A cord storage/organizer includes a container having paired, opposed open ends having an opposed opening of a size sufficient for urging insertion and removal of the cord. The container includes a continuous internal wall for urging retention of the cord. The internal wall further includes a first wall thickness at the open ends that is less than a second wall thickness located in a middle region of said container. The container further includes a label area disposed on the outer periphery of the arcuate continuous wall allowing identification of the cord stored in the container. The container also includes notches on at least one of said open ends of sufficient size to enable the user to grab the plug head and pull the cord out of the cord container with ease. The container includes at least one flexible baffle located on the inner portion of the side wall for urging the cord to remain in the stored condition.

This invention relates to a method and apparatus for storing and organizing electrical cords.
The proliferation of electrical devices deemed to be essential in our everyday life is staggering. For example, can one imagine a life without lamps, televisions, VCRs, stereos, computers, fax machines, printers, answering machines, space heaters, room fans, coffee pots, blenders, food processors, mixers, can openers, electric tools and many, many other electrical devices too numerous to mention. Some of the aforementioned electrical devices are equipped with permanent electrical cords. Other electrical devices are equipped with detachable electrical cords. Usually these detachable electrical cords are stored when not in use.
The proliferation of these electrical devices has indeed made our daily life more enjoyable and some would even say less stressful. However the increased use of these electrical devices having attached or detached electrical cords in the home and work place can produce a plethora of problems. For instance with a detachable electrical cord, it can be a problem for the user to identify a needed electrical cord being stored. Stored electrical cords also become tangled, thereby increasing the likelihood of damage to the cord.
Elongated electrical cords can also produce problems. For instance, a plurality of electrical cords inserted into an electrical outlet on a wall can produce a tripping hazard. These elongated cords are also a magnet for dirt and dust. One of the most frustrating situation arises when a person has to somehow identify a particular electrical cord from the maze of multiple, intertwined electrical cords found at an electrical outlet.
In the kitchen area, many small kitchen appliances such as hand-held mixers, electric frying pans, electric woks, indoor grills and food processors have removable electrical cords. Usually these items are not kept on the kitchen countertop area, thereby necessitating the storage of the appliance and its accompanying electrical cord. After the small kitchen appliance is used, its electrical cord is removed and placed for storage in a kitchen drawer, a container or the like. It can be appreciated that many electrical cords, including extension cords, can accumulate in this storage area. Therefore when one goes to retrieve the electrical cord that is needed to power a particular appliance, it can be difficult to identify the correct electrical cord needed. Additionally, many times these multiple electrical cords are tangled together, increasing the likelihood of damage to the cords. The mass of tingled electrical cords also contributes to the frustration level of the person trying to use the small appliance because he or she must first untangle the intertwined cords before the appliance can be used.
Similar types of problems and frustrations can be experienced in a workshop area. Usually within a workshop area there are a plurality of electrical tools having detachable electrical cords. The electrical cords are usually stored in an area such as a drawer, a tool box, a storage container or the like. It is very difficult and time consuming to identify the appropriate electrical cord needed to power the desired electrical tool. Moreover it is not good for the electrical cord to be in a prolonged tangled state with other electrical cords.
The usual workplace nowadays includes a computer having some, if not all of the following componentsxe2x80x94a hard drive, a monitor, a printer, a scanner and a telephone line. Some of these components need their own source of electrical power while others do not. However all the components are accompanied by a plurality of cords and cables having various lengths and widths. This plurality of cords and cables found in close proximity to each other increases the likelihood that tangling will result. As pointed out above, this occurrence is not favorable because the tangling increases the risk of damage to the cord. Moreover, if a troubleshooting situation arises whereby the user wants to find a particular cable or cord, it is very difficult for the user to identify the particular cord he or she is looking for. He or she must go through the time consuming process of first correctly identifying the needed cord and then untangling it form the other cords.
Another area where a variety of different cables and cords can be found is the area behind a television having a VCR attached thereto or behind a stereo system having many components. This plurality of cords and cables found in close proximity to each other increases the likelihood that tangling will result. This occurrence is not favorable because the tangling increases the risk of damage to the cords and or cables. Moreover, if a troubleshooting situation arises whereby the user wants to find a particular cable or cord, it is very difficult for the user to identify the particular cord or cable he or she is looking for. Additionally, the identification of the individual cords and cables would help in the set-up and breakdown of the stereo and multimedia systems.
Additionally, the elongated nature of most electrical cords can produce some problems. For instance, an elongated cord plugged into an electrical outlet can pose a tripping hazard. These elongated electrical cords also attract dirt and dust. A device that would shorten these cords would alleviate these problems.
Another area where one sees an increased use of electrical devices is in an automobile. These devices, usually power the automobiles cigarette lighter, including, but are not limited to car phones, electric coolers, miniature televisions and radar detectors. The excess length of cord found on the devices can pose a threat to the driver of the car because the excess cord can get tangled in the gas, brake and or the clutch pedals, thereby inviting an accident.
Yet another situation posing a cord containing problem is the storage of seasonal items such as room fans, space heaters and electrical blankets. When one stores these items in close proximity to each other, the likelihood that one or more of these heavy items will be placed on top of the cord for a prolonged period of time is increased, possibly resulting in damage to the cord. It would therefore be advantageous to store the cord in a protected environment close to its electrical device.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,867,681; 3,126,444; 3,337,681; 3,823,251; 3,889,044; 4,156,795; 4,902,852; 5,185,791 and 5,304,736 disclose structure for housing electrical wire and cords with structure for holding the wires and cords in place within the housing. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,433,889 the wires are folded within the housing. U.S. Pat. No. 3,259,680 discloses a tapered cylindrical hosing for electrical cords.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,001,491; 3,088,237; 3,212,207; 3,474,559; 3,551,541; 4,656,767 and 4,882,116 disclose placing information concerning the wires on the external surface of the housing.
A cord storage/organizer includes a container having paired, opposed open ends having an opening of a size sufficient for urging insertion and removal of the cord. The container includes a continuous internal wall for urging retention of the cord. The internal wall further includes a first wall thickness at the open ends that is less than a second wall thickness located in a middle region of said container. The container further includes a label area disposed on the outer periphery of the arcuate continuous wall allowing identification of the cord stored in the container. The container also includes at least one notch on at least one of said open ends of sufficient size to enable the user to grab the plug head and pull the cord out of the cord container with ease. The container includes at least one flexible baffle located on the inner portion of said side wall for urging the cord to remain in the stored condition. Use includes winding a cord connected to an electrical plug into a small bundle, inserting the said wound-up cord into the cord container, and inserting the cord""s electric plug into an area directly adjacent one of the open ends into the notch area for storage.


An identification system such as a system used to identify livestock and track ongoing livestock activities or data is provided.

Livestock tracking has become more import with the spread of livestock diseases such as, mad cow disease. Livestock identification tags are subjected to high levels of wear. Many livestock tags have identification indicia deformed into the substrate. Production of such items is high in cost particularly since individuated items are necessary.
More recently, individualized printed products or individualized sets of product have become desirable, such as, for example, individualized cards such as credit cards, gift cards, loyalty cards, membership cards, identification cards or tags, point of sale activated cards, telephone cards, etc. These types of products have required individual codes, characters or other depictions printed on individual items. Requirements for individualization have resulted in a variety of constraints affecting parameters such as printing quality, speed, cost, durability, resolution and materials.
A number of printing techniques have been used to print individualized items or sets of items, such as card substrates or other objects. One of such techniques is thermal transfer printing. Thermal transfer printing typically consists of printing from a colored ribbon, e.g. a pigmented foil resin ribbon, and transferring a dye or pigmented resin onto a card. In many instances in order to get good pigment adhesion to the substrate, thermal transfer printing includes melting the resin into the surface of the substrate, typically a plastic such as polyvinylchloride (PVC). One problem with thermal transfer printing techniques is that the quality of the printing may be compromised by debris on the item. In addition, this debris can damage the print heads used and cause costly repairs. Unprinted areas or gaps in printing may be formed, e.g., by damaged printheads or a wrinkled ribbon, and thus the consistency of appearance quality may be compromised. In addition, the printed image has poor durability; it can be removed through the use of a common, ordinary pencil eraser.
Other printing techniques used for such individualized items or sets include embossing of characters, dye sublimation to form characters and laser techniques to etch, heat or burn printing into the surface or core of an item. Some of these techniques have been relatively slow and inefficient, requiring costly materials and equipment. These techniques typically require special substrates, safety shielding and ventilation. Still other of these printing techniques such as xerography, require special substrate materials to accept the toner from the drum and are not designed for individuated items but rather for sheets of materials.
Some faster, more efficient technologies, such as ink jet printing have been used in printing individual items. In general, current ink jet printing techniques involve directing droplets of inks through the air onto a substrate. Currently two different types of ink jet printing are being commercially utilized: continuous and drop on demand ink jet printing. Continuous ink jet printing provides a continuous flow of ink through or within the printhead during the process. Continuous inkjet printing typically involves chargeable organic solvent or water based inks that are directed onto a surface by providing a continuous stream of droplets of ink that are either charged or not charged according to a desired printed image or template. In some systems, the uncharged drops are printed onto to the substrate while the charged drops are deflected and not printed. Conversely, in other systems, the charged droplets print. Other continuous ink jet systems use a variable deflection voltage to steer the individual droplets. Because the continuous ink jet process requires a continuous stream of ink be supplied, the inks selected typically have a low viscosity. Also, the selected inks typically become integrated with the surface on which they are printed because the typically selected solvents (e.g, acetone and methylethylketone) permit this.
One disadvantage of continuous ink jet products is that the resolution and durability are not high. Another disadvantage is that the flight of the droplets is not always consistent resulting in a poor image appearance, e.g., wavy bars in bar codes and text. This may affect the desired appearance and/or the readability of the coded information in certain applications. Furthermore, continuous ink jet printing is not economical requiring continuous flow of ink through or into the printhead and thus more ink and fluid. Continuous ink jet printing also has highly complex equipment with high maintenance costs. Continuous ink jet printing processes have been used to print on insulated wires where the insulated wires come in a long continuous strands. The insulation of the wires has been plasma treated to improve adhesion of the ink to the substrate. This process uses organic solvent-based inks that become integrated with the surface of the insulation on which they are printed and the process is not used to control flow of droplets over the surface after being applied.
Non-continuous ink jet printing uses solvent or water-based inks and apply ink on demand ("drop on demand" application or "DOD"). This type of printing technique is used in lieu of continuous ink jet printing to print items. The advantages of using DOD ink jet printing are that there are lower consumable costs such as ink and other fluid, lower capital costs and lower maintenance costs. However, one disadvantage to this technique is that because the ink in a printhead is not continuously used, it may dry on face of the printhead leading to poor print quality. Accordingly, slower drying solvents are used and thus the inks commonly used in drop on demand printing techniques do not dry quickly when applied to a substrate surface. The slower dry time increases the chances that the ink droplets will spread in an undesirable or uncontrolled manner across the substrate. The individual droplets of ink will fail to spread sufficiently or will spread too much. This is particularly the case with items made of non-absorbent or less absorbent substrates such as plastics. It is believed that dry time in drop on demand printing processes tends to affect appearance negatively at least in part because drop on demand inks are typically less volatile, e.g., than continuous ink jet printing ink, and in using less volatile inks, the dry time tends to allow the printed ink to flow for a longer duration on the substrate, which will alter appearance. Also, inks used in drop on demand printing tend to sit on the top of the substrate more while continuous ink jet inks attack and penetrate the substrate. Thus continuous ink jet inks will tend to integrate more with the substrate surface.
Accordingly, appearance of the printed image using drop on demand printing may be negatively affected. Additionally, the results of image quality using drop on demand printing can be unpredictable, particularly with relatively less absorbent substrates such as the PVC or other plastic cards that are typically used for individually coded transaction cards. The substrate materials and printing surface conditions tend to vary widely from type, form, material, condition, and age of the substrate, and from batch to batch, from piece to piece of substrate of the same or similar construction and at various locations on the surface of a particular substrate. Thus the results of printed image quality have varied in different locations on individual items, from item to item and batch to batch. Attempts have been made to treat the substrates with coatings or primers to reduce surface variability. However, they are typically applied to the substrate and dried or cured in a separate step, which introduces additional manufacturing steps and costs. They also change the consistency of appearance of the substrate. Coatings and primers change the glossy appearance from a continuous uninterrupted sheet to a patchwork like configuration of different surfaces. Some coatings have covered the desired glossy surface of the card. Because of their receptivity to inks, coatings and primers tend to attract dirt markings and will lead to a poor appearance over time.
Furthermore, the appearance and image quality of the product may be compromised over time and usage of the product. The appearance, edge contrast and/or color density of a printed image may be of particular importance in certain applications such as bar codes and products where such parameters have performance or marketing significance. Images printed with non-continuous ink jet printing (and other printing processes) can be easily rubbed off in normal use. In certain products, the printed images may subjected to conditions where the printed image is rubbed or used under physical conditions that cause the image appearance, edge contrast and color density to degrade over time. For example, transaction cards are subjected to repeated rubbing when read by a scanner or other conditions where the user carries, uses and stores the card. It would therefore be desirable to provide a printed image having improved durability over time and usage of the product.
All these printing techniques have had other problems including, slow dry time, poor resolution, and poor durability. Some printing systems such as ink jet systems, thermal transfer printing and dye sublimation have had such poor durability that they require an additional coating or clear layer on top of the printing to protect the printed image.
Furthermore, printing individuated items consistently has had various challenges and problems. Variations occur on the surface from item to item and in different areas on the same item. Other surface effects may occur from, e.g., handling when printing, finger prints, scratching when feeding or rubbing, and other non-visible surface effects that occur when the individual items are handled or fed onto a conveyor.
Accordingly it would be desirable to provide improved individualized and/or individuated printed products with greater durability, resolution, appearance, and consistency of image quality that may be efficiently produced.
It would also be desirable to provide individualized transaction cards, such as cards with codes or identification printed thereon, with greater durability and resolution.
It would also be desirable to provide an improved drop on demand printer and printing method that improves the appearance and consistency of product image quality of items printed with a drop on demand printer.
In addition, countries around the globe, including the United States, have been in the process of developing a standard identification system for the Livestock Industry or Animal Agriculture Industry. Groups such as the U.S. Animal Identification Plan (USAIP) and the United States Animal Health Association (USAHA) are just a few of such groups that are involved in this solution to identify livestock. The identification would be used to track livestock in the event that one or more of the livestock may have become contaminated with a disease, or may simply track locations that the livestock has been housed and or fed. According to some proposals, cattle, sheep and other livestock may be tagged at birth under a planned network that would help contain and control the inventory of this industry.
Currently, a process has been implemented which prints a number, barcode or both on the livestock tag that is then attached to the body of the livestock, typically in the ear of the animal. In the past, only the number was used as a type of brand to signify who owned the livestock or differentiate between livestock in a particular herd. It did not show any genealogy of the livestock or track locations where this livestock has fed. With the image or symbology (e.g. a one or two dimensional barcode) printed on the tag, more information can be gathered from the tag itself. Software systems have been created to link that information to systems in which livestock can be managed on a local or national level, especially in cases where contamination outbreaks may occur. However, currently Livestock tags are printed on Anodized Aluminum, Polyurethane, PVC Plastic, and Plated Steel. Numbering is done with several slow, labor-intensive, and costly processes. Processes for numbering currently include de-bossing, laser etching and foil stamping. These processes are slow and have a difficult time reproducing easy-to-read barcodes. Some numbering is done using continuous inkjet printing. Inkjet printing is a faster process but the ink is not believed to be durable enough for the application and thus is believed to require a separate step to apply a protective coating. Some of these processes, in particular mechanical stamping and de-bossing are mechanical and therefore are difficult and expensive to use to create variable or individualized identification images or symbology such as barcodes.
In addition, continuous inkjet inks as currently formulated and printed onto a substrate, can fade from sunlight, smear from abrasion, and experience blurring of images due to ink migration on the substrates. These factors coupled with continuous inkjet printing systems have limited resolution, which reduces the readability of bar codes and make the tag difficult to use for livestock tracking. Continuous inkjet inks also have problems adhering to certain substrates.
One of the problems with this particular form of identification is the environment in which this process is used. A barcode, to be read successfully, needs a clean environment in which the barcode is not obstructed from the reader. Dirt, scratches, or manure are just a few of the variables that do not allow for a clean read in the environment in which this barcode is used. Subsequently, the barcode reader would either not read the barcode information at all or worse, read the number incorrectly, which creates misinformation on the livestock in question. Due to these problems, Livestock owners are skeptical to participate in a program that is with inherent problems and could misinform on the status of individual livestock.
Infrared readable printing has been considered in tracking livestock or other identification and security applications. However, these applications have not been optimal because of the difficulty in providing durable and/or high resolution, readable images, particularly in individualized products with infrared readable printing and even more particularly in a hostile environment such as with livestock where dirt, fading and wear are significant issues in reading or scanning the image.
Accordingly it would be desirable to provide a livestock identification tag capable of carrying more livestock data that would have improved readability and durability particularly in a livestock environment. It was also be desirable to provide a durable tag with good resolution that is economically manufacturable.
It would also be desireable to provide a printed item with an improved infrared readable image and particularly that is used in hostile environment for tagging, scanning and/or reading the image.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

High durability printed livestock tag and tracking system


An electronic position sensor and a pneumatic microactuator form a portable robot master that may be operated by the fingers of a user's hand in the same, natural manner that the user would normally grasp an object to be finger manipulated. The master requires only two contact points to secure its ends to the user's fingers and to be manipulated by the user. The master includes a compact, hand-held unit that fits within the space defined by the user's palm and fingers, and functions as a position controller for a robot having a dextrous hand. The position sensor includes a linear variable differential transformer having an output signal that is proportional to the distance between the user's fingers, i.e. the two contact points, that are used to manipulate the master. A force feedback system, including the pneumatic micro-actuator, senses forces exerted by end effectors on the robot hand and causes a corresponding force to be exerted by the user.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of robotics and, more particularly, to a hand-held, compact device to be used as a portable dextrous master in a telemanipulation robotic system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Present telemanipulation techniques include the use of mechanical masters, open-loop servomasters, and to a lesser extent, closed-loop servomasters Direct mechanical telemanipulation is often the simplest method, but cannot be used in applications where the slave is not in the immediate vicinity of the master. Closed-loop telemanipulation eliminates the proximity requirement but may necessitate the need to have two nearly identical devices to act as master and slave. This duplication of resources is often prohibitive in terms of cost and payload weight
Efforts have been made to eliminate the duplicate master by replacing it with force feedback joy sticks, sensorized spheres, pistol grips and the like. Although such devices have served the purpose, they have not proved entirely satisfactory under all conditions of service because these devices are less "natural" to use by an operator since direct similitude does not exist between human hand and robot finger motions. Examples of manual controllers using levers, grippers, handles and like devices, with many having force feedback, may be found in the following U.S. Pat. Nos.: 4,795,296; 3,995,831; 4,604,016; 3,618,786; 3,637,092; and 3,771,037.
Those concerned with the development of telemanipulation devices have recognized the disadvantages of such prior art controllers and the need for a dextrous master controller that uses an operator's hand to replace the classical manipulator arm, the conventional keypad contact, the joy stick or handle, or other similar structure. Use of the human hand is a natural form of control and is applicable for use with both non-dextrous and dextrous slave devices. Further, because the human hand is used as master, duplication of most hardware is not required; and weight, inertia and friction can be reduced. Under most conditions, significant improvements in the time necessary to complete a task can be realized when using the human hand as the master. For example, it has been estimated that an improvement on the order of ten can be expected on the time efficiency when a dextrous master is used in place of a conventional keypad control.
While open-loop dextrous masters create more natural control environments, they lack the ability to bring force feedback to the operator's hand, which in turn limits the utility of the slave device. On the other hand, a dextrous master with force feedback, using much of the human hand as master in a closed-loop teleoperation environment, will allow the efficient execution of complex tasks such as assembly and repair involving the telemanipulation of small, intricately shaped parts. Examples of robotic masters with force feedback and wherein much of the human hand is used as the master may be found in the following U.S. Pat. Nos.: 3,449,008; 3,171,549; and 4,302,139.
Again, these examples demonstrate various prior art attempts at obtaining a controller that would be more "natural" to the operator. Although there has been a long recognized need for a "natural" dextrous master that more closely simulates the motions of the fingers of a dextrous slave, no practical system for doing so has yet been devised. Ideally, such a system should have the capability of being held in a natural position in the operator's hand; would be operated by the operator performing a natural movement; would be relatively light weight; would include a force feedback mechanism that affects the operator's hand in a manner that corresponds directly to the forces generated at the slave; would be compact, portable and simple in construction; and would be dependable in operation. The present invention fulfills this need.

Portable dextrous force feedback master for robot telemanipulation


Provided herein are methods for transducing a plurality of cells in a composition of cells, such as a population of lymphocytes, containing viral particles. In some aspects, provided methods and reagents for the transduction of cell populations involve binding of agents to a molecule on the surface of the cells. In some cases, the reagents are multimerization reagents and the one or more agents are multimerized by reversibly binding to the reagent. In some aspects, the multimerized agent can provide for transduction and/or expansion or proliferation or other stimulation of a population of cells, and then such agents can be removed by disruption of the reversible bond. Also provided are compositions, apparatus and methods of use thereof.

Various strategies are available for transducing T cell populations in vitro, including for transducing antigen-specific T cells in vitro for use in adoptive cellular immunotherapy or cancer therapy. In some aspects, infusions of T cell therapies, such as those engineered or transduced with a recombinant receptor, e.g. a chimeric antigen receptor, have been shown to have anti-tumor reactivity in a tumor-bearing host or for use to treat viral infections. Improved strategies are needed for transducing cell populations in vitro, including for research, diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. Provided are reagents, methods, articles of manufacture and kits that meet such needs.

Methods, kits, agents and apparatuses for transduction


The present invention provides lock release means that allows spring constant of the lock release means to be set to any desired value without regard to a material used for a cartridge holder. A disk recording and/or reproducing apparatus includes: recording and/or reproducing means disposed in a chassis; a cartridge holder supported on the chassis movably between an insertion and withdrawal position, at which a disk cartridge is inserted or removed, and a recording and reproducing position, at which the disk cartridge is recorded or reproduced by the recording and/or reproducing means; an eject lever disposed on an upper surface of the chassis so as to be movable in a disk cartridge insertion and withdrawal direction; eject lever lock means disposed on the upper surface of the chassis; and lock release means mounted on the cartridge holder such that a leading end side of the lock release means advances into the cartridge holder from an upper surface of the cartridge holder.

The present invention relates to a disk recording and/or reproducing apparatus including an eject lever for unloading a disk cartridge from a cartridge holder.
An apparatus as shown in FIG. 26 is known as an example of a disk recording and/or reproducing apparatus including an eject lever. In a disk recording and/or reproducing apparatus 401 shown in FIG. 26, when a disk cartridge 402 is inserted into a cartridge holder 403, a front surface 402a of the disk cartridge 402 pushes an eject lever 404. The eject lever 404 then overcomes an urging force of urge means 405 and is rotated. When the disk cartridge 402 is entirely accommodated in the cartridge holder 403, eject lever lock means 406 locks the eject lever 404 in position. The disk cartridge 402 is thereby prevented from ejecting from the cartridge holder 403. In this condition, the cartridge holder 403 is moved to a recording and reproducing position on the side of a chassis 407 and recording and/or reproducing of the disk cartridge 402 is then carried out. After recording and/or reproducing of the disk cartridge 402 has been completed, the cartridge holder 403 is moved from the recording and reproducing position to a cartridge insertion and withdrawal position. Lock release means 408 then unlocks the eject lever 404. This allows the eject lever 404 to be rotated by the urge means 405, thereby unloading the disk cartridge 402 from the cartridge holder 403.
More specifically, the eject lever 404 is rotatably and axially movably mounted to the chassis 407 via a shaft 409. The eject lever 404 is given a rotational force, and a pressing force to the chassis 407, by a coil spring as the urge means 405.
As described in the foregoing, when the disk cartridge 402 is inserted into the cartridge holder 403, the front surface 402a of the disk cartridge 402 pushes to rotate the eject lever 404. When the eject lever 404 is rotated to reach a point, at which the eject lever 404 clears a top surface of the chassis 407, the urge means 405 rotates the eject lever 404 in the direction of an arrow A. An engagement tab 406a included in the eject lever 404 is then engaged with an engagement recess 406b in a side surface of the chassis 407, thereby preventing the eject lever 404 from rotating in a return direction.
Reference is now made to FIG. 27. When the cartridge holder 403 is rotated toward the side of the chassis 407 in order to perform recording and/or reproducing, an inclined cam surface 410 included in the lock release means 408 contacts a cam engagement portion 411 included in the eject lever 404, causing the eject lever 404 to counteract the urging force of the urge means 405 and to escape in the direction of an arrow B. The cam engagement portion 411 is thereafter positioned on an eject lever operating surface 412 that continues to an upper end of the inclined cam surface 410. After recording and/or reproducing has been completed, the cartridge holder 403 is moved to the cartridge insertion and withdrawal position. Then, referring to FIG. 26, the eject lever operating surface 412 causes the eject lever 404 to rotate in the direction of an arrow C. The engagement tab 406a is then disengaged from the engagement recess 406b, allowing the eject lever 404 to be rotated by the urging force of the urge means 405. The disk cartridge 402 is thereby unloaded from the cartridge holder 403. Another arrangement may be made for the lock release means 408. Specifically, referring to FIG. 29, the lock release means 408 is made to deflect so as to temporarily escape from the cam engagement portion 411 of the eject lever 404. The lock release means 408 is then returned to the position of engagement with the cam engagement portion 411 by a returning force of the lock release means 408. (See, for example, Patent Document 1.)
[Patent Document 1]
Japanese Patent Laid-open No. Hei 9-259501

Chassis and cartridge holder with ejection mechanism for ejecting a cartridge from a disk apparatus


An adaptive current reversal comparator for synchronous switching regulator comparison circuit for use in a switching regulator is provided. The comparison circuit includes a voltage offset that is used at least in part to compensate for a propagation delay of the comparison circuit. The switching regulator includes an inductor and a synchronous transistor. The comparison circuit also includes a timing circuit that provides a threshold amount of time and an offset adjustment circuit. The offset adjustment circuit preferably decreases the voltage offset of the comparison circuit when a synchronous transistor control signal transitions to an OFF state more than the threshold amount of time prior to the discharge of an inductor. The comparison circuit also increases the voltage offset of the comparison circuit when the synchronous control signal transitions to an OFF state more than the threshold amount of time following the discharge of the inductor.

This invention relates to voltage regulators. More specifically this invention relates to switching regulators with synchronous rectification.
A synchronous switching regulator typically includes a first transistor that is ON during a first portion of a switching cycle and a second transistor that is ON during a second portion of the switching cycle. During the first portion of the switching cycle, the first transistor conducts between a power supply and an inductor. The second transistor is typically OFF during the first portion of the cycle. In the first portion of the cycle, power is transmitted from the power supply through the first transistor to the inductor (which in turn is typically coupled to a load and/or load capacitor). During a second portion of the cycle, the second transistor, which may be referred to herein as the synchronous transistor, turns ON and couples ground (or some other suitable reference voltage) to the end of the inductor that is not coupled to the load. In certain parts of the switching cycle, both transistors may be OFF and the end of the inductor not coupled to the load may, in fact, be floating.
Switching regulators with synchronous rectification preferably require a comparator, or for the purposes of this application other suitable comparison circuit, that monitors current reversal across the synchronous transistor. An ideal comparator with zero propagation delay would simply trip—i.e., change from a first output state to a second output state—when a sign reversal is detected across the synchronous transistor. The output of the comparator is used to control the operation of the second transistor.
However, real comparators must offset the trip point to compensate for the propagation delays associated with the current reversal in the output inductor. The offset required depends on the propagation delay of the comparator and the time the inductor current takes to reach zero from the trip point. These two factors typically depend on the output voltage of the regulator and the inductor value used, both of which are typically beyond the IC (integrated circuit) designer's control. The current state of the art is to select the most likely output voltage and its corresponding inductor value, and then calculate the offset voltage the comparator needs. This approach works reasonably well for many applications. But for some applications the comparator either trips too early or too late, resulting in lowered efficiency.
It would be desirable to provide current reversal comparison circuits and methods that automatically adjusts for any suitable output voltage and/or inductor value.


An inflatable knee bolster for a vehicle occupant is mounted in opposing relation to the knees of a vehicle occupant. The bolster is an expansible chamber of multipiece construction having a face portion and a separate three dimensional expansible body portion. The face portion and body portion are joined about their peripheries to define and substantially enclose the chamber. The expansible body portion is formed from injection molded polymeric material and has one or more integrally molded at least partially collapsible pleated profile elements disposed along the sides and across the top of the body portion in raised and lowered profile with respect to the face portion. Deformable mounting brackets extend outwardly from the body portion for attachment to the vehicle. The materials forming the face and body portions are of either similar or dissimilar chemical and physical character. Actuation of an inflator in fluid communication with the bolster pressurizes the expansible body causing at least a portion of the pleated profile elements to collapsibly deform such that the volume of the enclosed chamber is expanded and the face portion is thrust outwardly to an extended position.

Inflatable knee bolsters have been developed to enhance vehicle occupant protection in the event of sudden vehicle deceleration. Such devices increase the duration of deceleration of occupants' femurs and control upper torso kinematics during a frontal impact event. The bolster impact surface is moved from a stored position to an extended position to intercept an occupant's knees early in the impact event. This allows the knees more time to decelerate to the vehicle's final velocity. The initial positioning of the bolster impact surface in a retracted, stored position allows more styling flexibility and enhances occupant ingress and egress.
Typical inflatable knee bolster installations comprise an inflatable air bag sandwiched between an impact surface and a reaction surface. When the inflator is triggered, the air bag expands to move the impact surface a predetermined distance to active position. This position may be determined by tethers between the reaction and impact surfaces. These installations comprise numerous parts, bits and pieces and require careful installation.
It would be desirable to provide a simpler inflatable knee inflatable bolster which would be less costly to manufacture and assemble into the vehicle. To this end it is believed to be advantageous to utilize bolster configurations which utilize a relatively small number of components which may be easily assembled and which exhibit effective deployment in an operational situation.


According to example embodiments, an infrared thermal detector includes a substrate, a detector spaced apart from the substrate, and a thermal legal configured to transmit a signal from the detector to the substrate. The detector is configured to absorb incident infrared light via localized surface Plasmon resonance, and the detector is configured to change a resistance value according to a temperature change caused by the absorbed infrared light.

1. Field
Example embodiments relate to infrared thermal detectors and/or methods of manufacturing the same, and more particularly, to an infrared thermal detector for receiving and detecting infrared light emitted from an object having a temperature, and a method of manufacturing the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Some devices may be used to sense radiation. For example, an object having a desired (and/or predetermined) temperature T may emit light according to black body radiation and may have wide band indicating a maximum value. Light emitted from a nearby object at room temperature may be infrared radiation showing a maximum value in a wavelength band of about 10 μm. When such infrared light is incident on a thermal mass connected to surroundings via a thermal leg, a temperature may increase in the thermal mass and the thermal leg. Due to the temperature change caused by the incident infrared light, a resistance change, a polarity change, an electromotive force change, and/or a flexural change may be generated according to characteristics of a material, and such a change may be turned into an image array to obtain a thermal image. For example, a bolometer may be used to realize a thermal image by using a resistance change of a material.
Factors that affect the amount of temperature change of a pixel are the amount of incident energy, which is proportional to a result of multiplying an average light absorption ratio of the pixel by a pixel area in a given wavelength band, the thermal mass of the pixel, and the thermal conductance of the pixel.
An array having a format equal to or above a video graphics array (VGA) level is being developed via pixel miniaturization so as to realize a thermal camera having high resolution and high temperature precision. However, during the pixel miniaturization, the amount of incident energy decreases due to the decreased pixel area, and the amount of temperature change decreases due to the increased thermal conductance caused by a decreased length of a thermal leg. Accordingly, a temperature noise factor may increase as a pixel size decreases, and thus, a pixel having a size larger than a diffraction limit of a used wavelength (up to 10 μm) may be used.

Infrared thermal detector and method of manufacturing the same


A display panel includes a first display region and a second display region; the first display region includes first sub-pixels provided with first pixel density; and the second display region includes second sub-pixels provided with second pixel density, where the first pixel density is lower than the second pixel density. During one frame of picture display, a light-emitting phase of the first sub-pixel includes a first light-emitting period, and a light-emitting phase of the second sub-pixel includes a second light-emitting period; for same target brightness, the first sub-pixel emits light with first light-emitting brightness in the first light-emitting period, and the second sub-pixel emits light with second light-emitting brightness in the second light-emitting period, where the first light-emitting brightness is higher than the second light-emitting brightness; and the first light-emitting period is shorter than the second light-emitting period.

With the continuous development of science and technology, more and more electronic devices with display functions are widely applied to people's daily life and work, bring great convenience to people's daily life and work, and become essential tools for people today.
An important component of an electronic device that implements a display function is a display panel. In the existing display panels, in order to meet requirements of integrating an optical and electronic element into the electronic device, it is necessary to arrange a hollowed-out region in a set region of the display panel for setting the optical and electronic element.
The arrangement of the optical and electronic element leads to different display effects of sub-pixels in the hollowed-out region and a normal display region, affecting normal display of the display panel.

Wuhan Tianma Micro-Electronics Co., Ltd.


A technique facilitates continued operation of a position indicator which may be used with a valve or other types of actuatable components. The technique utilizes a housing and a stem driver mounted for rotation within the housing to actuate the valve/component to a desired position. The stem driver has a threaded region which is threadably engaged with a clutch collar located in the housing. When the stem driver is rotated relative to the clutch collar, the clutch collar moves in an axial direction along the interior of the housing. The clutch collar is coupled with a bracket which moves during axial translation of the clutch collar. The clutch collar comprises a flexible portion which enables slippage of threads at the region of coupling between the clutch collar and the stem driver if movement of the bracket becomes sufficiently restricted.

In many types of subsea operations, rotary actuated valves are used to control a fluid flow. A rotary actuated valve system comprises a valve coupled with an actuation system which includes a flag or other position indicator to indicate valve flow position. The valve position indicator is mechanically moved in correspondence with the flow position of the valve to provide a visual indication of the valve flow position. If movement of the valve position indicator is sufficiently restricted, a shear pin or similar one-time failure point disengages the valve position indicator to enable continued use of the valve actuation system. Subsequently, however, the valve position indicator becomes permanently disabled unless the rotary actuated valve system is retrieved to the surface to replace the shear pin or other failed component.

System and methodology for indicating position


The present invention discloses a method, system and a program storage device for remotely accessing medically relevant data stored on a server and provides remote access over a cellular or PCS communications network employing either a SMS or MMS communication protocol allowing dissemination of an individual's medically relevant data in an emergency, wherein the server authenticates each accessing PCS device by determining whether said accessing PCS device ID is stored in an emergency medical profile database and sending the user inputted emergency related personal data if the accessing PCS device ID is found in the emergency medical database device.

Upon arriving on the scene of an accident or responding to some other life-threatening incident, emergency first-responders need access a victim's personal information in order to adequately assess the condition of and provide treatment to the victim. For example, first-responders might need to inquiry into a victim's medical history, and other emergency related personal details such as, age, blood type, medical allergies, past medical conditions, emergency contacts and the like. Needless to say, if the victim is incapacitated this information cannot be obtained, leaving first-responder to existing solutions, such as medical ID tags or searching through a victim's personal possessions to retrieve relevant data.
Other means of accessing medical records are known in the art such as providing portable health care histories that allows patients to carry the medical records with them. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,039,628, "Portable health care history information system," issued to Logan, describes a system that provides restricted access to a user's individual medical records through the use of a computer-readable identity card. Presumably, an identity card provides user identification from any location, that is, provided a computer and a card reader are readily available at the scene of the accident. Other examples of portable health care histories are taught in U.S. Pat. No. 6,523,009, "Individualized patient electronic medical records system," issued to Wilkins (patient records stored on CDROM or similar mobile storage device), and U.S. Patent Application 2002/0120470, "Portable personal and medical information system and method for making and using system" applied for by Trice (patient records on a memory stick with USB dongle attached to a key ring). While Logan, Wilkins and Trice may provide portable access to medical information, the information is unlikely to be up-to-date and could be lost or unavailable if the disk or other storage means is damaged.
Another scheme of accessing medical records involves remote access over a communications network, which could avoid the problem of staleness of medical data encountered by Logan, Wilkins and Trice. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,028,190, "Method and system for electronic delivery of sensitive information," issued to Burakoff et al describes a mechanism for requiring and providing consent prior to obtaining access to sensitive information, such as health records over an Internet connection (e.g. via e-mail). Burakoff's scheme presumes active consent, whereby the owner of the information must react to a request for access in order to indicate consent. This is not applicable in a situation where a user is incapacitated or otherwise impaired and therefore unable to provide consent.
An alternative approach utilizing a credential mechanism is taught in U.S. Pat. No. 7,213,266, "Systems and methods for managing and protecting electronic content and applications," issued to Maher, et al. which describes an approach for controlling the distribution of electronic content which relies on digital certificates to serve as the credentials and coordinates the content control through a certification service. While it would be possible to use this type of system to construct a remote medical history distribution mechanism, it would be impractical due to the high level of complexity.
Hence, there is a need for a method and system of remotely accessing medically relevant data over a communications network that is convenient and reliable yet secure in that it protects the privacy of the victim while disseminating an individual's medically relevant data in an emergency.

Method and system for using communication devices for retrieving personal medical data


A cable duct assembly configured to retain an elongated cable is presented herein. The cable duct assembly includes a cover plate connected to a first sidewall and a second sidewall and a base plate pivotally connected to the first sidewall and the second sidewall. The first sidewall includes first arms that include lobe mechanisms and second arms that include rotation limiting portions.

The disclosure generally relates to the field of electrical installations, more specifically, electrical conduits, particularly, cable duct assemblies (e.g., cable ducts, modular cable duct assemblies). Cable duct assemblies are used to protect, route, and organize elongated cables, such as fiber optic cables and electrical cables (e.g., power cables, communication cables, conductors), inside electrical panels, electrical cabinets, and other hard-to-reach applications. Some cable duct assemblies include a base plate configured for mounting to a surface, a pair of opposing sidewalls defining a passageway therein, and a cover plate attaching to the sidewalls. The cover plate encloses the passageway.
In some applications, the base of a cable duct assembly is mounted on a non-horizontal surface, such as a vertical wall surface. In such a configuration, the weight of the cables carried in the passageway may act as a load that pushes downwards on the lowermost sidewall of the cable duct assembly, potentially causing the cover plate to disconnect. The disconnection of the cover plate could result in one or more of the cables spilling out of the passageway otherwise provided by the cable duct assembly.


An apparatus for counting the number of ions emitted by an ion source of a handheld domestic appliance is disclosed. The apparatus includes a collector housing for collecting ions impinging on the inner surface of the collector housing and a determining means coupled with the collector housing for determining the number of ions collected by the collector housing. The collector housing has an input opening dimensioned such that the domestic appliance is at least partially insertable into the collector housing via input opening. A method for counting the number of ions emitted by an ion source of a handheld domestic appliance is also disclosed.

According to the state of the art it is known to provide domestic appliances, especially hair care devices, comprising an ion source for emitting ions. Recently, hair care devices, e.g. hairdryers, hairbrushes or curling irons, having the function to expel ionized particles, i.e. negatively ionized air or positively ionized air, have enjoyed increasing popularity. These devices make it possible to obtain the effect of treating the hair, making it more manageable and giving it more body, by expelling towards the hair the negatively or positively ionized air while drying, brushing or curling the hair.
It is further known to provide apparatuses, which are able to count ions emitted by an ion source. Usually, such apparatuses count the number of ions and measure the concentration of ions, respectively, in a gas medium by means of electric current detection with an electrometer or another current detecting device. Such apparatuses usually comprise a so-called Faraday cup being made of a conductive material and having a relatively small input opening. In order to count the ions, the Faraday cup is positioned such that a narrow ion beam, which may for example be expelled by a directional ion source, enters the cup via the input opening. Alternatively, air of the environment could be sucked through the input opening, so that the ions in the surrounding gas medium are sucked into the Faraday cup as well. Inside the Faraday cup the ions, which carry an electric charge, impinge on its inner surface such that a current could be measured by means of the electrometer which is coupled with the Faraday cup. The measured current is directly proportional to the number of ions and number of charges per ion, such that it could be used to determine the number of ions emitted by an ion source and collected by the Faraday cup.
The known apparatuses for counting the number of ions emitted by an ion source have proved themselves insofar as the number of ions emitted by a directional ion source could be reliably determined by leading the ion beam of a directional ion source directly through the input opening into the Faraday cup. However, it has been found out that the result of the measurement is less accurate if the ions are emitted by a non-directional ion source and have to be taken up through the input opening by sucking the environmental air of the non-directional ion source through the input opening.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for counting the number of ions emitted by an ion source of a handheld domestic appliance permitting an accurate and reliable counting of the emitted ions independent of the type of ion source. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method for counting the number of ions emitted by an ion source of a handheld domestic appliance permitting an accurate and reliable counting of the emitted ions independent of the type of ion source. Above this, it is an object of the present invention to provide an advantageous use of the apparatus and the method according to the invention.

Apparatus for counting ions, and method for counting ions


A temporary bridge includes two spans, each including at least three bridge elements to be stacked when the bridge is in a first so-called non-deployed position. The bridge elements are pivotably connected to one another, wherein two consecutive bridge elements are connected to one another by at least two linking arms mounted on the same side edge of the bridge elements. Two consecutive linking arms form a regular parallelogram with the two consecutive bridge elements connected by the arms, which can be deformed such that the movement of one bridge element relative to a bridge element immediately below in the stack of a span in the non-deployed position of the bridge causes the circular translation of the bridge element relative to the bridge element of the span immediately below. For at least one of the spans, at least one of the linking arms is shared by three consecutive bridge elements.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a temporary bridge intended for crossing gaps, particularly for the passage of pedestrians, vehicles, or other mobile equipment.
2. Description of the Related Art
Such bridges that can be used for crossing gaps using one or more joists joined together, these joists being possibly foldable when these bridges are in the rest position, are known.
However, it is necessary to use a bridge-laying vehicle to transport and deploy these joists. The system for deploying these joists is therefore particularly complicated in order to take into account both the large dimensions of these joists and also the working area offered by the chassis of the bridge-laying vehicle. This system notably requires a launch ramp that allows the assembled joists to be set down toward the front of the vehicle.
In addition, the dimensions of the joists typically mean that the terrain has to be clear in order to allow these joists to be deployed.
It may therefore prove necessary prior to deployment of the bridge for the terrain to be prepared by qualified operatives, notably, by way of example, when there are wooded areas adjacent to the gap that is to be crossed.
Moreover, the trackway of these joists has to be capable, in certain applications, of taking one or more heavy vehicles. This trackway is therefore rigid and secured to each of the joists. It may, for example, be made of steel, wood or composite. The trackway thus increases the total weight of the bridge that has to be transported.
In addition, when the joists are of greater dimensions than the launch ramp, the weight of the joists thus assembled has to be counterbalanced by the weight of the bridge-laying vehicle in order to avoid any potential imbalance of this vehicle when laying the bridge. The vehicle, which has therefore to have a suitable chassis, has difficulty in moving over uneven ground.
Finally, these crossing systems of the prior art are not autonomous and require the presence of service personnel who are then particularly exposed and vulnerable in conflict zones for example.


A dual element headphone, including a first acoustic transducer mounted within a first housing so as to direct sound in a certain direction out of the first housing. The first housing is sized small enough so as to at least partially fit into the cavum concha of a listener's ear, and yet be larger in area than the entrance of the external acoustic meatus of the listener's ear. The first acoustic transducer is supported in the listener's ear so as to direct the sound generated by the transducer toward the entrance of the external acoustic meatus. A second acoustic transducer is mounted within a second housing. That second housing is substantially larger than the first housing, and overlies at least a portion of the auricle of the listener's ear. A crossover circuit divides the electrical signals received by the headphone, and transmits signals for higher frequencies to the first, smaller transducer and signals for lower frequencies to the second, larger transducer. The disclosure includes a headband and mounting plate, providing a set of these transducers for association with each ear. The first transducer may be flexibly mounted for improved comfort and sound fidelity.

This invention relates to headphones for sound reproduction with high fidelity, and in particular to dual element headphones having one transducer for each ear directed to reproducing higher frequencies and one transducer for each ear directed to reproducing lower frequencies.
Designers of loudspeakers have long recognized the need for more than a single acoustic transducer to faithfully reproduce the entire audio spectrum. Quality loudspeakers may contain from two to five separate acoustic transducers, each designed to operate over a specific portion of the audio spectrum. Crossover networks are employed to distribute the plied audio signal to the proper acoustic transducer and these typically include circuits comprised of resistors, capacitors and inductors.
In the same vein, headphones having two transducer elements for each side are known in the art. Refer particularly, for instance, to Piribauer, U.S. Pat. No. 3,943,304, wherein there is disclosed a headphone speaker system which combines a dynamic transducer for lower frequencies with an electrostatic transducer for higher frequencies. Similarly, the disclosure of Mathis, U.S. Pat. No. 4,418,248, shows use of two transducers, in this case using a dynamic transducer for lower frequencies and a piezoelectric transducer for higher frequencies. And Andre et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,965,836 discloses use of two dynamic transducers, a larger one for lower frequencies and a smaller one for higher frequencies. In each of the headphones disclosed in these patents, the transducers are oriented substantially coaxially, so that the sound from the two transducers emanates in almost entirely the same direction.
This invention relates to improvements to the headphone and loudspeaker apparatus set forth above and to solutions to some of the problems raised or not solved thereby.


There is provided a turn signal canceling mechanism 30 in which the types of the springs 42, 49 can be reduced and the production cost can be lowered.. A turn signal canceling mechanism comprises: a canceling cam 31; a turn bracket 35 attached to a case 34 so that the turn bracket can be turned between a neutral position and a right or a left turning position being linked with the operation of a turn signal lever 32; a movable member 38 having a pair of arms 37 arranged on the right and left, the movable member being attached to the turn bracket 35 in such a manner that the movable member can proceed and retract, the movable member being biased by a moderation spring 42 so that a moderation mechanism can be composed in which a forward end portion of each arm 37 comes into pressure contact with a moderation ridge 43 and the turn bracket 35 is held at one of the neutral position, right turning position and left turning position; and a ratchet 39 biased by a ratchet spring 49 in a direction so that the ratchet can proceed to the canceling cam 31, wherein when the turn bracket 35 is in a locking condition, the movable member 38 is retracted while resisting a force generated by the moderation spring 42, so that a disengagement of the ratchet 39 is caused.

In FIG. 5, there is shown a conventional turn signal canceling mechanism. As shown in the drawing, the turn signal canceling mechanism 10 includes: a canceling cam 11 turned integrally with a steering shaft; a turn bracket 14 attached to a case 13 so that the turn bracket 14 can be turned from a neutral position to a right or a left turning position being linked with a turn signal lever 12; a back plate 16 having a pair of arms 15 which are arranged on the right and left; and a ratchet 17 attached to the case 13 so that the ratchet 17 can be advanced and retracted.
Moderation pieces 18 and moderation springs 19 are respectively incorporated into the right and the left end portions of the turn bracket 14. These moderation pieces 18 come into pressure contact with moderation ridges 20 arranged in the case 13. Therefore, the turn bracket 14 can be held at the neutral position, the right turning position or the left turning position by these moderation pieces 18 and the moderation springs 19. On an upper face of the turn bracket 14, there are provided a pair of protrusions 21 which are arranged on the right and left, and the back plate 16 is 1 attached to both protrusions 21 in such a manner that the back plate 16 can be linearly reciprocated. The back plate 16 is held at a neutral position by the back spring 22 arranged between both protrusions 21.
The ratchet 17 has a protrusion 23 formed on the upper face, a protrusion 24 formed on the lower face, and a step portion 25. The upper protrusion 23 is engaged with a long groove 26 formed on an upper cover of the case, and the lower protrusion 24 slidably comes into contact with a cam face 27, the profile of which is an angle-shape, arranged inside of the forward end of the turn bracket 14. There is provided a ratchet spring 28 in the step portion 25 on the lower face. This ratchet spring 28 biases the ratchet 17 toward the canceling cam 11.
The structure of the conventional turn signal canceling mechanism 10 is described above. As shown in FIG. 5, when the turn bracket 14 is located at the neutral position, the lower protrusion 24 slidably comes into contact with a top portion of the ridge of the cam face 27, and a forward end portion of the ratchet 17 retracts from a rotational locus of the canceling cam 11.
When the turn lever 12 is operated, the turn bracket 14 is turned to the right turning position or the left turning position and held at the position by the actions of the moderation ridge 20, moderation piece 18 and moderation spring 19. When the turn bracket 14 is turned, the lower protrusion 24, which slidably comes into contact with the top of the ridge of the cam face 27, slidably comes into contact with a bottom portion. Therefore, the ratchet 17 advances along the long groove 26, and the forward end portion proceeds into the rotational locus of the canceling cam 11, and a base end portion of the ratchet 17 comes close to one of the arms 15.
When the turn bracket 14 is located at the right or the left turning position and also when the canceling cam 11 is turned in the same direction as that of the steering shaft according to the turn of the steering shaft, the canceling cam 11 is engaged with a forward end of the ratchet 17, and the base end portion of the ratchet 17 is turned in a direction so that it can be separate from the arm 15 which has been located close to the base end portion of the ratchet 17. On the other hand, when the canceling cam 11 is turned in the opposite direction, the base end portion of the ratchet 17 is engaged with the arm 15 which is located close to it. Therefore, the turn bracket 14 is returned to the neutral position integrally with the back plate 16.
When the turn signal lever 12 is turned by an operator's hand and held at the position as it is, the turn bracket 14 integrated with the lever 12 is locked at the right turning position or the left turning position. When the canceling cam 11 is turned in the opposite direction under the condition that the turn bracket 14 is locked at the right turning position or the left turning position, the base end portion of the ratchet 17 is engaged with the arm 15 which is located close to it, and a torque of the canceling cam 11 is transmitted to the back plate 16. Therefore, the back spring 22 is compressed, and the back plate 16 is moved to the right or the left along the protrusion 21, so that a disengagement of the ratchet 17 is caused.
In this connection, in the above conventional turn signal canceling mechanism 10, it is necessary to provide three types of springs including the moderation spring 19, the back spring 22 and the ratchet spring 28. As a result, the number of parts is large, and the production cost is raised.
The present invention has been accomplished to solve the above problems. It is an object of the present invention to provide a turn signal canceling mechanism capable of lowering the cost by reducing the number of spring types.


An apparatus and method of processing transmitted signals through the use of correlator means and RAM means thereby accomplishing synchronization and data interpretation. Specifically, a plurality of correlators are coupled to RAM means which cooperate to store and subsequently read transmitted data. Clocking means used in conjunction with a programmed delay period provides segments of the received and stored data to a plurality of correlators and on to logic means for further processing.

The invention relates to correlators and more specifically to correlators which include and comprise processing capability of received signals through the use of Random Access Memory (RAM) means.
Spread spectrum communications involve using more bandwidth than is theoretically needed to transmit digital data. Motivation for using spread spectrum signals is generally based on interference suppression, energy density reduction and/or time delay measurement. Direct sequence, pseudonoise, frequency hopping, time hopping and linear frequency modulation are generic types of spread spectrum signals which may be used alone or in combination with each other dependent upon user requirements and system capacity.
A matched filter, typically a correlator, provides at its output the maximum possible peak-signal power/average-noise power ratio when the input is a known signal and a random noise component. Matched filters are implemented in a variety of elements and may be periodic, non-periodic, autocorrelated or cross correlated. Traditional implementations require dedicated circuitry for each correlator and associated devices in a multi-frequency application. Alternatively, some single frequency implementations have utilized memory devices in a limited fashion to provide code correlation.
There currently exists a need for implementing correlator functions using minimum circuitry and elements that have maximum application flexibility.

Apparatus for correlating multi-frequency signals


An expandable sheath is disclosed herein, which has a first polymeric layer and a braided layer positioned radially outward of the first polymeric layer. The braided layer includes a plurality of filaments braided together. The expandable sheaths further include a resilient elastic layer positioned radially outward of the braided layer. The elastic layer is configured to apply radial force to the braided layer and the first polymeric layer. The expandable sheath further includes a second polymeric layer positioned radially outward of the elastic layer and bonded to the first polymeric layer such that the braided layer and the elastic layer are encapsulated between the first and second polymeric layers. Methods of making and using the devices disclosed herein are also disclosed, as are crimping devices that may be used in methods of making the devices disclosed herein.

Endovascular delivery catheter assemblies are used to implant prosthetic devices, such as a prosthetic valve, at locations inside the body that are not readily accessible by surgery or where access without invasive surgery is desirable. For example, aortic, mitral, tricuspid, and/or pulmonary prosthetic valves can be delivered to a treatment site using minimally invasive surgical techniques.
An introducer sheath can be used to safely introduce a delivery apparatus into a patient's vasculature (e.g., the femoral artery). An introducer sheath generally has an elongated sleeve that is inserted into the vasculature and a housing that contains one or more sealing valves that allow a delivery apparatus to be placed in fluid communication with the vasculature with minimal blood loss. Such introducer sheaths may be radially expandable. However, such sheaths tend to have complex mechanisms, such as ratcheting mechanisms that maintain the sheath in an expanded configuration once a device with a larger diameter than the sheath's original diameter is introduced. Existing expandable sheaths can also be prone to axial elongation as a consequence of the application of longitudinal force attendant to passing a prosthetic device through the sheath. Such elongation can cause a corresponding reduction in the diameter of the sheath, increasing the force required to insert the prosthetic device through the narrowed sheath.
Accordingly, there remains a need in the art for an improved introducer sheath for endovascular systems used for implanting valves and other prosthetic devices.


In a method of measuring track widths in a hard disk drive a plurality of estimation values are calculated based on differences in intensity between a plurality first measurement signals produced in relation to a head of the hard disk drive based on a plurality of burst signals stored in servo sectors of a track when the head moves along the track on a first side of a center of the track, and a plurality of second measurement signals produced in relation to the head of the hard disk drive based on the plurality of burst signals when the head moves along the track on a second side of the center of the track opposite the first side. The estimation values are then normalized, and excessive variation in the track widths is detected based on the normalized estimation values.

1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the invention relate generally to hard disk drives. More particularly, embodiments of the invention relate to methods of measuring track width variation in hard disk drives, and recording media adapted to store computer programs used by the methods.
A claim of priority is made to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2006-0009606, filed on Feb. 1, 2006, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
2. Description of Related Art
Hard disk drives (HDDs) are commonly used to provide data storage for computer systems. Hard disk drives are characterized by providing vast amounts of data storage and efficient access to stored data. In general, hard disk drives are formed by a combination of electronic and mechanical parts used to record data on a magnetic storage medium by converting digital signals into magnetic fields in order to magnetize portions of the magnetic storage medium. The electronic and mechanical parts are also used to reproduce data stored on the magnetic storage medium by converting magnetic fields produced by magnetized portions of the magnetic storage medium into digital signals.
In most hard disk drives, data is stored in concentric circular tracks on the magnetic storage medium. Accordingly, in order to accurately read and record data on these tracks, a read/write head of the hard disk drive must be properly positioned with respect to the tracks. In modern "embedded servo" hard disk drives, this positioning is accomplished by programming "servo data," or "servo patterns" at various angular positions of each concentric track using a servo writer and then using the servo data to sense the head's position as it moves along the tracks. The servo data allows the HDD to sense the head's position because the servo data produces different output signals in the head depending on the head's position in relation to the center of each track. The servo data is typically programmed on the HDD when the HDD is manufactured and then remains the same throughout the life of the HDD. Accordingly, it is important that the servo data is accurately placed at the time of a hard disk drive's manufacture.
One problem that can occur in the manufacture of hard disk drives is that imprecise programming of the servo data can cause the tracks to have undesirable width variation, both within each track and between tracks. In order to form each track with a consistent width, the servo writer must program the servo data with a high degree of precision. If the servo writer is not precisely positioned when the servo data is programmed on a HDD, the tracks of the HDD will have different, non-uniform widths. Where this happens, the head may not be able to achieve accurate positioning for reading and writing data on the HDD.
For example, FIG. 1 is a graph illustrating the positioning of data written on a HDD. Referring to FIG. 1, portions of three different tracks are illustrated by a rectangular grid. In each grid, white blocks indicate portions of the track that have been written. As can be seen in the grids, upper portions of each track are written and lower portions of each track are not written. In other words, the data on of these tracks is written slightly off the center of each track. One reason for this off-center writing of these tracks is that the tracks do not have constant widths, as defined by the servo data.
There are a variety of methods for recording servo data in hard disk drives. However, it is difficult to form ideal servo patterns due to inherent limits of conventional servo writer technology. Accordingly, to address the problems inherent in the servo writer technology, track width variation is typically monitored when the servo writer writes the servo data by explicitly measuring track width variation. In other words, after the servo writer writes the servo data, an additional step is performed to detect the width of resulting data tracks. In addition, further steps may also be performed to verify the quality of servo patterns themselves.
In a conventional method for measuring a track width, a head is moved to a predetermined distance from a 0% off track. The term "off track" here refers to a relative displacement of the head from a track's center. A percentage of off track is measured in a minus (−) direction on one side of the track center, and a plus (+) direction on an opposite side of the track center. Once the head is moved to the predetermined distance from the 0% off track, the head measures the track width in relation to "servo bursts", or burst signals, which form part of the servo data.
The above method uses two different limits to evaluate the severeness of track width variation. The first limit relates to an overall width difference between a track and neighboring tracks. The second limit relates to variation of the widths of sides of each track with respect to the center of the track.
As an example, FIG. 2 is a graph illustrating measurements of a track's width taken using a conventional method. In FIG. 2, there are two curves corresponding to the amplitudes of signals produced in the head of a hard disk drive in relation to burst signals when the head is moved along the track on opposite sides of the track's center. As seen in FIG. 2, there is significant variance within each of the measured signals, and the there is also significant variance in the distance between the signals. The variance within each signal can be interpreted as variation in the width of the track, and the variation in the distance between the signals can be interpreted as variation in the widths of neighboring tracks in the hard disk drive. However, much of the variation can also be attributed to noise in the measurement process, e.g., in the form of unknown variations in the amplitudes of burst signals used to generate the signals.
FIG. 3 is another graph illustrating measurements of a track's width taken using a conventional method. Like FIG. 2, FIG. 3 contains two curves corresponding to the amplitudes of signals produced in relation to burst signals when a head is moved along the track on opposite sides of the track's center. Like the curves in FIG. 2, the curves in FIG. 3 also exhibit significant variation, indicating possible variation in track width. However, the curves in FIG. 3 have a more clear separation than the curves in FIG. 2, potentially indicating the width of the curves and the widths of neighboring curves.
In conventional methods for measuring track widths in a hard disk drive, track width variation between neighboring tracks is measured under an assumption that each servo burst among the servo data in the tracks has substantially the same electromagnetic properties, e.g., the same amplitude. In addition, the track width variation is also measured under an assumption that a center point of each track and therefore deviation of written data from the center point, can be identified with some degree of accuracy.
Unfortunately, however, the amplitude of the servo bursts can vary, making the measurements of the track widths and the track center points somewhat unreliable. Accordingly, the range of allowable measured track width variation must be adjusted to account for the uncertainty in the amplitudes of the servo bursts. Moreover, the allowable measured track width variation must also be adjusted when measuring the track widths of hard disk drives having different burst signal amplitudes or different number of tracks per inch (TPI) due to differences in the accuracy of corresponding servo writers.

Method for measuring track width of hard disk drive


A pixel-data processing circuit adapted to resize pixel data in a first vertically processing mode is reconfigurable to operate in a nonresizing mode, wherein each mode receives pixel data at a first pixel rate and outputs pixel data at a different pixel rate. In one particular example embodiment, pixels are received at two pixels per cycle and output to a storage unit at one pixel per cycle. In a first operational resizing mode, the embodiment includes vertically processing pixel data including polyphase filtering and line-buffering the pixel data, resizing the received pixel data by circulating the data in the line buffers and by filtering the circulated data for the polyphase filtering, and presenting resized pixel data for storage at the first pixel rate. In a second operational nonresizing mode, the pixel data is processed by double-line buffering the pixel data, bypassing the polyphase filtering, and presenting nonresized pixel data for storage at the rate of one pixel per cycle. Using a control circuit, the pixel-data processing circuit can switch between the first operational resizing mode and the second operational nonresizing mode.

The present invention is directed to video signal processing and, more particularly, to video signal processing which employs a vertical pixel signal processing block, such as a polyphase filter.
Computer arrangements, including microprocessors and digital signal processors, have been designed for a wide range of applications and have been used in virtually every industry. For a variety of reasons, many of these applications have been directed to processing video data and have demanded minimal levels of power consumption and compactness. Some applications have further demanded a high-speed computing engine that can perform effectively on a real-time or near real-time basis. Many of these video-processing applications have required a data-signal processing circuit that is capable of performing multiple functions at ever-increasing speeds.
Increasing the power and versatility of such computing engines, however, can undermine other important goals. For example, faster computing engines consume more power and circuit real estate, whereas the ideal engine minimizes both power consumption and the amount of circuitry required to implement the computing engine.
Moreover, providing versatility and high power typically exacerbates the circuit real estate problem by requiring various types of processing circuitry, each specialized and selectively activated for different processing functions. This phenomena can be appreciated when comparing, for instance, relatively-slow general-purpose processing in video applications versus specialized video-signal filter processing used for compressing and decompressing video data in real time. Because the specialized processing circuitry is typically optimized to keep up with the real-time speeds of the video data, it is often difficult to provide a single video-data processing circuit that is adequately versatile without providing seemingly excess circuitry useful only for limited applications.
As a more particular example, many video-signal processing applications employ specialized video-signal filters for vertical signal processing which uses a specialized video-data filter known as a xe2x80x9cpolyphasexe2x80x9d filter. In video-processing applications, a polyphase filter is used to resize pixels by manipulating data stored to represent the horizontal and vertical lines used to refresh the display. In such applications, expansion or up-sampling (xe2x80x9czoom-factorxe2x80x9d greater than one) is achieved by increasing the ratio of the number of output pixels to the number of input pixels; whereas, compression or down-sampling (xe2x80x9czoom-factorxe2x80x9d less than one) is achieved by decreasing the ratio of the number of output pixels to the number of input pixels.
Due to their different functions, the type of circuit used for such general purpose video signal processing is different than the type of filtering circuit used for expanding or compressing video data. For video-data expansion, a polyphase filter typically receives the data representing multiple pixels at a first pixel rate (e.g., two pixels per cycle), and processes the pixel data by circulating it through a dozen or so line buffers. The exact manner of circulation through the line buffers depends on the scaling factor. Using the many line buffers to circulate the data and effect an appropriate delay, the polyphase filter is able to output the data to a storage unit a slower pixel rate (e.g., one pixel per cycle).
During processing when the data is not being resized, the polyphase filter and its arrangement of circular line buffers is not needed. Thus, another circuit is used to present the multiple pixels at the same rate in which they are received; thus, if the multiple pixels are received at two pixels per cycle, then they are passed to the storage unit at two pixels per cycle. The storage unit for this processing mode is larger than the storage unit that receives data from the polyphase filter; using the above example two pixels per cycle pixel rate, the storage unit for this processing mode must be twice as large.
The present invention is directed to the above-mentioned goal of minimizing the amount and types of circuits required to implement these respective modes of pixel-data resizing and other types of pixel-data processing.
Various aspects of the present invention are directed to generic de-coupling of input and output rates of sampling data when line buffers are used, and in a more specific application to a reconfigurable pixel-data processing circuit in which line buffers are used for both a vertically pixel processing mode and a nonresizing processing mode.
Consistent with one specific example embodiment, the present invention is directed to a pixel-data processing circuit being adapted to resize pixel data in a first vertically processing mode and to be reconfigured to operate in a nonresizing mode, wherein each mode receives pixel data at a first pixel rate and outputs pixel data at a different pixel rate.
In another particular example embodiment, pixels are received at two pixels per cycle and output to a storage unit at one pixel per cycle. In a first operational resizing mode, the embodiment includes vertically processing pixel data including polyphase filtering and line-buffering the pixel data, resizing the received pixel data by circulating the data in the line buffers and by filtering the circulated data for the polyphase filtering, and presenting resized pixel data for storage at the first pixel rate. In a second operational nonresizing mode, the pixel data is processed by double-line buffering the pixel data, bypassing the polyphase filtering, and presenting nonresized pixel data for storage at the rate of one pixel per cycle. Using a control circuit, the pixel-data processing circuit can switch between the first operational resizing mode and the second operational nonresizing mode.
Other example embodiments of the present invention are respectively directed to various other related aspects including method, circuit, and system-based implementations of such processing.
The above summary of the present invention is not intended to describe each illustrated embodiment or every implementation of the present invention. The figures and the detailed description that follow more particularly exemplify these embodiments.

Line-buffer reuse in vertical pixel-processing arrangement


A retaining structure includes a bracket, a retaining element, a securing element, a spring and a latching element. The bracket defines a mounting hole. The retaining element defines an opening and having a pin. The securing element is slidably retained to the retaining element. The securing element defines a securing groove, a guiding groove and a sliding groove. The sliding groove has a first end and a second end. The spring connects the retaining element and the securing element. The latching element is latched with the securing element. The latching element including a latching board and a latching post protruding from the latching board.

1. Technical Field
This disclosure relates to retaining structures, particularly to a retaining structure used in servers.
2. Description of Related Art
A typical sliding mechanism of a server generally includes an inner rail, a middle rail, and an outer rail. The inner rail is mounted on the server, the outer rail is mounted to a support frame of the server, and the middle rail is mounted between the inner rail and the outer rail to extend the sliding distance of the sliding mechanism. However, in the conventional product configurations, the sliding mechanism is typically fixed to the server by some screws. Thus, it is difficult to fix or detach the sliding mechanism to or from the server without a tool, such as a screwdriver.
Therefore, there is a room for improvement in the art.

Hong Fu Jin Precision Industry (ShenZhen) Co., Ltd.


A battery pack includes: a plurality of batteries; a housing for containing the batteries; and at least one partition plate for separating the batteries from one another. The at least one partition plate includes a metal mesh and a heat insulating layer disposed on each side of the metal mesh. The heat insulating layer includes a foam material capable of foaming at a temperature of 110° C. or more and 200° C. or less, so that the thickness of the heat insulating layer increases when the foam material foams. Even when one of the batteries contained in the battery pack generates abnormal heat, the conduction of the heat to other batteries can be effectively suppressed.

Recently, portable appliances such as notebook personal computers and cellular phones have become widely used, and there is thus an increasing demand for batteries as the power source for portable appliances. In particular, there is an increasing demand for secondary batteries that are small and light-weight, have high energy density, and can be repeatedly charged and discharged.
To meet such demand, non-aqueous electrolyte secondary batteries are under active research and development. Since non-aqueous electrolyte secondary batteries contain large energy due to an increase in the functionality of portable appliances, they generate large amounts of heat in the event of abnormal conditions.
Thus, proposals have been made on the structure of a battery pack containing such batteries, in order to suppress the conduction of abnormal heat, generated by a specific battery due to some reason, to adjacent batteries.
PTL 1 proposes disposing a partition plate with electrical and thermal insulating properties, made of a resin such as polypropylene or polycarbonate, between a plurality of batteries. The partition plate suppresses the conduction of heat of a specific battery generating abnormal heat to adjacent batteries.
In order to make the partition plate more flame-retardant, PTL 2 proposes using inorganic refractory materials such as mica and ceramics.
PTL 3 proposes forming a cavity in a partition plate made of an inflammable resin such as polyethylene or polypropylene and filling the cavity with a fire-extinguishing agent such as ammonium dihydrogen phosphate. In the event of abnormal heat generation of a battery, a part (a part with a low melting point) of the partition plate melts due to the heat, so that an opening is formed in the partition plate. The fire-extinguishing agent then flows out of the opening, and the empty cavity of the partition plate provides heat insulation.


An index calculating unit calculates a tonality index of a signal component of each area of the input signal transformed into a time frequency domain based on intensity of the signal component and a function obtained by approximating the intensity of the signal component. A similarity calculating unit calculates a similarity between a feature quantity in each area of the input signal obtained based on the index and the feature quantity in each area of the reference signal obtained based on the index calculated on the reference signal transformed into the time frequency domain. A music identifying unit identifies music of the input signal based on the similarity. The present technology can be applied to a music search apparatus that identifies music from an input signal.

The present technology relates to a music search apparatus and method, a program, and a recording medium, and more particularly, to a music search apparatus and method, a program, and a recording medium, which are capable of identifying music from an input signal.
In the past, a process of matching a feature quantity of an input signal with a feature quantity of a reference signal which is a candidate of music to be identified has been performed in order to identify music input as an input signal. However, for example, when an audio source of a television program such as a drama is used as an input signal, a noise component (hereinafter referred to simply as "noise") including a non-music signal component such as a conversation, sounds (ambient noise), white noise, pink noise, and sound effects are frequently mixed with a music signal component such as background music (BGM), and a change in a feature quantity of an input signal by such noise affects a matching process result.
In this regard, techniques of performing a matching process using only a component having high reliability using a mask pattern for masking a component having low reliability in a feature quantity of an input signal have been proposed.
Specifically, a plurality of kinds of mask patterns for masking a matrix component corresponding to a predetermined time frequency domain are prepared for a feature matrix representing a feature quantity of an input signal transformed into a signal in a time frequency domain in advance. A matching process between a feature quantity of an input signal and a feature quantity of a plurality of reference signals in a database is performed using all mask patterns. Music of a reference signal from which highest similarity is calculated is identified as music of an input signal (for example, see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) No. 2009-276776).

Music search apparatus and method, program, and recording medium