A semiconductor device includes a first semiconductor layer, a second semiconductor layer and a third semiconductor layer. The second semiconductor layer is formed over the first semiconductor layer and includes a recess in a vertical direction towards the first semiconductor layer. The third semiconductor layer is formed in the recess of the second semiconductor layer and includes a seam or void in the recess.

The present application relates generally to mask layers in semiconductor devices such as 3D memory devices fabricated with silicon-nitride and polysilicon hard masks.
The reduction in size of memory devices such as 3D memory devices has caused the aspect ratio (e.g., ratio of height to width) of structures to increase. High aspect ratio structures can lose structural stability and bend. Such bending can cause poor device formation or even short circuits that can result in complete device failure.
There is a need for improved processes and structures for the formation of high aspect ratio structures.

Semiconductor device having polysilicon mask layer


The present application includes systems and methods for determining pointing error of a satellite antenna. In one aspect a method for determining pointing error of a satellite antenna includes receiving, at a receiving station, a pointing error signal formed by the antenna and transmitted from a satellite, wherein the pointing error signal includes a first beacon (reference) signal and a modulated second beacon (error) signal. The receiving station may demodulate the received pointing error signal to recover the second beacon signal with respect to the first beacon signal, and based at least in part on the demodulated beacon signal, the receiving station may determine the pointing error of the satellite antenna.

Satellites in orbit provide directed beams using antennas aimed precisely towards a target region on the Earth to provide high signal quality for transmitting and/or receiving ground stations in that region. However, due to a variety of factors, the directed beams may drift away from the intended region, significantly reducing the transmitted/received signal quality and potentially interrupting service (i.e. a communications link) between the satellite and transmitting/receiving ground stations. The drift of the directed beams is a particular problem for multi-spot beam satellites because of the narrow beamwidth of each directed beam. Maintaining an accurate orientation of the satellite antenna or antennas during orbit is necessary to ensure that the directed beams service the intended target region without degradations and interruptions. To compensate for any variations in satellite antenna orientation that are affecting the transmitted/received beams, satellites and satellite components, for example, antennas, require minor pointing corrections.
Some current solutions for determining pointing corrections include utilizing "on-board" auto-tracking systems or multi-station tracking. However each existing solution has drawbacks. Accordingly, improved techniques for ground-based determination and correction of pointing error of a satellite are disclosed herein.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Ground-based satellite antenna pointing system

Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems, Inc.


A cloud network server system, a method, and a software program product for experiencing a three-dimensional (3D) model are provided. 3D model data associated with a 3D video game is uploaded to the cloud network server system. The system and method are used to design for example a computer game that renders non-spatial characteristics such as, smell, reflection and/or refraction of light, wind direction, sound reflection, etc., along with spatial and visibility information associated with 3D objects displayed in the 3D video game. Different versions of the 3D model are created based on memory, streaming bandwidth, and/or processing power requirements of different user terminal computers. Based on a virtual location of a user in the 3D model, parts of at least one version of the 3D model are rendered to the user.

Three-dimensional (3D) graphic models have wide variety of applications in a field of virtual reality, augmented reality, gaming, robotics, education, military, etc. 3D modelling comprises performing surface reconstruction where interactions between objects are reconstructed to create a 3D model.
Typically, 3D modeling comprises processing large data sets corresponding to object geometries to compose lifelike 3D models in real time. Such 3D modelling requires large storage space in the computing environment, and makes the process computationally expensive and time consuming. Rendering of the 3D models when done in real-time requires a large memory footprint, as a large number of geometries need to be displayed in high-resolution, comprising detailed textures, and in appropriate lighting conditions. Advantageous run time performance of 3D modelling systems can be achieved by reducing memory usage required for the computation and the storage of the 3D models.
A graphics engine configured to build voxel cells and portal graphs associated with 3D graphics data is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,988,431. This document is cited here as reference. Rendering shading and light effects on 3D computer graphics was already known in Ren et al. WO 2014159285. This document is also cited here as reference.
How a web server in communication with an external design application and an external display application facilitates rendering, display, navigation, and/or sharing of computer generated designs and models is discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,245,064. This document is also cited here as reference.
However, the prior art is deficient in techniques that would integrate designing and display of 3D graphic models on a web server for providing virtual reality experience of 3D environments with greater virtual reality detail that is not only contained to the large wall, floor and roof features of the 3D space.

Three-dimensional modelling with improved virtual reality experience


The present disclosure discusses a devices, systems and methods for transvascular, transvenous and/or transdural access, to the brain parenchyma, subarachnoid or subdural spaces. In some embodiments, the disclosed systems and methods may be used for local drug delivery, tissue biopsy, nanofluidic or microelectronic device/component delivery/insertion/implantation, in situ imaging, ablation of abnormal brain tissue and the like. Embodiments of the present disclosure include an access catheter system for extravascular procedures in the brain having an elongate, flexible tubular body, with at least one lumen extending axially there through between a proximal end, and a distal end. The access catheter system may include a side exit port and a distal end port. Further, the access catheter system may include a selective deflector positioned within the lumen configured to deflect a procedure catheter and permit a guide catheter.

Access to brain tissue may be required to confirm or treat neurologic diseases involving malignancy, inflammation, aberrant circuitry, or neuropathology in general, as well as to investigate fundamental properties of the brain for basic science exploration. Access to samples of intracranial tissue (i.e., for biopsy, in situ imaging, or cytological analysis) can be used to provide prognosis, tailor treatments, and monitor responses to treatment, as well as advance scientific understanding of the brain and its related functions or physiology. In addition to being used for evaluation via methods of histology, in situ imaging, and cytology, access to regions of brain tissue may be useful for the insertion of devices, such as probes, drug delivery systems or apparatuses, electronic devices with tissue or media sensing/stimulating/modulating properties (e.g., deep brain stimulators, optoelectronic devices, electrode-based microfluidic devices, cortical/intracortical arrays, or other forms of closed-loop neuromodulatory systems), or therapeutic agents (e.g., thermal ablative energy or chemicals, chemotherapeutics, immunonologics, or cytoactive agents that either do not readily cross the blood brain barrier, selectively target cell-populations of interest, or may cause excessive systemic toxicity).
Conventional methods for accessing brain tissue are invasive as they require open craniotomy and/or stereotactic surgery through burr holes. Consequently, conventional methods of accessing brain tissue are prone to the complications of surgery. Complications include disfigurement, pain, perioperative infection, symptomatic hemorrhage, seizure, edema, skull and dura defects, increased length of hospital stay, patient fear/anxiety, morbidity tolerance, hospital admissions associated with high costs and significant rates of complications, neurologic deficits, and even death. Accordingly, the threshold for neurosurgical intervention remains high due to either risks or physician/patient reluctance, which may in turn result in delays to diagnosis, treatment, and consequently, worse outcomes.
Further, conventional methods for accessing brain tissue may rely upon stereotactic neurosurgical methods with proxy fiducial markers, which may result in mistargeting, suboptimal placement, or excessive collateral damage. Stereotactic neurosurgery may rely upon static or temporally irresolute non-invasive imaging (e.g., pre-operative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and/or co-registration with non-invasive imaging modalities, linear/line-of-sight trajectories, and external fiducial markers to guide tissue biopsy, ablative therapies, electrode placement, and device implantation. The trajectories of endoscopic instrumentation in stereotactic neurosurgery rely on optimal burr hole drilling technique/execution and/or the fidelity of external fiducial markers and/or the accuracy of static or temporally irresolute image references. However, fiducial markers may physically move during the pre-operative or intraoperative period. and are located at a distance from the target tissue, which may result in suboptimal targeting when there are minor deviations in the incident insertion angle. These and more invasive methods may rely upon removing a cortical bone, dissection or incision of the meninges, and gross manipulation of the brain either by retraction, resection, suction, or ablation of tissue regions of interest. The large and rigid instrumentation (e.g., endoscopes, cannulas, etc.) utilized in minimally invasive stereotactic neurosurgery relies on linear or line-of-sight trajectories to reach a target region of interest, resulting in excessive and unwanted collateral damage, which is often a source of iatrogenic harm.
Minimally invasive catheter-based approaches to medical intervention are experiencing rising demand due to preference by clinicians and patients alike, and recognition by payers of the potential cost-savings to the healthcare system. Since their inception, percutaneous catheter-based interventions have lowered the threshold and broadened the inclusion criteria for diagnosing and treating disease earlier in its course and in patients with advanced disease or otherwise deemed too high risk for standard surgical or more invasive percutaneous approaches. Moreover, percutaneous catheter-based endovascular methods of diagnosis and treatment continue to evolve with increasing sophistication due to advances in materials science, nano- and micro-fabrication methods, optical technology, microelectromechanical systems, and engineering that often compare to, or in many cases supplant, open and current state of the art minimally invasive surgical approaches without compromising efficacy. Despite these technological advancements, catheter-based neuroendovascular modes of diagnosis and treatment for non-vascular disease remain under-developed.
In humans, the cerebral venous system courses through and overlays a range of important brain structures and provide access to a number of functionally significant cortical and subcortical structures and represents a promising avenue for biopsy, ablation, targeted drug delivery, epilepsy mapping, neuronal recording, neurostimulation, neuromodulation, and brain-machine interface. Specifically, the Superior Sagittal Sinus, the Inferior Anastomotic Vein of Labbé, the Superior Anastomotic Vein of Trolard, Superficial Middle Cerebral Vein, Superior Petrosal Sinus, Great Vein of Galen, Internal Cerebral Veins, and the Basal Vein of Rosenthal, and their respective tributaries provide endovascular routes to the limbic structures, thalamus, basal ganglia, occipital, temporal, parietal, and frontal cortices. The diameters of the Superior Sagittal Sinus, Transverse Sinus, and Straight Sinus in humans are reported to measure between 3.0 mm to 4.5 mm, 2.0 to 4.0 mm, and 1.5 to 3.0 mm (rostral to caudal), respectively. The Anastomotic Vein of Labbé ranges between 2.6 mm to ˜3 mm. The deep cerebral venous system—namely, the Great Vein of Galen, Basal Vein of Rosenthal, and internal cerebral veins—features rostral to caudal diameter ranges of 1.84 mm to 2.32 mm, 1.72 mm to 1.78 mm, and 0.90 mm to 1.60 mm, respectively. Advantageously, the cerebral venous system is a low flow system with pressures ranging between 10-15 mm Hg. Compared to the arterial system, cerebral veins possess relatively large lumens due to a negligible tunica media. These low flow vessels represent a promising avenue for transvascular access to extravascular spaces in the intracranial vault with the proposed transvascular catheter-based approach.
Techniques for navigating the subarachnoid space in human cadaveric brain did so with endoscopes and microcatheters from a percutaneous translumbar intraspinal route. These methods demonstrated atraumatic catheter navigation through the subarachnoid space as far as the anterior fossa from a lumbar puncture site using a passive-traction, over-the-wire technique. Notably, these conventional techniques do not provide a method for introducing endovascular catheters through systemic or extracranial vessels, advancing endovascular catheter(s) through an anastomotic vascular channel to gain access to the intracranial vascular system, or exiting an intracranial vascular tubular lumen via transvascular puncture to then enter and navigate extravascular spaces within the intracranial vault.
Conventional techniques for transvenous access from the inferior petrosal sinus (IPS) into cerebellar-pontine angle cistern describe the use a of needle encased in a sheathing component navigated over a flat rail guidewire affixed to a temporary stent. When unsheathed, the needle penetrates across the vessel lumen and the encasing dura of the IPS for subsequent placement of a catheter-deliverable transvenous/transdural cerebrospinal fluid shunt. The implanted shunt will have its distal end residing in the cerebellopontine angle cistern (CPA cistern) and its more proximal component within the IPS lumen.
As alluded to above, these conventional techniques stabilize transcatheter device delivery systems with the deployment of a temporary stent distal to the intended transvenous puncture site to anchor a flat rail guidewire over which the sheathed needle is tracked. Importantly, these conventional techniques rely on and exploit the anatomical configuration and angle of the IPS near the CPA cistern. These-conventional techniques however are not configured for distal venous access beyond the sigmoid sinus into more distal cerebral veins/sinuses nor are these instruments or techniques configured to navigate to remote extravascular spaces or tissue beyond the perivascular CPA cisternal space (i.e., to/through/within brain parenchyma, or the subdural/subarachnoid compartments), nor are these prior art techniques configured to provide maneuvers, tools, or materials for ensuring hemostasis after transvascular puncture and the removal of the select transvascular instrumentation, devices, or tools proposed herein. Pertinently, these conventional techniques solely provide a method for implanting and explanting a device or delivering therapeutics into the CPA cistern from the IPS.
Conventional methods for implantation of an intravascular electrode array within a tubular lumen (i.e., intracranial vessel) and configuring it to operate with a tissue/media signal sense or stimulate system and related components do not describe a method for extravascular navigation of the intracranial vault nor do these conventional methods describe directly sampling or accessing brain tissue for biopsy, imaging, ablation, or drug delivery.
In addition, conventional methods for recording or stimulating may only sense or stimulate tissue or media located in close (2-5 millimeters) proximity to the blood vessel wherein it is implanted and are not configured to interface directly with the tissue topology over a spatial extent to capture the source, spatiotemporal evolution, or dynamics of biopotential signals originating from the cortical surface across a centimeter scale and/or across cytoarchitectonic boundaries, such as the proposed embodied method would enable.
Furthermore, conventional systems demonstrating transvenous deep brain stimulator insertion do not detail the requisite catheter scale, specifications, or co-axial transcatheter instrumentation, nor do they describe methods or devices for ensuring post-procedural hemostasis, such as those described herein. Prior-work describing remote navigation to distal cerebral veins for electrophysiology capture and/or radiofrequency ablation are maintained intraluminally and do not provide the in situ, topological precision necessary for clinical applications, such as epilepsy, cortical mapping/stimulation, biopsy, in situ imaging, thermal energy ablation, or direct drug delivery.
Conventional systems featuring a catheter design with serially placed balloons have a plurality of lateral wall ports for concentrating embolic or chemotherapeutic agents within a vessel segment of interest to concentrate cytoactive agents for improved transmural diffusion to an extravascular tissue segment of interest. These conventional methods do not allow nor are they configured for co-axial or transcatheter instrumentation through these lateral ports. Conventional systems utilizing serially placed balloons at the distal end of a catheter have been described to occlude transcutaneous stomas or lumens of the gastrointestinal and genitourinary tracts, but are not configured with the requisite scale, materials, nor are previously discussed methods configured for endovascular use, for intracranial navigation, nor do they permit co-axial or transcatheter instrumentation from a lateral wall working exit lumen port.
Conventional catheters used for the uterus and pelvis are also limited in that they are typically made of silicon, or with other mechanically weak materials that are susceptible to breakage.
Conventional systems with lateral wall or offset exit ports featuring deployable needles or guidewires through those ports have been illustrated for use to cross chronic total occlusions (CTOs) or for enabling biopsy of the myocardial tissue. These conventional systems are configured for accessing the subintimal or perivascular tissue or media from the lumen of peripheral and coronary arteries. More particularly, commercially-available embodiments of conventional systems for CTOs have a stiff segment at their distal end, and are configured to provide distal pushability across stenotic or occluded segments of peripheral arteries, and are not configured for atraumatically navigating the intracranial cerebral venous system. Conventional systems for transluminal interventions using vessel wall penetrators, required a multi-lumen design and were limited to operation in high pressure vessels.

Apparatus, systems and methods for transvascular access to the brain


A discharge lamp and a headlight for a motor vehicle are proposed. A moving member is provided, which is movable between at least two positions, for switching over between different light distributions. It comprises at least one optically active element, preferably a lens, which generates an image of the gas discharge which is shifted away from the actual location thereof. A switch-over between two different light distributions is made possible by a movement of the moving member between the two positions in the headlight, such that the gas discharge seems to be shifted by the switch-over for a respective region of the reflector, whereby different light distributions are created. Preferably, the moving member is the outer bulb of the discharge lamp, on which two lenses are arranged and which is rotatable about the optical axis.

The invention relates to a discharge lamp and to a headlight for a motor vehicle.
Besides the incandescent lamps which have been used for a long time in automobile application, discharge lamps are also increasingly used for motor vehicle lighting. A gas discharge which emits a very intensive light is generated in a closed discharge vessel between two electrodes in known discharge lamps.
A discharge lamp usually comprises a lamp base, a burner comprising a discharge vessel, and an outer bulb. The lamp base serves to retain the burner and to position the lamp and contact it electrically in a headlight. The actual light generation takes place in the discharge vessel. Usually, an outer bulb of glass is arranged around the discharge vessel. This bulb serves to filter out UV radiation from the emitted light.
A motor vehicle headlight comprises a reflector and a lamp projecting through an opening into the interior of the reflector. The lamp is exactly positioned with its lamp base in a holder of the reflector, so that the discharge vessel is arranged in an exactly defined location. The reflector surface is illuminated by the emitted light. A headlight beam is formed thereby which, depending on the shape of the reflector surface, is radiated in forward direction. Various specifications exist for such headlight beams, depending on the lighting function to be performed. Thus a low beam, for example, must exhibit an asymmetrical light distribution with a substantially horizontally sharply delimited bright/dark cut-off, so that oncoming traffic is not dazzled. In a high beam, on the other hand, the maximum light intensity should be concentrated on the optical axis, while the remaining light distribution may be approximately symmetrical, and there is no bright/dark cut-off.
Although the discharge lamp has a number of advantages over conventional halogen lamps, it is considerably more difficult in a discharge lamp, as compared, for example, with known H4 lamps, for one lamp or one headlight with one lamp to be able to fulfill two lighting functions at the same time.
Thus DE-A-4435507 describes a headlight with a reflector and a light source which is arranged in a lamp holder, which lamp holder can be pivoted relative to the reflector by means of an adjustment element about a horizontal axis between a position for the low beam and a position for the high beam. In addition, movable screens are shown, which screens move during the pivoting movement from the low-beam to the high-beam position such that a lower region of the reflector, which is cut off in the low-beam position, is illuminated in the high-beam position.
DE-A-19825375 describes a headlight with a gas discharge lamp for motor vehicles, which headlight can be screened and unscreened. The gas discharge lamp is incorporated in a fixed position in the reflector housing of the reflector. A polarizing filter, which can be made transparent and opaque so as to serve as the control adjustment member, is arranged in the reflector housing such that a switch-over can be made between the low-beam and high-beam functions.
EP-A-0324652 describes an automobile headlight with a parabolic reflector and a gas discharge lamp. The gas discharge lamp is positioned in the focus of the reflector. To switch over between high beam and low beam, the light arc of the lamp is deflected through the generation of an electric or magnetic field such that a high beam is generated in conjunction with the reflector and the light arc in a first position, and a low beam in another position.
GB-A-2216332 describes a headlight for an automobile in which a gas discharge lamp is arranged inside a reflector. The gas discharge lamp generates a very concentrated light at its cathode. The location of the light generation is switched over between the electrodes arranged at a distance from one another through a change in the polarity, so that a low beam or a high beam is generated owing to different reflections on the reflector.
The existing solutions have a few practical disadvantages. In the case of a mechanical movement of the burner, it is very complicated to achieve the necessary exact positioning inside the reflector. The other solutions also proved to be complicated and not satisfactory in all cases.
Against this background, it is an object of the invention to provide a lamp and a headlight for a motor vehicle in which a switch-over between two lighting functions takes place in a simple manner, while nevertheless an exact positioning of the discharge vessel is maintained.
This object is achieved by means of a discharge lamp as claimed in claim 1 and a headlight as claimed in claim 6. Dependent claims relate to advantageous embodiments of the invention.
According to the invention, a moving member comprising at least one optically active element is provided at the lamp. The moving member is movably provided at the lamp, so that it can assume at least two different positions with respect to the discharge vessel.
The moving member comprises at least one optically active element. Preferred elements which may be used are lenses, but, for example, also prisms or mirrors, in particular concave mirrors. The optically active element generates an image of the gas discharge in the discharge vessel which is shifted with respect to the actual location of the gas discharge. The result of this is that the gas discharge seems to be shifted when observed from a location optically situated behind the optically active element.
The moving member is movable between at least two positions, so that it can be actively controlled whether from a given direction the discharge vessel with the discharge taking place therein is directly visible, or the shifted image thereof is visible through the optically active element.
A headlight according to the invention comprises a reflector and a lamp with a moving member. A certain region of the reflector is illuminated, in dependence on the position of the moving member, either directly by the gas discharge or indirectly through the optically active element, i.e. by the shifted image of the discharge generated by the element. The discharge vessel appears to be in its actual position or in a shifted position viewed from this region of the reflector, in dependence on the position of the moving member.
A movement of the actual light-generating element, i.e. the discharge vessel, is not necessary with the lamp according to the invention and the headlight according to the invention. The discharge vessel and the entire burner can indeed remain in place, which is advantageous in particular in respect of their fixed retention, exact positioning, and electrical connection. The moving member may be directly attached to the lamp, for example to the lamp base. It is alternatively possible, however, to arrange the moving member separately in the reflector.
The invention achieves the effect that the light-generating discharge vessel is seemingly switched between two positions, depending on the position of the moving member, for at least certain reflector regions. As is known from the cited prior art and also from conventional H4 lamps, two lighting functions can be realized with one reflector through shifting of the light-generating element. It is known in detail to those skilled in the art how a displacement of the light source influences a light beam emitted by a reflector. This effect is utilized, for example, with dual-filament incandescent lamps (for example H4), in which two different light beams are generated with one reflector and two coils arranged at a small distance from one another, such that two lighting functions are performed. With a parabolic reflector, for example, a slight displacement from the focus in forward and upward direction leads to a distribution which causes a low-beam distribution shifted in downward direction with respect to the parallel light beam. The shifting of the light source in conjunction with specially designed xe2x80x9cindependent surfacexe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9ccomplex shapexe2x80x9d reflector surfaces, whose shapes are digitally determined for the relevant application, renders it possible to generate two different light beams whose requirements are each defined beforehand and are taken into account in the design of the surfaces.
In a further embodiment of the invention, it is proposed that the moving member is a sleeve of a transparent material which surrounds the discharge vessel. In a particularly advantageous embodiment, this sleeve is the outer bulb of the discharge vessel. Said outer bulb, which has served mainly as a UV filter until now, is fixedly connected to the discharge vessel in conventional applications, usually by fusion. This, however, is not necessarily the case. This is why the outer bulb may be used as the moving member.
The outer bulb is usually arranged longitudinally with respect to the optical axis. It may be axially shifted when serving as the moving member. It is preferred, however, that the moving member is capable of rotation, in particular about the optical axis. A satisfactory support and an exact positioning are easy to achieve in that case. The operation may be realized in various ways. The use of mechanical adjustment drives as well as a direct drive by an electric motor is possible. Piezoactuators and the use of electromagnets are also conceivable.
In an advantageous embodiment, the optically active element is provided at the outer bulb. Preferably, there are two optical elements which are provided at mutually opposed sides of the outer bulb and which are active in a plane perpendicular to the optical axis on which the light source is situated, each over an angular range of 25 to 120xc2x0, preferably approximately 60 to 90xc2x0.
Lenses are preferred as the optically active elements, which lenses are formed such that they cause the gas discharge to appear to be displaced, preferably in the direction of the optical axis, when viewed through the lens. Suitable lenses may be readily designed by those skilled in the art for the respective applications.

Discharge lamp and headlight for a motor vehicle


A flexographic printing machine, especially for flexographic web printing, has at least one printing unit. The printing unit comprises a printing cylinder or an endless printing belt drawn on round a back-up cylinder and a tension roller, an impression cylinder, an engraved roller for transferring the ink to the printing cylinder or to the printing belt, and an ink drier. A paper web runs through all the printing units. Incorporated in each printing unit is a working engraved roller, which can be uncoupled from a drive shaft of the flexographic printing machine during the operation of the latter, and at least one stand-by engraved roller which can be connected automatically in exchange during the set-up time.

The invention relates to a flexographic printing machine, especially for flexographic web printing, which comprises at least one printing unit, each with a printing cylinder or an endless printing belt drawn on round a back-up cylinder and a tension roller, with an impression cylinder, with an engraved roller transferring the ink to the printing cylinder or to the printing belt, and with an ink drier, and a paper web running through all the printing units and guided via an idler roller or idler rollers and a draw roller or draw rollers between the printing cylinder or printing belt and the impression cylinder and through the ink drier.
In conventional flexographic printing machines, a printing cylinder is used as a plate carrier or rubber cylinders with a structured surface are used. The disadvantage of these printing cylinders carrying the negative printing pattern on their surface is that they have to be exchanged for each printing order. U.S. Pat. No. 3,518,940 therefore proposes a printing mechanism comprising an endless belt composed of polyethylene terephthalate, on which the flexible printing plates are mounted.
Messrs. Conprinta Ltd., Zurich, further developed the flexographic printing machines with an endless printing belt and described these in their prospectus "Flexographic Printing Presses". The basic principle of these flexographic printing machines is illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 which represent prior art. A dimensionally stable endless belt 11 is drawn onto a back-up cylinder 12 and a tension roller 14. Flexible printing plates 16 are fastened to the outer face of this endless belt, thus forming a printing belt 10. The printing ink is transferred to the printing plates 16 from an engraved roller 18 which dips into an ink bath (not shown). Excess ink is scraped off by a doctor blade 20 designed in the form of a negative angle. The paper web 22 guided in the direction of the arrow is pressed onto the printing plates by an impression cylinder 24 and printed on one side.
An optionally mountable short endless belt 11' having only a few printing plates 16' and tensioned by a tension roller 14' is represented by broken lines.
FIG. 2 shows a cut-out from the printing belt 10. The endless belt 11 serving as a carrier consists of a polyester film, for example approximately 0.25 mm thick, especially polyethylene terephthalate. The physical properties of the transversely and longitudinally stretched film material are the same in all directions. The uniformity extends over a wide temperature and humidity range. Furthermore, the film-like belt material has good elongation and high impact resistance in transverse and longitudinal directions. Finally, the flexible film material of the endless belt is chemically resistant and withstands oils, greases, printing inks, etc. The longitudinal sides of the endless belt 11 are provided with a perforation 26, through which engage knobs of the spiked disks transporting the belt in a known way. The printing belt can thus be prevented from sliding on the rollers.
The flexible printing plates 16 conventionally consist of a photopolymer material or rubber and are glued to the endless belt 11 by means of a suitable adhesive. In the present example, the printing plates 16 have a structured surface 28 which produces the printing pattern.
The advantage of the above-described printing belt 10 is that the flexible printing plates 16 do not have to be mounted on a printing cylinder, but can be glued to the endless belt which is easily removed from the flexographic printing machine after use. All the printing belts used can be rolled onto a tube and stored in a space-saving way.
At present, flexographic prints of a width up to 2.5 m are produced by means of printing belts of a length of up to 4.5 m. The flexographic printing machines work at high speed and are equipped with checking instruments for the automatic monitoring and recording of the paper webs.
Flexographic printing machines constructed according to the Conprinta System are conventionally equipped with 3 to 10 printing units. Any printing unit not participating in the current printing process can be equipped for the next working step during that available idle time. During this, the printing belt no longer used is removed, the new printing belt is fitted and the printing ink is exchanged. This usually takes 5 to 15 minutes.
Of course, instead of the printing belt, individual printing units can also contain a conventional structured or non-structured printing cylinder. This applies primarily to smooth or structured lacquerings or to the application of a base color.
The inventor made it his object to improve further a flexographic printing machine of the type mentioned in the introduction and make its mode of operation more efficient. In particular, an engraved roller with the best possible screen should be available for each printing, without the need for assembly work which involves a high outlay and which is detrimental to the operating time of the machine.

Flexographic printing machine, especially for flexographic blank printing


A vehicle-mounted device includes vehicle information detecting unit for detecting an on/off state of vehicle power, relay input/output unit for controlling an external relay configured to make a switch between a starting-disabled state and a starting-enabled state of a vehicle, and vehicle information-associated control unit for controlling the external relay based on a relay control command. The vehicle information-associated control unit controls the external relay based on an elapsed time since a change in the on/off state of vehicle power detected by the vehicle information detecting unit.

In the conventional automobile distribution and leasing industry, people have been unable to obtain vehicles without passing strict finance credit screening. Nowadays, a service has been proposed to users who have the ability to pay but fail to pass a conventional credit screening. This service eliminates credit screening but provides a vehicle and, if the charge (for example, monthly fee) is not paid within a predetermined time limit, remotely stops the vehicle and specifies the position of the vehicle for vehicle retrieval.
An example of a system for implementing such a service is disclosed in Patent Literature 1, in which a vehicle is equipped with a vehicle-mounted device with a remote control function, and this vehicle-mounted device is connected to a network so that a server remotely controls the vehicle or a server acquires information on the vehicle. Such a vehicle connected to a network is called a "connected car". In this system, if the user does not pay the charge within a predetermined time limit, or if theft of the vehicle is detected, the starting of the vehicle is restricted under an instruction from the server, for example, when the following conditions are satisfied:                the present position of the vehicle is a particular location or within a particular range;        the engine of the vehicle is not being started; and        a certain time has elapsed since the vehicle was stopped or parked.
Patent Literature 2 discloses a remote control system for auto loan and auto lease, in which a relay switch device is controlled such that the starting of the engine of a target vehicle is disabled when the loan payment or the lease fee is not settled, and the relay switch device is also controlled such that a lock state is entered to disable the starting of the engine when the transmission/reception antenna or the GPS antenna is removed.
Patent Literature 3 to Patent Literature 5 disclose techniques for performing control such that the starting of a vehicle is disabled by remote operation in anti-theft devices.
Patent Literature 3 discloses an antitheft system for construction machines using a satellite, in which at a point in time when a construction machine is found stolen, a stop signal is transmitted from a personal computer terminal of the manager of the construction machine to a satellite communication unit of the construction machine through a satellite, whereby the construction machine at a remote location is controlled such that the starting of the engine is disabled, or the engine is stopped, or the hydraulic operation of the machine is disabled. In addition, even if an illegal intruder succeeds in starting the engine by directly connecting the battery with the engine starter motor using a cable, the control that disables the hydraulic operation of each pilot valve prevents the construction machine from being operated.
Patent Literature 4 discloses a vehicle remote operation system in which a request signal is transmitted from a mobile phone to a communication ECU of the vehicle through a radio base station, and a remote ECU that receives the request signal from the communication ECU disables the use of a specific one of the devices mounted on the vehicle, whereby effective measures against theft can be taken even when the key of the vehicle is stolen. In this system, the remote ECU is connected to ECUs such as a door lock ECU, an immobilizer ECU, and a smart ECU through a vehicle LAN.
Patent Literature 5 discloses a vehicle antitheft system in which when a theft alarm signal is transmitted from a mobile phone to an antitheft control circuit on the vehicle through an antitheft service center, the antitheft control circuit supplies an engine restart-prohibiting signal command to an engine control circuit, under the condition that the vehicle speed is "0", and sets the engine to a restarting-disabled state.


Provided are optimizations to the memory virtualization model employed in a virtual machine environment. An opportunistic hypervisor page mapping process is used in order to utilize large memory pages in a virtual machine environment. Using these optimizations, physical memory is being virtualized for the virtual machine in a manner that allows the operating system (OS) running within the virtual machine to take real and full advantage of large physical memory pages.

Current virtual memory operating systems (OSs) use large memory pages in order to speed up virtual-to-physical address translation and in order to make a more efficient use of the processor's translation look-aside buffer (TLB). This allows such operating systems to boost overall performance by mapping OS code and data to large physical pages. Applications running within the OS are also able to map certain regions of their virtual address space to large physical pages.
When the OS runs within a virtual machine, an extra level of indirection is added to the address translation process. This happens because when the OS running inside the virtual machine references physical memory, it essentially references an abstraction layer that needs to be further translated to the underlying physical memory on the actual hardware. This extra level of indirection causes a situation in which the OS (when running inside a virtual machine) uses large physical pages, but the extra translation causes the underlying machine physical memory to reside in sparse machine physical pages that can not be treated as a large page. The end result is that even though the OS intended to optimize address translation by using large pages, the actual address translation performed on behalf of the virtual machine will be done using small pages. This will, in turn, degrade the overall OS performance.
In this regard, there is a need for processes and systems that address the shortcomings of the prior art.

Large page optimizations in a virtual machine environment


Generally discussed herein are systems and apparatuses that can include a flexible substrate with a hermetic seal formed thereon. The disclosure also includes techniques of making and using the systems and apparatuses. According to an example a technique of making a hermetic seal on a flexible substrate can include (1) forming an interconnect on a flexible substrate, (2) situating a device on the substrate near the interconnect, or (3) selectively depositing a first hermetic material on the device or interconnect so as to hermetically seal the device within the combination of the interconnect and first hermetic material.

Current mobile devices (beyond mobile phones and tablets) are termed as "internet of things" (i.e. the internetworking of things). The internet of things includes wearables that can include small, low power silicon integrated into unique form factors (e.g., flexible fitness bands, smart watches, smart eye wear, etc.). As the product category of wearables continues to evolve, new devices will emerge with other unique form factors and use conditions.


An air drag reduction apparatus attaches to the rear of vehicles having a generally rectangular rear end, such as tractor trailers, busses, and recreational vehicles. A left side roller is mounted in a generally vertical orientation to the rear of the vehicle and a right side roller is mounted in a generally vertical orientation to the rear of the vehicle, where the left side roller and the right side roller are each rotatable about a vertical axis. The left side roller and the right side roller may be mounted with attachment mechanisms which allow the rollers to each be moved out of the way as the rear door or doors of the vehicle are opened.

Drag is known to have a significant impact on the fuel efficiency of tractor-trailer trucks. Such vehicles, operating in the United States, were estimated in 2012 to consume approximately 30 billion gallons of fuel per year. Because of the magnitude of fuel usage for such vehicles, implementing measures which improve fuel efficiency can have a significant impact on overall usage and the emissions resulting from such usage.
As reported in the prior art, a reduction in drag can have a substantial positive impact on fuel economy. One approach to reducing drag is make modifications to the trailer. Recognized areas for addressing the aerodynamics of a trailer are at the gap between the tractor and the trailer, at the underbody of the trailer, and at the rear of the trailer. However, opportunities for improving the aerodynamics of the gap area are diminishing because of the evolution of improved aerodynamics for new tractors. Thus, tractor-to-trailer gap management devices are typically only necessary for older tractors which require a higher tractor-to-trailer gap for maneuverability. The common approach to improving the aerodynamics of the underbody is to employ underbody skirts which prevent wind from ducking in under the trailer and running into the non-aerodynamic trailer bogie—the subassembly of axles and wheels that support the trailer.
With respect to the rear of a trailer, devices which mount to the rear of the trailer are generally called boat tails or trailer wake devices. These devices modify the air flow as it leaves the trailing edge of the side and top of the trailer. Low pressure on the trailer base due to the aerodynamic wake, combined with high pressure on the front face of the vehicle, causes a net pressure differential that generates a force in the downwind direction. Increasing the base pressure reduces this differential and reduces the net drag on the vehicle. Tapering the back end of the vehicle increases the base pressure by providing pressure recovery of the surrounding flow before it leaves the sharp back edges and forms a wake. The increased base pressure provides a lowered overall pressure difference from front to back of the tractor-trailer combination.
However, while the positive impact of drag reduction devices is recognized in the literature, widespread acceptance of these devices on the rear of trailers has not been realized. One reason is that there remains doubt regarding the overall benefit of the devices in relation to their cost. In addition, the inventor herein suspects another reason for the lack of broad acceptance is that there are operational barriers which negatively impact the cost/benefit ratio. For example, drag reduction devices typically employ structures or appurtenances which extend outwardly from the body of the tractor-trailer truck. The devices add to the overall weight of the vehicle. Such structures can present maintenance challenges and can reduce the overall clearance of tractor-trailer truck. All such devices will require at least a minimal increase in maintaining the vehicle. There are also questions regarding the durability, reliability, and ease of use of the devices in day-to-day operations.
Some drag reduction devices also present operational problems. One of the operational problems presented by some drag reduction devices is that the devices can interfere with the loading and unloading operations for the tractor-trailer truck. For example, devices which mount to or near the rear of a vehicle can interfere with the opening and closing of the doors of the trailer, whether roll-up doors or swing doors which open outwardly. However, because of the substantial benefits to be gained in fuel economy with the use of such devices, a drag reduction device which is effective and which has a minimal impact on the operating ease of the tractor-trailer is desirable.

Drag reduction device and method for wheeled vehicles


A crushing device includes a horizontal shaft impact crusher having an impeller rotating around a horizontal shaft and at least one curtain against which material may be crushed. The crushing device further includes a first feeding device for feeding a first type of material to be crushed to a crushing chamber of the horizontal shaft impact crusher. A second feeding device feeds a second type of material, having a smaller average particle size than the first type of material, to the crushing chamber simultaneously with the first feeding device feeding the first type of material to the crushing chamber. A mixing arrangement for at least partially mixes the first and the second types of materials with each other before bringing them into contact with the impeller.

Horizontal shaft impact crushers (HSI-crushers) are utilized in many applications for crushing hard material, such as pieces of rock, ore etc. A HSI-crusher has an impeller that is made to rotate around a horizontal axis. Pieces of rock are fed towards the impeller and are struck by beater elements mounted on the impeller. The pieces of rock are disintegrated by being struck by the beater elements, and are accelerated and thrown against breaker plates, often referred to as curtains, against which further disintegration occurs. The action of the impeller thus causes the material fed to the horizontal shaft impact crusher to move freely in a crushing chamber and to be crushed upon impact against the beater elements, against the curtains, and against other pieces of material moving around at high speed in the crushing chamber.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,189,820 discloses a HSI-crusher having a crushing chamber in which material supplied to the crusher can be crushed. On some occasions it is difficult to adjust the curtains to obtain the desired particle size in the crushed product leaving the crusher.

Method of feeding material to a horizontal shaft impact crusher, and a crushing device


A method for performing wireless communication in a data-collection system includes a) listening whether a channel is free or busy and if the channel is free, transmitting; b) if the channel is busy, generating a random number and associating therewith a first interval of time to determine the instant of the start of transmission and further whether said channel is busy, identifying a second variable interval of time, monitoring the data exchanged in said channel with other devices that occupy the channel, queuing a third interval of time obtained from said first interval of time onto said second interval of time and transmitting at the end of said third interval of time. The second interval of time has a duration that is equal to the time wherein the channel remains in busy status.

The invention relates to a method for performing a wireless communication in a data collection system, the system comprising a plurality of devices communicating with one another over a first data network performed by means of a single wireless channel, in which access to said channel is based on a CSMA (English acronym for Carrier Sense Multiple Access) data transmission technique.
In particular, said communication method relates to a communication system in which the devices comprise a plurality of portable data-collection units and at least one base unit, communicating over a radio frequency wireless network.
Data-collection apparatuses are known comprising data-collection units which are able to read optical information, for example barcodes or RFID tags. The data-collection unit can be grasped by an operator and is thus portable. The data-collection apparatus may further comprise a base unit arranged for receiving and supporting the portable data-collection unit when the data-collection unit is not in use, or, alternatively, for communicating with the portable data-collection unit in order to acquire the collected data from said portable unit.
Each portable unit comprises a portable battery-driven data acquisition, and possibly management, device intended for interacting with a base unit for recharging the battery and/or for exchanging data. The portable unit may be a PDT (portable data terminal) i.e. a portable terminal for the automatic or manual acquisition of data, or, in general, a portable automatic identification terminal such as a portable reader of optical information or of coded information stored in a transponder (also called in English a Radio Frequency Identification Device or "RFID tag").
The base unit may comprise a battery-charging device that supplies batteries with which the portable unit is provided. Alternatively, if the battery-charging device is contained in the portable unit, the base unit comprises a supply circuit for the battery charger.
The portable data-collection unit can therefore assume a use configuration in which it is grasped by the user to acquire the optical information or the RFID tags and is communicated over a wireless network with the base unit, and a rest configuration, in which it is received and retained by the base unit so that the batteries can be recharged, if necessary.
Data-collection apparatuses are known, for an industrial environment or for commercial applications, that comprise a data collection system comprising a plurality of portable data-collection units and one or more base units. Each device (whether portable unit or base unit) that is part of said data collection system comprises a respective radio frequency element for communicating and exchanging data that defines a wireless data network, and over said wireless network the information, read by each portable unit in a use configuration is communicated to a respective base unit.
It should be noted that whilst each device can be in physical communication with any other device, in such systems it is known that each portable unit can communicate exclusively with a respective base, unit, in the sense that there is no provision for data exchanges between said portable units. In other words, each portable unit is associated with a respective base unit for data and command exchange.
In the industrial environment, over the years some international standards have been developed, such as, for example the Wi-Fi standard, which imposes physical requirements and data transmission specifications for using a wireless network. In particular, if single frequency is used for performing the transmission channel, the standard 802.11 provides network using a carrier sense multiple access (CSMA) and algorithms are known, such as, for example the CSMA/CA (Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision Avoidance), to ensure that collisions are avoided between the various, devices (whether they be portable units or base units) that are part of the wireless network.
The CSMA/CA algorithm provides for each device that wants to start a transmission listening to the channel (Listen-before-Transmit). If the channel is busy, the device generates a random number and associates a wait time therewith (known as the backoff time) that identifies the instant of time in which the device performs a transmission attempt.
A known problem of the CSMA/CA algorithm consists of the fact that as each devise of the network is asynchronous compared with others, although each device provides said random backoff time in the case of a busy channel, there is the probability that two devices transmit data simultaneously, generating interference on the transmission channel that makes correct reception of the data impossible, and above all, requires the transmission to, be repeated.
The phenomenon of interference is obviously greater the greater the throughput of the network and this typically occurs with a large number of devices present in the wireless network or with data packets of large size. In fact, as the transmission of a packet is delayed by the backoff time, the probability of two devices transmitting simultaneously increases with the throughput of the network. Further, recently, ever more sophisticated portable units have appeared on the market that are able to acquire even more evolved optical information, such as, for example, photographs. This information, when transferred to the respective base unit, generates very high throughput on the wireless network so as to increase the interference on the transmission channel so as to make the network unusable even with very few portable units communicating on the same wireless network.
The applications connected to the use of portable units in an industrial environment, or to applications of commercial type, are used increasingly so that installing complex wireless networks is very frequent in which the presence of a plurality of bases, or even of radio access points, connected in a network to one another is used to enable very wide work areas to communicate. Each base unit or each radio access point has an antenna of a given power that defines, as known, a cell, of a lesser dimension than the total work area of the wireless network and it is therefore necessary for each portable unit, which may be in a position of the work area in which several cells are located, to choose during a movement and in function of its position, with which of the base units present to be associated.
This functionality of the portable units in a wireless network is called "roaming" and typically the portable unit defines the presence of a possible base unit to use for "roaming", detecting a physical parameter of the radio signal coming from the base.
It is known to use the intensity of the radio signal as a criterion for conducting roaming on a base unit of the set of base units present, in particular by choosing the base from which the radio signal with the greatest intensity comes. If said radio signal is above a threshold value, the base from which the signal comes is considered to be present and usable for roaming.
The choice of the intensity of the radio signal as a physical parameter for enabling a portable unit to identify whether a base unit is, in general, present, or to choose a base unit for roaming, nevertheless raises numerous problems.
In particular, if several various wireless networks are present simultaneously, a radio signal coming from a base near the portable unit could be very intense but also very noisy, in fact making communication with said base impossible. Consequently, in the presence of several base units, said portable unit could erroneously associate itself with a base unit with which communication is difficult.
The object of the present invention is to improve communication in wireless networks of known type, based on the CSMA/CA technique, in particular optimising the use of the transmission channel of a wireless network based on the CSMA/CA technique, trying to avoid transmission interference as much as possible.
Another object is to improve communication in wireless networks of known type, assessing the efficiency of the communication.
A further object is to obtain a communication method in wireless networks in which the efficiency of communication is assessed on the basis of a criterion that is independent of specific physical parameters, so as to be immune to disturbances even in the presence of very crowded known wireless networks.
In a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a method for performing wireless communication in a data-collection system, according to claim 1.
Owing to this first aspect, it is possible to devise a communication method that enables each device on the network to be synchronised with the others to minimise transmission interference, even if a signal indicating a common, shared time is not available on the wireless network. In particular, each device that wishes to transmit but cannot because the channel is already busy, calculates a variable interval of time that indicates the moment at which the channel will become free again and waits for this time before queuing for a further wait time obtained from generating a random number, as required by the CSMA/CA protocol. In this manner, all the devices that are ready for transmission will await the end of the previous transmission and simultaneously, subsequently, will wait for said further wait time. Consequently, a collision will occur only if two different devices generate the same further wait time inasmuch as each device will start to transmit in a manner that is staggered over time compared with the others.
In a second aspect of the invention, a method is provided for creating wireless communication in a data-collection system, according to claim 12.
Owing to this second aspect, it is possible to make a communication method that enables an objective assessment to be made of the presence in the network of a data-packet sender device.
In fact, by monitoring the transmission channel, processing a monitored physical signal to assess whether said packet is corrupted or not and by performing further processing in case this packet is not corrupted, it is possible to identify as being present in the network only a device, which is the sender of the monitored packet, the transmission of which is not disturbed. In fact, processing said physical signal, in addition to contributing to demodulating the physical radio signal, enables it to assess whether a packet corresponds to said physical radio signal, said physical signal being compatible therewith, or whether, on the other hand, the physical signal is spurious, or corrupted.

Method to perform a wireless communication in a data collection system


The invention discloses an antenna arrangement with a supply line in the form of a coaxial cable arrangement suitable for high frequencies, in particular for medical applications of heat in hollow parts of the body, an extrusion process for the production thereof, a dilatation catheter with the antenna arrangement and a procedure for a dilatation treatment. The coaxial cable arrangement comprises a continuous inner conductor, an insulator arranged cylindrically around the inner conductor, a shielding device applied around the insulator in a first section of the coaxial cable arrangement which begins at the proximal end of the coaxial cable arrangement, a second section beginning at the distal end of the first section of the coaxial cable arrangement and ending at the distal end of the coaxial cable arrangement, said second section serving as an antenna and being designed without an insulator or a shielding device around the continuous inner conductor. The coaxial cable arrangement furthermore comprises a third section which begins at the proximal end of the antenna arrangement and which is shorter than the first section of the coaxial cable arrangement. The third section of the coaxial cable arrangement is more rigid than the other sections, due to the fact that gaps in the knitted, braided or wrapped material of the shielding device are closed by a filling material.

When blood circulation problems, caused by depositions (atheromateous), such as in pelvic, leg or coronary arteries, leading to stenosis, are cured by widening the arteries or breaking up the depositions, or percutaneous transluminal re-canalization, (dilation), the treatment often causes the artery wall to be injured or dissected as a consequence of the medical treatment, (i.e. iatrogenic injuries). Cutaneous flaps hanging from the blood vessel wall into the vessel obstruct the blood flow and may cause vascular occlusion or, in the case of coronary arteries, a heart attack. There are two obvious alternatives to avoid such complications: A balloon catheter may be used to place "stents" (such as wire meshes) into the vessel in order to mechanically stabilize the vessel wall and keep the vessel open. This process, however, makes the occurence of a thrombosis highly probable. An alternative is stated in volume 38, No. 1, January 1990 of Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques: "Percutaneous, transluminal microwave balloon angioplasty" by Rosen A. et al. A "hot balloon", such as a mostly multi-luminous balloon catheter, which is equipped with an asymmetric dipole suitable for radiating electromagnetic microwaves, is inserted and supplied with high-frequency energy by a cable inserted into a lumen. This dilatation catheter is inserted into the vessel in a pressure-free state and without being supplied with high-frequency energy and is then supplied with pressure to achieve the desired widening or blasting effect. Subsequently, high-frequency microwave energy is supplied to the dipole in the catheter so that the vessel wall and the direct vicinity of the catheter balloon are heated to a temperature of more than 50.degree. C for a short period. This causes the protein-substance to coagulate so that cutaneous flaps are bonded to the vessel wall.
The microwave high-frequency energy which serves to heat the tissue must be supplied to an antenna dipole in the balloon catheter with as little energy loss as possible, through the coaxial cable assembly of the dilatation catheter. If the attenuation of the coaxial cable is too high, undesirable heat will be generated in the lumen of the catheter in which the coaxial cable assembly is located. This undesirable generation of heat may cause a dangerous coagulation of the blood surrounding the catheter tube. At the same time, however, the cable assembly must be easy to bend in the distal area, in particular when applied in coronary vessels, so that it can be inserted into the vessel concerned even through narrow bends. In the proximal area a certain minimum rigidity is required to insert the cable assembly into the narrow lumen of a catheter and push it further therein. Furthermore, the diameter of the cable assembly should be as small as possible to minimize the diameter required for the lumen.
For this reason, the coaxial cable assemblies used in dilatation catheters comprise a shield consisting of a flat or round conductor, either wound or braided, and covered by a thin metal tube in the proximal area to enhance the rigidity. A disadvantage of this construction, however, is that the metal tube to be pushed over the cable for the sake of rigidity must be relatively thick so that the effective diameter of the cable becomes too large. This reduces the available room for pushing the cable within the lumen. It may even become necessary to use a catheter tube of a larger diameter. Furthermore, such a cable is complex and expensive to produce and not very efficient because a separate manufacturing step must be included to provide for an adequate connection of the tube to the coaxial cable.
Another approach used for cable assemblies in dilatation catheters is to separately produce two cable sections of different rigidity and electrically and mechanically connect them at a common interface with a micro-connector plug. However, this will detract from the electric transmission quality of the cable assembly due to the additional attenuation caused by the interface. Another disadvantage is the complex construction and the high manufacturing costs. In addition, the patient runs the risk of the connection accidentally being severed during the treatment.
There is a need for an improved arrangement with a supply line in the form of a coaxial cable assembly suitable for high-frequency operation for medical applications particularly in hollow organs of the human body.

Antenna arrangement with supply cable for medical applications


A image recognition device using pattern elements is disclosed. The device comprises an image recognition device, a recording medium, and an image processing device which is be capable of executing recognition processing accurately and evaluating an input image even when the input image data is a different size because the input image has been magnified or reduced. To achieve the objectives, the image recognition device of this invention has a pattern element recognizing means to recognize the pattern elements obtained by dividing the input image into a plurality of regions which are compared with corresponding target pattern elements, and a pattern detection means to detect the relative position of the pattern elements, which determines whether the pattern elements detected by the pattern element recognizing means are arranged properly with respect to each other.

I. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to a device and method to prevent the counterfeiting of paper money, stock certificates, or similar documents. More specifically, it relates to an image recognition device which is capable of recognizing a specific input image even though the input image has been enlarged or reduced in size.
II. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, the capabilities of full-color copy machines have become so sophisticated that it is often impossible to distinguish a copy from the original image with the naked eye. At the same time, such copying machines have become readily available. Thus, there is an increased danger that copiers will be misused to counterfeit documents, which may not legally be reproduced, such as banknotes and stock certificates. Various devices have been developed to prevent such counterfeiting.
Some of these devices pre-record a specific image of a banknote or other document, which may not be legally reproduced. Then, these devices determine whether the pre-recorded specific image exists in an input image which someone is attempting to copy. The method used to determine whether the image is recognized (i.e., pattern matching) entails evaluating the input image's distance from the template, or the relative correlation between a target pattern (the template) and the input image the device is attempting to recognize (the object of recognition).
If the device does recognize the target pattern in the input image, it employs any of various means to prevent copying, such as covering the paper entirely with black ink or halting the process.
Size is an essential element used in the technique described above. The size evaluation consists of determining if the input image and target pattern are exactly the same size. The input image and the target pattern must be the same size for the device to prevent copying. If the shapes in the two images are the same (i.e., the figures are similar) but their dimensions are different, the device will not recognize the input image as identical to the target pattern. As a result, if someone were to use the copier's zoom function to reduce or enlarge the input image to be copied, the size of the input image data, which the image recognition device received from the copier, would not match the target pattern stored in the device, and the device would conclude that the input image was not one for which copying should be prohibited.
A digital color copier normally reads the image loaded on the glass by moving an image sensor with one line of CCD (in the scanning direction) at a given speed. If the input image has been reduced or enlarged, the speed of the image sensor can be increased or decreased respectively. This is necessary because the quantity of data in the feed direction, which is received per unit of time, will differ with magnification.
It is understood that humans recognize shapes by a complex process. However, human are not as skilled in evaluating size. In fact, recognizing (or discriminating) small differences in size is difficult for most people. An item which is successfully copied because the image recognition device does not recognize the input image as the same size as the reference image may nevertheless be indistinguishable to the human eye.
If the magnification (either enlargement or reduction) is ten percent or more, anyone can easily recognize a copy by comparing it directly with the original bill or document and seeing that it is the wrong size; but seeing only the copy makes it much more difficult. Furthermore, if it is a bill which a person seldom sees, foreign currency for example, the task is even harder.
To address this problem, the image processing device disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication 6-237379 was developed. During preprocessing, this invention extracts a specified portion (which varies with the magnification) of the input image data based on the magnification it receives from the copier. This process makes the resolution of the extracted image data fixed at any magnification or zoom level. In this way the same processing can be executed in every subsequent unit without regard to the magnification, so that the likelihood of recognition will not vary with magnification.
The prior art device described above is effective for machines such as copiers which can transmit magnification or zoom data to it, but it cannot be used for machines which are unable to provide accurate magnification data. For example, an image processing system which consists of a scanner, a personal computer and a printer, inputs processes and reproduces the image by itself. This makes it difficult to obtain the sort of reliable index of magnification which a copier can readily provide. Thus, the recognition processing employing magnification disclosed in the Japanese Patent Publication 6-237379 cannot be applied to this sort of image processing system.
The rapid development of electronic technology has improved the resolution of all the devices discussed above and enabled accurate full color printing. For this reason we must have a reliable way to halt the reproduction of images containing specified target patterns.

Image recognition-processing device and method using pattern elements


Provided is an image processing apparatus that includes a long-time exposure distance image generation unit that captures an image with long-time exposure, calculates a parallax from a first long-time exposure image and a second long-time exposure image from a first long-time exposure camera and a second long-time exposure camera disposed at a predetermined interval, and generates a long-time exposure distance image. The image processing apparatus further includes a short-time exposure distance image generation unit that captures an image with short-time exposure, calculates a parallax from a first short-time exposure image and a second short-time exposure image from a first short-time exposure camera and a second short-time exposure camera disposed at a predetermined interval, and generates a short-time exposure distance image, and a distance image generation unit that combines the long-time exposure distance image with the short-time exposure distance image to generate a distance image.

In recent years, detection of obstacles such as pedestrians or vehicles using a plurality of cameras such as a stereo camera has been put into practical use. A stereo camera is an apparatus that calculates a positional deviation (parallax) of the same object in a plurality of images captured at the same time, and calculates a position of the object in a real space on the basis of the calculated parallax. This stereo camera calculates a distance to an object using a pair of images captured by two left and right imaging elements, and performs recognition of the object.
PTL 1 proposes acquiring a first image and a second image having different exposure times, performing brightness correction on the first image or the second image that has been acquired, and calculating a parallax using the corrected image.

Image processing apparatus, image processing method, and mobile device


A mobile station apparatus 2 is assigned multiple component carriers in an uplink and a downlink by a base station apparatus and communicates with the base station apparatus by using the component carriers. The mobile station apparatus 2 includes a downlink control channel detector 67 and a carrier component identifying unit 53a. The downlink control channel detector 67 detects a downlink control channel from multiple search spaces where to detect the downlink control channel. From the search space where the downlink control channel detected by the downlink control channel detector 67 is arranged, the carrier component identifying unit 53a identifies the component carriers controlled with downlink control information transmitted in the downlink control channel and addressed to the mobile station apparatus. This makes it possible to identify the component carrier controlled with the downlink control information (DCI) transmitted in the downlink control channel (PDCCH) without increasing the coding ratio of the downlink control channel (PDCCH).

With advancement of a radio access method and a radio network for cellular mobile communication (hereinafter referred to as Long Term Evolution (LTE) or "Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (EUTRA)," the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) has been studying a radio access method and a radio network (hereinafter referred to as "Long Term Evolution-Advanced (LTE-A)" or "Advanced EUTRA") for achieving further high-speed data communication utilizing wider range frequencies.
LTE uses an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) scheme which is multi-carrier transmission for a downlink. For an uplink, LTE uses a single carrier communication scheme of a DFT (discrete Fourier transform)—Spread OFDM scheme which is single carrier transmission. In contrast, it is proposed that LTE-A uses the OFDM scheme for the downlink, and newly uses, for the uplink, the OFDM scheme, a Clustered DFT-Spread OFDM scheme, and a N*DFT-Spread OFDM scheme which are the multi-carrier communication schemes, in addition to the DFT-Spread OFDM scheme, (see Non-patent Document 1 below).
For the downlink of radio communication from a base station apparatus to a mobile station apparatus, LTE uses a broadcast channel (Physical Broadcast Channel; PBCH), a downlink control channel (Physical Downlink Control Channel; PDCCH), a downlink shared channel (Physical Downlink Shared Channel; PDSCH), a multicast channel (Physical Multicast Channel; PMCH), a control format indicator channel (Physical Control Format Indicator Channel; PCFICH), and an HARQ indicator channel (Physical Hybrid ARQ Indicator Channel; PHICH). For the uplink of radio communication from the mobile station apparatus to the base station apparatus, LTE uses an uplink shared channel (PUSCH: Physical Uplink Shared Channel), an uplink control channel (PUCCH: Physical Uplink Control Channel), and a random access channel (PRACH: Physical Random Access Channel).
Meanwhile, LTE-A is required to have compatibility with LTE, that is, to enable a base station apparatus supporting LTE-A to communicate with both types of mobile station apparatuses supporting LTE-Advanced and mobile station apparatuses supporting LTE, and to enable a mobile station apparatus supporting LTE-A to perform radio communication with base stations supporting either of LTE-A and LTE. Thus, studies have been made on use of the same channel structure as in LTE. In addition, while a frequency band used in a general mobile communication system is contiguous, there is proposed utilization of multiple contiguous/non-contiguous frequency bands (hereinafter, referred to as "carrier components (CCs)" or "component carriers" (CCs)), as a single frequency band (wide frequency band) (frequency band aggregation: sometimes referred to as spectrum aggregation, carrier aggregation, frequency aggregation, or the like) (see Non-patent Document 2 below).
Further, studies have been made on configuring a downlink control channel (PDCCH) for each carrier component in the downlink in LTE-A. By using the downlink control channel (PDCCH), a base station transmits a downlink grant (DL grant) for each carrier component in the downlink, the downlink grant being control information including information indicating radio resource allocation (RA) of a downlink shared channel (PDSCH). By using the downlink control channel (PDCCH), the base station also transmits an uplink grant (UL grant) for each carrier component in the uplink, the uplink grant being control information including a region indicating radio resource allocation (RA) of the uplink shared channel (PUSCH) in the carrier component in the uplink.
Another proposal for LTE-A is that identities for identifying carrier components corresponding to the uplink grant and the downlink grant are included in the uplink grant and the downlink grant, respectively, and that a base station apparatus transmits an uplink grant and a downlink grant addressed to the same mobile station apparatus by using multiple downlink control channels (PDCCHs) on the same carrier component in the downlink (see Non-patent Document 3 and Non-patent Document 4 below).
The uplink grant and the downlink grant in LTE are constituted of information for the uplink shared channel (PUSCH) and the downlink shared channel (PDSCH), such as information on modulation schemes, information on coding schemes, and information on HARQ, in addition to the information indicating the radio resource allocation (RA). In addition, the mobile station apparatus is identified by using a 16-bit mobile station identity (also referred to as a radio network temporary identity; RNTI or a user equipment identity; UE ID) which is uniquely identifiable in the base station apparatus and included in the uplink grant and the downlink grant.
The following are cited as related technical documents.

Radio communication system, base station apparatus, mobile station apparatus, radio communication method, and program


A pumping system and a method for pumping liquid from a lower level to an operatively higher level are disclosed. The pumping system includes a pumping device, a bent delivery conduit, a single control port opening and control elements. The conduit has an operatively inclined ascending conduit section; an operatively inclined descending conduit section and an operatively horizontal peak section between the inclined sections; one end of the ascending conduit fitted to the outlet of the pumping device and one end of the descending conduit being below liquid level of the higher level. The single port opening is provided at the junction between the horizontal peak section and the descending conduit section, and spaced apart from the ascending conduit junction. The control elements introduce pressurized air into and evacuate air from the delivery conduit through the single port opening.

Liquids are pumped over long distance for storage and consumption. Water supplied to residents of a city is pumped from sources like lake and or rivers located far away from the city. Invariably catchment areas are located at a level lower than the consumption points. In a pumping station located close to the catchment area pumps are used to pump water over a terrain having many high and low regions. Once the flow is established, the conveying conduit and the pump casing are filled with water and water from a low lying catchment area is transferred to a storage reservoir or tank at a higher level, near the point of consumption. When the pumping unit is switched off water contained in the conduit line flows back due to gravity into the low level reservoir. This flow back establishes a siphon to drain the water from the high level tank back to the low level reservoir.
A siphon is a continuous tube that allows liquid to be drained from a reservoir through an intermediate point that is higher than the liquid level of the reservoir to a lower level. Flow of liquid in a siphon is driven by the difference in hydrostatic pressure without any need for pumping. It is necessary that the outlet end of the tube be lower than the liquid surface in the reservoir.
Liquids rise over the crest of a siphon as they are pushed by atmospheric pressure. A tube at the starting stage of a siphon is filled with liquid and atmospheric pressure acts on both ends of the conduit. The longer leg of the tube carries a greater weight of liquid. Gravity then drains the liquid through the longer leg, and this creates a low pressure inside the tube and at the other end of the tube and the liquid starts to flow into the tube establishing a siphon. Once started, a siphon requires no additional energy to keep the liquid flowing up and out of the reservoir. The siphon will pull the liquid out of the reservoir until the level falls below the intake causing air to enter the tube (cavitation/evolving of air dissolved in water) or until the outlet level of the siphon equals the level of the reservoir, whichever happens first. Capillary action can enhance the siphon and cavitation may modify the phenomenon and cause the siphon to break.
Cavitation is defined as the phenomenon of formation of vapour bubbles of a flowing liquid in a region where the pressure of the liquid falls below its vapour pressure. Cavitation often occurs in pumps, propellers and impellers.
The maximum height of the siphon crest is limited by atmospheric pressure, the density of the liquid, and its vapour pressure. When the pressure exerted by the weight of the liquid equals that of atmospheric pressure, a vacuum will form at the high point and the siphon effect will end. The liquid may boil briefly until the vacuum is filled with the liquid's vapour pressure. For water at standard atmospheric pressure, the maximum siphon height is approximately 10 m (33 feet) and for mercury it is 76 cm (30 inches).
In a conventional pumping system, non return and butterfly valves are required to arrest the reverse flow of liquid. Presence of valves and non return valves create resistance in forward flow of water and result in hydraulic losses and increases pumping cost.
Another problem encountered in large pumping system is trapped volume of gas, usually air, at the start of pumping. As there are many high and low regions in the lay out of the delivery conduit depending on the terrain, many air pockets are created at intermediate high regions within the conduit. These compressed air pockets and change in direction of water flow creates water hammer and surge creating high stresses and consequent damages. Surge conditions may occur for various reasons like pump start/stop sequences, power supply failure, and valve failure in the liquid system. Also change in demand and rapid valve operations causes surge conditions leading to water hammer.
Existing Knowledge:
Some of the devices used for prevention of back flow due to siphon effect are described herein under:
U.S. Pat. No. 6,443,181 discloses a "Backflow prevention apparatus", consisting of a valve with a valve seat, a pivoted closing device coupled to the valve seat provided with a seal having a closure mechanism operated by a linkage mechanism. This device is not suitable for large pumping system as the presence of the valves and non return valves create resistance in forward flow of water and result in hydraulic losses and increases pumping cost.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,742,534 discloses a "Method of damping surges in a liquid system" This system includes a surge vessel in which air is trapped and in the event of a surge in the system, the volume of trapped air within the surge vessel is changed to dampen the surge by providing pressure sensors and a control apparatus for operating a compressor, air inlet valve or air relief valve to maintain constant the mass of the trapped air in the surge vessel is maintained constant, irrespective of the liquid level within the surge vessel. The method as disclosed in this document is not suitable for preventing back flow of liquid due to siphon effect from a higher level tank or reservoir to a lower level liquid source.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,792,962 discloses an "Enhanced backflow prevention apparatus and method". This device is a plunger operated anti-siphoning device for use in a irrigation sprinkler system. The plunger is generally annular in shape and blocks water flow from the outlet channel into the inlet channel but allows flow from the inlet channel to the outlet channel. When the inlet channel is closed, the plunger permits air to flow into the outlet through the cap. This device is not suitable for large pumping system as the presence of the valves and non return valves create resistance in forward flow of water and result in hydraulic losses and increases pumping cost.
Hence there is a need for system for pumping water from a source at a relatively lower level to a reservoir at a relatively higher level and prevent back flow of liquid do to siphoning.

Pumping system for pumping liquid from a lower level to an operatively higher level


A rimless tire cover system for protecting a wheel-less tire including a first annular cover on one side of the tire and a second annular cover on the other side of the tire and a tubular central connector for pulling the first and second covers against the sides of the tire. Each of the covers has an annular seal portion that conforms in shape to and engages and seals directly against the tire bends.

Tire storage, particularly on truck tractors, is a problem because of space constraints so spare tires are usually mounted externally where they are subject to the elements and also to theft. By storing the tire with a wheel, the theft problem is worse because the wheel costs upwards of $300 depending on size and quality. Therefore, it would be desirable to store the spare tire without a wheel to minimize the cost and the theft problem. This creates ancillary problems of debris or icing inside the stored tire, which is difficult to clean when tire changing is required.
Tire covers presently in the market do not solve these problems because they are designed to fit over wheeled tires and most are not durable enough to endure extreme outdoor elements and they do not address the theft problem.
The following patents have been found in a preliminary patentability search:
InventorPat. No.Issue DateCampbellDesign 305,322Jan. 2, 1990Colgan5,076,477Dec. 31, 1991Cochrane, et al.5,513,788May 7, 1996Seltz5,823,413Oct. 20, 1998Saegusa, et al.5,921,449Jul. 13, 1999Rastelli6,116,415Sep. 12, 2000Chiku, et al.7,175,058Feb. 13, 2007Spater, et al.7,478,723Jan. 20, 2009Rock, et al.7,770,764Aug. 10, 2010


A compressor intake mixer system for internal combustion gas engines having a compressed charge bypass system comprises a bypass charge and fuel pre-mixer connected in line with the charge bypass system to reduce pressure gradient between the high pressure bypass charge and the low pressure fuel. A single volume main mixer is connected to the compressor inlet downstream of the pre-mixer to mix the flow of premixed charge and air and provide a mixed gas to the compressor inlet. Thus a need for a separate volume for a fuel mixer and a bypass mixer is eliminated and a single volume is provided at the compressor inlet. The locational constraint of necessarily locating the volumes at the compressor inlet is also obviated by providing a pre-mixer.

Many internal combustion gas engines have compressor bypass systems. A compressor bypass system bleeds off excessive pressurized charge (air and fuel) from a compressor outlet and returns the charge to a compressor inlet thereby bypassing the engine by recirculating the compressed gas to the compressor inlet. The engine's fuel system receives fuel at low pressure from a fuel source and mixes it in the compressor air inlet. The systems known in the art require separate mixers to handle the pressure gradient between the high pressure compressor bypass system and the low pressure fuel system.


Graphite carbon surfaces are protected from elevated temperature oxidation and mechanical wear by electric arc thermal spray coating exposed surfaces with a titanium nitride or multi-element (e.g., aluminum-silicon-titanium) coating.

Graphite/carbon shapes such as electrodes for use in the conventional electric arc furnace and sliding contact devices such as brushes used in electric motors and the like are heated during use. The heating causes the carbon to react with oxygen in the atmosphere to form gaseous carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide, the reaction providing for deterioration of the graphite/carbon article beyond that caused by normal process consumption.
Over the last 20 years numerous researchers have addressed the problem of providing oxidation resistant coatings for graphite/carbon substrates. Particular emphasis has been placed on providing these coatings for graphite electrodes for use in the electric arc furnace. Prior attempts at solving the problem centered around depositing either silicon or silicon carbide coatings by a plasma spray or chemical vapor deposition process on the major cylindrical surface of the electrode. Other coatings involve using a silicon carbide slurry which is painted on and allowed to dry.
A paper titled "Recent Developments of Electric Arc Furnace Electrode Evaluation Protection at Armco, Inc.," by P. Shcroth, B. H. Baker presented at the First European Electric/Steel Congress Sep. 12-14, 1983, in Aachen, West Germany, summarizes the use of a coating (not defined) that is non conductive and can be sprayed or brushed on furnace electrodes. The coating resulted in savings of electrode material of between 10 and 20%. However, since the coating is non-conductive, it must be applied below the electrical clamp at the mill before the electrode is positioned for use in the arc furnace, thus requiring significant capital expense and changes in current operating practice for the electric arc furnace shop.
A paper by J. H. Courtenay and J. Helmut, titled "Lower Electrode Consumption Through Reduced Sidewall Oxidation", published in Fachberichte Huttenpraxts Metallweitervera bettung Volume 23, No. 10, 1985, provides a review of three techniques used to reduce sidewall oxidation of large electric arc furnace electrodes. The techniques include precoating, water cooling and in situ coating, the later coating technique called Platol. The coating system Is fully automatic with a robot spray applicator and is installed on the furnace and places a fusible glass matrix onto the electrode. The coating material consists primarily of silicon carbide and resulted in graphite savings of between 14 and 22 percent, with a net saving after costs reported to be approximately 10% of the graphite cost. The coating is non-conductive and requires a high capital investment in equipment.
An article by S. Dallaire appearing in "Surface and Coatings Technology", Volume 32, 1987, pages 141-142, discloses the use of a plasma coating technique to coat graphite electrodes. The powdered materials used to form the coating were aluminum, silicon carbide, titanium, and titanium carbide. The titanium-titanium carbide powders are sprayed first to a thickness of 50 micrometers to achieve a good bond. Then the aluminum-silicon carbide powders are sprayed to a thickness of 700 micrometers. The resulting coating was sensitive to temperatures above 800.degree. C. and thus did not remain Intact below the roof of the furnace. The main conclusion is that an adherent AL.sub.4 SiC.sub.4 layer in close contact with graphite provided the protection.
Other attempts have been made to coat graphite steel electrodes with very thick aluminum based materials by a plasma deposition process. The coatings 1 to 2 millimeters in thickness, reportedly decreased the wear of an electrode resulting from oxidation between 25 and 30% without negative effects on thermal or electrical properties.
A German published patent application 3609359 (20 Mar. 1986) discloses a coating process using plasma spray techniques in a vacuum chamber for electrodes. The process of the application uses silicon deposition to approximately 0.1 millimeters. The graphite electrode must be sandblasted using an inert gas and a controlled atmosphere must be employed during the lengthy cooling cycle to assure integrity of the coating.
Japanese published patent application (83/224281) discloses using an unidentified method to spray a powder mixture of SiC, Si.sub.3 N.sub.4 -phosphate --Cr.sub.2 O.sub.3 --TaC, AlAl.sub.2 O.sub.3 in a glass (ZrO.sub.2 -SiO.sub.2 --MgO--FeZO.sub.3) along with copper, nickel, stainless steel, iron, tin powder onto graphite electrodes. According to applicants, service life of the coated electrodes was increased by 11.7%. It is believed that a service life greater than 15% is necessary in order for any coating to be viable.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,098,794 discloses and claims deposition of titanium oxide or titanium oxide plus carbon and binders on a carbon substrate such as a furnace electrode, followed by baking at high temperature in the presence of nitrogen to convert the deposit into a titanium nitride coating. The post deposition operation in which the entire electrode must be uniformly heated in a nitrogen atmosphere prior to use, consumes time and energy and is capital and labor intensive.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,852,107 discloses and claims providing a thick coating comprising 15 and 90 wt % of a matrix material, having a melting point greater than 1,000.degree. and 10 to 85 wt % of a refractory filler which is electrically non-conductive and can be applied to the graphite electrode only below the electrode clamps. The coating must be reapplied every two hours or whenever the electrodes are moved down into the furnace, requiring work on hot furnace electrodes which are already installed in the furnace. Alternatively, the coatings can be prefabricated and applied as sheets which must be glued to the electrode.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,939,028; 4,301,387; 4,439,491; 4,567,103; 4,711,666: 4,772,514 and 4,487,804 disclose and claim various attempts at coating graphite/carbon electrodes for use in the electric arc furnace and are indicative of attempts to solve the troublesome problem of excessive electrode oxidation and/or mechanical wear at elevated temperatures.

Graphite/carbon articles for elevated temperature service and method of manufacture