A pipe insulation coupling secures a pipe and adjacent ends of insulation tubing surrounding the pipe to a channel-section track having a pair of inwardly turned flanges. The coupling includes a one-piece elongated cylindrical body having an outer tube wall extending between first and second ends. A planar interior wall disposed midway between the first and second ends extends inwardly from the outer tube wall to a center bore for receiving the pipe therethrough. The planar wall defines opposing first and second channels extending from the planar wall to the first and second ends for receiving the adjacent ends of the insulation tubing therein. A pair of flexible and resilient legs extends between a proximal end fixedly secured to the outer tube wall and a distal end including opposing notches formed therein for selective engagement with the flanges of the track thereby locking the coupling to the track.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a pipe insulation coupling for supporting a pipe along a support structure. More particularly, the invention relates to a pipe insulation coupling having an integrated mounting clamp to support a pipe, which is encased by insulation tubing, along a support structure and an integrated closure mechanism.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventional pipes are used to convey or transfer fluids or gases in various industrial applications, such as sprinkler systems, refrigeration systems, and heating and cooling systems. These pipes are commonly encased in a cellular foam pipe insulation tubing, which maintains the fluids within the pipes at a desired temperature. The pipe insulation tubing is typically provided in predetermined lengths that are aligned end-to-end to cover an entire length of the pipe. It is desirable to interconnect adjacent ends of the pipe insulation tubing along the pipe to increase the insulation characteristics and efficiency of the pipe. The adjacent ends of the pipe insulation tubing are typically interconnected by tape, adhesive or straps. These means for interconnection are, however, susceptible to wear and tear over time. As an alternative, various pipe insulation coupling members have been introduced to provide a secure and long-lasting end-to-end attachment of adjacent pipe insulation tubing lengths along the pipe. An example of one type of pipe insulation coupling is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,315,006 to Opperthauser.
In a typical application, the insulated pipe, that is, the pipe encased by the pipe insulation tubing, is disposed along a support structure, such as a ceiling or wall. The insulated pipe is commonly supported along the ceiling by a plurality of spaced apart clevis hangers. Each clevis hanger typically includes an upper member mounted to the ceiling, and a generally U-shaped lower member for supporting the insulated pipe. The shape of the U-shaped lower member complements that of an outer periphery of an insulated pipe, thereby allowing the U-shaped lower member to retain the insulated pipe therein. An example of this type of clevis hanger is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,219,427 to Harris.
Alternatively, the insulated pipe is commonly supported along the ceiling or wall by lengths of channel-section track secured thereto on which are mounted spaced apart support devices or pipe mounting clamps that are clamped to the insulated pipe. U.S. Pat. No. 5,873,550 to Phillips discloses a support device for securing a pipe to a length of channel-section track. The support device includes a clip for retaining the pipe, and a track-engagement portion connected to the clip. A two-part foot forming the track-engagement portion is inserted into the track and by rotating the support device through 90 degrees it is cammingly engaged with the track. U.S. Pat. No. 3,463,428 to Kindorf et al. discloses a generally U-shaped clamp for securing a pipe to a channel-shaped support of the type having inwardly extending flanges defining a longitudinally extending slot. The clamp includes two metal straps, each strap having at least one notch on each edge of a part insertable in the slot for engagement with opposite flanges. Each strap includes a curved portion projecting away from the flanges to embrace the pipe and adjustable means extending between the ends to draw them together to embrace the pipe.
Many prior art clevis hangers, support devices, and pipe mounting clamps disadvantageously comprise a number of components which must be manipulated and assembled in place. This is made particularly difficult by the fact that often times this must be done while an installer is standing on a ladder holding the insulated pipe to be supported. In addition, these types of clevis hangers, support devices, and clamps are labor intensive, costly and inefficient.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0200936 to Opperthauser discloses a pipe support assembly for securing a pipe and adjacent ends of pipe insulation tubing surrounding the pipe to a support structure. The pipe support assembly includes a clevis hanger assembly that includes coupling slots for receiving and retaining a pipe insulation coupling therein, whereby the pipe insulation coupling maintains adjacent ends of the pipe insulation tubing in an end-to-end relationship along the pipe.
It remains desirable, however, to provide a pipe insulation coupling having an integrated mounting clamp to allow for easily securing the coupling to a length of channel-section track. It is also desirable to provide a pipe insulation coupling having an integrated closure mechanism.

Pipe insulating coupling with integrated mounting clamp and closure mechanism


A car circuit tester that detects circuit is revealed. The car circuit tester is applied to circuit system and devices of cars for selective measurement of voltage and temperature. The car circuit tester includes a main machine, a sensing part, a processor and a screen. The processor is connected to screen circuit and circuit of the sensing part. The sensing part is in direct contact with an object to be detected and used for inputting voltage signals or temperature signals to the processor. After receiving the signals, the processor outputs parameters to the screen. The parameters are shown on or played through the screen.

Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a car circuit or device tester, and more especially to a car tester that not only detects an electric current in circuits but also detects temperature of devices. The data detected is shown on or played through the screen.
Description of Related Arts
Nowadays vehicles have more complicated design, especially the circuit system. Thus circuit test and maintenance are getting more important. There are various test and maintenance devices for troubleshooting and diagnosis of the complicated circuit available on the market.
Refer to US Pat. No. 7,184,899, an electrical test device being adapted to vehicle electrical circuit system for selective measurement of a plurality of parameters is provided. The electrical test device includes a conductive probe element, a power supply, a processor and a display device. The conductive probe element is placed into contact with the electrical system to provide an input signal related to the parameter of the electrical system detected to the processor.
The probe mentioned above can be used only for detecting electrical circuit voltage and the processor thereof controls all of the functions of the electrical test device including test data from the probe, connection to an external power source, overload, etc. Such design puts the processor under heavy load and the processor starts to overhead. Thus the circuit is faulted easily.
Once one of the circuits of the object being detected is overloaded, the wire with the circuit is kept at high temperature. This may cause burning hazard or risk of fire. Moreover, the temperature of some devices needs to be detected during car maintenance and repair such as radiator temperature, fuel tank temperature, etc. Thus users need to use another set of temperature detector for test and diagnosis of temperature problems of the circuit system.
Thus users need to carry two detectors. One is a voltage tester and the other is a temperature detector for safety test of the circuit system.
Thus there is a need to provide a circuit tester that not only detects voltage of the circuit system but also checks whether the temperature of the system is abnormal. Thus the voltage tester and the temperature detector should be integrated into one device and users don't need to carry many test devices. The circuit tester should easy to use, the number of the test devices users need to carry with is minimized and the production cost is reduced.


A method and system for address server redirection for multiple address networks. A primary network address and an address of a secondary network address server are requested by a network device from a primary network address server. The address of the secondary network address server is requested in an option field in a request message sent to the primary network address server to request a primary network address. The request message may be sent through one or more routers. The primary network address is used by a network device to communicate with other network devices on a first network. The secondary network address is used by the network device to communicate with other network devices on a second network. For example, the primary network address may be a private Internet Protocol address or an Internet Protocol version-6 address and the secondary network address may be a public Internet Protocol address or an Internet Protocol version-4 address. The method and system may also allow existing primary network address servers such as Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (xe2x80x9cDHCPxe2x80x9d) servers, and new secondary network address servers, such as Distributed Network Address Translation (xe2x80x9cDNATxe2x80x9d) or Realm Specific Internet Protocol (xe2x80x9cRSIPxe2x80x9d) servers, to be reached via routers without any changes to any existing routers in existing networks. The method and system can be used to acquire virtually any type of primary network addresses and secondary network address from virtually any type of primary network address server or secondary network address servers. The method and system allow multiple types of network addresses for multiple address networks to be allocated.

This invention relates to computer networks. More specifically, it relates to a method and system for address server redirection for multiple network address networks.
The Internet Protocol (xe2x80x9cIPxe2x80x9d) is an addressing protocol designed to facilitate the routing of traffic within a network or between networks. The Internet Protocol is used on many computer networks including the Internet, intranets and other networks. Current versions of Internet Protocol such as Internet Protocol version-4 (xe2x80x9cIPv4xe2x80x9d) are becoming obsolete because of limited address space. With a 32-bit address-field, it is possible to assign 232 different addresses, which is 4,294,967,296, or greater than 4 billion globally unique addresses.
However, with the explosive growth of the Internet and intranets, Internet Protocol addresses using a 32-bit address-field may soon be exhausted. Internet Protocol version-6 (xe2x80x9cIPv6xe2x80x9d) proposes the use of a 128-bit address-field for Internet Protocol addresses. However, a large number of legacy networks including a large number of Internet subnets will still be using older versions for Internet Protocol with a 32-bit address space for many years to come. As is known in the art, a subnet is smaller of part of a larger network using a similar network addressing scheme.
Network Address Translation (xe2x80x9cNATxe2x80x9d) has been proposed to extend the lifetime of Internet Protocol version 4 by allowing subnets with private Internet Protocol addresses to exist behind a single or small number of globally unique Internet Protocol addresses (see e.g., Internet Engineering Task Force (xe2x80x9cIETFxe2x80x9d) RFC 2663, xe2x80x9cIP Network Address Translator (xe2x80x9cNATxe2x80x9d) Terminology and Considerations,xe2x80x9d by P. Srisuresh and M. Holdrege, August 1999). Each private host uses a single global Internet Protocol address is used for communication with external networks such as the Internet.
As is known in the art, the Internet Engineering Task Force (xe2x80x9cIETFxe2x80x9d) has assigned three sets of private Internet Protocol addresses: 10.0.0.0/8, 172.16.0.0/12 and 192.168.0.0/16. The number after the xe2x80x9c/xe2x80x9d indicates a number of bits used as a private network identifier. For example, the xe2x80x9c/8xe2x80x9d indicates that the first eight bits are used as a private network identifier. A network address represented as xe2x80x9cnetwork address/n-network bitsxe2x80x9d indicates that the first n-network bits represent a network identifier. The number of bits remaining represent the number of available host network addresses. For example, if a total of 32 bits are used for a network address (e.g., 32-bits for IPv4 addresses) and a xe2x80x9cnetwork address/8xe2x80x9d notation is used, then 32xe2x88x928=24 bits remain for host network addresses. In this example at most 224 host network addresses are available. Thus, the three sets of private Internet Protocol addresses: 10.0.0.0/8, 172.16.0.0/12 and 192.168.0.0/16 include at most 224, 220, and 216 addresses respectively. A private network may use any of these addresses without consulting any official Internet administrative entity.
Internally, a subnet may use local private addressing. Local private addressing may be any addressing scheme that is different from the public Internet Protocol addressing. The local addresses on a subnet are not available to the external, global Internet. When a device or node using local addressing desires to communicate with the external world, its local address is translated to a common external Internet Protocol address used for communication with an external network by a network address translation device. That is, network address translation allows one or more global Internet Protocol addresses to be shared among a larger number of network devices using local private addresses.
There are several problems associated with using network address translation to extend the life of the Internet Protocol. Network address translation interferes with the end-to-end routing principal of the Internet that recommends that packets flow end-to-end between network devices without changing the contents of any packet along a transmission route (see e.g., xe2x80x9cRouting in the Internet,xe2x80x9d by C. Huitema, Prentice Hall, 1995, ISBN 0-131-321-927).
Current versions of network address translation replace a local network address in a data packet header with an external global network address on outbound traffic, and replace an external global network address in a data packet header with a local private network address on inbound traffic. This type of address translation is computationally expensive, causes security problems by preventing certain types of encryption from being used, or breaks a number of existing applications in a network that cannot coexist with network address translation (e.g., File Transfer Protocol (xe2x80x9cFTPxe2x80x9d)).
Current versions of network address translation may not gracefully scale beyond a small subnet containing a few dozen nodes or devices because of the computational and other resources required. Network address translation potentially requires support for many different application layer internal network protocols be specifically programmed into a translation mechanism such as a network address translation router.
Computational burdens placed on a network address translation router may be significant and degrade network performance, especially if several network address translation-enabled sub-networks share the same network address translation router. In a worst case scenario, a network address translation router translates every inbound and outbound data packet.
Some of the problems associated with network address translation of private network addresses into public network addresses have been overcome with Distributed Network Address Translation (xe2x80x9cDNATxe2x80x9d) described in co-pending applications Ser. No. 09/035,600, 09/270,967 and 09/271,025 assigned to the same Assignee as the present application. See also xe2x80x9cDistributed Network Address Translationxe2x80x9d, by Michael Borella, David Grabelsky, Ikhlaq Sidhu, and Brian Petry, IETF Internet Draft,  less than draft-borella-aatn-dnat-01.txt greater than , October 1998. Distributed Network Address Translation is also called xe2x80x9cRealm Specific Internet Protocolxe2x80x9d (xe2x80x9cRSIPxe2x80x9d) by the IETF. For more information on Realm Specific Internet Protocol see xe2x80x9cRealm Specific IP Framework,xe2x80x9d by M. Borella and J. Lo, IETF draft,  less than draft-ieft-nat-rsip-framework-02.txt greater than , October 1999, and xe2x80x9cRealm Specific IP: Protocol Specification,xe2x80x9d by M. Borella and J. Lo, IETF draft,  less than draft-ietf-nat-rsip-protocol-02.txt greater than , August 1999.
For the Distributed Network Address Translation methods described in the co-pending applications, network devices request a set of locally unique ports with a Distributed Network Address Translation Protocol called a xe2x80x9cPort Allocation Protocolxe2x80x9d (xe2x80x9cPAPxe2x80x9d) from a Distributed Network Address Translation server for external communications with a public network like the Internet. A network device on a private network replaces default or ephemeral ports (e.g., such as Transmission Control Protocol or User Datagram Protocol) with the locally unique ports. The network device uses a combination network address including a locally unique port and a common external network address (e.g., an IP address) for the Distributed Network Address Translation server for communications with the external networks. The network devices use private network addresses for local communications on the private network.
A Distributed Network Address Translation server maintains a port-to-private network address table as locally unique ports are allocated to network devices. Network devices send data packets to external networks using a combination network address including a locally unique port and the common external network address via the Distributed Network Address Translation server. For inbound data packets from an external network, the Distributed Network Address Translation server uses the port-to-private network address table to route data packets back to the appropriate network device on the private network.
It is becoming commonplace for private stub network or subnets to be xe2x80x9cmultiple address networks.xe2x80x9d Multiple address networks are networks in which more than one type of network address is used, or two or more addresses of the same type are used. For example, a subnet may use private Internet Protocol addresses for local communications and use public, globally routable Internet Protocol addresses for communications with external public Internet Protocol networks such as the Internet. As another example, a private subnet may use older 32-bit Internet Protocol version-4 addresses to communicate with external networks, and use the new 128-bit Internet Protocol version-6 addresses to communicate on a local subnet. Networks using Distributed Network Address Translation or Realm Specific Internet Protocol are also examples of multiple address networks.
A network device on a multiple address network needs to obtain at least two network addresses. A first network address is a primary network address used for local communications with other network devices on a private subnet and a secondary network address is a secondary network address used for remote communications on public networks like the Internet.
As is known in the art, Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (xe2x80x9cDHCPxe2x80x9d) servers are often used to allocate primary Internet Protocol addresses and configuration parameters such as a netmask, a gateway router, a Domain Name Server (xe2x80x9cDNSxe2x80x9d) and other parameters for network devices on a private network. The Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol is used to dynamically allocate network addresses and dynamically obtain configuration parameters. If the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol is not used, then network addresses and configuration parameters have to be statically assigned to network devices connected to a network. Static assignment of network address and configuration parameters limits the ability of a network device to move to a new network or a new subnet. The Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol allows a network device to dynamically broadcast a message to a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol server whenever it moves to a new network or subnet requesting a network address and configuration parameters.
Another secondary protocol, such as a Distributed Network Address protocol (e.g., the xe2x80x9cPort Allocation Protocolxe2x80x9d) or a Realm Specific Internet Protocol may be used to allocate secondary network addresses or translation ports that are used to translate private or local Internet Protocol addresses into public, external Internet Protocol addresses.
However, there are several problems associated with allocating multiple addresses with multiple protocols for multiple address networks. One problem is that a subnet typically will use a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol server to allocate primary Internet Protocol addresses and another server to allocate secondary network addresses, such as those allocated for Distributed Network Address Translation or Realm Specific Internet Protocol.
In many instances a network device requesting a primary and a secondary network address is on a different subnet than the primary network address server or the secondary network address server. The subnets are typically connected by a router. As is known in the art, a router translates differences between network protocols and routes data packets to an appropriate device on a network.
In most private networks, a router will relay Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol messages since this protocol is well known in the networking arts and most routers recognize Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol messages and implement a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol layer. However, most routers do not recognize secondary network address request messages without changes to the router software. Thus, a network device can request a primary network address, but may have trouble requesting a secondary network address from a secondary network address server.
There have been a number of proposed solutions to this problem. First, a subnet could require that every network device connected to the subnet use a configuration file that includes the address of a designated secondary network address server. However, this would require explicit configuration of each network device. For mobile network devices such as laptop computers and personal digital assistants that may be attached to many different subnets, multiple configuration files may have to be maintained. This places an unacceptable burden on network administrator""s and makes it difficult for a user to ensure the proper configuration file is used on the proper subnet.
Another solution is to require that a protocol used to request secondary network addresses use BOOT strap Protocol (xe2x80x9cBOOTPxe2x80x9d) ports. As is known in the art, BOOTP is a protocol used to initialize and boot network devices on a network. The format of Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol messages is based on the format of BOOTP messages. The Dynamic Host Configuration protocol is typically considered an extension of the BOOTP protocol. Using BOOTP ports would allow Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol-like stateless configuration and message relaying of secondary network address protocols in a router. However, this solution causes potentially serious interoperability issues. For example, network devices, the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol server and a secondary network address server may contend for the same BOOTP ports at the same time causing collisions, confusion and other network problems. In addition, a secondary address server message broadcast to a BOOTP port on another subnet may not be forwarded by a router to the subnet.
Another solution is to define a secondary network address protocol router relay function for routers on a subnet. This solution would also allow Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol-like stateless configuration and message relaying for secondary network address protocols in the router. However, this would require modifications to the software, firmware and/or hardware on a huge installed based of routers from various manufacturers. This solution would expensive and require the cooperation of a number of number of network owners and router manufacturers, and thus is not feasible given the large amount of routers used in today""s networks.
Thus, it is desirable to provide a solution to the problem of allocating multiple types of network addresses for multiple address networks. The solution should allow existing Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol servers and secondary network address servers to be reached via routers without any changes to any existing routers in existing networks.
In accordance with preferred embodiments of the present invention, some of the problems associated with allocating multiple addresses with multiple protocols for multiple address networks overcome. A method and system for address server redirect for multiple address networks is provided.
One aspect of the invention includes a method for address server redirect from a client network device. The method includes requesting a primary network address and an address of a secondary network address server from a primary network address server. The address of the secondary network address server is requested in an option field in a message sent to the primary network address server to request a primary network address. The primary network address is used by a network device to communicate with other network devices on a first network. The secondary network address is used by the network device to communicate with other network devices on a second network. A message used to request a primary and a secondary network addresses may travel through one or more routers on the first network.
Another aspect of the invention includes a method for address server redirect from a network address server. A primary network address server allocates a primary network address to a network device. The primary network address server also conducts a test to determine if the network device is requesting an address of a secondary network address server in an option field of a message used to request the primary network address. If the network device is requesting an address of a secondary network address server in an option field, the primary network address server selects an address of a secondary network address server from a table. The secondary network address is returned to the network device in a same message as a primary network address.
Another aspect of the invention includes a system for address server redirect. The system includes a primary network address server, a secondary network address server and a client network device. The primary network address server is used for allocating a primary network address and for supplying a network address of a secondary network address server. The primary network address is used by a network device to communicate with other network devices on a first network. The secondary network address server is used to request a secondary network address that is used by a network device to communicate with other network devices on a second network. The client network device is used for communicating with other network devices on a first network using a primary network address allocated by the primary network address server and for communicating with other network devices on a second network using a secondary network address allocated by the secondary network address server.
For example, in one exemplary preferred embodiment of the present invention, the primary network address is a private Internet Protocol address and the secondary network address is a public Internet Protocol address. In another exemplary preferred embodiment of the present invention, the primary network address is an Internet Protocol version-6 address and the secondary network address is an Internet Protocol version-4 address.
In one exemplary preferred embodiment of the present invention, the primary Internet Protocol address is allocated by a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol server and the secondary network address is allocated by a Distributed Network Address Translation protocol or a Realm Specific Internet Protocol server. The method and system may further allow the BOOTP relay function of existing routers to be used for Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol messages including a request for a network address for a secondary network address server. Thus, a secondary network address server can use virtually any application protocol and virtually any port number for communications without having to be on a same subnet as network device clients.
However, the present invention is not limited to such exemplary embodiments, and the present invention can be used to acquire virtually any type of primary network addresses and secondary network address from virtually any type of primary network address server or secondary network address servers.
The method and system of the present invention may allow allocating multiple types of network addresses for multiple address networks. The method and system may also allow existing primary network address servers and new secondary network address servers to be reached via routers without any changes to any existing routers in existing networks.
The foregoing and other features and advantages of a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be more readily apparent from the following detailed description. The detailed description proceeds with references to the accompanying drawings.

Method and system for address server redirection for multiple address networks


A security article includes a light transmissive substrate having a first surface and an opposing second surface, with the first surface having an embossed region with an optical diffraction pattern or a holographic image pattern. A color shifting optical coating is formed on the substrate such as on the opposing second surface, with the optical coating providing an observable color shift as the angle of incident light or viewing angle changes. The security article can be used in a variety of applications and products to provide for enhanced security measures such as anticounterfeiting.

1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention is related generally to thin film optical coatings for use in producing security articles. More specifically, the present invention is related to the production of diffractive surfaces such as holograms or gratings having color shifting or optically variable backgrounds which can be used as security articles in a variety of applications.
2. The Relevant Technology
Color shifting pigments and colorants have been used in numerous applications, ranging from automobile paints to anti-counterfeiting inks for security documents and currency. Such pigments and colorants exhibit the property of changing color upon variation of the angle of incident light, or as the viewing angle of the observer is shifted. The primary method used to achieve such color shifting colorants is to disperse small flakes, which are typically composed of multiple layers of thin films having particular optical characteristics, throughout a medium such as paint or ink that may then be subsequently applied to the surface of an object.
Diffraction patterns and embossments, and the related field of holographs, have begun to find wide-ranging practical applications due to their aesthetic and utilitarian visual effects. One very desirable decorative effect is the iridescent visual effect created by a diffraction grating. This striking visual effect occurs when ambient light is diffracted into its color components by reflection from the diffraction grating. In general, diffraction gratings are essentially repetitive structures made of lines or grooves in a material to form a peak and trough structure. Desired optical effects within the visible spectrum occur when diffraction gratings have regularly spaced grooves in the range of hundreds to thousands of lines per millimeter on a reflective surface.
Diffraction grating technology has been employed in the formation of two-dimensional holographic patterns which create the illusion of a three-dimensional image to an observer. Furthermore, the use of holographic images on various objects to discourage counterfeiting has found widespread application.
There currently exist several applications for surfaces embossed with holographic patterns which range from decorative items, such as gift wrap, to security documents, such as bank notes and credit cards. Two-dimensional holograms typically utilize diffraction patterns which have been formed on a plastic surface. In some cases, a holographic image which has been embossed on such a surface can be visible without further processing; however, it is generally necessary, in order to achieve maximum optical effects, to place a reflective layer, typically a thin metal layer such as aluminum, onto the embossed surface. The reflective layer substantially increases the visibility of the diffraction pattern embossment.
Unfortunately, there exists a substantial incentive for counterfeiters to reproduce the holograms which are frequently used in credit cards, bank notes, and the like. One of the methods used to reproduce holograms is to scan a laser beam across the embossed surface and optically record the reflected beam on a layer of a material such as a photopolymerizable polymer. The original pattern can subsequently be reproduced as a counterfeit. Another method is to remove the protective covering material from the embossed metal surface by ion etching, and then when the embossed metal surface is exposed, a layer of metal such as silver (or any other easily releasable layer) can be deposited. This is followed by deposition of a layer of nickel, which is subsequently released to form a counterfeiting embossing shim.
Due to the level of sophistication of counterfeiting methods, it has become necessary to develop more advanced security measures. One approach, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,629,068 and 5,549,774 to Miekka et al., is the application of inks, such as metallic flake inks, metallic effect inks, or inks with pigments formed of optical stacks, upon the embossed surface in lieu of a thin metal layer. In another approach, disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,624,076 and 5,672,410 also to Miekka et al., embossed metal particles or optical stack flakes are used to produce a holographic image pattern.
Another problem with the holographic images as described above is that they require direct specular illumination in order to be visualized. This means that for best viewing results, the illuminating light must be incident at the same angle as the viewing angle. Therefore, diffuse light sources, such as ordinary room lights or viewing by an overcast sky, when used to illuminate the holographic image, do not reveal much of the visual information contained in the hologram, and what is typically seen is only a silver colored reflection from the embossed surface.
It would therefore be of substantial advantage to develop improved security products to provide enhanced viewing qualities in ordinary room light and which are usable in various security applications to make counterfeiting more difficult.
It is a primary object of the invention to provide a security article have color shifting properties which increases the difficulty of counterfeiting in a variety of applications.
Another object of the invention to provide a security article with a distinctive pattern that is readily observable over a wide range of viewing angles in diffuse lighting conditions.
Another object of the invention is to provide a security article with a holographic pattern that has enhanced visibility and contrast to provide for viewing under diffuse lighting conditions without the need for direct specular light.
Another object of the invention to provide a security article that can be manufactured to at low cost compared to prior security products.
To achieve the forgoing objects and in accordance with the invention as embodied and broadly described herein, a security article is provided which includes a light transmissive substrate having a first surface and an opposing second surface, with the first surface having an optical interference pattern such as a diffraction grating pattern or a holographic image pattern. A color shifting optical coating is formed on the substrate, with the optical coating providing an observable color shift as the angle of incident light or viewing angle changes. In one embodiment, the color shifting optical coating is formed on the second surface of the substrate opposite from the optical interference pattern, and includes an absorber layer formed adjacent to the substrate, a dielectric layer formed on the absorber layer, and a reflector layer formed on the dielectric layer. Alternatively, this multilayer optical coating can be formed on the same side of the substrate as the interference patter.
In another embodiment, the color shifting optical coating is applied to the substrate in the form of a paint or ink which includes a polymeric medium and a plurality of color shifting multilayer optical interference flakes dispersed in the polymeric medium. In other embodiments, the color shifting optical coating is coextruded with a light transmissive embossed substrate to form adjacent layers or is dispersed in the form of interference flakes in the substrate material prior to forming the substrate.
The security article of the invention can be used in a variety of applications to provide for enhanced security measures such as anticounterfeiting. The security article can be utilized in the form of a label, a tag, a ribbon, a security thread, and the like, for application in a variety of objects such as security documents, monetary currency, credit cards, merchandise, etc.
These and other aspects and features of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following description and appended claims, or may be learned by the practice of the invention as set forth hereinafter.

Diffractive surfaces with color shifting backgrounds


A wear sleeve for use with a rotating control device (RCD) includes a wear insert and a retainer flange. The wear insert is formed in a tube shape with an outer profile to match an inner profile of a downstream neck of the RCD to be inserted into the downstream neck. The retainer flange extending from an outer surface of the wear insert to couple with a neck flange at an end of the downstream neck of the RCD.

During well drilling, fracking, production or other operations involving abrasive fluid flow situations, destructive wear can occur on exposed inside surfaces of a wellhead pressure-control device such as a rotatable control device (RCD) or a diverter head for a blow-out preventer (BOP). Highly abrasive flow situations can occur when drilling with air, foam, water or oil-based drilling fluids carrying abrasive well born drill cuttings, sand or other materials at such a rate that they erode the inner diameter of the device outlet and flowline.

Rotatable wear sleeve for wellhead pressure-control device


Provided is an organic light-emitting display device including: a first pixel; a second pixel; and a common capacitor connected to the first and second pixels, wherein the first pixel comprises: a first switching transistor transmitting a first data signal in response to a first scan signal; a second switching transistor transmitting the first data signal to the common capacitor; a first storage capacitor storing a charge corresponding to the first data signal; a first driving transistor generating a driving current corresponding to the charge stored in the first storage capacitor; and a first organic light-emitting diode (OLED) emitting light corresponding to the first driving current, and wherein the second pixel comprises: a third switching transistor transmitting a second data signal in response to a second scan signal; a fourth switching transistor transmitting the second data signal to the common capacitor; a second storage capacitor storing a charge corresponding to the second data signal; a second driving transistor generating a driving current corresponding to the charge stored in the second storage capacitor; and a second organic light-emitting diode (OLED) emitting light corresponding to the second driving current.

Field
Exemplary embodiments relate to a pixel circuit and an organic light-emitting display device including the same.
Discussion
Resolution and pixel density of an organic light-emitting display device can be increased to display high-quality images. Decreasing the size of elements which form pixels, for example, the size of capacitors, could increase pixel density. However, when the size of elements is decreased, display of a high-quality image may become difficult because of interference between signals.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the inventive concept, and, therefore, it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.

Pixel circuit and organic light-emitting display device including the same


A handle accessory for reversibly connecting to a handle of a container without detaching the handle from the container, the accessory having first and second sides connected by a hinge, a passage for the placement and retention of the handle, and an enclosure for the placement of items between the two sides. The handle accessory is configured to permit access to the enclosure without removal from a handle. Also, a method for forming a handle accessory as a single unit, having at least one living hinge, a substantially sealable enclosure, and a retention mechanism for reversibly connecting to a predetermined container handle configuration.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to a combination carrying and storage accessory for a container handle.
2. Background Art
Paints, cleansers and other chemicals are typically displayed and sold in containers having wire loop handles attached on opposite sides and near the tops thereof to enable pivoting the wire loop handles up and over the tops of the containers. Because such containers, when full, may be quite heavy, various gripping elements have been developed to protect the hands when the container is lifted by the handle.
Generally, such gripping elements serve only a single purpose, are typically not ergonomic, reusable, comfortable, nor particularly durable. Accordingly, a need exists for an improved handle accessory.


A driving force controller for an electric motor vehicle which suppresses changes in behavior of a vehicle when a right or left driving wheel experiences trouble and detects vehicle conditions to independently control the driving force of each wheel so as not to deviate from a predetermined range. The driving force controller computes a driving force for each wheel in accordance to a demand value for driving force and a detected vehicle traveling condition to drive each wheel independently by electric motors. Motor drivers control the motors so that each motor generates power corresponding to the value of driving force computed therefor. A driving demand detector detects the value of driving force demanded for the vehicle and a vehicle condition detector detects a traveling condition of the vehicle. Wheel driving condition detectors detect conditions at the wheels. A computer computes the values of driving force to be provided at each wheel in accordance with the value of driving force demanded and the detected vehicle traveling conditions and corrects the values computed for individual wheel driving forces when a vehicle traveling condition or a wheel driving condition exceeds a predetermined range.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a driving force controller for an electric motor vehicle for distributing driving forces individually to each wheel in accordance with values for driving force required for the vehicle and travelling conditions to drive each wheel independently by electric motors instead of a conventional motor.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, four-wheel drive (4WD) vehicles and electric cars have drawn special attention by the public.
Conventionally, a 4WD vehicle has one driving source and its driving force is transmitted to wheels mechanically through the intermediary of a transfer unit, a propeller shaft and front and rear wheel differentials, etc. The mechanism which performs a torque distribution function in the mechanical 4WD vehicle is the transfer unit, but generally it just distributes torques to front and rear wheels and the ratio of such distribution is limited by the mechanism. Furthermore, since such distribution is controlled by hydraulic pressure, in that type of 4WD in which the ratio may be controlled, accurate torque distribution cannot be expected.
Though capable of roughly distributing front and rear torques in accordance with shift of load caused by acceleration and other factors, the prior art control system referred to above cannot deal with a shift of load caused by centrifugal force when turning around a curve, especially when the load is shifted to an outer wheel.
In a selective type 4WD, for example, motive power is connected and disconnected at the middle of a drive shaft to switch between 4WD and 2WD, and is transmitted through a switching clutch in 4WDs, relative difference in rotation as between the front and rear wheels is not permitted, causing a tight corner braking phenomenon.
In a case of a center differential type 4WD, though relative rotation is allowed by a differential gear, only a fixed torque distribution ratio can be set due to the gear arrangement. Thus, when driving force cannot be adequately transmitted to the road surface due to reduced traction at either the front wheels or the rear wheels due to encountering a muddy spot, etc., the driving force transmitted to the other wheels is lowered automatically by the fixed distribution ratio and the overall driving force is thereby drastically lowered.
In a viscous coupling type 4WD, torque is transmitted from a member rotating at high speed to a member rotating at low speed when the difference in relative rotation between front and rear wheels becomes great. That is, normally it drives only with the front wheels, and torque is transmitted to the rear wheels only when the front wheels rotate idly. In a torque split type 4WD, a multi-plate clutch is used and transmission capacity is adjusted by hydraulic pressure to effect torque distribution. Though in many cases the hydraulic pressure is now controlled by a computer, active distribution cannot be expected if there is no relative difference in rotation.
FIG. 12 illustrates the limit for driving force at a tire.
Considering factors that determine driving force of a tire, the limit for driving force of a tire is determined by a balance between a limit for frictional force produced by a vertical load and the resultant driving force F including component Fx in the advancing direction and cornering force Fy in the lateral direction, as shown in FIG. 12. That is, when a load shift is caused by acceleration and turning and the load on a wheel is thereby changed, the limit for frictional force is changed accordingly. The limit for frictional force changes similarly when the road surface condition is snowy or muddy. Cornering force becomes great when a sharp turn is made and as a result, the limit for driving force in the advancing direction is lowered.
Therefore,
Limit of driving force Fx.max=(F.sup.2 -Fy.sup.2).sup.1/2
As described above, the conventional 4WD vehicles cannot produce an optimum distribution of driving forces since the limit of the driving force for each wheel changes with traveling conditions. For example, when a vehicle is to be accelerated while making a turn, load is applied to the outside thereof by centrifugal force, so that the grounding load on an inner wheel becomes smaller while the grounding load on an outer wheel becomes larger, creating a large difference between the limits for the driving forces applied at the outer and inner wheels. Although some conventional 4WD vehicles have a mechanism for restricting the differential between left and right wheels, such vehicles do not have active torque distribution and cannot control the difference between driving forces at the right and left wheels, so that only a relatively small driving force corresponding to the limit for driving force at an inner wheel may be applied. Cornering capability of the vehicle may be lowered and the vehicle may become unstable if the driving force exceeds that limit.
Moreover, when one wheel comes off or turns idly on a muddy spot in the conventional mechanical 4WD vehicle the driving force transmitted to the other wheels is drastically lowered since the right and left wheels are linked by a differential.
From the foregoing, the importance of controlling the four wheels independently, corresponding to their driving force limits, may be appreciated.
Much attention has been paid as of late to electric motor vehicles due to the problem of pollution by exhaust gas of conventional engine vehicles. Electric vehicles are now more and more regarded as important together with solar cars carrying solar batteries, i.e. clean energy, from the aspect of a global scale environmental problem. Because a solar car itself is fundamentally an electric car, development of an electric motor vehicle that can be widely put into practical use is strongly desired.
A vehicle with an electric motor typified by conventional electric cars normally has one motor and driving force is distributed by a differential gear unit and associated structure. Due to that, the ratio of driving forces distributed to right and left wheels remains constant.
The use of two motors to drive right and left rear wheels independently is disclosed in (Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. 55-138129). In this disclosure, when an accelerator pedal is depressed while travelling at speeds less than a set value, the motors are switched to four wheel driving.
When a vehicle is turning at high speed, however, the grounding load is shifted between right and left wheels since a large centrifugal force is generated on the vehicle body, so that the grounding load on the turning inner wheels is reduced and the grounding load on the outer wheels is increased as described above. At this time, because the conventional vehicle described above is designed so that torques to the right and left wheels are equalized by the differential gear, when the grounding load on the inner side wheels is reduced and the limit for driving force is thereby lowered, the limit for driving force at the outer side wheels is also lowered. As a result, slip limit speed is lowered.
Furthermore, because the conventional vehicle only drives four wheels in particular traveling conditions, even if the grounding load shifts during turning, driving forces cannot be effectively distributed responsive to the shift of the grounding load. That is, such a prior art vehicle fully utilizes the driving force of all motors only when the accelerator pedal is depressed while traveling at low speeds less than a set value and adopts the four wheel drive only temporarily.
The applicant named in the present application has previously proposed a driving force controller for an electric motor vehicle which eliminates the aforementioned problems (e.g. Japanese Patent Application No. 62-25736). This controller is provided with a means for detecting centrifugal force, a means for detecting the required driving force value and a computation controlling means for finding shift of loads from the centrifugal force to set driving forces for right and left wheels and for controlling electric motors for independently driving the right and left wheels. The controller drives the right and left wheels independently by driving forces which correspond to the grounding loads on the right and left wheels. Thus the driving forces that correspond to the grounding loads on the right and left wheels are distributed to achieve maximum utilization of the driving forces and acceleration is enhanced even during cornering, while preventing slip from occurring.
FIGS. 13A through 13D are drawings explaining various motions of an automobile. As shown in FIG. 13A, an automobile has a vertical motion, a yawing motion pivoting on the vertical motion, a longitudinal motion and a rolling motion pivoting on the longitudinal motion.
A vehicle which drives a plurality of wheels independently can control each driving force regardless of driving conditions, so that it can continue to generate driving forces without interruption caused by a given wheel. Accordingly, when trouble occurs at either the right or the left driving motor or wheel, while each wheel is being driven according to a predetermined driving force distribution ratio, the other driving motors keep generating the same driving force and a large difference between the driving forces at the right and left wheels is created, so that an undesirable yawing force (a vehicle turning force) is generated and the direction of the vehicle is changed as shown in FIG. 13B. If the vehicle is front wheel driving, a force is received at the steering wheel and a phenomenon whereby the steering force is changed in a manner similar to that experienced when a tire goes flat, as shown in FIG. 13C. The difference appears as a torque difference around a king pin as shown in FIG. 13d and a large manual steering force is required since one force is generated in the driving direction and another force is generated in the braking direction.
However, since the driving force controller of the electric motor vehicle in applicants' aforementioned application merely drives the right and left wheels in accordance with the grounding loads on the right and left wheels, the driving forces cannot be corrected even when the condition of the vehicle deviates from a predetermined range and a large difference is created between the driving forces at the right and left wheels and, accordingly, an undesirable yawing force is generated.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to solve the aforementioned problems by providing a driving force controller that suppresses changes in the behavior of the vehicle when traction 3 is lost or reduced at either the right or the left driving wheels.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a driving force controller that detects vehicle conditions to control driving force independently at each wheel so as not to deviate from a predetermined range.

Driving force controller for electric motor vehicle


A presently-preferred magnetic bearing comprises a rotor disk having a first plurality of concentric teeth extending from a surface thereof, and a stator disk having a second plurality of concentric teeth extending from a surface thereof. The first and the second plurality of concentric teeth are spaced apart by a gap that permits a primary magnetic flux to flow between the first and the second plurality of concentric teeth substantially in a first direction. Then magnetic bearing also comprises a plurality of flux focusing magnets fixedly coupled to at least one of the surface of the rotor disk and the surface of the stator disk. The flux focusing magnets produce a secondary magnetic flux that flows substantially in a second direction substantially opposite the first direction.

The present invention relates to magnetic bearings for levitating or suspending a rotatable component. More specifically, the invention relates to a magnetic bearing that provides radial positioning of a rotatable component on a passive basis to facilitate rotation of the component about a predetermined axis.
Magnetic bearings are commonly used to levitate or suspend rotatable components, e.g., flywheels, and thereby facilitate rotation of the component about a predetermined axis. Magnetic bearings provide substantial advantages in relation to mechanical bearings. For example, magnetic bearings facilitate substantially friction-free operation, and thus function without most of parasitic energy losses that occur in virtually all mechanical bearings.
Magnetic bearings are classified as xe2x80x9cactivexe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cpassive.xe2x80x9d Active magnetic bearings usually comprise one or more electromagnets that create return forces. A typical active magnetic bearing also comprises one or more position sensors that operate in conjunction with a servo control system. The servo control system varies the current passing through the electromagnets in a manner that causes the return forces to suspend and align the rotatable member along a desired axis of rotation.
Passive magnetic bearings typically comprise one or more permanent magnets fixed to the rotating or static components of the bearing. The permanent magnets produce attractive or repulsive forces that bias the rotating component toward or along a desired axis of rotation. Passive magnetic bearings, in general, are lighter, smaller, less complex, less expensive, and more reliable than active bearings of similar capability. A passive magnetic bearing, however, cannot provide stable positioning of the rotatable member in the radial and axial directions, i.e., with respect a set of orthogonal axes one of which extends along the desired axis of rotation. Passive magnetic bearings, therefore, are typically used in conjunction with one or more active bearings.
So-called xe2x80x9ccentering bearingsxe2x80x9d represent a particular type of passive magnetic bearing. Centering bearings exert a radial force on a rotatable member that biases the rotatable member toward a desired axis of rotation. One possible embodiment of a conventional centering bearing 100 is depicted in cross-section in FIGS. 5 and 6.
The bearing 100 comprises a first stator disk 102 and a second stator disk 104. The bearing 100 further comprises a rotor disk 106. The rotor disk 106 is fixedly coupled to a shaft 109 that supports a rotatable component such as a flywheel.
The stator disks 102, 104 and the rotor disk 106 are each formed from a soft ferromagnetic material. The stator disk 102 includes a major surface 102a having a plurality of concentric raised portions, or teeth 102b, formed thereon. The teeth 102b each form a continuous ring, i.e., the teeth 102b each extend through a continuous arc of 360 degrees. The stator disk 104 likewise includes a major surface 104a having a plurality of concentric teeth 104b formed thereon.
The rotor disk 106 has a first surface 106a and a second surface 106b. The first surface 106a has a plurality of concentric teeth 106c formed thereon. The second surface 106b likewise has a plurality of concentric teeth 106d formed thereon. The geometry, i.e., the size and shape, of each tooth 106c substantially matches that of a corresponding tooth 102b on the stator disk 102. The geometry of each tooth 106d substantially matches that of a corresponding tooth 104b on the stator disk 104.
The rotor disk 106 is positioned between the stator disks 102, 104, as shown in FIG. 5. More particularly, the rotor disk 106 is positioned so that the first surface 106a faces the surface 102a of the stator disk 102 across an axial gap 114. The second surface 106b likewise faces the surface 104a of the stator disk 104 across an axial gap 116.
The bearing 100 further comprises a ring-shaped permanent magnet 110 having a north pole 110a and a south pole 110b. The magnet 110 is fixed to a non-magnetizable mounting surface 108. In addition, the magnet 110 is fixedly coupled to the stator disks 102, 104 so that the north pole 110a is positioned proximate the stator disk 104, and the south pole 110b is positioned proximate the stator disk 102.
The noted arrangement of the magnet 110, stator disks 102, 104, and rotor disk 106 produces a magnetic-flux circuit within the bearing 100. The primary direction of flow of the magnetic flux is denoted by arrows 112 included in FIG. 5 (the arrows 112 are not depicted in the lower portion of FIG. 5, for clarity). The magnetic flux flows from the north pole 110a into the stator disk 104. The magnetic flux travels through the stator disk 104, and is at least partially focused in the teeth 104b. The magnetic flux flows from the teeth 104b, across the gap 116, and into to the teeth 106d.
The magnetic flux flows through the rotor disk 106, and is at least partially focused in the teeth 106c. The magnetic flux flows from the teeth 106c, across the gap 114, and into the teeth 102b on the stator disk 102. The magnetic flux subsequently flows through the stator disk 102 and into south pole 110b of the magnet 110, thereby completing the magnetic circuit.
The noted flow of magnetic flux through the magnetic bearing 100, in conjunction with the geometry and arrangement of the stator disks 102, 104 and the rotor disk 106, produces a centering effect on the shaft 109. More particularly, the magnetic flux causes the teeth 102b on the first stator disk 102 to substantially align with the teeth 106c on the rotor disk 106. The magnetic flux likewise causes the teeth 104b on the second stator disk 104 to substantially align with the teeth 106d on the rotor disk 106. This phenomenon is based on the principle that the magnetic flux seeks a path of minimum reluctance.
Minimum reluctance in the flux circuit is achieved when the gaps 114, 116 are minimized, i.e., when the distances that the flux must travel to reach the first stator disk 102 from the surface 106a of the rotor, or to reach the rotor 106 from the surface 104a of the stator disk 104, are minimized. Minimization of the gap 114 occurs when the teeth 102b are substantially aligned with the teeth 106c. Minimization of the gap 116 likewise occurs when the teeth 104b are substantially aligned with the teeth 106d (as shown in FIG. 5).
Hence, the magnetic flux flowing through the bearing 100, in attempting to define a flow path of minimal reluctance, produces a magnetomotive force that urges each of the teeth 106c, 106d into substantial alignment with a corresponding tooth 102b, 104b. Aligning the teeth 102b, 104b, 106c, 106d suspends the shaft 109 and substantially aligns the shaft 109 with a predetermined axis extending in the xe2x80x9czxe2x80x9d direction, thereby permitting the shaft 109 to rotate about that axis (the noted axis is denoted xe2x80x9cC1,xe2x80x9d and the direction of rotation is indicated by the arrow 126 in FIG. 5). The resistance of the shaft 109 to radial displacement away from the predetermined axis is commonly referred to as the xe2x80x9cstiffnessxe2x80x9d of the bearing 100, and is proportionate to the above-noted magnetomotive produced by the flow of magnetic flux through the teeth 102b, 104b, 106c, 106d.
The magnetic-flux circuit in the bearing 100 is subject to various losses. In other words, only a portion of the magnetic flux available from the permanent magnet 110 is available to suspend and align the shaft 109. The teeth 102b, 104b, 106c, 106d represent one source of flux loss. In particular, a portion of the magnetic flux that enters each tooth 102b, 104b, 106c, 106d escapes into the space between adjacent teeth 102b, 104b, 106c, 106d.
For example, FIG. 6 is a magnified view depicting a plurality of the teeth 102b, 106c. Adjacent one of the teeth 102b define valleys 118 located between the adjacent teeth 102b. Adjacent teeth 106c likewise form valleys 118 located between the adjacent teeth 102b. A portion of the magnetic flux passing through the teeth 102b, 106c escapes from the teeth 102b, 106c and into the neighboring valleys 118. This flux leakage is denoted by the arrows 120 included in FIG. 6. The magnetic flux that leaks or escapes from each of the teeth 106c in this manner does flow directly to a corresponding tooth 102b on the stator disk 102. Hence, this flux does not contribute substantially to the suspension and centering of the shaft 109. The capacity of the permanent magnet 110 must therefore be greater than otherwise required to account for the noted flux leakage.
Increasing the capacity of a permanent magnet in a magnetic bearing typically results in a corresponding increase in the size, weight, and expense of the permanent magnet (and the magnetic bearing). Hence, minimizing the flux leakage from the magnetic circuit of a bearing can lead to substantial reductions in the size, weight, and cost of the bearing. An ongoing need therefore exists for a passive radial magnetic bearing having features that minimize the leakage of magnetic flux therefrom.
A presently-preferred embodiment of radial magnetic bearing comprises a rotor disk having a first plurality of concentric teeth extending from a surface thereof, and a stator disk having a second plurality of concentric teeth extending from a surface thereof. The second plurality of concentric teeth is spaced apart from the first plurality of concentric teeth by a gap that permits a primary magnetic flux to flow between the first and the second plurality of concentric teeth substantially in a first direction.
The magnetic bearing also comprises a primary magnet magnetically coupled to at least one of the rotor disk and the stator disk and being adapted to provide the primary magnetic flux. The magnetic bearing further comprises a plurality of flux focusing magnets fixedly coupled to at least one of the surface of the rotor disk and the surface of the stator disk and producing a secondary magnetic flux that flows substantially in a second direction substantially opposite the first direction.
Another presently-preferred embodiment of radial magnetic bearing comprises a rotor disk adapted to rotate about a predetermined axis and having a first and a second circumferentially-extending raised portion projecting from a surface thereof, and a stator disk axially spaced from the rotor disk and positioned around the predetermined axis. The stator disk has a third and a fourth circumferentially-extending raised portion projecting from a surface thereof. The radial magnetic bearing also comprises a permanent magnet magnetically coupled to at least one of the rotor disk and the stator disk and providing a primary magnetic flux, a first ring-shaped magnet positioned between the first and the second raised portions, and a second ring-shaped magnet positioned between the third and the fourth raised portions.
Another presently-preferred embodiment of radial magnetic bearing comprises a rotor disk having a first plurality of circumferentially-extending raised portions projecting from a major surface thereof, and a stator disk having a major surface that faces the major surface of the rotor disk. The major surface of the stator disk has a second plurality of circumferentially-extending raised portions projecting therefrom. The radial magnetic bearing also comprises a plurality of flux focusing magnets fixedly coupled to at least one of the major surfaces of the rotor disk and the stator disk.
Another presently-preferred embodiment of radial magnetic bearing comprises a rotor disk adapted to rotate about an axis of rotation and having a first plurality of circumferentially-extending raised portions formed thereon for conducting a primary magnetic flux substantially in a first direction. The radial magnetic bearing also comprises a stator disk positioned around the axis of rotation and axially spaced from the rotor disk. The stator disk has a second plurality of circumferentially-extending raised portions formed thereon for conducting the primary magnetic flux substantially in the first direction.
The radial magnetic bearing further comprises a primary magnet magnetically coupled to at least one of the rotor disk and the stator disk and being adapted to provide the primary magnetic flux. The radial magnetic bearing also comprises a first plurality of flux focusing magnets each being positioned between adjacent ones of the first plurality of raised portions and each being polarized in a direction substantially opposite the first direction, and a second plurality of flux focusing magnets each being positioned between adjacent ones of the second plurality of raised portions and each being polarized in the direction substantially opposite the first direction


A cartridge assembly is disclosed with improved protection of its media and/or ink ribbon. The cartridge assembly includes a cartridge housing for receiving media. The cartridge housing includes an exit opening through which the media exits the cartridge housing along a media path. A media guide is also located on the media path and is spaced from the exit opening a predetermined distance. An edge protector extends between the exit opening and the media guide adjacent a lower edge of the media path to protect a lower edge of the media.

This disclosure relates to a media cartridge for a printer. In particular, this disclosure relates to a locking/unlocking mechanism for a cartridge inserted into a printer.
Many printers are designed to receive cartridges that provide a length of media for printing. These media cartridges are often constructed so that a leading end of the media is pre-positioned for insertion between the components of the printing mechanism (e.g., the print head and platen roller) during the loading of the cartridge into the printer. This type of positioning of the media during the loading of the cartridge is generally preferable to, for example, requiring a user to manually thread an end of the media between the printing components in a cartridge-less style of construction.
Even with this pre-positioning of the media, it is possible that during loading of the cartridge something may go wrong. Typically, as the cartridge is loaded into a cartridge receptacle of the printer, the leading end of the media is blindly inserted between the printing components in a direction perpendicular to the print feed direction. Accordingly, there is the possibility that the media and/or an ink ribbon that runs parallel to the media will snag on a printer component. If either the media or the ink ribbon catch on one of the printer components, then the media or the ink ribbon may be damaged, torn, or crumpled. Ultimately, this may degrade print quality, jam the feeding of the media or the ribbon, or, even worse, damage the printer.
Hence, a need exists for an improved media cartridge. In particular, there is a need for a media cartridge with improved protection of the ink ribbon and media.


An electro-hydraulic braking system includes a main casing. A hydraulic unit brake master cylinder is provided in the main casing. An outer end of a piston rod of the brake master cylinder is connected to an output top rod. Another end of the output top rod is provided with an input rod. The input rod is slidably connected in the main casing along only a length direction of the input rod, and another end of the input rod is provided with a push rod that is configured to transmit a brake pedal force. The main casing is further provided therein with a reset member configured to push the push rod away from the brake master cylinder to reset and a displacement sensor configured to sense a displacement of the push rod. The input rod and the output top rod include a spacing state and an abutment state.

A motor vehicle braking system typically relies on an engine intake system to provide a vacuum source for a brake booster, to boost a brake master cylinder. For the braking system, a braking response speed increases and a vehicle braking distance is shortened, thereby improving vehicle safety. However, this mechanical booster cannot provide a sufficient boost for the braking system in a case of no vacuum or inadequate vacuum.
In order to solve the problem of the insufficient boost, most manufacturers have proposed an electric braking system, which uses a motor-assisted boost to replace a vacuum-assisted boost. The electric braking system typically includes a power unit, a transmission unit, a controller, and a brake master cylinder. The controller is used to control the power unit (generally being a brushless motor or a brushed motor) to respond quickly to a driver's braking requirement.
According to the solution proposed by these manufacturers, a brake pedal and a brake cylinder are not decoupled. During a deceleration process, the brake cylinder generates a hydraulic pressure for a braking operation when the brake pedal is pressed down, which cannot realize braking energy recovery. Even if a control strategy is configured to superimpose the electric braking on the mechanical hydraulic braking to complete the braking operation, an energy recovery rate is low. As a result, such a structure is not conducive to the promotion and application of products, especially in the application of electric vehicles.

Electro-hydraulic braking system and braking method thereof


A biosensor comprises a substrate; a reference electrode; a working electrode; a counter electrode; and a plurality of permeability adjusting spacers. The reference electrode, the working electrode and the plurality of permeability adjusting spacers are all being disposed to be substantially parallel to each other to create a plurality of enzyme containing porous sections. The enzyme containing porous sections contain an enzyme; where the enzyme is operative to react with a metabolite to determine the concentration of the metabolite. By combining a number of the aforementioned biosensors, the differential concentration of a target enzyme or protein is determined by monitoring the changes on its metabolite substrates.

This disclosure relates to biosensors for continuous monitoring of metabolites and proteins and to methods of manufacture thereof.
The development of biosensors for continuous monitoring of various analytes in the body of a living being is important because of its potential to provide an early indication of various body disorders and diseases. An important class of biosensors are electrochemical sensors that link enzymatic reactions to electroactive products. These sensors can be readily miniaturized and have enabled the detection of very small volumes of analytes in clinical or in home-use settings. For example, the development of miniaturized implantable sensors for continuous monitoring of glucose has revolutionized the management and care of diabetes mellitus.
In many other clinical situations, it is desirable to monitor the concentration of various metabolites developed and released into the bodies of living beings such as, for example, lactate, creatinine, creatine, glutamate, phosphate, cysteine, homocysteine, and the like. For example, a device that can measure lactate levels can be used in the detection of a number of diseases and conditions (e.g., to indicate muscle fatigue, shock, sepsis, kidney disorders, liver disorders, congestive heart failure amongst others). In some clinical situations, simultaneous monitoring of two or more metabolites is desirable. Because of the complex interrelationship between glucose and other metabolic analytes it is often desirable to simultaneously detect glucose, glutamate, lactate, oxygen, carbon dioxide, and the like. Simultaneous monitoring of glucose, lactate and/or oxygen levels in the brain provides a comprehensive picture of complementary energy supply to the brain in response to acute neuronal activation. Levels of glucose and glutamate in cerebrospinal fluid are important in the control of diseases such as meningitis.
Currently, most of the electrochemical sensors used for the specific detection of lactate, glucose, glutamate, and the like, employ analyte-specific enzymes, and are based on the Clark-type amperometric detection.
For example, first generation Clark-type glucose sensors employ the glucose oxidase enzyme (GOx), immobilized on top of a working electrode. This enzyme catalyses the oxidation of glucose to glucorolactone, as shown in reaction (1) below:
The generated hydrogen peroxide is amperometrically assessed on the surface of a working electrode according to reaction (2) below:
Clark-type bi-enzymatic sensors for detection of creatine employ two enzymes (namely creatinase and sacrosine oxidase) immobilized on top of the working electrode. First creatine is enzymatically converted by creatinase to sacrosine and urea (as shown in the reaction (3) below), the former of which is subsequently converted to glycine and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) by the action of sacrosine oxidase enzyme (reaction 4).

Similar to glucose sensors, the generated hydrogen peroxide is amperometrically assessed on the surface of working electrode by relating the current to creatine concentration. As is evident from reactions (1) and (4), optimum sensor performance can only be attained when the ratio of the substrate (i.e., glucose or sacrosine) to co-substrate (i.e., oxygen) is less than 1. If this ratio is greater than or equal to 1, the lack of oxygen renders reactions 1 or 4 oxygen-limited. This results in inaccurate readings of glucose and creatine, respectively.
In the case of glucose, a 0.18 mM oxygen concentration in the subcutaneous tissue is substantially lower than the 5.6 mM of physiological glucose concentration (i.e., glucose/oxygen ratio of ca. ˜30). This leads to signal saturation at higher glucose concentrations. The onset of signal saturation is typically expressed as the apparent Michaelis-Menten constant, which defines the upper limit of the glucose range that the sensor can detect with enhanced confidence.
This issue has been addressed by the use of diffusion-limiting outer membranes that provide a greater permeability resistance to the larger sized substrate as opposed to the smaller sized co-substrate. As a result of this modification, semipermeable membranes based on NAFION®, polyurethane, cellulose acetate, epoxy resins, polyether-polyethersulfone copolymer membranes, and layer by layer (LBL) assembled polyelectrolytes and/or multivalent cations have been extensively investigated. However, in the use of semipermeable membranes it is desirable to have strict control over the thickness and uniformity of the outer membranes and this methodology comes at the expense of decreased sensitivity and increased sensor response time. Furthermore, the accumulation of exogenous reagents within these outer membranes (i.e., calcification, biofouling etc.) lead to sensor drift and therefore to their eventual failure.
In order to overcome this problem, an additional oxygen reservoir is provided within the outer membrane by incorporating oxygen-absorbing zeolites. Similarly, an oxygen reservoir (e.g., fluorocarbons, mineral oils and myoglobin) can be employed within the glucose oxidase enzyme layer to compensate for the decreased oxygen.
The eventual fabrication of multiple enzymatic Clark type sensors adjacent to each other necessitates a site specific deposition technique along with provisions to avoid crosstalk from one sensor element to another from the outward diffusing hydrogen peroxide. In all of the various methodologies described above, these provisions have not been implemented. Moreover, the growth of oxygen reservoir may be difficult to be implemented at will on a specific sensing element and not on another, since patterning of biological containing entities is at best challenging.
In another variation, second- and third-generation Clark type biosensors employ redox mediators and direct 'wiring' of enzymes to electrodes in an attempt to minimize the effects of oxygen concentration on the measurement of the analyte. In the case of mediators, their toxicity and biocompatibility along with the possibility to leach out from the device to the surrounding tissue present a major problem. Direct wiring of enzymes to electrodes minimizes these limitations, although adds unwanted complexities and higher expense.
The significant imbalance of glucose (as well as other analytes) to oxygen has prompted researchers to simultaneously measure substrate and co-substrate concentrations in order to account for co-substrate induced variations. Although this approach has its merits, this methodology is also prone to interferences from exogenous agents that render such calibration challenging.
Interferences from endogenous species (other than the primary substrate) generally originate from the fact that these species oxidize at the same potential as hydrogen peroxide. For example, in voltages of about 0.6 to about 0.7 volts (V) many endogenous species such as bilirubin, creatinine, L-cystine, glycine, ascorbic acid (AA), acetaminophen (AP), uric acid (UA), and the like, also get oxidized (leading to an erroneous electrochemical signal).
In order to increase confidence in sensing accuracy it is desirable to actively account for the signal generated by the endogenous species. At present not many methodologies have been developed to actively account for this. Anionic charged membranes (e.g., NAFION®, polyester sulfonic acid, cellulose acetate, and the like) have shown to exclude interferences from anionic species like ascorbic acid, uric acid, and so on, based on the principle of charge repulsion. These methods, however, inevitably impede permeation of negatively charged analyte species (e.g., lactate, pyruvate, glutamate, and the like), and render their detection challenging. In addition, the large response time associated with the diffusion of analytes through these membranes require long equilibration times in order to attain steady state performance between the inner and outer membrane, which is an additional drawback.
Another approach to eliminate interference signals from endogenous species has been the use of inner, ultra-thin, electropolymerized films between the working electrode and the enzyme layer. These films have been seen to partially screen analytes and analyte sensors from the interference agents. However, while these electropolymerized films minimize the contributions to signal from the endogenous species, they do not completely eliminate them.
In another approach, secondary enzymes (for example, ascorbate oxidase, which converts ascorbic acid to dehydroascorbate and water) have been incorporated in the outer membrane of the sensor to eliminate the particular species from reaching the electrode surface and contributing to the amperometric current. These secondary enzymes, do however, require oxygen as co-substrate and therefore have the potential of depleting the sensor of oxygen, which can negatively impact the operation of the primary enzyme.
Another major problem with the current state of the art biosensors is the unwanted production of byproducts as a result of enzymatic and/or electrochemical reactions. These unwanted byproducts tend to build up and/or adsorb on the surface of the working electrode leading to loss of function of the working electrodes. In some cases, the presence of these unwanted byproducts could also hinder the diffusion of analytes towards the working electrode as well as inhibit the progress of enzymatic reactions. For example, a lactate biosensor employing lactate oxidase works on the basis of the following reaction (5) below:

The generated hydrogen peroxide is amperometrically assessed on the surface of a working electrode by applying a positive potential, as shown above in reaction 2. However, because of the application of positive bias onto the working electrode, the negatively charged pyruvate (generated in reaction 5) tends to electrostatically adsorb on its surface leading to (i) taint the working electrode and subsequent loss of sensor sensitivity and (ii) inhibition of the reaction of lactate oxidase (reaction 5) with subsequent erroneous readings. To this end, higher applied potentials, double pulsed amperometry or pulsed amperometric detection have been the common strategies to renew the surface of the working electrode even though such techniques are complex to be applied for miniaturized sensors and implantable sensors with miniaturized driving electronics.
Because of its role to every metabolic activity of the body, the level of glucose is expected to vary following trauma, fever, exercise and/or another physical activities. Implantable glucose sensors can be made more reliable only when one takes into consideration the local and physiological variations in various metabolites that are in relation to glucose. These metabolites include oxygen, lactate and a number of proteins that take part in the glycolysis cycle. Some of these proteins also accelerate the generation as well as breakdown of various other body metabolites. While the levels of these body metabolites are indicative of the state of the body, in some case the activity of the proteins/enzymes itself is an indication of the state of the body. For example, the enzyme glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase (GOT), when found in elevated levels is an indicator of damage to liver (caused by viral hepatitis, heart attack, inflammation, alcohol abuse, and the like), as well as to pancreas, kidney, muscles and red blood cells due to injury.
A number of reports have also been disclosed for the fabrication and detection of glucose in conjunction with other metabolites. Similar to the glucose sensors, these more complex devices utilize outer semi-permeable membranes in order to account for interferences from oxygen and other endogenous species. In the detection of these metabolites it is generally desirable to perform a small number of sequential reactions in order to generate an electroactive species for electrochemical detection. Detection of proteins (enzymes as well as antibodies) is much more difficult and generally utilize enzyme linked immunosorbed assay (ELISA) methodologies. These methodologies are extremely difficult to be performed in-vivo and in a continuous manner. Developing methodologies to perform continuous protein detection in-vivo are therefore desirable for patients with a number of disorders.

Biosensor for continuous monitoring of metabolites and proteins and methods of manufacture thereof


The present invention discloses a method, system and device for implementing identity identifier and location separation, to solve the technical problem that the change of the host IP address results in the connection interrupt of the terminal in the process of moving. By separating and mapping the identity identifier and location identifier, the present invention eliminates the network limitation because of the IP addresses with dual functions of the identity identifier and location identifier; the terminal host identity identifier and the terminal location identifier are mapped, the IP address is used for route only, and the host identity is denoted by the host identifier. Consequently, when the host address is changed because of moving or multi-homing and so on, the route is changed, the host identifier still keeps unchanged, and the network application and connection are not interrupted. Therefore, the continuity of the session can be implemented, the mobility, the multi-homing, the dynamic reallocation of IP addresses, and the inter-access among the different network area can be implemented effectively.

In the present, protocol entities of various layers except for the physical layer have name spaces in the structures of layers of the Internet, which are respectively Media Access Control (called MAC for short) addresses of the link layer, IP addresses of the network layer, IP addresses and port numbers of the transport layer, and domain names of the application layer. Wherein the MAC addresses are required to be unique in the sub-network, and the port numbers are required to be unique in the host, consequently, the IP addresses and the domain names are the global name space in the Internet, and the parsing between the domain names and the IP addresses is implemented by a Domain Name Server (called DNS for short).
In the current structure of the name space, the IP addresses have dual functions, one of which is the location identifier of the terminal host network interface of the network layer in the network topology, and the other of which is the identity identifier of the host network interface of the transport layer. And, because the moving of the host is not considered in the early design of the TCP/IP, the IP addresses have dual functions of the identity identifier and location identifier in the traditional network.
FIG. 1 is an architecture diagram of a Next Generation Network (called NGN for short) in pertinent prior art. The existing NGN primarily comprises a network access control component, a resource control component, a transport component, a service control component, and a user terminal/user network component, as shown in FIG. 1. Wherein the network access control component provides functions such as registration, authentication and authority, address allocation, parameter configuration, location management for the user terminal/user network which accesses the NGN, such as the Network Attachment Control Function (called NACF for short) and the Transport User Profile (called TUP for short) in the NGN. The resource control component implements functions such as admission control and resource reservation based on the policy and the state of the network resources when the user terminal/user network accesses the network, such as the Resource and Admission Control Function (called RACF for short) in the NGN. The transport component implements functions of information transmission, such as the Transport Function shown in FIG. 1. The service control component belongs to a part of the service layer and implements functions such as registration, authentication and authority, resource control on the service layer, such as the Service Control Function (called SCF for short) and the Service User Profile (called SUP for short) in the NGN. And the user terminal/user network component provides the network access function for the user, such as the Customer Premises Equipment (called CPE for short)/User Equipment (called UE for short) in the NGN.
With the development of the NGN, the mobility of the user and the multi-homing of the host are more and more popular, thus making the drawback related to the semantic overload of the IP addresses become apparent. In the present, when the host IP address is changed, the route is changed, and the identity identifier of the terminal host is changed as well. The change of the route will not result in a problem which occurs in the network. However, the change of the host identity identifier will result in the interruption of the application and connection.

Method, system and device for implementing identity identifier and location separation


An enclosed carton is provided that allows a product to be shipped, displayed, and dispensed all from the same carton. An enclosed carton is filled with product, sealed, and shipped to its destination. The carton can be “cracked” in half along a tear line and the back half is hinged downward to set the carton upright on its sealed ends, with one-half facing outward and the other half facing inward. A detachable dispenser, large enough to dispense product, is removed from the lower front half of the carton. Once the front half is emptied of product, it can either be detached from the back half at the tear line or remain as void filler on the shelf. The carton then is rotated 180 degrees at its base and a detachable dispenser, large enough to dispense product, is removed from the lower end of the back half of the carton.

Retail products generally are packaged in containers, e.g. boxes, can, cartons, etc., which are then placed on a retailer's shelves for display and sale. In order to reach a retailer's shelf, a manufactured product are packaged for shipping, shipped, unpackaged, arranged, and maintained on a shelf. Once products are packaged during manufacture in the retail package, these packaged products are then loaded individually in larger shipping containers and shipped to retailers. The retailers then unpack the packaged products from the shipping containers and place the individually packaged products on their shelves. After consumer's take the first few packaged products from the shelf, the retailer must move the remaining packaged products on the shelf to present an organized and evenly distributed display. Additionally, the retailer must timely rotate the packaged products from back to front to ensure that packaged products do not exceed their expiration dates. This unpackaging, fronting, and rotation creates waste from the shipping containers and is expensive in terms of time and labor. The known prior art has failed to provide a single carton that can be used to ship, display, and dispense individually packaged products from the same carton.


A method for fabricating a direct metal deposition (DMD) structure having substantially fully forged structural qualities is provided. In various embodiments, the method includes depositing a layer of metallic material onto an existing metallic structure having a microstructure that provides the existing metallic structure with substantially fully forged structural qualities. The DMD layer has a microstructure that provides the DMD layer with non-forged structural qualities. The method additionally includes applying a friction stir process to the deposited DMD layer utilizing a friction stir device such that the deposited DMD layer and at least a DMD affected zone of the existing metallic structure are friction stirred to refine and homogenize the microstructure of the deposited DMD layer and at least the DMD affected zone of the existing metallic structure, thereby producing a non-forged aggregate structure having a microstructure that provides the aggregate structure substantially fully forged structural qualities.

The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Additive manufacturing, e.g., laser deposition, electron beam deposition or freeform manufacturing is a process of joining materials layer upon layer, as opposed to subtractive manufacturing methodologies, such as milling away portions of a larger structure. For example, additive manufacturing is often used for constructing models, prototypes or other objects having intricate geometric designs from 3D model data. That is, such additive manufacturing is a process by which complicated structures can be fabricated in layers where each successive layer is deposited on top of the previous layer. However, in many additive techniques, the bonding of the independent layers is typically of a low structural quality, i.e., the structural integrity, strength and durability of the resulting part is not of high quality.
Additionally, in various instances, attempts have been made to use additive manufacturing to add material to an existing substrate, structure or part. However, neither the added material nor the joint where the material has been added to existing structure possess sufficiently high structural qualities. Hence, many additive manufacturing processes have failed for repairing, or adding to, other exiting structures because, among other reasons, the additive manufacturing process does not bond to the existing structure. Therefore, the resulting aggregate structure generally does not have the same structural quality as the original structure being repaired, or having material added.
Metal additive manufacturing, e.g., laser deposition and electron beam deposition, is an additive process using high energy source, in which metal is added to the part or product, layer by layer, to rapidly manufacture or form the part or product to a predetermined free-form shape. It is a technique that can produce 100% dense functional metal parts directly from a CAD system and eliminate the need for intermediate steps. The microstructure obtained through this process is dependent on the laser deposition parameters which include the laser power, laser scanning speed, the powder feed rate etc. While able to produce good bonding to the substrate, when the substrate or a part to be repaired material is of very fine grain microstructure, the high energy source may affect the quality of these fine grain structures due to high temperature operation. Therefore this becomes the limitation of these types of metal additive manufacturing (laser deposition and electron beam deposition).

Systems and methods for fabricating a direct metal deposition structure having fully forged structural qualities

The Curators of the University of Missouri