An improved shock absorbing and leveling system for vehicles or the like is disclosed and includes a shock absorber sub-assembly and an airspring sub-assembly that can be used as either an assist device for a primary spring or as a primary spring itself. The preferred airspring sub-assembly includes a relatively rigid chamber member and a rolling flexible diaphragm member sealingly interconnected to one another, with an electrical inductance height sensor surrounding the shock absorber and contained substantially wholly within the chamber member. The airspring sub-assembly also preferably includes a diaphragm support member that laterally supports the diaphragm member on the shock absorber housing in a laterally spaced-apart relationship at least at two longitudinal positions thereon. Advantageously, the shock absorber sub-assembly and the airspring sub-assembly are independently removable from one another and replaceable as separate sub-assemblies.

The present invention relates generally to shock absorbers for vehicles or the like, and more specifically to shock absorber assemblies having provisions for vehicle leveling to maintain a predetermined height relationship between the chassis of the vehicle and its ground-engaging wheel and axle assembly.
Various vehicle leveling systems have been included in or with shock absorber components, wherein a pressurized fluid such as pressurized air is admitted or released from a pressurizable fluid chamber in connection with a strut or shock absorber. In prior assemblies of this type, the pressurizable fluid chamber has been used as an air suspension device for assisting a primary or other suspension system, as well as being used as a load-leveling apparatus. In addition, such prior systems have included vehicle height sensing devices adapted to sense sustained changes in the height relationship between the chassis and the ground-engaging wheel and axle assembly in order to cause admission or release of pressurized fluid to or from the pressurizable fluid chamber in order to maintain a desired vehicle height relationship. Some recent examples of such suspension systems, both with and without the height sensing provisions discussed above, include U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,954,257; 4,017,099; 4,067,558; 4,141,572; and 4,206,907, the disclosures of which are all incorporated by reference herein.
Although the above-discussed prior shock absorber and suspension systems have generally provided significant advantages over their predecessors, many of such prior shock absorber or suspension systems have proved to be relatively expensive, complex, or inconvenient to manufacture or service. Furthermore, many of the prior shock absorber and leveling systems have required the replacement of both the shock absorber portion of the system, as well as the vehicle leveling portion of the system, whenever either of these components required replacement.
Therefore, it is a general object of the present invention to provide a new and improved shock absorbing and vehicle leveling system in the form of a shock absorber assembly that is adaptable to either conventional hydraulic shock absorbers or to strut-type shock absorber devices for automotive vehicles and for other applications.
A more specific object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved shock absorbing and vehicle leveling system that allows the shock absorber portion of the system and the vehicle leveling portion of the system to be removable and separately replaceable as independent sub-assemblies.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a shock absorbing and vehicle leveling system wherein the shock absorber portion of the system and the vehicle portion of the system are separate sub-assemblies that are each interchangeable with other corresponding components having different characteristics such that the characteristics or operating parameters of each of these sub-assemblies can be optimized for a given shock absorber assembly application.
Still another of the basic objectives of the present invention is to provide a new and improved shock absorbing and vehicle leveling system having a relatively simple design, that is economical to manufacture, and which has a long and effective operational life.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a fluid adjustable shock absorber assembly includes a shock absorber component having an elongated shock absorber housing and a piston rod extending from a longitudinally outer end of the housing for longitudinal movement relative thereto, as well as a generally hollow chamber member generally surrounding at least a portion of the shock absorber and sealingly interconnected with an outer end of the shock absorber's piston rod. A flexible diaphragm member is sealingly interconnected with the chamber member and the housing of the shock absorber such that the chamber member and the diaphragm member define a pressurizable fluid chamber with the shock absorber's piston rod and housing. An electrical inductance sensing device is fixedly attached to the chamber member, which is preferably relatively rigid, and is contained substantially wholly therein for sensing the relative longitudinal positions of the shock absorber housing and piston rod. The electrical inductance sensing device can be used either with or without the pressurizable fluid chamber and diaphragm. Preferably, the electrical inductance sensing device is fixedly interconnected with a longitudinally inner end of the chamber member and extends longitudinally outwardly therewithin. A fluid pressure supply system is operable in response to the sensing of the varying relative longitudinal positions of the shock absorber housing relative to the piston rod for supplying a pressurized fluid to, and venting pressurized fluid from, the pressurizable fluid chamber in order to adjust or maintain the relative longitudinal positions of the shock absorber housing and piston rod within predetermined limits. By such adjustments, the shock absorber assembly maintains the vehicle height relative to its ground-engaging axle and wheel assembly within predetermined desirable limits.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, which can be employed either with or without the above-mentioned features of the present invention, a diaphragm support member is provided for laterally supporting at least a portion of the flexible diaphragm member in a laterally spaced-apart relationship with the shock absorber housing at least at a pair of longitudinally spaced-apart positions on the shock absorber housing. Preferably, the diaphragm support member, which is sealingly interconnected with the flexible diaphragm member, is removably and sealingly interconnected with the shock absorber housing, and the diaphragm member is sealingly and removably interconnected with the piston rod, such that the diaphragm support member and the diaphragm member (as well as a relatively rigid chamber member, if any) are removable as a separate sub-assembly from the shock absorber itself.
In accordance with still another aspect of the present invention, which can also be employed with or without the various features mentioned above, the pressurizable fluid chamber includes a longitudinally fixed portion of the chamber member or other enclosure in part forming the fluid chamber, a flexible diaphragm member, and a sensor support member for the above-mentioned electrical inductance sensing device. The sensor support member and the sensing device generally surround the shock absorber and are spaced laterally outwardly therefrom. The sensor support member includes a laterally outwardly-extending flange thereon, and the longitudinally fixed portion of the fluid chamber enclosure is forcibly and permanently deformed in a generally laterally inward direction on opposite longitudinal sides of the support member flange portion in order to fixedly secure the sensor support member to enclosure. Preferably, a ring, which can be a one-piece structure or a composite structure, and which can be resilient or relatively rigid, is disposed on at least one longitudinal side of the support member flange portion in order to retain the sensing device components and/or to resiliently protect the sensor support member and the sensor device itself as the longitudinally fixed portion of the fluid chamber enclosure is forcibly deformed laterally inwardly.
Additional objects, advantages, and features of the present invention will become apparent from the following description and appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Vehicle leveling shock absorber assembly


Individual mode timing constraints associated with a set of netlists are combined into merged mode timing constraints. An initial merged mode constraint is generated by combining timing constraints from individual modes. The initial merged mode includes the union of all timing constraints from individual modes that add timing relationships and the intersection of all timing constraints from the individual modes that remove timing relationships. Extraneous timing relationships are identified in the merged mode and eliminated by introducing timing constraints in the merged mode. Equivalence between the merged mode and the individual modes is verified by comparing timing relationships in the merged mode with timing relationships in the individual modes. The merged mode is considered equivalent to the individual modes if every timing relationship present in an individual mode is present in the merged mode and every timing relationship present in the merged mode is present in any of individual modes.

Due to the large number of components in state of the art electronic circuits, most of their design and production is computer implemented. An important operation performed during design of electronic circuits is timing analysis that validates timing performance of an electronic design. One way to perform timing analysis is to use dynamic simulation which determines the full behavior of a circuit for a given set of input values. Timing analysis using dynamic simulation is highly computation intensive. A more efficient method for perform timing analysis validates timing performance of a circuit design by checking all possible paths for timing violations. This method is called static timing analysis (STA) and is much faster than dynamic simulation since it does not simulate the logical operation of the electronic circuit. However, performing static timing analysis for large electronic circuits can take significant time.
Furthermore, timing analysis needs to be repeated multiple times for the same electronic design for various combinations of modes and corners. Semiconductor device parameters can vary with conditions such as fabrication process, operating temperature, and power supply voltage. A circuit fabricated using these processes may run slower or faster than specified due to variations in operating conditions or may even fail to function. Therefore timing analysis is performed for various operating conditions to make sure that the circuit performs as specified under these conditions. Such operating conditions for a circuit are modeled using corners that comprise a set of libraries characterized for process, voltage, and temperature variations.
The timing analysis of a circuit is also repeated for different operating modes, for example, normal operating mode, test mode, scan mode, reset mode and so on. For example, a circuit used in a computer operates in a stand-by mode when the computer is in a stand-by mode. Similarly, during testing phase, a circuit may be operated in a test mode. A mode is modeled using a unique set of clocks, input voltages, and timing constraints in similar operating conditions.
For performing timing analysis during implementation and sign-off of a circuit, designers have to verify a large number of modes and corners. Each circuit design may have tens of modes and tens of corners. Since each mode has to be verified for each corner conditions, the total number of scenarios in which the design needs to be verified is the product of the number of modes and number of corners. This results in the timing analysis being performed a large number of times resulting in exorbitant costs.
One way to handle the large number of scenarios resulting from multiple modes and corners is to merge the modes into a smaller set, for example, a single mode. Since timing verification must be performed for the combination of modes and corners, reduction in the number of modes reduces the total combinations of modes and corners by a much larger number. For example, if there are 10 modes and 10 corners, the total number of combination of modes and corners is 10×10=100. However if the 10 modes were combined to a single mode, the total number of combinations is reduced to 1×10=10 which is a 90% reduction in the number of combinations that need to be verified.
Conventionally modes are merged manually by designers. Furthermore, the manually merged modes are manually verified against the original set of modes or not verified. Due to the complexity of constraints associated with circuit designs, the generation of merged modes is difficult to handle manually. Since the number of timing constraints for a given netlist can be large, manual merging of modes can be error prone and have prohibitive costs. For example, a circuit could have millions of lines of constraints and manually verifying correctness of merged constraints may not be practically feasible. Due to lack of confidence in the correctness of the merged modes, manually merged modes may be used during the implementation phase of the design but final sign-off of the design is performed using individual modes.

Automatic verification of merged mode constraints for electronic circuits


An apparatus and method for feeding welding wire, where the apparatus contains a wire feeding device which pays out a wire and a power source which provides a current and voltage to the wire while it is being paid out. The apparatus further includes a detection circuit which detects a short circuit in the wire when the wire makes contact with a work piece or the like, and upon detection of the short circuit the wire feeding device stops feeding the wire so that a desired stick out distance is achieved.

1. Field of the Invention
Devices, systems, and methods consistent with the invention relate to a method and apparatus automatically feeding wire, in particular welding wire.
2. Description of the Related Art
During the process of gas shielded MIG (metal inert gas) welding a MIG electrode (or MIG wire) is continuously paid off of a spool and passed to and through a welding gun. This is the case in both automatic and semi-automatic welding. Because the welding wire originates from a spool or bin of welding wire, at a point in time during the welding process the end of the wire is reached. When the wire is fully depleted the welding process must stop and a new spool, supply or bin of welding wire must be obtained.
When a new supply of welding wire is provided for the welding operation the wire must be initially fed through a wire feeder, or the like, to the welding gun. In most welding operations, a particular wire "stick out" length must be maintained to ensure a proper weld occurs. "Stick out" is a measure of the length of welding wire which extends from the contact tip of the welding gun. In related art systems, an operator must first feed the welding wire through the wire feeder and then continue to feed the wire until the operator believes he/she has provided sufficient wire for the "stick out."
This process has its disadvantages. For example, in an automatic welding system the contact tip is typically located behind a protective barrier or shielding to protect the operator and prevent interference with the automated welding process. This results in an operator initiating the wire feeding operation at a remote distance from the contact tip and requires guessing as to when sufficient "stick out" is provided. The operator then must access the welding area to determine if the stick out length is proper. If the stick out is too long the operator must cut the excess off, while if the stick out is not sufficient the operator must return to the wire feeder control and repeat the process. The operation can be alternatively completed with two operators, but this results in an inefficient use of the operators' time and results in delay and operational down time.


A pulse light receiving time measurement apparatus according to the present invention includes a light receiving element receiving reflected pulse light from an object to be measured; a pulse light receiving time measurement circuit measuring a time when pulse light is irradiated to the object and a time when the reflected pulse light from the object is received at the light receiving element; a resonance circuit converting an optical pulse signal of the reflected pulse light from the light receiving element into a damping signal; a multi-stage amplifier group amplifying the damping signal from the resonance circuit; a damping signal processing circuit composed of amplitude comparators and zero-cross comparators, and processing the damping signal from each stage of the multi-stage amplifier group, in which operations of the respective zero-cross comparators are determined according to comparison results of the respective amplitude comparators for the amplifier group.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to improvement and modification in a pulse light receiving time measurement apparatus and a distance measurement apparatus including the pulse light receiving time measurement apparatus.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventionally, a distance measurement apparatus has been developed for measuring a distance from the apparatus to a measuring object at a high speed by irradiating pulse light to the object and receiving reflected light from the object at a light receiving element to thereby measure a time from the irradiation of the pulse light to the reflected light's reaching at the light receiving element from the object (See Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2005-214786).
Moreover, in recent years, there has been an increasing demand for three-dimensionally measuring, at a high speed, a distance to an object which ranges from a natural object with low reflectivity to a retroreflective member with high reflectivity.
The conventional metrology device which measures the distance by optically adjusting amount of light cannot deal with the above high-speed measurement of the distance to the object, and moreover, it has to have an optical receiver circuit which can detect amounts of light in a large range from extremely small to large.
However, an amplifier used for the optical receiver circuit generally has a dynamic range in which the maximum value is five to ten times as large as the minimum value. In order to measure reflected light from various objects form the natural object to the retroreflective member, the dynamic range in which the maximum value is over 1,000 times as large as the minimum value is needed. Therefore, the amplifier needs to be configured to have multiple stages in order to achieve such a large dynamic range.
However, addition of a pulse light receiving time measurement circuit to each of the multiple stages of the amplifier makes the scale of the circuit larger, which is disadvantageous.

Pulse light receiving time measurement apparatus and distance measurement including the same


The present disclosure provides a system and a method for monitoring semiconductor manufacturing equipment. The system includes a sensor, a circuit, and an analysis unit. The sensor provides a sensor signal. The circuit receives the sensor signal and generates an input signal. The analysis unit includes a signal management platform, receiving the input signal and performing a first data process to generate a first data signal; a diagnosis subsystem, receiving the first data signal from the signal management platform and performing a health status monitoring process to generate a second data signal; and a decision subsystem, performing a determination process to generate a third data signal according to the second data signal from the diagnosis subsystem. The diagnosis subsystem generates a feedback signal according to the third data signal, and the signal management platform transmits the feedback signal to the semiconductor manufacturing equipment.

Much of the rapid growth that has been experienced in the semiconductor industry is due to improvements in integration density. Semiconductor manufacturing equipment, such as vacuum pumps, are often necessary to provide a vacuum state for complex processing steps in order to achieve the improved integration density. Maintenance of the vacuum pumps is important because the pumps contain many high-speed moving parts prone to failure. Oftentimes the vacuum pumps are maintained by vendors without providing advance health indicators, and so operators must expend valuable resources to anticipate when malfunctions might occur. Since unexpected malfunctions of the vacuum pumps can cause defective products as well as health hazards to operators or maintenance personnel when flammable gasses are not properly exhausted, systems and methods for monitoring the overall condition of the vacuum pumps and providing advance indicators need to be effective and optimized.
This Discussion of the Background section is provided for background information only. The statements in this Discussion of the Background are not an admission that the subject matter disclosed in this section constitutes prior art to the present disclosure, and no part of this Discussion of the Background section may be used as an admission that any part of this application, including this Discussion of the Background section, constitutes prior art to the present disclosure.

System and method for monitoring semiconductor manufacturing equipment via analysis unit


A hybrid chassis structure including a layer of particulate reinforced metal and a layer of graphite fiber reinforced metal bonded to the particulate reinforced metal layer, wherein the overall thermal expansion, thermal conductivity and elasticity properties of the bonded hybrid structure are determined by controlling the properties of the respective layers.

The disclosed invention is directed generally to composite chassis structures for electronic circuits, and more particularly is directed to a hybrid metal matrix composite chassis structure having different metal matrix composite layers metallurgically bonded together.
As electronic circuitry becomes smaller as a result of integrated circuit advances, the amount of power dissipated per unit volume increase while the size of packaging (e.g., box-like containers with external connectors) typically decreases. The net result is increased thermal energy which must be dissipated over a smaller area. The packaging material, therefore, becomes an increasingly significant factor in the over-all performance and reliability of the packaged electronic circuitry.
A further consideration with the increased thermal energy density is unmatched thermal expansion characteristics. For example, an alumina substrate supporting electronic circuitry can be bonded to a planar surface of a circuit package, which typically would comprise a different material such as aluminum. Alumina and aluminum have different coefficients of thermal expansion, and temperature variation would result in mechanical stresses. If the stresses are large enough, the substrate-to-package bond could be fractured outright. Lower intensity stresses could degrade the bond through fatigue over the lifetime of the packaged system. In any event, stresses resulting from expansion mismatch can degrade the bond, increasing thermal resistance in the steady-state operating temperature and shortening the life of the packaged circuitry.

Hybrid metal matrix composite chassis structure for electronic circuits


The amount of fuel injected in an engine with variable cam timing is more accurately reflective of engine operating conditions by accounting for the phase angle of the camshaft relative to the crankshaft in the calculation of the cylinder air charge. The cam phase angle for the existing engine speed is sensed and used in the calculation of a manifold filling coefficient which modifies the leakage compensated air flow data obtained from a mass air flow meter. A predicted final cylinder air charge is calculated based on the modified air charge from the manifold filling model and the required fuel for a desired air/fuel ratio is based on the calculated cylinder air charge.

Fuel injection systems for internal combustion engines typically include a mass air flow sensor for sensing air flow into the engine intake manifold. Data from the sensor is used to calculate a cylinder air charge from which the fuel injector pulse width needed to achieve a desired air/fuel ratio is determined. One prior art approach is disclosed in Follmer et al U.S. Pat. No. 5,159,914, assigned to the assignee of the present invention, and incorporated herein by reference. In Follmer et al a hot wire mass airflow sensor provides raw airflow rate data to the computer. The computer corrects the raw data to compensate for airflow leakage in the intake system. The compensated airflow data is used in a manifold filling model that modifies the data to account for the effects of engine load on volumetric efficiency of the engine. The computer calculates the cylinder air charge utilizing the modified data from the manifold filing model. After cylinder air charge is determined, the fuel injector pulse width necessary to achieve a desired air/fuel ratio is determined. Another method of predicting cylinder air charge is disclosed in U.S. Ser. No. 08/016,322 filed Feb. 10, 1993, assigned to the assignee of the present invention, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
One measure taken to improve fuel efficiency and reduce harmful emissions in internal combustion engine is to vary the timing or relative phase angle between the camshaft and crankshaft to achieve more optimum engine operation at various speed/load conditions. One approach to phaseshift control is disclosed in Maurer et al U.S. Pat. No. 5,209,202 assigned to the assignee of the present invention and incorporated herein by reference. That phase shift control uses a hydraulic device which rotationally couples a camshaft drive sprocket to a camshaft flange. The engine control computer in the aforementioned patent responds to continuously varying engine operating conditions to control the hydraulic device and set the desired relative phase angle for the condition existing at any point in time. A suitable hydraulic device is disclosed in Schechter et al U.S. Pat. No. 5,117,784 assigned to the assignee of the present invention and incorporated herein by reference.
Volumetric efficiency (Veff) describes how effective an engine is at filling a cylinder and is expressed as a percentage of total cylinder capacity. Because the cylinder does not totally fill up with air and fuel, Veff typically varies from 50% to 85% of the total cylinder capacity. Veff is influenced by such factors as cylinder displacement, piston stroke, air intake geometry, and valve timing. The intake system, in particular the intake valve, restricts the amount of air which an engine can induct. Varying the cam timing in response to continuously varying engine operating conditions as discussed above affects the time when the intake valve opens and closes and thus changes the Veff of the engine. In order to maintain or improve fuel economy gains and the reductions in harmful emissions obtained with variable cam timing, it is desirable that the strategy for calculating cylinder air charge, and thus fuel pulse width, account for the changes in Veff which occur when cam timing is varied.

Fuel control method and system for engine with variable cam timing


The invention relates to a process and a device (1) for the production of spherical metal particles (2) from a melt (3). In order to produce droplets a melt jet (8) is subjected to vibrations and is led through at least one nozzle (7). In order to produce spherical metal particles (2) the droplets at the outlet of the nozzle (7) are fed to a coolant (10) for purposes of consolidation. The nozzle (7) dips into the coolant (10), the temperature of the coolant (10) being below the melting point of the melt (3).

The present invention relates to a process and a device for the production of spherical metal particles.
Such spherical metal particles are formed in particular as soldering beads, which are used for the electrical contacting of electronic components. One typical field of application in this connection is the contacting of integrated circuits on printed circuit boards. Soft soldering alloy beads in particular are used for this purpose, whose diameters are typically in the range between 0.1 and 1.5 mm. A decisive factor for a reproducible and defect-free contacting is that the soldering beads have as ideal a spherical shape as possible. In addition the variation in size of the soldering beads that are used should be as small as possible.
A process and a device for the production of spherical particles from a liquid phase are known from EP 0 467 221 B1. The particles to be produced consist in particular of metal or glass.
Droplets are formed from the liquid phase. For this purpose the liquid phase is fed to a vibrating nozzle.
The nozzle itself as well as a defined section connected to the outlet opening is maintained at a constant temperature that is 1° C. to 10° C. above the melting point of the liquid phase.
The droplets leaving the outlet opening still have a spherical shape. This spherical shape of the droplets is first of all formed during passage along the aforementioned section. The section is arranged vertically so that, due to the force of gravity, the droplets execute a falling movement along the section, during which the spherical shapes of the droplets are produced.
After passing through this section the spherical droplets are led into a gaseous or liquid coolant whose operating temperature is at least 100° C. below the melting point. The feed of the coolant preferably takes place in the same direction as the falling direction of the droplets. Due to the contact with the coolant the droplets are suddenly quenched, resulting in a consolidation of the droplets into the respective particles.
A significant disadvantage of this process is that when the droplets strike the surface of the coolant deformations of the said droplets occur, leading to variations of the particles from the desired spherical shape.
A further disadvantage is that the section between the outlet opening of the nozzle and surface of the coolant cannot or can only be incompletely screened against the ambient atmosphere. In the production of metal particles using oxidizable metal melts a partial, uncontrolled closure of the outlet opening of the nozzle then occurs. This leads in turn to undesirable variations in the size distributions of the metal particles.
DE 40 12 197 C2 describes a process for the production of spherical metal particles from a melt. The melt is introduced dropwise from a melting crucible into a stream of liquid that forms a coolant for cooling the droplets. An oil is preferably used as coolant. The liquid stream is in this connection led countercurrent to the falling direction of the droplets. A temperature gradient is formed within the liquid stream, with the result that the temperature of the liquid in the region of the outlet opening is at least as high as the melting point of the metal. The temperature of the liquid in the region of the liquid feed is thus so low that the droplets falling in the liquid stream solidify at least on their surfaces.
A disadvantage in this respect is that the liquid has to be heated to temperatures that correspond to the melting point of the metal, which leads to a marked thermal stress of the coolant. This in turn leads to an undesirably severe restriction on the availability of such systems, since the coolant has to be renewed within short time intervals. In addition there is the danger of the formation of cracked products in the region of the outlet opening of the nozzle. The flow of the liquid through the nozzle is thereby affected, resulting in undesirably high variations in the sizes of the metal spheres.

Method and device for producing spherical metal particles


An integrated circuit structure with a metal-to-metal capacitor and a metallic device such as a resistor, effuse, or local interconnect where the bottom plate of the capacitor and the metallic device are formed with the same material layers. A process for forming a metallic device along with a metal-to-metal capacitor with no additional manufacturing steps.

Current integrated circuits are often formed with many complex and costly fabrications steps. Patterning steps are particularly costly. In addition to transistors, metal-to-metal capacitors and metal resistors are common devices in semiconductor integrated circuits. Some metal capacitors such as interdigitated metal finger capacitors may be formed without extra patterning steps, but most metal to metal capacitors such as a lower metal plate to an upper metal plate capacitor requires at least two and often three additional patterning steps.
Metal resistors are typically formed in the integrated circuit using additional steps such as deposition of the metallic resistor material plus resistor patterning and etching steps. A reduction in the number of processing steps, particularly patterning steps, is desired.

Integrated circuit structure with capacitor and resistor and method for forming


An object is to suppress a variation in amount of a sealant that is applied on an object to be sealed. There is provided a sealant discharge nozzle configured such that a sealant from a cartridge is discharged from a discharge hole of the sealant discharge nozzle. The sealant discharge nozzle has a leading end portion comprising a pair of side wall portions; and a connecting wall portion configured to connect the pair of side wall portions with each other and provided in cooperation with the pair of side wall portions to form a first recess that is open on one side in a first direction perpendicular to an axial direction of the sealant discharge nozzle, and on a leading end side. The discharge hole has an opening formed on a first recess side of the connecting wall portion.

A proposed configuration of a sealant discharge nozzle employed for an object that has a stepped sectional shape in a first plane and that is extended along a first direction perpendicular to the first plane includes a forming module configured to form a sealant and a guide module provided adjacent to the forming module in the first direction (as described in, for example, Japanese Patent No. 5922539). In this sealant discharge nozzle, the forming module includes a forming surface provided in a specified shape in the first plane and extended along the first direction and a sealant supply hole provided in a space defined by the forming surface and the object to supply the sealant. The guide module includes a guide surface provided in a specified shape in the first plane, extended along the first direction, and formed to be in line contact with a corner of an upper step in the stepped shape. The sealant is formed on the object, while the sealant discharge nozzle is moved such that the guide module comes prior to the forming module along the first direction (the extending direction of the object). This suppresses a variation in shape of the sealant formed on the object.

Sealant discharge nozzle and sealant discharge apparatus


The present invention provides a cable protection device and a cable having the same. The cable protection device is configured for connecting two cables and includes a first protective casing and a second protective casing assembled with the first protective casing. The first protective casing has a hollow body for allowing one of the two cables to be disposed through. The second protective casing has a hollow body for allowing the other of the two cables to be disposed through. The interiors of the hollow body of the first protective casing and the hollow body of the second protective casing form a protective space respectively for covering a connecting portion of the two cables. Thus, the present invention also generates waterproof and dustproof effects.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cable, and in particular to a cable protection device and a cable having the same.
2. Description of Prior Art
Conventionally, a cable connector is used for connecting two cables serially, such as an AC connector used in a photovoltaic micro-inverter. One end of each cable is provided with a plurality of metallic terminals. In practice, one cable connector (such as a male connector) is electrically connected to the metallic terminals of the one cable. Then, another corresponding cable connector (such as a female cable connector) is electrically connected to the metallic terminals of another cable. By means of the two corresponding cable connectors, the electrical connection between the two cables can be achieved. Although the conventional male and female cable connectors can be assembled with each other to generate an electrical connection quickly, they still have some problems with regard to the waterproof and dustproof capability as well as the protection design for outdoor use. Especially, after a long-term use in an outdoor place, the conventional cable connector has a lot of dust or dirt accumulated on its surface and even suffers damage. However, when the broken or damaged cable connector is replaced, the whole cable may need to be also changed, which increases the difficulty and cost in maintenance.
In view of this, the present Inventor proposes a novel and reasonable structure to solve the above-mention problems based on his expert knowledge and deliberate researches.

Cable protection device and cable having the same


A turbo blower for a laser comprises a motor which includes a shaft (17) having a distal end to which a turbo impeller (16) is mounted, a pair of bearings (22,23) for supporting the shaft (17), a rotor (19(, and a stator (20). A squeezed-film damper (36,37) is provided around each of the bearings (22,23), whereby vibration of the blower is damped. The damping coefficient of the squeezed-film dampers (36,37) are different from each other, whereby vibration at the bearing is reduced.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a high-power gas laser oscillator device such as a machining CO.sub.2 laser or the like, and more particularly, to a gas laser oscillator device provided with an improved turbo blower for use in a CO.sub.2 laser.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 3 shows an arrangement of a conventional CO.sub.2 laser which includes an electric discharge tube 1 having an output coupling mirror 2 and a total reflection mirror 3 that are positioned at opposite ends of the electric discharge tube 1. Two metal electrodes 4 and 5 are arranged on the outer circumference of the electric discharge tube 1, and when a high-frequency voltage is applied between the metal electrodes 4 and 5 from a high-frequency power supply 6, a high-frequency glow discharge is produced in the electric discharge tube 1 for laser excitation. A laser beam axis in the electric discharge tube 1 is indicated at 13, and a laser beam axis extending out of the tube 1 from the output coupling mirror 2 is indicated at 14.
To start the laser oscillator device, a gas in the device is first evacuated by a vacuum pump 12, and then a valve 11 is opened to introduce a predetermined amount of laser gas from a gas container 10 into the device until the pressure of the gas in the device reaches a prescribed pressure level. Subsequently, the device is continuously evacuated by the vacuum pump 12 and continuously replenished with the laser gas through the valve 11. The laser gas in the device is therefore continuously replaced with a fresh gas while the gas pressure in the device is kept at the prescribed pressure level, and accordingly, contamination of the laser gas in the device is prevented.
In FIG. 3, the laser gas is circulated in the device by a Roots blower 9, whereby the laser gas is cooled. In a CO.sub.2 laser, about 20% of the applied electric energy is converted into a laser beam and the rest is consumed to heat the laser gas, but theoretically, since the gain of laser oscillation is proportional to the minus (3/2)th power of the absolute temperature T, it is necessary to forcibly cool the laser gas to increase the oscillation efficiency. In the illustrated device, the laser gas flows through the electric discharge tube 1 in the direction indicated by the arrows at a speed of about 100 m/sec., and is introduced into a cooling unit 8. The cooling unit 8 removes most of the heat energy produced by the electric discharge from the laser gas. Further, since the Roots blower 9 heats the laser gas when compressing same, the laser gas from the Roots blower 9 is passed through a cooling unit 7 before the laser gas is again introduced into the electric discharge tube 1. The cooling units 7 and 8 will not be described in detail as they are well known in the art.
The above conventional laser oscillator device has the following problems: First, since the Roots blower is a low-speed volumetric blower, it is large in size and weight, and thus the laser oscillator itself is large; second, the Roots blower emits a pulsating gas flow, and the laser oscillation characteristics are affected by this pulsating gas flow; and third, the Roots blower produces vibrations which adversely affect the spot positioning stability of the laser beam.
If a turbo blower is used instead of a Roots blower, however, it may be damaged due to resonance when rotated at a high speed.


Disclosed in the present invention is a novel overvoltage protective device for lightning protection, comprising a first varistor, a second varistor, a PTC Thermistor, and lead-out terminals. The first varistor and the PTC Thermistor are connected in parallel, and then further connected in series with the second varistor to form a single port combined circuit. The surge-withstand capability of the first varistor is higher than the surge-withstand capability of the second varistor. At least one of the two lead-out terminals of the single port combined circuit is a thermally-conductive end with low thermal resistance. The second varistor is thermally coupled to the PTC Thermistor. The thermally-conductive end with low thermal resistance is thermally coupled to one or both of the second varistor and the PTC Thermistor.

Surge Protective Device (SPD for short), as a standard low-voltage electrical appliance, is widely used in low-voltage power lines. It can effectively suppress the surge caused by lightning or other origins. SPD has a significant role in improving the power quality and ensuring the safety of electrical appliances.
The core of SPD are surge suppression components, and common used ones are varistors. During the lifecycle of SPD, varistor is more likely to suffer repeated surges exceeding the rating specification, resulting in the risk of varistor breakdown in short-circuit failure mode. Once this kind of breakdown occurs, it will cause a short-circuit failure of the power line. The breakdown point will be cracked, smoking, arcing, and even cause fire and combustion in serious cases.
The first improvement scheme is the most commonly used method. The schematic diagram is shown in FIG. 1. On the two electrodes of the varistor A1, a piece of thin copper sheet electrode A2 with excellent electrical and thermal conductivity is soldered respectively. The thin copper sheet electrode A2 is prefabricated with a lead-out terminal A3, and the thin copper sheet electrode A2 functions as a conductive electrode and also forms a thermal coupling with the varistor A1 to conduct the heat generated by the varistor A1 to the lead-out terminal A3. An elastic metal sheet A4 is soldered on one of the lead-out terminals A3 with a low-melting alloy A5 to form a thermal disconnector. When the leakage current of varistor A1 degrades to milliampere-level, it enters the accelerated degradation stage. The leakage current causes the varistor A1 to heat up, and the heated varistor A1 causes the leakage current to increase further in turn, which creates a vicious circle. The process will eventually cause the varistor A1 to thermally break down. When the heat reaches the melting point of the low-melting alloy A5, the thermal disconnector cuts off the power supply, so that the varistor A1 exits the power grid before the short-circuit occurs, thereby achieving the purpose of protection. This solution can convert the failure mode of the varistor A1 from short-circuit mode to open-circuit mode which greatly improves the safety of the SPD.
However, there are still some shortcomings in this solution. It takes several seconds for the thermal disconnector to act by its operating principle. When the leakage current of the varistor A1 starts accelerated degradation and heating, the defects inside the ceramic body of the varistor A1 are already serious. Some defects are serious enough to make the time very short from the start of heating to the short-circuit breakdown. Short-circuit fault occurs before enough heat being conducted to the thermal disconnector to melt the low-melting alloy A5. Another common situation is when the varistor A1 deteriorates to the vicinity of the accelerated degradation stage. The leakage current of the varistor A1 is still less than the milliamp level. The varistor can maintain thermal stability and work under the operating voltage of the power grid. But the value of varistor voltage has been significantly lower than the initial value when it was first put into use. The surge-withstand capability of the varistor A1 is already weak. An ordinary surge can break it down. In this case, the short-circuit speed is too fast for the thermal disconnector to respond for protection.
The second improvement scheme is the Chinese invention patent with the application number of 201310268111.6. The schematic diagram is shown in FIG. 2. A PTC thermistor (positive temperature coefficient thermistor) B12 is connected in parallel with a GDT (gas discharge tube) 13 and then connected with a varistor B11 in series. The PTC thermistor B12 and the varistor B11 are soldered together to form a thermal coupling. The lead-out terminal 14 and the lead-out terminal 15 are connected to the protected power line in parallel. After the lead wires are soldered, they are encapsulated and cured by epoxy resin to form an encapsulation layer 16. When the varistor B11 degrades to the accelerated degradation stage, the temperature of PTC thermistor B12 elevates because of the heat conducted from the varistor B11. The elevated temperature results in the increase of its resistance value, which leads to the reduction of leakage current flowing into the varistor B11 in turn. This process helps to prolong the degradation time. After the temperature of the PTC thermistor B12 reaches the Curie temperature point, it shifts into a high resistance state, which limits the increase of the leakage current. The varistor B11 is forced to reach thermal equilibrium around the Curie temperature point, and can keep working under the operating voltage of the power grid.
However, this solution still has some serious shortcomings. First of all, due to the current limiting effect of the PTC thermistor B12, regardless of how seriously the varistor B11 deteriorates, the temperature of the varistor B11 is kept around the Curie temperature point of the PTC thermistor B12. When the varistor voltage of the varistor B11 drops to about one half of the peak value of the grid's operating voltage due to the deterioration, plus the GDT 13 begins conduction because of a surge impulse, the follow-on current cannot be disconnected due to the low voltage value of the varistor B12, which causes the GDT 13 to fail to return to the open circuit state. This will short the PTC thermistor B12, and the varistor B11 will breakdown immediately because of the short circuit, causing the protective circuit failed. Theoretically, most varistors will fail in this way if there are no other protective measures. The other failure process is similar to that in the first scheme, that is, when the varistor B11 deteriorates to a certain degree, even if it has not entered the accelerated degradation stage, its internal structure has been damaged, and its surge-withstand capability has been compromised. In this case, a surge can make it break down or close to breakdown. In the meanwhile, the GDT 13 is also in the conducting state. But the varistor B11 has lost the ability to block the follow-on current in the power grid, resulting in the short-circuit fault.

Overvoltage protective device for lightning protection


In a method of condensing an unprocessed well stream from an offshore gas or gas condensate field the well stream taken from one or more wellheads is cooled and directly expanded, isentropically, or near isentropically, to a state in which the pressure is close to that of a storage tank. Part of the well stream is condensed and condensed fractions thereof is drawn off the expander and fed to the storage tank along with condensation products from the exit of the expander. Hence, without any preprocessing, a condensed well stream product is produced which comprises a mixture of liquids and solids which is collected in the storage tank for transport therefrom to land. A system for carrying out the method is also disclosed. The invention makes the condensation of an unprocessed well stream possible without any preprocessing thereof, such as extraction of solid particles, e.g. sands, removal of water, cleaning or drying. Thus, by means of the invention smaller gas or gas condensate fields can be developed in a more cost efficient way.

The development of offshore gas or gas condensate fields of smaller size has often been considered as unprofitable because the costs of bringing the product therefrom onto the market would have been too high. Using technologies known thus far often requires complicated preprocessing and production plants for the preparation of products which are more suitable for the transport away from an exploitation field than an unprocessed well stream. In particular it has been common practice to separate liquids and solid particles, and any heavier hydrocarbons, from the well stream and then to process further constituents of the well stream individually, such as the extracted gas.
An example of the prior art is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,003,603 and 5,878,814, which relates to a method and system for offshore production of liquefied natural gas (LNG), wherein the well stream is supplied from a subsea production plant to a pipeline, in which it is cooled by the surrounding sea water. Then the well stream is supplied to a conversion plant provided on a ship, wherein liquids and solid particles are extracted and at least a part of the remaining gas is converted to liquid form for the transfer to storage tanks on board the ship.
Another example of the prior art is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,378,330 which relates to a process for making pressurized liquefied natural gas (PLNG) from a gas stream rich in methane, wherein gas is condensed by first being cooled and then expanded. If the stream of natural gas contains heavier hydrocarbons which may freeze out during the liquefaction, they must, however, be removed prior thereto.
Furthermore, U.S. Pat. No. 5,199,266 describes a method of dealing with petroleum gas from an oil or gas production field comprising ethane and heavier hydrocarbons, wherein liquids and solids are separated from a well stream and the gas of the well stream is dried, cooled and possibly processed further prior to condensation and the placement of condensed gas in storage tanks. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,094,937 describes a method of liquefaction and/or conditioning of a compressed gas/condensate from a petroleum deposit especially a compressed gas/condensate flow which has been separated from a crude oil extracted from an offshore oil field.
Using the technologies known thus far and disclosed in the above publications, the feed is in each case subjected to a preprocessing prior to the condensation process itself. In particular it is presupposed that liquids and solids, and any heavier hydrocarbons, are separated in advance. The known techniques referred to all focus on making liquefied natural gas of some quality or other, that may be brought ashore from a location at sea. None of the publications is seen to be concerned with the other constituents of the well stream. According to U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,003,603 and 5,878,814, for example, the extracted liquids and solids are transferred to a container with no indication as to what is done with the contents of the container when it is full.
Therefore, in such offshore production of liquefied natural gas, there may be a problem in respect of such components that traditionally are extracted, such as oily sands and water, which must be transported away, or otherwise be deposited in situ. Common to the approaches disclosed in the publications above is that they also require costly processing plants, sometimes drier/dehydration and regenerator/cleaning systems, too.
Thus, there is a need for a technological solution, by means of which smaller gas or gas condensate fields can be developed in a more cost efficient manner than by the technologies known so far.

Method and system for condensation of unprocessed well stream from offshore gas or gas condensate field


An electrical connector is provided with a housing having a plurality of terminal-receiving passages extending between a forward end of the housing and a rear end thereof. A plurality of terminals are received in the passages. A plurality of primary locks are operatively associated between the housing and the terminals and are provided for locking the terminals in the passages. A terminal position assurance device is mounted on the housing for movement between first and second positions only when all of the terminals are properly positioned in their respective passages. The device is mounted on the housing for movement to a third position whereat it engages the primary locks to move the locks to an unlocking condition in response to moving the terminal position assurance device to the third position, thereby allowing removal of the terminals.

Terminal position assurance devices are known for use in electrical connectors to assure that all of the terminals in the connector are properly positioned within the connector housing. Basically, a terminal position assurance device is movable between a first position and a second position. The device can move to the second position only when all of the terminals are properly positioned in their respective passages. If even a single terminal is not properly positioned, the terminal position assurance device cannot move away from its first position. Such a device often is used to prevent mating of a connector with a complementary connector unless the terminal position assurance device is moved to its second or enabling position.
An area where such electrical connectors with terminal position assurance devices are extensively used is in automotive applications, where safety and security are dominant. Electrical connectors incorporated into the circuitry of an automotive vehicle are subject to extreme environmental conditions, including broad ranges of temperature, exposure to moisture, subjection to almost continuous vibration during use and frequent subjection to direct physical shock. These environmental conditions may cause a terminal to shift in the connector housing. Terminals of electrical connectors that are not properly inserted in their associated housing or that shift during such use may not provide a high quality electrical connection. In an effort to ensure that electrical connectors perform properly, automotive manufacturers often require connectors to have terminal position assurance (TPA) components.
In addition, electrical connectors used in such environments as described above must meet other requirements, such as being compact in construction, sealed against the outside environment and provided with means for locking the terminals in the connector housing to prevent the terminals from shifting or backing out of the housing.
As can be understood in relation to automotive applications, although equally problematic in other applications, repairs of electrical connectors must be anticipated, including instances when one or more terminals must be removed from the connector housing. This causes problems because, as stated above, it often is required to provide means for locking the terminals in the connector housing, and in order to remove the terminals, the housings are provided with extraneous openings, passages and the like into which separate tools are inserted to release the locking means in order to remove one or more terminals. Such provisions, in turn, cause other problems in providing adequate seals as well as maintaining compact dimensional controls on the connectors.
This invention is directed to solving the myriad of interrelated problems identified above by providing a unique system built into the terminal position assurance device, itself, for releasing the interior terminal locking means of an electrical connector and allowing selective removal of the terminals from the connector housing. Therefore, no extraneous tools are even required, much less the provision of passages, cavities and the like for insertion of such tools into the connector.

Electrical connector with terminal position assurance device


In a method for asynchronously transmitting control signals from a transmitter end to at least one receiver via a plurality of control lines, control signals received via the individual control lines are logically combined with one another at the receiver end and the result of the logic combination is transmitted to the transmitter end.

Control signals must be interchanged between two or more components in many applications, special importance being attached to data integrity during transmission.
In the field of clock-controlled data transmission, it is known practice, in serial data transmission, for example in the CAN or FlexRay protocol, to form checksums over the transmitted data and to transmit said checksums together with the data. At the receiver end, it is thus possible to use the checksums to check the received data. In the case of clocked data transmission, it is generally known practice to form horizontal checksums over data transmitted in succession and to form vertical checksums over data transmitted in a parallel manner at the same time and to transmit said checksums together with the data to a receiver. In this case, for clock-controlled data transmission, it is necessary either to additionally transmit a clock to the receiver or to recover the clock at the receiver using a complicated circuit. Both disadvantageously constitute an outlay which is accepted only for complex systems.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method and apparatus for checking asynchronous transmission of control signals


An integrated controller (A) for a vehicle, and a vehicle (B), where the integrated controller (A) includes a box body (10), a high-voltage power distribution module (900) disposed in the box body (10), and a left driving motor controller (300), a right driving motor controller (400), an air compressor motor controller (500), a steering motor controller (600), and a DC-DC voltage converter (700) that are all connected to the high-voltage power distribution module (900); and the box body (10) is provided with a plurality of input/output interfaces corresponding to the high-voltage power distribution module (900), the left driving motor controller (300), the right driving motor controller (400), the air compressor motor controller (500), the steering motor controller (600), and the DC-DC voltage converter (700).

In the related art, controller modules in a high-voltage system of a vehicle operate independently, and the controller modules realize the operation of the whole vehicle through a switching wire harness. Because the controller modules operate independently and the modules are connected through the wire harness, the cost is high and the assembly difficulty of the whole vehicle is increased for detecting which modules have faults or are aging.

Integrated controller of vehicle and vehicle


A rotor assembly that includes a shaft and an impeller and/or a rotor core. The shaft is secured within a bore in the impeller and/or the rotor core by an adhesive such that the concentricity of the shaft is smaller than that of the bore. A method of manufacturing the rotor assembly is also described.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a rotor assembly 1 in which an impeller 2 has been press fit onto a shaft 3. Owing to tolerances associated with the manufacture of the impeller 2, the bore 4 into which the shaft 3 has been press fit is misaligned. The misalignment of the bore 4, which has been exaggerated for the purposes of illustration, adversely affects the performance of the compressor. In order to minimize possible misalignment, the impeller 2 and shaft 3 are typically manufactured using high-precision processes that achieve tight tolerances. However, high-precision manufacturing is expensive and precludes the use of certain materials and processes that are otherwise not capable of achieving the necessary tolerances.


A plastic film punching apparatus is improved to make a waste removed reliably. In the apparatus, a plastic film is sandwiched between and punched by male and female blades. The female blade has opposite surfaces which are first and second surfaces. The plastic film generates a waste which is pushed by the male blade to protrude from the second surface. A vacuum source and an opening cooperate with each other to suck air through the opening and generate airflow within the tubular cover, the waste being removed by the airflow.

For example, a plastic film punching apparatus is incorporated into a machine successively making plastic bags of plastic film, in which an aperture is formed in a plastic film. Japanese Laid-Open Utility Model Publication No, H06-5,898 discloses the apparatus including a female blade, a through hole being formed in the female blade. A male blade is moved toward the female blade to be inserted into the through hole so that a plastic film is sandwiched between and punched by the male and female blades, the aperture being formed in the plastic film.
In this case, the plastic film generates a waste when being punched, the male blade and the waste being inserted into the through hole, so that the waste must be adhered to the male blade. In this connection, in the apparatus, an air passage is formed in the male blade to eject air to the waste from the air passage, the waste being removed by the ejected air.
However, the waste is not always peeled off the male blade and removed by the ejected air when ejecting the air to the waste. Accordingly, the waste may be then withdrawn by the male blade pulled out of the through hole, to be mixed into the plastic film.
The through hole is thought to be a cause. The waste must be held in the through hole to be restricted from movement when ejecting the air to the waste. The waste would therefore be difficult to be peeled off the male blade.
By the way, Japanese Patent No. 3,655,627 discloses a machine for successively making plastic bags of plastic film, in which plastic films are fed longitudinally thereof and intermittently. The machine includes a heat seal apparatus and a cutter by which the plastic films are heat sealed with each other and cross cut when the plastic films are stopped temporarily whenever being fed intermittently, to successively make the plastic bags. The same is true of the plastic film punching apparatus incorporated into the machine. The plastic film is punched by the apparatus when the plastic film is stopped temporarily whenever being fed intermittently.
It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a plastic film punching apparatus in which the waste is removed reliably.


A method for forming ferroelectric wafers is provided. A prestress layer is placed on the desired mold. A ferroelectric wafer is placed on top of the prestress layer. The layers are heated and then cooled, causing the ferroelectric wafer to become prestressed. The prestress layer may include reinforcing material and the ferroelectric wafer may include electrodes or electrode layers may be placed on either side of the ferroelectric layer. Wafers produced using this method have greatly improved output motion.

1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to ferroelectric devices, and more particularly to ferroelectric devices providing large mechanical output displacements.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Prior art methods include xe2x80x98Rainbowxe2x80x99 piezoelectric actuators and sensors, more conventional piezoelectric actuators and sensors, and electro-magnetic actuators.
Conventional piezoelectric actuators exhibit limited mechanical displacements. The output of conventional piezoelectric devices is limited by the material""s basically low piezoelectric displacement constant. Thus conventional devices of reasonable thickness (i.e. on the order of a few millimeters) offer only micrometer-sized mechanical output motion. xe2x80x98Rainbowxe2x80x99 actuators, xe2x80x98Mooniesxe2x80x99, unimorphic, and bimorphic piezoelectric actuators exhibit greater mechanical output motion. However even the thinnest ceramic wafers, which exhibit the maximum observed output motion, provide a displacement limited to approximately 1 mm of motion in the z-direction for a device that is 3-4 cm long. Additionally xc2xc mm thick ceramic devices are extremely brittle and fragile so that they are prone to breakage and require special handling. Previous methods of forming xe2x80x98Rainbowxe2x80x99 actuators include an additional chemical reduction process which releases lead vapors from the wafer into the atmosphere.
It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a ferroelectric actuator with improved mechanical displacement.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a ferroelectric actuator with improved durability.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a ferroelectric actuator with improved machinability.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a method for producing a ferroelectric actuator which is more environmentally safe than previous methods.
It is yet another object of the present invention to accomplish the foregoing objects in a simple manner.
Additional objects and advantages of the present invention are apparent from the drawings and specification which follow.
According to the present invention, the foregoing and additional objects are obtained by providing a method for producing ferroelectric devices. First, a mold is selected for the device. A prestress layer is placed on the mold and a ferroelectric layer is placed on top of the prestress layer. These layers are bonded together by heating and then cooling the assembled device. The prestress layer may be an adhesive and may include reinforcing material. The ferroelectric layer may be a piezoelectric material, a piezostrictive material or a composite. The ferroelectric layer includes surface electrodes which may be applied by including an electrode layer on either side of the ferroelectric layer prior to heating the assembly.

Thin layer composite unimorph ferroelectric driver and sensor

The United States of America as represented by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration


A front stop for a feeding device has a planar lower surface connected to a round part and is provided with a bore, which is connected to a fluid source and has channels extending to the planar flat surface to enable a flow of fluid between a blank being fed under the stop and the next following blank of a pile of blanks in the feeder. This flow of air creates a cushion which reduces damage to the surfaces of the blanks, such as printed surfaces.

The present invention is directed to an improvement for an introduction front stop or gauge to be used in a device designed to feed box blanks to a folding arrangement to produce folded box blanks. The front stop or gauge of the device comprises a vertical stop body, whose lower part is rounded and serves as a support for the leading edge of each of the box blanks which are to be introduced and processed.
The devices, which are known up to now and are designed for feeding box blanks to a folding device, are ordinarily called feeders and usually comprise a lower carrying member consisting of a series of endless belts arranged side-by-side across the width of the device. These endless belts are driven by a driving roller, which is located at the outlet of the feeder adjacent an inlet of the processing device, and the belts travel around an idler roller located at the opposite end of the device. The upper run of each of the endless belts is supported furthermore by a series of supporting rollers, which are also free to rotate, so as to make up a carrying plane with a rather rigid surface. A vertical front stop is arranged almost on the axis and above the driven roller. The box blanks, which are to be fed from the device or feeder, are arranged in a stack in a slanting manner on top of the endless belts, with the blanks' front edge resting against the rounded part of the front stop and the rear edge of the lowermost blank of the stack being rested on one or more supports.
In the preferred arrangement, two front stops are arranged side-by-side across the width of the feeder. In order to allow the infeed of the blank, the front stop is mounted above the belts with a clearance between the lower part of the front stop and the endless belt, which clearance corresponds almost to the thickness of the blank. The box blanks are usually printed and, for folding requirements, are placed in the feeder so as to have their printed surfaces facing the endless belts. When being fed in, the lowermost blank of the pile of blanks positioned in the feeder will necessarily rub its unprinted upper surface against the printed surface of the next following blank of the pile.
Another example of a device for feeding blanks is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,907,278, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference thereto.
By this conception, the feeders known up to now have certain drawbacks when feeding in blanks with printed surfaces which are very sensitive to scratches, as well as to wear and tear. As a matter of fact, the use of a conventional front stop cannot prevent the permanent existence of a certain pressure, which is caused by the weight of the blank pile positioned in the feeder between the lowermost blank of the pile and the following blank. This pressure produces a negative effect when feeding blanks which have a very delicate printing, for example, when processing blanks printed with inks which are polymerized by ultra-violet rays or with inks of similar resistance characteristics. With a conventional front stop, the blank print is damaged to such an extent that the folding box blanks, when processed, have to be disposed of or discarded.

Introduction front stop for a device feeding box blanks


A first and a second magnetic layer are deposited on a substrate. The first magnetic layer has high magneto-optical effect at short wavelengths, but low perpendicular anisotropy. The second magnetic layer has low magneto-optical effect at short wavelengths, but high perpendicular anisotropy. The magnetic exchange coupling between the two magnetic layers results in a recording medium which has strong perpendicular anisotropy and high magneto-optical effect, even at short wavelengths.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a magneto-optical recording medium for recording information by use of a laser beam, and particularly to a magneto-optical recording medium which has a high magneto-optic effect under a short-wavelength light and is suitable for high-density recording.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Magneto-optical recording has been put to practical use through a rewritable optical recording approach. Until now, a single amorphous rare-earth-transition-metal film with a strong magnetic anisotropy in the direction perpendicular to the film surface has been used as a magneto-optical recording film. In particular, TbFeCo alloy system amorphous films have been researched and developed for practical use. In magneto-optical recording, there is a trend toward higher recording density, and use of a short-wavelength read/write light is now being researched as a possible approach. For this purpose, the development of magneto-optical materials with higher magneto-optic effects (Kerr rotation and Faraday rotation) is essential in order to achieve higher density magneto-optical recording in the future.
However, in the conventional TbFeCo alloy series amorphous film, as the wavelength of the laser beam becomes shorter, the magneto-optic effect tends to decrease monotonically. Thus, a sufficiently large Kerr rotation angle or Faraday rotation angle cannot be obtained at short wavelengths, and thus there is a problem that the output in reading with the laser beam decreases greatly. It was recently proposed that a two-layer film be used as a new magneto-optical film with magnetic exchange coupling between layers (for example, see Japanese Published Unexamined Patent Application No. 60-171652). However, since these are also substantially TbFe alloy system laminated films, the Kerr rotation angle decreases at short wavelengths. They are therefore unsuitable for read/write films at short wavelengths.
On the other hand, a rare-earth-transition-metal amorphous film consisting mainly of Nd or Pr is known (for example, see T. R. McGuire et al., "Magneto-optical Properties of Nd-Co and Nd-Fe alloys", J. Appl. Phys. 61 (1987) pp. 3352-3354). Although this film has a characteristic higher magneto-optical effect at short wavelengths, it is not a perpendicular magnetized film with strong magnetic anisotropy in the direction perpendicular to the film surface, but merely an in-plane magnetized film with strong magnetic anisotropy in the direction parallel to the film face. Thus, high-density recording cannot be attained.

International Business Machines Corporation


A method for controlling a drive (16) of a motor vehicle having an internal combustion engine (10) and an electric motor (24). A main transmission (16) having an output shaft (18) is connected to a driveshaft (19) of the motor vehicle, and an input shaft (14) is connected to the internal combustion engine (10). The electric motor (24) is coupled to the input shaft (14) or the output shaft (16) of the main transmission (16) by an intermediate transmission (22) having at least two transmission ratio steps. In order to accelerate the motor vehicle from rest, the drive is initially effected solely by the electric motor (24) with the intermediate transmission (22) in its lowest transmission ratio step. The drawing is then taken over by the internal combustion engine (10) before a shift operation in the intermediate transmission (22). In this case, the intermediate transmission (22) is preferably a claw shift transmission.

The invention relates to a method for controlling a drive of a motor vehicle having an internal combustion engine and an electric motor (hybrid vehicle), and in particular to a method for controlling a drive of a hybrid vehicle in which the input shaft or the output shaft of the main transmission is connected to the electric motor by means of an intermediate transmission having at least two transmission ratio steps.
A hybrid vehicle having an internal combustion engine and an electric motor, in which the input shaft of the main transmission is connected to the electric motor by means of an intermediate transmission having at least two transmission ratio steps, is known, for example, from German Patent Document DE 198 42 496 A1. The intermediate transmission (or compound transmission) of the electric motor having at least two transmission ratio steps allows the electric motor to work in an optimum way in every operating range of the hybrid vehicle. It is proposed in particular to increase the transmission ratio of the intermediate transmission when a downshift takes place in the main transmission when there is a sudden acceleration demand.
Furthermore, many documents are known which disclose a hybrid vehicle having an internal combustion engine and an electric motor, in which the intermediate transmission between the electric motor and the input shaft of the main transmission has only one transmission ratio step. Various control systems are proposed in this case to obtain as smooth a gear-change as possible and/or as smooth a changeover as possible between the provision of drive by the electric motor and the provision of drive by the internal combustion engine. In most methods, it is ensured that the electric motor or the internal combustion engine is connected to the respective other drive only after the speeds of the electric motor and internal combustion engine have been synchronized and/or that during a shift operation in the main transmission, the speed of the input shaft of the main transmission is regulated or synchronized by the electric motor.
At this point, reference is made by way of example to German Patent documents DE 44 22 554 C1, DE 195 30 231 A1, DE 195 30 233 A1, DE 100 08 344 A1, DE 102 24 189 A1, European Patent documents EP 1 090 792 A2, EP 1 104 712 A2, EP 1 236 603 A2, and United States Patent documents U.S. Pat. No. 6,342,027 B1 and US 2002/0170758 A1.
In contrast thereto, it is the object of the present invention to provide a method for controlling a drive of a hybrid vehicle, in which the input shaft or the output shaft of the main transmission is connected to the electric motor by means of an intermediate transmission which has at least two transmission ratio steps and permits a comfortable shift between the transmission ratio steps of the intermediate transmission of the electric motor.
According to the invention in order to accelerate the motor vehicle from rest, the drive is initially effected solely by the electric motor, the intermediate transmission being in its lowest transmission ratio step, and driving then being taken over by the internal combustion engine before a shift operation in the intermediate transmission.
This method ensures that the internal combustion engine at least partially always takes over the drive function of the main transmission before the intermediate transmission of the electric motor shifts to a higher transmission ratio step, so that a smooth shift is obtained, between the transmission ratio steps of the intermediate transmission in order to provide a comfortable ride for the driver. An interruption in tractive force during a shift operation of the intermediate transmission is thus reliably prevented.
In one preferred embodiment of the invention, the intermediate transmission of the electric motor is embodied as a claw shift transmission. This has the advantage that a relatively simple shift transmission for the electric motor is sufficient, by virtue of the fact that the internal combustion engine takes over the provision of drive torque for the drive in the pause in the shifting of the intermediate transmission.
In one embodiment of the invention, driving is taken over gradually by the internal combustion engine before a shift operation in the intermediate transmission, the drive torque supplied by the internal combustion engine being increased to the same extent as the drive torque supplied by the electric motor is reduced.
In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, driving is taken over by the internal combustion engine as a function of a detectable acceleration demand of the motor vehicle. The acceleration demand of the motor vehicle can be detected in this case, for example, from the accelerator pedal position and/or from the vehicle speed.
In a further embodiment of the invention, an energy store which is connected to the electric motor is intermediately discharged, the electric motor is operated in a regenerative mode, the electric motor is operated in a booster mode and the like only in at least the second transmission ratio step of the intermediate transmission. As a result, the electric motor can be of relatively small and simple design.
If appropriate, the motor vehicle can also be accelerated from rest solely by the internal combustion engine as drive if, for example, the energy store which is connected to the electric motor is discharged to too great an extent, is too cold or overheated.
The features and combinations of features given above, as well as other features and combinations of features, are disclosed in the description and in the drawings. Various specific exemplary embodiments of the invention are illustrated in a simplified manner in the drawings and are described in more detail in the following description.

Method for controlling a drive of a hybrid vehicle


A buck converter includes an output stage, a FCVB control circuit and a driver. The output stage includes a plurality of switches and a flying capacitor, wherein the switches are connected in series, the flying capacitor is coupled between two of the switches, and the output stage is configured to receive an input voltage to generate an output voltage. The FCVB control circuit is configured to compare a voltage of the flying capacitor with half of the input voltage to generate a comparison result, and the FCVB control circuit further responds to the comparison result to generate a first control signal and a second control signal based on a first PWM signal and a second PWM signal. The driver is configured to generate a plurality of diving signals according to the first control signal and the second control signal, wherein the driving signals are arranged to control the switches, respectively.

Compared to a general buck converter, a 3-level buck converter divides an input voltage by using a flying capacitor, and the 3-level buck converter has effective conversion ratio and lower switching loss. However, to maintain performance of the 3-level buck converter, the flying capacitor should be controlled to have a voltage that is half of an input voltage (i.e. voltage difference between two terminals of the flying capacitor is preferred to be half of the input voltage). This control mechanism of the flying capacitor comprises complicated gate driver, pre-charging circuit and monitoring circuit, causing difficulties in circuit design.

Bang-bang flying capacitor voltage balance for buck converter


The problem to be solved is to produce, at high yields with high purity, anhydrous crystals of a compound represented by formula (1) that is an important intermediate for preparation of FXa inhibitor compound (X) or a pharmacologically acceptable salt thereof, or a hydrate thereof. The solution thereto is an industrial preparation process that provides, with high purity, anhydrous crystals of a compound represented by the following formula (1), which is an intermediate for the production of FXa inhibitor compound (X) or a pharmacologically acceptable salt thereof, or a hydrate thereof, wherein Boc represents a tert-butoxycarbonyl group.

A compound represented by the following formula (X) [hereinafter, also referred to as compound (X)] or a pharmacologically acceptable salt thereof, or a hydrate thereof is a compound that exhibits an FXa inhibitory effect, as disclosed in Patent Literatures 1 to 3, and is useful as a preventive and/or therapeutic drug for thrombotic and/or embolic diseases:

The pamphlet of International Publication No. WO 2007/032498 discloses a process for preparing an FXa inhibitor compound (X) or a pharmacologically acceptable salt thereof, or a hydrate thereof. The process for producing compound (X) disclosed therein involves, as shown in [Scheme A] below, azidifying compound (2) to produce azide compound (3), subsequently reducing compound (3) into amino compound (1a), subsequently treating compound (1a) with anhydrous oxalic acid to obtain compound (1), which is then treated with compound (4) (ethyl 2-[(5-chloropyridin-2-yl)amino]-2-oxoacetate monohydrochloride) in the presence of a base to produce compound (5), followed by several steps from compound (5). This pamphlet also discloses crystals of the oxalate of compound (1) as a production intermediate.
wherein Boc represents a tert-butoxycarbonyl group.

Process for preparation of optically active diamine derivative salt


A method for slide shows. The method includes receiving one or more video content element and one or more image content element that are each associated with a respective audio track, where a first video content element includes a corresponding first audio track and a second video content element includes a corresponding second audio track that is disabled or non-existent, receiving input selecting a background audio track for the slide show, and automatically integrating the video content element, the image content element, and the background audio track together into the slide show, where the background audio track is played during playback of the slide show when the computing device detects that there is no audio signal generated by another audio track in the slide show.

This relates to multimedia devices and more particularly to methods and apparatus for enabling and aiding individual users in the creation of multimedia devices such as DVDs.
Multimedia devices such as CDs and DVDs are widely known and used. In commercial applications, a vendor prepares the content that ultimately goes on the multimedia device, such as a series of songs or a movie, and mass produces duplicates of a master disc which are packaged, distributed and sold in the normal stream of commerce.
Advances in computer technology, however, have made it possible to provide individual consumers with the ability to create CDs and DVDs in their home, through a process commonly referred to as "burning" (in which a blank piece of media is recorded). In some instances, burning is limited to a single instance for each physical piece of media, while in other instances, the media may be written more than once. For example, with a DVD-R type burnable DVD, a user may place a series of home videos on the DVD and burn it, but could not, at a later time, add anything else to the DVD. A DVD-RW, on the other hand, may be burned multiple times, such that additional data may be added to the DVD after the initial burning.
One difference between types of media, such as CDs and DVDs, is that DVDs are often expected to automatically work, when inserted into a DVD player. In that manner, the information from the DVD should load into the processor within the DVD player, and the user should be provided with some form of user interface with which to make viewing selections. For example, when a commercial movie DVD is placed into a DVD player, a top menu is provided to the user with options such as "Play Movie," "Sound Settings," "Video Settings," "The Making of XYZ," etc.
Enabling a consumer to easily create a similar experience for a user with a home-burned DVD, however, is a difficult process. There are many different ways that the various steps in the process of creating a DVD can be accomplished. In addition, at most or all of these steps, the consumer must make choices that can affect the quality of the recording, the time it takes to make the recording, and the amount of information that can be burned on to the DVD. In many instances, the positive effect of one decision will cause a negative effect of another, conveying the effects of such choices, in a simple manner, is difficult at best. For example, if a use wants to burn the DVD as quickly as possible, the resulting quality of the recorded material may suffer.
Similarly, commercial production of DVDs usually entails the work of people who are experts at dealing with graphic images. For example, a DVD of a typical commercial movie may include a portion of the DVD menu in which one or more small clips of the film are running continuously, or that still images of the movie are displayed as a background on the main menu. Providing consumers with similar capability, however, becomes a difficult task, as many consumers are limited in their knowledge and expertise of manipulating graphic images, etc. In many instances, consumers utilize a single, limited size, display as a workspace. As such, it can become increasingly difficult to manipulate a library of still images, another library of movies/clips, while at the same time interacting with the software that is required to create the DVD itself.
In addition, while commercial DVDs are often limited to movies and related material, many consumers often desire to create, for example, slideshows of the photos they have taken, such as on a vacation, and to place those slideshows on a DVD which other family members or friends can view in the convenience of their own living room. As technology has become more prevalent in society, however, it has become more common that vacations, etc., are often captured as a combination of moving and still images. In some instances, one family member may use a video camera to record certain parts of the vacation, while another individual takes pictures. In other instances, the digital camera may include the capability to record both pictures and movies, albeit at different times.
When the time comes to document the trip or vacation, consumers are often left with a choice of creating a series of videos or a slideshow of pictures. In some part, this is often because they are substantially different media that are handled in different ways.
Digital pictures, for example, are fixed files in which an image is stored in accordance with a predetermined method. For example, the most common form of storage for digital pictures is the JPEG format, a well-known industry standard that relates to image compression. Video files, on the other hand, involve more complex file structures that are often stored using any one of a variety of standards, such as the Quicktime, MPEG and AVI formats. Consumers that are essentially given a choice between one format or the other are left frustrated when various portions of their event are omitted from the final product.
Accordingly, what is needed are methods and apparatus for providing users with the ability to easily and simply create multimedia devices, such as DVDs. It would be advantageous if the tools to create these devices could provide the consumer with enough information so that the user could make informed decisions in the tradeoffs that are often experienced. In addition, what is needed are methods and apparatus for providing the user with the ability to simply and easily add information, such as digital images and movies or film clips, to the menu portion of the DVD interface, so that the user can customize each aspect of his or her creation. Another aspect of DVD creation that is needed, is to provide the creative users with the ability to intermix different forms of media in a single slideshow presentation. In that manner, the creative person would be able to document events in the chronological order in which the images, movies, etc. were captured.

Slideshows comprising various forms of media


A stabilizer bar assembly has a stabilizer bar and a pair of bushing assemblies. Each bushing assembly has an elastomeric bushing disposed around the stabilizer bar and an outer metal member disposed around the elastomeric bushing. The outer metal member compresses the elastomeric bushing between the stabilizer bar and the outer metal member to a prespecified percent of compression. When the stabilizer bar rotates with respect to the outer metal member, the compression of the elastomeric bushing stops movement between the elastomeric bushing and the stabilizer bar and between the elastomeric bushing and the outer metal member. A fastening strap is attached to the outer metal member to attach the stabilizer bar assembly to a vehicle.

The present invention relates to stabilizer bar bushings. More particularly, the present invention relates to a stabilizer bar bushing which incorporates anti-slip features to eliminate slip between the bushing and the stabilizer bar.
Conventional motor vehicle suspension systems often include one or more stabilizer bars to control the degree of roll of the motor vehicle during cornering or other vehicle maneuvers. A typical stabilizer bar is generally U-shaped having a long intermediate portion disposed laterally with respect to the motor vehicle and a pair of relatively short end portions extending forwardly or rearwardly to connect to a corresponding pair of suspension arms or wheel hubs. The intermediate portion normally is connected to the underside of the vehicle by one or more bracket assemblies.
The mounting bracket assembly for the intermediate portion of the stabilizer bar typically includes an elastomeric bushing, sometimes termed an insulator, and a bracket which is secured to the underside of the vehicle. The elastomeric bushing is located between the stabilizer bar and the bracket to support and isolate the stabilizer bar. In some applications it is desirable to use an elastomeric bushing that permits the stabilizer bar to rotate freely about the axis of the intermediate portion of the stabilizer bar. In other applications, it is desirable to allow partial wind-up of the bushing and then allowing the bushing to slip for relative torsional travel between the bushing and the bar. In still other applications, attempts are made to eliminate the slippage of the bushing such that all rotation of the stabilizer bar is resisted by wind-up of the bushing.
The designs that allow rotation between the bar and the bushing have attempted to minimize friction at the bushing/stabilizer bar interface by employing low-friction materials as liners covering the bore of the bushing or by adding lubricants between the bushing and the stabilizer bar. Commonly used materials for bushing liners are polyester or polytetra fluoroethylene while silicone greases have been utilized as lubricants. The primary disadvantage of these designs is that the liner wears or the lubricant dissipates resulting in an unacceptable audible squawk in the vehicle. Also, with these designs, environmental contamination can result in premature wear of the liner or premature dissipation of the lubricant thus leading to the audible squawk.
The designs that allow partial wind-up and then allow slippage of the stabilizer bar with respect to the bushing suffer from the same disadvantages as the designs that allow total rotation in that early wear and/or contamination of the interface between the bar and the bushing can lead to an audible squawk.
The designs that attempt to eliminate all slippage of the bushing have been successful for limited rotation of the stabilizer bar with respect to the bushing, but larger rotation of the stabilizer bar has caused deterioration of the bushing and/or slippage of the bushing. In order to overcome these problems, some prior art designs have incorporated flats on the stabilizer bar or other components which resist rotation of the bushing. While the incorporation of flats has resisted the larger amounts of rotation, the costs and complexities of these designs have limited their applicability.
The continued development of stabilizer bar bushings and attachment systems has been directed toward designs which provide additional durability, eliminate the audible squawking by eliminating the rotation between the stabilizer bar and the bushing but yet still perform the required isolation between the stabilizer bar and the vehicle.
The present invention provides the art with an attachment between the stabilizer bar and the supporting structure of the vehicle which will improve the durability of the bushing, provide isolation for the stabilizer bar and allow for the proper positioning of the stabilizer bar relative to the frame. The present invention provides for radial, axial, torsional and conical loading of the stabilizer bar due to jounce and rebound of the suspension. The present invention provides this relative movement between the stabilizer bar and the frame without slippage between the bushing and the stabilizer bar thus eliminating the potential for an audible squawk.
The present invention utilizes a mechanically bonded bushing assembled over the stabilizer bar and then compressed into an outer sleeve/bracket assembly. The bracket assembly is provided with slotted holes to compensate for the stabilizer bar assembly and the vehicle body tolerance stack-ups. This preassembly of the bushings and the stabilizer bar also allows the assembly to be supplied directly to the assembly plants ready for vehicle assembly. This is opposed to the prior art which supplies the stabilizer bar and the bushings as separate components requiring sub-assembly at the vehicle assembly plant. The stabilizer bar attachment of the present invention provides both axial and lateral location proximate to the vehicle body and suspension attachments, the torsional resistance of the elastomeric member provides enhanced anti-roll capabilities, and due to the lack of slippage between the elastomeric member and the bore, a noise free pivot attachment with enhanced longevity and product life is provided.
Other advantages and objects of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the subsequent detailed description, appended claims and drawings.