In a method for manufacturing an integral imaging device, a layer of curable adhesive is first applied on a flexible substrate and half cured such that the curable adhesive is solidified but is capable of deforming under external forces. Then the curable adhesive is printed into a lenticular lens having a predetermined shape and size using a roll-to-roll processing device and fully cured such that the curable adhesive is capable of withstanding external forces to hold the predetermined shape and size. Last, a light emitting diode display is applied on the flexible substrate opposite to the lenticular lens such that an image plane of the light emitting diode display coincides with a focal plane of the lenticular lens.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to stereo displays and, particularly, to a method for manufacturing an integral imaging device.
2. Description of Related Art
Integral imaging devices display a 3D image using lenticular lenses, each of which include an array of cylindrical lenses, precisely aligned in front of an array of image pixels, where each cylindrical lens looks different depending on viewing angle, thus creating a stereo effect that exhibits parallax when viewers move. To ensure display quality, it is required that the cylindrical lenses precisely align with the pixels, which is difficult and/or inefficient.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a method for manufacturing an integral imaging device which can overcome the above-mentioned shortcomings.

Method for manufacturing integral imaging device


The present invention provides an affinity trap reactor that enables the reaction between an enzyme bound to a support and substrate to proceed efficiently without its applications being restricted by the type of enzyme and substrate used. The present invention relates to an affinity trap reactor composed of a support bound with an enzyme and a molecule that specifically binds with a substrate of the enzyme, and a single-stage process for obtaining BL-angiostatin from plasminogen contained in a biological sample, wherein a biological sample containing plasminogen is applied to an affinity trap reactor composed of a support bound with bacillolysin MA and lysine, and reacted under conditions of a temperature of 0 to 50° C. in the presence of isopropyl alcohol but in the absence of calcium ions.

Substances that inhibit vascular neogenesis are expected to be applied as antitumor agents since they inhibit cancer growth, invasion and metastasis, and angiostatin is known to be one of such substances. Angiostatin is a protein having a molecular weight of about 40,000 that is obtained by the degradation of a fibrinolytic factor, plasminogen, present in blood. It has been reported to demonstrate dramatic effects against cancer in animal studies (see Non-Patent Document 1). There are two methods used to produce angiostatin, namely (1) hydrolyzing plasminogen with a protease known as elastase (see Non-Patent Document 2), and (2) producing it directly in Escherichia coli using gene recombination technology (see Non-Patent Document 3). In the case of method (1), there is considerable formation of by-products due to the low substrate-specificity of elastase, thus making it difficult to selectively form angiostatin from plasminogen. In addition, this method also has the disadvantage of the activity of the resulting angiostatin being low. In the case of method (2), it is difficult to purify angiostatin produced from E. Coli, and considerable costs are incurred. In addition, there is also a problem with the low level of solubility. Consequently, there has been a need to develop a means of obtaining angiostatin at high purity using a simple method.
Recently, a protease produced by Bacillus megaterium strain A9542 known as bacillolysin MA has been observed to form an angiostatin-like fragment having angiogenesis inhibitory action by specifically severing plasminogen (comprising mainly of Glu1-Ser441, hereinafter referred to as BL-angiostatin), and a mini-plasminogen-like fragment having thrombolytic activity (comprising mainly of Val442-Asn791) (see Patent Document 1). Since this enzyme known as bacillolysin MA is extremely stable, it can be used in various applications by immobilizing on a support. Therefore, there is a need to develop a process for obtaining highly pure BL-angiostatin by carrying out the steps from the reaction of bacillolysin MA and substrate plasminogen to purification of the resulting product BL-angiostatin in a single stage using the characteristics of bacillolysin MA, and to develop a device for carrying out that process.
On the other hand, enzyme-immobilized reactors in which various enzymes such as protease which can be used for various uses are immobilized on a support for use in a reaction have been proposed in the prior art. However, proteases are susceptible to inactivation resulting from degradation of the immobilized protease due to self-digestion, and in the case the substrate of the enzyme such as protease has a high molecular weight, the reaction between the enzyme bound to the support and the substrate has difficulty in proceeding efficiently and rapidly due to spatial restrictions. For these reasons, the applications of enzyme-immobilized reactors are limited by the types of enzymes and substrates used, and expectations have been placed on the development of an enzyme-immobilized reactor that can be widely used for various types of enzymes and substrates.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2002-272453
Non-Patent Document 1: M. S. O'Reilly, et al., Cell (USA), Oct. 21, 1994, Vol. 79, No. 2, pp. 315-328
Non-Patent Document 2: M. S. O'Reilly, et al., Nature Medicine (USA), 1996, Vol. 2, pp. 689-692
Non-Patent Document 3: B. K. Sim, et al., Cancer Research (USA), 1997, Vol. 57, pp. 1329-1334
As a result of conducting extensive research to develop an enzyme-immobilized reactor free of the aforementioned problems, as well as a process of producing BL-angiostatin using the characteristics of the aforementioned bacillolysin MA, the inventor of the present invention found that, by binding an enzyme such as bacillolysin MA together with a molecule that specifically binds with an enzyme substrate to a support to compose an affinity trap reactor, together with obtaining a reactor that is free of the aforementioned problems, by using an affinity trap reactor in which bacillolysin MA is immobilized as the enzyme and Lys is immobilized as the molecule that specifically binds with the enzyme substrate, a process is obtained for highly efficiently and rapidly degrading and purifying BL-angiostatin from plasminogen contained in biological samples such as blood, thereby leading to completion of the present invention.

Affinity trap reactor and single-step process for purifying angiostatin-like fragment from human plasma using the same


Nitrogen-doped tungsten films characterized by low stress (e.g. less than 250 MPa) and excellent adhesion to an underlying dielectric layer are deposited by physical vapor deposition (PVD). The films can be used as hardmask layers in fabrication of 3D memory stacks and can be deposited directly onto a top dielectric layer in a stack of layers. The low stress films are characterized by higher concentration of nitrogen at the interface with the dielectric layer than in the bulk of the film, and have a nitrogen content of between about 5-20% atomic. The films having a thickness of between about 300-900 nm can be deposited in a PVD process chamber by forming a plasma in a process gas comprising a noble gas and nitrogen, where the flow rate of nitrogen is between about 10-17% of the total flow rate of the process gas.

Fabrication of three dimensional (3D) memory devices (e.g., 3D NAND memory) involves patterning of stacks of dielectric layers, where one individual stack may include more than ten, twenty or even fifty layers. Patterning of such stacks on a semiconductor substrate is often performed by depositing a relatively thick hardmask layer over the top layer of the stack, patterning the hardmask to expose the underlying layer in a desired pattern, and etching the exposed underlying layer while not fully removing the hardmask.
The hardmask material should have an excellent etch selectivity versus the etched dielectric, it should have a good adhesion to the underlying dielectric layer and, importantly, it should not cause substantial substrate bowing due to stress. Two types of stresses contribute to deformation of the substrate—compressive stress and tensile stress. When the hardmask material is compressive (i.e., has compressive stress), the hardmask pushes onto the substrate and bows the substrate downward. When the hardmask material is tensile (i.e., has tensile stress), the hardmask pulls the substrate upward. Typically the absolute value of the substrate bowing increases with the increasing thickness of the hardmask. Therefore, in applications where thick hardmasks are needed, the stress of the hardmask materials should be particularly low in order to minimize the substrate bow. In some applications moderate stress may be desired to compensate for the existing stress of the stack.
In conventional processing carbon is often used as a hardmask material for patterning of the 3D memory stacks. However, thick carbon films can cause undesirably large stress-induced substrate bowing. New materials with lower stress and high etch selectivity are needed for hardmask applications.

Physical vapor deposition of low-stress nitrogen-doped tungsten films


The present disclosure relates to devices and methods for programming one-time programmable fuses of microphone assemblies. One microphone assembly includes a housing, a transducer, a filter circuit, and an integrated circuit. The integrated circuit has a fuse block having a one-time programmable (OTP) fuse configurable in a programming mode of operation during which a voltage applied to the supply voltage contact is increased relative to a voltage applied to a supply voltage contact in a normal mode of operation. The microphone assembly further includes a protection circuit configured to regulate a voltage at the voltage input terminal of the integrated circuit during the programming mode of operation based on a comparison of a voltage at the voltage input terminal with a reference voltage. The voltage on the voltage input terminal of the integrated circuit tracks the reference voltage during the programming mode of operation.

Microphone assemblies comprising a transducer (e.g., a capacitive MEMS transducer) and an ASIC disposed within a housing including a host interface with electrical contacts for integration in a host device are known generally. Such microphones are used in mobile communication devices and personal computers among other consumer and industrial devices. It is desirable to suppress electromagnetic interference (EMI) in such microphone assemblies. Such microphone assemblies are often calibrated postproduction to meet desired performance or operational specifications, for example, sensitivity. The calibration is fixed by burning one or more fuses of one-time programmable (OTP) memory on-board the ASIC. Burning the fuses, however, creates large current spikes, and supply impedance associated with an RF filter reduces the instantaneous voltage supplied to the ASIC. Thus while the RF filter suppresses EMI it also interferes with reliable burning of the OTP fuses. The problem is aggravated in applications that require larger RF filter impedances to comply with stringent EMI suppression requirements.
In the following detailed description, various embodiments are described with reference to the appended drawings. The skilled person will understand that the accompanying drawings are schematic and simplified for clarity and therefore merely show details which are essential to the understanding of the disclosure, while other details have been left out. Like reference numerals refer to like elements or components throughout. Like elements or components will therefore not necessarily be described in detail with respect to each figure.


Apparatuses and methods for the moderation of positrons are provided herein. The apparatus includes a structure consisting of linear arrays of electrode and semiconductor structures of generally planar or cylindrical form with vacuum gaps between each element electrode. This structure may be contained within a vacuum chamber. The positron source is positioned adjacent to the moderator structure or the electrodes may act as the positron source by pair production through bombardment of high energy photons, electrons, or neutrons. Positrons from this source are implanted into the moderator material and drift to the moderator surfaces through the influence of the electric fields produced by the electrodes. Positrons are emitted from the surfaces of the moderator material and are confined by orthogonal electric and magnetic fields while they drift out from the vacuum gap between cathodes and anodes for extraction.

Positrons are the anti-particle of an electron, each having the same mass as an electron, but opposite charge. When a positron and electron combine, they annihilate, converting 100% of their mass into energy. Positrons are currently used in a wide range of applications including medicine, fundamental physics research, and materials characterization. High intensity positron sources may be critical in the creation of the world's first gamma-ray laser. Antimatter has the highest energy density of any known substance, and positrons have been studied by NASA as a possible propellant for high performance in-space propulsion systems.
Currently, the most intense source of positrons in the world produces 109 cold positrons per second. At this production rate, it would take over 10 million years to accumulate a milligram of positrons. In order to realize these newer concepts, a much more intense source of positrons must be developed.

Array structures for field-assisted positron moderation and corresponding methods


A system and method for measuring mechanical properties of a tissue using an ultrasound system is provided. Ultrasound energy is applied to the tissue using the ultrasound system in order to produce shear waves that propagate in the tissue. Measurement data are then acquired by directing ultrasound detection pulses into the tissue. Information about the intensity field of the ultrasound energy used to produce the shear waves is obtained and used to produce a correction factor. This correction factor is applied to the measurement data to correct the measurement data for errors arising from the geometry of the ultrasound energy used to produce the shear waves. From the corrected measurement data, mechanical properties of the tissue are calculated.

The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for ultrasound and relates, more particularly, to systems and methods for ultrasound vibrometry, in which ultrasound is used to measure mechanical properties of a material or tissue of interest.
Characterization of tissue mechanical properties, particularly the elasticity or tactile hardness of tissue, has important medical applications because these properties are closely linked to tissue state with respect to pathology. For example, breast cancers are often first detected by the palpation of lesions with abnormal hardness. In another example, a measurement of liver stiffness has been used as a non-invasive alternative for liver fibrosis staging.
Recently, an ultrasound technique for measuring mechanical properties of tissues, such as stiffness and viscosity, called shear-wave dispersion ultrasound vibrometry ("SDUV") was developed. This SDUV technique is described, for example, in co-pending U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,785,259 and 7,753,847, which are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety. In these and similar methods, a focused ultrasound beam, operating within FDA safety limits, is applied to a subject to generate harmonic shear waves in a tissue of interest. The propagation speed of the induced shear wave is frequency dependent, or "dispersive," and relates to the mechanical properties of the tissue of interest. Shear wave speeds at a number of frequencies are measured by pulse echo ultrasound and subsequently fit with a theoretical dispersion model to inversely solve for tissue elasticity and viscosity. These shear wave speeds are estimated from the phase of tissue vibration that is detected between two or more points with known distance along the shear wave propagation path.
The shear wave speed measured with ultrasound vibrometry and related techniques is often biased such that it is greater than the true shear wave speed. This bias is position dependent and influenced by the three-dimensional structure of the ultrasound beam used to produce the shear waves. For example, the bias is larger closer to the sources of the ultrasound energy that produced the shear waves, and smaller when farther away from the sources.
In addition to the three-dimensional shape of the ultrasound push beam, the ultrasound detection beam used for shear wave detection also has a three-dimensional distribution. This means that pulse-echo detection cannot measure tissue motion at an infinitesimal point, but rather measures the averaged tissue motion within the small, but finite, detection beam dimension. This three-dimensional structure of the ultrasound detection beam can also have an impact on shear wave speed estimation. The overall result is that shear wave speed measurements are influenced by the beam shape of the ultrasound used for shear wave generation, as well as that used for detection. The ultrasound beam shape depends on where the ultrasound energy is electronically focused; therefore, shear wave speed measurements will be position dependent, even in a media with uniform stiffness, and, thus, a uniform shear wave speed.
Generally, shear wave speed measurements are depth dependent and biased towards overestimation. Shear wave speed measurements can also depend on the distance between the push beam and the detection beam. In general, measured shear wave speed is higher when detection is closer to the push beam and, thus, overestimated. This overestimation is exacerbated at shallow focal depths where the force field has split peaks.
It would therefore be desirable to provide a system and method for correcting measurements of shear wave speed for biases introduced by ultrasound push and detection beam shape and spacing.

System and method for correcting errors in shear wave measurements arising from ultrasound beam geometry

MAYO Foundation for Medical Education and Research


A method of removing from a stainless steel surface a difficultly removable soil originating from an animal or vegetable source comprising the step of contacting the soil adhered to the surface with an amount of a noncorrosive chemical composition effective to ultimately essentially chemically remove the soil from at least 51% of the surface. The difficultly removable soils that can be removed by the method of the invention are otherwise ultimately essentially chemically removable from at least 51% of the surface, at the temperature at which the above contacting step is conducted, only by contact with at least one corrosive chemical composition. The method is both safe for the user and highly effective to remove the above-described soils.

Removal from stainless steel surfaces of certain soils originating from an animal or vegetable source, such as charred animal or vegetable fats, fatty derivatives and other organic deposits from the cooking of food, has been a vexing problem in industries such as the food preparation industry, where essentially complete cleaning of such surfaces is desirable. In food service establishments, for example, stainless steel cooking surfaces may be found in food fryers which are heated to high temperatures for the cooking of large amounts of food. Soiling matter deposited on these surfaces may consist of a complex mixture of natural fats, fatty derivatives and other organic deposits from the cooking of food. During heating at high temperatures subsequent to deposition, this soiling matter may be converted into a charred, polymeric mass which is difficult to remove and which can comprise complex hydrocarbon chains containing fatty ester groups and ether linkages.
Such difficultly removable soils degrade shortening added for the frying of foods, reducing the useful life of added shortening and negatively affecting food quality and taste. Such soils also decrease the energy efficiency of the frying apparatus, which may become inefficient due to the thermal resistivity of the charred, carbonized buildup.
Removal of difficultly removable soils from food fryers has customarily been accomplished by a process known in the industry as a "boil-out," which typically involves adding an aqueous solution of a cleaner to a fryer, bringing the fryer to an elevated temperature, such as the boiling point of the cleaner, and maintaining the elevated temperature for a given period of time.
Effective removal of this type of soil is a considerable problem which in the past, even with a boil-out process, has required the use of highly corrosive, unsafe cleaners, typically based on highly alkaline caustics such as sodium or potassium hydroxide, sometimes accompanied by laborious scrubbing and/or scraping. The use of these products gives rise to serious hazards to the skin and eyes of the user. Such products may also damage adjacent surfaces, such as paint, aluminum or wood, with which they may inadvertently come into contact.
There has been a need in the industry to replace such dangerous, corrosive cleaners, with safer, noncorrosive products. A few noncorrosive products, such as trisodium phosphate, have been employed in boil-out processes. However, such noncorrosive cleaners have not proven to be adequate substitutes for the corrosive cleaners since, while safer, their cleaning effectiveness against difficultly removable soils is markedly lower.
Until now, therefore, those skilled in the art have been limited to selecting either relatively safe but ineffective cleaners or effective but hazardous cleaners.

Use of noncorrosive chemical composition for the removal of soils originating from an animal or vegetable source from a stainless steel surface


A method and device are provided for securing lubrication of an automated manual transmission, AMT, in a vehicle, when towing the vehicle, and where a transmission lubrication system is drivingly connected to and driven by rotation of an intermediate shaft of the AMT. The following steps can be executed in mentioned order and starting from when ignition of the vehicle is switched on: registering a signal that towing of the vehicle is demanded, disengaging all gears that are arranged to drivingly engage or disengage an input shaft to the intermediate shaft of the automated manual transmission, and engaging one gear that is arranged to drivingly engage or disengage the intermediate shaft to an output shaft of the automated manual transmission.

The present invention relates to a method for towing a vehicle equipped with an automatic manual transmission (AMT). In particular, an aspect of the invention will find its application in connection with automotive vehicles with an AMT where a lubricating system arranged in the AMT for lubricating said AMT is driven by a propulsion unit of the vehicle during idle drive.
An aspect of the invention also relates to a device intended for such a method for towing a vehicle equipped with an AMT.
An aspect of the present invention also relates to a computer program and computer program product both to be used with a computer for executing said method.
Automated manual transmissions (AMT) have become increasingly common in heavy-duty vehicles as microcomputer technology has developed further and made it possible, with a control computer and a number of actuators, for example servo motors, to precision-regulate engine speed, engagement and disengagement of an automated disk clutch between the engine and the gearbox and also the coupling means of the gearbox in relation to one another, so that soft shifting is always obtained at the correct engine speed. In heavy-duty vehicles, these automatic gearboxes are often equipped with a basic gearbox, which has forward and reverse gears, and also auxiliary gears, which auxiliary gears can be arranged in series before and/or after the basic gearbox. An example of an auxiliary gear arranged serially before the basic gearbox is a split gear and of an auxiliary gear arranged serially after the basic gearbox is a range gear (see, for example, WO0192049).
In order to introduce power shifting possibilities in an AMT the dual clutch transmissions (DCT) have been developed. This is basically an AMT with dual input shafts and corresponding clutches. A known example of a DCT is shown in US2005/0204841 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,777,837.
Common for both of the above mentioned types of transmissions is that there is often used a so-called forced-feed lubricating oil system in order to increase the service life of transmissions, when for example used in heavy trucks and buses. Such a forced-feed lubricating oil system usually comprises an oil pump which among other things supplies bearings in the transmission with an oil flow for lubrication and cooling. The oil pump may be located in various ways but usually it is driven directly or indirectly by an intermediate shaft in the transmission. The intermediate shaft is drivingly connected to a vehicle propulsion unit through an input shaft of the transmission. Driven wheels of the vehicle are drivingly connected to the intermediate shaft through an output shaft of the transmission. The input shaft, the intermediate shaft and the output shaft can have several different gears arranged to drivingly engage or disengage said input shaft to said intermediate shaft, and to drivingly engage or disengage said intermediate shaft to said output shaft. The engagement and disengagement of the different gears is controlled by a control unit.
When the vehicle is driven, the propulsion unit drives the forced-feed lubricating oil system by rotation of the intermediate shaft. During idle drive, that is when the vehicle is stopped and the propulsion unit is running, all gears between the intermediate shaft and the output shaft are disengaged and a gear between the input shaft and the intermediate shaft is engaged in order to drive the forced-feed lubricating oil system and secure lubrication during idle drive of the vehicle.
If the vehicle has to be towed away with the propulsion unit stopped the forced-feed lubricating oil system will not he driven and there is a risk of severe transmission damage since gears and bearings in the transmission are running without lubrication during towing. A known solution is to disconnect the driven wheels from the output shaft by demounting a propeller shaft of the vehicle.
A technical problem is to provide an alternative and improved solution to not risk damaging an AMT during towing of the vehicle.
It is desirable to provide an improved method and device for securing lubrication of an AMT in a vehicle during towing.
The method according to an aspect of the invention is a method for securing lubrication of an automated manual transmission in a vehicle, when towing said vehicle, and where a transmission lubrication system is drivingly connected to and driven by rotation of an intermediate shaft of said automated manual transmission. Said method is characterized by the following steps executed in mentioned order:                registering a signal that towing of the vehicle is demanded,        disengaging all gears that are arranged to drivingly engage or disengage an input shaft to said intermediate shaft of said automated manual transmission, and engaging one gear that is arranged to drivingly engage or disengage said intermediate shaft to an output shaft of said automated manual transmission.
According to one embodiment of the method according to an aspect of the invention said signal is manually initiated.
According to another embodiment of the method according to an aspect of the invention, said signal is automatically initiated when a vehicle fault is registered that will make towing of the vehicle necessary.
According to a further embodiment of the method according to an aspect of the invention, said signal is automatically initiated when vehicle velocity other than zero is registered and that a propulsion unit of said vehicle is turned off.
The device according to the an aspect of invention is an AMT in a vehicle comprising an input shaft, an intermediate shaft and an output shaft with several different gears arranged to drivingly engage or disengage said input shaft to said intermediate shaft, and to drivingly engage or disengage said intermediate shaft to said output shaft, and where a transmission lubrication system is drivingly connected to and driven by rotation of said intermediate shaft. The device is characterized in that a control unit is arranged to disengage all said gears drivingly connecting said input shaft and said intermediate shaft and to engage one of said gears arranged to drivingly connect said intermediate shaft and said output shaft, upon registration of a signal that towing of the vehicle is demanded and in order to drivingly connect said lubrication system with driven wheels of the vehicle.
According to one embodiment of the device according to the an aspect of invention said signal is initiated through a control for manually initiating said signal.
According to another embodiment of the device according to an aspect of the invention said AMT further comprises an auxiliary gearing connected in series to said output shaft and where an auxiliary gearing output shaft is further connected to said driven wheels. The auxiliary gear can for example be a range gear. Such a device is then further characterized in that said control unit is arranged to engage a gear of said auxiliary gear in order to drivingly connect said output shaft with said auxiliary gearing output shaft, upon registration of a signal that towing of the vehicle is demanded and in order to drivingly connect said lubrication system with driven wheels of the vehicle.

Method and device for securing lubrication of an automated manual transmission in a vehicle


A method and apparatus are described for status enquiry between sending and receiving nodes in a network. For the sending node, the method comprises sending a bulk status enquiry message to inquire status of a plurality of calls to the receiving node. The bulk status enquiry message conforms to a bulk status enquiry format. For the receiving node, the method comprises sending a bulk status enquiry response message in response to a bulk status enquiry message inquiring status of a plurality of calls from the sending network node. The bulk status enquiry message conforms to a bulk status enquiry format and the bulk status enquiry response message conforms to a bulk status enquiry response format.

Messages, or calls, transmitted within the network are usually queued or buffered, especially during peak hours waiting to be forwarded or processed. Sometimes these calls may be lost or contaminated due to network failures. It is, therefore, useful for a network management system or administrators to know the status of the calls. Status enquiry procedure, or call auditing, is developed to provide a mechanism to obtain a state of a connection, such as the call state, the type of connection being supported, the end state of a point-to-multipoint connection, or certain error conditions.
For example, the Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) communication model provides a status enquiry procedure in the user-network interface (UNI) protocol. According to this protocol, the status enquiry message is sent by a user or the network at any time to solicit a status message from a peer layer 3 entity. A status message is then sent in response to the status enquiry message by the enquired user or network.
A major drawback of this status enquiry procedure is that the status enquiry is done one call at a time and requires multiple (up to eight) messages to be exchanged per call. For large number of calls, the number of exchanged messages may be very high, resulting in diminished call processing capacity and congested network traffic. In addition, the procedure does not provide a way to tag the enquiry. Therefore, it is not clear for the system administrator if a certain call has been audited. As a result, many calls may have to be audited repeatedly, resulting in wasteful time and congested network traffic. When the number of calls to be audited is large, such as typical in ATM switched virtual channel (SVC) calls, the traditional status enquiry procedure degrades network performance significantly.


A seating unit includes a chair with a backrest and a hook assembly. The backrest includes a rear surface having an outwardly protruding rim. The hook assembly comprises a cover plate and a weldment, and the cover plate may include a hook being integrally formed on an exterior face. The hook assembly is configured to be securely coupled on or within the outwardly protruding rim of the backrest, and a secure coupling between the hook assembly and the backrest is formed via insertion of a fastening member, which is inserted through an apertures on a bottom surface of the cover plate, such that the fastener is aligned substantially parallel to the rear surface.

The need for learning is a fundamental rule of business, and a critical element of success. In an information age, effective, technology-driven learning is required not only in school, but also on the job. In part, effective learning depends on an environment which promotes interaction and collaboration with other students or coworkers and accommodates the use or storage of multimedia technology. As new interactive technologies and multimedia training programs emerge, the use of seating designed to support the necessary amount of collaboration and self-direction is important. For example, it has been recognized that relatively small whiteboards can be used in a classroom setting for expressing individual and small group thoughts to facilitate various types of learning activities. However, traditional seating options are often not equipped with means for conveniently storing or displaying such accessories.
Traditional classrooms, lecture halls, auditoriums, and meeting rooms often provide comfortable seating that allows individuals to concentrate and take notes. However, traditional seating options are not sufficiently flexible to adapt to a variety of seating arrangements that foster interactions required for group learning, and they also do not provide storage and easy access to personal belongings. Whether they are using or storing a whiteboard, backpack, computer, briefcase, purse, etc., people want their belongings to accompany them and be readily accessible.
A number of known seating units for classrooms include bins or wireframe racks disposed beneath the seat and being provided to accommodate the storage of accessory articles or extraneous classroom materials. Such bins have a relatively limited storage capacity and are therefore typically not able to retain bulkier items, like backpacks or jackets, with the chair. To the extent that such bins permit article storage, their configuration may not permit quick or easy access to the articles, e.g., to remove a book from a backpack, particularly if seats are positioned close to one another, thereby limiting a user's comfortable range of motion. Further, such bins are not configured to provide stored items with a high degree of visibility from the perspective of individuals throughout classroom. Seating units including storage bins beneath the seat also are typically incapable of being stacked due to the obstruction provided by the bin.
Some known seating units provide alternate devices for retaining accessories with the backrest of a chair in the form of a hook (or hook assembly) attached to the backrest, wherein accessory articles may be suspended from the hook. For example, Canadian Patent No. 2,962,171 discloses a garment hanger that is clampably mounted upon an upper edge of the backrest of a chair, and U.S. Pat. No. 10,219,631 discloses a chair having a backrest-mounted hook that is movable between extended and retracted positions. However, hook structures known in the prior art have deficiencies that stand to be improved.
A first type of known hook assembly for a chair removably attaches (i.e., clamps) upon a rear surface or upper edge of the backrest. Many users find the assembly of such structures to be cumbersome. Additionally, the associated mounting structures can mar the chair's exterior surfaces, and the hook assembly, itself, can often detract from the chair's aesthetic design.
Another known hook assembly for a chair securely couples to the backrest using threaded fasteners inserted horizontally into the rear surface of the backrest. Unfortunately, the practical implementation of such hook assemblies is limited to chairs having relatively bulky backrests that are thick enough to accommodate an inserted fastener without protrusion through the opposing (occupant-facing) surface. Also, a fastener that is over-inserted during assembly could crack, split, or otherwise damage the backrest.
Alternatively, some chairs include hook structures that are integrally formed with the backrest, but these structures cannot be replaced if damaged during use, short of replacing the entire backrest.
Seating must also be comfortable for persons of different sizes and accommodate a range of seated postures. In recent years, there has been a large amount of research surrounding the health benefits of maintaining good posture, especially while remaining seated for prolonged periods of time.
Generally, conventional adjustable seating includes a seat and a pivotally attached backrest which can be reclined, as desired. The recline feature is usually spring-biased up to a hard stop so that when selected, the user may lean back against the backrest and gently recline, continuously supported by the spring-bias, up to the hard stop. How far back the backrest reclines (i.e., the angular location of the hard stop) is usually adjustable from a vertical position (or approximately vertical), where the user does not want the backrest to recline at all and prefers to have full support when he or she leans back (sitting up straight).
Thus, a seating unit which provides one or more of comfort, convenience, durability, and flexibility in learning and collaborating environments is desired.


A business listing verification server is operative to verify whether a business listing complies with a selected business configuration rule. The business listing verification server may include a business listing database comprising a plurality of business listings and a business information source pipeline for processing the various business listings. The business listing verification server may further include a set of business listing configuration rules, wherein each business listing configuration rule may be established for a separate business. A business listing configuration rule may establish whether a business listing is a potentially suspicious business listing. In addition, the business listing verification server may also include a moderation priority queue, where business listings to be moderated are prioritized based on whether the business listings have been identified as potentially suspicious business listings according to one or more business listing configuration rules.

In deciding where to go shopping, people often turn to the Internet to look up nearby businesses. For example, people may look up a business's phone number, address, or other business information. This type of business information for a business may constitute a business listing. Although a business may provide their own business listing, an online service provider may aggregate a number of business listings to enable an end user to search through the business listings more expeditiously and to locate various businesses quickly.
However, an online service provider faces a number of challenges in providing business listings to the Internet-savvy user. One challenge is to avoid providing a business listing that is incomplete. For example, the provided business listing may be lacking in a phone number, street address, or other business information. Another challenge is to avoid providing a business listing for a business that has since gone out of business. For example, retail chain business often have multiple business locations in a given area and, at any time, one of these business locations may go out of business. However, even when a particular business location goes out of business, the business listing for that now out-of-business location may still persist. Hence, when the online service provider provides the business listing for the now out-of-business business location, the end user, upon visiting the actual location of the business, will find that the business is no longer there.
Another challenge is to avoid providing business listings established by competitors that masquerade as business listings for another business. For example, Business A may establish a business listing that appears to be for Business B but, in fact, the business listing provides an address for a business location of Business A. These types of business listings harm the end user because the end user may prefer to shop at Business A rather than at Business B.

Identifying potentially suspicious business listings for moderation


An apparatus and method for demodulation of FSK signals are provided. Digital pulses of the FSK signals can be processed to detect digital data contained in the FSK frequencies by converting the FSK frequencies from a frequency signal to a digital logic signal and vice versa.

Detectors used in industrial automation are becoming smarter due to advancement in technology. For example, field devices used in industrial automation can communicate process variables using a current loop, and a controller can sense the current and interpret the process variable. When an analog signal is used, only one process variable can be transmitted. However, a digital signal can communicate information using frequency shift keying superimposed on an analog signal, thus increasing the number of process variables that can be sent to a controller using an existing analog signal line.
Most of detectors known in the art support standard protocols recommended by the industry, but these protocols pose a constraint on the manufacturer of the detector. For example, the manufacturer must use sophisticated chips to implement the standard protocols recommended by the industry, and these sophisticated chips can add to the overall cost of the detector. Furthermore, the protocols must comply with a set of physical layer specifications so that the digital communication superimposed on the analog line does not disturb the overall network of field devices and/or the controller.
HART (Highway Addressable Remote Transducer) protocol is one example of a widely accepted and implemented communication protocol that is commonly used in the instrumentation and process control industry. The HART protocol is used to communicate digital data and uses an FSK (Frequency Shift Keying) signal of 1200 Hz and 2200 Hz traveling on a conventional 4-20 mA current loop.
Devices that communicate via the HART protocol must decode and generate FSK signals. Therefore, the integration and implementation of HART capability in these devices is essential. However, modern circuitry that implements and is compliant with the HART protocol can be very expensive, especially in the demodulation section of the modem.
Various techniques have been tried to reduce the cost of the HART modem. For example, some techniques have employed a dedicated HART modem IC. Other techniques and approaches for decoding FSK signals have been software-based and FPGA/CPLD-based. However, each of these known techniques presents drawback and disadvantages.
One previously proposed technique is disclosed in Application Note 2336 titled "Simplified FSK Detection" ("AN 2336"). AN 2336 discloses a technique for and implementation of a dedicated HART modem IC in a PSoC® platform, and FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a demodulator as disclosed in AN2336. The technique and implementation disclosed in AN2336 and shown in FIG. 1 is both CPU-intensive and costly. For example, if implemented with microcontroller software, such a technique can utilize most CPU processing power. Furthermore, the comparator circuit, as seen in FIG. 1, can add to the overall cost of the demodulator.
Another previously proposed technique is disclosed in U.S. Publication No. 2009/0168857 titled "Micro-Controller With FSK Modem" ("the '857 publication"). The technique disclosed in the '857 publication is primarily based on counting the number of zero crossing instances in a given time period, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the method disclosed in the '857 publication. One of the drawbacks of the technique and implementation disclosed in the '857 publication is that they are CPU-intensive.
Yet another previously proposed technique is the A5191HRTL HART modem IC manufactured by ON Semiconductor. The A5191HRTL HART modem IC has been widely used in the industry to add HART capability to products, and FIG. 3 is a circuit block diagram of the implemented IC. As seen in FIG. 3, the implementation of this technique requires the use of an A5191 IC and various other discrete components. Accordingly, this technique and implementation is extremely costly.
In view of the above, there is a continuing, ongoing need for an improved apparatus and method for demodulation of FSK signals.

Apparatus and method for demodulation of FSK signals


An authentication technique employs a security device that communicates with a software token construct installed on a user device via a connector. The technique includes secure provisioning of an authentication seed and safe storage of the seed in encrypted form on the user device. A key for decrypting the seed is stored within the security device, and token codes are generated by physically connecting the security device to the user device and conveying the encrypted seed from the user device to the security device over the connector.

Organizations that employ computer resources commonly require users to authenticate their identities before the organizations grant the employees access to the resources. For example, a company may require its employees to logon to an authentication server and enter credentials, such as usernames, passwords, and/or PINs (Personal Identification Numbers). The authentication server grants access only if it can verify the credentials.
Many organizations require users to enter token codes in addition to other credentials. For example, a company may issue its employees hardware tokens. Hardware tokens are generally simple devices, which have no network connections and cannot run user software. Hardware tokens automatically generate and display token codes at regular intervals, such as once per minute. The token codes produced by a hardware token may be based on a unique seed (e.g., a 256-bit value) which has been provisioned to the hardware token and thus to the specific user to whom the token is issued. The hardware token is typically a portable device (e.g., a key fob), which includes a timer and applies an algorithm to update the token code each time the timer expires. At the authentication server, the same seed is maintained, and the authentication server may apply the same or an equivalent algorithm as is applied on the hardware token, such that the token code produced by the authentication server can track the token codes produced by the hardware token. An example of a hardware token is the SecurID®, which is available from RSA The Security Division of EMC, of Bedford, Mass.
Organizations may also issue software tokens. Software tokens are programs that can be run on user devices, such as laptops, smart phones, or tablet computers, for example. Software tokens and hardware tokens work in similar ways, except that software tokens run on user devices and thus do not require special hardware.
To perform authentication with a token (either a hardware token or a software token), a user may be directed to a login screen, where the user is prompted to enter a user ID, the currently displayed token code, and (optionally) other credentials. The user then submits an authentication request, which sends the entered credentials to the authentication server. The authentication server receives the authentication request and computes an expected value of the token code, based on the seed it stores for the received user ID and the time. If the expected value of the token code matches the token code received from the user, and any other supplied credentials are verified, then the authentication server may grant the user access to the organization's resources. Otherwise, the authentication server may deny access.

Authentication using security device with electronic interface


Embodiments of the systems, devices, and methods described herein generally facilitate transmission and reception of activation data for use in activating a mobile device to operate with a server. In accordance with one example embodiment, an activation barcode is received from a server by reading an image comprising the activation barcode via a computing device, wherein the image is displayed on a display associated with the computing device, and wherein the activation barcode encodes activation data comprising an activation password. The activation barcode is decoded at the mobile device to obtain the activation password, and an authentication is performed using the activation password after a device activation request is transmitted to the server, wherein the mobile device is activated to operate with the server if the authentication is successful.

A barcode generally refers to an optical representation of data. For example, a typical "1-dimensional" barcode may be represented by a series of lines of varying widths and spacing. As a further example, a "2-dimensional" barcode may be represented by squares, dots, hexagons or other geometric patterns. A barcode may be a black-and-white barcode. Alternatively, a barcode may be a color barcode.

Methods and devices for transmitting and receiving data used to activate a device to operate with a server


A bioelectric interface for monitoring, detection and transmission of detected ECG data is provided comprising a sensory system for detecting bio-physiological measurements utilizing spatially resolved potential profiles obtained from a localized cluster of sub-electrodes to form constituent sets of miniature sensor arrays. Using only a single macro-electrode, two or more sets of sub-electrode arrays are used to measure bipolar spatial gradients obtained from measured cardiac potentials. The sets of sub-electrodes containing the clusters are optimized to attain measurable gradients of diagnostic value. A minimax procedure allows bio-potential sensory acquisition through a bi-directional digital steering process, which essentially comprises monitoring, detection, selection, grouping, recording and transmission of ECG waveform characteristic data.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the fields of bio-potential sensory measurements and transmission thereof for medical diagnostic purposes, and in a specific though non-limiting embodiment, to a comfortable, easily-affixable, portable bioelectric interface used to detect, monitor and communicate data relating to a subject patient's ECG waveform characteristics.
2. Description of the Related Art
Although well-known for over a century, the full benefit of the diagnosis of electrocardiogram recordings has not been realized, primarily because it has not yet been brought to the state of full clinical exploitation such technology deserves. Possible reasons for this shortfall include institutional resistance to sophisticated new electronics capable of subsuming the functions of many previously existent devices; misperceptions within the medical community regarding the possible uses of such systems when the technology is fully matured; the fact that few, if any, prototypical devices have been reduced to practice for experimentation, etc.
The net result of such reluctances has been to restrict the proliferation and effectiveness of ECG monitoring systems to clinics, hospitals, and emergency rooms. More effective functionality, such as auto-detection, wireless transmission, and ultimate ease of usage, has heretofore been unknown.
For example, the state of the art presently is to affix upon a subject an electrocardiogram recording system based on measurement of the potential difference from at least a pair of electrodes that are distinctly separated, and which connect with leads that terminate in the amplification stage. Examples of standard lead systems include the signal averaging x, y, z Frank set, and the 10 electrode averaging systems derived from the well-known, clinically standard 12 lead system. In virtually all cases, the electrodes are connected with wire leads to either an amplifier or a recording device.
It is problematic, however, that when affixing subjects with the standard 12-lead monitoring system, subjects must be affixed with all of the electrodes disposed in a proper anatomical position. Failure to so equip the subject results in either failure or poor reporting of the apparent ECG waveform.
Even when proper anatomical disposition is achieved, orientation and grouping of disjunctive constituent clusters is adversely influenced by the orientation of the myocardium muscle fibers with respect to the aspect of the cumulatively resulting solid angle obtained from a set of the electrodes. With respect to the sequence of activation, the spread of the activation stimulus moves from endocrinal sites on out to the transmural space. This space is heavily affected by the anisotrophic properties of the ventricular muscle.
It is intuitive that excitation or the wavefront will spread more rapidly along the long axes of the cardiac cell than in the transverse direction. In ventricular walls, fibers are oriented roughly parallel to both endocardial and epicardial surfaces, however there are some transverse connections between cells, therefore the spread from one endocardial point may be viewed as oblique. This means there is a predominant axial spread along the length of the fiber with a lesser degree of spread or activation along the transverse in the perpendicular direction. The cumulative effects of the resulting cardiac field manifest into corresponding deviations in the measured cumulative waveform. In short, measuring errors translate into analytical errors, which are then compounded during the amplification and recording process. The net result is that a testing protocol designed to be exacting and precise is not, much to the detriment of cardiac patients and their attending physicians.
It is also problematic that the wire leads associated with the electrodes more or less requires that the subject be confined and remains relatively still, and the lack of reliable remote reporting capability ensures that the subject must remain on-site during cardio interrogation. Consequently, benefits that could otherwise have been derived from the remote acquisition, transmission, and interpretation of waveform characteristics are not realized.
Several derivative electrode arrangements (for example, large patches) have been proposed as an alternative to the clinical standard. However, the basic challenge remains that such electrodes must be contiguous and sufficiently spatially separated. To avoid that fundamental necessity, prior arts have attempted and demonstrated embedded wires disposed in a lamination in various arrangements. However, the obstacle remains that these electrodes are contained within a relatively larger patch in which electrodes still have to be connected by wires disposed at relatively large spatial distances.
Accordingly, the prior art is deficient in achieving a clinically useful diagnostic potential gradient from a single electrode comprising a plurality of sub-clusters subtending and delimiting an area of no more than a few of inches or less.
Logical protocols, functional depictions, and satisfactory methodologies (i.e., decision rules) for constructing waveforms obtained from two or three sets of selected sub-clusters disposed in specific orientations, whether contiguous or disjointed, and grouping strategies for determining optimum signal acquisition, are also conspicuously absent.


A level shifter includes a first branch and a second branch. A trigger of the first branch is coupled to a low voltage input, an inverted high voltage output and a ground. A latch of the first branch is coupled to the inverted high voltage output and a high voltage output. A power gate of the first branch is coupled to an inverted low voltage input, the latch of the first branch and a high voltage supply. A trigger of the second branch is coupled to the inverted low voltage input, the high voltage output and the ground. A latch of the second branch is coupled to the high voltage output and the inverted high voltage output. A power gate of the second branch is coupled to the low voltage input, the latch of the second branch and the high voltage supply.

Electronic circuits frequently employ multiple voltage domains to improve various performance parameters. In one example, a low voltage domain is used for lower power operation, while a higher voltage domain is used for faster operation. Circuits that use a combination of analog and digital devices can use higher voltage domains for analog devices to achieve improved linearity or operating voltage range. Level shifters are used to interface between the various voltage domains.
Geometric scaling of semiconductor technologies has resulted in an increased voltage difference between the voltage domains, making the design of the level shifters more challenging. For example, the higher voltages can damage the gate oxide of the transistor devices used in the low voltage domain. Furthermore, high-speed level shifting is required for many systems. High-speed shifting often requires large transistor devices, however the parasitic capacitance associated with large devices reduces the level shifting speed.


Data storage devices having one or more data security features are provided according to various embodiments of the present invention. In one embodiment, a data storage device comprises buffer and a buffer client. The buffer client comprises a scrambler configured to receive a configuration setting and a secret key on a certain event, to configure a scrambling function based on the received configuration setting, and to scramble data with the secret key using the scrambling function, wherein the buffer client is configured to write the scrambled data to the buffer.

Data storage devices are commonly used to store data in computers, data bases, digital video recorders and other devices. A data storage device may include a storage media for storing data, such as a hard disk, solid state memory or other type of memory. Typically, a data storage device includes a buffer for temporarily storing data to be written to the storage media, data read from the storage media and/or data being processed by the data storage device. The buffer may include dynamic random access memory (DRAM) or other type of memory. A data storage device may be used to store sensitive data that is vulnerable to unauthorized access and other security threats while temporarily stored in the buffer of the data storage device.
Accordingly, there is a need to provide data security for data temporarily stored in a data storage device.


A crank angle position signal is generated which corresponds to rotational angles of a crankshaft and includes a specific signal for obtaining reference crank angle positions of cylinders. A cylinder identification signal is generated corresponding to the respective cylinders in accordance with the rotation of at least one of an intake-side cam and an exhaust-side cam which are subjected to VVT control. Correlation between the reference crank angle positions and cylinder groups is specified based on a combination of the reference crank angle positions and the cylinder identification signal. Cylinder identification ranges of a prescribed angular length in consideration of an advance angle and a retard angle are set based on the reference crank angle positions. The cylinders are identified based on the reference crank angle positions whose correlation with cylinder groups within each of the cylinder identification ranges has been specified, and the cylinder identification signal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cylinder identification apparatus for an internal combustion engine installed on a vehicle such as a motor vehicle, and more particularly to such a cylinder identification apparatus as can be applied to an internal combustion engine that is controlled at variable valve timing.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 16 is a block diagram that shows the configuration of this kind of conventional cylinder identification apparatus for an internal combustion engine disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-277744 for instance. FIG. 17 is a view that shows the configuration of each signal detector in FIG. 16. FIG. 18 is a waveform diagram that shows one example of each of a first signal sequence and a second signal sequence in FIG. 16.
In these figures, a camshaft 1 with a speed reduction ratio of xc2xd with respect to a crankshaft 11 of the internal combustion engine is driven to rotate by and in synchronization with the crankshaft 11 through a belt drive mechanism or the like. A first signal detector 81 for generating a first signal sequence POSR related to the rotation of the crankshaft 11 includes a rotating disk 12 integrally mounted on the crankshaft 11, a multitude of projections or teeth 81a formed at a first prescribed angular interval (e.g., crank angle of 1xc2x0-10xc2x0) along the outer periphery of the rotating disk 12, and a sensor 81b of the magnetic pickup type, the Hall effect type, the magneto-resistance type, etc., arranged in the vicinity of the outer periphery of the rotating disk 12 for sensing each projection 81a when its sensing portion comes to face therewith.
The first signal sequence POSR includes a crank angle signal generated at each first prescribed angle or angular interval in synchronization with the rotation of the crankshaft 11, and a reference position signal generated at each second prescribed angle or angular interval (e.g., crank angle of 360xc2x0) and corresponding to a reference position of a specific group of cylinders (in this case, cylinder #1 and cylinder #4 to be concurrently controlled) of the internal combustion engine.
The projections 81a corresponding to the respective pulses of the crank angle signal in the first signal sequence POSR includes an untoothed or lost teeth portion 80 (see FIG. 17) in the form of an angular range (i.e., a range where there exists no projection 81a) in which no crank angle signal is continuously generated over a crank angle of ten degrees to several tens degrees. An end position of the untoothed portion 80 (i.e., the position at which the next angle signal begins to be generated) corresponds to the reference positions xcex8R of the specific cylinder group. The untoothed portion 80 is arranged at one location (i.e., every crank angle of 360xc2x0) on the rotating disk 12 formed integral with the crankshaft 11.
A second signal detector 82 for generating a second signal sequence SGC related to the rotation of the camshaft 1 includes a rotating disk 2 integrally mounted on the camshaft 1, projections 82a formed on and along the outer periphery of the rotating disk 2 at locations corresponding to the respective cylinders (in this case, four cylinders), and a sensor 82b in the form of an electromagnetic pickup arranged in the vicinity of the outer periphery of the rotating disk 2 for sensing each projection 82a when its sensing portion comes to face therewith.
In this case, the second signal sequence SGC consists of a train of pulses of a cylinder identification signal corresponding to the respective cylinders. The pulse width PW1 of a pulse of the cylinder identification signal corresponding to a specific cylinder (cylinder #1) differs from and is longer than the pulse widths PW2-PW4 of pulses corresponding to other cylinders. The first and second signal sequences POSR and SGC are input to a microcomputer 100 through an interface circuit 90.
The microcomputer 100 constitutes a control means for controlling parameters of the internal combustion engine. The microcomputer 100 includes a reference position signal detection means 101 for detecting a reference position signal related to the specific cylinder group from the first signal sequence POSR, a reference position detection means 101A for detecting the reference position of each cylinder based on the angle signal in the first signal sequence POSR and the reference position signal, a cylinder group identification means 102 for identifying cylinder groups based on the reference position signal, a cylinder identification means 103 for identifying each cylinder based on the ratio of generation times or durations of successive signal pulses in the second signal sequence SGC (cylinder identification signal), a control timing calculation means 104 for counting the number of angle signal pulses included in the first signal sequence POSR and calculating the control timing of control parameters P (ignition timing, etc.), and an abnormality determination means 105 for determining whether there is abnormality (or failure) in one of signal sequences POSR and SGC and outputting an abnormality determination signal E to the cylinder identification means 103 and the timing calculation means 104 when it is determined that one of the signal sequences POSR and SGC is abnormal.
Here, note that the cylinder identification means 103 identifies each cylinder based at least on the second signal sequence SGC, and the control timing calculation means 104 calculates the control timing of the control parameters P based at least on the cylinder identification result of the cylinder identification means 103 and the second signal sequence SGC.
For instance, when the first and second sequences POSR and SGC are normal, the cylinder identification means 103 measures the generation duration or range of each cylinder identification signal included in the second signal sequence SGC by counting pulses of the angle signal included in the first signal sequence POSR, so that it identifies each cylinder based on the measurement result, as will be described later. On the other hand, upon occurrence of abnormality (e.g., when there is obtained no first signal sequence POSR), the cylinder identification means 103 identifies each cylinder based on the calculation of the ratio of generation times or durations of successive pulses of the cylinder identification signal (e.g., duty ratio of adjacent or successive high (H) level and low (L) level ranges) by using only the second signal sequence SGC in response to an abnormality determination signal E, thus making it possible to perform backup control.
Similarly, when the first and second sequences POSR and SGC are normal, the control timing calculation means 104 calculates the control timing of the parameters P by using the reference position signal included in the first signal sequence POSR and the cylinder identification signal included in the second signal sequence SGC, and by counting the crank angle signal. In addition, upon occurrence of abnormality (e.g., when there is obtained no first signal sequence POSR), the control timing calculation means 104 performs the backup control by using only the second signal sequence SGC in response to an abnormality determination signal E. Moreover, when the second signal sequence SGC is not obtained, the control timing calculation means 104 performs the backup control through simultaneous ignition of each cylinder group or the like by using only the cylinder identification result of the cylinder group identification means 102 based on the first signal sequence POSR.
Incidentally, note that at normal time, the control timing calculation means 104 determines the control parameters P such as the ignition timing, the amount of fuel to be injected, etc., through calculations using a map for example, based on engine operating condition signals D from various sensors (not shown), and supplies them to the respective cylinders.
Next, the operation of the conventional apparatus shown in FIG. 16 and FIG. 17 will be explained while referring to FIG. 18. First of all, the rotating disk 12 with the projections 81a formed at the first prescribed angular interval is mounted on the crankshaft 11, and the sensor 81b is arranged in opposition to the projections 81a. In this manner, the first signal detector 81 is constructed such that it generates the first signal sequence POSR including the angle signal and the reference position signal.
At this time, the untoothed or lost tooth portion 80 is provided at a part of the projections 81a (e.g., at one location on the rotating disk 12 in case of a four-cylinder engine) in order that not only the angle signal but also the reference position signal corresponding to each cylinder group is included in the first signal sequence POSR.
The untoothed portion 80 is detected by the sensor 81b that converts the presence or absence of a projection 81a into the first signal sequence POSR (electrical signal). Subsequently, an L level range xcfx84 (corresponding to the untoothed portion 80) included in the first signal sequence POSR is detected by the reference position signal detection means 101 in the microcomputer 100 based on the magnitude of each pulse generation period or cycle.
As a result, the first signal sequence POSR (see FIG. 18), which is generated in correspondence to the projections 81a as the crankshaft 11 rotates, includes the crank angle signal that consists of a train of pulses generated every first prescribed angle (e.g., crank angle of 1xc2x0) and the reference position signal generated every crank angle of 360xc2x0 that consists of an L level range (e.g., a range in which no crank angle signal is obtained over only a prescribed angular interval from a crank angle of ten degrees to several tens degrees) corresponding to the untoothed portion 80.
Here, note that the end position of each L level range xcfx84 (i.e., the position at which the following crank angle signal begins to be generated) becomes the reference position xcex8R used for the calculation of the control timing of the specific cylinder group. Accordingly, the cylinder group identification means 102 identifies the specific cylinder group and other cylinder groups based solely on the reference position signal from the reference position signal detection means 101, so that the control timing calculation means 104 can quickly identify groupwise ignitable cylinder groups. As a result, the minimum internal combustion engine control performance can be obtained.
In addition, the second signal sequence SGC generated in correspondence to the projections 82a on the rotating disk 2 mounted on the camshaft 1 includes the cylinder identification signal in which the pulse width PW1 of the pulse corresponding to the specific cylinder (cylinder #1) is set longer than that of pulses corresponding to other cylinders so that the cylinder identification means 103 can identify the specific cylinder and the other cylinders, and the control timing calculation means 104 can obtain the desired internal combustion engine control performance based on the cylinder identification result.
At this time, in cases where the first and second signal sequences POSR and SGC are soundly or correctly obtained, the cylinder identification means 103 measures the pulse width of each signal pulse in the second signal sequence SGC by counting the number of pulses of the crank angle signal in the first signal sequence POSR, whereby it identifies the specific cylinder and the other cylinders.
On the other hand, in cases where no first signal sequence POSR is obtained due to a failure of the sensor 81b, etc., on the crankshaft 11 side (i.e., when the first signal sequence POSR always indicates a constant level or an abnormal pulse width), the abnormality determination means 105 generates an abnormality determination signal E, which is then input to the cylinder group identification means 102, the cylinder identification means 103 and the control timing calculation means 104. As a consequence, the cylinder identification means 103 performs cylinder identification by using the second signal sequence SGC alone, thereby enabling the backup control of the control parameters P for the internal combustion engine.
That is, the ratios between the cycle or period of an H level and that of an L level of pulses of the second signal sequence SGC are successively calculated and compared with each other, whereby the specific cylinder pulse of the pulse width PW1 having the largest H level period or range is identified, thus determining the specific cylinder. Thereafter, the other cylinders are sequentially identified based on the specific cylinder pulse. At this time, for instance, by making the fall timing of each pulse of the second signal sequence SGC the ignition timing of each cylinder, it is possible to provide the minimum internal combustion engine control performance.
In addition, when the second signal sequence SGC is not obtained due to a failure of the sensor 82b, etc., on the camshaft 1 side, the control timing calculation means 104 performs the backup control in accordance with simultaneous ignition control or the like based solely on the cylinder group identification result according to the reference position signal in the first signal sequence POSR. In this manner, the minimum internal combustion engine control performance can be obtained.
The first signal detector 81 for detecting the first signal sequence POSR including the crank angle signal and the reference position signal is provided on the crankshaft 11 side, and the second signal detector 82 for detecting the second signal sequence SGC including the cylinder identification signal is arranged on the camshaft 1 side, so that the crank angle and the reference position xcex8R can be accurately detected without generating a phase difference or shift between the camshaft 1 and the crankshaft 11 that drives the camshaft 1 due to the interposition of a transmission mechanism such as a belt and pulley transmission mechanism therebetween. Consequently, it is possible to accurately control the ignition timing and the amount of fuel to be injected to each cylinder.
In addition, by setting a reference position signal for the specific cylinder group, the specific cylinder group can be identified every time a reference position xcex8R is detected so that all the cylinder groups can be detected quickly and easily. Thus, the ignition timing control and the fuel injection control particularly upon engine starting can be performed quickly and appropriately.
Moreover, even when the first signal sequence POSR is not obtained due to a failure of the first detector 81, etc., the cylinders and the control reference position can be identified by calculating the ratios of the successive cycles or periods of pulses of the second signal sequence SGC, whereby the ignition timing control and the fuel injection control can be continued without stopping the internal combustion engine (i.e., backup control being able to be performed).
Although in the above-mentioned explanation, the pulse width PW1 of the specific cylinder is made different from those of the other cylinders as a difference in the pulse form of the cylinder identification signal between the specific cylinder and the other cylinders, only the pulse corresponding to the specific cylinder may be superposed in phase on the reference position signal so that the specific cylinder can be identified based on the level of the second signal sequence SGC at each reference position xcex8R.
FIG. 19 is a waveform diagram showing an operation when the pulse of the cylinder identification signal corresponding to the specific cylinder is superposed on the phase of the reference position signal. Here, note that the pulse width PW1 of the pulse corresponding to the specific cylinder is set to be longer than the pulse width of each of the other cylinders. If, however, the phase of the pulse of the cylinder identification signal corresponding to the specific cylinder is superposed on the phase of the reference position signal, the pulse width of the cylinder identification signal corresponding to the specific cylinder may be the same as the pulse width of the other cylinders.
In FIG. 19, the phase of the second signal sequence SGC for the specific cylinder (cylinder #1) is superposed on the phase of the reference position signal included in the first signal sequence POSR, and becomes an H level at a corresponding reference position xcex8R. On the other hand, the phases of pulses of the second signal sequence SGC corresponding to the other cylinders are not superposed on the phase of the reference position signal, and hence become an L level at corresponding reference positions xcex8R.
That is, the pulse of the cylinder identification signal corresponding to the specific cylinder (cylinder #1) indicated by the pulse width PW1 is at an H level over a range including an L level range xcfx84 of the first signal sequence POSR, whereas the pulses of the cylinder identification signal corresponding to the other cylinders (cylinder #3, cylinder #4 and cylinder #2) become an H level immediately after corresponding reference positions xcex8R obtained from the first signal sequence POSR.
Accordingly, it is understood that if the second signal sequence SGC is at an H level at a reference position xcex8R, it corresponds to the pulse of the specific cylinder, whereas if it is at an L level, it corresponds to a pulse of any of the other cylinders. As a result, the cylinder identification means 103 identifies the specific cylinder from the level of the second signal sequence SGC at the point in time at which a reference position xcex8R has been detected by the reference position detection means 101A. Thereafter, the other cylinders are sequentially identified based on the specific cylinder.
In addition, identifying the cylinders by referring to the level of the second signal sequence SGC each time the reference position xcex8R is detected can eliminate the need of measuring pulse widths, etc.
Thus, in the past, when the crank angle position signal or the cylinder identification signal has failed or become abnormal, a minimum performance level has been maintained by performing the backup control by the use of another normal signal.
As mentioned above, such a kind of conventional apparatus can carry out cylinder identification quickly by a combination of the reference (crank angle) position signal and the crank angle signal generated in accordance with the rotation of the crankshaft, and the cylinder identification signal generated in accordance with the rotation of the camshaft. Since, however, the phase of the cylinder identification signal and the phase of the reference crank angle position signal are mutually superposed on each other, there arises the following problem. That is, in cases where this apparatus is applied to an internal combustion engine which is equipped with a variable valve timing mechanism, the phase of the cylinder identification signal might not be superposed on the phase of the reference crank angle position signal depending upon a variable cam phase range. As a result, cylinder identification becomes impossible, thus making it unable to perform the backup control.
In addition, in cases where the above-mentioned prior art is intended to be adapted to an internal combustion engine which is equipped with a variable valve timing mechanism, there will be another problem in that the combination of the reference crank angle position signal, the cylinder identification signal and the angle signal becomes complicated.
The present invention is intended to solve the problems as referred to above, and has its object to provide a cylinder identification apparatus of the character as described above which can be applied to an internal combustion engine that is subjected to variable valve timing control without complicating the combination of signals.
Bearing the above object in mind, the present invention resides in a cylinder identification apparatus for a VVT controlled internal combustion engine which includes: a crank angle position signal generator for generating a crank angle position signal including a train of pulses corresponding to rotational angles of a crankshaft of the internal combustion engine and specific signal pulses which are used to obtain a plurality of reference crank angle positions of respective cylinders of the internal combustion engine; and a cylinder identification signal generator for generating a cylinder identification signal including a train of pulses corresponding to the respective cylinders in accordance with the rotation of at least one of an intake-side cam and an exhaust-side cam which are caused to rotate at a ratio of xc2xd with respect to the rotational speed of the crankshaft and move to an advance angle position or a retard angle position under variable valve timing (VVT) control. The apparatus further includes: a reference crank angle position detection part for detecting the plurality of reference crank angle positions based on the specific signal pulse positions of the crank angle position signal; a reference crank angle position identification part for identifying correlation between the plurality of reference crank angle positions and cylinder groups based on a combination of the plurality of reference crank angle positions and the cylinder identification signal; a cylinder identification range setting part for setting cylinder identification ranges of a prescribed angular length with each of the reference crank angle positions as a reference in consideration of an advance angle and a retard angle according to the VVT control; and a cylinder identification part for identifying the cylinders based on the reference crank angle positions whose correlation with the cylinder groups within each of the cylinder identification ranges is specified and the cylinder identification signal.
According to the above arrangement, the cylinder identification apparatus can be applied to a VVT controlled internal combustion engine without complicating the processing of combining the signals upon cylinder identification. Specifically, cylinder identification ranges and signals are set in consideration of valve operation angles (e.g., intake valve operation angle and/or exhaust valve operation angle) so that cylinder identification can be performed irrespective of the valve operation angles.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments of the present invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Cylinder indentification apparatus for WT controlled internal combustion engine


The present invention provides a compound represented by the formula (1):

Phosphodiesterase (PDE) is an enzyme that hydrolyzes cAMP and cGMP that function as intracellular second messengers into 5′-AMP and 5′-GMP, respectively. PDE gene is constituted with 21 genes, and currently classified into 11 kinds of families based on the molecular structure of the enzymes. Furthermore, each PDE is classified into the following 3 kinds: 1) cAMP-PDEs (PDE4, PDE7, PDE8), 2) cGMP-PDE (PDE5, PDE6, PDE9), and 3) dual-substrate PDEs (PDE1, PDE2, PDE3, PDE10, PDE11), based on the substrate specificity.
cAMP and cGMP are involved in the control of various physiological functions such as control of ion channel, muscle relaxation, learning and memory function, differentiation, apoptosis, lipogenesis, glycogenolysis and gluconeogenesis. Particularly, they are known to play an important role in the differentiation and survival, as well as control of neurotransmission of the nerve cell (non-patent document 1). Phosphorylation of various molecules that control physiological functions such as transcription factors, ion channel and receptor, which is caused by protein kinase A (PKA) and protein kinase G (PKG), contributes to such control by cAMP and cGMP, and the amounts of cAMP and cGMP in the cell are under spatiotemporal regulation via generation by adenylate cyclase and guanylate cyclase in response to extracellular stimulations and degradation thereof by PDE (non-patent document 2). Since PDE is a sole enzyme that decomposes cAMP and cGMP in vivo, PDE is considered to play an important role in the regulation of cyclic nucleotide signaling.
PDE10A is a molecule cloned and reported by 3 independent groups in 1999 (non-patent documents 3, 4). Expression analysis thereof has elucidated that PDE10A shows high expression only in the brain and testis, and has a localized expression pattern in the PDE family (non-patent documents 5, 6). In the brain, both PDE10A mRNA and PDE10A protein show high expression in medium spiny nerve cells of the striatum (medium spiny neurons, MSNs) (non-patent documents 7, 8). MSNs are classified as two major kinds of pathways. One of them is called a direct pathway or nigrostriatal pathway, and mainly expresses dopamine D1 receptors. The other pathway, indirect pathway, is called a striatum-globus pallidus pathway, and mainly expresses dopamine D2 receptors. The direct pathway is involved in the functions of motion execution and reward learning and, on the other hand, the indirect pathway is involved in the suppression of motility. The activity of the output nucleus of the basal nucleus is regulated by the balance of antagonistic inputs from these two kinds of pathways. Since PDE10A is expressed in MSNs of both pathways, the both pathways are considered to be activated by inhibition of PDE10A. Since the action of existing antipsychotic agents having a D2 receptor shutting off action is mainly mediated by the activation of indirect pathway, a PDE10A inhibitor is expected to show an anti-mental disease action like existing drugs.
The excess D2 receptor shutting off action in the brain by existing drugs causes side effects such as hyperprolactinemia and extrapyramidal syndrome. However, since PDE10A shows striatum pathway specific expression and shows a lower expression level in the pituitary gland mainly involved in the prolactin release, PDE10A inhibitor is considered to have no prolactin concentration increasing action in plasma. Moreover, since PDE10A is also expressed in the direct pathway MSNs and activated by a PDE10A inhibitor, it is considered to have superior characteristics than existing antipsychotic agents that activate only indirect pathways. That is, since the direct pathway is involved in the motion execution, it is considered to antagonistically act against extrapyramidal syndrome caused by excessive activation of indirect pathway. Furthermore, this pathway is expected to show actions to enhance the output from the striatum-thalamus circuit and promote cognitive functions of reward learning and problem solving. Since existing antipsychotic agents show a shutting off action on many receptors, they pose problems of side effects such as body weight increase and abnormal metabolism. PDE10A inhibitor is also considered to be superior to the existing drugs in the side effects, since it directly activates second messenger signaling without receptor blocking action of dopamine and/or other neurotransmitter. In view of the specific expression and its function in the brain nerve system, PDE10A is considered to be useful as a drug discovery target in neurological diseases, in particular, psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia.
Patent document 1 discloses a compound of the following formula:
and the following compounds:
as a PDE10A inhibitor.
Patent document 2 discloses a compound of the following formula:
and the following compounds:
as a PDE10A inhibitor.

Abstract: wherein each symbol is as defined in the specification, or a salt thereof, a prodrug of the compound or a salt thereof, a medicament containing the compound or a salt thereof, the medicament which is a phosphodiesterase 10A inhibitor, and a medicament which is for preventing or treating schizophrenia.


A system and method for separation of traffic processing in a computing farm. The method comprises allocating a first group of computing resources of the computing farm to a trusted zone and a second group of computing resources to an un-trusted zone, wherein the computing resources in the first group are allocated to ensure at least service-level agreements (SLA) guaranteed to a group of trusted clients; determining, based on a plurality of security risk indication parameters, if a client associated with an incoming traffic is a trusted client or an un-trusted client; forwarding the incoming traffic to the second group of computing resources when the client is determined to be an un-trusted client; and diverting the incoming traffic to the first group of computing resources when the client is determined to be a trusted client, thereby ensuring at least the SLA guaranteed to the trusted client.

A significant problem facing the Internet community is that on-line businesses and organizations are vulnerable to malicious attacks. Recently, attacks have been committed using a wide arsenal of attack techniques and tools targeting both the information maintained by the on-line businesses and their IT infrastructure. Hackers and attackers are constantly trying to improve their attacks to cause irrecoverable damage, overcome currently deployed protection mechanisms, and so on.
Attacks and attack attempts are executed against servers and clients at different layers (e.g., a network layer and an application layer). Attacks have become more sophisticated and their scope has also been increased. That is, a multitude number of infected machines and groups of organized attackers take part in coordinated attack campaigns. Thus, it has become a significant challenge to secure online businesses and organizations against targeted attack campaigns.
As a result, organizations and businesses loose revenue due to security-related downtime, information theft, and the compromise of confidential information. Consequently, the organizations and businesses suffer immeasurable damage to their brand and image. In many cases, even after the attack has stopped, the remediation process can be a long and expensive process. That is, it may take a long time to restore the services/applications provided by the attacked site back to functioning properly.
Currently available security systems cannot guarantee full protection against a vast number of cyber threat categories and the numerous number of attack vectors that exist to execute such threats. As a result, when a site is under attack, a portion of the site or the entire site may be idle, and legitimate clients cannot access the servers of the site, or they experience a very low service response time (high latency).
Examples for cyber attacks include, denial-of-service (DoS) and intrusion types of attacks. An intrusion type of attack is typically performed by injecting a malware code into servers in the site. The malware code is often downloaded by a legitimate client and can be used against him in couple of ways. For example, the malware can be used to expose the client's confidential information and/or used to take control over the client's computer to perform other malicious activities. Other types of cyber attacks include buffer overflow attacks, misuse of computing resources, and the like. Types of (web directed) attacks include, for example, web defacement attacks, cross site scripting attacks, and so on.
Although there are various security systems designed to detect, prevent, or mitigate cyber attacks, there is no security system that can fully guarantee that such attacks will not succeed in negatively impacting the sites' services, and that clients of the site will not be affected. Thus, when a site is under attack, there is always a chance that the Quality of Service (QoS) will be compromised and the service-level agreement (SLA) cannot be guaranteed to the site's users.
It would therefore be advantageous to provide an efficient solution that would ensure the guaranteed SLA to the site's trusted clients even when the site is under attack and even though some of the security systems cannot guarantee the detection and prevention of the attacks against the site.

Techniques for separating the processing of clients' traffic to different zones