The operational flexibility of programmable transversal filters is enhanced by incorporating switch arrays to permit passage for a plurality of tap voltages or signals to particular amplifiers in amplifier arrays. Fixed gain amplifiers may be incorporated to overcome the need to calibrate variable gain amplifiers and to reduced the number of amplifiers required.

The present invention relates to programmable transversal filters (hereinafter PTF""s), particularly those using surface acoustic wave (SAW) substrates as the delay medium along with amplifiers which provide tap weight factors.
Programmable transversal filters using SAW substrates as the delay medium, which include an input interdigitated transducer and a plurality of individual output tap transducers, are well known in the art. Each of (n) tap transducers is paired with and connected to one of (n) variable gain amplifiers forming distinct signal paths for each of (n) tap transducer/amplifier combinations. The outputs of the (n) variable gain amplifiers are connected to the summing junction, which forms the output signal as the sum of the signals from the (n) signal paths. It should be noted that, in general, the signal paths should be connected to the summing junction with alternating polarity between sequential signal paths; such is readily accomplished through the use of both inverting and non-inverting inputs to an operational amplifier used as the summing junction which then provides the output of the filter. Several significant limitations are encountered with these prior art filters. Large numbers of tap transducers are very difficult to achieve thereon because the physical dimensions of the tap transducers on the substrate are not compatible with those of the amplifiers. That is, the width of an individual tap transducer along the SAW propagation direction, is substantially smaller than the width of an individual amplifier, and hence in order to connect each individual tap transducer to its corresponding variable gain amplifier, gross fan-out occurs. Consequently, the SAW device is limited to either a small number of individual tap transducers or the use of tap transducers whose widths are close to those of the variable gain amplifiers. The choice of a limited number of tap transducers results in limited passband bandwidth (passband bandwidth≈1/T) because of the short delay time (T) for the SAW to propagate through the small number of individual tap transducers on the SAW substrate.
The choice of tap transducer widths close to those of the variable gain amplifiers restricts the normal center frequency of the filter, as this frequency is determined jointly by the SAW velocity and periodic spacing of the individual tap transducers. Furthermore, the variable gain of the amplifiers must be calibrated over their full dynamic range if the operational uniformity and repeatability of the filter is to be maintained. This has proven to be impractical, particularly when environmental effects such as temperature changes are encountered. The restrictions on the number and/or spacing of individual transducers seriously limits the filter""s operational flexability. Of course, such limitations seriously affect filter quality.
It is the general object of the present invention to enhance the operational flexibility of programmable transversal filters.
It is the specific object of the present invention to achieve the general object by incorporating switch arrays into otherwise conventional circuitry.
It is a more specific object of the present invention to achieve the general object by incorporating amplifier arrays having fixed gain amplifiers, into the circuitry of the invention.
These and other objects are accomplished in accordance with the present invention, by arranging the switch arrays to permit passage for a plurality of tap voltages or signals to each amplifier.
The scope of the present invention is only limited by the appended claims for which support is predicated on the preferred embodiments hereafter set forth in the following description and the attached drawings.

The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army


A flexible clip applier includes a flat wire wound tubular coil, a pair of jaws at the end of the coil, end effector wires extending through the coil and coupled to the jaws, and a clip-advancing wire extending through the coil. A clip chamber is defined in the distal end of the coil. The clip-advancing wire includes a clip pusher which advances a clip into the jaws when the clip-advancing wire is moved distally. The jaws include channels in which a distalmost clip rides when the jaws are closed and the pusher is advanced, thereby causing the distalmost clip to be pushed over the tissue, and a distal anvil which operate to bend a portion of the clip to facilitate its retention on the clamped tissue. Rotation of the clip-advancing wire effects rotation of the jaws are rotatable about a longitudinal axis of the device.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates broadly to surgical devices. In particular, this invention relates to a flexible surgical device having end effectors rotatable about a longitudinal axis of the device. More particularly, this invention relates to a surgical clip applier which is adapted for use through an endoscope and may be used to clamp and/or suture, ducts, vessels, and other tissues, to anchor a tissue, or to attach a foreign body to a tissue.
2. State of the Art
Surgical clips are generally used to apply clamping force to ducts, vessels, and other tissues. In addition, surgical clips are particularly useful in controlling bleeding of a tissue in lieu of suturing or stapling where suturing or stapling is difficult.
All of the currently available surgical multifiring clip appliers are substantially rigid devices intended to extend through a trocar port or through an incision to a surgical site requiring application of a clip. The devices have been rigid because a stiff pushing element has been required in order to exert the required pushing force to move the clip over the tissue.
However, there is a substantial need for a flexible clip applier, particularly one insertable through a lumen of an endoscope. The ability to apply clips through an endoscope would permit myriad minimally invasive surgical solutions to medical problems, especially those of the gastrointestinal tract. However, it is accepted theory that the transmitted force required to advance or form a clip over tissue cannot be produced in the distalmost end of a long flexible device that is commonly constructed with a metal tubular coil, or polymer tube, such as an endoscopic device or catheter. For example, C. Paul Swain, MD, a recognized expert in endoscopic instruments and particularly endoscopic stapling devices, has stated that xe2x80x9c[i]t is hard to exert more than 200 g of force on the tissue when pushing. This fact is of course one feature that makes intervention at flexible endoscopy relatively safexe2x80x9d. See C. Paul Swain, xe2x80x9cWhat Endoscopic Accessories Do We Really Need?xe2x80x9d, Emerging Technologies in Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, Gastrointest. Endosc., Vol. 7, No. 2, pp. 313-330 (April 1997). Yet, a pushing force substantially greater than 200 g is required to push a clip over compressed tissue. In fact, it is believed a force in excess of 500 grams (1.1 lbs) is required for a satisfactory instrument, and substantially greater forces, e.g., in excess of 1500 grams (3.3 lbs) would be desirable.
Generally a flexible endoscopic device (e.g., a biopsy forceps device) includes an outer tubular member, typically being constructed of a metal tubular coil or a polymer tube which is poor in transmitting forces that impart tensile stresses to the outer sheath, a control element longitudinally movable relative to the tubular member, an end effector coupled to the distal ends of both the tubular member and the control element such that relative movement of the control element and the tubular member causes operation of the end effector, and a handle which moves the control element relative to the handle. This type of flexible endoscopic instrument is limited in the amount of pushing force it can generate for several reasons. Compression of a flexible control element (pushing element) tends to cause the pushing element to buckle within the outer flexible sheath of the device. If a relatively larger diameter flexible pushing element is used such that it better resists buckling, the pushing element may impart too much stiffness to the flexing of the endoscopic instrument. In addition, a flexible pushing element of larger diameter is subject to greater frictional forces within the outer sheath which reduces the force transmitted from the handle to the end effector. If the flexible pushing element is made relatively smaller in diameter, it is subject to kinking which will result in little to no force transmitted to the distal end. Kinking is especially a problem in endoscopic instruments, as the endoscope and its lumen may be extended through a tortuous path. For these reasons and others, mechanical application of a relatively large distal end pushing force and particularly clip application have been absent from the capability of flexible endoscopic tools.
It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a flexible endoscopic device capable of generating a relatively large pushing force at its distal end.
It is another object of the invention to provide an endoscopic clip applier.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a flexible clip applier which can exert a pushing force of at least 500 grams (1.1 lbs), and preferably in excess of 1500 grams (3.3 lbs) via a manually actuatable handle.
It is an additional object of the invention to provide a surgical clip applier which is adapted for use in minimally invasive surgery.
It is also an object of the invention to provide a surgical clip applier which has a pushing element which is not subject to kinking.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a surgical clip applier which has a pushing element which does not create unsuitably high frictional forces within the outer sheath.
It is still a further object of the invention to provide a surgical clip applier which can store and apply multiple clips.
In accord with these objects, which will be discussed in detail below, a surgical clip applier is provided having a flexible, preferably flat wire wound outer tubular coil, a pair of jaws at the distal end of the tubular coil, a set of end effector wires extending through the outer tubular coil and coupled to the jaws, and a clip-advancing wire extending through the tubular coil. A lubricious, preferably extruded polymer, multilumen barrier sheath extends within the tubular coil and separates the wires from each other and the tubular coil. A clip chamber is provided in the distal end of the tubular coil and stores a plurality of linearly arranged clips. A clip pusher is provided at a distal end of the clip-advancing wire, and adapted to advance the clips in the chamber toward the jaws when the clip-advancing wire is advanced through the barrier sheath and outer tubular coil. The jaws include clamping surfaces which operate to compress tissue between the jaws when the jaws are closed, guides in which a distalmost clip rides distally and is advanced over the clamped tissue when the line of clips is advanced by the clip pusher, and a distal anvil which operates to bend a portion of the distalmost clip to enhance its retention on the clamped tissue. A proximal handle is provided for movement of the clip-advancing wire and end effector wires relative to the barrier sheath to effect (1) clamping and rotation of the jaws (relative to each other and about the longitudinal axis of the tubular coil), and (2) advancement of the clip-advancing wire to effect distal movement of a clip.
The flat wire wound tubular coil is preferred over round wire (though not necessarily required over a round wire wound tubular coil) because it is flexible, yet sufficiently longitudinally stiff such that the device may be pushed through the lumen of the endoscope. In addition, the flat wire wound tubular coil can be made with a high preload and has a tensile spring constant sufficiently high that it resists buckling and uncoiling during application of a pushing force by the handle against the clip-advancing wire. The clip-advancing wire has a sufficiently large diameter to transmit force, yet small enough to minimize internal friction when moved within a device flexed through a tortuous path in an endoscope. The end effector wires are large enough to handle the high closing force from the handle, and to resist compressive buckling when moved in an opposite direction, yet small enough to be coupled to diminutive jaws. The multilumen barrier sheath supports the clip-advancing wire and end effector wires along their length to reduce compressive buckling, and provides a separation layer to reduce friction. Movement of the clip-advancing wire relative to the outer tubular coil causes a compressive force in the clip-advancing wire and tensile forces in the outer tubular member such that a relative pushing force is transmitted to the distal end of the clip-advancing wire in excess of the perceived threshold of the 200 grams (0.44 lbs). In fact, one embodiment of the device of the invention, sized for endoscopic use, provides a pushing force in excess of 2267 grams (5 lbs).
In operation, the jaws can be moved through a working channel of an endoscope in a closed position. Once exited, the handle can be operated to open the jaws and rotate the jaws to a desired orientation. The jaws are positioned on either side of tissue about which it is desired to place a clip and the handle is operated to pull the end effector wires such that the jaws clamp about the tissue. The handle is then locked to maintain the jaws in the clamped position. The handle is operated to effect advancement of the clip-advancing wire through the tubular coil such that a clip is advanced through the jaw guides and over the tissue. The clip is advanced until a portion thereof is forced against the anvil of the jaws to effect bending of the clip portion such that that portion moves laterally to pierce the clamped tissue. After the clip is applied, the jaws are released from about the tissue, and the end effector assembly may then be moved to another tissue location to apply additional clips.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reference to the detailed description taken in conjunction with the provided figures.

Flexible surgical device having a rotatable end effector assembly


This cellulose acetate has a total degree of acetyl substitution of 1.75 or more and 2.55 or less, and a degree of acetyl substitution at 2-position or a degree of acetyl substitution at 3-position is 0.7 or less. This cellulose acetate composition includes the cellulose acetate and an additive. The additive is one or more selected from the group consisting of (a) substances of which a pH of a 1 wt. % aqueous solution at 20° C. is 8 or more, (b) substances that dissolve in water at 20° C. in an amount of 2 wt. % or more, and (c) substances that exhibit biodegradability in seawater.

in recent years, there has been a demand for biodegradable molded articles due to growing interest in global environment. Examples of representative biodegradable resins include cellulose acetate.
For example, cellulose acetate having a degree of substitution of about 2.5 is used as a material for a cigarette filter used in cigarettes including e-cigarettes, as a material for a sanitary article, or the like. Cellulose acetate having a degree of substitution of about 2.5 is known to decompose in soil or activated sludge. However, the biodegradability thereof falls short of cellulose or cellulose acetate having a degree of substitution of 1.8.
From the viewpoint of improving the biodegradability, the degree of substitution of cellulose acetate is preferably low, but a certain degree of substitution of acetyl is required because of the ease of processing by thermoforming or the like. Various studies have been made for the purpose of improving the biodegradability and moldability.
Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for improving the biodegradability of a polymer such as cellulose ester by adding a basic additive having a pH of 13 or less and 7 or more in a 1% aqueous solution (20° C.) in the polymer.
Patent Document 2 discloses a technique for reducing the viscosity of a cellulose acylate solution used in the solvent casting method by setting −0.1≤(degree of acyl substitution at 3-position—degree of acyl substitution at 2-position)≤0.3 in cellulose acylate having a total degree of acyl substitution of 2.67 or more at 2-, 3-, and 6-positions, and a total degree of acyl substitution of 1.97 or more at 2- and 3-positions.

Cellulose acetate and cellulose acetate composition


An application apparatus is provided with an object supporting section including a support surface for supporting an object; a tape carrying section for rotatably carrying, in a roll form, a double-coated pressure sensitive adhesive tape with a release paper attached to one side of the tape; and a tape laying section for holding the double-coated pressure sensitive adhesive tape with the release paper, fed in a strip form from the tape carrying section, in a condition where the tape is laid on the support surface of the object supporting section with an adhesive surface of the tape to which the release paper is not attached facing outward. Further provided is a tape cutting section.

In a catalytic converter for cleaning exhaust gas of an automobile, a monolithic type carrier is generally accommodated in a metallic shell while covered on the outer circumference thereof with a mat having various functions of retention, cushioning or sealing. The mat is made of a flexible flat sheet mainly composed of ceramic fibers and wound around substantially entirely the cylindrical outer circumference of the carrier. Usually, the mat is secured to the carrier not to move within the interior of the metallic shell. A double-coated pressure sensitive adhesive tape capable of being easily handled is used as such securing means.
The catalytic converter of the above-mentioned structure is conventionally assembled in the following manner. First, the mat cut to have a desired shape is disposed in a flatly extended state, and the double-coated pressure sensitive adhesive tape having a release paper clad on one surface thereof is located and adhered to a proper position of one surface of the mat. Then, the release paper is peeled off from the adhered double-coated pressure sensitive adhesive tape. Subsequently, the mat is wound around the outer circumference of the carrier while the surface of the mat carrying the double-coated pressure sensitive adhesive tape is in tight contact with the outer circumference of the carrier, whereby the mat is fixed thereto by the double-coated pressure sensitive adhesive tape. And, the carrier is accommodated in the metallic shell together with the mat secured to the outer circumference thereof.

Apparatus and method for applying double-coated pressure sensitive adhesive tape, and method for producing catalytic converter


Method and arrangement for changing the direction of travel of a reel being moved by a incoming conveyor (12), for transfer to the following conveyor, in which method the reel is first brought to a turntable and the direction of travel of the reel is changed by turning the turntable. After turning, the reel is removed to a receiving conveyor. In order for the turntable to be able to turn reels, the width of which is greater than the diameter of the turntable, the reel is lifted on the turntable from the level of the incoming and receiving conveyors, for the duration of the turning.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for turning paper, board, tissue, and other fibre reels from their direction of travel during transfer.
2. Description of Prior Art
During the manufacture of paper, board, and corresponding fibre webs, the reels are cut after manufacture from large reeling-drum reels to the dimensions requested by customers and are then packed for transport. As a large number of different reel widths are made, the packaging machines must be able to operate in a very wide range of reel widths. During packaging and when moving the reels to intermediate storage, the reels are moved using various conveyors. The conveyors are usually straight and the direction of the reel is changed by turning it on a turning device, after which transportation continues using the next conveyor. At the turning device, intersections are formed, which can be L, T, or X-shaped, depending on whether only a change in direction is required, or whether different alternative routes are required. At a single intersection point, there can be one conveyor bringing the reels and several conveyors leaving the intersection, or several conveyors bringing the reels and only one leaving it, or several leaving and several coming to it. In practice, there are at most four conveyors joining a single intersection point.
At the intersection point, a turntable is used to turn the reels onto conveyors running in different directions. The turntable is a short conveyor, which can be rotated around its central axis on the plane of the other conveyors. The continuations of the center lines of the conveyors arriving at and leaving the intersection point usually travel through the central axis of the turntable, but it is, as such, possible for a conveyor to be at one side of the central axis of the turntable. The turntable conveyor is arranged on a bearing at its axis of rotation and can be rotated with the aid of an electric-motor drive or some other similar drive. Rotation can also take place using a crank handle. Rotation can take place to either one or other side relative to the arriving conveyor, or else the turntable can be used to make a stop before transfer to the following conveyor, or the reel can be rotated through 180°. Combinations of these can also be used.
As the widths of the reels delivered to customers increase, the sizes of the turntables also increase. This is because the reel must fit onto the turntable's conveyor, so that the reel will not be damaged during turning and can be kept under control while being handled on the turntable. The reel must fit completely onto the turntable, as otherwise the parts of the turntable outside the reel would damage the ends of the reel. On the other hand, the conveyor component of the turntable must be on the same level as the incoming and outgoing conveyors, nor must there be any differences in height between the conveyors. For these reasons, the diameter of the turntable must correspond at least to the length of the widest reel. Because customer requirements demand the handling of quite wide reels, the turntables become large and heavy. Thus they also take up much space in the mill hall.

Method and apparatus for turning paper rolls


A reflection measurement method and apparatus measures reflection characteristics of a device under test (DUT) when access to the DUT is through a dispersive element. The method and apparatus measure a composite reflection response of a network that includes the DUT and the dispersive element coupled to the DUT via a transmission line. A reflection response of the dispersive element is isolated from a remainder of the composite reflection response of the network. A set of transmission parameters for the dispersive element is generated from the isolated reflection response of the dispersive element and is then applied to the remainder of the composite reflection response of the network to extract the reflection characteristic of the DUT.

Time domain reflectometry and frequency domain network analysis are traditional techniques used to measure reflection characteristics of a device under test (DUT). There is a need to adapt these techniques to measure reflection characteristics of a DUT when access to the DUT is through a dispersive element. This need is met by a reflection measurement method and apparatus constructed according to the embodiments of the present invention.

Reflection measurement method and apparatus for devices that are accessed through dispersive elements


Disclosed is a pack for cigarettes or the like. The best known pack types for cigarettes, in particular hinge lid pack and soft cup, both have their advantages and disadvantages. The upper portion (top part 15) of the present pack is in the form of a hinge lid pack and the lower portion (bottom part 16) is in the form of a soft cup pack. As a result, the pack can be handled like a hinge lid pack but requires a smaller expenditure of material. This pack type can also be equipped with a collar which is integrally connected to a blank for the top part (15) which is in the form of a hinge lid pack. The bottom part (16) may also form part of an overall outer wrapper (outer wrapping).

The invention relates to a pack for cigarettes or the like which are packed in an inner wrapper made of tin foil, paper or a foil.
For packaging cigarettes, two types of cigarette packs are most commonly used world-wide. These are, on the one hand, hinge lid packs and, on the other hand, soft (cup) packs. The former pack is formed from thin cardboard. A hinged lid is pivotably connected to a pack part via a hinge connection. The cigarettes, which are in the form of a formatted cigarette group, are usually surrounded by an inner wrapper made of tin foil or paper.
This type of pack also comprises a collar which is inserted into the pack part in the region of a front panel and narrow side panels and which partially projects from the pack part. To improve aroma-preservation, the hinge lid pack is provided with an outer foil wrapper which must be removed before cigarettes are extracted for the first time.
In soft packs, the cigarette group is also packed in an inner wrapper. The actual pack is formed from a paper blank which is folded in a cup-like manner, such that the cigarette group with the outer wrapper partially projects from the cup which is open at the top.
The hinge lid pack is popular particularly because it is easy to handle. On the one hand, this pack is dimensionally stable and, on the other hand, the hinged lid facilitates the extraction of cigarettes. When the pack is closed, the cigarettes left inside the pack are well protected against mechanical and other influences. A drawback of the hinge lid pack is a considerable expenditure of material.


An automatic transmission comprising: a first planetary gearset of a double pinion; a second planetary gearset of a single pinion; a third planetary gearset of the single pinion, first sun gear and second sun gear being at all times linked together to constitute a first rotary member and second ring gear and third sun gear being at all times linked together to constitute a second rotary member; an input shaft; an output shaft; a first frictional element; a second frictional element; a third frictional element; a fourth frictional element; a fifth frictional element; a sixth frictional element, the six frictional elements being appropriately released or engaged to make a gear shift to a gear shift stage of at least eight forward speeds and, from among the six frictional elements, a combination of simultaneous engagements of three frictional elements achieving at least eight forward speed and one reverse speed.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an automatic transmission which is suitable as a vehicular transmission mechanism for which multi-stage demand of gear shift stages and widening demand of a gear ratio width are present.
(2) Description of Related Art
A Japanese Patent Application First Publication No, 2001-182785 published on Jul. 6, 2001 exemplifies a previously proposed automatic transmission achieving respective gear shift stages of eight forward speeds (speed ratios) by means of three planetary gearsets and six frictional elements and which is provided with a double pinion planetary gearset, a Ravineaux planetary gear unit (one double pinion planetary gearset and one single pinion planetary gearset), four clutches, and two brakes.


The results of mass spectrometry are compared; correspondences are established between individual components contained in different samples; the results of establishment of correspondences are checked; and varying components are extracted. At least two samples are compared with respect to the ion intensity corresponding to retention times and mass-to-charge ratios obtained by chromatography-mass spectrometry on the samples having a plurality of components. In ion groups observed as mass spectra, a correspondence between the retention times at which the same component is supposed to be observed is established by determining coincidence between the mass-to-charge ratios and determining that the ion intensity fall within a designated variation.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for chromatography mass spectrometry.
2. Background Art
When a sample constituted by a plurality of components is measured by a liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry using a combination of a separating instrument and a mass spectrometer, the sample components are successively observed as ions. By this liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, a three-dimensional data in which mass spectra consisting of the ion intensity with respect to the mass-to-charge ratio are accumulated at certain times (so-called retention times) can be obtained. Trials have been made by using such data for quantitative comparative analysis of components contained in different samples. In many cases, however, the retention times of individual components are not reproduced. There is a demand for a method of establishing correspondences between identical components between samples.
Methods for correcting retention times so that identical components have the same retention times have been devised on the assumption that even if the retention times of components vary, the order in which the components are observed is not changed. For example, patent document 1 and a non-patent document 1 disclose methods of establishing correspondences between retention times by considering the fact that similar mass spectra are produced from components identical to each other. In the methods disclosed in patent document 1 and a non-patent document 1, similarity between samples are computed with respect to mass spectra obtained by measuring the samples. However, when individual sample components vary under circumstances where the separating effect of chromatography is not sufficiently high and where ions derived from a plurality of components are observed in mass spectra, the mass spectra do not necessarily coincide with each other with accuracy. Dynamic programming is then used to successively obtain the correspondence relationships between retention times through observation of sample components.
[Patent document 1] WO 2004/090526 A1
[Non-patent document 1] Masaya Ono, Miki Shiashige, Kazufumi Honda, Tomohiro Isobe, Hideya Kuwabara, Hirotaka Matsuzuki, Setsuo, Hirohashi, and Tesshi Yamada "Label-free Quantitative Proteomics Using Large Peptide Data Sets Generated by Nanoflow Liquid Chromatography and Mass Spectrometry" Mol. Cell. Proteomics, 5: 1338-1347 (2006).

Method and apparatus for chromatography mass spectrometry


An error correction system is disclosed. The error correction system is applied to a storage system. The error correction system generates X first operation codes, Y second operation codes and a third operation code based on the storage system. The error correction system includes an error state determining circuit and M decoding circuits. The error state determining circuit is configured to identify a current error state. When a plurality of pieces of data have a 1-bit error, the M decoding circuits are configured to execute decoding processing on the X first operation codes and the Y second operation codes, to obtain whether there is erroneous data in the bytes corresponding to the decoding circuits and locate a bit to which the erroneous data belongs.

Semiconductor storage may be divided into nonvolatile storage and volatile memory. A Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM), serving as the volatile storage, has the advantages of high storage density, fast read-write speed, and the like, and is widely applied to various electronic systems.
With the more advanced manufacturing process and higher storage density of the DRAM, errors may occur in stored data in the DRAM, which may seriously affect the performance of the DRAM. Therefore, an Error Checking and Correction or Error correction Coding (ECC) technology is usually applied to the DRAM to detect or correct the errors in the stored data.


A battery module including a plurality of battery cells spaced apart in a first direction, and a barrier between adjacent battery cells of the plurality of battery cells, the barrier including a plate, and a protrusion extending from the plate in the first direction and contacting the adjacent battery cells, the protrusion including an elastomer.

1. Field
Aspects of embodiments of the present invention relate to a battery module, and more particularly, to a battery module including a plurality of battery cells and a barrier disposed between the battery cells.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, a high-output battery module using a high energy density nonaqueous electrolyte is being developed, and the high-output battery module is realized by a high-capacity battery module formed by connecting a plurality of battery cells in series so that the battery module may be used for devices using high power, such as a driving motor of an electric car.
A battery cell includes an electrode assembly formed of a positive plate, a negative plate, and an electrolyte and generates energy through an electrochemical reaction between the plates and the electrolyte. Here, gas may be generated in the battery cell due to a side reaction of the electrochemical reaction.
The gas may deform an external appearance of the battery cell and affect a shape of the battery module constituted by a plurality of arranged battery cells, interrupting or preventing secure fixing of the battery cells.


A microwave antenna system having a plurality of antenna elements arranged in an array having two spaced ends. A phase shifter is electrically connected to a first group of at least two adjacent antenna elements at one end of the array and is also electrically connected to a second group of at least two adjacent antenna elements adjacent the other end of the array. Individual phase shifters are connected to individual middle antenna elements for at least several of the antenna elements between the first and second groups of antenna elements. A switch selectively electrically connects a phase delay line in series between the phase shifter and the second group of antenna array elements to effectively double the number of good beam positions of the antenna array.

I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to antennas and, more particularly, to a microwave antenna system.
II. Description of Related Art
A phased array antenna is oftentimes used to electronically scan a radar or microwave beam echo. Such microwave antenna systems are used in many different applications, including automotive applications.
These previously known phased array microwave antenna systems typically include a number of antenna elements that are linearly arranged from one end and to the other end and in which the antenna elements are equidistantly spaced from each other. In order to control the direction of the antenna scan, phase shifters are employed to modify the phase of the incoming received signals so that the signals combine in the desired direction of the antenna system.
One approach for controlling the phase shift in the antenna array elements is to provide a phase shifter for every single element in the array. Such a design gives near ideal performance to control the direction of the radar beam.
A disadvantage, however, of providing a phase shifter for every element in a phased array antenna system is that the phase shifters are relatively expensive and increase the complexity of the radar transceiver module. Consequently, providing a phase shifter for every element in the array dramatically increases not only the cost, but also the size, of the transceiver module for the radar system. In many types of systems, for example automotive systems, it is difficult to justify the cost of individual phase shifters for every array element.
In one prior design, a single phase shifter was connected to each pair of adjacent antenna elements thus effectively reducing the number of required phase shifters for the antenna system by one half. This approach, however, disadvantageously resulted in the generation of grating lobes for the received microwave signal. Such grating lobes cause targets outside the field of view to appear as if they are actually inside the field of view and are known as ghost targets. These ghost targets cannot be distinguished from the real target and, as a result, the scannable area of the phased array is reduced.

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.


A boost power converter for powering a load with an AC power source. The boost power converter has an energy storage device, a resonant circuit, a resonator switch circuit, a boost inductor circuit with a boost inductor, and a boost switch circuit. The resonator switch circuit alternately connects the resonant circuit to different sides of the energy storage device, where power from the energy storage device is transferred by the resonant circuit to the load. The boost switch circuit selectively connects the boost inductor to the resonator switch circuit, such that the boost inductor is charged in one of two different directions depending on the phase of the AC power source. The boost power converter is well-suited for ballast applications that drive a fluorescent lamp.

This application is related to U.S. application Ser. No. 08/365,656, filed Dec. 29, 1994 as "Moriarty 3," and U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/009,353, filed Dec. 29, 1995 as "Moriarty 5" and converted to U.S. application Ser. No. 08/769,984 on Dec. 19, 1996, all three of which are incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to power converters, and, more particularly, to a power converter with a boost circuit for powering a load from an AC source. The invention is well-suited for resonant ballast applications.
2. Description of the Related Art
The two primary functions of a fluorescent lamp ballast are well known. First, to create enough voltage to start the lamp, and second, to limit the current once the lamp is started. For many years, both functions of a fluorescent lamp ballast were achieved by the use of magnetics, with a transformer to step up the voltage and an inductor to limit the current.
In recent years, electronic ballasts have been frequently used instead of magnetic ballasts to control fluorescent lamps and other non-linear loads. Compared to magnetic ballasts, electronic ballasts are smaller and lighter, do not have flicker associated with 60-Hz power mains, and are more efficient. Electronic ballasts are especially desirable for powering the compact, consumer fluorescent lamps that are becoming more popular.
Most compact electronic ballasts consist of discrete components, including power transistors and pulse transformers. A typical electronic ballast includes a half-bridge totem pole driver formed from two discrete power MOSFETs of bipolar transistors. The half-bridge output drives a resonant load by means of feedback from a pulse transformer whose primary winding is connected in series with the load. The two secondary windings of the transformer are connected to the inputs of the two half-bridge transistors such that the load is driven synchronously. The LC resonating elements provide substantially sinusoidally varying voltage and/or current waveforms. Driving the load in such a self-synchronous fashion allows a switching frequency at the load that is much higher than the line frequency. As a result, much smaller reactive components may be used to reduce the bulk and size of the ballast.
A disadvantage of typical electronic ballasts is a low power factor. That is, the current drawn from the power source is out of phase with the voltage of the source. Typically, the current leads the voltage, e.g., by approximately 50 to 60%. The low power factor is largely due to a peak detector rectifier that allows power to be drawn from the source only when the source voltage is higher than the load voltage. The low power factor not only wastes energy, but tends to inject high-frequency harmonics into the line. The total harmonic distortion might violate FCC regulations and/or disrupt other circuits connected to the line. A large capacitor in shunt with the line reduces total harmonic distortion, but is also likely to reduce the power factor.
A buck-boost power converter that operates with a high power factor is disclosed in U.S. application Ser. No. 08/365,656. A similar buck-boost power converter is disclosed in J. Moriarty et al., "New Integrated Electronic Ballast Chip Set," Proceedings of the Twenty-Ninth International Power Conversion Conference, September 1994, pp. 280-287, which is incorporated herein by reference. These buck-boost power converters are simple to control and have a high power factor since current drawn from the source to charge an inductor is in phase with the voltage of the source. A disadvantage, however, is that high peak currents result in high power dissipation and harmonic distortion.
Therefore, a need exists for a power converter that operates with a high power factor and low harmonic distortion.

Quasiresonant boost power converter with bidirectional inductor current


A wireless charger charges an electronic device. The wireless charger receives radio frequency (RF) from a wireless power transmitter and generates alternating current (AC) electricity. The wireless charger coverts the AC electricity to direct current (DC) electricity and charges the electronic device using the DC electricity.

1. Technical Field
Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to charging technology, and particularly to a wireless charger and a charging method using the wireless charger.
2. Description of Related Art
When an electronic device (e.g., a mobile phone) needs to be charged, a user may use a wired charger to connect to the electronic device and the wired charger can charge the electronic device. Still, improved methods of wirelessly charging the electronic device are desirable.


A display device for displaying images in a rear projection display device is provided. The display device may include, amongst other structure, a screen including a lens portion and a frame portion. A tensioner may be operatively associated with the screen and may be adapted to adjust the frame portion to maintain a predetermined tautness in the lens portion.

In order to provide a television with a screen size greater than approximately 40 inches a display device other than a direct view cathode ray tube (CRT) is typically used. As the screen size of a CRT increases, so too does the depth. It is generally accepted that for screen sizes greater than 40 inches direct view CRTs are no longer practical. Three alternatives exist for large screen (>40 inch screen size) displays: projection displays, plasma displays, and Liquid Crystal Displays (LCDs).
Current plasma and LCD displays are much more expensive than projection displays. Plasma and LCD displays are generally thin enough to mount on a wall, but can be heavy enough that mounting can be difficult. For example, current 42-inch plasma displays can weigh 80 pounds or more and 60-inch plasma displays can weigh 150 pounds or more. One advantage of plasma and LCD displays over current projection displays is that they are typically much thinner than current projection displays having the same screen size.
Projection displays, specifically rear projection displays, are typically more cost-effective then plasma displays. Projection displays may also consume too much space in a room to provide a practical solution for large screen needs. For example, typical 60-inch rear projection displays are 24 inches thick and can weigh 200 to 300 pounds.
FIG. 1 illustrates a prior art rear projection display device. In general, display device 100 includes optical engine 140, projection lens 130, back plate mirror 120 and screen 110. Optical engine 140 generates an image to be projected on screen 110. Projection lens 130 projects the image from optical engine 140 on to back plate mirror 120, which reflects the image to screen 110. The size of display device 100 is proportional to the size of the image to be displayed on screen 110. Thus, for large screen sizes (e.g., >60 inches), the overall size of display device 100 can be very large.
Fresnel lenses may be used to direct a projected image toward a viewer. Conventional rear projection display devices are thick because of surface reflections from the Fresnel surface. As the angle of incidence increases (on the flat side of the Fresnel) the amount of light that is reflected from the air-plastic interface also increases, reducing image uniformity. A person of ordinary skill in the art is familiar with calculating Fresnel surface reflections. The dimensions and arrangement of the surfaces in a Fresnel lens determines the angles at which the light will exit. Thus, any distortion to the shape of a Fresnel lens will distort the appearance of an image leaving the lens. Screen flex distortion is a type of distortion to the shape of a Fresnel lens. Screen flex distortion refers to distortion caused by pressure applied to the surface of a Fresnel lens that deforms the shape of the lens.
A Fresnel lens may also be distorted by the way it is mounted into a cabinet or otherwise implemented in a display device. Typically, a Fresnel lens is made of a thin sheet of flexible material. The thinness and the flexibility make the Fresnel lens difficult to handle and more difficult to maintain in a desired orientation, such as the vertical and flat orientation of the screen 110 of FIG. 1. The thin sheet of material comprising a Fresnel lens may be attached at a number of points to a mount in a rear projection display device to maintain the proper orientation. However, the tension in the Fresnel lens near the mounting connection points is typically greater than the tension in, for example, the center of the Fresnel lens. The uneven tension in Fresnel lens 120 may distort the shape of the lens and the image leaving the lens.
In some rear projection display devices, screen 110 may include both a Fresnel lens and a diffusion screen. However, both the Fresnel lens and the diffusion screen may be made of flexible materials. In these embodiments, the Fresnel lens and the diffusion screen both need structural support. Moreover, when the Fresnel lens is positioned adjacent to the diffusion screen, pressure applied to the surface of the diffusion screen may be transmitted to the associated Fresnel lens causing screen flex distortion.
To prevent screen flex distortion caused by pressure transmitted via a diffusion screen, some rear projection systems implementing Fresnel lenses, include an outer screen. The outer screen is separated from the diffusion screen by a distance that is sufficient to prevent contact between the screens when reasonable pressure is applied to the outer screen.
The pressure on, and deflection of, the outer screen does not cause screen flex distortion. However, the separation of the outer screen may cause parallax for users viewing the image on an angle. This is especially problematic when the outer screen is a touch screen, writing screen, or other screen configured for interactive input.


In a high-speed serial-to-parallel conversion transmission system, a transmitter inserts pattern data composed of a combination of a plurality of idle characters in a signal to be transmitted such that a receiver measures an amount of skew, while the receiver measures the amount of skew and performs delay control over the received signal. By using the idle characters as the pattern data, a skew compensation pattern can be inserted as invalid data in a transmitted data stream containing valid data.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a skew compensation method and a skew compensation apparatus for automatically compensating for skew occurring among a plurality of serial transmission paths used for high-speed signal transmission with parallel-to-serial conversion.
(2) Description of the Related Art
Parallel-to-serial transmission is a technology which serializes a parallel signal by time division multiplexing, transmits the resultant serial signal, and then parallelizes the serial signal again at a receiver. The technology allows the elimination of the problem of bit-to-bit skew which is conspicuous when the rate of parallel transmission is increased. To implement parallel-to-serial transmission in a broader band, it is necessary to increase the rate of serial transmission, but the acceleration of serial transmission is limited. For broader-band parallel-to-serial transmission, therefore, an approach of using a plurality of serial signals in parallel has been proposed. However, the approach entails the occurrence of skew between the serial signals, similarly to the parallel transmission.
It is inherently possible to suppress the skew by installing each of the plurality of transmission paths over an equal distance. Due to reduced margin resulting from higher-speed signal transmission, however, it is difficult to install all the lines for serial signals such that they have equal lengths. In particular, tremendous skew occurs in proportion to a transmission distance in the case of WDM (Wavelength Division Multiplexing) used for optical communication. In the WDM, a plurality of, serial signals are transmitted in parallel by utilizing the property of a single optical fiber which carries a plurality of optical signals with different wavelengths. In this case, however, the different wavelengths cause tremendous skew irrespective of equal transmission distances.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2000-341135 discloses a technology which transmits a test pattern in equiphase from each of the transmitters for serial signals to eliminate skew occurring among a plurality of serial signal transmission paths. In accordance with the invention disclosed in the precedent document, each of receivers sends the timing of a synchronization signal to a controller. The controller sets the delay line of the transmitter with the most delayed one of the received timings and thereby matches the reception timings at the receivers.
However, since the foregoing method sends a test pattern by switching normal data to the test pattern, the skew cannot be monitored during the transmission of the normal data so that a sudden skew shift is beyond handling.


This invention is a preapplied liquid adhesive whose components, when dried and heated, react to form a polymer. Laminates made with the thermoset adhesive withstand exposure to 240.degree. F. (116.degree. C.). The adhesive combines urethane dispersions, carboxyl functional acrylic latices and tertiary amine blocking agent.

Most pre-applied adhesives are pressure-sensitive adhesives and are not heated after application by the consumer. A recent development with pre-applied adhesives is a heat activated adhesive. Pre-applied adhesives may be prepared from hot melt adhesives; either non-reactive thermoplastic adhesive or reactive thermoset adhesive. They may also be prepared from water borne emulsions or dispersions, which are currently available only as the non-reactive thermoplastic systems. No reactive thermoset water borne pre-applied adhesives are currently available. Reactive hot melt adhesives are on the market although not in the form of a pre-applied storage stable adhesive. There is a need to fill this void for a reactive thermoset water borne pre-applied system.
In this invention, water borne adhesive systems are applied to the surface of a metal, vinyl, wood or plastic substrate. For example, a thin film of liquid adhesive is applied to and dried on a roll of vinyl. This roll which now has the pre-applied adhesive on the back of the vinyl is shipped to a manufacturer who heat laminates the vinyl usually to a rigid substrate, such as, a wood door or sheets of cold rolled steel or plastic. The advantage of the pre-applied method is elimination of all liquid chemicals from the final manufacturer's laminating facility. The pre-applied method also provides uniformity in application which results in improved quality of the final product. This invention is a water borne pre-applied system that when heat activated (at the final manufacturers facility) forms a thermoset adhesive bond. This thermoset bond, in contrast to commercially available thermoplastic bond coats, adds additional performance properties that are needed in the market place. The most critical performance need for pre-applied adhesives, second only to the adhesive bond strength, is heat resistance of the final product. The pre-applied adhesive is applied and dried on a roll of vinyl, foam or cloth. The end user of this roll of goods would like to have a processing procedure to heat activate and bond the unrolled goods to a surface at some minimum activation temperature. The lower the heat activation temperature the less the distortion of the final product. The service conditions of the final product often encounter elevated temperatures. In automotive applications for example, it is not uncommon to need performance properties for heat resistance for interior parts of 200.degree. F. because car interiors can reach such a temperature in the summer.
This invention is a waterborne thermoset system that can be dried on rolled goods, stored, and then heat activated at a later date at a relatively low activation temperature. The laminate exhibits unique elevated temperature heat resistant properties superior to the heat resistance of conventional thermoplastic adhesives. Longer press times permit lower activation temperatures and shorter press times require higher activation temperatures.

Thermoset crosslinkable pre-applied adhesive


A double shoot coulter assembly for an agricultural implement includes a packer wheel. The packer wheel is disposed behind a soil engaging blade. The packer wheel is configured to press soil displaced by the soil engaging blade into trenches formed by the soil engaging blade and a disc blade. A centerline of the packer wheel extends adjacent to a soil displacing side of the soil engaging blade.

The invention relates generally to coulter assemblies and, more particularly, to a packer wheel for a double shoot coulter assembly.
In agricultural settings, disc openers are typically mounted to an implement, which is towed behind a work vehicle, such as a tractor. Disc openers are generally configured to form a trench in soil, and to deliver seeds, fertilizer, or other products into the trench. Certain disc openers include a disc, such as a coulter, that cuts into the soil as the disc opener moves along the terrain. A penetration depth of the disc is generally regulated by a gauge wheel positioned adjacent to the disc, and configured to rotate across the soil surface. A vertical offset distance between the disc and the gauge wheel determines the penetration depth (e.g., seed depth, furrow depth) of the disc.
Certain disc openers (e.g., double shoot disc openers) are configured to excavate a trench in the soil that supports two different agricultural products within the trench. For example, a disc may cut a first trench in the soil, and a blade may cut a second trench within the first trench (e.g., into the side of the first trench). As such, a first agricultural product, such as fertilizer may be delivered to the first trench, and a second agricultural product, such as a seed, may be delivered to the second trench. Certain double shoot disc openers include a packer wheel to press soil into the trenches, thereby covering the deposited agricultural products with soil. Unfortunately, due to the position and orientation of the packer wheel, the trenches may not be sufficiently covered with soil. For example, the amount of soil covering the seeds may be uneven, thereby leading to variable seeding depths. Further, the resulting soil surface may include peaks and valleys, resulting in uneven plant emergence and poor yield.

Packer wheel for a double shoot coulter assembly


A method for accessing an access point by a station device, a device, and a system. A station device selects a master access point from multiple access points according to channel quality and accesses the master access point, and sends information about remaining access points to the master access point, so that the master access point selects a slave access point according to the information about the remaining access points.

With the development of communications technologies, intelligent terminals, such as portable computers and smart phones, become more popular, and these intelligent mobile terminals basically all support a wireless local area network (WLAN) technology. Moreover, due to low costs, a WLAN network attracts increasingly more users to choose the WLAN network for data service interaction; therefore, the WLAN technology based on an IEEE 802.11 standard is widely used.
With the rapid development of the WLAN technology, Wi-Fi is increasingly widely used, wireless homes and wireless cities gradually come true, and therefore, a deployment density of access points (AP) increases rapidly. In the prior art, even if in an area having a relatively large deployment density of APs, only one AP can access, in a contention manner, a channel through carrier sense multiple access with collision avoid (CSMA/CA) each time, and as a result, spectrum resources cannot be fully used, and usage efficiency of channel resources is reduced.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method for accessing access point by station device, device, and system


The invention relates to a control cone for control valves, in particular angle control valves, for critical operating states resulting from cavitation or flashing of abruptly vaporizing and erosive media, the control valve comprising a valve seat (2) and a valve stem (3) with a conical valve head (4) guided longitudinally movably therein. Starting from the rear, tapered end of the conical face (6) of the valve head (4), on the front portion adjacent thereto of the valve stem (3), a plurality of coaxially extending ribs (5) is arranged on the valve stem (3).

The invention relates to a control cone for control valves, in particular angle control valves, for critical operating states resulting from cavitation or flashing of abruptly vaporising and erosive media, the control valve comprising a valve seat and a valve stem with a conical valve head guided longitudinally movably therein.
In many processes control valves are used to control level or pressure in an upstream reactor/vessel. The pressure in the valve inlet Pi is roughly the same as the pressure in the upstream reactor/vessel, since this is in balance with the gas mixture above the liquid in the upstream reactor/vessel. Pi is accordingly roughly the same as Pv, the vaporisation pressure of the medium. Thus a situation arises in the control valve on the lower-pressure side in which the outlet pressure Po is a long way below Pv.
It is thus certain that the medium will vaporise or degas as soon as the pressure drops in the control valve. This is the case once the medium has passed through the valve seat. As the medium vaporises, it needs significantly more space. The medium would require approximately 1000 times more space, since the mass flow rate remains constant and the density of the gas is approximately 1000 times lower than the density of the liquid. Since there are no good possibilities for expansion in a normal straight-way valve, the control valve is obstructed and cavitation in the medium helps to destroy the materials of the valve seat, valve cone and valve housing.
A first remedy involves the use of an angle control valve, in which the medium can expand and accelerate unimpeded downstream. However, this also means that the medium "shoots" at very high speed through the downstream pipe and may possibly destroy everything lying in its path. This could also lead to destruction of the downstream reactor/vessel.
A further possible remedy consists in a per se known angle control valve according to FIG. 1 with a control cone which opens outwards, i.e. out of the valve. This only functions if the control valve is mounted directly on the inlet flange of the downstream reactor/vessel. The control cone then opens directly into the reactor/vessel, such that the liquid may expand through vaporisation, since, compared with the pipe, the vessel offers vastly more space for expansion. This significantly reduces acceleration of the medium downstream of the control valve.
However, there is generally high lateral pressure on the control cone, so meaning that the latter has to be guided. This is achieved by a plurality of ribs (FIG. 2), which extend coaxially outwards from the front edge, i.e. from the wider end of the conical face of the valve head, over the tapered end thereof as far as into the front portion of the valve stem. However, in practice it is noted that these ribs disturb flow around the conical valve head, such that erosion occurs to a greater extent around the ribs in the valve seat and at the conical face.
The object of the invention is to provide a control cone for control valves of the above-mentioned type by means of which flow of the medium can be better distributed and localised erosion in the valve seat can be eliminated.

Control cone for control valves, in particular angle control valves, for critical operating states


The method of preventing illegal copy of contents encrypts a header using a key generated from the previous sector, performs variable-length coding to the encrypted header to shorten its length, and stores the decoded header into the recording medium as well as contents data, in encryption phase. The method, in decryption phase, reproduces the contents data which have different length for each sector by decoding and encoding the header.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a system and a method for preventing an illegal copy of contents (including audio and video data, such as moving images) stored in a recording medium like an optical disk. In particular, the invention relates to a recording medium which stores the contents by the use of the system and the method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various recording mediums and methods have been proposed which can serve to prevent an illegal copy. For example, disclosure is made in Japanese Laid Open Publication No. Hei 11-250572 (namely, 250572/1999) about an optical disk and a recording method.
According to the disclosed method, it is possible to prevent an illegal copy by using a specific media ID of an original optical disk when contents stored in the original optical disk are decoded. That is, even if contents stored in the original optical disk are illegally copied onto another copy optical disk, decoding of the copied contents is properly prevented. This is because, when the contents are illegally copied onto another copy optical disk, a copied media ID on another optical disk is different from or changed from the media ID of the original optical disk.
However, in the conventional method, once the contents (for example, audio and video data) are decoded (decrypted), the can be easily reproduced without any restriction. Therefore, if the decoded contents are obtained by some means, the contents can be illegally copied to another optical disk or another recording medium in the same aspect as the original contents.

System and method for preventing an illegal copy of contents


A barrier for stopping unwanted watercraft and subsurface intruders from entering into a port or off-shore structure is provided. In one embodiment, the invention is a barrier comprised of a vertical net structure supported from the sea floor. The barrier comprises vertical supports and a net assembled between the vertical supports with a system of ropes and energy absorbing devices. The structural components of the barrier are designed and configured in a manner as to absorb and displace the kinetic energy generated by an explosive laden small watercraft traveling at a high rate of speed. In another embodiment, invention is a barrier system installed around the perimeter of a water side or offshore facility. This barrier system comprises a bottom founded perimeter fence having a gate system and a series of barriers comprised of a vertical fence structure supported from the sea floor. This barrier system is designed to control access and to protect a water side or offshore facility from potential terrorism threats.

Harbors and other waterfront and off-shore structures are vulnerable to attack by small watercraft, i.e., vehicles, vessels or crafts that move across or through water, such as a speedboat. These watercraft are common in the water and are used for many purposes such as for pleasure, recreation, physical exercise, commerce, transport of people, and goods. It is difficult to distinguish recreational watercraft from a hostile watercraft, such as, a watercraft loaded with explosives that is designed to detonate and cause harm to people, structures, and other watercraft. A small hostile watercraft can potentially slip into a harbor or other waterfront structure unnoticed or otherwise undeterred and cause severe damage to people and property.
Near shore, port, and off-shore barriers are known. Examples of such barriers are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,135,467, 6,681,709, and 6,843,197. These barriers consist of low freeboard float lines or log booms that mark a restricted area, or higher freeboard barriers fabricated of molded plastic or inflated rubber tubes. A port security barrier (PSB) comprised of continuous modular, floating barrier that is installed in lengths ranging from a few hundred feet to over a mile is also known. Each PSB module of the PSB system includes a capture net fabricated from nylon or other synthetic line and net support structure which operates to stop the waterborne craft and prevent entry into the port. However, these barriers suffer from one or more of the disadvantages of being ineffective against higher speed watercraft, are floating and subject to below water level threats such as swimmers, divers, and torpedoes, have unsuitable damage from the impact of a watercraft, have high maintenance costs, and/or are unreliable in the wind, waves, currents, storms and other harsh environmental conditions at sea.
Therefore, there is a need for a barrier system that is effective against high speed watercraft, can provide protection from subsurface threats, is resistant to environmental energies and damage from attacking watercraft, and has lower maintenance costs.


A first base station is configured to be connected with a second base station via an X2 interface. The first base station includes: a controller containing at least one processor and at least one memory, and configured to execute processes of transmitting a message, which includes a first identifier, a change notification, coverage state information, and a second identifier, to the second base station before modifying a coverage of the first cell, the first identifier identifying the first cell, the change notification indicating that the first base station is planned to modify the coverage of the first cell, the coverage state information indicating that a state of the coverage after modification of the coverage, the second identifier identifying a second cell for compensating at least part of the coverage of the first cell; and modifying the coverage of the first cell after transmitting the message.

In the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), which is a mobile communication system standardization project, a power saving (energy saving) technology of saving power consumption of a network has been introduced. For example, cells managed by a base station is turned off (deactivated) in the nighttime or the like in which communication traffic is small.
In addition, in the 3GPP, an enhanced energy saving technology is planned to be introduced from the release 12 (for example, refer to Non Patent Literature 1). For example, when one cell (hereinafter, referred to as an "off target cell") is turned off, the transmission power of a neighbor another cell (hereinafter, referred to as a "compensation cell") is raised. As a result, the coverage of the compensation cell can be expanded (coverage expansion), and the coverage of the off target cell can be compensated for (i.e., area compensation).
In this case, for preventing the occurrence of coverage holes, there can be considered a method of stopping the transmission power of the off target cell after raising the transmission power of the compensation cell.

Communication control method and base station


The invention relates to a continuous process for preparing dihydropyrones of general formula I,

Dihydropyrones are important as intermediate products in drug synthesis. In particular, 5,6-dihydro-4-hydroxy-6-phenethyl-6-propyl-2H-pyran-2-one is an important intermediate product in the synthesis of tipranavir, an HIV protease inhibitor. The compounds of formula I and processes for preparing them are known from the prior art, e.g. from International Patent Application WO 98/19997 and from the "Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 1998, Vol. 41, No. 18". Recently, a process for preparing a racemic mixture of 5,6-dihydro-4-hydroxy-6-phenethyl-6-propyl-2H-pyran-2-one has been described, which comprises in step a) reacting a dianion of methylacetoacetate with 1-phenyl-3-hexanone and in a subsequent step b) cyclising the resulting β-ketoester by alkaline hydrolysis followed by acidification. This process is carried out discontinuously and achieves a 72% yield.
The problem of the invention is therefore to provide a process which enables dihydropyranones to be prepared with a high degree of purity and in a significantly improved yield compared with the prior art.

Continuous process for preparing dihydropyrones

Abstract: wherein the groups R1 and R2 have the meanings described herein.

Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co. KG


A carving ski pole for assisting a skier/snowboarder in balancing on and carving through snow. The carving ski pole comprises a first shaft member detachably coupled to a second shaft member. A first arcuate gliding member is coupled to the free end of the first shaft member and a second arcuate gliding member is coupled to the free end of the second shaft member. The first and second shaft members each also have extendible arms for lengthening the overall length of the carving ski pole.

Skiing and snowboarding are widely popular sports which require a great deal of skill. Learning and mastering proper balance and control of skis/snowboards and the skier's/snowboarder's body are crucial to effectively performing these sports. This is true not only for enjoyment of the sport but also for safety. Because of the uneven and steep slopes usually traveled by these skiers/snowboarders, the skier's/snowboarder's body is constantly in new and unsupported positions which require continuous adjustments.
One of the ultimate goals of most skiers and snow boarders is mastering the technique known as carving. Unfortunately, techniques learned by beginners often need to be "unlearned" later as they become more proficient. The use of the present invention will avoid beginner skiers/snowboarders from having to unlearn the techniques they learned as a beginner when they progress to intermediate and expert levels. Using the carving ski pole as a beginner, teaches the skier/snowboarder the proper techniques which are used by advanced skiers/snowboarders.
Many devices have been designed to teach the art of carving through the snow. Unfortunately, none of them allow skiers/snowboarders to plant a ski pole confidently without losing their balance or control. What is needed is a device that will assist skiers/snowboarders in maintaining their balance on and carving through snow.


A method for selecting which rendering hint or tag to use when multiple tags may be associated with a pixel, includes prioritizing the set of input tags associated with an input image, such that each input tag has a unique priority relative to other input tags in the set; filtering the input image by selecting groups of input pixels, applying a filtering function to the contone data associated with each selected group of input pixels, and producing an output pixel having an output contone data for each selected group of input pixels; for each selected group of input pixels, comparing the priorities of the input tags associated with the selected group of input pixels and selecting as the output tag associated with the output pixel, that tag with the highest priority.

In digital image processing systems, each pixel is typically represented by a numeric value specifying the color of that element. These contone (color) pixel levels are generally continuous from one pixel to another. In some systems however, there are additional numeric values called "tags" associated with each pixel, which may describe how the pixel is to be rendered. For example, these tags (known also as "rendering intents" or "rendering hints") may specify to the rendering stage which halftone is to be used for a printing application. In contrast to the contone (color) pixel levels, where color values are continuous, adjacent tag values are in general not related. For example one pixel on the border of one object may have a tag value of 5 (150 cluster dot) associated with it. An adjacent pixel, which is associated with another type of object may have a tag value of 6 (300 line screen). The tag values of 5 and 6 are close, but the rendering hint they each refer to provide significantly different rendering outputs.
If the digital image processing system produces the image in its original format, i.e., including all pixels, each pixel is rendered according to the correct tag. However, in some applications, it may be necessary to filter the original image prior to rendering. For example, a user may wish to print a "draft" version or lower resolution version or a user may wish to print a monochrome version rather than a full color version, etc. General filtering (when an image is being reduced in resolution or size, for example) involving the contone data is very straightforward, as the final pixel color is simply a weighted sum of the surrounding pixel color values. However, filtering of the tag data plane presents a far more difficult problem, due to the lack of correlation between tag levels. Applying a weighted sum of the surrounding pixel tags may not produce a clear answer if there are tag values of 5 and 6 present in the filtering window. If there are tag values of 1 and 9 in the filter window, an entirely inappropriate tag may be chosen.

Method for merging rendering intents, hints, or tags


A conveyor of product units has mounting brackets extending laterally from endless chains. The mounting brackets rotatably mount two spools having axes parallel to the conveying path. The mounting brackets are displaced longitudinally one from another. Consequently, a central elongate cavity is defined along the conveying path between laterally adjacent spools. Further, lateral concavities are presented between rollers on individual spools and between rollers on separate spools. Pivotally mounted off-loading elements can be articulated to lift product units positioned on the conveying system for off-loading laterally from the conveyor. A laterally articulated actuator is located below the principal conveyor. The actuator includes laterally slidable slats which frictionally engage the overlying rollers associated with each mounting bracket. Guides are then arranged to move the slats laterally with motion of the conveyor. With lateral motion of the slats, the rollers are caused to rotate. Through control of the slats, product units may be rotated by one-half, one-third or even one-quarter of a revolution. Successive movements of the slats will provide further segments to be viewed.

The field of the present invention is conveying systems capable of additionally moving and/or reorienting units being conveyed.
Conveyors for produce have long been available which include rollers. Reference is made to U.S. Pat. No. 4,106,628. Other conveyors for produce have incorporated off-loading elements with a conveyor. Reference is made to U.S. Pat. No. 4,961,489. Conveying systems have also combined use of rollers to define the conveying surface and off-loading elements travelling with the conveying element to off-load produce from the concavities defined between adjacent rollers. Reference is made to U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,029,692, 5,195,628, 5,215,179 and 5,474,167, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
In the foregoing patents, the rollers are rotatably mounted to the conveying system about axes perpendicular to the conveying path. Static drives have long been employed beneath such rollers to cause rotation of the product conveyed so that it can be viewed or inspected from multiple sides. Reference is made to U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,156,278, 5,286,980 and 5,401,954, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. Dynamic drives incorporating friction belts movably mounted and driven beneath the conveyor have been used to speed up or slow down the rotation which might otherwise be provided by a static drive or friction plate located beneath the transversely mounted rollers.
The foregoing patents disclose systems which have provided versatile and efficient conveying with positioning and off-loading which have proven to be accurate and versatile. With long produce, such as cucumbers, squash and the like, the foregoing systems provide an appropriate cradle for conveying the produce but lack the ability to uniformly rotate the produce for inspection of all sides. The presentation of all sides for inspection can be important for blemish grading and recognition of color anomalies.
The foregoing conveying systems have been found to be particularly adaptable for use with electronic scanning equipment. Reference is made to U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,018,864, 5,106,195, 5,156,278, 5,223,917, 5,286,980 and 5,401,954, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference, disclosing such equipment and methods.

Conveyor with rotating and offloading of conveyed units


An apparatus and method for removing pericarp from a seed, such as a corn kernel. The method includes sonicating the kernel to loosen the pericarp and then separation of the pericarp. One example of separation is by frictional milling. An additional optional aspect of the invention is isolation of the pericarp from the remainder of the seed and/or further cleaning or purification of the pericarp.

A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the separation or isolation of the outer covering or pericarp tissue from the remainder of a seed.
B. Problems in the Art
A variety of circumstances requires the removal of the outer coating or pericarp of a seed. Most times, it is not a trivial task. The pericarp is usually a layer, several cells thick. Tissues or other adhering structure(s) connect the pericarp to the interior part of the seed. This, coupled with the relatively small size of most seeds, makes separation and removal of pericarp difficult, or at least time consuming and laborious.
Corn pericarp is an example. It is the mature ovarian female tissue of the seed. It protects the interior endosperm and embryo from disease and moisture loss. However, it has a special make-up; analogous to a fingernail. Tissues of the underlying endosperm adhere to the pericarp. Separation of the pericarp is not simply a matter of sorting.
Some of the reasons separation of pericarp from the remainder of the seed is desirable are as follows.
It is desirable to separate and discard corn pericarp from its endosperm in some food processing applications. The make up of pericarp detrimentally affects the nature and composition of the end product.
Pericarp removal is important as a preparatory step to perform biological tests to identify the genetic origin of corn germplasm. However, instead of removing it to discard it, in these instances it is desirable to isolate and retain the pericarp, but it should be free of any other seed tissue derived from the male and female, to obtain pure female DNA.
Still further, separation and isolation of corn pericarp is desirable in some cases to extract substances from the pericarp, for example, specific nucleic acids, proteins, vitamins, and other dietary or nutraceutical compounds. The pericarp can be rich in such substances.
Because of such needs, pericarp removal processes have been developed and used in the art. A conventional pericarp removal method in food processing applications involves soaking corn kernels in a chemical solution (e.g. sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and/or hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)) for a relatively long period of time (e.g. hours). Such chemical soaking has been found to substantially loosen pericarp such that an automated method of separation can be used to separate the loosened pericarp from the endosperm. These methods allow batches of a substantial number of kernels to be processed, and the process to be automated. However, such processes take a significant amount of time (e.g. hours of soaking) to get the pericarp sufficiently loosened. They also require the chemicals, and the costs and handling associated therewith. Additionally, the chemicals used tend to damage or otherwise effect the DNA in the pericarp.
Therefore, because damage to DNA must be avoided, when separating pericarp from the remainder of the kernel for genetic analysis, current conventional methodologies have stayed away from the chemical steeping. Instead, current methods involve trying to somewhat loosen the pericarp by soaking the kernels overnight in distilled water instead of chemicals. After such soaking, seed by seed, the pericarp is manually cut or picked off. Water soaking is not as effective as chemical baths at loosening the pericarp. Although a relatively small number of seeds is needed for each batch to obtain enough pericarp material for genetic analysis (usually on the order of 10 to 100 or so), such seed-by-seed manual removal, with this number of seeds, can take one, two, or more person-hours. Furthermore, it is difficult, if not impossible, to completely remove all endosperm from the pericarp with these manual methods, contrary to the purity level needed or desired for accurate genetic testing results.
Therefore, there is a need for an improvement in the art relative to pericarp removal. A primary object, feature, or advantage of the present invention is the provision of a method and apparatus, which improves over the state of the art. Further objects, features and advantages of the present invention include an apparatus or method that:                1. allows effective pericarp removal, which is less labor intensive and time-consuming;        2. has applicability to either single or small amounts of seeds, or to relatively large numbers of seeds;        3. is adaptable to bulk processing;        4. is adaptable to high purity pericarp isolation from the remainder of the seed;        5. is adaptable to pericarp removal for a variety of applications, including but not limited to food processing and extraction of pericarp for analysis or extraction substances;        6. is scalable in volume while retaining time and labor efficiencies;        7. is adaptable to substantial or even total automation.
These and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent with reference to the accompanying specification and claims.

Apparatus and method for removal of seed pericarp

Board of Trustees of the University of Arkansas


A lighting device, automotive lighting system and method of manufacturing a light device are described. A lighting device includes a mounting portion, at least one first light emitting element, at least one second light emitting element, and at least one optical component. The mounting portion includes at least a central mounting face and at least one lateral mounting face at an angle with respect to the central mounting face. The at least one first light emitting element is mounted on the central mounting face. The at least one second light emitting element is mounted on the at least one lateral mounting face. The at least one optical component is mounted to the mounting portion and configured to adjust an intensity distribution of light emitted from the at least one of the at least one first light emitting element or the at least one second light emitting element.

Lighting devices such as halogen lamps have been standard light sources for automotive headlights for many years. However, recent advances in LED technology with concomitant new design possibilities and energy efficiency has spurred interest in finding suitable replacements for halogen lamps based on LED technology, such replacement being often referred to as LED retrofit.


A memory system, including a flash memory including multiple memory blocks, and a controller configured to erase each of the memory blocks using multiple steps. The controller stores, for each of the memory blocks, metadata indicating which of the multiple steps have been completed, and erases each of the memory blocks based on the stored metadata.

The inventive concept relates generally to electronic memory technologies. More particularly, certain embodiments of the inventive concept relate to memory systems and related methods of operation in which memory cells are erased by a multi-step process based on stored metadata.
Memory devices may be roughly divided into two categories according to whether they retain stored data when disconnected from power. These categories include volatile memory devices, which lose stored data when disconnected from power, and nonvolatile memory devices, which retain stored data when disconnected from power. Examples of volatile memory devices include static random access memory (SRAM) devices, dynamic random access memory (DRAM) devices, and synchronous DRAM (SDRAM) devices. Examples of nonvolatile memory devices include flash memory devices, read only memory (ROM) devices, programmable ROM (PROM) devices, electrically erasable and programmable ROM (EEPROM) devices, and various forms of resistive memory such as phase-change RAM (PRAM), ferroelectric RAM (FRAM), and resistive RAM (RRAM).
In certain types of flash memory devices, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) flash memory devices using charge trapped flash (CTF) cells, erase operations may take a relatively long time and can therefore affect overall system performance. Consequently, there is a general need to improve systems to cope with or reduce this relatively long erase time.

Memory system performing multi-step erase operation based on stored metadata


A combustion turbine power generation system 10 includes a combustion turbine assembly 11 including a main compressor 12 constructed and arranged to receive ambient inlet air, a main expansion turbine 14 operatively associated with the main compressor, a combustor 16 constructed and arranged to receive compressed air from the main compressor and to feed the main expansion turbine, and an electric generator 15 associated with the main expansion turbine for generating electric power. Pressure reducing structure 28 is constructed and arranged to reduce pressure of compressed air from a source of compressed air to atmospheric pressure and thus to reduce a temperature of the compressed air from the source of compressed air to a temperature below ambient temperature when exhausted from the pressure reducing structure. Structure 32 is associated with the pressure reducing structure to permit mixing of the air exhausted from the pressure reducing structure and the ambient inlet air to reduce a temperature of inlet air to the main compressor and thus increase the combustion turbine assembly power.

It is well known that combustion turbine power generating systems have significant power degradation associated with increased ambient temperature or high elevations. This loss of power is primarily associated with the reduced inlet airflow mass of the combustion turbine power generating systems, caused by the reduced inlet ambient air density.
There are a number of technologies that pre-condition inlet air to recover power lost by combustion turbines due to high ambient temperatures/high elevation. For example, evaporative coolers, inlet fogging and "wet compression" technologies provide power augmentation by a combination of inlet air humidification and cooling with associated increased mass flow through the combustion turbine. However, this type of inlet air cooling is limited in areas that don't have a sufficient supply of water available. Inlet chillers also treat ambient air by cooling ambient air with chillers and provide a corresponding increased mass flow and power augmentation. However, high capital cost and high operating and maintenance costs are associated with these chillers.
Thus, there is a need to cool combustion turbine inlet air by mixing it with cold air extracted, for example, from an external air expander exhaust providing an effective alternative power augmentation option: power augmentation of a combustion turbine power generation system with additional power provided by an expander.

Power augmentation of combustion turbines by injection of cold air upstream of compressor


The invention relates to an optical ring network comprising stations (340) which are connected to at least one optical fiber by means of optical couplers, the two ends of the optical fiber being connected to a point of presence or an optical network access node. The point of presence comprises (k) at least an optical emitter (330-1) which emits a falling optical signal having at lest one first wavelength (420) in the direction of one end of the optical fibers (455) and (ii) at least one optical receiver (330-2) which receives a rising optical signal having at least one second wavelength which is different form the first wavelength. The aforementioned optical network access node comprises means such as a hub (320) which can be used for the communication between the optical receiver (330-2) and the optical emitter (330-1). The wavelengths of the rising signals and the wavelengths of the falling signals are shared by several stations.

The present invention relates generally to the technology of transmission via optical fibers and more particularly to a ring network using a dual optical data bus.
The ever-increasing use of public and private networks to transport data has for some years now given rise to an enormous demand for bandwidth, for exchanging ever-increasing quantities of information and setting up all forms of communication, from exchanging simple text and picture files to the considerable expansion of electronic mail (E-mail) and all types of business massaging, via voice transport, including conventional telephony using the time division multiplexing (TDM) mode and protocols, and even the transport of voice in packet mode using Voice over IP (VoIP) exchange protocols, video distribution and, of course, all the applications resulting from the considerable expansion of the Internet and especially its universally used main application, the World Wide Web (WWW).
To face up to this demand for bandwidth, those responsible for providing the networks soon had to have recourse to transporting the signals carrying the information in optical form, so as to benefit firmly from the low cost of the fibers themselves and secondly from the very high bit rates that can be achieved, despite transmission distances measured in kilometers, or even tens or hundreds of kilometers, without having to regenerate the signal, attenuation being very low, especially in mono mode fibers, compared to the attenuation resulting from electrical transmission over copper cables, for example. Moreover, optical transmission avoids all the problems that are associated with electromagnetic interference and which necessitate costly protection circuits and can lead to frequent transmission errors.
The first use of optical fibers was essentially in point-to-point connections. Thus, the transport signals are converted into light signals that are transmitted between two nodes of a network and are immediately converted back into electrical signals on reception, in order to be processed in the receiver node which, after analyzing the information received, must either relay the information to another node of the network or use the data locally. In the former case further electrical-to-optical conversion is needed, of course, even though the payload information transported has not been modified and only the final destination has had to be examined.
This mode of operation is used in Synchronous Optical NETwork (SONET) and Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) rings in particular, which are respectively the standard for North America and for Europe, and are for the most part compatible. In particular, the transmission bit rates are standardized, and the higher bit rates that are most widely used are 2.48 Gb/c (SONET OC-48 and SD STEM-16), 10 Gb/c (SONET OC-192 and SD STEM-64) and even 40 Gb/c (SONET OC-768 and SDH STM-256). It is to be noted that, as shown in FIG. 1, these rings in fact consist of a double ring of optical fibers 100, one of which is an inactive protection channel and is used only in the event of a break in the active fiber, after fast automatic protection switching (APS), taking less than 50 milliseconds, has taken place to assure the continuity of traffic that constitutes an essential quality criterion for networks of this kind transporting enormous quantities of data. The nodes of these networks are generally add/drop multiplexers (ADM) 110 which provide local access to a portion of the data stream without affecting the remainder of the traffic, although necessitating at each node optical-electrical-optical (O-E-O) conversion of the traffic. SONET/SDH rings have been very successful and are still very widely used, because of the APS system referred to above, and their inherent capability of adapting to the ever higher transmission speeds required by the extremely rapid expansion of the amounts of data exchanged characteristic of the last several years.
This first applications of optical fibers nevertheless soon proved to be insufficient. Although the fiber itself is of relatively low cost, its deployment can be very labor-intensive and prove extremely costly. Rather than deploy more optical fibers when the capacity of an installed network becomes insufficient, the solution has been adopted of making better use of the fibers already in place. By transmitting different frequencies in the same fiber, the wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) technique multiplies the number of completely independent transmission channels on the same physical fiber. In other words, transmitting light rays of different "colors" multiplies the bandwidth of a single fiber commensurately. The dense WDM (DWDM) technique, which soon succeeded the WDM technique, can multiplex 80 or even more channels.
Although the above techniques provided an effective response to the enormous demand for bandwidth, this led to the development of an optical data transport layer that itself gave rise to a few problems. The essential reason for this was that, in the current state of the art, the signals and the data transported are still processed essentially in the electrical domain. Accordingly, optical/electrical conversion is essential each time that the transported data has to be examined. In particular, in systems transporting information in packet mode, it is usually necessary to consult the packet headers at each network node to determine the next hop (i.e. the next destination node). This is the case with the Internet Protocol (IP) in particular, which is obviously in very widespread use, and which operates in the connectionless mode, in contrast to other protocols for which a path must be set up beforehand, by means of appropriate signaling, before the exchange of data can take place. This is the case with telephony and with the TDM modes of transport previously mentioned.
Thus although the optical transport of signals for exchanging data is intrinsically of relatively low cost, electrical/optical and optical/electrical conversion remain costly. In particular, light is almost always injected into an optical fiber from lasers, which have to be more sophisticated to mix numerous wavelengths in the same fiber (as in the DWDM technique). This is because the various "colors" or wavelengths used are much closer together, of course, and there is the risk that their emission spectra may overlap, making it impossible to distinguish them on reception unless the lasers used are capable of emitting in a very narrow frequency band, which makes them more difficult to produce and therefore more costly.
The document EP 1.128.585 describes a multilevel optical network. The lowest level comprises a ring and stations coupled to the ring by access nodes that do not necessitate optical/electrical or electrical/optical conversion. The ring comprises two optical fibers carrying uplink information and downlink information, respectively. Each node is connected to a plurality of stations by a star network. Each access network comprises:                two passive optical couplers connected to respective fibers,        a demultiplexer for downlink signals connected to a first coupler, and        a multiplexer for uplink signals connected to the second coupler.Each station is connected to the access node by a single fiber that is specific to it. Onto this fiber are multiplexed a wavelength carrying an uplink signal and a different wavelength carrying a downlink signal. Each station communicates with the remainder of the node by means of two wavelengths that are specific to the station.

Ring network made using a dual optical data bus