A method and apparatus are provided for adaptively controlling printer functions of a dot matrix printer in response to sensing the type of printer ink cartridge being used. An identifying resistive value is applied to surface of the cartridge and installed within the printer. The printer includes contacts that include sensors and sensor circuitry useful to detect a presence of the resistive indicator and the resistive value thereof. The sensed resistive value is used to directly control printer functions, and/or to access stored data or printer control routines specific to the type of cartridge, or desired performance characteristics. Stored information, which may be appended by other sensed information such as printer usage data, is used to selectively regulate printer operation to achieve maximum efficiency and performance from the particular ink cartridge.

(Not Applicable)
(Not Applicable)
Dot matrix printer assemblies utilize ribbon cartridges that contain continuous strip of material impregnated with an ink solution. The ribbon is contained in a cartridge container that normally mounts around the dot matrix printer""s print head. As the ribbon passes between the printer head and a sheet of paper, information is then printer on to the sheet of paper.
In order to print the information, small rods or pins in the printer head are thrust into the ribbon, which then makes contact with the paper adjacent to the pins, thereby transferring ink from the ribbon to the paper. Through the proper combination of dots, the ink transferred is transformed into recognizable letters or symbols. The higher the impact force of the pins on the ribbon the darker the resulting image. Contemporary printers commonly produce a consistent impact force.
As the printer assembly moves across the sheet of paper, the ribbon formed as a continuous band, is also pulled laterally across the gap between the paper and the print head, continuously providing a new area to be struck by the pins in order to provide ink for the printing operation. If the ribbon did not continuously move, it would quickly wear out in response to repetitive striking of the same area.
At present, many pictures such as dot matrix printers, do not track ink usage. The user typically notices print cartridge deficiency only when the printer starts printing characters that are difficult to read. As a matter of practicality, it will often be the case that a replacement is not readily available. For a business, this often means extra cost incurred in the form of expedited shipping charges.
A second factor in obtaining optimum print quality and usage efficiency from an ink ribbon cartridge is the variations in print quality attributable to differences in the manufacture and type of ribbon. Competitive pressures cause some suppliers to use lower quality ribbon or inks, which may produce lighter images. In such cases the user may assume the problem is with the printer and not the ribbon.
Previous methods for determining the type of cartridges have included physical extrusions or indentations on the cartridge so that the printing unit can determine which cartridge model is being utilized. This has a limitation in that all of the possible permutations much be considered at the start of the program, in order to modify the tooling for the cartridge body and the sensors in the printing unit.
By contrast to prior art dot matrix printers, prior art laser printers have employed advanced systems for identifying cartridge mode. One such system is disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 5,289,242 entitled xe2x80x9cMETHOD AND SYSTEM FOR IDENTIFYING THE TYPE OF TONER PRINT CARTRIDGES LOADED INTO ELECTROPHOTOGRAPHIC PRINTERSxe2x80x9d issued to Christensen, et al. A metal label is installed on the print cartridge, and contacts in the laser printer are used to detect and connect the metal label to a DC voltage signal line. If there is no conductive metal strip, then the detected voltage level is at logic 1, or 5 volts. If there is a conductive metal strip, then detected voltage is at logic 0, or 0 volts. By passing current through the label and determining the results, the printer ascertains what type of cartridge is installed.
This system has the disadvantage that may not distinguish many types of cartridges. Moreover, if the label is dirty or improperly positioned, failure to detect cartridge type will result in assumption by the printer that no cartridge is installed, and thus the printer will not work. Furthermore, this system is inappropriate for dot matrix printers. The primary advantage of dot matrix printers over, for instance, laser printers is that both the printer and the ink cartridges are relatively inexpensive. The metal label component could be prohibitively expensive if applied to a dot matrix print cartridge.
A method and apparatus are provided for adaptively controlling printer functions of a dot matrix printer in response to sensing the type of printer ink cartridge being used. An identifying resistive value is applied to surface of the cartridge and installed within the printer. The printer includes contacts that include sensors and sensor circuitry useful to detect a presence of the resistive indicator, and the resistive value thereof. The sensed resistive value is used to directly control printer functions, and/or to access stored data or printer control routines specific to the type of cartridge, or desired performance characteristics. Stored information, which may be appended by other sensed information such as printer usage data, is used to selectively regulate printer operation to achieve maximum efficiency and performance from the particular ink cartridge.
The resistive indicator may be applied directly to a surface of the cartridge, or to a label that may be adhesively applied to the cartridge, to facilitate compatibility with different cartridges. In some cases a cartridge may support different labels, each conforming a to a different operational status of the printer.
By means of the present invention, information respecting one or more characteristics of the ink cartridges can be adaptively factored into printer operation in order to enhance image quality and to enhance the operational life of the ink cartridge.
A display will and/or alarm may be incorporated into the invention to provide a visual indication of the printer/ink cartridge status, remaining life or ink cartridge, and other data.
The resistive ink identifier may be formed in different ways, to provide different resistive values corresponding to operational parameters. In one embodiment the resistive ink identifier has a resistance value that is a function of its length. In other embodiments the resistive value of the ink identifier is a function of its width, or ink characteristics.
In the presently preferred embodiment print head impact force may be regulated, in response to sensed resistive values by varying the pulse width of the print head activation coil. As would be apparent to those with ordinary skill in the yard, various other methods may be used to regulate functions such as printer impact force, without departing from the broader aspects of the invention, as set forth below.

Coded ribbon cartridge, decoder, and ribbon ink capacity indicator with LCD display


A network switch may be debugged by creating a virtual instance of the switch. Configuration data of the network switch may be retrieved, the configuration data including lists of the rules and groups configured on the switch. An isolated virtual environment may be created, and a virtual switch may be provisioned on the isolated virtual environment. The virtual switch may be configured with the configuration data of the network switch, including the rules and groups configured thereon. Diagnostic data corresponding to the switch may be obtained from the virtual switch.

Network switches are devices that connect different devices together on a network by using packet switching to receive, process, and forward data to the destination device. An OpenFlow™ switch is a programmable network switch that forwards packets in a software-defined networking (SDN) environment. OpenFlow™ switches may be implemented as a software program or hardware device and are either based on the OpenFlow™ switching protocol or compatible with it. The OpenFlow™ Switching Protocol is defined by the OpenFlow™ Switch Consortium in the OpenFlow™ Switch Specification, and is intended as a way for researchers to run experimental protocols in their networks.

Debugging a network switch by replaying configuration


An information providing device installed in a leader vehicle that leads a follower vehicle, for providing the follower vehicle with guidance prepared by the leader vehicle, the information providing device that includes a state detector configured to detect a state change in the leader vehicle to output a detecting signal and a guidance generator configured to receive the detecting signal from the state detector, the guidance generator configured to prepare, in response to the detecting signal, guidance to guide the follower vehicle, the guidance including a photographed image of a view ahead of the leader vehicle.

The present invention relates to an information providing device to provide a follower vehicle with guidance for guiding the follower vehicle, a program for controlling the provision of information, and an information providing system.
Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-20884 discloses a technique of allowing a leader vehicle and a follower vehicle to transmit and receive still or motion images taken at a desired position. According to this technique, the follower vehicle can obtain an image taken at a position optionally selected by the leader vehicle or an image taken at a position (to be passed by the follower vehicle) optionally selected by the follower vehicle. The obtained image can be used as route guidance or congestion avoidance information.

Information providing device, information providing system, and information providing program product


A system for mounting a lock for a door that must have at least one hole to accommodate the lock includes a panel, a pin connected to the panel, and at least one template hole, respectively, for each of the at least one hole, respectively, in the panel positioned relative to the pin and in location required for marking the at least one hole. pin extends substantially perpendicular from a face of the panel and has cross-section of shape of a cylinder cutout of the door. The panel is generally rectangular in shape and has a planar surface on which is connected the pin.

There is a wide variety of door closure hardware, such as locks, latch mechanisms, bolt mechanisms, exit devices, face plates, jamb features, handles, knobs, electronic keypads, card reader pads, key locators, and others. Locks, themselves, vary widely in variety, and include those attached to the face or outer portions of the door (e.g., pad locks, rim latch locks), to locks that are more securely incorporated in the door via mortise (i.e., mortise locks and others). More secure locks, such as mortise locks, typically include a main cylinder, cam, or other mechanical lock device that fits within a mortise, together with associated closures, latches, and bolts. Face plates, handles, knobs, levers, and entry systems of mortise and other locks are often attached to the door or door frame.
Door shapes, configurations and sizes vary widely. Mounting of locks within doors, for example, in door and frame mortises and the like, requires a degree of accuracy for effective operative placement of locking and securing features. The locks often require location of a mortise for housing the lock cylinder, bolt, latch and other closing and locking mechanisms. Screws, pins, plates, indicators and other devices attach the lock securely within the mortise and within the door frame. These screws, pins, plates, indicators and other devices are generally located offset in the door frame in relation to the mortise.
Conventionally, door hardware has been fitted by measuring from the lock cylinder or other mortise and door frame edges. The measurements are made by ruler or similar measurement instrument. Because door shapes, configurations and sizes are so varied, the measurements must often be made against corresponding slopes, angles and edges that may have widely varied configuration. Moreover, measurements must be quite accurate and accuracy is not readily possible when making direct measurements on the door frame. As a consequence, accuracy of alignment is not easily achieved.
It would, therefore, be a significant improvement in the art and technology to provide systems and methods for installing locks in doors of varied shapes, sizes and design.

Lock alignment and mounting template system and method


A flexible circuit board connector is at least composed of a base, a loose cover, a plurality of terminals, and a plurality of insertion terminals. The base is provided with symmetric grooves which are used to provide for an emplacement of projected shafts of the loose cover, so as to prevent the loose cover from being displaced horizontally. Next, front ends of the plural terminals are pressed into through-holes of loose cover, so as to prevent the loose cover from being dropped off in a vertical direction. Then, through an insertion of the plural insertion terminals, positions of the projected shafts of loose cover are lifted up by abutted parts at front ends of the insertion terminals, so as to position the loose cover. In addition, the abutted part is also provided with an inverted hook, such that the insertion terminal can be tightly emplaced in the hole.

(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a flexible circuit board connector, and more particularly to a connector which can be assembled conveniently.
(b) Description of the Prior Art
An ordinary conventional connector is assembled by first inserting a plurality of terminals into a base, followed by assembling a loose cover into the base, which enables front ends of the plural terminals to be transfixed into slots on the loose cover. At this time, a fixing piece should be inserted into the base, so as to prevent the loose cover from being dropped off, which will cause an inconvenience in assembling.
Accordingly, how to get rid of the aforementioned problems is a technical issue to be solved by the present inventor.


An apparatus includes a plurality of first optical devices and a second optical device. Each first optical device includes a respective first pair of waveguides comprising a respective first waveguide and a respective second waveguide that are coupled together, a respective second pair of waveguides comprising a respective third waveguide and a respective fourth waveguide that are coupled together, and a first fusion gate that includes a detector. Each first fusion gate is configured to perform a fusion on the respective second waveguide and the respective third waveguide of a respective first optical device. The fusion produces a detection pattern for the respective first optical device. The apparatus further includes a multiplexer to select a respective first optical device of the plurality of first optical devices based at least in part on the detection pattern for the respective first optical device and output photons from the respective first optical device.

One of the main barriers to widespread use of quantum technologies, such as quantum computing, quantum communications, and the like, is the ability to reliably generate entanglement among two or more physical quantum systems, e.g., between two qubits. In the specific case of quantum computation, many quantum computing algorithms require cluster states of multiple qubits, or, more generally, graph states. A graph state is a highly entangled multi-qubit state that can be represented visually as a graph with nodes representing qubits and edges representing entanglement between the qubits. However, various problems that either inhibit the generation of entangled states or destroy the entanglement once created (e.g., such as decoherence) have frustrated advancements in quantum technologies that rely on the use of highly entangled quantum states. Furthermore, in some qubit architectures, e.g., photonic architectures, the generation of entangled states of multiple qubits is an inherently probabilistic process that may have a low probability of success. For example, current methods for producing Bell states from single photons have success probabilities of around 20% (corresponding to an 80% failure rate). Accordingly, there remains a need for improved systems and methods for producing entangled states.

Generation of an entangled photonic state from primitive resources


An active Noise Reduction (ANR) device includes a plurality of inputs, a plurality of signal processing resources, an output for driving an earphone driver, a programmable switch arrangement capable of assigning any of the plurality of inputs to any of the plurality of signal processing resources, and a controller for programming the programmable switch arrangement in order to assign each of at least a subset of the plurality of inputs to a different one of the signal processing resources. The ANR device is dynamically configurable to vary which of the signal processing resources are selected to contribute to the output.

Active Noise Reduction (ANR) systems, particularly active control systems for headphones and earphones, are well known in the art. ANR techniques offer the capability to cancel (at least some useful portion of) unwanted external sound via feedforward control and/or to cancel excess pressures generated in the blocked (or "occluded") ear canal during speech ("occlusion effect") via feedback control.
ANR systems in the art are typically optimised for a particular architectural configuration according to one of a number of available choices of controlling topologies and processing technologies (e.g. analogue or digital). The architecture is internally defined by the internal hardwiring of the device and the processing is defined by the technology implemented in the device.
Typically ANR systems in the art vary in complexity, performance and power consumption depending upon the application for which they are designed. A manufacturer may have to produce a range of different devices to satisfy the needs of their customer base, with a variety of different technologies being implemented over the range of devices.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


The present invention provides an improved mink growth hormone gene, a recombinant DNA containing the improved mink growth hormone gene, microorganisms which belong to the genus Escherichia and contain the recombinant DNA and which are capable of producing a mink growth hormone, and a method for producing a mink growth hormone using the E.coli transformant containing the recombinant DNA. According to the present invention, a mink growth hormone is efficiently produced.

Mink growth hormone has been conventionally produced by isolation and purification from the pituitary gland of domesticated minks. Mink growth hormone facilitates the growth of minks by administrating the hormone to them and are very useful physiologically active substances.
Since the mink growth hormone is derived from minks, the production of the mink growth hormone requires many domesticated animals, a long period of time, labor and cost. The present inventors previously provided the growth hormone gene of Dark mink defined by SEQ ID No. 2 in order to produce mink growth hormone by genetic engineering techniques (Japanese Patent Application 315946/1990). However, the Dark mink growth hormone gene was not satisfactory expressed in the transformant.
The present inventors have extensively investigated genes that efficiently expresses the mink growth hormone and successfully found the method.

Isolated mink growth hormone genes, novel recombinant DNA and methods for producing mink growth hormone


An engine ECU executes a program including the steps of: detecting a waveform of vibration of an engine at a predetermined knock detection gate; determining whether a detected vibration's waveform and a knock waveform model stored in memory match within a predetermined range; if the model and the detected vibration's waveform match within the predetermined range, determining that the engine knocks; and if the model and the detected vibration's waveform do not match within the predetermined range, then determining that the engine does not knock.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to knock determination devices and ignition control systems including the same and particularly to such devices and systems that determine from a waveform of vibration of an internal combustion engine whether the engine knocks.
2. Description of the Background Art
Conventionally a technique employed to detect whether an internal combustion engine knocks is known. Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2000-205096 discloses an internal combustion engine knock detection device provided for an internal combustion engine and capable of detecting knocking with high precision. The knock detection device disclosed in this document includes a knock detector detecting the internal combustion engine's mechanical vibration to output a knock signal, and a knock determiner determining whether the engine knocks from the knock detector's knock signal in accordance with a reference knock level obtained by a background level BG (i.e., the knock detector's output level provided when the engine does not knock minus a mechanical vibration noise component and an electrical noise component that is multiplied by an adaptation constant K. The knock determiner determines that the engine knocks if a vibration component calculated by subtracting mechanical vibration and electrical components from a peak value of a signal output from the knock detector is larger than the reference knock level, and if the vibration component is equal to or smaller than the reference knock level the knock determiner determines that the engine does not knock.
The knock detection device described in this document can compare a vibration component corresponding to a peak value of a signal output from the knock determiner minus mechanical vibration and electrical noise components with a reference knock level obtained by removing mechanical vibration and electrical noise components to detect with high precision whether an internal combustion engine knocks or not.
The knock detection device described in the above document is, however, disadvantageous in that if the knock detector outputs a signal having a peak large in value the device detects that the engine knocks, and when the engine does not knock and the knock detector nonetheless outputs a signal having a peak increased in value a decision that the engine knocks may erroneously be made.

Internal combustion engine knock determination device and ignition control system including the same


A gasification co-generation process of coal powder in a Y-type entrained flow bed, comprising: spraying coal water slurry or coal powder, gasification agent and water vapor into a gasification furnace through a top nozzle and a plurality of side nozzles for performing combustion and gasification with a residence time of 10 s or more; chilling the resulting slag with water, and subjecting the chilled slag to a dry method slagging to obtain gasification slag used as cement clinker; discharging the produced crude syngas carrying fine ash from the Y-type entrained flow bed to perform ash-slag separation.

Coal gasification is a leading and key technology for the clean and efficient utilization of coal. Entrained flow gasification is a new type of coal parallel flow gasification technology developed in recent decades. The gasification agent and coal powder or coal slurry enter a gasification furnace through a plurality of nozzles, the pyrolysis, combustion and gasification reaction of coal are carried out almost simultaneously. The high temperature in the gasification furnace ensures complete gasification of the coal, and the minerals in the coal become slag and leave the gasification furnace. Compared with the traditional gasification technology, the pressurized gasification process with an entrained flow gasification has the advantages such as high temperature, large processing capacity, high content of effective constituents in the fuel gas and high gasification efficiency. It presents the future development direction of the coal gasification technology, it is also one of the landmark coal chemical industry technologies which have been widely used in China and foreign countries, and are representatives of the advanced technologies in the world.
However, the coal chemical industry has been harshly criticized for its high water consumption and energy consumption, wherein the primary cause is the high water consumption and energy consumption of coal gasification technology. While in the coal gasification process, the chemical water consumption for the coal gasification reaction process is only ⅕ of the physical water consumption of the technological processes such as chilling and washing. Therefore, the pivotal issue of saving water in the gasification of the entrained flow gasification is to avoid and reduce the physical water consumption. However, the existing entrained flow gasification process, both the dry powder gasification and the coal water slurry gasification contain the step of discharging wet slag and the step of wetting and washing in the carbon wash tower, on the one hand, the steps consume a large amount of water, and result in a large amount of black water and salinity-containing wastewater which are difficult to treat, and the crystallization waste salts are hazardous chemical which can hardly be processed; on the other hand, the high temperature residual heat in the reaction process is not effectively utilized, thus the energy consumption is high; moreover, the difficulty in dehydration of wet slag and ash cake having a high content of carbon hampers the comprehensive utilization, and the dumping and landfill treatment is prone to cause secondary pollution. The aforementioned problems have become the biggest bottleneck to enhance quality and improve efficiency and obtain the clean, efficient and low carbon development for the coal chemical industry in the world.
At present, the co-generation technology of combusting coal powder and cogenerating cement clinker by controlling the ash composition is a hot research topic at home and abroad. However, due to the fact that the combustion temperature is at the critical reaction temperature of cement and the residence time is short during the gasification process, it causes that the solid-solid reaction strength and time period are insufficient or the ash content is difficult to control. Only a small number of processes have been subjected to pilot scale test or demonstration at present. In addition, the produced cement clinker has not achieved the desired effect, thus the poly-generation technology is still in a process of research and exploration.
In the existing gasification co-generation technology, the reducing atmosphere of the gasification furnace and the oxidizing atmosphere of the combustion furnace are different, which increase the difficulty to co-produce cement clinker from the coal powder gasification furnace and slag; in addition, the existing gasification furnace has a short residence time of the solid materials, and the ash and slag are in a blended status, which directly affect the properties of the co-produced cement; moreover, a process of discharging slag with a wet method may be extremely prone to cause the hydration reaction, thereby form the agglomeration and blockage.
Therefore, the research on the co-production of cement clinker from the coal powder and the gasification slag may solve the problem concerning how to perform large-scale resource utilization with high added value on the solid waste generated by the coal gasification process. Therefore, the pivot issue and key point for the future development of the entrained flow bed for performing the clean and efficient coal gasification co-generation technology reside in how to reduce the physical water consumption, sufficiently recover the thermal energy, and perform large-scale resource utilization with high added value on the gasification furnace slag.

Gasification co-generation process of coal powder in a Y-type entrained flow bed

CHINA UNIVERSITY OF PETROLEUM (EAST CHINA)


A wind turbine, including a main gear box, which is lubricated and/or cooled by oil, and a thermosiphon cooling system for cooling the oil is provided. The thermosiphon cooling system solves the main challenges facing the oil cooling systems in wind turbines. The high efficiency of the evaporation heat transfer mechanism gives the capacity to transfer the required heat load in relatively smaller size system. In this way, installation space is reduced. The thermosiphon cooling system has no service requirements over the lifetime of the wind turbine since the thermosiphon cooling system has no moving parts. Costs are saved since the simplicity of the thermosiphon cooling system adds a big value to the system business case.

A wind turbine has a nacelle, a hub being rotatable supported at the nacelle, a generator being provided inside the nacelle and a main gear box that is arranged between the hub and the generator. The main gear box is lubricated and cooled by means of oil. During operation of the wind turbine, the oil needs to be cooled. Up to the applicant's internal knowledge, in the wind industry there are two main cooling methods used for oil cooling.
In a so-called active oil to air system, the oil heat is extracted in an oil/air heat exchanger by driving air into a cooler by electrical or mechanical ventilators. In a so-called oil/coolant/air system, the coolant that is driven by a pump extracts the heat from the oil in an oil/coolant heat exchanger. Then the coolant circulates into an air/coolant heat exchanger where it can be passively cooled by using the wind stream or actively by using a ventilator to drive the air.


Multi-centric radius focusing is used to inspect a radiused surface of a radiused part having a varying radius without mechanically adjusting the array sensor. A plurality of focal laws are designed to electronically steer and focus ultrasound at respective focal points corresponding to centers of curvature of a simulated radiused surface having a varying radius. The mechanical probe that carries the array sensor is located to two physical places that are outside of the radiused area and have a spatial relationship that varies less than the radius of the radiused surface varies. As the probe is moved along the radiused part, the probe maintains the array sensor at a constant location relative to the radiused part. As the array sensor scans the radiused part, the array sensor is electronically adjusted to focus at the respective focal points in sequence.

This disclosure generally relates to methods and apparatus for ultrasonic inspection and, in particular, relates to methods and apparatus for ultrasonic inspection of composite structures having radiused surfaces.
The desire to maximize performance and minimize weight in commercial aircraft has resulted in widespread use of composite materials, such as fiber-reinforced plastic materials. A variety of elongated composite structures may have relatively confined internal cavities that require inspection in order to assure that the structure meets production and/or performance specifications. In many instances, those internal cavities are bounded in part by stiffeners, each stiffener comprising a web and a flange which meet at an intersection having one or more fillets. More generally, components made of fiber-reinforced plastic materials may have internal or external fillets.
In mechanical engineering, a fillet is a rounding of an interior or exterior corner of a part design. Fillet geometry, when on an interior corner, is a line of concave function, and when on an exterior corner, is a line of convex function. In the manufacture of composite parts, fillets are often referred to as "radii" because they typically have profiles which are circular arcs. To avoid confusion that may result from use of terminology such as the "radius of a radius", this disclosure adopts the conventions of referring to the fillet with circular profile as a "radiused surface" and referring to the radial dimension of the radiused surface as a "radius". As used herein, the term "circular arc" is a portion of the circumference of a circle. The circular arcs referred to herein are theoretical (e.g., simulated) constructions which may be defined mathematically in a frame of reference of a radiused part. For example, a circular arc may be defined mathematically such that non-parallel first and second planar surfaces of a radiused part—defined mathematically in a frame of reference of the radiused part—are theoretically tangent to the circular arc at opposing ends of the latter.
In the case of elongated composite structures, fabrication using soft tooling creates radiused surfaces whose radii vary along the length of the composite part. There are also many individual composite parts having radiused surfaces with unique radii. Whether inspecting multiple parts with different radii or a single part with multiple radii, operators consume large amounts of time to adjust their probes to the different radii. In addition, the designers of non-destructive inspection (NDI) systems have to design and fabricate unique probes that include an array of transducer elements (hereinafter "array sensor") for the variety of profiles of the radiused surfaces.
Existing methods for ultrasonic inspection of filleted corners of composite structures include the following: (1) physically adjusting the ultrasonic array sensor by an operator as the probe is moving along the radiused surface; (2) having a very complex mechanical design to move the array sensor during inspection, which design might include motorized mechanical adjustment, robotic articulation, dimensional feedback sensors, etc. (the drawbacks include costly inspection probes, costly maintenance, and costly re-teaching of robots due to system variability); (3) taking multiple scans of the radiused surface, each scan acquiring data with different adjustments to the setup files and/or adjustments to the array sensor (this increases cycle time); (4) taking a single scan with different array sensors placed at different locations (this increases system cost and inspection probe complexity); (5) using beam steering to direct ultrasonic beams to the radiused surface (this works to some degree but the data may not be good because the physical angle of the ultrasound into the part is not ideally normal to the part surface at all locations; (6) using ultrasonic beam steering methods to send sound at different angles into the radiused surface of the part, adjust the electronic beam steering based on the response, and then send sound again into the surface of the part with the newer electronic beams adjusted, which iterative process is repeated several times until a suitable signal response is obtained (which process may tend to mask surface irregularities that operators would want to see; another drawback is that the software algorithms are confused by unwanted reflections from irregularities located near the fillet).
The challenge is to provide a way to inspect a radiused surface of a composite part without having to mechanically adjust the array sensor, even though the radius changes. Examples would be wing skin stiffeners, fuselage stiffeners, or spar radii, where mechanically adjusting an array sensor during the inspection becomes very costly, time consuming, or creates a complicated mechanical system.

Method for ultrasonic inspection of structure having radiused surface using multi-centric radius focusing


The present invention is directed to a coating composition comprising a vinyl acrylic copolymer latex wherein said copolymer latex has a water contact angle of about 60° or higher on the dried latex film surface, wherein said copolymer latex further has a specific water vapor permeability of about 0.5 mg/cm2/mm/24 hr. The invention is also directed to the copolymer latex itself. Further, the invention is a method of improving a coating's ability to withstand a high humidity environment comprising adding a vinyl acrylic copolymer latex to the coating composition wherein said copolymer latex has a water contact angle of about 60° or higher on the dried latex film surface, and wherein said copolymer latex further has a specific water vapor permeability of about 0.5 mg/cm2/mm/24 hr.

Coatings used in bath and spa applications encounter problems due to the conditions of high humidity that are present in such environments. Some problems associated with coatings used in high humidity environments include water marks, streaks, and defacement issues. Some existing coating products have good water vapor repellency but relatively low water vapor permeability. These products tend to perform well when the coating is relatively fresh; however, when the coating is aged, even just a few months after application, the water vapor permeability can decrease to an undesirable level, weakening the coating's resistance to water vapor condensation. This can then result in some or all of the problems noted above.
Another drawback to existing coatings is found when such products are applied over a previously coated surface. The water repellency of the coatings is weakened by surfactants leached from previous coatings, which can also lead to water marks, streaks, and defacement issues. Existing coatings designed for high humidity applications also tend to be costly.
Silicone resins may offer improved features over the existing coatings; however, they have drawbacks as well. For example, silicone resins tend to be quite costly. Also, they may exhibit poor flow and leveling properties which is undesirable for interior coatings. Problems with recoating may also be present.
An example of an existing coating is Perma-White Mold & Mildew Proof Interior Paint by Zinsser (which is intended to be applied in bath and kitchen areas). This product along with samples of flat paint (ID: JAM0516) and resin paint (ID: EXP-4539) from Dow Chemicals were tested under conditions of high humidity and performed poorly in terms of water vapor condensation resistance. Thus, there is a need for improved coatings for use in high humidity applications.
Prior art formulations differ from the current invention in various ways. For example, the abstract of JP 2008003580 describes a protective film for LCD polarizing plates which comprises a coating layer having a polymer which includes a chlorine containing monomer, which is not part of the present invention. It discloses that the protective film has a water vapor permeability at 60° C. and 95% relative humidity of less than 300 g/m2/day. Further, it fails to teach the water contact angle of the present invention.
The abstract of JP2007047776 describes a display panel that has a polarizing plate with a protective film. It discloses that the ratio of water-vapor permeability of protective film after and before maintaining the display device in a 95% relative humidity environment for 24 hours is 0.003-0.6. Again, it fails to teach the water contact angle of the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,736,287 describes an aqueous vinyl acrylic interpolymer emulsion and its use in latex paints. The latex paints described are said to provide a high degree of burnish resistance, scrub resistance, ease of stain removal, and low temperature coalescence. There is no mention of water vapor permeability or of a desired water contact angle.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,969,025 is directed to a water-based adhesive composition comprising a blend of adhesive polymers in an aqueous system, wherein the blend of adhesive polymers is: 20-60% by weight of an acrylic polymer having a polarity balance expressed as water absorption according to DIN 53495 of 3 to 20%; and 40-80% by weight of a compatible tackifying resin having a degree of hydrophobicity measured as the contact angle between a dried film of the resin and a drop of distilled water of not less than 60°, the percentages being based on the total of acrylic polymer plus tackifying resin expressed as dry solids. Thus, as noted above, the invention of the '025 patent requires a blend of an acrylic polymer and a tackifying resin, which the present invention does not have.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,114,045 is directed to the films obtained by applying and drying a latex based on special acrylic monomers. These coatings are both flexible and have low surface tack and surface tension. The low tack and hydrophobic nature are provided by the special acrylic monomers. While the coatings are hydrophobic, there is no mention of them being water permeable, and expectations are that they would have poor water permeability. The reference does not disclose the inclusion of a VeoVa monomer or similar monomer, which is included in the present invention.

Coatings for use in high humidity conditions


A mold assembly includes a first mold, a second mold, a first locking member, a second locking member and a pushing member. The first locking member is fixed in the first mold. The first locking member includes an engaging slot. The second locking member is pivotably mounted in the second mold. The second locking member includes an engaging portion. The engaging portion is engaged in the engaging slot to latch the first mold to the second mold, and the pushing member is adapted to push the second locking member to disengage the engaging portion from the engaging slot.

1. Technical Field
The disclosure generally relates to mold assemblies with latching devices.
2. Description of Related Art
A mold is a hollowed-out block that can be filled with a liquid such as plastic, glass, or metal. The liquid hardens or sets inside the mold, adopting the shape of the mold. A mold assembly usually includes a male mold and a female mold. When the mold assembly is not in use, the male mold and the female mold are usually placed apart. The male mold and the female mold may be exposed without protection and may be damaged. There is room for improvement within the art.

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


An actuator is driven by use of a power drive source, while drive output of the power drive source is switched among a plurality of different drive outputs. Values of a physical quantity regarding an operation state of the actuator and a physical quantity regarding energy consumption corresponding to the operation state are detected. One of the drive outputs is selected on the basis of the detected values and in accordance with a predetermined selection method, and the actuator is driven with the selected drive output.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a drive method for a production machine, such as an injection molding machine, which method is preferably used in the case where an actuator provided in the production machine is driven by means of a power drive source.
2. Description of the Related Art
A hydraulic drive apparatus for an injection molding machine disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 3455479 is an example of a conventional drive apparatus which drives a hydraulic actuator provided in an injection molding machine by means of a hydraulic drive source.
The hydraulic drive apparatus disclosed in the patent includes a fixed-displacement hydraulic pump, and a servomotor for driving the hydraulic pump, in which the discharge flow rate and discharge pressure of the hydraulic pump are controlled through control of the rotational speed of the servomotor. Further, a pilot port of a control valve connected to a hydraulic actuator of the molding machine main body is connected to a supply line for working fluid discharged from the hydraulic drive source, via a check valve for preventing reverse flow from the pilot port, and a changeover valve connected in series with the check valve.
Incidentally, the injection molding machine disclosed in the patent includes an injection apparatus and a mold clamping apparatus. In the mold clamping apparatus, a mold clamping cylinder (hydraulic actuator) is driven and controlled by means of the hydraulic drive apparatus so as to clamp a mold. Specifically, in a mold clamping step, high-speed mold closing is performed for a mold in an open state, and then low-speed mold closing is performed when the movable mold half of the mold (movable platen) reaches a low-speed position. Subsequently, high-pressure mold clamping is performed upon closure of the mold. In this case, the drive output for the high-speed mold closing can be set to a ratio (percent ratio) of the rated output (maximum output; 100%) of the hydraulic drive source (hydraulic pump). For example, in ordinary case, a percent ratio of about 90% is typically set. However, when a user wishes to decrease the mold closing speed further, the user can lower the drive output by setting a smaller percent ratio such as 80% or 70%.
However, even when the user lowers the drive output by setting a smaller percent ratio such as 80% or 70%, the actual mold closing speed (mold closing time) achieved by the driven mold clamping cylinder does not drop in proportion to the drive output of the hydraulic drive source, because of influence of, for example, conduit loss (thermal loss) produced within a hydraulic circuit extending from the hydraulic drive source to the mold clamping cylinder. Depending on the configuration and characteristics of the hydraulic circuit, in general, the drop ratio (change ratio) of the mold closing speed (mold closing time) is smaller than that of the drive output of the hydraulic drive source. In other words, even when the drive output of the hydraulic drive source is lowered to a large extent, the mold closing speed (mold closing time) does not drop as much.
FIG. 4 shows the results of an experiment in which in a mold clamping step, motor current I supplied to a servomotor for driving a hydraulic pump of a hydraulic drive source was actually measured with the progress of a molding cycle (molding process). In FIG. 4, Io represents motor current at the time when the drive output was set to 90% output, and Is represents motor current at the time when the drive output was set to 70% output. Further, To represents the mold closing time of a high-speed mold closing section when the drive output was 90% output, and Ts represents the mold closing time of the high-speed mold closing section when the drive output was 70% output. As is apparent from FIG. 4, when the drive output is lowered from 90% output to 70% output, although the motor current I drops greatly, the mold closing time T does not increase as much.
FIG. 5 shows the relation between the motor current I and the closing time T in a comparable manner. When the drive output is lowered from 90% output to 70% output, although the motor current I drops from 4.45 A to 2.65 A, the closing time T increases only slightly, from 0.16 sec to 0.18 sec. That is, although the drop ratio of the motor current I is about 40%, the increase ratio of the mold closing time is about 10%.
As described above, in the case of a hydraulic drive apparatus, in many cases, the actual value of a certain control parameter does not change in proportion to a value set for the control parameter, and may greatly change depending on the configuration and characteristics of the hydraulic circuit and other factors. In addition, a user cannot know this state as clear information. If a user can know the above-described state of high-speed mold closing from accurate information representing the state, the user can compare the state at the time of 90% output and the state at the time of 70% output. Through this comparison, the user may determine that the effect of reducing electricity consumption attained by 70% output outweighs the effect of shortening the closing time attained by 90% output, and accordingly select 70% output. This selection is desirable from the viewpoint of energy saving (the effect of reducing the emission of carbon dioxide). As described above, the conventional hydraulic drive apparatus has not been driven in a proper manner from the viewpoint of energy savings, and there has been room for further improvement.


A polymer-based reinforced rubber composition may be produced that comprises a) a plurality of polymer-based fibers, wherein at least some of the plurality of polymer-based fibers comprises at least one surface modification agent; and b) a rubber compound, wherein the rubber compound comprises a plurality of active rubber moieties, and wherein at least some of the plurality of active rubber moieties is adhesively interactive with the surface modification agent. Methods of producing a polymer-based reinforced rubber composition comprise: a) providing a plurality of polymer-based fibers; b) providing a rubber compound or composition, wherein the rubber compound or composition comprises a plurality of active rubber moieties; c) coupling a surface modification agent onto the surface of at least some of the plurality of polymer-based fibers; and d) adhesively interacting the surface modification agent with at least some of the plurality of active rubber moieties in an adhesive interaction in order to produce an interface. Furthermore, the surface modification agent and the plurality of active rubber moieties are chosen, such that the plurality of active rubber moieties is adhesively interactive with the surface modification agent under preparation conditions, such as vulcanization.

Tires generally comprise a composite of rubber compositions with fiber reinforcements. In some instances, the fiber reinforcements are based on synthetic polymers, such as polyester. Polyester fibers have been widely used as a reinforcing material for rubber in tires. However, achieving good adhesion of polyester tire cords to rubber compounds has always been a challenge, primarily due to the high molecular weight, high degree of crystallinity and highly drawn characteristics of the final polyester fibers which leave only few free hydroxyl and carboxyl groups on the surface of the fibers. With a limited number of functional groups remaining on the fiber surface, the reactivity of the polyester fiber surface towards adhesive agents is therefore, very limited.
In the tire industry, two conventional adhesive systems are widely used for achieving good bonding between tire cords and rubber compounds: 1) the Resorcinol-Formaldehyde-Latex (RFL) method wherein an adhesive is applied to the tire cord and 2) the Hexamethylenetetramine-Resorcinol (HR) method wherein an adhesion promotion system is incorporated into the rubber compound. For greater adhesion effectiveness, HR systems often contain hydrated silica and, in that case, they are referred to as HRH systems. Detailed discussions of the conventional RFL and HR methods that are being widely used in the industry can be found in several comprehensive reviews, including J. P. Noe et. al., Rubber and Plastic News, 14, May 1978; T. S. Solomon, Rubber Chemistry and Technology, vol. 58, 561 (1985); and R. Iyengar, Rubber World, November 1987, p. 24–29. Extensive literature has dealt with achieving the desired adhesion levels for polyester/rubber composites; however, most approaches are directed towards the modifications of the RFL dips and/or the HR rubber systems to improve adhesion. In order to understand how each of these adhesive methods works, it is important to understand the basic process of forming tires and tire fabric.
In conventional tire fabric processes, yarn is shipped to a conversion mill where it is subject to the following process: a) yarn is twisted into a greige cord (an unfinished cord), b) the greige cords are generally woven into a unidirectional fabric stabilized with fine denier "pick threads" in the weft direction, c) an aqueous dip (commonly known as a resorcinol-formaldehyde-latex (RFL) adhesive system) is applied to the greige cord, d) the dipped cord is dried, and e) the dried cord is subjected to high energy treating step, often requiring relatively high temperatures (350–480° F.) for relatively long residence times (30–120 sec). The resulting treated cord is then shipped to a tire plant where it is formed (generally calendered or passed between heated steel rolls) into a cord reinforced rubber sheet which is ultimately built into tires. These steps are generally performed at a conversion mill whose location is separate from either the yarn production or the tire production sites. These separate production locations are necessary because the treating units tend to be high-volume, multi-story units capable of making fabric over 50 inches wide.
Typical tire "fabric" has at least 20–30 cords per inch, which adds up to over 1000 cord ends that are simultaneously treated. In instances where single-end cords are required, 100–200 greige cords are generally placed in a creel, then the individual cord ends are fed directly into a treating unit, and finally the treated cords are wound onto individual spools. Compared to conventional fabric treating operations, these single-end treating operations are very inefficient and hence much more costly.
When using the RFL method to treat tire cords, the cords are coated with an aqueous solution consisting of a mixture of a resorcinol-formaldehyde resin and typically a latex of a styrene-butadiene-vinyl pyridine terpolymer. The coating process is typically followed by high temperature heat treatment for drying and crosslinking the resin to form a strong network, which is necessary to achieve optimum adhesion to rubber. Due to the low polarity of the polyester fiber surface as discussed above, numerous modifications of the RFL method have been successfully developed and widely used in the industry to achieve good adhesion between polyester fibers and rubber compounds. These include: (1) applying an adhesive activated spin finish or overfinish onto the polyester fiber surface during the fiber spinning process prior to RFL treatment; (2) utilizing a two-step coating process where the greige cords are pre-coated with for example, a blocked isocyanate/polyepoxide mixture prior to the RFL coating; or (3) using a one-step coating process where the RFL coating is further activated with other adhesive systems. Typical adhesion active finishes are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,348,517; 4,462,855; 4,557,967; and 5,547,755.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,075,415 describes an adhesive composition that strongly bonds polyester fibers to rubbers with reduced adhesive deterioration at elevated temperatures. The one-step dip consists of adding a co-condensation resin derived from m-cresol, m-aminophenol and formaldehyde to the standard RFL mixture. U.S. Pat. No. 5,922,797 describes an RFL adhesive system where the adhesion was improved further through the incorporation of a fourth monomer in the latex polymer. More specifically, the adhesion of the epoxy surface activated polyester fibers to rubber was improved with an RFL coating containing a latex polymer derived from styrene, butadiene, vinyl pyridine and vinyl aldehyde monomer. U.S. Pat. No. 6,444,322 describes an adhesive composition for a textile-reinforced rubber product where the polyester or polyamide reinforcing fibers were pre-coated with a mixture of amine functional silanes and organosilanes with unsaturation capable of reacting with the rubber, followed by a standard RFL treatment.
With respect to the RFL method, it can be seen in the above-discussed literature, that the most common solutions for improving polyester tire cords to rubber adhesion involved combinations of the following systems: (a) surface treatment of polyester fibers with epoxy based finishes, (b) pre-coating the fiber with a blocked isocyanate/epoxy resin mixture prior to RFL treatment, and (c) mixing resorcinol-formaldehyde-latex coatings with other adhesion promoters. Most of these processes are followed by high energy treatments which are required to dry the latex dip, to pre-react the dried latex components and crosslink the RFL adhesive coating. Thus, both long time (>30 sec) and high temperature are usually needed.
The second method for achieving adhesion between tire cords and rubber is the HR method and, particularly the improved HRH version. As mentioned earlier, the term "HRH" refers to the three adhesive components that are typically compounded into the rubber: 1) hexamethylenetetramine or hexamethoxymethylmelamine (commonly referred to as formaldehyde or methylene donor), 2) resorcinol (or any other phenolic derivatives, commonly referred to as formaldehyde or methylene acceptor) and 3) hydrated silica. This method has potential as a direct bonding or dry rubber method. In this case, the tire cords are embedded directly into the rubber. The crosslinked resin resulting from the reaction between the methylene donor and methylene acceptor is formed in-situ during the rubber vulcanization process. The RFL coating step can be totally omitted. This method was originally developed for metal wires since these cannot be pretreated with an RFL system. The method was later successfully adapted to work with polyamide fibers due to its inherent high degree of polarity. This method has not yielded good adhesion to polyester cords.
HR modified stocks have been used to improve adhesion to polyester treated cords. U.S. Pat. No. 3,638,703 describes the use of different acids to complex with hexamethylenetetramine in the HR modified rubber system to prevent the strength loss via degradation of polyester fiber during rubber curing which is due to ammonia generated from the decomposition of hexamethylenetetramine. This reference mentions the use of greige PET fabric in rubber and the improvement in bonding PET to rubber when HR is present in the rubber. However, it does not (a) mention the importance of the activation of the PET or (b) provide any information regarding the ability to achieve the adhesion level necessary for use in tires. Instead it merely says that adhesion may be improved by using conventional cord adhesives. U.S. Pat. No. 3,738,948 teaches the use of metal soaps such as calcium stearate in HRH modified rubber stocks to prevent the degradation of polyester cords and consequently preserving fiber to rubber adhesion. U.S. Pat. No. 3,778,406 teaches a process of premixing finely divided silica with resorcinol as a method for improving adhesion of conventional polyester fiber to HRH modified rubbers. Incorporation of lead oxide was also found to improve adhesion further. It should be noted from this reference that the modified HRH rubber works well, provides good adhesion with greige Nylon fibers, but not with greige ("non-impregnated") polyester fibers. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,656,687 and 5,684,082 disclosed improved adhesion of polyamide, polyester and metal tire cords by incorporating in addition to methylene donor, methylene acceptor and silica, a maleated styrene-butylene-styrene triblock polymer. JP 06294072 (1994) describes a rubber reinforcing fiber material where the surface of the fiber is treated with a reactive blocked isocyanate-based polyurethane which can deblock at rubber cure temperature to generate isocyanate groups which can subsequently react with the adhesive components in the HRH modified rubber. However, the use of blocked isocyanate is not safe and not environmentally desirable. British Patent 1263915 describes a rubber cement compound for use in the production of reinforced rubber articles such as V-belts. The adhesion pretreated polyester yarn (DIOLEN™ 164S) was coated with a rubber cement prepared by mixing neoprene, fillers, oil, curing agents, resorcinol supported on silica and hexamethylenetetramine in toluene solution followed by drying.
In most instances, conventional processes that involve HR modified rubber compositions have problems with the generation of fumes associated with the use of pure resorcinol. The use of pure resorcinol also results in hydroscopicity. There have been many attempts to modify resorcinol to reduce this fuming and hydroscopicity. U.S. Pat. No. 4,889,891 discloses that resorcinolic resins derived from reactions of resorcinol with mono or polyunsaturated hydrocarbon compounds such as piperylene, dipentene, dicyclopentadiene or divinylbenzene can reduce fuming associated with pure resorcinol and improve rubber adhesion. U.S. Pat. No. 4,892,908 described benzoylresorcinol as an alternative replacement for resorcinol. U.S. Pat. No. 5,049,641 replaced resorcinol with styrene modified resorcinol-formaldehyde resin. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,936,056 and 5,945,500 replaced resorcinol with resorcinolic or phenolic resins modified with epoxy resin, styrene or aromatic phenolic compounds. U.S. Pat. No. 5,206,289 taught a novel rubber stock composition modified with polyhydric phenoxy resin with improved cured rubber tensile strength at break. In most of these patents however, there was no mention of the type of fiber used and little to no adhesion data was reported in the examples.
Several patents that dealt with the problems inherent to the use of pure resorcinol also disclosed certain adhesive improvements in the materials. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,030,692 taught improving adhesion and mechanical properties of copper wire with resorcinolic novolac resins modified with cashew nut liquid or allyl and alkyl phenol. U.S. Pat. No. 5,021,522 disclosed the use of phenolic novolac resin modified with styrenic compounds to reduce fuming and hydroscopicity associated with pure resorcinol and to improve adhesion of copper wire. U.S. Pat. No. 5,244,725 disclosed the incorporation of hydroxyalkyl aryl ethers of di- and polyhydric phenols into HR modified rubber to improve adhesion of copper wire. U.S. Pat. No. 4,605,696 taught the use of phenolic esters such as resorcinol benzoate, resorcinol rosinate as a replacement for resorcinol in the HR rubber formulations to enhance adhesion of textile fibers or wire cords to rubber. U.S. Pat. No. 5,049,618 taught vulcanizable rubber compositions containing hydroxyl-aryl substituted monomaleimide as an alternative to resorcinol to increase adhesion of nylon and improve tear resistance of the resulting cured rubber stock. Although adhesion data was reported in these patents, the data dealt primarily with nylon cords and copper wires.
In a continuing effort to improve adhesion properties in rubber compositions for the tire industry, several patents describe using self-crosslinkable additives and other additives in the place of resorcinol. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,298,539 disclosed rubber compositions with improved tire cord adhesion using new self-crosslinkable additives. The additives include derivatives of melamine, aceto guanamine, benzoguanamine substituted with vinyl terminated radicals. U.S. Pat. No. 5,891,938 described the use of self-condensing high imino alkylated triazine resins for improved tire cord adhesion and reinforcement without the need for resorcinol or methylene acceptor. Only rheological cured properties of modified rubber stocks were provided.
With respect to the HR method, prior developments were focused on the combination of both the methylene donor and methylene acceptor in the rubber stock. One of the disadvantages of having both the methylene donor and methylene acceptor in the rubber is that they form a highly crosslinked resin during rubber curing, which increases the hardness of the final cured rubber and consequently leading to poor dynamic adhesion and fatigue resistance of the final reinforced rubber components.
Therefore, there is still a need in the tire manufacturing industry for a composition that has good dynamic adhesion, while ensuring that the final cured rubber composition is pliable and has good fatigue resistance. It is also important to ensure that the process, intermediate and final compositions are environmentally friendlier and safer than previously developed compositions and processes. Furthermore, there is still a need to provide methods for achieving improved adhesion between polyester cords and rubber over conventional methods previously mentioned and that can a) eliminate the use of an RFL coating, b) avoid the high temperature heat treatment required to cure the RFL adhesive resin prior to rubber curing, and/or c) reduce the hardness problem associated with the crosslinking of the bonding agents present in the HRH modified rubber stock.

Tire fabric compositions and methods of production thereof


Kinematic quantification of gait asymmetry is achieved by plotting the values of the angles of corresponding joints and then comparing the resulting figure to the figure that would have been produced based on a perfectly symmetrical gait. The comparison is based on geometric characteristics that are calculated based on the figures.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to analyzing gait symmetry, and more specifically, to quantifying gait asymmetry to determine deviation of actual gait from perfectly symmetrical gait.
2. Background Art
Gait asymmetry generally refers to the extent to which the two sides of the body behave differently during a walk cycle. Symmetry is considered to be an important indicator of healthy gait, and it is one of the first casualties of a gait pathology. Gait symmetry can be compromised due to various factors such as limb asymmetry, injury, use of prosthesis, stroke, cerebral palsy, and other mobility-affecting diseases.
Symmetry can be measured through virtually any measurable or computable gait variable. The value of the gait variable is measured or computed for one side of the body and then for the other side of the body, for a corresponding feature. One may use kinematic variables such as step period and step length or individual joint positions or velocities at specific gait events. Comparison between left and right foot trajectories is also a kinematic approach. Kinetic variables, on the other hand, involve acceleration, force, moment, energy, and power. Analyzing entire trajectories or specific discrete values of joint moment and segment power fall under this category. Symmetry can also be studied by comparing the ground reaction force profiles under the individual feet.
Among the existing gait symmetry quantifiers, algebraic indices and statistical parameters represent two major classes. Algebraic indices include the so-called symmetry index and the ratio index, both comparing bilateral variables such as step period or step length. Notwithstanding their successful use in some cases, both of the algebraic quantifiers suffer from major limitations. For example, since the indices report differences against their average values, if a large asymmetry is present, the average value does not correctly reflect the performance of either limb. Also, parameters that have large values but relatively small inter-limb differences will tend to lower the index and reflect symmetry. Additionally, these parameters depend on discrete variables and are thus unable to reflect the asymmetry as it evolves over a complete gait cycle.
Statistical techniques, such as paired t-tests and principal component analysis, and parameters, such as correlation coefficients, coefficients of variation, and variance ratios, have also been used to measure gait asymmetry. While the statistical parameters do not suffer from the limitations of the algebraic indices, their computation is more involved and their interpretation perhaps less transparent.
Despite the broad agreement in the fundamentals of what constitutes symmetry, there is yet to emerge a consensual objective measure of gait symmetry among the researchers. For a comprehensive review of the background and state of the art of gait symmetry research, see Symmetry and Limb Dominance in Able-Bodied Gait: A Review, H. Sadeghi, P. Allard, F. Prince, H. Labelle, Gait & Posture 12:34-45 (2000).
What is needed is a method to quantify gait asymmetry that overcomes the limitations of algebraic indices while also being less computationally involved and easier to interpret than statistical techniques and parameters.

Kinematic quantification of gait asymmetry based on bilateral cyclograms


An apparatus, system and method for reducing gas to liquid ratios in submersible pump applications are described. A method for reducing a gas to liquid ratio (GLR) in a pumped fluid includes pumping a gas laden fluid to a surface of a subsurface formation using a downhole electric submersible pump (ESP) assembly including an ESP pump and an ESP motor, monitoring one of a load of the ESP motor, intake pressure of the ESP pump, temperature of the gas laden fluid, or a combination thereof to obtain ESP assembly condition data, determining whether a GLR of the gas laden fluid exceeds a predetermined allowable maximum based on the ESP assembly condition data, injecting liquid from an external source into the gas laden fluid, and varying a rate that the external liquid is injected based on the GLR so determined.

1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the invention described herein pertain to the field of submersible pump assemblies. More particularly, but not by way of limitation, one or more embodiments of the invention enable an apparatus, system and method for reducing gas to liquid ratios in submersible pump applications.
2. Description of the Related Art
Submersible pump assemblies are typically used to artificially lift fluid to the surface in deep wells such as oil, water or gas wells. A typical electric submersible pump (ESP) assembly is located deep in the ground and, from upstream to downstream, consists of downhole sensors, an electrical motor, seal section, pump intake and pump. The motor, seal, intake and pump are all connected together with shafts that run through the center of the ESP assembly components. The electrical motor supplies torque to the shafts, which provides power to the pump. Production tubing connects the pump to piping or storage tanks at the surface of the well.
Centrifugal pumps are often used in ESP applications for lifting well fluid to the surface. Centrifugal pumps impart energy to a fluid by accelerating the fluid through a rotating impeller paired with a stationary diffuser. The rotation confers angular momentum to the fluid passing through the pump. The angular momentum converts kinetic energy into pressure, thereby raising the pressure on the fluid and lifting it to the surface. Multiple stages of impeller and diffuser pairs may be used to further increase the pressure.
Conventional centrifugal pumps are designed to handle fluid consisting mainly of liquids. However, well fluid often contains gas in addition to liquid, and currently available submersible pump systems are not appropriate for pumping fluid with a high gas to liquid ratio. When pumping gas laden fluid, the gas may separate from the other fluid due to the pressure differential created when the pump is in operation. If there is a sufficiently high gas to liquid ratio (GLR), typically around 10% to 15% gas volume fraction, the pump may experience a decrease in efficiency and decrease in capacity or head (slipping). If gas continues to accumulate on the suction side of the pump impeller, the gas may entirely block the passage of other fluid through the impeller. When this occurs the pump is said to be "gas locked" since proper operation of the pump is impeded by the accumulation of gas. As a result, careful attention to gas management in submersible pump assemblies is needed in order to improve the production of gas laden fluid from subsurface formations.
Currently, attempts are sometimes made to remove gas from produced fluid prior to the fluid's entry into the pump intake. For example, gas separators are sometimes implemented as an additional pump assembly component for this purpose. However it is often infeasible, costly or too time consuming to ascertain the correct type of pump and separator combination which might be effective for a particular well, and even if the correct arrangement is ascertained, the separator may not remove enough gas to prevent a loss in efficiency and/or prevent gas locking. Alternatively, perforations in the well casing are sometimes placed above the pump intake and implemented with a shroud. The shroud forces well fluid deeper into the well before entering the pump intake, a portion of the gas breaking out of the fluid in the process. A drawback to the use of a shroud is that conventional shrouds are prone to leaks. If well fluid were to leak directly into the pump, the fluid entering the well casing above the pump intake would bypass the motor, which would be at risk of overheating or failure due to the lack of cool, fresh flowing fluid passing-by during operation.
The motor of an ESP assembly is conventionally operated using a variable speed drive (VSD), which is controlled by a well operator with a VSD controller user interface located at the surface of the well. Typically, if the GLR becomes too high, this may be detected by the VSD controller since the load on the motor becomes lighter, the motor does not pull as much amperage and the temperature of the motor increases. In response, the pump operator would typically modify the speed of the pump's motor or hold more back pressure on the tubing in an attempt to prevent slipping or gas locking. However, this approach only meets with somewhat limited success, as the high gas to liquid ratio remains in the produced fluid.
Thus, conventional ESP assemblies are not well suited for pumping fluid with a high gas to liquid ratio. Therefore, there is a need for an apparatus, systems and method for reducing gas to liquid ratios in submersible pump applications.

Apparatus, system and method for reducing gas to liquid ratios in submersible pump applications


A circuit and technique for adjusting and accurately controlling clock duty cycles in integrated circuit devices in which only N-channel current regulating transistors are used in the voltage-controlled inverters and both the rising and falling edges can be adjusted by cascading two such inverters. The potential for cascading of these inverters allows for additional accuracy to be achieved.

The present invention relates, in general, to the field of integrated circuit devices. More particularly, the present invention relates to a circuit and technique for adjusting and accurately controlling clock duty cycles in integrated circuit devices such as, for example, double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memories (DDR SDRAMs).
It has become increasingly important in digital circuits that an accurate 50% duty cycle clock be generated since actions are taken on both the rising and falling edges of the clock. The use of a dual slope integrator scheme to indicate when a signal has a 50% duty cycle is known in the art. This scheme utilizes two current sources of equal magnitude, one to charge an integrating capacitor when the signal is "high" and the other to discharge the capacitor when the signal is "low". When the signal has a 50% duty cycle, there will be no net charge transferred to the capacitor during a clock cycle and the voltage on the capacitor will stabilize.
When the signal has a duty cycle greater than 50%, the voltage on the capacitor will increase. When the duty cycle is less than 50%, the voltage on the capacitor will decrease. The voltage on the capacitor can, in turn, be used to control the duty cycle; i.e., a "control voltage" is generated. In some cases, two control voltages have been generated, one utilizing the clock and one using the complement of the clock. In this case, the two control voltages move in opposite directions as the duty cycle diverges from 50%.
A number of different techniques have been proposed for using the above described control voltage to adjust the duty cycle. It is also known that using the same technique with current sources that are not equal can be used to generate signals with precise duty cycles other than 50%. Examples of the above listed techniques are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,015,739; 6,781,419 and 6, 975, 100.
The duty cycle deviation is the result of the rising and falling edges of a 50% duty cycle input signal propagating at different rates through the circuitry intervening between the input and a point at which the propagated signal is used. A common approach used for adjusting the duty cycle is to add voltage-controlled duty cycle adjusting circuitry to the intervening path. The added duty cycle adjusting circuitry in this approach uses the control voltage(s) to cause the rising and falling edge propagation delays to differ in opposite directions to those of the circuitry between the input and the added duty cycle adjusting circuitry. Thus, the duty cycle is adjusted toward the desired value.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,781,419 in particular, a voltage-controlled inverter is used to adjust the output slew rates of the rising and falling edges in opposite directions thus adjusting the duty cycle. A voltage-controlled current regulating P-channel transistor is used to control the inverter output rising edge slew rate. An N-channel voltage-controlled regulating transistor is used to control the inverter output falling edge slew rate. The control voltages used to control the P-channel and N-channel transistors are derived from the voltage generated by a dual slope integrator as described above rather than using this voltage directly.
The use of both P-channel and N-channel current regulation transistors in voltage-controlled inverters presents a problem in that both transistors require low threshold voltages if a dual slope integrator is to be used directly as the control voltage. Further, the control voltage generated using a dual slope integrator is conventionally not used directly. Rather, control voltages are derived from this voltage thus necessitating additional circuit complexity.

Circuit and technique for adjusting and accurately controlling clock duty cycles in integrated circuit devices


A scanning electron microscope, by which an image of unevennesses on the surface of a sample may be obtained in a high-resolution manner and a high contrast one, is provided according to the present invention. A sample image is obtained by use of the scanning electron microscope with a configuration in which a positive voltage is applied in order to accelerate a primary electron beam, and an electric field shielding plate, a magnetic field shielding plate, or an electromagnetic field shielding plate is arranged on the upper side of an object lens.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electron microscope apparatus which is preferably used for detecting a defect in a wafer, and, more particularly, to a scanning electron microscope for image picking-up of unevennesses on the surface of a sample.
2. Description of the Related Art
During processes for manufacturing a semiconductor device, there is executed in-line wafer inspection by which a defect in a wafer is inspected. The defect in the wafer is detected, and a reason for generation of the defect is located by analysis to realize yield improvement and stable operation of production lines.
Conventionally, an optical apparatus for inspecting a defect had been used for inspecting a defect in a wafer, but, recently, there has been used an apparatus for inspecting a defect by use of a scanning electron microscope. The scanning electron microscope may obtain an image of fine unevennesses on the surface of a sample.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-110351, and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-83563 have disclosed a method in which an image of unevennesses on the surface of a sample is obtained by use of a scanning electron microscope.
Recently, a finer production process for manufacturing a semiconductor has also caused a finer defect size. Accordingly, it is required to obtain an image of unevennesses for an image of the surface of a sample in a high-resolution manner and a high contrast one.

Scanning electron microscope and apparatus for detecting defect


At the time of a fan failure of a plurality of fans for cooling redundant controllers, data loss can be avoided even if a power source of each controller is controlled.

There is a type of storage system that is equipped with a plurality of controllers for controlling data input to and/or output from a plurality of storage units. This type of storage system sometimes uses a plurality of fans to cool each controller.
If a redundant configuration using a plurality of fans to cool each controller is employed, even if a failure of one fan occurs, other fans can cool each controller. However, if all the fans or fans, the number of which is equal to or more than a threshold, fail to operate, a failure of each controller itself might be caused by heat generation. Therefore, if all the fans or fans, the number of which is equal to or more than a threshold, fail to operate, a configuration in which the power source of each controller is set to a standby state is employed.
If the power source of each controller is set to the standby state, heat generation of each controller can be reduced by, for example, making a high-heat-generating device(s) from among a plurality of devices constituting each controller enter a reset state or stopping power supply to the high-heat-generating device(s).
It should be noted that in a case of a fan failure, a device for stopping peripheral equipment which may be affected by the fan failure is suggested (see Patent Literature 1).

Abstract: A storage system includes: a first controller for controlling a first power source; a plurality of first fans for cooling the first controller; a second controller for controlling a second power source; a plurality of second fans for cooling the second controller; and a storage device including a plurality of storage units; wherein if a fan failure of the first fans occurs, the first controller controls the first power source in a standby state on condition that the second controller is in a normal state; and if the second power source is in the standby state, the first controller executes destaging processing and then controls the first power source in the standby state.


Cooling lubricant (concentrate or solution) comprising a cooling lubricant base based on mineral and/or synthetic oil and preservative comprising (a) one or more 1- or 2-(C3 to C24 alkyl) glyceryl ethers.

The present invention relates to a preservative for cooling lubricants.
Presently in the market there is an intensive search for new possibilities of preserving cooling lubricants without formaldehyde. Formaldehyde-free formations have been preserved to date by the use of boric acid (up to 12% by weight), in combination where appropriate with a fungicide. This alternative, however, will be lost in future owing to the classification of boric acid (above a level of 5% by weight) as a category 2 reproductive toxin. At present there are few alternatives to boric acid on the market (e.g. phenoxyethanol, phenoxy-propanols, lactic acid derivatives), but these lag far behind the conventional formaldehyde depot substances in their activity. Consequently there is a need for effective formaldehyde-free and boric-acid-free preservatives for cooling lubricants.
Moreover, the use of known biocides may lead to skin allergies or sensitization on contact with human skin. Biocides having a strongly electrophilic nature (e.g. isothiazolones, organohalogen compounds) in particular, as preservatives or disinfectants, feature prominently in the public debate, and their use is regulated restrictively by the legislator.
DE-C-42 40 674 discloses a deodorizing action of glyceryl monoalkyl ethers of the formula R—O—CH2—CHOH—CH2OH. Further described is a combination of 0.15% by weight phenoxyethanol with 0.135% by weight 1-(2-ethylhexyl) glyceryl ether (Sensiva SC 50), which additionally contains 40% by weight ethanol and 0.015% by weight dibromodicyanobutane.
DE-A-40 26 756 relates to preservatives comprising as synergistic additive substances a mixture of (a) an organic acid, (b) a monophenyl glycol ether and (c) a guanidine derivative. Examples 13 and 14 are concentrates containing more than 60% by weight phenoxyethanol and 15 or 10% by weight, respectively, glyceryl monoalkyl ether. The preservatives of DE-40 26 756 are effective against a variety of bacteria and yeasts.
DE-C-41 40 473 discloses compositions which can be used as skin antiseptics and hand disinfectants and comprise a combination of an aliphatic C1 to C6 alkyl alcohol component and at least one glyceryl monoalkyl ether in aqueous solution. A preferred glyceryl ether is 1-(2-ethylhexyl) glyceryl ether.
DE-A-41 24 664 describes antimicrobial mixtures comprising a synergistic combination of aryl-substituted alkanol with diol. Exemplary diols are glyceryl monoalkyl ethers.
DE-A-100 25 124 discloses preparations which include a combination of glyceryl monoalkyl ether with aryl-substituted alcohol. One preferred aryl compound is phenoxyethanol.
The known applications of glyceryl monoalkyl ethers relate in particular to preparations which are applied to human skin and which therefore must be given a particularly mild formulation. In the case of preservatives for cooling lubricants, in contrast, it is important that the antimicrobial activity is particularly pronounced and that the preservative possesses corrosion control, surface protection and material protection properties and is also stable to oxidation and hydrolysis, stable in colour, and compatible with further ingredients of cooling lubricants. In addition, preservatives for cooling lubricants must be affective against particular microbes, e.g. the yeast Rhodotorula mucilaginosa and the mould fungus Fusarium oxysporum. Moreover, the preservatives for cooling lubricants must be reliably effective over a long period of time, even at elevated temperatures. The requirements asked of a preservative for cooling lubricants, therefore, go a considerable way beyond the requirements normally imposed on a preservative for dermatological preparations.

Glyceryl ethers as preservatives for cooling lubricants


The invention relates to a handheld device (1) for determining the location of a physical object (21) stored in a storage container (31). A reader system reads on the storage container (31) a visual code (31.1) which comprises a unique container identifier (31.2). A data entry system is configured to store object data (21.2) identifying the physical object (21) in a data store (1.4) linked to the container identifier (31.2). The data entry system is further configured to capture query data which defines the physical object (21). A query module is configured to determine the container identifier (31.2) by comparing the query data to the object data (21.2) in the data store (1.4), and to indicate the location of the physical object (21) by showing on a display the container identifier (31.2) of the storage container (31) containing the physical object (21).

In households as well as in small and large enterprises, physical objects, for example clothes, household articles, articles for the kitchen, etc., which are currently not needed are stored in storage containers. The storage containers are then further stored in an attic, a cellar or any other storage room. When a user needs a certain physical object, for example a certain pan which is only used rarely for some specific recipe, the user accesses and browses through the storage containers, hopefully finding the desired is physical object in a reasonable time.
For identifying the contents of a container, FR 2717593 discloses a label which is composed of a memory and a transceiver and includes a visual graphic in clear or coded form.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,312,011 discloses a stackable container system with a plurality of individual containers. The containers comprise at least a part formed of transparent material for the visual inspection of the contents. The containers may be individually color coded for easier identification.
JP 2007246125 discloses a container with a two-dimensional code. A QR (Quick Response) code is printed on the front face of the container. The QR code is reversed and covered, such that the QR code is unreadable when the container contains the content article, and becomes readable when the container is empty. Information unnecessary for a purchaser such as container recovery information is kept unnoticeable before the purchase of the container.

Handheld device and method for determining the location of physical objects stored in storage containers


A team roping dummy that encourages more correct roping. The dummy head can be rotated to different angles to match that of a typical running steer. A blocker post extends vertically out of the neck, which makes the roper deliver the loop at the proper plane. The blocker post further causes the roper to rope the horns in the center of the loop versus roping with the front or back edge of loop. The back legs extend at proper angle of heel loop swing, causing the roper to match the angle of the loop during its swing to the angle of the legs and provides a visual line to match the plane of the loop.

Field of the Invention
Applicants' invention relates to a device for practicing and learning proper roping techniques for team and steer roping, and methods for using same. More particularly, it relates to a roping dummy.
Background Information
Roping cattle from horseback is a historical process that many recognize. Branding and doctoring the cattle necessitated that cowboys capture the animals, and early ranches where this process completed without the benefit or aid or pens and specialized shoots necessitated a very specific skill of the cowboys, as well as necessitating specialized equipment. Part of this specialized equipment included development of the western saddle. These skills and equipment in practice in many places yet today.
Many people are also familiar with the transition that was made of the various roping styles to rodeo events. One of the roping styles that found its way to the rodeo arena, and continues to grow in popularity, is the sport of team roping. Team roping, as its name implies, is an event that is completed by two ropers. The first roper, called the header, ropes the animals first and either ropes the animal around the neck or, more preferably, around the horns. The second roper, called the healer, waits for the header to slow the animal and turn the animal at an approximate 90-degree angle before roping the animal's hind legs.
In a typical rodeo run, the steer is placed in a starting gate called a shoot. Behind the shoot is a three-sided area called the box in which the header and healer start on their horses. Traditionally, the header and healer were in a double-box to the rear and on the right side of the steer. However, in the last few decades, it has become most common that the header starts in a "box" to the rear and on the left side of the steer, while the healer starts in a "box" to the rear and on the right side of the steer. The header calls for the steer to be released by nodding his head or otherwise indicating his readiness. The steer is given a designated head start, called a score, and the ropers (or at least the header) are required to wait in the box until the steer reaches a certain point, at which time they can leave the box in pursuit of the steer.
Once the ropers leave the box, their horses chase the steer an attempt to close the distance between the animals. As the header gets closer to the steer, he generally attempts to arrive to the rear of the animal close enough to rope it and slightly to its left. Meanwhile, the healer rates his horse back and to the right of the steer such that he is ready to close the gap after the header ropes, but also he can attempt to help keep the steer from ducking to the right.
Once the roper has gotten close enough to the steer to rope, he ropes the steer around the horns or neck and pulls his slack to tighten the loop around the steer's horns. He then takes a couple of wraps around his saddle horn with the free end of the rope (the "daily") so that the steer is effectively attached by the rope to the saddle of the horse and rider. The header then signals his horse to slow which also slows the steer slightly. Then he turns his head horse off to the left at approximately a 90-degree angle such that the steer is then pulled to the left as well. Once the steer changes directions, the healer is then allowed to take his throw at the heels of the steer. He attempts to rope both hind feet, although roping one hind foot is a legal catch as well, albeit one with a penalty. Once the healer ropes the hind feet, he dallies his rope as well and stops his horse. The header continues until he takes the slack out of his rope, then turns his horse to face the steer, leaving the steer immobilized between the two horses.
As with most sports and activities, means for practicing the craft are often used. For team or steer roping, a common practice apparatus is a mechanical or modeled steer (referred to commonly as a "dummy"). The dummy is used to learn and practice roping techniques.


A continuous antenna array includes a plurality of antenna elements whose opposing electrodes create an electric field that excites polarization currents in an enclosed dielectric. Each of the antenna elements comprises one or more stripline feeds configured to provide a flat form factor and apply a signal with controlled phase differences between the plurality of antenna elements.

Phased arrays are commonly used in commercial and defense applications. For example, in defense applications that require mobility, phased arrays exhibit fragility based on their makeup from dipole antennas. These dipole antennas require a fixed wavelength-related spacing and a support structure with lots of void to minimize materials interfering with radiation.
Recent publications indicate a need for antennas that are more rugged, surface mountable, broadband and have large redundancy. While traditional phased arrays provide only marginal support to address these needs, an alternative to phased arrays may be more beneficial.