A glass composition is disclosed which has a high modulus of elasticity (Young's modulus) and a high rigidity (modulus of elasticity/specific gravity) and is capable of being effectively inhibited from bending or vibrating. Also disclosed is a substrate for information recording media which comprises the glass composition. The glass composition comprises the following components, in terms of mol %: 55 to 65% SiO.sub.2, 0.5 to less than 6% Al.sub.2 O.sub.3, 12 to 22% Li.sub.2 O, 0 to 5% Na.sub.2 O, 0 to 10% TiO.sub.2, 0 to 3% ZrO.sub.2, 0 to 8% MgO, 0 to 18% CaO, and 0 to 6% SrO, provided that the content of RO (RO=MgO+CaO+SrO) is 5 to 18%.

Information recording devices such as magnetic disks are always required to have a larger recording capacity and to attain a reduction in access time such as disk rotational delay. One possible means for satisfying the latter requirement is to heighten the rotational speed of a medium.
However, since the media are weighed down by themselves, they resonate considerably at an increased rotational speed. Eventually, the surface of such a medium comes into contact with the head to cause an error or crushing. It is therefore impossible to narrow the gap between the magnetic disk head and the recording medium to or below a certain level, and this constitutes a serious obstacle to an increase in recording capacity.
For diminishing the resonance of the medium being rotated, it is necessary to heighten both a modulus of elasticity (Young's modulus) of the substrate of the medium and a rigidity thereof which is the value obtained by dividing the Young's modulus by the density.
Aluminum alloy which has been most commonly used as the substrates of magnetic disks has a modulus of elasticity in the above meaning of 71 GPa and a rigidity as defined above of 26 GPa.multidot.cm.sup.3 /g. This conventional substrate material having such properties hardly copes with the trend toward higher rotational speeds of 10,000 rpm and above. In addition, it has become necessary to increase the thickness of substrates made of the above material from the standpoints of modulus of elasticity (Young's modulus) and rigidity (Young's modulus/density), despite of the current trend toward thickness reduction in disk substrates for device miniaturization.
In contrast, substrates made of a tempered glass are superior to the aluminum substrate in both modulus of elasticity and density. For example, a glass substrate obtained by subjecting a commercially available soda-lime glass to ion exchange in a molten potassium salt is on the market. This substrate has a modulus of elasticity of 72 GPa and a rigidity of 29 GPa.multidot.cm.sup.3 /g.
Also known besides the above one is a glass substrate obtained by tempering commercially available Corning 0317. Although this substrate has a modulus of elasticity of 72 GPa and a rigidity of 29 GPa.multidot.cm.sup.3 /g, these properties are still insufficient.
A high-rigidity substrate for information recording media which is made of a material other than tempered glasses is on the market. This substrate comprises a crystallized glass having a modulus of elasticity of 90 GPa and a rigidity of 38 GPa.multidot.cm.sup.3 /g. However, this substrate, after polishing, inevitably has residual crystal grains projecting from the surface because of the nature of the production process in which crystals are precipitated inside. Namely, this crystallized glass substrate has a drawback that it is inferior in surface smoothness to the substrates made of a tempered glass.
Furthermore, JP-A-10-81542 (the term "JP-A" as used herein means an "unexamined published Japanese patent application") discloses a material for use as a substrate for information recording media. This material comprises a glass which is based on SiO.sub.2 -Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 -RO (wherein R is a bivalent metal) and contains at least 20 mol % Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 or at least 20 mol % MgO. However, as apparent from the Examples shown in the above patent document, this prior art material has problems that it has a high liquidus temperature and hence poor moldability, and that it is unsuitable for high-speed rotation because of its high density.
Consequently, in view of the expected future trend toward even higher rotational speeds in information recording devices and smaller thicknesses in disk substrates, there is a desire for a glass composition which has further improved properties, i.e., which has a high modulus of elasticity represented by Young's modulus and a high rigidity (modulus of elasticity/density), can be easily molded, and gives a substrate having high surface smoothness through polishing.

Glass composition and substrate for information recording media comprising the same


A solution is proposed for efficiently determining whether or not a set of elements (such as convex shapes) in a multi-dimensional space mutually intersects. The solution may be applied to elements in any closed subset of real numbers for any number of spatial dimensions of the multi-dimensional space. The solutions provided herein include iterative processes for calculating the point displacement from boundaries of the elements (shapes), and devices for implementing the iterative process(es). The processes and devices herein may be extended to abstract (functional) definitions of convex shapes, allowing for simple and economical representations. As an embodiment of the present invention, an object called a “void simplex” may be determined, allowing the process to terminate even earlier when found, thereby avoiding unnecessary computation without excess memory requirements.

In the field of graphics processing, computational geometry is a critical discipline used to represent objects and object motion (via simulation). In addition to computer graphics and computer-aided design and manufacturing, other applications of computational geometry include the fields of robotics, geographic information systems (GIS), integrated circuit design, computer-aided engineering (CAE), and computer vision. One aspect common to almost every application of computational geometry is the detection of object collisions, particularly in physics simulations.
A central challenge facing these applications is to perform this detection as efficiently as possible, with good scaling behavior, and without requiring any more data than necessary. Two popular approaches to this challenge may be characterized as Linear Programming, and Convex Proximity Algorithms.
With respect to linear programming approaches, the computing resources (e.g., memory space and time) required to perform typical approaches scale exponentially with the number of elements, which can be prohibitive when the number of elements becomes large. Moreover, linear programming solutions typically are completely incapable handling input sets of an infinite or indefinite size. With respect to Convex Proximity Algorithms, these approaches are typically limited to two convex shapes. For convex polytopes with a finite number of faces, additional boundary data must be determined (and thus calculated), thereby requiring inefficient extra processing (or memory) overhead before the process can even be performed.

Method and apparatus for determining mutual intersection of multiple convex shapes


An adjustable pole caddy includes an elongated pole, a shelf including a generally planar surface for supporting at least one object thereon, a clamp having a first aperture and a second aperture, and a fastener extending through the first aperture of the clamp. The second aperture extends around at least a portion of an outer periphery of the pole. In a locked position of the fastener and clamp, an end portion of the fastener engages the pole and at least a portion of the shelf removably engages at least a portion of the clamp. The clamp is secured to the pole and the shelf is secured to the clamp. In a released position of the fastener and clamp, the end portion of the fastener does not engage the pole.

The present invention relates generally to an apparatus for supporting at least one object from or above a ground surface and, more particularly, to an apparatus equipped with an adjustable shelving system designed to hold, carry and/or support various objects in an organized manner.
The apparatus may be used as a shower or bath caddy because it is desirable to have an apparatus capable of supporting a variety of bathing articles (e.g., soap, shampoo, conditioner, etc.) that individuals generally require when bathing or taking a shower. Numerous types of shower caddies have been developed to support such articles so that an individual taking a shower can readily access such articles. One type of such conventional shower caddies includes caddies which are mounted over a shower head assembly. Another type of known shower caddies includes pole caddies which are mounted between two opposing surfaces of a shower stall or bath enclosure.
A problem with conventional pole shower caddies is that the individual shelves of the caddies have fixed positions, and thus the shelves cannot be adjusted to accommodate bathing articles of different sizes. Other conventional pole shower caddies may include adjustable shelves, but the configuration of these caddies requires the pole to be disassembled or removed from its mounted position in order to remove or move an individual shelf.
Thus, it is desirable to provide an improved pole shower caddy configured to allow the positions of individual shelves to be easily adjusted. More particularly, it is desirable to provide a shower caddy which is configured to allow individual shelves to be removed or moved without disassembling the pole or removing the pole from its mounted position.


A helmet having a molded cover shell for decorating and protecting the exterior surface of a helmet body is formed from a helmet body and a thin clear plastic sheet of material molded in the shape of the upper exterior portion of the helmet's body and painted or colaminated on the interior surface of the cover prior to being fitted and affixed to the helmet's body, thereby giving the cover's decorative design a deep luster, and protecting both the helmet's exterior surface and the cover's decorative appearance.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to covers, for helmets and more particularly to a method for making a durable, indelibly ornamented helmet cover.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
General utility foam molded helmets were first introduced on the market by Applicant in 1985. These helmets were not only lightweight and stylishly designed, but also offered surprisingly effective head injury protection, especially to bicycle riders. By injection molding the helmet body out of foam, injected at a density of about 5 1/2 pounds per cubic foot, Applicant was able to create a rigid, light-weight bicycle helmet body that would meet and exceed all applicable safety standards for such helmets. These helmets, weighing approximately 6 ounces, were not only found to protect riders involved in high range collisions (i.e., a 50-60 mile per hour collision with a wall), but also those involved in low range collisions (i.e., falls from 4-5 feet from the ground).
Since the foam body of the helmet was not outwardly attractive in appearance, a fabric cap was placed over the foam body to cover the foam, to decorate the helmet in different colors, and to identify the manufacturing source of the product. Although these covers were intended to serve as an ornamental accessory to the helmet, the covers also provided some minor incidental protection for the foam body, such as to prevent and/or hide dents or nicks in the foam.
When a foam helmet is involved in an accident or collision, the foam body will occasionally break into two or more pieces upon impact. Although the fabric covers could not prevent the helmet from breaking into pieces, if the type of impact was one which would cause such a result, the cover might occasionally help to retain the broken pieces of the helmet on the wearer's head after impact. However, since the covers were not designed for such a purpose and have not proven to be effective in this regard, different means have been sought to either improve the rigidity of the helmet structure during most impacts or to better hold the resulting broken pieces together. An additional problem with the fabric covers is that the fabric material is prone to snagging on branches and the like when the fabric covered helmet is used by mountain bicycle riders.
One effort to improve the body's rigidity has involved molding the foam body around an internal webbing or infrastructure, which still allows the helmet to break apart upon impact (a force absorbing action which often prevents major head injury), but still keeps the loose pieces together in order to maintain the basic form of the helmet. A second effort has involved replacing the fabric cap with a durable cover or shell. The resilient nature of the cover further strengthens the helmet body and, if an adhesive is used to affix the cover to the body, keeps the helmet from breaking apart. However, because it is very important to keep the helmet as light as possible, the heavy plastic covers typically used on many hard shell type helmets are undesirable for use on foam helmets.
Another disadvantage of the hard shell type helmet cover is that the hard shell cover is more difficult to decorate in a manner similar to that of the fabric covers, the appearance of which have gained wide popularity. The different techniques that have been used to decorate these and other covers include coloring the plastic compound used to form the cover or painting the outside of the helmet. Multicolored plastic shells are more expensive, do not provide as many design options, and may be easily scratched and soiled, thereby detracting from the attractiveness of the cover. Painted covers can also be easily scratched and soiled through normal use.
In an effort to help prevent the paint of painted covers from being scratched or rubbed off, some covers have been coated with a clear protective coating of paint. However, since this coating, like the paint base, is also adhered to the plastic cover, it is just as likely to be scratched off as the paint and therefore provides little improvement. Another disadvantage of a painted cover is that the cover generally appears to be painted, thereby giving the cover a rather lusterless appearance and causing it to lack some of the stylish nature associated with the popular fabric covers.

Method for making helmet with indelibly ornamented cover


In vSAN (virtual Storage Area Network) systems, pooled storage resources may be organized into logical disk groups. One drive of a disk group may be designated for caching storage operations directed at the remaining drives of the disk group that provide permanent storage. Each cache drive is partitioned into an allocation for read operations and an allocation for write operations. Embodiments provide the vSAN system with use of virtual cache that is backed by the cache drives of each disk group in the vSAN system. Embodiments adjust the cache memory allocations for individual cache drives of each disk group, while utilizing the virtual cache that adheres to a fixed cache allocation ratio required by the vSAN system. The number and type of cache misses by each of the individual cache drives is monitored and used to adjust the sizes of the read and write cache allocations in each cache drive.

As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option is an Information Handling System (IHS). An IHS generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements may vary between different applications, IHSs may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in IHSs allow for IHSs to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, global communications, etc. In addition, IHSs may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
Groups of IHSs may be housed within data centers. A data center may include a large number of IHSs, such as servers that are installed within a chassis and then stacked within slots provided by racks. In such data center configurations, resources may be pooled and shared by one or more IHSs. For instance, storage resources may be pooled and shared across a network fabric to form a storage area network (SAN). In some instances, the pooled storage resources of a SAN may be selected from a group of server IHSs that may be referred to as cluster. In addition to utilizing pooled resources, the software applications running on these server IHSs may operate within virtualized software environments that rely on abstractions of the underlying IHS hardware, thus allowing the hardware to be administered, and in some cases replaced, without affecting the operation of the software applications running in the virtualized environments. In some instances, data storage resources may be virtualized in this manner. In particular, a virtual storage area network (vSAN) utilizes a logical partition of the storage drives of a SAN, where the vSAN provides virtualized access to the pool of storage drives within the logical partition of SAN storage drives. In some instances, a vSAN may leverage this virtualization of storage drives by utilizing groups of storage drives, that may be referred to as disk groups, as a single, logical storage drive. In such instances, a disk group may include a dedicated storage drive that is configured as a read and write buffer for storage operations directed at the remaining drives of the disk group that provide permanent data storage.

Aggregated cache supporting dynamic ratios in a vSAN architecture


A glass-resin composite of the present invention includes at least a plurality of glass sheets and a resin sheet which are integrally combined with each other via an organic resin intermediate layer, wherein, out of inner glass sheets of the plurality of glass sheets, at least one glass sheet has a crystallinity of 30% or less and a Young's modulus of 75 GPa or more.

In general, a laminated glass, in which a plurality of soda lime glass sheets are integrally combined with each other via an organic resin intermediate layer, is used as a window glass of a vehicle or the like. For the purpose of weight saving, a glass-resin composite, in which a plurality of soda lime glass sheets and a resin sheet are integrally combined with each other via an organic resin intermediate layer, is sometimes used (see Patent Literatures 1 to 4).
The soda lime glass sheet to be used for a window glass of a vehicle or the like has a function of deforming its sheet shape encountering a tip portion of a scattered piece, such as a flying stone, while the vehicle or the like is moving, to thereby increase impact resistance against the scattered piece and thus attenuate collision energy with the scattered piece.
However, soda lime glass cannot be said to have a sufficient increasing effect on the impact resistance against the scattered piece. Under existing circumstances, the impact resistance against the scattered piece is increased by increasing the thickness of the soda lime glass sheet or increasing the number of sheets to be combined. However, this entails increases in thickness and weight of a window glass.
In view of the foregoing, in order to increase the impact resistance against the scattered piece, investigations have been made on use of a crystallized glass sheet instead of the soda lime glass sheet. For example, a crystallized glass sheet in which a Li2O—Al2O3—SiO2-based crystal, such as a β-quartz solid solution (Li2O.Al2O3.nSiO2 [where n≥2]), is deposited as a main crystal has been investigated.


When a notification, indicating that a read-start instruction is inputted in a reading apparatus that supports event push scanning, is received through a network, read-setting of read operation corresponding to the read-start instruction is acquired from the reading apparatus through a network, in response to the received notification. An instruction is given to the reading apparatus through the network to read an image in accordance with the acquired read-setting and transmit read image data generated by the reading, using a predetermined scanner driver.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus for acquiring data read by a reading apparatus, a control method of the information processing apparatus, and a storage medium storing a program.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally there has been a scanning function capable of transmitting read data of an original document, read by a reading apparatus, such as a MFP (Multi-Functional Peripheral) on a network, to an information processing apparatus, such as a PC. Such a scanning function includes pull scanning and push scanning functions. In the pull scanning function, original-document reading of a reading apparatus is executed by operation on an information processing apparatus, and read data is transmitted from the reading apparatus to the information processing apparatus. In the push scanning function, read data is transmitted to an information processing apparatus, which is designated as a transmission destination by operation on a reading apparatus. The push scanning function also includes a pseudo push scanning function, in which a read-start instruction from a reading apparatus is detected by an information processing apparatus, and the information processing apparatus instructs the reading apparatus to execute scanning based on a notification from the reading apparatus.
In a system including a plurality of information processing apparatuses and a plurality of reading apparatuses, several methods are known for recognizing a notification transmitted from a specific reading apparatus to a specific information processing apparatus. One of the methods is to recognize a notification from a reading apparatus by polling reading apparatuses from an information processing apparatus (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2007-219956). Push scanning that utilizes such a method is known as polling push scanning. However, in this method, because packets are transmitted periodically and repeatedly for polling, communication on the network becomes overloaded.
On the other hand, there is a method of notifying an event occurrence in the reading apparatus to all or a specific information processing apparatus (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2008-034923). Compared to the aforementioned method using polling, this method does not generate unnecessary packets on the network. Push scanning using such a method is known as event push scanning.
However, in the event push scanning, information that can be identified by a reading apparatus and an information processing apparatus is limited depending on the communication protocols adopted by these apparatuses. For instance, there is push scanning (WSD push scanning) utilizing the WSD (Web Services on Devices) scanning function of Windows Vista (registered trademark) or Windows 7 (registered trademark). In WSD push scanning, there is no method for notifying read-setting for scanning, such as a reading size, a form of storage, resolution, and so forth, from a reading apparatus to an information processing apparatus. Therefore, the read-setting for push scanning, set by a user on a reading apparatus, is not reflected in reading execution.

Information processing apparatus, control method thereof, and storage medium storing program


An electrical connector includes a casing defining at least one front receiving slot with a number of contact elements retained therein. The casing has two opposite side walls. Each side wall includes two wall segments spaced from and parallel to each other thereby defining a channel between the front receiving slot and a rear face of the casing. An inner shielding member is fit into and retained in each receiving slot. The inner shielding member has two rear extensions inserted into the channels. An outer shielding member encloses the casing and has two inward flanges extending into the channels for electrically and mechanically engaging with the corresponding rear extensions of the inner shielding member to retain the inner and outer shielding members on the casing and to form electrical connection therebetween. The outer shielding member has grounding tabs connected to a circuit board for grounding purposes thereby also grounding the inner shielding member.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to an electrical connector, and in particular to a double-shielded connector having excellent properties for shielding against electromagnetic interference (EMI).
2. The Prior Art
An electrical connector connects two devices together and transmits signals therebetween. To ensure proper signal transmission, a connector is provided with a shielding means for preventing the connector from being adversely affected by external electromagnetic interference (EMI). Related examples are disclosed in Taiwan Patent Application Nos. 85204902, 85208558, 85212192, 85215759 and 86214118. However, the conventional shielding means cannot completely shield the connector thereby resulting in poor EMI protection.
FIGS. 1 and 2 of the attached drawings show a conventional connector having a shielding means. The connector includes an insulative casing 1 comprising two tongue plates 11 and a partition plate 12 separating the two tongue plates 11 which support contact elements (not labeled) thereon. The shielding means comprises a rear shielding plate 2 and a front shielding member The rear shielding plate 2 defines a plurality of frames 21 for engaging with barbs 13 formed on the casing 1 thereby retaining the rear shielding plate 2 on the casing 1.
The front shielding member 3 comprises a housing 31 enclosing the casing 1 and having a plurality of resilient arms 312 stamped thereon thereby forming openings 311 associated with the arms 312. The resilient arms 312 serve to electrically and mechanically engage mating connectors coupled to the connector. The front shielding member 3 further comprises a U-shaped inner housing 32 which is fit over the partition plate 12 and retained thereon for electrically isolating the contact elements of the tongue plates 11. A number of resilient arms 322 are stamped on the inner housing 32 thereby forming openings 321 associated therewith.
However, the casing 1 is not completely shielded by the shielding means due to the openings 312, 321. Thus, proper signal transmission through the connector is not ensured.
Hence, it is desired to have an electrical connector providing excellent EMI protection.


A vibration dampening and thermal isolating 360.degree. adjustable bracket to connect components and accommodate for tolerance buildups in various manufacturing installations. The bracket comprises a bracket plate with a notched circular cutout therein, a vibration dampening and thermal isolating rubber grommet press fitted into the notched circular cutout, a slotted-insert press fitted into the central hole of the grommet, a support plate, and connecting means. The slotted-insert that has a slot through the insert's the longitudinal axes may be rotated through 360.degree. to accommodate for different relative positions of the connecting means.

During the manufacturing of an aircraft, components with variable tolerance restrictions are assembled, thereby resulting in tolerance buildups. This buildup may create problems when installing components. To avoid these problems, connecting methods with a degree of adjustability are desired. More specifically, a connecting bracket that may be adjusted in 2 or 3 of the aircraft's coordinate directions (forward/aft, inboard/outboard, and up/down) allows for easier and faster assembly of the aircraft.
Attempts have been made to provide the desired adjustability in connecting bracketry. For example, support bracketry used on commercial aircraft that connects fuselage lining panels to the aircraft frame provides for adjustment by combining plates with slots oriented in different directions. More specifically, a pickup plate is solidly mounted to the aircraft frame by rivets or hi-lock fasteners, and a slotted bracket is mounted to the pickup plate such that the slots are oriented to allow for inboard/outboard adjustments. Rubber isolators, discussed below, are riveted to the slotted bracket. A slotted lining support bracket is mounted to the rubber dampeners such that the slots allow forward/aft adjustment. Finally, a slotted panel-pickup is mounted to the lining support bracket such that the slots allow for up/down adjustment.
This type of bracketry system utilizes many parts that are unique to particular installations, thereby minimizing the commonality of parts between installations and between aircraft. In addition, the bracketry is complex, heavy, and expensive to manufacture and install.
Another design concern regarding connecting bracketry, in conjunction with adjustability, is the minimization of noise created by vibration of aircraft components. When an aircraft is in flight, the airflow boundary layer on the aircraft's skin creates substantial vibration that is transmitted to the aircraft frame. To reduce vibration in components connected to the frame, and thereby minimize noise, vibration dampeners may be installed between the frame and adjoining components. As indicated above, it is further desirable to have an inexpensive common assembly with a minimum number of parts that may be installed easily to achieve the desired result.
In addition to achieving commonality, adjustability, and dampened vibration, a further design consideration in component-connecting bracketry is heat loss through the components; e.g., the frame and accompanying skin panels. In terms of commonality, it is highly desirable to use the same part to achieve two or more desired results. For example, one component that acts as a thermal isolator and as a vibration dampener in an easily adjustable bracket assembly.

360 degree adjustable vibration dampening and thermal isolating bracket


An air to air heat exchange system for removing undesirable air from an enclosed structure. The heat exchanger provides for the removable of air containing pollutants, toxics gases and odors while providing for the recovery of heat from the exhaust air. The system utilizes a plurality of tubes within a larger tube so that air can flow freely over and around the smaller tubes thus providing for maximum heat transfer between the incoming air in the smaller tubes and the exhaust air in the larger tube. The smaller tubes, if used for the incoming air, permit the air to be distributed to various selected locations throughout the structure.

There are of course numerous types of heat exchangers that are used for a variety of purposes; e.g., to produce a cooling or heating effect or to improve efficiencies in heating or cooling systems by making the maximum utilization of available energy. Some heat exchangers, such as liquid heat exchangers, are relatively efficient. On the other hand, air-to-air type heat exchangers have been generally inefficient, and the energy savings usually did not justify the cost of the heat exchanger.
Air exhaust systems are becoming increasingly used to exhaust from an enclosure air that is undesirable because of temperature, humidity or pollutants. For example, the air in livestock confinement buildings must be exhausted because of the toxic gases that are created in such buildings. Unless exhausted, the air becomes warm and stagnant and the odor becomes almost over powering. The long-term health effects are not known, but it is believed that unless the air from such confinement buildings is frequently exhausted, farmers may suffer ill-effects, and the effect on the confined livestock is also not desirable.
More recently, concern has been publicized regarding radon gas in residential structures. One method of reducing the level of the harmful radon gas in living structures is to exhaust the air from the portion of the structure below ground level, this being the area of the structure where the radon gas invades the structure.
Regardless of the reason for exhausting air from an enclosed structure, the loss of energy can be fairly substantial especially during times of temperature extremes. Moreover, it is not only beneficial to exhaust undesirable air from an enclosed structure, but the air should be replaced with fresh air from outside the structure. Obviously, during times when the temperature of the outside air is much higher or lower then the temperature of the air within the structure, energy inefficiencies result.
Although air-to-air heat exchangers are known, they have had a number of problems and are relatively expensive for the energy savings produced. For example, fin-type exchangers are commonly used because of their higher efficiency. But if the air flowing through the exchanger contains a considerable amount of dust or other pollutants, the heat exchanger of the fin type can become rapidly clogged, thereby reducing its efficiency. Also, efficient distribution of the incoming outside air within the enclosed structure has not been satisfactory with prior art systems.
There is therefore a need for an efficient air-to-air heat exchanger that can be manufactured and installed at a relatively low cost and one which can be operated easily and with little or no maintenance.

Kirkwood Community College Facilities Foundation


Examples of the present disclosure describe systems and methods for using gesture recognition to control medical hardware and software. In aspects, an activation signal may be received by an input processing system, such as a gesture recognition system, a voice recognition system, or a touch-based system. After receiving the activation signal, user input may be received by the input processing system. The user input may be processed to determine a current or applicable context. Based on the context, one or more actions corresponding to the user input may be identified. The input processing system may then cause the identified action(s) to be performed.

Many healthcare professionals routinely engage in various tasks that require repetitive movements. In many cases, these tasks cause the healthcare professionals to incur injuries from poor posture or excessive load manipulation due to device location, patient position, or other environmental factors. Additionally, several tasks require interaction with potentially unsterile devices while the healthcare professionals are in sterile environments. As a consequence, the risk of infection may be unnecessarily increased for patients while the tasks are being performed
It is with respect to these and other general considerations that the aspects disclosed herein have been made. Also, although relatively specific problems may be discussed, it should be understood that the examples should not be limited to solving the specific problems identified in the background or elsewhere in this disclosure.

Gesture recognition in controlling medical hardware or software


Lightweight passenger seats that are especially adapted for use in aircraft cabins. The seats will include a seat back and a seat bottom having a basin which defines a recessed central interior space, a plurality of straps having opposed ends connected to respective upper edge regions of the basin so as to be positioned under tension over the recessed central interior space; and a cover cushion covering the straps and connected to the basin. The seat back may be connected at opposed sides thereof to upright support members adjacent a lumbar region thereof so as to establish an upper region of the seat back above the lumbar region which is capable of being resiliently flexed between upright and rearwardly inclined positions.

The latest design trends in aircraft cabin interiors demonstrate that providing a lightweight passenger seat that provides adequate passenger comfort is an extremely difficult balance to achieve due to sometimes competing requirements. For example, the requirement for comfort is important primarily for the passenger using the seat and the commercial airlines that are of course in the business of transporting such passengers in comfort. In this regard, airlines have explored the possibility to provide passengers with additional comfort and space at a cost to the passenger as means to increase revenue since current interior cabin seat layouts can make passengers feel cramped, especially when travelling in economy classes. The lack of privacy due to "living space" squeeze is also a common complaint from passengers as people tend recline in their seat which exacerbates the perception that the space afforded to passengers is even smaller. In extreme cases, passenger discomfort can cause flight disruptions and conflicts among passengers.
There are also weight requirements for passenger seats which must be taken into account since weight affects directly the airline business because increased weight affects either the airline's operational costs or the business model of the airline which might offer more payload for the same fare. There are also aesthetics and design requirements that must be taken into account which play an important role for the airlines and branding for the original equipment manufacturer (OEM). Airlines are constantly striving for a distinctive look in a highly competitive market.
Last but certainly not the least are safety and crashworthiness requirements, which make the implementation of new solutions and new materials a risky business endeavor since crash conditions occur in severe dynamic scenarios that are difficult to predict.
The vast majority of seat manufacturers who address these challenges fail to fulfill all the requirements in the same way, usually resulting in a poor passenger comfort experience and/or a seat that is unnecessarily heavy. The common solution to reduce seat weight is to remove padding from the cushions, therefore making the seats lighter, slimmer and thinner. That trend, however, removes value from the passenger, as resting surfaces (i.e.: seat bottoms and backrests) get harder and trap heat, causing quick muscle fatigue. Tight pitches limit movements, and cushioning surfaces get thinner and harder. Alternative materials to foam in aircraft seat for passenger comfort, and alternative materials and techniques for seat structure design are not so common to come by. Some previous literature and patents have presented solutions to this sort of challenge, usually driven by weight reduction, and addressing the technological limitations brought by manufacturing processes and materials as evidenced by U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,047,613, 9,327,835, 7,871,039, 7,954,762, 8,016,361, 8,336,965, 8,020,936 and 8,596,723, the entire contents of each being expressly incorporated hereinto by reference. However, a passenger-driven approach that addresses the variety of human shapes and behaviors is still lacking in conventional seat designs and implementations.
It would therefore be highly desirable if vehicle passenger seats were provided that are both comfortable to the passenger yet are lightweight. It is towards providing such improvements to passenger seats that the embodiments disclosed herein are directed.

Lightweight vehicle passenger seat assemblies


A hybrid network device can implement functionality for automatically detecting and locating legacy bridges in a communication network. In one embodiment, a first network device of a first class of network devices can determine that a second network device of a second class of network devices is communicatively located adjacent to at least one of a plurality of network interfaces of the first network device based, in part, on detecting that a packet originating from the second network device does not include a predetermined tag. The first network device can determine whether network segments associated with the first network device and a target network device are communicatively coupled via a network bridge device of the second class of network devices based on transmitting probe messages to the second network device and determining whether the target network device detected the probe messages.

Embodiments of the inventive subject matter generally relate to the field of communication systems and, more particularly, to a mechanism for discovery of conventional devices and bridges in a hybrid communication network.
Hybrid communication networks typically comprise multiple networking technologies (e.g., wireless local area network (WLAN) technologies, powerline communication technologies, Ethernet, etc.) that are interconnected using bridging-capable devices that forward packets between devices utilizing the different network technologies and media in order to form a single extended communication network. Typically, the communication mechanisms, and protocol specifics (e.g., device and topology discovery, bridging to other networks, etc.) are unique to each networking technology. The hybrid communication network can comprise hybrid communication devices and conventional (or legacy) communication devices.

Discovery of conventional devices and bridges in hybrid communication networks


The technology may provide display of an electronic representation of physical art in a virtual environment so that a customer may visualize how the physical art would appear in a physical environment. Based on a characteristic of the physical art, a virtual environment in which to display an electronic representation of the physical art may be selected. The electronic representation of the physical art may then be included in the virtual environment for display to a customer. The customer may then electronically purchase the physical art via the virtual environment.

Electronic retail stores have a number of advantages over brick-and-mortar stores. For example, electronic retail stores may not be limited to specific hours of operation or geography. As a result, electronic retail stores may enable consumers to shop whenever and wherever is convenient to the consumer. Additionally, electronic retail stores may provide a wider selection of items because electronic stores may not be constrained by the availability of a physical show room floor. Also, prices of items may be lower from electronic retailers that do not maintain a physical or brick-and-mortar store presence.
Despite various advantages provided by electronic retail stores, many customers may still feel some trepidation about purchasing certain types of items through an electronic store. For example, when purchasing art, a customer may be unsure how the art will look or fit in a given environment. Brick and mortar stores or art galleries may allow users to physically view the art in a physical display environment to assist customers in making a purchase.

Display of an electronic representation of a physical object in a virtual environment


An approach is provided for securely storing sensitive data values. A primary facility is provided that directly or indirectly receives requests from a requestor to store an actual data value. The primary facility obtains a replacement value associated with the actual value and encrypts the actual value, and the replacement value is transmitted to the requestor. The replacement and encrypted values are stored in a master copy database at the primary facility, and copies thereof are stored in distributed secondary databases. When the requestor needs an actual data value, the requestor transmits the replacement value either to the primary facility for retrieval of data from the master database, or to the secondary facility for retrieval from the respective secondary database. The chosen facility retrieves the encrypted value from its respective database using the replacement value, decrypts the encrypted value, and transmits the actual value back to the requestor.

With the onset of public use of the Internet and the World Wide Web, secure handling of sensitive data has become a very important issue. Hackers have become very sophisticated in their techniques for accessing sensitive data stores. It has become more and more common for these hackers to steal and use for illegal purposes, such data stores, which can include private information such as social security numbers, driver's license numbers, calling card numbers, bank account numbers, and credit card numbers. Legislatures have responded to identity theft by enacting laws requiring businesses that store sensitive data to perform certain steps to ensure a particular level of integrity of the data. For example, a law may require a certain level of encryption or firewall protection, or the law may require that if data is compromised, a keeper of the data store so compromised may be required to inform all owners of the compromised data of the breach so that they may take appropriate steps such as informing credit bureaus to issue a fraud alert for their credit records, as well as monitoring their credit records for fraudulent activity.
A common method of storage of sensitive data involves encrypting the data and storing it in a database. Thus, data regarding a particular entity, such as a customer, is stored in common facilities. To access the data, a hacker need only figure out how to break in to the facility and how to decrypt the data, and the hacker would then have enough information to be able to make fraudulent use of the data. For example, if a hacker broke into a telecommunications client's database and managed to obtain a customer's identity and card number, the hacker might be able to fraudulently make thousands of dollars of calls using the information.
Therefore, there is a need for more secure storage of sensitive data.

Method and system for providing centralized data field encryption, and distributed storage and retrieval


A collimator lens system has a single plano-convex lens and a plane parallel plate. An aspherical surface of the single plano-convex lens is convex to the magnification-larger-than-unity side. The collimator lens system fulfills the following conditions: ##EQU1## where n represents a refractive index of the single plano-convex lens, d represents an axial thickness of the single plano-convex lens, f represents a focal length of the single plano-convex lens and dg represents a thickness of the plane parallel plate.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming optical system comprising a single aspherical plano-convex collimator lens for use as a pickup optical system for an optical disk or as an optical system for use in a laser beam printer.
2. Description of the Prior Art
For a lens system used for reproducing signals recorded on optical disks, a large aperture with a numerical aperture NA of approximately 0.45 to 0.5 is required when the light source is a semiconductor laser. It is also required that axial aberrations should not exceed the diffraction limit. Moreover, in order to cope with automatic focusing or tracking, it is required that the number of lens elements should be as small as possible.
Lens systems fulfilling these requirements have already been proposed in Japanese Laid-open Patent Applications Nos. S60-181714, S61-88213, S61-132915 and S63-192006. These lens systems are all excellent lens systems each of which has achieved its object with a single lens by use of the recent progress in aspherical surface technology.
Regarding single aspherical collimator lenses made by a glass molding method, there is a constraint condition for each of the lens material (on which refractive index depends), the axial thickness and the curvature. These conditions are due to the manufacture method.
A lens system disclosed by the above-mentioned Japanese Laid-open Patent Application No. S61-88213 fulfills the following conditions (1) to (3): EQU 1.2<q<1.5 (1) EQU 1.68<n (2) EQU 0<dg (3)
where q is defined by ##EQU2## f represents a focal length of the single lens, d represents an axial thickness thereof, n represents a refractive index thereof, NA represents a numerical aperture thereof, and dg represent a thickness of a plane parallel plate.
In this prior art, by setting (d+dg)/f in accordance with the condition (1), coma is restrained, and the unfulfilled amount of sine condition is reduced to zero. Specifically, coma in the vicinity of the optical axis is removed by preventing the maximum image height of the single plano-convex lens from decreasing, and the unfulfilled amount of sine condition in the pupil is reduced to zero.
However, in the aspherical plano-convex lens fulfilling the above conditions, a ratio d/D of the thickness d to the effective aperture D is inevitably large. This is because d+dg is inevitably large in a lens having a large focal length since (d+dg)/f should be within a predetermined range in order to bring coma into an excellent condition. For example, in an embodiment which is a collimator lens where dg=0.25, the focal length f is long (7 to 13) and the axial thickness d is extremely large (4.2 to 7.8).
When the lens is processed by press molding, since the cut off amount at the process where the lenses are cut off for determining the center is large, the cost of lens manufacture is high. When decentering occurs in the lenses which have been cut off for determining the center, the angle of view increases because of the decentering. In a lens where the ratio d/D of the axial thickness d to the effective aperture D is large, the amount of lateral aberrations due to the increase in angle of view is more apt to be large than in a lens where the ratio d/D is small. That is, the amount of aberrations increases highly responsively to a change in angle of view. Since a lens where the ratio d/D is large must be designed so that lateral aberrations are restrained in a large view angel range for this reason, the degree of freedom in lens designing such as the selection of a lens material is limited.
If the lens where the ratio d/D is large is designed so that lateral aberrations are restrained only in a small view angle range, the assembly will be extremely difficult since it is necessary to attach the lens to a lens barrel with a high positioning accuracy so that the decentering amount from the optical axis is small.
Generally, a single lens is positioned with either of the effective surfaces as a reference surface. This is because edge surfaces are not highly precisely processed. For this reason, even though the finished lens has an ideal shape, the surface reverse to the positioning surface decenters due to the work accuracy of a supporting portion of the lens barrel. Although the element of the inclination is the same whether the ratio d/D is large or small, the parallel decentering amount is largely different.

Single aspherical plano-convex collimator lens


A method for producing a liquid ejecting head of the present invention includes the steps of: forming an etching stop layer on a portion corresponding to a region in which an independent supply port is formed, on a first face of a substrate; conducting dry etching treatment for the substrate from a second face side until the etched portion reaches the etching stop layer; and removing the etching stop layer by isotropic etching to form the independent supply port, after having conducted the dry etching treatment, wherein the isotropic etching is conducted in such a state that a side etching stopper portion having etching resistance to the isotropic etching is formed in the side face perimeter of the etching stop layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid ejecting head and a method for producing the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
An ink jet recording head for ink jet printing generally includes an ejection port for ejecting a solution, a liquid flow channel in communication with the ejection port, and an ejection energy generating element provided in the liquid flow channel. This ink jet recording head is broadly divided into two forms, from the viewpoint of a positional relationship between the ejection energy generating element and the ejection port. In the two forms, one is an edge shooter type ink jet head in which a growth direction of an air bubble is different from an ejection direction thereof (almost vertical), and the other is a side shooter type ink jet head in which the growth direction of the air bubble is almost same as the ejection direction thereof.
The side shooter type ink jet head can be produced, for instance, according to the following steps (1) to (4): (1) a step of forming a mold pattern of the ink flow channel on a substrate (base substance) having the ejection energy generating element formed thereon by using a dissolvable resin; (2) a step of forming a flow-channel forming member which constitutes a wall of the ink flow channel, by solvent-coating a coating resin containing an epoxy resin on the mold pattern; (3) a step of forming the ink ejection port in a coating resin layer which exists above the ejection energy generating element; and (4) a step of dissolving out the mold pattern which is formed of a dissolvable resin.
The above described production method will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS. 1A to 1E.
First, as is illustrated in FIG. 1A, the mold pattern 23 of the ink flow channel is formed on the substrate 21 which has the ejection energy generating element 22 formed on its first face (which is also referred to as surface), with the use of the dissolvable resin.
Here, a desired number of the ejection energy generating elements 22 such as an electrothermal conversion element, a piezoelectric element or the like are arranged on the substrate 21. An energy for ejecting an ink small drop as a recording liquid is given to the ink by the ejection energy generating element 22.
When the electrothermal conversion element is used as the ejection energy generating element 22, the electrothermal conversion element heats the recording liquid in the vicinity thereof, thereby causes the change in a state of the recording liquid, and generates ejection energy. In addition, when the piezoelectric element is used as the ejection energy generating element 22, the ejection energy is generated by mechanical vibration of the piezoelectric element.
Subsequently, as in FIG. 1B, the coating resin layer 24 having photosensitivity is further formed on the mold pattern 23 which serves as a mold of the ink flow channel, with a spin coating method, a roll coating method or the like.
Subsequently, as in FIG. 1C, the ejection port 25 is formed by the exposure of the coating resin layer 24 to light through a mask having the pattern and the development of the exposed coating resin layer.
A negative type resist, for instance, can be used for the photosensitive coating resin layer 24. When the coating resin layer 24 is the negative type resist, a portion (not-shown) on which the ejection port is formed and a portion (not-shown) for electrical connection thereon are shielded by a mask.
A light source to be used for the pattern exposure can be appropriately selected from ultraviolet light, Deep-UV light, an electron beam, X-rays or the like, according to a photosensitizing region of a cationic photopolymerization initiator to be used.
Subsequently, as is illustrated in FIG. 1D, an ink supply port 27 for supplying the ink to the ink flow channel therethrough is formed. At this time, in order to avoid a damage to the coating resin layer 24 which serves as a nozzle member, a face of the silicon substrate on which the nozzle has been formed may be protected by a protective material 26 such as a cyclized rubber. In addition, the protective layer may be removed after the ink supply port 27 has been formed.
In addition, the ink supply port can be formed with any method as long as a through hole can be formed in the substrate 21. The ink supply port may be formed, for instance, mechanically with a drill or the like, or may also be formed with the use of light energy of a laser or the like. In addition, the through hole may be formed by steps of forming a resist pattern on the substrate 21 and chemically etching the substrate.
Subsequently, as is illustrated in FIG. 1E, the mold pattern 23 formed of the dissolvable resin is dissolved out by a solvent, and the ink flow channel is formed.
The mold pattern 23 is easily dissolved out by immersing the substrate in the solvent or spraying the solvent to the substrate with a spray. In addition, if an ultrasonic wave or the like has been used together, a dissolving period of time can be further shortened.
With the substrate 21 having the ink flow channel and the ink ejection port formed thereon in this way, members for supplying the ink are attached and electrical connections (not-shown) for driving the ejection energy generating element 22 are provided to complete the ink jet recording head.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H05-116317 discloses a liquid ejecting head that has a structure which has an orifice opposing to a thermal energy supply unit, and has nozzle walls arranged in two different directions from each other when viewed from the thermal energy generating unit, in the vicinity of the thermal energy generating unit.
In addition, U.S. Pat. No. 6,534,247 describes a method for forming a liquid ejecting head according to the following steps of: (1) arranging an inorganic insulation film on the upper face and the lower face of a heater layer, and forming an independent supply port (Ink Feed) in the vicinity of a heater first from the surface of a substrate for an ink jet recording head; (2) forming a first common ink supply port by anisotropic etching from the rear face of the substrate for the recording head, with the use of a strong alkaline etchant; and (3) applying a resist onto the substrate with a spray coater or the like to form the film, patterning the resist film, and then forming a second common ink supply port to make the second common ink supply port communicate with the above described independent supply port. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,534,247, the independent supply port is formed from the surface of the substrate for the ink jet recording head, and accordingly such a step is not needed as to remove an inorganic insulation film arranged on the upper face and the lower face of the heater layer, from the rear face of the substrate through the independent supply port. However, it is difficult to stack nozzles on the above described substrate for the ink jet recording head with high accuracy, after deep independent supply ports have been formed on the surface. In addition, a material for temporarily plugging the above described independent supply ports also becomes necessary, and a process of uniformly plugging this plugging material also becomes complicated. Furthermore, it is needed to stably remove the above described plugging material at the end in order to form the nozzles.
In addition, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-150744 discloses the following method of producing an ink jet recording head. Specifically, the method includes arranging a TaSiN film which is a heater film, between a P—SiO film and a P—SiN film in a region in which a common ink supply port is formed, in an ink jet recording head disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H06-286149, and anisotropically etching the region. Then, when the P—SiO film is removed by a solution having acidity such as a BHF solution, the method prevents a damage to the above described dissolvable resin material layer 23, the above described photosensitive coating resin layer 24 and the like, through the P—SiN film.
In addition, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-039914 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-196244 disclose a structure that specifies a nozzle arrangement configuration of the recording head, which achieves such a symmetrical nozzle configuration that the nozzles are filled with ink through independent supply ports in a head having the independent supply ports, and specifies an arrangement configuration of the independent supply ports.

Liquid ejecting head and method for producing the same


Disclosed embodiments provide a unique touchless combination device that provides simultaneous convenient use of three features, such as dispensing of liquid sanitizer, access to paper tissues, and a compartment for immediate and safe disposal of used tissues. Touchless operation is provided by use of several proximity sensors which allow to access and use all features of the device without need to touch any part of it. Disclosed embodiments also utilize UV LED lights for the purpose of disinfecting used and disposed tissues.

The present invention is in the field of sanitizing devices providing means for protecting user from bacterial contamination. More particularly, the present invention is a fully touchless wall-mounted, stand alone or desktop device that provides users' access to liquid sanitizer dispenser, dry or wet paper tissue dispenser and disposal compartment for storing used paper tissues.
There are numerous products and devices on a market which offer dispensing of sanitizing liquids and gels, as well as devices dispensing paper tissue and means of disposal of used tissues. Many of them require a user to touch parts of a device to use it. Touching parts of such products may reduce effectiveness of protection against bacterial contamination. It is therefore desirable to have improvements in sanitation devices.


Error information are formed in respectively assigned dependability system sub-modules from error reports of program control modules in a job-oriented manner and are transmitted to a system dependability sub-module. These reports are compiled in the latter based on defined order and criteria. The records are then forwarded in a system dependability sub-module-associated data format to a signaling sub-module which is provided in an administration data server, a signaling distribution file and a signaling format file with whose assistance signaling information, from which error texts that can be output to display equipment are formed and assigned to the signaling sub-module.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to modular communications systems, particularly ISDN communication systems each of which comprises a switching unit having a digital switching matrix and a central control device and comprising an administration data server which serves for the control of the system-oriented periphery and for the storing of system files, as well as comprising further program control modules constructed in a job-oriented manner, a system bus connecting all program control modules, program-control module-associated dependability modules and a dependability security dependability sub-module in the switching unit hierarchy which ranks higher over the program-control module-associated dependability system modules, and further comprising at least one output equipment for the display of errors.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In communication systems, information are through-connected or switched between terminal equipment, these information involving only one type of communication in the simplest case, but increasingly involving a number of types of communication of voice, picture, text or data. ISDN communication systems are particularly suitable for processing all types of communication. ISDN communication systems are already known which enable the simultaneous transmission of different types of communication in uniform digital structure under one telephone number, enabling transmission at a subscriber terminal via a single lead pair. In such an ISDN communication system, as described in ISDN im Buero, special edition of Telcom Report and Siemens Magazin COM, the entire system structure is based on function modules, i.e. the hardware is modularly constructed and the software is modularly structured. The essential modules are a through-connection module which comprises a digital switching matrix array and a central control device, as well as an operation and data module which serves for the control of the system-oriented periphery, as well as for storing system files. The term "receiver" has become common for modules such as the operation and data control module which respectively fulfills specific tasks by means of individual program controls usually realized by multi-processor arrangements. Further known servers, in addition to the operation and data server, are thereby a voice information server which offers the connected subscribers the possibility of re-routing their telephone connection to what are referred to as voice-mail boxes and a text and fax server with which, among other things, the conversion of a message from teletex to telefax is possible in cases in which there is no terminal equipment capable of teletex at the receiver. Further, the picture screen text servers for promoting service procedures for the communication type of picture screen text and special terminal receivers are also known which simultaneously process the request of a plurality of multi-functional terminals. By way of a bus system, the through-connection module is integrated with all other program control modules to form an overall system. The control of all communication activities is sequenced by the protocol of ISDN interfaces B+B+D.
A constant ready state is usually required of such communication systems. Special hardware and software modules serve to guarantee these requirements, these modules being referred to, overall, as dependability systems and their assistance being used in order to limit the effects of disturbances. Crucial jobs which the dependability systems are responsible for are therefore trouble recognition, trouble localization, trouble evaluation and trouble reports. In the known ISDN communication system, the dependability systems are overall structured such that a sub-module for the module dependability system is formed in each module. These sub-modules are specifically adapted to the hardware structure and to the job of the appertaining program control module, but are always respectively identical in basic design. Due to the central significance and the wide-ranging jobs of the actual through-connection module in comparison to the remaining server modules, the dependability systems sub-module of the through-connection module differs noticeably from the dependability systems sub-modules of the remaining program control modules. Since the general domain of the dependability systems of such a communication system also include jobs that go beyond the domain of the program control modules, a system dependability systems sub-module is hierarchically higher-ranking over the individual dependability system sub-module, this system dependability systems sub-module being preferably arranged in the through-connection module. As a necessary precondition for error texts being capable of being output at error output equipment, these error texts providing indications regarding type of error, location of error or, respectively, cause of error, the dependability systems sub-modules of the individual program control modules transmit error information to this system dependability systems sub-module.

Modular ISDN communication system with formation and display of error texts


An annular blowout preventer device includes a body and a static head removably connected to the body, A piston is disposed inside an opening chamber to squeeze a packer. An opening chamber head has a rib extending upward from an upper surface. The rib is received within a recess in the lower surface of the static head.

1. Technical Field
Embodiments of the subject matter disclosed herein generally relate to blowout preventers and an opening chamber head that are configured to withstand deformations created by high pressures.
2. Discussion of the Background
During the past years, with the increase in price of fossil fuels, the interest in developing new production fields has dramatically increased. However, the availability of land-based production fields is limited. Thus, the industry has now extended drilling to offshore locations, which appear to hold a vast amount of fossil fuel.
The existing technologies for extracting the fossil fuel from offshore fields use a system 10 as shown in FIG. 1. More specifically, the system 10 includes a vessel 12 having a reel 14 that supplies power/communication cords 16 to a controller 18. A reel may be used to transmit power and communication. Some systems have hose reels to transmit fluid under pressure or hard pipe (rigid conduit) to transmit the fluid under pressure or both. Other systems may have a hose with communication or lines (pilot) to supply and operate functions subsea. However, a common feature of these systems is their limited operation depth. The controller 18, which will be discussed later, is disposed undersea, close to or on the seabed 20. In this respect, it is noted that the elements shown in the figures are not drawn to scale and no dimensions should be inferred from the figures.
FIG. 1 also shows a wellhead 22 of the subsea well and a production tubing 24 that enters the subsea well. At the end of the production tubing 24 there is a drill (not shown). Various mechanisms, also not shown, are employed to rotate the production tubing 24, and implicitly the drill, to extend the subsea well.
However, during normal drilling operation, unexpected events may occur that could damage the well and/or the equipment used for drilling. One such event is the uncontrolled flow of gas, oil or other well fluids from an underground formation into the well. Such event is sometimes referred to a "kick" or a "blowout" and may occur when formation pressure exceeds the pressure applied to it by the column of drilling fluid. This event is unforeseeable and if no measures are taken to prevent it, the well and/or the associated equipment may be damaged.
Another event that may damage the well and/or the associated equipment is a hurricane or an earthquake. Both of these natural phenomena may damage the integrity of the well and the associated equipment. For example, due to the high winds produced by a hurricane at the surface of the sea, the vessel or the rig that powers the undersea equipment starts to drift resulting in breaking the power/communication cords or other elements that connect the well to the vessel or rig. Other events that may damage the integrity of the well and/or associated equipment are possible as would be appreciated by those skilled in the art.
Thus, a blowout preventer (BOP), later to be expressed as BOP only, might be installed on top of the well to seal it in case that one of the above events is threatening the integrity of the well. The BOP is conventionally implemented as a valve to prevent the release of pressure either in the annular space between the casing and the drill pipe or in the open hole (i,e., hole with no drill pipe) during drilling or completion operations. FIG. 1 shows BOPs 26 or 28 that are controlled by the controller 18. The blowout preventer controller 18 controls an accumulator 30 to close or open BOPs 26 and 28. More specifically, the controller 18 controls a system of valves for opening and closing the BOPs. Hydraulic fluid, which is used to open and close the valves, is commonly pressurized by equipment on the surface. The pressurized fluid is stored in accumulators on the surface and subsea to operate the BOPs. The fluid stored subsea in accumulators may also be used to autoshear and/or for deadman functions when the control of the well is lost. The accumulator 30 may include containers (canisters) that store the hydraulic fluid under pressure and provide the necessary pressure to open and close the BOPs. The pressure from the accumulator 30 is carried by pipe or hose 32 to BOPs 26 and 28.
One type of BOP is the annular blowout preventer, an example of which is shown in FIG. 2. The annular BOP 26 has a body 40 in which is formed a cavity 42. The drill line (not shown) crosses through the cavity 42. The annular BOP 26 is attached to the well head 22 via a flange 44. A packer 46 is formed inside the cavity 42 of the body 40, around the drill line so that the packer 46 does not affect the movement of the drill line when the BOP is open. A static head 48 is attached to the body 40 to close the cavity 42 and also to prevent the packer 46 to exit the body 40. A piston 50 is provided in a recess of the body 40 to not affect the movement of the drill line through the cavity 42. The piston 50 is shown in FIG. 2 not pressing on the packer 46.
However, when piston 50 is actuated by the high pressure from the accumulator 30, the piston 50 moves towards the packer 46, squeezing the packer 46 such that a portion of the packer 46 presses against the drill line and seals the well. When the piston 50 moves upward, an opening chamber 52 decreases in size until an upper tip of piston 50 touches or is close to touch an opening chamber head 60. The closing pressure that actuates the piston 50 enters the closing chamber 58 (shown in FIG. 3) via an inlet 54. Once the piston 50 is closed, the high pressure from the closing chamber 58 is vented out so that the piston 50 is prepared for the opening phase. At this stage, it was observed that the piston 50 may move downwards, resulting in the occurrence of a low pressure or vacuum on a lower part A of the opening chamber head 60 while a high pressure (from sea water for example) may appear on an upper part B of the opening chamber head 60 as shown in FIG. 3.
FIG. 3 shows in more details the opening chamber head 60 being in contact with the static head 48, the piston 50 and the body 40. The opening chamber head 60 has a recess 62 in which o-rings are placed to seal the opening chamber 52. Due to the vacuum that occurs when the piston 50 moves backwards after the piston 50 was closed, it was observed that the opening chamber head 60 deforms due to the high pressure difference between sides A and B. As the opening chamber head 60 ensures that the hydraulic liquid in the opening chamber 52 remains free of contamination from outside, the deformation of the opening chamber head 60 is undesired as it reduces the time interval between scheduled maintenance events, increases the maintenance cost, and also increases the down time of the rig.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide systems and methods that avoid the afore-described problems and drawbacks.

Deformation resistant opening chamber head and method


A system and method allowing for optimization of query execution in database environments is provided. In an illustrative implementation, a database having distributed partitioned views is provided such that queries may initiate at any of the participating data stores. In operation, an offered query is analyzed to determine if it has predicate expression and/or sub-queries. Using this information the expressions and/or sub-queries are analyzed and processed to determine if appropriate start-up filters are available for the offered query. The start-up filters are applied to the query such that during compile and/or run time, redundant partitions in the distributed partitioned database environment are eliminated during query execution.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of database systems and, more particularly, to a system and method allowing for the creation and execution of scalar-based queries in database environments.
2. Brief Description of Prior Developments
Database systems store, retrieve, and process information. In order to retrieve information from the database, a user provides a query (written in a query language such as SQL), where the query specifies the information to be retrieved and the manner in which it is to be manipulated or evaluated in order to provide a useful result. To process the query, the database system converts the query into a relational expression that describes algebraically the result specified by the query. The relational expression is then used to produce an execution plan, which describes particular steps to be taken by a computer in order to produce the sought result.
Database environments comprise various configurations having cooperating homogeneous and/or heterogeneous data stores. These data stores generally maintain data in tables (T) that may reside locally on a single data store or may be distributed among several data stores in a distributed database environment. Included in the category of distributed database environments are clustered databases and federated databases. A clustered database configuration contemplates several data stores closely cooperating to produce a singular view of the data stored on the data stores. Comparatively, a database federation is a group of data stores (e.g. computer servers) that are administered independently, but which cooperate to share the processing load of a system. These various database environments support a number of views that may be imposed to better manage the underlying table (T) data. For example, these database environments (e.g. stand-alone, clustered, and federated) may be partitioned such that the table or tables storing data may be more efficiently handled. In the case of distributed database environments, distributed partitioned views may be created.
Generally, a partitioned view joins horizontally partitioned data from a set of member tables across one or more data stores making the data as if it appears from one database table. In a local partitioned view, all participating tables and the view reside on the same instance of the data store (e.g. the same instance of SQL server). In a distributed partitioned view, at least one of the participating tables resides on a different (i.e. remote) data store. For partitioned tables to exist the location of single data row in a partitioned table (T) must be uniquely located. Current implementations satisfy this requirement through the use of ranges (e.g. column and/or row ranges), or, through hashing functions which operate on columns and/or rows. In the ranges-based implementation, the member tables of the partitioned view are designed so that each table stores a horizontal slice of the original table based on a range of key values. The ranges are based on the data values in a partitioning column. The partitioning column serves to contain values that facilitate the creation and maintenance of partitioned views in partitioned database environments.
The member tables of the partitioned view are designed so that each table stores a horizontal slice of the original table based on a range of key values. The ranges are based on the data values in a partitioning column. The range of values in each member table is enforced by a database environment constraint (e.g. CHECK constraint) on the partitioning column, such that ranges do not overlap.
Current practices allow queries to be performed on partitioned views such that desired data is identified, retrieved, and returned to participating users. In the context of executing queries in distributed database environments, such practices lend to inefficient and non-optimal uses of processing resources. Stated differently, tables residing on a number of data stores may require numerous processing steps to satisfy offered requests. For example, if data is to be retrieved from remote participating data stores in a partitioned database environments, a number of unnecessary steps, such as, reading from redundant partitions may be performed.
In view of the foregoing, it is appreciated that there exists a need for an improved query execution strategy that overcomes the drawbacks of existing practices.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method for efficient query execution using dynamic queries in database environments


A method for assuring virtual atomic invalidation in a multilevel cache system wherein lower level cache locations store portions of a line stored at a higher level cache location. Upon receipt of an invalidation signal, the higher level cache location invalidates the line and places a HOLD bit on the invalidated line. Thereafter, the higher level cache sends invalidation signals to all lower level caches which store portions of the invalidated line. Each lower level cache invalidates its portion of the line and sets a HOLD bit on its portion of the line. The HOLD bits are reset after all line portion invalidations have been completed.

Cache storage schemes have been developed to provide faster access to frequently required data or instructions. Information which a processor needs can be retrieved from the main memory storage location; however, such retrieval may take a long time, particularly when viewed from the perspective of the increasingly fast processors which have been and are continuously being developed. In order to reduce the number of wait states involved when accessing information from main memory, more responsive memory locations have been provided in the form of caches. Each cache is smaller than the main memory storage location and is provided to store copies of certain lines of information from the main memory. Generally, a cache will be used to store the most recently and/or most frequently accessed information in order to provide that information to the processor with minimal memory access time.
Multiple layers or levels of cache memory have been implemented between the main memory and the processor to further expand the caching capabilities of a system and to provide faster access to larger amounts of information. Typically, a higher level memory location (e.g., L.sub.3) will be a large memory cache for storing some subset of the information contained in the main memory, while lower level memory locations (e.g., L.sub.2) will be smaller memory caches for storing subsets of the information contained in the higher level memory locations. Until recently, the monetary expense of incorporating cache memory into computer systems prohibited widespread usage of multilevel caches, in spite of the improved time efficiency. Now, however, multilevel cache usage is widespread, and is particularly popular in multiprocessor systems and in distributed computing environments.
In multiprocessor systems, more than one processor may require access to information stored at a particular location. FIG. 1 illustrates a multiprocessor system, M, having four processors, P.sub.A through P.sub.D, each associated with a lower level cache memory location, L.sub.2A through L.sub.2D. Each of the lower level cache memory locations contains a subset of the information stored at the higher level cache memory location L.sub.3, which in turn stores a subset of the information stored at the main memory (not shown). The multiprocessor system may additionally be connected along an interconnection network, 20, to another multiprocessor system, M', having processors P.sub.E through P.sub.H associated with lower level caches L.sub.2E through L.sub.2H, which contain subsets of the information stored at the higher level cache location L.sub.3 ', as shown in FIG. 2, and further to any number of multiprocessor systems M.sub.x (not shown).
In distributed computing systems, it is beneficial to incorporate multilevel caches to facilitate faster access to the stored information, whether the access is from a local processor or from remote processors located elsewhere on the network. Therefore, multilevel caches are provided which can be accessed by not only one or more local processors, but also by a plurality of remote processors.
In general, in multiprocessor systems, one processor is the designated "owner" of the information stored at a particular cache location, and that owner will be responsible for updating information in the cache and for allowing other processors to update the information stored in that cache. Any update to a given cache location is ideally carried through to all other stored copies of the information, in order to assure that each location has the most recent copy of the information stored therein, providing so-called cache coherency. However, the time and bandwidth required to broadcast and globally implement every memory update can be prohibitive. Therefore, systems generally adhere to one of two basic approaches to memory updates, implementing a write through or a write back policy, or a modified combination of both.
Under a write through policy, each update to a cache location is written to the next level cache, where the resident copy of the information will be updated and sent to the next level cache, with the change ultimately propagating through to all copies of the information. As noted above, such a policy is optimal for assuring that all retrieved information is not stale; however, time and resources are tied up throughout implementation of the write through policy.
As an alternative, the write back policy provides that an update is done at the cache location, with each of the other copies of the information, including the main memory, only being updated later when access to that copy is requested by its associated processor. When the update is done to a line of data at the "owned" memory location, an invalidation signal is sent out on the bus indicating that the line is being modified. Each cache location which has a copy of that line must then invalidate its resident copy of the line. Upon a subsequent attempt to access that line of data, the requesting processor learns that the line has been invalidated. The requesting processor must issue a request for the updated data from the owner, and only then will the line of data at the "non-owned" cache location be updated.
In bus-based systems, cache locations learn of an update or an invalidation by monitoring or "snooping" for any write requests or invalidation signals that involve information stored at that location. The write request will be issued by the owner of the information, and will identify that information which is to be updated. Invalidation signals will identify the line of information which has been updated. Therefore, the snooping location simply looks for write packets or invalidation signals which include any identifiers matching its stored information.
A problem that arises when operating under a write back policy in a multiprocessor environment is that different storage locations may have different copies of the stored information. Since one processor can be accessing a lower level cache, for example P.sub.A accessing information ftom L.sub.2A, at the same time as another processor is accessing the "same" information from a higher level cache, P.sub.E accessing information from L.sub.3, each may be receiving a different version of the stored information. The foregoing is particularly a concern when the request for access to the information is received at a cache location after the write to the owned location but before the invalidation signal has been received at the cache-location.
The invalidation process becomes even more problematic when the granularity of sharing between levels is altered. For example, there may be a difference in the line sizes between memory locations as different levels, so that one line of information from location L.sub.3 will be broken up for storage at the lower level locations, L.sub.2, with different portions of that line being stored at four different cache locations in level L.sub.2. With reference to FIG. 2, assume that a line of information stored at L.sub.3 has components of that line stored at each of locations L.sub.2A through L.sub.2D. Other lines of information from L.sub.3 may be stored in fewer than the four locations, depending upon the line size in the L.sub.2 caches and depending upon the amount of information in the line from L.sub.3. If the line of information stored at L.sub.3 is owned by a processor in M', and that processor issues an update for the line, L.sub.3 will put an invalidation signal on the L.sub.2 bus so that all cache locations storing any portions of the line will be invalidated. Since four separate invalidation signals must be sent, and L.sub.3 may have to wait for access to the L.sub.2 bus, it is possible that P.sub.A, P.sub.B, P.sub.C or P.sub.D may attempt to read that line from its associated cache in the interim between L.sub.3 being updated and L.sub.3 successfully completing transmission of all four of the invalidation signals. Therefore, the requesting processor may be receiving stale (i.e., non-updated) information.
Hence, it is an objective of the present invention to provide a method for propagating invalidation signals from a higher level cache, to lower level caches having smaller line sizes than the higher level cache, without risking incoherency in the process.

Method for providing virtual atomicity in multi processor environment having access to multilevel caches

International Business Machines Corporation