A method and system for relief of heat exhaustion symptoms through evaporative and conductive cooling is provided, and, more particularly, involves a rapidly deployable mobile fogging system suitably designed for relief of heat exhaustion symptoms, including a mobile platform for transporting the rapidly deployable mobile fogging system to locations where relief of heat exhaustion symptoms is needed, one or more fogging nozzles disposed on the mobile platform and oriented for dispensing a cooling pocket area of fog adjacent to the mobile platform, a coolant delivery system fluidly connected to the one or more fogging nozzles, and one or more controls for regulating the dispensing of the cooling pocket area of fog. In one embodiment, the rapidly deployable mobile fogging system comprises an emergency response vehicle. In one embodiment, the emergency response vehicle comprises a fire truck.

The present invention relates to the field of evaporative and conductive cooling for relief of heat exhaustion symptoms in humans. More particularly, the invention relates to self-contained rapidly deployable fogging and micro-misting systems and methods for dispensing a cooling pocket area of fog from a mobile vehicle, thereby promoting evaporative and conductive cooling for the relief of heat exhaustion symptoms.
Heat illness, or heat exhaustion, is a common problem affecting firefighters, road and building contruction workers, and other personnel in situations demanding physical exertion, the use of protective garments, or work in harsh environments. In these and other situations, body heat, or metabolic heat, combines with radiant heat from the environment to elevate the person's body temperature. The body also gains heat by convection when the ambient air temperature rises above normal body temperature (98.6 degrees F.). The body attempts to control its temperature by raising and lowering the heart rate (raising and lowering blood pressure), sending blood to the surface of the skin, and through perspiration. As the perspiration evaporates, heat is drawn from the body. However, in situations where protective garments such as firefighting suits or protective jackets, boots, gloves, and so on are needed, the body's natural evaporative cooling process becomes overburdened.
Studies conducted on firefighters have shown that fire suppression activities produce over 400 kilocalories of heat per hour and that another 180 kilocalories of per hour can be attributed to radiant heat (heat from the fire). Evaporation of over one quart of perspiration is needed to remove 580 kilocalories of heat. Therefore, a firefighter needs to evaporate over one quart of perspiration during each hour of work in order to maintain a safe body temperature.
Heat illness occurs as the body loses its ability to regulate temperature and affects not only the person's welfare but also cognitive abilities. Notwithstanding the increased potential for dangerous accidents due to heat illness symptoms, left untreated, heat illness can rapidly lead to progressively worse conditions or even death.
Heat illness generally has three stages: heat stress, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke. These stages are often difficult to distinguish, therefore experts recommend treating for the worst case when there is any doubt. Symptoms of heat stress include cool or moist skin, weakness, dizziness, and nausea. Treatment for heat stress includes moving the victim to an area of shade, loosening the victim's clothing, and giving the victim water. The symptoms of heat exhaustion include a weak pulse (low blood pressure), shallow breathing (breathing rate increasing), clammy skin (perspiring), a pale face, a loss of appetite, and possible confusion and irritability. And treatment for heat exhaustion includes all the steps for heat stress plus sponging the victim with water, fanning to increase evaporation, and seeking medical attention. Finally, the symptoms of heat stroke include a rapid pulse, hot or dry skin (no perspiration), a high body temperature (over 105 degrees F.), mental confusion, and a loss of consciousness. The treatment for heat stroke includes all the steps for heat exhaustion plus immediately cooling the victim's body before evacuation to a hospital.
Close attention must be given to the symptoms of heat illness so that the appropriate treatment is given in time to avoid progressively more serious conditions. In many situations, particularly those involving firefighting, road construction, manual labor in warm weather, or simply where there are no ready-made or available sources of shade or cooling, the steps that can be taken to respond to symptoms of heat illness are limited. When there is no area of shade, for example, other means to provide cooling, such as evaporative cooling, are needed.
Prior inventions involving evaporative cooling have not satisfactorily addressed the particular needs for a self-contained, rapidly deployable, mobile evaporative cooling device suitable for firefighting, commercial, or other types of vehicles and suitably designed for relief of heat illness or heat exhaustion symptoms.
One prior invention consists of a portable misting fan. The device consists of a water storage container, a fan, and a mist nozzle. Water stored in the container is dispensed from mist nozzle directly into the fan's airflow stream. This helps atomize the mist into smaller droplets and projects the mist outward covering more area. The system must have a portable electrical means, such as a DC battery pack or electrical AC power source, which requires power cords and, thus, setup time. This design does not lend itself well for fixed mobile application because of the fan and other hardware related to such device and the required time for setting up the system.
Another practice consists of using mist fans or pressure misting systems for outdoor sports (football, soccer, golf, tennis, etc.), sunbathers, lounge areas, over vending machines, and mounting under tents. These water misting apparatuses include several spray nozzles that can be attached to a fixed surface individually or in series. Similar applications may be used at amusement parks to cool people while they are waiting in long lines. This type of technology has been designed for these limited applications (such as outdoor sports) and are not suitably designed for the rapid deployment and mobile heat illness or heat exhaustion recovery applications discussed herein. All of these misting systems require substantial setup or assembly before use.
Other misting systems consist of components such as a water tank, a water pump, and spray nozzle and are available for applications such as golf carts, boats, and baby carriage canopies. These systems are unsatisfactory for mobile heat illness recovery applications because of the low performance components selected, low effective volume or area of mist delivered, the unpleasantly or unsatisfactorily large particle size of the mist dispensed, and assembly or set up required with such systems.


A novel group of radiolabelled diamines are provided, effective for pancreatic imaging and represented by the formula ##STR1## wherein n is 1 to 10; R.sub.1 and R.sub.2 are the same or different and are hydrogen, hydroxyl or lower alkyl having 1 to 6 carbon atoms; R.sub.3 is lower alkyl having 1 to 6 carbon atoms; and N' is a nitrogen atom forming part of a 4- to 8-membered heterocyclic ring containing one or two hetero atoms, one of which is said nitrogen, said heterocyclic ring being unsubstituted or substituted with one or more lower alkyl groups and pharmaceutically acceptable acid addition salts thereof.

Scintigraphic investigations of pancreatic diseases have in the past primarily utilised radiolabelled amino acids, such as C-11-L-tryptophan which has been used in positron emission tomographic (PET) studies or amino acid analogues such as selenium-75 labelled selenomethionine which has been used for planar gamma camera imaging. The use of Se-75 selenomethionine has been largely discontinued due to the high patient radiation dose associated with selenium-75 and the inconsistency of pancreatic visualisation, due in part to the relatively small quantities of this material which could be administered.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,360,511 to Baldwin et al. disclosed radioiodinated monoamine compounds which locate primarily in the brain and are useful as brain imaging agents.
Although these compounds were described as accumulating in some degree in pancreas, no data were provided on localisation of these compounds in pancreas and other abdominal organs so that it was not possible to predict their suitability for pancreatic imaging.
Kung and co-workers developed certain radioiodinated diamines, including N,N,N'-trimethyl-N'[2-hydroxy-3-methyl-5-iodobenzyl]-1,3-propanediamine (HIPDM), as indicators of brain blood flow and as brain imaging agents (Kung et al., 1983, J. Nucl. Med., Vol. 24, p. 66; U.S. Pat. No. 4,430,319 to Blau et al.)
Yamamoto's group has found some localisation of HIPDM in the pancreas of rats and mice but human clinical studies with this compound have proved disappointing in that differentiation between pancreatic and liver retention of the compound was difficult and pancreas/liver ratios are not optimal for clinical use. (Yamamoto et al., (1985), J. Nucl. Med., Vol. 26, p. 764; (1986), J. Nucl. Med., Vol. 27, p. 1013; (1990) J. Nucl. Med., Vol. 31, p. 1015).
There remains a need for convenient and discriminating pancreatic imaging agents suitable for routine diagnostic use.


Provided is an operation method for a memory device, the operation method comprising: performing an erase operation; performing a verify-read operation on a memory cell to generate a cell current, the memory cell including a first transistor and a second transistor; checking whether the cell current is lower than a first cell current threshold; when the cell current is not lower than the first cell current threshold, increasing a memory gate voltage until the cell current is lower than the first cell current threshold, wherein the memory gate voltage is applied to the first transistor; fixing the memory gate voltage and increasing a drain voltage; checking whether the cell current is lower than a second cell current threshold; and if the cell current is not lower than the second cell current threshold, increasing the drain voltage until the cell current is lower than the second cell current threshold.

Deep neural networks (DNNs) have achieved successes in several application fields such as image recognition, speech recognition, etc. Recently, computing in memory (CIM) has got great attention as a potential low-power solution to realize efficient computing for the deep neural network. Since CIM may reduce data movement, CIM directly utilizes memory arrays as the computing units to accelerate the DNN calculation and to reduce the system power consumption.
To increase the CIM capacity and cost-per-bit reduction, multi-bit data storage is developed. Therefore, tighten current distribution for MLCs is essential to improve recognition accuracy of DNN system.


The present invention is directed to a modular wall box system configured to be mounted substantially flush with respect to the wall. The assembly includes a plurality of wall surfaces, each wall surface includes a single gang opening that accommodates an AC electrical wiring device or a low voltage telecom device. At least one removable flange cover is configured to be removably coupled to the mounting flange. At least one modular connector can be inserted within the single gang modular device opening and includes a slidable engagement portion. The slidable engagement portion slidably engages a lateral edge of the wall surface forming the single gang modular device opening such that the at least one modular connector is slidably moveable to any vertical position.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to electrical device housing assemblies, and particularly to recessed electrical device housings.
2. Technical Background
With the advent of commercial electronics, consumers have sought to purchase various types of electronic equipment to provide entertainment for themselves and their families. Home entertainment electronics initially included nothing more than a radio receiver or a record player. But by the early 1950's, many homes included a black and white television set. The only electrical connection for radios and televisions was a simple electrical plug that was inserted into an electrical outlet for 120 VAC electrical power. Media content was delivered to the radio or the television by RF signals broadcast over the air. Over time, however, home entertainment systems increased in complexity as new kinds of audio-visual electronics were introduced.
Nowadays, broadcasting RF television signals directly to the TV receiver has become largely passé. Most home entertainment systems typically include a cable-TV or a satellite television receiver. The cable-TV set may receive service from the curb via a coaxial feed or via a fiber optic feed. Both types of units (i.e., cable or satellite) provide low voltage audio-visual signals to the television by way of a cable. The media content can be provided by a number of sources including "game stations," a DVD or "Blu-ray" player, a computer, and/or a "surround-sound" audio system. If the consumer is an audiophile, he or she may have audio preamplifiers, CD players, "IPods®," or other such devices.
Many modern homes are now wired to include low voltage telecommunications wiring to avoid having various kinds of unsightly telephony, coaxial, and/or HDMI wiring visible throughout the home. Thus, a home entertainment system may require multiple AC power outlets and multiple telecommunications outputs to accommodate all of these wires.
As those skilled in the art will appreciate, an electrical wiring device must be enclosed in a device box for safety reasons. An AC electrical duplex receptacle is often designed to fit in a single gang device box. But AC electrical wiring devices come in all sizes and a single gang device box can accommodate multiple devices. For instance, a single gang device box can accommodate a switch and dimmer assembly, and a switch in combination with a single receptacle outlet. On the other hand, multi-gang electrical wiring device boxes may be employed. One example of this is when two or more electrical duplex receptacles are required; two duplex receptacles are often mounted side-by-side in a two-gang device box. If three such devices are employed, a three gang device box may be required, and so on and so forth. Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that low voltage telecommunication wiring devices typically do not require device boxes. Instead, as shown in FIG. 1, an adapter 1 may be employed to mount the low voltage electrical wiring device to the wall. The user typically removes a rectangular portion of dry-wall where telecommunications service is desired. The telecom wires are inserted through the rectangular aperture of the adapter 1 and it is then inserted into the wall opening. The adapter includes a pair of screw-type mounting brackets 2. When adapter 1 is in place, the installer will turn the screw brackets 2 such that the flange 4 captures the drywall there between. At this point, a low voltage telecommunication device is mounted to the adapter 1 by mounting screws that are inserted into the threaded screw holes 3.
Those skilled in the art will further appreciate that there must be a physical barrier between AC power devices and low voltage telecom devices to prevent AC power from being inadvertently propagated on telecom wiring. Such an occurrence is unexpected and would lead to shock or electrocution. Thus, conventional wiring systems include a device box for AC electrical wiring devices and a separate adapter for low voltage telecom wiring. Both the AC electrical device and the telecom device are typically mounted flush with the drywall. This is undesirable because it is both unsightly and potentially dangerous, since an electrical plug extending perpendicularly from the wall may become partially exposed for various reasons.
FIG. 2 is an isometric view of another approach that has been considered. In this view, an old work mounting box 1 includes a first opening 6-1 that is dedicated to an AC electrical wiring device and a second opening 6-2 that is dedicated to telecommunications devices. While this represents an improvement over the device depicted in FIG. 1, there are several drawbacks. First, the box 1 offers no modularity because first opening 6-1 is dedicated to accommodating a device box for an AC electrical wiring device and the second opening 6-2 is dedicated to telecommunications devices (Note that connection tabs 6-3 accommodate the mounting screws for a telecom device). Moreover, the mounting surface 7-2 is not employed. In addition, the 2-gang opening 6-2 is parallel to the frame 1-1 (and hence the drywall). However, this is not an efficient use of space and results in a relatively large non-compact device box.
What is needed is a compact modular housing assembly that is configured to efficiently accommodate either AC electrical devices or telecom devices in a single recessed compartment, or both AC electrical devices and telecom devices in a single recessed compartment while providing the requisite electrical isolation between AC power devices and telecom devices. Moreover, a modular housing assembly is needed that can adaptively accommodate the wide variety of electrical wiring devices and telecom devices described above.


To ensure that on-line measurements performed at a moving or stationary fiber structure, such as a fiber composite or a sliver, deliver useful and reproducible measuring values, the fiber structure, whether such be fiber composites or fiber slivers, must be compressed at the location where they pass a measuring location or site where there is accomplished the measurement with a commercially available measuring instrument or apparatus. According to the invention, there is selected as the measuring location or site a location of the fiber processing process where the fiber structure is compressed any way by virtue of the undergoing fiber processing process.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a new and improved method and apparatus for measuring a characteristic or property of a fiber structure, such as a fiber composite or a sliver. The term "fiber composite", as used herein, is intended to mean an agglomeration or accumulation of fibers.
The present invention also relates to an improved method of blending or mixing textile fibers of different origin.
2. Discussion of the Background and Material Information
The commonly assigned European Published Patent Application No. 0,362,538, published Apr. 11, 1990 and the cognate U.S. Pat. No. 5,025,533, granted Jun. 25, 1991, teach a method of blending textile fibers of different origin or derivation in which each textile fiber origin possesses pregiven or predetermined fiber properties or characteristics and in which each textile fiber origin constitutes a mixed or blended component of a predetermined percentual proportion. Further, the entire fiber mixture exhibits pregiven or predetermined fiber characteristics or properties and the mixed components are variable components which can be controlled at all times. In order to attain the aforementioned fiber characteristics or properties of the fiber mixture, the percentual proportion of each component is automatically optimized while taking into account the fiber properties of the individual components, in that the component mixture or blend is determined as a function of pregiven and determined properties of an intermediate product which is subsequently manufactured, preferably a card sliver or a subsequently manufactured final or end product, preferably a yarn. Upon deviation of the component mixture or blend from the pregiven and determined properties such deviation is automatically corrected without delay.
The disclosed and illustrated method of the aforementioned commonly assigned European Published Patent Application No. 0,362,538, published Apr. 11, 1990 and the cognate U.S. Pat. No. 5,025,533, granted Jun. 25, 1991, teach the possibility of transferring textile fibers of different origin either directly from the fiber bales or from component cells or bins to a mixer or blender where there occurs homogeneous mixing or blending of such components. The resultant product of the mixer or blender is subsequently cleaned in a blowing room or "cleaning station", and thereafter transferred for processing to a card or carding machine. After the card the card sliver is checked in a color checking or testing apparatus and an appropriate signal is delivered to a control which controls the component mixing operation.
In the context of this disclosure, the term "origin", or equivalent expressions, embrace cotton fiber bales or fiber bales containing synthetic or man-made fibers, so that during the mixing or blending there can come under consideration mixtures composed of different types of cotton or a mixture of cotton fibers and synthetic fibers.
In this connection there exists the requirement of being able to determine the proportion of synthetic fibers present in a fiber mixture or blend. Previously, this determination was made by laboratory chemical analysis of individual samples, the performance of which required a considerable amount of time.

Method and apparatus for measuring a characteristic of a fiber structure, such as a fiber composite or a sliver


An image data display apparatus includes a display section configured to display images to be printed in the form of thumbnails; a reception section configured to receive image data and print data for the image data; a memory configured to store the image data and the print data; and a controller configured to determine a display order of the display in the form of thumbnails performed by the display section. The controller extracts from the memory image data items to which the print data is attached, and displays in the form of thumbnails on the display section the image data items to which the print data is attached.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image data display apparatus and an image data display method for displaying images to be printed, and more particularly, to an image data display apparatus, an image data display method, and an image data display computer program product for displaying in the form of thumbnails a plurality of received image data items in a predetermined order.
2. Description of the Related Art
Print kiosk terminals for printing images captured with image capturing devices, such as digital still cameras or camera-equipped cellular phones, have been installed in public spaces, such as mass merchandise stores, stations, and hotels, and have been widely used. When a user inserts a memory card in which image data is recorded into a print kiosk terminal of this type, the print kiosk terminal reads the image data from the memory card and displays a list of thumbnail images on a monitor of the print kiosk terminal. The user designates an image from the list of the thumbnail images displayed on the monitor, and printing of the designated image is performed.
In recent years, Digital Print Order Format (DPOF) (registered trademark), which is a data standard for printing image data, has been widely adopted. DPOF is data necessary for printing an image recorded with a digital still camera. DPOF contains information, such as print size, the number of copies to be printed, edit settings including trimming, and captured date and time. In a case where various types of data regarding DPOF are set in advance and stored in a memory card, when the memory card is inserted into a print kiosk terminal, printing can be automatically performed in accordance with the settings. With the use of a menu mode or the like of an image capturing device, a user is able to specify whether DPOF is to be set for a captured image and to perform operation and setting for various types of data regarding DPOF.
Since a print kiosk terminal is capable of performing printing in accordance with the settings of DPOF by reading print data stored, independently of image data, in a memory card, time and effort in setting print data every time printing is performed can be saved. Thus, a desired image can be printed simply and rapidly.
An example of such a technology is described, for example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2004-34597.

Image data display apparatus, image data display method, and image data display computer program product


The structure of slide-block module includes a plurality of slide-block modules composing several reinforced areas, the slide-block modules are contained in a plastic pallet shaping mold, the plastic pallet is provided in a connecting zone between a central area of a bearing surface and a plurality of supporting columns at surrounding sides on the plastic pallet with the plurality of reinforced areas having ribs arranged transversely or longitudinally; each slide-block module includes a fixed block fixed on a shaping mold and having at least a lateral side beveled, and having a slide block, by obliquely sliding moving of the slide block on the fixed block, the slide block can be released along the lateral side of the fixed block from the mold smoothly after injection molding.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a manufacturing technique of a plastic pallet, and especially to the structure of every slide-block module on a plastic pallet shaping mold.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As shown in FIG. 1, a conventional pallet 1 is composed of a bearing surface 2, a supporting surface 3 and a plurality of supporting columns provided between the bearing surface 2 and the supporting surface 3;
the plurality of supporting columns include four corner supporting columns 4.1, four pallet-edge supporting columns 4.2 on the surrounding sides of the plastic pallet and a central supporting column 4.3, a plurality of lateral openings 5 are provided between the bearing surface 2 and the supporting surface 3 and are provided each between a corner supporting columns 4.1 and one of the pallet-edge supporting columns 4.2 both on the surrounding sides of the plastic pallet, and further a plurality of inner through holes are provided to be communicated with the lateral openings 5; by virtue of material decreasing by having the above mentioned openings and through holes, cost of manufacturing is reduced, a mechanical arm of a piling machine can be inserted into the openings for the actions of transporting and storing.
The above stated pallet 1 and bearing surface 2 are composed of a plurality of ribs which are arranged across one another in 90 degree crossing angles, and by virtue that the plurality of supporting columns are provided between the pallet 1 and the bearing surface 2, for the convenience of manufacturing, some areas transversely or longitudinally allocated between the central supporting column 4.3 and each four pallet-edge supporting column 4.2 of the plastic pallet normally are provided with ribs 6 arranged in a single direction (transverse or longitudinal); the structural parts of such ribs 6 arranged in a single direction are subjected to non uniform distribution of force borne, concentration of stresses and having problem of damage.
And more, the lateral openings 5 and the inner through holes provided among the plurality of supporting columns are uneasy to have their mold built for manufacturing, in view of this, a conventional technique with a publication number 589,271 has a longer slide block and a shorter slide block respectively inserted into the lateral sides of a pallet mold to make lateral openings and inner through holes; however, when the length of the above slide blocks gets increased, manufacturing of the pallet mold gets more difficult, thus the time of the stroke for extracting the mold and the cost of the mold are increased.
In view of the above stated, the inventor of the present invention provides a "structure of slide-block module on a plastic pallet shaping mold" based on his professional experience of years in studying and experiments in related fields for improving the structure of the ribs arranged in a single direction, for increasing the strength of the bearing surface to thereby reducing the cost of manufacturing the pallet mold, and more important, to shorten the stroke of mold extracting, thus an object of reducing the working hour can be achieved.

Structure of slide-block module of a plastic pallet shaping mold


A keeper for taking up and storing excess length (slack) in an elongate cord and the like, such as an electrical cord. The keeper disclosed is formed as a unitary, molded, bi-fold device including a pair of housing parts that swing between open and latch-closed conditions, which parts cooperate with a hinged cord-winder panel that swings into a central plane between the two housing parts with the latter closed to define a pair of cord-wind-storing compartments. In its closed and operative condition, the keeper presents, to the viewer's eye, an elongate, slender, graceful element extending in the line of remaining portions of cord.

This invention relates to a keeper for receiving and storing excess length (slack) in an elongate cord and the like, such as an electrical lamp cord. More particularly, it relates to such a device which is characterized by low cost, simple, sleek design, and convenience and ease of use.
Familiar to most people is the sight of draping, twisting, often-in-the-way, excess lengths of electrical cord which extend between an electrical appliance, such as a lamp, and an outlet. In the past, various devices having many different designs have been proposed for enabling the user to take up and, in some fashion, store excess line, or cord, length.
The present invention, according to a primary objective, is focused on providing a unique, easy to use, unitary-construction, aesthetically pleasing device which offers a novel construction to deal with the slack problem.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, proposed is an elongate, generally linear, multi-component keeper which is formed unitarily, as by molding, employing a suitable homogeneous material, such as a suitable plastic material. The proposed keeper includes a pair of hinged housing parts to which there is also hinged a swing-out cord-winder panel. Winds of excess cord are easily wrapped in elongate runs on this panel, and the same is then swung into a position centrally between the housing parts, which are then closed upon one another to latch (catch) in a condition fully concealing the taken-up winds. In its operative condition holding excess line, the keeper presents a simple, graceful, elongate, slender configuration to the outside world.
The proposed keeper is extremely easy to use in that, with all of its components joined as a unit, the keeper can be held in one hand, with the other hand used to place winds on the winder panel.
Various other objects and advantages that are attained by the invention will become more fully apparent as the description which now follows is read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.


A hand tool impacting device may include a drive shaft, an impaler disk, and a floating pin positioned in an aperture of the drive shaft. Circular ramps along an outer edge of the impaler disk may interact with a stationary pin to translate the drive shaft and generate an impacting motion. A pair of springs placed against a side of the floating pin may allow a tool bit to engage or disengage the impaler disk, for selective use of translational impacting motion or rotational torque. An impact bit for engaging the impaler disk may include a tool head that may engage a work piece and a tool shaft inserted into the drive shaft to engage the floating pin.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to hand power tools and more particularly relates to an apparatus for creating an impacting motion in a powered hand tool.
2. Description of the Related Art
Hand drills are rotary tools that impose a rotational force onto a screw bit to drive a screw into a medium. Similarly, hand impact devices use a repeated translational impacting motion to drive a nail into a medium. Often times a project requires the use of both devices, which would require different tools. Delivering both a translational impact force and a rotational force in a single tool would therefore provide advantages that are lacking in currently available hand tools.

Hand tool impacting device with floating pin mechanism


Systems and methods for dynamically adjusting transmit gain in a transceiver. The gain is adjusted in order to provide the maximum gain. The amount of distortion is measured. The gain is increased until the distortion reaches a predetermined limit. The gain of several components can be adjusted independently.

Error free transmission of information is important in the communications industry today. In order to effectively transmit information modulated on radio frequency signals either over the air or on a medium such as a coaxial cable, it is helpful to properly set the power level at which modulated radio frequency signals are to be transmitted. The effective use of transmission power is the focus of much attention. Communications engineers are frequently concerned with is maximizing the amount of power used to transmit signals without causing distortion that will cause errors in the demodulation of data on the receiving side of the communications channel. Another concern is setting the desired amount of transmit power to the level necessary to ensure that the intended receivers receive the signals with sufficient power to accurately demodulate the information transmitted, but with no more power than is necessary. Accurately determining the amount of power that can be transmitted with an acceptable level of distortion allows the greatest transmit power range and the greatest data throughput.
In some systems, a closed loop power control system is used. Such closed loop power control systems require the receiver to provide feedback regarding the receiver's ability to accurately demodulate the information that is being transmitted. Such closed loop power control systems are relatively slow and require the receiver to demodulate the transmitted information before such feedback can be provided.
In addition to closed loop feedback control systems, transmitters are typically calibrated prior to being sent out to the field. The calibration is an attempt to determine the dynamic range of the transmitter and determine the particular output levels at which distortion will occur and to determine the amount of loss that the signal will incur prior to being transmitted.
FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram of a transmission section 100 of a transmitter. The maximum power that a transmitter can transmit is typically determined at the time the circuit is designed. Once the circuit is manufactured, the circuit is tested to determine the characteristics of the particular components that comprise the transmission section 100. The transmission section 100 is connected to a test load that simulates the conditions under which the transmission section 100 will be operating when put to use in the field. The transmission section 100 is placed in calibration/test mode by the combination of a receive/transmit (R/T) switch 102 and a calibration switch 112. In calibration/test mode, the R/T switch 102 disconnects a power amplifier (PA) 104 from a filter 106. In addition, the calibration switch 112 is closed to connect the output of the PA 104 to the input of a detector 114. The output of the PA 104 is also connected to a nominal test load 116 having a resistance that is equal to the impedance of the medium into which the transmission is to be launched (e.g., 75 ohms). Therefore, when the switch 112 is closed, the amount of power output by the PA 104 is measured by the detector 114.
A test signal is injected into the PA 104. A measurement made by the detector 114 on the test signal is reported to a PA controller 118. The PA controller 118 adjusts the gain of the PA 104 until the signal level is at a target value. The target value is determined based upon an estimate of a set of factors. These factors include the errors that might be present in the detector 114, any uncertainty in the level at which the PA 104 will begin to compress/distort the signals being amplified and the amount of distortion and attenuation due to the output filter 106 and the impedance of the load (not shown) coupled to the output port 108. Once the proper gain is determined for the PA 104, the unit is ready to be used in the field.
Accounting for all of the uncertainties associated with factors noted above requires a relatively large safety margin. That is, the transmission section 100 may need to operate at 3 dB, or more, above what is determined by the test procedure to be at the point at which information delivered to the load can be accurately demodulated. Accordingly, the transmitter will deliver enough power to meet the desired target in the majority of cases, but with more power than might be appropriate for the average situation. This is done in order to ensure that the power settings will provide a reliable signal (acceptable receive power) in the majority of situations. Even transmitting with a safety margin of 3 dB (i.e., doubling the target level output power) may not be sufficient to ensure that the target level output power will actually be delivered in all cases. The margin must be selected such that when the unknown factors noted above are at their worst case values, every unit (or at least every unit minus a negligible number of outlier units) will be able to deliver a signal that has an acceptable power level without excessive distortion.
While the margin noted above is required in order to ensure proper operation in nearly all cases, transmitting with such a margin is not necessary in most cases. Transmitting with a margin that is greater than necessary in most cases means that the DC power is significantly higher than necessary in most cases (i.e., nearly double that required). Yet, the resulting operation may still be sub-optimal in outlying cases due to the uncertainties that exist from unit to unit and situation to situation. In order to optimize the power level of transmissions, extensive work is done in the laboratory to obtain statistics and determine the most efficient and effective margin possible. Even with such work, a compromise is required. That is, a balance must be struck between providing more power than is optimal in some cases under the assumption that the more power will be necessary than then is actually the case and transmitting with less power than is optimal in cases in which these factors require more power than is assumed.
In addition to the above situations, in systems that use a closed loop power control system, the path between a transmitter and one receiver may have more loss than the path to several other receivers. In this case, the transmitter will be driven to transmit more power than is required for the receivers communicating over the low loss paths. Transmitting at the higher power level can cause distortion in the transmitter that results in errors occurring in the information transmitted. Therefore, a relatively large number of receivers will suffer because of the needs of one receiver.
Accordingly, there is presently a need for a method and apparatus that can more efficiently and effectively determine the amount of power with which a transmitter should transmit signals to ensure that a target output power will be delivered with an acceptable level of distortion.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method and apparatus for adaptive transmit power control


In encoding a picture, comprising a plurality of tiles, into a bit-stream, a method and apparatus is provided for signaling the tile attribute values per-tile, using a compact syntax. These embodiments signal per-tile attribute values using a loop over the tiles. The tile attributes may, for example, be in the form of a set of tile syntax elements (one syntax element per tile attribute), or for example in the form of a set of flags to enable or disable the usage of the tile attributes. These embodiments provide freedom for an encoder to assign the tile attribute values per tile, or per any subset of tiles in a picture, and the attribute values are signaled in a compact syntax using a loop (or loops) over tiles.

High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) is a block based video codec standardized by both the ITU-T and the Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG) that utilizes both spatial and temporal prediction techniques. Spatial prediction reduces spatial redundancy and is achieved using intra (I) prediction from within the same frame of a current picture. Temporal prediction reduces temporal redundancy and is achieved using inter (P) or bi-directional inter (B) prediction on a block level using previously decoded reference pictures. Regardless of the particular type of prediction technique, however, the resultant differences between the original pixel data and the predicted pixel data, referred to as the "residual," is transformed into the frequency domain and quantized. Quantizing the transformed residuals, the level of which is determined by the quantization parameter (QP), facilitates the control of a tradeoff between bitrate and the quality of the video.
The transformed and quantized residual is then entropy coded before being transmitted to a decoder together with the necessary prediction parameters. The prediction parameters, which are also entropy encoded, include prediction mode and motion vectors. Upon receipt, the decoder performs entropy decoding, inverse quantization, and inverse transformation to obtain the residual. The decoder then reconstructs the image from the residual using an intra-prediction or inter-prediction technique.
Both MPEG and ITU-T are working on a successor to HEVC within the Joint Video Exploratory Team (JVET). The name of this video codec is Versatile Video Coding (VCC).

Picture tile attributes signaled using loop(s) over tiles


The invention relates to a method for improving the mechanical properties, especially the hardness, of journal crosses for use in articulated shafts. According to the invention, a superficial area which is defined by the transition surfaces between two journals that are adjacent to each other in the peripheral direction and the superficial areas of the peripheral surfaces of the adjacent journals that point in the peripheral direction is induction-hardened in one method step and then quenched with cooling agents.

The invention relates to a method for improving the mechanical properties, especially the hardness, of journal crosses for use in articulated shafts, specifically journal crosses having a plurality of journals in the peripheral direction and having journal roots with transition surfaces between the roots, and relates to a journal cross and also to a device for carrying out the method.
A journal cross comprises four journals which are arranged offset 90xc2x0 from one another, as seen in the peripheral direction. They are connected to one another in the region of their journal roots. The journal crosses are used in articulated shafts for the purpose of torque transmission. The articulated shafts can be designed for a very wide range of applications. Particularly in heavy articulated shafts, the individual elements are under certain circumstances exposed to enormously high loads. This applies certain minimum demands on the condition of the component, in particular on its mechanical properties. The loads which act on the journal cross require a hard surface and, under certain circumstances, a low-wear surface. Because of the permanent dynamic loading in the form of peripheral bending stresses, a hard surface layer and a tough core are desired for the journal cross. Surfaces of the journals of a journal cross and also the transition surfaces provided between two journals, which are arranged offset through 90xc2x0 with respect to one another, as seen in the peripheral direction, are to be hardened. These transition surfaces are also referred to as saddle surfaces. There are essentially three hardening methods known from the prior art.
In the first method, the entire journal cross is case hardened. The journal crosses, which are forged from a low-carbon steel, are carburized to a carbon content of approximately 0.8% down to the desired hardening depth in a carbon-donating furnace atmosphere. The crosses are then quenched, with only the carburized surface layers becoming hard, while the core remains ductile. However, this operation is very time-consuming, energy-intensive and therefore also very expensive, on account of the long annealing times. Further, this method of hardening journal crosses is generally unsuitable, since the surface-layer hardening depth which can be achieved with acceptable outlay using this method is limited in absolute terms. The relative depth of the hardened layer decreases with the component size. However, for a high component load-bearing capacity, it is necessary for the stresses in the component to lie below the strength limit at all points below the surface. Therefore, for hardening large components, there is a tendency to try to use induction hardening, since it is known that in this way it is possible to achieve greater hardened depths.
To avoid these drawbacks, the second known method, which is described in DE 43 39 204 C1, simultaneously and cohesively surface-hardens the journal cross completely by induction in the region of the journal surfaces and the saddle surfaces between the journals arranged in a cross shape. For induction heating the journal cross over the entire surface region to the transformation temperature, the journal cross is rotated in the center of a toroidal, medium frequency alternating magnetic field. The toroidal alternating magnetic field is generated by a ring inductor, which has its axis inclined by approximately 45xc2x0 with respect to the axis of rotation of the journal cross and is arranged approximately concentrically with respect to the center point of the journal cross. Therefore, to achieve uniform hardening, accurate positioning of the journal required. Furthermore, the structural design of the device required to implement this method is very complex and expensive. The hardened depth which is to be achieved corresponds to the theoretically desired hardened depth in the most highly stressed region. The surface treatment entails the deployment of more resources than necessary.
A further, third solution consists in the use of shaped inductors. As a representative example in this context, refer to EP 0 785 615 A1 and to the publication xe2x80x9cWxc3xa4mebehandlungxe2x80x9d by Dr. Dieter Liedtke, Dr. Rolf Jxc3x6nsson, expert-Velag, third edition, p. 104. In this case, the inductor at least partially surrounds the workpiece which is to be hardened. The workpiece executes a uniform rolling movement. The internal contour of the inductor, when the coupling state remains the same, represents a parallel to the rolling contour of the workpiece. The drawback of this hardening method for hardening journal crosses is that the hardening run-out zone, in which the mechanical properties of the component are generally adversely affected, always lies at the highly stressed points, i.e. in the region of the journal root. A further significant drawback is that, on account of the sequential hardening of the journals using cylindrical inductors, the previously hardened journal-root region is always adversely affected by the subsequent hardening.
DE 1 955 010 discloses a method with a device for the nonuniform tempering of the journal cross by induction heating. The journal cross is overall surface-hardened. Then the journals are tempered for 6-12 seconds at a temperature of 100-200xc2x0 C. and to a hardness of 60-67 HRC, at the points of contact with the needles of the bearing, and the points of the journal cross which lie in the vicinity of the journal base are tempered for 6-12 seconds at a temperature of 450-650xc2x0 C. and to a hardness of 50-56 HRC. The nonuniform treatment of individual regions may lead to previously treated surface regions being superimposed and therefore to some extent influencing one another.
The invention is therefore based on the object of providing a method for improving the mechanical properties of journal crosses for use in articulated shafts which avoids the drawbacks of the prior art which have been described. In particular, in addition to allowing the mechanical properties to influence one another in a reliable way in the regions which are actually subject to high loads, it is desired for the operations to take less time and for a device for carrying out the method to be of structurally simple and inexpensive design.
According to the invention, at least the peripherally oriented surface regions of the journal roots of the individual journals of a journal cross and of the transition surfaces, which are also referred to as saddle surfaces and function as connecting surfaces between two journals arranged adjacent to one another in the peripheral direction, are induction-hardened in one method step. There is no continuous surface-layer hardening of the entire journal cross in one operation, which would have to be designed for the theoretical maximum required hardening depth. Instead, the mechanical properties, in particular the hardness, are improved in a targeted way only in the regions which are actually exposed to high loads, i.e. the transition regions between the journal roots of two journals arranged adjacent to one another in the peripheral direction, which are exposed to dynamic bending loads. This can be achieved inexpensively and in a simple way.
An important advantage of this method is that the regions which are actually highly stressed, namely the region of the journal root, do not lie in the hardening run-out zone, so that the mechanical properties of a journal cross in this region are not adversely affected by the hardening operation. Furthermore, with this solution, even in the event of sequential saddle-surface hardening, the risk of the journal root region which has previously been hardened being adversely affected during the subsequent hardening, as occurs with sequential journal hardening using cylindrical inductors, is avoided. Also, this method is not limited with regard to the depth of the hardened layer, so that even large components can be hardened in a corresponding way with satisfactory results.
On account of the only partial hardening of the peripheral surfaces of the journal root of a journal of a journal cross, it is theoretically also possible for the individual journals to be hardened in succession, since, given suitable dimensioning of the journals, the hardening run-out zones produced during hardening of the saddle surfaces and of the surface regions of the journal roots which face in the peripheral direction are not superimposed on one another.
The hardening operation is followed by a tempering operation in order to reduce the brittleness.
For the device, it is possible to use conventional induction devices which do not have to specially match the shape of the surface region which comprises saddle surface and the journal surface regions facing in the peripheral direction. These devices may be individually assigned, at the required distance, to the saddle surfaces and the journal roots.
For this purpose, the device comprises a holding device for the journal cross and at least one induction device, which is assigned to the saddle surface between two journals which adjoin one another in the peripheral direction. The induction device comprises at least one coil unit, preferably in the form of a high-frequency coil. Its induced currents act on the surfaces of the journal in order to influence the mechanical properties in the edge regions of the component. In the process, the surface layer of the workpiece or of the component which is to be treated is heated in the relevant region by the currents induced by means of the high-frequency coil. After the austenitizing temperature has been reached, the surface layer is cooled, for example by being immersed in a cooling liquid which is composed on the basis of water. It is also conceivable for the cooling liquid to be showered onto the surfaces.
Differently designed inductors can be used to carry out the method. These inductors may be designed as specially shaped induction devices, which have substantially the same contour, with larger dimensions, as the surfaces to be treated, or as conventional inductors which are of geometrically simple design, are commercially available and are to be arranged in a suitable way.
In the first case, according to a further aspect of the invention specially shaped induction devices are used, which in each case at least partially wrap around the periphery of the surface of the journal root of a journal at a defined distance, which is preferably constant in the wrapped region.
For this purpose, for example, the coils may be arranged at regular intervals on a supporting element which is designed in the form of half of a ring or may themselves already be in such a shape.
In the other case, conventional coil elements are arranged at a defined distance from the surface which is to be treated, without there being any matching to the surface to be treated in terms of the arrangement. The alternating magnetic field which can be generated should, however, have a defined minimum frequency. This minimum frequency, which is preferably approx. 10 kHz, allows the rapid introduction of the heating energy generated by means of the coil into the journal cross even when there is a relatively great distance between the coil elements and the surface which is to be treated.
The method according to the invention is suitable for the heat treatment of journal crosses of different designs. The journal axes of the individual journals belonging to a journal cross preferably lie in a common plane. However, it is also possible to use the method according to the invention for journal crosses with journals which are offset with respect to one another. In this case, the journal axes are arranged in two planes which are offset with respect to one another and oriented parallel to one another, the intention being that the journal cross or the journals should be brought together during the hardening operation.

Method for improving the mechanical properties of journal crosses by induction heating


A mold includes a first groove part and a second groove part. The first groove part extends with a constant length or a constant width from a center part to an outer circumferential part of the mold. The second groove part extends from a terminal end of the first groove part on an outer circumferential part side of the first groove and merges with any portion of the first groove part. A molding manufacturing method includes manufacturing a preform by semimolten die casting or semisolid die casting using the mold. The method may also include removing a portion of the preform corresponding to the second groove part.

In the conventional art, a molding manufacturing method wherein "a preform is formed by a semimolten die casting method into a near net shape, the preform is subject to ultraprecision finishing, and thereby a target molding is obtained" has been proposed (e.g., refer to Japanese Laid-open Patent Application Publication No. 2005-36693). Adopting this manufacturing method makes it possible to manufacture a molding that is stronger than the molding obtained by the casting method and, moreover, to reduce the cost of raw materials, machining, tool supplies, and the like as well as to reduce waste matter such as grinding waste material and machining waste liquid.


A temperature detector for a contact thermometer of process measurement technology having a thermowell, at least one thermal sensor element arranged in a process-side end of the thermowell, and at least one electrical connecting means connected to the thermal sensor element with a first connection side and extending in the thermowell at least up to an evaluation-side end of the thermowell, so that the thermal sensor element can be electrically contacted via a second connection side of the electrical connecting means, and in which the electrical connecting means is formed by a connection printed circuit board with conducting paths.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a temperature detector for a contact thermometer of process measurement technology having a thermowell, at least one thermal sensor element arranged in the process-side end of the thermowell and at least one electrical connecting means, wherein the electrical connecting means is connected to the thermal sensor element with a first connection side and extends in the thermowell at least up to the evaluation-side end of the thermowell, so that the thermal sensor element can be electrically contacted via a second connection side of the electrical connecting means.
2. Description of Related Art
Temperature detectors of the above mentioned type have been known for a long time in practice, wherein temperature detectors of this type come directly or indirectly into contact with the medium of which the temperature is to be determined. Contact thermometers should be presently differentiated from such thermometers that detect only thermal radiation coming from a medium. The thermowell of the temperature detector surrounds the thermal sensor element, wherein the thermal sensor element is normally arranged near a closed end of the thermowell. The thermal sensor element is often affixed in the thermowell with a heat-conducting medium, such as, for example, with a heat-conducting paste or a heat-conducting adhesive. The thermowell is thus closed on the process-side end and protects the thermal sensor element from the process. Often, a temperature detector of this type, however, is also used as an insert in a further protective casing; wherein the protective casing extends into the process and permanently protects the surroundings from the process. The temperature detector is then inserted with its thermowell into the additional protective casing. The other, evaluation-side end of the thermowell usually ends in a housing, anyway, wherein an evaluation or further processing of the signal occurs.
The thermal sensor element is normally a temperature-dependent resistor or a thermocouple that can be electrically contacted from outside of the thermowell via the electrical connecting means. A compact, modular construction around a contact head is used as housing, in which an electrical connection is produced indirectly via the electrical connecting means between the outside world and the sensor element. The contact head can, however, also have a transmitter, which has the task of filtering and linearizing a signal coming from the sensor element into a standardized signal and to provide higher-ranking process monitoring.
The electrical connection means normally implements at least two electrically conductive paths between the thermal sensor element and the connections located outside of the thermowell. In implementing the thermal sensor element as a temperature-dependent resistor, a voltage or a current is applied to the thermal resistor and correspondingly, the resulting current or the resulting voltage is determined and the temperature can then be determined using the resulting resistance values. In the simplest implementation of the electrical connecting means with two electrically conducting paths, changing resistances cannot be compensated, which is why implementations are often preferred in which the electrical connecting means have three or even four electrical leads as reference resistors.
Temperature detectors known from the prior art are relatively expensive, which, on the one hand, is due to the relatively complex production, and on the other hand, however, due to the materials being used. Temperature detectors known from the prior art often have mineral insulation of the electrical connecting means in the thermowell. Here, the electrical connecting means are located, for example, in a mineral or ceramic powder and the temperature detector has to be subject to heat treatment after mounting the thermal sensor element so that the mineral or ceramic powder is drought. Apart from the electrical connecting means with mineral insulation being expensive, they are also difficult to deal with in production, since it is necessary to make sure that the mineral powder remains in contact when mounting the thermal sensor element, which is difficult for thermowell diameters having only few millimeters to fractions of a millimeter and is practically not applicable for automation.

Temperature detector for a contact thermometer


This invention relates to a process for preparing 4-[(1,6-dihydro-6-oxo-2-pyrimidinyl)-amino]benzonitrile (I) starting from a 4-oxo-1,6-dihydro-pyrimidinylcarboxylic acid ester (II) or starting from a guanidine derivative which is reacted with an alkoxy-methylene malonic acid ester to an ester (II) which is converted to (I), which reaction sequence may be a one-pot procedure.

The virus causing the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is generally known as the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The spread of HIV has caused and continues to cause serious health problems throughout the world. A number of HIV inhibitory drugs have been developed that currently are used to combat the virus. These drugs have proven out to be effective in suppressing the virus, in particular when used in combination therapy. However no therapy is capable of completely eliminating the virus from the body.
Several classes of HIV inhibitors at present are available and new ones are being explored. One such class is that of that of the non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs). This class comprises a number of drugs that are used in anti-HIV therapy while other NNRTIs are in various stages of development. One of these is the compound 4-[[4-[[4-(2-cyanoethenyl)-2,6-dimethylphenyl]-amino]-2-pyrimidinyl]-amino]-benzonitrile, also known as TMC278. This compound, its properties as well as a number of synthetic approaches for its preparation have been described in WO-03/16306. TMC278, which currently is in clinical development, not only shows pronounced activity against wild type virus, but also against many mutated variants.
Consequently there is a need for producing larger quantities of this active ingredient based on processes that provide the product in high yield and with a high degree of purity. A synthesis strategy that has been developed to prepare this compound involves coupling (E)-4-amino-3,5-dimethylcinnamonitrile (B) with anilinopyrimidine (C) to obtain TMC278 as outlined in the following reaction scheme, wherein the compound TMC278 is represented by formula (A).

The preparation of intermediate (B) has been described in WO-04/016581 as comprising coupling 4-iodo-2,6-dimethylaniline (D) (X═I) with acrylonitrile in the presence of palladium on charcoal, sodium acetate as a base and dimethylacetamide as a solvent.

The preparation of intermediate (C) on the other hand has been described in WO-03/16306 as comprising a halogenation reaction of 4-oxo-1,6-dihydro-pyrimidine (I), in particular with POCl3.

Compound (I), which sometimes is represented by its tautomeric form (I′):
can be prepared following the procedure described in Synthetic Communications, 27 (11), 1943-1949 (1997):

The reaction of (E) with (F) results in the liberation of methyl mercaptane, a toxic and extremely odorous compound, which can be smelled at concentrations as low as 2 ppb. Complete removal of this mercaptane therefore is a requirement, posing a very difficult purification challenge. This makes this process impractical for large-scale production.
WO-00/27825 discloses at p.14 the synthesis of structural analogs of compound (I) bearing a Y substituent in 5-position and a Q substituent in 6-position of the pyrimidine moiety. The group Y in these structural analogs cannot be hydrogen and in particular is halogen and is never a carboxyl ester group as required in the process of the present invention. Moreover the synthesis disclosed in this reference lacks a decarboxylation step, which is essential in the process of the present invention.
Although the above mentioned prior art process via intermediates (E) and (F) may be useful for preparing small quantities of the desired product of formula (I), there is a need for a process that can be scaled up for the production of multi-kilogram and larger quantities, that is reproducible, is economical and through which the end product is obtained in high yield and with a high degree of purity. Providing such a process is an object of the present invention.

Process for preparing 4-[(1,6-dihydro-6-OXO-2-pyrimidinyl)amino]benzonitrile

Eastgate Village, Eastgate—Little Island, Cork


A memory is configured to store statistics indicative of historical vehicle use patterns. A processor is programmed to identify a next reboot time and top locations at which reboot is allowed according to the statistics, and upon transition to a keyoff state, reboot a vehicle controller responsive to confirmation that a current time has reached at least the next reboot time and that the vehicle is located at one of the top locations.

Modern vehicles may be equipped with multiple high-function electronic control units (ECUs). Beyond just the user visible in-vehicle infotainment (IVI) systems, there are other non-user facing "headless" ECUs that are as complex, if not more complex, than a traditional IVI ECU. These modern units typically operate sophisticated operation systems such as Linux, QNX, or other commercial embedded systems.
High-function ECUs require a full power cycle to refresh new configurations or to apply software updates or firmware obtained from external sources (such as over-the-air updates received from a cloud server, or data read from an optical disk or USB drive). In the event of a functional defect, a reboot may be required to resolve or alleviate such a circumstance. However, a full system reboot of a high-function ECU may take a significant amount of time (on the order of 15-60 seconds, similar to the reboot process for a desktop PC) as opposed to smaller micro controllers that can boot in milliseconds or a few seconds.

Opportunistic vehicle controller restart scheduling


A multilayer article is configured to provide cushioning for a musical instrument. The multilayer article has an attachment layer configured to be detachably coupled to the musical instrument. An upper raised section layer is attached to the attachment layer and configured to be concave downward. A lower raised section layer attached to the attachment layer and configured to be concave upward. A center raised section layer attached to the attachment layer between the upper raised section layer and the lower raised section layer. The upper raised section layer, the lower raised section layer and the center raised section layer are arranged to ergonomically accommodate a clavicle of a human user.

The embodiments herein relate generally to accessories for musical instruments or for other cushioning uses.
Prior to embodiments of the disclosed invention, there was no good solution to padding a musician's shoulder between the musician and an instrument. Pads and towels could fall off of the shoulder easily and can be unsightly. Clamping devices would affect the sound of an instrument adversely giving it a needlessly muted tone. Embodiments of the present invention solve these problems.

Multilayer article that provides cushioning


A process and a device for automatically determining meteorological conditions in the vicinity of an aircraft is disclosed. The device (1) comprises a meteorological radar (2), able to determine the meteorological information associated with a primary geographical area ahead of an aircraft, and means (3, 4A, 4B) for automatically determining the meteorological conditions associated with a geographical area being extended with respect to the primary geographical area.

It is known that modern airplanes, including transport airplanes, are provided with meteorological radars being able to determine the meteorological conditions (storms, turbulence areas, rains, wind shears, etc.) of a geographical area, generally located in the front part of airplanes.
When the meteorological conditions being determined are bad, the pilots can adapt the flight trajectory and/or parameters of airplanes so as to limit the impacts thereof on the comfort and the safety of the passengers and the crew.
It is further known that, in order to obtain such meteorological conditions, meteorological radars emit electromagnetic waves in a given direction and analyze return waves sent back by targets (droplets, hails, etc.).
However, softening electromagnetic waves, more specifically by the air and clouds, as well as reflecting the latter on obstacles (for instance, mountains) reduce the detection distance of the radar and thus, the dimensions of the geographical area for which the meteorological conditions are obtained.

Process and a device for automatically determining meteorological conditions in the vicinity of an aircraft


An examination device for use with a vehicle constant speed control apparatus which adjusts the speed of a vehicle to a predetermined speed in response to a constant speed control command includes a first switching arrangement for connecting and disconnecting an electric power supply and the apparatus, and a second switching arrangement for delivering the constant speed control command. A control arrangement is provided for inhibiting the constant speed control of the vehicle when the second switching arrangement is on at the time the first switching arrangement is connected.

A constant speed control apparatus is known which enables an automotive vehicle to run constantly at a speed predetermined by a driver while the accelerator, normally a foot-operated pedal, remains undepressed by the driver. The known constant speed control apparatus is arranged such that an actuator is activated upon receiving a constant speed control command and allows a cruise cable to actuate a throttle valve for specific opening and closing thereof.
Such a constant speed control apparatus is disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 61-291225 (1986), in which if a brake switch or relay is inoperable and thus fails to cancel (i.e. shut off) the constant speed control system when the brake is actuated, a trouble detecting arrangement detects a fault in the system and then, according to the detected information, a control arrangement actuates the throttle valve for returning it to the neutral position to thus cancel the constant speed running and ensure safe driving.
The prior art constant speed control apparatus incorporates a command switch acting as a control switch and a cancel switch acting as a reset switch and connected to a main isolator switch for the main power supply. The main power supply switch may be either activated in relation to an ignition switch or turned on and off independently of the ignition switch. Accordingly, the main power supply switch as connected and disconnected independently of the ignition switch is commonly kept closed for the purpose of constant power supply to the control arrangement. As a result, when the running speed of the vehicle exceeds a specified speed with the control switch (e.g. a set switch) being turned on, the vehicle continues to run at an incremental (i.e. varying) speed or at a constant speed but under no control, thus creating a disadvantage in the control.
A primary object of the present invention is to overcome the aforesaid problem by enabling a vehicle constant speed control apparatus to detect, at an early stage, a malfunction wherein the control switch is closed at the time the main power supply switch is switched on and to stop (i.e. shut off or deactivate) the constant speed control of the vehicle so that the vehicle can be prevented from running under no control, thus improving its safety.

Examination device in a vehicle constant speed control apparatus


An information processing apparatus that converts PDL data into PDL data having a hierarchical structure is provided. The information processing apparatus: acquires the number of records in PDL data and creates a template including nodes in a record layer, which correspond to records in a one-to-one relationship and are equal to the number of records, based on the number of records; inputs PDL data and acquires relational information indicating the relation between a page and a record both included in PDL data; adds nodes in a lower layer of the record layer, which are linked with the nodes in the record layer included in the created template, and sets attribute information about PDL data to each of the nodes in the lower layer of the record layer; and maps each page included in PDL data to each node in the lower layer of the record layer based on relational information.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, a PDL data conversion method, and a storage medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, the Print On Demand (hereinafter abbreviated as "POD") market has been expanding along with an increase in print speed and image quality of electrophotographic and inkjet digital printers. In general, POD is a service for printing electronic data with use of a digital printer, and POD enables performing relatively small-lot print jobs in a shorter turnaround time than when conventional offset printing or the like is used.
With POD, a printing method known as variable data printing (hereinafter abbreviated as "VDP") is performed, which takes advantage of the characteristic that electronic data is used. A collection of logical information such as page layout, data source, or the like required for one VDP is referred to as a "VDP document". A VDP document is divided into a fixed portion and a variable portion. An information processing apparatus that performs print processing for a VDP document acquires data for the variable portion from a data source such as an RDB (Relational Database) or a CSV (Comma Separated Values) file. The information processing apparatus associates a column (field) in the data source with a variable portion in a template document, and applies data in that column of the data source row-by-row (record-by-record), thus enabling printing slightly different content each time.
The application of VDP enables creating, for example, direct mail in which product information to be provided changes in accordance with customer information. Printing by changing product information to be provided in accordance with customer information is performed so that a higher advertising effect than normal printing can be provided.
Here, the physical electronic data of a VDP document is referred to as "VDP data". The application or the system for creating VDP data is referred to as a "VDP data producer". The application or the system for performing interpretation processing for VDP data and outputting VDP data using a digital printing machine is referred to as a "VDP data consumer".
As VDP data, electronic data described in arbitrary page description language (hereinafter abbreviated as "PDL") may be employed. However, VDP data described in PDL exclusively for VDP (hereinafter referred to as a "VDP language") is advantageous in terms of processing efficiency. This is because the VDP language enables the description such that an object of the fixed portion of a VDP document (hereinafter referred to as a "fixed object") is defined in advance so as to refer to the fixed object later. When the VDP language is subjected to print processing using a VDP data processing system, the VDP data processing system holds the result of interpretation processing for each fixed object, and copies the result of interpretation processing each time the fixed object is referred to. This increases the speed of processing for the entire VDP data.
Among the VDP languages, a PPML (Personalized Print Markup Language) can express the structure of a document using a hierarchical structure. The structure of a document indicates a semantic unit of pages in a document. For example, the structure of a document has a semantic unit such as one record in VDP, the front cover and the text therein, the chapter configuration in the text, or the like.
The expression of the structure of a document by means of PDL is effective for a user of an information processing apparatus for performing image formation processing to make print settings. In general, JDF (Job Definition Format) is often used for making print settings.
Here, assume the case where a user controls printing using PDL by which the structure of a document cannot be expressed. When JDF is used for making print settings, a user makes print settings for each page or a group of pages. For example, when a user wishes to make print settings for "chapter 2" in a document consisting of a plurality of chapters, the user must make print settings for "chapter 2" with knowledge of pages in "chapter 2".
On the other hand, assume the case where a user controls printing using PDL by which the structure of a document can be expressed. When JDF is used for making print settings, a user can make print settings for a semantic unit by the utilization of the structure of a document. For example, a user can make print settings for a document consisting of a plurality of chapters, such as print settings for printing only pages to which a meaning of "chapter 2" has been given, print settings for using a high quality paper sheet for only a page to which a meaning of "front cover" has been given and using plain papers for other pages.
Even when reprinting is performed according to another print setting, creation of a new JDF using a print setting method using JDF is not troublesome. In other words, in the print setting method using JDF, a user who makes print settings does not need to examine that which page belongs to which chapter one-by-one, which is very convenient for a user who makes print settings. Specifically, print settings can be made using PDL by which the structure of a document can be expressed at a higher concept than making print settings using PDL by which the structure of a document cannot be expressed, which is convenient for a user.
In the work flow of POD, PDF (Portable Document Format) is generally used as print data. Thus, PDF is also often used for VDP. Also, there is a format called "PDF/X" that facilitates data exchange and printing by imposing various limitations to PDF. PDF/X is also widely used as print data. However, since PDF and PDF/X are not VDP languages, it was impossible to perform high-speed print processing and make print settings using a higher concept.
Accordingly, International Organization for Standard (hereinafter abbreviated as "ISO") developed PDF/VT, which is PDL to which the function of VDP has been added based on PDF/X, in 2010.
In PDF/VT, the processing performed by a print processing system can be made more efficient by referring to the definition of a rendering object in a document plural times. PDF/VT has a page object structuring function and a metadata setting function. The page object structuring function is realized by a DPart (Document Part) hierarchical structure and the metadata setting function is realized by DPM (DPart Metadata). A group of any key and value can be set in DPM. A meaning can be given to DPart by setting a group of a key and a value in DPM. As a result of which, a user can make print settings for DPart instead of each page under the condition of metadata set in DPM.
For print data or a paper document, the prior art for giving a meaning to a document using the existing PDF function has been proposed. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-289357 discloses a method for setting additional information to be added to each component such as images, graphics, text, and the like constituting print data upon conversion of print data into PDF. Also, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2010-109420 discloses an image forming apparatus that sets a chapter divding mark to the read original document image as wished by a user, and stores the electronic document of the original document added with link information at the chapter diving mark thereof. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2008-269261 discloses an information processing apparatus that analyzes a print job created on the basis of a plurality of records to thereby detect the boundary of the records.
For print data or a paper document, the prior art for giving a meaning to a document using the existing PDF function only marks a certain position in a document or gives a meaning to an object using the existing PDF function such as "book mark", "annotation", or the like. The PDF function "book mark" does not indicate a range of pages in a PDF document but indicates an arbitrary position in a PDF document. Also, the PDF function "annotation" is to mainly add a comment or the like to text, and is not intended to structure pages. In other words, the prior art cannot structure pages, and thus, a user cannot make print settings using information to which a meaning has been given by the prior art.
In order to make print settings more flexibly while using a print work flow by means of the already-widely used PDF or PDF/X, using PDF/VT as print data is the most effective solving means. However, flexible print settings cannot be made for data of which the format has already been set to PDF.
In the actual POD work site, in order to save the need for the operation of a print operator, PDF data in which only pages having the same print settings has been collected from the entire print jobs and print setting data are created for each print setting so as to perform separate printing. However, in such a print work flow, it is difficult to perform on-line finishing or the like. Accordingly, it is desired that a PDF data group or a PDF/X data group representing one print job be converted into one PDF/VT. In PDF/VT obtained by the conversion, the page structure of a PDF data group or a PDF/X data group to be input must be properly expressed by the DPart hierarchical structure of PDF/VT to be output.
Conventionally, there has not been proposed an information processing apparatus that converts PDL data such as a PDF data group or the like into PDL data having a hierarchical structure such as PDF/VT or the like such that the page structure of the input PDL data is properly expressed by the hierarchical structure of the output PDL data.

Information processing apparatus, PDL data conversion method, and storage medium


A method for evaluating an alarm system for continuous or semi-continuous processes that gives an indication of the actual loading on the operator. A transformations is applied to a data set consisting of alarms and associated times, resulting in the data being much more amenable to common techniques of statistical quality control. The technique requires only a history of alarm events, and the transformation has a strong intuitive appeal.

1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to a transformation of industrial process alarm occurrence data so that it will be suitable for standard statistical quality control analysis.
2. Discussion of Prior Art
Industrial processes are typically monitored and controlled by computers, which scan hundreds or thousands of process measurements. Associated with each measurement may be one or more alarm limits, which notify the plant operator that the plant requires special attention when the measurement exceeds the limit. A common problem in many plants is that many alarms from different measurements may occur close to one another in time, so that the operator is overwhelmed with alarms and loses effectiveness at controlling the plant. Indeed, a contributing or direct cause of many plant upsets have been due to the overwhelming number of alarms that have been presented to the operator.
This situation is of concern in industry, and there are guidelines as to the maximum amount of alarms in a given time period that an operator can handle and still be effective. In particular, the manual Alarm Systems, A Guide to Design, Management, and Procurement (EEMUA, 1999) contains numerical values of acceptable alarm metrics that have been widely adapted (but perhaps not met) by industry.
There are several software packages that will plot a statistical quality control run chart on the number of alarms per given time period, and compare these values with the EEMUA recommended values. FIG. 1 is an example of such a run chart. Often, industrial software will have the points in the run chart replaced by bars, but the two formats are essentially equivalent.
It is apparent from FIG. 1 that the number of alarms per hour is a stochastic process, and that the techniques of statistical quality control provide a suitable framework for tracking and analyzing alarm system performance. Statistical quality control techniques are widely used in industry and provide a solid theoretical framework for interpreting stochastic processes.
Suitable confidence intervals may be superimposed on the run chart, in which case it would be termed a control chart. These confidence limits give some indication whether the measurement is within acceptable limits, given the capabilities of the process, or whether attention should be given to correct the process. Statistical quality control techniques also imply a probabilistic quality to the measurement—a measurement may be outside acceptable limits due to chance alone, and not to some actual shift in the process.
There is a fundamental difficulty in interpreting the plot of alarm occurrences over time. Typically, what is found in alarm systems is that there may be some time periods where the number of alarms is considerably above the median number of alarms. Almost always, this high number is due to the occurrence of a chattering alarm. A chattering alarm occurs when the process measurement hovers close to an alarm limit, so that random movement in the process causes the alarm to go rapidly on and off as the process crosses the alarm limit. Tens or hundreds of alarms may be generated in a short period from a chattering alarm.
Interpretation of the run chart or control chart is difficult with the inclusion of the alarm chatters. It is difficult to see any trend in the data, and the plot scaling is such that the number of alarms during "normal" operation are too small to be observed on the plot.
However, several alarm events from one chattering alarm are fundamentally different than several alarm events from different alarms, as the load on the operator differs. There are 2 reasons for this:                1. The operator response for a chattering alarm is roughly the same as if the alarm had rung only once. In other words, a chattering alarm indicates that the process is at, or close to, an alarm condition, and that the operator needs to make moves to get the process back to a non-alarm condition.        2. There may be little difference in the indication of a chattering alarm as compared to a non-chattering one (a chattering alarm may have an indication that flashes on and off; a non chattering one would have an indication that stays on).
So a sequence of chattering alarms is, as far as the operator is concerned, effectively the same as a single alarm. However, the run chart does not differentiate between a multitude of alarms from a chattering alarm and a multitude of alarms from different measurements, and therefore does not represent the true load on the operator.
From a statistical viewpoint, an assumption underlying statistical quality control charts for typical alarm data sets is not valid—the statistical distribution of the alarm counts is not normally distributed. FIG. 2 is a histogram for the data of FIG. 1, which indicates that there is a roughly normal distribution centered around 18, with another peak at 100. It is possible to develop statistical quality control charts for certain non-normal distributions (Jacobs, 1990), but these are generally of the uni-modal distributions (i.e., Gamma or Poisson); there are no suitable statistical quality control techniques for multi-modal distributions such as shown in FIG. 2.
Furthermore, a chattering alarm may be thought of as an equipment failure, and these equipment failures are not apparent from the run chart of all alarm counts. What is required is a separate run chart denoting the number of these failures versus time. This would also be a statistical quality control run chart, except that the underlying distribution would be a Poisson distribution rather than a normal distribution.
Evaluation of alarm settings was discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,618,691, where the purpose was to determine the best alarm setting that would give an operator adequate warning without excessive "false" alarms (i.e., alarming during normal variation). However, this technique looked at only a single alarm setting and process measurement at a time, did not consider the case of chattering alarms, and did not consider the total amount of alarms presented to the operator.
Standard Statistical Quality Control (SQC) techniques can be used to ascertain whether the process itself is in an alarm condition (see for example U.S. Pat. No. 5,257,206), but using SQC to track the number of alarms is unique to this application and is not considered in this or other references.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,308,141 pertains to analyzing the number and time of alarms on an injection molding machine to determine the state of the process. Statistical quality control is one of the methods employed, but the process was specific to injection modeling machine, and the statistical analysis of the alarms was only performed to determine characteristics of the operation, not to characterize the alarm system itself.
Statistical process control was one of the technologies employed to determine alarm thresholds in U.S. Pat. No. 7,076,695. The methods were applicable to non-normal statistical distributions, but again the purpose was to determine whether a process was in alarm, not to measure the performance of the alarm system itself.
Incorporation of statistical concepts into tracking the number of process alarms then is the crux of the problem addressed by this invention. Specifically, the use of a transformation results in a normally-distributed data set and a Poisson-distributed data set that are amenable to statistical quality control techniques.

Statistical quality control of alarm occurrences


The mallet putter head in this present invention is comprised of a body cast in 304 stainless steel having a smooth putting face with a 3 degree loft and also balancing weights starting at the putter face and continuing to the rear curve of the putter head giving a proper look, weight and feel. There are three painted grooves perpendicular to the putter face to assist the golfer in aligning the putter to the intended line of the putt. A hole just smaller than a golf ball is also provided that will assist the golfer in aligning the putt. The sole of the putter is curved to permit easy movement of the putter head in the pendulum swing and also in or out in front of the body. The rear end of the putter allows the golfer to pick up a golf ball, if desired.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention generally pertains to the development of a golf mallet putter head that can be used with a conventional hand putter, a belly putter and a chest putter.
2. Prior Art
There have been many mallet putter heads developed over the years each with their own characteristics in a variety of materials, shapes and sizes. See Information Disclosure Statement.


A rope structure comprising a plurality of fibers combined to form a plurality of yarns which are in turn combined to form a plurality of strands. The plurality of strands are combined using a single braid process to form the rope structure defining a void space. At least one of the fibers, the yarns, and the strands are configured substantially to reduce a volume of the void space and thereby maintain a shape of the rope structure when the rope structure is under load.

Rope is often used to displace an object. The object is supported by a distal portion of the rope, and a proximal portion of the rope is displaced to place the rope under tension and thereby displace the load. To displace the proximal portion of the rope, a winch device is often used. Examples of winch devices include a drum or spool winch, a windlass, and a capstan. The winch device may be human powered or motorized. In either case, the winch provides a mechanical advantage. When human powered, although human effort is required, the winch eliminates the need to grip the rope. When motorized, the winch eliminates the need for human effort altogether.
A winch typically defines an engaging surface that can take many forms. For a winch employing a drum or spool, the engaging surface is essentially cylindrical, often having side walls. For a winch in the form of a capstan or windlass, the engaging surface can be cylindrical or can define an annular cavity the cross-sectional area of which decreases towards the axis of rotation.
With any form of winch, at least an active portion of the rope is wound around the drum such that, when the drum is rotated about a longitudinal drum axis, friction causes a working portion of the rope under tension to be displaced along a pulling axis. For many winch systems, a stored portion of the rope can be stored on the drum; for other winch systems, such as when the winch takes the form of a capstan or windlass, the stored portion of the rope is stored separate from the winch. The friction may be between the active portion of the rope and the engaging surface or between the active portion of the rope and a stored portion of the rope already wound around the drum.
Loads on the active portion of a rope that is being displaced using a winch thus include tension loads that extend between the winch and the load, bearing loads directed radially inwardly towards the axis of the winch, and compression loads directed inwardly towards the longitudinal axis of any portion of the rope.
In the case of a winch having a drum or spool, the active portion of the rope engages the stored portion of the rope wrapped around the drum or spool. The stored portion of the rope defines shallow grooves between adjacent stored portions. The bearing loads on the active portion of the rope tend to pull the active portion of the rope down into these grooves. Compression loads on the active portion of the rope tend to deform the active portion of the rope to fit into the grooves formed by the stored portion of the rope. As the spool turns, the active portion of the rope is wound onto the drum and becomes the stored portion. The stored portion is no longer under significant tension load, but still may lie within a groove.
In another case, the rope may be taken up by a capstan or windlass having a friction surface defined by an annular V-shaped groove. The active portion of the rope is fed into the V-shaped groove. The slanted sides defining the V-shaped groove increase friction between the capstan or windlass and the rope but apply compression loads on the active portion of the rope. These compression loads tend to deform the rope such that the rope is forced towards the bottom of the V-shaped groove.
Accordingly, one or both of the active portion and the stored portion of the rope may be forced into a groove and become bound within the winch. When a rope is bound within the winch, the displacement of rope by the winch or the removal of the stored portion of the rope from the winch may be disrupted.
The need thus exists for rope structures and rope displacement systems and methods for lifting, lowering, and/or pulling ropes that are less susceptible to binding when displacing rope using a winch or unwinding rope from a winch.

Rope structures and rope displacement systems and methods for lifting, lowering, and pulling objects