A fuel tank venting system for a motor vehicle includes an outlet side of a tank venting valve connected to an inlet side of a first vent line and to an inlet side of a second vent line. An outlet side of the first vent line is connected to an intake manifold upstream from a throttle valve and downstream from an air filter, and an outlet side of the second vent line is connected to the intake manifold downstream from the throttle valve. A position sensor may be located at a first position and the first closing element has a detectable element. The position sensor is connected to an electronic control device to transmit signals. A position of the first closing element may be determined by means of the position sensor and the detectable element.

Exemplary embodiment of the invention relate to a fuel tank venting system for a motor vehicle and a method for diagnosing a fuel tank venting system.
The basic design of conventional fuel tank venting systems for motor vehicles and their function is described, for example, in ATZ Automobiltechnische Zeitschrift 101 (1999) 3, pages 166-173.
German patent document DE 10 2009 008 831 A1 discloses a fuel tank venting system of the generic kind. Upstream from a throttle valve, a first vent line is connected to an intake manifold of a motor vehicle via a first check valve. Downstream from the throttle valve, a second vent line is connected to the intake manifold via a second check valve. In this system, it is possible to detect leaks in the first or second vent line up to the position of the first check valve, using an intake manifold pressure sensor which is already present in the intake manifold. In this system configuration, a leak between the first check valve and the intake manifold cannot be detected. However, since the regulatory requirements in the United States stipulate that all types of leaks or blockages must be detectable unless components are connected via nondetachable connections, German patent document DE 10 2009 008 831 A1 proposes connecting the first check valve to the intake manifold via a nondetachable connection. For this purpose, the first check valve is positioned very closely to the intake manifold, at the end of the first vent line. This system has a drawback with regard to repair shop user-friendliness, since removal or replacement of the intake manifold can take place only together with the first check valve.
In addition, PCT publication WO 2009/106221 A1 discloses a check valve having a distance sensor, in which a movable part of the distance sensor is connected to a closing element of the check valve. The movable part may be a permanent magnet. A position of the permanent magnet, and thus of the closing element, may be measured using a Hall sensor. It is proposed to thus measure a volume flow of a fluid flowing through the check valve.
Exemplary embodiments of the present invention are directed to improving the repair shop user-friendliness of the generic fuel tank venting system while ensuring continued diagnostic capability in compliance with regulatory requirements.
The fuel tank venting system has an intake manifold for supplying air to a cylinder of an internal combustion engine of the motor vehicle, the intake manifold including a throttle valve and, upstream from the throttle valve, an air filter. In addition, the fuel tank venting system has a fuel tank, a tank vent valve, a cutoff valve, and an electronic control device, the electronic control device being connected to the throttle valve, the tank vent valve, and the cutoff valve, in each case for the purpose of controlled actuation. The control device may be a control unit or an assembly of multiple control units that are interconnected via communication connections. The connection between the electronic control device and the throttle valve, the tank vent valve, and the cutoff valve may be wired or wireless. Furthermore, the fuel tank venting system has a first vent line that includes a first check valve having a first closing element, and a second vent line, the cutoff valve being indirectly or directly connected to an inlet side of the tank vent valve, and an outlet side of the tank vent valve being connected to an inlet side of the first vent line and to an inlet side of the second vent line. The closing element of the check valve may be designed as a sphere, cone, flap, or diaphragm, or as some other known closing element.
An outlet side of the first vent line is connected to the intake manifold upstream from the throttle valve and downstream from the air filter, and an outlet side of the second vent line is connected to the intake manifold downstream from the throttle valve. The terms "upstream" and "downstream" refer to a direction of an air flow in the intake manifold.
According to the invention, a position sensor may be positioned at the first check valve for determining a position of a detectable element of the first closing element, the position sensor being connected to the electronic control device for the purpose of signal transmission. Here as well, the mentioned connection may be implemented in a wired or wireless manner.
In the mentioned system configuration, by means of the position sensor and the detectable element of the first check valve it is possible to detect leaks or obstructions in the first vent line. The leaks or obstructions may be detected over the entire distance between the tank vent valve, over the first vent line up to the intake manifold, i.e., up to the air filter.
A first advantageous refinement of the invention provides that the detectable element includes a magnet element, and the position sensor includes a Hall sensor. A magnet element may be mounted on or in the closing element in a cost-effective manner. A position of the magnet element, and thus of the first closing element, may be determined by means of the Hall sensor. In this case, the Hall sensor may be mounted in a flow channel of the check valve, or particularly advantageously, also outside the flow channel. A mounting outside the flow channel is cost-effective and robust.
The closing element is particularly advantageously designed in such a way that its position changes only in one direction during opening and closing, i.e., primarily in such a way that the closing element cannot rotate during opening and closing. This type of design is provided, for example, as a flap that is fastened on one side, or a diaphragm that is fastened on one side. Another advantageous refinement therefore provides that the first closing element includes a non-return flap. The non-return flap particularly advantageously has a leaf spring, the leaf spring exerting a force on the non-return flap in the direction of a closed position of the non-return flap. The check valve may thus be installed in the motor vehicle independently of position, since closing of the closing element occurs primarily due to an elastic force of the leaf spring, not due to gravity.
Another advantageous refinement provides that the second vent line includes a second check valve having a second closing element. In this case, a leak in the second vent line may advantageously be detected by means of an intake manifold pressure sensor situated in the intake manifold, downstream from the throttle valve or using the position sensor in the first check valve or a combination of both.
Another advantageous refinement provides that the first check valve and the second check valve are situated in a shared housing and form a double check valve, an inlet side of the double check valve at the same time forming the inlet side of the first vent line and the inlet side of the second vent line. Costs and space requirements may thus be reduced in the fuel tank venting system according to the invention.
Another advantageous refinement of the invention provides that a crankcase vent line is connected to the first vent line. This has the advantage that not only leaks in the first vent line, but also a disconnection or equivalent leaks of the crankcase vent line may be detected by means of the position sensor.
Another advantageous refinement of the invention provides that the intake manifold has a turbocharger upstream from the throttle valve. When the fuel tank venting system contains the turbocharger upstream from the throttle valve, there is no negative pressure in the intake manifold downstream from the throttle valve during full load operation of the internal combustion engine, and instead, there is a negative pressure upstream from the turbocharger. In this configuration, the first vent line opens into the intake manifold upstream from the turbocharger. Due to the negative pressure generated by the turbocharger under full load, leak detection may be carried out particularly easily by the position sensor.
The method for diagnosing a fuel tank venting system of a motor vehicle is characterized by a fuel tank venting system according to the invention, whereby a piece of error information is stored in the electronic control device, when a closed position of the first closing element is determined by means of the position sensor, and a full load regeneration operation is present, and a piece of error information is stored in the electronic control device when an open position of the first closing element (12) is determined by means of the position sensor and no full load regeneration operation is present.
The presence of a full load regeneration operation or a part-load regeneration operation is a function of a load on the internal combustion engine and a switching position of the tank vent valve, whereby the load on the internal combustion engine may be derived from measurement variables and/or control variables, for example a throttle valve position and engine speed. A full load regeneration operation is present when inlet manifold pressure is more than atmospheric pressure, and at the same time the tank vent valve is open. A part-load regeneration operation is present when inlet manifold pressure is less than the atmospheric pressure and at the same time the tank vent valve is open. The method is carried out according to the invention by means of the electronic control device, which is connected to all relevant electrical and electronic components and which has means for data processing.
A refinement of the method for diagnosing provides that the second vent line includes a second check valve having a second closing element, wherein
A leak and an obstruction of the second vent line may be reliably detected with the aid of the position sensor and the first detectable element.

Fuel tank venting system for a motor vehicle


A multi-user (MU) multiple-input/multiple-output (MU MIMO) module for a fifth-generation (5G) software-defined radio (SDR) network environment is disclosed. In embodiments, the MU MIMO module of a transmitting SDR system of a 5G mobile ad hoc network (MANET) or other peer-to-peer directional network receives feedback from a receiving SDR system based on a prior or current frame and generates, based on the feedback, a compound transmission security (TRANSEC) encryption key for a subsequent frame. The compound TRANSEC encryption key encrypts the transmission of the subsequent frame through a combination of frequency-hopping encryption codes, orthogonality-hopping encryption codes, and dynamic pseudorandom distribution of transmitting power among antenna elements to simulate multipath hopping. The SDR system may include an antenna controller capable of managing dynamic power distribution according to the compound TRANSEC encryption keys as well as directionality shifts and beamforming operations to evade jammers detected within the 5G network environment.

Many commercial interests are currently attempting to leverage fifth generation (5G) cellular communications assets, including the associated bandwidth as well as new hardware and software for building private systems and networks. Military communications platforms may similarly be well suited for the high-speed high-capacity capabilities of 5G architectures, but military architectures and software-defined radio (SDR) waveforms and architectures are not intuitively compatible with the 5G spectrum. For example, while it may be possible to retrofit existing military SDR platforms to 5G protocols, 5G does not by itself provide sufficient over-the-air transmission security (TRANSEC) to ensure acceptably low probability of interception and low probability of detection (LPI/LPD).

Compound transmission security (TRANSEC) for military-grade fifth generation (5G) radio systems


In some embodiments, a method for upmixing input audio comprising N full range channels to generate 3D output audio comprising N+M full range channels, where the N+M full range channels are intended to be rendered by speakers including at least two speakers at different distances from the listener. The N channel input audio is a 2D audio program whose N full range channels are intended for rendering by N speakers nominally equidistant from the listener. The upmixing of the input audio to generate the 3D output audio is typically performed in an automated manner, in response to cues determined in automated fashion from stereoscopic 3D video corresponding to the input audio, or in response to cues determined in automated fashion from the input audio. Other aspects include a system configured to perform, and a computer readable medium which stores code for implementing any embodiment of the inventive method.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to systems and methods for upmixing multichannel audio to generate multichannel 3D output audio. Typical embodiments are systems and methods for upmixing 2D input audio (comprising N full range channels) intended for rendering by speakers that are nominally equidistant from a listener, to generate 3D output audio comprising N+M full range channels, where the N+M full range channels are intended to be rendered by speakers including at least two speakers at different distances from the listener.
2. Background of the Invention
Throughout this disclosure, including in the claims, the expression performing an operation "on" signals or data (e.g., filtering, scaling, or transforming the signals or data) is used in a broad sense to denote performing the operation directly on the signals or data, or on processed versions of the signals or data (e.g., on versions of the signals that have undergone preliminary filtering prior to performance of the operation thereon).
Throughout this disclosure including in the claims, the expression "system" is used in a broad sense to denote a device, system, or subsystem. For example, a subsystem that implements a decoder may be referred to as a decoder system, and a system including such a subsystem (e.g., a system that generates X output signals in response to multiple inputs, in which the subsystem generates M of the inputs and the other X−M inputs are received from an external source) may also be referred to as a decoder system.
Throughout this disclosure including in the claims, the following expressions have the following definitions:
speaker and loudspeaker are used synonymously to denote any sound-emitting transducer. This definition includes loudspeakers implemented as multiple transducers (e.g., woofer and tweeter);
speaker feed: an audio signal to be applied directly to a loudspeaker, or an audio signal that is to be applied to an amplifier and loudspeaker in series;
channel: an audio signal that is rendered in such a way as to be equivalent to application of the audio signal directly to a loudspeaker at a desired or nominal position. The desired position can be static, as is typically the case with physical loudspeakers, or dynamic;
audio program: a set of one or more audio channels;
render: the process of converting an audio program into one or more speaker feeds, or the process of converting an audio program into one or more speaker feeds and converting the speaker feed(s) to sound using one or more loudspeakers (in the latter case, the rendering is sometimes referred to herein as rendering "by" the loudspeaker(s)). An audio channel can be trivially rendered ("at" a desired position) by applying the signal directly to a physical loudspeaker at the desired position, or one or more audio channels can be rendered using one of a variety of virtualization techniques designed to be substantially equivalent (for the listener) to such trivial rendering. In this latter case, each audio channel may be converted to one or more speaker feeds to be applied to loudspeaker(s) in known locations, which are in general different from the desired position, such that sound emitted by the loudspeaker(s) in response to the feed(s) will be perceived as emitting from the desired position. Examples of such virtualization techniques include binaural rendering via headphones (e.g., using Dolby Headphone processing which simulates up to 7.1 channels of surround sound for the headphone wearer) and wave field synthesis;
stereoscopic 3D video: video which, when displayed, creates a sensation of visual depth using two slightly different projections of a displayed scene onto the retinas of the viewer's two eyes;
azimuth (or azimuthal angle): the angle, in a horizontal plane, of a source relative to a listener/viewer. Typically, an azimuthal angle of 0 degrees denotes that the source is directly in front of the listener/viewer, and the azimuthal angle increases as the source moves in a counter clockwise direction around the listener/viewer;
elevation (or elevational angle): the angle, in a vertical plane, of a source relative to a listener/viewer. Typically, an elevational angle of 0 degrees denotes that the source is in the same horizontal plane as the listener/viewer, and the elevational angle increases as the source moves upward (in a range from 0 to 90 degrees) relative to the viewer;
L: Left front audio channel. Typically intended to be rendered by a speaker positioned at about 30 degrees azimuth, 0 degrees elevation;
C: Center front audio channel. Typically intended to be rendered by a speaker positioned at about 0 degrees azimuth, 0 degrees elevation;
R: Right front audio channel. Typically intended to be rendered by a speaker positioned at about −30 degrees azimuth, 0 degrees elevation;
Ls: Left surround audio channel. Typically intended to be rendered by a speaker positioned at about 110 degrees azimuth, 0 degrees elevation;
Rs: Right surround audio channel. Typically intended to be rendered by a speaker positioned at about −110 degrees azimuth, 0 degrees elevation;
Full Range Channels: All audio channels of an audio program other than each low frequency effects channel of the program. Typical full range channels are L and R channels of stereo programs, and L, C, R, Ls and Rs channels of surround sound programs. The sound determined by a low frequency effects channel (e.g., a subwoofer channel) comprises frequency components in the audible range up to a cutoff frequency, but does not include frequency components in the audible range above the cutoff frequency (as do typical full range channels);
Front Channels: audio channels (of an audio program) associated with frontal sound stage. Typical front channels are L and R channels of stereo programs, or L, C and R channels of surround sound programs;
2D audio program (e.g., 2D input audio, or 2D audio): an audio program comprising at least one full range channel (typically determined by an audio signal for each channel), intended to be rendered by speaker(s) that are nominally equidistant from the listener (e.g., two, five, or seven speakers that are nominally equidistant from the listener, or one speaker). The program is "intended" to be rendered by speakers that are nominally equidistant from the listener in the sense that the program is generated (e.g., by recording and mastering, or any other method) such that when its full range channels are rendered by equidistant speakers positioned at appropriate azimuth and elevation angles relative to the listener (e.g., with each speaker at a different predetermined azimuth angle relative to the listener), the emitted sound is perceived by the listener with a desired imaging of perceived audio sources. For example, the sound may be perceived as originating from sources at the same distance from the listener as are the speakers, or from sources in a range of different distances from the listener. Examples of conventional 2D audio programs are stereo audio programs and 5.1 surround sound programs;
3D audio program (e.g., 3D output audio, or 3D audio): an audio program whose full range channels include a first channel subset comprising at least one audio channel (sometimes referred to as a "main" channel or as "main" channels) that determine a 2D audio program (intended to be rendered by at least one "main" speaker, and typically by at least two "main" speakers, that are equidistant from the listener), and also a second channel subset comprising at least one audio channel intended to be rendered by at least one speaker positioned physically closer to or farther from the listener than are the speaker(s) ("main" speaker(s)) which render the main channel(s). The second channel subset may include at least one audio channel (sometimes referred to herein as a "near" or "nearfield" channel) intended to be rendered by a speaker (a "near" or "nearfield" speaker) positioned physically closer to the listener than are the main speakers, and/or at least one audio channel (sometimes referred to herein as a "far" or "farfield" channel) intended to be rendered by a speaker positioned physically farther from the listener than are the main speakers. The program is "intended" to be rendered by the speakers in the sense that the program is generated (e.g., by recording and mastering, or any other method) such that when its full range channels are rendered by the speakers positioned at appropriate azimuth and elevation angles relative to the listener, the emitted sound is perceived by the listener with a desired imaging of perceived audio sources. For example, the sound may be perceived as originating from sources in the same range of distances from the listener as are the speakers, or from sources in a range of distances from the listener that is wider or narrower than the range of speaker-listener distances. A "near" (or "far") channel of a 3D audio program that is "intended" to be rendered by a near speaker that is physically closer to (or a far speaker physically farther from) the listener than are the main speakers, may actually be rendered (trivially) by such a physically nearer (or farther) speaker, or it may be "virtually" rendered (e.g., using any of a number of techniques including transaural or wave field synthesis) using speaker(s) at any physical distance(s) from the listener in a manner designed to be at least substantially equivalent to the trivial rendering. One example of rendering of the full range channels of a 3D audio program is rendering with each main speaker at a different predetermined azimuthal angle relative to the listener, and each nearfield and farfield speaker at an azimuthal angle that is at least substantially equal to zero;
Spatial Region: a portion of a visual image which is analyzed and assigned a depth value; and
AVR: an audio video receiver. For example, a receiver in a class of consumer electronics equipment used to control playback of audio and video content, for example in a home theater.
Stereoscopic 3D movies are becoming increasingly popular and already account for a significant percentage of today's box office revenue in the US. New digital cinema, broadcast and Blu-ray specifications allow 3D movies and other 3D video content (e.g., live sports) to be distributed and rendered as distinct left and right eye images using a variety of techniques including polarized glasses, full spectrum chromatic separation glasses, active shutter glasses, or auto stereoscopic displays that do not require glasses. The infrastructure for creation, distribution and rendering of stereoscopic 3D content in theaters as well as homes is now in place.
Stereoscopic 3D video adds depth impression to the visual images. Displayed objects can be rendered so as to appear to be at varying distances from the user, from well in front to far behind the screen. The accompanying soundtracks (typically surround soundtracks) are currently authored and rendered using the same techniques as for 2D movies. A conventional 2D surround soundtrack typically includes five or seven audio signals (full range channels) that are routed to speakers that are nominally equidistant to the listener and placed at different nominal azimuth angles relative to the listener.
For example, FIG. 1 shows a conventional five-speaker sound playback system for rendering a 2D audio program for listener 1. The 2D audio program is a conventional five-channel surround sound program. The system includes speakers 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 which are at least substantially equidistant from listener 1. Each of speakers 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 is intended for use in rendering a different full range channel of the program. As indicated, speaker 3 (intended for rendering a right front channel of the program) is positioned at an azimuthal angle of 30 degrees, speaker 6 (intended for rendering a right surround channel of the program) is positioned at an azimuthal angle of 110 degrees, and speaker 4 (intended for rendering a center front channel of the program) is positioned at an azimuthal angle of 0 degrees.
In free-field (without reflections), a listener's perception of audio source distance is guided primarily by three cues: the auditory level, the relative level of high and low frequency content, and for near field signals, the level disparity between the listener's ears. For a familiar sound such as speech uttered (or assumed to have been uttered) at a typical emission level, the auditory level is by far the most important cue. If the listener does not have knowledge of the emission level of perceived audio, the perceived auditory level is less useful and the other cues come into play. In a reverberant acoustic environment there are additional cues (to the distance of the audio source from the listener) including direct to reverb ratio, and level and direction of early reflections.
For audio signals reproduced in a home listening room, cinema or theater, a "dry" or unprocessed signal rendered from a traditional loudspeaker will generally image at the loudspeaker distance. In creating a 2D audio program (e.g., surround soundtrack), farness (perception of sound from a distant source) can be simulated using well-known mixing techniques (e.g., reverb and low pass filtering). There is no effective mixing method for producing a 2D audio program which simulates nearness (beyond implicit contrast with audio from a simulated far source), in part because it is very difficult to remove or suppress the natural reverb of the playback venue.
Hardware-based systems for rendering 3D audio (near audio images as well as audio perceived to be from sources farther from the listener) have been proposed. In such systems audio is rendered by a first set of speakers (including at least one speaker) positioned relatively far from the listener and a second set of speakers (including at least one speaker, e.g., a set of headphones) positioned closer to the listener. Typically, the speakers in the first set are time-aligned with the speakers in the second set. An example of such a system is described in US Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0050890 by Tsuhako, published on Mar. 9, 2006. A system in this class could render a 3D audio program. Although such a 3D audio program could be generated specially for rendering by such a system, until the present invention it had not been proposed to generate such a 3D audio program by upmixing a 2D audio program. Nor had it been known (until the present invention) how to perform upmixing on a 2D audio program to generate a 3D audio program, e.g., for rendering by a system in the class discussed this paragraph.
A number of technologies have been proposed for rendering an audio program (either using speakers that are nominally equidistant from the listener, or speakers that are positioned at different distances from the listener) so that the emitted sound will be perceived as originating from sources at different distances from the listener. Such technologies include transaural sound rendering, wave-field synthesis, and active direct to reverb ratio control using dedicated loudspeaker designs. If any such technology could be implemented in a practical manner and widely deployed, it would be possible to render full 3D audio. However, until practical rendering means are available, there will be little incentive to explicitly author or distribute 3D audio content. Conversely, without 3D audio content there will be little incentive to develop and install the required rendering equipment. A means to derive 3D audio signals from traditional soundtracks to break this "chicken and egg" dilemma would be desirable. Typical embodiments of the present invention provide a solution to this problem by generating an N+M channel 3D audio program from a preexisting (e.g., conventionally generated) N-channel 2D audio program.

Method and system for upmixing audio to generate 3D audio

Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation


Disclosed are example embodiments of a method and system to reduce re-transmission requirements of a compress media transferring system implemented in a network where packet loss could be possible. An extended header for each transmitted packet can indicate the priority of the packet and endpoints can determine if a re-transmission of a missing packet is desired. Buffering of packets at different hops in a multi-hop system could allow for the retransmission request to be satisfied by a more recent hop than the original system transmitting the video packet. In one embodiment three levels of priority are established to achieve a reliable frame rate of 30 frames per second by compressing the first and second levels at 7.5 frames per second and a third level at 15 frames per second.

Videoconferencing enables individuals located remotely from each other to conduct a face-to-face meeting. Videoconferencing may be executed by using audio and video telecommunications. A videoconference may be between as few as two sites (point-to-point), or between several sites (multi-point). A conference site may include a single participant (user, conferee) or several participants (users, conferees). Videoconferencing may also be used to share documents, presentations, information, and the like.
Participants may take part in a videoconference via a videoconferencing endpoint (EP), for example. An endpoint (EP) may be a terminal on a network, for example. An endpoint may be capable of providing real-time, two-way, audio/visual/data communication with other terminals and/or with a multipoint control unit (MCU). An endpoint (EP) may provide information/data in different forms, including audio; audio and video; data, audio, and video; etc. The terms "terminal," "site," and "endpoint" may be used interchangeably. In the present disclosure, the term endpoint may be used as a representative term for above group.
An endpoint may comprise a display unit (screen), upon which video images from one or more remote sites may be displayed. Example endpoints include POLYCOM® VSX® and HDX® series endpoints, each available from Polycom, Inc. (POLYCOM, VSX, and HDX are registered trademarks of Polycom, Inc.) A videoconferencing endpoint may send audio, video, and/or data from a local site to one or more remote sites, and display video and/or data received from the remote site(s) on its screen (display unit).
Video images displayed on a screen at an endpoint may be displayed in an arranged layout. A layout may include one or more segments for displaying video images. A segment may be a predefined portion of a screen of a receiving endpoint that may be allocated to a video image received from one of the sites participating in the videoconferencing session. In a videoconference between two participants, a segment may cover the entire display area of the screens of the endpoints. In each site, the segment may display the video image received from the other site.
An example of a video display mode in a videoconference between a local site and multiple remote sites may be a switching mode. A switching mode may be such that video/data from only one of the remote sites is displayed on the local site's screen at a time. The displayed video may be switched to video received from another site depending on the dynamics of the conference.
In contrast to the switching mode, in a continuous presence (CP) conference, a conferee (participant) at a local endpoint may simultaneously observe several other conferees from different endpoints participating in the videoconference. Each site may be displayed in a different segment of the layout, which is displayed on the local screen. The segments may be the same size or of different sizes. The combinations of the sites displayed on a screen and their association to the segments of the layout may vary among the different sites that participate in the same session. Furthermore, in a continuous presence layout, a received video image from a site may be scaled, up or down, and/or cropped in order to fit its allocated segment size. It should be noted that the terms "conferee," "user," and "participant" may be used interchangeably. In the present disclosure, the term conferee may be used as a representative term for above group.
An MCU may be used to manage a videoconference. An MCU is a conference controlling entity that is typically located in a node of a network or in a terminal that receives several channels from endpoints and, according to certain criteria, processes audio and/or visual signals and distributes them to a set of connected channels.
Example MCUs include the MGC-100 and RMX 2000®, available from Polycom Inc. (RMX 2000 is a registered trademark of Polycom, Inc.). Some MCUs may be composed of two logical units: a media controller (MC) and a media processor (MP). A more thorough definition of an endpoint and an MCU may be found in the International Telecommunication Union ("ITU") standards, including the H.320, H.324, and H.323 standards. Additional information regarding video conferencing standards and protocols such as ITU standards or Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) may be found at the ITU website www.itu.int or in Engineering Task Force (IETF) website www.ietf.org, respectively.
Other video conferencing systems may use a Media Relay Conferencing system, (MRC). In MRC a Media Relay MCU (MRM) receives one or more streams from each participating Media Relay Endpoint (MRE). The MRM relays to each participating endpoint a set of multiple video streams received from other endpoints in the conference. Each receiving endpoint uses the multiple streams to generate the CP video image according to a layout. The CP video image is presented to the MRE's user. An MRE can be a terminal of a conferee in the session which has the ability to receive relayed media from an MRM and deliver compressed media according to instructions from an MRM. MRMs are described in more detail in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2010/0194847, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes. For purposes of the present disclosure, the terms endpoint and MRE may be used interchangeably.
In some MRC systems, a transmitting MRE sends its video image in two or more layers, levels, of quality. In some systems the two or more layers are carried over a single stream. In other MRC systems, each layer is associated with a different stream. Those systems can provide different window sizes in the layouts, different resolutions used by each receiving endpoint, different frame rate, etc. Furthermore, the plurality of layers can be used for overcoming packet loss. The qualities may differ in frame rate, resolution and/or signal to noise ratio (SNR), etc.
Throughout this disclosure the term video streaming represents any transmission of compressed media (e.g., audio and/or video) in multimedia conferencing sessions, media streaming, or any application using transfer of compressed multimedia streams. The media having been compressed by a scalable-coding encoder. Further, the transmitted compressed media may contain a plurality of layers with the layers differing from each other in quality of the media. The different layers may be handled differently by disclosed embodiments. Also, the term Scalable-Coding (SC) as used herein represents an example of multi-layer media coding.
Video streaming is becoming more and more popular. Further, more and more sources of video streaming as well as video conferencing system deliver a plurality of layers, wherein the layers differ from each other by the quality of the compressed video. The quality can be expressed in number of domains, such as time domain (frames per second, for example), spatial domain (high definition (HD) or common intermediate format (CIF), for example), and/or in quality (sharpness, for example). Video compression standards that are used for video streaming and multi-quality layers include H.264 AVC, H.264 annex G, MPEG-4, etc. Those compression standards can be referred as SC standards. More information on compression standards such as H.264 can be found at the ITU website www.itu.int, or at www.mpeg.org.
Some video compression techniques use two types of frames, an Intra frame and an Inter frame. An Intra frame is a video frame that was compressed relative to information that is contained only within the same frame and not relative to any other frame in the video sequence. An Inter frame is a video frame that was compressed relative to information that is contained within the same frame, and also relative to one or more other frame (reference frames) in the video sequence. An Inter frame can include a predictive frame (a P frame), and/or a bidirectional predictive frame (a B frame). In video conferencing, B frames are not typically used because of the latency they introduce. In the following description an Inter frame is used as a representative term for the term P frame.
The media (e.g., audio and video) of common video conferencing session, which is carried over an Internet Protocol (IP) network, uses Real-time Transport Protocol (RTP) as the transport protocol of the media packets. The RTP protocol is used in conjunction with Real-Time Control Protocol (RTCP). RTCP is used to monitor transmission statistics and quality of service (QoS) and aids synchronization of multiple streams. In addition RTP packets are carried over UDP/IP. It is well known in the art that UDP/IP is a connectionless protocol, which is not reliable and suffers from packet loss. As one of the measures for identifying packet loss, a common RTP processor, at a source of a video conferencing stream, adds a sequence number to each one of the media packets before transmitting them toward their destination.
At the destination of the compressed video stream, an RTP processor sorts the received packets according to their sequence number and delivers the compressed media toward a relevant decoder. In order to overcome packet loss, the RTP processor at both end of the connection may use different forward error correction techniques. Further, the video encoder/decoder at both ends of the connection uses different recovery methods to overcome packet loss. Yet another recovery method can comprise retransmission request for one or more missing packet that are sent toward the source of the stream.

System and method for handling critical packets loss in multi-hop RTP streaming


This disclosure describes techniques for securely, efficiently, and/or effectively providing cryptographic operations and key management services. Systems in accordance with one or more aspects of the present disclosure may provide secure management of cryptographic keys as service to a plurality of data center users or customers that contract for services provided by a data center. In one example, this disclosure describes a data center comprising a plurality of cloud service provider ports, a plurality of customer ports, network infrastructure coupling the plurality of cloud service provider ports to the plurality of customer ports, and a computing system including at least one hardware security module.

A hardware security module (HSM) is a computing device that stores, safeguards, and manages digital cryptographic keys, and also performs cryptographic operations. Typically, an HSM is a housed within a tamper-resistant casing and is designed to securely store cryptographic keys and other material. An HSM is also designed to perform cryptographic operations (e.g., encryption and decryption) without exposing unencrypted versions of the keys outside of the device, thereby preventing unauthorized disclosure of such keys. HSM devices sometimes take the form of a plug-in card or an external device that attaches directly to another computing device.


An ant sculpture is formed by removing a block of nutritious gel having with a network of ant tunnels from a formicarium container; placing the block in an p.v.c bag that serves as a release liner; and stuffing the bag containing the gel block back into the container. The tunnel network is then filled with a transparent epoxy resin which is permitted to harden in the tunnel network; the bag containing the gel body with set epoxy removed from the container and, the gel is then separated so that the hardened epoxy forms an ant sculpture replicating the network of ant tunnels. The epoxy resin is Bisphenol A epoxy resin.

It is prior art to make ant sculptures by casting materials in ant tunnels. An article by Petty in "Tunnel Vision", January-March 1999 edition (www.aragriculture.org/news/tvision.html/1999/) teaches filling ant tunnels with either molten wax or lead involving the steps of locating a fire ant mound in the field; flaking off a 1-2 inch area at the top to expose five tunnels; pouring the melt into respective tunnels until filled or until a cast estimated to be of desired size is reached; permitting the melt to cool and set; carefully digging up the cast and surrounding it in a bucket of warm soapy water for at least one hour for wax, or fifteen minutes for lead and, gently washing the cast to remove the soil (and ants) from between the tunnels. Grass and other foreign material need to be removed subsequently (with pliers from lead).
Furthermore, Petty teaches that, with wax, the cast temperature must be maintained above 80 degrees to avoid brittleness and risk of damage.
Using lead requires melting the lead on site in a lidded cast iron pot using a fierce heating source such as a propane burner. Because of weight, the molten lead needs to be transferred to a smaller pot with a pouring lip or ladle, and poured carefully as a steady stream.
Clearly, the above steps are time consuming and careful handling techniques need to be performed in the field in the presence of biting ants—donning protective latex gloves lined with talc is suggested by Petty—added to the other disadvantages of either sculpture fragility (wax) or high weight and, a sculpture of somewhat unpredictable size.
Separately, casting with dental plaster has also been proposed in the prior art.
It is also widely known to keep ants in formicarium-transparent walled containers filled with transparent, (clear or colored), ant-nutritious gel medium as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,803,014 issued in 1998 to Guri, providing the distinct practical advantages that the ants do not require any other food or water and can be seen in their tunnels throughout the medium.
However, clearly, casting materials significantly above ambient temperature cannot be poured into agar gel without destroying or significantly damaging the agar gel while an attempt to use dental plaster was not successful, apparently because the plaster did not dry and harden sufficiently to avoid collapse when attempting to separate the casting from the gel.


A steering assembly for a boat has a steering wheel, a mounting means to which the steering wheel is attached, and attachment means to attach the mounting means to the boat, the mounting means being movable between a use position where the mounting means generally extends partially across the inside of the boat, and an away position where the mounting means has been moved generally against or more towards the hull of the boat.

In the recreational boating industry, there are generally three types of powerboats being small boats (length 6-10 feet) medium-sized boats, and the large boats (which often made of fibreglass and have sleeping quarters, multiple levels etc).
Most of the small boats contain an outboard motor attached to the rear of the boat and a steering arm which is also at the rear of the boat. The boat can be steered by pushing or pulling the steering arm.
Many of the medium-sized boats have a more sophisticated steering arrangement which comprises a steering wheel mounted to some form of mounting means (such as a dashboard). The steering wheel is mounted such that the person operating the steering wheel faces forwardly and towards the prow of the boat. As a consequence, the steering wheel extends into the boat space and can take up a reasonable amount of boat space. These boats are manufactured from fibreglass, composite materials, metal (typically aluminum and steel) and the like.
Many recreational boats are used for fishing and when a desired fishing spot is obtained, the boat is anchored and the steering wheel is not required. There are, of course, many other times when the boat is anchored and the steering wheel is not required.
However, it is generally not possible, convenient and may even be quite dangerous to simply unbolt or remove the steering wheel and to store the steering wheel when not required. There would be in advantage if it were possible to move the steering wheel into an out of the way position without needing to unbolt the steering wheel.
It is known to provide a steering wheel mounted to a substantially vertical column and where the base of the column is pivotally mounted about a horizontal axis so that the column can pivot from one side of the boat to another side of the boat. This allows a person to either stand behind the steering wheel when the steering wheel is upright or sit on one side of the boat when the steering wheel is pivoted to that side or sit on the other side of the boat when the steering wheel is pivoted to the other side. French patent 2771997, and French patent 2869587 illustrate this design. This design however does not allow the steering wheel assembly to swing away to one side of the boat such that the inside of the boat is substantially free from any encumbrance from the steering wheel. In the French patent document, the steering wheel will still be in the way no matter where it is positioned.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,629,356 (1951) describes a steering wheel assembly mounted in the front of the boat and on a pair of horizontal spaced parallel rails. The rails extend transversely across the boat. The steering wheel can be slid anywhere along the rails and then locked into position. This design does not allow the steering wheel assembly to swing away to one side of the boat. Thus, the steering wheel will still be in the way no matter where it is positioned on the rails.
None of the above disclosures describe any cushioning ability should a person be thrown against a steering wheel (for instance in rough seas).
Misuse of boats or boat theft is also an issue, and security measures should be taken to secure a boat against theft or misuse. Various types of locking arrangements are known to lock the steering wheel or various parts or components of the boat such that the boat cannot be used. There would be an advantage if a better form of security arrangement could be provided.
With the smaller and mid sized boats which contain a steering wheel or something similar, the positioning of the steering wheel in front of the person means that the person can often strike the steering wheel or boat controls next to the steering wheel, especially if the boat is suddenly rocked by a wave. This can cause bruising to the person and possibly damage to the steering mechanism. There would be an advantage if some form of steering mechanism could be provided which may reduce possible bruising or damage to the steering mechanism.

Swing away steering wheel assembly for a boat


A transfer residual toner that has not been electrostatically transferred onto a transfer paper P at a transfer nip and remains on a surface of a photosensitive element is temporarily retained by an elastic blade of a toner retaining unit in a mechanical manner before reaching a latent image forming area. When passing through the latent image forming area, the transfer residual toner is returned onto the surface of the photosensitive member at such a timing that writing is not performed by an exposing unit on the surface of the photosensitive element.

1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus without a cleaning system, a process cartridge, a cleaning system, and an image forming apparatus that includes the cleaning system.
2) Description of the Related Art
An electrostatic transfer scheme is employed in some kinds of image forming apparatuses to transfer a toner image on a latent image carrier to a transferee. In the electrostatic transfer scheme, a transfer electric field is formed between the latent image carrier and the transferee that moves on a surface of the latent image carrier keeping a contact with the surface. In such apparatuses, a transfer residual toner remains on a portion of the surface of the latent image carrier after transferring the toner image. If the latent image carrier is used in a next image forming step with the transfer residual toner left unremoved on the portion, a charge failure, such as a nonuniform charge, occurs on that portion, causing image deterioration. Therefore, conventionally, a cleaning apparatus is provided at a position opposed to the surface of latent image carrier from a transfer area to a charging area to remove the transfer residual toner. Such a cleaning apparatus requires a space for installing a waste toner tank for storing the transfer residual toner collected from the surface of the latent image carrier, a recycle toner conveyor passage for conveying the transfer residual toner for recycling the collected transfer residual toner, and the like. This increases the size of the image forming apparatus.
To get around the problem of increasing the size of the apparatus, an image forming apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 3091323 (hereinafter, a patent document) has been devised, for example. This image forming apparatus adopts a scheme of collecting a transfer residual toner remaining on the surface of the latent image carrier by using a developing device (hereinafter, "developer collecting scheme"). In this developer collecting scheme, the developing device, which is provided for a purpose different from cleaning, is used for collecting a transfer residual toner. Therefore, no waste toner tank or recycle toner conveyer passage as described above is required to be separately provided. Thus, using such a developer collecting scheme can contribute to downsizing of the image forming apparatus.
Also, the patent document describes an example in which a charging device included in the image forming apparatus using the developer collecting scheme performs charging by making a charging roller in contact with the latent image carrier. Conventionally known schemes of uniformly charging the surface of the latent image carrier include a contact/proximity charging scheme in which the surface is uniformly charged by making a charging member, such as a charging roller, in contact with the surface, and a charger charging scheme for uniform charging with a corona charger. However, in the charger charging scheme, to cause the surface of the latent image carrier to have a desired potential, a large amount of discharge has to be generated. Therefore, a large amount of discharge products, such as ozone or nitrogen oxide, are generated, thereby causing a possible environmental problem. On the other hand, in the contact/proximity charging scheme, the amount of discharge is small compared with that in the charger charging scheme, and therefore this scheme is advantageous in view of environment. Therefore, according to the image forming apparatus disclosed in the example described above, the size of the apparatus can be made small, and also the amount of discharge products is small, thereby achieving a possible advantageous effect in view of environment.
However, in an image forming apparatus using both of the charger collecting scheme and the contact/proximity charging scheme, when the transfer residual toner on the latent image carrier is conveyed to a developing area, the transfer residual toner and the charging member may come in contact with or be proximity to each other. Therefore, the transfer residual toner may adhere to the charging member. The transfer residual toner adhering to the charging member may prevent uniform charging, thereby making it impossible to cause the surface potential of the latent image carrier at a desired potential and causing an insufficient charge, such as uneven charge. As a result, degradation in image density and background stain occur, thereby causing a problem of degradation in image quality. This problem does not restrictively occur when the developer collecting scheme is adopted, but also occurs as long as the apparatus has a structure in which a transfer residual toner is left unremoved from the latent image carrier and is conveyed to an area in contact with the charging member.
The Inventors have suggested the following apparatus (hereinafter, a first image forming apparatus) as an image forming apparatus that can solve the problem described above. In the first image forming apparatus, of the transfer residual toner remaining on the surface of the latent image carrier after transfer, a reversely-charged toner having a polarity reverse to a normally-charged toner charged with the same polarity as that of a charging bias is collected by a temporarily-retaining unit, such as a brush member, from the surface of the latent image carrier for retaining. As such, by collecting and retaining the reversely-charged toner, the reversely-charged toner can be prevented from adhering to the charging member. Then, the retained reversely-charged toner is returned to the surface of the latent image carrier at a predetermined timing, such as during a period starting from the completion of formation of an image until formation of the next image. Then, the reversely-charged toner returned on the surface of the latent image carrier is collected by a developing device or is transferred to a transferee or a conveying member for conveying the reversely-charged toner. According to the first image forming apparatus, while the returned reversely-charged toner is passing through the charged area, application of the charging bias is stopped or the charging member is separated from the latent image carrier. Therefore, the reversely-charged toner is prevented from adhering to the charging member.
The Inventors have also suggested the following apparatus (hereinafter, a second image forming apparatus) as an image forming apparatus that can solve the problem described above. In the second image forming apparatus, of the transfer residual toner remaining on the surface of the latent image carrier after transfer, a transfer residual toner having a polarity reverse to the polarity of a charging bias is collected and retained by a temporarily-retaining unit, such as a fur brush, from the surface of the latent image carrier for retaining. As such, by collecting and retaining the transfer residual toner having a polarity reverse to the polarity of the charging bias, the transfer residual toner can be prevented from adhering to the charging member. Then, the retained transfer residual toner having a polarity reverse to the polarity of the charging bias is returned to the surface of the latent image carrier at a predetermined timing, such as during a period starting from the completion of formation of an image until formation of the next image. Then, the transfer residual toner returned on the surface of the latent image carrier is collected by a developing device or is transferred to a transferee or a conveying member for conveying the transfer residual toner. According to the second image forming apparatus, while the returned toner is passing through the charged area, application of the charging bias is stopped or the charging member is separated from the latent image carrier. Therefore, the transfer residual toner having a polarity reverse to the polarity of the charging bias is prevented from adhering to the charging member.
However, in the first image forming apparatus, a normally-charged toner of the transfer residual toner is not collected by the temporarily-retaining unit, such as a brush member. Therefore, the normally-charged toner may pass through an area opposed to the latent image forming unit (hereinafter, a latent image forming area) during the step of forming of the next image to be collected by the developing device or be transferred to the transferee. Therefore, with the normally-charged toner adhering to the surface of the latent image carrier, a latent image is formed by the latent image forming unit on the surface of the latent image carrier. Thus, a portion where the toner adheres and a portion shadowed by the toner are not exposed, thereby posing a problem of occurrence of white dots on a solid image portion.
Similarly, in the second image forming apparatus, a toner having the same polarity as the polarity of the charging bias is not collected by the temporarily-retaining unit, such as a fur brush. Therefore, the uncollected toner may pass through the latent image forming area during the step of forming of the next image to be collected by the developing device or be transferred to the transferee. Therefore, with the transfer residual toner adhering to the surface of the latent image carrier, a latent image is formed by the latent image forming unit on the surface of the latent image carrier. Thus, a portion where the toner adheres and a portion shadowed by the toner are not exposed, thereby posing a problem of occurrence of white dots on a solid image portion.

Image processing apparatus, process cartridge, and cleaning system with residual toner retaining unit


Intermodulation products in the amplifier circuitry of a communications device are cancelled. A primary carrier is processed in a first main branch of amplifier circuit. The primary carrier is coupled to a secondary branch through a first signal splitters. Intermodulation products are created from a portion of the primary carrier coupled through the secondary branch. The intermodulation products are then coupled back into the main branch to produce an output signal provided to a transmitter.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to communications. More particularly, the present invention relates to amplifier circuitry used in communications systems.
2. Description of the Related Art
In communications, intermodulation products may be generated when processing fundamental frequencies through the amplifier circuitry of a transmission system. See FIG. 1. If not suppressed, then these intermodulation products can cause interference and distortion in the transmitted signal.
There are several existing methods of suppressing intermodulation products, such as filtering, reducing the operating efficiencies of the power amplifier, and feed-forward control systems. Each of these methods has disadvantages. Filtering in some systems, such as an EDGE modulation system, cannot easily remove third order intermodulation products (IM3) because IM3 products are very close to the primary carrier of the intended signal(s). Reducing operating efficiencies of the amplifier prevents growth of intermodulation products, but results in less amplification at a particular stage and generates more heat to be dissipated into the surrounding system.
FIG. 2 illustrates a prior art single loop feed-forward control circuit that uses a reverse diode configuration in the feedback path. The idea is to reproduce the portion of the signal clipped by the amplifier when operating at or near compression by using the reverse diode circuit. The replicated signal can then be reinserted back into the main path to pump up the primary carrier, which makes the intermodulation products look smaller. The feedback configuration will not work unless the amplifier is operating near compression. In other words, it has no effect on intermodulation products when the signal is backed away from compression. In addition, the configuration disadvantageously requires a delay line in the feedback path.
A dual loop feed-forward control circuit has a first loop which acts to null the primary carrier(s) by comparing a delayed version of the primary carrier(s) against a phase adjusted, amplified version of the primary carrier(s) having intermodulation components. See FIG. 3. The intermodulation products resulting from the comparison are delivered to the second loop. The amplitude and phase of those intermodulation products are adjusted and inserted back into the main path with a delayed version of the primary carrier in such a way as to suppress (cancel or reduce) the main amplifier's intermodulation products.
A dual loop feedback system may suppress intermodulation products, but the delay lines and multiple couplers required to align, sample and merge signals decreases the efficiency and significantly increases the size. The delay lines must be large if large bandwidths are required (>1 MHz). Efficiency of the circuit is important, but in next generation multicarrier systems, circuit size is also important.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Intermodulation product cancellation in communications


A telephone book data processor includes: a connection element for connecting to an external device via a short range communication manner to transfer a telephone book data; a telephone book data obtaining element for obtaining the telephone book data; a memory having multiple memory regions for storing the telephone book data; and a controller for executing a telephone book data transfer process and a telephone book data utilizing process. The controller defines one memory region as an object of the telephone book data transfer process and another memory region as an object of the telephone book data utilizing process. The controller executes the telephone book data utilizing process with using the telephone book data in the another memory region while the controller executes the telephone book data transfer process for storing a new telephone book data in the one memory region.

JP-A-2003-198713 (corresponding to US Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0114202) teaches the following technique. When a user brings a cell phone having a short range wireless communication function in a compartment of a vehicle, the cell phone is capable of communicating with an in-vehicle device having a short range wireless communication function. In this case, the user can browse telephone book data stored in the cell phone when the user operates the in-vehicle device. A telephone book data transfer protocol is established between the cell phone and the in-vehicle device. The telephone book data transfer protocol defines a transfer method of the telephone book data. In the above manner, the telephone book data stored in the cell phone is transferred to the in-vehicle device.
Here, the in-vehicle device executes a telephone book data transfer process for obtaining the telephone book data transferred from the cell phone and storing the data. When the in-vehicle device executes the telephone book data transfer process, the in-vehicle device can not execute a telephone book data utilizing process for utilizing the telephone book data. Accordingly, when the telephone data is transferred from the cell phone to the in-vehicle device, the user can not browse the telephone book data, and the user can not make a phone call with using the telephone book data. Further, the user can not recognize information about an incoming caller with using the telephone book data even when the cell phone receives an incoming call. The information about the incoming caller includes, for example, a name of the incoming caller. Thus, operability of a system of the in-vehicle device and the cell phone is low.


A ladder which is particularly useful as a boat ladder is constructed with a pair of centrally located side-by-side elongated support members which are movable lengthwise, to a limited degree, with respect to one another. The ladder rungs are pivotally attached to the support members such that when one support member is moved lengthwise the rungs are swung to extend outward from the support members for use as a stepping ladder and swung inward to be in line with the support members to make the ladder compact for storage. The ladder is pivotably engageable with a storage compartment in a boat hull for swinging the ladder downward for use from an opening in the compartment and upward in line with the opening for insertion into the compartment for storage.

This invention is in the field of ladders which hang down from a supporting structure. More specifically, the invention is directed to a boat ladder which can be compacted for convenient storage when not in use. In one embodiment the ladder is stored in a storage compartment in the boat hull.
Conventionally ladders which hang down from a supporting structure, such as boat ladders, have parallel outer elongated rigid support members with longitudinally spaced rungs or steps attached between the support members. For use, a ladder of this type is coupled to a support structure with some type of hook arrangement. When not in use the ladder has to be stored. Usually and often, in the case of a boat ladder, it is laid on the deck or alongside the deck rail or perhaps placed in a small closet after the ladder has been raised out of the water. Copending application by Garelick, et al. Serial No. 10/367,157 filed Feb. 19, 2003 titled COMPACTABLE LADDER FOR A BOAT describes a boat ladder which has an elongated rigid support member in the shape of an I-beam with pivotally attached rungs which can be swung out from the support member for use to provide steps or swing-inward for storage into the I-beam channel. In the storage condition the ladder can be stored in a storage compartment formed in a boat hull.
A pair of elongated rigid support members, rest side by side, each support member having an interior space to accommodate longitudinally spaced ladder rungs. Each rung is pivotally attached to both support members and the support members are lengthwise movable with respect to one another over a short distance. When one of the support members is moved lengthwise in a first direction to a first or storage position the rungs are pivotally swung into the support member interior spaces so that they are in line with the support members to form a compact package for convenient storage. When the one support member is moved lengthwise with respect to the other in the reverse direction to a second or use position, the rungs are pivotally swung to extend outward at right angles from the support members to be used in their conventional fashion as ladder steps. In the second or use position the support members may be coupled to or may engage a releasable lock mechanism which prevents the support members from moving longitudinally with respect to one another to ensure that the ladder stays in the use position. If desired, the ladder may also be releasably locked in the storage position.
In a particular embodiment when not in use the ladder is stored in a tubular compartment formed in a boat hull below the deck of the boat. For use, the compacted ladder is slid out of the compartment through an access opening and extends downward from the compartment into the water.


According to one embodiment, a method includes: receiving an incoming phone call on a mobile phone device, determining a phone number from which the incoming phone call originated, accessing a remote site for determining a name associated with the phone number, accessing the remote site for determining additional information associated with the phone number, and outputting the name and additional information associated with phone number from which the incoming phone call originated on the mobile phone device. Other methods, systems, and computer program products for determining a name associated with an incoming phone call are also described.

Current mobile phone devices, such as mobile phones, Blackberry® devices, PALM® devices, etc., have the ability to identify incoming phone calls based on the originating phone number, as long as the originating phone number has an associated phonebook entry on the mobile phone device. However, if an incoming phone call originates from a phone number that is not associated with a phonebook entry on the mobile phone device, the mobile phone device shows only the originating phone number. This makes it difficult for the mobile phone device user to determine who might be calling.
Therefore, it would be beneficial for the mobile phone device to be able to determine, based on the originating phone number, a name associated with the originating phone number even when there is no associated phone book entry on the mobile phone device.

Identifying caller name for output on mobile phone devices


A method for remotely diagnosing copy quality defects. The image scanner on a system reprographics machine, or other digital copier, is used to scan a document that has a copy quality defect. Information about the problem, which may include the scanned image itself as well as machine related parameters resident in non-volatile memory, is then transmitted to a host computer that can diagnose the problem. The diagnosis and instructions for correcting the defect are thereupon given either to a service representative or transmitted back to the user, who can then correct the problem. In some instances, the problem can be fixed remotely by adjusting non-volatile memory values using the Remote Interactive Communications (RIC) network or other similar communications network between the host computer and the defective system reprographic machine.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method for remotely diagnosing copy quality defects in system reprographic machines or other digital copiers.
2. Description of Related Art
In system reprographic machines, or digital copiers in general, a document or series of documents comprising at least one print job are successively scanned. Upon scanning of the documents, image signals are obtained and electronically stored. The signals are then read out successively and transferred to a printer for formation of the images on paper. Once a document is scanned, it can be printed any number of times or processed in any number of ways (e.g., words deleted or added, image magnified or reduced). If a plurality of documents comprise a job that is scanned, the processing or manipulation of the scanned documents can include deletion of one or more documents, reordering of the documents into a desired order, or the addition of a previously or subsequently scanned document. The printing or processing can be relatively synchronous with scanning or asynchronous after scanning.
If asynchronous, a time interval exists between scanning and printing or processing. The system can then accumulate a number of scanned jobs in the system memory for subsequent processing or printing. The order of the jobs to be printed may be different from the order of the jobs as scanned depending on the priority of the jobs and the desires of the operator for increasing productivity or throughput and decreasing printer or scanner down time.
However, even system reprographic machines need occasional alignment or correction of copier components. Further, mechanical problems in paper handling (i.e., skew, delayed feed and the like) as well as incorrect placement of transparencies can also adversely affect copy quality. Copy quality variation both within a reproduction machine and within a machine population is a major concern. Known methods of correction or calibration require extensive operator interaction or they provide inadequate correction.
Over time and through extended use, the subsystems of a system reprographic machine gradually wear, become contaminated, or slip out of adjustment. Because so many of the subsystems, for example, the printer and illumination subsystems are interrelated and dependent upon each other, errors or degradation of any of these components affects the operation and quality of the other components, usually propagating the errors. Due to this interrelationship, it is often difficult to determine the root cause of a copy quality error or to isolate one subsystem's error from errors affecting other components.
Typically, most copy quality problems can only be resolved by a trained service representative. The service representative is called and must invariably travel to the customer's location, inspect the defect(s) in copy quality and then make adjustments to the customer's machine. For more difficult problems, the service representative may have to consult with other experts to finally diagnose the problem.
There are several disadvantages to the typical telephonic service call initiated by the operator at the machine location. First, it is unlikely that the service representative will know the cause of the problem before arriving at the customer's location, which means that it is possible that the service representative will not have the proper parts to correct the problem. Second, the amount of training and experience necessary to make a correct diagnosis on the first attempt, is considerable (and expensive). Finally, difficult problems may require considerable time to diagnose and repair, particularly if engineering must be consulted, which contributes to customer dissatisfaction.
Recently, however, systems for monitoring the operation of a plurality of reprographic machines from a remote source by use of a powerful host computer having advanced, high level diagnostic capabilities have been developed. These systems have the capability to interact remotely with the machines being monitored to receive automatically initiated or user initiated requests for diagnosis and to interact with the requesting machine to receive stored data to enable higher level diagnostic analysis. Such systems are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,038,319 and 5,057,866 (the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference), owned by the assignee of the present invention. These systems employ Remote Interactive Communications (RIC) to enable transfer of selected machine operating data (referred to as machine physical data) to the remote site at which the host computer is located, through a suitable communication channel. The machine physical data may be transmitted from a monitored document system to the remote site automatically at predetermined times and/or in response to a specific request from the host computer. Machine physical data may also be transmitted upon operator instruction or when a problem severity threshold is reached.
In a typical RIC system, the host computer is linked by a public switched telephone system or a combination of public and dedicated systems to local reprographic machines via modems. The host computer may include a compiler to allow communication with a plurality of different types of machines and an expert diagnostic system that performs higher level analysis of the machines physical data than is available from the diagnostic system in the machine. After analysis, the expert system can provide an instruction method which can be used by the machine operator at the site of the document system to overcome a fault. Alternatively, if the expert system determines that more serious repair is necessary or a preventive repair is desirable, a message is sent to a local field work office giving the identity of the machine and an identification of the type of service action required.
Importantly, however, such expert systems, resident in a remote host diagnostic computer and accessed via RIC, have never been used to diagnose and correct copy quality defects. Thus, there is need of a method for remotely diagnosing copy quality defects in system reprographic machines and digital copiers.

Remote diagnosis of copy quality defects


A pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet for steel plates, which comprises a backing and a resin layer, wherein the backing comprises a resin-coated glass cloth obtainable by coating a glass cloth with a resin emulsion (A) followed by coating with a resin emulsion (B) which is different from the resin emulsion (A).

Heretofore, in order to reduce automobile body weight, a steel plate for automobile body is generally processed to a thin plate of 0.6 to 0.8 mm thick. Therefore, it is known that the body steel plate is attempted to be reinforced by sticking a steel plate-reinforcing sheet onto inner side of the steel plate.
Such steel plate-reinforcing sheet is, for example, stuck during an assembly step of the body steel plate and then heated to foam with the heat supplied during elecrodeposition coating to achieve reinforcement. For example, there is proposed a steel plate-reinforcing sheet wherein a foaming resin layer is laminated onto a backing (for example, cf. JP-A-7-68695).
Moreover, since the body steel plate is a thin plate, a vibration sound generates while moving and noise may be generated at door opening and closure. Therefore, in order to prevent the generation of these vibration sound and noise, there is proposed a damping sheet wherein a rubber composition is laminated onto a backing (for example, cf. JP-A-9-123356).

Pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet for steel plates


A method and apparatus for enhancing the weldment of a laser welding system is provided. The laser weld plume control device includes a cylindrical body defining an upside-down cone cavity; the upper surface of the body circumscribes the base of the cone cavity, and the vertex of the cone cavity forms an orifice concentrically located with respect to the laser beam and the plume which forms as a result of the welding operation. According to the method of the invention, gas is directed radially inward through inlets in the upper surface of the body into and through channels in the wall of the body and finally through the orifice of the body, and downward onto the surface of the weldment. The gas flow is then converted by the orifice of the device from radial flow to an axisymmetric gas jet flowing away from the weldment surface in a direction perpendicular to the surface and opposite to that of the laser.

During laser-beam welding, significant evaporation of metallic components occurs at the laser beam flux used during welding. When these vapors condense and solidify forming very small particles, some of these particles can be expected to settle on the welded part. The plume which develops and the resulting plume deposits are undesirable with respect to performance considerations, particulate contamination, and for cosmetic reasons. The presence of particulate contamination in electronic assemblies is a very serious problem. In addition, the resulting plume created can interact with the laser beam so as to alter the coupling of the laser beam energy to the metal. If the plume can be eliminated or altered by a gas flow, then control of the thermal characteristics of the process can be improved.
It has been demonstrated that the laser plume and accompanying weld geometry can be altered by impinging a transverse flow of gas near the base of the laser plume. Use of the transverse flow of gas during laser welding has been observed to reduce weld porosity. Such approaches in an attempt to control the laser plume do not eliminate the plume but merely divert the plume to one side and thus change the plume geometry. While affecting the laser weld geometry, use of the transverse flow of gas generally results in an undesirable deposit of condensed particles at the downstream side of the weld.

Method and device for controlling plume during laser welding


The invention relates to methods for producing a polymeric scaffold for use in tissue engineering applications or soft tissue surgery, as well as to the produced scaffolds and an associated kit. The method features a first fast drying step of applying a mechanical compression on a polymeric gel layer and a second slow drying step of the gel up to reach a polymer mass fraction of at least 60% w/w in the final scaffold. The method allows the production of scaffolds with high regeneration and healing properties of a grafted tissue via host cell invasion and colonization, and a good suturability. These goals are achieved through the formation within the scaffold of a non-uniform architecture creating softer and stiffer areas, which is maintained even upon re-swelling of the scaffold upon hydration of the final dried product.

Collagen is one of the first natural polymers used as a biomaterial. Being the most abundant structural extracellular matrix protein in the human body, it is therefore widely used as a scaffold component for tissue engineering applications, and considered among the first choices for natural scaffold materials.
Collagen gels are formed by a process called fibrillogenesis. Fibrillogenesis starts when a diluted acidic collagen solution is adjusted in vitro to physiological pH and temperature (Gross and Kirk, J. Bio. Chem 233 (1958): 355-360). Collagen gels are interesting as scaffolds due to their good biocompatibility, their low immunogenicity and their easy of remodelling by cells. However, the large excess of fluid entrapped between the collagen fibers render them inherently weak and thus difficult to manipulate. Several strategies were proposed to obtain collagen scaffolds having improved mechanical properties. The simple culturing of cells within collagen gels results in the expulsion of some of the interstitial fluid by gel contraction, but cell compaction is a not an easily controllable process and the increase in collagen density is linked to a reduction of the scaffold surface (i.e. scaffold shrinkage). Cross-linking of the collagen fibers enhances the mechanical properties of collagen scaffolds without changing the scaffold surface. Physical, chemical and biological collagen cross-linking methods are well reported in literature (Paul and Bailey, The Scientific World Journal 3 (2003): 138-155). One option is the lyophilization (freeze-drying) of an aqueous collagen solution followed by chemical cross-linking (EP1561480). Another possibility is freeze-drying of a collagen gel followed by thermal dehydration cross-linking (EP1098024).
The most common aldehyde cross-linking agent is glutaraldehyde. However its use for medical applications is questioned due to its cytotoxicity. Several chemical cross-linking agents have been identified that achieve comparable cross-linking levels to that of glutaraldehyde while improving the cytocompatibility (i.e. diphenylphosphoryl azide, 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)carbodiimide, genipin) (Petite H. et al., Biomaterials 16 (1995): 1003-1008).
Another method to produce collagen gels with enhanced mechanical properties consists of applying plastic compression. During the process of plastic compression, the interstitial liquid is expelled from a collagen gel and does not return on removal of the load. This simple, fast, controllable, and cell-friendly process to engineer collagen matrices with suitable mechanical properties for soft tissue engineering was described in detail by Brown and colleagues (WO 2006/003442; WO 2012/004564; Abou Neel E. A. et al., Soft Matter 2 (2006): 986-992; Brown R. A. et al., Adv Funct Mater 15 (2005): 1762-1770). Furthermore, collagen hybrid structures have been reported where a synthetic polymer component provided the mechanical support (Kawazoe N. et al., Biotechnol Prog 26 (2010): 819-826; Lu H. et al., Sci Technol Adv Mater 13 (2012)). However, this approach decreases the biocompatibility of the matrix.
Most scaffold design strategies aim to mimic the mechanical properties of the native tissue as much as possible while also providing a scaffold that is easy to handle and suturable. The following suturable collagen matrices were reported in literature: collagen sponge or collagen/glycosaminoglycan sponge crosslinked with collagen gel (U.S. Pat. No. 5,567,806), double layered collagen matrix resulting from a casting, freeze-drying, and lyophilisation procedure where the collagen layers differ in density (WO 2007/082295), and a high density freeze-dried collagen matrix (WO 2000/029484).
Furthermore it is well known that the mechanical properties of a scaffold influences cell behaviour. Myogenesis is best achieved on collagen scaffolds that are moderately stiff (Engler A. J. et al., J Cell Biology 166 (2004): 877-887) while osteogenesis is achieved on stiff collagen scaffolds (Huebsch N. et al., Nat Matter 9 (2010): 518-526). Researchers can change mechanical properties of collagen hydrogels by varying collagen concentration and using different cross-linking methods. However, these scaffolds are uniform matrices and a soft collagen scaffold showing excellent cell behaviour in term of proliferation and differentiation might not be suitable for a clinical application (i.e. not suturable, difficult to handle).

Non-uniformly stiff polymeric scaffolds and methods for producing thereof


A system and method for improving modularity of a software source code is provided. The system comprises of a user interface for receiving source code; a source code model extractor for parsing and forming a model of the source code; a source code model database for storing the source code model, refactoring operators, and a record of refactoring changes; a modularity improvement analyzer for reading the source code model and modularity problem diagnosis data and generating a set of prescriptions; an optimal improvement suggestion selector for evaluating and selecting prescriptions; and a refactoring engine for receiving selected prescriptions and applying them on the source code.

The present invention relates generally to system and method for improving quality of large legacy software systems and more specifically to provide prescriptive suggestions for improving modularity of a software system.
Large software systems are generally developed systematically using structured development methodology. Amongst various aspects employed during development of software systems, one common aspect is to arrange entire software into multiple logical modules. Modules are logical grouping of software code, functions and related data structures that collectively perform a specific task or service.
Even though modular design guidelines are easy to implement at the start of a new project, however, design guidelines are grossly violated as software evolves. Also, when numerous programmers are involved with the process of editing or writing a code for a single application, one programmer may be required to edit unfamiliar code that was drafted by another. Due to programmer's unfamiliarity with a code, coding errors in the unfamiliar code may not be easily recognized. Thus, there exist many significant applications in business and commerce world with millions of lines of code that is difficult to maintain due to outsized violation of modular design principles.
Organizations maintaining large software systems spend considerable amount of time, effort, and money in running these systems. Further, considerable amount of abovementioned resources are wasted if there is a need to modify a specific module or enhance the system.
Conventional tools may help in understanding a program flow and in assessing impact on a software system if a change in software is performed. However, by observing certain tacit indicators such as overall difficulty in understanding a module or amount of time required for a minor change etc. one can infer that there is a need for an improved method and system. Moreover, the conventional tools are not adequate enough to identify which specific modules, functions, and data structures of the software system/application are causing deterioration and what steps should be taken to improve modularity of a software system.
In addition, improving modularity of a software system is a challenging and time consuming task requiring skills of a domain expert. Further, manual remedies provided by conventional tools may not be time efficient and may also be prone to human errors. Furthermore, due to multiple environments from where data is fetched there is always a need of highly skilled resource to assess the readiness and effort required for improving modularity. The problem is exacerbated by the fact that the original authors of the code are often not available and the huge code base exists with little or no documentation. Moreover, the cost and efforts involved in procuring such resources for different environment makes the entire process arduous and infeasible.
Consequently, there is a need for an efficient system and method for assessing and improving the modularity of a software system. Further, there is a need for system and method to prevent further degradation of modularity when a software system is being developed. Furthermore, there is a need for a software tool that recommends prescriptions/remedies and evaluates its effect on modularity without actually implementing the changes in the software system.

System and method for improving modularity of large legacy software systems


A method and system to determine a battery mode of an integrated circuit device are presented. The battery mode is selected with respect to first and second direct current to direct current converter devices within the integrated circuit. A voltage is received at a single pin of the device. A battery mode is determined for the device based on the received voltage, and at least one of the direct current to direct current converter circuits is configured based on the determined battery mode.

Portable devices may use a battery to provide a voltage to the device components, including components within an integrated circuit. In some cases, it is desirable to modify the voltage provided by the battery in order to provide a system voltage for the device components of the integrated circuit. However, different portable devices use different battery types and configurations. For example, some portable devices use lithium batteries, while others incorporate alkaline or series AA types of battery configurations. Each type of battery may provide a different output voltage to an integrated circuit.
Accordingly, there is a need for a system and method to allow an integrated circuit to be coupled to a variety of battery types and configurations.

System and method for configuring direct current converter


A print apparatus includes a print unit that records a print pattern with a thermal head and a ribbon film, the ribbon film having a base film on which transfer-material areas and margin areas including cue marks are arranged; a cue-mark detector that detects the cue marks; a ribbon-moving mechanism that moves the ribbon film on which the transfer-material areas and the cue marks are arranged such that L1<L2 is satisfied, where L1 is a distance between the leading edge of each transfer-material area and the corresponding cue mark and L2 is a distance between a transfer position and a cue-mark detection position; and a ribbon movement controller that monitors the cue-mark detection and moves the ribbon film backward by a distance corresponding to the difference between the distances L1 and L2, thereby positioning the ribbon film with respect to a print start position.

1. Field of the Invention
An embodiment of the present invention relates to a print apparatus including a thermal head. Another embodiment of the present invention relates to a ribbon movement control device for positioning a transfer-material area of a ribbon film at a print start position. Another embodiment of the present invention relates to a ribbon movement control method and a program that realize a function of positioning a ribbon film with respect to a print start position by rewinding the ribbon film after detection of a cue mark.
In addition, another embodiment of the present invention relates to a ribbon film suitable for a method of positioning the ribbon film with respect to a print start position by rewinding the ribbon film after detection of a cue mark.
2. Description of the Related Art
A dye-sublimation method, a melting method, and a thermosensitive method are known as printing methods used in thermal printers.
A typical thermal printer includes a line thermal head having a plurality of heating elements (resistance elements) arranged in a print width direction. The amounts of heat generated by the heating elements can be controlled individually in accordance with grayscale levels, and a plurality of dots with different grayscale levels can be recorded on a recording sheet (recording medium). In, for example, the dye-sublimation method, the amounts of heat generated by the heating elements are individually controlled while an ink ribbon is placed between the thermal head and the recording sheet, so that grayscale information is recorded on the recording sheet.
The ink ribbon is usually wound around a feed reel and a take-up reel when the ink ribbon is used. As printing proceeds, the ink ribbon is pulled out from the feed reel and is wound around the take-up reel. The ink ribbon includes a base film on which transfer-material areas formed of dye-containing material (e.g. an ink layer), thermo-compressive material (e.g. a laminate film), etc., are arranged in a longitudinal direction of the ink ribbon.
For example, yellow ink (Y), magenta ink (M), cyan ink (C), and laminate film (L) are arranged in that order.
In addition, a cue mark is formed near the leading edge of each transfer-material area on the ink ribbon. In, for example, an ink ribbon for color printing, the cue mark is used for cueing in an operation of successively transferring different colors of ink on a recording sheet.
The cue mark is, for example, a black, bar-like pattern that extends across the base film and is optically detected by a mark detection sensor positioned downstream of the thermal head.
Normally, a distance L1 between each cue mark and the leading edge of the corresponding transfer-material area is set to be equal to a distance L2 between the mark detection sensor and the thermal head. Therefore, the leading edge of the transfer-material area reaches a position directly under the thermal head (that is, a print start position) at the time when the cue mark is detected by the mark detection sensor.
FIG. 1 shows the structure of a known ink ribbon. The ink ribbon shown in FIG. 1 is can be used for performing superimposed printing using three colors of ink and covering the printed area with a laminate film.
As shown in FIG. 1, each cue mark 1 and a transfer-material area 3 corresponding to the cue mark 1 are separated from each other by a distance L1. In addition, a margin area 5 that does not contribute to printing is disposed between the adjacent transfer-material areas 3. Each cue mark 1 is positioned at the leading edge of the corresponding margin area 5.
The distance L1 is set to be equal to a distance L2 between an attachment position of a mark detection sensor and an attachment position of a thermal head.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2002-292957 discloses an example of a known structure.

Print apparatus, ribbon movement control device, ribbon film, ribbon movement control method, and program