‘L6’ is a new and distinct Rosa sp. plant which is characterized by the combination of an upright growth habit with an abundance of long main stems, mid pink flowers born on terminal corymbs, an abundance of large vibrant red rose hips on each main stem, rose hips which remain very firm for an extended period of time relative to other cultivars, and the stability of these characteristics from generation to generation.

Parentage: 'L6' is a seedling selection which resulted from the open pollination of Rosa 'Kolmade' (Community Plant Variety Rights grant number 29439, granted on Apr. 5, 2011), the seed parent, and Rosa 'Autumn Pride' (not patented), the pollen parent. In 2013, seeds were harvested from 'Kolmade' which resulted in approximately 3,200 seedlings. In July of 2014, the seedlings were transplanted into a field in Willow Creek, Calif. and grown to a mature size. From 2014 to 2016, these plants were evaluated for commercial production, based on criteria such as growth habit and fruiting habit. In September of 2016, one plant was observed which exhibited a large number of long main stems with relatively few prickles, a high density of large, very firm rose hips with a vibrant red color, and improved resistance to rust disease. After further evaluation and confirmation of the desirable traits first observed, the claimed plant was selected for commercialization in November of 2016 and given the breeder denomination, 'L6'.
Asexual Reproduction: Asexual propagation of 'L6', by way of softwood stem cuttings, was first performed in November of 2016 at the inventor's nursery in Willow Creek, Calif. Through three subsequent generations, the unique features of this cultivar have proven to be stable and true to type.


A rotary compressor includes a cylinder having a cylindrical compressing chamber, an eccentrically movable rotor disposed in the compressing chamber, and a reciprocally movable blade disposed in a blade guide groove which extends from the compressing chamber in a radial direction. The blade is provided with a pair of projections respectively extending from the one end of the blade toward the bottom of the blade guide groove, and the other end of the blade contacts the peripheral surface of the rotor. A pair of depressions are respectively formed at the bottom of the blade guide groove for permitting the projection pairs of the blade to reciprocally move into the corresponding depressions, thereby increasing the contacting portion between the blade and the blade guide groove in comparison with a conventional rotary compressor when the blade moves into the compressing chamber at a prescribed length.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to rotary compressors used for an apparatus, e.g., air conditioners, refrigerators, etc., for compressing a gaseous fluid.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In general, a rotary compressor is used with a refrigerating circuit for compressing a gaseous fluid. FIGS. 1 and 2 show a conventional rotary compressor. A rotary compressor 11 typically includes a cylinder 13, a rotation shaft 15 and a blade 17. A compressing chamber 19 is defined by the inner surface of cylinder 13. A pair of bearing (not shown) are respectively arranged to the opposite ends of cylinder 13 to establish compressing chamber 19. Rotation shaft 15 penetrates compressing chamber 19 and is rotatably supported by the pair of bearings. Compressing chamber 19 is provided with a roller 21. A penetrating hole is formed at the center of roller 21. Rotation shaft 15 extends through the penetrating hole. The outer surface of an eccentric portion 15a of rotation shaft 15 loosely contacts the inner surface of roller 21. An eccentric amount of eccentric portion 15a from the center of rotation shaft 15 is indicated by a distance E. Therefore, roller 21 eccentrically rotates along the inner surface of cylinder 13 in response to the rotation of shaft 15. A blade guide groove 23 extends from the inner surface of cylinder 13 toward the outer surface of cylinder 13 in the radial direction of cylinder 13. Blade 17 which has a length l.sub.1 is disposed in blade guide groove 23, and is forcibly urged toward roller 21 by a spring 25 shown in FIG. 3 to reciprocate along balde guide groove 23 in response to the eccentric rotation of roller 21. As shown in FIG. 3, one end of spring 25 is supported by a channel formed at the one side of blade 17. The other end of spring 25 is supported by the inner surface of a compressor housing (not shown) when compressor is assembled into the housing. Therefore, as described above, the other side of blade 17 is always in contact with the outer surface of roller 21. Blade 17 partitions compressing chamber 19 into a high pressure cell and a low pressure cell for compressing a gaseous fluid, e.g., refrigerant, fed to compressing chamber through an intake port 27 in response to the eccentric rotation of shaft 15.
In the above described conventional rotary compressor 11, however, if the stroke of blade 17 is longer than the length of blade 17, a portion of blade 17 which is supported by balde guide groove 23 becomes small when blade 17 comes to a lower dead point, as shown in FIG. 1. When rotation shaft 15 rotates in the direction indicated by arrow A, blade 17 always is subject to the difference in pressure between the intake side cell (low pressure side) and the discharge side (high pressure side) during the compressing operation. Therefore, a moving resistance between blade 17 and blade guide groove 23 increases when blade 17 approaches the lower dead point. In other words, the pressure acting on the unit area of the inner side surface of blade guide groove 23 by blade 17 increases, as blade 17 comes to the lower dead point. As a result, the power consumption of compressor 11 increases, and the compression ability of compressor 11 is reversely affected.
To avoid disadvantages described above, inventors of the present invention have attempted to increase the length of blade 17 in a reciprocating direction. The length of blade guide groove 23 also was increased. With this construction, the contacting area between blade 17 and blade guide groove 23 can be increased in the reciprocating direction when blade 17 is at the lower dead point. However, the stiffness of cylinder 13 decreases because of the increase of the length of blade guide groove 23. The thickness of cylinder 13 should be increased so that the stiffness of cylinder 13 is increased, resulting in a large external shape of compressor 11 as well as the increase in cost.

Rotary compressor having long length blade


An accessory for coupling the A-arm of a vehicle to its torsion bar through a rigid member that relocates the relative position of the two components by a predetermined offset distance that raises the torsion bar with respect to the ground. As a result, the position of the torsion bar is elevated and the ground clearance of the vehicle""s undercarriage is increased. By rigidly positioning the coupling mechanism between the A-arm and the torsion bar so that the distance of the point of attachment from the A-arm""s pivot point in the frame remains substantially the same, the torsional effect of the torsion bar is retained without material change. Therefore, the safety and driving characteristics of the vehicle are not noticeably altered.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention is related in general to the field of automotive accessories and, in particular, to a coupling device for relocating the point of connection between the A-arm and the torsion bar of a truck that has been lifted to provide greater undercarriage clearance.
2. Description of the Related Art
As illustrated FIG. 1, in conventional front-end suspensions of small trucks and pick-ups, each front wheel is connected through a ball joint 10 to a shock-absorbed, torque-loaded A-arm 12 on each side of the vehicle. The A-arm 12 is pivotally attached through bushings 14 to the frame 16 of the vehicle and to a torsion bar 18 that provides a torque that stabilizes the wheel assembly in a desirable, predetermined position under load. The torsion bar consists of a long metal shaft 20 that has one end (not shown) held rigidly in the frame of the vehicle and the other end 22 twisted and attached to the A-arm 16 through a rigid socket connection 24 to act as a spring. Thus, as the A-arm pivots up or down around the bushings 14 in response to forces exerted on the front wheels of the vehicle, the torsion bar 18 urges the entire wheel assembly to its static, predetermined position by applying a torque to the A-arm.
Because small trucks are often used for off-road driving, it is very desirable that the clearance below the undercarriage of the vehicle be as large as possible. Accordingly, it has become common practice for owners of these vehicles to increase such clearance by using larger-aspect tires and elevating the frame with respect to the wheels. This is typically accomplished using after-market kits that provide additional ground clearance by relocating various undercarriage components to a higher position relative to the wheels. When this is done, the back end of the torsion bar 18 is stretched upward, changing its position in relation to the A-arm 12 and correspondingly introducing an undesirable variation in the torsional effect of the torsion bar. In order to avoid this problem, these kits often include an attachment for anchoring the back end of the torsion bar several inches below its original position in the undercarriage point, thereby retaining the original angle of the front end 22 of the torsion bar in relation to the A-arm. This approach solves the torsion-bar performance problem, but it reduces the additional clearance provided by the lift operation.
Therefore, it would be very desirable to be able to relocate the A-arm end 22 of the torsion bar 18 so as to also offset its position relative to ground, such as to maintain its functional integrity and also afford further clearance for the vehicle""s undercarriage. This invention provides a simple device for accomplishing this goal.
The invention is directed at an after-market accessory for use in conjunction with commercial lift kits employed to increase the undercarriage clearance of small trucks. The main objective of the invention is a coupling device for relocating the position of the front end of the torsion bar relative to ground, after the undercarriage of the truck has been lifted with such a lift-kit, in order to retain the functional characteristics of the torsion bar.
Another goal of the invention is a device that provides additional ground clearance for the vehicle""s undercarriage.
Another objective is device in the form of a kit that is adaptable for use with any conventional pick-up truck in conjunction with a corresponding lift kit.
Another goal is a kit suitable for assembly by the average vehicle owner without the need for special tools or expertise.
A final objective is a device that can be manufactured and marketed economically and directly to the general public as an after-market product in the automotive industry.
Therefore, according to these and other objectives, the invention consists of an accessory for coupling the A-arm of a vehicle to its torsion bar through a rigid member that relocates the relative position of the two components by a predetermined offset distance that raises the torsion bar with respect to the ground. As a result, the position of the torsion bar is elevated and the ground clearance of the vehicle""s undercarriage is increased.
According to another aspect of the invention, by rigidly positioning the coupling mechanism between the A-arm and the torsion bar so that the distance of the point of attachment from the A-arm""s pivot point in the frame remains substantially the same, the torsional effect of the torsion bar is retained without material change. Therefore, the safety and driving characteristics of the vehicle are not noticeably altered.
Various other purposes and advantages of the invention will become clear from its description in the specification that follows and from the novel features particularly pointed out in the appended claims. Therefore, to the accomplishment of the objectives described above, this invention consists of the features hereinafter illustrated in the drawings, fully described in the detailed description of the preferred embodiment and particularly pointed out in the claims. However, such drawings and description disclose but one of the various ways in which the invention may be practiced.


Efficiency of silicon photovoltaic solar cells is increased by an annealing process for immobilizing oxygen formed in Czochralski-grown silicon. The annealing process includes a short anneal in a rapid thermal annealing chamber at a high temperature, for example, greater than 1150° C. in an oxygen-containing ambient. More preferably, the wafer is rapidly cooled to less than 950° C. without an intermediate temperature hold, at which temperature oxygen does not nucleate and/or precipitate. Subsequent processing to form a photovoltaic structure is typically performed at relatively low temperatures of less than 1000° C. or even 875° C.

1. Field of the Invention.
The invention relates generally to thermal treatment of silicon wafers. In particular, the invention relates to thermal treatment of silicon wafers to be used to make photovoltaic cells.
2. Description of the Related Art.
There is currently great interest and intense development in photovoltaic (PV) solar cells which directly convert solar radiation to electrical power. Although many different configurations and even different semiconductor materials have been proposed, an efficient and economical solar cell can be fabricated using structures, materials, and techniques long known for silicon integrated circuits. Specifically, a single crystal or multi-crystalline silicon wafer is processed to have a large-area p-n junction extending across a substantial fraction of the wafer. One class of silicon PV cell is made on wafers cut from an ingot of monocrystalline silicon grown by the Czochralski (CZ) process in which a monocrystalline silicon seed crystal is used to start the freezing of silicon by contacting silicon melt held at about 1420° C. and the silicon ingot is drawn from the melt. The melt is contained in a heated crucible conventionally composed of fused quartz (silicon dioxide). A single silicon ingot intended for integrated circuits or PV applications is typically drawn from a crucible which is discarded after a single ingot. On the other hand, solar applications may benefit economically from a so-called continuous Czochralski process in which multiple ingots are drawn from a crucible which is recharged with silicon during the drawing process.
Silicon wafers usable for solar cells consist of elemental silicon and less than a total of 1 at % of dopants, oxygen, and other impurities. All monocrystalline silicon produced by the CZ process contains low but significant levels of oxygen in the ingot, typically at concentrations of about 1×1018 cm−3 or 20 ppma (parts per million atomic) relative to the silicon. The oxygen originates primarily from the quartz crucible. At the growth temperature, most of the oxygen is interstitial in the lattice, that is, single oxygen atoms residing in the interstices of the crystalline silicon lattice. However, some of the oxygen agglomerates together in various atomic configurations, also called cluster or oxygen precipitate nuclei. The precipitate nucleation occurs because, after crystallization at the silicon melting point of around 1420° C., as the crystal cools as the growing ingot is drawn away from the melt, oxygen becomes supersaturated in the silicon lattice. As a result, the free energy of the system is lowered by oxygen clustering as the ingot cools. Some of the oxygen coalesces around several silicon atoms to form small clusters called nuclei of size between about 6 and 35 nm. More nuclei can form if the crystal is post heated to between 650 and 850° C. Very rapid heating will dissolve the nucleated oxygen nuclei. However, in the as grown ingot, a long anneal above about 1000° C. will cause the oxygen to form much larger precipitates up to a few microns in size. Rapid heating cannot dissolve these large precipitates.
The initial clusters and nuclei are referred to as "grown in" defects. Both nuclei and precipitates are considered to be defects in the lattice which act as recombination centers or traps for electrons and holes in the crystalline solid, thereby decreasing the critical parameter for high-efficiency solar cells of minority carrier recombination lifetime. Removal or elimination of these oxygen defects increases the minority carrier lifetime (mel) in the silicon. Oxygen may further degrade an operating boron-doped silicon PV cell by causing a photo-induced degradation in which the solar irradiation activates the formation of boron-oxygen scattering in the silicon.
For the past thirty years, the effects of oxygen in CZ silicon for integrated circuit (IC) applications have been extensively studied. During CZ growth, oxygen in the silicon melt is incorporated into the growing silicon ingot typically in isolated interstitial locations in the silicon crystalline lattice at concentrations stable at the high temperatures. However, as the ingot gradually cools as it is slowly drawn from the melt, the equilibrium oxygen solubility limit decreases and oxygen incorporated at the interface during growth becomes super saturated. Assuming a moderately high temperature above for example 1200° C., the oxygen can diffuse through the silicon lattice to form a lower-energy state of oxygen precipitates believed to be regions of a few oxygen atoms in associated or chemically bonded with silicon in the lattice. Such oxygen precipitates act as defects which strain the silicon lattice and therefore act as gettering centers for metallic impurities during subsequent heat treatment typically experienced during semiconductor device fabrication. Except where those precipitates are near the surface, they are usually not important for integrated circuit applications. However, these oxygen precipitates (also referred to as gettering sites) throughout the entire wafer dramatically lower the minority carrier recombination lifetime of silicon, which is critically important for solar cells.
It has been observed that silicon with an oxygen concentration of less than 10 to 13 ppma (parts per million atomic, as measured according to the ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) standard for measuring oxygen in silicon) will not experience significant oxygen precipitation during device fabrication. Single crystal silicon can be also produced formed by the float zone (FZ) process, which does not use a quartz crucible. The FZ process produces silicon containing little if any oxygen, for example, less than 1 ppma oxygen dissolved in the silicon lattice. FZ silicon exhibits very high minority carrier lifetimes arising from the absence of oxygen defects and it thus enables high efficiency PV cells to be produced. However, FZ silicon is prohibitively expensive and is not used in commercial-scale terrestrial solar cell applications.
For CZ silicon, various techniques are applied to reduce the oxygen concentration in the ingot to below 13 ppma but the techniques introduce operational constraints and have not been completely successful.
Most modern IC's have active semiconductor devices formed in a surface region within about a few microns of the original wafer surface. For all IC types, low oxygen precipitation in the active surface region is not desired. On the other hand, for high yield in IC fabrication, controlled oxygen precipitation in the central plane of the wafer is desired because the precipitates not only "getter" metallic impurities but also increase the strength of the silicon substrate during the many high-temperature processing steps required for advanced IC's. Controlled oxygen nucleation and precipitation away from the surface of the silicon wafer help pin dislocations due to process induced thermal stress and thus reduce the tendency for crystallographic slip and wafer warping without interfering with the active devices which are usually within the first 20 microns from the surface. In addition to imparting strength, oxygen is desired during IC processing because the lattice strain caused by precipitates getters metals towards the precipitates and away from the active devices, thereby improving yield and performance of the IC's. Further, because almost all the IC's made today are majority carrier devices, such as MOSFET's, minority carrier lifetime is not considered to be very important. In fact, metals are often deliberately introduced by ion implantation to "kill" lifetime in specific regions around the IC devices. For these reasons, a "denuded zone" process has been developed for reducing oxygen precipitation in the surface layer but leaving some precipitates in the wafer interior. Falster describes the denuded zone process in the background section of U.S. Pat. No. 6,336,968, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Falster further describes, what is sometimes called, a tabula rasa process to avoid oxygen precipitation when the wafer is used in the fabrication of an electronic integrated circuit such as a DRAM. It is important in IC's not only to reduce the precipitates but also to prevent their reformation in the surface region during subsequent hot processing such as a long anneal at a temperature of 1000° C. In the Falster process performed before IC processing, the silicon wafer is subjected to a fast anneal in a rapid thermal processing (RTP) chamber at a temperature of greater than 1150° C. in an oxygen ambient. Falster believes that the high-temperature oxygen anneal reduces vacancies and thus prevents precipitation near the surface region during high-temperature processing used for IC's.
The Falster process is believed to prevent oxygen precipitation near the surface regions and thus does not enjoy the advantages of interior oxygen precipitation described above for the denuded zone process.

Thermal treatment of silicon wafers useful for photovoltaic applications


A coating composition for use in protecting metallic substrates from corrosion, comprising in weight percent, based on the total weight of the composition: from about 7% to 35% of film-forming substance; from about 35% to 55% of zinc powder; from about 5% to 25% of zinc flakes; from about 1% to 5% at least one kind of amorphous silica; and up to about 30% particulate ferrophosphate.

The outstanding corrosion resistance afforded by galvanizing has made it the most effective means for the long term protection of steel from oxidation (rusting) and subsequent corrosion. It is the conventional method of providing protection for guardrails, transmission towers, light poles, electrical equipment and dozens of other specific applications. Five mils or 125 microns of a galvanizing composition (applied to light poles and transmission towers) will protect exposed equipment for a period in excess of 20 years. Guardrails may be coated with an average deposition of 75 microns and provide approximately 10 years of corrosion protection in an average rainfall environment. Galvanizing compositions are applied both by hot dipping and electroplating, in applications where surface coatings do not provide adequate corrosion resistance.
Galvanizing compositions are made from zinc "ingots" and become oxidized only when exposed to the elements. The high conductivity of galvanizing compositions provides excellent cathodic protection to steel (which acts as the cathode, zinc being the anode), when exposed to a saline environment or other forms of oxidation caused primarily by water in its various forms, moisture, vapor and ice.
Zinc dust rich primers having an inorganic binder or vehicle have been in use for about 40 years. Typically such compositions contain about 80% to about 95% by weight zinc dust, and alkyl silicate has been the inorganic binder of choice. Single-package primer compositions containing about 80% to about 90% by weight zinc dust and ethyl silicate binder have been in use for about the last 20 years.
A brochure published by AKZO N.V. (publication date unknown) discusses the development of zinc-rich primers, the preparation of ethyl silicate and its use and mechanism as a binder. This publication explains that ethyl silicate is derived from tetraethyl orthosilicate which is reacted with water in the presence of an organic solvent to produce liquid polysiloxane resins. When used in a zinc-rich primer, evaporation of the solvent after application of the coating results in transformation of the polysiloxane resin to amorphous silica, which becomes the bonding film in the cured coating. The amorphous silica reacts chemically with some of the zinc powder in the coating to form zinc silicate compounds. The silica will also react with the ferrous metal substrate, particularly if it is previously abraded or sandblasted, to form iron-(zinc)-silicate bonds. Silicate mineral extenders frequently used in zinc-rich primers also are believed to react chemically in such inorganic systems. The resulting bonding matrix allows a controlled galvanic current flow between the ferrous substrate and the zinc pigment (cathodic and anodic to one another, respectively), thus providing long term galvanic protection, including scratched or abraded bare areas of substrate due to adjacent zinc metal.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,417,007, issued Nov. 22, 1983, to Salensky et al., discloses a zinc-rich paint formulation containing manganomanganic oxide as a color pigment, in which the binder may be any one of (1) epoxy resins, (2) that derived by reaction from diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A and vegetable oil fatty acids, (3) that derived from bisphenol A and epichlorohydrin, or (4) alkyl silicate. From about 43% to 90% by weight zinc dust, and from about 3% to 38% manganomanganic oxide are present, along with from about 4% to 25% by weight epoxy resin binder, 0 to about 35 % by weight pigment extenders and binders, 0 to about 5% by weight of a pigment suspension agent and balance solvent, in a claimed embodiment.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,891,394, issued Jan. 1990 to R. R. Savin, discloses a coating composition comprising about 10% to about 25% by weight of a film-forming polymer which may be an epoxy resin, a vinyl chloride resin copolymerized with polyisocyanates, or a vinyl chloride resin copolymerized with melamines; about 30% to about 60% by weight particulate metallic zinc (zinc dust as explained more fully below); a crystalline silica having an oil absorption value of less than 20 measured by ASTM Test D281-84, the volumetric ratio of such silica to zinc ranging from about 0.7:1 to about 1.25:1; about 2% to about 3% by weight of a pyrogenic amorphous silica having an average particle size less than about 0.012 micron (for control of rheological characteristics); and at least one solvent for the film-forming polymer.
French Patent 8611238 (Publication No. 2,602,239), published February, 1988, in the name of R. R. Savin, discloses a two part coating composition containing up to 70% by weight of a powdered metal (based on the total weight after admixture) (metal dust as explained more fully below); about 2% to 30% by weight of a film-forming polymer (as an organic binder); about 2% to about 30% of a hardener for the polymer; at least 1.8% and up to 30% of an agent for control of rheological characteristics; and up to 30% organic solvents. A preferred polymer is an epoxy resin having an average molecular weight of 350 to 3800. The agent for control of rheological characteristics includes at least one pyrogenic silica and optionally at least one natural or transformation silica having an oil absorption value preferably not greater than 90 and more preferably not greater than 40.
U.S. Pat. 5,098,938, issued March 1992 to R. R. Savin, discloses a coating composition similar to that of the above-mentioned U.S. No. Pat. 4,891,394, wherein an epoxy resin film-forming binder is used, and wherein at least four different size grades of pyrogenic amorphous silicas are present within specified proportions and average particle sizes, together with a crystalline silica having an oil absorption value of less than 20 measured by ASTM Test D281-84.
Canadian Patent 2,065,828 provides a waterborne zinc-rich anticorrosion primer which is based upon the combination of metallic zinc dust with a stable aqueous dispersion of a particular chlorinated addition copolymer. Such primer can be formulated without the need for significant amounts of organic co-solvents. There primers readily cure at ambient temperatures, allow overcoating shortly after drying, and result in films of desirable hardness, resiliency and adhesion both to the substrate and topcoat.
Canadian Patent 2,074,329 relates to an improved powder coating composition comprising (a) a resin, (b) a curing agent and (c) zinc, wherein the zinc is a mixture of (c1) lamellar zinc (zinc flakes) and (c2) zinc dust.
U.S. Pat. 5,167,701 issued December 1992 to R. R. Savin discloses a one-package zinc-rich coating composition having an inorganic binder which provides protection of metallic substrates against environmental attack comprises, in volume percent: from about 55% to about 60% of an alkyl silicate solution having a solids content of about 35% to about 45% by weight; about 10% to about 14% zinc dust of at least one different particle size grade; about 0.5% to about 2.5% zinc flakes; about 3% to about 6% particulate ferrophosphate; about 10% to about 17% of a particulate crystalline silica having an oil absorption value of less than 20 measured by ASTM Test D 281-84; about 1% to about 2.5% of at least two different size grades of pyrogenic amorphous silicas having average particle sizes ranging from about 0.007 to about 0.04 micron; about 0.3% to about 0.5% of a wetting agent; and about 7% to about 8% of an anhydrous alcohol solvent.
Coatings made from zinc dust provide only limited protection to bare metal due to its much lower conductivity than zinc metal caused by oxidizing during its manufacturing process. In conventional zinc rich paints the greater the conductivity the greater the area of adjacent bare steel will be protected by the zinc metal. The level of adjacent bare metal protection is largely proportional to its conductivity measured in ohms/cm.sup.2. All galvanizing compositions, prior to exposure, will measure total conductivity of 0.00 ohm/cm.sup.2 at 75 micron deposition, whereas organic zinc rich industrial and maintenance coatings will measure from 1 to several dozen ohms/cm.sup.2 at 75 microns based on the percentage of zinc dust and the particle size of the zinc dust utilized. In order to provide adequate continuity, zinc incorporated in organic primers customarily contains between 80-95 wt % of zinc dust to the binder including additives. The high percentage of zinc dust provides improved conductivity contributing improved cathodic protection, however, the high density and low binder content causes serious problems in handling and poor substrate adhesion requiring sand blasted metal to secure adequate adhesion.
Zinc powder has not been used in zinc rich coating systems due to its large particle size, heavy sedimentation problems and has been ignored as an acceptable pigment. This application involves the use of zinc powder as a low cost galvanized metal replacement. Its relatively larger particle size permits excellent topcoat adhesion while galvanizing generally requires pre treatment such as acid etching or special wash primers to provide adequate adhesion. Most galvanized metal is normally not coated due to the cost involved in the pre-treatment and the application of a topcoat in field conditions. While the term "zinc powder" has been and continues to be used interchangeably with "zinc dust", as used herein "zinc powder" only means pulverized metallic zinc in granular form, which is different from "zinc dust", from "zinc powder" and from "particulate zinc", as these terms are generally understood. As used herein "zinc powder" also is different from "lamellar zinc" or "zinc flakes", as used in the Canadian Patent 2,074,329.
Thus, there is clearly a genuine need for a cost effective zinc-powder based coating composition for replacing traditional galvanizing compositions, which affords all the advantages of the galvanizing compositions.


Methods and apparatus are presented for estimating environmental parameters from GNSS signals in real time. Some embodiments estimate a float solution using a federated ionospheric filter. Some embodiments fix ambiguities for improved estimates.

Over the last two decades, a large number of regional GNSS reference station networks with several thousands of receivers have been established and provide network corrections for continuous real-time centimeter level positioning (also called Real-Time Kinematic positioning or RTK positioning). The principle of network RTK positioning is that tropospheric and ionospheric effects are modeled in the regional network and largely removed for the RTK positioning. For GNSS positioning, the atmospheric effects are considered as systematic error to be removed in the positioning process. On the other hand, the tropospheric and ionospheric delays estimated in the GNSS network are valuable for meteorological and space weather applications.
Numerous studies have shown that the Integrated Precipitable Water Vapour (IPWV) contained in the neutral atmosphere can be retrieved using GNSS observations with the same level of accuracy as Water Vapor Radiometers (WVR). The advantage of using a GNSS network is that it provides continuous IPWV estimation with good spatial coverage and high temporal resolution. Nowadays, several research organizations provide near real-time and/or post-processed IPWV estimation from a GNSS reference station network with a typical delay of 30 minutes up to a day, and an accuracy of 1˜2 mm. Though the accuracy is quite good, the large latency means the information only reflects what happened in the past and is thus less useful for applications like Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP).
Space weather is the study of the environmental dynamics of "geospace": the region above the Earth's lower atmosphere including the ionosphere and the magnetosphere. Conditions on the Sun and in the solar wind, magnetosphere, and the ionosphere can affect our lives through the effects they have on satellites, communications, navigation, and power systems. Scientists are now studying space weather with a wide range of tools to try to learn more about the physical and chemical processes taking place in the upper atmosphere and beyond. In recent years, GNSS has become recognized as one of the premier remote sensing tools to monitor space weather events. The signals from the GNSS satellites travel through the ionosphere on their way to receivers on or near Earth's surface. The free electrons populating this region of the atmosphere affect the propagation of the signals, changing their speed and direction of travel. By processing the data from a dual-frequency GNSS receiver, it is actually possible to estimate just how many electrons were encountered by the signal along its travel path—the total electron content (TEC). TEC is the number of electrons in a column with a cross-sectional area of one square meter centered on the signal path. If a regional network of ground-based GNSS receivers is used, then a map of TEC above the region can be constructed.
Known software programs for estimating atmospheric models from GNSS signal data, though not in real time, include the Bernese Software from the Astronomical Institute, University of Bern, Version 5.0, January 2007, Chapters 11 and 12, and the GAMIT/GLOBK software from the Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, GAMIT Reference Manual Release 10.3, 1 Jun. 2009, Chapter 7.
United States Patent Publication 2009/0224969 A1 of Peter F. Kolb describes a Kalman-filtering method to model the ionospheric effect with carrier phase data from a regional network in real time. As only the carrier phase data is used, the absolute level of the TEC needs a long time to converge.
Improved methods and apparatus for estimation of atmospheric parameters from GNSS data in real time are desired.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

GNSS atmospheric estimation with federated ionospheric filter


A tracing device for use in the mouth cavity can include an upper jaw plate, a lower jaw plate, and a coupling tool that connects the above jaw plates. The upper jaw plate can be provided with a guide prop stud, a stud installation pore, a tracing pin, a tracing pin installation pore as well as an auxiliary stud. The lower jaw plate can include a guide tracing table, a connection pore, as well as a movement line formation table. Different structures can be made of a magnetic material or associated with a magnet. A lower jaw inducement guide plate can be made of plastic and have three dimensional slopes, and a guide tracing table can have a tracing plate, and can be freely attachable/detachable to/from the main body of the lower jaw plate.

1. Field
The disclosed subject matter relates to a tracing device for use in a mouth when center relation and jaw movement are recorded in an odontology clinical. In the in-mouth cavity tracing device, a lower jaw inducement guide plate which can have the shape of three dimensional slopes including plastic, and a guide tracing table which has a tracing board are connected by pressure, and fitted to the main body of the lower jaw plate, and can all be freely detached in use. Also, an in-mouth cavity tracing device can include a lower jaw inducement guide plate shaped in three dimensional slopes having arbitrary angles.
In recent odontology clinical studies, cases of using implantation, and ceramics, etc. as the newest odontology clinical materials, have been increasing. Also, in the in-mouth cavity tracing device, the desire for accurate measurement and recording of the position where a jaw movement, and the jaw itself are steady has been recognized.
Moreover, in terms of maintaining health in the mouth for a long time where odontology clinical mending materials are installed, accurate measurement, and recording of the position where a jaw movement, and the jaw itself are steady can be important in making odontology mending materials.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, in an in-mouth cavity tracing device, there are several typical devices and methods, including the Check-bite Method, the Pantograph Method, the Chew-in Method, for example, that are used for measuring movements of center relation of the jaw as well as the lower jaw. Among them, the Check-bite Method using the tracing device is the most widely adopted measuring and recording method.
The tracing device used for the Check-bite Method has a tracing pin installed in the upper jaw, and a plane tracing board installed in the lower jaw.
Tracing the horizontal movement line of the lower jaw on the tracing board can be possible by inducing the lower jaw forward and to the side. The movement line of the lower jaw is composed of three lines with one arrow head, and this tracing chart is called the Gothic arch. The point where these three lines intersect is the so-called APEX. Locating the APEX of the Gothic arch traced like this in the center, the horizontal jaw position can be determined, which can also be applied to a patient with missing or no teeth (denture wearers).
When the Gothic arch tracer mentioned above is used for cases of a jaw with teeth, and implantation, it can be traced in case of raising diameter of bite, i.e., a mouth being open wide, since the tracing board is planar.
Moreover, in this Gothic arch tracer, a high diameter of bite is often required, which can be stressful and make a patient's load heavier. Further, in the above condition, it is troublesome that natural movement of the lower jaw cannot be made, thus the correct center position cannot be determined. Consequently, in recording an in-mouth cavity, it is an important condition in determining the correct center position not to raise the diameter of bite.
As for the above-mentioned Gothic arch tracer, lots of troubles were found as listed above, since the position of APEX was difficult to confirm due to tracing in bold lines, and enough clearance space (space for no contact with upper and lower teeth) was typically necessary while recording. Moreover, the recording related to the center relation of the jaw, as well as movement of the lower jaw, are made in the paraffin wax, etc. by Check-bite Method based on the Gothic arch. In order to record precisely the center relation of the jaw, and the movement of the lower jaw, the Gothic arch should be done in high tracing accuracy.
In the in-mouth cavity tracing device shown in the Japanese Patent Publication No. 18053/1984 (U.S. Pat. No. 1,245,692) which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, it is known that accurate recording can be done in the cases where a patient has no teeth or has partial dentures, and is often used in the odontology clinic.
The in-mouth cavity tracing device shown in this patent gazette is composed of the upper jaw plate A shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the lower jaw plate B shown in FIGS. 9 and 11, and the coupling tool C shown in FIG. 13. It is installed in the mouth cavity as shown in FIGS. 14 and 15, and then tracing of the Gothic arch, and gathering of the Check-bite are done.
The upper jaw plate A as shown in FIG. 6 is placed downward with a projection at almost center to the main body of the upper jaw plate a which is u-shaped. And, it can include the guide prop stud 2 having rotating ball 4 at the edge, and two supplementary studs 3 installed symmetrically downward at the rear edge of the main body of the upper jaw plate "a". Pin device "f" can be installed downward with a projection at the front edge "e" of the main body of upper jaw plate "a" having cylinder maintenance part 24.
FIG. 7 shows the section view of FIG. 6 along line A2-A2. According to FIG. 7, in drawing in the mouth with the drawing device, the above-mentioned prop stud 2 can freely adjust the length of the device in order to induce the jaw movement and to keep the vertical jaw interval distance, and stud fixation screw 8 can fix the guidance prop stud 2 in place where length is adjusted.
Further, drawing pin 1 can be installed such that it is freely detachable in the hollow and cylindrical maintenance part 24 of the above-mentioned pin device "f" in order to draw the Gothic arch. Pin maintenance device "h" can also be installed to fix this drawing pin 1.
FIG. 8 shows a main part of the above-mentioned pin device "f". As shown in FIG. 8, the above-mentioned pin maintenance device "h" can be composed of a pin stopper 5 that is configured to hold the drawing pin 1, elasticity material 6, and stopping screw 7 for the elasticity material. In addition, a spring 23 for the pin can be installed about the drawing pin 1 in order to maintain a downward pressure.
FIG. 9 is a front view of the lower jaw plate B which is shown from the rear side. As shown in FIG. 9, the lower jaw plate B can include the main body of the lower jaw plate "b" and the recording floor connection part "d". The main body of the lower jaw plate "b" can include drawing table 9 for installing drawing plate 9a placed at the head, and guide table 10 for installing guide plate 10a placed at the center.
The record floor connecting part "d" having U-shape can include two tables of movement line formation tables 11 placed at the rear edge in symmetrical relation to each other respectively in order to install movement line recorder 11a. The main body of the lower jaw "b", and the record floor connection part "d" are detachably fixed with the main body of the lower jaw plate fixation screws 25.
FIG. 10 shows the above-mentioned drawing table 9 located at a foremost position in the mouth. The drawing plate 9a is formed on the surface of this drawing table 9. The drawing plate 9a can include plasticizer materials such as polymerization resins that are placed immediately on the surface of the drawing table 9, and it touches the head of the needle of drawing pin 1 installed in the above-mentioned upper jaw plate A, and records the movement of drawing pin 1 as the Gothic arch.
FIG. 11 shows a sectional view of the lower jaw plate B. In the above-mentioned guide table 10, guide plate 10a with processing resins can be installed. The guide plate 10a being formed on the three-dimensional slopes, corresponds with the guide prop stud 2 installed in the above-mentioned upper jaw plate A. In addition, guide plate 10a can record a patient's own incisor line angle, and can induce the jaw movement to record movement lines by touching with the above-mentioned guide prop stud 2 that serves as a sliding guide. The guide plate 10a can be connected with guide table 10 via guide plate fixation screw 26, as shown in FIG. 12.
Movement line record 11a can be formed by putting plasticity materials such as patty silicon rubbers on the above-mentioned movement line formation tables 11. The line movement recorder 11a can record and form, provided that the supplemental stud 3 follows the sculpturing in three dimensions on plasticity materials such as silicon rubbers, etc by inducing patient's jaw with guide prop stud 2 sliding on the incisor line angle recorded on the above-mentioned guide plate 10a.
The coupling tool C shown in FIG. 13 can include connection shaft 14, upper jaw plate supporter 15, lower jaw plate supporter 16, plate interval fixation screw 17, and connection screw 13 that connects lower jaw plate B. The coupling tool C connects upper jaw plate A, and lower jaw plate B, and is used for installation of the upper jaw plate A and the lower jaw plate B in recording floors X, and Y shown in FIGS. 14 and 15. The recording floor X and Y where upper jaw plate A and lower jaw plate B are installed respectively are removed from coupling tool C, and are fixed with adhesive such as cement in the mouth.
However, in a conventional in-mouth tracing device, the pin device "f" has breakdown problems attributed to the elastic material 6 due to complex detaching structures of the tracing plate formation pin 19, the tracing pin 1, and the jaw fixing pin, respectively, used in recording formation processes of the tracing plate 9a, for example, the Gothic arch, the Check-bite.
The main body of the above mentioned guide prop stud 2 is a male screw. In the process of deciding the vertical jaw distance by turning the thread part of the guide prop stud 2, and fixing by tightening the stud fixing screw 8, the length of the guide prop stud 2 is adjusted through the screw structure. However, there is a problem in that the guide prop stud 2 and/or other components can be easily loosened.
Moreover, the guide prop stud 2 is able to be fixed to maintain the decided length by the stud fixing screw 8. However, there is a fault in that it can be easily loosened in the process. For example, loosening can occur during the process of connecting the guide plate table 10 of the lower jaw plate B, and the guide plate 10a with the guide plate fixing screw 26. The guide plate 10a is fixed to the guide table 10 with the guide plate fixing screw 26, and it is able to detach for adjustment. There is also possibilities of medical accidents occurring, for example, dropping screws, or conditioner tools in the mouth because of the small screw size, etc.
The tracing plate 9a is made by using resin with the tracing plate formation pin 19 in the process of forming a record of the tracing plate 9a. However, the operational formation process is insufficient and complex.
Moreover, in the connecting process to adjust the starting position where the horizontal position should be constant, since it is typically necessary to use the connecting shaft 14, the upper jaw plate supporter 16, the plate interval fixation screw 17, and the connecting screw 13 in the connecting process of the upper jaw plate A and the lower jaw plate B, by using the coupling tool C, the operational efficiency therefore is difficult and complex.
It is also difficult to make a plate that is universally appropriate to a patient's mouth cavity (jaw). In addition, shaking is a problem at the time of detaching the guide tracing table and the lower jaw plate connection part from/to the main body of the lower jaw plate. In the device shown in FIG. 1, the detaching of the subcomponent parts is easy because in part, a complex operation such as tightening of screws is not required. In particular, tracing pin 1 and the jaw fixation pin (the same use as the tracing pin 1) can be fixed with magnetic force, respectively, in the installation pore 40.
In addition, detaching of the subcomponents for adjusting the jaw intervals can be easy, and there is substantially no complex operation required. Thus, the time for clinical adjustment is shortened, since the above-mentioned guide prop stud 2 is fixed with a magnetic force associated with the connection pore 27. In addition, the guide plate 10 and trace plate table 9 that have conventionally been separately installed in the lower jaw plate B can be united as the guide tracing table 33, whereby the detaching process can be done at one time, and the detaching can be easily done, since the installation of the lower jaw plate B is fixed with magnetic force associated with the connection pores 36a, and 36b.
Therefore, the detaching in the mouth cavity can be quickly done in many of the processes. For example detaching can occur quickly in the positioning adjustment process as well as the record formation process of the guide plate 10a, the record formation process of the tracing plate 9a, the Gothic arch tracing process, and the Check-bite collection process in the clinic.


A silver halide photographic light-sensitive material includes at least one light-sensitive silver halide emulsion layer on a support. A silver halide emulsion contained in at least one emulsion layer contains grains having an average grain diameter of 0.3 .mu.m or more, an average grain thickness of less than 0.5 .mu.m and an average grain diameter/average grain thickness ratio of 2 or more in a percentage of at least 50% of a total projected area of emulsion grains. The emulsion is chemically sensitized in the presence of at least one compound represented by the following formula (I): ##STR1## wherein X represents hydrogen or alkaline metal, and R represents hydrogen, halogen or alkyl having 1 to 5 carbons.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a photographic light-sensitive material and, more particularly, to a silver halide photographic light-sensitive material having good image sharpness and storage stability.
2. Description of the Related Art
A tabular grain is one of several types of various known forms of silver halide grains for use in a silver halide photographic light-sensitive material.
Methods of manufacturing and techniques of using tabular silver halide grains are already disclosed in, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,434,226, 4,439,520, 4,414,310, 4,433,048, 4,414,306 and 4,459,353 and JP-A-59-99433 and JP-A-62-209445 ("JP-A-" means Unexamined Published Japanese Patent Application). Known advantages obtained by the tabular silver halide grains are, for instance, an increase in sensitivity including an increase in color sensitization efficiency obtained by a sensitizing dye, an improvement in sensitivity/graininess relationship, an increase in sharpness obtained by specific optical properties of the tabular grains and an increase in covering power.
It has become apparent, however, that the tabular silver halide grain generally has a problem in which a latent image produced by exposure fades as time passes (to be referred to as "latent image fading" hereinafter).
As a means for preventing latent image fading, methods of adding a sulfur-, oxygen- or nitrogen-containing compound are disclosed in, for example, GB-1,308,777, GB-1,335,923, GB-1,353,527, GB-1,378,354, GB-1,386,630, GB-1,387,654, GB-1,389,089, GB-1,391,672, GB-1,390,237, GB-1,394,371, GB-1,412,294, GB-1,458,197, U.S. Pat. No. 3,881,939, U.S. Pat. No. 4,397,942, JP-A-47-37922, JP-A-49-17,720, JP-A-57-22234, JP-A-57-158840, JP-A-58-90634 and JP-A-58-152235; a method of adding a sulfinic acid derivative is disclosed in JP-A-57-104,927 and JP-A-62-21,145; and a method of adding various compounds is disclosed in RD (Research Disclosure) No. 17,643.
The present inventors have studied various methods on the basis of the above finding. With respect to tabular silver halide grains, however, each of the above methods has a drawback of, for example, increasing fog. Therefore, even if latent image fading is improved by these methods, they are still problematic to be put into practical use because of their side effect, i.e., an increase in fog, and an immediate solution of this problem has been desired. In addition, demand has arisen for an improvement in incubation resistance of a tabular emulsion at a high temperature, which is conventionally not at a sufficient level.

Silver halide photographic light-sensitive material


A compact corrosion measurement apparatus and system includes an air fan, a corrosion sensor, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, a heater element, and an air flow sensor all under control to monitor and maintain constant air parameters in an environment and minimize environmental fluctuations around the corrosion sensor to overcome the variation commonly encountered in corrosion rate measurement. The corrosion measurement apparatus includes a structure providing an enclosure within which are located the sensors. Constant air flow and temperature is maintained within the enclosure where the corrosion sensor is located by integrating a variable speed air fan and a heater with the corresponding feedback loop control. Temperature and air flow control loops ensure that corrosivity is measured under similar conditions in different facilities offering a general reference point that allow a one to one comparison between facilities with similar or different pollution levels.

The present disclosure generally relates to a device, system and method for minimizing environmental fluctuations around a corrosion sensor to overcome the variation commonly encountered in corrosion rate measurements and assess the true contamination level in data centers.
Corrosion is determined by the synergistic effects of "air" parameters such as temperature, humidity, air flow (speed), and gaseous contamination concentrations. Any of the above mentioned "air" parameters will affect the corrosion rate of certain metals, and as a result, measurement of the corrosion rate can vary depending on the location of the measurement and the environment that a corrosion sensor will see.
For example, corrosion sensors positioned at the outlet of an air conditioning unit may not detect the full extent of corrosion as the temperature is too low to trigger the corrosion, but at higher temperature a finite corrosion rate may be detected. Depending on the measurement location, either no corrosion or significant corrosion could be measured in the same facility.
Air parameters like temperature, humidity and air flow can influence corrosion in polluted atmospheres resulting in corrosion rates that can differ by more than a factor of five (5) or larger in the same facility.
The proliferation and spread of facilities such as information technology (IT) Data Centers (DC) into geographies with higher levels of atmospheric contamination and the use of air-side cooling within data centers require more attention towards air quality management as a data center encounters large variation of temperature, air flow and humidity over short distances. Besides temperature, humidity, and air flow, the concentration of gaseous contamination can also affect the corrosion rate in data centers. One concern of air side economization is the possibility of unintentional introduction in a facility of a large amount of gaseous and particulate pollutants potentially leading to more failures and outages of the IT equipment. That is, IT equipment operated at high temperatures and increased humidity combined with high level of air contamination can lead to enhanced corrosion risk in data centers.
Two types of contamination that have been identified to impose risk on IT equipment include particulates and gaseous contaminations. Recent investigation of the particulate contamination levels in data centers established that proper filtering can reduce the concentrations to acceptable levels. However, for gaseous contamination monitoring, the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) publication [see, ASHRAE Whitepaper, "Gaseous and Particulate Contamination Guidelines for Data Centers", 2009] states that reactivity should be measured both for copper and for silver. Currently, the study recommends that copper and silver corrosion rates should be maintained less than 300 Å/month for a non-contaminated environment. Furthermore the ASHRAE publication suggests that in situations where atmospheric contamination is high, proper filtration should be used to reduce the corrosion levels below 300 Å/month.
The ASHRAE guidelines are designed to minimize the physical failure risks of the IT equipment, while achieving higher energy efficiency. Certain limitations are set for temperature or relative humidity levels to reduce condensation or overheating risk of the IT equipment. For example, it is suggested that humidity levels below 20% can increase the probability of electrostatic discharge (ESD) and implicitly the failure of integrated circuit components. High humidity levels (above 70%) may increase the probability of Printed Circuit Board (PCB) delamination, anodic filament growth, zinc whisker growth and corrosion.
Standard industrial methods to measure corrosion rely on exposing metal (silver and copper) coupons to a polluted atmosphere and collecting the coupons after at least a one month period of such exposure. For field deployed copper and silver coupons, it has been observed that the corroded surface shows spatial variations across the surface depending on the direction of air flow, temperature, surface preparation and humidity. Even coupons which hang near each other will have different corrosion product thickness and variation across their surfaces indicating that the local environment has a large impact on the corrosion formation.
The desire of operating data centers (DCs) more energy efficient has resulted in two trends: (1) environmental operating parameters for IT equipment have been significantly expanded, and (2) air side economizers are increasingly used to offset cooling energy consumption, which can be substantial fraction of the total DC power. These two trends can have significant implications for the corrosion risk of a DC.
While filtering of the outside air, both for particulate and gaseous contamination, can mitigate air contamination in data centers, implementing a facility wide air quality monitoring system promises the safe use of air-side economizers and would establish appropriate filtering.

Corrosion detector apparatus for universal assessment of pollution in data centers

International Business Machines Corporation


A method of depositing a layer includes measuring a physical property that is related to an air pressure in a reactor chamber of a deposition apparatus. A main gas mixture including a source gas and an auxiliary gas is introduced into the reactor chamber at atmospheric pressure, the source gas including a precursor material and a carrier gas. A gas flow of at least one of the source gas and the auxiliary gas into the reactor chamber is controlled in response to a change of the air pressure in the reactor chamber.

CVD (chemical vapor deposition) deposits dielectric layers, metallic layers, amorphous semiconductor layers, polycrystalline semiconductor layers or single-crystalline semiconductor layers on a front surface of a substrate. For example, vapor phase epitaxy may grow single-crystal layers on an appropriate crystalline basis. A semiconductor wafer may be placed on a wafer holder (susceptor) in a deposition chamber of a deposition apparatus. The front surface of the semiconductor wafer may be subjected to a cleaning gas and then to a vaporous silicon source such as a silane at an appropriate temperature and at an appropriate pressure to deposit and/or grow a crystalline silicon layer on the substrate front surface. During deposition of the semiconductor layer the susceptor may rotate to improve uniformity of the deposition across the front surface of the semiconductor wafer. There is a need to further improve the deposition of layers, e.g., semiconductor layers.

Apparatus and method of depositing a layer at atmospheric pressure


A nipple end-piece adapter is disclosed for a bottle having a threaded neck, and further comprising an inner threaded chimney adapted for cooperating with the thread of the neck of the bottle, a sidewall also threaded for receiving the ring of the end-piece and, in addition, a skirt connected to the chimney, shaped and positioned so that it cooperates sealingly with the internal face of the neck of the bottle when the adapter is fixed thereon by screwing its chimney on the neck.

Mineral water has been used for a long time for preparing drinks in feeding bottles for infants, which generally comprise a nipple removably fixed to a bottle with a wide neck by means of a threaded ring adapted to be screwed on to said neck. The ring and the nipple after being fitted on the bottle form a liquid tight end-piece which allows air to enter the feeding bottle, progressively as the infant sucks. The bottles and the threaded end-pieces are sterilized before the feeding bottles are filled, including those to be filled with mineral water which are frequently given to a young child during walks, journeys or similar outings. It is then necessary, during such outings, to take one or more sterilized nipple bottles and the mineral water bottles for filling them. The weight and space required, particularly for a young mother, may then be a hindrance.

Nipple adapter for a bottle comprising a screw ring

Societe Anonyme des Eaux Minerales d'Evian


A steering apparatus of a vehicle includes a plurality of coupling portions formed in a rack housing of a gear box and coupled to mounting portions of a vehicle body; and a nut member having a support surface and installed in each of the mounting portions of the vehicle body. In particular, each of the plurality of coupling portions has a seating surface formed as a curved surface with a predetermined curvature, and the seating surfaces are respectively seated on the support surface of the nut member installed in each of the mounting portions of the vehicle body such that the rack housing of the gear box is fixed to the vehicle body by a bolt which passes through each of the plurality of coupling portions to be engaged with the nut member of each of the mounting portions.

The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Generally, a steering apparatus is a device for changing a driving direction of a vehicle according to an intent of a driver and for rotating a wheel so as to allow the vehicle to drive in a desired direction of a driver.
In a known steering apparatus, when the driver manipulates a steering wheel, a force (i.e., a steering torque) is delivered to the wheel through a gear box having a rack-pinion structure to thereby rotate the wheel of the vehicle.
Recently, an electric steering apparatus has been developed and widely used. The electric steering apparatus assists the steering torque of the driver through a motor to allow the driver to easily manipulate a steering wheel.
For the delivery of the steering torque from the driver and an auxiliary steering torque generated by the motor in the electric steering apparatus, multiple components are involved. The components may include a steering column installed below the steering wheel, a gear box for converting a rotational force delivered from the steering column into a forward force to change a direction of the wheel, and a universal joint for delivering the rotational force delivered from the steering column to the gear box.
Here, the gear box may include a pinion gear for receiving the rotational force from the universal joint, and a rack bar on which a rack is formed. A pinion gear is engaged with the rack.
In such a gear box, when the pinion gear is rotated, the rack bar performs a direct motion in a left-right direction due to the rack. In this case, an acting force due to the direct motion of the rack bar is delivered to the wheel through a tie rod and a ball joint to change the direction of the wheel.
Meanwhile, in the steering apparatus, a rack housing is coupled to the vehicle body, specifically, a sub-frame of the vehicle. In the case of the sub-frame, since it is difficult to precisely control a height and an angle of a mounting portion due to a characteristic of a manufacturing process, the rack housing which is coupled to the sub-frame is bent or damaged such that there is a problem in that noise and a steering failure occur.
FIG. 6 is a plan view illustrating a sub-frame 1 that includes a mounting portion to which a rack housing of a gear box is coupled.
As shown in the drawing, a plurality of mounting portions are set in the sub-frame 1, and a pipe-shaped nut member 2 is installed in each of the plurality of mounting portions.
FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a state in which a gear box 3 is mounted on the sub-frame 1, and FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a mounting structure. As shown in FIG. 8, the pipe-shaped nut member 2 (e.g., a "pipe nut") is welded and fixed to each of the plurality of mounting portions of the sub-frame 1, and a coupling portion 5 is formed on a rack housing 4 of the gear box 3 to be coupled to each of the plurality of mounting portions of the sub-frame 1 through a bolt 6.
The nut member 2 is formed by machining a screw thread on an inner circumferential surface of a hollow. A hole 1a is formed in each of the plurality of mounting portions of the sub-frame 1, and the nut member 2 is inserted into the hole 1a and fixed thereto by welding.
The coupling portion 5 of the rack housing 4 is formed at a position corresponding to each of the plurality of mounting portions of the sub-frame 1. In a state in which the coupling portion 5 is placed on the nut member 2 of a corresponding mounting portion, a coupling hole 5a of the coupling portion 5 is aligned with the hollow of the nut member 2, the bolt 6 passes from an upward side to be inserted into the hollow of the nut member 2 through the coupling hole 5a, and then the bolt 6 is screw-engaged with an interior of the hollow of the nut member 2.
In this case, since the plurality of mounting portions of the sub-frame 1 and a plurality of coupling portions 5 of the rack housing 4 are provided, one hollow of the nut member 2 among the plurality of mounting portions is first aligned with one coupling hole 5a among the plurality of coupling portions 5 to set a reference hole, one bolt 6 is engaged in the reference hole in advance, and then the remaining bolts 6 are engaged in the remaining mounting portions and the remaining coupling portions.
However, as shown in FIG. 9, we have found that in a state in which the nut member 2 is installed in the mounting portion of the sub-frame 1, a deviation of the nut member 2 may occur due to various causes. For example, when the nut member 2 is welded to the mounting portion of the sub-frame 1, a deviation may occur within a tolerance range (an angle of deviation: θ), and an angular deviation may occur due to thermal deformation and the like.
As shown in FIG. 10, we have also discovered that owing to a mounting seat surface tolerance after the gear box 3 is mounted on the reference hole, a spacing may occur on another mounting portion. As shown in FIG. 10, when the coupling portion 5 of the rack housing 4 is spaced apart from the nut member 2 in the mounting portion, damage may occur in the vicinity of the coupling portion 5 of the rack housing 4 during bolting, and friction fluctuation is caused due to deformation of the rack housing 4 such that a steering feeling may be adversely affected.


A fluid-dynamic actuator having a detection system for determining the position of a piston along its path of travel within a cylinder. The piston includes a head and rod extending therefrom. First grooves are machined on respective sections of the rod. Projections of the first grooves onto a first plane parallel to the longitudinal axis of the rod define segments arranged obliquely with respect to the axis. Second grooves extend along the axis for predetermined lengths such that a respective number of second grooves run across each section. Optical sensors detect the presence of second grooves through a second plane transverse to the axis and a displacement of segments along a line coplanar with the second plane due to movement of the piston. A processor counts detected second grooves to determine the position of the piston as a function of the count of second grooves and the displacement of segments.

A double-acting fluid-dynamic actuator comprises a cylinder and a piston, which is movable inside the cylinder under the action of a pressurized fluid and is provided with a head that sealingly slides along the inside walls of the cylinder and a rod integral with the head.
A system for determining the position of a piston along its path of travel for a fluid-dynamic actuator of the type described above is known in the prior art. Said system normally comprises a magnetostrictive sensor suitable to be mounted with a first part on the rod and with a second part on the cylinder. In particular, the magnetostrictive sensor comprises a magnet that is mounted along the cylinder to generate an electromagnetic field through the rod and an element sensitive to the electromagnetic field inserted in a specific seat obtained inside the rod and connected electrically to a control unit. This type of sensor requires complex and expensive machining processes to produce both the cylinder and the rod of the piston.
Another known system for determining the position of a piston along its path of travel comprises an optical sensor and a decoding unit to read a series of binary codes on the rod, each consisting of a series of grooves, arranged according to a specific pattern that defines the code, on the outer surface of the rod transversely with respect to the longitudinal axis of the rod. The precision of the system is defined by the size of the grooves and the precision with which they are machined on the rod. This system has the advantage, compared to that using the magnetostrictive sensor, of not requiring any specific machining of the cylinder, but it still requires special and expensive machining of the rod to obtain good reading accuracy.

System for determining the position of a piston along its path of travel for a fluid-dynamic actuator


A first network device transmits, to a second network device, a first indication indicating that the first network device is willing to transmit data to the second network device using an alignment mode for aligning protocol data units (PDUs) that include data with transport packets that encapsulate the PDUs for transmission of the data to the second network device. The first network device receives, from the second network device, a second indication indicating that the second network device is requesting use of the alignment mode for transmission of data from the first network device to the second network device. In response to transmitting the first indication to the second network device and receiving the second indication from the second network device, the first network device enables the alignment mode for transmission of data from the first network device to the second network device.

The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it is described in this background section, as well as aspects of the description that may not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure.
Network devices utilize various data transfer protocols to transfer data between a host device, such as a device implementing an application, and a target device, such as a storage box. Such transfers often occur over a network, in which a data transfer protocol may be layered over a transport protocol to perform the data transfer over the network. For example, a non-volatile memory express (NVMe) protocol may be layered over an NVMe over fabrics (NVMeOF) protocol, such as NVMe over transmission control protocol (TCP), to transfer data over a TCP connection on the network. An NVMe/TCP protocol data unit (PDU) that carries data typically includes a header that specifies information that allows a receiving device to determine a final memory location at which the data is to be stored at the receiving device. Thus, when the receiving device is able to locate the header of the NVMe/TCP PDU in a TCP packet, the receiving device is able to write data transmitted in the packet directly to a location in the memory at the final destination based on information carried in the header of the PDU. However, in some situations, TCP packets arrive out of order at the receiving device, for example, due to loss or delay of TCP packets in the network. In such situations, an NVMe/TCP PDU header corresponding to data received in the TCP packet may be located in a lost or delayed TCP packet. In such scenarios the receiving device typically needs to temporarily store OOO TCP packets in an OOO buffer until the missing TCP packet (or packets) is received, and subsequently transfer the data from the OOO buffer to the final memory location in the memory of the receiving device. Some devices rely on a dedicated OOO buffer that necessitate use of a large memory to temporarily store out of order TCP packets, particularly when many TCP connections are supported by the receiving device. Further, transfers of data from the temporary buffers to the final memory destinations increase latency of data transfers and require additional processing bandwidth at the receiving device.

Negotiation of alignment mode for out of order placement of data in network devices


A slat controller for a window blind has a gear, a worm member, and a connector. The gear connects to slats through cords, and the worm member having spiral teeth meshed with the gear. The connector has flexible arms, and the flexible arms have teeth. The worm member has teeth normally engaging the teeth of the connector, and the teeth of the worm member disengage the teeth of the connector to protect the meshed gear and the worm member when the user keeps turning the tilting rod beyond the allowable turning range.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a window covering, and more particularly to a slat controller of a window blind, which may be self-protected when the controller is over-turned.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1 shows a window blind, including a top rail 52, a bottom rail 54, and a plurality of slats 56 between the top rail 52 and a bottom rail 54. The window blind is provided with a slat controller (not shown) in the top rail 52 to be operated to adjust the slats 56. The slat controller is connected to a rod 58 that user may turn the rod 58 to change angles of the slats 58 through pulling or releasing cords 60 coupled to the slats 56.
The conventional slat controller includes a worm and a gear meshed with the worm, in which the rod 58 is connected to the worm and the cords 60 are fastened to the gear that the cords 60 will be pulled or released when one turns the rod 58.
The rod 58 is unable to be turned when the slats 56 touch the neighboring slats 56. However, some users may still keep turning the rod 58, and it may break the worm and/or the gear to make the controller cannot operate normally.


An automatic multiple-gear transmission, in particular a power-bifurcated auxiliary transmission for motor vehicles, is described, in which several power paths are provided in a transmission housing (24) between a transmission input shaft (3) and a transmission output shaft (4) for the shifting of gears. The gears are presented with several conversion devices (8, 9, 10) that can be hooked up via control elements (5, 6, 7) into a power flow. At least one of the conversion devices (8, 9, 10) is located at least partially in a transmission housing (24) in such a way that the radial and tangential forces can be transmitted directly to the housing when the conversion device (8, 9) is hooked up.

Automatic transmissions or multiple-gear transmissions, which are generally known in the art, are predominantly based upon the principle of conventional manual transmissions in a gear building system, in which a gear shift is realized with control elements in the form of synchronizations. Because power-producing elements in these types of transmissions, designed in the form of spur gear levels, require a large installation space, in practice so-called automatic power shift gears with planetary gear sets are used. These require less installation space in comparison with transmissions comprising spur gear levels.
Automatic power shift gears, however, are designed with control elements, such as frictional multiple disk clutches and multiple disk breaks, that must have relatively large dimensions to enable transfer of torque, and are most often actuated hydraulically.
In addition, these types of power shift gears are disadvantageously characterized by large drag losses during their inoperative state or in their open state, and a correspondingly large amount of actuation energy is required for their actuation, which has a negative effect on the transmission efficiency.
Furthermore, transmission types are known in the art that are a combination of the two previously described transmission concepts, i.e., they combine automatic multiple-gear transmissions with a gear building system and automatic power shift transmissions with planetary gearsets.
Such a combination is represented, for example, by a conventional auxiliary transmission with power bifurcation and a post-connected planetary gearset as a summing transmission. The individual gears of such a transmission are engaged via the control elements of the auxiliary transmission, wherein the control elements as well as the spur gears of the spur gear levels of the power-bifurcated auxiliary transmission are located directly on a main shaft and directly on a countershaft.
The further the control elements and the spur gears, located on the two shafts of the auxiliary transmission, are distanced from a bearing of the main shaft and from a bearing of the countershaft in a transmission housing on the main shaft and on the countershaft, the higher are the tangential, radial, and axial forces that are exerted when the spur gear levels are hooked up. These forces lead to higher or lower bending moments or bending loads of the main shaft as well as the countershaft, so that both shafts must be dimensioned accordingly to avoid damage.
If very high drive moments are transferred via the transmission, the main shaft, the countershaft, and the bearings of the two shafts must be designed with undesirably large dimensions, resulting in the disadvantage of a high total weight of the transmission and high manufacturing costs for the transmission.
It is the task of the present invention to provide an automatic multiple-gear transmission with a reduced total weight and more economical manufacturing costs in comparison with automatic multiple-gear transmissions known in the art.

Powersplit layshaft transmission with bearing plate for support of radial force


A turbine rotor of an embodiment includes a rotor body portion having turbine discs in plural stages in an axial direction protruding radially outside from an outer peripheral surface of the rotor body portion over a circumferential direction. The turbine rotor includes a plurality of axial passages, through which a cooling medium flows, formed at the rotor body portion radially outside than a center axis of the turbine rotor and radially inside than an outer peripheral surface of the rotor body portion in the axial direction; an introduction passage introducing the cooling medium into each of the axial passages; and discharge passages that penetrate from each of the axial passages to the outer peripheral surface of the rotor body portion to discharge the cooling medium.

In recent years, efforts have been made to improve performance of turbines to improve power generation efficiency of power plants. To improve the performance of the turbines, a temperature at a turbine inlet tends to be higher.
With the high turbine inlet temperature, it is necessary to keep materials used for a turbine structure at an appropriate temperature. Therefore, the turbine structures such as a turbine rotor, rotor blades, and stator blades are cooled by introducing a cooling medium.
Power plants are also increasing in power output. As a result, a diameter of the turbine rotor tends to be larger. Besides, the rotor blades and stator blades tend to be longer.
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a meridian cross-section of a conventional axial flow turbine 300. FIG. 3 illustrates a turbine structure of a gas turbine.
As illustrated in FIG. 3, the conventional axial flow turbine 300 includes an outer casing 310 and an inner casing 311 inside the outer casing 310. A turbine rotor 340 is provided through the inner casing 311 and the outer casing 310.
An outer shroud 320 is provided on an inner periphery of the inner casing 311 over a circumferential direction. An inner shroud 321 is provided inside the outer shroud 320 over the circumferential direction. A plurality of stator blades 322 are supported between the outer shroud 320 and the inner shroud 321 in the circumferential direction to form a stator blade cascade.
Here, the circumferential direction is a circumferential direction around a center axis O of the turbine rotor, that is, around an axis of the center axis O.
Inside the inner shroud 321, a heat shield piece 325 is provided over the circumferential direction opposite the inner shroud 321. A sealing portion is formed between the inner shroud 321 and the heat shield piece 325. The heat shield piece 325 is implanted in the turbine rotor 340.
The turbine rotor 340 includes turbine discs 341 protruding radially outside over the circumferential direction. The turbine discs 341 are provided in plural stages in a center axis direction of the turbine rotor 340. A plurality of rotor blades 350 are implanted in each turbine disc 341 in the circumferential direction to form a rotor blade cascade. The center axis direction of the turbine rotor is hereinafter simply referred to as an axial direction.
The stator blade cascade and the rotor blade cascade are alternately provided in the turbine rotor axial direction. A turbine stage is formed by the stator blade cascade and the rotor blade cascade which is directly downstream of the stator blade cascade. The "downstream" means a downstream side with respect to a mainstream flow direction of a working fluid.
As illustrated in FIG. 3, a transition piece 360, which leads combustion gas produced in a combustor (not shown) to first-stage stator blades 322, is provided through the outer casing 310 and the inner casing 311.
In the conventional axial flow turbine 300, a cooling medium is introduced to cool the turbine rotor 340.
A center passage 370 is formed at the center of the turbine rotor 340, through which the cooling medium flows in the axial direction. The center passage 370 whose center axis is the center axis O of the turbine rotor 340 is extended in the axial direction, as illustrated in FIG. 3.
The turbine rotor 340 is also provided with an introduction passage 371 that leads the cooling medium supplied to a space 361 in the inner casing 311 into the center passage 370. The cooling medium is introduced into the space 361 from around the transition piece 360 through a cooling medium supply pipe 362. The introduction passage 371 is formed in a radial direction and is connected to an upstream portion of the center passage 370.
The radial direction is a direction perpendicular to the center axis O, with the center axis O as a base point. The "upstream" means an upstream side with respect to the mainstream flow direction of the working fluid.
The turbine rotor 340 is provided with discharge passages 372 in a space 363 between the heat shield piece 325 and the turbine rotor 340 to discharge the cooling medium flowing through the center passage 370. The discharge passage 372 is formed in the radial direction and is connected to the center passage 370. A plurality of discharge passages 372 are provided in the axial direction to allow the cooling medium to be discharged into the space 363 of each turbine stage.
Here, the cooling medium supplied to the space 361 from the cooling medium supply pipe 362 is led through the introduction passage 371 to the center passage 370. The cooling medium flowing through the center passage 370 is then discharged into the space 363 through the discharge passage 372.
Since the turbine rotor 340 is a structure that rotates at high speed, various stresses are generated at different portions of the turbine rotor 340. Therefore, it is important to design the turbine rotor so that these stresses are each within an acceptable range.
FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically illustrating tangential stresses (shear stresses) in the conventional turbine rotor 340. FIG. 4 illustrates the tangential stresses in a cross-section perpendicular to the center axis O. In FIG. 4, the magnitude of the tangential stress is indicated by a length of an arrow.
As illustrated in FIG. 4, the conventional turbine rotor 340 has the center passage 370 whose center axis is the center axis O. The tangential stress is the largest at an inner wall portion of the center passage 370. The tangential stress decreases as going radially outside.
As mentioned above, it is necessary to increase the diameter of the turbine rotor to ensure stiffness of the turbine rotor in order to ensure rotor-shaft system stability in the axial flow turbine where high output is required.
However, as can be seen from the tangential stresses illustrated in FIG. 4, when a diameter of the center passage 370 is the same, the tangential stress at the inner wall portion of the center passage 370 increases as the turbine rotor diameter is increased. Therefore, the turbine rotor 340 with the center passage 370 whose center axis is the center axis O cannot ensure the stiffness of the turbine rotor due to the increase of the turbine rotor diameter. This reduces reliability of the axial flow turbine.

TOSHIBA ENERGY SYSTEMS & SOLUTIONS CORPORATION


Sound signals to be output from a loudspeaker array are modified by a plurality of filters designed according to an unconstrained optimization procedure to improve overall performance (e.g., power, directivity) of the loudspeaker array. More particularly, respective filters are configured to receive a signal to be output to a plurality of loudspeakers. Upon receiving the signal, the respective filters individually modify the received signal according to the results of the unconstrained optimization procedure and then output the individually modified signals to respective loudspeakers. The unconstrained optimization procedure takes into account manufacturing tolerances and individually enhances the signal output to each of a plurality of individual loudspeakers within an array to achieve an overall improvement in performance. In one example, a speaker system utilizes the unconstrained optimization procedure to enable a user to hear an output sound clearly, while adjacent people experience the output sound at lower volume, if at all.

In the past decade computers have changed the way that we communicate with each other. Instant messaging, social networking websites, video conferences, and file transfers allow us to provide information to each other with greater speed and convenience than ever before. In particular, Internet telephone calls and web cameras have made audio and visual communication (e.g., teleconferencing and virtual workplaces) more common. For many companies, a more geographically diverse workforce causes them to rely heavily upon teleconferencing. For employees in cubicles, teleconferencing means holding a phone to their ear for hours or wearing a headset that keeps them tethered to their workstations.
Beamforming technology is a signal processing technique that takes advantage of interference between the individual elements of arrays of transmitting or receiving transducers (e.g., loudspeakers or microphones) to control the directionality of a signal (e.g., focus the direction of the output sound). Beamforming, applied to loudspeaker arrays, allows sound output from speaker arrays to be focused into areas of high volume and nearby areas of low volume. However, due to the wide bandwidth of audible sounds, beamforming requires a great deal of precision to produce high quality directivity over the entire frequency range. This high degree of precision is difficult to achieve in practice. For example, small variations in the manufacturing tolerances of speakers provide sufficient differences in the speaker functionality to produce an unusable output.


A light emitting module including a light source set and a light guide member is provided. The light source set is suitable for providing a light and the light guide member is disposed above the light source set. The light guide member has a top surface, an opposite light incident surface, a first reflection surface, and an opposite light emergent surface connected between the top surface and the light incident surface. The top surface has a first concave surface serving a second reflection surface suitable for reflecting the light. Besides, a portion of the light reflected by the second reflection surface emerges from the light emergent surface through the reflection of the first reflection surface, and the other portion of the light directly emerges from the light emergent surface. Additionally, a surface light source device having the light emitting module is also provided.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a light emitting module, and more particularly, to a light emitting module using light emitting diodes (LEDs) as a light source and a surface light source device in which the light emitting module is applied to.
2. Description of Related Art
Recently, with an increased in the light emitting efficiency of the LED, the LED has gradually replaced the fluorescent lamp and the incandescent lamp in some fields, such as the backlight module of the liquid crystal display (LCD).
FIGS. 1A and 1B are schematic diagrams showing a side emitting light emitting devices disclosed in the U.S. Pat. No. 6,598,998. The conventional light emitting module 100 comprises a light guide member 110 and a plurality of side emitting light emitting diode (LED) package structures 120. The light guide member 110 has a plurality of through holes 112, and the LED package structures 120 are embedded in the through holes 112. Besides, each LED package structure 120 comprises a carrier 122, an LED chip 124 and a lens part 126. The LED chip 124 is arranged on the carrier 122, and the lens part 126 encloses the LED chip 124.
According to the above description, the LED chip 124 is suitable for emitting a light, and the lens part 126 has a reflection surface 126a and a plurality of refraction surfaces 126b. The light emitted from the LED chip 124 is reflected by the reflection surface 126a and refracted by the refraction surface 126b, and then the light emerges from a side of the lens part 126 and is incident into the light guide member 110 (such as a light beam 50). Next, the light beam 50 undergoes total internal reflection many times within the light guide member 110 and then uniformly emerges a light emergent surface (not shown herein) of the light guide member 110.
In the conventional light emitting module 100, the propagation direction of the light beam 50 is not well guided, and the light beam 50 undergoes total internal reflection many times within the light guide member 110, such that the light emitting efficiency is lowered. Besides, the LED package structure 120 of single side light emitting only emits a light beam with a single wavelength, and there is a need to combine different LED package structures 120 of different wavelengths to generate white light. However, this would increase the cost and requires a larger space for mixture of the light, and therefore the volume of the conventional light emitting module 100 is larger. Additionally, the cost of the LED package structure 120 of side emitting is higher to result in a higher fabrication cost of the light emitting module 100.

Light emitting module and surface light source device


A Bowden cable adjusting device is provided for one or more Bowden cables (1′, 1″). The Bowden cable adjusting device (3) has a housing (4) with a detachable locking device (6) for adjustably connecting the housing (4) to a transmission element (5), which can be connected to one or more Bowden cables (1′, 1″). The Bowden cable adjusting device (3) has a mounting securing device (7) for the transmission element (5). The mounting securing device (7) can be deactivated. A process for mounting and adjusting a Bowden cable arrangement is also provided, wherein the mounting securing device (7) may be deactivated and the Bowden cable adjusting device (3) is shortened while adjusting the distance between the actuating member (2) and the Bowden cable (1′, 1″).

Bowden cables are adjusted in practice by adjusting the Bowden cable sheath at the point of attachment. This is a manual adjustment.
Furthermore, it is known that to compensate wear, Bowden cables can be provided with an automatic Bowden cable adjusting device, in which the cable is restretched by means of a spring with the Bowden cable released.

Bowden cable adjusting device and mounting process


A ski includes a longitudinal ski body having an upper surface and a lower snow-contacting surface. A longitudinal slot extends from the upper surface to the lower surface. A longitudinal keel, having at least a portion selectively extending in the slot, is adapted to connect pivotably to a ski leg of the snowmobile. The ski body is connected to the keel and adapted thereby to connect to the ski leg. At least a portion of the ski body is selectively movable with respect to the keel. The ski body is thereby selectively disposed in any one of a plurality of ski body positions, each of the plurality of ski body positions being defined at least by a position of the slot with respect to the keel. A fastener retains the ski body in any one of the ski body positions. Ski assemblies and snowmobiles having the ski are also disclosed.

Snowmobiles are commonly used for sport, recreational, and utilitarian purposes. Snowmobiles are used for riding on well-groomed trails, on fresh snow or on ice, on level ground and on slopes. Snowmobiles can be used to transport one or two passengers, and varying amounts of cargo in addition to passengers. Snowmobiles are thus subjected to varying amounts of loads and riding conditions.
When snowmobiles travel on packed snow or ice, such as on well-groomed trails, the snowmobiles skis are firmly supported by the ground, and thus flotation is not a concern. Snowmobiles skis are not as well supported by unpacked or powder snow, and thus flotation can be a bigger concern for travel on such surfaces. In general wider skis are better suited for flotation of the snowmobile. Wider skis however are less effective for steering the snowmobile.
Snowmobiles skis are typically provided with keels extending below to aid in steering the snowmobile. Steering effectiveness and responsiveness of the steering assembly increases with depth of the keel below the skis. Deeper keels are therefore desired for aggressive riding of the snowmobile or when the riding surface is covered with soft-packed snow so the keel can extend down through the soft-packed snow into the harder-packed snow. However, deeper keels also increase the load on the steering assembly, and on the driver controlling the handlebar of the steering assembly when riding on hard-packed snow or ice. Therefore, in situations such as on longer rides, or where less aggressive riding is desired, it may be desirable to have skis with keels of a reduced depth. It is however inconvenient to replace the snowmobile skis according to changes in load requirements and riding conditions since the changes may occur while riding.
Therefore, there is a need for a ski for a snowmobile that can be easily adjusted for operation of the snowmobile in different driving conditions, and that can also be easily replaced if necessary.