An electric system for an electric vehicle includes a main battery used for driving the vehicle, an auxiliary battery used for accessories of the vehicle, an AC motor for driving one or more wheels, an inverter for converting DC power supplied from the main battery to AC power to be supplied to the AC motor, and an auxiliary battery charging circuit for charging the auxiliary battery by using the AC power from the inverter. When charging the auxiliary battery, the AC power is insulatedly transformed and then rectified. In another example, an input capacitor in the inverter is charged by a DC-DC converter connected with the auxiliary battery as its power supply when the inverter starts. The system enables the auxiliary battery charging circuit to be small, light and low cost. The system can also charge the auxiliary battery for accessories even when the vehicle is stopping.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electric system for an electric vehicle comprising a main battery for driving the vehicle and an auxiliary battery for accessories in which drive power is supplied via an inverter to an AC motor for driving wheels.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 8 shows a conventional electric system for an electric vehicle having a main battery as its power supply. In this figure, reference numeral 1 power supply. In this figure, reference numeral 1 designates a main battery consisting of a series of a number of unit batteries 100; 2, a main switch; 3, fuse; 4, an inverter for driving a motor which is PWM (pulse width modulation) controlled; 5, an AC motor. In this electric vehicle, the AC motor 5 is connected to wheels of the vehicle through reduction gears and so on (not shown). Further, reference numeral 6 designates an auxiliary battery for accessories; 7, a charger. The charger 7 comprises a charging circuit for charging the auxiliary battery 6 and an initial charging circuit for charging an input capacitor in the inverter 4 which is provided to absorb higher harmonic current when the inverter 4 operates. Reference numeral 8 also denotes a switch for charging.
Reference numeral 200 denotes accessories such as lamps and a car radio and the like which use the auxiliary battery 6 as their power supply. In the case of charging the auxiliary battery 6, the charging switch 8 is closed and then the auxiliary battery charging circuit in the charger 7 operates.
In the system described above, a three-phase inverter employing transistors is used as the inverter 4 and an induction motor is widely used as the motor 5.
FIG. 9 shows an example of a circuit when a three-phase inverter is used as the inverter 4 in which reference numeral 41 denotes transistors, 42 denotes diodes, each of which is connected in antiparallel with each one of the transistors 41, and 43 denotes the input capacitor. Reference numeral 44 denotes AC output terminals connected to the motor 5, and 45 denotes DC input terminals connected to the main battery 1 through the fuse 3 and the main switch 2.
FIG. 10 shows a constitution of the charger 7 in FIG. 8. In this example, the charger 7 is constituted by a DC-DC converter. In FIG. 10, reference numeral 70 denotes the auxiliary battery charging circuit and 700, the initial charging circuit for the input capacitor 43 in the inverter 4. In this auxiliary battery charging circuit 70, reference numeral 71 denotes an input capacitor; 72, an inverter; 73, an insulating transformer; 74, a diode rectifier; 75, a smoothing circuit; 76, output terminals connected to the auxiliary battery 6; 77, input terminals connected to the main battery 1 through the switch 8 for charging. Here, the inverter 72 is constituted by a single-phase transistor inverter which is similar to the three-phase transistor inverter 4 in a main circuit.
On the other hand, in the initial charging circuit 700, reference numeral 701 denotes an input capacitor; 702, an inverter having the same constitution as that of the inverter 72; 703, an insulating transformer having a turns ratio of the primary windings to the secondary windings equal to 1; 704, a diode rectifier; and 706, output terminals connected to the input capacitor 43 in the inverter 4. The inverter 702 in the initial charging circuit 700 is operated only when the inverter 4 is started and initially charges the input capacitor 43. Further a protective fuse may be provided on the input side or on the output side of the charger 7, if necessary.
In the electric system for an electric vehicle set forth above, the voltage of the auxiliary battery 6 is normally 12 V similarly to automobiles having an internal combustion engine, while the voltage of the main battery 1 is not less than 200 V and might be over 20 times the voltage of the auxiliary battery 6. In such systems, as the input voltage (main battery voltage) applied to the charger 7 for the auxiliary battery 6 is over 20 times the output voltage (auxiliary battery voltage), electrical insulation between the input and output terminals is required for a safety purpose. Accordingly, the conventional charger 7 was forced to use the DC-DC conversion system as mentioned above which included the inverter for inverting DC input power to AC power, the rectifier for converting the AC power to DC power, and the smoothing circuit. This results in that the conventional charging system becomes not only complicated and bulky in structure, but also expensive.
Since a charger having an auxiliary battery charging circuit, an initial charging circuit for an input capacitor of an inverter and so on is mounted on a vehicle, it is required to be small in size and light in weight like a main circuit for controlling a motor. At the same time, a low cost and highly efficient charging system is desired.


A fiberoptic connector is constructed entirely of metal and includes structure to radiate heat. Preferably, the fiberoptic connector also includes an arrangement to indicate whether the fiberoptic connector is holding an energized optical fiber. Preferably, the heat radiating structure includes fin structure and a metal stamping projecting from the connector housing. The indicating arrangement preferably is a temperature sensitive strip secured to the housing, which changes color based upon the heat radiated by the optical fiber carried within. Methods of indicating an energized fiberoptic connector and of dissipating heat from a fiberoptic connector are provided.

This disclosure relates to fiberoptic connectors. In particular, this disclosure concerns fiberoptic connector constructions and methods that may be used across a range of powers, e.g., 500 milliwatts to 2 watts.
In fiberoptic communications, there are situations when it is desired to send a signal over a long distance, for example, from the east coast to the west coast of the United States. In such situations, repeater stations are utilized every 500 miles or so. The repeater stations read the signal and repeat the signal. Repeater stations are needed because the power being transmitted along the fiber is not great enough to be able to sustain and transmit the signal over the very long distance of several thousands of miles.
The use of repeater stations is expensive. Thus, it is desired to minimize the number of repeater stations that are needed. One way of minimizing the number of repeater stations needed is by transmitting high powers through each optical fiber. In previously used systems, powers along the range of up to about 400 milliwatts are utilized.
Higher powers transmitted through optical fibers are more dangerous than lower powers. Improvements in fiber optic connectors are desired to ensure safety for operators and equipment when transmitting powers greater than 400 milliwatts.
In one aspect, this disclosure describes a fiberoptic connector suitable for use across a range of powers, for example, in the range of 500 milliwatts and up, such as up to 2 watts. In general, one embodiment of a fiberoptic connector is disclosed as including a connector housing defining an interior volume sized to hold an optical fiber and an opening in communication with the interior volume. An optical fiber is oriented within the interior volume of the connector housing. A temperature indicator is secured to the connector housing.
In one embodiment, the connector housing includes a plurality of fins projecting from the housing wall, and the connector housing comprises metal. In a preferred embodiment, there is a cover pivotally connected to the connector housing. Preferably, this cover comprises metal. Preferably, in some embodiments, there is a stamping secured to and projecting from the connector housing. Preferably, this stamping comprises metal.
In another aspect, a method for indicating an energized fiber optic connector is disclosed. The method includes a step of providing a fiberoptic connector including a housing holding an optical fiber therewithin, sensing a temperature of the fiberoptic connector, and providing a signal when the temperature of the fiberoptic connector crosses a threshold.
In another aspect, this disclosure describes a method of dissipating heat from a fiberoptic connector. The method includes a step of providing a fiberoptic connector including a metal housing holding an energized optical fiber, wherein the housing includes a plurality of fins and a metal stamping secured to and projecting from the housing. Heat generated by the energized optical fiber is radiated through the metal housing, the plurality of fins, and the metal stamping.


Systems and methods include, responsive to a Wi-Fi client device providing a password for a zone of a Wi-Fi network, determining a status of the Wi-Fi client device; when the status is unknown, placing the client device in a holding area associated with the zone, wherein the client device is connected to the Wi-Fi network while in the holding area and has restricted access that is less than full access to the zone in an allowed zone; responsive to placing the client device in the holding area, causing a notification to an administrator that the client device is in the holding area; and with the client device in the holding area, one of moving the Wi-Fi client device to the allowed area, moving the client device to a rejected area for the zone, and leaving the client device in the holding zone, based on any input or lack thereof.

Wi-Fi networks (i.e., Wireless Local Area Networks (WLAN) based on the IEEE 802.11 standards) have become ubiquitous. People use them in their homes, at work, and in public spaces such as schools, cafes, even parks. Wi-Fi provides great convenience by eliminating wires and allowing for mobility. The applications that consumers run over Wi-Fi is continually expanding. Today people use Wi-Fi to carry all sorts of media, including video traffic, audio traffic, telephone calls, video conferencing, online gaming, and security camera video. Often traditional data services are also simultaneously in use, such as web browsing, file upload/download, disk drive backups, and any number of mobile device applications. In fact, Wi-Fi has become the primary connection between user devices and the Internet in the home or other locations. The vast majority of connected devices use Wi-Fi for their primary network connectivity.
In Wi-Fi networks, similar to wired Local Area Network (LAN) networks, once a user device is connected (or plugged into a LAN), the user device has full access on the network. Thus, any connected user device can access any device or resources on the network. For example, when a user device is connected to a Wi-Fi network through its a Service Set Identifier (SSID) (network ID) that user device can access any device or resource also on the SSID. There is a use case for so-called guest access to Wi-Fi networks where user devices can connect to the Wi-Fi network for limited purposes, such as Internet access only, access to select devices or resources, etc.
The conventional approach to guest access in Wi-Fi networks utilizes a separate SSID and password for guest access. For example, the main Wi-Fi network can be HOME whereas a separate SSID is setup for HOME GUEST. However, this approach has disadvantages including the use of multiple SSIDs, inability to offer selective access to guest user devices to devices or resources on the main Wi-Fi network, etc.
Also, businesses deploy Wi-Fi networks in their offices, stores, warehouses, and the like, for customers, employees, contractors, etc. Enterprise Wi-Fi systems are available but tend to require full-time management by the business. This is typically acceptable in large businesses, with full-time Information Technology (IT) personnel on staff, but not for a small or medium size business where often the business owner is tasked with managing IT. In this situation, enterprise Wi-Fi systems are often overkill in terms of functionality and management requirements. It is not feasible for a business owner to allow/block every user that gets on the business's Wi-Fi network. Their objective is running the business, not performing IT. There is a need for a Wi-Fi network that meets the needs and objectives of small and medium-sized businesses. That is, an approach that balances security and ease of operation.

Access to Wi-Fi networks via two-step and two-party control


Systems, methods and other embodiments associated with dynamic probe generation are described. In one embodiment, an apparatus includes generation logic to dynamically generate a probe configured to identify a status associated with an event occurring in a network device, a path between network devices, and/or a location in an encapsulation stack. Additionally, the apparatus comprises reception logic to receive the status.

In a network, routers direct digital information traffic. In one example, two routers can service two networks in a one-to-one relationship. With the one-to-one relationship, one router serves one network while another router serves another network. The networks can have multiple computers, where the computers communicate with a local router. The local router evaluates information sent from a computer and determines if the information's intended destination is local or remote. If the intended destination is local, then the router transfers the information to the intended destination. However, if the intended destination is remote, then the router locates a next-hop router on a path. The local router encapsulates the information for router-to-router travel and transfers the information to the next-hop router. This process is repeated until the information reaches the remote router. The remote router processes the information and sends the information to the intended final destination. Thus, routers facilitate communication among multiple networks.
While a simple example is provided above, many networks are complex. Due to this complexity, there is a relatively high probability for error and/or failure. It can be difficult to determine where the error and/or failure occurred due to the network complexity. Conventionally, extensive resources are dedicated to identifying the error and/or failure.


A wood-based cement additive is formed by mixing high-density pellet particles of various sizes. The additive is to be introduced into a cement source to create a slurry mixture. The density of the mixture of pellet particles is selected to be less than the density of the particular cement type in which the pellet particles are introduced. The pellet particles are formed from sawdust or fiber pressed under high pressure, resulting in brittle pellets. The pellets may then be crumbled and screened into particles of an appropriate size. The particles do not disassociate into their constituent materials when mixed with the cement, and thus maintain their density during use in the cementing process.

The present invention relates to cement additives, and more particularly to wood-based cement additives designed to lighten the weight of the cement without degrading the cement.
Cement has a great many uses in construction and industry. One particular application is use of cement in the drilling industry, such as oil and gas drilling. As part of the drilling process, cementing is typically used to protect and seal the wellbore. Most commonly, cement is used to prevent water penetration into the well. Cementing can also be used to seal a lost circulation zone (an area where there is a reduction of flow within the well) or to plug an abandoned well. The process of cementing involves mixing cement, cement additives, and water to form a slurry, before pumping that mixture through the casing to the critical points.
Various types of cement additives exist, including additives aimed at reducing the weight or density of the cement. Examples of weight-reducing additives include microsilica, diatomaceous earth, glass spheres, and foam cement. These additives have a lower specific gravity than that of cement, which typically has a specific gravity of around 3.15 for portland cement, and thus give the cement slurry a lower density (except in the case of microsilica). Reducing the density of cement slurries leads to reduced hydrostatic pressure of the fluid column during cement placement and increased slurry yield, which reduces the amount of cement required to produce a given volume. Existing weight-reducing cement additives, however, do not come without limitations. Microspheres, or hollow glass spheres, for example, are susceptible to crushing during mixing and pumping, which may lead to increased slurry density and viscosity, decreased slurry volume, or premature slurry dehydration. Microsilica, or silica fume, is useful to improve the compressive strength, bond strength, and abrasion resistance of cement; however, it is expensive and is limited by a lack of sufficient supply for all possible applications.
The present invention overcomes the limitations associated with existing cement additives, and presents certain advantages over the existing technology as set forth below.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


A card destruction system includes a reader to read identification information from a card. A controller is coupled to the reader to receive the identification information and to determine whether the card is to be destroyed. A delivery sensor is coupled to the controller to sense when the card is delivered to a card destruction device. The controller is also configured to produce a record of the destruction based on a signal from the sensor.

This invention relates generally to the field of card destruction. More specifically, the invention relates to automated systems and methods to verify that a card is intended to be destroyed and to produce an audit record of the destruction.
A variety of organizations issue cards to their customers. For example, such organizations may issue credit cards, debit cards, smart cards, loyalty cards and the like to their customers. Often, such organizations contract with another company to produce and mail such cards to the end consumer. For a variety of reasons, once produced some of the cards may need to be destroyed. For instance, some cards may be returned by the postal service as being undeliverable, the customer""s account may be closed, or the like.
While such cards can be manually destroyed, such a process is time intensive and can make it difficult to produce reliable records of the destruction. Hence, this invention relates to systems and techniques to facilitate card destruction in a more efficient and reliable manner.
In one embodiment, a card destruction system comprises a reader for reading identification information from a card. A controller is coupled to the reader to receive the identification information and to determine whether the card is to be destroyed. A delivery sensor is also coupled to the controller to sense when the card is delivered to a card destruction device. The controller uses the sensed information to produce a record of the destruction. In this way, an automated system is provided to confirm that a card is to be destroyed, to destroy the card, and to confirm that the card was in fact destroyed.
In one aspect, a moving system may be used to move the card through the reader and to the card destruction device. Such a moving system may be constructed of a plurality of rollers that may rotate in opposite directions to move the card through the system. For convenience of manufacture, an AC motor may be used to rotate rollers that are both upstream and downstream of the reader. A DC motor may also be used to rotate rollers that are associated with the reader. In this way, the controller may be used to stop rotation of the reader rollers (by stopping the DC motor) if a card has been read by the reader but a confirmation that the card is to be destroyed has not been received. In this way, the card is prevented from prematurely passing to the card destruction device. Conveniently, sensors may be provided just before and after the reader to track the location of the card as it enters and exits the reader.
In a further aspect, the system may include a feeding mechanism to feed individual cards from a stack of cards and to the moving system. The feeding mechanism may include a cam that is moved based on a signal from the controller to in turn move a card from the stack and into the moving system.
The card destruction system may also include a switch that is disposed along the moving system downstream of the reader to direct the card to the destruction device or to a holding location depending on the determination from the controller as to whether the card should be destroyed. In a further aspect, the record produced by the controller may include information such as the identification information, a time and date of destruction, the operator monitoring the destruction, and the like.
Hence, in use an operator simply needs to place a stack of cards that are to be destroyed into the feeding mechanism. Cards from the stack are then individually fed into the moving system where their identification information is read and checked to confirm that the cards are to be destroyed. If so, the cards are directed to the card destruction device where a sensor confirms their destruction.


A camera has a data imprinting function provided with transport means for transporting photosensitive means, data imprinting means for imprinting data on a frame of the photosensitive means during transportation by the transport means after that frame of the photosensitive means has been exposed, reader means for reading the regular maximum number of exposure frames from a code provided on the photosensitive means, counter means for counting the number of exposed frames of the photosensitive means, and restricting means for restricting, on the basis of the regular maximum number of exposure frames read out by the reader means and the counted content of the counter means, restricting the imprinting data on the photosensitive means during transportation beyond either the last frame or the last frame but one of the regular maximum number of exposure frames.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to cameras of the type in which during the transportation of film serving as a photosensitive means that follows the exposure, data is imprinted on that exposed frame of the film and, more particularly, to improvements of the data imprinting function.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many proposals have been made concerning the cameras of the type in which a plurality of LEDs in a row perpendicular to the path of transportation of the film are arranged to be selectively energized to imprint data such as year, month and day on the film surface in dot-matrix form. Since, in such cameras, the above-described operation of the LEDs is started at a time during the winding-up operation that follows the termination of each exposure, and continues for the rest of the winding-up operation, until the last exposed frame is wound up, it has often happened that the film is stretched in the middle of a winding-up operation with the result that the imprinting of all data on the last exposed frame is left not perfectly performed (or fails to carry out to the complete end). Because the camera, though under such a condition, is automatically switched to the rewind mode, there has been a drawback that the photograph taken with the last frame will be found to be unacceptable due to the only partly imprinted data.


An apparatus is provided that is mountable upon preferably a skidsteer tractor, through a forklift truck or similar wheeled vehicle could be employed. The apparatus can be lowered into a trench on one side of a street or sidewalk and used to bore axially beneath the street or sidewalk to a trench on the other side of the street or sidewalk. Operation of the apparatus, which uses conventional commercial augers is controlled from the hydraulic couplings situated in the skidsteer tractor.. The apparatus includes a main housing which includes a means for receiving the accessory shoe of a prime mover for physical attachment thereto; and a motor housing with a motor, hydraulic coupler and bearing disposed therein, which motor housing is pivotally mounted to the main body.

Ofttimes it is necessary to lay pipe or wires beneath a driveway, sidewalk or the like. Typically such is necessary when sprinkler systems, outdoor lighting, or other utility improvements such as security systems or street lights or traffic lights are to be installed at locations where the sidewalks and/or the streets are already in place. Direct trenching would require that a street's traffic flow be interrupted during the pipe or cable laying. Or, in the case of a home, the homeowner does not want the expense of having to re-lay his concrete driveway after the pipes or wiring in question are laid in place.
Today, for these types of situations, a trench is dug on both sides of the impediment, such as a driveway, and then a connection is made between the two trenches. This can be carried out by hand digging beneath the impediment, using picks and shovels; or by directing a stream of high pressure water at the dirt or rock beneath the impediment. Both of these procedures are time consuming and do involve a certain amount of difficulty. In the case of the water, there is always the problem of drainage for or pump removal of the accumulated water not to mention the possibility the erosion of the surrounding substrate adjacent the bore which could result in a cave in of the street or sidewalk which is being bored under.
There is a need therefore, for a safe, sure, easy to achieve, low cost method of boring or tunnelling beneath impediments of the nature recited above. Such an apparatus is provided by the invention of this application.
It is an object therefore to provide an auger that can be readily attached to a skidsteer tractor (SST) for horizontal boring and which operatively controlled by the hydraulic system of the SST.
It is another object to provide an auger that can be quickly attached and detached to the mounting foot of an SST.
Other objects of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.
The invention accordingly comprises the apparatus possessing the construction, combination of elements and arrangement of parts which are exemplified in the following detailed disclosure, and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the appended claims.
For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the invention, reference should be had to the following detailed description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.

Horizontal auger for skidsteer tractors and the like


A container handling system includes a vehicle adapted to carry a container, the vehicle being equipped with a hoist for lifting containers, and, a trailer towable by the vehicle so as to provide tandem transport of containers. The trailer is adapted to receive a container from the vehicle via the vehicle hoist, and is further adapted to selectively hoist a received container in furtherance of unloading the received container, or dump contents therefrom.

The present invention generally relates to the ground transport of transportable containers, and handling systems related thereto, more particularly to apparatus and methods associated with tandem container loading/unloading, or content dumping.
A variety of container lift hoist styles are known for unloading containers from transport vehicles or the like. A great many of the styles include a container supporting surface which is tilted in furtherance of delivering the container to/at a work site. As supported by the numerous issued patents, and touted in the product literature for such devices, emphasis has heretofore been placed on the delivery, more particularly the unloading, of containers from transport vehicles, with numerous advances made concerning the mechanics associated therewith, and the safe operation thereof.
Tandem container transport generally provides for a more efficient container delivery and pick-up, conjuring up the notion of xe2x80x9ctwo for the price of one.xe2x80x9d Be this as it may, such tandem container transport, more particularly, readying the transport vehicles for loading and unloading is cumbersome and time consuming. Typically a self loading truck is provided for hauling both a container (i.e., a xe2x80x9ctruck containerxe2x80x9d) and a trailer loaded with a container (i.e., a xe2x80x9ctrailer containerxe2x80x9d). Such vehicles are commonly equipped with a hook style hoist, which in addition to having the capacity to load and unload truck containers, is capable of loading and unloading a trailer container from a trailer. Although this to some extent streamlines the loading and unloading process by eliminating a further loading/unloading apparatus from the process, typically a vehicle adapted for such purpose in addition to the vehicle and trailer combination, trailer ingress and egress can only be accomplished from the rear, as a trailer hitch assembly generally prevents access, or easy access. Such rear trailer loading requirement can be, and in fact is, prohibitive, as space to freely jockey about a job site is often times limited.
Arguably the most time consuming task associated with tandem container delivery is the unhooking of the trailer from the self loading vehicle so that the task of unloading the trailer container from the trailer may be completed, and thereafter, reconfiguring the units for tandem container transport. Although a variety of trailer hitching assembly styles are known, manipulation in furtherance of hooking and unhooking typically requires a jack or other multi-component lifting aid. Such task is especially time consuming for the single operator likely assigned to the tandem transporter. The intermediate steps of unhooking and re-hooking the trailer to the vehicle, when combined with the previously identified shortcomings, negate a great deal of the advantage gained by hauling tandem containers when compared to single container transport.
The container handling system of the present invention includes a vehicle adapted to carry a container, the vehicle being equipped with a hoist for lifting containers, and, a trailer towable by the vehicle so as to provide tandem transport of containers. The trailer is adapted to receive a container from the vehicle via the vehicle hoist, and is further adapted to selectively hoist a received container in furtherance of unloading the received container, or dump contents therefrom.
A container handling method for tandem container transport is likewise provided. A vehicle adapted to carry a container, and a trailer towable by the vehicle so as to permit tandem carriage of containers, is preliminarily provided in the method. The vehicle is preferably equipped with means for transferring the container from the vehicle, whereas the trailer is adapted to carry and unload a container therefrom. The vehicle is loaded with a container and subsequently transferred from the vehicle to the trailer via means for transferring the container from the vehicle.


A method for searching a predetermined satellite channel by making use of information available from the satellite.

The invention relates to a method for searching channels and to a satellite receiver.
EP-A-0821523 describes a method in a digital television signal receiver whereby a service table is composed of channel numbers currently on air.
To give the user the impression that a quick search through the whole frequency band is performed, only the channel number is increased (decreased) by continuously pressing the +(xe2x88x92) button, and only when the +/xe2x88x92 button is released the actual channel frequency of the chosen channel is used to obtain the chosen video/audio information.
A disadvantage of the known method and receiver is that to obtain a certain channel still the same considerably amount of time in needed, only the impression of a quicker search is obtained.
It is, inter alia, an object of the invention to provide a method and a receiver that overcomes the drawbacks of the prior art.
To this end a first aspect of the invention provides a method as defined in claim 1.
A second aspect of the invention provides a receiver as defined in claim 2.
By using information of existing transmission systems from a service channel stored in a user look-up table the search time is considerably reduced (the first step of the method). Further by using the second step of the method a receiver look up table is used to update the user look up table. The search through the relevant band has to be performed only with a subset of transmission parameters as where known at the moment the receiver was made. For example the receiver look up table can be stored in a chip. It is also possible to deliver updated chips when the information of the different satellites changes after some time. The last (third) step of the method comprises the present state of the art method to search channels.
An embodiment of a receiver according to the invention comprises the features of claim 3.
By using the method of searching the receiver will much more faster find the required satellite channel(s).

Method and apparatus for searching channels

Abstract: The method comprises three steps. The first step is searching for a service channel from the satellite, if found than the user look up table is updated with this information. A second step is updating the user look up table by using the receiver look up table, which is implemented in the satellite receiver. The third step is the conventionally search through the entire band till the predetermined channel is found.


Methods are provided for conducting surveys of regions of interest, points of interest, and objects of interest. The methods typically involve using a survey instrument with programmed logic. The programmed logic may include one or more base of knowledge in an electronically accessible format, and may include statistical analysis software. The survey instrument generally includes a display and one or more sensors. The sensors may include a visible image or an infrared image sensor. The program logic may be used to guide an operator through a survey.

Various construction, demolition, operation, maintenance, preventive maintenance, and predictive maintenance practices require the inspection of equipment, facilities, and surface and sub-surface features of land. Often these inspections are conducted by an operator using a hand-held, or at least portable, inspection instrument. The purposes of such inspections generally include location if an item of interest and assessment of the operational status of the item. Frequently it is difficult to locate the item, difficult to ensure that the correct item is located, and difficult to collect data that are necessary and sufficient to accurately and completely assess the status of the item. What are needed therefore are improved systems for conducting field surveys.

Method and apparatus for surveying with a feature location


An intake system for a vehicle includes a connecting tube disposed to bypass one side of a rear shock absorber. The capacity of the intake chamber is increased to achieve an improvement in intake performance and to reduce the influence of a liquid intake-spitting component on intake air. The connecting tube is formed to include a tubular main tube portion and a funnel portion installed integrally and consecutively with the main tube portion. The funnel portion has a funnel-shape that broadens as it nears the air cleaner with an opening of the main tube portion on the upstream end. An intake chamber serving as part of a purified-air chamber formed between the funnel portion and the cleaner case is formed at least below the main tube portion. A drain member is provided with the lower portion of the funnel portion to communicate with the lowest portion of the intake chamber.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a saddle-ride type vehicle having an engine body mounted between a front wheel and a rear wheel on a body frame. A rear shock absorber is installed between a swing arm and the body frame so as to extend vertically and between a pair of left and right frame members constituting part of the body frame and disposed behind the engine body with the swing arm pivotally supporting the rear wheel and being swingably supported by the body frame. A cleaner case for an air cleaner and intake air control means are connected via a connecting tube disposed to bypass the side of the rear shock absorber, the air cleaner being disposed behind the rear shock absorber with the intake air control means being adapted to control an amount of air supplied from the air cleaner to the engine body. In particular, the invention relates to an improvement in an intake system.
2. Description of Background Art
An intake system for a motorcycle is known as disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 5-172013, wherein a carburetor and a cleaner case for an air cleaner case disposed behind a rear shock absorber are connected by a connecting tube bypassing the rear shock absorber.
In the intake system disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 5-172013, the connecting tube is composed of a tubular connecting tube main body and a sub-chamber. The connecting tube main body bends so as to bypass the rear shock absorber. The sub-chamber is integrally formed with a cleaner case side end portion of the connecting tube main body so as to form an intake chamber together with the cleaner case. The intake chamber constitutes part of a purified-air chamber on the downstream side of a cleaner element of the air cleaner. The connecting tube is formed to have a transverse-sectional shape largely changed from the middle thereof. It is desired, however, to increase the capacity of the intake chamber in order to improve intake performance of an engine, thereby achieving an improved charging efficiency.

Intake system for saddle-ride type vehicle


Methods, media and systems that obfuscate control flow in software programs. The obfuscation can impede or prevent static flow analysis of a software program's control flow. In one embodiment, a method, performed by a data processing system, identifies each branch point in a set of branch points in a first version of software and replaces, in each branch point in the set, a representation of a target of the branch point with a computed value that depends upon at least one prior computed value in a stream of instructions in the first version of software. Other embodiments are also described.

The present invention relates to computer security and in particular to techniques for preventing the reverse engineering and/or other forms of attack on computer software.
Disassembling and mapping the flow of control between blocks of instructions in a computer program is by far the most common and easiest way for an attacker to reverse engineer and gain an understanding of the inner workings of a computer program. The mapping of the flow of control can produce a static control flow graph. In order to obtain this static control flow graph which shows the mapping of the flow of control between blocks, a disassembler has to perform two fundamental operations: (1) for each byte in the binary code, decide if this byte is part of an instruction or data and (2) map the flow of control between instructions. Techniques which impede or prevent this procedure can be used to prevent the reverse engineering of the software program. U.S. Pat. No. 7,779,270 describes an approach to obfuscate a computer program in a manner which impedes or prevents reverse engineering of the computer program.


An electronic device enclosure includes a chassis, a receiving tray, and a clipping assembly. The chassis includes a side plate and a blocking pin located on the side plate. The receiving tray includes a bottom panel and a side panel connected to the bottom panel. An opening is defined in the receiving tray and located between the bottom panel and the side panel, and the blocking pin is engaged in the opening. The clipping assembly includes a first pivoting member rotatably attached to the side panel. The first pivoting member extends towards the opening to abut the blocking pin, for prevent the receiving tray from moving out of the chassis, and the first pivoting member is rotatable to disengage from the blocking pin, for allowing the receiving tray from moving out of the chassis.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to electronic devices, more particularly to an electronic device enclosure.
2. Description of Related Art
Electronic device enclosures, such as for servers, often include a chassis and a plurality of receiving trays received in the chassis. The trays are used to receive electronic components, such as a motherboard and storage devices. The trays are secured to the chassis with screws. However, using screws to attach the trays is very laborious and time-consuming. Therefore, there is room for improvement within the art.

Hong Fu Jin Precision Industry (ShenZhen) Co., Ltd.


A medium supply device includes a feeding unit that feeds a medium among one or more media placed on a placing table, a separating unit that is arranged to come into pressure-contact with the feeding unit, and a blocking portion that is movable and blocks a space formed between the feeding unit and the separating unit in an upstream side of a nip region in a conveying direction of the medium. When one of the media placed on the placing table is fed by the feeding unit and the one or more media are placed on the placing table, the space is formed by the medium fed by the feeding unit, the separating unit, and the one or more media placed on the placing table.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a medium supply device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Hitherto, there is a medium supply device including a feeding unit and a separating unit (for example, refer to Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2001-130769).
In the medium supply device, regarding the suppression of the occurrence of a jam of a medium, there is still room for improvement.


Clusterin-derived peptides or homologues or derivatives thereof, pharmaceutical compositions including the same, methods of manufacturing the peptides, homologues, derivatives thereof and compositions including the same, and methods of treating conditions including administering the peptides, homologues, derivatives thereof and compositions including the same, are provided. Also provided are nucleotide sequences encoding the peptides, homologues, derivatives thereof and compositions including the same, antibodies directed to epitopes thereof and fusion proteins including the same.

Cancer cells often develop resistance to various chemotherapy agents. One of the mechanisms that contributes to such resistance is the elevation of Clusterin in its secreted form.
Clusterin (also known as CLU, Apolipoprotein J, ApoJ, testosterone repressed prostate message-2, TRPM-2, and sulfated glycoprotein-2) is a well known multifunctional, ubiquitously expressed protein that has been implicated in various cell functions including carcinogenesis and tumor progression.
Two Clusterin protein isoforms are known to be generated in human cells: a pro-apoptotic non-glycosylated nuclear form (nCLU) and a pro-survival glycosylated secreted form (sCLU) (Moretti R M, Marelli M M, Mai S, Cariboni A, Scaltriti M, Bettuzzi S, Limonta P. Clusterin isoforms differentially affect growth and motility of prostate cells: possible implications in prostate tumorigenesis. Cancer Res 2007; 67(21):10325-10333; Shannan B, Seifert M, Leskov K, Willis J, Boothman D, Tilgen W, Reichrath J. Challenge and promise: roles for clusterin in pathogenesis, progression and therapy of cancer. Cell Death Differ 2006; 13(1):12-1).
Upregulation of sCLU appears to be a general response to molecular stress. In particular, progression towards high-grade and metastatic carcinoma is correlated with a shift from nCLU to sCLU expression (Kurahashi T, Muramaki M Yamanaka K, Hara I, Miyake H. Expression of the secreted form of clusterin protein in renal cell carcinoma as a predictor of disease extension. BJU Int 2005; 96(6):895-899.)
In addition, sCLU is associated with resistance to various anti-cancer treatments including chemotherapy (Park D C, Yeo S G, Shin E Y, Mok S C, Kim D H. Clusterin confers paclitaxel resistance in cervical cancer. Gynecol Oncol 2006; 103(3):996-1000), radiotherapy (Cao C, Shinohara E T, Li H, Niermann K J, Kim K W, Sekhar K R, Gleave M Freeman M, Lu B. Clusterin as a therapeutic target for radiation sensitization in a lung cancer model. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 2005; 63(4):1228-1236), hormone ablation (Miyake H, Yamanaka K, Muramaki M Kurahashi T, Gleave M, Hara I. Enhanced expression of the secreted form of clusterin following neoadjuvant hormonal therapy as a prognostic predictor in patients undergoing radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer. Oncol Rep 2005; 14(5):1371-1375), and specific antibodies (Biroccio A, D'Angelo C, Jansen B, Gleave M E, Zupi G. Antisense clusterin oligodeoxynucleotides increase the response of HER-2 gene amplified breast cancer cells to Trastuzumab. J Cell Physiol 2005; 204(2):463-469).
Antagonists of sCLU have the potential to re-sensitize chemotherapy resistant malignancies.
Schmitz G. Drug evaluation: OGX-011, a clusterin-inhibiting antisense oligonucleotide. Curr Opin Mol Ther 2006; 8(6):547-554 describe OGX-011, a clusterin-inhibiting antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) as a potential treatment for increasing the susceptibility of resistant solid tumors (breast, non-small-cell lung and prostate) to conventional cancer therapies.
There have further been preliminary results demonstrating potential use of siRNA-mediated clusterin down regulation for treatment of cancers, such as colorectal cancer (Andersen C L, et al., Mol Cell Proteomics 2007; 6(6):1039-1048; Rodriguez-Pineiro A M, et al., Mol Cell Proteomics 2006; 5(9):1647-1657), melanoma (Shannan B, et al., Anticancer Res 2006; 26(4A):2707-2716), renal cell cancer (Zellweger T, et al., Neoplasia 2001; 3(4):360-367), bladder cancer (Chung J, et al., Cancer Lett 2004; 203(2):155-161; Miyake H, et al., J Urol 2004; 171(6 Pt 1):2477-2481; Miyake H, et al., Clin Cancer Res 2001; 7(12):4245-4252; Miyake H, et al., Neoplasia 2005; 7(2):171-179; Yamanaka K, et al., Oncol Rep 2005; 13(5):885-890) and pancreatic cancer (Xie M J, et al., Pancreas 2002; 25(3):234-238).
Clusterin is further involved in the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition of carcinoma cells. WO2007/030930 describes agents (such as monoclonal antibodies), having binding-activity to clusterin, which inhibit the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in carcinomas.
Furthermore, the level of clusterin is increased in the hippocampus and frontal cortex of the brains of Alzheimer's Disease patients. It is currently believed that clusterin, by binding to beta-amyloid, a protein known to aggregate in the brains of these patients, acts to link the progression of this disease to the complement system (Choi-Miura and oda, Neurobiol. Aging, 1996, 17, 717722).
sCLU in fact appears to be a part of the beta-amyloid complex and other complexes related to neurodegenerative disorders, and has been correlated to age-related macular degeneration (AMD) (An E, Lu X, et al., J Proteome Res 2006; 5(10:2599-2610), Alzheimer's Disease (AD) (Choi-Miura N H, et al., Neurobiol Aging 1996; 17(5):717-722), and Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (Freixes M, et al. Acta Neuropathol 2004; 108(4):295-301).
Clusterin is overexpressed in many disease states including neurodegenerative disorders, gliomas, and retinitis pigmentosa. Expression is induced in acute and chronic models of renal injury and disease, following ureter obstruction, ischemia/reperfusion, and atherosclerosis (Silkensen et al., Biochem. Cell. Biol., 1994, 72, 483-488).
Clusterin is also expressed in M cells (microfold cells) and follicular dendritic cells at inductive sites of human mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (Waelput W et al., Histochem Cell Biol. 2007 Dec. 21).
Clusterin has further been implicated in various physiological processes and physiological disturbance states including ageing, cancer progression, vascular damage, diabetes, kidney and neuron degeneration (Ioannis P. Trougakos & Efstathios S. Gonos; Free Radical Research, December 2006; 40(12): 1324-1334). Although unrelated in their etiology and clinical manifestation, these diseases represent states of increased oxidative stress, which in turn, promote amorphous aggregation of target proteins, increased genomic instability and high rates of cellular death. Among the various properties attributed to clusterin so far, those mostly investigated and invariably appreciated are its small heat shock proteins-like chaperone activity and its involvement in cell death regulation, which are both directly correlated to the main features of oxidant injury. Moreover, the presence of both a heat shock transcription factor-1 and an activator protein-1 element in the clusterin gene promoter indicates that the clusterin gene can be an extremely sensitive biosensor to reactive oxygen species.
To date, there are no known therapeutic agents which effectively inhibit the synthesis of clusterin. Investigative strategies aimed at modulating clusterin function have involved the use of antibodies, antisense oligonucleotides and chemical inhibitors. As in all technologies at all times, these agents can be improved upon and there remains a need for additional agents capable of effectively inhibiting clusterin.


Methods and an apparatus for communication between processes are provided. A first process obtains an original message to be sent, where the original message includes a message header and a message body. The first process determines the length of the message header and the length of the message body of the original message to be sent. The first process compresses the length of the message header according to the length of the message header and the length of the message body to obtain a compressed message. The first process adds the compressed message to a message queue pre-created for a second process, where the second process is configured to obtain the compressed message from the message queue.

In the industrial field, in order to reduce the cost of equipment, there is a large limitation on the hardware resources of the equipment.
For example, in the field of the Internet of Things (IoT), the hardware resources of IoT equipment are very limited. How to meet the overhead of the operating system (OS) under the condition of small hardware resources has become a technical problem to be solved.
In a common operating system, messages can be sent through a message queue between processes. For example, when the A process needs to send a message to the B process, the A process first creates a message queue for communicating with the B process. The A process adds the message that needs to be sent to the message queue, and the B process extracts the message from the message queue to complete the communication.
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a conventional message structure 100. Each of these messages includes a message header 102 and a message body 104. The message header 102 is used to indicate the length of the message content in the message body 104, which is generally 4 bytes in length. The content in the message body 104 is the length declared in the message header 102. When a message needs to be read from the message queue, the message header 102 is first read to obtain the length of the message content, and then the corresponding message content is read according to the length.
In the conventional message structure 100, the message header 102 used to store the length of the message is of a fixed length. In order to be able to indicate a message of 0 to n, an int type is generally used, with the length of 4 bytes. However, many message lengths are relatively short. For example, some message content is only a few tens of bytes in length. Such a length may be indicated with a one-byte message header 102. The rest of the bytes are not needed at all, which results in a waste of bytes of the message header 102.

Method and apparatus for communication between processes


A method of encoding data comprising: a) converting a first data set, representing pixels of a first image in an RGB format, to a second data set, representing pixels of the first image in an intensity-color format; b) discarding color data from the second data set to create a reduced second data set; c) converting a third data set, representing pixels of a second image in an RGB format, to a fourth data set, representing pixels of the second image in the intensity-color format; d) discarding color data from the fourth data set to create a reduced fourth data set; and e) combining the reduced second data set and the reduced fourth data set. A method of decoding to produce 3D image data and a method of decoding to produce 2D image data.

Color images can be presented in a number of different color spaces (formats). A popular color space for representation is RGB, which corresponds to modern mechanisms for image capture and image display.
An image is divided into an N row×M column array of picture elements (pixels). Each pixel is divided into three sub-pixels. There is a red sub-pixel for red light, a green sub-pixel for green light and a blue sub-pixel for blue light. The brightness and color at a pixel is dependent upon the intensity of blue light at the blue sub-pixel, the intensity of green light at the green sub-pixel and the intensity of blue light at the blue sub-pixel. The respective intensities of the red, green and blue light at a pixel can be represented as a vector (R, G, B) or signal having red, green, and blue signal components (red-green-blue format).
Currently available optical sensors for digital cameras produce output data in this so called RGB format. Currently available digital display matrix blue format).devices receive data in this RGB format and covert it to an image. The display matrix has an N×M array of pixels, each of which has a red sub-pixel, a green sub-pixel and a blue sub-pixel. The light produced at a pixel corresponds to the (R, G, B) vector for that pixel.
A display device can be used to create a three dimensional image. A first optical sensor is directed towards the object to be imaged from a left perspective and a second optical sensor is directed towards the object to be imaged from a right perspective.
The image from the left perspective can be presented as an N×M data array dRGB—left (n, m), of RGB vectors, where n=1, 2 . . . N and m=1, 2 . . . M i.e.
            d      RGB_left                  (              n        ,        m            )        =            {                                    d            R_left                                          (                          n              ,              m                        )                          ,                              d            G_left                                          (                          n              ,              m                        )                          ,                              d            B_left                                          (                          n              ,              m                        )                              }                                            =          {                        R                                                              n                                                                          m                                      [              L              ]                                      ,                  G                                                              n                                                                          m                                      [              L              ]                                      ,                  B                                                              n                                                                          m                                      [              L              ]                                          }      where Rnm[L], represents the intensity of the red pub-pixel, for the pixel at row n, column m from the left perspective, Gnm[L], represents the intensity of the green pub-pixel, for the pixel at row n, column m from the left perspective, Bnm[L], represents the intensity of the blue pub-pixel, for the pixel at row n, column m from the left perspective.
The image from the right perspective can be presented as an N×M data array dRGB—right (n, m), of RGB vectors, where n=1, 2 . . . N and m=1, 2 . . . M i.e.
            d      RGB_right                  (              n        ,        m            )        =            {                                    d            R_right                                          (                          n              ,              m                        )                          ,                              d            G_right                                          (                          n              ,              m                        )                          ,                              d            B_right                                          (                          n              ,              m                        )                              }                                            =          {                        R                                                              n                                                                          m                                      [              R              ]                                      ,                  G                                                              n                                                                          m                                      [              R              ]                                      ,                  B                                                              n                                                                          m                                      [              R              ]                                          }      where Rnm[R], represents the intensity of the red pub-pixel, for the pixel at row n, column m from the left perspective, Gnm[R], represents the intensity of the green pub-pixel, for the pixel at row n, column m from the left perspective, Bnm[R], represents the intensity of the blue pub-pixel, for the pixel at row n, column m from the left perspective.
A combined N×M data array dRGB—combined (n, m), of RGB vectors, where n=1, 2 . . . N and m=1, 2 . . . M is formed from the data array dRGB—left (n, m), and the data array dRGB—right (n, m) as shown in FIG. 1. In the Figure, the data array dRGB—left (n, m) is indicated by reference numeral 2, the data array dRGB—right (n, m) is indicated by reference numeral 4, and the data array dRGB—combined (n, m) is indicated by reference numeral 6.
The combined N×M data array dRGB—combined (n, m) has columns of vectors 7a, 7b and 7c which are taken alternately from dRGB—left (n, m), and dRGB—right (n, m),dRGB—combined (n, m)=dRGB—left (n, m[odd])+dRGB—right (n, m[even])
The combined N×M array dRGB—combined (n, m), of RGB vectors, is used to create a three dimensional image on a display device, such as an auto-stereoscopic 3D display device, which makes use of the human 3D image recognition mechanism of eye parallax.
A problem arises if one wants to send data representing an image than can be used on a '2D display device' as well as a '3D display device'.
One solution to this problem is to provide data representing the image from the right perspective (N×M data array dRGB—left (n, m) of RGB vectors) and data representing the image from the left perspective (N×M data array dRGB—right (n, m), of RGB vectors) to all devices. The '2D display device' would use only the data representing the image from the right perspective or only the data representing the image from the left perspective. The '3D display device' would create and use the combined N×M array dRGB—combined (n, m), of RGB vectors.
However, this requires the provision of a significant amount of data to the display device. This is undesirable particularly if the mechanism for supply is of limited bandwidth, such as a wireless connection.

Encoding and decoding data to render 2D or 3D images


Disclosed herein is technology for, among other things, a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, and a control system and a control method therefor, by which a target parameter that is measured from a wafer processed with a plurality of processing parameters that are processing conditions of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus to process a wafer, a multiple classification analysis is performed with the plurality of processing parameters and the target parameter to calculate a model formula expressing the target parameter in a selected parameter, a predicted value of the target parameter of the wafer being processed by use of the model formula is calculated, while the processing is being performed, the processing parameters of the processing is modified on the basis of the predicted value, and the processing is continuously performed.

In fabricating semiconductor devices, steps of processes are performed on a wafer of a semiconductor substrate by use of a number of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses. Such processes include, for example, the thin film formation on the wafer, etching process of the wafer or the thin film on the wafer, implantation of impurities, thermal treatment, exposure and development, and the like. Through the use of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses in wafer processes, the wafer is processed with multiple processing parameters such as processing conditions. Such a processed wafer needs to have target parameters, which are physically, optically, or electrically measured from the processed wafer, within desired ranges. The yield of the semiconductor devices can be maintained by keeping the target parameters of the wafer within the desired ranges, thereby enabling the production costs to be reduced.
Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 6-4789 discloses an error monitoring method in which characteristics of the apparatus to be monitored or neighboring equipment thereof are detected, multiple regression analysis is performed on the characteristics, and the regression coefficient is judged as to whether it lies within a given normal range. If the regression coefficient does not lie within the given normal range, it is determined that an error has occurred in the apparatus.
As a method of making the target parameters lie within a desired range, one or more of the processing parameters of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus are modified prior to the wafer processing, based on the target parameters measured from another wafer. The processing parameters, however, have variations in a short range. Even with the afore-described method, the desired target parameters are not always obtainable. While one process is being performed, there are, for example, ten to hundred processing parameters of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. For this reason, keeping the target parameter within a desired range proves difficult.

Semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and control system and control method therefor


A thrust augmentor heat shield for enclosing radially extending fuel pipes which can be attached to and removed from the outer duct wall from within the augmentor. The heat shield includes a hollow, elongate housing extending substantially entirely along the length of the fuel pipe, a nose projecting forwardly from the housing and received within a slot formed in the duct wall and a bolt for clamping the housing to the duct wall and urging the nose of the housing into the slot. The housing includes an opening between the outer duct wall and the diffuser wall for conveying cooling air radially inwardly along the housing, and openings along lateral sides of the housing in registry with the fuel discharge ports of the fuel tube. The housing includes a diffuser flowpath segment such that, when the housings are arranged in a spoke pattern, the segments form a continuous annular wall joined by splined connections. In an alternate embodiment, the outer duct wall includes a strut which extends from the duct wall to the diffuser wall and the housing is connected to it by a bolt and nose connection. With other embodiments, the housing connection includes a wedge-shaped cam mounted on the diffuser wall which jams against a correspondingly-shaped flared upper end of the housing. Another embodiment includes a collar contiguous with the diffuser wall and extended shank shoulder bolts for installation from inside the augmentor through the collar.

The present invention relates to thrust augmentors for gas turbine engines and, more particularly, to heat shield designs for the fuel pipes of such thrust augmentors.
A typical jet aircraft engine configuration is shown schematically in FIG. 1A and is referred to generally as 11, with an engine axis 17. Engine 11 includes a turbine engine section 31 generally defined by arrows A, and a thrust augmentor 12 generally defined by arrows B. The gas flow path through the engine is represented by arrows C.
In order to increase the thrust temporarily of a gas turbine engine, a thrust augmentor is used. Such thrust augmentors are located downstream of the core engine and include a substantially cylindrical diffuser wall which defines the augmentor or afterburner channel, and a plurality of fuel tubes 33 projecting radially inwardly toward the axis 17, into the augmentor channel for injecting fuel into the hot exhaust gases of the core engine.
Examples of such thrust augmentors are disclosed in Nash et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,901,527 and Gastebois et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,899,539. Nash et al. discloses a thrust augmentor including fuel injectors extending radially inwardly through an outer casing and diffuser wall into the augmentor channel. Fairings surround the injectors, shielding the fuel pipes from heat from the hot core gas flow and downstream flame in the augmentor, and include an opening for directing cooling air from the bypass channel through the fairing to further protect the fuel pipes from the surrounding heat of the augmentor. Gastebois et al. discloses a thrust augmentor having a plurality of tubular injectors concentric with an outer sleeve which directs cooling air trapped by an air scoop in the bypass air duct, along the length of the fuel tube, thus also acting as a heat shield. The fuel tube is within a V-shaped flame stabilizer which opens downstream of the fuel tube. The fuel tube includes a plurality of orifices arranged along its length and which open in an upstream direction, so that fuel issues in counterflow fashion of the flame stabilizer.
A disadvantage with such designs is that it is often difficult to replace damaged heat shields. Disconnecting such heat shields from the supporting structure for replacement typically requires removal of the engine from an aircraft to gain access to attachment means from outside the augmentor channel. Consequently, aircraft availability is affected and engine downtime is increased. Accordingly, there is a need for a thrust augmentor heat shield which can be accessed from within the thrust augmentor channel and replaced without requiring access outside the outer wall of the channel.


A voltage comparison circuit makes a comparison between a first voltage and a second voltage. A resistor and a constant current source are provided in series between the first voltage and the ground voltage. A comparator receives the second voltage via one input terminal (non-inverting input terminal), and the voltage at a connection node between the aforementioned resistor and the constant current source via the other input terminal (inverting terminal). The first voltage is preferably used as the power supply voltage for the comparator.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a power supply.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, various kinds of electronic devices such as PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), laptop personal computers, etc., include a great number of electronic circuits mounted thereon. Examples of such electronic circuits include: a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and a DSP (Digital Signal Processor) each of which performs digital signal processing; a liquid crystal panel; and other analog circuits and digital circuits. In a battery-driven electronic device which includes a battery as a power supply, each electronic circuit included therein operates using the battery voltage generated by the battery.


Systems and methods for analyzing data stored using a data model. The system can receive a user selection of a first object type indicating to perform filtering operations on a first set of data objects, generate a list of object types linked to the first object type based on an ontology, receives a user selection of a second object type, generate a list of properties of the second object type based on an ontology, receive a user selection of a first property from the list of properties, perform a data query determining values associated with the first property, receive a user selection of a first value, and displays information of a subset of data objects being a portion of the first set of data objects that are linked to data objects in the second set of data objects that have a first property value of the first value.

An ontology includes stored information that provides a data model for storage and association of data in one or more databases. The stored data may comprise definitions for data object types and respective associated property types. Analysis of a large data set stored using an ontology can start with selecting a portion of data stored as a data object and drilling-down into the data set to gain insight into a desired portion of the data set. In some instances, inexperienced and/or non-technical users may want to explore a data set or perform ad hoc analysis but the users may not have the requisite understanding of underlying tables, complicated object associations, and/or how to write code to join tables, filter data, etc. that they need to perform their desired analysis. Such situations can lead to inefficiencies in the analysis due to performing needless data queries, or not being able to perform the analysis at all. The analysis of certain data sets may benefit from displaying visualizations of the objects and down-selecting or filtering objects from a dashboard having multiple visualizations of the data. However, there is no system to adequately provide a graphical object-oriented methodology using associated objects in a data set used as the starting point for such an analysis where users do not need an in-depth requisite understanding of the underlying data tables and complicated object associations to explore a data set or perform ad hoc analysis. In addition, there is no system that tracks and displays the steps performed for graphically down-selecting and filtering objects of a data set, presenting down-selected and filtered objects on a "dashboard" and then saving the analysis operations and dashboard such that it can be shared with others, or used again.

Object-centric data analysis system and graphical user interface


Systems and methods are disclosed for vehicle integration of unmanned aircraft systems (UASs). Example methods may include coupling a landing dish of a vehicle integrated UAS to a ground station assembly; positioning the landing dish and the ground station assembly into a portion of a vehicle and a capping member of the vehicle integrated UAS; and coupling the landing dish to the capping member of the vehicle integrated UAS. In various embodiments, the vehicle integrated UAS may be configured to send and receive information (e.g., route information, power information, status information, etc.) between unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) associated with the UAS to device(s) of a vehicle.

Unmanned aerial vehicles ("UAVs" or "drones") are being routinely used in search and rescue, policing, facilities monitoring, package delivery, and other applications. As the capabilities of drones improve and FAA regulations become friendlier, drone use is likely to continue to grow. In anticipation of this, auto OEMs are incorporating drones into their vehicles. Such integration may enhance the utility of the drones and improve the appeal of the vehicles for drone users.

Systems, methods, and devices for vehicle integration of unmanned aircraft systems


There are provided a server machine and communication terminals communicatively connected to each other over a communication network. The server machine delivers software to a communication terminal. The server machine again delivers to the communication terminal delivered software which was delivered at least once to the communication terminal. Each communication terminal has an identification information transmitter section obtaining identification information by which users are identified. The server machine includes a delivery management database to manage the identification information and software delivery history information in an associated manner.

Conventionally, users install software, for example, from a CD-ROM or like storage medium or over the Internet, (hereinafter, "original software" which is a type of content) on their computers (communication terminals). Thereafter, every time the user needs a software update, he obtains a patch or updater (updater software) from, for example, the original software distributor's home page, over a network to correct the original software.
To facilitate the action, systems exist which automatically deliver updater software information to the communication terminal from the software provider's server machine over the network. Technology related to the system is disclosed in, for example, Japanese unexamined patent application 11-272471 (Tokukaihei 11-272471/1999; published on Oct. 8, 1999), Japanese unexamined patent application 11-312080 (Tokukaihei 11-312080/1999; published on Nov. 9, 1999), and Japanese unexamined patent application 7-129407 (Tokukaihei 7-129407/1995; published on May 19, 1995).
Tokukaihei 11-272471/1999 discloses a remote software installation technique where software is distributed to multiple computers interconnected via a network. Specifically, when the transmitting computer delivers software used on receiving computers, the transmitting computer records version information of each piece of delivered software for each receiving computer. Before delivering a new version of the software, the transmitting computer compares that version to the version of software already delivered to each receiving computer. The new version of software is thus delivered only to receiving computers with older versions.
Tokukaihei 11-312080/1999 discloses a technique where a program server machine broadcasts program update information over a network, and a client terminal device determines whether the program needs an update based on received program update information so that only those updates which are determined to be necessary are performed.
In Tokukaihei 7-129407/1995, a server transfers system version information to client terminals so that the client terminals can determine whether they have a program whose version matches that indicated in the information. If the versions do not match, the client terminal decides whether to update the program. Depending on this decision, an update is performed by the server transferring the latest version of the program to the client terminal for storage in the client terminal's program database. Tokukaihei 7-129407/1995 discloses the following modes of updating: (1) All programs are updated. (2) Only old versions of programs are updated according to the version information of the client terminal. (3) Only those selected by the user are updated.
Some trouble may in the communication terminal cause a malfunction of an updated version of software which was updated using an updater, requiring reinstallation of the original software. The user will desire to restore the software condition to the point at which a last updater was installed. The foregoing conventional technology, however, is not capable of responding the desire due to the following problems.
According to the technology disclosed in Tokukaihei 11-272471/1999, the latest version of the software is delivered when the original software is reinstalled in the computer on the receiving end. However, the version information stored in the transmitting computer does not reflect the fact that the original software has been reinstalled in the receiving computer which is thus currently running the original version. Updates older than the latest one are not automatically carried out.
According to the technology disclosed in Tokukaihei 11-312080/1999, only those programs in relation to which update information is broadcast are updated through version comparison. If the user wants to obtain other programs, he must identify the updaters delivered up to that moment to request the server to deliver the identified updaters. The user needs to make notes of the titles of the delivered updaters.
Mode 1 of update operation disclosed in Tokukaihei 7-129407/1995 updates all programs. The user cannot chose which programs are to be updated or not to be updated. He cannot recover the pre-installation configuration because some updated programs may never have been delivered to, and wanted by, the user.
Mode 2 selects only later versions of a program than indicated in the date and time information about the update(s) of the program in the client terminal. If the original software is reinstalled in the client terminal, only those programs newer than the update date and time are selected, and those programs older than the update date and time are not selected.
Mode 3 allows the user no other choice but to repeat the same updating procedures as he once did, starting with the reinstallation of the original software. He then must identify and obtain the same patches and other updaters again as the previous ones, so as to recover the pre-reinstallation configuration.

Content delivery server, communication terminal, content delivery system, content delivery method, content delivery program, terminal control program and storage medium containing the program


A method for manufacturing a touch panel having a sensing area that includes a conductive part made up of thin-line mesh includes a step of designing the thin-line mesh, the thin-line mesh including a plurality of intersections, wherein the intersection forms therearound an acute angular area and an obtuse angular area, the acute angular area being defined between a pair of adjacently converging thin lines that forms an acute angle therebetween, the obtuse angular area being defined between a pair of adjacently converging thin lines that forms an obtuse angle therebetween, a step of filling electrically conductive ink into a printing plate by a squeezing process using a doctor blade, the printing plate having a groove pattern that conforms with the thin-line mesh, and a step of forming the conductive part by printing, in which the electrically conductive ink is transferred to a surface of a base member.

FIG. 1, FIG. 2A, and FIG. 2B show, as a conventional example of the structure of a touch panel, the structure of a capacitive touch panel described in Japanese Patent Application Laid Open No. 2017-103317 (issued on Jun. 8, 2017). This touch panel has a structure in which a first conductive layer, an insulating layer, a second conductive layer, and a protective layer are sequentially laminated on a transparent base member 10. In FIG. 1, an area surrounded by a rectangular frame indicates a sensing area (sensor area) 20 where sensor electrodes are positioned. Details of the sensor electrodes are not shown in FIG. 1.
The sensor electrodes include a first sensor electrode and a second sensor electrode. The first sensor electrode is formed by the first conductive layer, and the second sensor electrode is formed by the second conductive layer.
As shown in FIG. 2A, the first sensor electrode 30 is configured such that a plurality of electrode rows 33 are arranged in rows along the Y direction, which is parallel to the short sides 22 of the sensing area 20, each of the plurality of electrode rows 33 being formed by connecting a plurality of island-shaped electrodes 31 arranged along the X direction, which is parallel to the long sides 21 of the sensing area 20, with connection sections 32.
As shown in FIG. 2B, the second sensor electrode 40 is configured such that a plurality of electrode rows 43 are arranged in rows along the X direction, each of the plurality of electrode rows 43 being formed by connecting a plurality of island-shaped electrodes 41 arranged along the Y direction, with connection sections 42.
The first sensor electrode 30 and the second sensor electrode 40 are individually made up of thin-line mesh. The electrode rows 33 and 43 intersect with each other in an insulated state. The connection sections 32 and 42 are positioned overlappingly.
Lead wiring lines 51 are drawn from both ends, in the X direction, of each of the electrode rows 33 of the first sensor electrode 30. Lead wiring lines 52 are drawn from one-side end, in the Y direction, of each of the electrode rows 43 of the second sensor electrode 40. Among the lead wiring lines 51 and 52 drawn from the sensing area 20 and arranged in rows, only those positioned at both ends are shown in FIG. 1, whereas the others are not shown.
Terminals 53 are formed and arranged at a middle portion along one long side of the base member 10, which is rectangular. The lead wiring lines 51 and 52 are extended to reach and connect to terminals 53. Ground wiring lines 54 are formed at a peripheral part of the base member 10 so as to surround the sensing area 20 and the lead wiring lines 51 and 52. The ground wiring lines 54 are also connected to terminals 53.
The lead wiring lines 51 and 52 and the terminals 53 are formed by the first conductive layer. The ground wiring lines 54 are formed by both the first and second conductive layers.
In this example, the first and second conductive layers, having the above-described structures, are formed by gravure offset printing by the use of electrically conductive ink that includes electrically conductive particles, such as silver particles.
In a touch panel having a sensing area that includes a conductive part made up of thin-line mesh and the conductive part is formed by gravure printing or gravure offset printing by using electrically conductive ink, as described above, blurring of the electrically conductive ink occurs at intersections of the thin-line mesh. Such blurring of the electrically conductive ink is visually recognized, affecting the visibility of a display unit in which the touch panel is arranged, thus reducing the visual quality of the touch panel.

JAPAN AVIATION ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY, LIMITED


The present invention provides a kit comprising, in separate compartments of a container, the following components (a) and (b): (a) a combination of apomorphine or a pharmaceutically acceptable acid addition salt thereof and a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient or carrier; and (b) a solution which comprises a diluent and a pH modifying agent; the components being presented such that they can be combined at the point of use into a formulation which is adjusted to a pH ranging from mildly acidic to alkaline and which is suitable for buccal administration. The formulation is useful in treating Parkinson's disease and in promoting sexual function.

Parkinson's disease is a chronic, progressive neurological disorder affecting approximately 20 in every 100,000 people. The disease is typically characterised by resting tremor, muscle rigidity, bradykinesia and postural instability. Although the exact pathological course of Parkinson's disease is unknown, the dopaminergic neurones in the substantia nigra are progressively destroyed which leads to a net decrease in the amount of dopamine in the basal ganglia. Dopamine replacement with levodopa is the current primary therapy for Parkinson's disease.
After a three to five year period of control, 25% of Parkinson's disease sufferers develop "on-off" fluctuations. These are characterised by periods of a few minutes to a few hours during which the patient is able to move and walk easily ("on"), alternating with periods during which the patient experiences severe akinesia ("off"). Many patients also experience other unpleasant "off" period phenomena, such as depression, anxiety, panic, pain, delusions and dystonia, which follow a time-course parallel to the motor stage. The "off" periods may appear several times a day even when anti-parkinsonian drugs are given at the optimum dosage.
Dopamine agonists have been shown to decrease dyskinesias and "on-off" fluctuations when combined with levodopa therapy. Apomorphine is a non-ergot dopamine agonist which has a high affinity for D2, D3 and D4 and lower affinity for D1, and D5 receptors. It has the following structural formula:

Oral doses in excess of 500 mg apomorphine have been shown to produce a dose-dependent improvement in tremor, rigidity, and akinesia but are associated with drug-induced nephrotoxicity. This is thought to be a result of nephrotoxic metabolites produced by the liver, presumably due to extensive first-pass metabolism.
Subcutaneous injections of apomorphine have proved to be effective in the treatment of "on-off" fluctuations in Parkinson's disease within 5 to 15 minutes, and last for 45 to 90 minutes. Trials have shown consistent reversal of "off" period akinesia, a decrease in daily levodopa requirements and consequently a decrease in the amount of "on" period dyskinesias. Advantages over other dopamine agonists include a quick onset of action and lower incidence of psychological complications. For a "rescue therapy" in patients with "on-off" fluctuations, apomorphine also has the advantage over other dopamine agonists that it has a relatively short half-life.
As there is a large inter-subject variation in pharmacokinetics, patients undergo an initial dose titration period at the start of treatment. Nausea and vomiting which may occur as a result of the peripheral dopaminergic action of apomorphine may be controlled by domperidone. Often, patients on long-term apomorphine treatment are able to discontinue or decrease the dose of domperidone without recurrence of these adverse effects.
The widespread application of apomorphine to control "on-off" fluctuations is limited by the necessity for subcutaneous administration. Alternative routes of administration have consequently been investigated. Intranasal apomorphine was shown to be effective in patients with Parkinson's disease but produced transient nasal blockage and burning sensation in two of five patients tested. Rectal administration of apomorphine has been shown to be effective and to have a longer duration of action than subcutaneously administered drug; however, higher doses of the drug are needed because of some first-pass metabolism. Furthermore, the delayed onset of action limits its application as a supplemental dopamine agonist therapy.
Sublingual administration of apomorphine has also been studied. Minimal first-pass metabolism allows for the use of lower doses compared with standard oral administration of apomorphine. In all studies, all patients (who were known to be responsive to subcutaneous apomorphine) fully "switched on". The mean time to onset of effect was approximately 30 minutes and was comparable between the studies. The mean duration of action was longer following sublingual administration compared to subcutaneous administration. Unpleasant taste and inconsistency of dissolution were noted formulation problems.
The use of apomorphine in treating sexual dysfunction has also been investigated. For instance, the sublingual administration of apomorphine has been found in a clinical study to have a statistically significant effect on erectile dysfunction when compared with placebo (Dula et al Urology 2000; 56: 130-135). According to the literature, apomorphine promotes sexual function and performance because of the effect it exerts on the brain, in particular on the neurological mechanisms underlying sexual arousal. Apomorphine can thus be used to promote or enhance sexual function, treat sexual dysfunction, enhance libido and/or reduce impotence.
For optimal buccal absorption the apomorphine used should ideally be un-ionised at physiological pH. The pKa of apomorphine is 8.9 so, above a pH of about 9, significant amounts of the drug exist as (free base. Thus at pH 3.5 the proportion of apomorphine which is un-ionised is negligible. The proportion of drug which is un-ionised only starts to increase when the pH approaches 7; an alkaline pH yields increasing proportions of un-ionised drug. Thus, for optimal absorption, the drug should be formulated in an alkaline medium.
Apomorphine undergoes rapid spontaneous oxidation. One way to prevent this is to keep solutions of the drug acidified. It is believed that commercially-available apomorphine for injection has a pH of about 3.5. Since this is intended for injection the pH does not influence systemic absorption. However, the nasal spray formulation described above is also an aqueous solution and is also believed to be acidic. This would imply that the formulation is not optimised for nasal absorption and the nasal irritation that has been reported might well derive from the acidic property of the formulation.
Administration of acidic apomorphine formulations into the mouth results in a stimulation of salivation. The excess saliva produced is rich in bicarbonate, which is intended to neutralise the acid and return the mouth to its normal, near neutral, pH. Although the resultant increase in pH should aid the absorption of apomorphine, there is also an increase in the amount of drug swallowed along with the additional volume of saliva. As a result, the amount of drug available for buccal absorption rapidly decreases.

Pharmaceutical formulation of apomorphine for buccal administration


An apparatus and process for coating a plurality of articles in batches, in particular for applying a biocompatible layer on articles adapted to come into contact with blood or body tissue, e.g. a coagulation-preventing substance so as to render the articles non-thrombogenic. A plurality of article-carrying plates (14) are stacked upon one another and have a plurality of communicating wells (18) for receiving therein a respective article to be coated. A base plate (12) defines with a bottom side of a lowermost of said article-carrying plates a distribution chamber (34) for receiving and evenly distributing a solution containing a substance to be applied to said articles. The solution is fed through the wells of the stacked plates (14) in parallel vertical flows.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an apparatus for coating a plurality of articles in batches. In particular, the invention relates to an apparatus for applying a biocompatible layer on articles adapted to come into contact with blood or body tissue, e.g. a coagulation-preventing substance so as to render the articles non-thrombogenic.
The invention also relates to a process for coating a plurality of articles in batches, in particular for applying a biocompatible layer on articles adapted to come into contact with blood or body tissue, e.g. a coagulation-preventing substance so as to render the articles non-thrombogenic.
2. Description of Related Art
It is well known that when blood comes into contact with other materials than the fresh natural wall of the blood vessel, for example in surgery with medical instruments such as scalpels, activation of certain circulating cells and enzyme systems takes place resulting in blood coagulation. Release of blood coagels or thrombi in the blood flow could lead to thrombosis, a major cause of death in the industrialised world. Coating the surfaces of solid substrates such as medical instruments with certain polysaccharides such as heparin makes these surfaces non-thrombogenic. EP 0 086 186 B1 and EP 0 495 820 B1 describe generally methods of how to bind polysaccharides to articles in order to make the surfaces of the substrates non-thrombogenic.
Furthermore, it is known to batchwise apply a coagulation-preventing coating on endovascular stents, adapted to be implanted e.g. in coronary artery, by placing the stents in a plurality of cavities interconnected serially by a passageway through which a solution containing the substance to be applied onto the stents is supplied sequentially to the cavities and to the stents placed therein. However, such an arrangement of the cavities and the serial flow passage of the solution therethrough may give rise to cavitation problem which may affect the quality and the uniformity of the coating applied to the articles. Also, the coating capacity of such a setup is limited.
It is an object of the invention to provide an apparatus, which eliminates said drawbacks of the prior art. To this end the apparatus of the present invention comprises an article-carrying plate, said article-carrying plate having a top side and a bottom side, a plurality of wells being formed in said top side for receiving therein a respective article to be coated, each of said wells communicating, via a respective orifice, with a space below said bottom side, said orifices having each a cross-sectional flow area that is smaller than the cross-sectional area of each well; a base plate having an upper surface defining with said bottom side of said article-carrying plate a distribution chamber for receiving and evenly distributing to said orifices a solution containing the coating substance to be applied to said articles, said base plate having an inlet for supplying said solution to said chamber; and a top plate covering said top side of the article-carrying plate and defining therewith a collection chamber for receiving used solution having been flown through said orifices and wells, said top plate having an outlet for discharging said used solution.
In order to multiply the coating capacity of the apparatus a plurality of said article-carrying plates are stacked upon one another.
A further object of the invention is to provide a process for coating a plurality of articles in batches, in particular for applying a biocompatible layer on articles adapted to come into contact with blood or body tissue, said process comprising the steps of: loading at least one article-carrying plate, having a plurality of article-receiving wells, with articles to be coated; supplying a solution containing the substance to be applied to the articles to a distribution chamber upstream of and communicating with said wells of the article-carrying plate; feeding said solution in parallel vertical flows through said wells to apply a coating of said substance on the articles; and removing the articles from the wells of said article-carrying plate after completion of the coating of said articles. Preferably, to increase the coating capacity the process comprises the step of feeding said solution in parallel vertical flows through the wells of a plurality of said article-carrying plates stacked one upon the other.
Other features and particulars of the apparatus and process of the present invention will be clear from the following description and claims together with the accompanying drawings.

Apparatus and process for coating articles


A turbomachine including: a combustion chamber, with a fuel injection device in the combustion chamber; a supply mechanism supplying fuel to the fuel injection device; a mechanism determining instantaneous variation of fuel flow rate of the supply mechanism; and a regulation mechanism regulating the fuel flow rate of the injection device according to the instantaneous variation of the fuel flow rate of the supply mechanism determined by the determination mechanism.

A privileged supply system is known from document U.S. Pat. No. 6,857,272. This privileged supply system operates on the basis of predetermined operating ranges depending on the flow rate of the fuel, in which privileged injection is either enabled or not.
However, such a system has the drawback of being enabled even for operating conditions for which this is not necessary. Indeed, there exist steady state operating conditions with a low fuel flow rate which do not have any risk of extinction, wherein the privileged supply is enabled even when this is not necessary. In this case, a hot trail forms, which may in certain extreme cases ovalize the turbine rings.

Turbomachine comprising a privileged injection device and corresponding injection method