A method, system and storage medium for monitoring power control loops in an optical communication network. The method includes polling network elements to obtain power management information for the network elements. A set of power management rules is selected based on the power management information along with network configuration, channel types, etc. The power management rules are applied to determine the validity of open and closed power control loop in the network elements.

1. Field of Invention
The invention relates generally to power management in optical communication networks and in particular to determining the validity of power control loops in an optical communication network.
2. Description of Related Art
Optical communication networks often include optical power management components to make sure that the optical signals are properly transported from one network element to the other. Power management is often done by manually configuring network elements which has a number of drawbacks. First, manually configuring each network element is prone to errors. Secondly, each network element being different, their configuration must be customized which requires time and resources. Thirdly, these manually configured systems cannot easily support optical protection switching that changes wavelength routing, power levels and number of wavelengths at different locations in the network. Finally, network upgrades (e.g., network element addition, hardware addition, new services deployment) can be costly and time consuming since all the network elements in the network might need to be reconfigured.

Method, system and storage medium for monitoring power control loops in optical communication networks


A carrying box is releasably attachable to a portion of a piece of clothing. The carrying box has a top section connectable to a bottom section in a sealing manner. The bottom section has a curved bottom face with a curve radius substantially corresponding with the curve shape of a body part of a human being to be covered by the portion of piece of clothing. The carrying box further is arranged for releasable interconnection with said portion of piece of clothing by at least one attachment means, wherein at least one of a curved inward top face of the top section and the curved bottom face of the bottom section is arranged to carry a compress element.

People exposed to risk of injuries during their activities, especially people working in remote areas, i.e. lumberjacks, construction workers, farmers, etc., are in need of rapid access to first-aid means. A first-aid box present on site, i.e. in a construction machine, in a tractor, in a workmen's hut, etc. is useful for those working in or close to such a site. For people staying remote from such site, it is an advantage to carry first aid means. However, first aid means carried in a pocket or the like might is easily drop out, being damaged or lost, or left behind in the cloths and being destroyed when delivered to the laundry.
There is also a need for safe and easy access storage of other small means to be carried during an activity.
US2005116003A1 discloses a sealed box with a hinged cover and arranged to be carried by a user in a length adjustable strap or a clip. The box has a rectangular cross section with rounded edges.
US2004251285A1 discloses a wrist-mounted circular or polygonal storage box provided with straps. The box is provided with a curved bottom face and a hinged cover. One or more apertures are formed in the box to provide for phone antenna and earphone cables.
DE1891903U discloses a box arranged for carrying tickets etc., the box being provided with a curved length section and strap or clip shaped attachment means arranged for attaching the box to an arm, waist or the like. A hinged or displaceable cover is extending over approximately half the convex face of the box.
DE20210863U1 describes a small bag or holder arranged to be attached to an arm or a leg of a carrier by means of an elastic material.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,003,637 A describes a container that is removably attached to the external back of a glove by means of a hook-and-loop fastener (VELCRO) strip.

Carrying box integrateable in an article of clothing


A method of providing a location estimate for a mobile station in a wireless communications network. The method of providing the location estimate includes implementing, in parallel, a plurality of different location estimate generation methods, each location generation method generating a location estimate. The method of providing the location estimate also includes selecting one of the location estimates based on predetermined criteria.

The ability to pinpoint the location of mobile terminals is a desirable feature of a mobile telephone network. This is because of the need to provide customer services which rely on knowing the whereabouts of users of these services. For example, up-to-date local traffic information can be provided to enable a user to avoid nearby traffic jams. A user may also wish to know, for example, how to get to the nearest pub or restaurant from their present location. Clearly the location of the user must be ascertained to within even a few metres for this type of service to work.
Another reason for wishing to know the location of a mobile terminal is so that emergency services can locate a caller who is unable to provide an accurate personal location themselves.
It is known in a GSM mobile network to provide the location of a mobile telephone in terms of the cell of the network in which the telephone is located. Each cell contains one base station and a telephone is only ever in traffic communication with one base station at a given time. Hence the location of the telephone to an accuracy of the cell area can be determined simply by ascertaining with which base station the telephone is communicating. Such methods are known as cell-based location methods. Other methods can be combined with the cell identity (CI), such as a triangulation system, in which the location of a particular mobile phone is calculated using control signals from at least the three base stations closest to it (two of which are located in adjacent cells to the cell in which the mobile telephone is located). This system uses the assumption that the distance of the phone from a base station is proportional to the strength of the signal which the base station receives from it, or the time taken for the signal to travel between the phone and the respective base station. Thus the position of the phone can be determined by comparing the relative strengths or travel times of received signals between the three base stations and thus assessing the distance of the user from each base station. The actual location of the user is then obtainable geometrically since the location of the base stations is known and fixed.
In a 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) network using a Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (W-CDMA) signalling system, it is possible for a mobile terminal to be in active communication with more than one base station at any one time. This situation is known as "soft handover" and differs from (hard) handover in a GSM system, in which a mobile terminal is "handed over" from one base station to another as it moves between cells of the network. Because of the nature of the soft handover, the above-described cell-based mobile location procedures suitable for GSM can not always be used in a W-CDMA type signalling system. It has therefore been necessary to develop more reliable ways of locating a mobile terminal in this type of signalling system.
In W-CDMA a "softer handover" is defined as well. In the case of "softer handover" the antennas of the base stations with which the mobile station is communicating are co-located (e.g. they are installed at the same physical location or site). In the remainder of this document, the term "soft handover" will be used also to cover the case of "softer handover", and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the invention and the described embodiments thereof are applicable to a softer handover situation as well as a soft handover situation.
Location techniques are known which are directed towards calculation of a location estimate and a "confidence region" associated with the location estimate of a User Equipment (UE).
One such technique is a Cell Identity and Round Trip Time (CI+RTT) location method.
The CI+RTT location method in UMTS relies on the availability of Round Trip Time (RTT) and Rx−Tx Time Difference (RxTxTD) measurements. RTT and RxTxTD measurements are introduced in UMTS FDD (Frequency Division Duplex) to allow the implementation of the CI+RTT location method.
The RTT is defined as RTT=TRxUL−TTXDL, where TDTXDL is the time of transmission of the beginning of a downlink dedicated physical channel (DPCH) frame to a User Equipment (UE) and TRXUL is the time of reception of the beginning (the first detected path, in time) of the corresponding uplink DPCCH (Dedicated Physical Control Channel)/DPDCH (Dedicated Physical Data Channel) frame from the UE.
The RTxTxTD=TTxUL−TRxDL is the difference in time between the UE uplink DPCCH/DPDCH frame transmission (TTxUL) and the first detected path (in time) of the downlink DPCH frame from the measured radio link (TRxDL).
RTTs are measured by the base stations, RxTxTDs are measured by the UE.
By combining a pair of RTT and RxTxTD measurements referred to the same base station the distance between the UE and that base station can be estimated. Such distance estimate is analogous to the distance estimate that can be obtained from one Timing-Advance (TA) in GSM. In this sense, the CI+RTT location method corresponds to the Cell Identity+Timing Advance (CI+TA) location method in GSM. However, two particular features of UMTS FDD make the CI+RTT method potentially more accurate than the CI+TA method in GSM:    1. The much shorter UMTS chip period as compared to the GSM bit period affects the resolution with which a distance estimate can be determined from a TA in GSM or from an (RTT, RxTxTD) pair in UMTS. One GSM bit period is equivalent to approximately 1100 meters while one UMTS chip period is equivalent to approximately 80 meters, thus the distance measurements resolution in UMTS is better than in GSM.    2. In UMTS a UE can be in soft handover. UMTS standards require that RTTs and RxTxTDs are measured for each active radio link, thus multiple distance estimates can be potentially available for locating one UE in UMTS. In GSM this is not possible since the TA is available only for the unique serving cell.
In the CI+RTT location method the unknown geographical coordinates of the UE whose position it is desired to determine are estimated by combining absolute distance measurements between the UE and the base stations in the active set. Each absolute distance measurement is calculated from each (RTT, RxTxTD) pair.
Existing CI+RTT location methods can be considered to fall broadly into two general categories, single-site location methods and multi-site location methods. There are a number of good, reasonably accurate algorithms for implementing multi-site location methods when the UE have active radio links with cells located at three or more sites. However, such methods often fail when two or less sites are available for location calculation purposes.
One of the difficulties with existing location systems is that a location system method is selected to generate a location estimate which may then fail for one or more reason. It then becomes necessary to try a different method, which may or may not be implementable at the site where the first location method was carried out.
It is an aim of the present invention to obviate or at least mitigate this difficulty.


A module includes a ceramic substrate, first and second electrodes provided on the ceramic substrate, a component having third and fourth electrodes connected to the first and second electrodes, respectively, and a resin filled in a space between the component and the ceramic substrate. The ceramic substrate has a surface thereof having a recess formed therein. The first and second electrodes are provided on the surface of the ceramic substrate so that the recess is located between the first and second electrodes. The component is located over the recess and spaced from the ceramic substrate with a space including the recess. The space including the recess is filled with the resin. The module allows each component to be surface mounted at higher bonding strength, thus preventing short-circuit between the electrodes on the substrate and improving the operation reliability.

Ceramic modules including electronic components, such as ICs, SAW filters, resistors, capacitors, and coils, mounted on a ceramic substrate having a wiring pattern thereon is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication Nos. 3-205857 and 4-252041.
FIG. 18 is a cross sectional view of a conventional ceramic module 50. The ceramic module 50 includes a component 60, such as a capacitor and an inductor, an active component 80, such as an IC and a SAW filter, and a ceramic substrate 70. The ceramic substrate 70 includes internal electrodes 51, via electrodes 52 connecting between the internal electrodes 51, land electrodes 55 connected with the active component 80 and the component 60 for surface-mounting them, and back electrodes 56 for mounting the ceramic module 50 on a mother board. The end electrodes 62 of the component 60 are connected to land electrodes 55 corresponding to them with a conductive adhesive 61, such as solder, while the back electrodes 81 of the active component 80 are connected to land electrodes 55 corresponding to them with a conductive adhesive 61. A gap between the active component 80 and the substrate 70 is filled with a resin 90 for increasing reliability of surface mounting of the active component 80.
In the conventional module 50, the component 60 and the active component 80 are mounted on the ceramic substrate 70 which has been baked, and may be molded with a resin 91 according to requirement.
When the component 60 has a small size, such as 1005 size or 0603 size, the conventional module 50 includes a small amount of the conductive adhesive 61 for avoiding short-circuit between the electrodes during the surface mounting. When being applied for molding the component 60 mounted, the resin 91 may fail to flow into beneath the component 60, and may produce a gap 92. When the ceramic module 50 is mounted on the mother board, the conductive adhesive 61, such as solder, may melt and flow into the gap 92 between the component 60 and the ceramic substrate 70, hence causing a short-circuit between the land electrodes 55 and disturbing the performance and the operational reliability of the ceramic module 50.
The resin 90 is also applied to between the component 80 and the substrate 70 for mounting and securing the component 80 onto the substrate 70. The resin 90, upon not being applied sufficiently between the component 80 and the substrate 70, may reduce the bonding strength and the operational reliability.

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A fastening device for a sliding board includes a base that defines a housing in which a shoe is designed to be immobilized by a maintaining device. The maintaining device includes a vertical locking pivot cooperating with an anchor element secured to the board on the one hand, and with rotational blocking elements on the other hand. The base includes a lower plate and an upper plate to support the shoe and sliding relative to one another, the pivot ensuring sliding locking of the two plates.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fastening device for a sliding board as well as a board equipped with such a device. In particular, the invention relates to the field of sliding sports, and more particularly to specific arrangements for fastening shoes on a snowboard.
These arrangements are designed to allow manual and easily configurable adjustment for all persons and, in particular, the user, of the fastening depending on the user's shoe size and/or preferred boarding method.
2. Related Art
In general, the snowboard fastening device comprises a base that is designed to be secured to the upper face of the board. The space receives a hoop configured to receive the bearing forces exerted on the rear of the fastener by the user during sliding.
It has already been proposed in documents EP 1,512,442 and FR 2,811,583 to make certain parts of the fastener, and in particular the rear hoop, adjustable in longitudinal translation and/or incline relative to the base to adapt the fastener to different shoe sizes or shapes. This adjustment is particularly useful for rental equipment or when the user must change shoes frequently.
Furthermore, for sliding comfort or style reasons, users wish to be able to adjust the angular position of their shoes relative to the axis of the board and, possibly, the spacing of the feet on the board.
These adjustments are even more sensitive and necessary when the board is to be used indifferently by left-handed and right-handed individuals and/or people of different sizes or degrees of experience.
To that end, it was proposed in FR 2,876,041 and FR 2,834,909 to mount, on the base, a central pivot that allows the rotation of the base, temporarily and only at the end of adjustment. This pivot is designed to be locked, after adjustment, by cooperation with an anchor element secured to the board.
Another adjustment solution was proposed in EP 1,508,352 consisting of making the base in three parts with two telescoping upper plates to make it possible to adapt the fastening area, in contact with the lower part of the shoe, to the shoe size. However, the element for securing and locking the base is not easily accessible, and the solution also does not offer any possibility of angular adjustment incorporating rotational locking.
Furthermore, this document does not examine the rear bearing of the shoe.

Fastening device for gliding board and board equipped with such a device


An ultrasound scanning assistance apparatus for diagnosis of a breast cancer is provided. The ultrasound scanning assistance apparatus includes a fixing container including a scan surface to scan an ultrasound transducer adapted to diagnose a breast cancer and a soft membrane to contact a surface of a human body; and a buffer fluid controller to control a hydraulic pressure of a buffer fluid filling the fixing container.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an ultrasound scanning assistance apparatus for diagnosis of a breast cancer and an ultrasound scanning method, and more particularly, to an ultrasound scanning assistance apparatus that hermetically contacts a skin of a human body part using a dedicated soft membrane and ultrasonically images the human body part being contacted.
The present invention is derived from a research conducted as part of the new technology convergence type growth engine program with the support of the Korea science and engineering foundation funded by the ministry of education and science technology. [Grant number: 2012K001520, Title: Development in a lesion detection technology for a breast ultrasound.]
2. Description of the Related Art
Globally, a breast cancer takes the first ranking of incidence of female cancers. In Korea, most of breast cancer patients are young at the age of forties. Mammography is generally used in diagnosis of the breast cancer. However, in regard to oriental women with over 40% of dense breast tissue, efficiency of the mammography is relatively low, that is, no more than 0.6% of a positive predictive value. Therefore, two-dimensional (2D) breast ultrasound imaging has been additionally performed. In this case, a breast cancer detection rate reaches about 95% or more. A three-dimensional (3D) breast ultrasound, which is being recently developed, easily identifies a location, size, and shape of a tumor, increases diagnosis accuracy of the breast cancer, and facilitates biopsies for a definitive diagnosis and treatment.
When performing the 3D breast ultrasound imaging, a meaningful image may be obtained only when a transducer device scans a skin in close contact with the skin so that the ultrasound effectively propagates through a human body. For this, gel-type assistant fluid needs to be disposed between the transducer device and the skin without air intervened.
A generally used method for the 3D ultrasound imaging outputs an ultrasonic signal from a transducer device such as a one-dimensional (1D) array lead zirconate titanate (PZT), and analyzes and post-processes a time interval between reflected signals, thereby reproducing a 2D image. In addition, the method constructs information with respect to a 3D space by continuously obtaining a 2D image slice by moving a transducer array in a direction orthogonal to the 1D array. According to a recently researched method, a 3D image may be simultaneously reproduced directly from a transducer device having a 2D array.
The 1D transducer method needs scanning of a transducer and therefore has a limit in synchronism. That is, a difference in obtaining time of an image between start and end of scanning need to be taken into consideration in reading. When a plurality of 3D images are obtained by a plurality of transducers and integrated into an entire 3D image, a mismatch between images obtained by the plurality of transducers may be generated. Furthermore, since the images are obtained on a time basis, a movement of a human body during the image obtainment needs to be considered. (Refer to US 2010/0179429 A1 FIGS. 1 and 6b, and US 2012/0089026 A1 FIG. 4a)
Recently, elastography showing an exclusive performance in tumor diagnosis is being spotlighted as a functional ultrasound imaging method. Elastography reconstructs an elastic property image using a difference between ultrasound images obtained by oscillating a particular surface of a human body at a short time interval of about tens of hertz (Hz) from an outside, and visualizes a change in human parenchymal properties, in particular, elastic properties. In case of diagnosis of a breast cancer, the elastography is particularly useful in determining malignancy and benignancy of a tumor since the elastic properties are obviously different between a malignant tumor, which is several times harder than a surrounding parenchyma, and the surrounding parenchyma in an image obtained by the elastography.
However, since the elastography extracts the elastic properties by applying oscillation to the human body at a short time interval, a method of applying oscillation directly influences an image quality. In addition, a structural problem may be caused since an ultrasound needs to be generated and collected by a transducer simultaneously with when a change in the elastic properties of the human body occurs. That is, in a conventional system, an oscillation apparatus of tens of Hz is operated integrally with a portable transducer and, at this time, an ultrasound image is simultaneously obtained using the transducer. In this case, a difference image is obtained by oscillating only a portion contacting the transducer. However, since oscillation is also generated from the portable transducer, it is difficult to maintain constant oscillation. (Refer to 2012/0136250 A1 FIG. 2)

Ultrasound scanning assistance apparatus for breast cancer diagnosis and method of ultrasound scanning

ELECTRONICS AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS RESEARCH INSTITUTE


An electronic metering device with a drive comprising an electric drive motor, at least one displacement device comprising a piston fixed to an axle drivable by the drive, for metering the fluid, and an electronic control for the drive motor, with a transducer which converts a feed voltage delivered by an electrical voltage source into a supply voltage for the drive, the supply voltage being matched in size to the respective load of the drive.

The invention relates to an electronic metering device.
Electronic metering devices are applied in the laboratory for metering fluids. They are known in various embodiments. Metering devices functioning according to the air cushion principle have an integrated piston-cylinder unit, by way of which an air column is displaceable in order to suction sample fluid into a metering syringe and to expel this from the syringe. With this the piston-cylinder unit does not come into contact with the fluid. Only the metering syringe which as a rule consists of plastic is contaminated and may be exchanged after use.
With direct displacement metering devices on the other hand a syringe is directly filled with sample fluid. The piston and the cylinder of the syringe are thus contaminated by the fluid so that the syringe before the exchange of the fluid mostly must be replaced by a new syringe or be cleaned. Also this syringe consists as a rule of plastic.
Pistonless metering devices may comprise a metering tip with a balloon-like end section which is expanded for suctioning fluid, and for expulsion is compressed. Such metering tips are also already conceived as an exchange part.
Micro-metering devices may have a micro-membrane pump and/or a free jet meterer, wherein at least one of these components is designed with micro-system technology, in particularly with silicon, glass and plastic injection molding technology and/or plastic imprinting technology. The metering is achieved by deformation of a wall of a container which is filled with fluid. The electrical drive for the deformation of the wall may be piezoelectric, thermoelectric, electromagnetic, electrostatic, electromechanical, magnetorestrictive, etc.
Air cushion, direct displacement, pistonless and micro-metering devices may have an unchangeable or changeable metering volume. A changing of the metering volume is achieved by adjustment of the displacement of the displacement means, i.e. of the displacement path of the piston or of the degree of deformation of the balloon-like end section or of the chamber wall.
Dispensers are metering devices which may repetitively dispense an accommodated fluid in small part quantities.
Furthermore there are multi-channel metering devices which have several xe2x80x9cchannelsxe2x80x9d by way of which it is simultaneously metered.
All metering devices may in particular be designed as a hand apparatus and/or stationary apparatus.
All previously mentioned metering devices may be electronic metering devices in the meaning of this application. With this they comprise a drive means with an electrical drive for driving a displacement means with which it may be the case of the piston-cylinder unit or the balloon-like end section of a metering tip, or a chamber with a deformable wall. The electrical drive in particular may be an electrical drive motor, electric linear drive or an electrical drive mentioned in the context of the micro-metering devices. Furthermore an electronic control means for the drive and an electrical voltage source for the supply of the control means and the drive is present. Electronic metering devices have in particular the advantage of the high reproducibility of meterings. In particular by way of preset constant metering speed (xcexcl/s) more exact results may be achieved than with manually driven metering devices. Furthermore they have the advantage of a broad area of application since they may fulfill simple pipetting functions as well as dispensing functions. The electrical voltage source may comprise a battery, an accumulator and/or mains electricity part.
With conventional electronic metering devices the electrical voltage source is dimensioned such that in the normal condition it makes available a sufficient power for the drive with all operating loads of the drive means. With a battery or an accumulator this requires a suitable number of cells. However with an advanced discharging and thus reducing feed voltage increasingly operating malfunctions occur. With a reducing feed voltage specifically the torque of the drive reduces so that the drive means no longer drives the displacement means with all occurring loads in the desired manner. In particular with the design of the drive as a stepper motor steps may be lost and by way of this metering errors arise. Therefore for a reliable operation over a desired time a complicated battery or accumulator supply with corresponding costs, volume and weight are required. The same applies to the embodiment of the electrical voltage source as a mains electricity part.
Proceeding from this it is the object of the invention to provide an electronic metering device with which the cost for the electrical voltage source, in particular its costs, space requirement and weight is reduced and the drive in spite of this at all operational loads is supplied with the required voltage.
This object is achieved by an electronic metering device with the features of claim 1. Advantageous formations of the electronic metering device are specified in the dependent claims.
The electronic metering device according to the invention has
a drive means comprising an electric drive,
at least one displacement means drivable by the drive means, for metering the fluid and
an electronic control and/or regulating means for the drive with a transducer which converts a feed voltage delivered by an electrical voltage source into a supply voltage for the drive, this supply voltage being matched in size to the respective load of drive means.
According to the invention thus the control and/or regulating means makes available to the drive via a transducer a supply voltage which is matched to the respective load of the drive means. Thus for example at the beginning of the drive procedure it may increase the supply voltage in order to overcome start resistances of the displacement means. Thereafter it may reduce the supply voltage to a nominal value which is sufficient for the further drive of the displacement means set in motion. In the case that the metering device can be equipped with various displacement means which represent varying loads for the drive means, for example syringes of differing size, the supply may be matched to the respective displacement means. The control and/or displacement means controls the operation of the metering device, for example according to control commands which may be inputted via a keyboard so that it recognizes the respective operating condition of the metering device. According to predetermined criteria the control and/or regulating means may find a suitable supply voltage for each operating condition and make this available via the transducer. Furthermore information on the respective present displacement means, e.g. a coding of a syringe may be automatically read by the metering device or inputted separately. Furthermore the control and/or regulating means may evaluate the respective load which may be unforeseeably changed by external influences and on account of the evaluation result regulate the supply voltage. Thus the matching of the supply voltage to the respective load may be achieved.
The invention is not limited to the application of step-up transducers. Included is also the case in which the supply voltage required by the electrical drive lies below the feed voltage of the voltage supply. Thus for example Lithium Ion (Li-Ion) accumulators are available which deliver a relatively high voltage (approx. 3V per cell), so that by way of series connection of only a few cells a relatively high feed voltage may be made available. In the state of the art, in particular with the application of stepper motors, with a low load of the drive means the high feed voltage is partly converted into waste heat. This is undesirable for various reasons. Within the scope of the invention then in such cases a stepping-up convertion of the feed voltage to the supply voltage at the level required with the respective load may be effected. Also the invention includes the case in which the supply voltage from the transducer is increased as well as also reduced, according to the load of the drive means.
The metering device according to the invention has the advantage that the electrical voltage source and the drive may be matched to an average load. With increased loads the transducer makes available an increased supply voltage. Since these only occur for a short time no damage to the drive motor is to be feared. As a result of this the metering device makes do with a lower number of battery or accumulator cells or with a smaller-dimensioned mains electricity part than conventional metering devices. On the part of the electrical supply voltage a cost saving can be achieved which exceeds the additional costs of the transducer. Furthermore by way of this the space requirement for the voltage source is reduced and a weight reduction of the metering device is achieved. A further advantage lies in the fact that this is largely independent on the discharged state of a battery or accumulator.
The electrical drive may in particular be an electrical drive motor, an electrical linear drive or one of the electrical drives mentioned in the combination with micro-metering devices. An electrical drive motor may in particular be a stepper motor with which an impulse control favors exactly defined metering quantities or metering steps.
Additionally or instead of this, exactly defined metering quantities may also be ensured by end abutments, angle coders or coding strips.
Furthermore the drive means may have a gear for converting a rotational movement of a shaft of the drive motor into a linear drive movement for the displacement means. This may in particular be the case if the displacement means comprises a piston-cylinder arrangement. With this it may be the case of the syringe of a direct displacer or displacement unit of an air cushion metering device.
The electrical voltage source may comprise at least one battery, at least one accumulator and/or an electrical mains part. In particular NiMH accumulators may be present. Preferably by way of two such accumulators a feed voltage of 2.4 volts may be made available.
The transducer may deliver the supply voltage in particular roughly at the level of the feed voltage and above this. Thus the supply voltage at the level of a feed voltage of e.g. 2.4 Volts may be used in order to exert a holding moment onto a stepper moment which is designed for a nominal voltage of e.g. 6 Volts. Without such a holding moment with a stepper motor on braking there is a tendency to oscillate, so that it possibly covers one or more undesired steps.
Preferably the transducer may deliver the supply voltage at various discrete or continuous levels. Of these one may serve the production of the holding moment. A further level may be the nominal voltage which the drive motor requires with an average load. Furthermore it may also output an increased voltage level for increased loads. Accordingly the control and/or regulating means may deliver the supply voltage at a low level with the stopping of the drive motor, at the middle level with an average load and with an increased load at the increased level. For example the supply voltage may assume the discrete value 2.4 Volts, 6 Volts and 8 Volts.
Preferably the transducer comprises a step-up converter. Step-up converters in supply technology are known circuits with which a constant voltage may be brought to an increased level. Step-up converters may set an output voltage via the input voltage, wherein as a rule these exploit the energy stored in an inductance.
Preferably the electronic metering device is designed as a hand device and accordingly is equipped with at least one battery or at least one accumulator. The electronic metering device may in particular be an electronic pipetting device.


Disclosed are a dianilino pyrimidine compound having an inhibitory effect on protein tyrosine kinase, pharmaceutically acceptable salts, crystal forms, prodrugs, metabolites, hydrates, solvates, stereoisomers or isotopic derivatives thereof, a pharmaceutical composition containing these compounds, as well as preparation and use of these compounds. The compound has a structure as represented by formula (I), and may be used for treating ALK-mediated cancer-related symptoms, such as non-small cell lung cancer, breast cancer, nerve tumors, esophagus cancer, soft tissue cancer, lymphoma, or leukemia.

Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) is a receptor-type protein tyrosine kinase that belongs to the insulin receptor superfamily. It was discovered by Morris and Shiota et al. in 1994 as a product of chromosome rearrangement in anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL). The most frequently found fusion is the one that the NPM (Nucleophosmin) gene on chromosome 5 fuses with the ALK gene on chromosome 2. NPM-ALK fusion protein was detected in nearly 75% of ALK-positive ALCL patients. It was found in subsequent studies that different forms of ALK fusion were present in various cancers, including inflammatory myofibroblastoma and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. Nevertheless, the importance of ALK kinase as an effective target for anti-tumor drugs has not been fully recognized until in 2007 Soda et al. discovered that the occurrence rate of the EML4-ALK fusion protein in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is 5%, and then the importance of ALK kinase as a target for anti-tumor drugs was highlighted. This is because among tremendous cancer patients worldwide, the lung cancer ranks the first. There are more than 8,000 new ALK-positive lung cancer cases each year in the United States, while the new cases each year in China are more than 65,000. The global 5-year survival rate for lung cancer is only 15%. It is interesting to note that EML4-ALK gene-positive patients generally do not carry epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) or Kirsten rat sarcoma vims (KRAS) mutations, which makes EML4-ALK fusion gene the unique molecular target for non-small cell lung cancer. In addition, amplification or point mutations of the ALK gene have been found in neuroblastomas, anaplastic thyroid cancer and ovarian cancer.
The first small molecule inhibitor Crizotinib (Xalkori), developed by Pfizer, targets the ALK fusion gene and is the first-generation ALK inhibitors. However, although Crizotinib achieved an objective response rate of 60-74% and a good median progression-free survival (8-11 months) in patients with ALK+NSCLC, most patients experienced disease relapse after 1 year of treatment, that is acquired resistance was generated. The mechanism of the acquired resistance to Crizotinib has also been identified, including the gene gain of the ALK fusion gene, activation of the signaling pathway, secondary mutations in the ALK kinase region, and other mechanisms. About 40% of ALK-positive patients have no objective response at the beginning of receiving Crizotinib therapy, and ⅓ of Crizotinib-resistant patients will undergo secondary mutations that induce secondary resistance.
There are several second-generation ALK inhibitors that may effectively overcome the shortcomings of resistance to Crizotinib therapy, such as Ceritinib (Zykadia, Novartis) and Alectinib (Alecensa, Roche). However, although these second-generation inhibitors may effectively overcome most of Crizotinib-resistant mutations, they are still not effective for some mutations, for example, Ceritinib still has no effect on F1174C/V, Alectinib has no effect on I1171N/T/S, and neither of them has effect on G1202R. So there is an urgent need for developing novel, more effective and safe ALK inhibitors.

Dianilinopyrimidine compound for inhibiting kinase activity


Some embodiments relate to a metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitor. The MIM capacitor includes a capacitor bottom metal (CBM) electrode, a high-k dielectric layer arranged over the CBM electrode, and a capacitor top metal (CTM) electrode arranged over the high-k dielectric layer. A capping layer is arranged over the CTM electrode. A lower surface of the capping layer and an upper surface of the CTM electrode meet at an interface. Protective sidewalls are adjacent to outer sidewalls of the CTM electrode. The protective sidewalls have upper surfaces at least substantially aligned to the interface at which the upper surface of the CTM electrode meets the lower surface of the capping layer.

A capacitor is a passive two-terminal electrical component used to store energy electro-statically in an electric field. The forms of practical capacitors vary widely, but all contain at least two electrical conductors separated by a dielectric (insulator). Capacitors are widely used as parts of electrical circuits in many common electrical devices. For example, capacitors are widely used in electronic circuits for blocking direct current while allowing alternating current to pass, but can also be used to store data states, such as in a dynamic random access memory (DRAM) device.
For integrated circuits and for DRAM devices in particular, the use of metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitors has become widespread in recent years.

Metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitor techniques

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd.


A conductor for windings cooled by liquid, especially for transformer windings, has an insulating covering which surrounds the entire conductor (1). At least one layer (2) of the covering completely surrounds the conductor (1). An external layer (3) provided with at least two layers (2, 3) of the covering comprises openings (4), holes (5) or frays (6) through which a coolant flowing around the conductor is placed in a turbulent state and better heat exchange is obtained.

A winding, formed from a generic conductor, of an oil-filled transformer or similar electrical device having a relatively high power rating generally has cooling channels passing through it for the purpose of guiding a cooling liquid such as oil in order to dissipate heat which is incident owing to resistive losses. The heat produced in the conductor in this case needs to pass through an insulating sheathing, which is generally applied directly to the conductor and is typically produced from paper, and a boundary layer formed on a surface of this sheathing. In the process, a temperature gradient occurs both in the sheathing and in the boundary layer and there is thus a temperature difference between the conductor and the cooling liquid. At a given value for the heat to be dissipated, this temperature difference is a decisive variable for dimensions to be selected for the conductor and the corresponding winding.
In order to ensure sufficiently effective cooling, in particular larger dimensions therefore often need to be selected for windings having conductors according to the prior art than would be desirable. The documents EP 0746861 B1 and EP 1079500 A1 have disclosed conductors for transformer windings which comprise a plurality of conductor elements and have a perforated or net-like sheathing such that the corresponding cooling liquid can flow through the sheathing and, as a result, flow around the individual conductor elements. Although this achieves an improved cooling effect, this is at the expense of considerably impaired insulation of the respective conductor, in the case of which, instead of the conductor being insulated as a whole, only the individual conductor elements are insulated by a thin enamel coating. It is therefore only possible to use such conductors at relatively low voltages up to approximately 25 kV, since higher voltages require the conductor to be completely closed off by a sheathing.


A pedotopography apparatus which measures the shape of a foot by producing a moire fringe pattern representative of the underside of the foot, capturing and storing an image of the moire fringe pattern in an image storage buffer, analyzing the image to locate at least two points of interest on the foot and computing information corresponding to the distance between the two points. In the preferred embodiment the captured image is processed by Sobel convolution to enhance edges in the image. Both an apparatus and a method of processing are disclosed.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to devices for measuring the shape of a human foot. More particularly, this invention relates to devices which measure the shape of the foot by producing a moire fringe pattern on the underside of the foot while the foot is bearing weight, and then analyze that pattern to determine the foot shape.
2. Description of Related Art
Previous devices for measuring the shape of a foot have generally employed one of two distinct methods of operation.
The first method involves mechanically measuring the shape of the foot by making physical contact between the sides of the foot and a probe. For example, the common foot-size measurement tool found in most shoe stores generally includes a pair of blocks, one of which is fixed and one of which slides along a distance scale between them. The heel of the foot is placed in contact with the fixed block and the sliding block is pushed into contact with the toes, after which the foot length can be read from the scale. Devices employing physical contact with the foot, however, often produce measurements which vary, even when measuring the same foot, due to the compressibility of the foot tissue and the difficulty of determining the exact moment of contact.
The second method involves placing the foot to be measured over an array of detectors sensitive to the presence or absence of light. The foot is then illuminated from above and an outline of the foot is determined by scanning the detectors An example of this type of device is found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,538,353 issued to Gardner and the related U.S. Pat. No. 4,604,807 issued to Gardner et al.
This method is an improvement over the first one in that it produces a complete foot outline, not just a single linear measurement of width or length. It also requires no physical contact with the sides of the foot which improves the repeatability of the measurements. However, it suffers from several inaccuracies of its own. The human foot does not have sides which are exactly square and perpendicular to its sole. Instead, they are curved and flare out from the portion of the sole in contact with the supporting surface. In the arch region, the sole of the foot may not be in contact with the supporting surface for a substantial distance inwards from the edge of the foot.
This three-dimensional nature of the foot permits light to leak under the edges of the foot activating the detectors and resulting in a detected foot outline which is much smaller than the actual foot. The extent of this undersizing varies depending on the foot being measured. One foot may make close contact with the supporting surface around its perimeter, or may have little or no arch thereby covering more detectors than another foot. Undersizing may also occur if the foot is not measured under load with the normal body weight applied.
This second method also suffers from problems with shadows cast by the foot and leg because of the difficulty of providing collimated illumination from directly above the foot.
Such prior art measuring devices have generally been used to measure the foot for shoe size and width. Many times, however, one wants to measure a foot in order to construct an orthotic insert for a shoe to balance the foot to a plantigrade position.
Such inserts have previously been prepared by taking an impression of the foot in a material that permanently deforms to follow the contours of the foot, thereby producing a mold. The insert is then produced either directly in that mold or on the exterior of a second mold produced by taking a positive casting from the first mold. However, small changes in the angle of insertion of the foot into the deformable media can result in an incorrect mold, and an incorrectly shaped insert. These problems are not present when the foot is measured with the pedotopography apparatus of the present invention.
Accordingly, one object of the present invention is to provide a pedotopography apparatus which is capable of measuring dimensions of the foot at an elevation above the plane of the supporting surface while the foot is under its normal standing load.
A second object of the invention is to provide a pedotopography apparatus which is capable of measuring the arch and other features of the foot within the perimeter of the foot.
Another object of the invention is to provide a pedotopography apparatus which can record images of the foot for subsequent review and analysis.
A further object of the invention is to provide a pedotopography apparatus which can produce a foot "signature" of measured dimensions of or locations on a foot and compare that signature to a database of previously measured feet to select an appropriately shaped shoe or insert.

Redotopography apparatus and method using moire fringe analysis to measure foot shapes


Continuously cast products (12) are often provided with surface defects such as oscillation marks (17) and other non-homogeneous structures in the cast state thereof during production in a casting die (11) of a continuous casting plant (10). Defects which render a strip useless for superior applications also frequently occur on the strip surface during subsequent milling of the slab (12″) into a strip. The aim of the invention is to minimize said defects and provide the rolling mill with a slab (12″) having a desired preliminary profile and an improved near-surface structure. Said aim is achieved by arranging a reducing roll stand (30) in the area of the bending rolls or straightening driver rolls (24) within the continuous casting plant (10). Said reducing roll stand (30) allows the cast billet (12) to be deformed in a specific manner at an early point in time while still having a high temperature and providing a high energy yield after being completely hardened such that the depth of the existing oscillation marks (17) on the cast billet surface (16) is reduced, the finely crystalline edge layer (18) is enlarged as a result of the energy being released which is introduced into the reducing billet (12′) during said deformation process, and increased recrystallization occurs and the grains in the deformed edge zone (19) of the slab (12″) are refined during the subsequent thermal treatment in a holding furnace (40).

The invention concerns a method and a device for producing slabs in a continuous casting installation, with an oscillating casting mold and a downstream strand guide below it, in which the cast strand is bent from the vertical casting direction into the horizontal rolling direction and during this process is supported and conveyed by driver rolls, which are arranged opposite each other in pairs, are adjusted relative to each other with well-defined contact force and can be combined into segments, and is deformed by at least one pair of driver rolls to a thickness that is reduced relative to its cast state, after which the continuous preliminary section or the reduced strand is cut into slabs, which are conveyed to a soaking furnace and then to a rolling mill.
So that the cast strand, which is produced in a continuous casting installation with a thickness of less than 100 mm, can be conveyed out of the continuous casting installation, the driver rolls are pressed against the strand with a certain pressure which prevents the driver rolls from slipping through and produces a sufficiently large tensile force on the strand below the point of complete solidification. In the state of the art, this pressure of the driver rolls in the area of complete solidification or locally sooner is utilized to alter the strand thickness, since the rolling forces to be applied are small due to the fact that the cast strand is still soft.
For example, DE 38 22 939 C1 describes a continuous casting method for the production of slabs with a reduced thickness relative to the cast state, in which a strand whose cross section is partially solidified is deformed by rolls that can be hydraulically adjusted relative to each other. These rolls acts to deform the strand both within the solidification section and in the area of the completely solidified strand, and during this process, the strand is deformed from about 60 mm to a final gage of 20 to 15 mm, and at the same time a product with a high proportion of rolling microstructure is produced. In this regard, at least one pair of rolls that acts on the already completely solidified part of the strand can be adjusted against stops to ensure the final dimension of the strand.
DE 198 17 034 A1 describes a method for the continuous casting of thin metal strip in a continuous casting installation with an oscillating, water-cooled mold, in which, directly after the complete solidification of the cast strand, at least one pair of driver rolls is continuously pressed against the strand with a variably defined pressure to achieve a well-defined thickness reduction of at least 2% and to maintain a desired strand thickness that has been adjusted in advance at a constant level.
Finally, EP 0 804 981 B1 describes a continuous casting method and a continuous casting device, in which cast slabs are fed to a large number of reducing installations, each of the reducing installations is assigned a target rolling reduction or a target pressure, and a deformation of a liquid core of the slabs is carried out, such that cast slabs can be produced with increased or decreased thickness compared to the slabs continuously removed from the mold.
In addition to the effort to reduce the thickness of the cast strand inexpensively and with relatively simple means that are already available by using the drivers that are already present, another objective that needs to be pursued is improvement of the surface quality of the slabs that are produced. In their cast state, continuously cast products may have surface defects, such as oscillation marks and other microstructural inhomogeneities. Subsequent rolling of the slab into a strip then results in defects in the strip surface. The effect of oscillation marks in austenitic steels consists essentially in the fact that, at the base of the oscillation marks (in the notch), there is diminished heat dissipation, which results in coarsening of the microstructure and segregation. These are mainly Cr or Mo concentrations. These concentrations lead to the formation of intermetallic phases, which, as the cause of the specified surface defects, must be removed by grinding before the rolling operation is carried out.
The solidification behavior of austenites is characterized by shrinkage during the transformation from ferrite to austenite, which results in a tendency of the strand shell to contract. This contraction can lead to increased delta ferrite concentrations and to poorer hot workability in the affected places. The nonuniform solidification at the surface then causes so-called scale patterns during direct rolling. These negative phenomena also generally have to be eliminated by grinding.
In ferritic steels as well, oscillation marks cause diminished heat dissipation at their base, which results in coarsening of the microstructure and segregation (Ni concentration, hard spots). To obtain a satisfactory final product, these inhomogeneities must also be eliminated by grinding.
The aforementioned surface defects cannot be eliminated by the previously known deformation of the cast strand while it is still soft, since the practical effect is to "knead" especially the oscillation marks that are present more deeply into the soft cast strand.

Method and device for producing continuously cast steel slabs


A frequency distribution or histogram M (L.sub.j-1, L.sub.j) of differences between gradation levels (L.sub.j-1, L.sub.j) of adjacent pixels (P.sub.j-1, P.sub.j) in an image is obtained, and the number of level-changes for each tentative threshold level L.sub.j is determined as a function of the histogram of the level differencies. By using the number of level-changes, an optimum binarization threshold level is set by means of an adaptive thresholding method. Since the number of level-changes is calculated from the histogram of the level-differencies without practical binarization for each threshold level, the amount of calculations is not dependent on the number of pixels but on the number of gradation levels. The calculations for setting the threshold level for the binarization of the image are achieved at high speeds by a small-scale hardware.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of and an apparatus for obtaining a binary image which can be employed in wiring-pattern inspection of printed circuit boards, for example.
2. Description of the Background Art
In an apparatus for inspecting wiring patterns on printed circuit boards, it is required to discriminate an image of a wiring pattern from a background image. Accordingly, an image signal of the printed board having gradation (hereinafter referred to as "an original image signal") is obtained and is compared with a threshold level to obtain a binary image having logical levels of "0" and "1". The binary image signal thus obtained represents the image of the wiring pattern.
In order to obtain an appropriate binary image of the wiring pattern, the threshold level should be carefully determined. Numerous approaches for determining the threshold level have been proposed, and one of the approaches is the method which is called the "adaptive thresholding method". In this method, an optimum threshold level is determined by analyzing results obtained by binarizing the original image with various threshold levels, respectively, and then selecting one of . the various threshold levels according to a predetermined criterion.
However, these conventional methods have a problem in that an enormous processing time is required to binarize the original image with all threshold levels and to calculate and index value for each of the resultant binary images.
To solve the problem, there has been proposed a method of calculating index values at high speeds through filter operations, in which the amount of calculations does not depend on the number of threshold levels. In this method, however, multi-level image memories are required. For high-speed processing, large-scale shift registers should be used as the multi-level image memories, for example, so that the total scale of the hardware therefor is increased.

Method of and apparatus for obtaining binary image


A scanner which can be used in both sheet feed and self move modes including a scanner body and a cover. The scanner body has an entry slot at a top side of a lateral wall thereof, and an elongated roller driven by a motor and connected via circuit means to a control panel. The control panel is connected via circuit means to a sensor at one end and is connected to a connector at the other end for connection with a computer. The scanner body further has an exit slot at a top side of a lateral wall opposite to the entry slot. The cover is a plate connected via connecting means to the top side of the scanner body and can be turned open through 270.degree.. When the cover is put on the scanner body, the scanner is in a sheet feed mode. But when the cover is turned over through 270.degree. and the scanner body inverted, the scanner is in a self move mode.

(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a scanner, and more particularly to a sheet feed and self move type scanner.
(b) Description of the Prior Art
The scanner is a kind of computer key-in tool. For illustrated printer materials in particular, the contents may be input into the memories of the computer using a scanner, eliminating the trouble of duplicating, keying-in, drawing, etc. The contents may also be corrected, arranged and printed with use of the computer. Thus, scanners play an important role in the use of information products.
Existing portable scanners generally fall into two main types: sheet feed type and self move type. The so-called sheet feed type scanner is similar to the facsimile machine, in which the document to be scanned is placed at an entry slot and is rolled past a sensor which senses the contents of the document and transmit the same to a signal processor for conversion into signals to be stored in the computer. As for the so-called self move type scanner, the document to be scanned is placed flat on a planar plate, and a movable sensor passes over the document, scanning the contents at the same time. The contents are also converted into signals to be stored in the computer. This type is suitable for scanning relatively thick books or a pile of documents that cannot be dismantled. Certainly, it is also suited for large-size documents that need to be scanned partly and several times.

Scanner having sheet feed and self move modes


The present invention provides a blade sharpening system in which a cylindrical drum abrasive is fitted snugly about a rotatable drum. The blade is run across a guide plate which is maintained at a proper orientation with respect to the drum as the edge of the blade is sharpened on the abrasive. The drum abrasive is maintained at a constant radius, thereby assuring that the contact surface between the blade and the abrasive surface is substantially constant, even after a substantial number of blades are sharpened. Further, an adjustable blade tensioner assembly is provided for substantially continuously maintaining a proper amount of pressure between the blade and the abrasive surface, reducing blade chatter, allowing a rapid but accurately repeatable sharpening process.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to blade sharpening systems. More specifically, the invention relates to systems for sharpening spiral meat slicing blades.
2. Related Art
The spiral meat slicing blade disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,050,370 (Schmidt et al.) has normally been sharpened on a sharpening device employing a stone sharpening abrasive. A significant disadvantage of this device is that, with continued sharpening, the radius of the sharpening abrasive is reduced. This reduced radius causes unreliable sharpening results due to the progressive change in contact area between the blade and the abrasive as the abrasive wears down. Further, the life of the blade is reduced when the contact area is changed through the reduced radius of the abrasive.
There is therefore a need to provide a system of sharpening blades in which the contact area between the blade and the abrasive is maintained substantially constant, even after large numbers of blades have been sharpened.
Another problem of known blade sharpening systems involves "blade chatter". Blade chatter is encountered when a blade being sharpened does not continually and smoothly contact the abrasive surface. Rather, the blade "jumps" periodically or aperiodically from the abrasive surface. Thereafter, a returning force must be applied (such as by a human applying pressure with his hand) to cause the blade to again contact the abrasive surface. This repetition of periods of contact, followed by periods of lesser contact or no contact, causes unevenness of blade sharpening.
Further, known methods of holding the blade against the abrasive surface have often caused either too little pressure or too much pressure between the blade and the abrasive surface. An improper amount of pressure causes blade sharpening to be unreliably sharpened, causing poorer cutting performance.
Therefore, there is a need to provide a blade sharpening system in which a proper amount of pressure is maintained between the blade and the abrasive surface, to reduce blade chatter.
Various blade sharpening systems are known in the art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,635,402 (Sakabe et al.) discloses a knife sharpening apparatus for sharpening blades that are located on the periphery of a drum-shaped cutter used for shredding material (such as tobacco leaves) which are input to a shredding port. An abrasive wheel has a "plane" which rotates to grind a blade edge in a substantially longitudinal direction on the blade, so that it does not become serrated. The abrasive "plane" is not truly a plane, but is curved so as to conform to the cylindrical outer surface of the blade cylinder. This observation applies to other embodiments of the Sakabe et al. device.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,265,146 (Horrell) discloses a device for sharpening lawn mower blades which uses a disk-shaped abrasive wheel adapted for rotation by a standard hand drill. A clamp grasps the blade and allows it to reciprocate, in contact with the abrasive wheel. The Horrell patent discloses two angular orientations of the blade with respect to the abrasive wheel.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,883,995 (Ohashi) discloses a device for sharpening razor blades or scissors in which the razor blade is positioned above a cylindrical abrasive element and moved by a block.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,755,971 (Garcia) discloses a device for grinding sheers and scissors in which a grinding wheel is disposed at 5-25 degrees from the vertical (preferably 20 degrees). With the scissor blade secured to a platform, the platform assembly and scissor blade reciprocate in a direction so that the scissor blade contacts the grinding wheel at an oblique angle.
U.S. Pat. No. 895,749 (Gury) discloses a device for sharping both edges of a blade, the blade being attached to a longitudinally moveable rod so that the two edges of the blade may contact the periphery of cylindrical grinding wheel at a right angle.
The above systems do not enjoy the advantages possessed by the present invention in providing a constant contact surface between blade and abrasive, or in solving blade chatter problems. Some of these patents do not even relate to sharpening the type of blade on which the present invention is most advantageously used. Therefore, there is a need in the art to provide a blade sharpening system which overcomes the above limitations of known blade sharpening systems.

Sharpening system especially suitable for spiral meat slicing blade

The Original Honey Baked Ham Co. of Georgia, Inc.


The present invention performs density adjustment (ATR process) and transfer voltage control (ATVC) in parallel; the ATR process transfers and forms a patch image on an intermediate transfer member and detects and adjusts the density of the patch image, and the ATVC gradually raises a transfer voltage to measure a transfer current and generates a transfer voltage corresponding to a target transfer current to control a transfer of an image from an image carrier to the intermediate transfer member. The present invention determines the timing at which the patch image is formed in the density adjustment, in association with the transfer voltage in the transfer voltage control step, to allow a density adjustment process based on density adjustment and transfer voltage control to be executed in parallel.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus based on, for example, an electrophotographic scheme, and a density adjusting method for the apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
For color image forming apparatuses that print color images on the basis of an electrophotographic scheme, a process of adjusting the image forming apparatus (this process is hereinafter referred to as an image adjusting process) needs to be executed in a sequence different from an image forming process of actually forming images, in order to stabilize the quality of formed (printed) images. Control for the image adjusting process includes an ATR (Automatic Toner Refresh) patch detection process of making the color perception of formed images constant and ATVC (Automatic Transfer Voltage Control) that allows a toner image formed on a photosensitive member to be appropriately transferred to a paper or a transfer member.
The ATR patch detection process is control which makes the color perception of formed images constant and which maintains the fixed concentration ratio of toner to a carrier (developing material) in a developer. This control periodically supplies a developer with toner the amount of which is equal to that of toner consumed for image formation. Toner supply is controlled by forming a patch image on a photosensitive member or a transfer member so that a photo sensor placed opposite the patch image formed detects reflected light from the patch image to determine the concentration ratio of the developing material to the toner.
Image forming apparatuses such as printers and copiers transfer a toner image formed on a photosensitive drum that is a photosensitive member or on an image carrier to a print sheet (transferred member) such as a sheet of paper or an intermediate transfer member. On this occasion, a transfer member such as a transfer roller is abutted against the photosensitive drum to form a transfer nip (transfer site). A transfer bias is then applied to the transfer member with the print sheet passed through the transfer nip. This allows the toner image on the photosensitive drum to be transferred to the print sheet. The transfer roller, serving as the transfer member, normally has its resistance value appropriately adjusted by dispersing conductive particles in an elastic member such as rubber or sponge. However, the resistance value of such a transfer roller varies significantly as a result of a manufacturing variation, an environmental variation, or the lifetime. This makes it difficult to offer high transferability through stable application of the transfer bias.
Ideally, the amount of electric charge applied to the back surface of the print sheet is appropriately controlled in order to offer constant high transferability. To achieve this, for example, the transfer roller may be controllably subjected to a fixed current. However, the passage width (the width of print sheets perpendicular to a conveying direction) of print sheets for the image forming apparatus is not fixed. The width of a part of the transfer roller which directly contacts the surface of the image carrier thus varies depending on the width of print sheets used. This causes the load impedance of the transfer roller with respect to the surface of the image carrier to vary between a part of the transfer roller which contacts the print sheet and a part which does not contact the print sheet. Particularly in an area in which no print sheet is present (the drum or the intermediate transfer member directly contacts the transfer roller), the load impedance is so small as to allow a large current to flow in a concentrated manner. This may result in low transferability in an area in which the print sheet is present.
To eliminate such a disadvantage of the simple constant current control, an ATVC scheme has been proposed. This scheme passes a given current through the transfer roller with no print sheet at the transfer nip and records a generated voltage required for the transfer; the given current is determined by assuming a current passed through the transfer roller during a transfer operation. During actual transfer, a corrected voltage is applied which is equal to the generated voltage, the generated voltage multiplied by a coefficient, or the generated voltage to which a constant is added. However, the ATVC scheme requires a constant current circuit, which increases costs. Moreover, the ATVC scheme employs a hardware configuration with a capacitor as means for storing an output voltage during a constant current operation. Thus, the output voltage during transfer may be affected by a variation in capacitor voltage caused by leakage, the tolerance of gain resistance, or a variation in temperature characteristics. Further, the ATVC scheme is implemented using hardware. As a result, constants, for example, a constant current value and coefficients required to correct the generated voltage to the appropriate transfer voltage are determined in a stage of a circuit design of the image forming apparatus. Thus, the ATVC scheme is disadvantageously limited to the simple bias control.
To eliminate this disadvantage, a software-based ATVC scheme has been proposed which uses means for digitally increasing or reducing the voltage applied to the transfer roller, means for detecting a current flowing from the transfer roller into the image carrier, and means for determining whether or not the current flowing from the transfer roller into the image carrier has reached a desired value (target current). This scheme enables the current flowing from the transfer roller into the image carrier to converge to a given value to achieve control equivalent to that of the constant current circuit in the hardware-based ATVC scheme. The software-based ATVC scheme applies a transfer bias step by step and detects a current flowing from the transfer roller into the image carrier. When the current flowing from the transfer roller into the image carrier reaches the target current value, this control is ended. The transfer bias is then stored in a RAM or the like so as to be applied during the following transfer. However, this ATVC scheme requires the output voltage to be repeatedly varied step by step until the current flowing from the transfer roller into the image carrier reaches the given value. This disadvantageously increases control time. If the circumferential resistance of the transfer roller varies markedly as a result of a manufacturing error, the current at each output voltage is desirably determined by averaging the current values obtained during at least one rotation of the transfer roller. If the current detecting circuit operates under a state of heavy noise, the current at each output voltage is desirably more frequently sampled for averaging. However, such an averaging process further increases the control time.
The above ATR patch detection process and ATVC process are adjustive control required to allow the apparatus to output stable images. However, during the execution of the ATVC, the current flowing from the transfer roller into the image carrier needs to be monitored with the transfer voltage varied until the current converges to the given target value. Thus, an attempt to control ATR patch detection during the ATVC may cause a patch image for the ATR patch detection control to be affected by a variation in transfer voltage based on the ATVC. This may lead to incorrect density corrections. Thus, these control operations needs to be sequentially executed.
In short, the conventional system must sequentially execute the ATR patch detection process and ATVC process at different timings; both the ATR patch detection process and ATVC process are adjustive control required to stabilize images. Thus, the duration of the adjustments equals the simple sum of the control times of the ATR patch detection and the ATVC process. This may disadvantageously degrade productivity for users.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 2001-166553 and 2002-014505 disclose the simultaneous execution of image density correction and auto registration correction. However, these documents do not teach the image density correction executed in parallel with the ATVC.

Image forming apparatus and density adjusting method thereof


A Wireless Communication Device (WCD) includes multiple fingers that track one or more tracked transponder beams. Each tracked beam is from a respective tracked transponder. The WCD determines a tracked-beam searcher energy for each of the tracked beams, and an untracked-beam searcher energy for each of one or more untracked beams from each of the tracked transponders. The WCD attempts to determine a preferred one of the untracked beams that should become a tracked beam. This determination is made based on the tracked-beam and the untracked-beam searcher energies. The WCD assigns, or alternatively, reassigns, a finger to the preferred untracked beam when the attempt to determine a preferred untracked beam is successful. The transponders may be satellites or base stations.

I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to wireless communication devices (WCDs), and more particularly, to such a wireless communication device (WCD) capable of interacting with multiple beams in a satellite or a terrestrial based communication system.
II. Related Art
A known satellite communication system uses satellite beams from multiple communication satellites to provide communication signal connectivity between a large number of geographically distributed user satellite terminals and multiple satellite ground stations, referred to as gateways. At any given time, one or more satellite beams from one or more of the satellites illuminate each user terminal. A typical user terminal, also referred to herein as a wireless communication device (WCD), includes a finite number of satellite beam tracker resources, referred to as receiver "fingers." The receiver fingers track communication signals within the satellite beams illuminating the WCD. Typically, a finger tracks various characteristics of a communication signal, such as an energy level, a frequency offset, a spreading code offset when the signal is a spread spectrum signal, and so on, to enable the WCD to demodulate and recover information from the communication signal.
Relative motion between the satellites and a WCD creates a dynamic environment, wherein different satellite beams sweep past, and thus illuminate, the WCD over time. To accommodate this dynamic environment, it is desirable for the WCD to be able to allocate and reallocate the finite number of fingers between the different beams dynamically, whereby the WCD can maintain connectivity with the communication system over time. In other words, it is desirable for the WCD to be able to assign and reassign various ones of the fingers to the different satellite beams over time, so that at any given time, the fingers track the one or more satellite beams illuminating the WCD.
The ability of a finger to track a satellite beam successfully, that is, the ability of the finger to track the signals within the satellite beam, depends on an energy of the beam as received at the WCD. For example, the greater the beam energy, the greater is the ability of the finger to track the beam successfully. Therefore, it is desirable that the WCD allocate fingers to satellite beams dynamically, and in such a manner as to maximize the beam energies delivered to the fingers.

Managing searcher and tracker resources in a wireless communication device


A gyroklystron device includes an electron beam source, a plurality of bunching cavities and an output cavity. A first bunching cavity has an input coupling aperture for receiving an rf signal from an rf signal injecting source. Each of the bunching cavities has a first pair of substantially uniform-angle slots of a preselected angle, which are diametrically opposed, and extend axially, parallel to the direction of the electron beam and extend into drift regions on both sides of the cavities. The first pair of slots control the Q of a desired mode and higher order modes. A second and third pair of slots are diametrically opposed and extend axially, parallel to the direction of the first pair of slots, but are rotated 90 degrees circumferentially from the first pair of slots. These slots control the axial profile of any mode that leaks out beyond the desired mode and control the length of field interaction with the electron beam. The second and third pair of slots begin in the walls of drift regions just beyond the first pair of slots, and have a preselected angle at their beginning and the angle increases in size along an axial distance away from the cavities. An outer vacuum jacket lined with rf absorbing material is also included such that rf energy leaving through the slots will not return.

1. Field Of The Invention
This invention relates to innovations in the design of bunching (also called prebunching) cavities for high power gyroklystron amplifiers or phase-locked gyroklystron oscillators, and more particularly to the arrangement of slots in the walls of the bunching cavities as well as in the cut-off regions.
2. Background Description
A gyroklystron is a cyclotron maser device operating in the gyrotron mode (i.e., either near cutoff in a microwave cavity, or with k.sub.z of the mode near zero) that employs one or more bunching cavities, separated by drift spaces that are cutoff to the modes of the bunching cavities, and followed by an output cavity. As such, it operates in a strong axial magnetic field, such that the operating frequency is near the cyclotron frequency or one of its harmonics. An external signal is applied to the first of the bunching cavities, and used to initiate a phase-modulation of the beam. This modulation is magnified by transit through the drift spaces (much as in a conventional klystron the axial velocity modulation leads to axial bunching). The output cavity acts either as an amplifier of the external signal, in which case the device is called a gyroklystron amplifier, or alternatively, the output cavity will produce power, i.e. oscillate, without an external signal, in which case one can attempt to phase lock and frequency lock this oscillation and the device is called a phase-locked gyroklystron oscillator.
There are a number of design constraints with respect to the bunching cavities of a gyroklystron amplifier or phase-locked gyroklystron oscillator. Specifically, there are two pairs of conflicting constraints that a design must satisfy. The first pair of conflicting constraints are that the cavity (or cavities) must be stable against self-oscillation both in the desired mode, e.g. the fundamental, cylindrical TE.sub.111 mode, as well as in competing axial and transverse modes, in the first and higher harmonics of the cyclotron maser interaction, while simultaneously sustaining large drive fields from an external source in order to produce the bunching of the electron beam that permits amplifier or phase-locked oscillator operation. The second pair of conflicting constraints are that the bunching cavity or cavities must be isolated from each other and from the output cavity, so that information will not flow back from the output cavity to the bunching cavities, causing the system to self-oscillate or oscillate without phase control, while at the same time the diameter of the drift spaces must permit transit of the electron beam that drives the interaction. This constraint becomes more difficult to achieve at higher frequencies, e.g. 35 GHz and above, due to the necessity that the transverse dimension of the drift space be below cutoff to the operating mode. For instance, if the operating mode is the fundamental rectangular mode, the transverse dimension of the drift space would be less than or on the order of 1/2 of the free-space wavelength of the mode. If the operating mode is the fundamental cylindrical mode, the transverse dimension of the drift space would be less than or on the order of .586 of the free-space wavelength of the mode. Furthermore, precise tuning of the bunching cavity with respect to the output cavity is essential, so that the ability to mechanically tune the cavity in order to obtain this precise tuning without remachining of the cavity is very valuable.
Previous phase-locked gyroklystron oscillator bunching cavities have faced the same design constraints, and the cavity designs employed had severe limitations. Cavity loading was accomplished by means of resistive walls, which are very inflexible in determining ultimate cavity Q-factors. Furthermore, the previous method did not provide control of competing transverse modes by preferentially lowering their Q-values. It also did not provide a means to control the length of the interaction both in the lowest order axial mode (the preferred mode) and in higher order axial modes, thus increasing the danger of self-oscillation in these modes, which would prevent successful gyroklystron operation. The disadvantages of the old approach apply particularly to devices designed to operate at millimeter-wave and higher frequencies, where the device cross sections decrease, making the twin requirements of beam propagation and cavity cutoff difficult to simultaneously satisfy.
The foregoing illustrates limitations known to exist in present devices. Thus, it is apparent that it would be advantageous to provide an alternative directed to overcoming one or more of the limitations set forth above. A suitable alternative is provided including features more fully disclosed hereinafter.

Gyroklystron device having multi-slot bunching cavities

The United States of American as represented by the Secretary of the Navy


A method for providing a seal in an annular space between a rehabilitative pipe liner and a conduit wall is provided. Areas on the surface of a section of a conduit wall surrounding lateral connections are provided with an expandable sealing agent, preferably during an investigative and/or cleaning inspection of the conduit section and preferably without repeated withdrawal and insertion of equipment between the provision of the agent at successive lateral connections. The rehabilitative pipe liner is then installed in the conduit section and a curing agent or agents such as heat, visible light, ultraviolet light, chemical agents, sonic energy or other radiant energy means is applied to cure or form the rehabilitative pipe liner and to cause the expandable sealing agent to expand and fill at least a portion of the annular space that may exist between the rehabilitative pipe liner and the conduit wall.

The present invention relates generally to the field of rehabilitative conduit liners and specifically to a method for sealing gaps or annular spaces, such as those which commonly exist at the connections between service, or lateral, line openings and rehabilitative conduit liners, using a sprayed-on, cured-in-place annulus seal. Such liners are commonly used to reduce the infiltration and inflow of extraneous ground water into sewer collection systems and the release of untreated waste into the environment. However, even with the use of such liners, there often remains an annular space between the liner and pipe, which space may provide for the entry of groundwater into, or the loss of sewer contents from, the liner at locations such as service line ports or at liner section ends (which are commonly located at manholes).
The technology of rehabilitative conduit or pipe lining is widely varied and well known in the prior art and in practice and is only described generally herein. Through relining, sewer lines may be rehabilitated without the need for expensive and labor-intensive subterranean digging, trench support installation, and the accompanying risk to workers. In general, relining is accomplished by inserting an uncured and typically cuffed liner into a length of existing sewer conduit, everting the cuffed liner through application of mechanical, hydraulic, or other force, and allowing the liner, or a coating on the liner, to cure in place. In this manner, the inserted liner becomes a rigid and continuous pipe-within-a-pipe. Typical liner inserts include resin-impregnated felt liners (or other resin-impregnated porous material), folded or flattened PVC or polyethylene pipes, or other materials. Commonly known processes include the Insituform™ cured in place pipe relining process. Because the new lining is continuous, openings must be cut in the liner shortly after installation to return sewer service to connecting lines (service lines, lateral lines, or any other connecting lines) or to existing homes or facilities whose service line connections may be covered by the newly installed liner.
The installation process for most prior art liners includes heating to effect curing of the liner during installation and subsequent cooling of the cured liner to an ambient temperature determined by the surrounding earth and the contents of the pipe. During the heating process, liners are cured and/or pressurized to mold to the interior of the host pipeline. Once the liner has cured, a minute annulus may be created due to the shrinking of the heated liner during cooling or due to conduit surface irregularities. This annulus may create a pathway for the migration of inflowing and infiltrating groundwater to enter the collection system from the exterior of the newly installed liner. In particular, this pathway allows for the entry of migrating fluid into the liner at ports such as lateral openings or at other locations where the liner is not continuous. These same locations may serve as points where sewage or waste may migrate from the system.
Typically, the points of entry include not only the lateral or house service line connections or ports, but also the beginning and ending of pipe liner sections at locations such as manholes. All intersecting or joining pipes or conduits are referred to herein generally as lateral lines. At the manholes, the annular space may be easily accessible for a post-liner-installation annulus sealing, as illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,879,501 issued Mar. 9, 1999 to Livingston. However, for remote lateral connections, the annulus is hidden by virtue of its location and by virtue of the newly installed liner, and the lateral connection is not readily accessible. When the liner is cut at the ports at these remote locations to return service to the lateral lines, migrating waste or water may move between the newly lined pipe and the annular space.
The known technology for returning service to existing lateral lines employs a remotely controlled sled which may be driven or pulled through a lined pipe and which includes a cutting arm. The cutting arm is longitudinally retractable from a typically cylindrical body and has on its end a rotary cutting blade or bit that may be used to open ports by cutting through the liner at the points of lateral connections. Because service must quickly be returned to the sealed lateral line connections to prevent the back-up of sewage or waste through lateral lines, the cutting often must occur before the recently installed liner is completely cured. The uncured liner, when exposed to the violence of the cutting process, tends to shower uncured resin about the area of cutting. This uncured resin, along with other debris, may pollute remote sensing equipment. Because the resin may become impossible or unduly burdensome to remove without causing damage to the sensors if allowed to cure after arriving on a lens, light or sensor, workers must frequently withdraw the sensors from the confined space to a location, such as a manhole, where they may manually clear the sensor of resin and dirt. Then, workers must relocate the lateral service connection and continue the cutting operation. The process of repeated withdrawal, cleaning, and relocation dramatically increases the time and labor costs associated with pipe rehabilitation.
Similarly, prior methods for sealing the annular space between the liner and the conduit at lateral connections have required exorbitant, expensive and time-consuming labor and repeated insertion and withdrawal of equipment or liner elements. Therefore, in addition to the labor expended to perform the cleaning and periodic repair that is required in association with the use of traditional cutters, labor and time must be expended in yet a further step in the process of sewer rehabilitation. In the field of sewer maintenance, where the investment of employee time, vehicle time and equipment time in a project directly impacts project cost, and therefore profit, it is imperative to eliminate or minimize process steps to remain competitive. Therefore there has been and remains a need for a method to seal junctions between rehabilitative liners and adjoining pipes that will allow fast and convenient sealing with a minimum need for the investment of labor and time.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,879,501 discloses a method for sealing openings in sewer manholes wherein a polymeric coating is formed on the interior surface of manhole walls, and a generally tube-shaped polymeric sealing member that is coaxially aligned with the coating is formed to be integral with the coating. After these coatings and tube-shaped members are cured, a rehabilitative liner is inserted through the cured tube and coating. The rehabilitative liner is selected to have an exterior surface adapted to permanently bond with the already-cured tubular sealing member. The '501 patent therefore teaches a sealant method for use in a manhole opening wherein an annulus sealer is sprayed and cured in place to form a hardened gasket prior to the introduction of a rehabilitative pipe liner. In fact, the '501 patent describes the process as demanding the use and removal of forms to create the tube-shaped sealing member and optional additional steps of roughening the cured sealing member with sandpaper or other abrasive means to create a mechanical bond that will enhance the chemical bond between the later-installed liner and the previously cured sealing member.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,439,469 issued Mar. 27, 1984 to Wood discloses a method for the rehabilitative lining of sewer pipes. In the '469 patent the process for liner installation is described generally, without reference to the sealing of resultant annular spaces. U.S. Pat. No. 5,405,218 issued Apr. 11, 1995 to Hyde-Smith discloses a method for spray-applying a fast curing rehabilitative manhole liner as a combination of a sprayed-on compound having at least two isocyanate groups and a sprayed on amine-terminated compound having at least two reactive amine groups. U.S. Pat. No. 6,068,725 discloses a post-lining sealant method wherein a resin-impregnated liner in the general shape of a top hat is placed at a lateral opening in a cured rehabilitative liner and forced into the lateral line and outward through the use of an inflatable bladder. The bladder is part of an installation device that is positioned in the rehabilitative liner at the lateral line and controlled from a remote location. Through the use of the top-hat configuration, a seal is allowed to cured on the interior of the rehabilitative liner and the interior of the lateral line to cover the connection and the annular space from the liner interior. Finally U.S. Pat. No. 4,434,115 discloses a method for lining side or lateral connection pipes. None of these prior art patents disclose a method for placing an unactivated sealant at points of future liner ports and causing the sealant to be activated to form an annulus gasket after installation of the liner through application of a curing means to the rehabilitative liner.
Therefore, there has been and remains a need for an improved method to seal the annular space that may be formed between a pipe and a rehabilitative liner inserted into the pipe. Such an improved method is needed to lessen the requirement for labor expense associated with extra process steps in addition to worker downtime as multiple layers of liner or sealer are applied, allowed to cure, and subsequently treated in anticipation of receiving a rehabilitative liner.


After a solution of chloropropyltriethoxysilane and sodium thiocyanate react in ethanol to form a thiocyanatopropyltriethoxysilane suspension, salt resulting from the reacting step is removed from the ethanol-containing centrifugate and washed. The first embodiment for manufacturing thiocyanatopropyltriethoxysilane includes adding the wash ethanol to the solution in the reacting step, distilling the centrifugate to remove ethanol, and removing solids from a thiocyanatopropyltriethoxysilane residue resulting from the distilling step. The ethanol from the distilling step may be used to wash the salt separated in the centrifugating step. The second embodiment in the process for manufacturing thiocyanatopropyltriethoxysilane includes distilling a thiocyanatopropyltriethoxysilane suspension to form distilled ethanol and a thiocyanatopropyltriethoxysilane residue, and centrifugating the residue to separate salt resulting from the reacting step from the centrifugate to obtain a thiocyanatopropyltriethoxysilane product. The distilled ethanol can be used to wash the salt, and the ethanol from the washing step can be added to the solution in the reacting step.

This invention relates to processes for generating thiocyanatoalkyltrialkoxysilanes and preferably thiocyanatopropyltriethoxysilane.
Thiocyanatopropyltriethoxysilane is used by the rubber industry as a reinforcement agent. The EtO-groups of this silane compound show reactivity towards the OH-groups of fillers (e.g., precipitated silicas), while the SCN-group (in combination with accelerators and sulfur) reacts within the polymer. Stable bonds form, therefore, between fillers and polymer via the silane.
Thiocyanatopropyltriethoxysilane is produced by reacting chloropropyltriethoxysilane and sodium thiocyanate in ethanolic solution under elevated pressure. The typical reaction involving known reagents proceeds as follows: EQU (EtO).sub.3 Si--(CH.sub.2).sub.3 --Cl+NaSCN.fwdarw.(EtO).sub.3 Si--(CH.sub.2).sub.3 SCN+NaCl
Salt generated by this reaction is removed in a centrifuge immediately after the reaction. The resulting filter cake of salt is washed with ethanol and, according to the previously employed process, this wash ethanol is then mixed with the filtrate resulting from the centrifugation step. The resulting mixture is distilled and the substance is freed of the ethanol.
One of the problems with the previously employed process is the length of time it takes to distill the ethanol. Thus, it would be advantageous to the industry if the efficiency of the method could be improved by shortening the distillation time. Due to precipitation of solids previously dissolved in the ethanol as a result of the distillation step, another solid removal step must follow. Therefore, it would also be an advantage to the industry if the subsequent solid removal step could be eliminated.

Process for producing thiocyanatopropyltriethoxysilane