Compounds for use in the preparation of polymerizable liquid crystalline mixtures, liquid crystalline polymers and optical devices prepared from such mixtures and polymers. The compounds include novel compounds comprising an organosiloxane portion and a portion having a structure that is compatible with a mesogenic molecular architecture.

The present invention relates to the use of a component of a polymerisable liquid crystalline mixture in the production of orientated liquid crystalline polymers; compounds used as components in polymerisable liquid crystalline mixtures; liquid crystalline mixtures comprising these components, liquid crystalline polymers prepared from such components and liquid crystalline devices comprising those compounds.
Liquid crystal polymers (LCPs) are used in the manufacture of optical components such as waveguides, optical gratings, filters, retarders, piezoelectric cells and non-linear optical cells and films. The choice of LCP for use in any one of the aforementioned optical components depends upon its associated optical properties such as the optical anisotropy, refractive index, transparency and dispersion. Optical filters, for example, contain LCPs having a large anisotropy (xcex94n) and a low dispersion (n=f(xcex)).
In some applications there is a requirement to produce LCPs in which the component molecules adopt a specific tilt angle with respect to the plane of the substrate. These LCP materials can be used as optical components such as compensation layers and retarders. Such optical components may be used in the production of liquid crystal devices (LCDs) with improved viewing angles, for example.
LCPs are manufactured by orientating a layer of a polymerisable liquid crystal single compound or mixture on an orientated substrate and cross-linking the mesogenic layer to form a liquid crystal polymer (LCP) network. Polymerisable LC compounds used in the manufacture of the LCPs need to be chemically and thermally stable, stable to electromagnetic radiation, soluble in standard solvents, miscible with other LC components and exhibit liquid crystalline properties over the range 25 to 150xc2x0 C., preferably 25 to 80xc2x0 C. The configuration imposed by the orientation layer on the polymerisable LC single compound or mixture becomes fixed or frozen into the LCP network formed upon cross-linking. The resulting LCP films have a high viscosity and are stable to mechanical stresses, temperature and light exposure.
The tilt angle adopted by the polymerisable LC single compound or mixture prior to cross-linking depends in part upon the nature of the LC components comprising that single compound or mixture. Previous strategies employed in generating a tilt angle in a given LC single compound or mixture prior to cross-linking have, for example, relied upon the introduction of one or more lateral substituents into the meosogen, such as a short aliphatic alkyl chain. However, such substitution is accompanied by a decrease in the mechanical properties of the LC material or, depending upon the molecular architecture of the mesogen, is associated with a small or vanishing tilt angle. In each case the reproducibility of the initial tilt is readily lost before the mixture is cross-linked to give the LCP network due to thermal and mechanical effects.
There is therefore a need for a liquid crystalline single compound or mixture that can be orientated on a substrate prior to cross-linking in such a way that the orientation of the LC single compound or mixture on the substrate remains stable over the period required for manufacturing the LCP network. There is also a need for a LC component with the ability to facilitate the generation of and maintain a wide range of predetermined tilt angles prior to and during the manufacture of the LCP film. The present invention addresses those needs.
A first aspect of the present invention provides the use of a component of a LC mixture in the manufacture of a LCP network comprising the mixture, characterised in that the component induces a stable tilt angle in the LCP network. By the word stable it is to be understood to mean that there is no substantial change in the value of the tilt angle over the period necessary for manufacturing the LCP network. The LCP network obtained by cross-linking the polymerisable LC mixture can be a nematic, smectic A or discotic film, but is preferably a nematic film. These films are characterised by good orientation of the film components relative to the substrate.
The component used to induce a stable tilt angle is preferably mesogenic in nature or is compatible with a mesogenic molecular architecture and may contain polymerisable or non-polymerisable substituents. It is preferably miscible with the other components of the liquid crystal mixture. Without wishing to limit the scope of the invention, it is believed that the component must contain a sterically bulky group that has the ability to form a strong association with the substrate or with the orientation layer. The component should also contain a sterically less bulky group that is compatible with a mesogenic molecular architecture and which extends into the bulk of the LC single compound or mixture as a whole. It is believed that this mesogenically compatible group is able to assume an angle in which it is tilted relative to the plane of the substrate. Unlike the LCP mixtures of the prior art, LCPs including these components are less susceptible to thermal effects and the polymerisable LC single compound or mixture comprising or including a component of the present invention is able to retain its initial orientation over the period necessary for manufacturing the LCP network. Judicious choice of the substrate associating and mesogenic extending groups allows this angle to be varied. It will be appreciated that the components of the invention can therefore be used in the manufacture of polymerisable LC single compounds or mixtures having a stable orientation or tilt angle relative to the plane of the substrate.
By sterically bulky it is to be understood that the lateral dimensions of the substrate associating group are at least half as large again as the lateral dimensions of the less bulky group, preferably two or more times the dimensions of the less bulky group.
The substrate associating or more bulky groups preferably comprise organosiloxane groups and the mesogenic extending or less bulky groups preferably contain aromatic or non-aromatic carbocyclic or heterocyclic ring systems. It is believed that the organosiloxane containing components used in the first aspect of the invention include compounds that are new per se and a second aspect of the invention provides an organosiloxane compound of formula I
wherein
B1 to B4 each individually represent a spacer group selected from the group comprising optionally substituted saturated or unsaturated, straight chain or branched chain C1-80 alkyl group, one or more of the non-adjacent alkyl CH2 groups being optionally replaced by one or more heteroatoms;
B5 represents a hydrogen atom or spacer group as defined above,
A1 and A2 each individually represent a single bond or a spacer group as defined above,
MG1 to MG3 each individually represent a mesogenic group comprising at least one optionally substituted aromatic or non aromatic carbocyclic or heterocyclic ring systems; and
n1 and n2 are each independently 0 or a positive integer with the proviso that, firstly, when n2 is 0 both B1 and B2 include a polymerisable group and at least one of A1, B1 and B2 includes a group selected from an organosiloxane, an organogermanium, an organotin and an organo-perfluoro residue and secondly, when n2  greater than 0 at least one of B1, B2, B3 and B4 includes a polymerisable group and at least one of A1, A2, B1, B2, B3 and B4 includes an organosiloxane group.
By the term xe2x80x98heteroatomxe2x80x99 it should be understood to include nitrogen, oxygen and sulphur. Replacement nitrogen atoms may be further substituted with groups such as alkyl, aryl and cycloalkyl. These compounds have been found to be particularly useful in the preparation of liquid crystalline polymer networks (LCPs) in which the molecules are tilted with respect to the orientation layer. These LCPs can be used in a range of different optical and electrical applications. LCP networks having nematic, smectic A and surprisingly discotic properties may be prepared. Nematic mesophases are preferred.
Most of the discotic liquid crystalline compounds described in prior art are based on disc-shaped molecules (such as triphenylene) which are characterised by a rigid and highly conjugated aromatic central core. These discotic compounds are of limited use because of properties such as a high viscosity, a high melting point, near visible light absorption and problems in their preparation, which also hinders the chemical diversity of the compounds that may be prepared.
There is, therefore, a need for new discotic liquid crystalline materials having reduced melting points and viscosities compared to those obtained with calamitic liquid crystals.
The present inventors have surprisingly found that discotic mesophases may be obtained from rod-shaped molecules, which are more easily prepared and offer the possibility of preparing material having diverse molecular structures. These discotic mesophases may be obtained from molecules having calamitic architecture, by introducing into each one of their peripheral alkyl chains, at least one bulky group which is not compatible (in the liquid crystalline state), with the other molecular constituents. This non compatibility means that these bulky groups tend to associate in the mesophase leading to separate micro layers.
The presence of the bulky groups in each of the peripheral alkyl chains causes the central rigid rod-shaped cores to adopt an intermolecular crossed configuration leading to disc-shaped elements which are able to form discotic mesophases.
The compound of formula (I) may be monomeric, oligomeric or polymeric in nature. It will be appreciated that the value of the integers n1 and n2 will be determined by the nature of the compound of formula (I). When the compound of formula (I) is monomeric or oligomeric in nature, n1 and n2 may assume values of from 0 to 10, preferably from 1 to 5. However when the compound of formula (I) is polymeric in nature the values of n1 and n2 can range from 6 to 3,000 preferably from 11 to 2,000.
The number of aromatic or non-aromatic ring systems present in the groups MG1 to MG3 will depend upon the application in which the compound of formula (I) is to be used. MG1 to MG3 preferably contain between 1 and 4 aromatic or non-aromatic ring systems.
The hydrocarbon spacer groups B1 to B4 may include C1-C20-alkyl, C1-C20-alkoxy, C1-C20-alkoxycarbonyl, C1-C20-alkylcarbonyl and C1-C20-alkylcarbonyloxy groups, for example, methyl, ethyl, propyl, butyl, pentyl, hexyl, heptyl, octyl, nonyl, decyl, undecyl, dodecyl, methoxy, ethoxy, n-propoxy, i-propoxy, butoxy, pentyloxy, hexyloxy, heptyloxy, octyloxy, nonyloxy, decyloxy, undecyloxy, dodecyloxy, methoxycarbonyl, ethoxycarbonyl, propoxycarbonyl, butoxycarbonyl, pentyloxycarbonyl, hexyloxycarbonyl, octyloxycarbonyl, nonyloxycarbonyl, decyloxycarbonyl, undecyloxycarbonyl, dodecyloxycarbonyl, methylcarbonyl, ethylcarbonyl, propylcarbonyl, butylcarbonyl, pentylcarbonyl, hexylcarbonyl, octylcarbonyl, nonylcarbonyl, decylcarbonyl, undecylcarbonyl, dodecylcarbonyl, methylcarbonyloxy, ethylcarbonyloxy, propylcarbonyloxy, butylcarbonyloxy, pentylcarbonyloxy, hexylcarbonyloxy, octylcarbonyloxy, nonylcarbonyloxy, decylcarbonyloxy, undecylcarbonyloxy, dodecylcarbonyloxy, and the like.
The optionally substituted C1-80 alkyl groups may be substituted by alkyl, aryl and cycloalkyl, as well as amino, cyano, epoxy, halogen, hydroxy, nitro, oxo etc. Possible heteroatoms, which may replace carbon atoms, include nitrogen, oxygen and sulfur. In the case of nitrogen further substitution is possible with groups such as alkyl, aryl and cycloalkyl. The optionally substituted aromatic or non-aromatic carbocyclic or heterocyclic ring systems may be similarly substituted.
Any one of the groups B1, B2, B3 and B4 may contain an organosiloxane group and a polymerisable group. Alternatively one or more of the groups B1, B2, B3, B4, A1 and A2 may contain an organosiloxane group with one or more of the other groups of B1, B2, B3 and B4 containing a polymerisable group. Preferably at least one of the groups B1 to B4 includes both a polymerisable group and an organosiloxane group and in a first preferred embodiment of the second aspect of the invention each or any of the groups B1 to B4 may be a hydrocarbon residue of formula (II)
Pxe2x80x94(Sp1)k1xe2x80x94[(Si(R1)2O)m1xe2x80x94Si(R2)2]m2xe2x80x94(Sp2)k2xe2x80x94(X1)t1xe2x80x94xe2x80x83xe2x80x83(II)
wherein
P is a polymerisable group selected from groups comprising CH2xe2x95x90CWxe2x80x94, CH2xe2x95x90Wxe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94, CH2xe2x95x90CWxe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94, CH2xe2x95x90C(Ph)xe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94, CH2xe2x95x90CHxe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94Phxe2x80x94, CH2xe2x95x90CWxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94, CH2xe2x95x90C(Ph)xe2x80x94CONHxe2x80x94, CH2xe2x95x90C(COORxe2x80x2)xe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94, CH2xe2x95x90CHxe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94, CH2xe2x95x90CHxe2x80x94OOCxe2x80x94, Phxe2x80x94CHxe2x95x90CHxe2x80x94, CH3xe2x80x94Cxe2x95x90Nxe2x80x94(CH2)m3xe2x80x94, HOxe2x80x94, HSxe2x80x94, HOxe2x80x94(CH2)m3xe2x80x94, HSxe2x80x94(CH2)m3xe2x80x94, HO(CH2)m3COOxe2x80x94, HS(CH2)m3COOxe2x80x94, HWNxe2x80x94, HOC(O)xe2x80x94, CH2xe2x95x90CHxe2x80x94Phxe2x80x94(O)m4
wherein
W represents H, F, Cl, Br or I or a C1-5 alkyl group;
m3 is an integer having a value of from 1 to 9;
m4 is an integer having a value of 0 or 1,
Rxe2x80x2 represents a C1-5 alkyl group;
Rxe2x80x3 represents a C1-5 alkyl group, methoxy, cyano, F, Cl, Br or I;
Sp1 and Sp2 each independently represent a C1-20 alkylene group;
k1 and k2 are integers, each independently having a value of from 0 to 4;
R1 and R2 each independently represent straight chain or branched C1-20 alkyl groups;
m1 is an integer having a value of from 0 to 10;
m2 is an integer having a value of from 1 to 10;
X1 represents xe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94Sxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94, N(CH3)xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CH(OH)xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94COxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CH2(CO)xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94SOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CH2(SO)xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94SO2xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CH2(SO2)xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94OCOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94OCOxe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94Sxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94COxe2x80x94Sxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94SOOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94OSOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94SOSxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CH2 l xe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94OCH2xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CH2Oxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CHxe2x95x90CHxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94Cxe2x89xa1Cxe2x80x94 or a single bond; and
t1 is an integer having a value of 0 or 1.
In relation to the hydrocarbon residue of formula (II), the term xe2x80x94Phxe2x80x94 is to be understood as representing 1,4-phenylene, 1,2-phenylene as well as 1,3-phenylene. 1,4-phenylene groups are preferred. The term Phxe2x80x94 or (Ph) should be understood to represent a phenyl group.
The C1-20 alkylene groups Sp1 and Sp2 may comprise branched or straight chain alkylene groups and may be unsubstituted, mono- or polysubstituted by F, Cl, Br, I or CN. Alternatively or in addition one or more of the CH2 groups present in the hydrocarbon chain may be replaced, independently, by one or more groups selected from xe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94Sxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94NHxe2x80x94, N(CH3)xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CH(OH)xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94COxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CH2(CO)xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CH2(SO)xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94SO2xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CH2(SO2)xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94OCOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94OCOxe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94Sxe2x80x94COxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94COxe2x80x94Sxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94SOOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94OSOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94SOSxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94Cxe2x89xa1Cxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94(CF2)xe2x80x94r, xe2x80x94CD2)sxe2x80x94 or C(W1)xe2x95x90C(W2)xe2x80x94, with the proviso that no two oxygen atoms are directly linked to each other. W1 and W2 each represent, independently, H, Hxe2x80x94(CH2)q1xe2x80x94, F, Cl, Br or I. The integers r, s and ql each independently represent a number of between 1 and 15.
One or more of the CH2 groups of the C1-20 alkyl groups R1 and R2 may each be replaced, independently, by xe2x80x94Si(CH3)2xe2x80x94 or/and by xe2x80x94Si(CH3)2O Si(CH3)2xe2x80x94.
Compounds of formula (I) in which Aand/or A2 comprise an organosiloxane group are preferred and in a second preferred embodiment of the second aspect of the invention the groups A1 and/or A2 comprise a group of formula (III)
xe2x80x94(X2)t2xe2x80x94(Sp3)k3[(Si(R3)2O )m5xe2x80x94Si(R4)2]m6xe2x80x94(Sp4)k4xe2x80x94(X3)t3xe2x80x94xe2x80x83xe2x80x83(III)
wherein
Sp3 and Sp4 each independently represent the designations assigned to Sp1 and Sp2 above,
X2 and X3 each independently represent the designations assigned to X1 above,
R3 and R4 each independently represent the designations assigned to R1 and R2 above,
k3 and k4 are integers, each integer independently having a value of from 0 to 4,
t2 and t3 are integers, each independently having a value of 0 or 1; and
m5 is an integer having a value of from 0 to 10; and
m6 is an integer having a value of from 1 to 10.
The groups MG1 to MG3 may be the same or different and may comprise up to three bridging groups. A third embodiment of the second aspect of the invention provides compounds of formula (I) in which MG1 comprises a group of formula (IV)
xe2x80x94C1xe2x80x94(Z1xe2x80x94C2)a1xe2x80x94(Z2xe2x80x94C3)a2xe2x80x94(Z3xe2x80x94C4)a3xe2x80x94xe2x80x83xe2x80x83(IV),
wherein
C1 to C4 each independently represent a non aromatic, aromatic, carbocyclic or heterocyclic group;
Z1 to Z3 each independently represent xe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94OCOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94OCH2xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CH2Oxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CHxe2x95x90CHxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94Cxe2x89xa1Cxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CHxe2x95x90CHxe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94OCOxe2x80x94CHxe2x95x90CHxe2x80x94 or a single bond; and
a1, a2 and a3 are integers, each integer independently having a value of from 0 to 3, with the proviso that a1+a2 +a3 xe2x89xa63.
It is especially preferred that the groups C1 to C4 are selected from the following structural formulae:
In a fourth embodiment of the second aspect of the invention the groups MG2 and MG3 comprise groups of formula (IVa)
xe2x80x94C5xe2x80x94(Z4xe2x80x94C6)a4xe2x80x94(Z5xe2x80x94C7)a5xe2x80x94(Z6xe2x80x94C8)a6xe2x80x94xe2x80x83xe2x80x83(IVa),
wherein:
C5, C6, C7 and C8 each independently represent a non-aromatic, aromatic, carbocyclic or heterocyclic group; and
Z4 to Z6 each independently represent xe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94OCOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94OCH2xe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CH2Oxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CHxe2x95x90CHxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94Cxe2x89xa1Cxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94CHxe2x95x90CHxe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94OCOxe2x80x94CHxe2x95x90CHxe2x80x94 or a single bond; and
a4, a5 and a6 are integers, each integer independently having a value of from 0 to 3,
with the proviso that firstly a4+a5+a6xe2x89xa63 and secondly that at least one of C5 to C8 independently comprises a trivalent group.
It is preferred that C7 is the trivalent group. It is especially preferred that C7 selected from one of the following structural formulae:
wherein for each of the groups MG1 to MG3 of formulae (IV) and (IVa) respectively
L represents xe2x80x94CH3, xe2x80x94COCH3, xe2x80x94NO2, CN, or halogen;
u1 represents an integer having a value of from 0 to 4;
u2 represents an integer having a value of from 0 to 3; and
u3 represents an integer having a value of from 0 to 2.
In an especially preferred fifth embodiment of the second aspect of the invention there is provided a compound of formula (I)
wherein
n1 and n2 are independently 0 or 1;
B5 is hydrogen;
B1 to B4 each independently represent a group of formula (V)
P2xe2x80x94Sp5xe2x80x94[(Si(CH3)2O)m7xe2x80x94Si(CH3)2]m8xe2x80x94Sp6xe2x80x94X4xe2x80x94xe2x80x83xe2x80x83(V);
A1 and A2 each independently represent a group of formula (VI)
xe2x80x94X5xe2x80x94Sp7xe2x80x94[(Si(CH3)2O)m9xe2x80x94Si(CH3)2]m10xe2x80x94Sp8xe2x80x94X6xe2x80x94xe2x80x83xe2x80x83(VI)
wherein
X4 to X6 each independently represent xe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94COxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94OCOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94Cxe2x89xa1Cxe2x80x94, or a single bond, especially xe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94OCOxe2x80x94 or single bond;
Sp5 to Sp8 each independently represent a C1-20 straight-chain alkylene group, especially ethylene, propylene, butylene, pentylene, hexylene, heptylene, octylene, nonylene, decylene, undecylene, or dodecylene;
p2 represents CH2xe2x95x90CW5xe2x80x94 or CH2xe2x95x90CW5xe2x80x94(CO)v2Oxe2x80x94wherein
W5 represents H, CH3, F, Cl, Br or I; and
v2 is 0 or 1;
m7 and m9 are integers, each independently having a value of 1 or 2;
m8 and m10 are integers, each independently having a value of 0 or 1; with the proviso that m8+m10 greater than 0;
MG1 represents a group of formula IV wherein
C1, C2, C3 and C4 are the same and are selected from phenylene or biphenylene; and
Z1 to Z3 each independently represent a single bond, xe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94 or xe2x80x94OCOxe2x80x94; and
MG2 and MG3 each independently represent a group of formula IVa wherein
C5, C6, and C8 are the same and are selected from phenylene or biphenylene;
C7 represents phenylene or biphenylene; and
Z4 to Z6 each independently represent a single bond, xe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94 or xe2x80x94OCOxe2x80x94.
The surprising ability of the compounds of the invention to form discotic mesophases has been discussed to above. The compounds of the invention that have been found to be particularly suitable for the preparation of discotic mesophases are those having a bulky group in each of their peripheral alkyl chains B1 and B2. As mentioned previously it is believed that the presence of the bulky groups causes the rod-shaped molecules of the invention to associate thereby forming disc-shaped elements, which are stabilising to discotic mesophases.
Suitable bulky groups include fluorinated alkyl residues as well as and organic residues having bulky atoms such as germanium, silicon, and tin.
Preferably the bulky groups comprise organic residues having tetravalent bulky atom such as germanium, silicon, and tin. It is especially preferred that the bulky groups comprise at least one silioxane group. It is more especially preferred that each of the groups B1 and B2, include at least one siloxane group.
It is preferred that the central core of molecules having the ability to form a discotic mesophase comprises at least one optionally substituted aromatic or non-aromatic carbocyclic ring system. More preferably the central cores are selected from those that are able to induce a calamitic mesophase.
The bulky groups are preferably each independently attached to the central core of the molecule via a C1-20 alkyl spacer group as defined above.
A preferred sixth embodiment of the second aspect of the invention provides a compound of formula (I) in which
n1 and n2 are both 0,
B1 and B2 each independently represent a group of formula (VIl)
P3xe2x80x94Sp5xe2x80x94[Si(CH3)2O)m7xe2x80x94Si(CH3)2]m8xe2x80x94Sp6xe2x80x94X4xe2x80x94xe2x80x83xe2x80x83(VII);
wherein
X4 represents xe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94COxe2x80x94,xe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94,xe2x80x94OCOxe2x80x94, xe2x80x94Cxe2x89xa1Cxe2x80x94 or a single bond, especially xe2x80x94Oxe2x80x94,xe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94,xe2x80x94OCOxe2x80x94 or single bond;
Sp5 to Sp6 each independently represent a C1-20 straight-chain alkylene group, especially ethylene, propylene, butylene, pentylene, hexylene, heptylene, octylene, nonylene, decylene, undecylene, or dodecylene;
P3 represents a hydrogen or CH2xe2x95x90CW5xe2x80x94 or CH2xe2x95x90CW5xe2x80x94(CO)v2Oxe2x80x94wherein
W5 represents H, CH3, F, Cl, Br or I; and
v2 is 0 or 1;
m7 is 1 or 2;
m8 is 1;
MG2 represents a group of formula IVa wherein
C5,C6, and C8 are the same and are selected from phenylene or biphenylene;
C7 represents phenylene or biphenylene; and
Z4 to Z6 each independently represent a single bond, xe2x80x94COOxe2x80x94 or xe2x80x94OCOxe2x80x94.
These compounds are particularly suitable for the preparation of materials having discotic mesophases.
The compounds according to the second aspect of the invention may be readily prepared using methods that are well known to the person skilled in the art, such as those documented in Houben-Weyl, Methoden der Organischen Chemie, Thieme-Verlag, Stuttgart. In particular, the compounds may be readily prepared from direactive organosiloxane compounds according to any one of Schemes 1 to 5. A third aspect of the invention provides a method for the preparation of compounds according to the second aspect of the invention comprising reacting a direactive siloxane with a mesogenic compound comprising at least one carbocyclic or heterocyclic ring system.
The organosiloxane compounds according to the second aspect of the invention may be used alone or as a component of a liquid crystal mixture. Liquid crystalline materials comprising a compound of formula (I) may be used in the manufacture of LCPs. A fourth aspect of the invention therefore comprises a liquid crystalline material comprising a compound of formula (I). Preferably the liquid crystalline materials comprises at least two components. The additional components must be miscible with the compound of formula (I) and may selected from known mesogenic materials such as those reported in Adv. Mater. 5, 107 (1993), Mol. Liq. Crsyt. 307, 111 (1997), J. Mat. Chem. 5, 2047 (1995) or in patent applications U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,593,617; 5,567,349; GB-A-2 297 556; GB-A-2 299 333; DE-A-195 04 224; EP-A-0 606 940; EP-A-0 643 121 and EP-A-0 606 939, optionally selected from EP-A-0 606 940; EP-A-0 643 121 and EP-A-0 606 939.
The form of the liquid crystal material will depend upon the application in which it is to be used and may be present as a liquid crystalline mixture, (co)polymer, elastomer, polymer gel or polymer network. Polymer networks have been found to be of particular use and in a first preferred embodiment of the fourth aspect of the invention there is provided a polymer network comprising a compound of formula (I) in cross-linked form. Preferably the polymer network comprises at least two components, at least one of which is an organosiloxane compound of formula (I).
The polymer network may be prepared by the copolymerisation of a mesogenic mixture comprising:
i) at least one chiral or/and achiral mesogenic polymerisable compound;
ii) at least one organosiloxane compound of formula I; and
iii) an initiator.
The chiral or achiral mesogenic polymerisable compound may be an organosiloxane compound of formula (I). Alternatively or in addition, the polymerisable compound may be selected from the known mesogenic materials referred to above. Preferably the chiral or achiral polymerisable compound includes the nematic phase in its thermotropic sequence.
The polymer network may optionally comprise further components. These include further polymerisable compounds, stabilisers and dyes. The additional polymerisable compounds preferably comprise a non-mesogenic compound having at least one polymerisable functional group, especially diacrylate compounds.
Any suitable stabiliser that prevents undesired spontaneous polymerisation, for example during storage of the mixture, may be used in the liquid crystalline mixture according to the invention. A broad range of these compounds is commercially available. Typical examples include 4-ethoxyphenol or 2,6-di-(t-butyl)-4-hydroxytoluene (BHT).
If colour filters are required, dyes may be added to the mixture. In a preferred embodiment of the invention the LC mixture contains no dye.
The chiral or achiral polymerisable mesogenic compound may be present in an amount comprising 0.01 to 99% by weight of the liquid crystalline polymer network mixture, preferably 50 to 95% by weight.
The organosiloxane compound of formula (I) may be present in an amount from 0.1 to 100% by weight of the liquid crystalline network, preferably from 1 to 50% by weight.
The initiator is preferably a photoinitiator and may be a radical or cationic initiator that is present in an amount comprising 0.1 to 5% by weight of the polymer mixture, preferably from 0.2 to 2% by weight.
When the mixture further comprises a stabiliser, this is generally present in an amount comprising 0 to 5% by weight of the liquid crystalline mixture, preferably from 0.1 to 1% by weight.
These polymerisable liquid crystalline mixtures may be formed into liquid crystalline polymer (LCP) films and a fifth aspect of the invention provides a LCP film comprising a compound of formula (I). LCP films may be readily prepared by UV polymerisation of a LC mixture according to the fourth aspect of the invention; a film comprising the LC mixture is formed on a substrate and polymerised using UV light to give a cross-linked liquid crystal polymer (LCP) film. The film is both light and temperature stable and can be used in the manufacture of devices such as waveguides, optical gratings, filters, retarders, piezoelectric cells or thin films exhibiting non-linear optical properties.
Different methods can be used for the formation of the sought LCP network, starting from the polymerisable liquid crystalline mixture manufactured as described above. Transparent substrates such as coated ITO (indium tin oxide), glass or plastic substrates, may be used. Preferred substrates include glass or plastic, especially those including a layer of rubbed polyimide or polyamide or a layer of photooriented photopolymer (LPP). Said layers are used to facilitate uniform orientation of the liquid crystalline mixture.
In the preparation of LCP films, it is particularly important to prevent the formation of defects or inhomogenities. This can be achieved by forming the polymerisable liquid crystalline mixture into a thin film; placing the mixture between two of the aforementioned substrates which are then sheared over a small distance until a planar order was obtained; or capillary filling the polymerisable liquid crystalline mixture between two of the said substrates prior to curing with, for example, by UV light, preferably in the presence of a photoinitiator, such as Irgacure(copyright).
The invention will now be described with reference to the following examples. Variations on these falling within the scope of the invention will be apparent to a person skilled in the art.
In the following Examples the thermotropic phases are abbreviated as follows:

Compounds as components in polymerizable liquid crystalline mixtures and liquid crystal polymer networks comprising them


A writing support is disclosed comprising a strip which can be fixed on a fixed wall and receive an intermediate shaped adjusting piece. A writing supprot box is fitted by a longitudinal rib in one of the grooves on the external face of the intermediate shaped adjusting piece and receives a block of repositionable removable sheets and a writing means. The writing support box may be readily fitted or removed by longitudinal sliding and its slant may be adjusted.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a writing support for receiving sheets on which the user may write messages, and which is intended to be removably fixed to a wall.
The writing support of the invention is particularly suitable for use in motor vehicles
2. Description of the Prior Art
A removable table for motor vehicles is already known, described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,189,607. This table comprises a fixed plate which is fitted to a motor vehicle door or the wall of the vehicle dashboard, with a longitudinal slit in which is engaged a T bracket with holes. Two hooks are engaged in the holes and hold a plate forming the table. The plate is hinged to the hooks and a screw adjusts its slant. In such a structure, the connection between the adjustable plate and the fixed plate is provided by a succession of parts which have resilient deformation and considerable free motion. The assembly is not sufficiently rigid for writing on the sheets laid on the plate. Such rigidity, necessary for writing, is not required for a table or shelf intended to support inert objects.
A first problem which the invention seeks to solve is to provide a writing structure which can be very readily fitted to and removed from the wall of the vehicle, while being sufficiently rigid to allow writing. Thus, the user may rapidly fix the writing support on the wall of the vehicle and remove it from said wall without using tools and by very simple movements; despite such simplicity and such speed of fitting and removing, the writing support of the invention is held very rigidly in a fixed position on the wall of the vehicle and provides a rigid support for writing.
A second problem which the invention attempts to solve is to permit adjustable orientation of the writing support with respect to the wall of the vehicle without adversely affecting the rigidity which makes writing possible. It has been discovered that such orientation is made necessary for fitting the writing support to all existing vehicles In fact, dashboards have very various shapes and generally comprise no portion for fixing a flat element of sufficient dimensions to form a support for writing sheets. It is then necessary to provide intermediate means connecting the flat sheet supporting element to the wall of the vehicle and means for orienting this element with respect to the wall, particularly for housing the flat element with respect to the non flat surface of the dashboard.
Another problem which the invention attempts to solve is to provide fixing means which, when the writing support is removed, leave on the wall of the vehicle elements of discreet appearance which do not adversely affect the aesthetics of the vehicle.
In another aspect of the invention, the writing support is adapted for receiving blocks of repositionable removable sheets and a writing means such as a pencil or pen. It may also comprise visible surfaces having decorations or inscriptions, for example advertizing slogans.


A solute can be separated from a solute/solvent solution by dissolving a gas-forming material into said solution and then adjusting the temperature, pressure and solute concentration of the resulting solution such that a Joule-Thompson free expansion of the gas-forming material released from the solution will produce a three-phase separation of the components of said solution.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention is generally concerned with the use of freezing conditions in order to accomplish a degree of separation of a solvent or solute from a solute/solvent liquid solution. It is particularly concerned with the use of gas evolution to produce such freezing conditions. The herein disclosed processes have many useful ecological and industrial purposes, but they are especially well suited for: (1) converting seawater, brackish water, etc., into potable water, (2) recovering metals such as magnesium from seawater or other salt-containing bodies of water, (3) demineralizing "fresh" waters used to make carbonated beverages, (4) recovering solutes and/or solvents from industrial solute/solvent solutions and (5) cleaning up polluted bodies of water such as lakes, rivers, streams, groundwaters, etc.
Numerous methods have been suggested and/or developed for employing freezing conditions to produce potable water or other "pure" solvents or solutes from solute/solvent solutions. Most of these processes have not, however, experienced wholehearted acceptance. For example, one of the principal problems inherent in most desalination processes that employ freezing conditions as their modus operandi is their inability to produce potable water at economically acceptable costs. Not only must these processes be able to produce large volumes of potable water, they also must be able to do so at locally acceptable costs. Cost considerations are particularly important because many areas of the world having the most acute potable water shortages also are characterized by their very low income levels.
In many processes employing freezing conditions to produce potable water, the subject water is simply frozen to produce an ice product that is then melted to obtain "pure" water. Flash-freezing is also employed to produce water vapor products that are recondensed to obtain pure water. Both of these freezing techniques require a great deal of expensive refrigeration and/or compressor capacity. Flashfreezing techniques are especially expensive because they employ vacuum/freezer apparatus wherein a vacuum must be created to evaporate the entire volume of the water thus produced. Such evaporation can only be accomplished by the expenditure of a great deal of mechanical work. The water vapor thus created then must be condensed back to its liquid form by another large expenditure of mechanical work. The refrigeration, vacuum creation and condensation steps of such processes require considerable amounts of mechanical and/or electrical energy that can only be obtained at high fuel and capital costs. Consequently, freezing and flash-freezing processes have not been widely employed to produce potable water. Another approach to lowering the expenses associated with freezing a solute/solvent solution involves dissolving a gas such as carbon dioxide into such a solute/solvent solution. Then, after the temperature and pressure of the solution is adjusted, a Joule-Thompson free expansion of the resulting solute/solvent solution is forced by spraying it through a nozzle. In effect, this spraying produces a three phase separation of the solute/solvent solution.
2. Description of the Prior Art
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,084,187 ("the 187 patent") and 5,167,838 ("the 838 patent") to Wilensky (hereinafter the "Wilensky patents") represent the closest art to the processes described in this patent disclosure. Indeed, many of the teachings of the Wilensky patents help to clarify the teachings of the present patent application, and hence, these patents are incorporated herein by reference. Generally speaking, the Wilensky patents teach that a solute can be separated from a solute/solvent solution by: (a) dissolving a gas such as carbon dioxide into the solution to produce a single-phase composite liquid, (b) raising the pressure on the liquid, (c) lowering the temperature of the liquid and (d) performing a Joule-Thompson free expansion on the entire mass of composite liquid by spraying it through a nozzle under pressure supplied by a pump.
Applicants have postulated that Wilensky's method of performing his Joule-Thompson free expansion--forcing the entire liquid mass through a nozzle--may not achieve maximum ice production for a given expenditure of mechanical energy. Applicants do not wish to be strictly bound to such a theory, but they have reason to believe that a lower than theoretically possible amount of ice production by the Wilensky processes may follow from the fact that the carbon dioxide vapors produced by a Joule-Thompson free expansion of an entire liquid mass through a nozzle may not provide sufficient time to fully associate the emerging carbon dioxide vapors with the liquid-phase material (e.g., brine). This lack of association time between the carbon dioxide vapor and liquid-phase material (e.g., water) tends to limit production of a small (but very important) amount of solvent vapor (e.g., water vapor) from the liquid phase material (e.g., water) when pressure is suddenly released from the liquid just after it clears the nozzle employed in the Wilensky processes. Applicants believe that the carbon dioxide/liquid exposure time is particularly important because of its effect on the amount of solvent vapor that can be created by such a process. This, in turn, is important because the water vapor provides most of the refrigeration created these vaporization processes. In other words, applicants have determined that greater amounts of ice can be formed as more solvent (e.g., water) vapor is produced. Consequently, applicants' processes are designed to produce more water vapor than can be created from the Wilensky processes with comparable energy expenditures. Moreover, the herein described processes, at the very least, save the mechanical energy needed by the Wilensky processes to pump an entire mass of liquid through a nozzle constriction to achieve a Joule-Thompson free expansion of the entire mass of that liquid.


Provided is a strand board with improved strength and water resistance. Reduction in productivity is prevented and characteristics of the strand board can be varied as desired while achieving certain strength and water resistance of the strand board. A strand board B is formed by stacking and laminating five strand layers 1 each formed by a large number of strands 5. The strand board B has substantially constant density distribution in the lamination direction of the strand layers 1. Three of the five strand layers 1 of the strand board B are high-density strand layers 1a having a higher density than the other strand layers 1, and the other strand layers 1 are low-density strand layers 1b.

Today there are less and less tropical hardwood species including broadleaf tress such as apitong and keruing, and it is difficult to obtain high-quality veneer at low cost. Degradation in quality of plywood using tropical hardwood species has therefore become a big problem. Wood fiberboards such as oriented strand boards (OSBs) are increasingly used as a substitute material for plywood. However, OSBs with common densities do not provide sufficient strength.
Conventionally, Patent Document 1, for example, discloses a large OSB plate having a density of at most 700 kg/m3, a length of at least 7 m, and a flexural modulus of at least 7000 N/mm2 in the primary load direction.
Patent Document 2 discloses a technique of using a strand material, which is formed by orienting and stacking woodbased material pieces and compressing and heating the stack, for joists, foundations, etc.

Wood laminate material and method for manufacturing same


A control device for an automatic transmission of a vehicle includes a shift control section including; a deceleration state judging section configured to judge whether a deceleration of the vehicle is a gentle deceleration state or a sudden deceleration state, and a downshift control section configured to command a plural stage downshift to downshift from a current shift stage of the automatic shift mechanism to a target shift stage that is lower than the current shift stage by two stages or more when the deceleration state judging section judges the sudden deceleration state.

There is developed, as a fuel economy improvement of a vehicle, an art to perform a fuel cut when an engine speed is equal to or greater than a predetermined value in a coast traveling state in which an accelerator pedal is released. Moreover, a torque converter is locked-up during the fuel cut. When a vehicle speed is decreased during this fuel cut, the engine speed is decreased. When the engine speed is decreased to be a fuel recovery rotation speed, a fuel supply recovery (fuel recovery) is performed. At this fuel recovery, the lockup of the torque converter is previously released.
However, it is preferable to extend (prolong) the fuel cut period as long as possible, for improving the fuel economy.
Accordingly, there is developed an art to extend (prolong) the fuel cut period by downshifting the automatic transmission in accordance with the decrease of the vehicle speed to suppress the decrease of the engine speed to the fuel recovery rotation speed, as described in a patent document 1 (paragraph 0036 and so on) and so on.
Incidentally, a shift stage of the automatic transmission is preferred to be downshifted one after another in accordance with the decrease of the vehicle speed, for extending (prolonging) the fuel cut period as long as possible.
For example, FIG. 9 is a time chart showing one example of a downshift control for extending (prolonging) the fuel cut period as long as possible. In the drawing, NxtGp represents the shift stage. Ne is the engine speed. NLUre is a lockup release rotation speed. When the engine speed Ne is decreased to be this rotation speed NLUre, the lockup of the torque converter is released. NFCR is the fuel recovery rotation speed. When the engine speed Ne is decreased to be this rotation speed FCR after the release of the lockup, the fuel recovery is performed.
As shown in FIG. 9, when the engine speed Ne is decreased to approach the lockup release rotation speed NLUre due to the decrease of the vehicle speed (time t1), the downshift is performed. The engine speed Ne is decreased during a time period (during a torque phase) from the command of the downshift at time t1 to time t2 at which an inertia phase of the downshift is started. Accordingly, the downshift is commanded with a margin for this decrease of the engine speed Ne.
The engine speed Ne is increased until time t3 at which the downshift is finished by the increase of the transmission gear ratio by the inertia phase of the downshift. However, the engine speed Ne is decreased thereafter in accordance with the decrease of the vehicle speed. When the engine speed Ne is decreased to approach the lockup release rotation speed NLUre again (time t4), the downshift is performed.
In this way, by the sequential downshift according to the decrease of the vehicle speed, it is possible to extend (prolong) the fuel cut period while maintaining the lockup, and to improve the fuel economy.
However, for example, in a case where a strong brake force is added during the coast traveling of the vehicle, the downshift operation cannot follow the decrease of the vehicle speed.
That is, in case of the large deceleration of the vehicle, a decrease amount of the engine speed according to the decrease of the vehicle speed during the time period during which the downshift is performed becomes greater than the increase amount by the recovery of the engine speed by the downshift. Accordingly, the engine speed is decreased to be equal to or smaller than the lockup release rotation speed NLUre during the next downshift, so that the lockup and the fuel cut cannot be continued.

Automatic gear changer control device and control method


The present disclosure provides methods for analyzing structure and/or composition of N-glycans. Such methods often involve digestion of N-glycans with multiple exoglycosidases. In some embodiments, N-glycans are digested with multiple exoglycosidases simultaneously. In some embodiments, N-glycans are digested with multiple exoglycosidases sequentially. In some embodiments, methods in accordance with the present disclosure involve comparison of cleavage products of N-glycans that have been digested with multiple exoglycosidases simultaneously to N-glycans that have been digested with multiple exoglycosidases sequentially.

The glycosylation pattern of a glycoprotein often plays a significant role in the function of that glycoprotein. To give but a few examples, a glycoprotein's glycosylation pattern may affect its ability to fold correctly, its stability (e.g., resistance to proteolytic and/or other degradation), catalytic activity, pharmacodynamic and/or pharmacokinetic properties, and/or the ability of that glycoprotein to properly interact with other molecules. Alternatively or additionally, a glycoprotein's glycosylation pattern can affect transport and targeting of the glycoprotein. For example, a glycoproteins' glycosylation pattern may affect whether the glycoprotein remains intracellular (including, e.g., the correct targeting of the glycoprotein to the proper subcellular compartment or compartments), whether the glycoprotein will be membrane-bound and/or whether the glycoprotein will be secreted from the cell.
Current methods are often not able to detect glycan species that are present at low levels within a population of glycans. Major glycan species can prevent detection and identification of glycan species that are present at low levels. Furthermore, current methods usually cannot accurately quantify relative levels of individual glycan species within a population of glycans. Current methods may not be able to detect non-standard linkages within a population of glycans. Accordingly, methods to detect glycan species that are present at low levels within a population of glycans are needed. Methods to quantify relative levels of individual glycan species within a population of glycans are needed.


A method to regrow a protective layer over exposed/demineralized dentin that includes a step of identifying a subject having exposed/demineralized dentin. The demineralized dentin is contacted with a remineralization composition that includes an amelogenin and derived peptides, a chitosan, water, and a sufficient amount of a pH adjusting component such that the composition has a pH greater than about 6.0 such that dentinal tubules are occluded with apatite crystals and enamel is regrown on the dentinal tubules.

Enamel is the exterior layer of the mammalian tooth. Dentin is the underlying calcified tissue, similar in composition to bone, that constitutes the bulk of the tooth structure. Dentin is secreted by the odontoblasts to form a large number of closely packed S-shaped dentinal tubules in a mineralized collagen matrix. Together with the overlying enamel, it provides resilience and rigidity to the tooth structure against masticatory and shearing forces. Exposure of dentinal tubules to the oral environment may occur due to several factors like dental caries, erosion, abrasion, attrition, failed restorations, cracked cusps and gingival recession. This can prompt a sharp acute pain response termed dentinal hypersensitivity explained by the increased dentinal tubular fluid flow, which activates the nerve fibers for pain. Currently, no clinically viable strategies are available to regrow an enamel-like tissue on a dentin substrate.

Amelogenin-chitosan hydrogel for dentin hypersensitivity


A case is gripped by its side panel by suction cups mounted on a squaring arm and rotated out of a magazine into contact with a squaring rail, which forces the case into a squared configuration as the case rotates into position between two drive belts, one fixed, and one with a gate-like swinging section which is rotated open. The bottom minor flaps are then closed by minor flap folders as the swinging belt section rotates closed, gripping the case. The drive belts then convey the case out of the squaring area, over flap ploughs which close the bottom major flaps. The squaring arm, fixed drive belt, and rear minor flap folder are mounted to a carrier. The front minor flap folder and major flap ploughs are mounted to a second carrier. The adjustment mechanism of both carriers is coupled to the adjustment mechanism of the magazine height.

Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
This invention relates to the field of packaging machinery, particularly machines for erecting or squaring cases and folding the bottom flaps in preparation for filling and closing. The cases are typically shipping cases into which single or multiple articles are placed for storage and transport to retailers or end users. These machines typically contain a quantity of identical cases, held in a magazine, which are removed, squared, and transported, one at a time, out of the machine.
Known machinery of this type currently in use typically utilizes suction cups to grip the case, then extract it from the magazine and manipulate it into a squared configuration using various combinations of reciprocating linear and/or rotary motions. The bottom minor flaps are then closed by flap folding mechanisms. The bottom major flaps may also be closed by similar mechanisms, or by stationary ploughs which force the major flaps closed as the case is conveyed out of the squaring area. One common conveying means is a reciprocating carrier, traveling along a linear path. This carrier may contain the extracting and squaring means, and may drive the case from behind or by the gripped sides of the case. Another common conveying means consists of a pair of rotating side drive belts which the case is inserted between after it is squared.
There are generally two basic configurations for this type of machinery, determined by the path taken by the cases as they move through the machine. The first is an xe2x80x9cLxe2x80x9d-shaped configuration, wherein the case is extracted from the magazine and conveyed along a path at a ninety degree angle to the flow of cases from the magazine. The second is an xe2x80x9cin-linexe2x80x9d configuration, wherein the case is extracted from the magazine and conveyed along a path common to or along the same line as the flow of cases from the magazine. With this type of configuration, the cases xe2x80x9cflow throughxe2x80x9d the machine.
These machines are adjustable to handle a variety of case sizes, within a specified range. There are usually several adjustments that must be made during a changeover from one case size to another. These adjustments include magazine height (to compensate for varying bottom flap length), left and right magazine side guide position, magazine case top support position, squaring mechanism position, bottom flap kicker positions, and conveying means side guide positions. These adjustments are typically made individually, using scales mounted on the mechanisms and measured dimensions of the case, or the case itself as a gauge. Thus, a typical case size changeover may involve as many as nine individual adjustments.
Examples of the previously described machines include the following U.S. Pat. Nos. Re. 27631; 4,439,174; 3,739,696; 4,627,830; 4,632,666; 4,285,679 and 5,156,582.
As can be seen in the prior art, many of the mechanisms used in current machines are complex and elaborate, making them more expensive to manufacture and difficult to adjust and maintain. These machines use some form of reciprocating linear motion in the squaring and/or conveying operations. As opposed to reciprocating rotary mechanisms, reciprocating linear mechanisms are typically more expensive to construct due to the cost of linear bearings and substantial structure required in order to achieve stability and reliability. Due to increased mass, reciprocating linear mechanisms typically require more area within the machine, more energy to operate, and are more limited in terms of operating speed than reciprocating rotary mechanisms.
Many of the prior art machines are of the xe2x80x9cLxe2x80x9d configuration, which typically occupies more floor space than the xe2x80x9cin-linexe2x80x9d configuration machine, and utilizes this floor space less efficiently. The xe2x80x9cLxe2x80x9d configuration also deems necessary the offering of left-hand and right-hand models to accommodate customers differing layout requirements.
As detailed earlier, most prior art machines have numerous adjustments which must be made individually, which leads to time-consuming and complicated changeovers. Additionally, the accuracy of these adjustments is difficult to achieve and replicate, which can mean xe2x80x9cdebuggingxe2x80x9d the machine after each changeover.
The primary object of the invention is to provide a case erector that is mechanically simple, with the minimum number of moving parts.
Another object of the invention is to provide a case erector where simple rotary motions perform all the necessary functions.
Another object of the invention is to provide a case erector that is relatively inexpensive to manufacture.
A further object of the invention is to provide a case erector having the preferable xe2x80x9cin-linexe2x80x9d magazine configuration and a relatively small footprint.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a case erector that allows for simple mechanical coupling of several changeover adjustments, meaning simpler changeovers with less steps and better accuracy.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following descriptions, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein, by way of illustration and example, an embodiment of the present invention is disclosed.
In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, there is disclosed a mechanism for squaring flattened case blanks, folding the bottom flaps and delivering them in preparation for use. A magazine section contains a plurality of flattened case blanks, each case blank having a first major side panel, a first outer folded corner adjacent to the first major side panel, a second outer folded corner on the opposite end of the case blank from the first outer folded corner, two bottom major flaps, and two bottom minor flaps. A pivotally mounted arm with suction cups attached grips the lead case blank by the first major side panel, leaving the remaining three side panels free to rotate about its four corners. A curved structure is mounted in the path of the rotating case blank in a position where it will making contact with the second outer folded corner. The curved structure is formed in such a manner that it causes the distance between the outer folded corners to gradually decrease as the case blank rotates. The case blank is forced into a squared configuration as it reaches 90 degrees of rotation.
The bottom minor flaps are then folded by flap kickers as the major side panels of the case are gripped between two drive belts, one stationary, and one with a gate-like swinging section. The drive belts convey the case over major flap ploughs, which close the bottom major flaps, and out of the machine.


During a method of phosphating a metal surface which includes at least in part iron or steel and is dipped into or flooded with a phosphating solution which contains layer-forming cations and nitrate or equivalent accelerators, the iron content is limited by a precipitation of iron phosphate. A partial volume of the phosphating solution is intermittently withdrawn from the bath tank and in a separate aerator is contacted with oxygen or an oxygen-containing gas. The iron phosphate sludge is removed from the resulting solution, which is then returned to the bath tank. The partial volume of the phosphating solution is supplied from below into and is aerated in an aerator, which is provided with an aspirating aerating agitator and which is tapered at least in its lower portion. When the aerator has been terminated, the phosphating solution which has been depleted of iron(II) is sucked off upwardly and is returned to the bath tank.

The present invention relates to a process carried out in conjunction with the phosphating of a metal surface which consists, at least in part, of iron or steel and is dipped into, or flooded with, a phosphating solution. The solution contains layer forming cations and nitrate or equivalent accelerators. The iron content of the solution is limited by the precipitation of iron phosphate in that a partial volume of the phosphating solution is intermittently withdrawn from the bath tank and is contacted with oxygen or an oxygen-containing gas in a separate aerator. Iron phosphate sludge is removed from the resulting solution and the solution is then returned to the bath tank.
In the formation of a phosphate coating on a metal surface by a treatment with, e.g., a zinc phosphate solution, it is common practice to add one or more oxidizers to the phosphating solution to accelerate the formation of the layer. In the formation of phosphate coatings on iron or steel surfaces, special problems arise because iron is dissolved and initially forms iron(II) ions in solution.
In one category of phosphating processes, the phosphating solutions used contain oxidizers for transforming iron(II) to iron(III) so that an insoluble iron phosphate is formed. As additional surface area is treated, sludge forms in considerable amounts and must be removed by physical separation. Difficulties are involved in the removal of the sludge in some processes so that it is more desirable to control the phosphating process so as to preclude, or minimize, the formation of sludge.
In the phosphating processes of that category, which are said to be carried out "on the iron side", the phosphating solution contains chemicals which do not transform dissolved iron to a trivalent state. This is effected by the use of e.g., nitrate, or a similarly weak oxidizer as accelerator.
Whereas in the phosphating processes carried out "on the iron side" the formation of sludge is substantially suppressed, such processes involve other disadvantages. For instance, because a strong oxidizer is absent, the phosphate layer forms slowly. Since the solution is enriched with iron(II) phosphate, the content of iron phosphate in the resulting phosphate layer may become undesirably high and the formed phosphate layers tend to be coarse-grained.
Numerous attempts have been made to eliminate these various problems. For instance, in the process in accordance with GB-A-996,418, urea is added to the phosphating bath so that the phosphating can be carried out at a higher temperature without the risk of the formation of much more sludge. While that process results in a faster formation of the phosphate layer, the other mentioned disadvantages remain. An additional disadvantage is the phosphating solution must be heated and this otherwise unrequired heating consumes additional energy.
In a different bath of the type which is not operated "on the iron side", it has been attempted to solve the sludge problem by increasing the solids content of the sludge so that less sludge is formed (GB-A-1,555,529). Whereas a compact sludge is obtained and the interval between the times at which the treating apparatus must be desludged is increased, it has been found that it may be more difficult to remove compact sludge rather than light-weight, bulky sludge.
It is known from EP-A-45 110 to form phosphate layers on iron or steel surfaces, which are dipped into, or flooded with, solutions which have a defined composition and in which an iron(II) content of 0.05 to 1% by weight is adjusted by the addition of a suitable amount of ClO.sub.3 or a similarly acting accelerator, which oxidizes iron(II) to iron(III).
In another process of phosphating a metal surface which consists at least in part of iron or steel and is dipped into or flooded with phosphating solutions which contain layer-forming cations, particularly zinc cations, and nitrate or equivalent accelerators, a partial volume of the phosphating solution is withdrawn from the bath tank, oxidizers are added to that partial volume in a separate device to effect a precipitation of iron phosphate, and iron phosphate sludge is removed from the resulting solution. The solution is then returned to the tank. Iron phosphate is mainly precipitated by an addition of chlorate and/or hydrogen peroxide. The amount of precipitated iron phosphate is desirably controlled so that the iron content of the phosphating solution in the bath tank is not in excess of the content of the cation which determines the type of layer formed (DE-A-33 45 498).
Whereas the two last mentioned processes are satisfactory as regards the control of the iron(II) content of the phosphating solution, handling of the phosphate sludge which is formed is not solved in a satisfactory manner.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a process which is carried out in conjunction with a metal surface consisting at least in part of iron or steel and which is free of the known disadvantages, particularly those mentioned hereinbefore, does not require additional chemicals, can be carried out in a simple manner without adversely affecting the quality of the layer, does not require a substantial apparatus expenditure and permits a simple handling of the sludge.


A method for improving a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) functionality in a user equipment (UE) of a wireless communication system is disclosed. The method includes steps of configuring a timer for controlling the DRX functionality, which indicates the UE a time length to monitor a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH); and excluding a duration corresponding to a measurement gap from calculation of the time length when a running time of the timer is overlapped with the measurement gap.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for improving a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) functionality, and more particularly, to a method and apparatus for handling a timer of the DRX functionality and a measurement gap in a user equipment (UE) of a wireless communication system, so as to enhance system scheduling efficiency.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Long Term Evolution wireless communication system (LTE system), an advanced high-speed wireless communication system established upon the 3G mobile telecommunication system, supports only packet-switched transmission, and tends to implement both Medium Access Control (MAC) layer and Radio Link Control (RLC) layer in one single communication site, such as in Node B (NB) alone rather than in NB and RNC (Radio Network Controller) respectively, so that the system structure becomes simple.
In LTE system, Discontinuous Reception (DRX) functionality is applied to MAC layer for allowing a user equipment (UE) to enter a standby mode during certain periods of time and stopping monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), so as to reduce power consumption of the UE.
According to related protocol specifications, the DRX functionality is configured by Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer, an upper layer of RLC layer. If the DRX functionality is configured, whenever a new DRX cycle begins, an On Duration Timer is started and the UE is awaked to monitor the PDCCH until the On Duration Timer expires. In addition, when a DRX Inactivity Timer or a DRX Retransmission Timer is running, the UE also monitors the PDCCH to acquire information about whether the network has assigned resources for uplink transmission or whether the network has downlink data for the UE to receive.
During the time when the UE monitors the PDCCH, if the PDCCH indicates the UE to receive or transmit a new transmission packet, the DRX Inactivity Timer is started or restarted for allowing the UE to continue monitoring the PDCCH, so as to prevent missing reception or transmission of following packets or to reduce data transmission delay.
On the other hand, if the PDCCH indicates the UE to receive a packet but the packet cannot be decoded successfully on a Downlink Share Channel (DL-SCH), the MAC layer of the UE would perform a Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) process to request a retransmission of the packet. Since the UE would not receive any retransmission packet during a signaling round trip time (RTT) of the HARQ process, a HARQ RTT Timer is thus configured by the DRX functionality to allow the UE to enter into the standby mode during this round trip time. So the power consumption of the UE can further be saved.
After the HARQ RTT Timer expires, the DRX Retransmission Timer is started by the DRX functionality to awake the UE to start monitoring the PDCCH for detecting the retransmission packet of the HARQ process. In such a situation, if the retransmission packet of the HARQ process is successfully decoded, the DRX Retransmission Timer is stopped. Otherwise, the DRX Retransmission Timer is kept running until expiration, at which time the UE enters into the standby mode again.
In other words, the UE configured with the DRX functionality is allowed to stop monitoring the PDCCH during some period of time. The situations that the UE monitors the PDCCH when the DRX functionality is configured are summarized as follows: (1) when the On Duration Timer is running; (2) when the DRX Inactivity Timer is running; and (3) when the DRX Retransmission Timer is running. It is noted that the said timers and parameters used for controlling operation of the DRX functionality are configured by the RRC layer. Detailed operations of the DRX functionality can be referred to related specifications, and are not further narrated herein.
According to the current specifications, the said timers for controlling the DRX functionality may be overlapped with a measurement gap, i.e. a duration the RRC layer assigns to the UE for performing radio measurement. Since the UE is incapable of monitoring the PDCCH within the measurement gap, the network scheduling would be greatly limited if overlap occurs between the said timers and the measurement gap.
For example, if the DRX Retransmission Timer is overlapped with the measurement gap, the time that can be used by the network to schedule retransmission packets is reduced during the running time of the DRX Retransmission Timer, or even there is no chance for the network to schedule retransmission packets during the running time of the DRX Retransmission Timer. As a result, the network scheduling is greatly limited. Similarly, the problem may also occur to the DRX Inactivity Timer and the On Duration Timer.

Method and apparatus for improving DRX functionality


A chalcogen-containing compound of the following Chemical Formula 1, which may have decreased thermal conductivity and improved power factor in the low temperature region, and thus exhibit an excellent thermoelectric figure of merit, a method for preparing the same, and a thermoelectric element including the same:V1Sna−xInxSb2Tea+3  [Chemical Formula 1]wherein V, a and x are as defined in the specification.

Recently, due to resource depletion and environmental problems caused by combustion, studies on thermoelectric conversion materials using waste heat as one of alternative energies has accelerated.
The energy conversion efficiency of such thermoelectric conversion material depends on a thermoelectric figure of merit (ZT). Here, ZT is determined according to a Seebeck coefficient, electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, etc. as shown in the following Mathematical Formula 1, and more specifically, it is proportional to the square of a Seebeck coefficient and electrical conductivity, and is inversely proportional to thermal conductivity.ZT=S2σT/k  [Mathematical Formula 1]
(In Mathematical Formula 1, σ is electrical conductivity, S is a Seebeck coefficient, k is thermal conductivity, and T is an absolute temperature)
Thus, in order to increase the energy conversion efficiency of a thermoelectric conversion element, the development of a thermoelectric conversion material having a high Seebeck coefficient (S) or electrical conductivity (o) thus exhibiting high power factor (PF=σS2) or having low thermal conductivity (k) is required.
Among the various thermoelectric conversion materials known before, thermoelectric conversion materials with a crystal lattice structure related to or similar to sodium chloride (NaCl), in which a part of the lattice site is vacant, such as PbTe, Bi2Te3, SnSe, etc., for example, are known to exhibit excellent thermoelectric conversion properties. Materials having such a crystal lattice structure exhibit excellent electrical conductivity, and exhibit low thermal conductivity because a part of the lattice site becomes vacant. Thus, they may exhibit an excellent thermoelectric conversion property.
However, little is known about thermoelectric conversion materials that have a face-centered cubic lattice structure that is identical to sodium chloride as shown in FIG. 1, in which a part of the lattice site is vacant.
In general, as a crystal structure has higher symmetry, and the constructional atoms are heavies, the movement of the phonon is hindered, and thus thermal conductivity may be lowered, and in case a vacancy exists in a lattice, thermal conductivity may be further lowered.
Although Sn4Bi2Se7 having a face-centered cubic lattice structure (or rock-salt structure) previously developed includes a vacancy in the lattice and thus has lowered thermal conductivity, it has a low power factor.
Thus, there is a demand for the development of a thermoelectric material capable of simultaneously realizing a high power factor resulting from a face-centered cubic lattice structure and low thermal conductivity resulting from the introduction of a vacancy.

Chalcogen-containing compound, its preparation method and thermoelectric element comprising the same


The present invention relates to a peptide promoting cell adhesion and spreading, fragments, and derivatives thereof, more particularly, integrin-α3β1-dependent peptide in human laminin-5 α3 chain LG3 domain, mediating integrin α3β1 binding and cell adhesion and spreading, fragments and derivatives thereof. The inventive peptide, fragments and derivatives thereof can be used effectively for research on cell adhesion activity, wound care, tissue regeneration, inhibition of cancer metastesis etc. mediated by various extracellular matrix protein including laminin.

Laminins are a family of extracellular matrix proteins localized primarily in the basement membranes which regulate various cellular functions such as adhesion, motility, growth, differentiation, wound healing, and tumor invasion through an interaction with specific integrins or other receptors on the cell surface (Timpl, R., Curr. Opin. Cell Biol., 8: 618, 1996; Howe, A. et al, Curr. Opin. Cell Biol., 10:220, 1998; Colognato, H. and Yurchenco, P. D., Dev. Dyn., 218:213, 2000). Laminins consist of three different subunits (α, β and γ chains) which form the cross-shaped structure linked by disulfide bonds (Ekblom, M. et al., Ann. N. Y Acad. Sci., 857:194, 1998). Thus far, 5α, 3β and 3γ chains have been identified, at least 15 isoforms (laminin 1-15) are formed by various combinations of these subunits (Colognato, H. and Yurchenco, P. D., Dev. Dyn., 218:213, 2000; Burgeson, R. E. et al., Matrix Biol., 14:209, 1994; Miner, J. H. et al., J. Cell Biol., 137:685, 1997). Among these laminin isoforms, laminin-5, an isoform consisting of α3, β3, and γ2 chains, has a unique structure and biological activity. Laminin-5 was originally identified as a keratinocyte-derived matrix protein (Carter, W. G. et al., Cell, 65:599, 1991), but, unlike other isoforms, it lacks some domains found in the N-terminal regions of the three subunits (Aumailley, M. and Rousselle, P., Matrix Biol., 18:19, 1999). The laminin-5 precursor (460 kDa) is processed in keratinocytes. This precursor is secreted, followed by the proteolytic conversion of the α3 chain (200 kDa) and the γ2 chain (155 kDa) to 165 and 105 kDa, respectively (Marinkovich, M. P. et al., J. Biol. Chem., 267:17900, 1992; Rousselle, P. et al., J. Cell Biol., 114:567, 1991).
Laminin-5 regulates the stable adhesion of the epithelium to the underlying connective tissue (Marinkovich, M. P. et al., J. Biol. Chem., 267:17900, 1992; Rousselle, P. et al., J. Cell Biol., 114:567, 1991; Niessen, C. M. et al., Exp. Cell. Res., 211:360, 1994), and influences the cell's behavior by interacting with cell surface receptors, such as integrins α3β1 and α6β4 (Carter, W. G. et al., Cell, 65:599, 1991; Rousselle, P. et al., J. Cell Biol., 114:567, 1991; Niessen, C. M. et al., Exp. Cell. Res., 211:360, 1994; Rousselle, P. and Aumailley, M., J. Cell Biol., 125:205, 1994). Among the integrins expressed in normal human keratinocytes, integrin α3β1 is involved in the formation of focal adhesions, which are associated with actin-containing stress fibers and mediation of keratinocyte motility (DiPersio, C. M. et al., J. Cell Sci., 108:2321, 1995; Zhang, K. and Kramer, R. H., Exp. Cell. Res., 227:309, 1996). Integrin α6β4 forms the hemidesmosome structure of epithelial cells, mediates adhesion, migration, and wound healing of epithelial cells, and is involved in the invasion of carcinoma cells (Niessen, C. M. et al., Exp. Cell. Res., 211:360, 1994; Mercurio, A. M. et al, Curr. Opin. Cell Biol., 13:541, 2001). Mutations in laminin-5 or integrin α6β4 cause a Herlitz-type junctional epidermolysis bullosa, which is characterized by a splitting of the epidermal/dermal junctions (Aberdam, D. et al., Nat. Genet., 6:299, 1994; Korge, B. P. and Krieg, T., J. Mol. Med., 74:59, 1996).
Besides laminin-5, the laminin α3 chain is found in laminin-6(α3β1γ1), laminin-7(α3β2γ1) and laminin-13(α3β2γ3), however the laminin β3 and γ2 chains are found only in laminin-5. The laminin α3 chain contains a C-terminal globular domain that consists of five globular modules LG1-LG5, each approximately 200 amino acid residues in length (Talts, J. F. et al., FEBS Lett., 426:71, 1998; Timple, R. et al., Matrix Biol., 19:309, 2000). Mapping studies using various laminin isoforms have mapped the localization of the integrin-dependent cell adhesion site to the globular domain of laminin α chains (Baker, S. E. et al., J. Cell Sci., 109:2509, 1996; Hirosaki, T. et al., J. Biol. Chem., 275:22495, 2000). The C-terminal LG3 domain in the α3 chain is essential for the unique activity of laminin-5. Recombinant LG3 (rLG3) domain in rats and recombinant laminin-5 proteins serially lacking the LG domains in humans promote cell adhesion and migration by interacting with integrin α3β1 (Hirosaki, T. et al., J. Biol. Chem., 275:22495, 2000; Shang, M. et al., J. Biol. Chem., 276:33045, 2000). Studies on the rLG proteins of the human laminin α3 chain have shown that the LG2 domain contains an integrin α3β1-binding site, while the LG4 and LG5 domains weakly interact with the heparin sulfate proteoglycans (Mizushima, H. et al., Cell Growth Differ., 8:979, 1997). In addition, while the LG4-LG5 fragment of the laminin α3 chain, itself does not exhibit activity, it stimulates cell migration in the presence of the mature laminin-5, which suggests a regulatory role in cell migration (Tsubota, Y. et al., Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun., 278:614, 2000). However, the direct demonstration of integrin-dependent cell adhesion in the human laminin α3 chain LG3 domain has not been reproduced using rLG domain fragments, possibly due to difficulties in expressing the soluble LG proteins.
Meanwhile, it has been recognized that the primary adhesion site of laminins is located in the C-terminal LG domain region of laminin a chains. Various LG domains of the laminin α chain have been shown to mediate cell adhesion and migration and bind to heparin, α-dystroglycan, syndecans, and integrins (Howe, A. et al., Curr. Opin. Cell Biol., 10:220, 1998). Although it has been demonstrated that the LG3 domain of the human laminin-5 α3 chain is essential for the promotion of cell adhesion and motility by laminin-5 (Hirosaki, T. et al., J. Biol. Chem., 275:22495, 2000), there has not been any further report on the active sites for the biological functions and integrin binding in the LG3 domain.
Accordingly, to clarify the functions of the LG domains of the human laminin-5 α3 chain and to further determine biologically active core sequences, the present inventors prepared the recombinant human laminin-5 α3 chain LG domains expressed in the form of monomeric, soluble fusion proteins and synthetic peptides within the LG3 domain of the laminin-5 α3 chain, and examined their cell adhesion and spreading activities. As a result, the present inventors confirmed that human laminin-5 α3 LG3 domain promoted cell adhesion and spreading activities by acting as a ligand for integrin α3β1, and a motif PPFLMLLKGSTR (1312-1323 residues) of the SEQ ID NO:1 within the LG3 domain, fragments and derivatives thereof are important for cell adhesion and spreading activities as an active site for integrin α3β1 binding, and show excellent cell adhesion activity with Beschitin W microfiber thus can be used in wound care or tissue regeneration, thereby completing the present invention.

Peptide and a derivative thereof promoting cell adhesion and spreading

Seoul National University Industry Foundation


Poly(arylene sulfide/sulfone) polymers prepared using a sulfur-rich reaction mixture are treated in order to increase melt stability by contacting the poly(arylene sulfide/sulfone) polymer with an acidic solution, followed by contacting the polymer with a soluble zinc compound.

Poly(arylene sulfide/sulfone) polymers are thermoplastic polymers of interest for film, fiber, molding, and composite applications because of their high glass transition points and good mechanical and electrical properties and chemical resistance.
Poly(arylene sulfide/sulfone) polymers can generally be prepared by the reaction of a polyhaloaromatic sulfone with a sulfur source and a polar organic compound, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,127,713. In preparations of this type, it is acceptable to have present excess amounts of the sulfur source (e.g. an alkali metal sulfide) in relation to the amount of dihaloaromatic sulfone present. For purposes herein, this preparation will be referred to as a "sulfur-rich" reaction mixture. Such sulfur-rich reaction mixtures typically product poly(arylene sulfide/sulfone) polymers with a characteristic yellow color in contrast to the white color of poly(arylene sulfide/sulfone) polymers produced from reaction mixtures in which excess amounts of dihaloaromatic sulfone is present in relation to the amount of sulfur source present.
One problem experienced with poly(arylene sulfide/sulfone) polymers in the past is that they exhibited relatively low melt stability. When a sulfur-rich reaction mixture is employed, the resulting polymer often exhibits an even lower melt stability due to the presence of mercaptans or metal sulfides as end groups on polymer chains.
One problem frequently encountered in semi-commercial and commercial scale production of poly(arylene sulfide/sulfone) as described, occurs when operating closer to balanced stoichiometry (equimolar amounts of sulfur source and dihaloaromatic sulfone) than the experimental error in reactant analyses and/or charge amounts. Specifically, the aim of a preparation may be to produce the white, more melt stable poly(arylene sulfide/sulfone) by charging an excess of the dihaloaromatic sulfone relative to the sulfur source only to find, when the polymer is isolated, that, due to inaccuracies in the analyses of the concentration of the aqueous sodium sulfide used as the sulfur source, for example, or in the actual charged amounts, that what was actually present in the reactor during polymerization was an excess of the sulfur source relative to the dihaloaromatic sulfone, resulting in less melt stable, yellow poly(arylene sulfide/sulfone).
U.S. Pat. No. 4,774,276 discloses a method to produce poly(arylene sulfide/sulfone) polymers having increased melt stability by treating the poly(arylene sulfide/sulfone) polymers with a zinc source, thereby incorporating zinc cations into the polymer. It would still be desirable, however, to have a method for further improving the thermal stability of a poly(arylene sulfide sulfone) polymer, especially those made using a sulfur-rich reaction mixture.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a process for preparing a poly(arylene sulfide/sulfone) polymer having increased melt stability. It is further an object of this invention to provide a process for treating a poly(arylene sulfide/sulfone) polymer prepared using a sulfur-rich reaction mixture in order to improve its thermal stability.

Treatment of poly(arylene sulfide/sulfone) polymers


A form rolling method for an involute gear, which includes a work piece including a cylindrical outer peripheral surface having a predetermined radius, and a round die with an involute tooth profile including an addendum pitch corresponding to a pitch defined by dividing a length of an outer circumference of the work piece by number of teeth of the involute gear. The round die is pressed to the work piece while rotating when form rolling the involuete gear.

According to a known method for forming a gear, a die on which a predetermined tooth profile is formed is pressed to a cylindrical blank to form a gear with a predetermined configuration. In those circumstances, for example, a round die for form rolling having a tooth profile which is engageable with a gear to be manufactured is applied. Generally, two round dies for form rolling are rotated and are moved to be close to a work piece to press the dies to the work piece. The round dies for form rolling are gradually pressed to move to a final position for forming a gear.
In a case where a gear is formed by using a round die for form rolling, first, an addendum portion of a tooth of the round die for form rolling comes in contact with a surface of a work piece. Intermittently pressed indentations are formed on the surface of the work piece by the contact of the addendum portion of the tooth of the round die. By gradually pressing the round die for form rolling to the work piece, a tooth (teeth) of the round die for form rolling thrusts into the work piece to form a bottom land portion of the gear. On the other hand, at a portion adjacent to the bottomland portion, a blank of the work piece is bulged to form a tooth portion of the gear. A desired configuration of the gear is formed when the round die for form rolling is pressed to a predetermined position relative to the work piece.
FIG. 2 shows a state where a die 20 starts contacting a work piece 10 (i.e., contacting state of the die 20) in a manufacturing process for a known involute gear. The die 20 is rotated by an actuation of a driving mechanism. The work piece 10 is driven by the die 20. Generally, another die 20 is arranged at an opposite side of the work piece 10, and the work piece 10 is pressed by a pair of the dies 20. In a state shown in FIG. 2, an addendum portion 21 of the die 20 presses into the work piece 10 to form an indentation 11. By moving an axis X2 of the die 20 to an axis X1 of the work piece 10 while rotating the die 20, the addendum portions 21 of the die 20 are gradually and consecutively pressed into the indentation 11 so that a dimension of the indentation 11 are enlarged broader and deeper. A base material of the work piece 10 positioned at the indentation 11 is bulged at both sides of the indentation 11 to form gear teeth.
FIG. 3 shows a mid-way state during a form rolling where the addendum portion 21 of the die 20 thrusts into, or presses into the work piece 10 to some extent. The die 20 moves to be closer to the work piece 10 while rotating, presses into the work piece 10 to form the indentation 11, and the addendum portion 21 of the die 20 simultaneously presses the work piece 10 in a radial direction to form the indentation 11 to be deeper and in a circumferential direction to expand the indentation 11 to be broader when the die 20 moves to be away from the work piece 10 so that adjacent portions of the indentation 11 are plastically deformed to form gear teeth.
FIG. 4 shows a state where the pressing of the die 20 into the work piece 10 is completed. Each tooth 12 of a gear W formed by the form rolling is engaged with teeth 22 of the die 20 without a backlash. In those circumstances, a tooth depth of the gear W corresponds to a tooth depth of the die 20. The gear W includes a base circle C1 having a radius rg1 whereas the die 20 includes a base circle C2 having a radius rg2. Each of the teeth 12 includes an involute tooth profile, and a pitch circle Cp2 of the die 20 is tangent to a pitch circle Cp1 of the gear W at a pitch point p. The pitch circle Cp1 has a radius rp1, and the pitch circle Cp2 has a radius rp2. The pitch point p corresponds to a point of intersection of a line connecting a center X1 of the gear W, a center X2 of the die 20, a common tangent L of the base circle C1 of the gear W, and the base circle C2 of the die 20. An angle formed by the line connecting the center X1 of the gear W and the center X2 of the die 20 and a perpendicular line drawn from the center X1 of the gear W, or the center X2 of the die 20, to the common tangent L, corresponds to a working pressure angle αw. The working pressure angle αw is defined when meshing two involute gears, and thus, the working pressure angle is varied when a distance between centers of the gears is varied.
On the other hand, each gear includes a pressure angle, which is defined when a pitch point overlaps a reference circle of the gear. The reference circle is defined for each gear or each die as a reference for determining parameters for designing gears or dies including the number of teeth, a module, a pressure angle, a helix angle, an addendum modification coefficient, or the like. Hereinafter, "pressure angle" indicates the pressure angle defined on the reference circle.
FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing changes in configuration of the work piece 10. A surface of the work piece 10 before a form rolling process is indicated as d0 in FIG. 5. A portion indicated as a region A2 is pressed by the form rolling, and a base material moved from the pressed region A2 is assumed to have a volume of region A1 to form an addendum portion. Further, FIG. 5 illustrates addendum circle d1 and dedendum circle d2.
Conventionally, a gear configuration of the die 20 is designed on the basis of a configuration of the gear W to be manufactured. For example, specifications for forming the die 20 includes the number of teeth, a module, a pressure angle, a helix angle, an addendum modification coefficient, or the like. In those circumstances, generally, a module, a pressure angle, and a helix angle of the gear W are most likely applied as they are for determining the configuration of the die 20, and an addendum modification coefficient is fine-tuned as necessity arises. Thus, man-hours and labor for designing the die 20 are reduced, and the die 20 for forming the gear W with a desired configuration is readily attained. Generally, a diameter of the die 20 differs from a diameter of the gear W and the number of the gear tooth of the die 20 is assumed to be greater than the number of the gear tooth of the gear W.
In order to make the involute gears engage each other appropriately, base pitches of the respective involute gears have to accord to each other. The base pitch corresponds to a pitch measured along a common perpendicular between tooth profiles of a particular tooth and another tooth adjacent to the particular tooth. Namely, even if configurations of teeth and the number of teeth of the both gears differ from each other, the gears engage with each other appropriately as long as the feed distances between the teeth are the same. The base pitch P is generally defined as follows using a module m and a pressure angle α of the gear.P=π·m·cos α  [1]
Thus, conventionally, the module m and the pressure angle α of the die 20 can differ from those of the gear W. However, settings of degrees of the module m and the pressure angle α of the die 20 relative to the module and the pressure angle of the gear W, are not utilized in known methods and constructions.
According to the known form rolling method, a configuration of a die is designed assuming a meshed state of the die and a gear when the form rolling is completed. Accordingly, for example, when forming a bottom land portion of the gear by pressing the die into a work piece, there is a drawback that a contacting position of a tooth of the die to the work piece fluctuates in a circumferential direction of the work piece with each contact of the tooth. In other words, in a state where the gear is completely formed, the gear and the die are tangent to each other at a respective pitch circle to be appropriately engaged. Generally, a pitch on a reference circle of the die and a pitch on the pitch circle are considered for designing dies, however, an addendum pitch (i.e., pitch between addendum portions of adjacent teeth) is not particularly considered when designing the dies. Thus, positions of indentations formed on the work piece at an initial stage of the form rolling process is not stabilized. Further, according to circumstances, there is a drawback that each time an addendum portion of a die contacts a work piece, a position of an indentation deviates in a circumferential direction. In those circumstances, in addition to a configuration of the indentation portion being formed in an inappropriate shape, a precision of a gear is decreased and a gear having inferior mechanical characteristics may be formed because a base material of the work piece is unnecessarily plastically deformed.
In order to solve the foregoing drawbacks, for example, JPH1-37800U (i.e., referred to as Patent reference 1) discloses a die provided with processing teeth including a contacting portion, a mid finishing portion, a finishing portion, and a run-off portion, in order. With the construction of the die disclosed in the Patent reference 1, configurations of an addendum portion of each portion and a distance between teeth portions are changed. Thus, when pressing the die into the work piece, the addendum portion of the die can be pressed to a desired position to form an indentation in an appropriate configuration. Other than the disclosure in the Patent reference 1, for example, according to a known method, in response to a distance between an axial center of a die and an axial center of a work piece is shortened, dies are changed to perform the form rolling. According to this method, although a gear is formed to some extent with precision, changing operations of dies require man-hours and labors.
As explained above, in known methods, the pressed positions of the die change when performing a form rolling using a round die, and configurations of teeth of the die are configured to change during the form rolling process in order to compensate for the changes of the pressed positions of the die. Accordingly, manufacturing operations of the gear are assumed to be complicated and man-hours and manufacturing costs are increased.
A need thus exists for a form rolling method for an involute gear which is not susceptible to the drawback mentioned above.


An image matching apparatus is provided. The apparatus includes a storage unit, an obtaining unit, a specification unit, and an image matching unit. The storage unit is configured to store image data of one or more devices that are connected to a local network. The obtaining unit is configured to obtain image data of device image obtained by capturing a device. The specification unit is configured to specify one or more local networks to be used for image matching. The image matching unit is configured to perform image matching of the obtained image data against the stored image data of one or more devices that are connected to the specified local network.

It becomes possible to visualize an environment using an overlay of received images from a network on top of images which are received from a camera, together with any additional information which may also be received from the network (such as which music is being played on the devices, etc). This type of enhanced view is frequently referred to as "augmented reality" (AR).
An AR application needs to identify a device that a user requests to obtain the information. Sekai-camera, an example of the AR application, identifies a target device based on the location information of a mobile device which has captured the target device. The location information is computed using the GPS, motion and angle sensors in the mobile device. However, GPS does not provide sufficient accuracy and populating the location of each device bothers the end user and won't be accepted. ARToolKit, another example of the AR application, identifies a target device by utilizing markers to be captured by the camera. However, the end user needs to put the markers on the different places and thus the end user won't accept this solution.
US2010135527 proposes an AR application which identifies a device by performing image matching. According to this application, a mobile internet device compares a captured device image against a plurality of candidate device images stored in an image database to identify the captured device. This solution is superior to Sekai-camera and ARToolKit because the solution need not use location information and markers. However, when the image database stores a lot of device images, the processing time of the image matching will increase and accuracy of the image matching will also degrade. Therefore, it is desirable to improve the processing time and accuracy of image matching.

Image matching apparatus and image matching method


A testing system for a PSU includes a test chamber and a control device. The test chamber includes a first partition with the PSU accommodated therein and a second partition with an electric load accommodated therein. The PSU is electrically connected to the electric load. The control device includes a microcontroller unit (MCU). The MCU is connected to a setting circuit and a temperature sensing circuit. The setting circuit is configured to set one of predetermined parameters. The temperature sensing circuit is capable of sensing temperature in the test chamber. The MCU is capable of automatically controlling a predetermined temperature in the test chamber and presetting a test time for testing the PSU.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a testing system for testing a power supply unit (PSU).
2. Description of Related Art
A PSU is an electric device capable of converting an alternating current (AC) source to a plurality of direct current (DC) output voltages to a load (e.g., personal computer). Before the PSU is used in the personal computer, the PSU should pass several tests (e.g., burn-in test, power cycling test, etc). A typical testing system includes a test chamber and a control device connected to the test chamber. A plurality of PSUs can be placed in the test chamber. An operator can operate buttons of the control device to preset a test time and a temperature in the test chamber. Then the testing system can performs the burn-in test and the power cycling test to the plurality of PSUs. However, the typical testing system is cumbersome and power-consuming.

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