A high input impedance AC buffer for use in an instrument that does not require high frequency compensation or calibration. An op-amp receives an input signal that is to be measured via a high resistance input resistor and produces an output signal proportional to the input signal. A feedback resistor block and a feedback attenuator form the feedback path of the buffer and establish buffer gain. The low resistances of the feedback block and the feedback attenuator are substantially less than the resistance of the high resistance input resistor, precluding the need for compensation and calibration capacitors. A switching circuit operates to select resistors in the feedback resistance block and the feedback attenuator to provide predetermined gains for the buffer.

An instrument used for measuring AC electric signals typically has a high impedance front end that substantially isolates the instrument from the circuit containing the signal being measured. The isolation allows the instrument to make an accurate measurement without significantly disturbing the signal being measured. Conversely, if the instrument were to have a low impedance front end, the instrument would not be isolated from the circuit and the signal being measured would be loaded down by components in the instrument, thereby resulting in an inaccurate measurement of the signal.
In many instances, the front end these instruments includes a high input impedance AC buffer, which consists, in part, of an operational amplifier. If the instrument is intended to measure a broad range of signal magnitudes, the front end will undoubtedly have a range selection capability. The range selection capability in prior art instruments is provided by resistors selectably connected in series with the input signal path ahead of the operational amplifier or in the feedback path of the buffer. When connected in the signal path, the selected resistor(s) scales the signal magnitude as required by the instrument. When connected in the feedback path, the selected resistor(s) determine the gain of the buffer. Traditionally, resistors having high resistance values have been used in high input impedance AC buffers for both signal scaling and feedback gain control. The high resistance of the input resistors provides the high impedance characteristic of these AC buffers.
As is well known by one having ordinary skill in the amplifier art, the gain of the buffer must remain substantially constant for all frequencies of input signals that are to be accurately measured. A signal whose frequency lies in that portion of the buffer's bandwidth in which the gain is not constant, that is, where the buffer gain is changing, will not be accurately measured by the instrument. Unfortunately, the combination of the high resistance of the prior art input and feedback resistors and the stray capacitance associated with the buffers cause the gain of the buffer to vary. Typically this gain variation occurs for signal frequencies in the upper end of the bandwidth of the buffer. To correct this problem, prior art instruments must be compensated so as to be calibrated at these high signal frequencies.
Historically, calibration of prior art instruments has been accomplished by inserting compensation capacitors in the buffer circuit. In effect, these capacitors reduce the effects of stray capacitance of the buffer. The compensation capacitors may include adjustable type capacitors. Depending on the sophistication of the instrument, the calibration procedure may be performed manually or automatically. When performed manually, a trained technician removes the instrument cover and adjusts the capacitors until the instrument falls within the manufacture's specifications. Such a procedure can be rather time consuming. If the instrument is of the type that is calibrated automatically, the procedure is typically performed by a calibration program embedded in the instrument. The program instructs switches to open and close so that fixed compensation capacitors are connected to the buffer circuit in a predetermined manner. Obviously, the complexity of the calibration program increases as the number of capacitors and switching operations increase.
As is readily apparent from the foregoing discussion, manual calibration of prior art signal measuring instruments is time consuming and, therefore expensive, while automatic calibration procedures add to the complexity and expense of the instruments. Furthermore, the compensation capacitors used in prior art instruments increase the manufacturing cost of the instrument. Yet another problem caused by the use of compensation capacitors is the corresponding increase in the number of components, which hampers efforts to reduce the size of the instrument.
Accordingly, there is a need for a high input impedance AC buffer suitable for use in an instrument that does not require calibration at high signal frequencies. The buffer should have as few parts as possible so that it is compact and inexpensive to manufacture. The present invention is directed to an input buffer having lower feedback resistance designed to achieve these results.

High input impedance buffer with low feedback resistance


A lighting fixture includes a first housing portion and a second housing portion. The first housing portion includes a base and a wall extending outwardly from substantially the perimeter of the base. A top portion of the wall includes one or more hinges extending outwardly therefrom. The second housing portion includes a front panel and a side panel extending outwardly from substantially the perimeter of the front panel. A top portion of the front panel includes at least one slot. The second housing is coupled to the first housing in an open position when the hinge is inserted into the slot and the front panel is disposed elevationally above the base. The second housing is coupled to the first housing in an operational position when the hinge is inserted into the slot and the front panel covers the base.

One particular type of light fixture is known as a wall pack light fixture. A wall pack light fixture is typically installed to a support structure, such as a vertically oriented wall. Several wall pack light fixtures include housings formed of two or more individual components coupled to one another. The individual components of the housing include at least a mounting portion and a cover coupled to the mounting portion. The wall pack light fixture typically houses one or more light sources for providing illumination to a desired illuminated area.
Installation of the housing of conventional wall pack light fixtures occurs in at least two separate steps. The mounting portion is first mounted to the wall and then the cover is later coupled to the mounting portion in a proper position. During this step where the mounting portion is mounted to the wall, the mounting portion is securely mounted to the wall or is screwed into a J-box. One or more electrical wires that are located within or adjacent to the support structure are routed into the mounting portion and electrically coupled to the light source, thereby providing current to the light source. Also during this step, the cover is typically propped in an inconvenient and/or in a costly manner. In certain instances, the inconvenient manner in which the cover is propped causes the installer to rush through the installation and possibly make mistakes.
Conventional approaches to propping the cover include the installer holding the cover in one hand, thereby causing the installer to make wiring connections with the other hand. This approach is very inconvenient to the installer and does not allow the installer to easily make the connections. Another conventional approach to propping the cover includes placing the cover on the ladder. This approach is not safe since the cover can fall off of the ladder and be damaged or cause injury to a person. Alternatively, the placement of the cover can interfere with the installer's installation of the fixture. Another conventional approach to propping the cover includes placing the cover on a safety cable. This approach adds additional time for setting up and disassembling the safety cable, which therefore adds additional costs for the installation. Also, the cover can be inadvertently disconnected from the safety cable or can come in the way of the installer during the installation process. Another conventional approach to propping the cover includes using captive hinges located along the left or right side of the wall pack light fixture that allow the cover to rotate open in a horizontal manner. This approach requires that there be sufficient room in front of the wall pack light fixture so that the cover can fully rotate about the captive hinges. Thus, the installer has to lean backwards to allow the cover to rotate, which can cause the installer to fall off the ladder. Alternatively, the installer has to maintain his ladder a required distance away from the wall pack light fixture so that when he climbs up the ladder, he is not interfering with the rotation of the cover. According to this situation, the installer has to lean forward to perform the installation of the fixture because the ladder is not positioned as close to the fixture as typically desired.


A support assembly is for an electrical system. The electrical system includes a network protector and a number of disconnect switches coupled to the network protector. The support assembly includes: an insulative mounting member coupled to each of the disconnect switches; a number of base assemblies each including a housing assembly and a stand assembly disposed on the housing assembly, the housing assembly being coupled to the insulative mounting member; and a lifting apparatus disposed on each of the base assemblies. The lifting apparatus moves each of the insulative mounting member and the housing assembly in a direction transverse to the stand assembly.

Field
The disclosed concept pertains generally to electrical systems and, more particularly, to electrical systems including network protectors. The disclosed concept also pertains to support assemblies for electrical systems.
Background Information
Low voltage secondary power distribution networks consist of interlaced loops or grids supplied by two or more sources of power, in order that the loss of any one source will not result in an interruption of power. Such networks provide the highest possible level of reliability with conventional power distribution and are, normally, used to supply high-density load areas, such as a section of a city, a large building or an industrial site.
Each source supplying the network is typically a medium voltage feeder including a switch, a voltage reducing transformer and a network protector. As is well-known, a network protector is an apparatus used to control the flow of electrical power to a distribution network. The network protector includes a low voltage circuit breaker and a control relay which opens the circuit to the transformer upon detection of abnormal current flow. Additionally, typically coupled to the network protector are a number of low profile disconnect switches intended to isolate the network protector from an energized bus. To remove the network protector from its associated transformer, the disconnect switches must either be unbolted from the network protector or the energized bus, both of which require manual support and present safety challenges.
There is thus room for improvement in electrical systems and in support assemblies therefor.

Electrical system and support assembly therefor


A tool cabinet includes a cabinet unit and an audio device. The cabinet unit includes a cabinet body and at least one receiving member. The receiving member has a cover body and a bottom wall. The cover body is movably connected to the cabinet body. The bottom wall cooperates with the cover body to define a receiving space therebetween. The cover body is movable relative to the cabinet body to open and close the receiving space. One of the cabinet body and the cover body is formed with a coupling opening in communication with the receiving space. The audio device engages the coupling opening, is received in the receiving space, and has a sound output surface exposed from the coupling opening.

In recent years, people are in demand of music while working, and music is commonly played at a workplace (e.g., an office, a factory, a personal studio).
Generally, a conventional tool cabinet is designed for storage, compartmentalization, and protection of tools. When a user intends to listen to music during work, an external audio device (such as a loudspeaker) is required, thereby resulting in inconvenience and occupation of a certain space around the conventional tool cabinet.


Disclosed is a method for preparing fatty acid alkyl ester for bio-diesel fuels by reacting a raw material containing fat with water to prepare fatty acid, and then reacting the prepared fatty acid with alcohol. The method for preparing fatty acid alkyl ester for bio-diesel fuels includes the steps of: preparing fatty acid and glycerin by an hydrolysis reaction of a raw material containing fat and water at the temperature of 200 to 280° C. and the pressure of 30 to 80 bar; carrying out a phase separation of the fatty acid and the glycerin; and carrying out an esterification reaction of the separated fatty acid and alcohol at the temperature of 200 to 350° C. and the pressure of atmospheric pressure to 35 bar.

Diesel, among the various fuels derived from crude mineral oils, has some advantages such as good fuel efficiency, low cost and low carbon dioxide generation. On the other hand, there is a problem that the combustion of diesel produces a large quantity of air pollution. In order to solve these problems, various researches have been actively conducted on the bio-diesel as an alternative fuel of diesel. The bio-diesel has similar physical property to the traditional diesel oil, remarkably reduces air pollution, and is naturally recycling energy source. Generally, the bio-diesel is produced by transesterification reaction of vegetable oil such as rapeseed oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, palm oil, etc, animal fats, waste-cooking oil, and so on with alcohol in the presence of acid catalyst or alkali catalyst. As the raw material of the source of bio-diesel, oil from the vegetables such rapeseed, soybean, sunflower, coconut palm etc. has been commonly used. Recently, the production of bio-diesel is rapidly and world-widely increasing so that the cost of the raw material for preparing bio-diesel also increases, which causes problems of food shortage and farmland demolition. Thus, there has been a demand on a method for preparing bio-diesel using a non-edible raw material.
On the other hand, crude oils or sludge oils which are produced during an oil-expelling step and include relatively large amount of fatty acid, acidulated soap stock (acid oils) which are produced as a by-product during an oil-refining step, greases which are discharged from households or restaurants etc. contain a large amount of impurities as well as a large amount of free fatty acids. Thus they are classified to representative non-edible oils. In detail, examples of the non-edible oils include i) sludge oils and waste oils separated from the waste water which is generated from the processes of cleaning, sterilization, crushing and so on, during the vegetable or animal oil-expelling process (oil extraction process), ii) crude oils including a large amount of fatty acid inherently, for example, including more than 3 weight % of fatty acid, such as microalgae oils or oils obtained from the rancid vegetables or animals, iii) acidulated soap stock (Soap stock, Acid oil) which is reduced to the fatty acid by acidification or soap-splitting of fatty acid salt (soap) generated at the neutralization process for removing fatty acids during an oil-refining step, iv) used cooking oil (yellow grease, fryer grease) including large amount of fatty acid, which is collected after high-temperature deep-frying with large amount of butter and oils at households or restaurants, v) trap grease (brown grease or FOG (Fats, Oils, Grease)) including large amount of fatty acid, which is separated from water at a grease trap which is installed in a drainpipe of a house or a restaurant, and so on. In case where the above-mentioned non-edible oils are used as the raw material for preparing the bio-diesel, it is difficult to prepare fuels satisfying the quality standard. Also, pre-treatment or refining reaction step is inevitable for removing fatty acid or for converting fatty acid to the bio-diesel. Thus, the reaction time and the reaction steps increase and the total manufacturing cost for preparing bio-diesel increases. Accordingly, it has been generally known that the fats containing large amount of fatty acids are not suitable as the raw materials for preparing bio-diesel.
As described above, the vegetable or animal fats and oils of triglyceride form are generally used as the raw materials for preparing the bio-diesel. However, when these raw materials include free fatty acids, the reaction efficiency is deteriorated. Thus, in order to increase the reaction efficiency and to improve the quality of the prepared fatty alkyl ester, several methods are developed. For example, in European patent publication No. 127104A, European patent publication No. 184740A and U.S. Pat. No. 4,164,506, and so on, a two-step method is disclosed in which the free fatty acids in oils and fats is first esterified and then the transesterification of oils and fats are carried out. In the methods, the esterification reaction is carried out by heating the mixture of fatty acid and fatty acid triglyceride with methanol at about 65° C. in the presence of sulfuric acid or sulfonic acid catalyst. European patent publication No. 708813A discloses a method for increasing the yield of fatty acid alkyl ester from oils and fats. In the method, the free fatty acid is separated from glycerin phase which is prepared by a transesterification reaction, and then the separated free fatty acid is esterified. In this method, the free fatty acid is obtained by the neutralization of glycerin phase, and the obtained free fatty acid is reacted for 2 hours at about 85° C. in the presence of strong sulfuric acid catalyst, which reduces the amount of fatty acid from 50% to 12%.
In U.S. patent publication No. 2011/0144375A, Bioresource Technology 102 (2011, 2380-2386) and so on, the yield of fatty acid alkyl ester is improved by reacting a mixture of free fatty acids, oils and fats with alcohol in the presence of a ceramic catalyst and by carrying out an esterification reaction and a transesterification reaction simultaneously. In this method, large amount of the catalyst is necessary and water produced at the esterification reaction and glycerin produced at the transesterification reaction cannot be effectively discharged to the outside of the reaction system. Thus, the conversion ratio of fatty acid into fatty acid alkyl ester is low and also complicate processes including neutralization, filtration, cleaning, distillation should be carried out for using the prepared fatty acid alkyl ester as the bio-diesel. In U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,855,838 and 7,795,460 and so on, it is disclosed a method of firstly converting the mixture of free fatty acid, oils and fats into fatty acids and then esterifying the converted fatty acids. In this method, the mixture of free fatty acid, oils and fats is converted into the fatty acids by hydrolysis in the presence of sulfuric acid or a solid acid catalyst and the converted fatty acids is esterified in the presence of sulfuric acid or on exchange resins.
In addition, methods for improving esterification reaction efficiency of fatty acid are disclosed, which utilize a mechanical apparatus or supersonic waves for causing dynamic turbulence in a reactor (Korean patent publication No. 2004-0101446, International Publication No. WO 2003/087278). In this method, the esterification is carried out by reacting the fatty acid and/or fatty acid contained in oils and fats with alcohol at a high pressure and a high temperature in the presence of sulfuric acid or ion exchange resin catalyst. Further, Korean patent publication No. 2004-87625 discloses a method for removing free fatty acid from waste cooking oil, using solid acid catalyst. The above mentioned methods commonly use an acid catalyst, such as sulfuric acid etc. If such an acid catalyst is not completely removed after the reaction, the quality of bio-diesel is deteriorated. Therefore, complicate processes for neutralizing, filtering, washing and cleaning the acid catalyst should be carried out. In addition, the reactor should have a corrosion resistance against the acid catalyst, which increases the cost of the production facilities. Also, the life cycle of the solid acid catalyst is generally short, and the cost for recycling the catalyst is high. Furthermore, in the above mentioned conventional methods, since the esterification of fatty acid is carried out at low temperature, water produced during the reaction is not efficiently removed to the outside of the reaction system. Thus, the conversion ratio of fatty acid into fatty acid alkyl ester is low, and the physical properties of the obtained fatty acid alkyl ester are not suitable for bio-diesel.

Method for preparing fatty acid alkyl ester using fat


A motor rotation controlling device, usable for example in a video recorder, to minimize transient phenomena at an initial operation and shorten a transient response time for detecting a rotation speed of a motor, a signal processor for constantly controlling rotation speed of the motor by the detected rotation speed supplied from the rotation detector, a comb-shaped filter for removing a rotation period component and its harmonic component included in a control signal supplied from the signal processor, a controller for varying a transfer function of the comb-shaped filter at a transient response time and a normal time according to the rotation speed of the motor, a driving device for driving a motor by the filtered control signal supplied from the comb-shaped filter, and a limit device connected between the signal processing means and the comb-shaped filter for clamping the control signal.

The present invention relates to a rotation controlling device suitable to the servo circuit of a motor used in a video cassette recorder, etc., and more particularly to a motor rotation controlling device which can minimize the transient phenomena of motor in an initial operation and the time to arrive at a normal speed.
A rotation controlling device applied to a drum spindle servo circuit of a video cassette recorder (hereinafter referred to as "VCR") detects a rotation speed of a drum motor from a frequency generator signal generated in a frequency generator (hereinafter referred to as "FG") and yields a speed error of drum motor from the detected rotation speed. And, the rotation controlling device compensates the yielded speed error, and supplies the compensated motor driving signal to a drum motor, thereby keeping the speed of drum motor constant. However, since the rotation controlling device includes rotation defect components, i.e., the drum rotation frequency, 30 Hz, and its harmonic component, generated by the eccentricity of drum, the attachment error of the PF, etc., are included in the yielded speed error, it cannot keep the rotation speed of drum motor constant. And, when the rotation controlling device is initially operated like other rotation controlling devices applied to other fields, the time for arriving at a normal speed, i.e., the transient response time, is long, so that there is a problem in that the video signal is muted for a long time at an initial time of reproduction mode or record mode of VCR.
An improved rotation controlling device to solve the above problem is described in Japanese laid-open Patent No. Sho 63-129877 and No. Pyung 1-117676. The rotation controlling device described in No. Sho 63-129877 removes the unnecessary rotation defect components, i.e., durum rotation frequency, 30 Hz, and its harmonic component, included in the speed error signal yielded by a notch filter in a normal driving mode and drives the drum motor by a motor driving signal compensating the rotation defect component removed speed error signal, thereby keeping the rotation speed of drum motor constant. However, the rotation controlling device described in No. Sho 63-129877 utilizes the notch filter only in a normal driving mode, so that it has the problem of consuming a long time for the rotation speed of drum motor to reach normal speed in an initial operation.
To improve the problem of the rotation controlling device described in No. Sho 63-129877, the rotation controlling device described in No. Pyung 1-117676 varies the transfer function of the notch filter according to the initial operation and the normal speed drive. Thus, in a normal speed drive, even if the gain of a pure speed error component, i.e., "0" Hz component, is decreased, the relatively large rotation defect component is removed, and also in an initial operation, even if the rotation defect component is not completely removed, the gain of zero Hz component increases. However, the rotation controlling device described in No. Pyung 1-117676 can shorten the time for the drum motor speed to reach a normal speed in an initial operation, but there are problems in that the transient phenomena in the motor speed are made more severe by the acceleration of the motor speed and the long time for the drum motor to keep at a normal speed, i.e., a long stabilized time, is consumed. The problems are described with reference to the attached drawings as follows.
With reference to FIG. 1, a conventional rotation controlling device comprising a drum motor 10 and a rotation detector 12 installed in the drum motor 10 is described. The rotation detector 12 comprises an FG head 14 for generating an FG pulse, as shown in FIG. 2A, having a frequency according to a rotation speed of drum motor and a phase generator (hereinafter referred to as "PG") head 16 for generating a PG pulse, as shown in FIG. 2B, according to a rotation phase of the drum motor 10. The PG pulse having one pulse per rotation of drum motor 10 is supplied to a control signal generating circuit 32, and on the other hand, the FG pulse having 6 pulses per rotation of the drum motor 10 is supplied to a control signal generating circuit 18. The first control signal generating circuit 18 resets a counter 20 at the rising edge of the FG pulse as shown in FIG. 2C to start to count, and samples the values N.sub.1, N.sub.2, N.sub.3, . . . counted by the counter 20 at the falling edge of the FG pulse. The sampled count values N.sub.1, N.sub.2, N.sub.3, . . . which are speed error data DS are supplied to a digital notch filter 22 and a control circuit 24. The counter 20 counts up by a clock pulse from a clock generator (not shown) received through an input terminal 48. The control circuit 24 determines an initial operation mode or a normal mode according to a logic value of the speed error data, and varies a transfer function of the comb-shaped filter 22 according to the determined result. Under the control circuit 24, even if the rotation defect component is not removed at an initial driving mode, the comb-shaped filter 22 filters the speed error data DS for the gain of 0 Hz component not to be damped, and at a normal mode, even if the 0 Hz component gain is damped, the speed error data DS is filtered to remove the rotation defect component. A multiplier 26 multiplies the filtered speed error data supplied from the comb-shaped filter 22 by a multiplier coefficient K.sub.1 and supplies the multiplied speed error data to an adder 42. And a differentiator 28 differentiates the filtered speed error data supplied from the comb-shaped filter 22 and generates angular acceleration data. A multiplier 30 multiplies the angular acceleration data generated in the differentiator 28 by a multiplier coefficient K.sub.0 and supplies the multiplied angular acceleration data to the adder 42.
Meanwhile, the second control signal generating circuit 32 resets a counter 34 at the falling edge of the PG pulse supplied from the PG head 16 to start to count. The counter 34 counts up by 1 by a clock pulse supplied through a second input terminal 50 from a clock generator (not shown), samples the counted value at the falling edge of a vertical sync signal such as FIG. 2D supplied through a third input terminal 52 from a sync signal separating circuit (not shown) and supplies the sampled count value as phase error data DP to an integrator 36 and a multiplier 40. The integrator 36 integrates the phase error data DP, and the multiplier 38 multiplies the phase error data integrated in the integrator 36 by a multiplier coefficient K.sub.3 and supplies the integrated and multiplied phase error data to the adder 42. Also, the multiplier 40 multiplies the phase error data DP supplied from the counter 34 by a multiplier coefficient K.sub.2 and supplies the multiplied phase error data to the adder 42. The adder 42 adds the data from the multipliers 26, 30, 38 and 40 and supplies the added data to a digital-analog (hereinafter referred to as "D-A") converter 44. The D-A converter 44 converts the added data supplied from the adder 42 into an analog signal and supplies the converted analog signal to a driving circuit 46 as a speed control signal. The driving circuit 46 controls the speed of the drum motor 10 according to the voltage level of the speed control signal.
FIG. 3 shows a detailed circuit diagram of the D-A converter 44 shown in FIG. 1, and FIGS. 4A and 4B show output waveform diagrams at the respective portions of FIG. 3. In FIG. 3, a timing signal generator 56 generates a pulse width modulated signal having a width corresponding to a logic value of digital data received through an input terminal 54 from the adder 42 shown in FIG. 1. The pulse width modulated signal, a signal having three logic states, as shown in FIG. 4A has a low logic with respect to a high impedance level when the digital data has a plus logic value and to the contrary, has a high logic with respect to a high impedance level when the digital data has a minus logic data. And the pulse period of the pulse width modulated signal has the same period as that of the FG pulse. An operational amplifier 58 constituting an integrator circuit together with a resistor R1 and a capacitor C1 charges/discharges for a pulse width interval according to a logic state of pulse width modulated signal supplied from the timing signal generator 56, thereby generating a speed control signal of analog signal form as shown in FIG. 4B. In more detail, the operational amplifier 58 charges a voltage in a capacitor C1 for a pulse interval when a pulse width modulated signal of low logic state is input, and contrarily, discharges the voltage charged in the capacitor C1 for a pulse interval when a pulse width modulated signal of high logic state is input. The time constant .tau. of charging/discharging of the capacitor C1 is 1/(R.sub.1 C.sub.1) and the voltage charged in the capacitor C1 is supplied to the driving circuit 46 shown in FIG. 1 through an output terminal 60 as a speed control signal So.
FIG. 5 shows speed error data DS outputted from the comb-shaped filter 22 shown in FIG. 1 at an initial operation and a speed control signal So outputted from the D-A converter 44. In FIG. 1, the speed error data DS has a maximum value during the interval T.sub.1, i.e. from the time t.sub.0 to start to drive the drum motor 10 to the time t.sub.1 for the drum motor to reach the first target (or normal) speed, and rapidly decreases to have a minus value during the interval T.sub.2, i.e., from the time t.sub.1 to the time for the drum motor 10 to rotate with a maximum speed, and slowly increases during the interval T.sub.3, i.e., from the time t.sub.2 for the drum motor 10 to have a maximum speed to the time t.sub.3 to be driven with a normal driving mode. Meanwhile, the speed control signal So keeps the output voltage at a maximum according to the speed error data DS during the interval from the time t.sub.0 for the drum motor 10 to be initially operated to the time t.sub.1 for the drum motor 10 to reach a target speed, and rapidly decreases to "0" level during the interval from the time t.sub.1 for the drum motor 10 to reach the target speed to the time t.sub.2 for the drum motor 10 to have a maximum speed. And, the motor speed control signal So keeps "0" level for a constant interval during the interval from the time t.sub.2 for the drum motor 10 to rotate at a maximum speed to the time t.sub.3 to be operated at a normal driving mode.
FIG. 6 shows a rotation speed of the drum motor 10 according to the speed control signal So outputted from the D-A converter 44 shown in FIG. 1, at an initial operation. In FIG. 6, the drum motor 10 is driven and accelerated by a speed control signal of maximum voltage from the driving started time t.sub.0, and reaches the target speed at the time t.sub.1, and then reaches the maximum speed at the time t.sub.2 by rotation inertia even if the speed control signal So is decreased to the "0" level from the maximum value from the time t.sub.1. And the drum motor 10 is rapidly decelerated from the time t.sub.2 and is driven with a normal control mode by a speed control signal So starting to be increased at the time t.sub.3 having below target speed.
As described above, at the initial operation, the conventional rotation controlling device completely detects the error near Hz even if the rotation defect component having a relatively low level is included, and accelerates the motor by the detected error value, so that the transient phenomena are severed and the transient response time until it is driven with a normal driving mode for keeping the target speed constant, lengthens. Moreover, the conventional rotation controlling device utilizing a D-A converter having an integrator for increasing/decreasing by steps the voltage value of the speed control signal by a voltage corresponding to an error amount according to the error amount of motor, has the problem of having more severe transient response characteristic due to a slow response characteristic of the motor speed control signal with respect to the speed variation. Because of these problems, a VCR mutes the video signal for a long time at the initial reproduction and record, thereby inconveniencing the consumer and decreasing the reliability of the VCR.


Data for a plurality of musical pieces is preset in a ROM pack and also on a tape recorder. Musical piece data read out from the ROM pack or tape recorder is supplied from a control section to melody generators, a chord generator, a bass generator and a rhythm generator. Melody data, chord data, and rhythm data obtained from these generators are coupled through an amplifier to a loudspeaker.

The present invention relates to an auto-playing apparatus for reading out and playing musical pieces preset in a memory device such as a ROM or a RAM.
Recently, there has been made available an auto-playing apparatus, which can read out and automatically play musical data preset in an internal memory and which can also read out and automatically play musical data preset in an external memory. These auto-playing apparatuses meet the demand for automatically playing music. Particularly, the auto-playing apparatus which uses an external memory permits a variety of musical pieces to be enjoyed by the user simply changing the external memory for another. External memories, such as the so-called ROM packs may be used. The ROM packs, however, usually contain data for only a single musical piece. Therefore, it has been impossible to enjoy continuous playing of a number of different musical pieces without frequently changing ROM packs. Additionally, since in order to enjoy the automatic playing of several different musical pieces, the corresponding number of ROM packs must be purchased, the cost to the user is very high.


A vehicle stability control apparatus calculates a desired yaw rate from the angle of the steering wheel and vehicle's velocity and always executes control so as to have the actual yaw rate correspond to the desired yaw rate. Both of the front wheels' braking force and the rear wheels' braking force are operated according to the amendment momentum calculated by a control in response to the yaw rate difference. However, the actual yaw rate cannot be accurately corresponded to the desired yawing moment without delay when the driver operates a steering wheel rapidly in the emergency evasion condition, the control unit increases the amendment momentum right after the emergency evasion condition. Furthermore, the control unit decreases the amendment momentum when the vehicle is converging on straight-ahead driving.

The invention relates to a vehicle stability control apparatus, which calculates the desired yaw rate from the exerted force on the vehicle or the generating physical quantity on the vehicle and executes feedback control so as to have the actual yaw rate correspond to the desired yaw rate. Particularly, this invention is applicable to an apparatus that can execute the feedback control such as a four wheel steer apparatus which steers individually both of the front wheels and the rear wheels, a limited slip differential control apparatus which controls the engagement power between front wheels and rear wheels or between right and left wheels, a braking force control apparatus, a stabilizer control apparatus or an active control suspension apparatus which is capable of adjusting the rolling rigidity.
As one example, Japanese Patent Kokai No. 9-2316 discloses a vehicle stability control apparatus that calculates a desired yaw rate from the angle of the steering wheel and the vehicle's velocity, and always executes control so as to have the actual yaw rate correspond to the desired yaw rate. With such conventional apparatus, when the vehicle is quickly turned so as to change lanes for emergency evasion on a low friction road such as an icy road, the feedback control is executed so as to make the actual yaw rate correspond to the desired yaw rate. However, the actual yaw rate cannot be accurately corresponded to the desired yawing moment without delay because the tires can not generate lateral force, braking force and traction force transmitted on a road. Accordingly, a delay of phase of the vehicle's yaw rate becomes large in comparison to a driver's steering operation when the vehicle is converging on straight-ahead driving, and driver tends to over-correct the vehicle's behavior.


The opening system entails a longitudinal translation and a rotation of plates of a counter or display unit along the customer""s side; each plate is fixed to a first bar; the latter is hinged to two supporting arms by pivots and at its turn each supporting arm is hinged to a lower bearing bar by two further pivots; the supporting arms are parallel and the pivots insist on their ends; a gas-actioned piston is connected to a supporting arm; the lower bearing bar is shaped in such a way to house in its section all the moving mechanics of plates; the two supporting arms of each plate in co-operation with each bar on which the plate-holding clamps are attached and the lower bearing arm form a parallelogram-like moving system.

The system as per subject can be validly employed in the sector of display units and the refrigerated, neutral, warm counters destined to both the retail sale of foodstuff and jewellery, toys, etc., etc.
The counters and display units for selling foodstuff or non-food products are always equipped with glass or plastic plates. The function of the latter is that of isolating the food contained into them from the external environment and/or that of avoiding that customers may touch the displayed goods. The plates are hinged in different ways to a lower frame or to an upper frame sustained by posts.
The opening systems based on the upper frame, though valid, are affected by some problems. First of all, to support the plates, it is necessary to have profiled bars with relevant section so as to avoid twisting and deformation of the frame itself. This entails two consequences: a higher cost of production of the counters and display units and a lower quality of the display and of the visibility of the goods on sale. Furthermore, the employed gas-actioned pistons are often subject to wear in time, with a subsequent danger of collapse for the plates from their maximum opening position. Apart from these anomalies, there is however the constant possibility for operators to get head injuries when the plates are lifted up.
In the systems with downward openings each plate is hinged to the lower frame. Its movement is made easier since at least one side always remains attached to the display or the glass and thus the physical strain is decreased. But even this solution cannot solve all the problems for operators either. With the downward opening of large crystals it is actually needed to support them manually while cleaning and placing/replacing operations of goods are carried out so to avoid the breakage of hinges. The strain for operators is thus doubled: on one hand the efforts of holding the plates, on the other that of being incapable of moving along the display as the latter is mostly occupied by the lifted plates.
The present invention provides a system with a sliding movement of plates that resolve the previously mentioned problems.
This and other purposes are achieved by this claimed system based on a circular translation movement of plates for counters and display units, which entails a longitudinal sliding of glass or plastic plates, independently from their number, along the customer""s side. Simultaneously with the sliding, there is a rotation of each plate as clarified later on.
Each plate is attached to a first bar. Such first bar is then hinged to two supporting arms through pivots and each supporting arm is hinged to a lower bearing bar, attached to the display or glass by means of two further pivots. The two supporting arms are parallel and the pivots insist on close to their ends.
An elastic device is connected to one of the two supporting arms of each plate. The device is hinged to the supporting arm itself and to the bearing lower bar of the counter or display by two pivots.
Each plate can be slid to the right or the left (for an observer standing in front of the display on the customer""s side) according to the orientation of the supporting arms. Consequently the way in which the various plates open themselves depends only on the user""s requirements and/or the space available in the location that is going to lodge the display or the glass.
The bearing lower bar has a shaped section so as to be able to lodge internally the supporting bars, the bars which the plate-holding clamps and the elastic devices are attached to. Also the supporting arms house the elastic devices so as to allow for a complete folding of all the moving elements in a narrow space when they are in a rest position. To allow for the above mentioned total folding, some housings suitable for lodging some of the above mentioned pivots are created in the bars which the plate-holding clamps are attached to. To avoid that, for accidental reasons, the plates move away from the display or the glass when they are at rest, the bearing lower bar is equipped with a magnetic washer acting on the bars fixed to the clamps of the plates.
The two supporting arms in co-operation with each bar capable of holding a plate and the lower bearing bar make up a parallelogram-like moving system. The plate, throughout and at the end of its opening movement, has the same vertical slant that it takes when at rest. Each plate, at the end of the run, places itself on one side of its resting position, always close to the counter or display unit though detached from it for as much as it is necessary to overlap the nearby plate for at least two thirds. With this movement the plate leaves a free space in the counter or display unit having a length that corresponds to that of the two superimposed plates and therefore equal to two thirds of the length of the plate itself.
The opening system of the plates in question is alternative to the upwardly lifting systems of plates as well as to the traditional ones that have a simple downward rotation of the plates themselves.
Each plate, which perfectly matches with the one at its side when at rest, can be opened independently. When the plates have to be operated at least one of them is moved away from the counter or display unit and is turned to the right or to the left. The weight of the plate discharges itself on the lower bearing plate, as in the traditional downward opening systems but the presence of the foreseen supporting arms avoids the necessity of holding it. This allows not only to reduce the strain for operators but also to give them a higher safety degree, as no longer there are lifted weights that might suddenly drop or the possibility of bumping the head against the edges of the upwardly lifted plates. Actually the installed elastic devices are used only to ease the opening of plates and not as a safety brake for a sudden collapse or closure of themselves. Moreover, the advantages for operators are remarkable since the plates do not obstacle during such operations. The cleaning of counters and display units is easy, since by opening the plates one after another, every corner can be reached.
The claimed moving system enables to manufacture counters or display units with the upper part free from any bar or bearing element, thereby giving a greater visibility to the product on sale. But obviously nothing prevents from placing some upper posts at the back to support the intermediate shelves on the counters or display units or as a support for an additional lighting different from the natural one.
The special orientation of the supporting bars for moving the plates into the lower bearing bar obstacle their view by the customers. At the same time it allows for an easy fitting, with a remarkable reduction of costs. Another diminution of costs can be obtained by using lighter bearing frames since, being all the mechanics housed into the lower part of the display or glass, the torsion forces are extremely reduced with respect to the systems using upward opening systems.

Circular translation opening system for plates of counters and display units


A method and system for dynamically selecting a destination gateway to complete a call over a path supported at least in part by an IP telephony network and a public switched telephone network. The method and system further provide for dynamically detecting available gateways, dynamically removing failed and/or unavailable gateways, and automatically recovering failed and/or unavailable gateways after a predetermined period of time. A method is also provided for detecting available destination gateways using a ping method, where a message is transmitted to a plurality of destination gateways on a one-by-one basis to ascertain the availability status of each destination gateway.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of IP telephony, and more particularly to a method and system for selecting gateway(s) for routing calls through a packet-based telecommunications network interconnected with a public telecommunications network.
2. Acronyms
The written description herein uses a number of acronyms to refer to various services, messages and system components. Although generally known, use of several of these acronyms is not strictly standardized in the art. For purposes of this discussion, several acronyms will be defined as follows:                Dynamic Gateway Selection (DGS)—a process employed by a network server and a Redirect Server (RS) to allow calls to be routed to an egress gateway.        Egress (Destination) and Ingress (Origination) Gateways—gateways connecting an internet protocol network to a PSTN, PBX or other network.        Network Management System (NMS)—performs a variety of functions, including receiving and storing status changes to destination or egress gateways.
3. Description of the Prior Art
Internet telephony provides real-time delivery of voice, and other multimedia data, between two or more parties across a network employing Internet protocols (IP). Internet telephony is session-based rather than connection-based. That is, Internet telephony uses virtual connections or circuits to pass data between two nodes. These connections between the nodes are termed "virtual circuits" to distinguish them from dedicated circuits of conventional networks.
While IP telephony offers benefits to both users and carriers in terms of costs and versatility of media carried, there are a substantial amount of traditional telephones being serviced by the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN). The PSTN provides users with dedicated, end-to-end circuit connections for the duration of each call. Circuits are reserved between an originating switch and a terminating switch based on a called party number.
However, because of the popularity of the Internet, many public telecommunications networks now carry significantly more IP data traffic than voice data traffic. Public telecommunications networks, optimized for voice traffic, are ill-equipped to handle increasing data traffic volumes. The growth in IP data traffic coupled with customer demands for integrated voice and data services at lower costs has led to the adoption of IP as the preferred protocols for carrying both voice and data traffic between originating and terminating switches of the public telecommunications network.
Accordingly, in order for IP based telephony services to become broadly accepted by users of traditional telephones, it is necessary to interface the IP telephony network with the existing PSTN and with private PBX phone networks. To permit this mode of operation, a packet-based network, such as the Internet, must interface directly with public telephone networks and operate as a bridge between originating and destination switches of such networks.
Media streams which originate from a public network must be capable of being transported through the packet-switched IP network and terminate at the same or different public network. This type of interfacing is performed by gateways which interface the signaling and bearer paths between the two networks. Therefore, Internet gateways perform code and protocol conversion between two otherwise incompatible networks to provide links necessary to send packets between the two different networks and thus make network-to-network connections possible. To assure overall system reliability it is crucial that the gateways are reliable and their availability, especially destination or egress gateways, be monitored for quickly and efficiently selecting an available gateway.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method and system for dynamic gateway selection in an IP telephony network


A cap member for covering a plurality of nozzle arrays disposed in a nozzle plate of a liquid ejecting head includes a first lip, at least one second lip, and a main body. The first lip has an annular shape and is configured to abut against the nozzle plate to enclose the plurality of nozzle arrays. At least one second lip has an annular shape, is disposed within the annular first lip, and is configured to abut against the nozzle plate to enclose at least one of the plurality of nozzle arrays separately from the first lip. The first lip and the at least one second lip are disposed on the main body. The main body is configured to cooperate with the first lip and the at least one second lip to make sealing contact with the nozzle plate.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a cap member for covering a plurality of nozzle arrays formed in a nozzle plate of a liquid ejecting head, and also relates generally to a liquid ejecting device comprising such a cap member.
2. Description of Related Art
As an example of liquid ejecting devices, inkjet recording devices capable of color recording using inks of a plurality of colors (such as black, yellow, cyan, and magenta) are known. In such known inkjet recording devices, arrays of nozzles for ejecting respective color inks are provided in a nozzle plate of an inkjet head. A cap member also is provided to enclose and cover the nozzle openings to prevent the ink in the nozzles from drying up or hardening, or both, when the inkjet recording device is kept in the non-recording mode, i.e., in the standby mode.
For example, as shown in FIGS. 11A and 11B, a cap member 90 having two annular lips 91, 92 is used in a 4-color inkjet recording device, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,883,896 B2. Lips 91, 92 cover separate four nozzle arrays 10h, 10i, 10j, 10k, which are divided into two segments. Lip 91 covers nozzle array 10h, while lip 92 covers the other three nozzle arrays 10i, 10j, 10k. The four nozzle arrays are divided into two segments, so that ink is withdrawn separately from the two segments, thus, reducing the amount of waste ink. When an ink ejection failure occurs in any nozzle of the inkjet recording device, ink is withdrawn from the nozzles under negative pressure by a maintenance mechanism to restore ejection performance of the nozzles. In this case, if ink is withdrawn by covering all the nozzle arrays with a single lip, ink is withdrawn from all the nozzle arrays regardless of whether or not each nozzle array includes faulty nozzles, resulting in an increase in the amount of waste ink.
As described above, if four nozzle arrays 10h, 10i, 10j, 10k are divided into two segments, and if two lips 91, 92 are provided separately for the respective segments a portion of lip 91 and a portion of lip 92, which are parallel with the nozzle arrays, are disposed at a boundary portion between two adjacent nozzle arrays 10h, 10i, as shown in FIG. 11B. In this case, a distance d between two adjacent nozzle arrays 10h, 10i may resist reduction below a certain limit. Lips 91, 92 experience reduced rigidity and collapse during ink withdrawal if lips 91, 92 are made with a reduced width to decrease distance d. Consequently, a gap is created between lip 91 and the nozzle plate or between lip 92 and the nozzle plate, making ink withdrawal under negative pressure difficult or impossible.
Alternatively, a compact inkjet head, as well as a compact inkjet recording device, in which nozzle arrays are arranged at reduced intervals and at high density is desired. For example, a cap member 100 as shown in FIG. 12A is known. Cap member 100, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,471,330 B2, has a lip 101 and a lip 102 that integrally intersect with each other at a portion E and share a partition wall 103 disposed therebetween. Accordingly, a single partition wall 103 is disposed at a boundary portion between two adjacent nozzle arrays.
Nevertheless, in cap member 100, it may be difficult to make lips 101, 102 flush with each other. As shown in FIG. 12B, lips 101, 102 and partition wall 103 are connected at the portion E because potions of lips 101, 102 share partition wall 103. When such a cap member is made by injection molding, grooves for lips are machined into the mold. Because a tool to cut such grooves passes the intersection (i.e., joint) twice, it is difficult to make the depth of the intersecting grooves the same, and a relatively small step may be formed at the bottoms of the intersecting grooves. Consequently, a difference in height h (i.e., a step) is created at the intersection of lips 101, 102 and the flushness between the uppermost surfaces of lips 101, 102 is not ensured.
Even if the cap member having such a step at the intersection of the lips is pressed against the nozzle plate, a clearance may be created between the lip and the nozzle plate, such that the cap member fails to make sealing contact with the nozzle plate. Such a clearance may be eliminated by forcibly contacting the cap member with the nozzle plate. This measure, however, may require use of a greater power source and an increased rigidity of the inkjet recording device, leading to an increase in the production cost.

Cap members and liquid ejecting devices comprising cap members


An orifice shield for a wastewater drainage conduit is an injection molded unitary body which is cylindrically-shaped with a first open end and an opposed second open end. The body is provided with a top wall and rounded sidewalls extending from the top wall. At least one flow through slot is provided in the top wall of the body to allow the flow of effluent therethrough. The rounded sidewalls terminate in spaced edges which extend along the length of the unitary body for receiving and gripping a conduit. Longitudinally extending spacers are provided along an interior surface of the unitary body for spacing the top wall of the orifice shield from the drainage conduit.

This invention relates to a shield which surrounds drainage openings in a conduit and more particularly to a shield for the orifices in a drainage conduit to prevent debris and the like from entering the orifices when the conduit is buried in a wastewater treatment drain field.
In the treatment of wastewater and particularly wastewater that has been treated in a septic tank, or the like, the effluent from the septic tank is transferred into a drain field wherein the effluent is absorbed in the soil. In the preparation of these drain fields to receive wastewater effluent, trenches are generally dug in a preselected arrangement and pipes or conduits with drainage openings or orifices therein are laid into the trenches. Generally these pipes are covered with pebbles or crushed rock which assists in the percolation of the effluent into the soil. However, with this type of arrangement it is very difficult to obtain uniform distribution of the effluent in the drain field as the openings within the pipes can be clogged with dust or fines from the crushed rock or gravel. There have been suggestions, however, of placing shields to prevent the clogging of these orifices or openings, but such shields in many instances have proved to be cumbersome or inefficient in assembling. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,167,914 teaches an orifice protector which is of C-shaped cross-section for circumscribing the drainage conduit and cover the orifices in the conduit. Opposed ends of the elongated C-shaped orifice protector are provided with downwardly and inwardly indented portions which define stand-off portions for maintaining the central top portion of the conduit in a spaced relationship with the conduit. One problem in the manufacture of this orifice protector, after the initial step of injection molding of the body of the orifice protector, the orifice protector is subjected to a second manufacturing step of deforming or indenting the ends of the wall of the orifice protector downwardly and inwardly to make the stand-off portions to provide a flow through channel between the inner surface of the orifice protector and the outer surface of the drainage conduit.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an orifice shield for protecting the orifices in a drainage conduit.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an orifice shield for the drainage openings in a drainage conduit wherein the inner surface of the orifice shield is spaced from the outer surface of the drainage conduit thereby providing for a channel for the drainage of effluent from the drainage conduit.
A further object of the present invention is to provide an orifice shield for a drainage conduit which is manufactured in a one-step injection molded process.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide an orifice shield for a drainage conduit which is relatively inexpensive and easy to install onto a drainage conduit.
More particularly, the present invention provides an orifice shield for wastewater drainage conduit which is an longitudinally extending cylindrically-shaped unitary body having a first open end and an opposed second open end. The shield body includes a top wall section and rounded sidewalls extending from the top wall with at least one flow-through slot in the top wall. The rounded sidewalls end in opposed spaced terminating edges extending along the length of the body for receiving and griping a conduit. At least one longitudinally extending spacer is provided along an interior surface of the body to space the top wall of the unitary body from the drainage conduit.

Orifice shield for a drainage conduit in a wastewater treatment drain field


Effective treatments of pain and inflammation are provided. Through the administration of an effective amount of fluocinolone at or near a target site, one can reduce, prevent or treat inflammation and pain and autoimmune disorders. In various embodiments, fluocinolone formulations may be provided within biodegradable polymers to reduce, prevent or treat sciatic pain and/or inflammation. In various embodiments, prevent transplant rejection for at least twenty-five days. In some embodiments, the pain relief can be for at least fifty days, at least one hundred days, at least one hundred and thirty-five days or at least one hundred and eighty days.

Inflammation is the result of a complex biological response of vascular tissues to harmful stimuli, such as pathogens, damaged cells, or irritants. It is part of an attempt by a patient to remove the injurious stimuli, as well as to initiate the healing process for the tissue. Due to an increased blood flow that accompanies this healing process, there is a rapid delivery of immune system cells thereby causing the patient to experience the swelling and redness that are associated with inflammation.
An inflammatory response may be initiated at the site of injury by endothelial cells that produce molecules that attract and detain inflammatory cells (e.g., myeloid cells such as neutrophils, eosinophils, and basophils). The inflammatory cells are then transported through the endothelial barrier into the surrounding tissue. The resulting accumulation of inflammatory cells, in particular neutrophils, is followed by generation of toxic oxygen particles and release of neutrophil granules that contain acid hydrolases and degradative enzymes such as proteases, elastase, and collagenase, which contribute to local tissue breakdown and inflammation. Neutrophils can also release chemoattractants and complement activators that amplify the inflammation.
Although the inflammatory response can play a role in the healing process by destroying, diluting, and isolating injurious agents as well as stimulating repair of the affected tissue, inflammatory responses can also be harmful, and indeed life-threatening. Five symptoms often characterize the inflammatory response: pain, redness, heat, swelling, and loss of function. For example, inflammation may result in leakage of plasma from the blood vessels. Although this leakage can have beneficial effects, it can also cause pain, and when uncontrolled lead to loss of function and, in severe cases, death. Anaphylactic shock, arthritis, and gout are among the conditions that are characterized by uncontrolled or inappropriate inflammation.
In certain situations, after injury or infection heals, proinflammatory activity persists. This, in turn, leaves sensory nerves carrying pain information to the brain to remain sensitized in the absence of injury or infection. Consequently, the patient experiences pain.
One particularly painful disease is sciatica. Sciatica is a chronic disease that often can be very debilitating and may take a terrible toll on those with the disease as well as their families, friends and caregivers. Sciatica is a very painful disease associated with the sciatic nerve which runs from the lower part of the spinal cord (the lumbar region), down the back of the leg and to the foot. Sciatica generally begins with a herniated disc, which later leads to local immune system activation. The herniated disc also may damage the nerve root by pinching or compressing it, leading to additional immune system activation in the area. There has been considerable interest in developing effective treatments for this painful disease, yet to date current treatments of sciatica are only partially effective.
Inflammation also has an immunological component, which can cause problems particularly in heterologous tissue or organ transplants. Transplant rejection occurs when the immune system of the recipient of a transplant attacks or rejects the tissue (or organ) that has been transplanted.
To prevent rejection, one strategy that is employed by the medical community to reduce the likelihood of transplant rejection is to use donated tissues from related individuals. A second strategy, which may be used in combination with the first strategy, is to use chemical compositions that suppress the immunological response that may lead to rejection of the donated tissue.
One compound that is known to reduce inflammation and/or immunological rejection of transplanted tissue is fluocinolone, which in its acetonide form (C24H30F2O6) has been administered topically as a cream in connection with hand transplants. It may also be referred to as 4b, 12-Difluoro-6b-glycoloyl-5-hydroxy-4-a,6a,8,8-tetramethyl-4a,4b,5,6,6a,6b,9a, 10, 10a, 10b,11,12-dodecahydro-2H-naphtho[2′,1′:4,5]indeno[1,2-d][1,3]dioxol-2-one or 6α-,9α-Difluoro-16α-hydroxyprednisolone 16,17-acetonide.
However, to date there is an unmet need to be able to reduce inflammation, pain, and/or immunological rejection utilizing sustained release fluocinolone.

Fluocinolone formulations in a biodegradable polymer carrier


This gantry type conveying device is provided with: a beam which is horizontally installed; a runner traveling along the beam; an elevator supported to be movable in the vertical direction with respect to the runner; and a loading part which is supported by the lower portion of the elevator and on which a workpiece is loaded. This processing line has the gantry type conveying device and a machine tool. The machine tool is provided with: a base; and a workpiece supporting device provided movable with respect to the base in a forward and backward direction perpendicular to the extending direction of the beam when viewed in a plane.

Patent Document 1 (JP2002-178238 A) discloses an automatic supply and removal device for supplying and removing a work to/from a machine tool, as an example of a conventional gantry type conveying device.
This automatic supply and removal device is provided with a beam horizontally supported by two posts, a robot main-body (runner) moving along this beam, and a robot hand provided to this robot main-body to hold a work (see paragraphs [0020], FIG. 9, etc.).

Gantry type conveying device and processing line


An inkjet printhead heater chip includes a resistor layer, a dielectric layer on the resistor layer and a cavitation layer on the dielectric layer. A grounded-gate MOSFET electrically attaches to the cavitation layer to protect the dielectric layer from breakdown during an electrostatic discharge (ESD) event. Protection typically embodies the safe distribution of ESD current to ground during user printhead installation. Locations of the grounded-gate MOSFET(s) include terminal ends of one or more columns of ink ejecting elements formed by the resistor layer. Also, the MOSFET source electrically connects to the gate while the drain attaches to the cavitation layer. The drain attaches via first and second metallization lines, including attachment generally above the cavitation layer. The dielectric layer is diamond like carbon layer and is about 2000 angstroms thick. Inkjet printheads and printers are also disclosed.

The art of printing images with inkjet technology is relatively well known. In general, an image is produced by emitting ink drops from a printhead at precise moments so they impact a print medium at a desired location. The printhead is supported by a movable print carriage within a device, such as an inkjet printer, and is caused to reciprocate relative to an advancing print medium. It emits ink at times pursuant to commands of a microprocessor or other controller. The timing of the emissions corresponds to a pattern of pixels of the image being printed. Other than printers, familiar devices incorporating inkjet technology include fax machines, all-in-ones, photo printers, and graphics plotters, to name a few.
Conventionally, a thermal inkjet printhead includes access to a local or remote supply of color or mono ink, a heater chip, a nozzle or orifice plate attached to or integrated with the heater chip, and an input/output connector, such as a tape automated bond (TAB) circuit, for electrically connecting the heater chip to the printer during use. The heater chip, in turn, typically includes a plurality of thin film resistors or heaters fabricated by deposition, patterning and etching on a substrate such as silicon. One or more ink vias cut or etched through a thickness of the silicon serve to fluidly connect the supply of ink to the individual heaters.
Heretofore, conventional heater chip thin films included a relatively thick silicon nitride (SiN) and silicon carbide (SiC) overlying a resistor layer for reasons relating to passivation. In turn, a cavitation layer overlies the two passivation layers to protect the heater from corrosive ink and bubble collapse occurring in the ink chamber. However, as layers continue to become thinner and more energy efficient over time, thinner passivation seems unable to provide adequate ESD protection. It some instances, the passivation is so thin that ESD events damage the resistor layer making it altogether inoperable.
Accordingly, the inkjet printhead arts desire ESD protection despite a continuing trend toward thinner heater chip configurations.

Heater chip for inkjet printhead with electrostatic discharge protection


The new Shasta daisy plant, Leucanthemum ‘Banana Cream II’, is a sturdy plant with dark-green serrated foliage and stiff stems. The numerous freely-flowering inflorescences producing two to three rows of ray florets starting light yellow and developing to creamy-colored. The center disk florets are golden yellow. Flowering repeats into fall if deadheaded. The new plant is useful in the landscape as a long-flowering border, in mass, as accent plants and containerized for patio or indoor use, or as a cut flower.

The original Leucanthemum x superbum, or Shasta daisies, were bred by Luther Burbank in the late 1800's as a cross between Leucanthemum maximum (Ramond) DC. and Leucanthemum vulgare with Leucanthemum lacustre (Broth.) Samp. and Nipponanthemum nipponicum. The new plant, Leucanthemum 'Banana Cream II' originated from a planned breeding program of the inventor at a wholesale perennial nursery in Zeeland, Mich., USA. The new Leucanthemum was a single plant selected from a group of seedlings from a cross on Jul. 15, 2015 between 'Sante' U.S. Plant Pat. No. 19,829 and 'Banana Cream' U.S. Plant Pat. No. 23,181. The individual plant that eventually became 'Banana Cream II' was first evaluated in the summer of 2016 and originally given the breeder number 15-1-6 through the subsequent evaluations.
The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Shasta daisy botanically known as Leucanthemum x superbum and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name 'Banana Cream II' or the new plant.
Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by division at the same nursery in Zeeland, Mich. as the fall of 2017 has demonstrated that the new cultivar reproduces true to type with all of the characteristics of the original plant retained through successive generations of asexual propagation. The new plant has since been asexually propagated by basal shoot tip cuttings and sterile shoot tip tissue culture.


This invention relates to an assay for high density lipoprotein in blood. More particularly, it relates to the use of boar vesicle seminal plasma protein material to bind to and precipitate HDL cholesterol. In one embodiment, the method involves measuring the cholesterol using standard methods prior to and after precipitation of the HDL. The difference in measurements being an estimate of HDL cholesterol present in the sample.

Low density lipoprotein ("LDL") and high density lipoprotein ("HDL") are very important components of blood. LDL is involved in transporting cholesterol to the peripheral organs and cells. HDL is involved in transporting cholesterol away from the peripheral organs and cells to the liver. High blood plasma LDL cholesterol levels are correlated with the development of coronary heart disease and heart attacks. On the other hand, high HDL levels appear to reduce the adverse affect of high LDL levels. The ratio of LDL to HDL is therefore now an important predictor for the susceptibility or resistance to coronary heart disease and heart attacks, and as a factor in developing diets.
Precise measurements of HDL lipoprotein levels are therefore highly desirable for clinical purposes. HDL cholesterol is currently usually determined by first measuring total blood plasma cholesterol, then LDL is precipitated out, and then the level of total cholesterol left in the supernatant is measured. The difference is assumed to be HDL. While deducing HDL in this way gives a rough estimate, it assumes that there is no other type of cholesterol present in the sample, and the method is limited by the ability of the LDL precipitant to selectively and effectively pull the LDL out of solution. There are currently no better practical methods to assay levels of HDL cholesterol (albeit there is also an ultracentrafuge method which is very costly and time consuming). The development of a more practical method for directly measuring HDL cholesterol is therefore highly desirable.
In separate unrelated work a red blood cell haemagglutinating factor has been isolated in boar seminal plasma. See J. Boursnell et al., 11 J. Reprod. Fert. 139-144 (1966). It is present in boar vesicular secretion, but not in epididymal seminal plasma or in boar spermatozoa. See also J. Boursnell et al., 19 J. Reprod. Fert. 157-266 (1969) (protein H in factor agglutinates sperm cells); H. Moore et al., 47 J. Reprod. Fert. 39-45 (1976) (factor secreted by seminal vesicle accessory gland); D. Schellpfeffer et al., 23 J. Reprod. Fert. 291-98 (1970) (two sizes of proteins active in factor); T. Roberts et al., 41 J. Reprod. Fert. 489-92 (1974) (lipid site on red blood cell may cause agglutination). The disclosure of these articles and of all other articles recited herein are incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein. While there has been some interest in studying this factor and whether it contains any lipoprotein, to date there has been no suggestion in the art that this factor has any utility vis a vis testing for HDL levels.

Assay for high density lipoprotein cholesterol


A backlight module includes a reflective plate, a light module and a heat dissipation module. The light module and the heat dissipation module are disposed at two sides of the reflective plate. The light module has a number of light emitting diodes to emit light. The heat dissipation module includes at least one heat pipe, a heat sink and a fan on an end of the heat sink. The heat pipes are disposed between the reflective plate and the heat sink to transfer the heat generated by the light module. The at least one heat pipe defines a number of nano-scale recesses in an inner surface thereof.

1. Technical Field
The invention relates generally to backlight modules, and in particular to a backlight module with uniform brightness and a high heat dissipating efficiency. The invention also relates to a method for manufacturing a backlight module.
2. Related Art
Liquid crystal display devices are commonly used as display devices for compact electronic apparatuses such as digital cameras, personal digital assistants (PDAs), navigation satellite global positioning systems (GPSs), computer monitors, flat panel televisions (TVs) and so on. Because liquid crystals in the liquid crystal display device do not emit any light themselves, it is common for a backlight module to be disposed in the liquid crystal display device. The backlight module illuminates a liquid crystal panel of the liquid crystal display device, and the panel can thereby display clear images.
Referring to FIG. 8, a conventional liquid crystal display device 10 comprises a liquid crystal panel 20 and a backlight module 40 disposed below the liquid crystal panel 20. The backlight module 40 comprises a light source, a diffusing plate 42, a light guide plate 43, a reflective plate 44, and a housing 45. The light source has a plurality of cold cathode fluorescent lamps (CCFLs) 41 in an airtight cabinet, and is for emitting light toward the light guide plate 43. The diffusing plate 42 is interposed between the liquid crystal panel 20 and the light source, and is for diffusing received light. The light guide plate 43 is interposed between the diffusing plate 42 and the light source, and is for scattering light toward the diffusing plate 42. The reflective plate 44 is disposed below the light source. The reflective plate 44 is for reflecting at least some (and preferably nearly all) of light that is emitted from bottom and side portions of the light source back into the light guide plate 43. This reflection enhances the utilization ratio of the light. The housing 45 is disposed below the reflective plate 44, and is for assembling the reflective plate 44, the light source, the light guide plate 43 and the diffusing plate 42 onto the liquid crystal panel 20. Furthermore, a prism sheet 46 is disposed on the diffusing plate 42. The prism sheet 46 is for improving the illumination of the light that transmits to the liquid crystal panel 20.
In the typical configuration of the liquid crystal display device 10 having the backlight module 40, the CCFLs 41 are arranged in a discontinuous parallel manner. Each of the CCFLs 41 is a linear light source, which emits light by means of cathode ray stimulation of fluorescent material therein. Referring to FIG. 9, the brightness of areas of the liquid crystal display device 10 relatively far away from the CCFLs 41 (shown by broken lines) is less than that of areas nearer the CCFLs 41. Thus, a dark area 47 is likely to be formed between each two adjacent CCFLs 41. Furthermore, in order to satisfy the requirement of high brightness, a large number of the CCFLs 41 is generally disposed in the airtight cabinet. Heat generated by the CCFLs 41 may not be dissipated efficiently. This can cause problems such as unstable images and a reduced useful working lifetime of the liquid crystal display device 10.
What is needed, therefore, is a backlight module that provides uniform brightness and has a high heat dissipating efficiency.
What is also needed is a method for manufacturing the above-described backlight module.

Backlight module including heat pipe with nano-scaled recesses


Wireless power transfer is created using a first antenna that is part of a magnetic resonator, to create a magnetic field in an area of the first antenna. One or more parasitic antennas repeats that power to create local areas where the power is more efficiently received.

Our previous applications have described magneto mechanical systems. Previous applications by Nigel Power LLC have described a wireless powering and/or charging system using a transmitter that sends a magnetic signal with a substantially unmodulated carrier. A receiver extracts energy from the radiated field of the transmitter. The energy that is extracted can be rectified and used to power a load or charge a battery.
Our previous applications describe non-radiative transfer of electrical energy using coupled magnetic resonance. Non-radiative may mean that both the receive and transmit antennas are "small" compared to the wavelength, and therefore have a low radiation efficiency with respect to Hertzian waves. High efficiency can be obtained between the transmit resonator and a receive resonator.

Wireless power range increase using parasitic antennas


A dual drill pipe joint includes a pin end and a box end. An inner pipe is disposed within an internal bore of the joint of drill pipe. A retainer is disposed proximate each longitudinal end of the inner pipe. A retaining feature is formed in an interior of the joint of drill pipe proximate each longitudinal end. The features are configured to engage a respective one of the retainers so that the inner pipe is held in longitudinally fixed relation to the joint of drill pipe.

The invention relates generally to the field of drill pipe used in drilling wellbores through subsurface formations. More particularly, the invention relates to "dual" drill pipe, in which two separate fluid conduits are provided within a single pipe extending from a drilling unit into a wellbore.
Dual drill pipe is disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,208,539 issued to Henderson. Generally, dual drill pipe includes conventional, threadedly connected drill pipe, such as conforms to standards set by the American Petroleum Institute, Washington, D.C. An inner conduit or tube may be disposed in the interior of the conventional drill pipe to provide an additional fluid conduit. As explained in the Henderson '539 patent, the additional fluid conduit may be used to transport drill cuttings from a drill bit back to the surface during drilling operations. A possible advantage of using the additional conduit for such purpose is that the conduit has smaller cross-sectional area than an annular space between the exterior of the conventional drill pipe and the wall of the wellbore. Such smaller cross-sectional area enables higher drilling fluid velocity, thus requiring less drilling fluid flow to entrain the drill cuttings and return them to the surface. Another possible advantage of using the additional conduit for cuttings return is in drilling highly inclined wellbores. In such wellbores, cuttings tend to settle on the bottom of the wellbore, sometimes leading to "packing", and having the drill pipe become stuck in the wellbore as a result.
Dual drill pipe structures known in the art may require extended seal engagement features for the inner tube to be sealingly engaged between segments of the dual drill pipe. Dual dill pipe structures may also require expensive and difficult manufacturing techniques. There exists a need for improved structures for dual drill pipe.

Structure for a nested dual drill pipe joint


The invention relates to a motor vehicle (1) and, mainly a cabriolet-type vehicle, comprising at least one opening (3, 4) in which the opening and closing movements are activated by driving means controlled by a control unit, said opening (3, 4) having at least one inner surface turned towards a part of the vehicle (1) to be covered and at least one edge (10) situated facing an element of the body or a mobile part of said opening when the opening (3, 4) is in its closed position, characterised in that a pressure-sensitive tape, which can emit a signal according to said pressure, is placed on the inner surface next to said edge, said control unit being arranged so as to modify the kinematics of the movement according to the pressure signal measured during said movement.

The invention relates to an opening of a motor vehicle in which the closing and/or opening movements are activated by driving means. More particularly, the invention relates to openings for cabriolet-type vehicles, and mainly a boot lid or a retractable roof consisting of several rigid roof elements.
In the previous technique, there are known openings for convertible motor vehicles in which the opening and closing movements are activated by driving means.
One of the problems with this type of opening is to secure the opening and closing of the opening, in particular during an automatic movement. In particular, the edges of the opening situated next to the body of the vehicle or to any other mobile part of the opening when the opening is closed can pinch objects or bodies.
In particular, the edge situated in the periphery of the boot lid can pinch hands or incorrectly positioned objects between the body element and the edge of the boot lid.
Likewise, the front and rear edges of the roof element can pinch a finger or a hand placed between a roof element and the crosspiece of the windscreen or between two roof elements.
The previously described pinches are particularly dangerous. In fact, the openings are activated by hydraulic or electrical actuators, which are particularly powerful due to the weight of the openings.

Motor vehicle equipped with a pressure-sensitive tape next to the edge of an opening


A hollow housing has a closed top, a closed back, a pair of side walls formed integrally with the closed top and the closed back, an open front and an open bottom. The open front is adapted to abuttingly engage a flat exterior surface of a wall of a building. The open bottom receives an uppermost end of a vertically oriented conduit. A throughbore is formed in the wall so that at least one cable enters the vertically oriented conduit from a lowermost end, extends through the lumen of the conduit, makes a gentle right angle bend in the hollow housing, and extends through the throughbore into the interior of the building. Sealant is then introduced into the hollow housing through a port formed in the closed top to seal the throughbore.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates, primarily, to the art of building construction. More generally, it relates to an aesthetic device that covers and seals an opening in an exterior wall through which electrical wiring, tubing, or other elongate members extend.
2. Description of the Prior Art
An opening must be formed in an exterior wall of a house or other building so that external electrical wiring may enter into the interior of such building.
The hole must be sealed around the wiring to form a barrier that keeps out the effects of weather, insects, and the like.
Cable television companies, for example, typically drill a throughbore in an exterior wall, position a centrally-apertured rubber grommet in the throughbore, and extend the cable through the central aperture. The rubber grommet is typically exposed to the effects of sunlight. Thus, it usually disintegrates within a few months. Its disintegration allows insects, reptiles, and the like to travel through the throughbore.
In other applications, an opening may need to be formed in the wall of a planter so that the soil in the planter may be irrigated by drip tubing or the like. It is customary to seal such openings with a grommet, just as in the cable TV example just mentioned.
There are several more elaborate ways of sealing such an opening or throughbore, and some of them have been patented. However, some of the known methods are time-consuming, some of them are expensive, and some of them are ineffective.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,914,011 to Eccles depicts a hollow housing that is screw threadedly engaged to an external wall that covers a throughbore formed in the external wall. The external and internal wiring meets in the housing but the housing is otherwise empty or hollow. Thus, no barrier to insect entry is provided.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,051,747 to Harshman et al. discloses an interface for cables for preventing the escape of electromagnetic radiation. It includes a housing with an attachable cover. The cover is closed during operation, but is removed to enable introduction of powdered graphite into the housing after cable installation. The graphite fills a recess defined by the housing, thereby isolating the cables from the housing and from all other cables.
However, the Harshman et al. structure employs an O-ring to form the seal.
Accordingly, its installation is relatively slow and not inexpensive.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,580,029 to Bing discloses an electrical conduit body that facilitates removal through securable screws. However, Bing does not suggest a means of insulating or protecting the electrical wires.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,656,313 to Moore et al. teaches a cable penetration seal formed by shaped packing blocks of deformable material.
Thus there is a need for an improved structure for sealing an electrical wiring throughbore formed in an exterior wall of a structure that is fast and easy to install, inexpensive, and effective.
A similar need exists for sealing openings formed in other materials for other reasons, such as the sealing of an opening in the wall of a planter around an irrigation drip tube, for example.
However, in view of the prior art considered as a whole at the time the present invention was made, it was not obvious to those of ordinary skill in the pertinent art how the identified needs could be fulfilled.
The long-standing but heretofore unfulfilled need for an aesthetic structure that covers and seals a throughbore for electrical wiring, piping, tubes, or other elongate members is now met by a new, useful, and nonobvious invention. The novel device covers a throughbore or opening and is adapted to receive a conduit for electrical wiring, piping, tubing, or the like. The novel structure includes a hollow housing having a closed top, a closed back, a pair of side walls formed integrally with the closed top and the closed back, an open bottom, and an open front adapted to abut against an exterior surface of a wall within which the throughbore is formed.
The device further includes fastening means for securing the hollow housing to the exterior surface of a wall so that the open front of the hollow housing abuts the exterior surface of the wall. The closed top, closed back, and the pair of side walls collectively form a hollow interior when the open front of the hollow housing is disposed in abutting relation to the exterior surface of the wall.
The hollow interior is adapted to accommodate an upper end of the conduit and the conduit has a lumen adapted to accommodate at least one electrical conductor. The upper end of the conduit may be press fit into the hollow housing, secured thereinto by a suitable adhesive, screw-threadedly engaged thereto, or secured by other means.
A port is formed in the closed top and is adapted to receive a sealant that at least partially fills the hollow housing to seal the throughbore. A cap closes the port and is removed from the port when the sealant is introduced into the hollow housing. The cap is placed in closing relation to the port after the sealant has been introduced into the hollow housing.
The fastening means includes a first flange formed integrally with a first side wall and a second flange formed integrally with the second side wall. The first flange is positioned in normal relation to the first side wall and the second flange is positioned in normal relation to the second side wall. Both flanges are disposed in overlying relation to the exterior surface of the wall when the open front of the hollow housing is disposed in abutting relation to the exterior surface of the wall.
An important object of this invention is to provide a throughbore seal that may be installed quickly.
Another object is to provide a throughbore seal that is inexpensive yet effective.
These and other important objects, advantages, and features of the invention will become clear as this description proceeds.
The invention accordingly comprises the features of construction, combination of elements, and arrangement of parts that will be exemplified in the description set forth hereinafter and the scope of the invention will be indicated in the claims.

Conduit wall interface with sealant port


An infrared thermometer includes a probe and an infrared sensor. The probe with an infrared target absorbs thermal radiation to provide a substantially consistent source of infrared radiation and an aperture for preventing contamination of the infrared target while permitting the transmission of thermal radiation to the target. The infrared sensor is configured for sensing infrared radiation from the infrared target. The infrared target is positioned within the probe such that it absorbs thermal radiation that comes from the aperture and thereafter emits thermal radiation to the infrared sensor.

It has been a longstanding objective in the art to rapidly and accurately measure the temperature of a patient. The core temperature of a mammal may be approximately measured in a number of ways. For example, typical temperature measuring techniques use specialized probes such as oral, rectal, axillary, and/or tympanic probes to measure the temperature of a specific area of the body. The body's "core temperature" may then be extrapolated from such a measurement. Reference may be had to U.S. Pat. No. 6,292,685 to Pompei (Temporal Artery Temperature Detector). Each of the aforementioned probes is useful under different circumstances. For example, axillary probes are particularly useful in conjunction with neonates, whereas tympanic infrared probes are widely used on adults.
The use of tympanic infrared probes on adults has proven to be particularly useful. One of the primary advantages of such probes is their speed—a typical infrared probe can measure the temperature of the tympanic membrane in less than one second. In contrast, a mercury oral thermometer often takes several minutes to provide a proper measurement. Examples of tympanic infrared probes include U.S. Pat. No. 5,159,936 to Yelderman et al. (Noncontact Infrared Tympanic Thermometer) and U.S. Pat. No. 6,609,823 to Kraus et al. (Infrared Radiation Thermometer with Variable Exterior Probe Head for Conforming to Body Cavity). Such tympanic infrared thermometers are readily commercially available. For example, the Braun Pro4000, available from Welch Allyn, provides such an infrared probe, complete with a disposable, sanitary cover.
The use of infrared axillary probes is also known in the art. Reference may be had to U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,874,736; 5,893,833; 6,045,257; 6,056,435; 6,241,384; 6,299,347; 6,402,371; and 6,499,877 to Pompei et al.
Unfortunately, other bodily sites are not so suitable for infrared temperature measurement. For such other sites, traditional thermometers, which require long equilibration times, are often used to measure temperatures. Traditional thermometers include those materials, both liquid and solid, that expand or otherwise change their physical confirmation when heated. Examples include mercury and ethanol based thermometers. It would be a significant advantage if medical personnel could quickly measure body temperature at multiple locations using infrared technology. It would be a further advantage if medical personnel could use a single infrared thermometer to obtain temperature measurements at multiple sites.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,789,936 to Kraus et al. (Infrared Thermometer for Performing Temperature Measurements at Different Sites) provides a device capable of measuring body temperature using either temporal or tympanic probes. Although Kraus discusses the desirability of obtaining infrared temperature readings from other bodily sites, obtaining such measurements has proven problematic. The device of Kraus is deficient in that it does not describe a mechanism or method for enabling an infrared temperature reading from the sites most commonly used by healthcare professionals, particularly oral, rectal and axillary sites. Conversions to derive readings similar to these sites are discussed but such conversions are found to work only in general and are not sufficiently accurate for individual subjects.
Additional background references that are of some importance, while not material to the present claims, include U.S. Pat. No. 5,169,234 to Bohm (Infrared Temperature Sensor); U.S. Pat. No. 6,129,673 to Fraden (Infrared Thermometer); U.S. Pat. No. 6,347,243 to Fraden (Probe Cover for Infrared Thermometer); U.S. Pat. No. 6,390,671 to Tseng (Probe Cover with Film Insert); U.S. Pat. No. 6,447,160 to Fraden (Blackbody Cavity for Calibration of Infrared Thermometers); U.S. Pat. No. 6,527,439 to Bellifemine (Infrared Thermometer); U.S. Pat. No. 6,709,154 to Janotte (Radiation Thermometer and Radiation Sensor with Several Sensor Elements, Method for Determining Temperature); U.S. Pat. No. 6,742,927 to Bellifemine (Infrared Thermometer); U.S. Pat. No. 6,751,497 to Fraden (Infrared Thermometer); and U.S. Pat. No. 7,048,437 to Bellifermine (Infrared Thermometer and Waveguide for Infrared Thermometer).
Therefore, an infrared thermometer is desired which permits the user to rapidly measure body temperature at multiple sites using a single device.
Furthermore, an infrared thermometer is desired which automatically detects what type of probe is connected to the thermometer and thereafter loads a program that permits the thermometer to properly interpret data from such a probe.