34 to the bumper 31. However, the casting process of the bumper 31 requires that it be provided with a casting pin. The use of such a pin presents the disadvantage that it might readily break under the contraction force generated by a large component such as the bumper, during the cooling period.
Still another exemplary assembly is illustrated in FIG. 9. The ornamental plate 34 is bonded to the opening 31a of the bumper 31 by a high frequency bonding process, which requires expensive and bulky equipment such as a high frequency bonding machine.
Another conventional assembly is illustrated in FIG. 10, and includes clips 40. This assembly further includes a plurality of projections 41 that are formed around the opening 31a in the rear side of the bumper 31. A plurality of through holes 42 are formed in the ornamental plate 34, and correspond to the projections 41. The plate 34 is first secured to the bumper 31 by inserting the projections 41 into the corresponding through holes 42. The clips 40 are then attached to the projections 41, which protrude through the corresponding through holes 42. The ornamental plate 34 is secured to the bumper 31 by urging the clip 40 deep enough to abut against the plate 34. A plurality of bites 43 are formed in each clip 40, and act against the projections 41, for preventing the plate 34 from getting detached. As a result, the plate 34 is secured at a predetermined position in the bumper 31.
However, the surfaces on which the plates 34 are installed, are not always facing in the upward direction. Certain installation surfaces of the bumper 31 sometimes face sideways or downward. In this case, the clip 40 must be installed with one hand while the plate 34 is held by the other hand, in order to prevent the plate 34, which is inserted in the corresponding projection 41, from separating from the bumper 31. Therefore, if a number of clips 40 become tangled in a container, it is very difficult to take out the clips 40 one by one, and the installation becomes less efficient.

Kabushiki Kaisha Toyoda Jidoshokki Seisakusho


An exposure system for light sensitive materials held in a vacuum frame includes an electrical light source and a power supply to the light source, the power supply having a power consumption monitor so it can modify the power supplied to the light source to compensate for any fluctuations in power consumption by the light.. The light source is supported in a housing having air exhaust openings proximate the mid-portion of the light source. A blower cools the light source with a helical airflow. The voltage drop across the electrical light source is used to control the speed of the blower to maintain the voltage of the light source at a desired level. The housing has an open face and a removable pane. An indicator indicates the presence of the pane. A metal shutter in the housing has a black ceramic surface adjacent the light source to selectively expose light sensitive materials. A control means closes the shutter when the indicator senses removal of the pane while power is being supplied to the light source. The control means includes a timer to hold the shutter closed for a period of time after the switch is opened, long enough to permit cooling of the light source and opens the shutter after expiration of the period. It also actuates the blower during the period to hasten the cooling of the light source.. The control unit to control operating parameters of a plurality of subsystem units of the exposure system includes an electronic memory unit and means responsive to signals stored in the electronic memory unit to control variables. The control lines of the control unit and the subsystem units have a plurality of physically equivalent, but electrically unique, pin socket outputs each having a plurality of electrical leads. A plurality of cables having physically and electrically identical terminations are provided, so that any of the cables may be used to connect a pin socket of the control unit to a pin socket of a subsystem unit.. The control unit includes a keyboard input to the memory storage means of variables to be stored. The keyboard includes function keys to select the variable to be assigned a value and numeric keys to assign a numeric value to a selected numeric variable.

The present invention relates to improvements in vacuum frames and exposure devices for light sensitive material. Numerous shortcomings in prior art devices have existed and the present invention addresses various such aspects to improve upon the functioning of the vacuum frame.
A vacuum frame consists generally of a support in which a flexible blanket and light-transmissive plate form two major boundaries of a flat chamber. A negative and light sensitive material are placed on the blanket, so that light passing through the light-transmissive material will be modified by the negative and expose the light sensitive material. When the flat chamber is closed, a vacuum is drawn in that chamber so that the blanket will flexibly be urged against the glass and bring the negative and light sensitive material into intimate contact. A particularly preferred vacuum frame arrangement is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,754,309 issued to assignee of the present invention on Jul. 25, 1986. The entire disclosure of that patent is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
The light sensitive materials to be exposed come from various manufacturers who develop new light sensitive emulsions quite regularly. Each emulsion has its own sensitivity to light, so that the wave length of the light impacting on the light sensitive material and the relative intensity at the various wave lengths of the spectrum are critical to getting an optimum exposure. Also, there are various light sources, which can be used, and each has its own spectral output, which may vary according to operating conditions.
In order to achieve good exposures, it is important to match up the spectral output of the light source with the sensitivity of the light sensitive material, and to insure that the exposures are controlled so that the desired correlation is obtained and maintained. A frequently used light source is a high intensity discharge light in which an envelope of glass is provided with electrodes on either end and filled with a gas, and sometimes also dopant materials. When a very high voltage is applied across the two electrodes of the light source, the gas in the envelope ionizes and becomes quite conductive so that electrical current is maintained between the two electrodes. As the lamp gets hot, it begins to glow and the dopant vaporizes and ionizes. The current passing through the gas and dopant causes the materials to emit light, with the frequency and wavelength of the light being determined by the temperature of the envelope. The desired operating temperature for these bulbs is typically on the order to 900 degrees Celsius or greater, in order to obtain the spectral distribution from the lamp as contemplated by its manufacturer.
As can be appreciated, the lamp does not immediately jump to such a high temperature from room temperature at start-up, but rather takes some time to reach its optimum operating temperature. As such, it is desirable to maintain the lamp in a standby condition very close to its operating temperature, so that when an exposure is desired, it is not necessary to wait for lamp warmup. In addition such lamps are difficult or impossible to make conducting when they are hot, so turning them off requires a cool-down period on the order of several minutes before they can be turned on again.
Such lamps are reliable sources of their designed spectrums, as long as the lamp power supply is supplied with electrical power of a constant voltage. However in industrial settings, where devices of this nature are used, there can be wide swings in voltage applied to lamps from other loads on the electrical system, causing voltage surges and drops. These can materially adversely effect the control that the operator has over the light output from the lamp. Also, as the lamp ages, its operating characteristic can vary, presenting an additional variable which it is desirable to control.
Prior art devices have attempted to accommodate the voltage fluctuation and lamp life deterioration problems using integrators which integrate either the voltage applied to the lamp power supply or the measured light output from the lamp, as measured by a photocell. Both of these approaches have merit, but neither have in the past been accomplished in a manner which permits maximum control over the exposure, in order to achieve precise results.
Furthermore, prior art integrators have used only one means of monitoring the lamp operation in order to determine when to stop directing light from the lamp to the light sensitive material. This results in a lack of flexibility and lack of precision control over the light output.
In addition, problems have been encountered with lamps, particularly in their replacement in that workers sometimes prematurely try to handle a hot lamp when replacing it. They can be severely burned by the extraordinarily hot lamp, or subjected to dangerous electrical shock from touching the electrical connections while attempting to change lamps.
Also, the power applied to the lamp has in the past been selectable, at most, three increments as dictated by switching of inductive ballasts in series with the lamp circuit. This provides less control over the light output than is optimum.
The light output from the HID lamps is often in the ultraviolet range and is useful for exposing the light sensitive materials sensitive to such high energy wavelengths. However, other distributions of light output are also desirable, depending upon the results sought. Filters have been known to modify distribution of wavelengths from the light source but have had only limited utility in prior art devices.
Another shortcoming of the prior art devices has been in assembling them on a customer's premises. The various components from an integrator or other control device to a vacuum control, to the light source or the like have been difficult and problematic to wire. As can be appreciated, if the wire intended to go to the light is instead hooked up to the vacuum, calamitous results may occur.
Also, the operation of the lamp, as stated before, is very temperature sensitive. Temperature fluctuations can change the spectral output, so a lack of control over lamp temperature can lead to undesirable exposures. Also, as the lamps age, they can develop hot spots or cold spots where the dopants preferentially have condensed on parts of the envelope and do not re-vaporize as readily. These problems also require resolution.
In addition, the worker who mans a vacuum frame for extended periods of time has a tedious job, which can lead to inattentiveness. With so much care being required to obtain just the right exposure, there is a need to provide the operator with an easy way to cause the lamp and vacuum frame to operate properly, even if the worker becomes distracted.
Accordingly, as can be seen, there are numerous shortcomings in prior art devices of this sort needing resolution.


A process for producing a reversed image proof from a negative film separation (66) including applying a uniform toner layer (60) to an offset member (46), exposing a charged surface (20) through the film separation (66) to produce unexposed non-image areas (68) and exposed image areas (70) thereon, contacting the offset member (46) to the charged surface (20) to transfer toner (74) from the offset member (46) to the surface (20) in the non-image areas (68), leaving an image residue (76) upon the offset member (46), and contacting the offset member (46) to a receptor (49) to transfer the image (76) thereto. The process may be repeated for subsequent colors to produce a positive multicolor image and may also be adapted to conventional proofers formerly capable of producing images from positive film separations only.

The purpose of pre-press proofs, as is well known in the art, is to assess color balance and strength which can be expected from the final press run and accordingly to correct the separation transparencies before the printing plates are made therefrom. In many instances it is also required to produce so-called customer proofs for approval of subject, composition and general appearance of the print prior to press run. Thus it is essential that the pre-press proof should have the same appearance as the press print, that is to say in addition to matching the colors of the press print, the pre-press proof should be on the same paper as the press print.
On the basis of the pre-press proofs, the color separation transparencies are accepted or corrected if necessary and then used for the preparation of printing plates. There are so-called positive working and negative working printing plates, as is well known in the art. A positive working printing plate is exposed to a positive transparency or film positive wherein the information to be printed corresponds directly to opaque areas, whereas the non-printing background areas correspond to transparent areas contained on such film positive. By exposing such positive working plate to light through a film positive, the exposed areas contained thereon are rendered removable by chemical treatment and the underlying usually grained aluminum plate surface then forms the water receptive nonprinting or non-image areas, whereas the unexposed areas contained thereon form the ink receptive printing or image areas during the subsequent lithographic or offset printing.
A negative working printing plate is exposed to light through a film negative wherein the information to be printed corresponds to transparent areas, whereas the non-printing background areas correspond to opaque areas contained on such film negative. In this case the exposed areas become photo-hardened and form the ink receptive printing areas whereas the unexposed areas are removed by chemical treatment and the underlying water receptive usually grained aluminium plate surface forms the non-printing or non-image areas during subsequent lithographic or offset printing.
It is known to produce by electrophotographic processes lithographic and gravure pre-press proofs containing in general four colors, such as yellow, magenta, cyan and black. Such pre-press proofing processes are disclosed for instance in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,337,340, 3,419,411 and 3,862,848.
It is customary to produce such electrophotographic pre-press proofs by charging a photoconductive recording member followed by exposure through a separation film positive corresponding to one color, followed by toning of the exposed photoconductor with a liquid toner of the appropriate color, followed by in-register transfer of the color toned image deposit to a receiving member surface, such as paper, usually of the same grade as the printing stock. These process steps are then repeated with separation film positives of the other three or more colors and appropriate color toners to produce a multi-color pre-press proof of print as required.
It should be noted that prior art electrophotographic pre-press proofing processes are so-called direct reproduction processes, that is to say the color separation transparencies employed include film positives wherein the image areas to be reproduced correspond directly to the opaque image areas on such film positives. Consequently in such prior art electrophotographic pre-press proofing processes the latent image formed on the photoconductor upon exposure to such positive separation films is developed by attracting thereto liquid toner material of opposite polarity to that of the electrostatic charges constituting said latent images whereby the so formed toner deposits on the photoconductor surface correspond directly to the image areas to be reproduced. Thus prior art electrophotographic pre-press proofing processes are employed only for proofing of film positives which are used for the preparation of positive working printing plates.
Prior art electrophotographic pre-press proofing processes are not suitable for the proofing of film negatives used for the preparation of negative working printing plates, in that such processes are not suitable for the reversal reproduction of imagery wherein the transparent areas contained on a film negative are to be reproduced as the image areas on the pre-press proof. Reversal reproduction per se by electrophotography is well known in the art but the processes employed for this purpose are not suitable for multicolor pre-press proofing.
Reversal image reproduction in electrophotography is normally carried out according to prior art practices by means of so-called repulsion toning. This process includes the steps of electrostatically charging the surface of a photoconductor to a polarity, typically charging an n-type photoconductor such as zinc oxide to negative polarity, exposing the surface to a film negative containing the image to be reproduced in the form of transparent areas and the non-image part in the form of opaque areas whereby the photoconductor surface becomes discharged in the exposed image areas while retaining the charge in the unexposed non-image areas and applying to the surface toner material having the same polarity as that of the charges contained on the surface, typically applying negative toner material to a negatively charged n-type photoconductor surface, whereby such toner material is repelled from the charged non-image areas onto the discharged image areas forming toner deposits thereon corresponding to the image to be reproduced. The thus formed image deposits in certain instances are fused to the photoconductor surface whereas in other instances they are transferred to a receptor sheet.
Such above described image reversal reproduction by electrophotography is very well suited to microfilm and microfiche reproduction and reader/printers wherein the information to be reproduced generally is in the form of alphanumeric characters and lines and where complete fill-in of large solid areas and complete absence of fog or stain in the non-image areas are not absolutely required. In pre-press proofing however in order to match the image quality of the press print sheet it is essential to have on the pre-press proof large solid areas completely filled in and background areas completely free of fog or stain. These requirements cannot be met by the prior art electrophotographic reversal process, because unlike by attraction toning, by repulsion toning it is not possible to produce uniformly filled in large solid areas. This is because toner repulsion from a charged background area onto an uncharged solid image area is most effective near the edges of the solid area where the intensity of the field lines from the charged background area terminating in the uncharged image area is highest. The intensity diminishes in effectiveness towards the center of the solid image area where the intensity of the terminating field lines is lowest. This results in solid image areas characterized by high density near the edges and a so-called hollow or lower density center. For the same reason, in repulsion toning the background non-image areas are completely free of fog or stain only near the edges. This so-called edge effect cannot be fully overcome even by using biasing devices during repulsion toning, that is by placing a so-called developing electrode a short distance apart from the photoconductor surface to thereby enhance toner deposition as is well known in the art.
A color proofing apparatus and method is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,556,309 ('309) whereby multicolor proofs are produced from positive color separation films only. In the method taught in the '309 patent, a photoconductor plate is uniformly charged, exposed to light through a positive transparency, toned in the image areas and the toned image deposits are transferred to an offset member and then to a receptor, such as a suitable grade of paper. In view of the above-identified advantages of producing proofs using negative transparencies and attraction toning, it would be desirable to be able to adapt a conventional proofer similar to that disclosed in the '309 patent, designed to use the positive color separation process, to convert to a negative color separation process without requiring significant changes to the proofer apparatus.


A method for interrogating a passive sensor comprising at least one piezoelectric resonator includes the following steps:                the identification of the characteristic width of the resonant frequency band of the resonator;        the determination of a scan interval equal to a third of the measured bandwidth;        a first series of three interrogation measurements with signals respectively at a first frequency, at a second frequency and at a third frequency making it possible to define a first resonance value, a second resonance value and a third resonance value;        the determination by a parabolic fitting operation of the resonator response curve on the basis of said first, second and third resonance values, so as to calculate a first value of the frequency in real time of the resonator.

These sensors are known for their use for example as temperature or pressure sensors and generally comprise at least one resonator comprising a micro-structure deposited on the surface of a piezoelectric substrate. An exemplary sensor can typically comprise two interdigital electrode comb transducers placed between reflecting gratings. The reflecting gratings behave like mirrors and there therefore exist resonant frequencies for which the return path in the cavity is equal to an integer number of wavelengths. The resonant modes for these frequencies are excited by the transducer placed between the mirrors.
This type of sensor can be interrogated remotely, by connecting the input of the transducer to an RF radiofrequency antenna. When the antenna receives an electromagnetic signal, the latter gives rise to waves on the surface of the substrate which are themselves reconverted into electromagnetic energy on the antenna. Thus, the device consisting of an assembly of resonators connected to an antenna has a response at the resonant frequencies of the resonators that it is possible to measure remotely. Thus, remotely interrogatable sensors can be produced. This possibility is a significant advantage of surface acoustic waves and can be used notably within the framework of tire pressure sensors. It is indeed beneficial in this type of application to be able to place the sensor in the tire whereas the interrogation electronics are on board the vehicle.
According to the known art, remote interrogation systems use interrogation signals in the form of pulses (typically with a period of about 25 μs) which travel via an emitting antenna toward a receiving antenna connected to the surface wave sensor dubbed hereinafter in the description, SAW sensor.
A favored band of frequencies for systems of this type is the ISM band, the acronym standing for "Industrial, Scientific, Medical" having as central frequency a frequency of 433 megahertz and a bandwidth of 1.7 megahertz.
Generally a remotely interrogatable SAW sensor and its interrogation system can comprise, as illustrated in FIG. 1 in the simplified case of a single transducer:                an interrogation system 2;        at least one resonator 1 comprising:                    an antenna 100;            a transducer with interdigital electrode comb 11 and an SAW resonant cavity 13 characterized by its central frequency F and its quality factor Q, corresponding to the ratio between the central frequency and the passband width. The cavity 13 comprises two series of reflectors regularly spaced apart by a distance d. The transducer is connected to the antenna 100.
The interrogator 2 dispatches a long radiofrequency pulse to charge the resonator 1. When the emission stops, the resonator discharges on its natural resonant frequency with a time constant τ equal to Q/πF. This discharge of the resonator constitutes the return echo detected by the receiver of the interrogator. A spectral analysis thereafter makes it possible to work out the frequency of the resonator which constitutes its identification. This analysis can be performed by algorithms based on the Fourier transformation, for example of FFT type, the acronym standing for Fast Fourier Transform. This type of processing by spectral analysis is particularly complex.

Method for querying a piezoelectric resonator and querying device implementing said querying method

Abstract: The invention also relates to an electronic device for interrogating a passive sensor comprising at least one piezoelectric resonator and comprising a micro-controller implementing the interrogation method of the invention.


The present invention provides a tape substrate with COF structures for a liquid crystal display panel. A plurality of package units with the COF structures are arranged along a longitudinal direction of the tape substrate. Each of the package units includes input leads and output leads. In each of the package units, along the longitudinal direction of the tape substrate, the input leads and the output leads are disposed at both sides of the tape substrate, respectively. The present invention further provides the liquid crystal display panel using the tape substrate.

In accordance with a development of a liquid crystal display (LCD) technology, a requirement for elements of a liquid crystal display panel is raised gradually.
At present, in a COF type package structure, a driving chip is basically packaged with hot press by tape automated bonding (TAB). The COF type package structure is coiled for transporting. When using the COF type package structure, COF structures can be obtained by cutting a tape substrate, and are electrically connected between a circuit on a glass substrate of an LCD panel and a driving circuit board. At least one COF structure is disposed between the glass substrate and the driving circuit board. The larger a size of the LCD panel is, the more an amount of the required COF structures is.
Referring to FIG. 1, in the COF structure shown in FIG. 1, a longitudinal direction D2 of a driving chip 11 is vertical to a longitudinal direction D1 of a tape substrate 10. The tape substrate 10 has input leads 12 and output leads 13, wherein the input leads 12 are close to a printed circuit board (PCB), and the output leads 13 are close to a glass substrate for outer lead bonding (OLB). The input leads 12 and the output leads 13 are disposed at both sides of the driving chip 11 and arranged radially along the longitudinal direction D1 of the tape substrate 10.
Taking the output leads 13 for example, the output leads 13 are connected to a transparent circuit (not shown) on the glass substrate. The amount of the output leads 13 is more than the input leads 12, and the output leads 13 are arranged very closely. However, in the conventional COF, a width of the tape substrate 10 is less and limited (normally 35 or 48 mm). Thus, the width of each chip (COF) on the tape substrate 10 is also limited. Moreover, with an increase of the amount of the COFs, the leads of each COF are required to be increased. Therefore, obviously, the conventional COF can not meet a high circuit density requirement for the LCD panel of large size.
Accordingly, in the field of the LCD technology, it is a problem that the conventional COF (especially the output leads of the COF) can not meet the high circuit density requirement for the LCD panel of large size.

Tape substrate with chip on film structure for liquid crystal display panel

Shenzhen China Star Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd.


A voice processing system for connection to a telephone line for providing telephony support to voice processing applications having a voice processing application and a media object, the media object having an output element for outputting a set of output components in accordance with one or more presentation criteria such as locale and style; a receiving element for receiving the media object from the voice processing application, the media object representing desired output over a telephone line; and the outputting element outputting the output components over the telephone line.

The present invention relates to voice processing systems for supporting one or more voice processing applications.
Voice processing systems are widely used in call centres and other environments to manage interactions with customers, thereby reducing the number of relatively expensive human agents required to service customer inquiries, whilst at the same time providing improved responsiveness for callers. The vast majority of voice processing applications developed for use in such situations are still based primarily on a relatively simple set of operations, including playing the caller a prompt (typically a question, perhaps asking them to specify the particular service in which they are interested), receiving a dual tone multiple frequency (DTMF) key input from the caller in response to such prompt, and then performing some action in response to the caller selection. Examples of possible actions include playing a prompt to obtain further DTMF input, recording a voice message from the caller, transferring the caller to another extension, or playing some information to the caller, such as an account balance, or timetable information (this may require the voice processing system to interact with a separate computer database). The prompts and other information played out in audio form to callers typically comprise one or more pre-recorded audio segments which can be assembled together as required.
It will be appreciated that an enormous range of voice processing applications have been developed in the industry, both inbound and outbound. One problem with traditional voice processing systems is that they have often each provided their own specific voice application environment. This has had several unfortunate consequences, for example it is difficult to port voice applications from one voice processing system to another, whilst at the same time few voice processing systems are properly scalable across the whole range of potential operation (from handling a few lines up to several hundred). Thus a user having a heterogeneous system environment is prevented from flexibly deploying a single voice processing application across all machines.
The provision of a specialised voice application environment also makes voice processing applications difficult to integrate with general computing business systems in an organisation, and in addition voice processing applications are often harder and more expensive to develop (since programmers must learn about the specialised environment). These problems are becoming ever more acute with the rapidly increasing the number of voice processing systems employed in customer situations, and the need to provide good integration between the voice processing applications and the overall management information systems.
U.S. Patent Publication 6,335,964B1, filed Sep. 19, 1997, describes a voice processing application environment, based on the object-oriented (00) Java programming language. In particular, this document describes the provision of a set of telephony Java Beans (i.e. programming components) which can be readily integrated using standard Java program development tools into general business applications to provide straightforward access to telephony functionality on any platform. A Java-based voice processing architecture called xe2x80x9cInteractive Communications Managementxe2x80x9d has been disclosed by Syntellect Inc. EP-A-658855 discloses the integration of a multimedia facility within an object oriented environment, whereby selection of an object by a user of an audio view can result in output for example using a text to speech facility.
An important feature of the above-mentioned UK patent application is the ability to render details of the voice processing system effectively transparent to the application, thereby providing full platform independence. It is difficult to provide an efficient interface between the application and the telephony system in order to allow the application access to telephone functionality, without building into the application some knowledge of the underlying voice processing system, and thereby compromising flexibility. One particular complication for example involves playing a prompt, due to the variations in the way that certain information such as dates and times are handled in such situations.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a voice processing system for connection to at least one telephone line for providing telephony support to one or more voice processing applications, comprising:
means for receiving a media object from a voice processing application, said media object representing desired output over a telephone line;
means for processing said media object into a set of a plurality of output components in accordance with one or more presentation criteria; and
means for outputting said output components over the telephone line.
In the preferred embodiment, said output components comprise individual voice segments, and said means for processing said media object into a set of a plurality of output components includes means for generating a set of voice segments for said media object in accordance with one or more presentation criteria.
The presentation criteria can generally be specified by said voice processing application, determined automatically by the voice processing system (typically using default values), or some combination of the two. Example of presentation criteria include the locale and a presentation style.
Such an approach provides great flexibility, in that there is no need to hard code information such as locale or presentation style into the application, but instead these can be provided by the default telephony environment. This allows applications to be developed without needing to know in advance the countries or languages in which they will be deployed. Moreover, the ability to override the default settings is valuable for example where one voice processing system is running the essentially the same application in two different languages, potentially accessible from two different countries.
The invention further provides a method of operating a voice processing system for connection to at least one telephone line for providing telephony support to one or more voice processing applications, said method comprising the steps of:
receiving a media object from a voice processing application, said media object representing desired output over a telephone line;
processing said media object into a set of a plurality of output components in accordance with one or more presentation criteria; and
outputting said output components over the telephone line.
In the preferred embodiment, said media object is received via remote method invocation in serialised form, thereby allowing the voice application to reside on a different machine than the voice processing system.
The invention also provides a voice processing complex comprising a plurality of host machines, each host machine supporting one or more voice applications, at least one host in the complex including telephony hardware for providing access to a plurality of telephone lines, said at least one host including:
means for maintaining a mapping of voice applications to telephone lines;
means for creating a call object in response to an incoming call on one of said plurality of telephone lines;
means for determining a voice application to be associated with said incoming call on the basis of said mapping of voice applications to telephone lines;
means for providing an identifier for said call object to the determined voice application; and
means in said call object responsive to requests from said determined voice application for providing telephony functions to said incoming call.
In the preferred embodiment the determined voice application is on a different host from the call object, and accesses the call object via remote method invocation. Applications which are currently available to receive an incoming call, register themselves with the voice processing means; if there is an incoming call on a telephone line for which no application is registered, then a default application is launched.
The invention further provides a voice processing system for supporting one or more voice applications, said voice processing system including:
telephony hardware for providing access to a plurality of telephone lines;
means for maintaining a mapping of voice applications to telephone lines;
means for creating a call object in response to an incoming call on one of said plurality of telephone lines;
means for determining a voice application to be associated with said incoming call on the basis of said mapping of voice applications to telephone lines;
means for providing an identifier for said call object to the determined voice application;
means in said call object for receiving a media object from said determined voice processing application, said media object representing desired output over said one telephone line;
means for processing said media object into a set of a plurality of output components in accordance with one or more presentation criteria; and
means for outputting said output components over said one telephone line.
The invention further provides a voice processing system for connection to at least one telephone line for providing telephony functionality to one or more voice processing applications, said voice processing system comprising:
first application manager means for launching a first voice processing application when the voice processing system in initialised, said application manager means providing access to said telephony function for said first voice processing application; and
second application manager means which is launched responsive to a request by a second voice processing application for access to said telephony function.
Thus one of the difficulties when trying to separate the application from""specifics of the telephony functionality is in supplying information about the actual telephony environment into a generic application. In the preferred embodiment, this is achieved by supplying configuration information to an application manager when the system is initialised, which can then be made available to the application. This is satisfactory for applications which are effectively subservient to the voice processing environment, but ill-suited to certain applications for example where the telephony is only a minor part of such applications, or perhaps only required on an intermittent basis. Thus the voice processing architecture of the present invention also allows such applications to create their own application manager (note that in this case the application must provide its own information about the telephony resource to use, since this will not have been provided as part of the initial configuration). In the preferred embodiment, this is achieved by making said first and second voice processing applications obtain access to telephone functionality through a static interface into an application manager.

Voice processing system with mapping of voice applications to telephone lines

International Business Machines Corporation


In a mobile communication system including Home eNBs, information on mobile stations permitted to access each Home eNB can be easily registered, and the permitted mobile stations can be connected to the Home eNB substantially at the same time of the registration of the access permission. In order to control access to a certain user targeted base station, the information on mobile stations permitted to access the certain user targeted base station is supplied to the certain user targeted base station. Then, the information on the access permitted mobile stations is transmitted to a mobile communication management apparatus on a network. The access permitted mobile station registration is stored in the mobile communication management apparatus in association with the certain user targeted base station. When the access permitted mobile station has entered a location registration area covering the certain user targeted base station or exists in the location registration area, the mobile communication management apparatus transmits connection information for the certain user targeted base station to the mobile station.

Presently, it is being discussed and proposed to introduce a very small base station targeted for certain or specified users for implementing FMC (Fixed and Mobile Convergence) services (see "Requirements for LTE Home eNodeBs", RP-070209, 3GPP TSG RAN #35, Lemesos, Cyprus, 6-9 Mar. 2007). In LTE (Long Term Evolution), whose specification development is being currently ongoing, as a successor to the third generation radio access scheme, such very small base stations targeted for certain or specified users are collectively referred to as Home eNBs (or Home e-NodeBs). The Home eNB is a so-called plug-and-play type of apparatus that a user can buy and install at a desired location without the necessity, of operator's manual installation, maintenance and management.
Since the Home eNB serves as a private base station for certain or specified users, the Home eNB differs from general-purpose base stations constituting an existing public communication network, and it is not reasonable that all subscribers be permitted to access the Home eNB. Conventionally, in order to gain permission to access the general-purpose base stations constituting a mobile communication network, a user has only to subscribe to any communication operator and have user information registered with storage devices provided by the communication operator such as a HLR (Home Location Register) and a HSS (Home Subscriber Server). When the user subscribes to the communication operator, the user information is registered by the communication operator with the HLR. Before initiation of communications with a mobile station (user), the general-purpose base station targeted for the public determines whether the user is an authorized one through authentication of the mobile station based on the user information in the HLR.
However, it has not been conceived that access permission be registered for each base station. Acquiring access authority by subscribing to a communication operator conventionally means that it is permitted to access all base stations or a set of base stations (except base stations during maintenance) operated by the communication operator.

Access control method for certain user targeted base station, base station apparatus and mobile communication management apparatus


A patterning process, including steps of: forming the first resist film from the first resist material containing a thermosetting compound having a hydroxy group and/or a carboxy group each protected by an acid-labile group, an acid generator, and a sensitizer; irradiating the first resist film with a high energy beam or an electron beam to perform pattern exposure to deprotect the hydroxy group and/or carboxy group in a pattern exposed portion; forming the second resist film from second resist material containing (A) metal compound on the first resist film, and forming a crosslinked portion wherein the component (A) and deprotected hydroxy group and/or deprotected carboxy group are crosslinked on the pattern exposed portion; and developing the second resist film with a developer to give a metal film pattern composed of the crosslinked portion. This provides a method for forming a thin film resist pattern with higher resolution and higher sensitivity.

As Large-Scale Integrated circuits (LSIs) advance toward higher integration and higher processing speed, miniaturization of a pattern rule has been required. In such a trend, in ordinary lithography using a photo-exposure, various technologies have been developed on how to process finer pattern more precisely with the light source used.
As the advanced miniaturization, image blurs due to acid diffusion have been regarded as a subject (Non-Patent Document 1). In order to ensure resolution for fine patterns with a post-45 nm size, the importance of controlling the acid diffusion is proposed not only enhancing dissolution contrast, which has been proposed previously (Non-Patent Document 2). In chemically amplified resist materials, however, the sensitivity and the contrast are enhanced by acid diffusion. Accordingly, an attempt to minimize acid diffusion by decreasing the temperature and time of post-exposure bake (PEB) lowers the sensitivity and contrast markedly.
It is effective to control the acid diffusion by adding an acid generator that generates a bulky acid. Accordingly, it has been proposed to copolymerize a polymer with an acid generator in the form of an onium salt having polymerizable olefin. In post-16 nm size patterning of resist films, however, it is considered that patterning is impossible for chemically amplified resist films in view of the acid diffusion. Accordingly, development of non-chemically amplified resist material has been required.
As a non-chemically amplified resist material, polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) may be exemplified. The PMMA is a positive resist material which increases solubility in organic solvent developer through scission of the main chain by EUV irradiation to lower the molecular weight. Due to the lack of cyclic structure, however, it has the drawbacks of lower etching resistance.
Hydrogensilsesquioxane (HSQ) is a negative resist material which turns insoluble in alkaline developer through crosslinking by condensation reaction of silanol generated by EUV irradiation. Calixarene substituted with chlorine also functions as a negative resist material. These negative resist materials have a small molecular size prior to crosslinking and are free from causing blurs due to acid diffusion to exhibit smaller edge roughness and very high resolution. Accordingly, they have been used as a pattern transfer material to show the resolution limit of the exposure apparatus. These materials, however, are insufficient in sensitivity, and further improvement is required.
In miniaturization using EUV lithography, the resist is required to have higher sensitivity and higher resolution in the first place. In addition to that, it is also important to control line edge roughness (LER) that lowers dimensional precision. Another important subject is prevention of pattern collapse due to miniaturization. One of the reason for the pattern collapse is an increase of aspect ratio of a resist pattern. Accordingly, the resist material is required to be thinned, but this causes a sore subject to increase a burden in the subsequent etching process.
In photoresist materials for semiconductor lithography, it has been impossible as yet to use a resist material incorporated with metal because the metal atom can transfer to a substrate to cause malfunction of a semiconductor. In a use other than the semiconductor, such as a resist material for LCD (Non-Patent Document 3), however, zinc neodecanate has been used as a patterning material for forming a transparent electrode ZnO. Patent Document 1 exemplifies patterning with an acetylacetonato complex of silicon, titanium, zirconium, tantalum, barium, strontium, or hafnium. Additionally, Patent Document 2 exemplifies patterning using a copper, chromium, cerium, yttrium, barium, or aluminum salt of a ligand having a carboxy group or a ligand having an amino group. After the patterning, heat treatment is performed at 300° C. to form a pattern of metal oxide.
Patent Document 3 exemplifies a patterning using a positive resist material in which diol or triol coordinates to partly condensed alkoxide of titanium, zirconium, or hafnium. These materials make it possible to form a pattern with higher resolution and smaller edge roughness, but are insufficient in sensitivity and are required to be further improved.
Patent Document 4 shows a patterning process of forming a metal oxide-containing film onto a substrate to be processed using a composition for forming metal oxide, forming a resist upper layer film onto the metal oxide-containing film using a resist upper layer film material, followed by forming a resist pattern by exposing the resist upper layer film, transferring the resist pattern to the metal oxide-containing film, and etching the under layer of the substrate to be processed using the metal oxide-containing film having the transferred pattern as an etching mask. These patterning processes are excellent in etching selectivity and make it possible to form a pattern formed of the resist upper layer film onto a substrate to be processed without causing difference in size change, but have large number of steps for patterning and are insufficient in resolution of the resist upper layer, and further improvement is required thereby.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


The present invention relates to a metal oxide nano-composite magnetic material, fabrication method, and method for linkage, enrichment, and isolation of phosphorylated species. The metal oxide nano-composite magnetic material comprises the magnetic iron oxide nanoparticle, a silica layer immobilized onto the magnetic iron oxide nanoparticle and a metal oxide layer coated onto the silica layer. The magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles can be used for absorbing microwave radiation to accelerate the enrichment and linkage for phosphorylated species onto the metal oxide nano-composite magnetic material. Furthermore, the magnetic property of magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles leads to isolation of the metal oxide nano-composite magnetic material-target species conjugates by simply employing an external magnetic field. The specificity of the metal oxide on the surface of the metal oxide nano-composite magnetic material for phosphorylated species also leads to the linkage/enrichment of phosphorylated species with high selectivity.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention displays the fabrication method for a metal oxide nano-composite magnetic material and their uses in linkage, enrichment, and isolation of phosphorylated species. Furthermore, this invention especially addresses the applications for the enrichment and isolation of phosphorylated peptide/proteins from complex samples by using the proposed metal oxide nano-composite magnetic nanoparticles as affinity probes.
2. Description of Related Art
Protein phosphorylation is one of the most common protein post-translational modifications. Phosphorylated proteins play an important role for signal transduction and cell regulation in biological systems. Nevertheless, the abundance of phosphorylated proteins is generally low in biological samples (Cohen, P., Nature Cell Biology 4, E127-E130 (2002)). Therefore, it is necessary to develop suitable methods for selectively enriching traces of phosphorylated proteins from complex samples. Hence, many technologies for purifying phosphorylated proteins and phosphorylated peptides have been developed. Among these technologies, immobilized metal ion chromatography (IMAC), which immobilizes Fe3+ and Ga3+ onto solid substrates, has been used for purification of phosphorylated species from complex samples by Ficarro, S. B. et al., Nature Biotechnology 19, 301-305 (2002). The phosphorylated species can strongly interact with metal ions on the IMAC substrate.
Although IMAC has been widely used for purifications of phosphorylated proteins/peptides, there are some problems arising in IMAC. For example, non-specific binding, which may result in low sensitivity and poor extraction capacity, remains a problem in IMAC that has been investigated by Thomas, K. et al., J. Mass Spectrom. 38, 131-137 (2003). Metal oxide affinity chromatography (MOAC) is an alternative approach used for selectively enriching phosphorylated proteins/peptides based on the interaction between metal oxides and phosphates (Wolschin, F. et al., Proteomics 5, 4389-4397 (2005)). Conventionally, chromatographic columns packed with metal oxide coated beads are used for the enrichment of phosphorylated species. Columns packed with titanium oxide and zirconium oxide have been employed in MOAC for enriching phosphorylated peptides/proteins by Cantin, G. T. et al., Anal. Chem. 79, 4666-4673 (2007); Sugiyama N. et al., Mol. Cell Proteomics 6, 1103-1109 (2007). For ease of use, we have previously demonstrated that titanium oxide/zirconium coated magnetic nanoparticles can be used as effective affinity probes for phosphopeptides/proteins (Chen, C. T. and Chen, Y. C. Anal. Chem. 77, 5912-5919 (2005); Lo, C. Y.; Chen, W. Y.; Chen, C. T. and Chen, Y. C. J. Proteome Res. 6, 887-893 (2007)). This approach greatly simplifies the steps for isolation of probe target species from sample solutions because probe-target species conjugates can easily be isolated by magnetic separation. Moreover, the problem of non-specific binding is greatly reduced. We further explore several types of metal oxide coated magnetic nanoparticles (MOMNPs), which is the invention presented herein. In addition, microwave heating is utilized in accelerating the enrichment of phosphorylated proteins/peptides by MOMNPs because magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) are good microwave absorbers, first investigated by Walkeiwicz, J. W. et al., Miner. Metall. Proc. 124, 247-252 (1988). Chen, W. Y. and Chen, Y. C. Anal. Chem. 79, 8061-8066 (2007), have previously demonstrated that extraction of traces of oligonucleotides from a sample solution could be completed using MNPs as the adsorbents under microwave heating within 30 sec. This invention also combines this technique to this MOMNPs approach. It has been demonstrated that metal oxide nano-composite magnetic material can be used to selectively enrich traces of phosphorylated species from complex samples within 30˜90 sec and then the target species of metal oxide nano-composite magnetic material can be characterized by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI MS). Thus, the advantages of the present invention involve short analysis time, high specificity, and high sensitivity.

Metal oxide nano-composite magnetic material, fabrication method, and method for linkage, enrichment, and isolation of phosphorylated species


In the WDM systems, the OSNR and the signal loss among the optical signals are substantially minimized at the receiving terminal to combat the SRS effects. An equal amount of the signal loss is expected for every span in the transmission path so that the optical amplifier gain tilt is not affected among a number of wavelength frequencies in the optical signal. This is accomplished by controlling the amplification process according to a feedback from the monitoring units for monitoring the optical signal.

Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) transmission systems have been used as a means to increase the transmission capacity. WDM allows a single optical fiber to send a plurality of optical signals each with a varying wavelength. Optical fiber amplifiers such as an Erbium Doped Fiber Amplifier (EDFA) simultaneously amplify a wide range of wavelengths. Due to the above simultaneous amplification, the combination of WDM and optical amplifiers enables economical transmission in a large capacity over a long distance with relatively simple structures.
To cover a long distance, optical amplifiers are used in succession for a series of spans or portions. Because the spans are not necessarily equal, the actual placement of the optical amplifiers is also not equidistant. Consequently, the amount of transmission loss varies for each span. For the above varying transmission loss, the input optical level to an optical amplifier is not constant for each optical amplifier, and the gain tilt occur among optical signals with different wavelengths.
The above gain tilt is accumulated over multiple optical amplifiers that are connected to a single optical fiber. At a final receiving unit, the gain tilt appears as a significant problem over a long distance. Since the gain tilt may exceed a predetermined reception dynamic range of a receiving unit, acceptable reception may not be possible. The optical signal levels during the transmission also vary among the wavelengths, and each optical signal receives a varying non-liner effect. Because of the above reasons, the optical signal waveform is affected for each wavelength.
The WDM optical gain transmission generally requires an optical signal at a high input level to be entered into an optical fiber in order to implement a long distance transmission system. It is concerned that the above described non-linear degrading effect on transmission would be further exaggerated due to the high optical input signal level. One of the non-linear effects is Stimulated Raman Scattering (SRS), which causes excessive loss or gain in optical signals. SRS is a non-linear optical process where a portion of the optical fiber input signal acts as stimulating light and energy moves from high-frequency signals to low-frequency signals by interacting with the low-frequency signals in the optical fibers. Although SRS occurs in all optical fibers, the effect depends upon the type of fibers and the frequency difference between the optical signals that are involved in energy transfer.
There is a number of factors for the amount of the above described energy transfer. The energy transfer is proportional to the sum of the output optical strength. The more wavelengths there are and the wider the wavelength range is in the WDM apparatus, the larger the amount of the energy transfers. As a result, the SRS effect is more typically seen. Further, the longer the transmission path is, the more apparent the SRS effect becomes. Under the influence of the SRS effect, the WDM transmission experiences a varying Optical Signal to Noise Ratio (OSNR) among the optical signals with a different wavelength since the wavelength signal level discrepancy occurs during transmission and the optical input level varies for each optical amplifier. Similar to the inter-wavelength gain tilt, the optical output strength also varies for each wavelength during transmission. As a result of the varying output strength, the reception waveform also experiences wavelength-dependent waveform distortions and transmission errors due to self phase modulation and wavelength dispersion as well as frequency chirping.
Prior art WDM systems had operated with a relatively small number of wavelengths and a relatively narrow range of frequencies in optical signals. For the above reasons, the effect of the inter-wavelength gain tilt and the SRS-induced signal level discrepancy had not been significant. Contrarily, as the communication traffic has increased in the recent years, the WDM systems have been demanded to cover a longer distance, to accommodate a larger number of frequency signals and to widen a range of the frequency. As a result of the added requirements, the effect of the inter-wavelength gain tilt and the SRS-induced signal level discrepancy can be no longer ignored. It has been reported in academics that transmission becomes disabled due to the above described increased SRS effects when the initial design capacity for the wavelengths is reached in the WDM systems.
To deal with the above described undesirable effects in the WDM systems, prior art has considered the discrepancy in gain tilt in optical amplifiers and the wavelength-dependent loss in the transmission path. For example, Japanese Patent Publication Hei 8-223136 discloses a method of minimizing the gain tilt in the optical amplifiers to obtain the minimal OSNR. Another example is Japanese Patent Publication Hei 11-55182, which discloses a method of minimizing the optical signal level discrepancy and the OSNR at a receiving end. The above prior art methods are useful for the situations where the optical signal loss amount is equal among the spans in the transmission path. Alternatively, the above prior art is also useful if the optical signal loss and the optical amplifier gain tilt are not affected by a number of wavelength frequencies in the optical signal to be inputted in an optical amplifier. Unfortunately, the above described prior art technologies do not account for the situations where the optical signal loss amount is not equal among the spans in the transmission path. The above prior art technologies also fail consider that the optical signal output strength is different among a number of wavelength frequencies or ranges of frequencies in the optical signal.
Japanese Patent Publication 2000-183818 discloses the method of adjusting optical signal strength at a transmission side for each wavelength by pre-emphasis so as to stabilize the OSNR at a receiving side. However, the above method depends upon a range and a number of frequencies, and the discrepancy or tilt in signal level among the optical signals may exceed the pre-emphasis guaranty.
For the above described reasons, it is desirable to guarantee the OSNR among the optical signals at the receiving terminal in the WDM systems. In other words, it is desirable to guarantee an equal optical signal loss amount among the spans in the transmission path so that the optical amplifier gain tilt is not affected among a number of wavelength frequencies in the optical signal. Furthermore, it is also desirable to guarantee the signal level among frequencies due to SRS during the optical fiber transmission.

Optical transmission system for substantially equalizing the output signal level among frequency bands and substantially lowering the signal-to-noise ratio


The present invention provides a water-curable resin composition for use in the preparation of composite materials. The resin composition is composed of a water-reactive liquid organometallic compound having a viscosity of no greater than about 500,000 centipoise under ambient conditions; and a nonreactive organic thermoplastic polymer, having a number average molecular weight of at least about 1,000, mixed with the water-reactive liquid organometallic compound. Preferably, the water-reactive liquid organometallic compound is a compound of the formula (R.sup.1 O).sub.x MR.sup.2.sub.(y-x) wherein: each R.sup.1 is independently a substituted or unsubstituted C.sub.1 -C.sub.100 hydrocarbon group, optionally interrupted in the backbone by 1--10 nonperoxide--O--, --S--, --C(O)--, or --N-- groups; each R.sup.2 is independently selected from the group consisting of hydrogen and a substituted or unsubstituted C.sub.1 -C.sub.100 hydrocarbon group, optionally interrupted in the backbone by 1--10 nonperoxide--O--, --S--, --C(O)--, or --N-- groups; x is an integer between 1 and y, inclusive; y is the valence of M; and M is boron, aluminum, silicon, or titanium.

Composite materials are generally defined as materials containing a mixture of two or more constituents that are solid in the finished product, mutually insoluble, and differ in chemical nature. Such composite materials are highly attractive for many applications, typically because they possess unique characteristics relating to rigidity, toughness, strength, density, and particularly cost. Most composite materials are macroscopic combinations of an inorganic reinforcing material and an organic polymeric matrix material. The organic polymeric matrix material is generally either obtained from a thermoplastic or thermoset resin.
Composite materials are generally utilized in a prepreg form, i.e., a form in which the reinforcing material is combined with the resin before molding. That is, the inorganic reinforcing material and an amorphous, reactive, organic matrix material are combined prior to use as a composite. Typically, in a prepreg the organic matrix material is an amorphous thermoplastic material. The transformation of the amorphous thermoplastic material (i.e., a polymer that softens when heated and hardens when cooled) into a thermoset material (i.e., a polymer that becomes crosslinked when cured) can be initiated by an energy input into the system or by introduction of a catalyst or coreactant. An example of such a catalyst or coreactant is water.
The inorganic reinforcing material used in composites can be obtained from an organometallic compound when contacted with water. Many organometallic compounds, such as metal alkoxides, are known to undergo hydrolysis on contact with water to form the corresponding metal hydroxides. Metal hydroxides often undergo subsequent condensation reactions to form compounds having M-0-M bonds (M=metal). In this way, organometallic compounds can decompose to form an essentially inorganic reinforcing material.
In certain mixtures of organometallic compounds and organic polymers, the two components react to provide polymer-bound organometallic compositions. In such situations, there is little or no free organometallic compound to act as solvent for the organic polymer. Therefore, the viscosity of the derived composition would be very similar to that of the organic polymer itself. Such composite materials are of limited value because their viscosities cannot be readily controlled. Thus, they are not useful for a wide variety of for various applications.
In other mixtures of organometallic compounds and organic polymers, the organometallic compound is used simply as a filler or as a polymer swelling agent. In some situations, the organometallic compound acts as a plasticizer to increase the ductility, reduce the glass transition temperature, and reduce the brittleness of the polymer. In such applications, an organometallic compound is used in an amount of only up to about 25% by weight of the host polymer. These compositions are not suitable composite materials because they are generally not flowable and do not possess acceptable coating viscosities.
Some combinations of organic polymers and organometallic compounds also include a volatile organic solvent. Such mixtures are undesirable because of the need to evaporate the organic solvent from the composite material. The evaporation of an organic solvent in the preparation of a composite material is undesirable because of the potential environmental impact of the organic solvent, the associated increased energy requirement, and the limitation such a step places on the production rate of the composite material.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,879,065 discloses an organic solvent-free, high temperature mixture of an organic polymer with an organometallic compound. Solutions of organometallic compounds with organic polymers at temperatures in excess of 170.degree. C. are exemplified, but the existence and stability of these solutions at ambient temperature are not shown. Furthermore, because of the high processing temperatures required, the number of useful polymers is quite small, being limited to those that are heat stable.
Other organic solvent-free mixtures of an organic polymer with an organometallic compound incorporate reactive groups such as acrylates, isocyanates, and epoxides. In order to produce useful composite materials, such reactive groups are necessarily present in the organic species. Because of this, there is the potential that such reactive groups could contact the user of the derived product. Because of any perceived health hazards associated with such reactive groups, it is desirable to manufacture products that are essentially free of these highly reactive moieties.
Silicone polymers, such as polydialkylsiloxane polymers, have also been used with organometallic compounds. Such combinations are used in the preparation of silicone rubber having good high temperature properties. These silicone rubbers are not widely applicable composite materials, however, because they do not generally overcoat well, e.g., few paint formulations adhere well to them.
Therefore, a need exists for a resin composition that is stable under ambient conditions, is flowable, and is free of highly reactive, potentially harmful, moieties. Also, a need exists for a resin composition that cures with water under ambient conditions. Furthermore, a need exists for such a composition that is capable of possessing a wide variety of viscosities.

Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company


The present invention relates to a process for producing a hydrogen containing gas mixture comprising the following steps: (i) providing a preheated mixture comprising a fossil fuel, preferably methane, and steam, (ii) conducting an adiabatic reaction between the fossil fuel and the steam, in the presence of a catalyst, wherein a first reaction product mixture is formed comprising methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide, and (iii) conducting an oxygen-assisted reforming reaction in the presence of a catalyst between said first reaction product mixture and an oxygen comprising stream, wherein the oxygen comprising stream comprises at least 40 vol % oxygen, forming a second reaction product mixture comprising hydrogen and carbon monoxide. The invention also relates to a system suitable for hydrogen production from a hydrocarbon feed according to the present invention.

Steam reforming is a well known method to generate mixtures of hydrogen and carbon monoxide from light hydrocarbon feeds, which can be used, in turn, for methanol synthesis or Fischer-Tropsch process, or further for hydrogen production. Due to the strong endothermicity, the steam reforming reaction needs to be carried out at a high reaction temperature (>750° C.), and is usually performed by supplying heat to a mixture of steam and a hydrocarbon feed in contact with a suitable catalyst, typically nickel based. The catalyst is usually contained in tubes, which are placed inside a furnace that is heated by combustion of fuel, thus supplying the reforming reaction heat.
Owing to the high energy intensive character of the steam reforming process, the hydrogen production industry has been driven to improve its thermal efficiency. It is known that the thermal efficiency is improved when the overall steam to carbon molar ratio is reduced. However one of the technical barriers for decreasing this ratio to values lower than 2.0 is that carbon (or coke or soot) would form on the reforming catalyst, especially in a top-fired reformer. Carbon formation must be prevented for two main reasons: (i) its deposition on the active sites of the catalyst leads to deactivation; (ii) the carbon deposits growth can cause total blockage of the reformer tubes, resulting in the development of hot spots and overheating of the tubes.
In spite of the widespread character of the steam reforming technology it still shows several disadvantages, in particular related to its high energy intensive character and the substantial amount of greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted, such as CO2, during the burning of a part of methane feedstock in order to sustain the global endothermic balance of the steam reforming reaction.
One approach to overcome, at least partially, the mentioned drawbacks is to use autothermal reforming instead of steam reforming. Autothermal reforming (ATR) is a combination of partial oxidation and steam reforming wherein the exothermic heat of the partial oxidation supplies the necessary heat for the endothermic steam reforming reaction. This is typically carried out in a conventional, two-zone ATR reactor. In the first zone, which is typically provided with a burner, the feed is partially oxidized with oxygen or air, wherein most, if not all, of the molecular oxygen is consumed. The heat release from the oxidation reaction can raise the gas temperature as high as 1200-1300° C. The oxidation reaction is often carried out in an open volume, free of any catalyst. The hot gases then flow through a bed of reforming catalyst where the endothermic reaction between the unconverted hydrocarbons and water results in a mixture containing CO and H2 at a desired ratio.
Use of autothermal reforming is known, for example, from U.S. Pat. No. 6,375,916 B2. This publication is directed to soot free autothermal reforming of hydrocarbon feed containing higher hydrocarbons. The system comprises a pre-reformer upstream of an autothermal reformer. The autothermal reforming is carried out in a burner combustion zone and, subsequently, in a catalytic zone having a fixed bed of steam reforming catalyst. In the burner combustion zone, where thermal reactions occur, the possibility of coke formation cannot be excluded.
WO 00/78443 A1 discloses a method for generating a pure hydrogen stream for use in fuel cells. The hydrogen generation zone is provided with: (i) a pre-reforming zone; (ii) a partial oxidation zone; (iii) a reforming zone; and (iv) a water gas shift zone. The partial oxidation and the steam reforming zones are physically separated but remain in thermal contact. Also, air is fed to the partial oxidation reactor to ensure that the overall plant operating temperature is not higher than 700° C.
WO 2006/097440 A1 discloses a process for hydrogen production comprising the steps of: (i) pre-reforming of a hydrocarbon feedstock; (ii) heating of the mixture to a temperature higher than 650° C.; (iii) non catalytic partial oxidation by contacting with a source of oxygen. The non catalytic partial oxidation is performed in order to reduce the consumption of oxygen.
US 2006/0057060 A1 discloses a method for producing synthesis gas from hydrocarbons comprising: (i) a pre-reforming step; (ii) an oxidative reforming step in a catalytic ceramic membrane reactor equipped with a membrane for oxygen separation from air; (iii) steps of preheating of various process streams. The membrane based separation of oxygen from air allows to use low pressure air as an oxygen source instead of pressurised high purity oxygen which is associated with high costs.
US 2001/0051662 discloses a pre-reformer used in order to reduce the content of higher hydrocarbons in natural gas. The resulting mixture is then converted to a synthesis gas with a 2:1 H2:CO ratio and without significant soot formation in a conventional autothermal reformer. The synthesis gas is further used to produce higher hydrocarbons in a Fischer-Tropsch process.
Despite all that is known, the main drawbacks of the existing technology are (i) a higher reaction temperature to be employed to obtain a sustainable hydrocarbon conversion while affecting the selectivity to hydrogen and carbon monoxide; (ii) the presence of a burner combustion zone where carbon formation may occur.
Therefore it is desired to provide a process for the catalytic conversion of hydrocarbon feedstock with a high degree of feed flexibility and decreased soot formation, which at the same time provides an increase of the thermal efficiency of the overall process and hydrogen production and also a reduction in plant size due to the absence of burners for the catalytic conversion reaction.

Method and system for production of hydrogen rich gas mixtures


A sewing machine includes a plurality of needle bars to a lower end of each of which a needle can be attached, a display portion that is configured to display various information, a first display control portion that causes the display portion to display replacement information, the replacement information being information pertaining to a replacement needle bar that corresponds to a thread spool for which replacement is necessary and that is at least one of the plurality of the needle bars, a specifying portion that specifies a replacement-completed needle bar during a period in which the replacement information is being displayed on the display portion, the replacement-completed needle bar being a needle bar that corresponds to a thread spool that has been placed after replacement, and a second display control portion that causes the display portion to display a result that has been specified by the specifying portion.

The present disclosure relates to a sewing machine that is capable of sewing an embroidery pattern that is to be sewn with threads of a plurality of colors and to a computer program product.
A sewing machine is known that is capable of sewing an embroidery pattern that is to be sewn with threads of a plurality of colors. In processing that sews the embroidery pattern in the plurality of colors, it may be necessary to replace a thread spool. The known sewing machine may control a display portion that is provided in the vicinity of a spool stand and a thread guide path member and that corresponds to a needle bar for which the thread spool must be replaced to display the color for the thread spool that is to be attached to a spool pin.

Sewing machine and computer program product


An extended nip press apparatus is disclosed for pressing water from a web of paper. The press includes a blanket which defines an endless loop and a first and a second lateral edge. Edge seals cooperate with the edges for sealing the edges of the blanket against egress of lubricant disposed between the shoe and the blanket. The edge seals include a head rotatably secured to a frame and an extension which extends from the head. The extension cooperates with the first edge of the blanket and defines a duck's bill configuration in a cross-machine sectional view such that the first edge of the blanket conforms to a surface defined by the extension. The surface has a first portion which undulates radially away from the head in an outward direction, and a second portion which undulates radially inwardly towards the head in an outward direction. A clamp adjustably secures the first edge of the blanket to the extension so that flow of lubricant from between the shoe and the blanket past the head is inhibited.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an extended nip press apparatus for pressing water from a web of paper. More particularly, the present invention relates to an "Apple" type enclosed extended nip press in which lubricant disposed between the shoe and the blanket is enclosed or contained within the blanket.
2. Information Disclosure Statement
An extended nip press is a press for a papermaking machine which increases the residence time of a web during passage of the web through a pressing nip.
More particularly, an extended nip press typically includes a backing roll and an elongate shoe which defines a concave surface that cooperates with the backing roll to define therebetween an elongate pressing nip. A bearing blanket is slidably disposed between the shoe and the backing roll such that the blanket is permitted to move in an endless loop through the pressing nip. A web to be pressed extends through the pressing nip and is sandwiched between the blanket and the backing roll such that the web is exposed for an extended period to increased pressure during passage of the web through the pressing nip.
In view of the movement of the blanket through the pressing nip and around the elongate shoe, the path of the blanket defines an "Apple" shaped configuration.
In order to permit the blanket to slide relative to the elongate shoe, lubricating oil is supplied between the concave surface of the shoe and the inner surface of the blanket.
The outer surface of the blanket either directly contacts the web or, more usually, contacts a press felt so that the web is disposed between the press felt and the backing roll.
In operation of the so-called "Apple" type extended nip press of the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,287,021 to Justus et al, a problem of oil contamination of the web exists.
More particularly, there exists a tendency for the lubricating oil disposed between the shoe and the blanket to creep around the edges of the blanket so that such lubricating oil marks the press felt and the web.
Furthermore, such oil tends to atomize and subsequently settle as an oily film on ancillary equipment.
Such oily film not only causes a potential hazard in the form of slippery walkways and access ladders, but also poses a potential fire hazard in that the atomized oil droplets have a relatively low flash point.
Many proposals have been presented in an attempt to prevent the egress of lubricating oil from an apple type ENP. However, such proposals have often included relatively complex sealing arrangements, including compression springs, seal rings, and the like.
Included among such prior art proposals is U.S. Pat. No. 4,944,089 to Flamig et al issued July 31, 1990.
The present invention provides a very simple sealing arrangement for sealing the respective edges of a bearing blanket so that lubricating oil is prevented from seeping outwardly around the edges of the blanket, thereby inhibiting contamination of the pressed web.
Therefore, it is a primary objective of the present invention to provide an extended nip press apparatus which overcomes the aforementioned inadequacies of the prior art arrangements and which make a considerable contribution to the art of pressing water from a web of paper.
Another object of the present invention is the provision of an extended nip press which includes edge seal means which cooperate with the edges of a bearing blanket for sealing the edges of the blanket against egress of lubricant disposed between a shoe and the blanket.
Another object of the present invention is the provision of an extended nip press apparatus which includes edge seal means having a head rotatably secured to a frame and an extension which extends from the head, the extension cooperating with a first edge of the blanket. The extension defines a duck's bill configuration in a cross-machine sectional view such that the first edge of the blanket conforms to a surface defined by the extension. The surface has a first portion which undulates radially away from the head in an outward direction, and a second portion which undulates radially inwardly towards the head in an outward direction.
Another object of the present invention is the provision of an extended nip press apparatus which includes clamp means adjustably secured to the extension for clamping the first edge of the blanket to the extension. The clamp means defines a tapered surface which cooperates with the first edge such that the first edge is clamped between the tapered surface and the second portion. The arrangement is such that flow of lubricant from between the shoe and the blanket past the head is inhibited.
Another object of the present invention is the provision of an extended nip press apparatus which includes edge seal means having a further head rotatably secured to a frame, the further head having an outside diameter which is less than the outside diameter of the head. The arrangement is such that axial fitting of the blanket and the extensions over the further head is permitted.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art by a consideration of the detailed description contained hereinafter taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings.

Extended nip press apparatus with blanket edge seals


A weight training apparatus, includes a central body comprising a width and a depth, wherein the width of the central body is greater than the depth. The weight training apparatus further includes a first handle comprising an opening coupled to the central body at a first position and a second position on a top surface of the central body, wherein the first handle is positioned laterally relative to the width of the central body, a second handle coupled to the central body at a third position on a first side surface of the central body, and a third handle coupled to the central body at a fourth position on a second side surface of the central body, wherein the second side surface is adjacent to the first side surface.

A kettlebell is a weight training apparatus that includes a cast iron or cast steel ball with a handle attached to the top. The kettlebell is used by a user to perform various exercises, such as ballistic exercises, in which the user grips the kettlebell by the handle and swings the kettlebell.