The present invention provides an optical recording medium having on a substrate a recording layer containing an organic coloring matter and a record-assisting layer which is formed out of an elastic polymer cured by a radical reaction. So that radicals generated in the record-assisting layer may be inactivated, a radical scavenger is given to the recording layer, or a radical-scavenging layer is provided between the recording layer and the record-assisting layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an optical recording medium for optically recording and reproducing information.
2. Related Background Art
Magnetic materials are generally used for conventional recording mediums such as credit cards, floppy disks, and the like. These recording mediums are advantageous in that writing and reading of information can readily be performed, but have problems that the recorded matters can readily be altered and high density recording is not achievable. As means of solving such problems and treating a variety of information efficiently, optical information recording methods were proposed which utilize an optical recording medium, and various proposals therefor have been made regarding the recording mediums, recording-reproducing systems, recording-reproducing apparatuses, and the like.
The optical recording mediums for optical recording and reproduction of information includes those which comprise silver particles dispersed in a gelatin matrix.
Furthermore, a heat-mode recording medium was disclosed in which recording is conducted by projecting a spot-like energy beam such as a laser beam onto the recording layer thereof to change the state of portions of the recording layer. Such a recording medium does not require a developing treatment, allowing direct reading after writing (called a DRAW medium), and enabling high-density recording and additional recording, and is considered to be promising as recording mediums for disks and cards.
Organic coloring matters which change their properties by receiving a relatively long wavelength of light are studied comprehensively for use in optical disks and optical cards, because the organic coloring matters are nontoxic and capable of being formed into a film by a coating method at a lower production cost.
Generally, optical disks have an air gap structure in which a void space is formed at the upper portion of the recording layer to raise recording sensitivity. The formation of the void space in the upper portion of the recording medium facilitates the change of the state of the recording layer to achieve high sensitivity. The optical cards, however, are frequently carried and used in the same manner as in cash cards and credit cards. Therefore, strength against distortion caused by various external forces is necessary. In addition, there is a desire of making the medium thin. Such facts refuse the employ the air gap structure; instead contact-layer structures are generally employed.
Optical disks are preferable to minimize its thickness in view of carriage and storage. As far as the thickness is minimized, the optical disks are also desired to have a contact-layer structure. However, the optical disks having a contact-layer structure disadvantageously exhibit lower recording sensitivity in comparison with the one having the hollow structure.
On the other hand, the formation of a layer of an elastic rubber polymer such as urethane rubber, silicone rubber, and fluororubber on the recording layer was disclosed to improve the recording sensitivity, for example, in Japanese Patent Publication No. 63-42333, and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 58-125248 and 58-203095.
Further, formation of a thermoplastic soft layer of such material as a styrene-butadiene copolymer, a nylon resin, and a polyvinylbutyral resin was disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. 63-2223 to improve the recording sensitivity.
As mentioned above, a record-assisting layer provided on the recording layer is known to improve the recording sensitivity. The material for constituting the record-assisting layer is desired to be capable of forming a film by a coating method on the recording layer without dissolving the recording layer. In the case where the recording layer contains an organic coloring matter, the preferred material for the record-assisting layer includes curable rubber type polymer which exhibits rubber elasticity after curing: for example, silicone rubber, diene type liquid rubber, and the like.
The curable rubber polymers are classified into a room-temperature-curable type, a heat-curable type, and a UV- or electron-ray-curable type. Of these types, the UV- or electron-ray curable type of rubber can be cured in an extremely short time of from several seconds to several minutes, and exhibits significantly high productivity.
The UV- or electron-ray curable type of rubber polymer undergoes generally the cure reaction in a radical chain reaction caused by a radical formed by irradiation of a UV ray or an electron ray. Therefore, such problem is involved that a part of the radicals generated in the cure reaction will react with the organic coloring matter in the recording layer to deteriorate the recording layer.


An ozonated water generating device includes a first housing, a second housing on the first housing, and a catalytic electrode disposed in a space in the first and second housings. The catalytic electrode includes an anode, a cation exchange membrane, and a cathode. The device includes a cushion at least one between the anode and the first housing and between the cathode and the second housing, and at least one pusher in at least one of the first housing and the second housing. The pusher penetrates the first or second housing to push the cushion toward the catalytic electrode, or to directly push the catalytic electrode. The pusher is positioned to ensure pushing on at least the center of the catalytic electrode. And the pressure of the pusher brings the anode, the cation exchange membrane, and the cathode into pressure contact with each other.

In recent years, ozonated water has been used for various purposes, such as the sterilization of food and the deodorization of malodorous gas. Furthermore, many findings about the ozonated water have been reported in the medical and nursing-care fields. The semiconductor production also needs the ozonated water, which exhibits characteristic ozone oxidation to hyperfine structures.
The ozonated water is typically generated through direct electrolysis (e.g., refer to Patent Document 1). In the direct electrolysis, feed water is brought into direct contact with the electrolytic surface of catalytic electrode, which includes a cation exchange membrane, and an anode and a cathode in pressure contact with the cation exchange membrane on the respective surfaces, to be electrolyzed into ozonated water.
In a typical procedure for the pressure contact between the anode or cathode and the cation exchange membrane, for example, as illustrated in FIGS. 8A and 8B, a pushing screw 41 is tightened in a housing 11 stacked on a grating 34 disposed on an anode 32 to urge the anode 32 against a cation exchange membrane 31. In FIG. 8, the housing 11 has a feed-water supplying path 5 and an ozonated-water discharging path 6 for discharging the resulting ozonated water, which penetrate through the housing 11 to the cation exchange membrane 31. Feed water supplied through the feed-water supplying path 5 comes into contact with the anode 32 and the cation exchange membrane 31, and the resulting ozonated water is then discharged through the ozonated-water discharging path 6. It is noted that a cathode (not shown) is disposed below the cation exchange membrane 31.


In a general aspect, a parameter is refreshed in a lattice-based cryptography system. In some aspects, a first value of a public parameter is obtained. The first value of the public parameter may have been previously used in an execution of a lattice-based cryptography protocol. A second value of the public parameter is generated based on the first value of the public parameter and random information. The second value of the public parameter is used in an execution of the lattice-based cryptography protocol.

The following description relates to refreshing public parameters in lattice-based cryptographic protocols.
Cryptography systems are used to communicate securely over public channels. For example, some cryptography systems provide confidentiality by encrypting messages, and some cryptography systems provide authenticity through digital signatures. Cryptography systems may encrypt messages based on shared secrets, which may be generated based on public parameters.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Refreshing public parameters in lattice-based cryptographic protocols


A communication system is described in which data characters are each repeatedly encoded in an encoder (3) until an encoded character occurs which is not one of a predetermined set of characters, e.g. reserved characters. Each encoded character, whether or not that encoded character is one of the predetermined set is transmitted by the transmitter (4) to the receiver (5) and a decoded output character provided from the decoder (6) when the corresponding received character is determined not to be the one of the set of characters.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a communications system, and in particular, though not exclusively, to a communication system incorporating a satellite link.
2. Related Art
In communications systems such as those having a satellite link, data is sent in a synchronous block mode to keep down the overhead of control and signalling information. Such a synchronous link is maintained in the absence of user data by transmitting a null character e.g. ASCII value 00H. A problem arises because the user data may contain the null character, and unless action is taken the receiving part of the synchronous link will discard a null in the user data as if it were not data. To indicate such characters to the receiving part of the link it is known to send "Escape" control sequences of characters but these increase the control overhead of a link sharply and are liable to cause significant errors if one of the characters of a sequence is lost in transmission. This is a particular example of the more general problem of transmitting data, over whatever medium, when that data includes so called reserved characters or characters which in the circumstances the receiving part of a link will not recognise as proper data.

System to prevent a scrambler from generating undesired symbols

British Telecommunications public limited company


An apparatus for preventing the radiation and conduction of electro-magnetic wave noises generated from the igniting device of a gasoline engine is disclosed. The igniting portion of a gasoline engine such as an igniting coil, a continuously contacting and opening contact breaker, a power distributor, and igniting plugs generate all kinds of electro-magnetic wave noises of wide frequency bands. These noises give adverse effects to the various components of an automobile or an air plane such as electric and electronic convenience devices, safety devices and engine controllers, resulting in malfunctions of the components. By shielding and absorbing such electro-magnetic wave noises, an automobile or an air plane is protected from possible accidents, and human lives are saved.

Generally, if a gasoline engine is started by inserting a key into the igniting switch of the engine, the engine is driven by the battery power. In this case, an electro-magnetic wave noise, which is conducted through the wires, and which is radiated from various components such as the high voltage glow discharge of igniting plugs, coils, contacts of the igniting device, the power distribution system, the igniting coils of the igniting device, gives influences to various electric and electronic gauges, convenience devices (such as power window, auto suspension, navigation system, various warning devices, and gauge system), safety devices (such as antilock brake system, air bag, power steering, and cruise control system), engine controller and the like. That is, the indicating needles of the gauges can be oscillated, and the controller can malfunction, and therefore, a running automobile or a flying air planes can make a fatal accident. Further, the electro-magnetic wave noise can give tiredness to the driver, as well as shortening the life expectancy of the automobiles.

Apparatus for preventing electro-magnetic wave noise from being radiated and conducted from igniting device of gasoline engine


The resilient return strut is of the elastic-hydraulic type with incorporated linear damping by throttling a high-viscosity fluid, and comprises a damper (1) mounted between two return springs (2, 3) in elastomer-based sleeves (17, 18), undergoing a shearing action and sealing the chambers (34, 35) set off within the body of the damper (12) by a transverse wall (10) which marks off a permanent throttling passage around a central brace (23). Limiting valves equipped with spring-leaves (45) sealing the holes (40) bored in the wall (10) increase the throttling section. A compressed-air system (52), mounted in a spring (2), compensates for thermal expansion of the fluid. The device is used with helicopter rotors.

On helicopter-supporting rotors, whose hinged-type hubs comprise, in particular, for each blade what is termed a drag hinge articulated around an axis perpendicular to the plane of the blade, thereby allowing this blade to freely oscillate within the rotational plane of the rotor, it is well understood that advantage is gained by providing for, around this hinge, the vigorous elastic return of each blade toward its median angular position, in such a way as to be able to adjust the natural vibrating frequency of the blade assembly on which drag is exerted, and it is also well understood that it is imperative to dampen these angular drag oscillations of the blade in order to minimize the transmission of dynamic drag stresses traveling from the blade toward the helicopter frame, while avoiding any instability which may arise from connections between oscillations resulting from aerodynamic stresses and the mechanical reactions of rotor and fuselage elements, both during the operational raising and lowering of the rotor speed durIng take-off and landing, and in flight when the rotor turns with its substantially stabilized operational rotation speed.
It is known that the dynamic drag characteristics of a blade of a helicopter-supporting rotor are a function of the value of its initial natural mode of vibration under the force of drag, which is in turn a function, first, of the centrifugal return of the blade on which drag occurs, caused by the centrifugal force which is exerted radially to the center of gravity of the blade, and of a possible additional elastic drag-induced return brought about by any device exerting elastic resistance to the angular displacements of the blade around its median position under the force of drag, and, second, of damping induced in the alternating angular movements of the blade around its drag hinge.
To obtain the correct operation of the rotor in the face of these dynamic phenomena, the two parameters, i.e., the position of the initial drag mode and damping, must be mutually adjusted.
To meet this requirement, it has recently been proposed that resilient return struts of the hydraulic-elastic type having incorporated damping be used, each of which is a piece of equipment providing simultaneously for the elastic return of a blade subjected to drag by means of the deformation of a mass of flexible material, and damping by means of a hydraulic device.
Struts of this type, examples of which are described in French Patents Nos. 2 528 382 and 2 592 696, have been developed based on rotating dampers operating by throttling and using high-viscosity fluids, such as those described in French Patents Nos. 2 256 347 and 2 592 449, as well as tubular fluid dampers such as those described in French Patent No. 2 573 829, whose principles of operation have been proposed as models for the construction of resilient return struts having incorporated linear damping.
The rotational damper operating by throttling a high-viscosity fluid, as described in French Patent 2 256 347, is composed of the coaxial arrangement of a rotor and a stator fitted with radial blades which are made unitary alternately with the rotor and the stator in a circumferential direction, and demarcating within the damper, which is closed off transversely from the axis of the rotor and the stator by at least one cover, a main inner chamber filled with a viscous fluid.
The blades are connected to means for the throttling of the fluid which flows from one to the other of different capacities set off by the blades within the main inner chamber when the damper rotor and stator are induced in relative rotation around their common axis. Damping is thus produced by the transfer of the viscous fluid through the throttling means produced by the action of the rotation of the blades connected to the rotor, in relation to the blades connected to the stator. Compensation for thermal expansion of the viscous fluid is provided for by the existence of an auxiliary chamber filled with a volume of this viscous fluid and permanently feeding into the main inner chamber by at least one small-diameter hole opened in a bottom of the damper separating the main and auxiliary chambers. The viscous fluid contained in the auxiliary chamber is pressurized by a piston activated by spring washers, in order to ensure the constant feeding of the main chamber under static pressure. Furthermore, the auxiliary chamber is connected to the main chamber by at least one hole having a larger diameter which cooperates with a supercharging valve equipped with a spring-leaf attached to the bottom surface through which the large-diameter hole is drilled on the side facing the inner chamber, in such a way as to act as a reverse-lock valve which inhibits the flow of the viscous fluid from the main chamber toward the auxiliary chamber, but which permits a flow in the opposite direction when the part of the main chamber in which this large-diameter hole opens out is depressed.
A rotational damper of this kind is made to be particularly economical because of the use of a high-viscosity fluid, which makes it possible to attribute high values to the operational play among the functioning parts of the damper, and simultaneously to use simplified throttle means to create the damping forces, as well as valves having an equally simple structure for related functions, such as compensation for thermal expansion of the viscous fluid and the supercharging of the main chamber of the damper.
A rotating damper of this kind was perfected in French Patent No. 2 592 449, according to which the auxiliary chamber is formed at least partially by a diaphragm which is elastically deformable, thus making it possible to compensate for variations in the volume of the fluid as a function of its temperature. An elastically-deformable diaphragm is, advantageously, fitted on each end, and substantially transverse, surface of the damper, in such a way that two auxiliary chambers are thus demarcated on each side of the stator and rotor, respectively, and, more precisely, formed between one end surface of the damper and the corresponding diaphragm, and at least one feeding passage between each auxiliary chamber and the main chamber is fitted in the corresponding end surface, this feeding passage being small enough to act as a dynamic filter for the frequencies of use of the damper. This arrangement makes it possible to limit the return stress of the elastically-deformable diaphragms, and, because of this circumstance, this return stress may be less than the stress corresponding to the operating pressure of the damper. Furthermore, each end surface is preferably composed of a first ring, linked to the stator, and a second ring, linked to the rotor, and the diaphragm, which is ring-shaped, has inner and outer peripheral edges which are encircled by an inner and outer collar, respectively, to which the diaphragm is made unitary by vulcanization. The inner and outer collars are housed in an annular groove created by the two rings on the corresponding end surface; the water-tightness of the corresponding auxiliary chamber is obtained by means of the adhesion of the inner and outer collars to the walls of the groove, and the feeding passage between the principal chamber and the corresponding auxiliary chamber is formed by a gap created between the two rings of the end surface under consideration. The throttling of the high-viscosity fluid, for example a silicone-based fluid, is two-directional, and takes place between the end of each stator blade and the inner cylindrical, circular wall of the rotor, and means ensuring the unidirectional transfer of the fluid are, furthermore, fitted on each stator blade and are composed of an elastic plate attached by a screw on each blade which seals off an orifice drilled straight through the blade. The auxiliary chambers thus make it possible to compensate for variations in the volume of the viscous fluid filling the main chamber caused by changes in its operating temperature, because of the elastically-deformable diaphragms. These diaphragms, which are made unitary with the stator and rotor, respectively, by means of the inner and outer collars, operate under the action of torsion when motion of the rotor in relation to the stator takes place, in such a manner that they exert some degree of elastic return under the force of torsion, which tends to bring the stator and rotor back into an initial relative position. Furthermore, since the viscous fluid is introduced into the damper under pressure sufficient to produce an elastic deformation of the diaphragms which covers the fluid-volume retraction during low-temperature use, the diaphragms produce the pressurization of the volumes of viscous fluid contained in the auxiliary chambers, thereby ensuring that the main chamber of the damper will be filled under static pressure.
French Patent No. 2 573 829 describes a tubular, fluid-operated damper which produces linear, rotational damping between a tube and an axis central to the tube by means of fluid shearing between two sets of concentric, alternately telescoping tubes in a shearing chamber between the tube and the central axis. Axial water-tightness is achieved by means of two elastic connecting collars between the tube and the central axis, an arrangement such that these elastic collars also produce a rotational, linear elastic return. Furthermore, an expansion chamber, which is coaxial to the shearing chamber, is marked off between the central axis and the outer tube by an annular, expansion diaphragm which separates the expansion chamber from the shearing chamber. This expansion chamber provides for the compensation of heat-induced variation in the volume of the fluid, which is sheared in the damper. A device of this kind may be used as a resilient return strut of the hydraulic-elastic type having linear and rotational damping incorporated by shearing of fluid between two sets of concentric, alternately telescoping tubes. Furthermore, this strut is equipped with a device which compensates for thermally-produced expansion of the sheared fluid, and the elastic plugs which produce the elastic return of the central axis and the outer tube toward the original relative position, also bring about the water-tight sealing of the damper chamber. As regards their use on helicopter rotors, tubular, fluid-operated dampers of this kind do not possess sufficient rigidity, and have a complex structure which is of delicate construction, in particular because the dampers have two coaxial and alternately-telescoping sets of shearing tubes.
For these reasons, French Patents Nos. 2.528.382 and 2.592.696 propose resilient return struts of the hydraulic-elastic type having incorporated damping, which contain:
two rigid devices, each of which is equipped with hinging means designed to connect one of the rigid devices to a first part, such as a blade or a device connecting said blade to a rotor hub, and the other rigid device to a second component, such as said rotor hub,;
at least one resilient return device comprising a mass of a deformable material, which is unitary with the two rigid devices and designed to become deformed when said rigid devices are displaced one in relation to the other, and to produce on said rigid devices a resilient return action tending to bring them back to the initial relative position;
at least one hydraulic damper comprising two working chambers of volume varyIng in opposition, which contain a relatively viscous hydraulic fluid designed to circulate from one to the other of the chambers through at least one narrow circulation passage between said working chambers when said rigid devices are displaced one in relation to the other, in order to produce a damping of the relative displacement of said rigid devices; and
means for the absorption of the thermal expansion of the hydraulic fluid.
In this type of strut, also called a drag damper or frequency adapter, described in French Patent No. 2 528 382, the mass of the deformable material is a ring made of a viscoelastic material adhering by its two front surfaces to two rigid plates bolted one onto the other and onto a brace so as to constitute the rigid device which is unitary with the blade and in such a way that the brace is shaped in the form of an attachment bracket which supports a mounting ball-joint, while the second rigid device, mounted on the rotor hub by a ball-joint, has one part in the shape of an annular plate embedded in the thickness of the viscoelastic ring and around a central, oblong recess in this ring, in which a restrictive element is housed, delimiting together with the lateral wall of the central recess of the ring, the two working chambers having volumes varying in opposition. and two narrow circulation passages between the two working chambers. The restricting element is formed by the bolting of the substantially cylindrical central portions, one against the other of the two rigid parts, each of which has a circular plate housed in an opening in one of the two rigid plates of the device connected to the blade, in order to close the central hollow of the viscoelastic ring. The means for absorbing the thermal expansion of the hydraulic fluid are housed in the restricting element and are composed of two pairs of inner chambers, each of which contains a manometric capsule; the two chambers of each pair are connected to a single narrow duct which opens out at the mouth of one of the two narrow circulation passages between the working chambers.
In-flight experimentation on helicopters of medium tonnage of a main rotor comprising a new-generation hub and equipped with resilient return drag struts of the viscoelastic and hydraulicelastic type, such as those described in French Patent No. 2 528 382, has demonstrated that it was desirable to increase the damping produced by these resilient return struts, in order to properly provide the damping effect over a flight range which has been enlarged as regards weight and especially speed of which these modern helicopters, equipped with a new-generation rotor hub, are capable. However, the increase in damping applied to these resilient return struts brings with it a correlative increase in their rigidity which is incompatible with a satisfactory mechanical resistance of the means used to attach these struts to the rotor hub.
In order to correct these problems, French Patent No. 2 592 696 proposed that, in a strut of the type described above, the mass of the deformable material of the resilient return device be a cylindrical sleeve made of an elastic material, which also forms a sealing joint of the hydraulic damper, and that this sleeve be made to adhere in a water-tight manner by its inner and outer surfaces between two tubular metal cylinders which are coaxial in relation to the axis of the strut, each of these cylinders being unitary with one of the two rigid components. The hydraulic damper comprises, in addition to a piston mounted so as to slide axially in a cylinder carrying one of the rigid components and which separates one from the other the two working chambers marked off in this cylinder, a longitudinal shaft rod parallel to the axis of the strut which renders the piston unitary with the other rigid component while extending through at least one of the working chambers, as well as a compensation chamber placed between, first, a cylinder base adjacent to a working chamber through which the rod passes, and, second, a lateral surface of the cylindrical resilient sleeve and the inner lateral face of the inner tubular cylinder. This compensation chamber contains a volume of hydraulic fluid as well as a volume of gas, which constitute said means for absorption of the thermal expansion of the hydraulic fluid; in addition, it is designed to compensate for the difference between the variations in volume of the two working chambers, which results from the rod when the piston is displaced in the cylinder. Finally, the hydraulic damper contains a compensation device by which the compensation chamber is connected to each of the working chambers in order to allow for a flow of hydraulic fluid from one of the working chambers and toward the compensation chamber when the piston is displaced in one direction, and a flow of hydraulic fluid from the compensation chamber toward a working chamber when the piston is displaced in the cylinder in the other direction.
Since the sliding movement of the piston in the cylinder is accomplished in a water-tight manner, the narrow feeding passage between the two working chambers is a passage provided in the piston and in which a restriction device is installed. Furthermore, excess-pressure valves are also installed in ducts arranged through the piston in order to connect the two working chambers together, and to allow a flow of hydraulic fluid from the one of the working chambers which is pressurized, when the piston is displaced in the cylinder, toward the other working chamber which has been depressed, as soon as the differential pressure between the two working chambers exceeds a given threshold. In addition, the compensation device is housed in a compensation duct which is, itself, set in the piston, in such a way that each of its two ends are continuously connected to one of the two working chambers, and that one substantially central portion of this compensation duct is permanently connected to the compensation chamber by means of a compensation conduit extending into the piston shaft. The compensation device is a dual valve comprising two movable seals, each of which cooperates with one of two receptacles against which it is lodged in water-tight fashion by the pressure existing in one of the two working chambers, when this chamber is pressurized by displacement of the piston in the cylinder, while the other seal is drawn away from its receptacle so that the other working chamber may be connected to the compensation chamber.
An arrangement of this kind requires that the rod be guided. This function is provided by a bearing installed in a cylinder base adjacent to a working chamber equipped with mechanical packing and through which the rod passes.
The disadvantages of such a strut are, first, that its internal structure requires the use of complex valves, parts sensible to wear, and various devices which cooperate with each other while possessing slight relative play; and, second, that watertightness is obtained only with the careful installation of the sliding piston and the rod connected to this piston.

Resilient return strut of the elastic-hydraulic type with incorporated linear damping by throttling a high-viscosity fluid

Societe Nationale Industrielle et Aerospatiale


A novel fabrication process uses a combination of negative and positive photoresists with positive tone photomasks, resulting in masking layers suitable for bulk micromachining high-aspect ratio microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices. This technique allows the use of positive photomasks with negative resists, opening the door to an ability to create complementary mechanical structures without the fabrication delays and costs associated with having to obtain a negative photomask. In addition, whereas an SU-8 mask would normally be left in place after processing, a technique utilizing a positive photoresist as a release layer has been developed so that the SU-8 masking material can be removed post-etching.

The invention relates to microelectromechanical systems and microfabrication.
Photolithography is an iterative process used to transfer patterns from a photomask design onto a photosensitive material or photoresist. Once transferred into the photoresist, the pattern is then developed and "windows" to the underlying material are opened up. The underlying materials are then etched away, leaving behind a permanent pattern in the lower material, or materials are deposited into the windows. When fabricating surface micromachined microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices, thin film depositions are interlaced with photolithography, etching, and lift-off processing steps. Typically, positive photomasks and photoresists are used in MEMS fabrication to ensure fine resolution and precise minimum feature sizes. Sometimes, however, reverse field or complementary mechanical structures must be etched into the substrate (e.g., thermal isolation), which necessitates using a combination of surface and bulk micromachining and involving aggressive etch chemistries, negative photoresist, and robust masking materials. When these situations arise, the ability to use a positive photomask with a negative resist is often helpful to avoid fabrication delays and higher costs. In addition, certain negative photoresists (i.e., MicroChem's Nano™ SU-8) are desirable because when they are hard baked they become chemically and thermally resistant. This allows them to stand up very well to the aggressive etching profiles needed for bulk micromachining, such as SF6, when isotropic silicon etching is required.
AZ 5214E is a positive photoresist that also has the ability to be utilized for image reversal, providing the negative pattern of a photomask. It is most commonly utilized in the IR mode for lift-off processes where thin film metals are deposited and selectively patterned using a lift-off technique. Through an initial exposure, post-exposure bake (which acts as an image reversal bake), and flood exposure steps, image reversal is easily obtained. After a layer of AZ 5214E is exposed with a positive photomask, it is baked at a temperature between 115° C. and 125° C., which initiates an agent in the photoresist that crosslinks the areas that have been exposed. This step is critical, since if it is not baked at the right temperature (±1° C.) the negative pattern of the photomask will not be obtained and the AZ 5214E will just act like a positive photoresist. Therefore, it is important to determine and optimize the reversal bake temperature in the range mentioned above for individual processes. The exposure of a photoactive compound within the photoresist, and the crosslinking in the exposed areas, makes these exposed areas insoluble in the developer. Meanwhile, after a flood exposure, the unexposed areas develop away in a standard positive photoresist developer. Unfortunately, AZ 5214E alone is not robust enough to stand up to the aggressive bulk micromachining etching profiles.
SU-8 is a thick, epoxy-based, high contrast photoresist that is typically used in applications where it will be a permanent layer. Through an exposure and post-exposure bake steps, an SU-8 layer crosslinks and becomes resistant to liquid developers, and a wide range of other removal methods [e.g., O2 plasma ashing, reactive ion etching (RIE), corrosive etches, etc.], thus making SU-8 an excellent masking material for bulk micromachining. The exposure step creates an acid and the post-exposure bake step follows this up by thermally activating the acid to crosslink the exposed areas. The challenge here is that the SU-8 must remain uncrosslinked, and therefore unexposed, through a majority of the process. If the SU-8 gets exposed at any point it will crosslink and no longer be usable for this process. Various methods have been used to protect an uncrosslinked SU-8 layer during subsequent lithography and/or metal deposition steps, such as a filament evaporated metal layer, using an antireflective coating on top of the SU-8, UV exposure dose control, contact printing of a metal layer, and using a positive photoresist as a protection layer. These approaches have been used in applications where SU-8 is utilized as a sacrificial material, in the creation of microfluidic channels and other stacked structures, and for electroforming.

MEMS fabrication process base on SU-8 masking layers

The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Air Force


A cap adapter breech plug for muzzle loading firearms utilizes a cylindrical plug with barrel and breech ends and having a passage extending axially therethrough, a coaxial counterbore about the passage at the breech end of the plug, an axial slot along the side of the counterbore, and an exhaust passage extending generally radially from the passage adjacent the inner end of the counterbore to the outer surface of the plug for exhausting gases from the axially extending passage. A spring seated in the plug has a portion extending through the axial slot and into the counterbore to bear resiliently against the casing of a cap seated in the counterbore to retain it in the plug.

The present invention relates to muzzle loading firearms and, more particularly, to breech plugs which adapt the firearm to utilize percussion caps as the ignition means.
As is well known, percussion caps are preferred for ignition of the black powder charge in muzzle loading firearms, and various types of nipples using such caps have been developed. With the increasing use of inline firing systems because of better ignition characteristics, there has been a move to use primer or percussion caps in breech plugs providing such an inline firing system. Shotgun shell primer caps have been considered highly advantageous for use in such inline ignition systems.
There have been a number of breech plug constructions to adapt the muzzle loading firearm to use a primer cap which is detonated by a firing pin. The hot gases from the detonated primer cap travel in a passage through the plug to ignite the black powder at the barrel end of the breech plug. Exemplary of such structures are those illustrated in Carron U.S. Pat. No. 5,010,677 granted Apr. 30, 1991; Mahn et al U.S. Pat. No. 5,408,776 granted Apr. 25, 1995; and Osborne et al U.S. Pat. No. 5,487,232 granted Jan. 30, 1996.
The problems encountered in such breech plug adapters have included (i) holding the primer cap in the plug, (ii) expansion or deformation of the casing of the cap by the hot gases so as to make it difficult to remove from the plug, and (iii) contamination of the firing mechanism by the particles in the exhaust gases. Although it is necessary that the cap be securely seated in the plug, it is also necessary to be able to extract it readily from the plug.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel breech plug adapter for seating firing caps in an inline firing system for a muzzle loading firearm.
It is also an object to provide such a breech plug adapter which may be fabricated readily and relatively economically.
Another object is to provide such a breech plug adapter which seats the firing cap securely but avoids a tight friction fit which would make removal difficult upon expansion or deformation of the casing of the cap.
A further object is to provide such a breech plug adapter which diverts a substantial portion of the exhaust gases radially to the periphery of the plug to minimize distorting pressures on the casing of the cap and contamination of the bolt or other firing assembly.


An electrocardiogram device, and a corresponding method of administering an electrocardiogram, includes a housing that is placed over a patient's chest, a plurality of electrodes mounted on the housing that align with precordial positions, a conductive gel pad detachably affixed on the housing between the electrodes and the patient's body, and an attachment mechanism for attaching the electrocardiogram device to the patient's chest. The electrocardiogram device of the present invention is suitable for portable or remote testing, and it ensures proper placement of the electrodes for accurate and consistent results.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of medical data gathering devices, and, more particularly, to an electrocardiogram ("ECG" or "EKG") device and method of use including features that facilitate accurate placement of the device on a patient.
2. Discussion of the Background Art
An ECG is a medical diagnostic test that measures electrical activity of the heart. The results of an ECG reflect the direction of electrical current flow through the heart, as well as the magnitude of the heart muscle that is depolarized. The ECG provides a noninvasive way for health care professionals to diagnose arrhythmias and conduction irregularities of the heart.
It is well known to perform an ECG by placing electrodes at specific locations on the body to capture tracings of the heart's electrical activity. Electrodes usually consist of a conducting gel embedded in an electro-conductive material, to which cables are clipped on. Each lead, or output from a pair of electrodes, records the electrical activity resulting from a depolarization and a repolarization of the heart. ECGs vary in the number of electrodes and leads, but they all provide a summation of the information recorded from each lead. In a traditional twelve lead ECG, ten adhesive electrode pads are attached to the body, and each electrode is connected to a wire that leads to a monitor. The ten electrodes of the twelve lead ECG consist of six precordial electrodes, which are placed above the heart, and four limb electrodes, one on each arm and each leg. The six precordial leads are labeled as V leads and are numbered V1-V6. The lead connected to the right leg is a neutral lead. There also exist, for example, three and five lead ECGs.
In order to obtain quality data, it is important for the electrodes to be placed at the correct locations on the body and with good contact with the skin. In the ECGs that are currently employed, the electrodes are often inconsistently or inaccurately positioned on the body. The proper positioning of the precordial electrodes, in particular, is very specific. The precordial electrodes are positioned at various intercostal spaces of the rib cage. Therefore, one must exercise great care to ensure proper positioning. Furthermore, the electrodes need to be placed at the same positions each time an ECG is administered so that ECG results for a particular patient may be compared to the patient's past results to look for changes in the heart's activity. Even slight differences in electrode position can lead to discrepancies in ECG results, so consistent placement is essential to ensure accurate comparison. Particularly in busy physicians' offices, technicians and nurses administering ECGs are sometimes rushed and do not practice the necessary level of care and accuracy in electrode positioning. Therefore, there is a need in the art for a way to ensure accurate and consistent positioning of electrodes. Other disadvantages of the current art are that electrode wires easily become tangled, which is burdensome for those administering ECGs. Additionally, many ECGs require the use of adhesive pads which may irritate patients' skin or cause particular discomfort to patients with hairy body surfaces.
There also remains a need in the art for portable ECG devices that are as effective as those that are stationarily located at hospitals and physicians' offices. There is a need for small, portable ECG devices that can be self-administered in the comfort of a patient's home or by emergency personnel in an ambulance or at the site of an accident. Particularly when the patient or care giver is not trained in administering ECGs, it is important to ensure that the device is easy to use and that the user accurately positions the electrodes.


Disclosed is a method of automatic establishment of a location-based talk group call with reduced messaging overhead. The initiating device may be a subscriber unit (SU). The SU determines a geographic reference location and generates location data representative of the location. The SU broadcasts a location-based talk group call header including the location data and including a location-based talk group call identifier field set to cause other SUs receiving the call header to receive and output subsequent data associated with the call header responsive to determining that its current geographic location satisfies the location criterion of the call. The location criterion may be fully determined by the initiating SU and specified in the call header, and may take the form of a specified radius that extends from the geographic reference location represented in the call header.

Radio access networks (RANs) provide for radio communication links to be arranged within the system between a plurality of user terminals. Such user terminals may be mobile and may be known as 'mobile stations' or 'subscriber units.' At least one other terminal, e.g. used in conjunction with subscriber units, may be a fixed terminal, e.g. a control terminal, base station, eNodeB, repeater, and/or access point. Such a RAN typically includes a system infrastructure which generally includes a network of various fixed terminals, which are in direct radio communication with the subscriber units. Each of the fixed terminals operating in the RAN may have one or more transceivers which may, for example, serve subscriber units in a given local region or area, known as a 'cell' or 'site', by radio frequency (RF) communication. The subscriber units that are in direct communication with a particular fixed terminal are said to be served by the fixed terminal. In one example, all radio communications to and from each subscriber unit within the RAN are made via respective serving fixed terminals. Sites of neighbouring fixed terminals may be offset from one another or may be non-overlapping or partially or fully overlapping.
RANs may operate according to an industry standard protocol such as, for example, the Project 25 (P25) standard defined by the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials International (APCO), or other radio protocols, such as the terrestrial trunked radio (TETRA) standard defined by the European Telecommunication Standards Institute (ETSI) or the Digital Mobile Radio (DMR) standard also defined by the ETSI. Communications in accordance with any one or more of these standards, or other standards, may take place over physical channels in accordance with one or more of a TDMA (time division multiple access), FDMA (frequency divisional multiple access), or CDMA (code division multiple access) protocol. Subscriber units in RANs such as those set forth above send user communicated speech and data, herein referred to collectively as 'traffic information', in accordance with the designated protocol.
Many so-called 'public safety' RANs provide for group-based radio communications amongst a plurality of subscriber units such that one member of a designated group can transmit once and have that transmission received by all other members of the group substantially simultaneously. Groups are conventionally assigned based on function. For example, all members of a particular local police force may be assigned to a same group so that all members of the particular local police force can stay in contact with one another, while avoiding the random transmissions of radio users outside of the local police force group.
When an event or incident occurs, such as a fire or accident, numerous different groups may respond to the incident, including for example, direct first responders such as police, fire, and medical groups and supporting responders such as utility, traffic control, crowd control groups, among others.
In some examples, a dispatcher at a dispatch console disposed in the RAN may control operation of the subscriber units arriving at the incident scene, and may instruct each subscriber unit or group of subscriber units to manually join one or more groups particularly associated with the incident so that all subscriber units responding to the incident can communicate with one another about the incident. For example, verbal or text messages may be broadcast from the dispatch console to all subscriber units in a police group, a fire group, and a medical group. In emergency situations, e.g. in case of an accident, however, it takes a significant amount of time for the dispatcher to manually create one or more talk groups, identify subscriber units and/or groups responding to the emergency situation, and to correspondingly assign the groups, as well as to monitor and assign subsequently arriving subscriber units to those groups. Such manual processes causes some delay as additional exchanges of information is required and causes some additional delay as a result of required manual operations of varying dispatch console operators, among other issues.
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the present disclosure.

Method and device for automatic creation of a location-based talk group call with reduced messaging overhead


A package made of cardboard and a process and an apparatus for producing the package are disclosed. For various reasons it is required to form projections (10), stops etc. in pack panels of packs made of (thin) cardboard. To support a collar (13) which is located in the box part (11) of a hinge-lid pack, projections (10) are disposed at the side panels (17, 18). These projections are formed from a transversely directed punch cut (21) and a convexity which adjoins this punch cut and is made by shaping the material (cardboard). A projection (10) which is designed in this manner is produced in a single working step by punching and shaping (embossing) with the aid of an appropriate tool (punching piece 24) in conjunction with a counter tool (counter roller 28) during the continuous transport of a blank.

The invention relates to a package which is made of (thin) cardboard and has a projection, stop or the like which is formed in a panel of the package from the cardboard by deformation, especially a hinge-lid pack for cigarettes, having stops located at the inner side of side panels of the pack for supporting a collar. The invention further relates to a process and an apparatus for producing projections or stops in panels made of (thin) cardboard.
For various reasons it is required in the packaging art to form projecting portions in the region of a panel of a package, which portions serve as a projection or stop for positioning parts of the package. These projecting portions are for example required in hinge-lid packs for cigarettes or the like. This type of pack is provided with a collar which partially immerses in a box part of the hinge-lid pack. In order to accurately position the collar within the box part, inwardly directed stops are disposed at side panels of the box part. Lower edges of the collar bear against these stops. DE-A-41 22 900.2 is directed to a package which comprises stops for this purpose. It is difficult to produce this stop in the continuous manufacturing process. The invention provides a remedy for this problem.

Apparatus for producing package made of cardboard


A first open path in a microprocessor design is identified. At least one modification to a design of that first open path is simulated. An updated arrival time at a pin is calculated based on the simulated modification or modifications. An updated path time is then calculated based on the updated arrival time.

The present disclosure relates to microprocessor design, and, more specifically, to computer systems that facilitate the process of refining designs of microprocessors.
Microprocessor design typically involves the design of logic macros and integration components that link the logic macros together. Logic and integration designs are co-dependent; an error in either could negatively affect the timing of the other and all downstream components. Designers typically attempt to eliminate these negative timing effects in lengthy trial-and-error processes of combining logic and integration within the chip.

Simulation of modifications to microprocessor design

International Business Machines Corporation


A method of fabricating a semiconductor heterostructure includes the growth of a quantum well active region that is highly lattice-mismatched relative to a substrate. A buffer layer having a thickness above a critical value is grown on the substrate whereby the stress due to a lattice constant mismatch between the buffer layer and substrate is relieved through the formation of misfit dislocations. A strained superlattice structure is grown on the buffer layer in order to terminate any upwardly-propagating dislocations. An unstrained barrier layer is subsequently grown on the superlattice structure. The fabrication method concludes with the growth of a quantum well structure on the unstrained layer wherein a lattice constant mismatch between the quantum well structure and the unstrained barrier layer is smaller than the lattice constant mismatch between the quantum well structure and the substrate. As a result, only a fraction of the stress due to the large lattice mismatch between the quantum well structure and the substrate is accommodated by coherent strain in the quantum well structure, while the remainder of the stress is relieved through the formation of misfit dislocations spatially separated from the quantum well structure.

Semiconductor superlattices and quantum well heterostructures (QWH's) form an important new class of electronic/optoelectronic materials since the properties of these layered structures are in many ways superior to those of bulk materials. While most superlattices and QWH's are grown using lattice-matched materials, structures comprised of lattice-mismatched heterolayers are also of considerable interest since they offer increased flexibility in choosing constituent materials while exhibiting some interesting properties due to the stress present in the structure.
For example, a heterostructure consisting of biaxially tensile stressed quantum wells can be used to control the light/heavy hole splitting energy and thus modify the effective mass of the charge carriers and the polarization properties of optoelectronic devices fabricated from these stressed heterostructures. Furthermore, changing the compositions and strain layers in these lattice-mismatched material systems permits a designer to selectively adjust the bandgap of the system. One such material system, formed by the growth of InGaAs quantum wells on a GaAs substrate, enables the fabrication of semiconductor lasers which operate in a wavelength range of 0.9 .mu.m to 1.1 .mu.m, a range not easily achieved in lattice matched structures.
Referring specifically to the effect of lattice mismatch in heterolayer structures, it is well known that the stress resulting from this mismatch can be accommodated solely by coherent strain in the heterolayers so long as the thickness of the individual heterolayers is below a critical value. This critical thickness is a function of alloy composition and strain, and is the thickness at which it becomes energetically favorable for misfit dislocations to occur, obviously an undesirable result if the material quality is to be maintained.
At present, conventional research has begun to demonstrate the feasibility of using lattice-mismatched quantum well structures in optical communication applications where large energy bandgap shifts are possible by varying the elastic strain due to lattice mismatches. However, as noted above, the quantum well structures must satisfy a critical thickness constraint that in turn limits the range of allowable bandgap shifts.
This constraint presents a particular problem to the designer who seeks, for example, to decrease the bandgap of a quantum well region to a range suitable for optical communications (1.1-1.3 .mu.m) by increasing the alloy composition x of the quantum well region which, for exemplary purposes, may be an In.sub.x Ga.sub.1-x As single quantum well layer. However, the effect of increasing composition is to correspondingly decrease the critical thickness of the quantum well layers and thereby restrict the designer to the growth of only narrow wells. Unfortunately, narrow wells limit the range of achievable bandgap shifts.
With respect to specific conventional structures, Marioka et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 4,835,583 disclosed a semiconductor device which reduces the influence of lattice mismatch between the substrate and active region by growing a strained superlattice structure therebetween. Another conventional structure, proposed by Gourley et al. in Applied Physics Letters 47(5), 1985, pp. 482-484, attempts to eliminate misfit dislocations in a strained superlattice structure (SLS) epilayer by interposing a thick buffer layer between the SLS and the substrate. As a result, upwardly-propagating defects are confined to the first few layers of the SLS so that the upper layers are nearly free of dislocations.

Method of farbicating highly lattice mismatched quantum well structures


A fiber optic splice enclosure for housing an interconnection contained in a splice tray between at least one optical fiber of a feeder cable and at least one optical fiber of a drop cable is provided. The optical fiber of the feeder cable is at least partially contained in a spliced feeder cable buffer tube and the optical fiber of the drop cable is at least partially contained in a spliced drop cable buffer tube. The feeder cable or the drop cable includes one or more express buffer tubes that extend uninterrupted through the enclosure. The fiber optic splice enclosure includes a support frame arranged in the enclosure and a basket is arranged on the support frame for storing slack of the spliced feeder cable buffer tube and the spliced drop cable buffer tube transitioning to the splice tray. An express buffer tube storage arrangement is provided on the support frame separate from the basket. A splice tray mounting arrangement is arranged near the basket for supporting the splice tray. The splice mounting arrangement is configured such that the splice tray is removable. The basket is sized so as to be able to store sufficient slack of the spliced feeder cable buffer tube and the splice drop cable buffer tube such that the splice tray can be moved to a working position outside the enclosure.

There is an ever-increasing demand for high-speed or high-bandwidth communication channels for delivering high-speed data and video services. To meet this demand, telecommunications service providers are developing networks (sometimes referred to as outside plant networks) that extend the higher bandwidth of fiber optic components all the way to the end-user businesses and homes (referred to as premises). In such networks, there are distribution points where a distribution, feeder or branch cable is interconnected with one or more drop cables that are routed to the premises. At such distribution points, the side coming from the service provider is generally referred to as the central office or CO side while the side leading to the premises is generally referred to as the drop side. A distribution, branch or feeder cable typically includes a sheath surrounding a plurality of buffer tubes with each buffer tube housing a plurality of optical fibers.
Enclosures are used to house fiber optic cable interconnections and splices and certain fiber optic components (e.g., splitters and couplers) at various locations in a fiber optic network. Existing fiber optic enclosures, however, are not well suited for use at distribution points close to the end-user premises. Technicians will have to access the interior of the enclosures at such distribution points on a fairly regular basis to add new splices for the premises of additional subscribers or to disconnect service to subscribers canceling service. Vault-type enclosures that are buried in the ground are one type of enclosure commonly used in fiber optic networks. Such vaults are thought to be necessary to protect the integrity of the optical fibers and splices. However, to gain access to the splices in the vault, a bulky lid with multiple bolts must be removed and a sealed splice case, also with multiple fasteners and cable sealing provisions, removed from the interior of the vault. As a result, accessing and servicing such vaults is time-consuming, and thus expensive, making them unsuitable for use at distribution points close to premises that will have to be accessed by technicians on a regular basis.
In addition, performing splicing operations in the field can also be very awkward when working with buried vault enclosures. In particular, when the sealed splice case is removed, lengthy slack fiber loops must also be removed from the vault so that the splice case can reach a clean area where the splicing can be performed. Once the splice case is situated in the clean splicing area, actually gaining access to the splices can sometimes involve the removal of over a dozen threaded fasteners. Once the splicing operation is completed, these steps must be repeated in order to replace the splice case back in the vault. Failure to properly reseal the cable openings and tighten the fasteners often results in water leakage into the splice case that may cause undesirable optical signal degradation.
The routing and management of the fiber optic cables in such vaults can also lead to problems. For example, with such vaults, there is a significant risk that a technician will disrupt the unopened buffer tubes (known as "express buffer tubes") that extend in an uninterrupted manner through the vault in the course of performing the splicing operation. Obviously, this issue is of particular significance when the vault is being used at a distribution point to premises that will have to be accessed frequently for field splicing operations. The cable routing and management in such vaults can also be quite complicated further increasing the potential for errors by technicians performing work on the equipment in the vault. Other types of enclosures used in fiber optic networks have similar issues and drawbacks.
It can be relatively difficult and time consuming to separate the express buffer tubes from the spliced buffer tubes and find the appropriate optical fibers when adding or reconfiguring splices to drop cables in an enclosure. Also difficult and time consuming to access the splice tray to perform the splicing operation without damaging the express buffer tubes. Thus, such field splicing operations frequently require a highly skilled technician. However, highly skilled technicians are expensive.


A method for producing a powdered iron oxide comprises the steps of adjusting the pH of a crude iron chloride solution to 2.5-4.5; reducing the P content of the solution by mechanical stirring or air bubbling and filtering; and oxidizing the solution into a powdered iron oxide having a maximum P content of 0.005 wt. %. The P content of the solution may also be reduced by ultrafilter treatment. The soft ferrite made by using the powdered iron oxide by this process shows excellent magnetic properties.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for producing powdered iron oxide used for manufacturing high-quality soft ferrite.
2. Description of the Related Art
Powdered iron oxides are widely produced by roasting and oxidizing a crude iron chloride solution. A hydrochloric solution after use for pickling of iron and steel, a solution obtained by dissolving iron and steel and or iron oxide in hydrochloric acid, the heated and concentrated solutions thereof or the solutions thereof whose insolubles are filtrated, are used for such a crude iron chloride solution.
Powdered iron oxide is used as a raw material for soft ferrite. FIG. 1 shows an example of a typical process for making powdered iron oxide. In FIG. 1, a waste hydrochloric pickling solution 6 is stored in a reservoir 1. The hydrochloric pickling solution 6 is contacted with hot gas 3 in a contact tower 2. Hot gas 3 containing hydrogen chloride is generated in a roasting furnace 5. By this contact the waste hydrochloric pickling solution is heated and concentrated in the contact tower 2. The heated and concentrated solution is then sprayed in the roasting furnace 5, and a sprayed mist of the solution is roasted and oxidized, thereby producing a powdered iron oxide 4 and hot gas 3. An electrostatic dust collector 7 collects the powdered iron oxide 4. The hydrochloric acid is recovered from hot gas 3 in a recovering tower 8. The numeral 9 represents spray water and reference number 10 is hot air. Iron and steel or iron oxide contains Si, Al, Cr, Cu, P and etc., and industrial water contains Ca. These elements are contained in the crude iron chloride solutions. Powdered iron oxide produced by roasting the crude iron chloride solution also contains those elements as impurities. This process of producing powdered iron oxide is very simple and the cost of the powdered iron oxide produced thereby is low. Accordingly, the powdered iron oxides made by this process are used widely as raw materials for soft ferrite of ordinary grades. However for high-quality soft ferrite the powdered iron oxides made by this process are not used because of the impurities contained therein.
Powdered iron oxide having a decreased content of SiO.sub.2 and CaO also may be produced by this process if certain additional treatment to the crude iron chloride solution is performed. However, the powdered iron oxide of decreased SiO.sub.2 and CaO content is still unsatisfactory for the high-quality soft ferrite, and this powdered iron oxide is not used for high-quality soft ferrite. For high-quality soft ferrite a high-purity powdered iron oxide of very low impurity content exclusively is used.
A high-quality powdered iron oxide is usually produced by a crystal refining method. In the crystal refining method crystals of iron sulfate or iron chloride are crystallized from an aqueous solution thereof, and the high-purity powdered iron oxides are produced by oxidizing these crystals. In this method, however, the impurities are not reduced sufficiently by a single occurrence of crystallization because some of the impurities remain included in the crystals. The thus obtained crystals are, therefore, dissolved again in water etc., and crystallized again. These treatments are repeated several times, thereby reducing the impurity content of the crystals. According to the crystal refining method a high-purity powdered iron oxide is obtained, in which the content of all impurities is very low. However, the crystal refining process is complicated and the production cost or the powdered high-quality iron oxide produced thereby is very high. Among the impurities in powdered iron oxide, some impurities may impair the properties of a soft ferrite, and others do not. However, general knowledge regarding the type of impurities which impair the ferrite properties has been insufficient, and it has been difficult to improve the powdered iron oxide of ordinary grades to a level sufficient for the high-quality soft ferrite.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to selectively remove harmful impurities from an iron oxide.
Another object of the invention is to simplify the process for producing iron oxide for high quality soft ferrite.
It is a further object of the invention to reduce the cost of producing iron oxide for high quality soft ferrite.

Method for producing powdered iron oxide


Provided is an image forming apparatus that speeds up the performance in the auto color mode. A document reading unit reads a document and outputs image data. A document determination unit temporarily determines the document as a monochrome document when the ratio of the color components of the document is equal to or less than the monochrome threshold value at a specific timing after the document reading unit starts reading the document. An image processing unit performs monochrome image processing on the image data. A document determination unit determines that the document is a color document when the ratio of the color components of the image data is equal to or more than the color threshold value while the image processing for the monochrome document is being performed.

The present disclosure relates to an image forming apparatus, an image processing method, and an image forming method, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus, an image processing method, and an image forming method that speed up an auto color mode.
There is an image forming apparatus such as a multi-functional peripheral (MFP) capable of printing a document or an image.
Some of the image forming apparatuses are capable of selecting any one of a color mode, a monochrome mode, and an auto color mode when copying, or the like.
Among them, the color mode is a mode that a document is read in color, and color output is performed. The monochrome mode is a mode that monochrome output is performed regardless of whether the document is monochrome or color. The auto color mode is a mode that the document is determined whether color or monochrome, and the color or monochrome output is performed according to the determination.
There is a typical image forming apparatus capable of selecting the auto color mode. In this apparatus, when a specific threshold value is set and the number of color pixels of the original document exceeds the threshold value while the original document is being read, image processing is started in the color mode. As a result, even in the auto color mode, image processing can be started without waiting for the completion of reading the document.

Image forming apparatus, image processing method, and image forming method for speeding up auto color mode by monochrome threshold value


An oil pipe connection device has a base, an oil pipe, a pipe connector and a securing nut. The base has a connection hole and an abutting shoulder. The pipe connector is mounted in the connection hole and has a tapered head, an insertion segment, a pressing collar and an engaging recess. The tapered head abuts with the abutting shoulder. The insertion segment is inserted tightly into an end of the oil pipe. The pressing collar is around the insertion segment and has an inclined guiding surface. The engaging recess is formed between the pressing collar and the insertion segment and holds the end of the oil pipe inside. The securing nut is mounted around the oil pipe, is connected with the connection hole in a threaded manner and has an inclined guiding surface abutting with the inclined guiding surface on the pressing collar.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a hydraulic brake of a bicycle and, more particularly, to an oil pipe connection device for a hydraulic brake of a bicycle and having a simplified structure and an excellent sealing effect.
2. Description of Related Art
A hydraulic brake device for a bicycle substantially comprises a brake lever, a disk brake and an oil pipe. The brake lever is mounted on a handlebar of the bicycle, and the disk brake is mounted on a side of a wheel of the bicycle. The oil pipe is connected between the brake lever and the disk brake to lead oil from the brake lever to the disk brake to provide a braking effect to the wheel. To connect the oil pipe securely with the brake lever or disk brake, different connection devices are provided.
With reference to FIG. 6, a conventional connection device 90 for an oil pipe comprises a base 80, an oil pipe 91, a pipe connector 92, a pressing ring 93 and a securing nut 94. The base 80 is formed as a part of a brake lever and has a connection hole 81 formed in the base 80. The oil pipe 91 is connected with the base 80. The pipe connector 92 is inserted into the oil pipe 91 and has a head 922, an insertion segment 921 and an O-ring 924. The head 922 is formed on one end of the pipe connector 92 and has an annular groove 923 defined around the head 922. The insertion segment 921 is formed on and protrudes from one side of the head 922, is inserted into the oil pipe 91 and is composed of multiple conical collars. The O-ring 924 is mounted in the annular groove 923 in the head 922. The pressing ring 93 is mounted around the oil pipe 91. The securing nut 94 is screwed with the connection hole 81 in the base 80 and holds the pressing ring 93 inside. With the securing nut 94 and the clamping effect provided by the pressing ring 93, the oil pipe 91 is connected with the connection hole 81 in the base 80. The O-ring 924 provides a sealing effect to prevent the oil in the base 80 from leaking.
However, the conventional connection device 90 has the following drawbacks.
1. The conventional connection device 90 composed of a pipe connector 92, an O-ring 924 and a pressing ring 93 has a lot of components, so to assemble the conventional connection device 90 is laborious and troublesome. The cost for manufacturing and assembling the conventional connection device 90 is high, and some component may be easily missed or assembled in an opposite direction.
2. The O-ring 924 is made of a rubber material but is easily deformed or broken during the assembling process of the conventional connection device 90 if interference between the components occurs. The sealing effect provided by the O-ring 924 is easily lost due to becoming aged or deteriorated after a period of use.
3. The O-ring 924 is mounted in the annular groove 923 in the head 922 of the pipe connector 92, but the size of the pipe connector 92 is relatively small. Therefore, to form the annular groove 923 in the head 922 of the small pipe connector 92 is difficult, and the O-ring 924 is easily detached from the annular groove 923 to lose the sealing effect.
To overcome the shortcomings, the present invention provides an oil pipe connection device to mitigate or obviate the aforementioned problems.

Oil pipe connection device for a hydraulic brake


An infant measuring and growth charting device having a substantially flat bottom base of a length and width to accommodate infants to be measured, a fixed head board, and a slideable locking foot board, the infant being place in the device, the foot board slid forward to touch the bottoms of the infants feet, the infants legs being fully extended, and the device locked into place. An embedded ruler is affixed into the upper surface of the bottom base, and a viewing hole in a portion of the sliding foot board, over the embedded ruler, follows, and displays the measurements of the infant, and when the exact measurement of the infant is displayed in the viewing hole, the foot board is locked into that position, and this exact measurement will be in the viewing hole for later recording, or, photographing. After the infant is removed from the measuring device, a T-square charting device is inserted into the same groove used to guide the moveable foot board. This charting device allows the user to insert a standard growth chart onto the device, align pertinent data values on the standard growth chart, with guide lines on a transparent cursor plate on the T-square, and holes being provided at the intersections of these guide lines allow a pencil, or pen, or marking device, to be inserted through the cursor plate, and onto the chart, to mark, and plot the several parameters involved in the growth of the infant in a very precise manner.

This invention relates to an apparatus and method of measuring the height, or, length, of an infant, and, charting the growth, head circumference, weight, and other parameters associated with the child. It provides a safe, and reliable method of measuring the length of the infant, while simultaneously providing a locking mechanism to hold this exact measurement of the infant in a viewable location, to be stored on the device until the attendant can conveniently record the height on a permanent chart for the infant.
As an additional feature of this device, (and this is an improvement over the prior art of this inventor, submitted on patent application Ser. No. 07/959,340, filed on Oct. 13, 1992 now abandoned), a charting mechanism is provided for accepting a standard infant progress chart onto the invention, locating the progress coordinates and marking the appropriate progress points on the standard progress chart, for permanent progress charting for the infant.
It has been customary for health care professionals to manually hold the infant, and measure the length by placing the infant on an examining table, and gently stretching out the child's legs, while attempting to make the measurement, using a flexible tape measure, or, a wooden ruler of sorts. Sometimes a pencil is used to make a pencil mark at the head, and the feet of the infant, on the paper on the examination table, and, when the infant is removed, and placed in a safe place, the distance between the pencil marks is measured, and recorded. There are many problems associated with these types of measuring systems, which can translate into misreadings of the infants progress.
Another approach to the height measurement of infants is to place the infant on the examination table, gently stretch the infants legs to an extended position, and use a tape measure to try to get a measurement, memorize the measurement, remove the infant from the table, and place it in a safe place, and then record the measurement. There are several problems with this type of measuring. The measurement is not accurate, or, the person making the measurement forgets the measurement, or translates it wrong. Also, it normally requires at least two persons to make the measurement.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,197,649, Flinn teaches a ruled straight edge, having transparent properties, and provided with a surface gripping strip of material, and a marking implement groove. Such a device is useful for scanning and underlining books, letters, and other flat documents, and could be used to measure an infant. However, it would be inconvenient for measuring these infants, because the device is designed to be placed on top of a flat surface for measuring. Also, the magnification, surface gripping, and marking capabilities are not useful in the measuring of infants. Further, there are no facilities for measuring head circumference, and weight.
Still another approach to the problem of measuring the height of infants is taught in the art of Bergstedt, in U.S. Pat. Des. No. 277,939, wherein a child's growth and height measurement is continually recorded, as the child grows. The invention is intended to be hung on the wall, with the child standing in front of the device, while a second person records the height measurement. This teaching is clearly unsuitable fro use with infants, who are not capable of standing,. If the device were used horizontally, with the infant laid prone, measurement would be haphazard, and again, would require memorization of the height for later recording, or, it would require the services of at least two persons. Also, the ornamental deer's head, being made from a rigid material, could possibly cause injuries to infants. Further, there are no facilities on the device to measure and chart the head circumference, nor the weight of the infant.

Infant measuring device with progress charting capability


The blood pressure measuring device (10) has a bowl-shaped casing (11) in which is arranged a pressure measuring system with a measuring scale (13) and indicator. The casing (11) is closed at its upper edge by a transparent cover plate (25). This primary casing (11) is surrounded at a given distance on the outside by a protective housing (15), whereby the base (18) of the protective housing (15) is combined in one piece with the base (16) of the primary casing (11). The compressed air line is connected either through a hole (22) in the base (16) of the casing (11) or through the casing walls. In the latter case, there is a material bridge in the space between the wall of the primary casing (11) and of the protective housing (15).

In most of the known sphygmomanometers the manometer is contained in a usually cup-shaped case and is mounted therein on one of the parts of the case. This case also contains the dial through which the meter shaft passes. Above the dial the pointer is mounted on the meter shaft. The dial, and the pointer are covered by a crystal which is either inserted directly on the upper margin of the case or is inserted in a separate bezel which in turn is joined to the margin of the case (EP-A-0 008 351 A2). In both cases the disk seals the interior of the case, with the parts contained therein, from the exterior.
If such a sphygmomanometer falls onto a hard surface there is the danger that the case may be damaged, especially that it may be distorted. In the area of the bottom, and of the transition from the bottom to the circumferential wall, the case has of its nature a comparatively great stability of shape, so that in this area the distortions caused by dropping generally remain comparatively slight. It is different when the case strikes in the area of its top margin where the dial and the crystal become damaged. The dial may be bent or may bulge. Such deformation of the dial can be so great that the pointer can no longer move across the dial.
If the case becomes deformed the dial may also snap out of its mounting. The same applies to the crystal. In the event of a particularly hard shock the spiral return spring of the manometer mechanism may become damaged, when for example one or more of its coils loop over one another and become entangled. In the case of all such damage or even destruction of individual parts, the entire sphygmomanometer becomes useless.


The present invention provides a manufacture method for processing bamboo timber into high strength and xylon type bamboo timber methods for rearranging bamboo timber fibers, and articles formed of the xylon type bamboo timber.

In the world, especially in China, there are plenty of bamboo resources. It is just the issue that the human being has been investigating and researching hard, i.e., making full use of the natural bamboo resources, raising the value of bamboo, using bamboo to substitute the traditional usage of wood and compensating the short supply of wood so as to substitute bamboo for wood.
For processing bamboo into section materials, the customary method is to split bamboo, eliminate the curvature of bamboo and process it into rectangular sheets after being dried, then apply adhesive on the sheets, overlap them one by one and press and adhere them together into the section material. This processing method does not change, however, the array orientation of bamboo fibers, and the finished bamboo plates therefrom are easy to bend and arch and get degummed and cracked in the worst case. It is well known that due to the differences of thickness and density of fibers between the outer and inner layers of bamboo, the bamboo plate may extend to get a little more flatness in the course of being dried while it may get curled and bent in the course of being damped. Making raw bamboo into rectangular bamboo sheets does not change the difference between the inner and outer layers of bamboo, and the sheets may bend inward continuously on absorbing moisture. Therefore, by means of this forming method, the bamboo sections may absorb moisture and get deformed continuously in storage or use at a relatively higher temperature, and get degummed and cracked in the worst case. Furthermore, the density of bamboo sections made by this method is close to the density of raw bamboo.
Some current processes may rearrange bamboo fibers. However, the relevant working load and cost are high for splitting bamboo into bamboo wires, and the practical production is difficult to form a certain scale; in addition, due to the failure to consider the unification of water content of bamboo prior to impregnating adhesive, especially the water content is not be unified prior to pressure-moulding, thus physical performances of section bamboo after thermosetting is unstable, and some fatal defects may often occurred, such as degumming, cracking and deforming.

Xylon type bamboo, device of making thereof and method of making thereof


An image processing apparatus having a storage device includes a switching unit configured to switch a bus width of a data bus of the storage device between at a time of activation of the image processing apparatus, and after the image processing apparatus is activated, and a shared terminal switching unit configured to switch a shared terminal shared between an I/O port and the data bus of the storage device, to an I/O side after the activation.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a program.
Description of the Related Art
In a controller of an image forming apparatus, a plurality of memories is often used. For example, a not-and (NAND) flash memory is used to store a boot program, and a serial not-or (NOR) flash memory is used to temporarily store data.
Moreover, a system-on-a-chip (SOC) can incorporate a larger number of circuits as integration density of a semiconductor integrated circuit has been increased. However, if the number of terminals is increased, a package size becomes large, causing an increase in costs.
Thus, a terminal for a dedicated-circuit is often shared with a general-purpose input/output (I/O) port. When the dedicated circuit is not used, the terminal is used as the general-purpose I/O port. This method reduces the number of terminals of the SOC. Moreover, a terminal of a controller SOC may be shared between a built-in read only memory (ROM) and an external secure digital (SD) card. In such a case, when an apparatus is activated, the boot program for the activation can be switched to the program stored in the built-in ROM or the external SD card (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-192051).
Meanwhile, an embedded multimedia card (e-MMC) has recently become widespread as a memory device, and been used in various systems.
In the market environment which often requests for larger data storage and higher-speed operation, the memory device has been improved to respond to such requests.
The e-MMC has characteristics of having larger capacity and operating at higher-speed compared to a conventional memory device such as a NAND flash memory.
Moreover, the use of the e-MMC can not only dynamically change a data bus width at 8 bits, 4 bits and 1 bit, but also change a clock frequency.
According to the above-described technique, the terminal of the controller SOC can be shared between the built-in ROM and the external SD card, thereby reducing the number of terminals. However, high-speed activation cannot be achieved by such a technique.

Image processing apparatus, information processing method, and program for high speed activation and terminal reduction


The present invention relates to a hydraulic brake system with anti-lock control, including a main pressure line leading from a master cylinder to at least one wheel brake and into which a normally open inlet valve is inserted. A pressure fluid return delivery line is connected to an outlet valve and accommodates a pressure fluid accumulator. Connected downstream of the pressure fluid accumulator, an auxiliary pressure pump takes pressure fluid from the pressure fluid accumulator and delivers the fluid via an auxiliary pressure line to the wheel brake. The auxiliary pressure line is connected to the pressure side of the auxiliary pressure pump and establishes a permanent direct hydraulic connection to the wheel brake so that the auxiliary pressure pump is adapted to be isolated from the master cylinder by the inlet valve. A low-noise brake system is accomplished thereby which permits a reactionless positioning of the brake pedal without complicated controls.

The present invention relates to a hydraulic brake system with anti-lock control, in particular for automotive vehicles.
A brake system is known already from the technical leaflet of Robert Bosch GmbH "Pkw-Bremsanlagen" (passenger vehicle brake systems), first edition, page 17, picture 36. In this brake system the modulated braking pressure has a reactive effect on the brake pedal during the anti-lock control, since the auxiliary-pressure pump is directly connected to the tandem master cylinder. Due to this design of circuit configuration the brake system described above does not perform an anti-lock control operation with the given means without pedal pulsation and without valve switch noises caused by the digital control of the inlet and outlet valve designed as a three-way/three-position directional control valve combination.

ABS hydraulic circuit with a variably open inlet valve


A heterogeneous and scalable bridge capable of translating a plurality of network protocols is adapted for coupling to a network switch fabric. The bridge uses at least one egress buffer interface and can perform port aggregation and bandwidth matching for various different port standards. The bridge is adapted for both networking and storage area networking protocols. A control unit is implemented with the bridge is able to identify control and flow information from different protocols and adapt them to the respective interface to which they are to be transmitted. Accounting logic is provided to one or more of the elements of the apparatus to aid in the tracking, storing, and reporting of network traffic.

Current Storage Area Networks (SANs) are designed to carry block storage traffic over predominantly Fibre Channel standard medium and protocols. There exist several proposals for moving block storage traffic over SANs built on other networking technology such as Gigabit Ethernet, asynchronous transfer mode (ATM)/SONET, InfiniBand or other networking medium and protocols. A bridge is sometimes used to couple a network processor with a switch fabric interface. For example, a switch fabric interface is standardized by the Common Switch Interface Consortium (CSIX) and known as a CSIX switch fabric. There are many other proprietary interfaces. For example, UTOPIA 3, POS-PHY 3, SPI-3, and SPI-4 are another standards. The network processors, however, often have a different interface. These bridges or translation devices, therefore, make the necessary translations between these two protocols/mediums in order to serve the clients (host computers/servers and storage target devices). Existing bridges usually allow the connection of a single network processor interface to one switch fabric interface. Such bridges may provide some functionality with respect to ingress/egress handling, congestion management, protocol translation, and Quality of Service (QoS)-based thresholding.
Many silicon vendors offer a total solution of network processor and switch fabric that work together. However, depending on the goals of the system design, it may be desirable to mix a network processor and a switch fabric from different vendors. Often this requires glue logic between the two devices because the interfaces are not compatible.
Another issue is that some switch fabrics only have an OC-192 port granularity that makes it difficult to connect OC-48 network processors, wherein, OC-192, OC-48 refer to the bandwidth of interfaces in the telecommunications world. Normally, these interfaces are for handling Synchronous Optical NETwork/Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SONET/SDH). There are various interfaces that meet the SONET/SDH bandwidth requirements, as mentioned above, such as POS-PHY, Utopia, CSIX, SPI, etc. Therefore, more intelligent bridges are needed to mux/demux the OC-48 to OC-192 traffic.
It is difficult to build heterogeneous SANs that are scalable using these bridges/translation devices because the bridges/translation devices usually become the bottleneck as the number of clients and the number of storage devices increase. In addition, a mixed protocol environment requires the installation of complex hardware or logic on these bridges/translation devices.


Continuous processes for the anaerobic bioconversion of syngas to oxygenated hydrocarbonaceous products, in particular lower alkanols, are disclosed in which nutrients, including micronutrients, and lower carboxylate anion are recovered from at least a portion of an aqueous distillation fraction from a distillation unit operation to recover lower alkanols by using a “tight” ultrafiltration membrane. At least about 75 percent of the water permeates the ultrafiltration membrane. The tight ultrafiltration membrane rejects sufficient components that are adverse to the microorganisms used in the bioconversion that continuous fermentation operations over long durations can be achieved.

Anaerobic fermentations of hydrogen and carbon monoxide involve the contact of a gaseous substrate-containing feed with an aqueous fermentation broth containing microorganisms capable of generating oxygenated hydrocarbonaceous compounds, most commonly lower alkanols such as ethanol, propanol and n-butanol. The bioconversion of carbon monoxide results in the production of oxygenated hydrocarbonaceous compounds and in many cases a lower alkanol and carbon dioxide. The conversion of hydrogen involves the consumption of hydrogen and carbon dioxide, and this conversion is sometimes referred to as the H2/CO2 conversion or, as used herein, the hydrogen conversion.
Typically the substrate gas for carbon monoxide and hydrogen conversions is, or is derived from, a synthesis gas (syngas) from the gasification of carbonaceous materials, from the reforming of natural gas and/or biogas from anaerobic digestion or from off-gas streams of various industrial methods. The gas substrate contains carbon monoxide, hydrogen, and carbon dioxide and usually contains other components such as water vapor, nitrogen, methane, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide and the like. For the sake of convenience, the substrate gas is referred to herein as "syngas" even though it may only contain one of carbon monoxide and hydrogen and may not be derived by the gasification of carbonaceous materials.
These anaerobic fermentation processes are suitable for continuous processes. The syngas is passed into a bioreactor the aqueous fermentation broth for the bioconversion. Off gases can be removed from the bioreactor, and aqueous broth can be withdrawn from the bioreactor for recovery of the oxygenated hydrocarbonaceous compounds or lower alkanol at a rate sufficient to maintain steady-state operation. For the anaerobic fermentations to be commercially viable, economies of scale are required. Hence, commercial scale reactors, i.e., those with liquid capacities of at least 1 million, and more often at least about 5, say, 5 to 25, million, liters would be advantageous.
In the production of lower alkanol in these commercial-scale processes, broth is withdrawn at a rate sufficient to maintain the lower alkanol at concentrations below those that adversely affect the microorganisms used for the bioconversion. Typically the concentration of the alkanol in the fermentation broth is below about 5 mass percent. Thus, a relatively dilute stream is processed to recover the lower alkanol, typically by a unit operation comprising distillation. The hydraulic retention time of the broth in the bioreactor is often less than about 3 days. Consequently, nutrients and micronutrients contained in the withdrawn broth can represent an economic loss. A commercial-scale process would thus seek to recycle water from the alkanol recovery operation. The portion of the water that can be recycled is limited as the syngas bioconversion processes produce metabolites and proteins can be present that can, in sufficient concentrations, adversely affect the microorganisms, e.g., be toxic or inhibitory to the microorganisms or affect metabolic pathways or cause a metabolic shift.
Peyton, et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 7,569,146, disclose, in connection with drawing 3, processes for obtaining potable water from still bottoms in the bioconversion of starch and sugars to ethanol. As shown in the drawing, the still bottoms is subjected to pressurized filtration, with the retentate, which contains carbohydrates, being passed to an enzymatic conversion unit operation (29a), and the enzymatic product is subjected to pressurized filtration where the sugars permeate the membrane and the retentate is sent to anaerobic digestion in CSTR reactor 32. The permeate, containing the sugars, is passed via line 29d to the ethanol fermentation. The patentees on drawing 3 caption the pressurized filtration as "MF/UF/NF"; however, they clearly state that the fermentable sugars pass through the membrane. As shown, at least two pressurized filtrations are used by Peyton, et al., where sugars are recovered and recycled to the ethanol fermentation, and the capital and operating costs offset the value of the incremental sugars being passed to the ethanol fermentation.
Although Peyton, et al., disclose the use of pressurized filtration in certain fermentation processes, they provide no disclosure or suggestion regarding reducing nutrient and micronutrient loss for anaerobic syngas fermentation processes or increasing the amount of water that can be recycled to the bioreactor in a syngas fermentation without undue adverse effect on the microorganisms or the bioconversion activity.
Accordingly, continuous processes are sought to reduce nutrient and micronutrient loss in the anaerobic bioconversion of syngas to oxygenated hydrocarbonaceous products which processes can be economically practiced on a commercial scale.

Processes for bioconverting syngas to oxygenated hydrocarbonaceous compounds