An image processing apparatus for expanding given compressed image data in combination with other compressed image data, provided with a retaining device which retains, at the successive expansions of the compressed data, information relative to the development of a certain area until the data development of an area next to the above-mentioned certain area.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus.
2. Related Background Art
Information constituting a page, prepared for example by a word processor or a desk-top publishing system, can be generally divided into "characters", "patterns" such as a circle or a straight line, and "images" generated for example by an image scanner. Examples of such information will be explained further with reference to FIG. 3, in which 301 indicates a one-page data prepared, for example, by a word processor or a desk-top publishing system. These "characters", "patterns" and "images" are transferred in the form of codes 302 to a next process. For encoding an "image", in the case of a multi-value color image, there is often employed an image compression method called ADCT. In the conventional method, the encoded data 302 are developed, at the image output, as a raster image in a page memory 303 representing the entire area of a page. Even in the case where two "image" codes are included as shown in 302, the use of said page memory allows, after the development of a first image by an ADCT process block, the development of a second image. Also the "character" and "pattern" are developed in this page memory. The data of one page is transmitted to a printer unit for image output.
However, such page memory as explained above, requires a large memory capacity. If the printer unit is of a low speed, the page memory can be composed for example of a rigid disk, but it is inevitably expensive. As an example, a printer unit employing four colors of C (cyan), M (magenta), Y (yellow) and K (black) with a resolving power of 400 DPI and a gradation of 8 bits per color, there is requires a RAM of about 60 Mbytes for an A4-sized image. For this reason there is conceived a system, as represented by 304 in FIG. 3, of dividing a page into laterally oblong segments and developing the codes in a band memory corresponding to a segment. The memory capacity can be reduced by such segmentation of a page. However, in such structure, there has not been satisfactory processing in the case where a page contains plural "images" as shown in FIG. 3. For example, referring to FIG. 4, in case an expander of compressed image expands a first image 402 in a considered segment 404, a, b, c, . . . in said image 402 signifies blocks each consisting of 8.times.8 pixels in the ADCT process. After successive expansions of blocks a, b, c, . . . , f, the next block expansion has to be conducted not on a block g but on a block j in a second image 404. However, satisfactory image expansion cannot be conducted because the processed image is switched from the first image to the second image.
Also the present inventor has found that a drawback is encountered if the boundary of such segment does not coincide with the boundary of a small block of the image expanded from a compressed code. In an image compression method such as ADCT, the image is processed in a block for example of 8.times.8 pixels. If the boundary of said block does not coincide with the boundary of segment, in a block containing the boundary of two adjacent blocks, the data processing in a portion belonging to the next block becomes a problem.

Image processing apparatus capable of expanding compressed data


Systems and methods are disclosed that can be used to broadcast or otherwise send load shed and other requirements over a network to recipients. One exemplary embodiment involves sending a first broadcast message to a first group of recipients. The first broadcast message requests compliance with a requirement but does not require a synchronous reply from the first group of recipients. The first group of recipients are each configured to automatically comply with the requirement in response to receiving the first broadcast message. The exemplary embodiment further involves determining, for example, based on actual load determination, to send a second broadcast message to a second group of recipients different from the first group of recipients and sending the second broadcast message to the second group of recipients, the second broadcast message requesting compliance with the requirement.

Electric utilities provide power using systems such that under normal system conditions there are adequate generating and transmission capacities to meet load requirements. Detection systems are used to account for those generally rare conditions in which the system's capability is exceeded. Such systems monitor a system's loading levels and reduce loading in certain circumstances. Specifically, load shed processes sense overload conditions, and shed enough load to relieve the overloaded system before problems such as equipment damage or shutdown occur.
When a load shed event request is made, there is a window of time in which the utility must comply with and verify the load reduction. Responding quickly, for example within minutes, can reduce or prevent equipment damage, shutdown, and other issues. Reducing load in large service areas can require requesting a large number of energy consumers to cease or reduce consumption and confirming compliance with such requests. The scale of these requests in an exemplary large service area can involve on the order of 200,000 to 2,500,000 or more individual energy consumers. Existing techniques for load shed requesting and confirmation involve acknowledgement of load shed on a per-device basis. Such acknowledgements, in very high volume, can result in reducing the performance of the information network that is used and the device or devices that are used to control the messaging. In some circumstances, such reduced performance may delay receipt of other vital messages, instructions, and alerts.

Methods and systems for requesting compliance with a requirement over a network


The invention relates to a fuel composition based on a diesel fraction, having a sulphur content of less than 10 mg/kg with the boiling range of 180-360° C., characterized in that said fuel composition contains organic peroxides as ignition promoters, which are selected from the group: di-tert-butyl peroxide, 1,1-di-(tert-butylperoxy)cyclohexane, dicumyl peroxide, tert-butyl cumyl peroxide, isobutyl cumyl peroxide, n-butyl cumyl peroxide, isopropyl cumyl peroxide, ethyl cumyl peroxide and methyl cumyl peroxide, and contains an anti-wear additive based on carboxylic acids having the following ratio of components, wt %: 0.01-0.5 organic peroxide, 0.005-0.1 anti-wear additive, and up to 100 being the diesel fraction. The proposed diesel fuel composition allows producing diesel fuel which meets quality performance requirements.

Diesel fuel remains the most highly-demanded petroleum product both in the worldwide and in the Russian markets. It is mostly consumed by railway, water and road freight transportation, as well as by various electric generators, military and agricultural equipment.
Modern diesel fuel is a deeply hydroprocessed product having various additives, which provide the required environmental and operational properties.
A very important quality in the parameters of diesel fuel that characterizes its volatility is the cetane number, and its optimal value provides good starting properties of fuel, as well as a lesser amount of noxious emissions along with exhaust gases.
In order to enhance the ignition of diesel fuels, ignition promoters are used. Nowadays, additives based on 2-ethylhexyl nitrate are used as the ignition promoters in Russia. However, along with advantages, 2-ethylhexyl nitrate has a number of disadvantages: it is explosion-dangerous, may decompose upon explosion, accelerates the fuel oxidation, comprises nitrogen, corrosive relative to metals, and deteriorates antiwear properties of diesel fuel. It is known that in presence of the ignition promoter based on 2-ethylhexyl nitrate, the concentration of the antiwear additive must be increased in order to achieve the required fuel lubricity. Also, investigators note that the cetane numbers of diesel fuels are reduced in the process of their storage, which is explained by decomposition (by hydrolysis) of 2-ethylhexyl nitrate in the presence of water.
Abroad in view of the limitation of the nitrogen content in diesel fuel, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) implies a successive transition to output of diesel fuels with peroxides.
An additive for a low-sulfur diesel fuel is known in order to reduce the fuel consumption in a diesel engine, characterized in that it comprises peroxide in the amount of from 0.001 wt. % to 10 wt. %.
(Application WO 2016/174176 A1, 2016).
The additive disadvantage lies in an insufficient efficiency in terms of increase of lubricity the diesel fuel lubricity that does not allow the enhancement of this parameter up to the standard requirements.
(U.S. Pat. No. 5,314,511, 1994).
The composition disadvantage lies in a high sulfur content in the fuel composition being up to 500 mg/kg of sulfur, while nowadays, modern diesel fuels comprise up to 10 mg/kg of sulfur. When testing the obtained samples of the fuel composition, an influence of the additive onto the fuel consumption was studied and a toxicity of emissions was evaluated, i.e. environmental properties were evaluated, rather than operational ones.
The closest analogue of the suggested fuel composition is a diesel fuel formulation comprising an additive of premixed cyclohexyl nitrate or 2-ethylhexyl nitrate and peroxides selected from a group of: ditert-butyl peroxide, dicumyl peroxide, cumyl hydroperoxide under a mass ratio of said components from 3:1 to 1:3 in the amount of the additive of 0.1-0.5 wt. %.
(RU Patent No. 2451718, 2012).
This composition disadvantage lies in a presence of the diesel fuel produced according to the GOST 305-82 that is characterized by an increased content of sulfuric compounds (up to 0.05 wt. %). Such diesel fuels have good lubricating properties and do not require adding of antiwear additives. Also, this fuel is produced to supply according to the state defense order only and for export. Also, the formulation of this fuel composition comprises nitrates that does not allow reduction of the content of nitrogen oxides in exhaust gases to the minimum.


A technique is disclosed for non-disruptive migration of data between storage on hosts that do not share storage with each other. Aggregate relocation is enabled to operate between the hosts in the absence of shared storage connectivity. The technique includes mirroring an aggregate from storage of a first host to storage of a second host by using a sub-RAID level proxy in each of the first and second hosts to proxy data communications between the hosts. The proxy is used in lieu of the mirroring application in the first host having direct access to the storage devices of the second host. The technique further includes relocating the aggregate from the first host to the second host.

Network storage is a common approach to backing up data, making large amounts of data accessible to multiple users, and other purposes. In a network storage environment, a storage server makes data available to client (host) systems by presenting or exporting to the clients one or more logical containers of data. There are various forms of network storage, including network attached storage (NAS) and storage area network (SAN). In a NAS context, a storage server services file-level requests from clients, whereas in a SAN context a storage server services block-level requests. Some storage servers are capable of servicing both file-level requests and block-level requests.
There are two important trends today in the field of network storage. First, companies today more commonly package their products as virtual storage servers (VSSs) instead of as dedicated (special-purpose) physical storage servers (PSSs). This trend is driven primarily by cost considerations (i.e., it allows lower cost, generic server hardware to be used) and made feasible by the widespread use of system virtualization software in data centers. Second, data centers are increasingly starting to use "shared-nothing" storage environments; that is, in place of dedicated network storage servers, the copious DAS in commodity servers is pooled to provide "virtual" network storage systems. This trend is due to the higher capacities of today's hard drives, as well as a desire not to waste available storage space provided by these commodity servers.
Despite the growing prominence of DAS data centers, a data center operator may at some point find it desirable to transition its operations from a DAS-based VSS configuration (a "VSS-DAS" configuration) to a PSS-based configuration. For example, it may be desirable to upgrade from a relatively inexpensive VSS-DAS system to a more powerful PSS-based system. Or, a data center operator may find it desirable to move from a centralized PSS configuration to a potentially less-expensive VSS-DAS configuration. As another possibility, to facilitate a hardware upgrade of a PSS, it may be desirable to temporarily migrate data from the PSS to another storage server, where at least one of the two storage servers involved in the migration uses DAS (or where the two storage servers otherwise do not share storage with each other). As still other possibilities, it may be desirable to migrate from one VSS to another VSS, or from one PSS to another PSS, where at least one of the two storage servers involved in the migration uses DAS (or where the two storage servers otherwise do not share storage with each other).
This sort of data migration has the potential to be very disruptive to client applications that access data maintained by the storage servers. By "disruptive" what is meant is that it causes apparent downtime of the storage server from the viewpoint of a client application.

Non-disruptive data migration between processing systems that do not share storage


A system for alarm correlation and aggregation. The system includes a computing device. The computing device has a process and a storage device storing computer executable code. The computer executable code, when executed at the processor, is configured to: provide a plurality of alarms triggered by components of the system; provide aggregation patterns; perform iteratively until a criterion is met: generating itemsets from the alarms using the aggregation patterns, computing a new aggregation pattern from the generated itemsets using frequent itemset mining, and updating the aggregation pattern using the new aggregation pattern to obtain updated aggregation patterns; and aggregate the alarms using the updated aggregation patterns to obtain aggregated alarms.

The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it is described in this background section, as well as aspects of the description that may not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure.
Monitoring and anomaly detection in data centers helps IT operators and application owners detect and fix various system issues timely. The current anomaly detection methods tend to generate a large number of alarms, which can be overwhelming. In addition, the relationships between alarms are often missing. A large number of alarms plus the lack of relevant information about the alarms becomes a main obstacle to using monitoring and alarming system.
Therefore, an unaddressed need exists in the art to address the aforementioned deficiencies and inadequacies.

System and method for alarm correlation and aggregation in IT monitoring

Beijing Wodong Tianjun Information Technology Co., Ltd.

JD.com American Technologies Corporation


In order to check the operation of high-voltage electric circuit-breakers, proximity detectors are housed in through-bores pierced in the wall of the hydraulic jack cylinder, the through-bores being disposed in spaced relation over a distance corresponding to the range of travel of the jack piston. Since no provision is made for any piston ring or packing seal, the jack piston is not damaged as it passes against the outlets of the through-bores on the internal surface of the cylinder. The output signals of the proximity detectors are applied to a unit for measuring and controlling the position of the piston within the cylinder.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a hydraulic jack with a system for checking the position of the piston.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In many applications of jack-operated hydraulic control systems, it is necessary to determine the position of the element which is actuated by the jack. To this end, it is a customary practice to make use of so-called end-of-travel contacts or passing contacts which are influenced by the element itself or by an associated element such as, for example, the emergent rod of the piston.
However, for certain specific applications such as, for example, hydraulic control of high-voltage electric circuit-breakers, it is highly inconvenient and often impossible (on account of the voltage applied to certain moving parts) to install end-of-travel detectors or the like in immediate proximity to elements which are actuated by the jack.
It is for this reason that, in order to avoid mechanical connections of substantial length and low reliability, provision is made in electric circuit-breaker control systems for a so-called "image jack" or in other words a small auxiliary control jack which is supplied or connected to drain in the same manner as the main jack. Thus the auxiliary jack is intended to reproduce the operations of the main jack and consequently to reproduce the displacements of the element actuated by said jack, namely the moving contact of the circuit-breaker.
Aside from its principal function which consists in indicating the open or closed position of the circuit-breaker, the "image jack" also has the function of controlling certain automatic safety operations of the circuit-breaker. This jack must therefore offer highly reliable operation, with the result that it is difficult and therefore costly to manufacture with a view to guarding against any danger of a false indication. A further disadvantage of such jack is that it entails the need for an additional hydraulic circuit, which may be a source of leakages of hydraulic fluid.
Furthermore, in modern circuit-breaker control systems, it is a desirable objective to check the real response and operating times of the moving contact of the circuit-breaker under service conditions. It is known that the operating times are of very short duration, namely of the order of a few hundredths of a second. These time intervals are checked at the moment of reception of equipment but it is no longer possible to determine whether initial performances in fact continue to be maintained once this equipment has been put in service. It would also prove highly advantageous to make sure that these operating times are wholly constant and reproducible, in particular in the case of circuit-breakers having a number of poles in series in which operations must be absolutely simultaneous. Finally, electrical engineers take into account the time of outward displacement of the moving contact with respect to the stationary contact (this time interval being clearly only a fraction of the total time of displacement of the moving contact) and also need to determine the curves of velocities of the moving contact.
It will be readily apparent that, since the inertia of the "image jack" is not at all the same as that of the main jack and the moving parts which it actuates, said "image jack" is not capable of giving any useful indication in regard to the different operating characteristics under service conditions.
The object of the present invention is to overcome the disadvantages and shortcomings of the control systems such as "image jacks" in particular which have been in use up to the present time.
The present invention permits the construction of a control system which detects the position of the piston itself during its travel within the jack, position detection being possible not only in the two end-of-travel positions but also in a plurality of intermediate positions.
Up to the present time, it has not been possible to house piston-position sensors within a jack cylinder in immediate proximity to the displacement of the piston. In point of fact, conventional jacks designed for circuit-breaker control systems operate at a very high pressure of the order of 300 to 400 bar, which calls for perfect pressure-tightness of the piston within the cylinder. The piston is fitted with a packing seal of a highly elaborate type which consists in the majority of instances of a so-called "spring-loaded packing" and the internal surface of the cylinder is perfectly ground and lapped so as to guard against either wear or damage of the packing. It is clearly not possible to place one or a number of piston proximity detectors within the thickness of the cylinder wall since the resultant irregularities in the surface of the cylinder would have the effect of destroying the packing.
The present inventor has recently found, however, that it was possible to construct differential jacks, especially for the control of circuit-breakers, in which the piston is not provided with any packing seal or ring and in which the piston actuates or is adapted to carry a sealing valve for closing the main chamber of the jack at the end of travel of the piston. In consequence, the leakage flow which exists around the piston by reason of the fact that this latter is no longer provided with any packing seal is prevented from penetrating into the volume of the cylinder located beneath the piston when this latter has reached the end of its travel.
A differential jack of this type in which the piston is not fitted with any packing seal has been described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 168,148 filed Mar. 15, 1988 in the name of the same inventor.
The present invention applies to a differential hydraulic jack of this type.

Hydraulic jack with a system for checking the position of the piston


A wearable mobile device executes a personal safety service client application to detect activation of a periodic safety confirmation mode, wherein the activation is detected from a first user input received by the wearable mobile device, receive, from a personal safety service server, a request for safety confirmation, and detect a safety confirmation event, wherein the safety confirmation event is detected from a second user input received by the wearable mobile device. The personal safety service client application is further to provide an indication of the safety confirmation event to the personal safety service server, wherein the personal safety service server is configured to send a notification message via a push notification displayed on user devices of a predefined group of emergency contacts indicating the occurrence of an emergency if the indication of the safety confirmation event is not received within a first pre-defined time interval and periodically receive additional requests for safety confirmation, wherein each additional request for safety confirmation is received after a second pre-defined time interval has passed.

Personal safety is an important issue, especially as the world seems to be becoming a more dangerous place. As crime statistics increase, a large and growing population of users is seeking personal safety services that provide an ever-present, discreet way of notifying others about the occurrence of an emergency. These users further seek a personal safety solution that is affordable, effective and convenient enough for widespread use.

Personal emergency triggering, notification and communication for smartwatches


A system includes an operator interface that includes a screen on which a ladder logic diagram is displayed. The system also includes an input device that may be used to draw a hand-drawn ladder logic component in the ladder logic diagram on the screen. Additionally, the system includes memory circuitry that stores ladder logic programming code and processing circuitry that executes the ladder logic programming code. The ladder logic programming code executed by the processing circuitry includes a recognition module to recognize the hand-drawn ladder logic component and a conversion module to convert the recognized hand-drawn ladder logic component to a standard graphical format and to a standard programming object.

The present application relates generally to the field of automation control systems. More specifically, the present application relates to techniques for recognizing hand-drawn ladder logic diagrams and symbols and converting such diagrams and symbols for utilization by an automation control system.
Many automation applications rely on encoded logic for execution of monitoring and control functions, from motor or actuator monitoring and control to complex system oversight and control. Traditional switchgear and associated devices were hard-wired based upon circuit designs expressed in "ladder logic", which represented components by standard symbols, and relationships between components by lines generally extending from a vertical power line on one side and a vertical ground or reference potential line on an opposite side. Power and signal routes thus corresponded to "rungs" of a ladder-like representation. Such diagrams are still extremely well understood and play an important role in wiring and programming automation systems.
Modern programming techniques, however, have tended to adopt computer-assisted diagramming platforms in which the only inputs available are by keyboard or other computer input tools. These can prove quite rigid and constrained in many cases, and there is a need for improved and more flexible techniques that allow for input of ladder logic components and relationships, and for interpretation of these for processing of initial designs, as well as for design modification.

Hand-drawn ladder logic conversion method and system


A processing control device controls a tool for processing a first workpiece. The processing control device includes a driving unit to drive the tool, an output unit, and a control unit to control the driving unit and the output unit. Processing information obtained by performing preliminary processing on a second workpiece before performing first processing on the first workpiece is transmitted by the control unit to the output unit and accordingly the processing information is outputted from the output unit. The control unit generates a control command for performing second processing that is performed on the first workpiece after the first processing. The control unit controls the driving unit according to the control command.

A machine tool for processing a workpiece (e.g., metallic material) that is a processing object by driving a tool is generally used. When a cutting tool is used as the tool, for example, burrs occur due to the cutting processing, and thus there has been proposed a method for inhibiting the occurrence of burrs (see Patent Reference 1, for example). Further, there has been proposed a method of extracting deburring positions through a simulation regarding the workpiece that is the processing object and displaying the deburring positions on a display unit (see Patent Reference 2, for example).

Processing control device, machine tool, and processing control method


A receiver unit for a radio frequency (RF) tag is provided, including a first input terminal and a second input terminal each being connected to an antenna; a communication stage configured to demodulate and/or to modulate an incoming signal in the communication stage; and a power stage including a voltage converter circuit being configured to supply power to the receiver unit, and a regulation circuit being configured to limit an output voltage of the voltage converter circuit, wherein the regulation circuit includes a regulator circuit being configured to determine a first current value and a second current value, the second current value being a current value provided in addition to the first current value, and, if the second current value exceeds a predetermined threshold value, to supply a control signal to a limiter circuit configured to limit an input voltage of the voltage converter circuit.

There are known radio frequency (RF) tags also called electronic labels or communication beacons provided with a communication circuit. This type of communication circuit comprises an antenna connected to a modulation/demodulation stage for processing an incoming signal or an outgoing signal. Such an RF tag is also provided with a power supply system, i.e. a stage that uses the energy received on reception of a signal to supply the entire RF tag with electrical energy.
This type of stage generally includes an AC/DC converter converting a received alternating signal into a continuous power signal. An AC/DC converter of this type takes the form, for example, of a diode bridge of the Graetz type.
However, depending on the type of incoming signals, it is necessary to have an AC/DC converter able to work not only at low power but also at high power.
Further, one problem of AC/DC converters is that they may have stray capacitances. Indeed, each antenna operates in an optimum manner with a tuning capacitor. It is therefore sought to control the value of the tuning capacitor associated with the antenna and therefore to reduce the value of stray capacitances so that they do not significantly disrupt the desired antenna characteristic. Therefore, as the AC/DC converter is the largest contributor to stray capacitances, it is important to select assemblies that minimise stray capacitance contribution.
Further, RF tags face a risk of the AC/DC converter being destroyed subsequent to excessively high voltage in the AC/DC converter, which causes damage to the components. A known solution is to clip the signal beyond a predetermined voltage value. However, one drawback of clipping the input signal is that it distorts the signal resulting in a loss of information.


A collapsible container assembly includes a folding container having at least two walls pivotable relative to each other at a corresponding corner disposed between the at least two walls, the folding container movable between a collapsed position wherein the at least two walls are disposed adjacent to one another and an extended position where in the at least two walls are spaced from each other, and an inside cellular structure attached to at least a portion of the at least two walls, the cellular structure comprising a plurality of panels forming a cellular structure, the cellular structure further comprising a plurality of cells in both an X and Y direction with respect to the cellular structure, each cell having four cell walls.

Shipping and storage boxes are often provided with a divider that can be inserted into the box for separating individual items from one another. For example, breakable items, such as drinking glasses are often shipped in a box having a divider to prevent the drinking glasses from contacting each other. A divider can also facilitate packing and unpacking of the items within the box by maintaining the items within a defined position relative to one another.
One example of a box and divider system is shown in U.S Publication No. 2008/0283535 to Westrate et al., now U.S. Pat. No. 8,499,956, issued Aug. 6, 2013, which discloses a collapsible container assembly comprising a cell assembly that can be inserted into a box and attached to an interior wall of the box. The box with the cell assembly inside can be folded in a parallelogram motion into a collapsed position which is substantially flat. U.S. Pat. No. 145,137 to Wade discloses an egg carrier comprising a plurality of cells made from strips of pasteboard or thin veneers of wood, which can be used to carry eggs without a surrounding box or container, and which can be folded in a parallelogram motion to a substantially flat condition for transport and storage.

Container assembly having a cell assembly therein and methods for forming


A new fuze that reduces projectile miss-distance to a target, by correcting for discrepancies in anticipated round velocities through its flight. As a result, the fuze-equipped projectile is nominally aimed at a target and maintains improved accuracy relative to a conventional round. The fuze adjusts for the discrepancies in velocity by using an internal electric motor to mechanically actuate a drag-altering surface on the fuze body. In order to adjust for errors in the anticipated velocity, the fuze compares its preprogrammed velocity to its actual velocity at a given point in time during flight. An anticipated velocity table versus time in flight is constantly referenced so that appropriate adjustments in velocity can be made.

Traditional long range artillery munitions have been a mainstay of warfare over the centuries. Much effort has been spent attempting to improve upon the accuracy of the projectiles. With the development of semiconductors and the integrated circuits, it has become possible to install embedded controllers to measure in-flight dynamics and to correct for inaccuracies and disturbances as integral components of the artillery rounds.
In terms of accuracy, the dispersion pattern of impact locations increases with the increasing range of projectiles. Factors that contribute to the increased dispersion are winds aloft (meteorological data), propellant temperature variations, and marginal errors in gun elevations. The final dispersion pattern is an elongated ellipse with the major axis in the direction of flight.
Winds aloft present one form of disturbance in that crosswinds can send a projectile left or right relative to the intended target, and head and tail winds can propel the projectile too far or too short of the intended target.
Recently, different propellants have been used, some combust more quickly and propel the projectiles out of the cannon at higher velocities than others. As a result, resources have been dedicated to characterize the different production lots of propellants, as they leave the factory. Ambient temperature also affects the propellant in a gun in that a hot propellant typically produces increased muzzle velocities, while a cold propellant produces lower muzzle velocities.
In addition to external dynamics, there are issues that affect the performance of the electronics installed within the projectiles. For inertial sensors, the severe gun-launch environment often produces permanent bias shifts in the measured acceleration of the projectiles. Additionally, the high spin rate of the stabilized projectiles may also affect the readings on a sensor, by adding spurious centrifugal forces to the sensor that are not, in reality, affecting the projectile.
One method to improve the accuracy of the projectile is to install GPS receivers that input an accurate estimate of the physical location of the projectile into the controller. Additionally, the data from the GPS receivers can be coupled with advanced inertial suites capable of being calibrated and continuously updated throughout the flight of the projectile, to improve performance. U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,500,636 and 7,834,300 are examples of the increasing complexity of integrated systems to guide a ballistic munition.
Separately, the additional confounding of data by the spin-stabilization is to add canards to the fuze, as well as high cost bearings. This combination allows the electronics stored in the fuze to be "de-spun" and acts independently of the spinning of the round.
Previous fuze efforts attempted to correct for the range dispersion and to improve the accuracy of spin stabilized projectiles in impact locations, by employing a single action drag brake. Reference is made, for example, to U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,345,785 and 5,816,531. In this application, the munition is intentionally fired "too-long," such that if uncorrected, the projectile would fly past the intended target. Then, while in flight, the controller would determine the best time for the drag brake to be deployed.
Incorporating guidance into artillery rounds increases the cost of the entire system. Gun-hardened, inertial measurement systems are relative costly. Similarly, a significant cost driver is the gun-hardening of components and electronics (e.g., GPS) to survive the loads of gun-launching and to improve the flight path accuracy.
GPS denial is a modern concern, between land/space based intentional jamming of signals by adversarial actors, solar activity also can prevent GPS signals from being received or correctly interpreted. However, should the electronics on-board the projectile be duds, then the projectile will fly past the intended target and potentially cause collateral damage. For obscurant or illumination, it would be beneficial to have a very low cost round that allows soldier assistance without prohibitive expenses.
There is therefore a need for a projectile that is capable of autonomously self-correcting its course toward an intended target, during flight. The projectile should be capable of being nominally aimed at the target, and of maintaining improved accuracy relative to a conventional round. The projectile should not require overshoot adjustment. The projectile should be capable of being deployed at a less full or optimal deployment, so that in the event of electronics or mechanism failure to maneuver the nominal flight, the projectile would follow the flight trajectory of a conventional projectile, including the standard statistical impact dispersion around the target location.
The need for such a course, self-correcting projectile has heretofore remained unsatisfied.

The United States of America as Represented by the Secretary of the Army


Methods and apparatus for a stone fragment suction device. An apparatus includes a steerable access sheath having a proximal end and a distal end, a tip at the distal end, and a suction conduit positioned within a central lumen of the steerable access sheath from the distal end to the proximal end, the steerable access sheath containing an outer lumen surrounding the central lumen with one or more channels therethrough, an outer circumference of the outer lumen and an outer circumference of the central lumen forming concentric circles, the steerable access sheath further including a radiopaque material at the distal end or along a length of the steerable access sheath to enable tracking with a remote fluoroscopic device.

The present invention generally relates to a kidney device, and more specifically to a stone fragment suction device.
In general, one purpose of a human kidney is to filter waste products from the blood and excrete these substances and excess water in the form of urine. A calyx section of the kidney generally refers to a beginning of the urine collecting system. A kidney typically has 6-10 calyces. Stones in the kidney are typically found within the calyx. In general, a stone is a microscopic organized aggregation of salts. Procedures to treat the presence of kidney stones include, for example, lithotripsy and ureteroscopy.
Ureteroscopy is a practice used to diagnose the presence of kidney stones or to provide access for other devices such as lithotripters, graspers, or stone baskets. Small stones have been treated with only a stent (no lithotripsy), by dilating the ureter. However, if the stone is large, continues to cause problems, or the urinary system appears infected, a urologist may elect to perform a procedure during which an endoscope is used to place a small tube in the ureter. This small tube allows urine to pass, which can alleviate pain, and dilates the ureter, allowing small stones to pass.
Treatment of kidney stones with ureteroscopic lithotripsy or laser fibers creates stone fragments and stone dust or "sand." Stone baskets or graspers may have problems removing stone fragments that are below 2 mm in size. When small stones and stone dust are present in the more difficult to access calyces of the kidney, it would be desirable to have a more robust removal mechanism. In these cases, unless the small stones and stone dust are removed, they can continue to grow and aggregate until they become symptomatic and require more invasive treatment.
Therefore, what is needed is a device and method of mechanically removing kidney stone fragments and stone dust or "sand" in order to reliably reduce the amount of fragmented kidney stones left in a patient, particularly following treatment with ureteroscopic lithotripsy or laser fibers.


A service providing system for improving convenience of users by quickly executing a membership registration process in a system in which plural shops and groups jointly administrate its members. In the system, an external reading/writing unit stores a write data table in which provider-side data is correlated with information notification level, a portable information terminal enables the user to select the information notification level in accordance to a control of a portable terminal-side application and writes user-side data correlated with the information notification level selected by the user in the notification data table and the information notification level selected by the user to a non-contact IC. The external reading/writing unit reads the user-side data and the information notification level out of the non-contact IC, stores the user-side data and writes the provider-side data correlated with the information notification level in the write data table to the non-contact IC.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a service providing system for providing predetermined services to a user of a portable information terminal, in which a non-contact IC is built in, via the portable information terminal.
2. Related Art
Conventionally, a system for simplifying a membership registration procedure and for improving convenience of users has been proposed as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-44935 for example in a system in which a plurality of shops and groups jointly administer its members. This system is what registers member's information in a whole member database of a server by correlating with an ID of an IC tag held by the member. In registering a new member in a shop, a reader of the shop reads the ID of the IC tag to collate to the whole member database based on the read ID. A shop terminal registers the member by obtaining the member's information from the whole member database.
The conventional system described above obtains the member's information  necessary for the registration of the member from the whole member database of the server. Accordingly, there has been a problem that the member cannot be registered  when the shop terminal is not connected with the server. Still more, there has been a  problem even when the shop terminal is connected with the server that it takes time to  register the member when traffic of the network is crowded or when the server is heavily loaded. There has been also a problem that because transmission/receiving of  the member's information is concluded between the server and the shop terminal, the user  is unable to select the member's information to be transmitted to the shop terminal. Furthermore, it has been unable to select information and membership registration level  required by the user by the conventional system. That is, it has been unable to provide  services corresponding to needs and desire of the respective users, i.e., corresponding to  the membership registration levels, such as services for users who just want information  on a shop and do not want to register the membership, who occasionally want information and who want to have a point service and the like.


A spherical logical puzzle is disclosed comprising four interconnected branches, each of which defines a branch axis and comprises a fixed puzzle segment of arcuate triangular shape connected thereto, the segment being rotatable about its respective branch axis; a plurality of free puzzle segments are also provided comprising six arcuate square puzzle segments and four arcuate triangular puzzle segments, the free and fixed puzzle segments being coupled together to form a sphere; the segments are capable of adopting a plurality of positions relative to one another, and are movable between these positions by relative rotation of the segments in planes perpendicular to the branch axes.

This invention relates to a puzzle.
Three dimensional logical puzzles which include a plurality of segments interlocked to form a cube or regular polyhedron have been proposed for example as disclosed in Hungarian Patent No. 170,062 to Rubik, or in U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,866 to Alford.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,866 also proposes a spherical puzzle design comprised of eighteen segments of at least three different shapes. Such a puzzle design has the disadvantage of being very difficult to manufacture.


A mobile electrostatic carrier (MESC) provides a structural platform to temporarily bond a semiconductive wafer and can be used to transport the semiconductive wafer or be used to perform manufacturing processes on the semiconductive wafer. The MESC uses a plurality of electrostatic field generating (EFG) circuits to generate electrostatic fields across the MESC that allow the MESC to bond to compositional impurities within the semiconductive process. The MESC is particularly useful during singulation for a wafer fabrication process. The MESC holds the semiconductive wafer in a constant position as the semiconductive wafer is cut into a plurality of dies. Once the MESC is discharges its EFG circuits and consequently dissipates its bonding electrostatic fields, the plurality of dies can be easily and readily removed from the MESC.

With the advent of new technology, people are more reliant on electronic devices and systems in their daily routine. This causes an increase in manufacturing and producing of these electronic devices and systems. In addition, the manufacturing of smaller and smaller end user products has driven semiconductor manufactures to continually decrease the size and the power consumption of semiconductors devices, which has created a variety of challenges to the manufacturer. Currently, these semiconductor devices are singulated from a whole wafer by processes involving diamond saw technology, well known in the art of wafer fabrication. Dicing tapes have also helped to speed up the throughput and the cost effectiveness of singulation, but the downside to dicing tapes is that a die could be difficult to remove from the dicing tape or that the residue from the dicing tape can be hard to remove or clean off of a die. Thus, there is no cost effective and highly yielding technology that allows for a semiconductive wafer to be cut into a plurality of dies.
An objective of the present invention is to utilize a mobile electrostatic carrier (MESC) during singulation of the wafer fabrication process. The MESC is able to hold and to gently release thin semiconductive substrates and does not require extra steps to clean. The MESC is an electrostatic temporary bond technology that provides a rigid contamination-free handling solution for fragile non-standard substrates and small devices without the need for fasteners or adhesives. In addition, the MESC is able to carry these thin semiconductive substrates without permanent connections to an external power supply, vacuum supply, or mechanical clamping assembly. The MESC is able to bond so strongly to a thin semiconductive substrate that the MESC can hold onto the thin semiconductive substrate during different manufacturing processes with large sheer forces such as grinding or singulation.
In order to address the aforementioned problem with the current technology used during singulation of the wafer fabrication process, the MESC is used to mount a semiconductive wafer so that the semiconductive wafer is properly held in place while being cut into a plurality of dies by some means known in the art. Once the semiconductive wafer is separated into the plurality of dies, the MESC can be transported to a different location with the individual dies still firmly attached to MESC. When the electrostatic bond is discharged by the MESC, the individual dies can be readily and easily removed from the MESC.

Mobile electrostatic carrier for a semiconductive wafer and a method of using thereof for singulation of the semiconductive wafer


A cushion dimensioned to support a seated user is comprised of an outer covering with handles defined by a continuous strap attached to the outer covering. A foam cushion layer is permanently attached to the outer covering and a liquid filled pouch is slideably enclosed by the outer covering.

This invention relates to a cushion which uses water as its principal supporting medium.
The cushion has been developed primarily as a seat cushion for use by a paraplegic or quadriplegic who is confined to a wheelchair. However, the cushion does have broader application and it may be employed for supporting any anatomical part of a person who is confined to a bed or chair for protracted periods of time and who might suffer discomfort from pressure points which are experienced with use of more conventional support cushions.

C/- Smith & Co., 593-595 Princes Highway


Electrosurgical systems and methods are provided for RF nerve ablation, wherein a control console is utilized with a passive or active cable accessory connecting to different of electrode attachments, such as monopolar and bipolar self-grounding types. The control console has multiple RF amplifiers that are associated with multiple channels of the control console and that are energized according to control signals non-simultaneously applied by a controller of the control console. The control console stores and processes identification data and usage data relating to cable accessories and electrode attachments that are connected or have been connected to the control console over time. The control console displays a representation of this processed data on a graphical user interface. The control console further provides components and techniques for implementing stimulation and impedance verification/calibration for situations where the stimulation signals or impedance measurement signals are provided by the control console.

RF energy is commonly utilized to ablate diseased sensory nerves for the purposes of treating nerve based pain. Conventionally, an electrosurgical console having a single RF amplifier delivers the RF energy through multiple channels to electrodes connected to the control console. The electrodes are placed at the treatment location and application of the RF energy through the electrodes creating RF lesions, and thereby causing ablation of the diseased nerves.
One shortcoming of electrosurgical consoles stems from the limitations of using the single RF amplifier. Comprehensive relief of the patient's pain often requires the treatment of multiple locations. For example, the majority of RF nerve ablation procedures involve lesioning three or more distinct locations. Procedural efficiency dictates the treatment of the multiple locations in a concurrent manner. There exists RF nerve ablation systems that feature concurrent treatment of multiple locations through the use of multiple channels. Such systems, however, commonly utilize a single RF amplifier shared among the multiple channels. Temperature feedback for each channel enables the use of closed loop control in order to regulate the delivery of RF energy to each treatment location.
There are two fundamental approaches to creating RF lesions in multiple locations in a concurrent manner through the use of a single RF amplifier. Lesioning of multiple nerve locations by this single RF amplifier may be accomplished by either the application of the output energy from the single RF amplifier to multiple locations simultaneously, or by non-simultaneous application of the single RF amplifier output energy to multiple locations via sequential time-slicing. Although treating multiple locations, both techniques are limited to use of the single RF amplifier. With the single RF amplifier, there are disadvantages to both the simultaneous energy delivery method as well as the non-simultaneous time-sliced delivery method.
Simultaneous application of RF energy to multiple locations from the single RF amplifier results in only limited ability to control the RF energy delivered to each location. The power delivered to each location is strongly influenced by the patient-circuit impedance from each location to the common return location. The power level required to effectively treat each lesion location is influenced by normally occurring anatomical variation present in all patients such as blood vessels. Fully independent control of each channel is not possible with this method. In order for all channels to achieve their respective set temperature, the output power level must be set to the level required by the most demanding location. A single control loop is used to regulate the RF output amplitude. Control specific to each channel is limited to a simple ON/OFF selection for treatment location.
While non-simultaneous energy delivery makes fully independent control loops possible, practical implementations of non-simultaneous time-slicing from a single RF amplifier is limited by the requirement to utilize mechanical relays to steer the RF output waveform to the various channels. Reliable operation dictates the need to stop RF output before switching relay states and not resume RF output until the relay contacts have settled to the new state. Time-slice switching between channels is thereby limited to relatively low frequencies. For instance, certain control consoles feature channel output cycling around 2 Hertz. Such low frequency switching of RF output energy from the single RF amplifier increases the likelihood of unwanted patient stimulation in the form of inadvertent neuromuscular stimulation. The relatively long off-time that occurs during the low frequency cycling increases the difficulty in heating lesion locations up to treatment temperature. Another shortcoming associated with non-simultaneous time-slicing from a single RF Amplifier are the practical limitations associated with instantaneously changing the magnitude of the RF amplifier output power level when switching between channels.
Another disadvantage of conventional electrosurgical consoles stems from the inability of conventional consoles to verify proper delivery of stimulation energy to the patient. Safety and efficacy of the nerve ablation procedure is highly dependent upon proper placement of the electrodes at the treatment location. The electrode must be placed proximal to the nerve to be ablated, otherwise the procedure's effectiveness will be diminished. Likewise it is important that the electrode not be placed proximal to motor nerves or other tissue to be avoided, otherwise the patient may experience loss of motor function or another adverse side effect associated with lesioning in the wrong location.
Placement of the electrode is facilitated through the use of visualization guidance, and most commonly C-arm x-ray fluoroscopy. While bony structures and the metallic electrodes are visualized quite well by x-ray imaging equipment, nerve fibers are not visible with this imaging technology. Bony structures, visible under fluoroscopy, serve as the navigational landmarks to direct the placement of the electrodes proximal to nerve pathways that are well established.
Secondary to visualization guidance, patient feedback from electrical stimulation applied to each electrode may be utilized during the electrode placement process as a supplemental means of confirming proper electrode placement. There are two distinct forms of electrical stimulation i.e., sensory nerve stimulation and motor nerve stimulation. Electrosurgical consoles enable selection of sensor or motor waveforms and selection of the desired amplitude of the selected stimulation. Patient response provides the user with an ancillary means of evaluating electrode placement.
Sensory nerve stimulation is optimized to elicit a sensory nerve response. Proximity to sensory nerves that have been selected for ablation may be assessed through the application of sensory nerve stimulation to the electrode. On the other hand, motor nerve stimulation is optimized to elicit a motor nerve response. Clearance from motor nerves that must be avoided may be assessed through the application of motor nerve stimulation to the electrode.
With conventional electrosurgical consoles, it is possible for an undetected hardware fault to occur that would inhibit the selected waveform from reaching the patient. If a fault in the motor stimulation circuitry or waveform routing circuitry is undetected, it is possible that a physician may proceed with a nerve ablation procedure based upon faulty patient feedback. This condition may lead to an increased risk of inadvertent motor nerve impairment.
Moreover, management of attachment cables for conventional electrosurgical consoles has proven to be difficult. Different types of electrodes and electrode configurations exist for performing nerve ablation with electrosurgical consoles. Examples include monopolar electrodes, bipolar self-grounding electrodes and dual-monopolar electrodes operating in a parallel bipolar fashion. The different types of electrodes and electrode configurations often require changing of an attachment cable that couples one or more of the electrodes to one of several different combinations of channels of the electrosurgical console. Bipolar self-grounding electrodes have provided a particular challenge. Whereas monopolar electrodes utilize one channel of the electrosurgical console, bipolar self-grounding electrodes utilize two channels of the electrosurgical console. Changing the attachment cable for proper operation of bipolar self-grounding attachments is particularly onerous. The need to change attachment cables in order to match attached accessories has proven to increase the occurrence of use errors. Moreover, it is also well known that attachment cables have a tendency to be misplaced once disconnected from the electrosurgical console.
Furthermore, although bipolar self-grounding electrodes utilize two channels of the electrosurgical console, each bipolar self-grounding electrode is limited to creating a single lesion in a single location. Electrosurgical consoles are usually equipped with no more than four channels for practical reasons. Hence, the use of bipolar self-grounding electrodes limits the ability of the electrosurgical console to perform no more than two bipolar self-grounding lesions at any given time.
Yet another shortcoming of conventional electrosurgical consoles resides in the inability to track and display data associated with electrodes or cable accessories that are utilized by the console. It is known to embed an electronic device (e.g., an electrically erasable programmable read only memory or EEPROM) into a medical device accessory for the purposes of authentication and/or use metering. For example, the electronic device serves to identify the accessory to the main unit to which the accessory is connected. The electronic device typically includes a writeable portion that functions as a use meter. If the accessory is not identified as a supported accessory, then the main unit disables operation with the attached accessory. Upon use of the accessory, the main unit writes to the embedded device, effectively marking the accessory as "used" in order to prohibit the future use of accessories that are intended to be single patient use only.
In the field of nerve ablation, it is known to provide electrodes having a connector containing an EEPROM having an authentication section and an odometer data structure. If the authentication code is not identified by the electrosurgical console as a supported accessory, then the electrosurgical console disables operation with that attached electrode.
Some electrosurgical consoles are configured to read the electrode's use data and provide a warning message to the user that the attached accessory may be approaching the end of its useful life after the odometer had been incremented to a predetermined value. However, the odometer value is never displayed to the user and the data is not stored on electrosurgical console. Therefore, once the electrode is disconnected from the electrosurgical console, the use data, as well as the authentication and identification data are immediately lost. The issue is exacerbated by the fact that a healthcare facility may have dozens of each type of electrode in their inventory. Therefore, users of conventional electrosurgical consoles have no practical way of tracking and displaying data associated with electrodes that are or have been connected to the console. Tracking of authentication and usage data for cable accessories in the field of nerve ablation is virtually non-existent.
As such, there remains a need to address at least the aforementioned problems surrounding conventional electrosurgical consoles and their accessories.

Control console and accessories for RF nerve ablation and methods of operating the same


An information processing apparatus includes an information recognition unit, an acquiring unit, and a recording unit. The information recognition unit recognizes a description written in each of one or more description areas. The acquiring unit acquires attribute information of the description area in which the description is written. The recording unit records the description written in the description area or a recognition result obtained through the recognition performed by the information recognition unit in accordance with the attribute information acquired by the acquiring unit.

Field
Aspects of the present invention generally relate to an information processing apparatus, a controlling method, and a computer-readable storage medium.
Description of the Related Art
Heretofore, in the medical field such as hospitals, paper medical records having a predetermined format have been used to record the condition and the treatment process of a patient. A paper medical record is constituted by four description areas abbreviated to SOAP. The character S represents the main complaints of a patient. The character O represents information obtained through physical examinations/tests. The character A represents a disease evaluation made by a doctor. The character P represents a treatment plan made on the basis of the above-described data. Among these description areas, the S area is mainly referred to by a doctor. The other areas other than the S area, in which test information and a prescription for medicine are described, are referred to when a medical practice is performed by a nurse or when paperwork is performed by a staff in Medical Professions Division.
Advantages of paper medical records are, for example, that it is easy to use because a doctor can fill out a medical record while looking at and listening to a patient, and that the handwriting reminds a doctor of a deep nuance of the description and a scene of diagnosis. However, a handwritten description about medical-treatment information which is to be shared among sections is difficult to read, and time and effort are required to check the description. For paper medical records, it has been pointed out that a storage area is required, that manpower is required for transcription which is not a meaningful task, or that it is difficult to perform a search using paper medical records. Therefore, a shift from paper medical records to electronic medical records has progressed.
The shift from paper medical records to electronic medical records achieves unified management and sharing of medical-treatment information. This eliminates time and effort for a traditional operation of writing medical-treatment information by hand multiple times, resulting in a reduction in transcription errors. A large amount of data can be easily searched for necessary medical-treatment information, and the problem of storage space for paper medical records can be reduced.
However, use of an electronic medical record involves operations based on a complicated specification. In limited consultation hours, a doctor may fail to communicate with a patient because the doctor concentrates on input operations, and the doctor may miss hearing important information. In addition, all of the input data is shaped, making it difficult for the handwriting or the like to remind a doctor of a scene of diagnosis.
Therefore, to combine the advantages of paper medical records and those of electronic medical records, various proposals about data input and data management of electronic medical records have been made. In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-252607, a technique is described. In the technique, a medical record in which minute points are previously printed over the entire surface of a sheet is filled out; medical care record data including a description and its position coordinates is generated; and the generated electronic data is managed over a network. The technique proposed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-252607 achieves high operability, enables input of medical record information which is the same as that written by hand, and enables medical care information to be recorded and used on a time-series basis even among sections or among medical institutions. In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-30257, a technique is proposed. In the technique, patient information handwritten on a data sheet is obtained by using an electronic pen; the obtained information is transmitted to a server; the server performs authentication to check if the patient is a patient who is to be nursed, on the basis of the written patient information; and the authentication result is transmitted to a staff.
However, in these techniques of the related art, all of the descriptions on a paper medium are converted into electronic forms. Therefore, a description from which memories are desirably evoked and a description that desirably remains as handwriting information fail to be checked.

Information processing apparatus, controlling method, and computer-readable storage medium


An improved basket catheter is provided that is particularly useful for mapping the heart. The catheter comprises an elongated catheter body having proximal and distal ends and at least one lumen therethrough. A basket-shaped electrode assembly is mounted at the distal end of the catheter body. The basket assembly has proximal and distal ends and comprises a plurality of spines connected at their proximal and distal ends. Each spine comprises at least one electrode. The basket assembly has an expanded arrangement wherein the spines bow radially outwardly and a collapsed arrangement wherein the spines are arranged generally along the axis of the catheter body. The catheter further comprises a distal location sensor mounted at or near the distal end of the basket-shaped electrode assembly and a proximal location sensor mounted at or near the proximal end of the basket-shaped electrode assembly. In use, the coordinates of the distal location sensor relative to those of the proximal sensor can be determined and taken together with known information pertaining to the curvature of the spines of the basket-shaped mapping assembly to find the positions of the at least one electrode of each spine.

The invention is directed to a catheter having a basket-shaped electrode array with two or more location sensors to provide improved mapping capabilities.
Electrophysiology catheters are commonly-used for mapping electrical activity in the heart. Various electrode designs are known for different purposes. In particular, catheters having basket-shaped electrode arrays are known and described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,772,590, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
Additionally, it is generally known to incorporate into certain electrophysiology catheters a location or position sensor for determining the location of electrodes being used to map electrical activity. Such catheters are generally inserted percutaneously and fed through one or more major blood vessels into a chamber of the heart. A location sensor in the catheter, typically near the catheter""s distal end, gives rise to signals that are used to determine the position of the device relative to a frame of reference that is fixed either externally to the body or to the heart itself. The location sensor may be active or passive and may operate by generating or receiving electrical, magnetic or ultrasonic energy fields or other suitable forms of energy known in the art.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,391,199, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference, describes a position-responsive catheter comprising a miniature sensor coil contained in the catheter""s distal end. The coil generates electrical signals in response to externally-applied magnetic fields, which are produced by field-generator coils placed outside the patient""s body. The electrical signals are analyzed to determine three-dimensional coordinates of the coil.
International Publication No. WO 96/05768, the disclosure of which is also incorporated herein by reference, describes a position-responsive catheter comprising a plurality of miniature, preferably non-concentric sensor coils fixed in its distal end. As in U.S. Pat. No. 5,391,1999, electrical signals generated by these coils in response to an externally-applied magnetic field are analyzed so as to determine, for example, six-dimensional position and orientation coordinates of these coils.
Multiple position-sensing devices may be placed in a known, mutually-fixed spatial relation at or adjacent to the distal end of a catheter, as described, for example, in International Publication No. WO 97/24983, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. This publication describes a catheter having a substantially rigid structure at its distal end, to which one or more position sensors are fixed. The sensors are used to determine the position and orientation of the rigid structure.
The present invention is directed to an improved catheter having a basket-shaped electrode assembly. The basket-shaped electrode assembly can expand into a variety of positions and has two or more location sensors for determining the location of electrodes mounted on the assembly.
In one embodiment, the invention is directed to a catheter comprising an elongated catheter body having proximal and distal ends and at least one lumen therethrough. A basket-shaped electrode assembly is mounted at the distal end of the catheter body. The basket assembly has proximal and distal ends and comprises a plurality of spines connected, directly or indirectly, at their proximal and distal ends. Each spine comprises at least one electrode. The basket assembly has an expanded arrangement wherein the spines bow radially outwardly and a collapsed arrangement wherein the spines are arranged generally along the axis of the catheter body. The catheter further comprises a distal location sensor mounted at or near the distal end of the basket-shaped electrode assembly and a proximal location sensor mounted at or near the proximal end of the basket-shaped electrode assembly. In use, the coordinates of the distal location sensor relative to those of the proximal sensor can be determined and taken together with known information pertaining to the curvature of the spines of the basket-shaped mapping assembly to find the positions of the at least one electrode of each spine.

Basket catheter with multiple location sensors


Two embodiments of assembly devices particularly adapted for assembling components such as IC chips on a printed circuit board. The arrangement includes a pair of carriages each of which supports gripping means and the supporting and driving arrangements for the carriages permits a very compact assembly and prevents interference between the carriages during their movement. The carriage has an improved supporting arrangement that prevents binding and embodiments are shown wherein the gripping devices carried by the carriages may either pick up units from one or both sides of the device.

This invention relates to an for placing small workpieces on a work table such as is employed in assembling circuit boards and more particularly to an improved arrangement for this purpose.
In many types of assembling devices, workpieces are assembled onto a device that is supported on a work table with the workpieces being supplied from a supply at one side or the other of the work table. Normally the workpieces are picked up by a gripping unit which is moved in the X--X and Y--Y directions in order to place the workpiece at the desired location upon the work table. Such devices lend themselves to automatic operation. However, the previously proposed devices for this purpose have been rather cumbersome and occupy a large area.
It is, therefore, a principal object of this invention to provide an improved and compact arrangement for assembling workpieces onto an article supported on a table.
It is a further object of this invention to provide an improved compact and high speed assembling device for such applications as assembling circuit boards.
In connection with assembling devices of the type aforedescribed, the supporting arrangement for the gripper that picks up the workpieces and places them on the table is such that it is not possible to employ plural grippers at the same time. As a result, the assembly procedure may be extremely slow.
It is, therefore, a principal object of this invention to provide an arrangement wherein a plurality of workpiece gripping means may be moved at the same time in order to assemble workpieces onto an article supported on the work table.
In connection with the support for the gripping devices that move the workpieces from their supply to the work table, it has already been noted that the gripper must be moved in an X--X direction and a Y--Y direction. It is desirable to provide an accurate support for permitting the movement of the grippers and one which will nevertheless be compact.
It is, therefore, a still further object of this invention to provide an improved arrangement for moving a gripping device in two directions.


Apparatus and process for gas phase polymerisation of olefins. The apparatus includes (a) a reaction zone having a grid at its base, (b) an inlet located in the lower half of the reaction zone for introducing a reaction gas to the reaction zone, (c) an outlet located in the upper half of the reaction zone for removing the reaction gas from the reaction zone, and (d) a solids separation unit having an inlet fluidly connected to the outlet for removing the reaction gas from the reaction zone. The inlet of the solids separation unit is located at a vertical height lower than the outlet for removal of reaction gas from the reaction zone and such that the angle to the horizontal of a straight line drawn between the inlet of the solids separation unit and the outlet for removal of reaction gas from the reaction zone is greater than 20°.

The polymerisation of olefins in the gas phase in fluidised or similar reactors is well-known and commercially operated. In a typical fluidised bed process for the production of polyethylene, for example, a bed of growing polymer particles is maintained in a fluidised state in a vertically orientated cylindrical reactor by means of an ascending gas stream (fluidising gas). Gas exiting the top of the fluidised bed reactor is cooled and recycled to the base via a recycle loop. Fresh monomer(s) are added to replace those consumed in the reaction whilst produced polymer particles are continuously removed from the bed.
GB 1,413,613, for example, describes a process for the dry polymerisation of olefins in a fluidised bed reactor. Two possible configurations are described to address the potential problem of small solid particles, known as "fines", being entrained from the reactor with the ascending gas stream. The first of these is the use of what is referred to in GB 1,413,613 as a "tranquilisation chamber" which is an area of larger cross-section compared to the reactor and provided above the reactor which acts to reduce the velocity of the fluidising gas, allowing solid particles which might otherwise exit the top of the fluidised bed to fall back to the bed. The second is the use of a cyclone to separate the entrained solids for subsequent return to the reactor.
Of the two options disclosed in GB 1,413,613, that referred to as the tranquilisation chamber, which may alternatively be, and, in fact, is more generally, referred to as a disengagement zone or velocity reduction zone, has become the commonly used means for reducing entrainment from fluidised bed reactors. However, despite the use of a disengagement zone, it is common for significant quantities of solids to remain entrained in the fluidising gas exiting the disengagement zone. Such solids may foul components of the line through which the fluidising gas is recycled, which can lead to a requirement for shut-down and cleaning. To reduce this problem it is therefore known to also use a cyclone in addition to the disengagement zone to separate entrained solids from the fluidising gas exiting the disengagement zone. Such processes are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,882,400 and 5,382,638.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,882,400, for example, discloses an apparatus for the gas phase polymerisation of olefins in a fluidised bed reactor comprising a disengagement chamber and a cyclone which acts to separate entrained solids from the fluidising gas exiting the reactor, for recycle to the fluidised bed.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,382,638 also discloses an apparatus for the gas phase polymerisation of olefins in a fluidised bed reactor comprising a disengagement chamber and a cyclone which acts to separate entrained solids from the fluidising gas exiting the reactor, for recycle to the fluidised bed.
Cyclones are also known for essentially the same purpose for vapour phase polymerisation of propylene in horizontal gas phase reactors, for example as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,640,963.
In general reaction (e.g. fluidising) gas passes through and exits the top of the reaction zone and is passed to a cyclone or other solids separation unit, wherein entrained solids are separated from the gas, usually for return to the reaction zone. In general the gas exits the reaction zone via a length of vertically orientated pipe at the top of the reaction zone and enters the cyclone, which is itself vertically orientated, at or near the top of the cyclone via a length of horizontally orientated pipe. Thus, the simplest connection is obtained by simply connecting the vertically orientated pipe to a length of horizontally orientated pipe which passes the gas directly to the cyclone. Further, a relatively high location for the cyclone has been considered advantageous in minimising back-pressure and providing a gravitational driving force for reinjection of the fines into the reactor. In particular, if it were just a case of "ease" of reinjection into the reaction zone, the solids would be reinjected above the fluidised bed. However, from a process point of view this can lead to direct re-entrainment of significant quantities of the reinjected solids. It is thus desirable to reinject the solids back into the fluidised bed itself, although this requires injection into a zone of higher pressure and hence requires a larger "driving force".
Consistent with this, in the prior art documents mentioned above the inlet of the cyclone is shown located above the vertical height of the reactor outlet.

Apparatus and process for the polymerisation of olefins


Examples of maintaining or querying a traffic database to generate a traffic flow model to provide traffic flow information and determine a per-lane route for a vehicle to travel are disclosed.

Unless otherwise indicated herein, the approaches described in this section are not prior art to the claims in this application and are not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section. Traffic flow information may be used to predict travel times along various prospective or potential vehicle routes. The traffic flow information may be incorporated into a route recommendation algorithm of a Global Positioning System (GPS) based navigation and mapping system to recommend a route for a vehicle to travel. Traffic flow information, for example, can be gathered from various sources such as in-road speed sensors, cameras, and other types of fixed measurement devices or reported from individual vehicles as they travel. The accuracy of predicted travel times may be an important factor for vehicles to determine which route to travel.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Traffic flow model to provide traffic flow information


An apparatus for detection of the gradient of a magnetic field includes at least four antenna elements (11, 12, 13, 14) composed of a ferromagnetic material, which are arranged in pairs, and a bridge circuit having at least four resistance elements (1, 2, 3, 4), which are associated with the antenna elements (11, 12, 13, 14) or antenna element pairs. Each antenna element pair has at least one associated resistance element (1, 2, 3, 4) whose resistance value is dependent on the field strength and on the direction of the magnetic field, and which resistance element (1, 2, 3, 4) is arranged in a field area (19) which extends between the two antenna elements (11, 12, 13, 14) of the antenna element pair. The invention also relates to a method for production of an apparatus which is intended for detection of the gradient of a magnetic field.

Apparatuses with appropriately high resolution are required for detection of magnetic fields with a low field strength. Conventional apparatuses admittedly achieve the necessary resolution, but problems occur as soon as there are interfering electromagnetic fields in the vicinity.
The required resolution is admittedly achieved by the use of SQUID sensors (SQUID=Superconduction Quantum Interference Device), but problems occur in the event of interference caused by electromagnetic fields in the vicinity. Furthermore, the SQUID sensors have antenna elements composed of superconducting material. These require cooling, which increases the design complexity.
The use of a spin magnetometer likewise provides the required resolution, but a supporting magnetic field with a relatively high field strength is required. Furthermore, the supporting field must be very stable over time. The spin magnetometer has numerous components, so that the design complexity is relatively high. Furthermore, a spin magnetometer cannot be designed as an integrated circuit.
Finally, apparatuses with magnetoresistive sensors (XMR sensors) are known, whose resistance value depends on the field strength of the magnetic field. XMR sensors likewise achieve, strength of the magnetic field. XMR sensors likewise achieve, for example, the required resolution, but are susceptible to interference from electromagnetic fields in the vicinity. Shielding devices would considerably increase the design complexity.

Apparatus for detection of the gradient of a magnetic field, and a method for production of the apparatus


The current invention is concerned with methods and compositions for the removal of arsenic contamination from water. A method for binding As to oxidized metal coated pumice and method for making the same are disclosed. Water filters comprising oxidized metal coated pumice, such as oxidized iron coated pumice, are also provided.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to the field of chemistry. In particular the invention involves compositions and methods that may be used in water purification.
2. Description of Related Art
Arsenic is a naturally-occurring element in the surface and subsurface environment that ranks 20th in abundance in the earth's crust. Arsenic is present at very low concentrations in rocks and soils, which are the prime sources of arsenic in ground water. However, some arsenic in ground water is likely leached from sulfide minerals within bedrock and transported to aquifers. Sulfide minerals, in particular, are known to contain high concentrations of arsenic.
Arsenic in water occurs in two valance states, arsenite (As III) and arsenate (As V). Natural ground water contains As(III) since the reducing conditions prevail. On the other hand, As(V) is the dominant species in surface water. The exposure of humans to such arsenic contaminated water is a major concern world wide. For example, arsenic exposure has been associated with the development of skin and internal cancers. In addition to its oncogenic effects, other conditions such as diabetes, peripheral neuropathy, and cardiovascular disease have also been linked to arsenic exposure (Abernathy et al., 1999).
In developed, countries a variety of technologies are currently in use for removal of As from water sources. These technologies include ion exchange, reverse osmosis, adsorption, and electro-dialysis reversal. Though these methods are effective for As removal their complexity and cost precludes their implementation in rural areas and developing countries. Alternative methods used for arsenic removal in developing countries rely primarily of coagulation/filtration. For example, ferric chloride coagulation and filtration is currently in use in some Bangladeshi villages (Adeel and Ali, 2002). Other techniques include batch-mixed treatment with zero-valence iron to reduce arsenic from water (Anuradha et al., 2001). Granular ferric hydroxide has also been tested for the removal of arsenic from drinking water (Driehaus et al., 1998; Thirunavukkarasu et al., 2003). Studies have also been performed to test removal of arsenic from ground water by iron hydroxide-coated sand (Joshi and Chaudhuri, 1996). However, these methods are inadequate to reduce arsenic contamination levels to meet safety levels recommended by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) (Adeel and Ali, 2002). The dire health effects of arsenic and the implementation of more stringent controls on arsenic levels in drinking water have created a need for an efficient and cost effective means for removal of arsenic from water supplies.

Removal of arsenic from water with oxidized metal coated pumice

The Board of Regents of the University of Texas System


A method and apparatus are provided for controlling a fixing condition of a printer according to the size and type of paper to be printed in order to improve print quality. The apparatus and method include setting a fixing condition according to a selected paper property of a printer driver, measuring a resistance of a paper being printed, comparing a paper property corresponding to the measured paper resistance with the selected paper property of the printer driver, and resetting the fixing condition according to the paper property corresponding to the measured paper resistance if the paper property corresponding to the measured paper resistance is different from the selected paper condition of the printer driver.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a printer having a fixer that adheres a transferred toner image to paper. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus for controlling a fixing condition of a printer according to the size and type of paper used in order to improve the print quality.
2. Description of the Related Art
Printers are the most common output devices for printing the results of data processed onto paper in order to check, store, and deliver data from a computer, camera, facsimile and the like. Printers comprise the basic element of multi-functional printers, facsimiles, electronic cash registers, automatic teller machines, and so on.
Various types of printers have been developed such as daisy wheel, dot pin, ink jet, laser printers and especially the ink jet and laser printers, which are widely adopted.
The laser printer uses physical elements such as toner, light (laser or light emitting diode (LED) array), static electricity, heat, and pressure to perform a printing operation. The core technology of the laser printer uses static electricity.
FIG. 1 is a schematic view illustrating a conventional laser printer.
Referring to FIG. 1, a laser printer includes a print unit 100 for printing an image onto paper, a sheet output passage 310, a sheet turn passage 320, a pick-up roller 201, and a feed roller 210.
The print unit 100 includes a charger 120, a Laser Scan Unit (LSU) 130, a photoconductive drum 110, a development unit 140 holding a developer, a transfer belt 150, and a fixer 170. The print unit 100 prints an image on paper, using an electrophotographic method. The development unit 140 of the print unit 100 includes four cartridges respectively holding black (K), cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y) developers, in order to print a color image.
Operations of forming an image by the print unit 100 are as followings. In a charge operation mode, the charger 120 charges the photoconductive drum 110 uniformly. In an exposure operation mode, the LSU 130 supplies the photoconductive drum 110 with a light corresponding to a color of image data such as a yellow color. The light causes a voltage difference between light exposed and non-exposed surfaces of the photoconductive drum 110, thereby creating an electrostatic latent image of yellow. In a development operation mode, the development unit 140 applies the developer to the electrostatic latent image in order to form a yellow toner image. The developed yellow toner image is transferred to the transfer belt 150.
After the yellow toner image is completely transferred to the transfer belt 150, magenta M, cyan C, and black K toner images are sequentially transferred and overlapped onto the transfer belt 150 with the same method as is mentioned above in order to make a color toner image on the transfer belt 150. The color toner image is transferred onto paper that passes between the transfer belt 150 and a transfer roller 160, and the fixer 170 applies heat and pressure to the color toner image to adhere the image onto the paper, thereby completing a color image print. Herein, the fixer 170 includes a heat roller 171 and a pressure roller 172.
Though the exemplary print unit 100 shown in FIG. 1 is a multi-path type printer that uses one photoconductive drum and one LSU, there are various types of electrophotographic print units that can employ aspects of the present invention.
The sheet output passage 310 connects an outlet of the print unit 100 and a sheet output tray 230. Typically, the fixer 170 is placed at the outlet side of the print unit 100. A pair of rollers 220 is used to eject the paper that has been printed.
When printing an image onto each side of paper, an image is printed on one side of the paper and the paper turns over and returns to the print unit 100 through the sheet turn passage 320. The sheet turn passage 320 is separated from the sheet output passage 310 and extended to the feed roller 210.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a conventional circuit construction of a printer.
Referring to FIG. 2, the printer 200 includes an interface 202, a controller 204, a memory 206, a lookup table 208, an input/output (I/O) interface 210, an operator panel 212, and a print engine 214.
The operator panel 212 includes a plurality of keys for receiving various commands from the user and a display for presenting operational information to the user.
Through the interface 202, command signals, print data, and the like are received from the host computer (not shown) and signals such as printing status signals are sent to the host computer. The received print data from the host computer is buffered in the memory 206.
The controller 204 communicates with the host computer through the interface 202 and controls the print engine 214 to print the print data according to commands from the host computer and the operator panel 212. The controller 204 can also access lookup tables from lookup table 208.
The memory 206 stores setup values from the operator panel 212 and print data from the host computer under the control of the controller 204. Also, the memory 206 may store an operating program of the controller 204.
The I/O interface 210 connects the controller 204, the operator panel 212, and the print engine 214, for exchanging data such as input/out signals of the controller 204. The print data is transmitted to the print engine 214 through the I/O interface 210.
The print engine 214 includes many devices for feeding paper and printing on the paper, and performs the printing operation under the control of the controller 204.
Since the laser printer uses heat to affix the toner onto the paper, operational properties of the fixer 170 must be properly adjusted according to the size and type of the paper to be printed. For example, the fixing temperature and fixing speed must be properly set according to the size and type of the paper in order to affix the toner onto the paper thoroughly.
For this, the size and type of the paper are selected through a printer driver of the host computer in the related art.
FIG. 3 is a table illustrating the relationship between paper properties and fixing conditions of a printer shown in FIG. 2. T and V denote a reference temperature and a reference speed for fixing, respectively. ΔT1-ΔT4 and ΔV1-ΔV4 differ with respect to the type of paper used. T, V, ΔT and ΔV vary depending on the manufacturer and the model used. However, in general, the fixing temperature and fixing speed for thick paper and OHP are inferior to those for other types and sizes of paper.
The lookup table 208 stores a table shown in FIG. 3 and the controller 204 uses the values in the table 208. The controller 204 controls the fixing operation of the print engine 214 with the paper information of the printer driver and the fixing conditions of the lookup table 208.
FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating a method of controlling a conventional fixer.
Referring to FIG. 4, when a printing operation starts, the size and type of the paper are selected using the printer driver in step S402.
In step S404, the controller 204 sets the fixing speed and temperature of the print engine 214 according to the size and type of the paper selected from the printer driver.
In step S406, the development unit 140 of the print engine 214 forms a toner image on the photoconductive drum 110 and the transfer belt 150.
In step S408, the image transferred onto the transfer belt 150 is transferred to the paper.
In step S410, the fixer 170 of the print engine 214 performs a fixing operation according to the fixing speed and temperature set in step S404.
After above operations, the paper is output and the printing operation ends.
As described above, in the related art method of controlling the fixer of the printer, the fixing conditions (temperature and speed) is set before starting a printing operation according to the paper conditions (size and type) selected using the printer driver, and the printer performs the fixing operation according to the fixing conditions. However, if the paper conditions selected using the printer driver is not correct, the fixing operation is performed improperly.
The drawback of the related art method is that there is no way of correcting the paper conditions during printing operation when the selected paper conditions and actual paper conditions are different.
Accordingly, there is a need for setting fixing parameters based on actual paper size rather than a predetermined paper size.

Method and apparatus for controlling a fixer of a printer


A lock mechanism for use with a screen having a generally square or rectangular configuration and elongated hooks or flanges along two opposed side edges thereof, and rails which extend along and engage the hooks. The lock mechanism comprises at least one arm and a crank. The arm has an outer end coupled to a rail and an inner end pivotably connected to the crank. The crank is rotatable about an axis and it is pivotably connected to the arm on an axis which is spaced from the axis of rotation. Rotation of the crank in one direction causes the arm to be extended outwardly and stretch the screen; rotation of the crank in the other direction retracts the arm and relaxes the screen. A lock is provided between the arm and the crank to hold the arm extended, and a spring is preferably provided between the arm and the associated rail. Preferably a second arm, connected similarly to the first mentioned arm, connects the crank with the other rail.

This invention relates to shakers or separators for removing shale from drilling mud and for cleaning the mud; more particularly it relates to a mechanism for supporting and tensioning a screen of such a machine.
When drilling a well such as an oil or gas well, drilling mud is circulated through the hole, and the mud carries solids, such as pieces of shale, out of the hole. It is necessary to remove the solids from the mud before using it again, and a machine known as a shale shaker is provided for this purpose. A shaker includes one or more metal wire screens, and the mud is flowed through a screen in order to strain out the solids. The screen is normally vibrated or shaked in order to speed the flow of mud through it.
Each screen of a shaker is secured in a metal frame and is stretched tightly in the frame. In the prior art arrangement shown in FIG. 1 and described more fully hereinafter, a series of locks are provided along one side edge of the screen. The locks connect with and pull on one side edge in order to tension or stretch the screen.
While the prior art lock operates satisfactorily, it has a number of disadvantages. A number of locks are provided and they are independently operated, which requires either a number of men or an excessive amount of time to operate the locks in order to remove a screen and replace it. Since the locks are independently operated, they may not tension the screen uniformly along its length. Further, the locks are mounted along one side of the machine at a location which is rather difficult to service.
It is a general object of this invention to provide an improved tensioning and lock mechanism for a screen, which avoids the foregoing disadvantages.