A pressure regulator is provided. In one embodiment, the pressure regulator includes a housing having a supply port for receiving a pressurized medium within the housing and an outlet port for outputting the pressurized medium to a downstream device. The housing of this embodiment also includes a vent port for venting the pressurized medium from the housing. The pressure regulator of this embodiment further includes two pistons disposed within the housing, wherein one piston controls flow of the pressurized medium through the supply port, and the other piston controls flow of the pressurized medium through the vent port, based on the level of pressure within the housing. Other embodiments of pressure regulator devices and systems are also provided.

This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present invention, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
As will be appreciated, supplies of oil and natural gas have a profound effect on modern economies and civilizations. Devices and systems that depend on oil and natural gas are ubiquitous. For instance, oil and natural gas are used for fuel in a wide variety of vehicles, such as cars, airplanes, boats, and the like. Further, oil and natural gas are frequently used to heat homes during winter, to generate electricity, and to manufacture an astonishing array of everyday products.
In order to meet the demand for these resources, companies often spend a significant amount of time and money searching for and extracting oil, natural gas, and other subterranean resources from the earth. Particularly, once a desired resource is discovered below the surface of the earth, a drilling system is often employed to access and extract the resource. These drilling systems may be located onshore or offshore depending on the location of a desired resource. Further, such systems include a wide array of components, such as valves, that control drilling or extraction operations. Often, some of these components are controlled through pressure variation, such as that provided by a hydraulic control system.
In some such systems, a hydraulic pressure regulator is used to provide a fluid at a regulated pressure to downstream components, such as solenoid valves. One common type of hydraulic pressure regulator has a control piston that moves back and forth to open and close both supply ports and vent ports of the regulator in response to the magnitude of pressure within the regulator. As the functionality of an entire drilling system may depend on proper operation of the hydraulic pressure regulator, it is generally desirable to employ a pressure regulator that is both durable and sensitive to changes in pressure. Further, when such a regulator is employed in a subsea application, halting production from the system to replace an underwater pressure regulator may be particularly undesirable.
There is a need, therefore, for a pressure regulator that provides increased sensitivity to changes in pressure within the regulator and increased reliability.


Various systems and methods of handling items such as files are disclosed, including systems and methods for polling RFID-tagged items while they are stored in storage areas.

At least two patent publications describe the use of radio frequency identification (RFID) systems for document or file management. One is U.S. Pat. No. 5,689,238 (Cannon, Jr. et al.), which according to its abstract describes methods and systems for locating objects using electronic tags that are attached to the object before it is stored. To locate the object, the response code associated with the tag on that object is entered into an interrogator, and the interrogator sends a signal that causes the tag to emit a sound, or a signal.
Another publication is PCT published application WO 00/16280, and specifically at page 23, line 11 through page 24, line 5. That portion of the PCT publication references a filing cabinet having drawers, each of which stores file folders. The file folders may be provided with an RFID tag. In use, a controller sequentially polls antennae in the drawers of the filing cabinet. The controller detects response signals or codes, and thus can determine which files are in the drawers.
The present invention is related to improvements in fields of this type.

Radio frequency identification in document management


An access control system such as a telephone entry system (TES) capable of seamlessly transmitting facsimile log reports to remote locations for storage. Alarms are selected such that upon an occurrence of an alarm, the access control system will send a fax to the selected phone number with information about the alarm situation and, for example, all the transaction information within the memory. Alarm situations can include, for example, a number of transactions, a specific person accessed, or code being used, a specific time of day, a specific time since the last alarm situation, a door staying open, and/or a door being forced open. Log information may be sent to an office located in a building that is remote from the access control system. This information may be sent in a standard format to any location around the world.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to access control systems and more particularly to reporting activity on an access control system.
2. Background Description
Apartment buildings, office buildings, condominium complexes, gated residential communities, industrial parks and other secured locations often include an entrance access control system. One type of access control system, known as a telephone entry system (TES), provides building security as well as tenant access control to a particular building, apartment complex, etc. The access control system controls entry at one or more other building entry points, e.g., doors, garage doors, etc. A typical access control system includes a main control unit located at a primary entrance and, depending on the size of the structure or area being monitored, additional remote units may be provided to control remotely located doors. The access control system may also monitor the connected entry points for unauthorized access. For a TES type access control system visitors wishing to enter the building/complex contact tenants or other building personnel over the TES, that are capable of admitting the visitor by remotely unlocking the entrance, e.g., from the tenant""s apartment.
The main control unit controls the main building entrance and may include a keypad and auto-dialer and be connected to a public telephone line. Remote units, typically communicate with the main unit to provide remote access to authorized personnel. The main unit can identify tenants seeking entry by a personal access code, authorize entry, monitor for unauthorized entry at the remote doors, etc. A tenant directory may be displayed on the control unit itself or on an adjacent sign. The directory includes tenant codes that are corresponding directory code numbers for each person, business or for other entities in the building (e.g., corporate departments, business employees, or other building tenants) authorized to unlock the entrances.
When a visitor enters a tenant code into the keypad, the main control unit automatically dials the corresponding tenant""s telephone number. Then, the called tenant has an opportunity to establish the identity of the visitor. The tenant, using the same everyday telephone upon which the call was received, unlocks the entrance, e.g., by pressing a predetermined number on the telephone keypad.
Some state of the art access control systems generate alarm calls under various conditions. If the access control system senses the door it has control over is forced open, an alarm call may be generated. If the same door is opened by the access control system but fails to close after a specified amount of time, an alarm call may be generated. Occasionally, someone may randomly enter codes at the keypad in the hope of discovering an entry code. To prevent this, a count of the number of invalid sequential codes may be maintained. If a maximum false entry count is met, an alarm call may be generated.
Normally, an alarm call is made by dialing a telephone number and, then, periodically beeping until the person answering the call presses a digit on a dual tone multifrequency (DTMF) telephone. A next level of alarm call may be voice. At this level the system states xe2x80x9cALARM DOOR 1.xe2x80x9d Again, the alarm process is terminated in response to pressing a digit from the answering telephone. The next alarm call level is a modem call. At this level the access control system uses the modem to call another modem and then, transmits a detailed description of the alarm call. The originating modem identifies the originating unit experiencing the alarm condition.
Some access control systems may log entries/exits or a number of other selected events. Typically, a history log, e.g., of the last 2000 such events, may be maintained in system memory. Should the need arise to review authorized and/or unauthorized building entries, such a history log may prove to be an invaluable tool, provided the events of interest remain in memory. Often, the event log may be too short to contain enough history to establish a telltale trend, e.g., relating the comings and goings of a single missing tenant of a 200 tenant complex.
Periodically saving a printed log for storage may just present the complex manager with another apparently unnecessary task. Unnecessary, that is, until that one event occurs where reviewing the logs is a priority. It may be very tempting, rather than collecting the printouts and sending them to storage, to just throw printouts into the trash, thinking no one will ever notice.
Thus, there is a need for a way to automatically send system alarm calls and other log information to the proper authorities or other authorized personnel for attention, processing and/or storage.
It is a purpose of the present invention to facilitate access control system long term record retention;
It is another purpose of the invention to automatically provide access control system history for storage to selected remote locations.
The present invention is an access control system such as a telephone entry system (TES) capable of seamlessly transmitting facsimile log reports to remote locations for storage. Alarms are selected such that upon an occurrence of an alarm, the access control system will send a fax to a selected phone number, sending information about the alarm situation and, for example, all the transaction information within system memory. Alarm situations may include, for example, a set number of transactions, a specific person accessed, a code being used, a specific time of day, a specific passage of time since the last alarm situation, a door staying open, and/or a door being forced open. Log information may be sent to an office located in a building that is remote from the access control system. This information may be sent in a standard (fax) format to any location around the world.
Advantageously, faxing the alarm information allows using standard communications over potentially long distances.

Access control system having a programmable automatic notification feature


A displaceable sidewall of an infant crib made from outwardly rotatable bi-fold door sets that cooperate to open outward to provide limited or complete access to the bed space. Each of the doors has a latch mechanism to retain the doors in a closed position and the central doors have a locking pin for maintaining the integrity of the sidewall when closed and locked.

In recent years the safety of infant cribs has come into question. A variety of additional safety concerns have been identified and a new set of safety standards have been implemented. To this end, the previously, long known and used, drop-down sidewall has been disallowed for continued sale and use. Infant cribs now are required to have either fixed height side walls or sides that can be lowered but retain a minimum height above the mattress or mattress support deck. This has resulted in the redesign of infant cribs without a drop-down side for ease of access into the crib for the parent or caretaker.
The infant crib has been designed to allow for the vertical repositioning of the mattress and support deck as the child grows such that the support deck is lowered as the infant grows into a toddler. Some of the infant cribs, in addition to the mattress height adjustment, also convert to a youth bed so that the furniture can be used for a longer period of time. Other versions of the new crib designs have fold-down sides which are horizontally hinged, above a fixed lower section of the sidewall, along the top of the entire lower section of the sidewall from corner post to corner post with locking latches positioned at each post. This provides for slightly better access to the bed surface and the infant or toddler, but still constitutes a pinching hazard at the hinge point as the sidewall is folded back and locked into its vertical position.
It is, therefore, one object of the present invention to provide for greater ease of access to the infant bed surface and to the infant by creating either a partial or an entire sidewall opening along one side of the crib without the possibility of a pinching hazard. It is also an object of the present invention to provide only as much access to the infant bed surface as is required, so that only a part of the sidewall may be opened at any given time.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide individual locking elements to permit each section of the sidewall to be opened or to remain in its locked and closed position. It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a hinging system between each of the operable door sets and the infant crib that is pinch-proof so that this type of hazard is eliminated entirely. It is yet another object to provide latching mechanisms that are operable only from the exterior of the crib and that reset automatically when released.
It is also another object of the present invention to provide temporary door retention mechanisms to retain one or more of the doors in the open position so that the door does not move and impede access to the crib. In addition, it is another object of the present invention to provide door stops so the operable doors cannot be pushed into the crib and over the bed surface preventing any possible injury to an infant occupant.
Other objects will appear hereinafter.

Infant crib having paired sets of vertically hinged doors for creating opening along entire sidewall


A network device includes computing resources for utilization by processes hosted by the network device and a computing resources manager. The computing resources manager automatically instantiate a new instance of a first process of the processes upon termination of the first process; makes a determination that the network device has entered an out of computing resources state; and in response to the determination: performs an action set to increase a quantity of the computing resources that are available for allocation to the processes.

Computing devices may utilize computing resources to perform their functionality. For example, computing devices may utilize processing resources to execute instructions, memory resources to temporarily store data, storage resources to store data long term, etc.
Computing devices may include a limited quantity of computing resources. For example, computing devices may include a finite number of processors that provide processing resources, memory modules that provide memory resources, storage devices that provide storage resources, etc.

System and method for managing low computing resource state


A packaged vertical semiconductive device including a compressive stress and a method of making such a packaged vertical semiconductive device are disclosed. In one embodiment an assembled device includes a carrier, a connection layer disposed on the carrier, the connection layer having a first height, and a chip disposed on the connection layer, the chip having a second height, wherein the second height is smaller than the first height.

Packaging and assembly constitute the last phase of a single or multiple chip fabrication. Packaging and assembly provide mechanical and electrical connections between a chip and a chip carrier and a protective enclosure against mechanical, chemical or irradiation induced damage.
Thermo-mechanical stress induced defects such as layer delamination, crack formation or solder joint failures typically provide potential reliability problems for component lifetimes.

Packaged vertical power device comprising compressive stress and method of making a packaged vertical power device


A system and method for provisioning mobile clients on a network for use of network service applications via a provisioning Web service. At least one mobile terminal is coupled to at least one network service via the mobile client provisioning Web service. The provisioning Web service provides a single point of interface to the network service for provisioning the mobile terminal. The mobile terminal is provisioned by the provisioning Web service for use of at least one application provided by the network services where the provisioning includes at least configuring the mobile terminal for use of the application, and delivering the application to the mobile terminal.

The modern communications era has brought about a tremendous expansion of wireline and wireless networks. Computer networks, television networks, and telephony networks are experiencing an unprecedented technological expansion, fueled by consumer demand. Wireless and mobile networking technologies have addressed related consumer demands, while providing more flexibility and immediacy of information transfer.
Current and future networking technologies continue to facilitate ease of information transfer and convenience to users. The proliferation of local, regional, and global networks such as the Internet has availed a sea of information to society. These networking technologies have expanded to increasingly include wireless and mobile technologies. Through these networks, information can be downloaded to desktop systems, wireless systems, mobile systems, etc. For example, information available via the Internet can now be downloaded onto mobile wireless units, such as cellular telephones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), laptop computers, etc. One such technology facilitating the transfer of Internet content to and from wireless devices is the Wireless Application Protocol (WAP), which integrates the Internet and other networks with wireless network platforms. Generally, WAP is a set of protocols that accounts for characteristics and functionality of both Internet standards and standards for wireless services. It is independent of wireless network standards, and is designed as an open standard. WAP bridges the gap between the wireline Internet paradigm and the wireless domain, to allow wireless device users to enjoy the benefits of the Internet across both platforms.
Second generation wireless service, often referred to as 2G wireless service, is a current wireless service based on circuit-switched technology. 2G systems, such as Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) and Personal Communications Services (PCS), use digital radio technology for improved quality and a broader range of services over first generation mobile technologies. 3G, or third generation, refers to a set of digital technologies that promises improvements in capacity, speed and efficiency by deploying new packet-based transmission methodologies between terminals and the network. Users of 3G devices and networks will have access to multimedia services such as video-on-demand, video conferencing, fast web access and file transfer. Existing and future services are, and will continue to be, provided by network service operators who make services and applications available to mobile device users via the network.
With the introduction of new mobile services such as WAP, Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS), calendar and contact synchronization, as well as a multitude of other possibilities, the number of servers and portals providing services for mobile Internet terminals continues to expand. Further, there is an increasing number of features associated with these services, such as support for multimedia, location-based services, electronic payments, etc. Thus, new terminals supporting new network technologies and mobile Internet services will continuously be taken into use, often as replacement devices for existing subscribers. The new terminals will increasingly require new or updated configuration settings before they can successfully connect to the network servers that offer applications over the network.
However, mobile terminals are by nature limited devices. They typically have limited memory, storage, and processing, capabilities. Therefore, mobile devices do not include all of the components required to access new or upgraded services that may be available on the network. When a mobile user wants to utilize new services available on the network, the terminal must be configured to use those new services. Configuring a terminal to use a service on a network is generally referred to as "provisioning" the terminal. Provisioning may be performed upon initial setup of a mobile device, or may also be performed to upgrade services and applications already being used at that mobile device.
One traditional provisioning methodology in use today requires that a retail establishment provision the terminal for the user. This, however, is inconvenient for the user. Further, if the user decided to purchase a different terminal or upgrade services, the user is forced to return to the dealer to provision, or re-provision the terminal. More recent and advanced provisioning systems have made it possible to allow the user to initiate provisioning from the device. For example, a user may manually initiate provisioning from the device to be provisioned. Further, remote servers may instigate a communications session with a provisioning server device, and provide the provisioning server with provisioning information. For example, two existing standards for remote configuration of terminals are the WAP provisioning protocol and the SyncML device management protocol. However, both of these standards assume that components required to be configured are already existing on the mobile terminal. Other systems focus solely on the delivery of data objects to the mobile terminal.
Existing methodologies for provisioning mobile terminals thus currently involve multiple actions and multiple interfaces to the network service providing the application. This complicates provisioning, particularly where new service and utility network elements increasingly proliferate the networks.
Accordingly, there is a need in the network communications industry to unify various provisioning procedures in a common network system, in order to expedite and simplify the provisioning procedures for the network services providing applications. The present invention solves these and other shortcomings of the prior art, and offers numerous advantages over prior art provisioning systems and methodologies.


Methods and apparatus provide for a network device(s) employing tree tracer processing of a data packet(s) and/or a response(s) in order to discover and graphically represent all the paths within a hierarchical tree of network devices for multicast traffic flows. Specifically, a first network device receives a data packet. The data packet provides a multicast target MAC address. The first network device forwards the data packet to a plurality of network devices, where each of the plurality of the network devices belong to a multicast group identified according to the multicast target MAC address. Based on receipt of the data packet, the first network device generates and transmits a first response to a source of the data packet. The first response indicates a placement of the first network device with respect to a hierarchical tree of the plurality of network devices belonging to the multicast group.

The advent of Ethernet as a metropolitan-area networks (MANs) and wide area networks technology imposes a new set of Ethernet layer operation, administration, and management (OAM) requirements on Ethernet's traditional operations, which were centered on enterprise networks only. The expansion of Ethernet technology into the domain of service providers, where networks are substantially larger and more complex than enterprise networks and the user base is wider, makes operational management of link uptime crucial. More importantly, the timeliness in isolating and responding to a failure becomes mandatory for normal day-to-day operations, and OAM translates directly to the competitiveness of the service provider.
Ethernet Connectivity Fault Management (CFM or Ethernet CFM) is an end-to-end per-service-instance OAM protocol that provides proactive connectivity monitoring, fault verification, and fault isolation for large Ethernet MANs and WANs. CFM uses standard Ethernet frames. ALL CFM frames are distinguishable by EtherType and in case of multicast frames by Media Access Control (MAC) addresses. CFM frames are sourced, terminated, processed, and relayed by bridges. Bridges that cannot interpret CFM messages forward them as normal data frames. Ethernet CFM comprises three protocols that work together to help administrators debug Ethernet networks. These are: continuity check, link trace and loopback protocols.
CFM continuity check messages are "heartbeat" messages issued periodically by MEPs. They allow MEPS to detect loss of service connectivity amongst themselves. They also allow MEPs to discover other MEPs within a domain, and allow MIPs to discover MEPs. CFM link trace messages are transmitted by a MEP on the request of the administrator to track the path (hop-by-hop) to a destination MEP. CFM link trace messages allow the transmitting node to discover vital connectivity data about the path. CFM loopback messages are transmitted by a MEP on the request of the administrator to verify connectivity to a particular maintenance point. Loopback indicates whether the destination is reachable or not; it does not allow hop-by-hop discovery of the path. It is similar in concept to the concept of a "ping" message.


A tool for manipulating a tubular. The tool comprising a plurality of tool sections arranged in a stack, each tool section comprising a propellant source having an upper surface and lower surface, the upper and lower surfaces being separated by an outer surface extending around the perimeter of the propellant source, a first flame retardant material being associated with the propellant source upper surface and a second flame retardant material being associated with the propellant source lower surface. The tool further comprises at least one modifying agent provided in or adjacent the tool sections or generated by the tool sections; and an ignition mechanism for igniting the propellant source outer surface of each tool section, such that upon ignition, each propellant source is adapted to deflagrate, creating a stream of combustion products, the stream of combustion products extending around, and flowing away from, the outer surface of said propellant source.

There are situations in which it is desirable to remove a portion of casing or tubing from an oil or gas well. A typical situation may be to remove a length of casing to allow a permanent cement plug to be installed, prior to well abandonment. Current Oil and Gas UK Guidelines for the Abandonment of Wells (July 2015, Issue 5) dictate that a permanent barrier, typically a cement plug, must be formed between the reservoir and the seabed to act as one of a number of permanent barriers when a well is abandoned or plugged. This measure is intended to isolate the well and reduce the possibility of pressure migration in order to prevent hydrocarbons and other well fluids from underground reservoirs leaking past the barrier(s) and coming to surface and spilling into the sea.
In some situations, prior to installing the cement plug to abandon or plug the well, it is necessary to remove the production tubing, casing and other downhole tubulars, and the cement and other downhole fixings that secure the well to the bedrock.
Casing may also be removed to undertake a casing repair, or to expose the cement behind the casing to allow cement repair. In some cases, where cemented casing is used, for example, there may be a leak path in the cement behind the casing or between casing layers. Rectifying such a breach may also require the removal of a casing section and associated cement before forming new cement and repairing the casing.
Conventional removal of cemented casing uses, for example, milling tools or hydro-abrasive cutters which remove the casing and associated cement by gradually cutting or milling away small portions of metal and cement. These are slow processes and therefore make such an operation very expensive and time consuming.
Perforating charges have also historically been used to penetrate a casing wall, to allow fluid communication through the casing wall and to allow cementing behind. Perforations only produce small holes through the target, whereas large holes are often desirable.
International patent application number PCT/GB2015/053507, describes a tool which, in some embodiments, utilises propellant and a modifying agent to strip sections of casing. In embodiments of this tool, there is a need for relative movement between the tool and the casing to be stripped. In some circumstances this may not be possible or practical.


A volume data transmission system for transmitting volume data consisting of voxel data through a communication line includes a projection data generating section, a data selecting section, and a data transmitter section. The projection data generating section generates binary projection data from the volume data in accordance with whether predetermined significant data is included in any of voxel data along a plurality of predetermined directions in a 3-dimensional space. The data selecting section selects only voxel data having significant data corresponding to any of the binary projection data on the basis of the binary projection data. The transmitter section transmits the binary projection data and the selected voxel data.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a volume data transmission system for efficiently transmitting volume data having a 3-dimensional structure consisting of a large number of so-called voxel data.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, in an imaging system such as a computed tomography (CT) system capable of obtaining tomographic image information of a specific slice of an object, 3-dimensional image information is obtained by obtaining not only 2-dimensional tomographic image information of a slice but also tomographic image information of a plurality of adjacent slices. The 3-dimensional image information consists of volume data consisting of a group of a large number of so-called voxel data which are obtained by performing arbitrary processing including interpolation processing if necessary for tomographic image data of a plurality of adjacent slices. The tomographic image data of each slice consists of a group of a large number of pixel data. The volume data is used to perform predetermined 3-dimensional image processing, thereby displaying a tomographic image of an arbitrary section intersecting to a region constituted by the volume data, displaying a pseudo 3-dimensional image, which is a perspective image obtained when an object is viewed from various viewing points, on a 3-dimensional space on the basis of the volume data, or displaying a stereoscopic image by so-called stereoscopy.
In some conventional CT apparatuses, the pseudo volume image is displayed as follows. That is, in such systems, the volume data is constituted by voxel data consisting of gradation values (CT values) in units of voxels. These voxel data are binarized in accordance with whether they exceed a predetermined threshold level or fall within the range of a predetermined level. For example, if an object is a human body, a level between a bone and any other portion is used as a threshold for binarization. Then, gray scale gradation is given to a perspective image of the bone viewed from a virtual viewing direction arbitrarily set in a 3-dimensional space, thereby forming and displaying a stereoscopic pseudo 3-dimensional image.
In the system capable of performing image processing as described above, the volume data must be transmitted between sections constituting the system. However, since the volume data is generally constituted by a large amount of data, data transmission for performing the image processing is performed through a high-speed transmission bus in the conventional CT apparatus. A low-speed bus is not used to process the volume data because a transmission time is prolonged when a large amount of data are to be transmitted.
In a system including the above conventional CT system which can process the volume data and display a pseudo 3-dimensional image and a work station (WS), connected through a public communication line such as a telephone line or another communication line, data must be transmitted between the CT apparatus and the WS in order to display a pseudo 3-dimensional image on the basis of the volume data. In this case, the following three types of data transmission can be performed.
(a) CT slice data consisting of gray scale value data is transmitted. (Therefore, in order to transmit volume data, a large number of CT slice data or gray scale voxel data based on the CT slice data are transmitted.)
(b) Binary voxel data which is obtained by binarization is transmitted as preprocessing for forming a pseudo 3-dimensional image.
(c) Pseudo 3-dimensional image data converted from volume data is transmitted.
Processing times and evaluations of the above three methods are as follows.
(1) In method (a), assuming that one pixel consists of 16 bits and 32 image data each having 512.times.512 pixels are differentially compressed (compression ratio =70%) and transmitted at a communication rate of 9600 bps, the processing time is 512.times.512.times.32.times.16.times.70%/9600 bps=2 hours and 43 minutes.
(2) In method (b), when the data as described above are subjected to 3-dimensional processing and binarization, 256.times.256 voxels in each of which 1 pixel =1 bit can be obtained. Therefore, the processing time is 256.times.256.times.256/9600 bps=29 minutes.
(3) In method (c), since an image is transmitted every time a viewing point is changed, the processing time is 512.times.512.times.16.times.70%/9600 bps=5 minutes and 5 seconds. For this reason, the processing is stopped for a very long time every time a viewing point for displaying a 3-dimensional image is changed.
As described above, in any of the above methods, a data transmission time for displaying a 3-dimensional image based on the volume data is prolonged.


An image forming apparatus, for forming an image with plural types of dots having different densities per unit area in a same hue, including: a section to compare between a pixel value of a target pixel and a value of a prescribed threshold value matrix, and to determine, based on the comparison, whether to form a first type of dot at a position corresponding to the target pixel; a section for calculating a corrected threshold value matrix from the prescribed threshold value matrix; a section for calculating a second determining condition by reflecting the corrected threshold value matrix; and a section for determining whether to form the second type of dot, based on a target pixel value added an error with an error diffusion process and the second determining condition, at the position where the first type of dot has been determined not to be formed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, an image forming method and an image forming program, particularly to an image forming apparatus, an image forming method and an image forming program for forming an image by distribution of two or more types of dots having different densities per unit area in the same hue.
2. Background of the Invention
A printing apparatus for printing an image by a personal computer or the like is exemplified by a printer using the ink of three colors, magenta (M), cyan (C) and yellow (Y), and a printer using the ink of four colors composed of the aforementioned three colors plus black (K). Such a printer allows an image to be formed by turning on or off the dot of each hue.
In recent years, by contrast, there have appeared many types of printers wherein, in order to get a high-quality output image, inks of different densities within the same hue (e.g. dark colored ink and light colored ink) are used or different ink dot diameters are utilized so that a dot having a plurality of gradation levels in one hue is formed.
However, even if the aforementioned dots each having a plurality of gradation levels in one-hue can be formed, the image may deteriorate in some cases if these dots are not arranged adequately. For example, to get an output image having a large dot (having a large area, hence high dot density per unit area) and a small dot (having a small area, hence low dot density per unit area), binary halftone processing is applied to each dot; then the pixel values are added up. Thus, although the distribution of small dots alone (FIG. 11(a)) and distribution of large dots alone (FIG. 11(b)) are satisfactory, distribution of the overlapped dots cannot be said to be satisfactory in many cases, with the result that the graininess in the final image considerably deteriorate (FIG. 11(c)).
Solution to this problem has been found in the method wherein a plurality of types of dots having the different densities per unit area are arranged in the form associated with one another. For example, such a method is disclosed in Patent Document 1.
In Patent Document 1, dot positions for relatively high density dots per unit area are determined by dither method, dots positions for relatively low density dots per unit area are determined by error diffusion method, and when performing the error diffusion, by reflecting the quantization error caused by the processing of the relatively high density dots, good distributions of the two types of dots are obtained.
Incidentally, "two or more types of dots having different densities per unit area" includes in addition to the dots having different densities such as high density dot, mid density dot and low density dots, the dots having different dot sizes such as large dot, middle dot and small dot, and combinations of different density dots and different sized dots such as high density dot and small dot, or large dot and low density dot.
Patent Document 1: Official Gazette of Japanese Patent No. 3208777
Patent Document 2: Official Gazette of U.S. Pat. No. 6,264,300
Patent Document 3: Unexamined Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-501300
However, in the aforementioned Patent Document 1, the reflection of the quantization error is restricted to unprocessed pixels, and processed pixels cannot be reflected with the quantization error. Sometimes, this causes the case where dots are not well dispersed.
The example of this case is shown in FIG. 12. FIG. 12 is a figure of the image formed according to Patent Document 1, where the high density dots are determined by dither method, and low density dots are processed by the error diffusion method reflected with the quantization error caused by the dither method. In this method the processing is performed with repetition of the scanning direction, in the figure, from right to left and left to light, while proceeding from up to down, this movement is so called a zigzag scanning. As can be seen from FIG. 12, in the unprocessed pixel (at underside of the high density dot or down stream of right/left scanning direction) dot generation is suppressed by the influence of the error from the high density dot. However regarding the low density dots generated previously to the high density dot generation, since the influence of the error can not be reflected, the low density dots are generated at the upside or upstream scanning side of the high density dots. This causes to worsen the dispersion of the total image and to deteriorate the image quality.
Therefore, a method for obtaining better dispersion has been required.

Image formation using dots of different spatial density determined based on comparison of pixel value to threshold value matrix and error added by error diffusion


A shunt rivet for implantation in the aorta and inferior vena cava to treat chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and a method of treating chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), chronic hypoxia, hypertension, and left ventricular hypertrophy and pulmonary hypertension are diseases of the cardiopulmonary system. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema, is a slowly progressive lung disease caused primarily by smoking. In COPD, the lungs are damaged and the airways are partly obstructed, making it difficult to breath and leading to a gradual loss of lung function. Symptoms of COPD include chronic cough, excessive sputum production, low blood oxygen levels and severe disabling shortness of breath. COPD represents the fourth leading cause of death in the United States. Chronic hypoxia (reduction of oxygen supply to the body despite adequate blood flow through the body), hypertension, and left ventricular hypertrophy are related conditions which may be symptomatic of COPD or coincident with COPD.
These serious conditions affect many people, and the primary treatments are merely ameliorative. The primary treatments for COPD include avoidance of irritants such as tobacco smoke and breathing supplemental oxygen. In advanced cases of COPD, lung reduction surgery is sometimes performed, but it is not clear that it helps. There is no known cure for COPD.
An aortocaval fistula (ACF) is a rare clinical condition that can be either spontaneous (80% of the cases), related to abdominal aortic aneurysm, or the result of some trauma such as lumbar disk surgery. It is currently seen as a defect that should be cured with surgery and, possibly, stent-graft implantation in the aorta.
Contrary to this understanding, an intentionally formed aortocaval fistula appears to be a viable treatment for COPD. Recently, in our co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/820,169 filed Apr. 6, 2004, entitled Implantable Arteriovenous Shunt Device and listing John L. Faul, Toshihiko Nishimura, Peter N. Kao & Ronald G. Pearl as inventors (the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference), we propose creation of an artificial aortocaval fistula as a treatment for COPD, and we disclose the method of creating the fistula and an implantable shunt for maintaining the aortocaval fistula.
Shunts or stents for connecting blood vessels have been proposed for the treatment of coronary artery disease. Makower, Device, System And Method For Interstitial Transvascular Intervention, U.S. Pat. No. 6,746,464 (Jun. 8, 2004) (filed Oct. 28, 1998) discloses a stent with a short tubular section spanning the thickness of a coronary artery and an adjacent parallel coronary vein. This stent includes "clovers" on either end of the stent, and these clovers fold radially outwardly to obstruct movement of the stent through the vessel walls. Two clovers on the proximal end of the stent are orthogonal (relative to the radial cross section of the stent) to two clovers on the distal end of the stent, and the interconnecting wires are parallel to the longitudinal axis of the device.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Device and method for establishing an artificial arterio-venous fistula


An assembly of saw handle and saw member is provided. An end portion of the saw member is inserted into an inserting groove of the saw handle. The saw handle has stopping bars at an inserting portion and a swing arm. The end portion defines an opened hole and a closed hole. When the swing arm is moved to an eject position and not received in a receiving space of a guard portion of the saw handle, the saw member is not blocked by the swing arm and is allowed to be inserted into the inserting groove. After the saw member is inserted into the inserting groove and the swing arm is moved to a fix position, the stopping bars are respectively located in the opened hole and the closed hole, so that the saw member can be assembled with the saw handle in a convenient and rapid manner.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a saw, and more particularly to an assembly of saw handle and saw member.
Description of the Prior Art
FIG. 12 illustrates a sectional view of a conventional saw. The saw includes a saw handle 91, a fastening bracket 92, and a saw member 93. An inserting groove 911 is laterally opened on the saw handle 91, the fastening bracket 92 has an end portion 921 corresponding to the inserting groove 911, and the fastening bracket 92 further has assembling portions 922 for fixing the saw member 93. In assembling, firstly the saw member 93 is assembled with the assembling portions 922 of the fastening bracket 92, and then the end portion 921 of the fastening bracket 92 is inserted into the inserting groove 911, next the fastening bracket 92 and the saw handle 91 are fastened with each other by a screw 94, so that the saw can be assembled for further use.
However, the fastening bracket 92 is assembled with the saw member 93 followed by inserting the end portion 921 of the fastening bracket 92 into the inserting groove 911 of the saw handle 91 and fastening the assembled structure with screws 94. The assembling of the conventional saw is complicated, resulting in inconvenience for the user.
The present invention is, therefore, arisen to obviate or at least mitigate the above mentioned disadvantages.


A circuit for controlling the temperature of a system by sensing a temperature is disclosed. The circuit includes a heater heated by a given control signal, a thermistor installed around the heater and having variable resistivity according to an environmental temperature, a temperature sensing circuit for supplying a supply voltage of a given level to either one terminal of the thermistor and generating a temperature detecting voltage corresponding to the variation of resistivity of the thermistor, a disconnection detecting circuit connected between the supply voltage and a ground voltage, for generating a disconnection state signal in response to the current cutoff of the other terminal of the thermistor, a temperature state detecting circuit for generating a temperature state signal by comparing the temperature detecting voltage with a preset reference voltage, and a heater control circuit connected to receive the disconnection state and temperature state signals generated respectively from the disconnection detecting and temperature state detecting circuits, for controlling the heater.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a heating control circuit, and more particularly, to a process and a circuit for controlling the temperature of an electronic system to a preset temperature by sensing a disconnection of a temperature sensor located within the electronic system having a heating element such as a heater.
2. Background Art
Generally, electronic systems such as, by way of example, laser beam printers, laser array printers, copiers, photomultilithographic duplicators, facsimile telecommunication units, and other office machines, perform a predetermined operation using an input of a supply voltage, and execute a corresponding operation in response to an exterior command. Typically, these electronic systems have a heater for preparing the operation of the system, and the heater maintains the temperature of a fusing unit to a preset temperature in order to fuse a developing material, called toner, onto copying or printing paper during a copying or printing operation. As is well known in the art, if the temperature of the fusing unit positioned within the system has been not preheated to the preset temperature, the toner will not be fused onto the copying or printing paper. Therefore, office machines with a heater must both heat the fusing unit by appropriately driving the heater during a stand-by mode and lower the temperature of the fusing unit by controlling the heater to not drive the heater whenever the fusing unit is in an overheated state.
In such laser beam printers or copiers, the temperature of the fusing unit is about 150.degree. C. during a stand-by state and about 180.degree. C. during a printing state. The temperature of the fusing unit is controlled by a heater control circuit for controlling the temperature of the heater to a temperature within the range of 150.degree.-180.degree. C., in response to the output of a temperature sensor for sensing the temperature of the fusing unit. Therefore, office machines having a heater necessarily include a temperature sensor for sensing the temperature of the interior of the system in order to appropriately control the temperature. Moreover, the heater control circuit controls the temperature of the heater to a preset temperature in response to the output of the temperature sensor, in order to adjust the temperature of the fusing unit.
The system including the heater control circuit for controlling the temperature of the fusing unit in response to the output of the temperature sensor has a circuit for checking the temperature sensor in order to prevent the fusing unit from overheating. That is, if the temperature sensor is disconnected or separated from a connector, an error in detection of the temperature of the temperature sensor will occur; if the heater control circuit continuously the heater energizes, the temperature of the fusing unit will overheat, and as a result, a fire may occur. Therefore, a system with the heater should have a heating control circuit for preventing the fusing unit from overheating.
One design of a heating control circuit for preventing the fusing unit from overheating uses a thermistor to sense the temperature of the heater and generates a temperature detecting voltage corresponding thereto with a preset disconnection detecting voltage circuit and produces a disconnection signal when the disconnection detecting voltage is greater than the temperature detecting voltage.
Such a circuit shown can not easily detect the disconnection of the thermistor, and as a result, it is difficult to accurately control the temperature of the fusing unit. That is, when the thermistor is disconnected or the ambient temperature is very low, for example, about 5.degree. C., the level of the temperature detecting voltage is nearly the same. In more detail, if the thermistor is displaced, dislodged or disconnected from proximity to the fusing unit, or if the ambient temperature is very low, the temperature detecting voltage is very high, and thus, it is difficult to set the disconnection detecting voltage so as to accommodate a range of values of the temperature detecting voltage that corresponds to a very low ambient temperature.


A continuously variable transmission as a speed change unit is inclined such that an upper portion of the transmission is displaced more than a lower portion of the transmission toward one side in a lateral direction of a vehicle body. Thereby, a space on the other side of the upper portion of the transmission in a vehicle body frame is enlarged, and a muffler is arranged in the space. The vehicle body frame may an inverted trapezoid shape, when viewed in a longitudinal direction, with an imaginary line connecting upper ends of left and right vertical frames as an upper base and an imaginary line connecting lower ends of the vertical frames as a lower base. Inside the trapezoid, a longitudinally oriented long muffler is arranged in a vicinity of one of the upper left and right corners of the trapezoid.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a working vehicle in which a muffler reducing engine exhaust sound is arranged at a rear portion of a traveling vehicle body.
2. Description of Related Art
As a working vehicle configured as described above, Related Art 1 discloses a configuration in which a drive unit, in which an engine and a transmission case is connected, is arranged at a rear position of a traveling vehicle body, and a muffler is arranged at a position above the drive unit and below a cargo bed. The muffler has a cylindrical shape and is arranged in an orientation having an axis of the cylindrical shape in a longitudinal direction. The muffler is configured in a manner that an exhaust gas of an engine is supplied to a front end of the muffler and the exhaust gas is discharged from a rear end of the muffler.
Related Art 2 discloses a configuration in which a drive unit configured by an engine and a transmission case is arranged at a rear position of a traveling vehicle body, and, in this working vehicle, a pair of left and right long longitudinal frames that constitute a vehicle main frame are arranged at rear positions of the traveling vehicle body, and the drive unit is arranged in a space surrounded by the pair of left and right long frames in a plan view.
Related Art 2 discloses a configuration in which a muffler having a cylindrical shape and having an axis of the cylindrical shape in the longitudinal direction is arranged at a position parallel to the engine and on a more inner side than the pair of left and right long frames. The muffler is configured in such a manner that an exhaust gas of the engine is supplied from a front end and discharged from a rear end.    [Related Art 1] Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2010-190152    [Related Art 2] Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2009-67144
As in the utility vehicle disclosed in Related Art 1, in a working vehicle in which a drive unit including an engine and a transmission case is arranged at a rear position of a traveling vehicle body and rear wheels are arranged at two sides of the drive unit, in order to secure a space for arranging the rear wheels, a space for accommodating the drive unit is limited, and thus, a muffler is to be arranged in a limited space.
Further, in a configuration in which a working vehicle is provided with a continuously variable transmission, a space accommodating a drive unit is further narrowed. Therefore, arrangement for a muffler is likely to be difficult, and thus there is room for improvement. In order to avoid such a disadvantage, it is also possible to enlarge a dimension in a vertical direction of the space where the drive unit is arranged. However, in this case where the dimension in the vertical direction is enlarged, a cargo bed arranged above the drive unit is at a high level, and the center of gravity of the traveling vehicle body also rises, and thus, there is room for improvement.
A purpose of the present invention is to reasonably configure a working vehicle in which a muffler is arranged in a limited space without wastefully enlarging a space where a speed change unit is arranged.
As in the working vehicle disclosed in Related Art 2, in a working vehicle in which a drive unit including an engine and a transmission case is arranged at a rear position of a traveling vehicle body and rear wheels are arranged at two sides of the drive unit, in order to secure a space for arranging the rear wheels, a space accommodating the drive unit is limited, and thus, a muffler is to be arranged in such a limited space.
Further, as in the working vehicle disclosed in Related Art 2, in a working vehicle in which longitudinal long frames for supporting an engine and a transmission case are provided, it is necessary to consider positional relationship with the frames to arrange a muffler. It is also possible to displace the frames upward and in a lateral direction in order to arrange the muffler. However, in this case where the frames are displaced, the traveling vehicle body becomes larger, and thus, there is room for improvement.
Another purpose of the present invention is to configure a working vehicle in which a muffler is arranged in a limited space by reasonably utilizing arrangement of frames.


In some embodiments, a method includes measuring a disparity between two speech samples by segmenting both a reference speech sample and a student speech sample into speech units. A duration disparity can be determined for units that are not adjacent to each other in the reference speech sample. A duration disparity can also be determined for the corresponding units in the student speech sample. A difference can then be calculated between the student speech sample duration disparity and the reference speech sample duration disparity.

The present invention relates generally to teaching machines and, more particularly concerns a system and method for teaching a language.
Traditional methods for teaching a language, in particular a foreign language, are far from enjoyable for students. Students spend a great deal of time learning rules of grammar and syntax and generally learn by memorizing words in the target language (the language being learned) that are translations of corresponding words in a source language. The only exposure to correct pronunciation might be on a recording or during discussions in a classroom. On such occasions, the student finds himself mentally composing his recitation in his native language and then translating it. The usual result is a halting, stilted recital, replete with grammatical and syntactic errors introduced by the translation process. The foregoing approach generally does not enable the language learner to converse fluently in the target language.
In contrast, upon first learning a language, young children are fully immersed in a natural learning process in which they learn words, grammar and syntax interactively through deductive reasoning, in context, and by emulating others. In time, children develop a flowing communication style, without the need to translate or to be concerned about rules. It would be desirable to be able to emulate this kind of learning process in learning a second language.
Systems of teaching a user language using immersion are known to some extent in the prior art. However, to best measure the user's progress, the language student should be prompted to speak naturally. Simply showing the user target language text to be read aloud is less than optimum, because read speech is not spoken the same way as natural speech not being read. Thus, attempting to gauge student progress by measuring an ability to read prepared text is generally not effective.
An existing method for measuring rhythmic contrast for an utterance is the use of the Pairwise Variability index (PVI) which involves determining the mean difference between pairs of adjacent syllables over an entire vocal utterance (also referred to herein as a speech sample). However, the use of adjacent syllables for measuring rhythm is of limited value in assisting a language learner to more accurately mimic native speech in the language being taught. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an improved system and method for comparing and/or contrasting the rhythm of two or more speech samples.

Method for measuring speech characteristics


A utility trailer having outboard wheels, the trailer including a deck having a first height, a frame having an axle in which wheels attached to the axle have a second height, the second height extends a predetermined distance above the first height, opposed side panels are rotatably coupled to the frame, at least one of the opposed panels includes an opening having a third height, the third height being greater than the predetermined distance.

The present invention pertains to trailers intended to be towed by a motor vehicle. These trailers may be used for a variety of purposes including transporting luggage, materials, or sports machines. Such trailers are generally made from metal beams cut to the correct length and welded together and are commonly arranged with the deck over the wheels. Such trailers must be end loaded via a ramp or the like, or otherwise materials to be loaded must be lifted over the trailer sides. The arrangement of the deck over the wheels necessitates the deck to be elevated from the ground at a height at least greater than the wheel height. In order to side load a trailer such as this, it is necessary to lift the materials onto the elevated deck. This can be impractical when loading heavy objects. Moreover, the elevated center of gravity when such a trailer is fully loaded may cause instability. A new trailer is therefore desired which permits a lower center of gravity, having outboard wheels, with fully rotatable sides and arranged to permit side loading of the trailer with materials. Such an arrangement allows side loading with forklifts or the like, and greatly enhances the flexibility of use. It is further desired to design a new trailer which can be side-loaded easily to reduce the logistical problems associated with side-loading trailers having an elevated, deck-over-wheels configuration.


A diffusion barrier layer comprising TiNxBy is disclosed for protection of gate oxide layers in integrated transistors. The diffusion barrier layer can be fabricated by first forming a TiN layer and then incorporating boron into the TiN layer. The diffusion barrier layer can also be fabricated by forming a TiNxBy layer using a TDMAT process including boron. The diffusion barrier layer can also be fabricated by forming a TiNxBy layer using a CVD process. The diffusion barrier layer is of particular utility in conjunction with tungsten or tungsten silicide conductive layers formed by CVD.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to materials used during integrated circuit fabrication, and more particularly to materials used as diffusion barriers.
2. Background
A gate electrode is a structure commonly found in an integrated circuit. One fabrication technique of a gate electrode begins with the formation a gate oxide film on a semiconductor substrate. Following this step, a polysilicon layer is formed on the gate oxide film. A tungsten silicide layer is then deposited over the polysilicon layer using a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process. The CVD process may include the use of a fluorine-containing gas, such as tungsten hexafluoride (WF6). Therefore, during CVD, fluorine atoms can be incorporated into the tungsten silicide layer.
Once the gate oxide film, the polysilicon layer, and the tungsten silicide layer have been formed on the substrate, the device is annealed. During this anneal, fluorine atoms undesirably diffuse from the tungsten silicide layer through the polysilicon layer to the gate oxide film.
To reduce the diffusion of fluorine atoms during the anneal, attempts have been made to incorporate a diffusion barrier layer under the tungsten silicide layer during the fabrication of gate electrodes. Conductive diffusion barrier layers comprise materials such as titanium nitride, titanium tungsten, or tantalum nitride. Although these materials inhibit fluorine diffusion to some extent, they still allow a substantial amount of fluorine to diffuse from the metal layer to the gate oxide film.
When fluorine atoms diffuse to the gate oxide film, they react with the gate oxide film in a manner that increases its electrical thickness. Furthermore, fluorine diffusion can lower breakdown voltage and increase defect density. Fluorine diffusion can also cause device degradation, such as a shift in threshold voltage or a decrease in saturation current.

Boron incorporated diffusion barrier material


A method of audio signal processing for a loudspeaker located close to an ear in use, the method consisting of or including:- creating one or more derived signals from an original monophonic input signal, the derived signals being representative of the original signal being scattered by one or more bodies remote from said ear (excluding room boundary reflection or reverberation), combining the derived signal or signals with said input signal to form a combined signal, and feeding the combined signal to said loudspeaker, thereby providing cues for enabling the listener to perceive the source of the sound of the original monophonic input signal to be located remote from said ear.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of audio signal-processing for a loudspeaker located close to an ear, and particularly, though not exclusively, to headphone xe2x80x9cvirtualisationxe2x80x9d technology, in which an audio signal is processed such that, when it is auditioned using headphones the source of the sound appears to originate outside the head of the listener.
2. Background
Conventional stereo audio creates sound-images which appearxe2x80x94for the most partxe2x80x94to originate inside the head of the listener, because of the absence of three-dimensional sound-cues. At the present time, there are no adequate and efficient methods for creating a truly effective xe2x80x9cout-of-the-headxe2x80x9d external sound image, although this has been a long sought-after goal of many audio researchers.
By measuring so-called xe2x80x9cHead-Related Transfer Functionsxe2x80x9d (HRTFs) from a sound-source at specified locations in space, the spatially dependent acoustic processes which act on the incoming sound-waves, caused by the head and outer ear, can be synthesised electronically. This processing, when applied to an audio recording and auditioned on headphones, creates the auditory illusion that the listener hears the recording from a sound-source at that point in space corresponding to the spatial position associated with the HRTF. However, this method is anechoic (no sound-wave reflections are present), and emulates listening to the sounds in an anechoic chamber. The consequent effect is that, although the direction of the sound-source can be emulated reasonably well, its distance is impossible to judge. The sound-source appears to be situated very close to the head.
If an element of artificial reverberation is added to the above processing, then the illusion of providing an external sound-image can be improved a little, but the effects are still not convincing. This is well known for stereo signals, and has been described in our co-pending patent application GB 0009287.4 for monophonic signals.
However, it is known that more adequate xe2x80x9cexternalisationxe2x80x9d effects can sometimes be demonstrated by means of artificial-head recordings, but the recording method does not lend itself to synthesis. Similarly, various so-called xe2x80x9cauralisationxe2x80x9d signal-processing technologies have been known to create adequate externalisation effects by replicating the impulse response of the entire reverberant properties of a chosen room (typically lasting 4 or more seconds). However, this is achieved at the expense of massive signal-processing effort which is prohibitively impractical for incorporating into, say, portable stereo players, even by present-day standards.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an effective method for creating an external sound-image for headphone listeners, which (a) uses minimal and practicable signal-processing, and (b) which is xe2x80x9cneutralxe2x80x9d, in the sense that it does not necessarily possess specific room characteristics, such that it could be used in conjunction with many different reverberation types, if required.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method as specified in claims 1-7. A second aspect of the invention provides apparatus as specified in claims 9-13, whilst a third aspect of the invention provides an audio signal as specified in claim 8.

Method of audio signal processing for a loudspeaker located close to an ear


A vehicle lamp control apparatus is provided with: a receiving portion for receiving output values of an acceleration sensor; a control portion for deriving a variation in an inclination angle of a vehicle based on the output values of the acceleration sensor and generating a control signal for instructing an optical axis adjustment of a vehicle lamp; and a transmitting portion for transmitting the control signal to an optical axis adjusting portion of the vehicle lamp. The control portion is configured to detect an error factor of the output values occurring in the acceleration sensor based on the output values of the acceleration sensor and to correct an optical axis position of the vehicle lamp.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a control apparatus for a vehicle lamp.
2. Related Art
Conventionally, there is known an auto leveling control which automatically adjusts an optical axis position of a vehicle headlamp according to an inclination angle of a vehicle in its pitch direction to thereby change an illuminating direction of the vehicle headlamp. Generally, in the auto leveling control, as a device for detecting an inclination of the vehicle, there is used a vehicle height sensor and an optical axis position of the headlamp is adjusted according to a vehicle pitch angle detected by the vehicle height sensor. On the other hand, Patent Document 1 discloses a structure which uses a gravity sensor as an inclination detecting device. Also, Patent Document 2 discloses a structure which, as an inclination detecting device, uses a three-dimensional gyro sensor for detecting an inclination angle of the vehicle relative to a horizontal plane. Also, Patent Document 3 discloses a structure which uses, as an inclination detecting device, a clinometer for detecting a vehicle inclination angle relative to a gravitational direction. Further, Patent Document 4 discloses a structure which uses, as an inclination detecting device, an acceleration sensor for detecting the gravity acceleration of the vehicle.    Patent Document 1: JP-A-2000-085459    Patent Document 2: JP-A-2004-314856    Patent Document 3: JP-A-2001-341578    Patent Document 4: JP-A-2009-126268
When the acceleration sensor including the gravity sensor (a three-dimensional gyro sensor or the like) is used as the inclination detecting device for the vehicle, as compared with the structure using the vehicle height sensor, the auto leveling system can be produced at a lower cost and also can be reduced in weight. On the other hand, even when the acceleration sensor is used, there always exists a need to enhance a performance of the auto leveling control. One aspect of the performance of the auto leveling control is the safety of the auto leveling control. That is, the auto leveling control is required to be able to avoid a heavy degradation of a visibility of a driver even when the optical axis position is adjusted wrong by the auto leveling control.


A tire pressure monitoring device with an inclinable valve stem is disclosed. The tire pressure monitoring device includes: a main body having a channel, wherein the channel includes a socket segment near one end thereof; the valve stem being movably fixed to a wheel rim and having a domed end movably received in the socket segment wherein the domed end has a threaded hole axially passing therethrough; and a positioning bolt being positioned in the channel from an opposite end of the channel and coupled with the threaded hole, so that the domed end of the valve stem is movably positioned in the socket segment and when the domed end moves, an angle between the connected valve stem and the main body is changed, thereby allowing the main body to abut against the wheel rim.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to tire pressure monitoring devices, and more particularly to a tire pressure monitoring device featuring for a valve stem that is inclinable with respect to a main body of the tire pressure monitoring.
2. Description of Related Art
Automobiles are undoubtedly the most important transportation means for the modern times. Therefore, the contemporaries put increasing attention to car safety. Among others, appropriate tire pressure is essential for safe and smooth driving. As compared with properly filled tires, low-pressure tires can consume more fuel during driving and make it more difficult for a driver to control the direction where a car proceeds, wherein the latter in particular endangers the driver and his/her passengers in car.
Recently, there have been many tire pressure monitoring devices on the market. For example, FIG. 1 is a conventional tire pressure monitoring device, which comprises a main body 1 and a valve stem 2 fixedly attached to the main body 1. The valve stem 2 is configured to be set in a valve-stem hole formed on a tire wheel rim 9 and work with a bolt 3 as well as a nut 4 to affix the main body 1 to the tire wheel rim 9, so that the main body 1 is allowed to monitor the tire pressure during driving all the time and warn the driver with a signal when the tire pressure is detected as abnormal.
It is noted that on various wheel rim products such valve-stem holes are locate differently. For easily adapting the valve stem 2 to different installation angles for most valve-stem holes, the washer and nut used to hold the valve stem 2 of the conventional tire pressure monitoring device about a valve-stem hole of a wheel rim 9 are typically round-headed, which allow the valve stem 2 to be inclined as needed. However, since the valve stem 2 comes integratedly with the main body 1, when the valve stem 2 inclines for adaptation, the main body 1 is likely to be lifted from the wheel rim 9 where it should rest on and become suspending about the wheel rim 9. Such a suspending main body 1 can be rocked under the centrifugal force generated by the rolling wheel, and this is harmful to the tire pressure monitoring device itself. Hence, in the course of attaching the tire pressure monitoring device to the wheel rim 9, it is important to ensure that the relative location among the main body 1, the valve stem 2 and the nut 4 is proper set. To this end, manual adjustment has to be carefully performed throughout the course of attachment, making the attachment inconvenience.

Tire pressure monitoring device with inclinable valve stem


The invention pertains to the use of a composition comprising per serving between 50-300 kcal; between 10 g and 35 g proteinaceous matter; and at least 2.5 microgram vitamin D, for the manufacture of a nutritional product for (a) the treatment or prevention of muscle mass decrease, (b) stimulation of muscle mass increase; or (d) stimulating muscle mass preservation, in obese or overweight adults of at least 40 years of age participating in a weight loss program. The inventors surprisingly found that nutritional supplementation with a low-caloric composition rich in protein, particularly whey protein and leucine, compared to an iso-caloric control supplement without protein, synergistically leads to preservation of muscle mass during a weight loss program involving a hypocaloric diet and a resistance exercise program in overweight/obese older adult.

The prevalence of obesity among older adult is rising. At present, about 70% of the population above 40 years has overweight and more than 30% of the population above 40 years of age is obese. Obesity is clearly related to metabolic risk factors for cardiovascular diseases and diabetes mellitus. In addition, body weight and body mass index (BMI) play a significant role in non-fatal physical disability in the older adult. In older adult, controversy exists about the health benefits of voluntary weight loss. Weight loss in older persons leads to better metabolic control with better glucose regulation, lower blood pressure, better pulmonary function and improved functional ability. However, weight loss not only results in a decrease in fat mass, but also in a decrease of lean mass: about 25% of lost weight is loss of lean mass. It is therefore possible that weight loss in overweight or obese older adult in the long run accelerates the age-related loss of muscle mass, i.e. sarcopenia, and subsequently a decreased physical functioning. Because the loss of muscle mass is associated with decreased physical functioning the present inventors believe there is a need to minimize loss of muscle mass during a weight loss program in overweight or obese older adult and thus for a new method of treatment of overweight/obese older adult.
WO2012024611 describes the use beta-alanine for the treatment of muscular disorders and for the improvement of muscle function in older adult.
WO2011011252 discloses compositions in combination with exercise to attenuate the loss of functional status in elderly. The exercise is not part of an attempt to address obesity. The effect of a weight loss program on muscle mass is not disclosed.
WO2012091571 describes a combination of components including PUFA, vitamin B and choline for the prevention and treatment of frailty.
WO2007043870 describes a composition comprising proteinaceous matter, said proteinaceous matter providing at least 24.0% of the energetic value of the composition (en %) and at least 12 wt. % based on proteinaceous matter leucine in the manufacture of a medicament for the treatment of a subject suffering from insulin resistance including subjects suffering from obesity.
D T. Villareal, et al. Am J Clin Nutr 2005; 82:923-34 Obesity in older adults: technical review and position statement of the American Society for Nutrition and NAASO describes the problem of obesity in older persons and discusses the current therapeutic tools available for weight management in older persons; 1) lifestyle intervention involving diet, physical activity, and behaviour modification; 2) pharmacotherapy; and 3) surgery.
Muscle mass preservation during a weight loss program is increasingly important in older adults. Resistance exercise is a tool sometimes applied for supporting the preservation of muscle mass or stimulating the increase in muscle mass, during a weight loss program. However, even resistance exercise as part of a weight loss program as it is used in the art yields loss of muscle mass. Therefore, the art is in need of ways to preserve muscle mass preservation during a weight loss program, particularly nutritional compositions with proven efficacy to preserve muscle mass for the overweight or obese adult in a weight loss program.

Muscle preservation in overweight or obese adult during weight loss program


Disclosed is an absorbent article having a liquid permeable surface layer, a backing sheet, and an absorbent layer interposed between the surface layer and the backing sheet. The surface layer includes a liquid permeable base and a layer of continuous filaments extending substantially in one direction and disposed on the surface of the base. The continuous filament layer is fixed to the base at a plurality of fixing portions which are spaced apart in the filament extending direction by a given pitch, to thereby form loop portions of the continuous filaments between adjacent fixing portions. The loop portions are raised toward the surface side.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an absorbent article having a layer of continuous filaments disposed on a liquid receiving side to achieve good fitting feeling, and a manufacturing process thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
Absorbent articles, such as sanitary napkin, disposable diaper or the like are typically of construction in which an absorbent layer is laid over a liquid impermeable backing sheet, and a liquid permeable surface material is laid over the liquid receiving side of the absorbent layer.
Conventionally, as the surface material of the absorbent article, use has been made of a non-woven fabric, such as a thermal bonded non-woven fabric in which thermoplastic synthetic fibers are bonded by hot embossing or by applying hot air, or a spun laced non-woven fabric in which fibers are entangled (interlaced) by applying water flow. With the fibers being bonded or entangled, these non-woven fabrics have a predetermined surface strength, while maintaining a sufficient bulkiness and permeability to liquid.
Moreover, as the surface material, it is also known in the art to use a synthetic film or non-woven fabric formed with a large number of through holes.
The surface material of the absorbent article is required to be excellent in liquid permeability to the absorbent layer, to have low possibility of causing so-called re-wetting back (the phenomenon in which the liquid once absorbed in the absorbent layer leaks back through the surface material to the surface of the absorbent article), and to be less irritative to the wearer""s skin contacting with the surface material.
Irritation on the skin is affected by following ability of the material located on the surface of the surface material to motion of the skin. For example, the surface of the surface material formed of the porous film (i.e., the film formed with through holes) has low following ability to motion of the skin to possibly cause irritative feeling to the skin of a wearer.
On the other hand, the non-woven fabric provides relatively less irritation to the skin, because its fibers contacting with the wearer""s skin may slightly move to follow the motion of the skin. In the nonwoven fabric formed with the through holes, too, since the fibers around the through holes may slightly move to follow the motion of the wearer""s skin, it provides relatively less irritation to the skin. However, the absorbent article employing the surface material formed of a non-woven fabric is less effective in view point of re-wetting back prevention performance in comparison with the porous film.
As set forth above, neither the non-woven fabric nor the porous film could satisfy all the functions required for the surface material of the absorbent article. Therefore, it has been difficult to provide a surface material satisfying all the required functions.
The present invention has been worked out in view of the shortcoming in the prior art set forth above. Therefore, it is an object of the present invention is to provide an absorbent article which has a surface layer of a structure less irritative to the skin of a wearer and achieving high performance in restricting re-wetting back, and a manufacturing process therefor.
According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided an absorbent article comprising: a liquid permeable surface layer; a backing sheet; and an absorbent layer interposed between the surface layer and the backing sheet, the surface layer including a liquid permeable base and a layer of continuous filaments extending substantially in one direction and disposed on the surface of the base, the continuous filament layer being fixed to the base at a plurality of fixing portions which are spaced apart in the filament extending direction by a given pitch, to thereby form loop portions of the continuous filaments between adjacent fixing portions, the loop portions being raised toward the surface side.
Preferably, the fixing portions are arranged in a pattern of rows each extending in the filament extending direction, wherein in any two rows adjacent in a direction perpendicular to the fiber extending direction, fixing portions in one row are not continuous to but are offset from fixing portions in the other row, so that peaks of loop portions in one row are offset from peaks of loop portions in the other row for permitting each individual loop portion to behave independently of others.
It is possible that pitches of the fixing portions are differentiated at different positions of the article, and heights of the loop portions are varied depending upon the pitches of the fixing portions. In this case, loop portions having a greater height may be arranged at a center portion in a liquid absorbing region of the absorbent article, and loop portions having a smaller height may be arranged at front and rear sides of the center portion and/or at left and right sides of the center portion.
It is also possible that loop portions having a greater height and loop portions having a smaller height are alternated in the filament extending direction.
It is further possible that each fixing portion is formed as a bent or curved fixing line, and a distance between two fixing lines adjacent in the filament extending direction varies depending upon a shape of the fixing lines, so that each loop portion per se varies in height at different positions thereof.
It is still further possible that the continuous filament layer is consisted of a plurality of rows of continuous filaments, each row extends in straight to have a predetermined width, and the rows are spaced apart in a direction perpendicular to the filament extending direction. In this case, the base is preferably a porous sheet.
Preferably, a height of the loop portion from the surface of the base is greater than a pitch between adjacent fixing portions defining the loop portion. Also preferably, between adjacent fixing portions, a total length of continuous filaments appearing on the outer surface of the loop portion is 1.1 to 4 times of the pitch of the fixing portions.
For example, the base is contracted in the filament extending direction after formation of the fixing portions, so that an initial pitch between adjacent fixing portions is shortened by contraction of the base into the given pitch for raising the loop portions.
For contraction of the base, the base may be formed of a stretchable material or a heat shrinkable material. Alternatively, the absorbent article may further comprise an elastic member fitted on the base for causing contraction.
According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a manufacturing process of an absorbent article having a surface layer, a backing sheet, and an absorbent layer interposed between the surface layer and the backing sheet, comprising the steps of:
(a) fitting a longitudinally stretched elastic member over one surface of a liquid permeable base;
(b) simultaneously with the step (a) or before or after the step (a), stacking a layer of continuous filaments extending substantially in one direction on the other surface of the base and fixing the continuous filament layer to the base at a plurality of fixing portions which are spaced apart in the filament extending direction by a given initial pitch;
(c) causing contraction of the base in the filament extending direction to shorten the given initial pitch into a given contracted pitch by releasing stretching force on the elastic member for raising the continuous filaments in each region between adjacent fixing portions from the surface of the base to form loop portions, and whereby forming the surface layer; and
(d) laminating the surface layer, the backing sheet on opposite surfaces of the absorbent layer for forming the absorbent article.
According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a manufacturing process of an absorbent article having a surface layer, a backing sheet, and an absorbent layer interposed between the surface layer and the backing sheet, comprising the steps of:
(a) longitudinally stretching a liquid permeable, stretchable base;
(b) simultaneously with the step (a) or after the step (a), stacking a layer of continuous filaments extending substantially in one direction on the base and fixing the continuous filament layer to the base at a plurality of fixing portions which are spaced apart in the filament extending direction by a given initial pitch;
(c) causing contraction of the base in the filament extending direction to shorten the given initial pitch into a given contracted pitch by releasing stretching force on the base for raising the continuous filaments in each region between adjacent fixing portions from the surface of the base to form loop portions, and whereby forming the surface layer; and
(d) laminating the surface layer, the backing sheet on opposite surfaces of the absorbent layer for forming the absorbent article.
According to a fourth aspect of the invention, there is provided a manufacturing process of an absorbent article having a surface layer, a backing sheet, and an absorbent layer interposed between the surface layer and the backing sheet, comprising the steps of:
(a) supplying a heat shrinkable base;
(b) stacking a layer of continuous filaments extending substantially in one direction on the base and fixing the continuous filament layer to the base at a plurality of fixing portions which are spaced apart in the filament extending direction by a given initial pitch;
(c) causing heat shrinkage of the base in the filament extending direction to shorten the given initial pitch into a given contracted pitch by applying a heat on the base for raising the continuous filaments in each region between adjacent fixing portions from the surface of the base to form loop portions, and whereby forming the surface layer; and
(d) laminating the surface layer, the backing sheet on opposite surfaces of the absorbent layer for forming the absorbent article.
The manufacturing processes as set forth above may further comprise a step of opening a tow which is a bundle of crimped continuous filaments for forming the continuous filament layer. In addition, the manufacturing processes may further comprise a step of spreading the continuous filament layer in its width direction to have a uniform bulk, after the step of opening.

Method of making absorbent article employing surface layer with continuous filament


A dynamic speed finding method to detect drive speed of a target, i.e., a speeding car, to serve as evidence in writing a traffic ticket is executed in the following steps: Step A: the position and speed of a speed finding object, i.e., a moving police car, are detected; Step B: the relative position and relative speed of the target are detected; Step C: the speed of the target is calculated; and Step D, the data of the speed of the target is stored.

(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to dynamic speed finding method, and more particularly to one that finds the position and speed of a moving police vehicle using signals transmitted from GPS, the relative position and relative speed of a speeding car found with a range and speed finder mounted in the police vehicle to calculate a speed of the speeding car to enforce a ban on the vehicle driving against traffic regulations according to the calculated speed.
(b) Description of the Prior Art
To maintain driving safety and improve traffic condition, traffic control authorities will set speed limits at various spots depending on traffic flow and usually test finding units are erected to ban speeding by taking photos. Radar speed finders generally available in the market include USA specification, European specification and stationary photography system.
Usually radar has a wide angle of transmission that can't lock up a specific car in case of heavy traffic and it may easily attract disputes, while a laser system has a small angle of transmission to lock up a specific car. For the radar or laser speed finder, it must remain still while taking a photo of a speeding car and the included angle between the speeding car and the speed finder must be small enough to get correct speed value disregarding the speed finder is of stationary or hand-held type. There is a different type of a speed finder, such as the Autovelox 104/c2 made in Italy, that it finds the car speed by emitting two parallel beams of light, then included angle between the speeding car and the speed finder must be near 90°. Response time is another factor to be considered. Traffic police officer prefer that a speed finder, hand-held or mobile, is capable of finding a speeding car within a long range, then the speed finding system must be adapted with a telephoto lens when a photo is needed to clearly identify a license plate of a speeding car for writing a traffic ticket. Accordingly, the entire camera speed finding system adapted with the telephoto lens will become too heavy and is not easily portable. Furthermore, the telephoto lens has a narrow visual angle, so it is too sensitive to handle for mild vibration. Therefore, it is less efficient for the policeman to ban speeding violation.
A conventional bluetooth satellite positioning speed finder is comprised of a satellite positioning module to receive signals from GPS; a radar signal detection module to pick up frequency signal of radar wavelength emitted from a speed finding unit on the road; a data storage unit to store data of coordinates available from a stationery speed finding device; a microprocessor to process GPS signals, the frequency signal of the radar wavelength, and the data of coordinative; a tone broadcasting module to sound alarm according to a command given by the microprocessor; a display module to display status according to a command from the microprocessor; and a bluetooth module to transmit signals from the satellite positioning module and the tone broadcasting module to an electronic device provided with bluetooth function. Accordingly, a warning message is given to a driver of a speeding car to control driving speed to prevent from receiving a traffic ticket.
Other conventional devices take advantage of GPS to duck away from speeding regulation of police. Then a driver of a car adapted with the warning device to speed along without fears. Consequently, it makes even more difficult for the police to ban traffic violation.


Clustering-based methods, apparatuses for frequency offset determination and elimination and electronic devices are disclosed. The clustering-based method for frequency offset determination includes: determining a constellation diagram for a received signal; determining N different values within a preset frequency interval, as N frequency offset estimates for a frequency offset of the received signal; for each of the frequency offset estimates, correcting the constellation diagram based on the frequency offset estimate to obtain a corrected constellation diagram, clustering signal points on the corrected constellation diagram, and calculating an area of a signal region in the corrected constellation diagram after clustering; and determining a frequency offset estimate corresponding to a signal region with a minimum area as a value of the frequency offset. The embodiments of the present invention can improve the accuracy and stability of the calculated value of the frequency offset.

With the rapid development of wireless communication technologies, people are having a higher demand on quality of wireless communication. In the field of wireless communication, a frequency offset between a transmitter and a receiver may cause significant reduction of the accuracy that the receiver identifies the received signal. Specifically, the frequency offset would cause the constellation diagram of the received signal to be rotated, and the rotation of the constellation diagram in turn results in a large distortion of the received signal. Therefore, the accuracy of identifying the received signal at the receiver will be significantly reduced.
An existing commonly used approach for determining a value of a frequency offset includes: calculating an argument of a complex signal generated from a received signal, and then calculating the frequency offset using the calculated argument. In such an approach, a discrete number n for the received signal is required in calculating the argument.
However, the calculated value of the argument of the complex signal varies depending on the discrete number n for the received signal, which makes the value of the frequency offset calculated by using the argument vary accordingly. Therefore, in the existing approach for determining a value of a frequency offset, the calculated value of the frequency offset may not be constantly accurate.

Clustering-based frequency deviation determination and elimination method and device, and electronic apparatus

Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications