An EMUS transducer system for producing linearly polarized transverse waves having a variably predeterminable polarization direction within a test specimen containing at least ferromagnetic material portions and having a test specimen surface, a magnetization unit produces a magnetic field orientated parallel to the test specimen surface within the test specimen. At least one HF coil on the test specimen surface produces or detects a HF field combined with the magnetic field orientated parallel to the test specimen surface within the test specimen. The magnetization unit includes at least three magnetization bodies spatially separated from one another to introduce a magnetic field into the test specimen. The magnetic flux emanating from at least one of magnetization bodies a spatial direction relative to the test specimen surface is varied.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an EMUS transducer system and a method for producing linearly polarized transverse waves with a variably predeterminable polarisation direction within a test specimen containing at least ferromagnetic material portions. A test specimen surface with a magnetization unit provided which is arrangeable on the surface of the test specimen and produces a magnetic field orientated parallel to the test specimen surface within the test specimen. At least one HF coil arrangement is provided and is arrangeable on the test specimen surface and for producing or detecting a HF field overlaid with the magnetic field.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Linearly polarized ultrasound (US) transverse waves are preferably used for non-destructive material testing and also for assessing material states, such as textures or inner stresses. To this end, it is necessary to orientate the polarization direction of the linearly polarized US transverse waves to be coupled into the material to be investigated in each case parallel and perpendicularly to the preferential direction of the respective texture or inner stress, for detecting and correspondingly evaluating propagation differences of the US waves characteristic of anisotropic material in respective propagation directions. In addition, by suitable orientation, that is to say rotation of the polarization direction of the US waves relatively to the material structure, for example workpieces made from cast iron, optimum propagation conditions for US waves can be created, in order to bring about evaluable interactions between the US waves and the respective workpiece. It is also possible to detect the orientation of cracks running perpendicularly to the workpiece surface into the interior of the material in a spatially resolved manner.
Linearly polarized US transverse waves are typically produced by piezoelectric or electromagnetic ultrasound transducers.
The use of piezoelectric ultrasound transducers necessitates the use of a coupling means, providing ultrasound signals or vibrations produced by a piezoelectric ultrasound probe to be coupled into a workpiece to be investigated or out of the same again. However, the coupling means, as well as the coupling gap thickness between the workpiece surface and the ultrasound probe, influence the signal quality and therefore the validity of the measurement results in a disadvantageous manner. Especially in the case of transverse waves, there is furthermore a requirement for a coupling medium, which is as highly-viscous as possible, as a result of which the test conditions are made more difficult, particularly in the case of probe movements. In addition, the coupling means contaminates the workpiece surface which is a circumstance occurring undesirably and in particular in the case of investigations on quality surfaces. Additionally, the use of coupling means limits the use of this investigation method on workpieces at higher temperatures.
An alternative to this result is the use of electromagnetic ultrasound transducers (EMUS), which was transversely polarized ultrasound waves guided in a mode-pure manner which can be excited particularly well. In this technology, ultrasound signals are excited and picked up directly in the layers of a component close to the surface without coupling means, that is to say contactlessly by means of electromagnetic interaction. In ferromagnetic materials, the excitation is mainly based on the effect of magnetostriction, by contrast the Lorentz force acts as the excitation mechanism in non-magnetic, electrically conductive materials. More information on this can be drawn from the following articles: Hirao, M. and Ogi, H. (2003), EMATS for Science and Industry (Kluwer Academic Publishers) and also Igarashi, B., Alers, G. A., "Excitation of Bulk Shear Waves in Steel by Magnetostrictive Coupling", IEEE Ultrasonic Symposium Proceedings (1998) 893-896.
In FIG. 2, a prior art EMUS transducer arrangement is illustrated which produces transversely polarized ultrasound waves within a workpiece 2 made of ferromagnetic material is illustrated. The EMUS transducer has a magnetization unit 1 and also a HF coil system 3. The magnetization unit 1, which can be constructed in the form of a permanent magnet or an electromagnet operated with direct current or low-frequency alternating current, provides two regions 11 and 12 which can be placed onto the test sample surface. One region constitutes the magnetic north pole N and the other region constitutes the magnetic south pole S. In this manner, a magnetic field 13 orientated parallel to the test sample surface is introduced into the test specimen 2. The HF coil system 3, which can be a single coil or of a plurality of coils, is located between the magnetic north and south poles of the magnetization unit 1 as close to the surface as possible on the test specimen surface, in order to produce a modulated high-frequency electromagnetic field 13 which is orientated parallel to the test specimen surface, in the region of the parallel orientated magnetic field 13 within the test specimen 2 by corresponding electrical excitation, preferably by means of a powerful HF burst signal. Due to magnetostrictive effects acting within the ferromagnetic material of the test specimen 2, oscillating forces arise due to the modulation of the quasi-stationary magnetic field 13 by the high-frequency electromagnetic field. These oscillating forces are used as sources for ultrasound signals, particularly in the form of transversely polarized ultrasound waves 31 propagating perpendicularly to the test specimen surface. In the case of reception, the processes are reciprocal to these processes. More details about this can be drawn from the following article: Niese, F., Yashan, A., Wilhelms, H., "Wall Thickness Measurement Sensor for Pipeline Inspection Using EMAT Technology in Combination with Pulsed Eddy Current and Magnetic Flux Leakage", 9th European Conference on NDT, 2006, Berlin.
In order to be able to perform material investigations with an EMUS probe, it is necessary to rotate the entire EMUS probe relative to the test specimen surface, particularly as the polarization direction of a linearly polarized transverse wave 31 created with an EMUS probe of the type of construction illustrated in FIG. 2 is always aligned parallel to the magnetization direction along the parallel running magnetic lines of the magnetic field 13 within the test specimen 2. A rotation at least of the magnetization unit 1 is in many cases connected with additional mechanical outlay which is furthermore undesirable, particularly as the measurement constellation relative to the test object is subject to a change as a result, which is error-prone for an exact investigation of location-dependent material states in test specimens.
A test apparatus for testing ferromagnetic workpieces using ultrasound waves is disclosed in DE 41 01 942, which provides an overlaying of an alternating magnetic field orientated parallel to the workpiece surface with a stationary or quasi-stationary magnetic field orientated perpendicularly to the workpiece surface for the oblique sonic impingement of vertically polarized ultrasound waves into the workpiece to be investigated. A HF coil arrangement for coupling eddy currents into the workpiece is attached in the region of the magnetic field orientated perpendicularly to the workpiece surface. For the direction-selective sonic impingement, high-frequency transmitting pulses are triggered for controlling the HF coil arrangement either in the region of the lower or upper half waves of the alternating current. It is neither possible to create ultrasound waves propagating into the workpiece vertically to the workpiece surface with a test arrangement of this type. Moreover, influence on the spatial orientation of the polarization direction is not provided.

EMUS transducer system as well as a method for producing linearly polarised transverse waves with variably predeterminable polarisation direction within a test specimen

Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der Angewandten Forschung E.V.


An apparatus for feeding a printing sheet in a printer, comprising a platen for supporting and feeding a printing sheet to be printed, a plurality of printing heads used for printing, in turn, colors of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (B), and arranged along the periphery of the platen, and a motor for rotating the platen via a speed reduction gear train, so that the plurality of printing heads, in turn, print the printing sheet while the printing sheet is moved by the platen. A distance between the printing heads in the sheet feeding direction is equal to a distance for which the printing sheet is moved while as second gear engaged with a first gear directly mounted on the platen is rotated by an integral number of revolutions.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a printer, and more particularly, to an apparatus for feeding a printing media, such as a printing sheet or paper, for printers having a plurality of printing heads arranged along the feeding direction of the printing sheet and a printing sheet driving means comprising a speed reduction gear train including reduction gears. This invention also can be applied to a drive means for driving a photosensitive drum or belt of a printer.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventionally known printer includes a cylindrical platen for feeding a printing sheet and a plurality of printing heads arranged along the periphery of the platen for printing various colors in turn, for example, yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (B), respectively, to obtain a full color image on the printing sheet. A large gear is directly mounted on the platen and driven by a step motor via a speed reduction gear train including gears.
In the conventional printer, however, the relationship between the distance from one of the printing heads to the adjacent head, and the number of revolutions of the reduction gear or gears has not been particularly considered.
These reduction gears, however, are always involved in pitch errors due to slight aberrations when these gears were made by a mechanical process. Therefore, if a speed reduction gear train including gears is employed, the pitch errors of several gears are accumulated, so that the platen is rotated with unstably with pitch errors.
For example, if four printing heads for different colors of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (B) are arranged along periphery of the platen, the pitch errors are generated in the respective printing heads as shown in FIG. 4. For example, at a printing position A, the printing of magenta (M) is incorrect in the forward direction, and on the other hand, the printing of cyan (C) is incorrect in the rearward direction. Namely, there are two kinds of pitch errors, i.e., pitch errors in the forward and rearward directions, and therefore, a maximum amount of printing aberration between two printing heads is represented as double the accumulated pitch errors.
The aberration of the printing position due to the aberration of the gear pitch generally causes an uneven darkness in the feeding direction, but a small aberration of the printing position due to pitch errors of the gears particularly causes a color aberration.


The present invention declares a pharmaceutical extract, composition that has effect to treat drug addiction, and its preparation method and quality control method. This extract is extracted from Radix Stephaniae Epigaeae. Starting medicine material of said composition is Radix Ginseng, Radix Astragali, Rhizoma Corydalis, Radix Angelicae Sinensis and Radix Ophiopogonis; and said composition also can prepared by ethanol extract of Radix Ginseng, ethanol extract of Radix Angelicae Sinensis, total alkaloids of Radix Stephaniae Epigaeae, water extract of Radix Astragali and water extract of Radix Ophiopogonis. Quality control method of said pharmaceutical composition includes one of or several of identifications and content determinations. The present invention also declares the use of said pharmaceutical extract, composition in the preparation of a medicine to treat drug addiction.

In recent years, substance abuse in our country has become a serious social problem, and the drug abuse population rises year by year. The heroin abuse population who has only registered by the public security department is more than one million, and the actual population even more than that. In recent years, the population abusing amphetamines stimulant narcotics also rises rapidly at increasing trend on young people of our country. Once catch narcotic, one will become addict to it soon. It not only impairs health, but also wastes money. Gradually, it often makes the evil consequence that the family was broken up. Regardless using which medicine to treat drug addiction on early phase, relapse rate is still up to 95%. The long-term drug addict exists the lasting psychic dependence (psychology addiction), and deferment of the protracted withdrawal symptom is also an important reason to cause relapse. Now, still without an especially effective medicine specially uses to maintenance treatment for drug addiction on late phase.
In patent CN1537549A and CN1537550A, the declarer developed the traditional Chinese medicine compound prescription preparation which is prepared by five traditional Chinese medicine extracts of Radix Ginseng, Radix Astragali, Rhizoma Corydalis, Radix Angelicae Sinensis, Radix Ophiopogonis. According to the characteristics of chemical constituents in each starting medicine material and dosage form, extract medicines by classification: extract Radix Ginseng and Radix Angelicae Sinensis by ethanol reflux extraction process; extract effective ingredients of Radix Astragali and Radix Ophiopogonis by water-extraction and ethanol-precipitation process respectively; gain effective ingredients, effective alkaloids, from Rhizoma Corydalis by diafiltration with the acid solution, then basification and ethanol recrystallization. These extracts compose the traditional Chinese medicine compound prescription preparation, which has preferable curative effect to treat stimulant withdrawal symptom and treat protracted withdrawal symptom of opioids addiction.
But there is no stepholidine in Rhizoma Corydalis, which tetrahydropalmatine extracted from is raceme dl-THP, and it must further split racemes to get L-THP. On the other hand, the content of raceme dl-THP contained in Rhizoma Corydalis is rather low, moreover, dosage of Rhizoma Corydalis in this drug addiction treatment prescription is large, Rhizoma Corydalis mainly depends on the artificial cultivation, its output is low, its cost is high, and it cannot meet the need of industrialization large production.

Medicine to treat drug addiction and preparation method thereof

Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Academy of Military Medical Sciences


A golf club has a head with a hollow body. The head has a neck formed at an upper portion of the hollow body. A passage is longitudinally defined through the neck. A flange is formed at a lower end of the neck and inside the hollow body. A first threaded hole is defined through the flange and coaxial with the passage. A bolt is inserted through the first threaded hole. A second threaded hole is defined through a bottom surface of the head and coaxial with the first threaded hole and the passage. A shaft has a lower end inserted in the passage of the neck. A third threaded hole is defined at the lower end and engaged with the bolt.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to a golf club, and more particularly to a golf club which can be finely adjusted after a dynamic balance test, and a method for assembling the golf club.
2. Description of Related Art
A high-quality golf club must have a good dynamic balance performance. To achieve the dynamic balance, in a conventional process of assembling a golf club, a point is marked on a shaft to show an optimum position, and the gravity of the head is aligned with the point while the head is installed on the shaft. Afterwards, the finished product golf club is processed a test to examine its dynamic balance performance.
However, if the conventional golf club does not have a good dynamic balance performance after testing, it cannot be further adjusted because the head and the shaft have been irreversibly integrated.
Therefore, the invention provides a golf club to mitigate and/or obviate the aforementioned problems.
The main objective of the invention is to provide a golf club which can be finely adjusted to improve its quality after a dynamic balance test.
Another objective of the invention is to provide a method for assembling the golf club.
Other objectives, advantages and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Golf club and a method for assembling the golf club


A fluid compressor comprises a cylinder, a cylindrical piston eccentrically disposed inside the cylinder so that the periphery of the piston is partly in contact with the inner face of the cylinder, the piston being movable relative to the cylinder, a spiral groove formed around the piston at pitches that gradually reduce from a suction side toward a discharge side, and a spiral blade fitted in the groove so that the blade is outwardly and inwardly movable in the groove, the blade defining a plurality of work chambers between the inner face of the cylinder and the periphery of the piston. The outer diameter of at least part of the blade is larger than the inner diameter of the cylinder.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a spiral blade type fluid compressor for compressing a fluid such as a coolant gas in a refrigerating cycle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Compressors are usually classified into a reciprocation type and a rotary type. In addition to these two types, there is a spiral blade type compressor, which successively moves a coolant from the suction side of a cylinder toward the discharge side thereof through work chambers to compress the coolant, and discharges the compressed coolant outside.
Such a conventional spiral blade type compressor will be explained with reference to FIG. 1.
The compressor has drive means 105 including a stator 101 and a rotor 103. The drive means 105 turns a cylinder 107. The cylinder incorporates a piston 111. The piston 111 is eccentric to the cylinder 107 by a distance of e, so that the piston 111 may rotate relative to the cylinder 107 through an oldham ring 109.
A spiral groove 113 is formed around the periphery of the piston 111 substantially over the whole length of the piston 111. A blade 115 is movably fitted in the groove 113. The periphery of the blade 115 is in contact with the inner face of the cylinder 107.
The blade 115 fitted to the spiral groove 113 defines a plurality of work chambers 117 in a space between the piston 111 and the cylinder 107. The volume of each work chamber 117 is determined by a corresponding pitch of the spiral groove 113. The pitches of the groove 113 gradually shorten from the suction side of the piston 111 toward the discharge side thereof. Namely, the volumes of the work chambers 117 defined by the blade 115 gradually decrease from the suction side (the right-hand side in the figure) toward the discharge side (the left-hand side in the figure), so that the coolant is gradually compressed while being conveyed from the suction side toward the discharge side.
The blade 115 moves inwardly and outwardly in the spiral groove 113, so that the periphery of the blade 115 is partly in contact with the inner face of the cylinder 107, to seal the work chambers 117.
Discharge capacity of the compressor is determined by the volume of the work chamber 117 defined at the suction side. To increase a refrigerant, a pitch of the blade 115 for the work chamber at the suction side must be extended.
FIG. 2 shows the blade 115. Compared with a small pitch region (the left-hand side in the figure) of the blade 115, a large pitch region (the right-hand side in the figure) involves large twists 119, which may be strongly pressed against the wall of the spiral groove 113. Contact pressure between the twists 119 and the groove 113 produces sliding resistance that prevents smooth movements of the blade 115 in the groove 113. If the blade 115 does not smoothly move in the groove 113, the periphery of the blade 115 will not be in tight contact with the inner face of the cylinder 107. This will break the sealed state of the work chambers 117 and deteriorate the discharge capacity.


A process for the preparation of a magnetic recording medium comprises the steps of subjecting a magnetic recording layer coated on a nonmagnetic support to surface smoothening treatment, said magnetic recording layer comprising a ferromagnetic powder dispersed in a binder, and then abrading a surface of the magnetic recording layer by means of an abrasive tape.

1. Field of the invention
The present invention relates to a process for the preparation of a magnetic recording medium basically comprising a nonmagnetic support and a magnetic recording layer provided thereon.
2. Description of prior art
A magnetic recording medium comprising a nonmagnetic support and a magnetic recording layer provided thereon is used as an audio tape, a video tape, or a recording medium for a computer system. The magnetic recording layer comprises a binder and a ferromagnetic powder dispersed therein.
The magnetic recording medium is generally prepared by the following process. A binder such as a resin component and a ferromagnetic powder are dispersed in a solvent to prepare a magnetic paint, and the magnetic paint is coated over a nonmagnetic support to form a layer of the magnetic paint on the nonmagnetic support. The coated layer of the magnetic paint is then subjected to various treatments such as magnetic orientation, drying treatment and surface smoothening treatment. Subsequently, the sheet having been subjected to such treatment steps is cut or slit into a desired shape to prepare a desired magnetic recording medium.
It is thought that the particles of the ferromagnetic powder are firmly kept in the recording layer of the magnetic recording medium prepared as above and the magnetic recording layer has a very smooth surface. According to studies of the present inventors, however, it has been confirmed that some particles of the ferromagnetic powder are insufficiently fixed to the recording layer and merely deposited on the surface of the recording layer. These insufficiently fixed ferromagnetic particles easily separate (drop off) from the recording layer and deposit on a surface of a magnetic head in the course of running procedure, to cause clogging on the head. Further, these particles sometimes cause occurrence of drop-out in the case of a video tape, etc. Moreover, such separation of the ferromagnetic powder from the recording layer reduces the amount of the ferromagnetic powder present in the vicinity of the surface of the magnetic recording layer, so that the resulting magnetic recording medium is lowered in the electromagnetic conversion characteristics (i.e., lowering of output level occurs) after repeated uses.
For solving the above-mentioned various problems such as occurrence of drop-out, clogging on a magnetic head and lowering of output level, the present inventors have invented a method of grinding the surface of a magnetic recording layer by means of a grinder and applied for a patent with respect to the method (U.S. Pat. Ser. No. OO7,216).
According to the method, the surface of the magnetic recording layer which has been subjected to surface smoothening treatment is ground by means of a grinder of high hardness such as a diamond wheel or a fixed sapphire blade to remove particles of the ferromagnetic powder easily dropping off from the recording layer or the deposited material on the surface of the recording layer, so as to prevent separation of those particles or the deposited material from the recording layer in the course of running procedure.

Process for the preparation of magnetic recording medium


Disclosed are embodiments of a method for occluding a left atrial appendage (LAA) and other cavities or openings within a body. Some embodiments of the method can include an implant configured to be deployed within the LAA or other cavity, configured to be expanded or moved against a wall portion of the LAA or other cavity, and configured to twist at least a portion of the LAA or other cavity when the implant is rotated. Thereafter, one or more securing elements, staples, sutures, or other fasteners can be implanted in the gathered tissue to hold the tissue in the gathered state, thereby occluding the opening of the LAA or other cavity. In some embodiments, the opening of the LAA or other cavity can be occluded by elongating or otherwise reshaping the opening using an implant device, and securing the opening in the occluded state.

Left atrial appendage (LAA) closure has been typically performed in high-risk patients due to possible stroke risk. LAA closure techniques are generally performed to block emboli from exiting the LAA. Typical surgical closure includes stitching the opening closed via left atrium entry. Other techniques include the application of external clamps such as ATRICLIP manufactured by Atricure where a Nitinol device is used to clamp the appendage without opening the left atrium to exclude the appendage from left atrium blood circulation.
Other solutions have used a plug to close the appendage from the inside of the left atrium. Such plugs can be constructed from a laser cut Nitinol tube expanded to a semi-spherical shape. The portion exposed to the left atrium can be covered with cover—such as a thin micron membrane made from polyethylene terephthalate. The membrane can act as a blood barrier to prevent flow from flowing through and between one or more struts of the plug. Typical sizes range between approximately 20 mm and 35 mm in diameter and approximately 20 mm and 40 mm in depth. The device can have anchors protruding from an outer surface of the device intended to engage the wall of the appendage and prevent movement post deployment. The device can be delivered via venous access through the groin and a transseptal crossing into the left atrium where a guide catheter and coaxial delivery catheter are positioned proximal to the left atrial appendage. The implant for appendage exclusion is typically positioned at the distal most portion of the delivery catheter. The device is typically positioned and deployed using fluoroscopy and echocardiography for guidance. Typical issues with conventional devices include complicated pre-procedural sizing algorithms used to determine the appropriate device size, migration of the implant, leakage around or through the implant, and/or fracture of the implant, all which may exacerbate the thrombus and stroke problem the device was designed to reduce. A typical drug regimen associated with conventional LAA treatment devices includes warfarin anticoagulation for 45 days (approximately 6 weeks) followed by dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) for six months post-procedure and aspirin thereafter. Another procedure typically required with conventional LAA treatment devices includes a follow up transesophageal echogram at six weeks following the procedure. The incidence of device-related thrombus in patients with LAA imaging has been reported to be 7.2% per year.

Devices, systems, and methods for treating the left atrial appendage


A collision plate having plural small holes is provided at an interval from a bottom surface of an inner shroud to form a chamber and guides cooling air from the small holes into the chamber. A leading edge flow path is provided at a leading edge side along a width direction and introduces the cooling air. A side flow path is provided along both sides of the inner shroud and guides the cooling air to a trailing edge side. A header is formed along the width direction near the trailing edge and guides the cooling air from the side flow path. Plural trailing edge flow paths are formed at the trailing edge side at intervals along a width direction, in which one end of each flow path is connected to the header and the other end is open at the trailing edge, and the cooling air in the header is ejected from the trailing edge.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cooling system of a stationary blade of a gas turbine, in particular, a cooling system of a stationary blade having superior cooling efficiency, and to a gas turbine.
2. Description of Related Art
A gas turbine used for a generator and the like is shown in FIG. 4.
Compressor 1, combustor 2, and turbine 3 are shown in FIG. 4, and rotor 4 extends from compressor 1 to turbine 3 in the axial direction.
Inner housing 6, and cylinders 7 and 8 provided at the compressor 1 side enclose the outside of compressor 1. Furthermore, cylindrical shell 9 forming chamber 14, outside shell 10 of turbine 3, and inside shell 11 are provided in the gas turbine.
Inside of cylinder 8 which is provided in compressor 1, stationary blades 12 are disposed in the circumferential direction at equal intervals. Moving blades 13, which are disposed around rotor 4 at equal intervals, are disposed between stationary blades 12.
Combustor 15 is disposed in chamber 14 which is enclosed by cylindrical shell 9. Fuel supplied from fuel feeding pipe 35 is injected from fuel injection nozzle 34 into combustor 15 to burn.
A high temperature combustion gas generated in combustor 15 is introduced into turbine 3 while passing through duct 16.
In turbine 3, two-stage type stationary blades 17, which are disposed in the circumferential direction at equal intervals on inside shell 11, and moving blades 18, which are disposed in the circumferential direction at equal intervals on rotor 4, are alternately provided in the axial direction. The high temperature combustion gas is fed into turbine 3 and is discharged as an expanded gas, and further, the high temperature combustion gas rotates rotor 4 on which moving blades 18 are fixed.
Manifolds 21 and 22 are provided in compressor 1 and turbine 3 respectively. Manifolds 21 and 22 are connected with each other by air piping 32, and cooling air is supplied from the compressor 1 side to the turbine 3 side via air piping 32.
A portion of cooling air from compressor 1 is supplied from a rotor disc to moving blades 18 in order to cool moving blades 18. As shown in FIG. 4, a portion of cooling air from manifold 21 of compressor 1 passes through air piping 32 and is introduced into manifold 22 of turbine 3 to cool stationary blades 17, and simultaneously, the cooling air is supplied as sealing air.
Next, a structure of stationary blades 17 will be explained below.
In FIG. 5, inner shroud 26 and outer shroud 27 are provided at the inside and the outside of blade 25 respectively.
Inside of blade 25, leading edge path 42 and trailing edge path 44 are formed by rib 40. Cylindrical insert parts 46 and 47, in which plural cooling air holes 70, 71, 72, and 73 are formed at the peripheral surfaces and bottom surfaces, are inserted from the outer shroud 27 side into the leading edge path 42 and trailing edge path 44.
Blade 25 is equipped with pin fin cooling part 29 comprising a flow path having plural pins 62 at the trailing edge side.
When cooling air is supplied from manifold 22 into insert parts 46 and 47, the cooling air is ejected from cooling air holes 70, 71, 72, and 73, and hits the inner walls of leading edge path 42 and trailing edge path 44 to carry out so-called impingement cooling. Furthermore, the cooling air flows through pin fin cooling part 29 comprising flow paths formed between plural pins 62 at the trailing edge side of blade 25 to carry out pin fin cooling.
On inner shroud 26, forward flange 81 and rearward flange 82 are formed at the leading edge side and the trailing edge side, and are connected to seal supporting part 66, which supports seal 33 for sealing arm 48 of rotor 4 and seal supporting part 66. Furthermore, cavity 45 is formed between seal supporting part 66 and inner shroud 26. The cooling air ejected from cooling air holes 70, 71, 72, and 73 of insert parts 46 and 47 is supplied into cavity 45.
Flow path 85 is formed at the forward side of seal supporting part 66. Air is injected from cavity 45 while passing through flow path 85 toward the front stage moving blade 18 and toward the rear stage moving blade while passing through spaces formed in seal 33, and the inside is maintained at a pressure higher than that of a path of high temperature combustion gas in order to prevent high temperature combustion gas from penetrating to the inside.
As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, leading edge flow path 88 equipped with plural needle fins 89 is formed at the leading edge side of inner shroud 26. Leading edge flow path 88 is connected to cavity 45 via flow path 90. Rails 96 are formed along the leading edge toward the trailing edge at both sides of inner shroud 26. In each rail 96, flow path 93 is formed in which one end of each rail 96 is connected to leading edge flow path 88 and the other end of each rail 96 opens at the trailing edge of inner shroud 26.
On the bottom surface of inner shroud 26, collision plates 84 having plural small holes 101 are provided at an interval from the bottom surface. By providing these collision plates 84, chamber 78 is formed at the bottom surface side of inner shroud 26.
Furthermore, at the trailing edge side of inner shroud 26, plural flow paths 92 are formed so as to be connected to the trailing edge of inner shroud 26 and chamber 78.
Cooling air flowing into cavity 45 is injected into leading edge flow path 88 of inner shroud 26 via flow path 90, passes through the space between needle fins 89 to cool the leading edge side of inner shroud 26, and subsequently passes through side flow path 93 to be ejected from the trailing edge of inner shroud 26.
Moreover, cooling air flowing into cavity 45 flows into chamber 78 from small holes 101 and passes through flow path 92 to be ejected from the trailing edge of inner shroud 26. When cooling air flows into chamber 78 from small holes 101 of collision plate 84, cooling air hits the bottom surface of inner shroud 26, carrying out impingement cooling. Due to impingement cooling, cooling air passes through plural flow paths 92 to cool the trailing edge side of inner shroud 26.
As shown in FIG. 8, collision plates 102 having plural small holes 100 are provided at the upper surface of outer shroud 27 at an interval from the upper surface. By providing these collision plates 102, chamber 104 (not shown) is formed at the upper surface side of outer shroud 27.
Leading edge flow path 105 is formed in outer shroud 27, and side flow path 106, which opens at the trailing edge of outer shroud 27, is formed at both sides thereof. Leading edge flow path 105 is connected to one chamber 104.
Furthermore, at the trailing edge side of outer shroud 27, plural flow paths 107 are formed so as to be connected to the trailing edge of outer shroud 27 and chamber 104.
Cooling air flowing into manifold 22 flows into chamber 104 from small holes 100 of collision plate 102 and passes through trailing edge flow path 107 to be ejected from the trailing edge of outer shroud 27. When cooling air flows into chamber 104 from small holes 100 of collision plate 102, cooling air hits the upper surface of outer shroud 27, carrying out impingement cooling.
Furthermore, cooling air flowing into chamber 104 flows into leading edge flow path 105 and passes through leading edge flow path 105 and side flow paths 106 to cool the leading edge and both sides of outer shroud 27. Subsequently, cooling air is ejected from the trailing edge of outer shroud 27.
As described above, in stationary blades of this type of gas turbine, the blade metal temperature is maintained at an allowable temperature or less using various cooling techniques, such as impingement cooling, and pin fin cooling by introducing a portion of compressed air. However, inner shroud 26 and outer shroud 27 require a large amount of air for cooling of the trailing edge side. As a result, further improvement of cooling efficiency is required.
The present invention is conceived in view of the above-described problems and has an object of the provision of a cooling structure of a stationary blade in which the amount of cooling air is reduced to be used while significantly improving cooling efficiency, and of the provision of a gas turbine.
In order to solve the problems, a first aspect of the present invention is to provide a cooling structure of a stationary blade comprising an inner shroud and an outer shroud at the inside and outside of a blade, in which the outer shroud, the blade, and the inner shroud are cooled by cooling air to be sent to the outer shroud side. A cavity is formed at an inner surface of the inner shroud into which cooling air passing through the blade is sent. The inner shroud comprises: a collision plate having plural small holes which is provided at an interval from the bottom surface to form a chamber between the bottom surface and the collision plate, for guiding the cooling air in the cavity from the small holes into the chamber; a leading edge flow path provided at a leading edge side along a width direction for guiding the cooling air in the chamber; a side flow path provided along both sides for guiding the cooling air in the leading edge flow path to a trailing edge side; a header formed along the width direction near the trailing edge for feeding the cooling air from the side flow path; and plural trailing edge flow paths formed at intervals along the width direction at the trailing edge side, each having one end connected to the header and the other end being open at the trailing edge, for ejecting the cooling air in the header from the trailing edge.
In the above-described cooling structure of a stationary blade, the outer shroud may comprise: a collision plate having plural small holes which is provided at an upper surface of the outer shroud at an interval to form a chamber between the upper surface and the collision plate; a leading edge flow path provided at a leading edge side along a width direction for guiding cooling air in the chamber; a side flow path provided along both sides for guiding the cooling air in the leading edge flow path to a trailing edge side; a header formed along the width direction near the trailing edge for feeding the cooling air from the side flow path; and plural trailing edge flow paths formed at intervals along the width direction at the trailing edge side, each having one end connected to the header and the other end being open at the trailing edge, for ejecting the cooling air in the header from the trailing edge.
In the above outer shroud, plural trailing edge flow paths may be provided along the width direction at predetermined intervals.
Furthermore, a second aspect of the present invention is to provide a cooling structure of a stationary blade comprising an inner shroud and an outer shroud at the inside and outside of a blade, in which the outer shroud, the blade, and the inner shroud are cooled by cooling air to be sent to the outer shroud side. The outer shroud comprises: a collision plate having plural small holes which is provided at an interval from the upper surface to form a chamber between the upper surface and the collision plate, for guiding the cooling air from the small holes into the chamber; a leading edge flow path provided at a leading edge side along a width direction for guiding the cooling air in the chamber; a side flow path provided along both sides for guiding the cooling air in the leading edge flow path to a trailing edge side; a header formed along the width direction near the trailing edge for feeding the cooling air from the side flow path; and plural trailing edge flow paths formed at intervals along the width direction at the trailing edge side, each having one end connected to the header and the other end being open at the trailing edge, for ejecting the cooling air in the header from the trailing edge.
In the above-described cooling structure of a stationary blade, plural trailing edge flow paths may be provided along the width direction of the outer shroud at predetermined intervals.
According to the above-described cooling structure of a stationary blade, the stationary blade is cooled by allowing the cooling air from the small holes of the collision plate to flow into the chamber, passing the cooling air after being used for the impingement cooling through the leading edge side and both sides, and sending the cooling air to the trailing edge side. Therefore, in comparison with the effects of a conventional cooling structure in which the cooling air after being used for the impingement cooling is simply sent to the trailing edge side and is ejected, the amount of the consumed cooling air is largely reduced and therefore, the cooling efficiency is significantly improved.
Furthermore, the present invention provides a gas turbine having a cooling structure of a stationary blade according to any one of the above-described structures, wherein a stationary blade constitutes a turbine which rotates a rotor by means of combustion gas from a combustor.
As described above, since the gas turbine has a stationary blade having superior cooling efficiency, the amount of the consumed cooling air is largely reduced and the performance of the gas turbine is improved.

Cooling structure of stationary blade, and gas turbine


An approach is provided in which a QA system ingests traditional sources, which includes traditional terms, into a domain dictionary. Next, the QA system ingests crowd-based sources that include crowd-based terms and corresponding crowd-based metadata. In turn, the QA system calculates weightings pertaining to the traditional terms based upon the crowd-based metadata. When the QA system receives a question from a requestor that includes question terms, the QA system identifies an answer to the question based on the calculated weightings pertaining to the traditional terms that are relevant to the question terms.

A Question/Answer (QA) system answers questions posed in a natural language format by applying advanced natural language processing, information retrieval, knowledge representation, automated reasoning, and machine learning technologies. QA systems differ from typical document search technologies because document search technologies return a list of documents ranked in order of relevance to a word query, whereas QA systems receives a question expressed in a natural language, seeks to understand the question in much greater detail, and returns a precise answer to the question.
System developers may train QA systems to specific domains to provide more relevant answers to domain-specific questions (e.g., financial domain, travel domain, etc.). Training a QA system for a new domain, however, is time consuming. One approach to training a QA system is for a set of experts in a field to input detailed domain training knowledge into the QA system. Another approach to training a QA system is to capture corpora from trusted, traditional sources (textbooks, journals) that include accurate information. These traditional sources, however, have time-dated information due to their publication frequency. For example, most publishers publish textbooks every few years and publish journals on a monthly or quarterly basis. As such, QA systems trained from traditional sources may not return an up-to-date answer for a given question.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Building a domain knowledge and term identity using crowd sourcing

International Business Machines Corporation


An electric power supplied to an electric load (24) is determined and the current (i.sub.FC) outputted from a fuel cell part (7) is controlled in accordance with a load power signal (701) which corresponds to the detected result. A fuel cell output following the variation of the power load (24) can be obtained by controlling the amounts of a starting material (41) to be reformed, a reformed fuel (42) and an air (43) to be supplied based on this output current. When the power load (24) is at a low level, the foregoing output from the fuel cell is also supplied to a heating portion (10) for heating the fuel cell part so as not to reduce the current (i.sub.FC) outputted from the fuel cell part. Since the output current is not reduced, it is possible to prevent an extreme increase in the electrode voltage of the fuel cell part (7) and hence the deterioration of the electrode is reduced.

In general, in a fuel cell power generating apparatus which utilizes hydrogen obtained by reforming, for instance, a hydrocarbon with a fuel reforming apparatus, particularly a small-sized AC fuel cell power generating apparatus for supplying power to an electric power load which causes vigorous variation, it is required to increase or decrease the feed rate of a starting material to be reformed such as hydrocarbons, which is fed to the fuel reforming apparatus, and that of a fuel air to be fed to the fuel cell portion depending on the increase or decrease of the electric power load.
In addition, a reforming catalyst for promoting a reforming reaction is filled in the fuel reforming apparatus and, therefore, a fuel for heating the reforming catalyst must be used. The feed rate of auxiliary combustion air for burning the fuel for heating must also be increased or decreased depending on the increase or decrease in the feed rate of the fuel for heating. In the fuel reforming apparatus, it is necessary to maintain the temperature in the reforming apparatus at a predetermined level to increase reforming efficiency of a starting material to be reformed and a extend the life time of the reforming catalyst.
On the other hand, the fuel cell portion suffers from a loss L represented by the following equation (1): EQU L=KI.sup.2 ( 1)
wherein I is an electric current outputted from the cell portion and K represents a proportionality factor.
Since the temperature of electrodes rises due to the loss L, usually the electrodes of the fuel cell are cooled with air so as not to cause an extreme increase in their temperature. Moreover, since, in the fuel cell portion, the temperature of the cell electrodes must be held at a predetermined level for achieving a good power generation efficiency, the fuel cell power generating apparatus should be controlled so that an electric current outputted from the cell portion and the feed rate of air for cooling the fuel cell portion are increased or decreased depending on the increase or decrease in the temperature of the fuel cell portion.
However, a conventional small-sized AC-fuel cell power generating apparatus for supplying electric power to an electric load which causes vigorous variation as in, for instance, a heater or an inverter air conditioner is not provided with a function for automatically increasing or decreasing the feed rate of a starting material for reforming and that of air to be fed to various apparatuses depending on the increase or decrease in the electric load or the like. Therefore, the conventional fuel cell power generating apparatus exhibits low load follow-up properties.
When the fuel cell is started and the electric load is in a very low level of the order of zero load such as those observed when a load is reduced to a low level, a current inversely passes through the fuel cell if the voltage of the electrodes of the fuel cell portion becomes extremely high. Therefore, another serve problem of deteriorating the electrodes, for instance, corrosion of an electrode catalyst such as platinum arises.

Fuel cell power generating apparatus and method for controlling the apparatus


A tool used for managing multiple auctions is presented. The tool includes instructions providing the capability of creating subgroups of auctions based on criteria used to sort data pertaining either to the subject matter of the auction or to its participants. Further, the tool manages within-group closing times by extending closing times of all auctions in the group. A comparison of a recent bid to extension criteria may extend the closing time of an auction by an extension period; if the number of times this auction is extended meets a trigger number, then all closing times of all auctions in the group are extended by a specified time related to the trigger number and the extension period.

In the last ten years, on-line auction capabilities, features, and functions have evolved at lightning speed. Nearly as popular as forward auctions (auctions where bidders enter higher bids in order to win the item or service sold by the seller), reverse auctions (auction where bidders enter lower bids to entice a buyer to select the item or service sold by the bidder) have become the procurement tool of choice in many industries.
It is typical that an on-line auction be conducted electronically. Each participant in an auction does so through a remote site. The participant typically sends information from its remote site via a communications network (e.g. a network services provider) to an auction coordinator at its own remote site; the coordinator sends information to the participant in the same manner. The auction is actually managed by a software application which usually includes a client component operating at the remote site of the participant and a server component which typically operates at the coordinator's remote site. The client component communicates the bids entered by the participant to the server component. The server component communicates updates about the auction to the client component. Most often the client component includes software used to connect to the server component, usually via telephone lines or the interne.
The popularity of the electronic auction format is evident by the dozens of auctions occurring at any one time. These auctions are forward or reverse or conducted with different auction rules. The auctions move nearly any kind of service and any kind of item. They are conducted by and for entities all over the world and may include participants scattered across the globe. The length of any given auction may be hours, days, or longer. The level of participation and the speed with which bids are placed vary with a number of factors. Because of the broad acceptance and the success of using this method to move services or products, the sheer volume of possible participants has motivated the development and implementation of tools to increase the efficiency of the auctions.
The entity wishing to purchase services or items from suppliers or an entity wishing to sell a service or item may employ a service to manage auctions on its behalf or may employ special tools to assist with the management of its auctions. The service may employ tools that provide means to separate and select possible participants. For example, the auction holder may be allowed to specifically designate certain suppliers it wishes the service to invite to the auction or to provide certain requirements for eligibility of suppliers which the service applies to determine the group of invitees. Often, such services use tools that store information about past participants, both buyers and sellers, making the group of invitees simple to select based on characteristics such as the physical location of the past participants, its inventory or offerings, or its credit standing. Further, stored information can be used to assess the likely participation of a particular supplier in a specific auction and may even be applied to set a prebid ceiling or floor for that supplier all based on its prior bidding behavior. It is not unusual to allow the entity wishing to purchase to set reserve prices, or to enter particular bid ceilings for a specific supplier with whom it has done business in the past or is the present encumbant of a supply contract with the auction holder.
With all of the auctions being conducted, it is typical that many occur at the same time or overlap to a certain extent. If a participant wishes to participate in several simultaneous auctions, and more than one is scheduled to close at a given time or one auction is extended so that its closing time coincides with that of another auction, then the participant is faced with the challenge of how to manage both auctions. It is often the case that the latter part of an auction enjoys the highest frequency of bidding activity which creates a difficult situation for the multi-auction participant. Further, bidding may be more complex than simply bidding a price and include factors such as distance, current inventory and ship date, and bidding on levels that include lots and/or line items. All of these factors together can create an auction wherein the auction holder does not receive the best bids because the participant is distracted and unable to participate effectively in simultaneous relevant auctions.
Those who manage multiple auctions have tried several approaches to solve the problem created by coincidental closing times. Often, auctions are scheduled to have staggered closing times. However, because of the propensity of some bidders to place their best bid just before the end of the auction thereby avoiding competitive bids, many auctions are set such that certain activity in the last minutes of the allotted time will act to extend the time to close the auction to allow other participants to adjust their bids if they so desire. When this happens, the extended closing time may coincide with or go beyond that of another auction the closing time of which had originally been staggered with that of the first auction, creating a situation where a participant cannot effectively participate in both auctions. To address this problem of coinciding closing times of multiple auctions, mechanisms to take into consideration the extension of the first lot and calculate specific extensions to be applied to each of several other auctions whose scheduled closing times would otherwise occur at the same time or before the first extended auction have been devised. However, these tools are fairly complex in the way they work and may result in so many changes a participant has difficulty keeping track or extends auctions participants had no interest in to begin with.
Further, several methods have been developed that allow a participant to group auctions together in order to help the participant manage bidding in simultaneous auctions. These methods include robot programs that allow the participant to prioritize the auctions, set a certain total amount of money for bid and set rules for placing bids and allocating and splitting bids in response to the progress of the market. However, to date there has not been a functional tool that facilitates grouping of auctions for the auction manager. There is a need for a tool that allows auction managers to group auctions in a manner that facilitates full participation by the invited participants. A tool functioning in this manner should create an environment conducive to placing the best possible bids and maximizing the possible benefit to the auction holder.
It is one objective of the present invention to provide a simple mechanism for triggering and setting extensions of time for related auctions based on activity in the leading auction.
It is another objective of the present invention to provide a tool for grouping auctions to create a group of auctions described by a specified set of characteristics.
It is a final objective of the present invention to provide a means for grouping auctions in a manner that allows for participation by desirable participants and managing the closing times of such auctions to facilitate the full participation of the desired participants.

Tool for auction grouping by preference and extensions of time


A pipe pig is reciprocated through a section of a pipe having deposits of scale. In the case of very hard deposits, each pass through the contaminated sections removes a thin layer each time. The location of the coated section can be located by first running the pig through the pipe. The hydraulic pressure is monitored using pen recorders. At each bend in the pipe, a sharp pressure increase will be recorded. The location of the bends can be determined from a drawing of the pipe installation. When the pig encounters scale, there will be a pressure increase that corresponds to the degree of resistance met by the pig resulting from the scale. Greater pressure means greater scale build up. By running the pig through the pipe, a profile of the scale may be created. The location of the scale can be correlated to the known location of the bends. The scale itself can be flushed out with the hydraulic propellant and analyzed. The pin height and hardness can then be selected for the particular scale encountered. The pig may be run backwards and forwards primarily through the contaminated section. After several passes, the pig can be removed from the pipe, the pins replaced or moved radially outward by placing washers between at least some of the pins and the pig body and the pig returned to the pipe.

Pipes used in pipe lines, chemical plants, power generation plants, mines, steel mills, pulp and paper plants, water filtration, sewage treatment plants and the like often carry contaminants that become deposited on the inside of the pipe. These contaminants are generally known as scale, and can be extremely hard, such as coke, calcium, silica, sulfur, iron sulfides and types of ceramic scale. Build up of the scale can cause a variety of problems from reduced production to rupture of the pipe. It is therefore desirable to remove the scale from the pipe.
Various prior art methods have been used to clean the inside of pipes including using wire brushes, steel shot blasting, high pressure water blasting and chemical cleaning. These methods have drawbacks such as incomplete removal of coke, increased pipe erosion and sagging, fire hazards, environmental concerns, long shut down, high cost and decreased production run lengths.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,150,493, there is disclosed a pig that may be used to clean a pipe. The pig has removable appendages or pins disposed circumferentially around and extending radially outward from the elastomeric body of the pipeline pig. The pins are adjustable to various heights. The pig is forced through the pipe using hydraulic pressure, and the pins scrape the scale from the pipe. This pig has been found to be very successful in overcoming the problems with prior art methods of cleaning pipes.
In co-pending application Ser. No. 07/828,234, a method of use of the pig is described in which the pig is driven backwards and forwards through the section of the pipe that is contaminated with scale. In the case of very hard deposits, each pass through the contaminated sections removes a thin layer of scale. The method described there is expanded upon in this disclosure.
The location of coated sections can be identified by first running the pig through the pipe. The hydraulic pressure is monitored using pen recorders. At each bend in the pipe, a sharp pressure increase will be recorded. The location of the bends can be determined from a drawing of the pipe installation. When the pig encounters scale, there will be a pressure increase that corresponds to the degree of resistance met by the pig resulting from the scale. Greater pressure means greater scale build up. By running the pig through the pipe, a profile of the scale may be created. The location of the scale can be correlated to the known location of the bends. The scale itself can be flushed out with the hydraulic propellant and analyzed. The pin height and hardness can then be selected for the particular scale encountered. The pig may be run backwards and forwards primarily through contaminated sections. After several passes, the pig can be removed from the pipe and the pins replaced or moved radially outward by placing washers between at least some of the pins and the pig body.

Method of cleaning a pipe with a cylindrical pipe pig having pins in the central portion


A bumper beam reinforcement structure has plurality of pairs or plate insertion holes formed side by side in a longitudinal direction of a bumper beam. These insertion holes are formed on the upper surface and the lower surface of the bumper stay mounting part. Inverted U-shaped steel plates are inserted into the plurality of plate insertion holes. When an impact occurs, the deformation and the rotation of the bumper stay mounting part of the bumper beam is effectively prevented. In addition, parts such as a headlight, a corresponding panel and the like are preferably hardly damaged. Further, the cost for manufacturing the bumper beam reinforcement structure can be significantly reduced.

The present invention relates to a bumper beam reinforcement structure, and more particularly, to a bumper beam reinforcement structure wherein a plurality of pairs of plate inserting holes are formed on the upper surface and the lower surface of a bumper stay mounting part and a plurality of inverted U-shaped steel plates are inserted into the plurality of inserting holes, thereby reducing manufacturing cost and eliminating impact energy generated from a vehicle collision.
Generally, bumpers are provided on front and rear ends of a car in order to protect passengers from an impact generated during a car collision. The bumper typically includes a bumper cover for exterior aesthetics of the car and an impact absorbing member, which is mounted on the inside of the bumper cover, for absorbing impact generated in a collision. The bumper also typically includes a bumper beam made of metal such as steel, aluminum, etc., in order to alleviate a given impact. The bumper beam is coupled to the body frame of the car by a bumper stay and entirely supports the remainder of the bumper structure.
Further, the bumper beam is typically reinforced with ribs, inner bulkheads or other reinforcement members in order to prevent the bumper beam from destruction from an intense impact from a car collision, etc.
In a car collision, a part of the impact energy is absorbed by the impact absorbing member, and the remaining impact energy is transferred to the bumper beam. The impact energy, which is transferred to the bumper beam, is gradually absorbed as it passes through the bumper stay. Finally, the remaining impact energy is absorbed by the body frame which is connected to the bumper stay. Such a bumper structure can protect passengers from an impact of a car collision, etc.
In order to effectively reduce the impact energy generated from a high speed car collision, the absorbing member should be formed densely with lots of impact cells. However, this results in increased manufacturing costs. Accordingly, an absorbing member that better absorbs impact and that can be produced for a lower cost, would be highly desirable.
A bumper beam reinforcement structure is provided in which a plurality of pairs of plate insertion holes are formed, side by side, in the longitudinal direction of a bumper stay mounting part. Inverted U-shaped steel plates are inserted in each pair of plate insertion holes, thereby decreasing the manufacturing costs and reducing impact energy. The steel plates preferably have through-holes on the lower end thereof, which are tightly fixed to the plate insertion holes by a bolt which entirely passes through the through-holes and by a nut which is coupled to the bolt, thereby securing all of the steel plates together.
In an alternative embodiment of the invention, a bumper beam reinforcement structure includes a bumper beam and at least one plate. The bumper beam has at least one pair of opposing plate insertion holes formed through opposing upper and lower surfaces of the bumper beam. A plate, preferably made from a metal, such as steel, extends through the at least one pair of plate insertion holes, such that in use the plate absorbs impact directed at the bumper beam.
In a preferred embodiment, the bumper beam reinforcement structure includes multiple pairs of plate insertion holes, each having a separate plate extending therethrough. The multiple pairs of plate insertion holes are aligned substantially parallel with one another along a longitudinal direction of the bumper beam. Each plate preferably includes two vertical surfaces that are substantially parallel to each other, and a horizontal surface joining the two vertical surfaces to one another to form a U-shaped plate. Each plate preferably has a different width between the two vertical surfaces. In a preferred embodiment, each plate having a smaller width is positioned within each plate having a larger width. Each plate preferably extends through two pairs of opposing plate insertion holes. Also, each vertical surface includes at least one hole therethrough wherein the hole is formed through each vertical surface at a position remote from the horizontal surface. A bolt extends through each hole formed through each vertical surface, and a nut coupled to the bolt secures the plate to the bumper beam.


A driver assistance system is provided in a motor vehicle, which driver assistance system executes at least active transverse guidance interventions. The driver assistance system can be activated while decoupled from the activation of a longitudinal control system but can also be active both, with and without longitudinal control, and includes both a traffic jam assistance sub-function and a track guiding assistant sub-function. The two sub-functions can be jointly activated and deactivated by a single on-/off-button. The driver assistance system is characterized by a special combination of the sub-functions track guiding assistance and traffic jam assistance. They each take turns depending on the presence of conditions, which are defined differently for each sub-function.

The invention relates to a driver assistance system in a motor vehicle, which driver assistance system carries out at least active lateral guidance interventions (in particular steering interventions).
A variety of systems of this kind are already known, for example, in the form of lane change assistants and/or haptic lane departure warning systems or lane departure prevention systems.
Furthermore, a steering assistant which can be switched on only when the longitudinal guidance system is activated and after additional operation of a separate steering assistant button is known from the vehicles with the "ACC, active speed control with Stop&Go function and with traffic jam assistant" system produced in series by the Applicant.
Furthermore, driver assistance systems with hands-on monitoring operations and hands-on requests at fixedly predefined time intervals are known in principle.
The object of the invention is to improve driver assistance systems of the kind outlined in the introductory part with respect to easier handling, better clarity and a higher and more anticipatory assistance level.
According to the invention, this and other objects are achieved by a driver assistance system in a motor vehicle, which driver assistance system carries out at least active lateral guidance interventions. The driver assistance system can be activated in a manner decoupled from the activation of a longitudinal control system, but can be active both with and without longitudinal control. The driver assistance system comprises a traffic jam assistant subfunction and a lane guidance assistant subfunction, wherein the two subfunctions can be activated and can be deactivated jointly by a single on/off button.
The driver assistance system according to the invention carries out at least active lateral guidance interventions (in particular steering interventions) in a motor vehicle, can be activated in a manner decoupled from the activation of a longitudinal control system, but can be active both with and without longitudinal control, and comprises both a traffic jam assistant subfunction (also called STA for short in the text which follows) and a lane guidance assistant subfunction (Active Lane Control, also called ALC for short in the text which follows), wherein the two subfunctions can be activated and can be deactivated jointly by a single on/off button (STA/ALC).
The single common button is preferably mounted in a multifunctional steering wheel in the vicinity of operator control elements of a longitudinal guidance system. The single common button can optionally also be used to automatically turn on longitudinal control when presetting operations corresponding to this have been carried out on the system side or on the driver side.
The driver assistance system according to the invention can be deactivated depending on a speed-dependent capacitive hands-on monitoring operation.
Furthermore, the driver assistance system according to the invention comprises a display concept which is situated preferably within or in the same location of the display region of a longitudinal guidance system. The display concept according to the invention represents a large number of states which will be discussed in detail further below using a particularly advantageous exemplary embodiment.
When the driver assistance system according to the invention is active, further safety systems can optionally be automatically switched on thereby, without the driver having to manually preselect them. Therefore, the driver assistance system according to the invention can be automatically coupled to further safety systems. Possible safety systems which can be coupled are, for example, a side collision warning system, a lane departure warning system or a pedestrian warning system.
The "STA/ALC" driver assistance system according to the invention is characterized, in particular, by a special combination of the "lane guidance assistant" and "traffic jam assistant" subfunctions too. Said subfunctions each switch over from one to the other depending on the presence of conditions which are differently defined for each subfunction.
The essential aspects of and the interaction between the two subfunctions of the driver assistance system according to the invention are explained below.
The traffic jam assistant subfunction (STA) can be activated when the vehicle speed lies below a predefined lower control speed threshold (for example 70 km/h) and a vehicle traveling ahead is identified at the same time, said vehicle traveling ahead possibly also serving as a target object for longitudinally controlled following travel in the case of an additional longitudinal control operation. The traffic jam assistant subfunction (STA) performs corrective steering interventions with respect to the vehicle traveling ahead in the form of laterally controlled following travel.
A safety system for haptic (steering wheel vibration or counter-steering) side collision prevention is preferably necessarily coupled to the traffic jam assistant subfunction (STA), as a result of which, in particular, the hazardous situation which can occur in the event of the vehicle traveling ahead changing lane without lane identification is taken into account.
The lane guidance assistant subfunction (ALC) can be activated when the vehicle speed lies below the predefined lower control speed threshold (for example 70 km/h) and no vehicle traveling ahead is identified at the same time or when the vehicle speed lies above the predefined lower control speed threshold (independently of a vehicle traveling ahead). The lane guidance assistant subfunction (ALC) carries out corrective steering interventions in respect of the center of the lane.
The lane guidance assistant subfunction (ALC) is preferably designed in such a way that it is oriented to a vehicle traveling in front for a predefined short period of time, optionally in the form of a time-limited lane identification bridging operation, when lane identification is not possible during active operation of said lane guidance assistant subfunction and a (new) vehicle traveling ahead is identified. The lane guidance assistant is therefore oriented primarily to existing lane markings, but, in the absence of lane identification or in the case of unreliable lane identification, can briefly bridge guidance to the center of the lane by way of orientation to a vehicle traveling ahead, provided that a changeover has not been made to the traffic jam assistant in any case owing to new lateral guidance-related following travel.
A hands-on monitoring operation for preferred application in the driver assistance system according to the invention is described below.
A capacitive sensor is used to identify when a driver does not have his hands on the steering wheel (hands-off identification=identification that the driver has let go when a hands-on check is made). However, a hands-on check is preferably performed only above a lower, comparatively very low, speed threshold (for example 10 km/h). Below this speed threshold, the driver assistance system according to the invention remains active, even if the driver has let go of the steering wheel. If, at a vehicle speed above said lower speed threshold, it is identified that the driver has let go of the steering wheel, a request to touch the steering wheel (again) and/or a request to take over control of the vehicle (solely by the driver) is output in principle at least at a vehicle speed-dependent time interval from the point at which the driver let go.
After the point at which the driver has let go, a request to touch the steering wheel (HOR) (again) is preferably output in a comparatively short fixedly predefined time interval (for example 2 s) from the point at which the driver had let go. As an alternative, this short time interval can also be predefined in a variable manner depending on the vehicle speed. If there is still no contact with the steering wheel after said time interval, a request to take over control of the vehicle (TOR) is output after a time interval (for example 10 s<t<30 s) which is relatively long in comparison to the short time interval.
In particular, this relatively long time interval is, in principle, predefined to be shorter (for example 30>t>20 s) at least in a defined lower or moderate speed range (10 hm/h<v<30 km/h) as the vehicle speed increases.
In one development, the speed-dependent predefined relatively long time interval is constant (for example 10 s) above a defined upper speed threshold (for example 30 km/h), but longer than the fixedly predefined relatively short time interval, and therefore, for safety reasons, does not decrease further as the speed continues to increase.
An exemplary embodiment in this respect is mentioned further below. This hands-on monitoring operation is an independent idea for other driver assistance systems too, but is particularly preferably applicable to the above-described driver assistance system which comprises at least the two said lateral guidance-related subfunctions.
Preferably used sensor system and actuator system:                Sensor system:                    Video camera with lane and object identification.            Front radar with object identification and object merging (front area).            Side radars with object identification for the side region.            Hands-off detection sensor in the steering wheel (HOD) only for STA/ALC.            Driving state variables (steering angle, speed, yaw rate, . . . ).                        Actuator system:                    Corrective steering intervention via EPS.            Display/operator control concept (ABK): visual and acoustic indications by means of the combination instrument and an optional head-up display (HUD).
Overview of Control Functions—STA/ALC—General
Description of Functions
The "STA/ALC" driver assistance system according to the invention is a lateral guidance system which assists the driver in his driving tasks by means of corrective steering interventions.
The operating states of the STA/ALC system are: [off], [standby] or [active].
Above a defined vehicle speed threshold (for example approximately 70 km/h), STA/ALC can change to the [active] state only when a suitable lane is identified in front of the vehicle being driven. Below the defined vehicle speed threshold (for example approximately 70 km/h), the function can also move to [active] when a vehicle traveling ahead is identified within the same traffic queue and the driver's intended course therefore matches the current course profile of the vehicle in front. In the event of the defined vehicle speed threshold being undershot or exceeded, an automatic change in the activation condition and the associated system state takes place (preferably taking into account a hysteresis).
The STA/ALC function is designed as an assistance system which does not absolve the driver of responsibility but is intended to proactively relieve him of having to apply forces on the steering wheel, in particular in monotonous and tedious traffic situations. When the system is active, it is sufficient to touch the steering wheel, with steering by means of steering force not being required.
In the process, the driver is requested to substantially permanently keep at least one hand on the steering wheel. This is checked by means of a capacitive hands-off detection sensor which is incorporated in the steering wheel. If the driver lets go of the steering wheel, the function requests after a short time period that he grasps the steering wheel again, initially directly. In the event of a long-lasting hands-off state, the function changes over to the [standby] system state with a clear visual and acoustic indication. The time period for the hands-off check is (as already mentioned above) dependent on the vehicle speed.
The system provides a simple correction target selection which is considered to be transparent to the driver.
In order to increase the safety of the function during automatic active correction operations, additional safety systems, such as "preventative pedestrian protection", lane departure warning or side collision protection for example, are also activated, preferably automatically, when STA/ALC is active. If one of these functions cannot be activated, deactivation of both subfunctions (STA and ALC) to the [standby] state may take place. Automatically turning on safety systems can be predefined, for example, by a preselection in a menu of a vehicle computer (for example iDrive by BMW) by the driver.
The main part of the function logic of the lateral guidance is preferably implemented in the vehicle's own electronic driver assistance special equipment controller (SE controller), wherein elements can also be integrated in other controllers.
The majority of the data for the function is provided by a video camera which is known per se and in which algorithms for lane and object identification are already running.
With the inclusion of, in particular, the following parameters, a setpoint trajectory for all lateral guidance control interventions is calculated in the SE controller—depending on the current availability of said parameters:                lateral distance between the vehicle (EGO) being driven and the left-hand or right-hand lane boundary (if it can be identified) or the center of the vehicle traveling ahead (if it can be identified) (lateral offset), and/or        angle between the longitudinal axis of the EGO vehicle and an identified lane boundary (if it can be identified) (heading angle), and/or        bend curvature of the identified lane (if it can be identified), and/or        position and movement history of the vehicle (ZO) traveling ahead in relation to the EGO vehicle (if present).
Driving dynamics data, such as vehicle speed, wheel rotation speed, yaw rate, steering angle, lateral acceleration, longitudinal acceleration, etc. for example, are provided by the rest of the overall vehicle assembly by means of data bus systems, which are known per se, of other controllers.
All of the available parameters are evaluated, in particular, in respect of determining a good pilot control value for rapid control. The evaluation method for the parameters is preferably designed in such a way that, in particular as part of the traffic jam assistant subfunction (STA) in the case of laterally guided following travel, in which the EGO vehicle is aligned substantially with the center of the vehicle traveling ahead, a prediction, which is as accurate as possible, about the expected movement of the vehicle traveling ahead is made. As a result, control deviations are kept low and the frequency and also the extent of the control intervention are minimized.
General Operating Principle of STA/ALC:
If the instantaneous vehicle course deviates from the setpoint trajectory to an excessive extent, a steering correction is initiated.
Function Logic Depending on the Speed:
The setpoint trajectory and, respectively, the required steering corrections are calculated depending on the driving speed as follows:                Lower speed range, for example 0 to 70 km/h:                    Primary use of position of the vehicle in front or movement history of the vehicle in front for determining suitable steering corrections.            Taking into account identified lane markings for avoiding undesired steering corrections in respect of lane departure.            Corrective steering interventions in respect of the center of the lane, provided that no vehicle in front is identified.                        Moderate speed range, for example 70 to 130 km/h:                    Steering corrections in respect of the center of the lane.            Time-limited bridging of non-identified lane markings by estimating the lane profile on the basis of a vehicle traveling ahead.                        Upper speed range, for example 130 to 210 km/h:                    Steering corrections in respect of the center of the lane.            No estimation of the lane profile by means of a vehicle traveling ahead on account of an assumed increased operating risk above the recommended speed.
The primary use of the vehicle in front as a correction target in the first speed range is the result of the limited availability of current lane identifications in situations with limited range of vision in the front region.
Especially in traffic jam situations and situations with heavy traffic flow, very short following distances (<10 m) due to vehicles traveling close together and additionally frequent partial covering of lanes ahead owing to lane straddling often occur. The result is a frequent inability to identify lanes. In order to increase the robustness to frequent lane misidentifications, the position of the vehicle in front is selected as the primary correction target in these situations. The lanes serve, however,—if identified—as a lateral boundary of the driver's intended course which is anticipated by the STA. The border of the transition between traffic jam-like situations and flowing traffic with greater ranges ahead is adopted on the basis of empirical determinations. In order to achieve a robustness which is suitable from the driver's view in the event of changing lane identification, a functional tolerance of 10 km/h is selected in addition to this empirical speed. In addition to the more robust separation between heavy traffic and normal traffic flow, the number of correction target changes given a limited lane availability in inner-city areas is also considerably reduced in this way. The permitted driving speed in inner-city areas may also be 60 km/h instead of 50 km/h. A tolerance range is likewise necessary as a result.
In order to prevent excessively narrow vehicles—such as motorcycles and bicycles for example—from being selected as the correction target, object classification and minimum width of the object traveling ahead is evaluated.
Activation Conditions:
When the driver operates the on/off switch on the steering wheel, which on/off switch is used jointly for the two subfunctions (STA/ALC), the system changes over to the [standby] system state.
In order that the lateral guidance assistance can change over from the [standby] system state to the [active] operating mode, the following requirements can preferably be met on their own or in any desired combination with one another:                A lane boundary is identified by the camera and judged to be "valid" by the function.        Checking criteria include:                    road bend radius >minimum value;            lane width within a plausible range                        or                    a vehicle traveling ahead which matches the movement direction of the vehicle being driven is accepted only below the predefined vehicle speed threshold (of 70 km/h for example) for function activation.                        At least one hand is on the steering wheel rim.        Defined additional safety systems (such as pFGS and LCA-SKW for example) are optionally [active] or can be successfully activated by the STA/ALC.        There are no identified faults in partner controllers or the environmental sensor system, setpoint value generation means or actuator system.
If the above conditions are met, the STA/ALC function changes over to the [active] state and executes the above-described steering corrections.
If one of the function requirements for lateral guidance assistance is temporarily not met, the function changes over to the [standby] state with or without driver indication (also see "silent deactivation" below). As soon as all of the conditions are met again, the steering corrections are automatically reactivated.
Switch-Off Conditions:
The lateral guidance assistance for the driver is deactivated when, for example, at least one of the following conditions is met:                The driver has switched off the function by means of the on/off switch.        Manual DSC deactivation (DSC off) or deactivation of an electronic controller in which functional modules of the ALC/STA are also integrated).        Automatic braking intervention and/or steering intervention of a safety system (for example iBrake initial braking, pFGS intervention or LCA intervention).
The lateral guidance assistance for the driver is switched to [standby] when one of the following conditions is met:                Lower speed range (for example 0 to 70 km/h): a vehicle in front is no longer identified and there is no lane marking.        Moderate speed range (for example 70 km/h<v<130 km/h): no lane marking is identified and there is no vehicle in front in order to temporarily bridge the absence of a lane.        Upper speed range (for examplev>130 km/h): no lane marking is identified.        The minimum lane width is undershot.        Lateral guidance assistance is temporarily interrupted by lane change warning (LCA), DSC control interventions, over-/understeer identification, high driver steering torques or high longitudinal decelerations.        Driver exceeds the permissible hands-off period.        Driver operates the indicator.
When the driver takes his hands off the steering wheel, a hands-on request (HOR) is made by means of a visual indication in the combination instrument (for example steering wheel with hand symbol, also see the exemplary embodiment relating to the display operator control concept, below) after a predefined time period (for example approximately 2 seconds). If the driver does not return his hands to the steering wheel, a takeover request (TOR) is made by means of a visual indication (for example flashing red steering wheel with hand symbol in the combination instrument or in the HUD together with an acoustic warning) after a speed-dependent time period.
Displays
The primary feedback relating to the status of the STA/ALC function is made by means of the combination instrument and—if incorporated in the vehicle—additionally by means of a head-up display (HUD).
In all cases in which the lateral guidance has to be completely deactivated from the [active] or [standby] system states in a manner which is unexpected by the driver, a takeover request is always made to the driver (TOR or check control message (CCM)).
However, if the function is turned off by an active driver operation (for example manual deactivation of STA/ALC, manual DSC deactivation, heavy oversteering of the function), "silent" deactivation which can be sensed by the driver is performed.
The invention has, in particular, the following advantages over the prior art:                A higher and more anticipatory assistance level with virtually "steering force-free driving".        The lateral guidance can be perceptible independently of the longitudinal guidance; no turn-off when the brake is operated, no necessary coupling to the longitudinal guidance, such as for example to the active state of a driving speed control system with distance control (ACC).        Active feedback of the current control strategy (lane or vehicle in front); improved assistance in a traffic jam situation by orientation to the vehicle in front.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of one or more preferred embodiments when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Driver assistance system in a motor vehicle

Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft


Even a thin communication device is enabled to transmit or receive a polarized wave having a polarization direction substantially coinciding with a thickness direction of the communication device.

In a mobile communication system based on a communication standard called LTE/LTE-advanced (A), a wireless signal having a frequency called ultra high frequency around 700 MHz to 3.5 GHz is mainly used for communication.
Furthermore, in communication using ultra-high frequencies like the above-described communication standard, a so-called multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO) technology is adopted to further improve communication performance using reflected waves in addition to direct waves in signal transmission/reception even under a fading environment. Since a plurality of antennas is used in MIMO, various techniques for arranging the plurality of antennas in a more favorable mode for mobile communication terminal devices such as smartphones have been studied.

Abstract: An antenna device includes a first substrate extending in a first direction, a second substrate supported on the first substrate, and extending in both the first direction and a second direction orthogonal to the first direction, and an antenna element supported on a surface of the second substrate, the surface having a normal direction substantially coinciding with a third direction orthogonal to both the first direction and the second direction, and configured to transmit or receive a wireless signal having a polarization direction substantially coinciding with the second direction.


A toy launch apparatus for discharging soft foam darts, the launch apparatus having a cylinder, a piston, a launch spring and a dart tube. An air chamber with variable volume is formed between the cylinder and the piston and is divided into two or more sections, a first section where there is little or no resistance to relative movement between the cylinder and the piston so that there is a momentum gain, and a second section where there is rapid compression and increasing pressure to cause a loaded dart to be discharged. A third section may be a transition section between the first and second sections.

Toys are often designed to have play value by simulating a real object, safely and at a reasonable expense. Toy launch apparatus simulating guns and rifles have been marketed as toys for decades and include such devices as water pistols and rifles, cap guns, BB guns and rifles, dart guns and NERF® brand launchers that discharge a soft foam dart. Most air launchers discharging darts use a launch spring and a piston and cylinder arrangement to generate the energy and direct that energy to cause the dart to discharge. Generally, more energy is developed with a spring having a higher spring rate. However, offsetting more powerful springs is the difficulty in cocking the launcher, especially for young children. Furthermore, from design and function standpoints control of the size and operation of an air chamber in the cylinder is desirable for efficiency and cost considerations.
The inventions discussed in connection with the described embodiments below address these and other deficiencies of the prior art. The features and advantages of the present inventions will be explained in or become apparent from the following summary and description of the preferred embodiments considered together with the accompanying drawings.

Toy launch apparatus with momentum feature