Disclosed is a method for controlling a neutral gear of an automatic transmission. The method includes: when a neutral gear control function of the automatic transmission is in an activated state, an automatic Transmission Control Unit (TCU) collects information on a pressure of a brake main cylinder, a state of a brake pedal, and whether an autohold function is in an activated state or not; and when the pressure of the brake main cylinder is smaller than a pressure threshold P3 of the neutral gear control function and the autohold function is in an inactivated state, or when the brake pedal is in an unstamped state and the autohold function is in the inactivated state, the automatic TCU controls the neutral gear control function to exit from the activated state.

In the related art, in order to reduce the oil consumption of a vehicle and improving the Noise, Vibration and Harshness (NVH) properties of the vehicle, a neutral gear control function of an automatic transmission is provided on more and more vehicles; an automatic Transmission Control Unit (TCU) may control a linear pressure sensor inside the transmission, so that the vehicle to keep at a Drive (D) gear (forward gear); when a driver stamps on a brake and a pressure of a brake main cylinder reaches to a certain value, the automatic transmission is in a neutral state and the power output of an engine is disconnected; and when the driver loosens the brake, the pressure of the brake main cylinder is close to 0 kpa and no longer meets the requirement on neutral gear control in the automatic TCU at this moment, then the neutral gear control is exited.
In order to improve the driving comfort of the vehicle, more and more vehicles are provided with an autohold function. The autohold function refers to that an Electrical Park Brake (EPB) directly brakes a wheel by changing a wheel cylinder pressure in combination with an Electronic Stability Program (ESP). When the driver brakes the vehicle, the autohold function brakes the wheel in terms of a brake requirement of the driver; at this moment, the driver may loosen the brake pedal and the vehicle still automatically keeps stationary, so that a right foot of the driver is liberated. When the system detects a start intention of the driver, for example when the driver stamps on an accelerator, the brake is relieved automatically. This function can guarantee the comfort of starting the vehicle when the brake is automatically relieved and may actively boost the pressure to keep the vehicle stationary when a brake force is insufficient.
In the related art, the neutral gear control function of the automatic transmission and the autohold function are increasingly and widely applied to the vehicle. However, when the two functions exist, simultaneously, an incompatible condition may be occurred with the following reasons.
First, when the driver stamps on the brake pedal at the D rear, the autohold function and the neutral gear control function of the automatic transmission are activated simultaneously. However, the autohold function is designed to relieve the right foot of the driver and improve the driving comfort of the driver. If the driver loosens the brake pedal, the autohold function still keeps the wheel to be braked, the neutral gear control function is exited and the engine outputs a power outward. At this moment, the neutral gear control function can no longer improve the oil consumption and the NVH properties of the vehicle.
Second, when the neutral gear control function is exited, since the engine outputs the power outward, the vehicle has a driving tendency. However, at this moment, the autohold function brakes the wheel to make the vehicle stationary. In this way, the vibration of the vehicle is increased, the comfortable capability becomes poor, and additionally, the oil consumption is also increased.

Method for controlling neutral gear of automatic transmission


A vacuum cleaner has a lid that selectively opens or closes a filter bag compartment. A secondary motor protection filter is removably mounted in the lid by a frame of an elastic material that simultaneously seals the secondary filter element to the lid and seals the lid onto the bag compartment. An air passage flows between the secondary filter and the lid through a duct to the suction motor compartment. A perimeter groove in the lid receives a spline of the elastic frame of the filter element in a removable manner, while the opposite surface of the frame forms the seal surface relative to a housing rim around the bag compartment.

Arrangements of the abovementioned general type are known in various configurations and embodiments in the prior art. For example, a surfacial fleece filter element is held by a frame, which is then mounted in the area of the filter bag compartment of the vacuum cleaner. An air flow path leads from the filter bag compartment, through the filter element, and then through passages or ducts to the suction motor compartment of the vacuum cleaner. Thereby it is ensured that no debris can be sucked into the suction motor unit.
The known arrangements all suffer several difficulties, problems, and disadvantages as follows. It is necessary to provide one or more seals around the secondary motor protection filter relative to the bag compartment lid and/or relative to the bag compartment in order to ensure that the air flows properly from the bag compartment through the motor protection filter and then to the suction motor unit. In the known arrangements, the configuration and arrangement of the necessary seals and fastening elements are relatively complicated and thus also the installation thereof is rather cumbersome. Therefore, the handling that is necessary during an exchange of the motor protection filter causes significant difficulties for the user of the vacuum cleaner, in order to then again achieve a proper installation of the motor protection filter and the associated seals to ensure a proper functional sealing of the filter housing. The manufacturing of the seal components and the motor protection filter is also more complex and more costly than would be desired.

Arrangement of a motor protection filter in a vacuum cleaner


A method for detecting a side collision, in which either temperature or pressure sensors are provided for detecting an adiabatic increase in pressure or temperature. The signals of these sensors are filtered with a low pass filter and then, as a function of a signal of a sensitivity block, checking of the signal for various criteria is initiated. Besides the pure temperature and pressure signals, these criteria include checks of the first and second derivative of the signal as a function of time.

From German Patent No. 100 57 258, a method for side crash detection using a temperature sensor is known; this sensor measures an adiabatic increase in temperature upon a deformation of a side part of a vehicle. The absolute temperature increase and the temperature gradient are ascertained. They are compared with predetermined thresholds, to ascertain whether a side crash is involved, or not. Only if both thresholds are exceeded does a side crash exist, and a plausibility check is performed with an acceleration sensor. As a function of the plausibility check and the collision signal, restraint means are deployed as appropriate.
From European Published Patent Application No. 667 822, a pressure sensor is known which detects an adiabatic pressure increase in a largely closed side part of the vehicle body as a collision evaluation parameter. Once again a plausibility sensor is provided. Filtering of the signal below one kilohertz may be provided.
From German Patent No. 198 30 835, a method for deploying a restraint means is known in which a sensor system furnishes a pressure signal. The algorithm that detects the collision uses a variable threshold, which depends on the change in the pressure signal.
From German Patent No. 196 19 468, a method for deploying a restraint means for side crash protection in a vehicle is known in which the deployment of a restraint means is performed as a function of a mean value signal of the pressure signal and as a function of an increase in the pressure signal.
A disadvantage of the algorithms proposed in the related art for evaluating pressure and temperature signals is that there are some instances that do not call for deployment that are difficult to distinguish from genuine crashes. Especially the impact of a soccer ball, kicks, or a bicycle, or at least shutting doors very forcefully, generates pressure and temperature signals that in general are hard to distinguish from crashing into a pole at low speed.


A small number of transmissions are performed at a sufficient number of frequencies and power levels so that a correlation between frequency, measured power, and detector values is established. Once a correlation is established, the wireless transmitter employs the measured data and calculates target detector values for all supported frequencies and at all supported power levels, eliminating the need for one frequency and one power level at a time iterations with a host device. Using the calculated target detector values and closed loop transmissions, the radio self-calibrates. Once employed in the field, the wireless transmitter can utilize measured changes in signal strength to determine when to re-calibrate, and using measured values from other network components, can employ the methodology of the present invention to self-calibrate, eliminating the need for field re-calibrations.

The present invention relates generally to wireless transmitters and more specifically to a method and system for self-calibrating output power of a wireless transmitter.
It is often desirable that wireless transmitters, such as 802.11 capable radios used in a wireless local area network (WLAN), have calibrated transmit power levels.
Typically, calibration is performed during manufacturing. Traditional calibration methods require significant time and money, affecting both throughput on the manufacturing line and profit margins. Furthermore, radio transmit power can change over time, due to component aging, etc. These power changes can have a detrimental effect on WLANs, reducing throughput and creating a need for site maintenance, for example a new site survey, relocating or adjusting transmit power, etc. This can be particularly problematic in installations with radios in difficult to access areas, e.g., isolated location, difficult to reach locations such as a ceiling of a warehouse, etc.
Transmit power control for a typical 802.11 radio is closed loop system consisting of one or more output gain stages (with coarse and fine adjustments), and a power detector feedback circuit that outputs a value representative of the transmit power being delivered. The radio maintains a proper output power by continually monitoring the detector value during transmission, adjusting the gain stages as needed to keep the detector value equal to some desired detector "target value." As such, calibration needs to be performed on each radio, obtaining a detector target value for each frequency at each of the various transmit power levels. These values are stored in Transmit Power Calibration Tables in non-volatile memory of the radio.
Existing calibration systems use an iterative, time consuming process to determine the detector values for a given radio. A typical system consists of a host computer that controls the process, equipment for measuring transmit power, and the device under test (the radio being tested). The process for determining the proper detector values consists of the host computer commanding the radio to transmit an open loop at a specified frequency, reading the measured power from the test equipment, adjusting the gain settings on the radio and repeating until the measured power equals the desired level. The detector value is then read from the radio by the host and stored with corresponding gain settings. This process then repeats itself for all supported frequencies, at all supported power levels. The accumulated detector and gain values are then stored into the power tables. The power tables are then transferred to the radio, often using a very slow link, and then stored in the radio's non-volatile memory.

Method and system for self-calibrating transmit power


Settable gypsum compositions are described herein which include a gypsum slurry, comprising water; and a first additive comprising a vinyl acetate/ethylene copolymer in latex or emulsion form and a second additive which is at least one of (i) a wetting agent and/or a surfactant; (ii) a titanium coupling agent, (iii) a zirconium coupling agent, and (iv) mixtures thereof. The compositions demonstrate improved strength and gypsum core adhesion. Such compositions may also include at least one dispersant and/or a wetting agent and/or a surfactant. Such dispersants may be lignosulfonic acid, naphthalene sulfonic acid, and combinations and salts thereof and the wetting agent and/or surfactant may be N-dodecyl 2-pyrrolidone, ethoxylated alcohol, and combinations thereof. The dispersant and/or wetting agents and/or surfactants can further enhance rheological properties to benefit the enhanced strength gypsum compositions.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the field of wax emulsions and mixtures for addition to settable gypsum formulations, and more particularly to the field of such mixtures and emulsions for making gypsum wallboards having good strength properties.
2. Description of Related Art
Gypsum wallboard is used for forming interior and exterior walls of many building structures. The structure of the wallboard typically includes a gypsum composition which is generally prepared as a slurry composition, which is placed between two liners and set. Such wallboard gypsum compositions may be standard wallboard formulations or made to be water-resistant through, for example, the use of various wax emulsions. Some of the more common commercial water-resistant wax emulsions involve use of particular wax components (which may include a single wax, or more typically, a blend of waxes), saponifying agent(s), emulsifier(s), stabilizer(s) and other additives.
Of growing importance in the wallboard industry is the ever-increasing cost of manufacture of wallboard with respect to the rising cost of formulation components as well as increasing energy costs. For example, it is known in the art that manufacturing methods for formation of building products like gypsum wallboard that use emulsions in formation of the finished products, typically require a drying step or steps that consume energy. Thus, it would be beneficial to manufacture gypsum wallboard (standard and water-resistant) if the drying energy could be reduced for cost savings, particularly when energy demands are growing for manufacturers. Components, time and steps required in manufacture are also a concern, as is the quality of the resulting wallboard.
With respect to the manufacture of water-resistant wallboards, U.S. Pat. No. 5,437,722 describes a water-resistant gypsum composition and wax emulsion therefor, which includes a paraffin hydrocarbon having a melting point of about 40° C. to 80° C., about 1 to 200 parts by weight montan wax per 100 parts of the paraffin hydrocarbon, and about 1 to 50 parts by weight polyvinyl alcohol per 100 parts of the paraffin hydrocarbon. The use of montan wax in the wax emulsion for water-resistant wallboard has been very effective and provides excellent performance. Other water-resistant formulations based on natural waxes other than montan (such as carnauba and bees wax) and/or synthetic waxes (such as Fischer-Tropsch wax) have been used as well as alternative water-resistant wax formulations. Most such formulations provide good water-resistance in gypsum wallboard formulations. However, some waxes typically used for such emulsions are in limited supply and/or are very expensive. Further, while strong water-resistance can be achieved, it would be desirable to achieve good water resistance properties in gypsum wallboard, while lowering the cost of components, increasing supply and/or reducing manufacturing costs.
There have been attempts to enhance physical properties of wallboard, however, many such proposed enhancements are expensive and/or complex and/or involve additional manufacturing steps such that the process becomes less economical. Many boards are strengthened with fibrous reinforcement, such as woven mats, but getting the slurry to adhere to the mat is typically an issue. In some instances extra films and/or mats are laminated onto the wallboard during or after its formation to increase the impact strength and other mechanical properties of the wallboard.
For example, WO 2010/025207 A1 describes a durable and strong gypsum board having woven porous mats, such as mats made from fibers and held together with a binder such as a urea, a dense slurry layer penetrating the porous mats which may have a thermoplastic pre-coating thereon. A core of slurry is also provided. The plastic layer provided on the mats is to mechanically adhere to polymer additives in the dense slurry layers surrounding the mats. External coating layers are also provided to the wallboard. The disclosure describes the mats as providing strength to the board. Polymer additives suggested to bond with the mats and increase strength are polyvinylidene chloride, polyvinyl chloride, and similar polymers, as well as functionalized styrene butadiene latex and silane compounds which may also serve as stabilizers.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,615,504 also teaches a fiber-mat reinforced board wherein the board can have a core of gypsum or Portland cement. This patent also teaches additional sizing, coatings and binders for the mats. The additional plastic coating on the mat may include various polymers including polyvinyl acetate, polyvinyl chloride and other polyvinyl copolymers.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,048,794 teaches addition of various starch compounds including substituted starch and polysaccharides to enhance strength in gypsum boards.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,406,799 teaches a paperless wallboard having a primer for providing a smoother surface and improved surface characteristics, wherein the primer incorporates a water-based system that heat cures to improve the surface of the board. The primer can include a latex that is an aqueous emulsion of a film-forming polymer having a glass transition temperature of 10-40° C., such as acrylic polymers and copolymers, polyvinyl acetate/acrylate copolymers, ethylene vinylchloride/vinyl acetate polymers and others.
Polymer additives are also provided to other building materials aside from gypsum compositions for strength and/or flexibility. For example, U.S. Publication No. 2002/0195025 A1 teaches a powder composition for addition as a rheological additive for water retention and thixotropic purposes in cement-containing mortar compositions or "cement-free" mortar compositions, in place of or in addition to cellulosic materials typically used, wherein the powder includes a copolymer of methacrylic acid and methacrylic esters, a dispersant and a polymer powder redispersible in water, including a variety of vinyl-based copolymers including ethylene vinyl acetate copolymers. Such additives are asserted to improve rheological properties without negatively impacting curing of the mortar.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for compositions and methods that improve the properties of gypsum wallboard while preferably also keeping the costs of manufacturing including reducing energy costs at or lower than standard levels, and that avoids adding complex process steps or expensive components.

Mixtures and emulsions for use in providing strength to gypsum compositions


The invention provides an apparatus for forming a toner image by reversal development. In the apparatus, there are provided an electric charger for uniformly charging a photoreceptor to a given electrostatic potential; the photoreceptor discharging in response to an exposure light to form an electrostatic latent image, the photoreceptor having a predetermined light decay curve indicating a relation between an amount of the exposure light and a discharged potential on the exposed portion wherein an absolute value of the differential coefficient of the light decay curve is small when the amount of the exposure light is small and the value sharply becomes large when the amount of the exposure light increases; a laser beam exposure device for exposing the photoreceptor with a dot-shaped light beam; and a developing device for providing toner onto the exposed portion of the latent image, thereby forming a toner image.

This invention relates to an image forming apparatus in which an electrostatic latent image is formed on a photoreceptor by dot exposure wherein the photoreceptor is exposed with a dot-shaped scanning exposure light beam, and more particularly, to an image forming apparatus in which reversal development is conducted to the electrostatic latent image.
In conventional electrophotography, first of all a photoreceptor is charged, by an ordinary method, in order to give photosensitivity to the photoreceptor. Then, the photoreceptor is exposed in order to form a static electric latent image on its surface. Hereinafter, a static electric latent image is called `a latent image`. The latent image is developed by a dry or a wet developer and then transferred to a transfer paper by the action of static electricity or through an intermediary body, and then fixed to form a visible fixed image.
In order to form a visible image by electrophotography, it is necessary to form a latent image on the surface of a photoreceptor which has an excellent electrostatic charging property, dark decay characteristics, light decay characteristics, and gradation property.
A photoreceptor used in a transfer type copier is required to have durability such that gradation and quality of images are not deteriorated because of fatigue even when the photoreceptor is repeatedly used to obtain many copies.
Photoconductive semiconductors used in conventional electrophotography are inorganic photoconductive materials such as selenium, zinc oxide, cadmium sulfide, and cadmium selenide, photoconductive pigments such as phthalocyanine, copper phthalocyanine, cobalt phthalocyanine, and nickel phthalocyanine, and organic photoconductive materials such as poly-N-vinyl carbazole, anthracene, and triallyl amine derivatives. These chemical compounds can be dispersed in the binder resin and/or can form a photoreceptor composed of two layers such as a charge generation layer and a charge transport layer.
Recently, transfer type copiers, especially high speed copiers which can make many copies in a short time, are required in the market. For that reason, a photoreceptor whose light decay is fast, is needed. However, the reciprocity effect appears between the optical attenuation speed of the photoreceptor and the characteristics of charging, dark decay, gradation, image quality, and fatigue and deterioration. As a result, a practically desirable photoreceptor has not been obtained yet.
On the other hand, in response to the requirements of expressing better gradation, especially half tone gradation, a beautiful color image, and excellent image quality, the digital image forming method has come to the fore instead of the conventional analog image method. In the digital image forming method in which dot exposure is conducted by a laser beam, conversion and adjustment of an image can be freely carried out and the image position is accurately aligned, furthermore image data can be transmitted and received. The image quality has been improved to a level equal to that of printed matter.
The LED array method, the EL array method, and the liquid crystal array method can be used to conduct dot exposure. The laser beam method is mainly used at the present time because high speed and high density recording is possible by the laser beam method.
In the case of dot exposure, as well as analog exposure, either the positive exposure system, in which non-image portions are exposed to erase the electric charge on the surface of a photoreceptor in order to form a latent image, or the negative exposure system in which image portions are exposed to erase the electric charge, can be used. However, the negative exposure system is used almost exclusively because of its stability of scanning for writing, excellent reproducibility of dots, and shortened exposure time.
In the case of the negative exposure system, the distribution of light intensity used for each dot exposure is approximate to the normal distribution curve, the peak of which is the center of the dot, and the curve has a long gentle slope with wave patterns according to the intensity of light caused by diffraction. This problem becomes important in the case of a laser beam when the light converges to a diameter of not more than 100 .mu.m, furthermore not more than 50 .mu.m, by the optical lens system. Furthermore, when pulse-duration modulation is used, this problem becomes more serious since the dot diameter substantially becomes smaller. In this case, the exposure distribution of a dot is approximated to Gaussian distribution and the dot diameter indicates the width at which the peak of exposure is 1/e. The diameter of 100 .mu.m corresponds to 16 dot/mm of writing density and the diameter of 50 .mu.m corresponds to 32 dot/mm of writing density.
In the case of the negative exposure system, this wave pattern is remarkable and can be the cause of fog as it acts as a noise. The negative exposure system needs to be combined with reversal development and toner with the same polarity as the electrostatic charge polarity of a photoreceptor must be prepared.
Furthermore, the most appropriate photoconductive semiconductor needs to be selected regarding the light decay curve. Generally speaking, the differential coefficient (the absolute value) of a light decay curve of a photoconductive semiconductor is large in the region of small amounts of light and the electrostatic charge decays sharply. The differential coefficient suddenly becomes small in the region in which the quantity of light is more than a certain amount. As a result, the curve has a gentle slope in this region.
Accordingly, when weak light at the gentle slope portion of the light intensity distribution curve of the above-described spot light, is caught by the electrostatic charge erasing action of the photoreceptor in the region of the small amount of light, the electric potential distribution curve of the formed latent image of a dot becomes funnel-shaped, with a broadly extended edge. Therefore, the peripheral portion of the image developed by toner becomes blurred and fog may also occur.
Those are the reasons why a photoreceptor must be designed to meet the requirements of dot exposure.
Since the dot exposure system has many advantages as described above, it is well-suited to color image forming. charging, image exposure, and developing are repeated many times to superimpose many color toner images on a photoreceptor. The dot exposure system can be applied to this color image forming system. In this color image forming system, when a formed latent image is developed by the contact developing method, the previously formed toner images are damaged. Therefore, there is no alternative but to adopt the non-contact developing method in which a one component or two component developer is used.
In the contact developing method, since the developer comes into contact with the photoreceptor, the toner is attracted to the peripheral portion of the image with the help of the edge effect of the electric field at a latent image on the photoreceptor surface and the density is increased. As a result, sharpness of the image is improved. In the case of non-contact developing, the developer is apart from the photoreceptor. Accordingly, the electric field has a tendency to influence the toner to be drawn to the center of the dot rather than to the peripheral portion of the dot. For that reason, it can not be expected to make the peripheral portion sharp. In order to sharpen the peripheral portion of the dot, it is important that the dot exposure and the optical decay curve have a proper relation.
As described above, a multicolor image can be obtained by repeating exposure, development, and other processes. Accordingly, compared with obtaining a monochrome image, it takes a long time to get a multicolor image and fatigue is increased in the photoreceptor. In order to cope with the situation, it is necessary to reduce the image forming time and to reduce fatigue of the photoreceptor. Conventional technology lacks countermeasures against these points.
In multicolor development, electric potential of the photoreceptor surface is not decreased to the developing level in some cases because of light absorption by the previously adhered toner. This can be the cause of color contamination and deterioration of sharpness. The above-described fact presents a problem of image exposure by visible light.
In the present technical field with regard to toner, the following are important: fluidity of toner to increase static charge property, regularity of toner consumption to eliminate irregular toner consumption in which larger toner particles are consumed first of all and then smaller toner particles are successively consumed, excellent transfer ratio to obtain a high density image, and cleaning property of toner to guarantee repeated copying with excellent reproducibility.
Toner particles are made spherical in order to increase the fluidity of toner, to enhance triboelectric efficiency, and to unify and stabilize static charge property.
However, spherical toner is not always advantageous. Adhesion of toner to the photoreceptor or the developing sleeve is increased by spherical toner particles, and it causes a decrease of the transfer ratio and inferior cleaning of the photoreceptor and the developing sleeve. According to the investigation of the inventors, the more toner particles are spherical, the more toner particles adhere to the above described parts.
The adhesion is caused by physical and electric forces as well as the hardness and evenness of the photoreceptor and the developing sleeve. As far as the photoreceptor is concerned, a part of the reason to cause toner adhesion is the denaturing and softening of the photoreceptor surface caused by corona discharge and oxidation. When contact developing is conducted, the reasons to cause toner adhesion are the toner filming caused by rubbing and Coulomb force acted between the electrostatic charge polarity of the photoreceptor and that of the toner.
The amount of toner which adheres to the photoreceptor and the developing sleeve becomes large, and the toner particles on the photoreceptor and the developing sleeve increase its adhesion, when a period of time between the start and the last operation to clean the photoreceptor and the developing sleeve is long, and the toner adhesion is more repeated.
When the amount of adhesion and the adhesion strength are increased, the transfer ratio decreases, and it can be the cause of inferior cleaning.

Dot exposure type image forming apparatus


A control device, mounted removably on a substrate, includes a power outage detection unit that detects disconnection of electrical connection of a signal line that is wired to a power supply device on the substrate and detects a power outage state of the power supply device, and an output unit that outputs a power outage signal to a control target device on the substrate that executes predetermined power outage process, in a case that disconnection of the electrical connection of the signal line is detected by the power outage detection unit, after a lapse of a fixed time from detection of disconnection of the electrical connection of the signal line.

In the past, there has been a control device that monitors a power outage state of a power supply device in a system and outputs a blackout signal at the time of power outage to cause a control target device to execute power outage process. Such a control device is mounted removably on a system substrate via a connector of the control device to allow removing for maintenance, inspection, and the like. Another device in the system determines whether or not the control device is removed by the presence of electrical connection of a signal line to recognize that the control device is mounted on the substrate.
As a related technique in the past, there is, for example, a technique that detects a voltage decrease of a commercial power supply, insulates the detection signal for incorporation, and obtains a switch output to a power supply in a battery switch circuit when the incorporated detection signal is applied and also a secondary output of an AC/DC convert starts decreasing. In addition, there is a technique that calculates a power outage detection value based on a load current value.
Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2006-33997 and Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2008-148495 are examples of the related art.
However, in the techniques in the past, when removing a control device for maintenance, inspection, and the like, there is a case of disconnecting electrical connection of a signal line for a control device to detect a power outage state of a power supply device before disconnecting electrical connection of a signal line for another device to recognize the control device. In this case, only by removing a control device for maintenance, inspection, and the like, power outage process sometimes turns out to be carried out by a control target device that has accepted a blackout signal from the control device.
It is desired to provide a control device, a control method, and a system that avoids execution of useless power outage process.

Control device, control method, and system


A biocompatible synthetic bone growth composition comprising a fibrillar collagen component and a calcium phosphate component. The composition is formed into particles, and then formed into a unitary article that may be provided at the site of a skeletal defect. An osteoinductive component may be further added, either before or after forming the unitary article. The composition may be formulated as a paste or putty and facilitates bone growth and/or repair.

The use of osteoinductive proteins or growth factors, such as bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), mitogenic growth factors, etc., improves clinical outcomes after surgical reconstruction of skeletal defects (e.g., implants). Such osteoinductive factors induce bone formation by targeting and activating undifferentiated perivascular connective tissue cells. Mitogenic growth factors target and accelerate the osteogenic activity of previously differentiated cells. Although advances have improved the biological activity of osteoinductive factors, their clinical application has been limited by the requirement for a superior tissue scaffold/delivery vehicle.
Autologous bone grafts are the gold standard for restoring skeletal defects because they provide both a natural tissue scaffold and osteoinductive growth factors. Allogenic grafts may also be used, such as demineralized bone matrices. For example, demineralized bone material can be prepared by grinding a bone, demineralizing it with an acid solution, washing with a phosphate buffered solution, washing with ethanol and drying it. Demineralized bone material can also be obtained from a commercial bone or tissue bank (e.g., AlloSource, Denver Colo.). Because autogenic and allogenic sources of human bone are limited and may be expensive or painful to obtain, the use of substitute materials is preferred. Numerous synthetic or modified natural materials have been experimentally evaluated as alternative delivery vehicles, and include but are not limited to products containing hydroxyapatites, tricalcium phosphates, aliphatic polyesters (poly(lactic) acids (PLA), poly(glycolic)acids (PGA), polycaprolactone (PCL), cancellous bone allografts, human fibrin, plaster of Paris, apatite, wollastonite (calcium silicate), glass, ceramics, titanium, devitalized bone matrix, non-collagenous proteins, collagen and autolyzed antigen extracted allogenic bone. However, these synthetic or modified natural materials have yet to result in delivery vehicles having osteoinductivity comparable to autograft or allograft bone sources, or having the capability to enhance the osteoinductivity of these or other osteoinductive materials.
Alternate products are desirable.

Bone growth particles and osteoinductive composition thereof


A hearing aid insertion tool assists a user in the insertion and removal of hearing aids into and from an ear. The tool includes a handle, a thumb pad, and a spring clip. The spring clip is adapted to releasably clamp an ear-piece portion of a hearing aid, such that a user can utilize the tool to subsequently guide the ear-piece into their ear. Once the ear-piece is in place, the user can squeeze the spring clip to release the tool from the hearing aid. The tool is provided in a short-handled embodiment which provides a smaller overall construction adapted for travel and a long-handled embodiment for use at home or by users with diminished strength or dexterity.

Hearing aids are used by a large number of people to help restore their hearing to a suitable level. Whether the hearing loss was caused by an accident, excessive loud noise, old age, a genetic abnormality, or the like, the hearing aid allows these people to overcome their disability and become a fully functioning member of society. Current hearing aid technology often utilizes a discreet transducer that is used in the ear canal along with a larger component that is mounted behind the ear. However, as the technology improves and components become smaller, it becomes more difficult for such items to be properly placed. Those who are elderly, disabled, or suffering from reduced dexterity often find it difficult to hold such small items, much less place them properly.
Typically a user must attempt to insert the hearing aid with the fingers. Unfortunately, this method is often difficult and frustrating. As an alternative, some users resort to usage of tweezers which are not suited to control delicate hearing aids. Accordingly, there remains a need for a device that addresses these problems.


A powder mixing system and mixer for mixing cement used in cementing oil wells or other similar dry powder mixtures. The mixer is provided with a central recirculation jet and with annularly located alternating recirculation and mix water jets that discharge into the mixing chamber of the mixer in an overlapping fashion to effectively wet dry cement introduced into the mixing chamber. The mix water jets are formed from a set of slots provided both in a rotatable element and from another set of slots provided in a stationary portion so that when the rotatable element rotates, the size of mix water jets is adjusted. Two inlet elbows attach to the inlet of the central recirculation jet to cause the flow from the jet to rotate in a diverging pattern.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a high efficiency, high energy slurry mixer used primarily to mix oil field cement in a recirculating system for cementing the casing in oil and gas wells. Specifically, the present invention employs continuous recirculation via a central recirculation line and via annular recirculation jets that are spaced alternately with annular adjustable mix water jets.
2. Description of the Related Art
Utilization of cement within oil wells, particularly in the cementing of casing therein, has been under development since the early 1900""s. Two of the purposes of placing cement into the annular space between the casing and the formation are to support the casing within the well, and to seal off undesirable formation fluids.
Casing is typically secured in the well bore by the cement which is mixed at the surface, then pumped down the open center of the casing string and thence back up the annular space which exists between the outer diameter of the casing and the inner diameter of the oil well bore. A displacement fluid, such as drilling mud, is pumped behind the cement to push the cement to the desired location. In many oil and gas well applications it is often necessary to provide cement mixers which will rapidly prepare large quantities of material to be pumped into the well by a batch or continuous process until a sufficient predetermined quantity has been applied.
In either case, the process usually begins with the material being pre-prepared by dry blending and then adding water at the well site. Batch mixing is one form of system to obtain a satisfactory slurry, but batch mixing requires an initial outlay of a large amount of equipment, people, and space. In offshore operations, space and weight capacity are expensive. Batch mixers use valuable space and add to rig weight. Typically, large tanks with rotary paddle type mixers, although being able to adequately perform the mixing operations, have not been efficient in term of space, numbers of people required or equipment costs where large volumes of mixing must be done at the well site.
The quality of the cement slurry placement process involves the completeness of the mixing process and the pumping rate which can affect the bond between the casing and the well bore. The completeness of the mixing process depends on the efficiency of wetting all the dry bulk particles. The pumping rate affects the bond by having an important effect on mud displacement efficiency. There are many other factors that affect the quality of the cementing process.
Many types of cement mixers have been known in the prior art. For example, jet-type mixers and vortex mixers such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,201,093 and 3,741,533 have been used with considerable success but have not necessarily been successful in continuously mixing cement slurries. Such jet or eductor type mixers worked reasonably well when slurry designs were simple. With the more enhanced slurry designs of today, the jet mixer cannot adequately mix these slurries. Early type mixers generally had centrally located water jets, while later models added a recirculation flow in combination with the central water jets.
Continuous recirculation mixers were developed to overcome some of the deficiencies of the jet type and batch mixers. These systems mix dry cement and water in an inlet mixer, the output going to a tank for agitation with excess slurry flowing over a weir to an averaging tank, which may be agitated, thence pumped into the well. Typically, a portion of the mixed slurry was recirculated from the mixing tank and directed back into a modified jet mixer. Thus, newly delivered dry bulk cement was wetted both by water and recirculated cement. This provided additional mixing energy that enabled satisfactory mixing. These type mixers were first introduced during the early 1970""s. Since that time, cement slurry design has evolved into the use of more complex slurries that earlier continuous mixing systems are unable to mix satisfactorily. Thixotropic slurries with very low xe2x80x9cfree waterxe2x80x9d requirements have evolved for the deep, high temperature, high pressure gas wells. It seems as though the industry is constantly testing the ability of mixers by developing even more difficult to mix slurries.
Although prior inventions have taught use of centrally located recirculation jets, or alternately, annularly located recirculation jets, none of the prior art teaches or suggests the desirability of providing both centrally located and annularly located recirculation jets. The present invention incorporates this arrangement and adds mix water jets located between the discrete annularly located recirculation jets so that flows from the annular recirculation jet and the water jets overlap each other. With this arrangement, recirculation rate in the present mixer is independent of slurry design or mixing rate, but is only dependent upon recirculating pump capacity and mixer design.
One of applicant""s previous inventions, as taught in U.S. Pat. No. 5,046,855, provided a combination of annular water jets and recirculation jets with no centrally located jets. Another of applicant""s previous inventions, as taught in U.S. Pat. No. 5,571,281, included annular recirculation jets and a centrally located water jet. The short coming of the U.S. Pat. No. 5,571,281 mixer was when mixing slurries that had a low water requirement, i.e. small number of gallons of water per sack of cement, or when the mixer was used in a batch mode, there is insufficient energy to effectively wet all the incoming dry bulk cement. The present invention addresses this problem by having both centrally located and annularly located recirculation jets which operate all the time and provide good mixing regardless of slurry design or operation in continuous or batch modes.
Prior art mixers, including both the U.S. Pat. No. 5,046,855 mixer and the U.S. Pat. No. 5,571,281 mixer, utilize discrete annular recirculation jets, i.e. the former having two and the latter having four. The use of discrete jets is practical, but allows the potential bulk cement to by pass the jets, and thus discharge without becoming wet. The present invention addresses this problem by having the mix water jets located between the discrete recirculation jets. These mix water jets overlap the discrete recirculation jets, thus providing 100% coverage of the flow path of the dry bulk cement.
Also, the U.S. Pat. No. 5,046,855 mixer also suffered from discrete mix water jets. That design included six sets of three jets each, for a total of eighteen jets. These jets opened consecutively as increasing water rate was required. Coverage was good when all jets were open, but when only the first set of jets was operational due to low mix rate or low water requirement or both, coverage was poor and mixing quality suffered.
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,571,281 invention provided a continuous circumferential and diverging flow pattern for mix water which worked well when relatively high water rates were required but provided little mixing energy when low water requirements existed or when batch mixing. The present invention provides good coverage and mixing energy regardless of mix water requirement or while batch mixing.
The prior U.S. Pat. No. 5,571,281 mixer provides xe2x80x9cbaffledxe2x80x9d annular space through which recirculated flow passes. This design is unnecessarily restrictive to the recirculation flow and has a low coefficient of discharge. The flow path of the present invention for annular recirculated flow is more streamlined and thus has a higher coefficient of discharge. With a higher coefficient of discharge, this means that pressure head is converted to velocity more efficiently and therefore provides the same mixing energy with less input horsepower.
One object of the present invention is to improve the mixing capabilities as compared to prior art mixers. The present invention will provide more effective and efficient mixing over a wide range of conditions, including both batch mixing and continuous mixing modes.
A second object of the present invention is to have effective mixing while only recirculating water and/or slurry from a mix tank and not adding additional water. Present technology performance during this mode of operation is significantly degraded. This operation is typical while starting the recirculating process or while batch mixing.
A third object of the present invention is to provide both a centrally located recirculation jet and a plurality of equally spaced annular recirculation jets. Bulk cement enters the mixer and encounters high energy jets from the center and from annular jets. These jets have trajectory angles which intercept the dry bulk, breaking it apart and effectively wetting the incoming dry bulk.
A fourth object of the present invention is to provide a plurality of annular and adjustable water jets located at alternate positions from the annular recirculation jets. These jets, in combination with the recirculation annular jets, provide improved mixing and more effective wetting of the bulk cement.
A fifth object of the present invention is to provide a mixing system that provides more predictable slurry properties due to improved and effective mixing.
A sixth object of the present invention is to provide a mixer which provides high mixing energy while consuming less energy.
A seventh object of the present invention is to allow the use of more than one recirculation pump source, further optimizing the use of mixing energy sources.
These and other objects will become more apparent upon further review of referenced drawings, detailed description, and claims submitted herewith.
The present invention is a cement mixing system and mixer for mixing cement that will be used in cementing oil wells. A recirculation pump recirculates the contents of a cement mixing tank to the mixer via annular recirculation flow inlets provided on the mixer, and also via a central recirculation inlet provided on the mixer.
The mixer is provided with the bulk cement inlet, the central recirculation inlet and associated central recirculation line, the mix water inlet, the annular recirculation flow inlets, a mix water adjustment input means, and the slurry outlet.
The centrally located central recirculation line discharges through a nozzle into a mixing chamber provided within the mixer.
The annular recirculation flow inlets connect to a recirculation manifold chamber which is defined by the inside diameter of an outer housing of the mixer and the outside diameter of the fixed part of the water metering means. The water metering means consists of the fixed part that cooperates with a movable part. The movable part is comprised of a rotatable water metering valve element and its attached mix water adjustment input means. The recirculation manifold chamber is connected to parallel multiple recirculation outlets where each recirculation outlet is defined by two surfaces within the mixer. The recirculation outlets discharge into the mixing chamber.
The mix water inlet is connected to a mix water manifold chamber which is defined by the I.D. of the fixed part of the water metering means and the O.D. of the rotatable water metering valve element. The mix water manifold chamber is connected to parallel multiple and elongated jet outlets. Each elongated jet outlet is formed by a matching set of elongated jet openings, with one of the elongated jet openings of each set provided in the rotatable water metering valve element and with a cooperating and associated elongated jet opening provided in the fixed part of the water metering means. Each matching set of elongated jet outlets are located in such a way that if the rotatable water metering valve element is rotated, the size of orifice of each of the elongated jet outlets is changed. Mix water flows out of the mix water manifold chamber via the adjustable jet outlets which discharge into the mixing chamber. The jet outlets which discharge mix water into the mix chamber are located so that they alternate with and are evenly spaced relative to the annular flow recirculation outlets. The evenly spaced and alternating jet outlets deliver mix water annularly to the mixing chamber and recirculation outlets also deliver recirculation flow annularly to the mixing chamber. The discharge nozzle of the central recirculation line delivers recirculation flow centrally within the mixing chamber.
The elongated metering slots of the rotatable water metering valve element are equally spaced. The element is provided with threaded holes as means to attach a mix water adjustment input means to the rotatable water metering valve element via threaded fasteners to rotate the rotatable water metering valve element in order to adjust the flow of mix water passing through the elongated jet outlets. Grooves are provided in the rotatable water metering valve element to accommodate pressure seals to contain water pressure within the mix water manifold chamber.
Elongated metering slots in the fixed part of the water metering means are equally spaced and alternately located between the recirculation outlets. The water discharge chamber is connected to the metering slots. Each of the recirculation outlets changes shape and decreases in cross sectional area as it approaches the mixing chamber, thereby increasing fluid velocity as the recirculated slurry approaches the mixing chamber. A groove is provided for a seal to prevent mix water from entering the I.D. of the chamber
The centrally located central recirculation line conveys recirculation flow to a discharge nozzle provided in the line. Two inlet elbows that attach to the central recirculation line are arranged at 90 degree angles to each other so as to cause the flow of recirculation within the line to rotate. Therefore when discharged from the nozzle, the recirculation fluid continues to rotate. The rotational flow tends to diverge as it discharges from the nozzle in a pattern that enhances mixing.

Cement mixing system for oil well cementing


Among other things, one or more techniques and/or systems are provided for authorizing an action using vehicle identification information (e.g., supplied by a vehicle) and user identification information (e.g., supplied by a mobile device associated with a user of the vehicle). Such an action may relate to, among other things, refueling the vehicle, parking the vehicle, using a fee-based road segment, and/or other vehicle-centric actions, for example. Moreover, in one embodiment, as part of the authorization, a payment transaction may be initiated by an authorization system configured to authorize the action.

The availability and ease of credit card systems have altered the way people pay for services, particularly vehicle-centric services. Transactions that used to require interaction with an attendant can now be performed without the aid of an attendant. By way of example, users can pay by credit card at a gasoline pump and/or at a parking establishment, reducing (e.g., to zero) the required interaction with an attendant and reducing the time it takes to complete the transaction.
Today, authorization and/or payment systems have advanced beyond credit card systems to further increase user convenience. By way of example, many toll roads provide frequent travelers with RFID tags that may be mounted to their vehicles. When a vehicle enters and/or exits the toll road, the RFID tag is detected and a user account associated with the RFID tag is billed. As such, the user may not be required to stop at a toll gate to collect a ticket and/or to manually pay a requisite fee. As another example, many parking establishments and/or parking authorities have developed payment applications for mobile devices (e.g., smartphones, tablets, etc.). When a user approaches a parking gate and/or parking meter, the mobile device may communicate with the parking gate and/or parking meter (e.g., via Bluetooth, infrared, etc.) to communicate an identity of the user and/or to communicate a user authorization to debit an account associated with the payment application, for example.
While these more advanced systems have proven useful, there are some drawbacks. For example, these authorization and/or payment systems are often highly fractured. As an example, an RFID tag provided by a first toll road authority may not be accepted by a second toll road authority. Therefore, if a user frequently travels on toll roads controlled by both the first and second toll road authorities, the user may be required to mount two RFID tags to his/her vehicle. Likewise, the payment applications developed by parking establishments and/or parking authorities are often not universal and/or not interoperable. Therefore, a user that frequents multiple garages may be required to install multiple applications, each of which requires its own user account. It may be appreciated that such lack of interoperability may be undesirable to a user because the user may be required to create multiple user accounts and may be required to know which establishment utilizes which application and/or RFID tag, for example.

Authorization of service using vehicle information and/or user information


Apparatuses, methods, and systems are disclosed for creating a network slice section policy (“NSSP”) rule. One apparatus includes a processor and a transceiver for communicating with a network function in a mobile communication network. The processor receives a first request from the network function, the first request comprising a list of one or more application identifiers and a corresponding application profile and application provider for each application identifier. The processor determines one or more network slice identifiers for each application identifier using the corresponding application profile and application provider. The processor also creates a NSSP rule for each application identifier in the list of application identifiers, the NSSP rule containing the application identifier and the associated one or more network slice identifiers.

The following abbreviations and acronyms are herewith defined, at least some of which are referred to within the following description.
Third Generation Partnership Project ("3GPP"), Access and Mobility Management Function ("AMF"), Application Function ("AF"), Downlink ("DL"), Enhanced Mobile Broadband ("eMBB"), Evolved Node B ("eNB"), European Telecommunications Standards Institute ("ETSI"), Frequency Division Duplex ("FDD"), Frequency Division Multiple Access ("FDMA"), Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request ("HARQ"), Internet Protocol ("IP"), Internet-of-Things ("IoT"), Long Term Evolution ("LTE"), LTA Advanced ("LTE-A"), Medium Access Control ("MAC"), Multiple Access ("MA"), Mobility Management Entity ("MME"), Machine Type Communication ("MTC"), Massive MTC ("mMTC"), Narrowband ("NB"), Network Exposure Function ("NEF"), Network Function ("NF"), Network Slice Selection Assistance Information ("NSSAI"), Network Slice Selection Policy ("NSSP"), Next Generation Node B ("gNB"), Packet Data Unit ("PDU"), Policy Control Function ("PCF"), Public Land Mobile Network ("PLMN"), Quality of Service ("QoS"), Radio Access Network ("RAN"), Radio Resource Control ("RRC"), Session Management Function ("SMF"), Single-Network Slice Selection Assistance Information ("S-NSSAI"), Transmission Control Protocol ("TCP"), Time-Division Duplex ("TDD"), Time Division Multiplex ("TDM"), Transmission and Reception Point ("TRP"), Transmit ("TX"), Unified Data Management ("UDM"), User Data Repository ("UDR"), User Datagram Protocol ("UDP"), User Entity/Equipment (Mobile Terminal) ("UE"), Ultra-Reliability and Low Latency Communications ("URLLC"), Uplink ("UL"), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System ("UMTS"), User Plane Function ("UPF"), and Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access ("WiMAX"). As used herein, "HARQ-ACK" may represent collectively the Positive Acknowledge ("ACK") and the Negative Acknowledge ("NACK") or ("NAK"). ACK means that a TB is correctly received while NAK means a TB is erroneously received.
In mobile communication networks, a Network Slice Selection Policy ("NSSP") is used to associate one or more application identities with one or more Single-Network Slice Selection Assistance Information ("S-NSSAI"). An S-NSSAI essentially identifies a certain network slice in the 5G network that should be used to carry the traffic of the associated application. The NSSP includes a plurality of NSSP rules, each NSSP rule associating an application identity with one or more S-NSSAIs (e.g., network slices). Conventionally, this policy is manually constructed by the operator. However, manual NSSP construction is cumbersome and time consuming as the operator needs to consider many different applications and manually assign each one of them to one or more S-NSSAIs.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Creating a network slice selection policy rule


A wiring board includes: an insulating layer; and a connection terminal formed on the insulating layer. The connection terminal includes a first metal layer laminated on the insulating layer, a second metal layer laminated on the first metal layer, a metal pad laminated on the second metal layer, and a surface treatment layer that covers an upper surface and a side surface of the pad and that is in contact with the upper surface of the insulating layer. An end portion of the second metal layer is in contact with the surface treatment layer, and an end portion of the first metal layer is positioned closer to a center side of the pad than the end portion of the second metal layer is to form a gap between the end portion of the first metal layer and the surface treatment layer.

In recent years, with the development of the electronic industry, the high performance, high functionality, and compact size of electronic components are required. For this purpose, for example, in a wiring board on which semiconductor chips are mounted, high integration, thinning, and fine circuit patterning are required.
Generally, electronic components such as semiconductor chips are joined to connection terminals formed on a surface of a wiring board by using solder. Specifically, a seed layer of metal such as copper is formed on a surface of an insulating layer forming the wiring board, and a pad made of metal such as copper is formed on an upper surface of the seed layer to form a connection terminal. Then, solder is supplied to this connection terminal, and the connection terminal of the wiring board and a connection terminal of a semiconductor chip are joined through the solder. As necessary, the solder may be supplied to the connection terminal of the semiconductor chip.
For the purpose of improving the wettability of the solder and the like, a surface treatment layer may be formed of nickel, palladium, gold plating (a gold plating layer is on the front side), or the like on a surface of the connection terminal of the wiring board. An example of related art is described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2006-005322.
However, at the connection terminal of the wiring board described above, there is a problem in that metal such as copper, which is a material for the seed layer and the pad, diffuses and cracks may occur in the solder for joining the electronic components. That is, since the seed layer and the pad are formed of, for example, copper as a material, copper atoms diffuse and move to the solder for joining the semiconductor chip, and an alloy layer containing copper is formed inside the solder. As a result, breakage is likely to occur at an interface between the solder and the alloy layer, and cracks may occur. In a case where the cracks occur in the solder, conduction resistance increases, and the connection reliability of the electronic components decreases.
In a case where the surface treatment layer is formed on the surface of the connection terminal of the wiring board, the diffusion of copper electrons from the seed layer and the pad is suppressed, but the occurrence frequency of cracks in the solder is not sufficiently reduced. In particular, as the miniaturization of wiring on the wiring board progresses, the amount of copper per unit area on the wiring board increases. Accordingly, the diffusion amount of copper atoms increases, and the occurrence frequency of cracks in the solder increases.


This disclosure relates to a process for controlling chlorination reactions in manufacturing titanium tetrachloride in a fluidized bed reactor, followed by processing to form a titanium product comprising an amount of silica, the process comprising: (a) feeding carbonaceous material, titanium bearing material comprising an amount of silica, and chlorine to the fluidized bed reactor to form a gaseous stream, and condensing the gaseous stream to form titanium tetrachloride, a non-condensed gas stream and a condensable product stream; (b) processing the titanium tetrachloride to form a titanium product comprising an amount of silica; (c) analyzing the titanium product comprising an amount of silica to determine the analyzed concentration of silica; (d) identifying a set point concentration of silica; (e) calculating the difference between the analyzed concentration of silica and the set point concentration of silica; (f) measuring the titanium tetrachloride flow to a processing reactor that releases chlorine; (g) measuring the flow of fresh chlorine added to the fluidized bed; (h) measuring the flow of the titanium bearing material added to the fluidized bed reactor and establishing a historic average flow of the titanium bearing material added to the fluidized bed reactor; (i) calculating the chlorine released from the titanium tetrachloride that is processed using the titanium tetrachloride flow data from step (f); (j) calculating the total chlorine flow to the fluidized bed reactor by adding the chlorine flow in step (g) to the chlorine flow calculated in step (i) and establishing a historic average chlorine flow; (k) calculating a unit titanium bearing material consumption per unit chlorine; (l) calculating an estimated current consumption rate of titanium bearing material based on the total chlorine flow from step (j) times the unit titanium bearing material consumption per unit chlorine from step (k); (l) calculating an estimated current consumption rate of titanium bearing material based on the total chlorine flow from step (j) times the unit titanium bearing material consumption per unit chlorine from step (k); and (m) generating a signal based on difference generated in step (e) that provides a feedback response and combining this to the estimated current consumption rate of titanium bearing material from step (l) to provide a feed forward response to control the flow of the titanium bearing material into the fluidized bed reactor.

The process for chlorinating titanium containing materials in a fluidized bed reactor is known. Suitable processes are disclosed in the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,701,179; 3,883,636; 3,591,333; and 2,446,181. In such processes, particulate coke, particulate titanium bearing materials, chlorine and optionally oxygen or air are fed into a reaction chamber, and a suitable reaction temperature, pressure and flow rates are maintained to sustain the fluidized bed. Gaseous titanium tetrachloride and other metal chlorides are exhausted from the reaction chamber. The gaseous titanium tetrachloride so produced can then be separated from the other metal chlorides and exhaust gas and used to produce titanium dioxide (TiO2), titanium metal or titanium containing product.
In the chlorination process to prepare titanium tetrachloride, TiCl4, in a fluidized bed reactor, it is desirable to reduce or control the formation of excess silicon tetrachloride and other undesireable chlorinated organic species. Silicon tetrachloride, SiCl4, contamination of titanium tetrachloride impacts a variety of quality parameters, such as particle size distribution and primary particle size (indicated by carbon black undertone) of the titanium dioxide produced by oxidation of the TiCl4. Minimizing or controlling the silica, SiO2, contamination in the titanium product formed allows for improved performance of the TiO2 product.
A need exists for a control process that detects the presence of excess, SiO2, in the untreated oxidized material, and that is capable of correcting the problem.

Titanium bearing material flow control in the manufacture of titanium tetrachloride with silica content monitoring of the titanium product using feedback and feed forward responses


Disclosed herein are methods, systems, and processes for automated log entry identification and alert management. A log statement that includes a log format string and is part of program code associated with a computer program is accessed at a log management server. The execution of the log statement generates a log string that is associated with a trigger pattern of an alert configuration. A fixed part of the log format string that remains unchanged during execution of the log statement when the program code associated with the computer program is executed is extracted and a template is generated for the log statement to track changes to the fixed part of the log format string that causes a mismatch between the trigger pattern of the alert configuration and the log string. The template is then stored. A modification to the fixed part of the log format string is tracked using the template and the trigger pattern of the alert configuration that corresponds to the log string is updated based on the modification.

Field of the Disclosure
This disclosure is related to log management in cybersecurity computing environments. In particular, this disclosure is related to optimizing log management by performing automated log entry identification and implementing alert management from source code.
Description of the Related Art
Log management involves collecting large volumes (e.g., gigabytes) of computer generated log messages (e.g., log data) to understand and manage security, system, and network operations in complex computing environments. Log data is typically generated by most computing, networking, and storage devices and includes technical and configuration information that can be used to effectively maintain computer programs, applications, and/or websites (e.g., to validate bugs, test new application features during software development, and the like).
Log data typically includes sequences of lines (e.g., log lines) that are generated by computer programs. These sequence of log lines can be voluminous while the set of program statements (e.g., log statements) that generate the sequence of log lines can be limited. Because the generated log lines can contain fixed and variable parts, identifying log lines generated by a single log statement (e.g., for alert management, and the like) is a technical challenge.
During software application development, developers can include log messages in program code of a computer program (e.g., source code) to configure program statements to generate alerts if and when the computer program is subsequently executed. Unfortunately, if certain portions of log lines that include such alert notifications are subsequently modified (e.g., by the same developer or by a different developer), the all-important alert associated with the original log line is not triggered. From a cybersecurity standpoint, the foregoing presents a significant danger to customers and clients in log data-based cybersecurity environments.
SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE
Disclosed herein are methods, systems, and processes to perform automated log entry identification and alert management. One such method involves accessing a log statement is at a log management server. The log statement includes a log format string and is part of program code associated with a computer program. Execution of the log statement generates a log string (also called a log line) and the log string is associated with a trigger pattern of an alert configuration. The method further involves, extracting a fixed part of the log format string that remains unchanged during execution of the log statement when the program code associated with the computer program is executed, generating a template for the log statement to track changes to the fixed part of the log format string that causes a mismatch between the trigger pattern of the alert configuration and the log string, and storing the template.
In some embodiments, the method involves tracking a modification to the fixed part of the log format string using the template and updating the trigger pattern of the alert configuration that corresponds to the log string based on the modification. In other embodiments, the method involves extracting a variable part of the log format string that can vary during execution of the log statement based on parameter values and updating the template with identities of one or more placeholders and one or more parameters that are associated with the one or more placeholders.
In certain embodiments, the log format string includes placeholders and parameters. The execution of the log statement generates the log string by replacing the placeholders with the parameter values stored in the parameters and appending the log string to a log file that is ingested by the log management server. The log string appended to the log file is compared to the trigger pattern of the alert configuration once the log file is ingested by the log management server.
In some embodiments, the extracting is performed using static analysis techniques on the program code or source code associated with the computer program, the computer program is a web application that generates log data, and the log string is received by the log management server as part of log files that contain the log data from clients that execute computer programs. In other embodiments, the method involves determining that the fixed part or the variable part of the log format string has been modified and creating a map file that indicates a mapping correlation between the trigger pattern of the alert configuration and the log statement.
In one embodiment, the mapping correlation in the map file permits change coordination between the trigger pattern of the alert configuration and the log statement by requiring, as part of the updating, replacement of only a portion of the trigger pattern of the alert configuration that corresponds to the modification to the log format string of the log statement.
In certain embodiments, the log management server generates and stores at least: (a) templates to enumerate fixed parts, variable parts, and placeholders in log messages of log statements, (b) one or more models, based on the templates, of log statements that generate log lines, provided during buildtime to manage updates to a search engine, an alert manager, or an outlier detector, (c) at least one map file to manage change coordination between trigger patterns of alert configurations and log statements, and (d) at least one index to facilitate searching of modified log data.
The foregoing is a summary and thus contains, by necessity, simplifications, generalizations and omissions of detail; consequently those skilled in the art will appreciate that the summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any limiting. Other aspects, features, and advantages of the present disclosure, as defined solely by the claims, will become apparent in the non-limiting detailed description set forth below.

Automated log entry identification and alert management


A method and apparatus for the calculation of the reciprocal of a normalized mantissa M for a floating-point input number D. A formula for determining the minimum size for the look-up table in accordance with the required precision is provided, as well as formulas for calculating look-up table entries. The look-up table stores the initiation approximations and the correction coefficients, which are addressed by the corresponding number of the mantissa""s most significant bits and used to obtain the initial approximation of the reciprocal by means of linear interpolation requiring one subtraction operation and one multiplication operation. The result of the linear interpolation may be fed to a Newton-Raphson iteration device requiring, for each iteration, two multiplication operations and one two""s complement operation, thereby doubling the precision of the reciprocal.

This invention relates to signal processing. In particular, this invention relates to a method and apparatus for calculating the reciprocal or inverse of a number.
Calculating the reciprocal plays an important role in the division operation, especially with floating-point decimal numbers. By using a reciprocal, the result of the division of two numbers can be obtained by multiplying the dividend by the inverse of the divisor. This division method can be used to increase the speed of processing complex calculations in digital processing devices such as computers and in application-specific integrated circuits such as digital signal processing (DSP) processors.
According to IEEE Standard for Binary Floating-Point Arithmetic 0754P-1985, which is incorporated herein by reference, floating-point standard numbers in floating-point formats are packed within 32 bits with a significand (mantissa) 24 bits long in single precision, or packed within 64 bits with a significand 53 bits long in double precision.
Several interpolation and iteration methods are widely used by developers for calculating reciprocals, including direct approximation, linear interpolation, square interpolation, cubic interpolation, and so on.
In the direct approximation method of obtaining reciprocal of a number, all possible mantissas for reciprocals are stored in a ROM table. Using this method the result can be obtained quickly, but this method requires an extremely large memory capacity. For example, to obtain a reciprocal according to the IEEE standard 754 single precision floating-point format requires 223xc3x9723=184 Mbits of memory.
The linear interpolation method is based on the theorem of a mean value from calculus, and can be summarized for the calculation of reciprocal as follows:                               1          x                =                              1                          x              0                                -                                    1                              ξ                2                                                                (                              x                -                                  x                  0                                            )                                                          (        1        )
where "xgr" ∈ [x0, x] and xxe2x89xa7x0.
It is also possible to use square interpolation, cubic interpolation and other interpolation methods to obtain a reciprocal with the required precision. However, all of these methods require additional multiplication operations, and require additional memory to store the correction coefficients. The main disadvantage of interpolation methods is that as the desired precision increases, the amount of memory required to store the necessary data also increases.
In digital computers the Newton-Raphson iteration method is widely used for calculating reciprocals. This method gives the solution of the equation
f(z)=0xe2x80x83xe2x80x83(2)
based on employing the recurrent formula                               z                      i            +            1                          =                              z            i                    -                                    f                                            (                                  z                  i                                )                                                                    f                xe2x80x2                                                          (                                  z                  i                                )                                                                        (        3        )
The values zi obtained after iteration i are quadratically converging toward z, so the corresponding errors ∈ after iteration i and iteration i+1 relate by the expression:
∈(Zi+1)xe2x89xa6∈2(Zi)xe2x80x83xe2x80x83(4)
Employing the Newton-Raphson method for calculating reciprocal   x  =      1    a
produces the following expression:
xi+1=xi*(2xe2x88x92xcex1*xi)xe2x80x83xe2x80x83(5)
As can be seen from equation (5), every iterative step of this method involves two multiplication operations performed in sequence, and one xe2x80x982xe2x80x2s complementxe2x80x99 operation. The precision of a reciprocal thus doubles after each iterative step. The disadvantage of the Newton-Raphson iteration method by itself is that it can require multiple iteration steps to obtain a reciprocal with the required precision.
To overcome the above disadvantages methods have evolved to use some type of interpolation method to obtain the initial approximation of a reciprocal, and then employ an iteration method based on this approximation. As an example, it has been proposed to use inverse tables to obtain the initial values for consecutive iterations.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus for dividing a value which can deliver the inverse (reciprocal) of a number quickly and with a high precision.
According to the method of the invention, linear interpolation is employed to obtain an approximation of the reciprocal of a number. This approximation may then be used as an input value for Newton-Raphson iterations to calculate a reciprocal with high precision.
Unlike prior art methods, the method of the invention provides a formula for calculating a minimum number of entries in a look-up table to obtain the approximation of a reciprocal with required precision. The method of the invention also provides formulas for calculating initial approximations and correction coefficients for composing entries in look-up tables. An apparatus for implementing the method of the invention comprises a look-up table memory for storing these values, an integer multiplier, and a subtracter.
The present invention thus provides a method for generating an output signal representing an output value approximating a reciprocal of input value D having a normalized mantissa M (where 1xe2x89xa6M less than 2) represented by an input signal, the input signal comprising a set of N0 most significant bits and the output signal approximating the reciprocal with a desired precision ∈=2xe2x88x92N where Nxe2x89xa6N0, comprising the steps of: a for a set of P most significant bits of the input signal, generating a number n of entries in a plurality of lookup tables where n=2P, including the sub steps of: i. generating a set of input entries yi comprising a set of N significant bits in a first lookup table, where i=0, . . . , nxe2x88x921; and ii. generating a set of input entries Ki comprising a set of (Nxe2x88x92P) significant bits in a second lookup table, where i=0, . . . , nxe2x88x921; b. finding the entries yi and Ki in the lookup tables corresponding to the set of P most significant bits of the input signal; c. multiplying Ki by a signal comprising a set of (Nxe2x88x92P) significant bits following the set of P most significant bits of the input signal; and d. subtracting a set of (Nxe2x88x92P) most significant bits from the set of N significant bits of the entry yi.
In further aspects of the method of the invention: the step of generating n entries in the lookup tables comprises the sub steps of: iii. calculating the minimum number l of lookup table entries necessary to obtain a precision higher than the desired precision, where                               2                    l                +        1                              2                    l                +        2              -                  l                  l          +          1                       less than             ϵ                    xe2x80x83                  and                    xe2x80x83                                                2                        l                    -          1                          2                    l                      -                            l          -          1                1              ≥  ϵ
and iv. finding a required minimum number n of lookup table entries for n=2P, where 2Pxe2x88x921 less than l and 2Pxe2x89xa7l; the step of generating a set of input entries in the first lookup table comprises the sub steps of: A. calculating             y      ^        i    =                                          x            i                                          (                                          x                i                            +                              1                n                                      )                              +              1                  2                    n                                    x        i                          (                              x            i                    +                      1            n                          )
where i=0, . . . , nxe2x88x921, x0=1, and             x              i        +        1              =                  x        i            +              1        n              ,
and B. finding entries yi comprising a set of N significant bits and approximating a mantissa of ŷi for i=0, . . . , nxe2x88x921; and/or the step of generating a set of input entries in the second lookup table comprises the sub steps of: calculating                     K        ^            i        =                                        2                          N              -              P                                                          x              i                                                  (                                                x                  i                                +                                  1                  n                                            )                                                        xe2x80x83                        where                          xe2x80x83                        i            =      0        ,  …        xe2x80x83    ,      n    -    1    ,            x      0        =    1    ,            and                    xe2x80x83                          x                  i          +          1                      =                  x        i            +              1        n
and finding entries Ki comprising a set of (Nxe2x88x92P) significant bits and approximating integer parts of {circumflex over (k)}i for i=0, . . . , nxe2x88x921.
The present invention further provides an apparatus comprising at least one processor for calculating an inverse I having a precision ∈=2xe2x88x92N of an input value D with normalized mantissa M (where 1xe2x89xa6M less than 2) comprising a set of N0 most significant bits where N0xe2x89xa7N, the apparatus comprising a first memory forming a lookup table addressed as a function of P most significant bits of the mantissa M and having an output I0 comprising a set of N significant bits; a second memory forming a lookup table addressed as a function of P most significant bits of the mantissa M and having an output K comprising a set of (Nxe2x88x92P) significant bits; a multiplier of size (Nxe2x88x92P)xc3x97(Nxe2x88x92P) having two inputs of a set of(Nxe2x88x92P) significant bits following the set of P most significant bits of the mantissa M and of the output K, and an output MU comprising a set of (Nxe2x88x92P)xc3x97(Nxe2x88x92P) significant bits; and an adder/subtracter having an output I and having two inputs connected to respectively receive the output I0 and the set of (Nxe2x88x92P) most significant bits of the output MU.
In further aspects of the apparatus of the invention: the first and second memories are combined into a storage device which stores both I0 and K and is addressed as a function of P most significant bits of the mantissa M; the apparatus further comprises a device for performing a programmed Newton-Raphson iteration based on I; the first memory comprises a read only memory (ROM); the second memory comprises a read only memory (ROM); the storage device comprises at least one read only memory (ROM); and or the apparatus is included in a digital signal processing device.

Method and apparatus for calculating a reciprocal


A method for providing a content service to a subscriber terminal (MS) from a first server, i.e. content server (CS). The provision of the content service from the content server to the subscriber terminal is controlled by a second server, i.e. proxy (CBP). The control comprises the following steps: 1) determining (5-4 to 5-10, 706) a billing address for the content service by means of the proxy (CBP); 2) under the control of the content billing proxy, providing (5-48) a content service corresponding to a service request from the content server (CS) to the subscriber terminal (MS); and 3) generating (5-46) billing information (CDR) related to the content service.

The invention relates to a proxy. When establishing a connection from a subscriber terminal to a server of a content provider, a proxy participates in establishing the connection and/or billing for it.
In a normal situation, a subscriber terminal connects to an access network and a server of a content provider is connected to a service network. The access network can be a cellular radio access network, such as GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) or WLAN (wireless local area network). The service network is typically an IP (Internet Protocol) network, such as the Internet or closed subnetworks thereof (intranet, extranet, etc.). These network types are naturally only illustrative and not restricting examples.
To provide a concrete example, the invention will be described using a GPRS network. GPRS is a packet-switched telecommunications network operating on top of the GSM network and can be used to switch Internet telecommunication to terminals. The terminals can be mobile phones, hand-held computers and portable computers, for instance.
The connection from the GPRS network to the Internet is through a gateway GPRS support node GGSN. The GPRS network establishes a tunnel from the edge of the network to the terminal. In other words, the network processes IP packets of users in the terminal and GGSN only. In a normal situation, one terminal uses only one GGSN node at a time, but if the terminal is in between switched off, for instance, it can use another GGSN node next time. However, all traffic between the terminal and an external network (such as the Internet) only goes through one GGSN node at a time.
The Internet interface in connection with a GGSN node is called a gateway and different technical services can be provided through it. Typical services include an IP address translation service NAT (Network Address Translation) that in practice provides a limitless number of addresses in a GPRS network, a WWW traffic proxy, a cache memory, and firewall services. The services can be technically implemented in different parts of the network or in different equipment.
Billing in the GPRS network differs from billing in a conventional mobile network in that it provides more alternatives. A teleoperator may bill for the use of the network on the basis of one or more of the following: 1) a fixed monthly charge; 2) the time the terminal is connected to the GPRS network (even though it does not necessarily communicate anything); and 3) the amount of data transmitted in the network (bytes or packets, for instance).
A general problem underlying the invention is that the access network side (a public switched telephone network or cellular mobile network, for instance) has mechanisms for billing the subscriber of the terminal on the basis of the number that is called or to which a short message is sent. The billing methods of access networks do not, however, allow billing on the basis of content in such a manner, for instance, that the charge for retrieving the WWW pages of a content provider would depend on the price set by the content provider on the information. The present billing systems of the GPRS network do not take into account the content of the telecommunication, only the connection time and the traffic volume.
This basic problem is generally known in the field and solutions for it are actively discussed in the trade forums. The problem is called 'billing for content'.
A number of sub-problems can be derived from this basic problem:    1 How can a user monitor his or her own expenses when a solely volume-based or content-based billing is used?    2 How to implement a 0800-type toll-free service, i.e. the service is billed to the content provider (not the user)?    3 How can the payer of the access network (e.g. GPRS) connection who is not necessarily the same person as the user, restrict the use of the service?    4 How can a person who has bought a license to use a chargeable data content gain access to the content after a technical failure or for a fixed time so that the license to the service entity is paid once (like one buys an entire newspaper)?    5 How will the time of day be taken into account if the service charge depends on it?    6 How to direct the costs to the correct user?
Present GPRS network solutions for pricing content are based on the fact that the content (generally WWW pages) to be provided to the customer are located in a content server managed by the teleoperator (i.e. the operator of the access network) and the server is connected to the billing system of the teleoperator. The use of the content can be restricted using a user identifier and password combination. Alternatively, there may be a telecommunications connection for transmitting billing data between the billing system of the teleoperator and the service platform of the content provider. In these solutions, all traffic is priced using one pricing model. Billing techniques used on the Internet are not very advanced, either. Most systems allowing billing for content are based on a separate user agreement (the existence of which is verified by a user identifier and password). The payment is done by a data network-independent technique, such as credit card or bank transfer.
A specific problem with the known arrangements described above is that they do not offer simple payment transfers between the operators of the access network (such as telephone network or mobile network) and service network (such as the Internet), because the operator of the service network is not in practice able to bill the subscribers of the access network. The problem is slightly simpler if the same operator manages both the access network and the service network, but in this case, too, the operator cannot implement a flexible arrangement for content-based billing, and this requires that the content service is implemented in a certain access network only and is thus not available to subscribers of other access networks. Thus, an Internet site administrator, for instance, has not been greatly motivated to adapt corresponding services to suit mobile network terminals. A second problem caused by this is that only a small number of services has been provided to mobile subscribers.


An upstream bandwidth allocation method, apparatus, and system. The method includes obtaining, by a cable modem termination system (CMTS), a service flow attribute of each online cable modem (CM) of one or more online CMs, where the service flow attribute comprises at least one delay-sensitive service and a delay-insensitive service, allocating, by the CMTS, an upstream bandwidth to each online CM according to a received service request, and obtaining a remaining bandwidth that is a remaining part in a preset total bandwidth other than the upstream bandwidth that is allocated to each online CM according to the service request, allocating, by the CMTS, at least a part of the remaining bandwidth to a CM whose service flow attribute is a delay-sensitive service, and informing, by the CMTS, each online CM of the one or more online CMs of an upstream bandwidth allocation result.

A networking architecture specified in the Data Over Cable Service Interface Specifications (DOCSIS) specifically includes a network management system, a service provisioning system, a cable modem termination system (CMTS), and multiple cable modems (CM) that access the CMTS by means of a hybrid fiber coaxial (HFC). Because many CMs access the CMTS, there is a one-to-many scenario. That is, multiple CMs share a bandwidth. In this case, time-division multiplexing is applied to upstream transmission, to ensure normal communication between the CMTS and each CM.
In the DOCSIS standard, a basic upstream service flow scheduling type is specifically defined, including: an unsolicited grant service (UGS), a real-time polling service (RTPS), a non-real-time polling service (NRTPS), best effort (BE), and the like. In the prior art, for a UGS service flow, a CMTS periodically and actively allocates a fixed bandwidth to a CM. The CM may periodically send data according to the allocated bandwidth, and does not need to send a request in advance. However, for the active bandwidth allocation manner, traffic to be sent by the CM cannot be learned in advance. Consequently, when the CM has no traffic or little traffic, there is bandwidth waste, and when the CM has burst traffic, the bandwidth is insufficient. For an RTPS service flow, a CMTS periodically allocates a unicast request opportunity, and this can meet a real-time transmission requirement of a service flow having variable traffic. This type needs more request overheads than UGS, but supports data having variable sizes, to obtain optimal transmission efficiency. For a BE flow, a contention-based bandwidth request opportunity is used, and a scheduling priority is lower than that of RTPS. Existing bandwidth allocation mainly depends on a request, and a CM needs to buffer data in a request phase, inevitably causing a delay. In addition, for some types of service flows, a piggyback solution may be used. Each time a CM uploads data, the CM may add a next bandwidth request to the data. However, bandwidth allocation in the piggyback solution mainly depends on a request, and the CM buffers data in a request phase, inevitably causing a delay.
To sum up, in a process in which a CMTS allocates bandwidth resources for various service flows of multiple CMs to ensure upstream communication of each CM that accesses the CMTS, because the allocation depends on a request, or a resource allocated to each CM is insufficient, a relatively large upstream transmission delay is caused.

Upstream bandwidth allocation method, apparatus, and system