Solvent based poly(urethane/urea) resins suitable for formulating flexographic and gravure laminating printing ink and coating compositions formed from a poly(urethane) prepolymer solution made from a blend of polymeric diols and diols reacted with diisocyanates and then with diamine in an organic solvent. The resin is prepared by adding the poly(urethane) prepolymer solution at a controlled rate to the diamine in a organic solvent which allows a resin solution to be formed, which may be used in the formulation of laminating printing ink and coating compositions without the need for adjuvants, grinding in polyvinyl butyral or blending with nitrocellulose base.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a poly(urethane) urea resin and to its use in printing ink compositions. More particularly, the present invention relates to a poly(urethane/urea) resin useful as a binder for formulating printing inks and coatings used in laminating plastic films.
2. Description of Related Art
Recent diversification in package bags or containers has required a high degree of performance for printing inks or coating agents used for the ornamentation or surface protection. Such inks or coating agents should exhibit excellent adhesiveness for various kinds of plastic films and blocking resistance, and excellent adaptability for boiling or retorting treatment. For instance, printing inks for plastic films are needed to provide more excellent printability, adhesion to a wider range of films, and more excellent blocking resistance and gloss than conventional ones.
In the field of food packaging, bags or containers made of laminated film materials are used for the reasons that they are sanitary and their contents do not come in direct contact with the ink and to provide a satisfactory appearance as high grade printed products. Generally there are two methods for producing such laminated film materials: One is an extrusion laminating method, wherein a plastic film substrate is printed with an ink, and if necessary, a primer is applied onto the inked surface; then a molten resin such as polyolefin is extruded onto the inked surface. Another method is an adhesive laminating method, wherein an adhesive is applied onto the inked surface of the plastic film substrate, and a plastic film is then laminated onto the same surface. Accordingly, laminating inks must posses excellent adhesion to the printing substrate as well as adhesiveness (lamination strength) to the film to the laminated. When the laminated film materials further undergo boiling or retorting treatment in which packages are immersed in hot water for the purpose of cooking or sterilization of the contents, such film laminates should not undergo delamination through the retorting treatment. Most of these performance requirements for the printing ink or coating mainly depend upon the performance of the binder resin used. Accordingly, in the case of printing inks for plastic film, one or more of various binder resins are selected so as to meet the performance required for individual printing inks. In general, however, when a binder resin in a film hardens, there is a tendency for the resulting film to have blocking resistance but with reduced adhesion to the plastic film and lamination strength. For instance, when binder resins are used, such as acrylic resins, polyamide resins and polyester resins, an aromatic ring or a highly polar functional group is introduced in the molecule which hardens the resin film. However, such rings and functional groups invite the reduction of adhesion and lamination strength. Accordingly, such resins typically are unsuitable as a binder for a laminating inks and coatings to be applied to a wide variety of films.
Polyurethane resins can be improved both in hardness of the coated film and in adhesion to plastic films by increasing the concentration of urethane bonds in the molecule. An ink containing a polyurethane resin of this type provides good adhesiveness and lamination strength, as compared with inks containing other resins providing ink films having the same hardness. For this reason, polyurethane resins in which the concentration of urethane bond is increased as highly as possible, have been used as binders for printing inks and coatings for use in laminates of plastic films. However, polyurethane resins wherein the concentration of urethane bond is increased highly, fail to give sufficient adaptability for boiling or retorting treatment. To eliminate this problem a two-component reaction type resin system is used composed of one component containing a polyurethane resin and the other component containing a polyisocyanate compound as a curing agent. Nevertheless, the two-component reaction type resin system has various problems as well. Since the main component must be mixed with the curing agent immediately before being used, it is inconvenient in handling, the pot life is short and the remaining ink or coating after printing is unstable. Further, the use of expensive curing agent raises substantially costs of packaging bags or containers.
Plastic film substrates such as those used in laminates, typically are printed using flexographic printing or gravure printing. In flexographic printing, the flexographic ink or coating is applied to the surface of a resilient letter-press image, and the image is then transferred to the plastic print stock. Flexographic inks, for example, typically contain a polar organic solvent such as an alkanol, which dissolves ink binder components but which does not swell or otherwise deteriorate the resilient letter-press image. In gravure printing, the gravure ink is deposited in image wells in the flat surface of a gravure plate, and the deposited ink image is then transferred to the print stock. Since gravure printing typically is carried out at high speeds, the gravure ink typically contains volatile organic solvents such as alkyl esters, which dissolve ink binder components and must be rapidly removed during the drying process. Accordingly, flexographic ink and gravure ink each have specific performance requirements dictated by the distinctly different methods of printing. As a result, the inks and coatings for each application are formulated to meet those requirements including specific binder components designed specifically for flexographic inks or for gravure inks. Such specific binder components which are specifically designed for one ink type, have been found to be incompatible in solvent systems of the other ink type, which has necessitated the preparation and storage of two distinct ink systems with there attendant expense.
While there continues to be a need for an improved laminating ink and coating in general, there also is a clear industry need for a single binder resin system which can be used to formulate inks and coatings useful for both flexographic and gravure printing applications.
The above mentioned industry needs are met by the solvent-soluble poly(urethane/urea) resin of this invention which is derived from a polyurethane prepolymer being the reaction product of: a diisocyanate component; and, a diol component having (i) a first diol having a molecular weight below 2000; and (ii) a polymeric diol having a molecular weight below 3000; wherein the xe2x80x94NCO/xe2x80x94OH ratio is less than 2; the polyurethane prepolymer contains 1.3 to 6.0 wt. % of unreacted xe2x80x94NCO groups; and 80 to 120% of a diamine, based on the equivalents of the unreacted xe2x80x94NCO groups; whereby the resulting poly(urethane/urea) resin is soluble in organic solvent.
An added embodiment of this invention is an improved method of producing a poly(urethane/urea) resin involving the steps of: (a) preparing a polyurethane prepolymer solution by reacting a diisocyanate component, a diol component, and a condensation polymerization catalyst in an organic solvent; wherein the polyurethane prepolymer contains unreacted xe2x80x94NCO groups; and (b) reacting the polyurethane prepolymer with a diamine; wherein the improvement comprises:
preparing a diamine solution comprised of diamine and a solvent mixture having an alcohol solvent and a second organic solvent; and adding, at a controlled rate, the polyurethane prepolymer solution into the diamine solution to form a poly(urethane/urea) resin.
A further embodiment of this invention is a solvent-based laminating ink useful in flexographic and/or gravure printing comprising: (A) a solvent-soluble poly(urethane/urea) resin which is derived from a polyurethane prepolymer being the reaction product of: a diisocyanate component; and, a diol component having (i) a first diol having a molecular weight below 2000; and (ii) a polymeric diol having a molecular weight below 3000; wherein the xe2x80x94NCO/xe2x80x94OH ratio is less than 2; the polyurethane prepolymer contains 1.3 to 6.0 wt. % of unreacted xe2x80x94NCO groups; and wherein the poly(urethane/urea) resin is formed by reacting the polyurethane prepolymer with 80 to 120% of the diamine based on the equivalents of the unreacted xe2x80x94NCO groups;
(B) a colorant; and
(C) an organic solvent.
A further embodiment of this invention is a solvent-based coating useful in flexographic and/or gravure printing comprising: (A) a solvent-soluble poly(urethane/urea) resin which is derived from a polyurethane prepolymer being the reaction product of: a diisocyanate component; and a diol component having (i) a first diol having a molecular weight below 2000; and (ii) a polymeric diol having a molecular weight below 3000; wherein the xe2x80x94NCO/xe2x80x94OH ratio is less than 2 and the polyurethane prepolymer contains 1.3 to 6.0 wt. % of unreacted xe2x80x94NCO groups; and (B) an organic solvent; wherein the poly(urethane/urea) resin is formed by reacting the polyurethane prepolymer with a diamine present in about 80 to 120% based on the equivalents of unreacted xe2x80x94NCO groups.
A still further embodiment of this invention is a method for printing an image on a polymeric substrate comprising: (a) image wise printing the laminating ink of this invention described supra, onto a surface of the polymeric substrate; and (b) drying the image to form an image which is tack-free, firmly adherent to the substrate, and un-blocked when contacted under pressure at ambient temperatures to a second surface of the substrate.
The present invention relates to solvent based multipurpose poly(urethane/urea) resin suitable for formulating flexographic and gravure printing compositions. The poly(urethane/urea) resin is formed from a poly(urethane) prepolymer comprising a blend of high molecular weight polymeric diols and low molecular weight diols reacted with diisocyanates. This polyurethane prepolymer containing unreacted isocyanate groups is further extended with a diamine to form the poly(urethane/urea) resin. The poly(urethane/urea) resin is soluble in an organic solvent such as ester and alcohol/ester solvents and is particularly useful in formulating packaging laminating inks. This resin""s exceptional solubility in ester and alcohol/ester solvents allows for the formulation of a single ink or coating composition for both flexographic and gravure applications with only minor formulation modifications. The poly(urethane/urea) resin of the present invention or coating can be formulated into an ink compositions without any adjuvants or by grinding in polyvinyl butyral or blending with nitrocellulose base. As used herein the term xe2x80x9cnitrocellulose basexe2x80x9d is intended to have its conventional meaning of a pigment dispersed with nitrocellulose in organic solvent and ground to a desired particle size, typically 10 microns or smaller. Laminating ink and coating compositions formed with the poly(urethane/urea) resin of this invention exhibit excellent extrusion bond strengths, block resistance, printability, resolubility, retort capability, and superior adhesion on a wide variety of films (substrates) compared to laminating inks and coatings made with conventional and commercially available resin binder systems.
The solvent-soluble poly(urethane/urea) resin of the present invention is derived from a condensation of poly(urethane) prepolymer containing 1.3 to 6.0 wt % of unreacted isocyanate (i.e., xe2x80x94NCO) groups and 80% to 120% of a diamine based on the equivalents of the unreacted xe2x80x94NCO groups. The resulting poly(urethane/urea) resin has the structure:
NH2xe2x80x94R1xe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94(xe2x80x94Uxe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94R1xe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94)mxe2x80x94Uxe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94R1xe2x80x94NH2
Wherein R1 is a covalent bond or a C1-10 alkyl group, m has the value of 4 and xe2x80x94Uxe2x80x94 has the structure:
xe2x80x94(xe2x80x94Axe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94R2xe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94)nxe2x80x94Axe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94R2xe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94Axe2x80x94
wherein xe2x80x94Axe2x80x94 is an aryl or alkyl group; R2 comprises R3 and R4, wherein R3 is an alkyl or a polymeric group having a molecular weight below 2000, and wherein R4 is a polymeric group having a molecular weight below 3000, and n has the value of 1 or 2. Typically, the molecular weight of R3 is less than the molecular weight of R4, and the molar ratio of R4 to R3 ranges between about 90:10 and about 10:90. A preferred ration of R4 to R3 is about 55:45. Preferably, the resin has a molecular weight between about 10,000 and about 80,000.
The polyurethane prepolymer is a condensation reaction product of a diisocyanate component and a diol component in which the xe2x80x94NCO/xe2x80x94OH ratio is less than 2. As used herein the xe2x80x9cxe2x80x94NCO/xe2x80x94OH ratioxe2x80x9d is intended to mean the ratio of equivalents of xe2x80x94NCO groups in the diisocyanate component, to equivalents of xe2x80x94OH in the diol component. The xe2x80x94NCO/xe2x80x94OH ratio is sometimes identified as the isocyanate index (I.I.). Preferably, the xe2x80x94NCO/xe2x80x94OH ratio is between about 1 and 2, and more preferably 1.5. The polyurethane prepolymer has the structure:
OCNxe2x80x94(xe2x80x94Axe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94R2xe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94)nxe2x80x94Axe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94R2xe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94Axe2x80x94NCO
wherein xe2x80x94Axe2x80x94 is an aryl or alkyl group; R2 is R3 and R4; wherein R3 is an alkyl or a polymeric group having a molecular weight below 2000; wherein R4 is a polymeric group having a molecular weight below 3000, and n has the value of 1 or 2. As indicated above, the polyurethane prepolymer contains 1.3 to 6% by weight of unreacted xe2x80x94NCO groups which are represented in this polyurethane structure. In particular, the nitrogen content of the solvent-soluble poly(urethane/urea) resin of the present invention is from 1.3 to 6.0% by weight. Typically, the molecular weight of R3 is less than the molecular weight of R4, and the molar ratio of R4 to R3 ranges between about 90:10 to about 10:90; and preferably, R2 contains from about 30 to about 80 equivalent % of R4, and the ratio of R4 to R3 is about 55:45.
Any conventional condensation polymerization catalyst may be used to form the poly(urethane/urea) solution of this invention including triethylenediamine, dibutyltindilaurate, and the like. Preferably the catalyst is dibutyltindilaurate.
The diisocyanate component may be a single diisocyanate compound or it may comprise two or more diisocyanate compounds. It may also be an aromatic compound, an aliphatic compound, or a mixture thereof. In the preparation of the prepolymer, a number of aryldiisocyanates or alkyldiisocyanates may be used, such as 4,4xe2x80x2-diphenylmethane diisocyanate; 4,4xe2x80x2-dicydohexyl diisocyanate; hexamethylene diisocyanate; meta-tetramethylene-xylenediisocyanate; isophorone diisocyanate; toluene diisocyanate and the like. A preferred aliphatic diisocyanate is isophorone diisocyanate (IPDI). Preferred aromatic diisocyanates include toluene diisocyanate (TDI) in isomer blends of 80/20 and 65/35. The TDI isomers are toluene 2,4-diisocyanate and toluene 2,6-diisocyanate. Typically, 10 to 20 parts by weight diisocyanate component is used.
The diol component comprises a first diol having a molecular weight below 2000; and a polymeric diol having a molecular weight below 3000. Although these molecular weight ranges overlap, the first diol typically will have a lower molecular weight than the polymeric diol; however, in some instances the molecular weights of the first and polymeric diols may be substantially the same such as when two diol polymers have a molecular weight of 2000 or less. Preferably the polymeric diol comprises 30 to 80% of the equivalents of the diol component. The first or low molecular weight diols may be selected from the group consisting of aliphatic diols, polyether diols and polycaprolactone diols. These short chain diols should have molecular weight less than 2000. Preferred short chain diols include 1,4-butanediol; 1,5-pentanediol; and alpha-hydro-omega-hydroxy-poly(oxy-1,4-butyldiyl) having a molecular weight of 1000.
The polymeric diol preferably has molecular weight ranging from about 425 to about 3000 and is selected from the group consisting of polyether diols and polycaprolactone diols. In the preparation of the poly(urethane/urea) prepolymer, a number of long chain polyether diols may be used, such as polytetrahydrafuran (pTHF) of molecular weights. 650, 1000 or 2000; and polypropylene glycol (PPG) of molecular weights 425, 725, 1025 or 2025. A number of polycaprolactone diols having molecular weights of 2000 or 1000 may also be used. Preferably, the polymeric diol is selected from the group consisting of alpha-hydro-omega-hydroxy-poly(oxy-1,4-butyldiyl), and polypropylene glycol.
The polymeric dial and the first preferably lower molecular weight diol, make up the diol component of the prepolymer. Although, this diol component contains 30 to 80 to molecular equivalents of polymeric diol for every 100 molecular equivalents of total diol in the diol component; a preferred ratio of polymeric diol to first diol is 55.45 in a diol component of 100 molecular equivalents. Each molecular equivalent of polymeric diol typically has a greater molecular weight than an equivalent of first diol. The prepolymer is prepared from about 40 parts by weight of the polymeric diol and about 2 parts by weight first diol, along with 10 to 20 parts by weight diisocyanate component and the remainder solvent.
The polyurethane prepolymer is chain extended by reacting it with a difunctional amine in an organic solvent. The extension reaction is carried out with 80 to 120% equivalence of the diamine, based on the equivalents of unreacted xe2x80x94NCO groups on the prepolymer to form the above described solvent soluble poly(urethane/urea). Typically, the extension reaction is carried out with from about 80% to about 120% of diamine, or more preferably with about 102% to about 120% diamine. Preferably, more than 100% of diamine is used to extend the prepolymer to form the solvent soluble poly(urethane/urea) of this invention, with 112% diamine being particularly preferred.
A number of diamines may be used including hydrazines and C1-10 alkylene diamines such as methylene diamine, ethylene diamine, diamino cyclohexane, hexamethylene diamine, piperazine, isophorone diamine, or the like. Particularly preferred diamines are ethylene diamine, isophorone diamine, or mixtures thereof.
For extension reactions in which there are less than 100% diamine based on equivalents of unreacted xe2x80x94NCO groups, a conventional batch process may be used in which the reaction components are all mixed and reacted in a single reaction vessel. However, when the diamine concentration nears 100%, insoluble gel formation can occur in such batch processes. For extension reactions where there is more than 100% diamine used based on equivalents of unreacted xe2x80x94NCO groups, a xe2x80x9ctwo-kettlexe2x80x9d reaction process is used which surprisingly precludes any gel formation.
In the xe2x80x9ctwo-kettlexe2x80x9d process, the polyurethane prepolymer solution is prepared by reacting a diisocyanate component, a diol component, and a condensation polymerization catalyst in an organic solvent. The diol component preferably comprises a first diol having a molecular weight-below 2000; and, a polymeric diol having a molecular weight below 3000 each hereinabove described. Preferably, the xe2x80x94NCO/xe2x80x94OH ratio is less than 2. The polyurethane prepolymer solution produced by this initial condensation reaction contains a polyurethane prepolymer having unreacted xe2x80x94NCO groups; preferably the prepolymer has 1.3 to 6.0% by weight of unreacted xe2x80x94NCO groups. A diamine solution is then prepared by dissolving a diamine in a process solvent mixture containing an alcohol and an organic solvent. Preferably, this diamine solution contains up to about 120% of the diamine based on the equivalents of the unreacted xe2x80x94NCO groups; and preferably the solvent mixture contains between about 10% to about 75% of the alcohol solvent. The polyurethane prepolymer solution is then added to the diamine solution at a controlled rate to-react the two. The addition is at a rate effective to avoid gelling and form a solution of the poly(urethane/urea) resin of this invention.
In the xe2x80x9ctwo kettlexe2x80x9d process, the organic solvent used for the polyurethane prepolymer may be the same as the second organic solvent used as in the process solvent, or alternatively it may be a mixed solvent similar to the process solvent. Surprisingly, the alcohol in the processing solvent mixture does not interfere with the extension reaction. A number of organic solvents may be used as the solvent and/or process solvent for the condensation and chain extension reactions. Useful organic solvents for these reactions include ester solvents such as ethyl acetate or n-propyl acetate, or an ester/alcohol blend. A number of alcohol solvents may be used such as methanol, ethanol, n-propanol, isopropanol, butanol, and the like.
By the method of this invention, a solution of poly(urethane/urea) resin is formed and gel formation is avoided. Typically, the poly(urethane/urea) resin solution contains enough solvent, e.g., alcohol and ester solvent mixture, to give about 25 to about 40 parts by weight of final resin solids. The resulting poly(urethane/urea) resin of this invention typically has a molecular weight between about 10,000 and about 80,000; and the solution typically has a viscosity between about 150 and about 5000 cps at room temperature, and an amine value of 1 to 15 with a value of about 7 being preferred.
The solvent-based laminating ink of this invention comprises the solvent-soluble poly(urethane/urea) resin of this invention; a colorant; and an organic solvent. The ink system of this invention has a unique characteristic in that it may be used in either flexographic or gravure printing by simply making minor adjustments to the formulation (e.g. solvent and viscosity adjustments). In particular, the ink of this invention comprises, based on the weight of the ink: about 15 wt. % to about 50 wt. % of the solvent-soluble poly(urethane/urea) resin; about 6 wt. % to about 30 wt. % of the colorant; and about 10 wt. % to about 60 wt. % of the organic solvent; and component concentrations may be adjusted for use in flexography or gravure printing. Preferably, the gravure ink comprises, about 8 wt. % to about 60 wt. % of the solvent-soluble poly(urethane/urea) resin; about 3 wt. % to about 30 wt. % of the colorant; and about 15 wt. % to about 60 wt. % of the organic solvent such as alkyl ester solvent; and the flexographic ink comprises, about 8 wt. % to about 60 wt. % of the solvent-soluble poly(urethane/urea) resin; about 3 wt. % to about 30 wt. % of the colorant; and about 15 wt. % to about 60 wt. % of the organic solvent such as an alkanol solvent. The ink preferably has a viscosity between about 15 seconds to about 30 seconds, as measured in a #2 efflux cup. Efflux cup measurements are conventional methods for measuring ink viscosities and involves timing the flow of a calibrated quantity ink through a calibrated orifice. The lower viscosity inks typically are used in gravure printing and the higher viscosity inks typically are used in flexographic printing. Thus when the ink has a viscosity of about 28 seconds as measured in a #2 efflux cup, it is suitable for flexographic printing; and when the ink has a viscosity of about 18 seconds as measured in a #2 efflux cup, and is suitable for gravure printing.
The inks of this invention contain one or more colorants such as soluble dyes, pigments or mixtures thereof. Such inks typically contain one or more pigments dispersed therein.
The pigment may be any conventional organic or inorganic pigment such as Pigment Yellow 1, Pigment Yellow 3, Pigment Yellow 12, Pigment Yellow 13, Pigment Yellow 14, Pigment Yellow 17, Pigment Yellow 63, Pigment Yellow 65, Pigment Yellow 73, Pigment Yellow 74, Pigment Yellow 75, Pigment Yellow 83, Pigment Yellow 97, Pigment Yellow 98, Pigment Yellow 106, Pigment Yellow 114, Pigment Yellow 121, Pigment Yellow 126, Pigment Yellow 127, Pigment Yellow 136, Pigment Yellow 174, Pigment Yellow 176, Pigment Yellow 188, Pigment Orange 5, Pigment Orange 13, Pigment Orange 16, Pigment Orange 34, Pigment Red 2, Pigment Red 9, Pigment Red 14, Pigment Red 17, Pigment Red 22, Pigment Red 23, Pigment Red 37, Pigment Red 38, Pigment Red 41, Pigment Red 42, Pigment Red 112, Pigment Red 170, Pigment Red 210, Pigment Red 238, Pigment Blue 15, Pigment Blue 15:1, Pigment Blue 15:2, Pigment Blue 15:3, Pigment Blue 15:4, Pigment Green 7, Pigment Green 36, Pigment Violet 23, Pigment Black 7, titanium dioxide, carbon black, and the like. Pigment compositions which are also useful in the energy curable inks of this invention are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,946,508; 4,946,509; 5,024,894; and 5,062,894 each of which is incorporated herein by reference. Such pigment compositions are a blend of the pigment along with a poly(alkylene oxide) grafted pigment.
The classes of dyes suitable for use in present invention are selected from acid dyes, natural dyes, direct dyes either cationic or anionic direct dyes, basic dyes, and reactive dyes.
The acid dyes, also regarded as anionic dyes, are soluble in water and mainly insoluble in organic solvents and are selected, from yellow acid dyes, orange acid dyes, red acid dyes, violet acid dyes, blue acid dyes, green acid dyes, and black acid dyes. European Patent 0 745 651, incorporated herein by reference, describes a number of acid dyes which are suitable for use in the present invention. The yellow acid dyes selected include Acid Yellow 1 (C.I. 10316); Acid Yellow 7 (C.I. 56205); Acid Yellow 17 (C.I. 18965); Acid Yellow 23 (C.I. 19140); Acid Yellow 29 (C.I. 18900); Acid Yellow 36 (C.I. 13065); Acid Yellow 42 (C.I. 22910); Acid Yellow 73 (C.I. 45350); Acid Yellow 99 (C.I. 13908); Acid Yellow 194; and Food Yellow 3 (C.I. 15985). The orange acid dyes selected include Acid Orange 1 (C.I. 13090/1); Acid Orange 10 (C.I. 16230); Acid Orange 20 (C.I. 14603); Acid Orange 76 (C.I. 18870); Acid Orange 142; Food Orange 2 (C.I. 15980); and Orange B. The red acid dyes selected include Acid Red 1 (C.I. 18050); Acid Red 4 (C.I. 14710); Acid Red 18 (C.I. 16255); Acid Red 26 (C.I. 16150); Acid Red 27 (C.I. 16185); BASOVIT(trademark) 425E (available from BASF Corporation) a xanthone based acid dye also known as Acid Red 51 (C.I. 45430); Acid Red 52 (C.I. 45100); Acid Red 73 (C.I. 27290); Acid Red 87 (C.I. 45380); Acid Red 94 (C.I. 45440); Acid Red 194; and Food Red 1 (C.I. 14700). The violet acid dyes selected include Acid Violet 7 (C.I. 18055); and Acid Violet 49 (C.I. 42640). The blue acid dyes selected include Acid Blue 1 (C.I. 42045); Acid Blue 9 (C.I. 42090); Acid Blue 22 (C.I. 42755); Acid Blue 74 (C.I. 73015); Acid Blue 93 (C.I. 42780); and Acid Blue 158A (C.I. 15050). The green acid dyes selected include Acid Green 1 (C.I. 10028); Acid Green 3 (C.I. 42085); Acid Green 5 (C.I. 42095); Acid Green 26 (C.I. 44025); and Food Green 3 (C.I. 42053). The black acid dyes selected include Acid Black 1 (C.I. 20470); Acid Black 194 (BASANTOL(trademark) X80, available from BASF Corporation, an azo/1:2 CR-complex also known as.
The direct dyes selected for use in the present invention include Direct Blue 86 (C.I. 74180), Direct Red 199, Direct Red 168, Direct Red 253 (C.I. Not Assigned) and Direct Yellow 107/132 (C.I. Not Assigned). The direct dyes are commonly used in coloration of pulp paper.
The natural dyes selected for use in the present invention include Alkanet (C.I. 75520,75530); Annatto (C.I. 75120); Carotene (C.I. 75130); Chestnut; Cochineal (C.I. 75470); Cutch (C.I. 75250, 75260); Divi-Divi; Fustic (C.I. 75240); Hypernic (C.I. 75280); Logwood (C.I. 75200); Osage Orange (C.I. 75660); Paprika; Quercitron (C.I. 75720); Sanrou (C.I. 75100); Sandal Wood (C.I. 75510, 75540, 75550, 75560); Sumac; and Tumeric (C.I. 75300).
The reactive dyes selected for use in the present invention include Reactive Yellow 37 (monoazo dye); Reactive Black 31 (disazo dye); Reactive Blue 77 (phthalo cyanine dye) and Reactive Red 180 and Reactive Red 108 dyes.
Preference is given to the use of acid dyes such as, for example, Acid Black 194; Acid Red 51, Acid Blue 9; Acid Green 26; Acid Yellow 36, Acid Orange 142, Direct Blue 86, Direct Red 253 and Direct Yellow 107/132 dyes.
A number of organic solvents may be used in conjunction with formulating the laminating inks of this invention. Useful organic solvents include ester solvents such as ethyl acetate or n-propyl acetate, or a polar solvent such as an ester/alcohol mixture. A number of alcohol solvents may be used such as, ethanol, n-propanol, glycols, and the like. Preferably, the ink formulating solvent is similar to or the same as the process solvent described supra in connection with the preparation of the poly(urethane/urea) resin.
The solvent based laminating inks of this invention may also contain the usual adjuvants to adjust flow, surface tension and gloss of a cured coating or printed ink. Such adjuvants typically are polymeric dispersants, surface active agents, waxes, or a combination thereof. These adjuvants may function as leveling agents, wetting agents, dispersants, defrothers or deareators, or additional adjuvants may be added to provide a specific function. Preferred adjuvants include polymeric dispersants or bonding agents such as polyvinyl butyral, or nitrocellulose, fluorocarbon surfactants such as FC-430, a product of the 3M company; silicones, such as DC57, a product of Dow Chemical Corporation; polyethylene wax; polyamide wax; polytetrafluoroethylene wax; and the like.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the laminating inks contain a polymeric dispersant which is employed to disperse the pigment during mixing and grinding operations in the solvent. All components of the ink may be blended together and ground to reduce the pigment particles to the desired size distribution, typically 10 microns or less; or alternatively the pigment and the polymeric dispersant can be premixed and ground in the solvent to form a xe2x80x9cbasexe2x80x9d which is subsequently blended with the remaining components of the ink composition. The ink components may be mixed in a high speed mixer, e.g., a Hockmeyer mixer, until a slurry consistency is reached and then passed through a media mill, e.g., an Eiger a horizontal media mill, until the pigment is reduced to 10 microns or smaller. The wide versatility of the poly(urethane/urea) resin of this invention provides ink and coating formulations that may be prepared without a polymeric dispersant, but preferably with a polymeric dispersant such as by either grinding in polyvinyl butyral (PVB), or blending with a nitrocellulose (N/C) base as hereinabove described. Thus, the ink or coating of this invention may contain 0 to about 12 parts by weight of the polymeric dispersant. In particular, one ink system of this invention is prepared by grinding the poly(urethane/urea) resin in PVB. In this instance, the PVB serves as a dispersing aid and serves to improve extrusion bonds to polypropylene films. Preferably, the PVB formulation is prepared from: about 10 to about 20 parts by weight pigment; about 25 to about 50 parts by weight poly(urethane/urea); about 2 to about 15 parts by weight 25% PVB solution; 0 to about 0.5 parts by weight calcium carbonate and 0 to about 0.5 parts by weight colloidal silica, e.g., Syloid(copyright) silica. Calcium carbonate and colloidal silica are typically added to improve the ink block resistance. Typically the PVB formulation also contains about 10 to about 50 parts by weight of organic solvent. In another embodiment of the present invention, the ink system may be prepared by blending the poly(urethane/urea) resin in nitrocellulose (N/C) bases. The N/C bases are mixed with the neat poly(urethane/urea) resin of this invention, solvent, and other additives, including wax and co-solvent. Typically the N/C base is composed of about 3 to about 15 parts by weight nitrocellouse, about 12 to about 30 parts by weight pigment, and about 55 to about 82 parts by weight solvent; which are mixed in a high speed mixer until a slurry consistency is reached and then passed through a media mill until the pigment is reduced to 10 microns or, smaller. Typically, this N/C base formulation further contains about 0.5 to about 1.5 parts by weight wax. Thus, the N/C base may be composed of about 9.00% nitrocellouse, about 25.00% pigment, and about 66.00% organic solvent (e.g. ethyl acetate). The N/C base system provides laminating bond strength, printability and resolubility.
In one embodiment of the invention, the laminating ink as described supra is imagewise printed onto a surface of a polymeric substrate-and forms a dried ink image which is tack-free, firmly adherent to the surface of the substrate, and un-blocked when contacted under pressure at ambient temperatures to a second surface of the substrate.
Although any polymeric substrate may be printed with this method, preferred polymeric substrates include a sheet of polyethylene, polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, cellulose acetate, cellulose acetate butyrate, polycarbonate, polyamide, PVDC coated polyethylene terephthalate, PVDC coated polypropylene, metallized polyethylene terephthalate, or metallized polypropylene. Particularly preferred film substrates used for lamination are oriented polypropylene and treated polyester films.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, a second substrate may be applied or laminated to the dried ink image on the first substrate by any conventional method. Thus, the second substrate may be applied as an extruded melt onto the dried image to form the second substrate; or a preformed second substrate may be laminated to the dried ink image through an adhesive surface. The second substrate may be composed of the same material as the first substrate or it may be different depending on the nature of the end use of the printed laminate. Preferably the second substrate is a polyethylene. In many instances the second substrate is the same as the polymeric substrate.
An additional embodiment of the present invention further comprises the step of subjecting the printed laminate to retort conditions to form a retorted laminate, wherein the ink image remains substantially unchanged and wherein the retorted laminate is free of delamination defects. In this embodiment, the printed laminate can be, at least in part, as a packaging material for contents (e.g., such as foods, medicinals and the like) which are processed insitu at elevated temperatures by retorting. As used herein the term xe2x80x9cretortxe2x80x9d is intended to include operations and conditions in which laminates, or packaged contents, are heated under prescribed conditions such as boiling in water; heating in an autoclave, or an oven, or a microwave and with Infrared radiation; or the like. A typical retorting operation commonly used in the food packaging industry involves heating in water at 180xc2x0 F. (about 82xc2x0 C.) for 45 minutes.

Solvent soluble poly(urethane/urea) resins


A data storage device includes a memory and a controller coupled to the non-volatile memory. The controller is coupled to a communication interface that is configured to enable communication with a host device. The controller is configured to send a signal via a first connection of the communication interface and to send a corresponding clock signal via a second connection of the communication interface. The signal is compliant with a communication protocol that specifies that the first connection of the communication interface carries the signal while the second connection of the communication interface carries the clock signal. The first connection is testable to measure the signal to generate data indicating transitions of the signal. The data excludes measurements of the clock signal. The data is analyzable to detect an indication defined by the communication protocol and to determine an estimated bit sequence of the signal.

Non-volatile data storage devices, such as embedded memory devices and removable memory devices, have enabled increased portability of data and software applications. For example, certain multi-level cell (MLC) flash memory devices may store multiple bits in each flash memory cell, enhancing data storage density. Such increased data storage density may be associated with large amounts of data being rapidly written to and read from data storage devices. For example, a host device may write data to and read data from a data storage device using a clock signal having a frequency of several hundred megahertz (MHz) or greater.

Method and device for efficient trace analysis


Disclosed is a fine-screened grid having a screening grate. A slider is guided on the grid grate to remove debris therefrom. The slider is connected to a slider arm which, together with a guide lever, forms a knee lever. The configuration enables the slider to pass over large or heavy objects because it can be moved away from the screening grate as a result of the geometry and kinematics of the knee lever. The system can operate continuously without monitoring, because larger particles which cannot be carried by the slider and which collect at the beginning of the screening grate can be removed when convenient. Rinsing nozzles, which are disposed on the upper end of the screening grate, are provided in order to improve the transfer of retained particles from the slider to a capturing groove.

The invention relates to a fine-screened grid having a screening grate and having a motor-driven slider, which can be moved along the interior surface area of the screening grate, for clearing the screening grate. The slider may be connected with a slider arm which is disposed on a swivellable guide lever, rotatably around a pivot with its end facing away from the slider. In one position of the guide lever, the clearing position, the pivot is in a position in which the slider rests against the screening grate. In free positions, the pivot occupies a position in which the slider is away from the screening grate.
Fine-screened grids, among other uses, are used in the purification of industrial and domestic waste water. Before the waste water passes through further purification stages, coarse impurities have to be removed from it. Such a purification stage is conducted, for example, in a grit chamber in which fine-grained particles and suspended matter are removed from the waste water. However, coarse particles can also be removed from other liquids in such systems.
In the case of a fine-screened grid, the water to be purified is guided through a screening grate disposed diagonally in a water passage. The exemplary screening grate holds back fine to coarse particles corresponding to its gap width, and preferably has a curved surface. The material collecting in front of or on the screening grate is moved by means of a slider to the one end, the upper end of the screening grate, where it falls over the discharge edge of the screening grate into a container or into a conveying element. The slider moves along on a path displaced away from the screening grate to return to the start of its motion, at the lower end of the screening grate, where it resumes the purification work. Such systems are typically called fine-screened grids, operating without any limitation with respect to the size of the held-back particles.
A fine-screened grid is described in German Published Patent Application DE 41 19 593 A1. The slider is situated on a slider arm which, rotatably about a pivot with its end facing away from the slider, is disposed on a swivellable guide lever in the form of a platform. In the normal position of the guide lever, the motor-driven pivot is situated in the cylinder axis of the quarter-cylindrically constructed screening grate, so that the path of the movement of the slider during clearing of the screening grate extends directly adjacent thereto. The platform is tilted toward the rear, so that the slider can be moved on an oppositely extending path back to the start of the screening grate. The pivot is thus removed from the screening grate and the slider arrives at a certain distance marked x in the published patent application to the screening grate.
Problems occurs when using conventional fine-screened grids, such as the fine-screened grids according to the above-mentioned published patent document, because not only relatively small particles collect at the screening grate, which can be removed by the slider without any problem, but frequently also very large particles which are not typical of waste water. For example, rocks may have detached from the walls of the sewage system, or construction waste may have entered the sewage system during construction work at open sewage system intake points.
Such large particles block the slider in its clearing movement, which may eventually result in damage to the system and which will result in an interruption of the clearing operation which has to be restored immediately.
However, since such systems frequently run without monitoring, a blocking of the slider often results in a fairly long interruption before the damage can be detected and eliminated.
It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a fine-screened grid which continues to operate even when heavy and unwieldy particles are carried by the fluid being screened.
The embodiments of the invention provide a swivellable guide lever that is freely movable, so that it can be moved into the clearing position as a result of gravity on its mass, and can be moved into a free position as a result of a force applied to the slider by the material to be cleared.
In contrast to the system according to German Patent Document DE 41 19 593 A1, the guide lever of the invention is not adjustable by a motor, but can follow a movement forced onto the slider. Normally, the slider is pressed against the screening grate by the weight of the guide lever so that it is virtually moved without any gap along the screening grate. In the process, the slider takes along small particles which have not fallen through the screening grate. If larger particles are situated in front of the screening grate, the slider moves over them, in which case it moves away from the screening grate and thereby brings the guide lever into a free position. Because it is swivellable, the guide lever does not permit a return of the slider along a path at a distance with respect to the screening grate, but it enables the slider to be displaced away from the screening grate during the clearing movement in order the pass over the larger particles situated there.
In some cases, the particles are caught by the slider, so that they are taken along and cleared although the slider does not rest directly on the screening grate. However, as a rule, these large particles remain at the start of the screening grate and can be removed by other means when the opportunity arises. In this condition, the clearing performance of the fine-screened grid is limited only insignificantly. An unmonitored continuous operation is therefore possible.
The free mobility of the pivot also has the advantage that wear of the slider edge by the advancing of the pivot onto the screening grate in the clearing position is automatically compensated, so that the slider always rests closely against the screening grate, independently of the amount of wear.
The screening grate of the fine-screened grid preferably has a curved surface, particularly a quarter-cylindrical shape as illustrated in the above-mentioned published patent application. However, the bent-lever arrangement consisting of the slider arm and the guide lever, corresponding to the kinematics of such a knee shaped lever, permits the cleaning of other shapes of the curved surface of the screening grate, which may possibly be better suited to improve the clearing performance. For example, the screening grate could extend to be slightly flatter at the start end, and which becomes steeper only later, towards another end. The preferred quarter-cylinder arrangement described above is only one possible shape.
In one embodiment, a motor for the rotating drive of the slider is mounted on the pivot, and is supported by means of a torque bracket disposed on the guide lever. This configuration also increases the weight of the guide lever which presses the slider into the clearing position, which improves the clearing performance.
In another embodiment, it is practical to arrange the swivel pin of the guide lever above the screening grate with in a vertical extension of the screening grate's upper end. This configuration results in a particularly compact construction, while the guide lever is relatively long. This, in turn, has the advantage that the swiveling angle of the guide lever does not become too large even at a relatively large offset of the slider.
In one embodiment, the tilt of the guide lever with respect to a horizontal line preferably amounts to between about 30° and about 60°.
The construction of the exemplary fine-screened grid is characterized in that the screening grate may be arranged between two parallel side walls, and the guide lever is a double lever whose two lever arms are arranged outside the side walls. A curved oblong hole is formed in each side wall, with the pivot of the two lever arms extending through this oblong hole.
The arrangement has the advantage that the two lever arms are situated outside the housing formed by the two side walls and are therefore easily accessible for repair purposes. This applies particularly if, as mentioned above, the motor is fastened to one of the lever arms and thereby also remains accessible. In addition, the motor is not exposed to moisture and fogginess which forms inside the housing above the screening grate.
The clearing performance of the present device can be increased when the pivot is provided with at least two sliders and is fastened to the opposite pivot. Three sliders may also be used which may each be situated at intervals of 120° respectively. Four or more sliders may not be as practical, two sliders at a time would engage the screening grate, and would both move away from the screening grate if either one were to be displaced from the screening grate by an obstacle.
Because the fine-screened grid has one or more sliders, a continuous operation is possible, since the pivot retains its rotating direction which significantly simplifies the control of the fine-screened grid. In particular, no additional servomotor has to be provided in order to maintain a desired distance of the slider with respect to the screening grate for the return movement. In order to maintain this distance, other fine-screened grids have specialized return cranks which can be eliminated according to the present invention.
For receiving the screened material, a collecting groove with a screw conveyor or the like is connected to the upper end of the screening grate, on the other side of the discharge edge.
To improve the transfer of the screened material from the slider into the collecting groove, a rinsing system is provided which includes several rinsing nozzles aligned diagonally with respect to the area in front of the upper screening grate end. When the slider is in this upper position, the rinsing nozzles flush the screened material into the collecting groove. To prevent the flushed-in water from not running over at the exterior side of the collecting groove, the groove edge adjoining the screening grate is situated lower than the groove edge situated on the outside. This configuration ensures that excess water runs back only to the screening grate. Solid components carried along with it are thereby returned onto the screening grate.
The rinsing nozzles are preferably fastened on the housing walls and are situated above the screening grate on both sides of the vertical plane in which the slider arm is moving. The rinsing nozzles thus do not hinder the rotating movement of the slider arm and, since they are stationarily mounted, can easily be supplied with water.
To obtain a sufficiently long rinsing time, a switch is provided by means of which the position of the slider at the upper screening grate end can be determined. A control device is provided which, for a certain time period after the actuation of the switch, turns off the driving motor and turns on the rinsing system.
The invention will be explained in further detail in the following paragraphs which describe an exemplary embodiment according to the invention.


It has been discovered that relatively large cyclic and open chain carbonates are extremely efficient in the selective extraction of metal ions, such as gold, silver, platinum and mercury from aqueous solution without the need for a potentially hazardous, organic solvent or use of a corrosive salt, such as NaCl. For example, 1,2-decane carbonate extracted >99.9% mercury, 99.76% gold, 97.5% silver and 79.0% platinum. The homologous 1,2-dodecane carbonate was found to extract 99.9% gold and silver from aqueous solution and 95.8% platinum. Didecyl carbonate extracted 77% gold from aqueous solution. The method of this invention is simpler than prior techniques and eliminates the need for potentially hazardous solvents (toxic, flammable and environmentally unfavorable) and corrosive additives, such as salt, NaCl, used as a salting agent in prior methods.

Currently many metals are recovered by hydrometallurgy methods. These often consist of combinations of leaching, adsorption and electro-winning or precipitation. However, disadvantages exist with each of these processes from the view of economics of the process, purity of the metal obtained, toxicity of the materials used, difficulty of recovery of the pure metal, and the like. For example, conventional processes for mining gold involve extracting the gold from the ore using a basic cyanide solution. The dilute solution is purified and concentrated by various ways, normally solid adsorbents. Techniques to recover other metals are as troublesome and expensive. In particular, the presence of other undesired metals together with the valued ones decrease the efficiency of the process.
W. I. Harris, et al. in "The Extraction of Gold from Cyanide Solutions Using Moderate Base Polyamine Ion Exchange Resins," Reactive Polymers, Vol. 17,1992, pp. 21-27 describe that two polyamine moderate base resins were synthesized from 1,3-diaminopropane or 2,4-diamino-2-methylpentane and chloromethylated styrene-divinylbenzene copolymers. The resins were evaluated for gold recovery from cyanide solutions. The effects of solution pH on the resin gold loadings were determined over the pH range 5-12. The selectivities of the resins for gold cyanide over base metal cyanides were determined. These moderate base polyamine resins were compared against dimethylamine type resins with high and low salt splitting capacity for gold cyanide recovery. The resins possess good selectivities for gold, good loading capacities, good elution properties and can operate at the pH of most leaching streams without acid adjustment.
Large organic ring structures are known to be useful as chelating agents for selective binding and extraction of cartons. Cyclic organic carbonates have been found, along with mixtures of the same with other organic liquids that are miscible therewith, to extract certain metals in stable complex or simple salt form from a medium in which the solvent is not completely soluble, according to U.S. Pat. No. 3,912,801. Extractable metals include gold, platinum, palladium, rhodium, iridium, cobalt, copper, vanadium, uranium, bismuth, cadmium, mercury and cerium. However, the method of this patent is limited in a number of ways. First, the use of an organic solvent that is (a) miscible with the carbonate and (2) is from only slightly soluble to insoluble in the medium is so preferred in this teaching as to be essentially required. Solvents contended to be suitable include benzene, o-xylene, m-xylene, p-xylene, diethyl ether, 4-methyl-2-pentanone, 2,4-pentandione, ethyl acetate, n-heptyl alcohol and chloroform. It should be noted that almost all of these allegedly "suitable" solvents are in essence highly unsuitable for one or more reasons. For example, many have toxicity concerns such as being carcinogens, e.g. benzene. Other materials are too volatile, have strong odors, flash points which are too low or are dangerous due to peroxide formation. For example, diethyl ether is very flammable and has a severe fire and explosion hazard. Chloroform is a known carcinogen and further is a hazard to the ozone layer. Second, the only cyclic carbonates demonstrated as effective are ethylene carbonate and propylene carbonate. Third, to achieve immiscibility or improved extraction, the '801 patent frequently uses added NaCl--this technique is poor because salt is highly corrosive.
It would be desirable if new materials could be developed which efficiently extracted precious metal ions from aqueous solutions selectively and in an extremely efficient manner. Preferably such a process would not require a solvent other than the carbonate itself. Therefore, the use of toxic, flammable co-solvents could be avoided. Note that the method of the '801 patent must use a solvent with ethylene carbonate because ethylene carbonate is 100% water soluble. In any economical sense, the '801 method is undesirable because of the solubility of the carbonates taught therein in water. Propylene carbonate is soluble in water at 25 g of propylene carbonate to 100 g H.sub.2 O. While NaCl may be added to prevent this, the salt undesirably increases corrosiveness. Either alternative of losing the carbonate to the water or using the salt is disfavored.

Use of carbonates in metal ion extraction


A multiple-patterned semiconductor device and a method of manufacture are provided. The semiconductor device includes a conductive layer. The conductive layer includes conductive tracks which may be defined by photomasks. The conductive tracks may have quality characteristics. Distinct quality characteristics of distinct conductive tracks may be compared. Based on the comparison, signals and supply voltage may be routed on particular conductive tracks.

The semiconductor industry is producing more and more capable components with smaller and smaller feature sizes. Due to the increased demand for highly integrated semiconductor devices, advanced techniques of fabricating more semiconductor devices in a smaller die area have become strongly relied upon. The production of such semiconductor devices reveals new design and manufacturing challenges to be addressed in order to maintain or improve semiconductor device performance.

Semiconductor device with distinct multiple-patterned conductive tracks on a same level

International Business Machines Corporation


Provided is a method for providing Internet advertisement. The method provides a plurality of individual Internet advertisements included in an advertisement pool which is configured with a plurality of advertisement groups ‘G1’ to ‘Gm’ having a predetermined advertisement number rate ‘Ni’, a predetermined exposure frequency setting value ‘Ci’ and a correction coefficient ‘Ki’. An advertisement providing server, which provides one or more Internet advertisements to a web page providing server providing a web page including an Internet advertisement, calculates a CTR to the number of times the individual Internet advertisements are exposed.

As an Internet advertisement method, a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) link scheme is mainly being used. An Internet advertisement based on the URL link scheme is an advertisement method that inserts Internet advertisements (hereinafter referred to as banner advertisements, which have types such as text character strings, banners and moving images), where a URL link is set, in a web page having many users' accesses, and achieves advertisement effects by moving to an advertisement web page associated with a corresponding advertisement on the basis of the link information when a user accesses a corresponding web page and clicks the Internet advertisement.
Accordingly, the Internet advertisement based on the URL link scheme cannot achieve advertisement effects by only exposing the banner advertisement in a specific web page, and can obtain desired advertisement effects only when a user clicks the banner advertisement. That is, as the number of click times for a banner advertisement exposed in a specific web page becomes higher, i.e., as a CTR becomes higher, the Internet advertisement based on the URL link scheme can obtain a high advertisement effect.
FIG. 1 is an exemplary diagram illustrating the web page of a portal site in which an Internet advertisement is inserted.
Referring to FIG. 1, a web page provided from a portal site provides contents such as news articles, and allocates a specific region as an advertisement region 100 to provide all types of advertisements (for example, text character strings, banners and moving images).
In such advertisements, different advertisements may be provided with time or according to the web-page accesses of users. For example, if an advertisement A is displayed when a user first accesses a web page, an advertisement B may be displayed when the user refreshes or reaccesses the same web page. If an advertisement A is displayed when a user X accesses a web page, an advertisement B may be displayed when a user Y accesses the same web page.
As shown in FIG. 1, moreover, when a plurality of advertisements are provided in the advertisement region 100, the advertisements provided in the advertisement region 100 and their order may be changed and displayed each time each user is accessed. That is, whenever each user accesses a web page, advertisements are randomly extracted from a database storing a plurality of advertisements by the number of corresponding advertisements that may be simultaneously inserted and are displayed.
As a method of extracting advertisements that are inserted in the advertisement region 100 of a web page from a database storing a plurality of advertisements, a related art method of determining the frequency of exposure to Internet advertisements will be described below.
When a b number of advertisements may be simultaneously inserted in the advertisement region 100, the advertisement region 100 is configured with a b number of advertisement slots. All advertisements, which are registered as being inserted in the advertisement region 100, are stored in the database. When the total number of advertisements registered in the database is 'a' and the advertisement region 100 has a b number of slots, the frequency of exposure to one individual advertisement is "b/a".
The CTRs of individual advertisements are shown to vary in a corresponding advertisement region according to factors such as the construction of advertisement sentences (for example, head copies) or the preference of businesses. Accordingly, although CTRs for individual advertisements vary, when all advertisements are randomly inserted at the same rate like a related art method, general advertisement effect decreases. That is, by exposing an advertisement having a high CTR and an advertisement having a low CTR at the same rate, it is impossible to maximize a general CTR.
As described above, two limitations that are caused when a general CTR decreases are as follows. First, all advertisers can achieve the purposes of advertisements by displaying advertisement web pages that are linked through users' clicks, and in this case, the decrease of a CTR denotes the general decrease of an advertisement effect. Second, when fee per click is applied according to a contract between an advertiser and a homepage provider or advertisement agent that provides a corresponding Internet advertisement, the homepage provider or the advertisement agent can merely obtain an advertisement profit equal to or lower than an average profit in a case where it provides an Internet advertisement having low advertisement attractiveness. That is, in all advertisers and a homepage provider or an advertisement agent that provides a corresponding Internet advertisement, the general decrease of a CTR causes the decrease of an advertisement effect and the decrease of an advertisement profit.

Method and system for providing internet advertisement


An in-pipe inspection or maintenance apparatus comprises: a single rotational and radial deployment mechanism to both rotationally deploy a probe or tool about an inner circumference of a pipe with respect to the axis of the pipe and radially deploy the probe or tool to first and second target points on the inner circumference; and a single actuator to automatically actuate the rotational and radial deployment mechanism to perform both the rotational and radial deployments of the probe or tool. The rotational and radial deployment mechanism is further configured to: rotate the probe or tool and radially extend the probe or tool to the first target point in response to the single actuator actuating the rotational and radial deployment mechanism; and rotate the probe or tool from the first target point to the second target point in response to the single actuator further actuating the rotational and radial deployment mechanism.

In automated pipeline technology, in-pipe inspections and maintenance can be challenging tasks as they can require certain functions to be executed in a limited space using remotely operated or autonomous robots and crawlers. Robots and crawlers equipped with sensory features and maintenance tools drive inside the pipe and perform certain tasks at specific locations. In performing an in-pipe inspection or maintenance task, the robotic system or crawler usually uses two actuators, for example, to independently account for rotation deployment and radial deployment of the probe or tool. Here, the rotation deployment can include, for example, the position or angle in the circumferential dimension. However, this design can add wiring complexity and increase the number of actuated components to perform such a task.
It is in regard to these and other problems in the art that the present disclosure is directed to provide a technical solution for an effective pipeline apparatus having a single actuation probe or tool deployment mechanism for in-pipe applications.

Single actuation probe or tool deployment mechanisms for in-pipe applications


Methods and apparatus, including computer program products, are provided for MBSFN measurements. In one aspect there is provided a method. The method may include receiving, by a user equipment, an indication of a monitoring requirement (202, 204) for at least one of an idle mode of operation at the user equipment or a connected mode of operation at the user equipment; receiving, by the user equipment, information (206) for one or more transmissions (MBMS) that are multicast or broadcast; and measuring, by the user equipment, the one or more transmissions (MBMS) that are multicast or broadcast, the measuring performed in accordance with the received information (206) and without regard to the indication of the monitoring requirement (202, 204) for at least one of the idle mode of operation or the connected mode of operation. Related apparatus, systems, methods, and articles are also described.

Discontinuous Reception (DRX) generally refers to a user equipment configured to enter into a DRX state during which time the user equipment enters into a power savings state. This power savings state may include reduced measurement requirements, polling, user equipment monitoring requirements, and/or the like. When data transfer is needed, the user equipment may exit the standby DRX state, and enter a non-DRX or higher power consumption state and begin more active measurements, polling, monitoring, and data transfer with the network. For example, in Long Term Evolution (LTE), the user equipment is typically required to read the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) for allocations. When the user equipment is configured with a DRX cycle, the user equipment may be on and thus available to read the PDCCH for a portion of the DRX cycle, and then may be off and not available to read the PDCCH for another portion of the DRX cycle. The longer that the duration of the DRX cycle is, the greater the power savings. However, too long a DRX cycle may negatively affect mobility as the user equipment may miss mobility opportunities.

MBSFN measurements and DRX, different DRX settings for different transmission types


An information processing apparatus establishes a proximity wireless link with a partner device and utilizes instantaneous interruptions of the wireless link to control processing of data transfer between the information processing apparatus and the partner device. A control unit in the information processing apparatus determines a frequency of the instantaneous interruptions of the wireless link generated within a predetermined time based on a reception state of a plurality of signals transmitted from the partner device, and controls the processing of data transfer between the information processing apparatus and the partner device according to the determined frequency of instantaneous interruptions.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus and control method thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, close proximity wireless communication (noncontact communication) techniques have proliferated due to widely recognized advantages such as high-speed data transfer, device mobility, and ease of deployment. As an example, a known proximity wireless communication technique is applied to a noncontact integrated circuit (IC) card containing a radiofrequency identification (RFID) circuit. The noncontact IC card is used, for example, as a train pass or the like utilizing an advantage of allowing easy access between devices.
A communication method for proximity wireless communication includes near field communication (NFC) using electromagnetic induction, TransferJet (registered trademark) using induction field, and the like.
The above-named proximity wireless communication methods are limited to significantly short communication distances. Thus, when close proximity communication devices are located close to each other, within a communication range (e.g., in NFC, within 10 cm, and in TransferJet, within 3 cm), a wireless link is established therebetween. When the respective devices are located away from each other (out of the communication range), the wireless link is disconnected.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-92139 discusses executing disconnection processing of an upper layer protocol when a predetermined time has elapsed after a wireless link is disconnected.
Thus, in the proximity wireless communication, the wireless link can be connected or disconnected by an intuitive user operation by locating respective devices close thereto or away therefrom. Accordingly, the respective devices connected with the wireless link are once located apart therefrom and are immediately located close thereto, thereby allowing instantaneous interruption of the wireless to be intentionally generated. The instantaneous interruption of the wireless link indicates that the wireless link is reconnected within predetermined time (e.g., within 200 milliseconds) after the wireless link is disconnected.
However, conventionally, utilizing intentionally-generated instantaneous interruption of a wireless link to control an application on a device has not been considered.

Information processing apparatus and control method thereof


An automated edge peener apparatus includes a peener housing, a slide carried by the peener housing, a shotpeener mechanism carried by the slide and a shot recovery system communicating with the shotpeener mechanism.

During the fabrication of aircraft wing skins, tooling tabs may be provided on the skins to facilitate tool handling and placement. After the majority of manufacturing steps have been completed on a wing skin, the tooling tabs may be removed from the wing skin. This step may expose several areas on the wing skin which have not been subjected to a shotpeening process. Completion of the fabrication process may require that these unprocessed areas on the wing skin be subjected to shotpeening.
Conventional shotpeening methods may include masking of the wing skin, clamping of the shotpeen fixture to the portion of the wing skin which is to be processed and then manual application of the shotpeening process to the wing skin using a mobile blasting system. This process, however, may require that masking be applied at each area on the skin which is exposed by each removed tab. The shotpeening operator may be required to move heavy shotpeening equipment to each exposed area. The process may not be repeatable from one area to another on the wing skin due to operator techniques. The weight and design of the shotpeening equipment may render the equipment awkward to operate.
Therefore, an automated edge peener apparatus which is ergonomic, requires reduced set-up time and is amenable to increased process control may be desirable for some applications.


A slider for use in a magnetic disk drive includes read pads for connecting to a flexible circuit that couples to a pre-amplifier circuit, a transducer, and a protector connected to the transducer and the read pads to protect the transducer against damage from electrostatic discharge (ESD). Examples of transducers that may be used include a giant magnetoresistive (GMR) sensor and a tunneling magnetoresistive (TMR) sensor.

This invention relates to electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection in systems, such as magnetic disk drives.
One approach to providing ESD protection to ESD sensitive devices in magnetic disk drives, such as a giant magnetoresistive (GMR) sensor in a disk drive read head, involves the use of back-to-back diodes. If these diodes are located in a preamplifier circuit, as they typically are, there is no protection until the head gimbal assembly is completed. The protection at that point is marginal due to the high turn-on potential of the diodes, the high impedance of the turned-on diodes, and their remote location (at the opposite end of the flex circuit from the GMR sensor). Locating the diodes closer to the GMR sensor would only partly mitigate these problems, and would incur significant additional manufacturing cost to implement.

On slider inductors and capacitors to reduce electrostatic discharge damage


A liquid crystal display device includes a first substrate and a second substrate which sandwiches a liquid crystal between itself and the first substrate, wherein the first substrate has thin film transistors and a wiring connection portion in which are formed terminals connected to the thin film transistors, a wiring substrate connected to the terminals is disposed in the wiring connection portion, the second substrate is a plastic substrate, and has an adhesive layer and an inorganic insulating layer formed on top of the adhesive layer, and the adhesive layer covers the wiring connection portion and one portion of the wiring substrate.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a display device, and particularly, to an ultrathin, lightweight and flexible liquid crystal display device and a manufacturing method thereof.
2. Related Art
A so-called flat panel type display device, such as a liquid crystal display device or an organic EL display device, is configured of one substrate (an active matrix substrate or a TFT substrate), on which is formed a thin film transistor (TFT) circuit, and an opposite substrate or a sealing substrate, which holds a liquid crystal layer or an emitting layer between itself and the TFT layer. It is common that a glass material is used for these substrates. In particular, the TFT substrate requires a high temperature process in a TFT formation. Consequently, a glass substrate is used which is of an inexpensive material having a heat resistance and a low heat expansion coefficient. However, glass being fragile, there is a limitation in reducing a thickness of the substrate, posing an impediment to promoting a reduction in thickness and weight, and an increase in flexibility, of the display device.
FIG. 6 is a plan view of a heretofore known liquid crystal display device. Also, FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along line X-X′ of FIG. 6. The liquid crystal display device shown in FIG. 6 is configured by sealing a liquid crystal LC between a principal surface of a thin film transistor substrate (a TFT substrate) SUB1, which is a first glass substrate, and a principal surface of an opposite substrate (a color filter substrate or a CF substrate) SUB2, which is a second glass substrate, and bonding the thin film transistor substrate SUB1 and the opposite substrate SUB2 together with a seal agent SL. Thin film transistors TFT, unshown pixel electrodes, and an unshown wiring system are formed on the principal surface of the thin transistor substrate SUB1. A color filter CF divided into segments by an unshown black matrix or, in a case of a TN type liquid crystal display device, opposite electrodes (not shown) are formed on the principal surface of the opposite substrate SUB2.
One edge of the opposite substrate SUB2 is slightly retracted from a corresponding edge of the thin film transistor substrate SUB1, exposing one portion of the principal surface of the thin film transistor substrate SUB1. A wiring connection portion TMA is formed in the exposed portion. A wiring substrate FPC is connected to the wiring connection portion TMA. The wiring substrate FPC is a so-called flexible printed substrate, and one extremity thereof is connected to the wiring connection portion TMA of the thin film transistor substrate SUB1, while the other extremity is connected to an external circuit.
As heretofore described, a semiconductor thin film for a thin film transistor circuit is formed on the thin film transistor substrate SUB1, but as a high temperature process is required in this formation step, a glass substrate is used as the substrate. For this reason, in order to bend the display device, it is necessary to make the glass substrate thin. However, as shown in JP-A-2005-115087, as there is a limitation in reducing a thickness of the glass substrate, there is also a limitation on a bending degree of the display device.
A flexible display device which can be freely bent cannot be made using the glass substrate. For this reason, as shown in JP-A-7-140451, the display device can be freely transformed by using a plastic substrate.
However, the plastic material having no heat resistance, it is hard to form a high performance semiconductor thin film, and it is difficult to use the plastic substrate as a TFT substrate to which is applied the high temperature process which forms the semiconductor film for the thin film transistor circuit.

Display device with a base material made of plastic

Panasonic Liquid Crystal Display Co., Ltd.


Barrel for a self-winding timepiece including a drum of axis AA provided with an internal lateral wall having friction surfaces alternating with locking structures forming salient or inward edges at the boundary of the friction surfaces and a mainspring forming a winding including an outer coil, which is friction coupled to said internal lateral wall and free to slip against said internal lateral wall in the event of overwinding of the mainspring, characterized in that said friction surfaces are demarcated, downstream relative to the direction in which said outer coil slips, by a rounded salient edge or an inward edge.

Barrels for self-winding timepieces conventionally include a drum housing a mainspring coiled about a barrel arbour. To prevent any overwinding of the mainspring, which could cause it to give way or damage the gear train of the self-winding device, the mainspring is not fixed to the lateral wall of the drum, but friction coupled, via its last coil or turn, using an elastic strip called a slip spring. The friction coupling between the mainspring and the lateral wall of the drum must be calculated such that, beyond a defined maximum drive torque, the last coil slips along said wall and thus reduces the tension of the mainspring. The surface state of the internal lateral wall of the drum and the lubrication thereof are factors that greatly affect the operation of this friction coupling. Another determining factor concerns the geometry of the internal lateral wall.
According to the state of the art, the internal lateral wall of the drum includes friction surfaces, alternating with cut out portions in the form of notches in which the end of the mainspring abuts. The combined effects of friction and abutment of the last coil on the lateral wall enable high maximum drive torques to be attained and thus a large power reserve.
However, one difficulty linked to the presence of notches in the internal lateral wall of the drum is that of wear. The problem of wear is particularly inconvenient since it self-amplifies and may lead to significant damage, malfunctions or even to breakage of a part. When the friction of the last mainspring coil tears off fine particles from the wall, they make the friction more abrasive, which produces more particles and accelerates the process of wear. Over time, the friction coupling between the mainspring and the lateral wall of the barrel may be seriously affected.
It is known that the presence of notches in the internal lateral wall of the drum contributes to the process of barrel wear. Indeed, the notches form square salient edges at the upstream and downstream boundaries of the friction surfaces relative to the direction in which the last coil slips, i.e. respectively at the outlet and inlet of the notch. The mainspring pressure is very high at these square salient edges. They may therefore quickly become blunted.
According to a widespread prejudice among those skilled in the art, the square salient edges delimiting the friction surfaces upstream relative to the direction in which the last coil slips, are mainly responsible for generating, by wear, particles that accelerate the process of wear. Indeed, these edges play an active part in the friction coupling, since the end of the last coil abuts against the salient edges at the outlet of the notch, unlike the square salient edges at the inlet to the notch, which are virtually passive in the friction coupling.
Observations made within the scope of the present invention show that, contrary to commonly accepted belief, the square salient edges delimiting the friction surfaces downstream relative to the slip direction of the last coil, also play an important part as precursors, by wear, of the generation of particles accelerating the process of wear. The explanation for this is as follows: The slipping movement of the last coil against the friction surfaces is generally slow because of the permanent quasi-equilibrium between the drive torque and the friction torque. The end of the last mainspring coil thus arrives slowly at the notch inlet and rubs against the square salient edge which demarcates the downstream friction surface, at a low speed. At low speed, the lubrication efficiency is mediocre and there is significant friction. There is therefore significant wear of the square salient edge at the notch inlet. The situation is slightly different as regards the square salient edge which demarcates the friction surface upstream relative to the slip direction of the last coil. Indeed, the end of the last mainspring coil abuts against this square salient edge at the notch outlet, which substantially increases the mainspring tension up to the defined maximum drive torque. When the winding of the mainspring increases beyond this value, the end of the mainspring leaves the notch, abruptly breaking the quasi-equilibrium between the drive torque and the friction torque. The notch outlet then wears very quickly. At a high speed, lubrication efficiency is good, which greatly limits friction. Ultimately, the wear of the square salient edges both at the inlet and outlet of the notch play an important part in the degradation of the surface by wear, even if the inlet edges do not actively participate as stop members in the friction coupling between the last mainspring coil and the internal lateral drum wall.


The present set of embodiments relate to systems, methods, and apparatuses for airfoil systems designed for aircraft or other craft. More specifically, the present disclosure includes various embodiments of airfoils that include fixed or adjustable louvers that allow the airfoil to adapt to various conditions including angle or attack and airspeed. Such airfoil systems increase the dynamic range or airfoils by maximizing lift or minimizing drag depending on the conditional requirements.

Aircraft rely on airfoils to create aerodynamic lift by creating a difference in pressure above and below the airfoil. On most airfoils, the upper surface is longer than the lower surface, thereby, causing faster airflow above the wing. This results in a lower pressure above the airfoil which causes lift. Generally, airfoils designed for slow flight have a larger upper surface in proportion to the lower surface which creates more lift, but also more drag. Airfoils that are designed for faster flight have a smaller upper surface in proportion to the lower surface and create less drag. High speed airfoils (See FIG. 1) require more power and do not perform well at low speeds.
At higher angles of attack (AOAs) separation of a boundary layer of air begins to occur at the aft upper section of the wing. The shape of the airfoil determines where, how, at what speed, and how abrupt this separation is. Once the critical AOA is reached, the airfoil will stall.
Blown wing resultant from induced airflow changes the relative airflow and can increase the allowable AOA from relative motion of the wing. This configuration requires higher power states to drive air over the airfoil with sufficient velocity to increase lift and inhibit boundary layer separation.
A glider airfoil is another solution. A wing with a long wingspan and short chord (fore and aft), allows for slower speeds. Additional system components such as dihedral wings, stall strips, and winglets are all aimed at achieving a balance between desired lift, stall, drag, and performance.
What is needed is an airfoil method and system that can adapt to various conditions which will maximize efficiency during low and high speed conditions. Essentially, a method and system that will combine the advantages seen in FIGS. 1A and 1B while minimizing the drawbacks.

Systems, methods, and apparatuses for airfoil configuration in aircraft


The present invention provides unsupported and supported cobalt oxide catalysts and preparation method thereof, and its application for hydrogen generation from a metal borohydride solution. More particularly, provided are an activation method of a newly prepared catalyst and a regeneration method of a deactivated cobalt oxide catalyst.

Cobalt oxides have gained much attention due to their potential applications in numerous areas of science and technology. Recently, the applications of cobalt oxides have been extensively investigated in the fields of catalysis, solid-state gas sensors, magnetic materials, electrochromic devices, and high-temperature solar collectors (Seshadri, R. et al., Chem. Mater. 2005, 17, 834-838). These interesting properties of the cobalt oxides result from their unique electronic structures and surface characteristics.
Cobalt oxides have been used as oxidation catalysts in several chemical processes. The catalytic activity of the cobalt oxides depends on preparation conditions, surface structures, degree of crystallization, oxidation states, surface area, and so on. The surface structures and compositions of the cobalt oxides play important roles for catalysis applications. It is often observed that the catalytic reaction using cobalt oxide takes place at elevated temperatures due to the activation of the catalyst and the acceleration of the reaction.
It has been known that hydrogen gas is generated by hydrolysis of sodium borohydride in the aid of acid, transition metals, or their salts (Kaufam, C. M. and Sen, B., J. Chem. Soc. Dalton Trans. 1985, 307-313). U.S. Pat. No. 6,534,033 discloses that transition metal catalyst for hydrogen generation may be obtained from a stabilized metal borohydride solution. Those metal catalysts, such as ruthenium, rhodium, or cobalt metal supported on various substrates exhibited high activity for hydrogen generation. Other metal catalysts, including silver, iron, nickel, copper, and so on are often inactive or less active for hydrogen generation at room temperature based on unpublished tests. Some metal catalysts such as copper and nickel, showed more activity after they were heated in nitrogen at 600-800 degree C. In addition, usage of high performance metal catalyst, such as ruthenium, rhodium or platinum is cost prohibitive for one-time use in various applications.
According to a recent publication (Kojima, Y. et al., Int. J. Hydrogen Energy, 2002, 27, 1029-1034), Toyota Central R&D Laboratories, Inc. reported that a catalyst containing platinum and LiCoO2 has a high catalytic activity for hydrogen generation due to the synergistic effects of afinely divided platinum metal on the metal oxide framework. However, this system still uses a precious metal like platinum, which is not attractive for practical application due to high production cost. From a practical point of view, a high performance catalyst for hydrogen generation having low production cost is highly desirable.


An apparatus and method are provided for forming a package with heat tack seals for a slice of a food item. A web of thermoplastic material is first formed into a tubular arrangement with a longitudinal heat tack seal. To form the tubular arrangement, means are provided for folding a continuous web of thermoplastic material into a tube and for continuously forming a heat seal along the longitudinal face of the folded web. The food item which has been formed into a soft mass, is then inserted into the tubular member and the tubular member is flattened to form a thin film tube. Means are provided for forming a heat tack cross-seal which is disposed substantially transverse to the longitudinal forward moving direction of the web.

The present invention relates generally to an apparatus and method for packaging food items and more particularly to an apparatus and process for packaging and stacking food items in individual slices having heat tack seals.
Various methods and apparatus have been proposed and utilized for the manufacture and packaging of individual slices of food items such as cheese. Although the available apparatus and methods are suitable for the packaging of individual slices, they are not without disadvantages.
One distinct apparatus and method is disclosed in U.S. application Ser. No. 07/791,490, filed on Nov. 12, 1991, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference. In Ser. No. 07/791,490 the package for the individual slices is formed from a continuous film or web of a thermoplastic material. The web is first folded in V-folded condition. As used herein, the term V-folded condition refers to a length of material which has been folded over onto itself so as to form what may subsequently be identified as a front sheet and a rear sheet which are Joined by the fold at the bottom, so as to approximate the letter "V" in cross section. The web is typically folded such that the rear sheet is longer than the front sheet to define a flap section in the rear sheet, which extends beyond the top edge of the front sheet. The flap section is typically folded over onto the front sheet to form a tubular web.
For purposes of an example, the following description is given with processed cheese as the food item being wrapped. It will be appreciated that other items are within the scope of the invention. The food item, such as processed cheese, is inserted into the tube. The web and cheese are then flattened. Subsequently, cross-seals are formed transverse to the longitudinal length of the tubular web at predetermined intervals thus forming slices which are joined together. After the tube is cross-sealed it is severed along the cross-seals in order to produce individually wrapped slices of cheese.
Several processes presently exist for providing the cross-seal. In one commonly used method, the transverse cross-seals are formed by subjecting the flattened web (with the inserted hot cheese) to pressure, at the desired locations. The pressure is applied such that an ultra-thin layer or film of cheese is left in the transverse sealing section. The ultra-thin layer or film of cheese acts as an adhesive to hold the two layers of the plastic web together. After this "cheese seal" has been formed, the web is severed at the sealed sections to define individual slices of cheese.
Although the "cheese seal" provides an adequate seal for the individual slices of cheese, the shelf life of the cheese product after it is packaged is not as long as would be desirable. This is due to the face that the cheese seal is a relatively weak seal which will eventually deteriorate and which allows air to enter into the slices under ordinary atmospheric conditions. The slices thus will soon dry out or spoil, particularly near the edges where the "cheese seal" is formed.
Other methods of providing a transverse cross-seal have also been disclosed. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,586,317 (Bussell), whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, discloses an arrangement for forming a seal in packaging material (such as processed cheese) which utilizes a sealing element having a finite number of small channels in the surface. The packaging film is co-extruded or laminated to include an inner sealing layer of relatively low thermal plastic melt temperature and an outer layer which does not melt under sealing conditions. The tube is heated and compressed transversely by the sealing elements thereby sealing the internal layers of the packaging film together. Such a sealing method is also employed in the arrangement disclosed in WO 91/02461 (Davison et al.) whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference. Although the apparatus and method disclosed in this patent provide a suitable cross-seal, the finished product suffers from the same disadvantages that are described above. Since the longitudinal seal is formed by providing a flap in the V-folded condition web and simply overlapping the flap with the upper surface of the front sheet of the web, a poor seal is formed. Thus, air and other atmospheric products will enter into the wrapped slices of cheese, reducing the shelf life of the product.
Another sealing device is available from Kusther Industries S.A. The Kustner device employs two pairs of opposing rotating cylinders wherein at least one of the opposing cylinders has heated cleats attached thereto. Seals are formed by having a flattened cheese product tube having hot cheese therein move through one of the pair of opposed cylinders and being pressed by the heated cleats on the opposed cylinders. The heated cleats are aligned where the tube passes through the opposed cylinders. The tube is then conveyed to another pair of opposed cylinders having heated cleats and the process is repeated so as to form seals where the tube is pressed. It should be noted that the Kustner device only heats the seals when the cleats make contact with the seals and the dwell time of the seal on the cleats is approximately 0.01 seconds.
One solution to the problems present in the prior art is disclosed in U.S. application Ser. No. 07/791,490, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference. Ser. No. 07/791,490 teaches to provide an individual slice of cheese which is wrapped in a package which is hermetically sealed on all sides. To accomplish this, a hermetic seal is formed along the longitudinal edge of the web as well as along the transverse cross-seals. A hermetically sealed package would have several advantages. For example, a hermetically sealed slice would permit immersion for cooling and sanitizing. Further, a hermetically sealed slice is essential to aseptic packaging.
Despite the advantages of using hermetically sealed slices, the present invention provides other advantages. For example, the hermetically sealed slices are harder to open than other seals and a hermetic seal may not always be necessary.
Therefore, in view of the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and a method for producing individual slices of food items, such as processed cheese, which avoid the disadvantages of a "cheese seal" and provide an alternative to hermetically sealed packaging. In other words, the present invention involves producing a sealed packaged slice having the positive attributes of a "cheese seal" (i.e. easy to open and inexpensive) and a hermetically sealed slice (i.e- strong bond and long preserving time).
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and method for providing a continuous and efficient arrangement for forming a longitudinal heat seal along the face of the folded packaging web.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an apparatus which can form heat seals in an inexpensive manner by allowing present packaging devices, such as hot-fill machines, to be retrofitted with a crimp/sealing station which produces heat seals which are better than "cheese seals".

Method and apparatus for forming a slice of a food item having a heat tack seal


The improved friction facing has a porous, resilient fused metallic matrix with a second metal having a lower boiling point being infused into and alloyed with the matrix.

This invention generally relates to friction materials which are used in torque transmitting apparatus having a friction facing material operatively engageble with an opposing surface in the presence of a transmission fluid or oil. More particularly, the invention relates to a friction facing material comprising metallic particles in the form of a porous body having excellent friction properties and durability, and to the method for making such materials.
The torque transmitting apparatus referred to above may comprise, for example, clutch and brake assemblies having a friction disc and an opposed plate. The friction facing material, in the form of a grooved or ungrooved disc, or disc segments, is secured to a metallic core to provide a friction or torque transmitting surface thereon. The opposing plate provides a cooperating surface which operatively engages the friction surface for torque transmission. A plurality of discs having friction facing material on opposed surfaces are normally interleaved with a plurality of opposing plates to provide a multiple disc clutch. Torque transmission is regulated by closing means which control the axial proximity of the adjacent discs and plates.
The disc and opposing plate may extend to a reservoir of transmission fluid, or the fluid may be delivered to the disc under pressure from such reservoir or from a remote reservoir. The fluid serves to cool the apparatus by dissipating the heat energy resulting from torque transmission, which is referred to as wet operation of the unit. The fluid may also serve to transmit torque by the shearing of films of fluid between adjacent discs and plates, as well as to dissipate heat, which is referred to as hydroviscous operation of the apparatus.
The heavier duty torque-transmitting apparatus and applications of concern herein are of the type encountered in large road vehicles, such as buses and trucks as well as off-the-highway and construction vehicles. In order to meet the torque loading requirements of such applications, friction facing materials composed of graphite in a powdered metal matrix pressed using high pressures to form a green compact and then sintered at high temperatures and pressures have been developed.
Another type of friction material involves the use of relatively high proportions of abrasive or ceramic materials with minimal proportions of graphite in a powdered metal matrix. These loose mixtures are sprinkled onto a metallic core and then sintered in place to form a facing and to bond the facing to the metallic core. While these types of friction facing materials exhibit a relatively high dynamic coefficient of friction they are limited to less severe applications due to their limitations in energy absorption rates.
The torque transmission characteristics are determined by a number of factors, including the particular transmission fluid and the friction facing material as well as the nature of the cooperating opposing plate surface. The resiliency of the friction facing is a major contributing factor to the torque transmission characteristics in that more resilient friction facings conform better to the opposing plate surface thereby providing more uniform energy absorption over the area of the friction facing. More resilient friction facing generally can tolerate higher energy absorption rates due to the more uniform absorption of energy over the area of the facing. Less resilient friction facings are limited in their rate of energy absorption by this same factor. Heretofore, metallic based friction facings have exhibited low levels of resiliency and as a result have been limited in their rate of energy absorption. Metallic based friction facings manufactured utilizing high pressures to form a green compact are limited in resiliency due to the dense structure of the friction facing obtained with this method. Metallic based friction facings manufactured using the sprinkling process are limited in resiliency due to the coarse rigid metallic matrix inherent with these type of friction facings.

Resilient metallic friction facing material