A bypass duct has a support unit comprising a pair of aerofoils arranged as an “A” frame. A bleed duct assembly is provided on the radially inner wall of the bypass duct annulus and the aerofoils project from the surface and extend across the annulus between the inner wall and an outer wall of the annulus. The aerofoils lean at an acute angle to the surface with the first flank facing toward the inner wall and adjoining a bleed duct opening. The bleed duct having a bleed duct passage and a submerged scoop.

Modern gas turbines are provided with an engine core comprising a compressor, combustor and turbine section and a surrounding annular bypass duct through which an air flow is guided by a fan. The bypass duct is limited by a radially inner wall and by a radially outer wall. Between the inner wall and the outer wall of the bypass duct, a support unit is provided that includes strut-like support elements connected at one end to the inner wall and at the other end to the outer wall.
FIG. 1 depicts a ducted fan gas turbine engine generally indicated at 10 which comprises, in axial flow series, an air intake 1, a propulsive fan 12, an intermediate pressure compressor 7, a high pressure compressor 9, combustion equipment 115, a high pressure turbine 116, an intermediate pressure turbine 117, a low pressure turbine 118 and an exhaust nozzle 119.
Air entering the air intake 8 is accelerated by the fan 12 to produce two air flows, a first air flow 11 into the intermediate pressure compressor 7 and a second air flow 10 that passes over the outer surface of the engine casing 12 and through a bypass duct 2 which provides propulsive thrust. The intermediate pressure compressor 7 compresses the air flow directed into it before delivering the air to the high pressure compressor 9 where further compression takes place.
Compressed air exhausted from the high pressure compressor 9 is directed into the combustion equipment 115, where it is mixed with fuel that is injected from a fuel injector and the mixture combusted. The resultant hot combustion products expand through and thereby drive the high 116, intermediate 117 and low pressure 118 turbines before being exhausted through the nozzle 119 to provide additional propulsive thrust. The high, intermediate and low pressure turbines respectively drive the high and intermediate pressure compressors and the fan by suitable interconnecting shafts.
In the bypass duct 2, several fan outlet guide vanes 13 are arranged downstream of the fan 9 which reduce or remove a twist in the flow of the bypass flow 10. In addition, supports 14a or 14b are provided downstream of the fan outlet guide vanes 13, bracing the inner wall 3 and the outer wall 4 against one another. In addition to the supports 14, the engine can have further support structures called bifurcations 15 through which lines are routed for supplying the jet engine device 1 or an airframe of an aircraft provided with the jet engine device 1. The position of the support 14a is the position typically used within large or medium civil gas turbines. The position of the support 14b is that typically used in smaller, business jet type applications. The general structure and form of the supports is the same for each and will be discussed in common as reference 14 in the rest of the specification.
Depending on the specific application, it is also possible for the bifurcations 15 to be arranged in the same cross-sectional plane as the supports 14.
The support unit 14 includes strut-like aerofoil support elements 17 to 20 shown in more detail in FIG. 2 and connected at one end to the inner wall 3 and at the other end to the outer wall 4. The aerofoils 17 to 20 of each support element each describe an acute angle 17E, 18E, 19E and 20E between the circumferentially outward facing flanks 17C, 18C, 19C and 20C and the radially outer wall of the bypass duct 4. The aerofoils 17 to 20 of each support element also each describe an acute angle 17F, 18F, 19F and 20F between the circumferentially inward facing flanks 17D, 18D, 19D and 20D and the radially inner wall of the bypass duct 3.
Each support unit comprises two aerofoils 17 and 18 or 19 and 20, respectively that are connected in a manner forming an A-arrangement to the inner wall 3 and to the outer wall 4 in the manner shown in more detail in FIG. 2 and form so-called A-frames of the support unit 14. The "A" tapering as the support unit progresses radially outwards. The facing flanks of each aerofoil pair describing an acute angle with the radially inner wall of the bypass duct.
The aerofoils 17 and 18 or 19 and 20, respectively, representing A-frames level in the bypass duct 2 with a duct height H in order to transmit engine loads acting in the area of the engine core 12 outwards in the direction of the outer wall 4. The aerofoils 17 and 18 or 19 and 20, respectively, assigned to one another in pairs form the support units and are, depending on the specific application, arranged relative to one another at a defined acute angle 17F, 18F or 19F, 20F, respectively, and at a distance D defined in the circumferential direction.
The acute angle of the aerofoil flanks to the radially inner and outer walls causes an increase in the velocity of the air which subsequently interacts with the main flow boundary layer and causes wakes to form which add to the pressure loss through the bypass duct and can take energy from the bulk flow. The lost energy reduces the overall efficiency of the gas turbine engine and reduces the engine performance.
In many conventional engines an offtake is provided in the by-pass duct to supply cool air for proper functioning of the engine and its units. The offtakes are separated from the aerofoils and also generate wakes as shown in FIG. 3 and therefore also generate further pressure loss in the by-pass duct.
FIG. 4 depicts the static pressure of the bypass flow 10 for the arrangement of FIG. 3. The bulk pressure has a region 30 where the pressure is relatively constant. At the leading edge of the support unit there are regions of lower static pressure 32 and similar regions of lower static pressure 34, 36 can be seen at boundary layers of the radially inner wall 3 and the radially outer wall 4 respectively.
The regions of lowest static pressure 38, 40 are found where the aerofoils of the A frame form an acute angle with the radially inner 3 and the radially outer 4 wall of the bypass duct. These regions can be significant and can cause significant wakes to form that reduce the efficiency of the gas turbine engine. The wakes are formed in part by the acute angle that the aerofoil forms to the duct wall and which causes an increase in the velocity of the air that goes on to interact with the main flow boundary layer. The wakes generate an area of increased loss in the by-pass duct flow and a reduction in engine performance.
It is an object of the present invention to seek to provide an arrangement having an improved efficiency.

Bleed duct assembly for a gas turbine engine


A curvature sensing device 10 comprising, a first fiber Bragg grating (FBG) strain sensor 12, a second FBG strain sensor 14, a flexible piece comprising two end pieces 16, 18 joined by a tubular mid-section 20. The device 10 further comprises 16 contact rollers 22 provided on the internal surfaces of the end pieces 16, 18, which maintain the end pieces 16, 18 tangential to a pipe around which the device 10 is located. The FBG strain sensors 12, 14 are embedded within the mid-section 20 and are arranged in two generally orthogonal planes, so that the curvature is measured in two dimensions. This enables the device 10 to detect both the magnitude and direction of bending/curvature within a pipe. Bending in a pipe is transferred through the end pieces 16, 18 to the mid-section 20. The FBG sensors 12, 14 measure bending of the mid-section 20 from which bending of the pipe can be inferred.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an elongate structure curvature sensing device.
2. Description of Related Art
Current pipe survey methods included position measurement using remotely operated vehicles (ROV) or autonomous underwater vehicles with acoustic positioning technology based on the time of flight of sound pulsed through water. Other methods include side-scan sonar from an ROV or a vessel. All of these techniques obtain a measurement of the pipe position at a number of locations. When deriving bending stress from the position information, the high level of noise on the position measurement equates to a very high level of noise on the derived bending measurement and it is widely known that position measurement can not be used to provide accurate measurements of bending in installed pipelines.
Other techniques to measure the stresses in installed pipelines include intelligent pigs, devices with measurement capability that are sent along the inside of the pipeline. Pigs with instruments to measure acceleration have been used to try an measure bending stresses and shapes of pipelines, but again processing acceleration measurements to obtain bending stresses generates significant errors.

Elongate structure curvature sensing device


A cellulose derivative which has a suitable elastic modulus and viscosity when it is dissolved in water and is useful as an adhesion barrier.

The adhesion of a living tissue occurs through its bonding to another tissue when the surface of a damaged organ is regenerated. Therefore, various adhesion barriers comprising a polysaccharide such as cellulose which is a biocompatible material are proposed to prevent adhesion after an operation.
For example, an adhesion barrier which is an aqueous solution of carboxymethyl cellulose is proposed (Am J Surg. 169, 154-159 (1995)). However, this adhesion barrier cannot exhibit an adhesion inhibition effect to the full due to its low retention properties in vivo.
Therefore, many attempts are being made to modify a polysaccharide by various methods or make it water-insoluble.
For example, adhesion barriers prepared by modifying hyaluronic acid and carboxymethyl cellulose with carbodiimide are proposed (JP-A 5-508161, JP-A 6-508169, Fertil Steril. 66. 904-910 (1996), J Am Coll Surg. 183, 297-306 (1996)). An adhesion barrier comprising a cellulose derivative obtained by substituting the hydrogen atom of cellulose with a specific substituent is further proposed (JP-A 1-301624). It is also proposed to use a composite material of carboxymethyl cellulose and a polyether as an adhesion barrier (U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,906,997, 6,017,301, 6,034,140). It is further proposed to use a cellulose derivative prepared by making soluble cellulose hardly soluble in water through an acid treatment as an adhesion barrier (WO01/34214 pamphlet). JP-A 2004-51531 proposes an adhesion barrier containing carboxymethyl cellulose which had been made hardly soluble in water. The adhesion barrier is substantially in a sponge or film form.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,064,817 discloses a reaction for obtaining a phospholipase A2 inhibitor composition by reacting carboxymethyl cellulose having a low molecular weight and phosphatidylethanolamine in a water solvent.
Not relating to an adhesion barrier, as means of chemically crosslinking a polysaccharide, it is proposed that carboxymethyl cellulose should be crosslinked by glyoxal (JP-A 10-251447). Further, a composition prepared by mixing carboxymethyl cellulose with a polyvalent metal ion is proposed (JP-A 63-37143). It is also proposed that hyaluronic acid should be crosslinked by bisepoxide (JP-A 7-97401). It is further proposed that hyaluronic acid should be crosslinked by divinyl sulfone (U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,582,865, 4,605,691). It is further proposed that hyaluronic acid should be crosslinked by formaldehyde or divinyl sulfone (JP-A 60-130601). JP-A 2003-518167 discloses a water-insoluble biocompatible gel prepared by reacting a polyanionic polysaccharide with an activator in an aqueous solution containing a water-compatible organic solvent and gives carboxymethyl cellulose as an example of the polyanionic polysaccharide.
All of the above proposals still have room to study as for adhesion preventing effect, handling properties and safety.

Abstract: The cellulose derivative has a molecular weight of 5×103 to 5×106 and is composed of a repeating unit represented by the following formula (1):

Abstract: wherein R1, R2 and R3 are each independently selected from the group consisting of the following formulas (a), (b), (c) and (d) in predetermined amount:

Abstract: (X in the formula (c) is an alkali metal, and R4 and R5 in the formula (d) are each independently an alkyl group or alkenyl group having 10 to 28 carbon atoms).


A simplified method and device for sensing water level is disclosed. In particular applications the invention may be used for activating a fill valve or other control circuitry in order to maintain an average level in a reservoir or provide notification of a low fluid level. By incorporating a standard rectifier circuit as a biasing network for a solid-state circuit control driver on one side of a probe network, the level of the water may be determined when contact is made with the probes. AC current drawn across metallic probes provides a DC bias at the output of the rectifier that may be incorporated into various control circuits.

The present invention pertains to devices and methods for maintaining water level in a reservoir. Sensing water level in reservoirs of varying styles and application has been an important need in many industries. The need to ensure that a fluid remains at a set level within these reservoirs makes it necessary to economically sense when the level has dropped below the prescribed setting and provide a means to activate a filling mechanism to return the fluid to its proper level or activate an alarm or other control functions.
There are many methods in the prior art for sensing level, yet many are expensive and difficult to apply. Probes of varying shapes and size have predominantly been used as a means to sense water level because of their simplicity of manufacture and relative ease of use. However, the circuitry needed to integrate the probes to provide control capabilities can become intricate and expensive.
As direct current (DC) causes corrosive breakdown of the probe material due to electrolysis, alternating current is typically used to minimize the effects of electrolysis.
With this in mind, prior art devices have incorporated the aforementioned probes in conjunction with expensive current sensing devices that use magnetic field sensing, optics, logic matrices, or capacitance networks to induce a secondary indicator signal to activate the control circuitry. What is needed is a simple and inexpensive device to sense water levels and enable control of water flow devices using direct current electrical power.

Simplified method and device for sensing water level in a reservoir


A smooth surfaced, inelastic, flexible, belt-like strip for recording electrocardiograms having a series of six separate precordial electrodes, three fixed and three being independently movable leads with electrodes and movable within a fixed range insuring proper placement on the patient's chest or precordium during usage, the S-shape of the belt-like strip enables it to cover the proper recording areas. The fixed, electrodes, which are raised and compressible, maintain contact with patients' chests despite variations in chest size among patients. The apparatus is attached around the chest with an adjustable elastic strap providing a constant and evenly distributed downward force holding it and the precordial contacts, which are between the strip and patient's chest, in place. Internal lead wires attach at the sides of the precordial belt-like strip with electrodes placed on each arm via external lead wires. The internal lead wires from the precordial electrodes and from the left and right arm electrodes are inside or on the outside surface of the belt-like strip and emerge therefrom at one place to form a main cable which connects to an electrocardiograph machine. Two additional wire leads from electrodes on each leg enter the main cable to transmit signals from each lower limb electrode to the electrocardiograph machine. This device is reusable for many patients, easily cleaned and designed for use with a variety of body habitus.

1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to a new, practical belt-type apparatus containing therein lead wires for measuring the electrical activity of the heart of a patient when used with an electrocardiograph machine. It is attached to a patient and is useful for taking electrocardiograms instead of the conventional individual wires attached to the patient, one at a time, in order to take an electrocardiogram.
An electrocardiogram, generally referred to as an ECG or an EKG, is a visual display of the electrical activity of the heart. Electrocardiograms are accepted in the field of medicine, particularly cardiology, to be of great value in the diagnosis and management of patients with heart disease, undergoing surgery, in distress for other medical reasons and undergoing routine physical examinations to establish a baseline record of the heart's electrical activity. In cases where a permanent record is desired, the EKG is usually recorded by an electrocardiograph machine on paper made specially for that purpose.
The most commonly performed electrocardiogram is called a "twelve-lead EKG" although it is made with only 10 separate lead wires attached to electrodes that are attached to the body of the patient. Six of the electrodes are attached to the patient's chest at certain known recording zones over the heart. They and their attached lead wires are referred to as the "precordial" electrodes and leads, respectively. Four other wires and their attached electrodes are commonly referred to as the "limb" leads and electrodes, respectively. Each limb of the patient has one limb lead and its electrode attached thereto over commonly accepted recording zones. Such electrodes must be applied one at a time and in the particular case of the precordial electrodes must be placed in the proper sequence over the proper recording area for each lead. In addition, the two arm leads must not be reversed in order to avoid obtaining a faulty EKG tracing (this is not critical for the leg leads). Because of the great number of separate leads and their length, problems with conventional devices often arise, e.g., the wire leads frequently get entangled during normal usage resulting in time delays to perform the next EKG and wires are mistakenly placed over the wrong recording area of the body leading to inaccurate readings that require repeating the test or else untoward errors in patient care and management may result. These events may not only place the patient in potential harm, but also waste the time of the patient, performing technician, and attending physician, thus adding to the cost of medical care.
Conventional precordial EKG electrodes are applied to the body with either suction cups or self-adhesive disposable electrodes. Both devices are prone to falling off, for example, when the patient has large pectoral muscles, is large breasted and/or their chest is hairy, sweaty, and/or the test is performed with the patient partly or completely sitting up. Such circumstances generally lead to additional delay in performing the test. In addition, the reusable suction cups may become unsightly or unsanitary through use particularly when employed in a high volume patient setting such as an emergency room.
2. Prior Art
The prior art reveals several alternative devices for recording EKGs. Mills et al. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,121,575 and 4,202,433 teach embedding the precordial electrodes in an elastic strip held down by weights at both ends. However, the entire device is not contoured to accommodate patients with large pectoral muscles or breasts nor can it accommodate those who cannot lie completely flat during the test. The greatest interpersonal variability in the distances between patients' precordial recording zones occurs laterally because of the downward curvature of the chest approaching the left flank. Mills et al. fail to take this variabiity into account by fixing the positions of V4, V5 and V6 thus limiting the variety of chest sizes with which it may be used. In addition, weights applied at both ends will tend to lift the centermost electrodes off the chest leading to incomplete recordings from one or more of the central precordial electrodes. Further, neither of the Mills et al. patents describe recording signals from any of the limb leads.
Arkans, U.S. Pat. No. 4,328,814, describes a precordial strip of six electrodes that are self-adhesive and adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of body habitus'. In addition, the entire device is removably attached to a particular plug from an EKG machine. As with conventional precordial electrodes, the adhesive may not properly stick to patients' precordiums for the reasons described above. In addition, the adhesive electrodes are not reusable and the device does not record signals from the limb leads.
Rubin, U.S. Pat. No. 4,854,323, like Mills et al., describes placing the precordial electrodes in a fixed sequence to avoid electrode reversals. In addition, all six of the electrodes are freely movable along a shapable track to accommodate a variety of body habitus'. However, since there is little or no downward pressure exerted on the chest throughout the normal respiratory cycle, all of the precordial electrodes may not be in simultaneous contact with the chest during recording due to the stiffness of the tube and/or stylet. Further, there are no fixed distances between the locations of any of the precordial leads. This might decrease the intrapersonal reproducibility of the EKG as all precordial electrodes are freely movable. Similar to Arkans, all of the leads exit the device in a cable ending in a plug making for easy attachment to an EKG device. Rubin's invention is intended to be reusable, yet the complex shapes of its parts hinder easy cleaning between patient use. Finally, the disclosed device also does not record signals from the limb leads.
Groeger et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,957,109, as in the Mills et al. and Arkans teachings, does not disclose significant interpersonal variation in the distances between the lateral precordial recording zones. However, adjustments can be made between patients of various sizes by making kinks in the flexible conductors. The electrodes are attached to the body by an electrically conductive adhesive that is similar to conventional methods using disposable electrodes. The adhesive used may not properly stick to patients' precordiums resulting in poor EKG tracings for the reasons described above. The Groeger et al. device may be used with the wireless telemetry device described in the patent or hard wired to provide automatic or continuous EKG monitoring. In addition, its parts are only partly reusable after each patient.
There is, therefore, a need for an EKG signal recording device that at once provides an accurate, effective, efficient, hygienic, and reusable means of recording EKG's.

Apparatus and method for measuring electrical activity of heart


A pressure compensated flow control valve including a body member having an axial bore extending to a closed end and a number of radially aligned ports formed near the closed end. A cylindrical spool is disposed within the axial bore and is movable between a controlled flow position where the spool extends over a portion of the radial ports and a reverse flow position where the radial ports are unobstructed. An orifice formed in an end plate of the spool is sized to allow a predetermined flow rate.

Known pressure compensated flow control valves are of complicated designs, including valve bodies having intricate interconnecting bores of varying diameters and including numerous component parts. These complicated designs result in high machining and assembly costs and a physically bulky structure.
Those concerned with these and other problems recognize the need for an improved flow control valve.


A system for printing an image on a surface includes a robot, a printhead having a reference line printing mechanism, and a reference line sensor. The robot has at least one arm. The printhead is mounted to the arm and is movable by the arm over a surface along a rastering path while printing a new image slice on the surface. The reference line printing mechanism is configured to print a reference line on the surface when printing the new image slice. The reference line sensor is configured to sense the reference line of an existing image slice and transmit a signal to the robot causing the arm to adjust the printhead in a manner such that a side edge of the new image slice is aligned with the side edge of the existing image slice.

The painting of an aircraft is a relatively challenging and time-consuming process due to the wide range of dimensions, the unique geometry, and the large amount of surface area on an aircraft. For example, the wings protruding from the fuselage can interfere with the painting process. The height of the vertical tail above the horizontal tail can present challenges in accessing the exterior surfaces of the vertical tail. Adding to the time required to paint an aircraft are complex paint schemes that may be associated with an aircraft livery. In this regard, the standard livery of an airline may include images or designs with complex geometric shapes and color combinations and may include the name and logo of the airline which may be applied to different locations of the aircraft such as the fuselage, the vertical tail, and the engine nacelles.
Conventional methods of painting an aircraft require multiple steps of masking, painting, and demasking. For applying an aircraft livery with multiple colors, it may be necessary to perform the steps of masking, painting, and demasking for each color in the livery and which may add to the overall amount of time required to paint the aircraft. In addition, the aircraft livery must be applied in a precise manner to avoid gaps that may otherwise expose a typically-white undercoat which may detract from the overall appearance of the aircraft. Furthermore, the process of applying paint to the aircraft surfaces must be carried out with a high level of control to ensure an acceptable level of coating thickness to meet performance (e.g., weight) requirements.
As can be seen, there exists a need in the art for a system and method for painting an aircraft including applying complex and/or multi-colored images in a precise, cost-effective, and timely manner.

Automated system and method for printing images on a surface


A temporary door hardware system comprising a first side component configured to be exposed from a side of a door when the temporary door hardware system is installed in the door, a second side component attachable to the first side component and configured to be exposed from another side of the door when the temporary door hardware system is installed in the door, a latch assembly securable between the first and second side component when the components are installed in the door, wherein the latch assembly is dimensioned for integration with an opening in an door frame, wherein the latch assembly includes a spring bias configured to extend the latch assembly into the opening and retract the latch assembly from the opening, wherein the spring bias allows the latch assembly to retract from the opening when a threshold force is exerted on the door is provided.

In the construction industry, temporary door hardware such as locks, stops or handles are typically placed on the doors of buildings that are undergoing construction. This temporary door hardware is configured to prevent the door from opening and closing in the wind, causing potential damage to the door and to the interior of the building being constructed. Further, in some instances, temporary door hardware may prevent unwanted people from entering into the building being constructed at night. In large construction buildings, such as multi-floor apartment buildings or commercial office buildings, there are hundreds or even thousands of doors that require temporary hardware. This hardware is often expensive and made of metal. Due to the expense, contractors must generally find a place to store the hardware until the next construction project.
Thus, it would be well received in the art to have less costly door hardware that is specifically configured to be temporary and/or disposable after use.


A metal surface on which a phosphate conversion coating is to be formed and which has been surface conditioned by contact with a liquid surface conditioner composition that contains dispersed fine particles of solid phosphate of at least one divalent or trivalent cations type and an adhesion promoting agent. After such conditioning, a very high quality conversion coating can be formed on the surface by contact with a nickel-free liquid phosphating composition that contains at least acid, zinc cations, and phosphate anions and optionally and preferably also contains other materials.

This invention relates to processes for the phosphate conversion treatment of metals wherein said processes employ a nickel ion-free phosphate conversion treatment bath and produce a uniform, strongly paint-adherent, and highly post-painting corrosion-resistant coating on such metals as steel sheet, zinc-plated steel sheet, aluminum alloys, and magnesium alloys.
Phosphate conversion treatments are currently executed as a pre-paint treatment on automotive body components in order to enhance corrosion resistance and improve the steel sheet-to-paint adherence. In these phosphate conversion treatments, the metal is first brought into contact with a colloidal titanium surface conditioning bath and is then brought into contact with an acidic solution containing phosphate ions, zinc ions, nickel ions, and manganese ions in order to precipitate a phosphate coating on the metal.
However, in association with today""s heightened concern with environmental protection, the regulatory situation with regard to nickel in wastewater has become increasingly stringent, particularly in Europe. It is certainly prudent to anticipate that regulations on nickel in wastewater might also become much more demanding in other countries in the future. These considerations make it desirable to eliminate the nickel from the conversion treatment baths used in zinc phosphate treatments.
Unfortunately, a number of negative effects are caused by removal of the nickel from many phosphate treatment baths used in the aforementioned phosphate treatment processes: The crystals in the phosphate coating undergo coarsening: the phosphate coating suffers from a loss of uniformity, the post-painting corrosion resistance declines, and the secondary (water-resistant) adherence of paint to zinc-plated material also declines,
Japanese Laid Open Patent Application (PCT) Number Hei 7-505445 (505,445/1995) teaches a nickel-free phosphate treatment process in order to solve the problems referenced above. This treatment process involves formation of a nickel-free phosphate coating by treatment with a phosphate conversion bath containing 0.2 to 2 grams of zinc ions per liter of bath (this unit of concentration being freely used hereinafter for any constituent of any liquid and being usually abbreviated as xe2x80x9cg/lxe2x80x9d), 0.5 to 25 milligrams of copper ions per liter, and 5 to 30 g/l phosphate ions. This process uses copper as a substitute metal for nickel, but still suffers from several problems. Since the allowable copper level in this conversion treatment bath is so very low, management of the copper concentration in real-world lines is exceedingly difficult. Another concern is with electrolytic corrosion of the equipment accompanied by displacement copper plating on parts of the equipment.
Given this background, there is a desire for development of a phosphate conversion treatment process that does not use nickel but nevertheless affords a post-painting adherence and post-painting corrosion resistance that are the equal of those afforded by existing phosphate conversion treatments that use nickel. One major object of this invention is to provide a phosphate conversion treatment process that treats metal surfaces with a nickel-free conversion treatment bath and produces a phosphate conversion coating that evidences an excellent post-painting corrosion resistance and excellent paint adherence.
It has been found that most or all of the problems caused by the removal of nickel from previous phosphating treatments can be eliminated by using a surface conditioning composition that contains very fine, dispersed solid phosphate particles.
More specifically, a process according to the invention for forming a phosphate conversion on a metal substrate surface comprises, preferably consists essentially of, or more preferably consists of the following operations:
(I) contacting the metal substrate surface with an aqueous liquid surface conditioning composition (hereinafter for brevity often called a xe2x80x9cbathxe2x80x9d without intending any implication that it must be contacted with the metal substrate by immersion of the metal substrate in a volume of the aqueous liquid surface conditioning composition) that comprises, preferably consists essentially of, or more preferably consists of, water and the following components:
(I.A) dispersed solid phosphate particles that:
(i) have a diameter no greater than 5 micrometres, this unit of length being hereinafter usually abbreviated as xe2x80x9cxcexcmxe2x80x9d; and
(ii) comprise, preferably consist essentially of, or more preferably consist of, at least one substance selected from the group consisting of phosphates that contain at least one divalent or trivalent metal cation; and
(I.B) as adhesion-promoting component, at least one selection from the group consisting of the following subgroups:
(1) monosaccharides, polysaccharides, and derivatives thereof;
(2) phosphorus containing solutes selected from the group consisting of orthophosphoric acid, condensed phosphoric acids, and organophosphonic acid compounds;
(3) water-soluble polymers that are homopolymers or copolymers of vinyl acetate and derivatives of these homopolymers and copolymers; and
(4) copolymers and polymers as afforded by the polymerization of:
(a) at least one selection from:
monomers, exclusive of vinyl acetate, that conform to general chemical formula (I):
xe2x80x83where R1=H or CH3 and R2=H, C1 to C5 alkyl or C1 to C5 hydroxyalkyl; and
other xcex1,xcex2-unsaturated carboxylic acid monomers; and, optionally,
(b) not more than 50 % by weight of monomers that are not vinyl acetate and are not within the description of part (a) immediately above but are copolymerizable with said monomers that are within the description of said part (a); and
(II) contacting the metal substrate surface as conditioned in operation (I) as described above with a nickel-free phosphate conversion treatment bath that comprises, preferably consists essentially of, or more preferably consists of water and the following amounts of the following components:
(II.A) from 0.5 to 5 g/l of zinc cations;
(II.B) from 5 to 30 g/l of phosphate ions; and
(II.C) a component of conversion accelerator.
In a preferred embodiment, the above-specified conversion treatment baths also contain from 0.1 to 3.0 g/l of at least one type of metal containing ions selected from the group consisting of magnesium ions, cobalt ions, manganese ions, calcium ions, tungstate ions, and strontium ions.
The features of this invention are explained in greater detail hereinbelow. Whenever a group of materials from which a constituent can be selected is specified, whether by a specific list, use of generic chemical terms, and/or conformance to a general chemical formula, any two or more of the group may be selected instead of a single member with equal preference unless explicitly stated otherwise.
While no particular limitations apply to the metal on which the inventive phosphate-treatment process may be executed, this metal is preferably steel sheet, zinc-plated steel sheet, zinc alloy-plated steel sheet, magnesium alloy, or aluminum alloy.
It is preferred in the practice of the invention that the metal substrate surface be clean prior to the phosphate conversion treatment. Metal whose surface is already clean can be brought without further treatment into contact with the surface conditioning bath. However, in the case of treatment of metal whose surface is contaminated with adherent materials such as iron particles, dust, and oil, the contaminants adhering on the surface should be removed by cleaning, for example, by cleaning with a water-based alkaline degreaser or an emulsion degreaser or by solvent degreasing. When a water-based cleaner is used, the cleaning bath remaining on the metal surface is preferably removed by the provision of, for example, a water rinse step after the cleaning step.
At least some of the particles of divalent and/or trivalent metal phosphate present in a surface conditioning bath in a process according to the invention must have a particle size or diameter no greater than 5 xcexcm. (Insolubles of larger size are undesirable becausexe2x80x94depending on the particular circumstancesxe2x80x94they often cannot be stably maintained in the aqueous bath.) These phosphate particles are believed to function as nuclei during phosphate crystal deposition and also to promote the deposition reaction itself, by undergoing partial dissolution in the phosphate conversion treatment bath and inducing a substantial acceleration of the initial phosphate crystal deposition reactions by supplying one or more main components of the phosphate crystals to the region immediately adjacent to the metal surface.
The divalent and trivalent metals used here are not critical, but preferably comprise at least one selection from Zn, Fe, Mn, Co, Ca, Mg, and Al. The divalent and/or trivalent metal phosphate particles are preferably present at a concentration from 0.001 to 30 g/l. Acceleration of the initial phosphate crystal deposition reactions does not normally occur at a divalent and/or trivalent metal phosphate particle concentration below 0.001 g/l due to the small amount of divalent and/or trivalent metal phosphate particles that become adsorbed on the metal surface at such low concentrations. Concentrations below 0.001 g/l also prevent acceleration of the crystal deposition reactions due to the small number of divalent and/or trivalent metal phosphate particles available to act as crystal nuclei. Divalent and/or trivalent metal phosphate particle concentrations in excess of 30 g/l cannot be expected to provide additional promotion of the phosphate conversion reactions and hence will be uneconomical.
The adhesion-promoting component that must be present in the inventive surface conditioning bath functions to improve the dispersion stability of the divalent and/or trivalent metal phosphate particles and to accelerate adsorption of the divalent and/or trivalent metal phosphate particles onto the metal surface. More specifically, the adhesion promoting component is believed to adsorb on the surface of the divalent and/or trivalent metal phosphate particles and, through a steric hindrance activity and repulsive forces arising from its electrical charge, to prevent collisions among the divalent and/or trivalent metal phosphate particles in the surface conditioning bath and thereby inhibit their aggregation and sedirmentation. In addition, due to its structure, the adhesion-promotng component itself is believed to have an ability to adsorb to metal surfaces and thereby to accelerate adsorption to metal surfaces by the divalent and/or trivalent metal phosphate particles, so that the surface conditioning activity. manifests upon contact between the metal workpiece and surface conditioning bath.
The adhesion-promoting component concentration is preferably from 1 to 2,000 parts by weight of the adhesion promoting component per 1000 parts by weight of the total conditioning composition, this unit of concentration being hereinafter usually abbreviated as xe2x80x9cppmxe2x80x9d. At concentrations below 1 ppm a surface conditioning activity can not usually be produced just by contact between the metal workpiece and the surface conditioning bath. Not only can no additional benefit be expected at concentrations in excess of 2,000 ppm, but such concentrations can impair the phosphate conversion coating formed, perhaps as a result of excessive adsorption of the adhesion promoting component on the metal substrate surface.
A saccharide type of adhesion-promoting component for the surface conditioning operation in a process according to the invention may be exemplified by fructose, tagatose, psicose, sorbose, erythrose, threose, ribose, arabinose, xylose, lyxose, allose, altrose, glucose, mannose, gulose, idose, galactose, talose, and the sodium and ammonium salts of all of these saccharides.
A phosphorus containing acid type of adhesion-promoting component in the surface conditioning process is exemplified by orthophosphoric acid, polyphosphoric acids, and organophosphonic acid compounds, or more individually by pyrophosphoric acid, triphosphoric acid, trimetaphosphoric acid, tetrametaphosphoric acid, hexametaphosphoric acid, aminotrimethylenephosphonic acid, 1-hydrbxyethylidene-1,1-diphosphonic acid, ethylenediaminetetramethylenephosphonic acid, diethylenetriaminepentamethylenephosphonic acid, and the sodium and ammonium salts of all of the preceding acids. Sodium salts are preferred for the organophosphonic acids if they are to be used in salt form.
Polymeric adhesion promoting components derived from polyvinylacetate in a surface conditioning operation in a process according to the invention are exemplified by polyvinyl alcohols afforded by the hydrolysis of vinyl acetate polymers, cyanoethylated polyvinyl alcohols afforded by the cyanoethylation of polyvinyl alcohol with acrylonitrile, formalated polyvinyl alcohols afforded by the acetalation of polyvinyl alcohol with formaldehyde, urethanized polyvinyl alcohols afforded by the urethanation of polyvinyl alcohol with urea, and water-soluble polymers afforded by the introduction of carboxyl moieties, sulfonic moieties, or amide moieties into polyvinyl alcohol. Suitable vinyl acetate-copolymerizable monomers are exemplified by acrylic acid, crotonic acid, and maleic anhydride. The effects associated with the present invention will be fully manifested as long as the vinyl acetate polymer or derivative thereof or the copolymer of vinyl acetate and vinyl acetate-copolymerizable monomer is soluble in water. Within this limitation, these effects are independent of the degree of polymerization and the degree of functional group introduction of the subject polymers.
Suitable monomers for other polymeric adhesion promoting components for the surface conditioning operation are exemplifed by: methyl acrylate, ethyl acrylate, propyl acrylate, butyl acrylate, pentyl acrylate, hydroxymethyl acrylate, hydroxyethyl acrylate, hydroxypropyl acrylate, hydroxybutyl acrylate, hydroxypentyl acrylate, hydroxymethyl methacrylate, hydroxyethyl methacrylate, hydroxypropyl methacrylate, hydroxybutyl methacrylate, and hydroxypentyl methacrylate as examples of polymers according to formula (I); acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, and maleic acid as unsaturated adds; and styrene, vinyl chloride, and vinylsulfonic acid as optional comonomers.
A surface conditioning bath used by the inventive phosphate treatment processes can also optionally contain an alkali metal salt or ammonium salt or a mixture thereof, selected from the group consisting of orthophosphate salts, metaphosphate salts, orthosilicate salts, metasilicate salts, carbonate salts, bicarbonate salts, nitrate salts, nitrite salts, sulfate salts, borate salts, organic acid salts, and combinations of two or more selections from the aforesaid alkali metal and ammonium salts. The concentration of this component is not critical, but when used is preferably from 0.5 to 20 g/l. The surface conditioning bath may also contain a surfactant to promote uniform wetting of the surface being treated.
The phosphate conversion treatment process of this invention will now be considered in greater detail. A zinc ions concentration below 0.5 g/l, because it can prevent the formation of a coating of acceptable weight and can result in a diminished coverage ratio by the deposited phosphate crystals, can produce an inadequate post-painting corrosion resistance. A zinc ions concentration in excess of 5.0 g/l can cause a coarsening of the coating crystals, resulting in particular in a decline in the post-painting adherence. The use of a phosphate ions concentration below 5.0 g/l strongly impairs the production of a normal conversion coating. Concentrations in excess of 30.0 g/l are uneconomical since they provide no additional effect. Phosphate ions can be supplied by the addition of phosphoric acid or its aqueous solution to the phosphate conversion treatment bath or by the dissolution of, for example, sodium, magnesium, or zinc phosphate in the phosphate conversion treatment bath.
The conversion treatment bath also contains a component known as a xe2x80x9cconversion acceleratorxe2x80x9d or simply xe2x80x9cacceleratorxe2x80x9d. The accelerator acts to restrain gaseous hydrogen production during etching, an action sometimes called xe2x80x9cdepolarizingxe2x80x9d the metal substrate surface. Otherwise, however, no particular limitations apply to the accelerator; and any material or combination of materials recognized as a conversion accelerator in prior art may be used.
The phosphate conversion treatment bath of this invention can also contain from 0.1 to 3.0 g/l of at least one type of metal containing ions selected from the group consisting of magnesium cations, cobalt cations, manganese cations, calcium cations, tungstate anions, and strontium cations. The presence of this component in the phosphate conversion treatment bath, through its incorporation into the phosphate coating and through its precipitation in a form separate from the phosphate, provides additional performance enhancements in the post-painting corrosion resistance and post-painting adherence, respectively. The use of a concentration below 0.1 g/l usually does not effect any improvement in painting performance. A concentration above 3.0 g/l is economically wasteful, since no additional improvements in painting performance usually results; a high concentration can actually hinder deposition of the zinc phosphate that is the main component of an effectively protective conversion coating produced according to this invention. The source of one of the types of metal cations can be, for example, an oxide, hydroxide, carbonate, sulfate, nitrate, or phosphate of the particular metal. The source of tungstate can be, for example, the sodium or potassium salt.
An etchant may be added to the phosphate conversion treatment bath in order to induce a uniform etch of the surface of the metal workpiece. Usable as this etchant are, for example, fluoride ions and complex fluoride ions such as fluorosilicate ions. The fluorine compound used here can be, for example, hydrofluoric acid, fluorosilicic acid, or a water soluble metal saft (e.g., sodium salt, potassium salt) of the preceding.
The phosphate conversion treatment can be carried out by immersion or spraying or some combination thereof. Treatment for about 1 to 5 minutes can form a conversion coating satisfactorily robust for practical applications. The temperature of the phosphate conversion treatment bath is preferably from 30 to 60xc2x0 C.
The phosphate conversion treatment is preferably followed by at least one water rinse, and deionized water is preferably used in the final water rinse.

Process for forming a phosphate conversion coating on metal


The invention discloses a treatment apparatus for the excrement and a bio-toilet using the treatment apparatus. The treatment apparatus includes a tank, a reactor basin in the tank for containing the raw material and the excrement and having at least two parallel, concave parts having curved profile in the bottom part of the tank, a temperature control means for maintaining the temperature of the basin at a predetermined range; and at least two mixing devices which match with the at least two concave parts, each of them can rotate around a rotation shaft, the helical blade stirrer secured to the rotation shaft by a plurality of spokes. The bio-toilet is waterless, and thus a large quantity of water can be saved and the pollution of the environment due to the drainage of sewage can be avoided. Furthermore, treated by the treatment apparatus of the present invention, the microorganisms and the organic materials are combined and converted into stable loosen soil and the organic components. The load applied to the environment will be decreased and the environmental protection will be most effective by using the bio-toilet of the present invention.

As a kind of conventional toilet, flushing toilet has been broadly used in cities. Using this kind of toilet, some kind of transport scheme has to be used firstly, then the excrement can be treated by an urban sewage treatment system. However, the treatment capacity of the urban sewage treatment system is limited and the conventional treatment method not only uses up large quantity of water, but also pollutes the environment due to its improper and non-recycling treatment of excrement. Hence, as people increasingly realized the importance of environmental protection, a variety of bio-toilets were developed. For example, in a bio-toilet disclosed by JP3160859, as shown in FIGS. 1A-1B, human waste—excrement and urine fall down directly into a treatment apparatus 10 of the conventional bio-toilet. The treatment apparatus 10 includes a reactor basin 12, a rotation shaft 14 driven by a motor 16 extending through the whole length of the basin 12 and a plurality of blades 18 secured to the rotation shaft 14. On one hand, these blades 18 stir the sawdust and human waste as the rotation shaft rotates, and on the other hand, blades 18 can also convey the treated excrement to the location away from the drop inlet. By adjusting the heating means 20, the temperature of the reactor basin 12 is maintained constant so as to refrain the microorganism in human waste from growing. In this way, after sawdust and human waste are mixed for a predetermined time period, the organic materials in the excrement are decomposed sufficiently and converted into organic fertilizer. However, in fact, in this treatment apparatus 10, the treatment efficiency is too low to be satisfactory in composting due to the limited capacity for treatment of the individual rotating shaft and insufficiently mixing of the prior art between the sawdust and human waste. In addition, the treatment apparatus of the prior art could not avoid the hardened trouble which is caused by the mixture of the sawdust and excrement and thus will be easily broken due to the increase of the torque load. Therefore, the bio-toilet of prior art could not be widely applied to the public sites, such as tourist sites, hospitals, temporary performance sites, construction sites, livestock farms, or parks etc., as the bio-toilet might be used frequently.
In general, in this bio-toilet of prior art, it takes a few days for the human waste to be converted into organic fertilizer. The human waste and sawdust in the reactor basin 12 is of being conveyed by the blades 18, however, it is hard time to face the trouble caused by the hardened mixture. Also, as shown in FIG. 1C, the urinary inlet and drop inlet must be spaced apart by a predetermined distance and the urinary inlet is often provided at one side of reactor basin, causing the uniformity of the mixture of the human waste and sawdust decreased. This is why the bio-toilet of prior art can only has a single mixing devise and can not increase the treatment capacity and efficiency by using more mixing devise with larger diameter.
As shown in the figures, although the profile of the bottom of the conventional reactor basin matches with that of blades 18, the harden problem can not fully eliminated. Furthermore, under present conditions, only by increasing the height of the reactor basin can the capacity of the reactor basin 12 be increased. Thus, it is difficult to entry into the bio-toilet and feed the sawdust. Due to the forgoing disadvantages, the maintenance for the conventional bio-toilet is troublesome and its use is dramatically limited.

Treatment apparatus for excrement and a bio-toilet using the same and a treatment method for decomposing excrement


A dye migration-resistant heat transfer label for application to various fabrics includes a carrier web, a release coat applied to the carrier web and a composition including ink(s) and/or adhesive applied to the release coat. Inks and/or adhesive containing nanoclay are printed and dried to form a storable film on the carrier web. The composition is heat transferred to the fabric and the carrier web is removed. A method for making the label and a method for marking an item are also disclosed.

The present invention relates to heat transfer labels. More particularly, the present invention relates to heat transfer labels for application of indicia to various fabrics to provide indicia that resists the migration of dye from the fabric through the indicia.
Labels are in widespread use in the textile industry. For example, labels are used to transfer indicia formed from ink onto many fabrics for cleaning instructions, sizes, fabric composition, and decoration to name just a few. Typically, labels include thermoplastic inks and/or adhesives that are heat-activated to adhere to fabrics. Heat transfer labels have replaced sewn-on patches in many fabric applications, especially for tee shirts and under garments.
In many instances, the fabric contains a dye that migrates or bleeds and can stain adjacent fabrics or indicia. Often these dyes migrate or bleed through the applied indicia and stain the indicia color(s). White indicia are especially susceptible to dye staining. Therefore, the indicia of a label must be able to resist the migration of dye from the fabric through the indicia after the indicia are applied to the fabric.
In order to achieve dye migration-resistant indicia, it is often necessary to incorporate one or more additional "barrier prints" between the indicia layer and the fabric, such as activated carbon or extender pigment with a platelet structure like talc, clay, or mica. Additional prints, however, not only add to the cost of the indicia, but also act as a temporary fix by postponing the dye migration rather than eliminating dye migration.
Accordingly, there is a need for a high quality heat transfer label that is highly resistant to the migration of dye from a substrate without the need for additional barrier prints. Desirably, such a label is easily made (e.g., printed), using readily commercially available materials. More desirably, raw materials used to make the indicia are approved for use on fabrics. Most desirably, such a label is stable and has a prolonged shelf life.

Dye migration-resistant heat transfer label


Methods and structure for loading a CRC value cache memory in a storage controller on the fly to reduce overhead processing associated with access to system memory to load the CRC value cache memory. The invention provides for circuits and methods for monitoring normal system accesses to system memory to manipulate CRC values in system memory in conjunction with associated access to disk drive of a storage subsystem. When accesses are detected loading or retrieving CRC values from system memory, the CRC values are loaded substantially in parallel into the CRC value cache memory.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed generally toward a method and apparatus for protection of data utilizing cyclical redundancy checking (CRC) and more specifically relates to methods and structure for loading CRC values into a CRC value cache memory with minimal overhead.
2. Discussion of Related Art
In a high-performance computer system consisting of multiple processors and mass storage devices, it is of critical importance that all information be stored and retrieved reliably with no errors. It is of equal importance that if errors occur in the storage or retrieval of data, that the errors be detected and reported. Typically, the mass storage of a high-performance computer system consists of a redundant array of independent disks (RAID). Within the RAID mass storage system, data is stored both in semiconductor memory in the RAID controller and on the magnetic media of the RAID disk drives. A storage controller in such a RAID subsystem manages the transfer of information between semiconductor memory associated with the controller and the storage devices (i.e., disk drives). In a RAID subsystem, all data is stored with redundancy information to enhance reliability and to permit continued operation through various failures.
Though data written to semiconductor memory can be protected using error correction code (ECC) techniques, this will not prevent against inadvertent writes to locations in the memory or reading from incorrect locations. Furthermore, data stored on the disk drives of a RAID system can be stored incorrectly or retrieved incorrectly due to errors in the drives. For example, the drives or connections to the drives may have physical problems, data may be stored in the wrong location on the drive, or the data may become corrupted.
The method by which these errors are detected in the system should have minimum impact on the overall system performance. There are several approaches that may be used to protect data from the above-mentioned errors. One method involves the execution of software that checks the integrity of data as it is being stored or retrieved. This method, used to ensure the accuracy of transmitting digital data, is cyclical redundancy checking (CRC). This operation executes concurrently with the transfer of the data. Because this method utilizes a portion of the computing resources for its execution, the overall performance of the system is reduced. This method adds an additional amount of complexity to the software executing in the RAID system.
Another method involves a hardware engine that checks the integrity of data after it has been transferred. Though this method utilizes a small amount of computing resources to initialize and start the hardware engine, system performance is reduced due to the time required to initialize the engine and execute the checking algorithm. If a separate hardware engine is used to perform the CRC function after a transfer to or from system memory is completed, then the next system operation or transfer would have to wait until this CRC operation is completed before executing. This reduces system performance.
The parent patent application provides the addition of a dedicated hardware CRC computation engine integrated with the memory controller of the storage controller to assure the integrity of data transferred between the system memory and storage devices. The CRC computation engine provides CRC calculation xe2x80x9con-the-flyxe2x80x9d for the protection of data transferred to and from the system memory without software overhead. The computation of CRC values and optional checking against previously calculated CRC values is selected through the use of an address-mapping scheme. The CRC protection scheme of the parent application requires a small amount of initial software overhead to allocate the data, CRC value, and CRC error regions of the system memory. After the CRC protection scheme is initialized, all CRC operations are transparent to the executing software.
The parent application further provides a separate cache memory for storing recently utilized CRC values. In the parent application, an exemplary preferred embodiment discloses multiple devices coupled through the memory interface each capable of generating transactions involving CRC values. A CRC engine generates CRC values as host supplied data is initially transferred to system memory of the storage controller. The generated CRC values are stored in system memory for later use. The parent application points to use of a cache for CRC values to expedite accesses to CRC values when used subsequently to check data transferred between the storage devices and the storage controller""s system memory. Where all such CRC values are cached together, it remains a problem to rapidly locate a particular cached CRC value entry. Searching through a single hierarchy of the CRC value cache can negatively impact overall system performance. The sibling patent application presents methods and structure for improving system performance by reducing overhead in processing CRC values in CRC value cache memory. As other CRC values are generated, older values in cache may be replaced. It is often the case that later data exchanges to/from the storage devices and from/to the system buffer memory will have to re-read stored CRC values that are not present in the CRC cache memory.
It remains a problem that loading of CRC values into the CRC value cache memory for checking of blocks exchanged between system memory and the storage devices requires two accesses to the system memory. A first access moves the CRC values to or from system memory when the associated data block is accessed on the disk drives and a second access moves the CRC values from system memory to the CRC value cache memory when the associated data block is accessed in system memory. The extra memory access to load CRC values in CRC value cache memory negatively impacts overall system performance by adding extra arbitration overhead for access to system memory and by adding additional read cycles on the system memory to re-read the stored CRC values.
It is evident from the above discussion that a need exists for an improved method and structure for loading CRC values into a CRC value cache memory from system memory.
The present invention solves the above and other problems, thereby advancing the state of the useful arts, by providing structure and methods for reducing overhead processing when loading CRC values from system memory into a CRC value cache memory. More specifically the invention provides that CRC values are loaded into CRC cache memory in parallel with system memory access of CRC values relating to access to the storage devices. In other words, when CRC values are transferred to/from system memory from/to the disk drives of the storage system, structure and methods of the invention detect the transfers and load the CRC values into CRC value cache memory in parallel with the detected transfers. This mode of the present invention used to load CRC values into CRC cache memory is also referred to herein as xe2x80x9cfly-byxe2x80x9d mode. This fly-by feature of the invention reduces overhead processing associated with a need for a second access to system memory to load CRC values into CRC value cache memory.
Still more specifically, circuits of the present invention monitor the memory accesses by the processor of the storage controller to system memory in the controller. When CRC values are transferred from/to system memory in conjunction with associated disk drive transfers, the CRC values are captured by the CRC engine and stored in CRC value cache memory substantially in parallel with the transfers from/to system memory. These structures and methods of operation obviate the need for a second access to system memory specifically to load CRC values from system memory to the CRC value cache memory.
A first feature of the invention therefore provides a method in a system having a plurality of disk drives coupled to a storage controller having system memory and a CRC value cache memory, a method for loading CRC values into the cache memory comprising the steps of: monitoring access to the system memory by the storage controller; detecting normal mode accesses by the storage controller to CRC values in the system memory such that the normal mode accesses exchange the CRC values between the system memory and storage devices coupled to the storage controller; and loading the CRC values into the cache memory substantially in parallel with the detected normal mode access.
Another aspect of the invention further provides that the step of detecting includes the step of: determining that an address associated with the access is within a range of normal mode access addresses to determine that the access is a normal mode access.
Another aspect of the invention further provides that the step of determining comprises the step of: comparing the address against normal mode base and limit registers to determine that the access is within the range of normal mode access addresses.
Another aspect of the invention further provides that the step of determining comprises the steps of: comparing the address against generate mode base and limit registers to determine that the access is not within a range of generate mode access addresses; and comparing the address against check mode base and limit registers to determine that the access is not within a range of check mode access addresses.
Another aspect of the invention further provides that the step of detecting further includes the step of: determining that the address is within a range of CRC value access addresses to determine that the access is a normal mode access to CRC values in the system memory.
Another aspect of the invention further provides that the step of determining that the address is within a range of CRC value access addresses comprises the step of: comparing the address against CRC value base and limit registers to determine that the access is accessing CRC values in the system memory.
Another feature of the invention provides in a system having a plurality of disk drives coupled to a storage controller having system memory and a CRC value cache memory, an apparatus for loading CRC values into the cache memory comprising: means for monitoring access to the system memory by the storage controller; means for detecting normal mode accesses by the storage controller to CRC values in the system memory such that the normal mode accesses exchange the CRC values between the system memory and storage devices coupled to the storage controller; and means for loading the CRC values into the cache memory substantially in parallel with the detected normal mode access.
Another aspect of the invention further provides that the means for detecting includes: means for determining that an address associated with the access is within a range of normal mode access addresses to determine that the access is a normal mode access.
Another aspect of the invention further provides that the means for determining comprises: normal mode base and limit registers for defining the range; and means for comparing the address against the normal mode base and limit registers to determine that the access is within the range of normal mode access addresses.
Another aspect of the invention further provides the means for determining comprises: generate mode base and limit registers for defining a generate mode range of access addresses; check mode base and limit registers for defining a check mode range of access addresses; means for comparing the address against the generate mode base and limit registers to determine that the access is not within the generate mode range of access addresses; and comparing the address against the check mode base and limit registers to determine that the access is not within the check mode range of access addresses.
Another aspect of the invention further provides that the means for detecting further includes: means for determining that the address is within a range of CRC value access addresses to determine that the access is a normal mode access to CRC values in the system memory.
Another aspect of the invention further provides that the means for determining that the address is within a range of CRC value access addresses comprises: CRC value base and limit registers for defining a range of CRC value access addresses; and means for comparing the address against the CRC value base and limit registers to determine that the access is accessing CRC values in the system memory.
Another feature of the invention provides for a storage subsystem comprising: a plurality of storage devices for storing data blocks and CRC values corresponding to the data blocks; and a storage controller coupled to the plurality of storage devices for controlling operation of the storage subsystem such that the storage controller includes: system memory for storing the CRC values such that the storage controller exchanges the CRC values between the system memory and the plurality of storage devices using a normal mode memory transaction; a CRC value cache memory for storing the CRC values; and a fly-by transfer element coupled to the system memory and coupled to the CRC value cache memory for loading the CRC values into the CRC value cache memory substantially in parallel with the normal mode memory transaction.
Another aspect of the invention further provides that the storage controller further includes: a memory controller coupled to the system memory and providing an interface for other components of the storage controller to access the system memory, such that the fly-by transfer element is coupled to the system memory through the memory controller.
Another aspect of the invention further provides that the memory controller includes: a memory monitor bus adapted to enable the fly-by transfer element to detect the normal mode memory transaction.
Another aspect of the invention further provides that the memory controller further includes: a normal mode detector coupled to the memory monitor bus to detect the normal mode memory transaction and to apply a signal to the memory monitor bus indicating detection of the normal mode memory transaction.
Another aspect of the invention further provides that the normal mode detector comprises: normal mode base and limit registers for defining a range of normal mode access addresses; and a comparator for comparing an access address on the memory monitor bus against the normal mode base and limit registers to determine that the memory access is within the range of normal mode access addresses.
Another aspect of the invention further provides that the normal mode detector comprises: generate mode base and limit registers for defining a generate mode range of access addresses; check mode base and limit registers for defining a check mode range of access addresses; a comparator for comparing an access address on the memory monitor bus against the generate mode base and limit registers to determine that the access is not within the generate mode range of access addresses and for comparing the address against the check mode base and limit registers to determine that the access is not within the check mode range of access addresses.

Methods and apparatus for loading CRC values into a CRC cache in a storage controller


The present disclosure relates to systems, devices and methods related to transmitters, and/or transceivers having a single, tunable oscillator in a dual conversion architecture. In various exemplary embodiments, this transmitter may include: a first mixer configured to receive a first oscillator signal from the single oscillator; a filter configured to band pass filter the converted signal and output a filtered signal; and a second mixer in communication with the filter, configured to receive the filtered signal. This dual conversion transmitter may be configured to receive a communication signal from an input to the transmitter and to output a converted signal based on the first oscillator signal and the communication signal. The second mixer may be configured to receive a scaled version of the first oscillator signal and to output a desired frequency output signal based on the scaled version of the first oscillator signal and the filtered signal.

Various existing transmitters, and/or transceivers (herein after transmitter(s)) may employ a dual conversion architecture for up or down conversion of radio frequency ("RF") signals. Such a transmitter is generally configured in the prior art to use two, separate local oscillators. More particularly, when the transmitter is a tunable transmitter, the dual conversion architecture comprises two or more separate local oscillators.
With reference to FIG. 1A, a prior art tunable dual conversion transmitter 100 comprises at least two local oscillators 110, 111. Local oscillator 110 is a tunable LO, that is tunable from 9.8 to 11.2 GHz. Tunable dual conversion transmitter 100 further comprises a first mixer 120, a filter 125, and a second mixer 130.
With reference to FIG. 1B, a prior art tunable transmitter 100′ comprises a local oscillator 110. Local oscillator 110 is a tunable LO, that is tunable from 10.133 to 10.6 GHz. Tunable transmitter 100′ further comprises a first mixer 120, and a filter 125. In this embodiment, spurious signals can be difficult to filter because IF related spurious signals are typically a small percentage away from generally desired RF passbands. Additionally, each band will require filtering to remove undesired IF related spurious signals. Thus, resulting in unnecessarily high material costs. This approach achieves a high phase noise degradation of approximately 20 log(3)=9.54 dB.
Use of two or more local oscillators in tunable transmitters that have dual conversion architecture has a number of disadvantages. For example, in such embodiments the Intermediate Frequency ("IF") band following the first upconversion, at first mixer 120, must be just as wide as the final output band. Also, one of the oscillators, e.g. local oscillator 110, must be able to tune the transmitter across the entire band. Furthermore, the final upconversion uses a local oscillator at a high frequency that is more difficult to design with adequate phase noise than the first LO.
Wider filter passbands employed by such prior art may be difficult if not impossible to design because, in some instances, undesired higher order spurious mixer outputs related to multiples of LO and IF input frequencies may be too close to the pass-band to adequately filter or may even be inside the filter pass-band thus prohibiting a single filter approach. In any event, it may be difficult to design a cost effective device comprising multiple local oscillators in tunable transmitters with a dual conversion architecture. In some instances, use of such prior art designs may also necessitate use of a switchable bank of filters, which increases overall design cost. Use of prior art architecture also renders it difficult if not practically impossible to use highly integrated GaAs, silicon-germanium (SiGe) or other semiconductor processes in tunable transmitters and obtain sufficient spurious rejection, due to process variations that give rise to additional design limitations.
Thus, it is desirable to have a tunable transmitter with dual conversion architecture that overcomes some of these drawbacks of the prior art. It is further desirable to have a tunable transmitter with dual conversion architecture with lower material costs, that is easier to manufacture, that has improved phase noise characteristics, that reduces the range the LO has to tune, and that reduces the IF bandwidth.

Dual conversion transmitter with single local oscillator


A glass sheet for a thin-film solar cell of the present invention is characterized by including, as a glass composition in terms of mass %, 45 to 60% of SiO2, more than 8.0 to 18% of Al2O3, 0 to 15% (excluding 15%) of B2O3, 1 to 40% of MgO+CaO+SrO+BaO, and 1 to 30% of Na2O+K2O, and having a strain point of more than 580° C.

In a thin-film solar cell, for example, a CIS-based solar cell, Cu(InGa)Se2, which is a chalcopyrite-type compound semiconductor comprising Cu, In, Ga, and Se, is formed as a photoelectric conversion film on a glass sheet.
In order to coat the top of a glass sheet with Cu, In, Ga, and Se and convert them into a chalcopyrite-type compound by using a multi-source deposition method, a selenization method, or the like, a heat treatment step at about 500 to 600° C. is required.
In a CdTe-based solar cell as well, a photoelectric conversion film comprising Cd and Te is formed on a glass substrate. In this case, a heat treatment step at about 500° C. to 600° C. is also required.
Soda-lime glass has been conventionally used as a glass substrate in a CIS-based solar cell, a CdTe-based solar cell, or the like. However, soda-lime glass is liable to have thermal deformation and thermal shrinkage in a heat treatment step at high temperature. In order to solve the problem, the use of high strain point glass has been currently studied (see Patent Literature 1).
In the meantime, a PDP is manufactured as described below. First, a transparent electrode such as an ITO film or an NESA film is formed on a surface of a front glass sheet, a dielectric layer is formed thereon, an electrode made of, for example, Al, Ag, or Ni is formed on a surface of a back glass sheet, a dielectric layer is formed thereon, and in addition, a dividing wall is formed thereon. Next, the front glass sheet and the back glass sheet are opposed to each other to position the electrodes and the like, and then the outer peripheral edge portions of the front glass sheet and back glass sheet are subjected to frit sealing in the temperature region of 450 to 550° C. After that, the air inside the resultant panel is evacuated to create a vacuum through an exhaust pipe and a noble gas is introduced into the panel, followed by sealing.
In the past, a glass sheet into which soda-lime glass (having a thermal expansion coefficient of about 84×10−7/° C.) was formed so as to have a thickness of 1.5 to 3.0 mm by a float method or the like was used in a PDP. However, soda-lime glass has a strain point of about 500° C., and hence is liable to have thermal deformation and thermal shrinkage in a heat treatment step. Thus, a glass sheet having the same thermal expansion coefficient as that of soda-lime glass and having a higher strain point has been currently used (see Patent Literature 2).


A method of removing at least a part of a thermal sprayed wear resistant coating on a gas turbine engine part includes grinding the thermal sprayed wear resistant coating with a superabrasive grinding wheel.

The present invention relates to a method of removing a thermal sprayed wear resistant coating from a gas turbine engine part, and an apparatus for doing the same. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method of removing a thermal sprayed wear resistant coating from a gas turbine engine part with a superabrasive grinding wheel.
A gas turbine engine part formed of a metal alloy, such as brush seal components, blade outer air seals, blades, and vanes, may be damaged during use. For example, during operation, the gas turbine engine part may be exposed to high pressure, foreign particles, or in the case of a rotating component, centrifugal force in a hot corrosive environment. In order to help protect the metal alloy from damage, a gas turbine engine part may be coated with a thermal sprayed wear resistant coating ("coating"), such as a high velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) coating. When a part is manufactured, the metal alloy component of the part may be formed in a smaller dimension than desired, and the coating may then be applied to the metal alloy in a thickness that gives the final part its desired (or "finished") dimension.
Over time, the coating may become worn (or "eroded"), which may affect the dimensions and performance of the part. The change in dimensions may be a concern for parts that require precise dimensions, such as a brush seal, where it is preferred that bristles remain in contact with a rigid, rotating member in order for the seal to be close-fitting and to discourage airflow through the seal. If the coating on a rotating member of a brush seal becomes worn, a leakage path may form, which could compromise the effectiveness of the brush seal.
When a gas turbine part is repaired, whether to correct the erosion of the coating or to repair the underlying metal alloy component, at least a part of the coating is typically removed. The present invention is a method of removing the thermal sprayed wear resistant coating from a gas turbine engine part.