An oven for treating a moving web has, within each zone (A), an incinerator (C) with a long holding period for receiving combustion products directly from a burner (B) and mixing them with process exhaust air from nozzles applying heated air to the web, and passing the products of the incinerator to a heat exchanger (E) for heating air from the nozzles prior to return of the heated air thereto.

This invention relates to an improved apparatus and method for treating a moving web including textile and plastic webs with heated air by, in at least one oven zone, passing all of that zone's process air through a heat exchanger and discharging a portion thereof directly into an incinerator providing a source of heated air for the heat exchanger. Such portion is also cleaned by the incinerator and exhausted to atmosphere.
Common pollutants which are in the process air which should be removed are volatile organic chemicals, including knitting oils and other finishes and impurities related to textile, plastic and other webs or other being treated.
Heretofore, oven exhaust has been cleaned of pollutants by either central precipitators, scrubbers or incinerators external to the oven.
Precipitators and scrubbers have been difficult to maintain. The polluted air must be cooled, with the result that the pollutants condense in the air stream and onto any of the cooler surfaces. These contaminated surfaces must subsequently be cleaned and the condensed pollutants disposed of.
Central incinerators have been expensive to manufacture and install, and to operate. To reclaim the heat from the incinerated air stream, the heated air or water heated by an air to fluid heat exchanger, must be used in the plant. Frequently, excess heat may be produced and is wasted. Furthermore, if heated air is reintroduced into a well-balanced oven, that oven may require additional exhaust to maintain a balance with the room air. This added exhaust volume in turn increases the energy consumption and operating cost of the oven.
Prior attempts to solve the problems contemplated a heat exchanger and incineration system, both located externally to the oven. Subsequently, attempts were made in which exhaust air was passed through a burner and heat exchanger to heat circulating air. However, in this latter case, no attempt was made at incineration.
Accordingly, it is an important object of this invention to eliminate these problems by providing an incineration system which will be an integral part of the oven and whose heat will be used to heat the oven's circulating air, sometimes referred to as process air, all of which passes through a heat exchanger in a constant path back to the nozzles.
An important advantage of the invention resides in a reduction in energy consumption because no substantial amount of makeup air is added to the oven due to the incineration and heat exchanger system hereof and because most components are inside the oven where any heat lost is recaptured in the process. Further, as a result of controlling process temperature first by controlling the incineration temperature and then by utilizing a bypass carrying a portion of incinerated air past the heat exchanger should the process result in the incineration temperature falling below a predetermined temperature, the exhaust temperature and exhaust volume are minimized. Thus, energy costs are minimized.
As a further advantage, maintenance costs will be reduced since only clean incinerated air will enter one path of the heat exchanger. The system is easy to install since it is a modular part of the oven. Insulation will not be required for the incinerator, and insulation cost for the exhaust duct will be minimized since the exhaust temperature of exhaust air will have been reduced well below the its temperature upon incineration. Air entering the heat exchanger may be readily filtered.
Apparatus and method in accordance with the invention may be utilized with and adapted to a variety of ovens constructions including those illustrated in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,295,284, 4,341,024 and 4,435,909.

Clean air oven with heat recovery and method


A warning device is disclosed for an evaporative cooler or swamp cooler. The alarm comprises a pair of closely spaced electrodes mounted at a desired position above the floor of a water reservoir in the evaporative cooler. During normal operation of the evaporative cooler, the electrodes are not submerged in the pater. Upon malfunction of the float valve in the water supply to the reservoir, uncontrolled amounts of water are added to the reservoir, and the water level rises. When the water level attains a specified depth, the electrodes become submerged in the water. An electrical circuit is associated with the electrodes, and when the electrodes become submerged in the water, the electrical circuit is closed. The closing of the circuit activates an audible alarm which can be heard by inhabitants in the building being served by the evaporative cooler. Preventive maintenance can then be undertaken before extensive damage is done by water overflowing from the water reservoir of the evaporative cooler.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to evaporative coolers used in semi-dry climates for cooling of buildings such as residential homes. Such evaporative coolers are often referred to as swamp coolers. In particular, the invention relates to alarm devices for giving a warning alarm that the water level in the reservoir of an evaporative cooler has become sufficiently deep so that water is overflowing from the reservoir.
2. State of the Art
Evaporative coolers are used widely in semi-dry climates for cooling air which is being introduced through the cooler to a building. Water is distributed over pads in the housing of the evaporative cooler, and as relatively dry air passes through the wet pads water is evaporated. The evaporation of the water takes heat from the air and thus reduces the temperature of the air. In semi-dry climates, evaporative coolers are very efficient, low cost means for cooling the air within a building.
All evaporative coolers must have a reservoir of water that is used to recirculate over the pads through which the air passes. As the water is evaporated, the level of the water in the reservoir drops, and a float valve turns on to introduce make-up water to the reservoir through a water supply conduit.
The float valves are prone to malfunction, usually failing to close when the reservoir is properly filled thus allowing excess water to enter into the reservoir. Virtually all evaporative coolers are provided with an overflow tube that allows excess water to flow out of the reservoir. The overflow water usually flows on to the roof of the building on which the evaporative cooler is installed. The flow of water over the roof of the building causes ugly water marks on the roof and can eventually cause sufficient damage that the roof must be repaired.
Quite often, the overflow tube is insufficient in size to carry off all the excess water being introduced into the water reservoir by the malfunctioning float valve, such as when the overflow tube becomes partially blocked with debris. When this occurs, there is a high probability that the water level will rise sufficiently in the reservoir to leak into the interior of the building. Such water leaking into the interior of the building can cause major damage that is very costly to repair.
An extensive search of prior art patents relating to evaporative coolers indicates that the problems resulting from malfunctioning float valves have not been adequately addressed. There was no prior art found that relating to means for monitoring the level of water in the reservoir or an evaporative cooler or of giving a warning that excess water is being discharged from the evaporative cooler through the overflow tube. Without any warning of such a condition, the inhabitants of the building may delay for some time to determine that the evaporative cooler is malfunctioning. Overflow water in the mean time can be causing serious damage to the roof of the building or to the interior of the building when the overflow water is leaking to the interior.

Warning alarm device for an evaporative cooler


Embodiments described herein use closed-loop control (CLC) of conditioning sweep to enable uniform groove depth removal across the pad, throughout pad life. A sensor integrated into the conditioning arm enables the pad stack thickness to be monitored in-situ and in real time. Feedback from the thickness sensor is used to modify pad conditioner dwell times across the pad surface, correcting for drifts in the pad profile that may arise as the pad and disk age. Pad profile CLC enables uniform reduction in groove depth with continued conditioning, providing longer consumables lifetimes and reduced operating costs.

1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments described herein generally relate to the planarization of substrates. More particularly, the embodiments described herein relate to the conditioning of polishing pads.
2. Description of the Related Art
Sub-quarter micron multi-level metallization is one of the key technologies for the next generation of ultra large-scale integration (ULSI). The multilevel interconnects that lie at the heart of this technology require planarization of interconnect features formed in high aspect ratio apertures, including contacts, vias, trenches and other features. Reliable formation of these interconnect features is very important to the success of ULSI and to the continued effort to increase circuit density and quality on individual substrates and die.
Multilevel interconnects are formed using sequential material deposition and material removal techniques on a substrate surface to form features therein. As layers of materials are sequentially deposited and removed, the uppermost surface of the substrate may become non-planar across its surface and require planarization prior to further processing. Planarization or "polishing" is a process in which material is removed from the surface of the substrate to form a generally even, planar surface. Planarization is useful in removing excess deposited material, removing undesired surface topography, and surface defects, such as surface roughness, agglomerated materials, crystal lattice damage, scratches, and contaminated layers or materials to provide an even surface for subsequent photolithography and other semiconductor manufacturing processes.
Chemical Mechanical Planarization, or Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP), is a common technique used to planarize substrates. CMP utilizes a chemical composition, such as slurries or other fluid medium, for selective removal of materials from substrates. In conventional CMP techniques, a substrate carrier or polishing head is mounted on a carrier assembly and positioned in contact with a polishing pad in a CMP apparatus. The carrier assembly provides a controllable pressure to the substrate, thereby pressing the substrate against the polishing pad. The pad is moved relative to the substrate by an external driving force. The CMP apparatus affects polishing or rubbing movements between the surface of the substrate and the polishing pad while dispersing a polishing composition to affect chemical activities and/or mechanical activities and consequential removal of materials from the surface of the substrate.
The polishing pad performing this removal of material must have the appropriate mechanical properties for substrate planarization while minimizing the generation of defects in the substrate during polishing. Such defects may be scratches in the substrate surface caused by raised areas of the pad or by polishing by-products disposed on the surface of the pad, such as accumulation of conductive material removed from the substrate precipitating out of the electrolyte solution, abraded portions of the pad, agglomerations of abrasive particles from polishing slurries, and the like. The polishing potential of the polishing pad generally lessens during polishing due to wear and/or accumulation of polishing by-products on the pad surface, resulting in reduced polishing qualities. This alteration of the polishing pad may occur in a non-uniform or localized pattern across the pad surface, which may promote uneven planarization of the conductive material. Thus, the pad surface must periodically be refreshed, or conditioned, to restore the polishing performance of the pad.
Therefore, there is a need for improved methods and apparatus for conditioning polishing pads.

Closed-loop control for improved polishing pad profiles


A grinding tool includes a rotary motor driving a rotary drive shaft, a first grinding disc having a center opening for receiving the drive shaft, with the outer end of the drive shaft projecting through the opening in the grinding disk, a spacer assembly having a socket at one end receiving the projecting end of the drive shaft, a pin at the opposite end, and a spacer between said socket and pin, a second grinding disc having a center opening for receiving the pin of the spacer assembly with the outer end of the pin projecting through the latter opening and an outer collar attached to the projecting end of the pin for securing the two grinding discs to the drive shaft in spaced-apart relationship such as to enable the grinding tool to simultaneously cut two spaced grooves.

The present invention relates to a grinding tool, and particularly to one provided with two spaced grinding discs for simultaneously cutting two spaced grooves. The invention also relates to a spacer assembly which may be used with existing grinding tools having but a single grinding disc, to convert the grinding tool to one capable of simultaneously cutting two spaced grooves.
The invention is particularly useful with respect to grinding tools for cutting grooves in concrete walls in order to accommodate pipes or conduits passing through the walls. When the grinding tool is used for this purpose, it cuts two spaced grooves in the concrete wall, and the space between the grooves is then chiselled out in order to define a larger groove for accommodating the pipe or conduit.
One known form of grinding tool used for this purpose includes a grinding disc which cuts a single groove at one time. When using this type of tool, however, the two grooves must be cut separately, which substantially increases the time required for performing this operation.
Another type of grinding tool is also known including two grinding discs in spaced relation and adapted to simultaneously cut two spaced grooves, but such a known tool is substantially more complicated in construction, and therefore more expensive, than the single-disc grinding tool mentioned above.
An object of the present invention is to provide a grinding tool of relatively simple construction adapted to simultaneously cut two spaced grooves. Another object of the invention is to provide a spacer assembly which may be used with the existing single-disc grinding tools to convert such a tool for simultaneously cutting two spaced grooves.
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a grinding tool comprising a rotary motor driving a rotary drive shaft; a first grinding disc having a center opening for receiving said drive shaft with the outer end of the drive shaft projecting through the opening in the grinding disc; a spacer assembly having a socket at one end receiving the projecting end of said drive shaft, a pin at the opposite end, and spacer means between said socket and pin; a second grinding disc having a center opening for receiving said pin of the spacer assembly with the outer end of the pin projecting through the latter opening; and an outer collar attached to said projecting end of the pin for securing the two grinding discs to the drive shaft in spaced apart relationship such as to enable the grinding tool to cut two spaced grooves.
According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a spacer assembly for use with a grinding tool comprising: a rotary motor driving a rotary drive shaft, a first grinding disc having a center opening for receiving the drive shaft with the outer end of the drive shaft projecting through the opening in the grinding disc, and an outer collar attached to the projecting end of the pin for securing the grinding disc to the drive shaft. The spacer assembly comprises a socket at one end receiving the projecting end of the drive shaft, a pin at the opposite end, and spacer means between the socket and pin. The socket is adapted to project through the opening of the first grinding disc to thereby enable the spacer assembly to receive a second grinding disc having a center opening receiving the pin with the outer end of the pin projecting through the latter opening, whereby the outer collar may be attached to the projecting end of the pin to secure the two grinding discs to the drive shaft in spaced apart relation, and thereby to enable the grinding tool to simultaneously cut two spaced grooves.
According to preferred features in the preferred embodiment of the invention described below, the spacer assembly comprises a first spacer washer fixed at the socket end of the spacer assembly to bear against the first grinding disc; and a second spacer washer fixed at the pin end of the spacer assembly to bear against the second grinding disc.
According to a still further feature in the described preferred embodiments, the spacer assembly may further comprise one or more additional washers received over the pin between the second washer and the second grinding disc, to further space the second grinding disc from the first grinding disc.
It will thus be seen that the invention may be embodied in either a grinding tool constructed to have two grinding discs, or in a spacer assembly for converting existing single-disc grinding tools to two disc grinding tools, to enable two grooves to be simultaneously cut.
Further features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the description below.

Grinding tool and spacer assembly for use therein


Bone fixation devices, assemblies, and methods are provided. An expandable bone fixation implant can be implanted into a patient and attached to an underlying bone via a percutaneous or alternative fixation procedure in order to provide fixation and stabilization of the underlying bone.

Injuries to bones, such as fractures or breaks, are common in everyday life. For instance, in the case of fractured ribs, conventional surgical treatment includes the implantation of bone plates, bone wraps, and other methods of fixation and stabilization onto the fractured ribs. However, surgical procedures are typically open surgeries, which can be costly and time consuming, may involve the risk of surgical complications, and involve a prolonged recovery time. Furthermore, existing bone fixation devices, such as the above-mentioned bone plates and bone wraps, have been found to offer limited positional flexibility on the rib when implanted. As a result, surgical procedures are typically reserved for more severe trauma, such as those that involve fractures of multiple ribs. Other less severe rib fractures are typically treated conservatively, for example with pain medication and extended periods of rest, despite the reduced levels of functionality and long healing periods that commonly accompany such injuries.


A digital video editing apparatus in which the frame number information that is encoded in non-visible portions of frames in an analog video signal is utilized to ensure that there are no missing frames of corresponding digital video information. The frames of analog video information are digitized and stored in the editing apparatus using a two-pass procedure. In the first pass, as many analog video frames as possible are digitized and stored, and the frame numbers from the frames are utilized to form a list of missing frames. In the second pass, the missing frame list is utilized to reposition the analog video source and to read in the missing frames. If desired, a digital frame trap may be provided such that the contents of a temporary frame memory are frozen until computer processing apparatus has enough time permanently to store the trapped frame. Once a complete set of digital frames has been converted and stored, digital video editing may be undertaken, and the edited digital frames may be outputted in analog form.

1. Field Of The Invention
The present invention concerns a digital video editor which converts frames of analog video information into corresponding frames of digital video information in real time and which detects and fills in lost frames of video information by re-reading the original analog information in additional passes or by reconstructing them from adjacent frames.
2. Description Of The Related Art
With recent advances in speed and storage capacity of personal computing systems, it has become possible to convert analog video information in real time into corresponding digital video information, to edit the information while in digital form, and to convert the edited digital information back into an analog form.
Such an arrangement is desirable for several reasons. First, it eliminates the need for customized analog video editing machinery and instead allows a general purpose programmable computer to perform editing. The editing program on such a computer may be changed at will thereby permitting flexibility and facilitating change when new advances in editing technology are made.
Second, digital editing offers a simpler interaction interface and permits relatively unskilled workers to produce sophisticated results. As skill grows, a more complete set of editing effects may be generated through use of computer graphics, digital image processing and text editing techniques.
Finally, as the cost of personal computing machinery decreases, it becomes possible for more and more people to use video editing capabilities. Those capabilities would be foreclosed to an ordinary individual who could not afford high-end and single use items such as analog editing machinery.
However, acquiring digital video information that is full frame size, full color, and full motion places unprecedented demands on the bandwidth of digital computing machinery, and these demands can cause entire frames of video information to be lost. For example, corresponding to the NTSC standard, a full frame is 640.times.480 pixels, and full motion is 30 frames per second. With full color of 24 bits per pixel, the bandwidth requirements to handle such a digital video signal in real time is 640.times.480.times.30.times.24=221,184,000 bits per second which far exceeds the capabilities of currently available personal computing machinery. Future standards such as HDTV (high definition television) are even more demanding. Compression techniques such as JPEG ("joint photographic expert group"), MPEG ("motion picture expert group") and CCITT H.261 ("International Telegraph and Telephone Consultative Committee") have been proposed to reduce the bandwidth requirements to acceptable levels, but other factors can still cause video frames to be lost.
For example, known compression techniques are not "loss-less". That is, known compression techniques introduce errors when the compressed data are uncompressed. If the final video is to be of the same quality as the original video, compression cannot be so great as to introduce errors that are perceived as visual degradation in image quality. This limits the amount of bandwidth reduction obtainable from compression, and a fine balance must be struck between bandwidth reduction from compression and the bandwidth capabilities of the digital computing machinery. Today's high-end PCs and workstations have barely the bandwidth capabilities required to handle NTSC-type data, and HDTV processing put those capabilities into jeopardy.
Another factor contributing to the loss of video frames is multitasking. Current operating systems on workstations as well as next generation operating systems on personal computing equipment have multitasking capabilities which permit several tasks to run concurrently. Those several tasks compete in real-time for shared resources of the computing equipment, such as an internal computing bus, the CPU and the hard disk. Multitasking, however, places further bandwidth demands on the digital equipment, as well as raises the possibility that the CPU is busy servicing one task when a video frame is ready to be stored. If the CPU is not able to store the video frame before the next video frame becomes available, that video frame will be ignored and lost.
Lost frames of digital video information are not acceptable for many reasons. Lost frames can make it impossible to obtain high quality cuts, merges, compositions, special effects, etc. For example, when creating a slow motion special effect, missing frames cause large jumps and unevenness that are visually unacceptable. Further, errors caused by missing frames accumulate over longer clips. Even if only three frames are lost per minute, an entire second of material is lost in a ten minute sequence. Because sound is generally handled on a separate channel from video, such losses will quickly de-synchronize sound and video.
Further still, some compression techniques such as MPEG do not fully encode each video frame independently, but rather fully encode only some reference frames. Frames between the reference frames are encoded as the difference or change from the reference frames. If a reference frame is lost, it is impossible to re-create the original image for frames which depend on the lost reference frame.
To handle lost frames of digital video information in a real time digital video environment, a two-pass procedure has been proposed. In the first pass, the analog video equipment plays out the analog video signal, and the digital video equipment digitizes and stores as many frames of video information as possible. While the analog video equipment is playing out the video signal, it generates frame number information which is transmitted to the digital equipment over a frame number interface that is distinct from the video interface. The digital video equipment inspects the frame number information to determine if any frames have been lost and to determine the identity of those frames. If any frames have been lost, then a second pass is performed in which the analog video equipment is repositioned using the frame number information from the frame number interface and the missing frames are played out. If frames are still missing after the second pass, then additional passes are performed until all frames have been acquired in digital form.
The foregoing procedure is not entirely satisfactory. First, because the frame number information is not part of the video signal, and is supplied on a frame number interface that is separate from the video interface, it is possible that the video information on the video interface is not synchronized with the frame number information on the frame number interface. This means that the frame on the video interface is different from the frame indicated by the frame number information. Accordingly, it is not always possible to ensure that missing frames are properly detected, or to ensure that properly detected missing frames are supplied with the needed video data.
Second, there is no guarantee that progress will be made in finding missing frames. More specifically, even in the case where it is known with certainty that a frame is missing, there is no guarantee that the particular frame in question can be captured and added to the collection of already-digitized video frames. In fact, the same problems that caused the frame to be missed in the first pass, such as multitasking demands on shared resources, may also exist on subsequent passes, making it difficult ever to capture the missing frame.

Digital video editor having lost video frame protection


The presently described technology provides compositions of one or more of oxoacids, polyethylene glycols, and/or vitamin compounds chemically conjugated to dextrorphan, (+)-17-methylmorphinan-3-ol), to form novel prodrugs and compositions of dextrorphan.

Opioids are highly effective as analgesics and are commonly prescribed for the treatment of acute and chronic pain. They are also commonly used as antitussives. The opioids, however, also produce euphoria and are highly addictive. As a result, they are often abused with far reaching social and health related consequences.
Because of the inherent potential for abuse, it is desirable that any pharmaceutical composition containing an opioid agonist be made as abuse-resistant or abuse-deterrent as practical. Illicit users often will attempt to circumvent the extended release properties of these dosage forms by injecting or otherwise misusing the product in order to achieve an immediate release of the opioid agonist.
Dextrorphan ((+)-17-methylmorphinan-3-ol) is the (+)-isomer and one of two enantiomers of 17-methylmorphinan-3-ol. The other enantiomer is levorphanol ((−)-17-methylmorphinan-3-ol). A 1:1 mixture of both enantiomers (dextrorphan and levorphanol) is referred to as racemorphan.

It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that different stereochemistry may impact the pharmacodynamics, pharmacological and/or pharmacokinetic properties, among other properties, of each isomer or racemic mixture utilized. Further, it should also be appreciated that various conjugations of the isomers to various ligands may also impact the pharmacodynamics, pharmacological and/or pharmacokinetic properties, among other properties, of each resultant conjugate, formulation, and/or end product. For example, those skilled in the art can appreciate the pharmacodynamics, pharmacological and/or pharmacokinetic property differences exhibited and/or observed by different enantiomers (dextrorphan and levorphanol) as well as a mixture such as racemorphan. Moreover, those skilled in the art, also appreciate that the conjugation of those various different enantiomers may impact the various properties observed for the resultant dextrorphan or levorphanol conjugate, formulation and/or end product. Furthermore, those skilled in the art can recognize that conjugation to dextrorphan, levorphanol, or a mixture thereof, may create new enantiomers or diastereomers that may affect their resulting pharmacodynamic, pharmacological and/or pharmacokinetic properties.
Dextrorphan is a psychoactive drug of the morphinan class which acts as an antitussive or cough suppressant and dissociative hallucinogen. It is also an active metabolite of dextromethorphan that forms after O-demethylation by CYP2D6. Dextrorphan is an NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) receptor antagonist. Dextrorphan also binds to the σ1-receptor, and to a lesser extent to the norepinephrine reuptake transporter (NET) and to the serotonin reuptake transporter (SERT). Dextrorphan can act, for example, as an anesthetic and antitussive.
The present technology utilizes covalent conjugation of dextrorphan with certain oxoacids including amino acids, as well as with polyethylene glycols (PEG or PEO), and/or vitamin compounds to decrease its potential for causing overdose or abuse by requiring the active dextrorphan to be released through enzymatic or metabolic breakdown of the conjugate in vivo. The present technology also provides methods of delivering dextrorphan as conjugates that release the dextrorphan following oral administration while being resistant to abuse by circuitous routes such as intravenous ("shooting") injection and intranasal administration ("snorting"). The compounds and conjugates of this disclosure (aka prodrugs) may be administered alone, or combined with other active ingredients, for the treatment of conditions including, but not limited to, cough, pseudobulbar affect (PBA), neuropathy, diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain, catalepsy, amnesia, Alzheimer's disease, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Dextrorphan prodrugs and processes for making and using them


A method for processing data read/write includes receiving a data read/write request. The data read/write request includes a command type, data, an address, a resource identifier, and a priority level. If the read/write request is the read request, determining whether the read request meets a first placement rule, the first rule being that the address of the read request is different from any and all write request addresses in the write command queue. If the first placement rule is not satisfied, the data stored in the conflicting (i.e., duplicated) address of the write request in the write command queue is acquired as the read data. A data read/write processing apparatus and a computer readable medium related to the data read/write processing method are also disclosed.

Storage mediums receive read/write requests from a processor or other source and acquire data to transmit to the processor or the other source. The storage medium includes a read command queue and a write command queue. Command requests in the read command queue and the write command queue are arranged based on time of receipt or priority level. When any one of the read command requests and any one of the write command requests correspond to a same address in the storage medium, the read command request is executed before the write command request, thus there is a delay in data reading.
Thus, there is room for improvement in the art.

Method for processing read/write data, apparatus, and computer readable storage medium thereof


A coated electrical accessory includes a bare electrical accessory and a substantially inorganic and dried coating layer coating the bare electrical accessory. The coating layer includes a heat radiating agent and a binder. When the coated electrical accessory is tested in accordance with ANSI CI 19.4-2004 with an amount of imparted current, the coated electrical accessory exhibits an operating temperature that is less than an operating temperature of a bare electrical accessory tested in accordance with ANSI CI 19.4-2004 with the same amount of imparted current. Methods are also provided.

As the need for electricity continues to grow, the need for higher capacity transmission and distribution lines grows as well. The amount of power a transmission line can deliver is dependent on the current-carrying capacity (ampacity) of the line. The ampacity of a line is limited by the maximum safe operating temperature of the bare conductor that carries the current. Exceeding this temperature can result in damage to the conductor or to the line accessories. Moreover, the conductor gets heated by Ohmic losses and solar heat and is cooled by conduction, convection and radiation. The amount of heat generated due to Ohmic losses depends on current (I) passing through it and its electrical resistance (R) by the relationship Ohmic losses=I2R. Electrical resistance (R) itself is dependent on temperature. Higher current and temperature can lead to higher electrical resistance, which, in turn, can lead to more electrical losses in the conductor. Prior attempts to overcome these issues have proposed coating overhead conductors with white spectrally selective coating surfaces or polymeric coatings having high emissivity. However, white coatings are undesirable due to glare and discoloration over time while polymeric coatings are undesirable due to their questionable heat and wet aging characteristics. Therefore, there remains a need for a durable, inorganic coating for overhead conductors and related electrical accessories that allow the conductors and/or electrical accessories to operate at reduced temperatures.

Electrical accessories for power transmission systems and methods for preparing such electrical accessories


An overvoltage suppression system is disclosed, such as for construction equipment, for protecting the construction equipment from overvoltages that may occur in day to day operations. An overvoltage suppression system for construction equipment may have a communication network that includes nodes. A data line may be used to electrically connect the nodes of the communication network. A semiconductor device may be electrically connected with the data line. Also, a frame of the construction equipment may be electrically connected with the semiconductor device, where the frame may be a frame common. The frame common may be adapted to include a common electrical point of the communication network.

Electromagnetic phenomena, such as lightning, may be a threat to electrical equipment such as computers, radios and televisions. Various large structures, such as construction equipment, may be particularly susceptible because the electric and magnetic fields as well as associated transient voltages and currents may be attracted to tall objects. In addition, the structure of construction equipment may include metal that acts as a good conductor. Other electromagnetic occurrences such as electromagnetic interference, alternating current ("AC") induction, electrostatic discharge, AC power crosses, faults and their associated transient voltages and currents are all examples of sources that may stress electrical equipment and components, such as the electrical equipment and components associated with construction equipment. For example, surge currents and lightning strikes can lead to operating system failures, fire hazards, and other considerable damage.

System for overvoltage suppression for construction equipment


In an evaporator unit for a refrigerant cycle device, an evaporator is connected to an ejector to evaporate refrigerant to be drawn into a refrigerant suction port of the ejector or the refrigerant flowing out of the outlet of the ejector. The evaporator includes a plurality of tubes in which the refrigerant flows, and a tank configured to distribute the refrigerant into the tubes or to collect the refrigerant from the tubes. The ejector is located in the tank, and the nozzle portion is brazed to the tank to be fixed into the tank. The tank may be a header tank directly connected to the tubes or may be a separate tank separated from the header tank.

JP-A-2007-192465 (corresponding to US 2007/0163294 A1) proposes an evaporator unit for a refrigerant cycle device with an ejector. In the evaporator unit, the ejector having a refrigerant decompressing function and a refrigerant circulating function is located inside a tank of an evaporator so that the ejector and the evaporator are integrated. Thus, the ejector and the evaporator can be mounted as an integrated unit, thereby improving a mounting performance of the refrigerant cycle device with the ejector.
In the evaporator unit, after an evaporator body is integrally brazed, the ejector is assembled to the evaporator body. Therefore, the productivity of the evaporator unit may be deteriorated, and the manufacturing cost of the evaporator unit may be increased. Furthermore, the ejector is difficult to be used for evaporators with different widths (i.e., different dimensions in a tank longitudinal direction), thereby reducing the compatibility of the ejector relative to the evaporators with different widths.

Evaporator unit having tank provided with ejector nozzle


A defect judgement processing method and apparatus which can optimize image processing and defect judgement parameters for a detection image cut out by each inspection window to avoid erroneous judgement and defect missing and to realize reliable defect judgement. An image data generator cuts out ranges indicated by a plurality of predesignated inspection windows from a detected image and stores them in a memory, a window data generator generates window data having inspection conditions attached thereto with respect to the plurality of inspection windows and stores them in the memory, a feature extractor reads out detection images of the ranges indicated by the inspection windows from the memory and extracts a structural feature parameter therefrom on the basis of an image processing parameter conforming to the inspection condition obtained by the window data, and a defect judger performs its defect judging operation over the extracted structural feature parameter on the basis of a defect judgement parameter conforming to the inspection condition.

The present invention relates to a defect judgement processing method and apparatus which selectively collects necessary image data from a detected image and applies image processing operation to the collected image data to perform defect judgement.
In conventional visual inspections, there has been known a technique by which positional information on inspection points of such an object to be inspected as, e.g., a parts-mounted substrate are previously registered as inspection window data so that an image including the inspection points is detected to perform defect judgement on the basis of image processing of ranges indicated by the inspection window data.
The aforementioned prior art, which requires a lot of parameters for use in the image processing and defect judgement and further requires parameters corresponding to various types of parts to be separately set, has had a problem that it takes a lot of time to optimize the parameters.

Defect judgement processing method and apparatus


The present invention relates to a resource request and a packet scheduling method for uplink traffic in a mobile communication system. For efficient scheduling of the uplink traffic, a base station and user equipment (UE) determines a scheduling method according to characteristics of the traffic when performing negotiation therebetween. The traffic may be classified into traffic that generating a fixed-size packet in a periodical time interval, traffic that generates a variable-size packet in a periodic time interval, and traffic that generates a variable-size packet in a random time interval. Therefore, the UE requests a resource in accordance with the characteristics of the traffic and the base station performs scheduling according to the characteristics of the traffic such that an optimal uplink packet scheduling can be achieved.

Recently, a standard protocol and a system for wireless Internet service have been actively developed, and accordingly, the importance of a packet transmission technique has been highlighted for preempting technical power in a packet-based fourth generation mobile communication system.
A resource allocation request and link packet scheduling methods for satisfying quality of service (QoS) requirements and maximizing wireless link efficiency in packet transmission packet is a specialized field of wireless link sharing, and is valued as an important resource for improving system capacity compared to a conventional wired system.
A resource request includes a series of processes in which user equipment (UE) informs the presence of uplink data to a base station and requests a necessary amount of resource allocation. A scheduling method of which the base station allocates resources to the UE can be divided into an uplink scheduling method and a downlink scheduling method.
According to the downlink scheduling method, the base station allocates resources while checking the amount of data packets stored in a transmit buffer of the base station in real-time. According to the uplink scheduling method, the base station allocates resources on the basis of buffer state information reported from the terminal. Therefore, an efficient resource request method is required for maximizing radio resource utilization and providing quality of service (QoS) in the uplink scheduling method. In order to realize the efficient resource request method, a transmit buffer state should be reported at an appropriate time and in an appropriate level of contents.
Appropriateness in the reporting time indicates that the UE should report the transmit buffer state information in an appropriate time so as to guarantee QoS. For example, when the amount of data packets queued in the transmit buffer is increasing and the UE does not report the transmit buffer state, data is transmitted through subsequently allocated uplink resources. However, in this case, the resources through which the data is transmitted is allocated without considering the state of the transmit buffer. Therefore, with respect to a network, the data does not satisfy delay requirements. As a result, the data successfully transmitted from a transmitting side may be discarded in a receiving side. Meanwhile, uplink packet scheduling performance may be improved as the number of reports on the state of the transmit buffer of the UE increases. However, excessive resource use may cause a trade-off.
The appropriateness in the reporting time has a close relationship to a time interval from the time that the UE determines a resource request to the time that the base station perceives the request. As the time that the base station perceives the resource request of the UE is delayed, the time interval is increased, thereby decreasing utility of transmitted data. The delay is closely related to design of frame and channel structures.
The appropriate level of reporting contents indicates that information provided by the UE should include appropriate information for efficient uplink scheduling of differentiated multimedia services. For example, in the case of a file transfer protocol (FTP) that is insensitive to time delay compared to other services, information on the amount of packets queued in the transmit buffer is more worthy than information on a packet that has been transmitted to the transmit buffer for the first time (so-called a head of line, HOL). Therefore, since unnecessary and unimportant information is inappropriate with respect to utilization of radio resources, the reporting contents should include information for efficient scheduling.
As described, information on the transmit buffer state reported to the base station from the UE for uplink scheduling may be called scheduling information, and the scheduling information must include optimum information for efficient scheduling. The uplink scheduling is performed on the basis of the scheduling information and QoS information exchanged between the UE and the base station when establishing a connection therebetween. The QoS information is an index that should be satisfied on average or ultimately, and the scheduling information is a measure that indicates short-term service satisfaction of a user. Therefore, optimum uplink scheduling can be achieved when the QoS information and the scheduling information are converged to each other. Since the QoS information and the scheduling information vary depending on characteristics of traffic between the UE and the base station, a resource request method and a scheduling method that provide efficient scheduling information according to characteristics of traffic are required in order to achieve optimum uplink scheduling.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.

Method for requesting resource and scheduling for uplink traffic in mobile communication and apparatus thereof

Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute


The present invention proposes an engagement mechanism employed in a first assembly part and a cooperating second assembly part. The engagement mechanism comprises a pivot member assembled in the first assembly part; and an elastic member having a double-wedged surface at an endmost portion thereof which extends outwardly from the projecting portion of the first assembly part. The elastic member is employed to provide an elastic force of maintaining the projecting portion extending outwardly from the first assembly part to engage with the second assembly part. The present invention, via the design of the double-wedged surface of the projecting portion, facilitates easy engagement or disengagement of the engagement mechanism, and overcomes the problem of having to provide extra disengagement arrangement in the prior art.

Engagement mechanism is widely used, which may be employed in any assembly between two assembly parts, as long as disassembly possibility is to be considered.
Conventional engagement mechanism employed for assembling, disassembling the assembly parts is usually composed of locking tenon, spring and single-wedged surface barb. When two assembly parts are assembled, the barb is pressed aslant along its single-wedge surface to engage and secure the two assembly parts. In disassembly, the barb has to be pushed from inward via additional tools to release the engagement, which is extremely inconvenient for an assembly operator. Consequently, engagement mechanism incorporated release mechanism is designed as follow.
TW Utility Model Patent Publication No. 244713 discloses a lateral plate engagement mechanism incorporated a release mechanism, which comprises: a frame, the frame is arranged with a rear plate which defines a cutout; a lateral plate, the lateral plate is moveably assembled to a side of the frame, one end of the lateral plate adjacent the rear plate forms an accommodating portion, the accommodating portion forms a pair of positioning holes; and a locking device accommodated in the accommodating portion of the lateral plate comprising a box member, a clasp structure accommodated in the box member, and a handle. One side of the box member forms a pair of positioning holes; a top portion of the box member forms an elongated groove; a pair of protruding posts extends from an inner side of the box member. The clasp structure comprises a pair of buckling bars and an elastic portion. One end of the buckling bar pivotally connects the protruding post, and the other end extends outwardly from the positioning hole of the box member. The buckling bar connects the elastic portion, and the elastic portion is adjacent to the handle. Wherein, after the locking device is secured to the accommodating portion of the lateral plate, the other end of the buckling bar extends outwardly from the positioning hole of the accommodating portion. After the lateral plate is assembled to the frame, said other end of the buckling bar abuts against both sides of the cutout of the rear plate to secure the lateral plate. In disassembling the lateral plate, the handle is pressed through the elongated groove of the box member; the handle abuts against the elastic portion; the elastic portion deforms and drives the buckling bar to retract, so that said other end of the buckling bar retracts from the cutout. This prior art patent provides convenience for releasing engagement without the help of extra tools, however, much more complex mechanism is needed, and its cost is relatively increased. In the meantime, extra disengagement procedure (pressing the handle through the elongated groove of the box member) is required to release the engagement, which is still an inconvenient design for the assembly operator.
In addition, TW Utility Model Patent Publication No. 506562 also discloses an engagement mechanism incorporated with release mechanism without screw used to engage a computer housing having a flange and a computer main body. The engagement mechanism comprises: an engagement body having a plurality of long hooks and a plurality of short hooks; a cover member covering the engagement body having a plurality of locking tenons; a locking groove set provided on the computer main body having a plurality of locking grooves for engaging with the engagement body and also limiting transverse movement of the engagement member while enabling the longitudinal movement of the engagement member; and a locking ring, which is arranged on the flange of the computer hosing at a position corresponding to the locking groove set. When the computer housing engages with the computer main body, the locking ring is embedded in the long hook of the engagement body and the computer main body, therefore preventing the computer housing from disengaging. This prior art patent provides convenience in releasing without using extra tools and screws. However, much more complex mechanism is needed, and the cost is relatively increased. At the same time, extra disengagement procedures (moving the cover member and the engagement body) are needed to release the engagement, which is also still an inconvenient design for the assembly operator.
All of the abovementioned conventional mechanism cannot provide convenience and practicability in disengagement. Consequently, there is a need to provide an engagement mechanism that provides easy engagement/disengagement eliminating extra disengagement design in order to simplify structure and lower cost.


A switching element comprises a source electrode, a drain electrode arranged apart from the source electrode, an active layer in contact with the electrodes, and a gate electrode arranged apart from the source and drain electrodes and being in contact with the active layer with a gate insulating layer interposed therebetween. The active layer is formed of a dispersion film containing predetermined carbon nanotubes and a predetermined polyether compound.

A switching element such as a thin film transistor (TFT) is widely used for a picture element switch for a display device such as a liquid crystal display or an EL display. Recently, a case is increasing that a driver circuit for a picture element array is also formed by a TFT on the same substrate.
Generally such a TFT is formed on a glass substrate using an amorphous or polycrystalline silicon. However, there was a problem that it needs increasing cost to fabricate a display device using such silicon materials of a large area because a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) device used for fabricating such a TFT made of silicon is rather expensive. In addition, there was a problem that a substrate was limited on a material, such that a light resin substrate could not be used, because the process to form an amorphous or polycrystalline silicon film is performed at a very high temperature.
To solve such problems, a TFT using a carbon nanotube (CNT) as a semiconductor material is proposed. The practical application of such a TFT using a CNT dispersion film is expected because of merits that a CNT dispersion film is generally formed by a wet process such as an application method and the process can realize a large dispersion film in area at low cost, and selection of a material for a substrate is less restricted because the process temperature is low.
Recently many reports relating to a TFT using a CNT dispersion film are published such as Non-Patent Documents 1 to 4. Also Patent Documents 1 to 3, for example, disclose techniques using a carbon nanotube. The method for preparing a carbon nanotube structure disclosed in Patent Document 1 is "a method including a purification step of a carbon nanotube for preparing a carbon nanotube structure, in which the purification step is to carboxylate a carbon nanotube and react the carbon nanotube with a compound having at least two functional groups that react with a carboxylic group".
According to Patent Document 1, a purification yield can be remarkably increased because carbon nanotubes are combined to increase the weight (or size) so as to make it easy to recover them and improve the amount of recovered carbon nanotube. It is also described that a carbon nanotube structure can be achieved, in which weight-increased or chemically modified carbon nanotubes are precisely arranged.
The method for forming a pattern of nano-carbon materials disclosed in Patent Document 2 is "a method for forming a pattern of nano-carbon materials layer including a step of forming a nano-carbon materials layer on a substrate, a step of forming a desired pattern of a first metal layer composed of at least a metal selected from the group consisting of zinc, tin, indium, aluminum and titanium on the nano-carbon materials layer, and a step of etching the nano-carbon materials layer by oxygen plasma with a mask of the first metal layer as a positive pattern".
According to Patent Document 2, it is described that a desired pattern of nano-carbon materials can be formed without deterioration or damage of the nano-carbon materials and thus it is possible to provide high performance semiconductor devices such as an electromagnetic field effect transistor or FED by applying nano-carbon materials.
A thin film transistor disclosed in Patent Document 3 is composed of "an insulating substrate having a uniform thickness and a first main surface and a second main surface both being flat, a gate electrode formed on the first main surface of the insulating substrate, a channel layer formed on the second main surface of the insulating substrate and structured by an organic semiconductor, carbon nanotube, or an organic dispersion material containing at least carbon nanotube, and a source electrode and a drain electrode formed so as to position on both sides of the gate electrode and on the channel layer or between the channel layer and the insulating substrate".
According to Patent Document 3, it is described that a thin film transistor having stable characteristics can be realized because the insulating substrate as a gate insulating layer has an even thickness and both of the main surfaces are flat, and thus capacity components are uniform in the surface of the substrate. Also it is described that a reliable thin film transistor having improved characteristics of migration degree of carrier in the channel layer and an ON/OFF ratio of current can be achieved because the insulating substrate serves for a gate insulating layer and the channel layer is formed on the second main flat surface that is opposite to the first main surface on which the gate electrode is formed, and thus an evenness of the film thickness of the channel layer is improved. In addition, it is described that the cost can be reduced due to decreased structural elements and fabrication steps because the insulating substrate serves also as a gate insulating layer.    [Patent Document 1]
Japanese Patent Kokai Publication No. JP-2005-125428A    [Patent Document 2]
Japanese Patent Kokai Publication No. JP-2005-347378A    [Patent Document 3]
Japanese Patent Kokai Publication No. JP-2006-73774A    [Non-Patent Document 1] E. S. Snow, J. P. Novak, P. M. Campbell, D. Park, Applied Physics Letters, vol. 82, p. 2145, 2003.    [Non-Patent Document 2] E. Artukovic, M. Kaempgen, D. S. Hecht, S. Roth, G. Grner, Nano Letters, vol. 5, p. 757, 2005.    [Non-Patent Document 3] S.-H. Hur, O. O. Park, J. A. Rogers, Applied Physics Letters, vol. 86, p. 243502, 2005.    [Non-Patent Document 4] T. Takenobu, T. Takahashi, T. Kanbara, K. Tsukagoshi, Y. Aoyagi, Y. Iwasa, Applied Physics Letters, vol. 88, p. 33511, 2006.

Switching element and method for fabricating same


To enable a thrust force acting on an impeller shaft to be received by a sufficiently large bearing member. A water jet propulsion apparatus is provided with a stator forming a channel. An impeller is rotatably disposed in the stator. An impeller shaft is rotatably supported by bearing members and provided in front and rear portions of a bearing disposed in the stator and coupled to the rear part of the impeller. The bearing member on the rear side which receives a thrust force of the impeller shaft is larger than the bearing member on the front side. Both of the bearing members and on the front and rear sides are assembled on the bearing from the rear.

The present application claims priority under 35 USC 119 to Japanese Patent Application No. 2001-284067 filed on Sep. 18, 2001 the entire contents thereof is hereby incorporated by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a water jet propulsion apparatus for use in a boat. Particularly, the invention relates to a bearing structure of an impeller shaft for supporting an impeller of the water jet propulsion apparatus.
2. Description of Background Art
A known conventional water jet propulsion apparatus is as shown in FIG. 5 (Japanese Utility Model Registration No. 2,548,210).
The water jet propulsion apparatus is attached to the rear portion of a boat body and has a stator (duct) 1 forming a channel, an impeller 2 is rotatably disposed in the stator 1, and an impeller shaft 3 is rotatably supported by bearing members 4 and 5 provided in the front and rear part of a bearing 1a disposed in the stator 1 and coupled to the rear part of the impeller 2.
A drive shaft 6 is coupled to the front part of the impeller 2. When the drive shaft 6 is driven by a not-illustrated engine, the impeller 2 is rotated and a water stream is jetted rearwardly in the direction R, thereby propelling the boat body forward F. A thrust force for pulling the impeller shaft 3 forward F acts on the impeller shaft 3.
As is obvious from the shape of the bearing 1a shown in the diagram, the bearing member 4 on the front side is assembled to the bearing 1a from the front and the bearing member 5 on the rear side is assembled to the bearing 1a from the rear, so that the thrust force acting on the impeller shaft 3 is received by the bearing member 5 on the rear side.
More specifically, a flange 3a formed in the rear part of the impeller shaft 3 is in contact with an inner race 5a of the bearing member 5 and an outer race 5b of the bearing member 5 is in contact with a step 1b of the bearing 1a, so that the thrust force can be received.
The above-described conventional water jet propulsion apparatus has a problems such that, since the bearing members 4 and 5 on the front and rear sides have the same size, the thrust force acting on the impeller shaft 3 cannot be received by a large bearing member.
An object of the present invention is to provide a water jet propulsion apparatus which can solve the above problem and receive a thrust force acting on the impeller shaft by a large bearing member.
To achieve this object, a water jet propulsion apparatus of present invention includes a stator forming a channel, an impeller rotatably disposed in the stator, and an impeller shaft rotatably supported by bearing members provided in front and rear parts of a bearing disposed in the stator and coupled to a rear part of the impeller. The bearing member mounted on the rear side which receives a thrust force of the impeller shaft is larger than the bearing member on the front side.
A water jet propulsion apparatus of the present invention includes the bearing members on the front and rear sides that are both assembled on the bearing from the rear.
The water jet propulsion apparatus of present invention includes a stator forming a channel, an impeller is rotatably disposed in the stator, and an impeller shaft is rotatably supported by bearing members provided in front and rear parts of a bearing disposed in the stator and coupled to a rear part of the impeller. The bearing member on the rear side which receives a thrust force of the impeller shaft is larger than the bearing member on the front side. Consequently, in the water jet propulsion apparatus, the thrust force acting on the impeller shaft can be received by the large bearing member on the rear side.
Also, the bearing member on the front side can be constructed to be smaller than the bearing member on the rear side, so that the size of the bearing of the stator supporting the bearing member does not increase to a great extent. As a result, the size of the water jet propulsion apparatus itself can be prevented from being increased.
As for the water jet propulsion apparatus of the present invention both of the bearing members on the front and rear sides are assembled on the bearing from the rear. Therefore, the following action and effect are obtained.
Since the conventional water jet propulsion apparatus has a configuration such that the bearing member 4 on the front side is assembled to the bearing 1a from the front, there is a problem wherein the workability at the time of assembly is very low. Since the impeller 2 is positioned in front of the bearing member 4 on the front side, the drive shaft 6 is coupled in front of the impeller 2 and, further, the engine exists in front of the drive shaft 6, the assembly workability of the bearing member 4 on the front side is very low and it is consequently difficult to perform maintenance.
In contrast, in the water jet propulsion apparatus of the present invention, both of the bearing members on the front and rear sides are assembled to the bearing from the rear, so that a remarkably improved assembly workability is provided as compared with the conventional technique. Accordingly, an effect of facilitated maintenance is also obtained.
In the configuration where both of the bearing members on the front and rear sides are assembled to the bearing from the rear as described above, if the bearing member on the front side is also a large bearing member like the bearing member on the rear side, the size of the bearing increases and, as a result, a problem results in that the size of the water jet propulsion apparatus also increases. However, in the water jet propulsion apparatus of the present invention, the bearing member on the front side can be constructed to be smaller than the bearing member on the rear side. Thus, the size of the bearing of the stator supporting the bearing member does not increase to a great extent and the size of the water jet propulsion apparatus itself can be consequently prevented from being increased.
Further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.


A display system and method are provided for an aircraft. The system includes a processing unit configured to determine a visual segment for the aircraft and to generate display commands based on the visual segment; and a display device coupled the processing unit and configured to receive the display commands and to display symbology representing the visual segment as a visual segment marker.

Landing is one of the most demanding tasks in flying. During the landing approach, the pilot must evaluate if the aircraft may safely land or if the landing attempt should be aborted. In addition to monitoring various flight instruments and navigating the aircraft, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations require a pilot to visibly identify certain runway environment or runway surface references in a predefined visual segment in front of the aircraft. Generally, the visual segment is defined by the FAA by the ability to visually identify ground references at a certain distance and under certain defined visibility conditions. Issues that may obscure the visual segment may include the aircraft design, such as the window configuration, weather visibility, angle of approach, and the like. As such, at a predetermined approach point (e.g., a decision height), the pilot is required to look out of the window and identify these runway or runway environment references. Upon positive identification, the pilot may continue the approach and land the aircraft. If the pilot is unable to visibly confirm the runway or runway environment references, the pilot must abort the landing and execute a missed approach. The time allocated to this task is very limited given the airspeed of the aircraft and the typical or nominal reaction time of the pilot to see and recognize such references at the decision height. Estimating the visual segment and identifying the runway references may be a challenge in some circumstances, particularly in nighttime, low visibility, turbulent or crosswind situations that may make it difficult for the pilot to quickly locate and identify the references.
Computer generated aircraft displays have become highly sophisticated and capable of displaying a substantial amount of flight management, navigation, and control information that gives flight crews more effective control of the aircraft and a reduction in workload during a normal flight situation and/or a low visibility, instrument situation. In this regard, electronic displays, such as head up displays (HUDs) and head down displays (HDDs), are used in aircraft as primary flight displays. For example, the primary flight display can combine critical flight instrumentation (e.g., altitude, attitude, heading, airspeed, vertical speed instruments) and primary engine instrument indicators into a single, readily interpretable display. Although conventional primary flight displays may provide some assistance to the pilot during normal and instrument situations, such displays are typically not as helpful during landing situations, particularly in tasks such as identifying the runway references during approach.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide systems and methods that improve situational awareness and assist the pilot in identifying runway references during a landing situation. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description of the invention and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background of the invention.

Aircraft systems and methods for displaying visual segment information


A rail system for large turret bearing includes a turret bearing support structure, a rail support ring provided with a L-shaped cross section including an inward directed wedge mating face, at least two rings of radially elongated segment bolt holes, and an outermost ring of wedge bolt holes, a plurality of rail segments together forming a complete circle with an outer radius slightly smaller than the radius of the wedge mating face of the rail support ring. Each segment includes a sloped outer wedge mating surface, a downward facing contact surface with threaded bolt holes corresponding to the bolt holes in the rail support ring, an upper largely horizontal surface, and an inner largely vertical surface.

Turret mooring systems have been in use for some decades and as the search for hydrocarbons has increased, the depth from which hydrocarbons can be extracted has increased. The risers coming from greater depths are associated with greater loads and the turret wheel bearings now has to handle hundreds of tons. If the turret wheel bearing fails production must stop. Because of this it is desirable to maintain the turret wheel bearing while operating or minimize the length of the stoppage. Previous state of the art pretension systems comprise clamps or/and bolts pressing the rail segments against the support structure much like in rail way technology. The contact face between the adjacent rail segments will then be without compression stresses. Welded joints limit the selection of high strength materials which are required for these high loads.
The objective with using a rail comprised of rail segments is to                apply materials with very high strength uneasy to weld        limit the size of individual components        replace segments with the turret in place
A very important feature is that the rail is getting a substantial compression stress by the pretension system. Advantages are:                1. contact between the rail segments remains in compression even at extreme radial turret loads        2. rail segments remain in stable position relative one to another thus avoiding fretting fatigue in the mating surfaces between adjacent rail segments        3. a high compression stress in the rail is advantages for the stress level in the contact zone between the wheel and the rail by the hydrostatic pressure effects        4. a rail subject to compression has a higher fatigue strength than without compression stresses.        5. the strength of the rail remains intact also in the rail joints 21.Re. 1. The compression in the rail is larger than the tangential stresses generated by the radial turret loads.Re. 2. The rail segments in the rail joints remain in relative vertical position due to the tongue and groove and due to the substantial clamping effects from the rail bolts 24.Re. 5. The strength of the rail in the edge of the material will be reduced. Generally, the contact pressure at the edge of a raceway for a roller bearing should generally be avoided or substantially reduced compared with pressure in the contact zone in the middle of the material. This is due to the hydrostatic effects obtained in the middle of the material, while at the edge there will be a tendency for the material to break away by the shear effect. By a substantial compression of the adjacent rail segments, it is obtained a rail joint where the neighboring rail segment are supporting each other. End face of the rail segment 42 is mutually supporting each other so that the combined effect will be close to the situation of an endless rail.
KR 2015/0095361 A discloses a turret bearing supporting a turret in pool of a hull. The turret bearing comprises: a supporter mounted on the pool; a control bar installed in the supporter; a support plate moveably mounted to move from the supporter to the turret; and height adjustment means to move the support plate by means of the control bar.
WO 2015/123567 A1 describes a bearing assembly including a support ring, a plurality of bearing-element carrier members coupled to the support ring, and a plurality of superhard bearing elements having a lateral periphery extending between a base and a superhard bearing surface. At least one superhard bearing element of the plurality of superhard bearing elements is attached to each of the plurality of bearing-element carrier members. A bearing apparatus includes a rotor, a stator, and a bearing assembly. A method for assembling a bearing assembly includes attaching at least one superhard bearing element to each of a plurality of bearing-element carrier members and coupling the plurality of bearing-element carrier members to a support ring.
A rail system according to claim 1 and methods for mounting and replacing according to claims 10 and 11 helps to obtain the objectives and advantages mentioned above.

Exchangeable rail system for large turret bearing


A turbine shaft bearing apparatus in a turbine module includes two axially spaced turbine shaft bearings, including an outlet side bearing protected from overheating by a solid bearing housing which surrounds the outlet side bearing. The bearing housing being provided with a support including conduit for a lubricating medium. The turbine module has plurality of axially spaced turbine wheels connected to a common turbine shaft and coaxial therewith; an inlet through which motive fluid vapor is introduced to a first stage of the turbine wheels; a structured bleeding exit opening formed in an outer turbine casing of the turbine module; and a passage defined between two of the turbine wheels and in fluid communication with the bleeding exit opening, wherein expanded motive fluid vapor may be extracted through the structured bleeding exit opening and supplied to a heat exchange component for heating the motive fluid condensate.

Due to the worldwide environmental considerations particularly relating to use of energy resources, it has become, recently more important to utilize relatively medium to low temperature heat sources or resources, such as geothermal steam and/or geothermal brine as well as industrial waste heat, for power production.
An Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) is well suited to exploit the energy content of a medium to low temperature heat source or resource due to the relatively low boiling point of organic motive fluid. Organic fluid flowing in a closed cycle vaporizes after extracting heat from the medium to low temperature heat source or resource. The vapor is expanded in an organic vapor turbine that converts heat in the vapor to work and produces heat-depleted or expanded organic vapor that is condensed in a condenser. The condensed organic fluid is returned to the vaporizer, and the cycle is repeated.
An important consideration in designing the power capacity of such a power plant is the selection of a suitable turbine configuration. Reliable operation of the turbine is contingent upon the structural strength of the shaft that enables turbine rotor rotation and upon the ability of the bearings that support the turbine shaft to absorb both the radial load and axial thrust imposed by the expansion of the motive fluid within the turbine.
One prior art bearing arrangement for supporting a rotating turbine shaft is an overhang design illustrated in FIG. 1. To support the mechanical load imposed by three turbine wheels 2, 3 and 4 which permit the expansion of the working fluid in separate stages carried on turbine shaft 6, two bearings 7 and 8 are provided at the inlet end 5 of turbine shaft 6, which is proximate to the port through which the working fluid is introduced into the turbine interior, and are distant from the outlet end 9 of turbine shaft 6 being close to the port from which the expanded working fluid exits the turbine. The overhang bearing arrangement simplifies assembly and maintenance as both bearings 7 and 8 are at the same side of shaft 6; however, it reduces the maximum mechanical load that can be supported due to the high bending stress that the turbine shaft experiences. Due to the proximity of the two bearings, the moment arm resulting from the weight of the turbine wheels which is applied on the shaft is unidirectional, producing a significantly large moment that causes the shaft to be susceptible to bending.
It is to be noted that the maximum number of turbine wheels that can be supported by the overhang bearing arrangement is usually limited to three as a result of the bending stress, significantly reducing the power output of a turbine from what could be achieved if more turbine wheels could be incorporated therewith.
Another disadvantage of the overhang bearing arrangement is that the end of the turbine shaft that is unsupported by the bearings can undergo an induced vibration phenomena, particularly flexural vibration. Such vibration can result in damage to elements with small radial clearance such as seals.
WO 2013/171685 discloses an ORC system that comprises a radial turbine of the axial inflow and radial outflow type. The turbine is formed by a single rotor disc that carries rotor blades to define a plurality of stages and that is provided with an auxiliary opening between two successive radially spaced stages. The auxiliary opening is interposed between an inlet and an outlet of the turbine, and is in fluid connection with an auxiliary cogeneration circuit so as to extract from the turbine or inject into it organic working fluid at an intermediate pressure between an injection pressure and a discharge pressure. The rotor disc is supported in a casing by two bearings, and is mounted at an end of the shaft that is cantilevered with respect to the casing according to an overhang design.
Since the vapors expand radially outwardly from the turbine shaft in this prior art configuration, large mechanical loads are imposed on the turbine shaft and on the bearings. The various radially spaced stages of the single rotor disc are very closely fitted to the stator blades, and are therefore very sensitive to expansion and contraction forces, particularly due to the application of radial forces to the stages. The applied radial forces increase for the second and third stages, which are more distant from the turbine shaft than the first stage.
Other disadvantages of this single turbine wheel configuration relate to the need of accommodating the large-sized and heavy rotor that has a correspondingly high moment of inertia, requiring an increased torque to drive the rotor, and also to the pressure losses of the vapor exiting the turbine via a 90-degree turn through a volute.
Another prior art bearing arrangement for supporting a turbine shaft is the rotor between bearings design where two bearings are axially spaced. Although the level of bending stress and vibrations is significantly reduced relative to the overhang bearing arrangement by virtue of the axially spaced bearings, one or both of the bearings may be exposed to the hot and pressurized motive fluid vapors. Due to the exposure to the hot vapors, the metal temperature of a turbine shaft bearing is liable to become excessive. As a result of bearing overheating, metal or alloy based lining having good lubricating properties tends to become weakened and shears in the direction of shaft rotation. Without protection for the metal or alloy lining, the bearing surface geometry can become altered due to the metal-to-metal contact between the bearing and the shaft, ultimately leading to possible bearing failure and an unsupported turbine shaft. At times, the sheared metal or alloy blocks the oil inlet to the bearing, resulting in another cause of bearing failure.
In addition, the rotor between bearings design has been utilized only with respect to steam turbines. Thermal stress present in steam turbines is not similar to the thermal stress that may be present in organic vapor turbines.
It is an object of the present invention to provide turbine shaft bearing apparatus for use in a rotor between bearings design that is not subject to overheating.
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide turbine shaft bearing apparatus to facilitate an increase of the total power output of the turbine and of a power plant in which the turbine is incorporated.
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a turbine module apparatus to facilitate an increase of the total power output of the turbine and of a power plant in which the turbine is incorporated.
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide turbine shaft bearing apparatus to facilitate efficient utilization of relatively low temperature heat sources or resources.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the description proceeds.

Turbine shaft bearing and turbine apparatus


A key device for a keyboard includes a circuit board, a keycap located over the circuit board, a supporting plate disposed under the circuit board, a first stabilizing member, a second stabilizing member and two supporting members. The supporting plate includes two first mounting seats cooperatively defining a rotating axis extending in a first direction. Each of the first stabilizing member and the second stabilizing member is made of a plastic material, slidably engages the keycap, and is rotatably mounted to the first mounting seats. When the keycap is pressed toward the supporting plate, the first stabilizing member and the second stabilizing member rotate relative to the supporting plate about the rotating axis.

For a current keyboard, keycaps of some keys (e.g., a space key, an enter key and a backspace key) are generally larger than those of the rest of the keys so that a user may type faster and more accurately. The keys with larger keycaps on a keyboard are usually called large/long keys.
Generally, when a user exerts a force to press a large key, distribution of pressure on the large key is not uniform, which may cause the large key to tilt or wobble. Therefore, a conventional key device that is prevented from tilting or wobbling when pressed is used to serve as the large key. The conventional key device is disposed on a keyboard and includes a keycap and two stabilizers. The keyboard includes a base board that has two engaging units. Each of the stabilizers interconnects the base board and the keycap, and has two open ends respectively engaging the engaging units of the base board. By virtue of the stabilizers, the keycap may smoothly move toward the base board without tilting or wobbling when the conventional key device is pressed by a user.
However, the base board of the keyboard and the stabilizers are made of a metal material, and the stabilizers are slidable in a sliding zone defined by the engaging units of the base board. Consequently, when a computer that the keyboard is connected to plays sound through a built-in speaker, vibrations of the stabilizers and the base board caused by resonance may generate loud noise, and may make the stabilizers strike the base board.


A playing field has a plurality of pachinko mazes arranged side by side. Each pachinko maze has a scoring slot at the bottom of the maze. When each playing disk falls into a particular scoring slot, the value of the slot is determined. The value of each scoring slot is changed from game to game by means of a random electronic program so that different winning values occur. In one version of the game, the playing field comprises three parallel pachinko mazes and a disk is dropped into one of each of the pachinko mazes. Each pachinko maze has six scoring slots at the bottom thereof. At the beginning of each game, each scoring slot has one of three possible symbols illuminated--cherries, plum or jackpot. The player wins preselected amounts depending on which combinations of symbols the three playing disks fall into. In another version of the game, eleven playing disks are dropped into eleven parallel pachinko mazes, each maze having only two scoring slots--designated "left" or "right". Prior to the disks being dropped, an indicator light activates either the right side slot or the left side slot in each maze for that particular game. The player wins predetermined amounts if the disks land in at least a predetermined number of the illuminated slots.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a pachinko game, and more particularly to a pachinko game in which the values of the scoring slots change with each game.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The game of the present invention is based on the well-known game that normally goes by the name of pachinko. Pachinko involves a vertical playing field that has a glass cover plate and a solid back wall. A plurality of deflection pins or pegs extend at right angles from the back wall to the glass cover plate. A disk, coin, token, ball or other scoring device is dropped through a slot at the top of the playing surface and bounces back and forth between the deflection pins as it falls toward the bottom of the playing surface. Along the bottom of the playing surface are a plurality of scoring slots. The player scores points corresponding to the value assigned to the particular scoring slot in which the falling disk ultimately comes to rest.
A typical version of pachinko is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 524,475 (Wheeland), which patent was granted in 1894. This patent in fact is directed at an improvement to the game of pachinko in which the deflection pins or pegs are made of a spring material to give the falling disk an even more random travel path. Another example of a pachinko game is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 1,947,772 (Harris).
While pachinko is quite appealing to people who like to play games because of the apparently random movement of the disk as it bounces off the deflection pins and because it is possible through the glass to watch the fall of the disk, it has proven difficult to adopt pachinko to a casino gaming environment. Gaming regulators require any gaming device to result in a random determination of winning and losing events. In a pachinko game, the final destination of the falling disk is determined by the location of the deflection pins.
Even if the deflection pins are positioned in such a manner to make the disk fall as randomly as possible, the falling disk will still more often fall toward the middle of the scoring area than toward the outer ends. Older versions of pachinko attempted to adjust for this probability by making the scoring slots on the outer edges of the scoring area have a higher value than the scoring slots toward the center of the scoring area. Representative of this scoring value adjustment is the patent to Wheeland which shows the end scoring slots having a value of 5 whereas the scoring slots in the center have a value of 0, 1 and 0, respectively.
It is possible to bias the outcome of the game by positioning the deflection pins in a particular way to favor one scoring slot over the other scoring slots. It is also possible to bias the game by externally tipping the gaming device slightly by placing a wedge or shim under a leg or other support of the game. Any game that is easily "gaffed" (i.e. modified to favor the player or the house) will not be approved for use in legalized gaming establishments.


The present invention provides modified von Willebrand Factor molecules, methods for their preparation and uses thereof. The invention further provides pharmaceutical compositions for treating coagulation disorders.

There are various bleeding disorders caused by deficiencies of blood coagulation factors. The most common disorders are hemophilia A and B, resulting from deficiencies of blood coagulation Factor VIII (FVIII) and IX, respectively. Another known bleeding disorder is von Willebrand's disease (VWD).
In plasma FVIII exists mostly as a noncovalent complex with von Willebrand Factor (VWF), and its coagulant function is to accelerate Factor IXa dependent conversion of Factor X to Xa.
Classic hemophilia or hemophilia A is an inherited bleeding disorder. It results from a chromosome X-linked deficiency of blood coagulation FVIII, and affects almost exclusively males with an incidence of between one and two individuals per 10,000. The X-chromosome defect is transmitted by female carriers who are not themselves hemophiliacs. The clinical manifestation of hemophilia A is an increased bleeding tendency.
In severe hemophilia A patients undergoing prophylactic treatment FVIII has to be administered intravenously (i.v.) about 3 times per week due to the short plasma half-life of FVIII of about 12 to 14 hours. Each i.v. administration is cumbersome, associated with pain and entails the risk of an infection especially as this is mostly done at home by the patients themselves or by the parents of children having been diagnosed for hemophilia A. It would thus be highly desirable to increase the half-life of FVIII so that pharmaceutical compositions containing such FVIII would have to be administered less frequently.
Several attempts have been made to prolong the half-life of non-activated FVIII either by reducing its interaction with cellular receptors (WO 03/093313 A2, WO 02/060951 A2), by covalently attaching polymers to FVIII (WO 94/15625, WO 97/11957 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,970,300), by encapsulation of FVIII (WO 99/55306), by introduction of novel metal binding sites (WO 97/03193), by covalently attaching the A2 domain to the A3 domain either by peptidic (WO 97/40145 and WO 03/087355) or disulfide linkage (WO 02/103024A2) or by covalently attaching the A1 domain to the A2 domain (WO2006/108590).
Another approach to enhance the functional half-life of FVIII or VWF is by PEGylation of FVIII (WO 2007/126808, WO 2006/053299, WO 2004/075923) or by PEGylation of VWF (WO 2006/071801). The increased half-life of pegylated VWF would indirectly also enhance the half-life of FVIII present in plasma. Also fusion proteins of FVIII have been described (WO 2004/101740, WO2008/077616 and WO 2009/156137).
VWF, which is missing, functionally defect or only available in reduced quantity in different forms of von Willebrand disease (VWD), is a multimeric adhesive glycoprotein present in the plasma of mammals, which has multiple physiological functions. During primary hemostasis VWF acts as a mediator between specific receptors on the platelet surface and components of the extracellular matrix such as collagen. Moreover, VWF serves as a carrier and stabilizing protein for procoagulant FVIII. VWF is synthesized in endothelial cells and megakaryocytes as a 2813 amino acid precursor molecule. The amino acid sequence and the cDNA sequence of wild-type VWF are disclosed in Collins et al. 1987, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 84:4393-4397. The precursor polypeptide, pre-pro-VWF, consists of an N-terminal 22-residue signal peptide, followed by a 741-residue pro-peptide and the 2050-residue polypeptide found in mature plasma VWF (Fischer et al., FEBS Lett. 351: 345-348, 1994). After cleavage of the signal peptide in the endoplasmatic reticulum a C-terminal disulfide bridge is formed between two monomers of VWF. During further transport through the secretory pathway 12 N-linked and 10 O-linked carbohydrate side chains are added. More important, VWF dimers are multimerized via N-terminal disulfide bridges and the propeptide of 741 amino acids length is cleaved off by the enzyme PACE/furin in the late Golgi apparatus.
Once secreted into plasma the protease ADAMTS13 can cleave high-molecular weight VWF multimers within the A1 domain of VWF. Plasma VWF therefore consists of a whole range of multimers ranging from single dimers of 500 kDa to multimers consisting of up to more than 20 dimers of a molecular weight of over 10,000 kDa. The VWF-HMWM hereby having the strongest hemostatic activity, which can be measured in ristocetin cofactor activity (VWF:RCo). The higher the ratio of VWF:RCo/VWF antigen, the higher the relative amount of high molecular weight multimers.
In plasma FVIII binds with high affinity to VWF, which protects it from premature elimination and thus, plays in addition to its role in primary hemostasis a crucial role to stabilize FVIII, regulate plasma levels of FVIII and as a consequence is also a central factor to control secondary hemostasis. The half-life of non-activated FVIII bound to VWF is about 12 to 14 hours in plasma. In von Willebrand disease type 3, where no or almost no VWF is present, the half-life of FVIII is only about 2 to 6 hours, leading to symptoms of mild to moderate hemophilia A in such patients due to decreased concentrations of FVIII. The stabilizing effect of VWF on FVIII has also been used to aid recombinant expression of FVIII in CHO cells (Kaufman et al. 1989, Mol Cell Biol 9:1233-1242).
VWF-derived polypeptides, in particular VWF fragments, have been described to stabilize FVIII in vitro and in vivo. WO 2013/106787 A1 is directed at chimeric proteins comprising certain VWF fragments and a FVIII protein. WO 2014/198699 A2 and WO 2013/083858 A2 describe VWF fragments and their use in the treatment of hemophilia. WO 2011/060242 A2 discloses fusion polypeptides comprising certain VWF fragments and an antibody Fc region. WO2013/093760 A2 describes a method for preparing a protein, comprising co-expressing FVIII or VWF polypeptides, including truncated forms of VWF, with a recombinant α-2,3-sialyltransferase. Yee et al. (2014) Blood 124(3):445-452 found that a VWF fragment containing the D′D3 domains is sufficient to stabilize Factor VIII in mice. However, although a VWF D′D3-Fc fusion protein exhibited markedly prolonged survival when transfused into FVIII-deficient mice, the VWF D′D3-Fc fusion protein did not prolong the survival of co-transfused FVIII.
The effect of the fermentation temperature on the sialylation level of a glycoprotein was investigated by Trummer et al (Biotech. Bioeng. (2006) Vol. 94, No. 6, p. 1033-1044) who found for erythropoietin at 30° C. a decrease in sialylation by 40% and at 33° C. a decrease by 20%.
Ahn et al. also investigated the effect of fermentation temperature on the sialylation level of a glycoprotein and published for erythropoietin (Biotech. Bioeng. (2008) Vol. 101, No. 6, p. 1234-1244) a percentage of asialo glycoprotein at 37° C. of 2.4%, and at 32° C. of 2.1%.
There is an ongoing need for methods increasing the half-life of FVIII and FVIII products with reduced administration frequency.

Methods for preparing modified von Willebrand factor