This television tuner comprises a mixer 1c for frequency converting each of a television signal and an FM broadcasting signal into an intermediate signal, a local oscillator for outputting a local oscillation signal to the mixer, and a PLL circuit for setting the frequency of the local oscillation signal in correspondence with the frequency of the television signal or the frequency of the FM broadcasting signal. The step frequency of the PLL circuit in the event of receiving the television signal and that in the event of receiving the FM broadcasting signal are made different. The step frequency in the event of receiving the television signal is set to 31.25 kHz and that in the event of receiving the FM broadcasting signal is set to 50 kHz.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a television tuner which controls the oscillation frequency of a local oscillator by using a PLL circuit and can receive both a television signal and an FM broadcasting signal.
2. Related Art
A conventional television tuner comprises, as shown in FIG. 4, a VHF tuner 21, a UHF tuner 22, a PLL circuit 23, and a station selection control circuit 24. A VHF band television signal TV and an FM broadcasting signal FM are supplied to the VHF tuner 21 and a UHF band television signal TU is supplied to the UHF tuner 22. The VHF tuner 21 has an FM switching circuit 21a for performing switching between the VHF band television signal TV and the FM broadcasting signal FM and receiving the switched signal, a tuning circuit 21b, a mixer 21c, a local oscillator 21d, and the like. An intermediate frequency signal IF is outputted from the mixer 21c.
The tuning circuit 21b can be switched between a case of receiving a television signal in the high band of the VHF band and a case of receiving a television signal in the low band of the VHF band. The FM broadcasting signal can be received in a state where the tuning circuit 21b is switched to receive the television signal in the low band of the VHF band. Although not illustrated, the UHF tuner 22 has also a tuning circuit, a mixer, and the like and an intermediate frequency signal of the UHF band television signal is outputted via the mixer 21c of the VHF tuner 21.
The PLL circuit 23 comprises a first fixed frequency divider 23a, a variable frequency divider 23b, a phase comparator 23c, a low pass filter 23d, a second fixed frequency divider 23e, and a reference oscillator 23f. The first fixed frequency divider 23a, the variable frequency divider 23b, the phase comparator 23c, and the low pass filter 23d construct a closed loop with the local oscillator 21d. The first fixed frequency divider 23a divides the frequency of a local oscillation signal outputted from the local oscillator 21d at a predetermined frequency dividing ratio. The variable frequency divider 23b further divides the frequency of the local oscillation signal divided by the fixed frequency divider 23a on the basis of frequency dividing ratio data DA outputted from the channel selection control circuit 24 in correspondence with the frequency of a reception channel and outputs the resultant signal to the phase comparator 23c.
Meanwhile, a reference oscillation signal outputted from the reference oscillator 23f is also divided by the second fixed frequency divider 23e, thereby obtaining a reference frequency. The reference frequency is supplied to the phase comparator 23c. The phase comparator 23c compares the phases of two signals and outputs an error signal corresponding to the phase difference to the low pass filter 23d. The low pass filter 23d smoothes the error signal into a DC voltage. The DC voltage is used as a control voltage and applied to a varactor diode (not shown) in the local oscillator 21d, thereby controlling the frequency of the local oscillation signal outputted from the local oscillator 21d to be stable.
The station selection control circuit 24 receives a station selection signal S from a station selection operating unit in a television receiver (not shown), outputs the frequency dividing ratio data DA to the variable frequency divider 23b and outputs switching voltages BS1 to BS4 to the VHF tuner 21 and the UHF tuner 22. The switching voltage BS1 is outputted when the low-band television signal is received. The switching voltage BS2 is outputted when the high-band television signal is received. The switching voltage BS3 is outputted when the FM broadcasting signal is received. The switching voltage BS4 is outputted when the UHF band television signal is received. The switching voltages BS1 and BS2 are supplied to the tuning circuit 21b in the VHF tuner 21. The switching voltage BS3 is supplied to the FM switching circuit 21a in the VHF tuner 21. The switching voltage BS4 is supplied to the UHF tuner 22.
The tuning circuit 21b is switched so as to be tuned to the television signal in the low band of the VHF band and the FM broadcasting signal by the switching voltage BS1. The tuning circuit 21b is switched so as to be tuned to the television signal in the high band of the VHF band by the switching voltage BS2. The FM switching circuit 21a outputs the FM broadcasting signal to the tuning circuit 21b by the switching voltage BS3. Further, the switching voltage BS4 makes the UHF tuner 22 operative.
Each of the VHF television signal TV and the UHF television signal TU which are supplied to the television tuner has two kinds of television signals; what is called a ground wave television signal and a cable television signal sent via a cable (called a CATV signal). The ground wave television signal is according to what is called a standard frequency arrangement. The frequency of the CATV signal is, however, often slightly deviated from the frequency of the corresponding ground wave television signal. This is generally called an offset. The offset frequency lies within a range from few kHz to ten-odd kHz. The step frequency of the PLL circuit 23 is generally set to not 50 kHz but 31.25 kHz so as to be received even by an offset channel.
The step frequency indicates the minimum frequency interval of local oscillation signals outputted from the local oscillator 21d and is determined by the comparison frequency supplied to the phase comparator 23c and the frequency dividing ratio of the fixed frequency divider 23a. Generally, the oscillation frequency of the reference oscillator 23f is set to 4 MHz and the frequency dividing ratio of the second fixed frequency divider 23e is set to 1024, so that the reference frequency is 4000/1024=3.90625 kHz. In order to set the step frequency to 31.25 kHz, the frequency dividing ratio of the fixed frequency divider 23a is set to 31.25/3.90625=8.
The FM broadcasting signal is outputted at intervals of 100 kHz and, moreover, the frequency minimum unit is 100 kHz. When the step frequency of the PLL circuit 23 is 31.25 kHz, the oscillation frequency of the local oscillator 21d is therefore deviated from each of many FM broadcasting frequencies by ten-odd kHz. The sound quality of the FM broadcasting consequently deteriorates.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a television tuner in which the step frequency of the PLL circuit 23 when the FM broadcasting signal is received is made different from that when the television signal is received, thereby realizing just-tuning of the FM broadcasting signal.
In order to solve the problem, there is provided a television tuner capable of receiving both of a television broadcast and an FM radio broadcast, comprising: a mixer for frequency converting a signal of each of the broadcasts into an intermediate frequency signal; a local oscillator for supplying a local oscillation signal to the mixer; and a PLL circuit for controlling the frequency of the local oscillation signal, wherein the PLL circuit varies the frequency of the local oscillation signal in accordance with the case of receiving the television broadcast and the case of receiving the FM radio broadcast by using different step frequencies.
Preferably, according to the television tuner, the PLL circuit comprises: a reference oscillator for outputting an oscillation signal of a predetermined frequency; a reference frequency divider for dividing the frequency of the oscillation signal and outputting the resultant signal as a reference oscillation signal; and a comparison frequency divider for dividing the frequency of the local oscillation signal outputted from the local oscillator and outputting the resultant signal as a comparison signal, the frequency dividing ratio of the reference frequency divider is switched between the case of receiving the television broadcast and the case of receiving the FM radio broadcast to thereby change the frequency dividing step frequency of the local oscillation signal in accordance with the time of receiving the television broadcast and the time of receiving the FM radio broadcast, and the frequency dividing ratio of the comparison frequency divider is switched, thereby changing the frequency of the local oscillation signal.
Preferably, according to the television tuner, the reference frequency divider has a frequency dividing ratio switching terminal and its frequency dividing ratio is switched when a reception switching voltage for switching a broadcast to be received from the television broadcast to the FM radio broadcast is applied to the frequency dividing ratio switching terminal.
Preferably, according to the television tuner, the frequency dividing step frequency of the local oscillation signal is set to 31.25 kHz in the event of receiving the television broadcast and to 50 kHz in the event of receiving the FM radio broadcast.


A rotary electric machine control device that performs drive control on an AC rotary electric machine using an inverter that converts power between DC power and AC power through pulse width modulation based on a carrier frequency, the rotary electric machine control device including: an electronic control unit that is configured to vary the carrier frequency such that the carrier frequency becomes higher as a rotational speed of the rotary electric machine becomes higher so that carrier sideband frequencies, which are frequencies of sideband waves that appear on higher and lower sides of a center frequency that is set in accordance with the carrier frequency, are not included in a frequency band prescribed in advance.

The present disclosure relates a rotary electric machine control device that performs drive control on an AC rotary electric machine using an inverter that converts power between DC power and AC power through pulse width modulation.
Pulse width modulation is often performed to drive an AC rotary electric machine using an inverter. In the pulse width modulation, a voltage command in a sinusoidal waveform (including a distorted waveform for improving the conversion efficiency) is converted into a pulse signal in a square waveform through magnitude comparison with a carrier in a triangular waveform (including a sawtooth shape) that serves as a threshold. The pulse signal is finer if the frequency of the carrier is higher, and coarser if the frequency of the carrier is lower. In the case where a rotary electric machine (e.g. a permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM)) is driven using pulse width modulation, as pointed out in Takefumi Hara et al. "Study on Vibration Mechanism of Distributed Winding Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor for PWM Method of Voltage Source Inverters", 2017 IEE Japan Industry Applications Society Conference, IEE Japan, 2016, 3-59 [III-319], resonance may be caused to generate noise in the audible range in the case where the frequency of an electromagnetic excitation force generated because of the frequency of the carrier and the frequency of natural vibration of a mechanical element match each other. Such noise in the audible noise has sideband waves that have frequencies that are higher and lower than a center frequency that is set in accordance with the frequency of the carrier. The frequencies of the sideband waves are varied toward the higher and lower sides away from the center frequency as the rotational speed of the rotary electric machine is raised.
It is known that the audible range includes a frequency band called an uncomfortable audible frequency band that makes humans feel very uncomfortable. If the frequency of noise in the audible range is included in the uncomfortable audible frequency band, such noise in the audible range is uncomfortable for humans. For example, in the case where the uncomfortable audible frequency band is lower than the center frequency that is set in accordance with the frequency of the carrier, the frequency of one of the sideband waves on the lower side with respect to the center frequency may be included in the uncomfortable audible frequency band. As a countermeasure, it is conceivable to increase the center frequency such that the frequency of the sideband wave becomes higher than the upper-limit frequency of the uncomfortable audible frequency band. The center frequency can be increased by increasing the frequency of the carrier. However, increasing the frequency of the carrier makes a pulse signal generated through modulation finer (makes the frequency of the pulse signal higher), which may incur an increase in switching loss of the inverter.


A personal protection system can comprise a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag coupled to a personal protective equipment, a barometric sensor coupled to the RFID tag, and a computing device communicatively coupled to the RFID tag and the barometric sensor. The computing device can comprise a processing unit that can be configured to access radio frequency (RF) data received from the RFID tag and receive, from the barometric sensor, barometric data determined by the barometric sensor. Further, the processing unit can be configured to determine a positioning state of the personal protection equipment. The positioning state can indicate whether the personal protection equipment is being worn correctly or incorrectly by the user.

In various industrial environments workers can operate in hazardous areas or with equipment that that may cause harm or injury. To help prevent worker injury and/or product contamination, workplace safety rules can mandate use of one or more pieces of personal protection equipment (PPE) in various work areas of a production facility. While PPE is often an effective means of protecting workers, PPE is effective when it is used according to its intended function and in adherence with safety norms. Thus, non-compliance with PPE usage guidelines may result in various workplace injuries.

Systems, methods, and apparatuses, for monitoring personal protection equipment compliance


An operability testing apparatus used in conjunction with an electrical testing apparatus to perform live-dead-live tests consists of: a power source; a voltage source coupled to the power source with the voltage source being configured to provide an AC voltage output and/or a DC voltage output; and one or more visual indicators. The visual indicator(s) are configured to indicate operability for electrical testing equipment such as voltmeters and the like. The probes or leads of electrical testing equipment are inserted into apertures in the apparatus. The apparatus provides an output, allowing a determination to be made as to the operability of the electrical testing equipment. Then, the test leads or probes are applied to the subject electrical circuit or equipment to ensure that the subject electrical circuit or equipment is de-energized. Then, the probes or leads are inserted into the apparatus once again as a final test to ensure that the electrical testing equipment has remained operable and is functioning correctly.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to the field of electrical test equipment and more particularly to the field of operability testing for voltmeters and/or similar devices at their point of use.
2. Background Art
Voltage is a term used to describe the amount of energy or electromotive force available to move a certain amount of electrons from one point to another in an electrical circuit, which results in a difference in electrical potential between two points. For most purposes, voltage can be characterized as one of two types, alternating current (AC) or direct current (DC) voltage. Both of these voltage types are commonly used to supply power to various electrical circuits and electrical equipment. A conductor is a material or object that offers a pathway for electrons or current to flow from one point to another in the presence of an applied voltage.
When voltage or electrical pressure is exerted upon a conductive closed loop or circuit, current will flow within the circuit. However, if voltage is applied to an open circuit no current will flow. Regardless of whether or not current flows in an open or closed circuit, both circuits are "energized" by the application of voltage and the voltage differential between two points in the circuit. Similarly, two or more conductors, with an earthen or equipment ground (i.e., reference ground) considered to be one of the conductors and having a voltage differential between the conductors, are considered energized. Resistance is a closely related concept that describes a material or object with physical properties that reduce or restrict the flow of electrons or electrical current in a conductor. Current and resistance are generally inversely proportional in that the higher the level or measurement of resistance in a given circuit, the lower the corresponding current flow in that circuit will be. For purposes of this discussion, the terms "electrical circuit" or "electrical equipment" may be broadly interpreted to mean any type of electrical device or mechanism which is capable of conducting current when a voltage is applied to the circuit.
An appropriately configured electrical instrument can be used to determine whether or not there is a difference in electrical potential between two given points in a circuit. The electrical instrument used will generally indicate a difference in potential by providing some type of feedback to the user of the electrical instrument. For example, a visual indication such as an illuminated light bulb, an audible sound, or a combination of the two may be employed. Several electrical instruments are currently available such as audio emitting instruments containing piezo electric sound or tone generators or light emitting instruments such as neon test probes that indicate voltage. Additionally, voltage measuring meters such as the "Simpson" meter, solenoid driven voltage meters such as the "Wiggins" meter, and various digital voltmeters are also available for this use.
A voltage measuring meter or voltmeter can be used to perform at least two functions when there is a difference in electrical potential in a given circuit. First, the voltmeter can be used to indicate the presence of voltage and second, to determine the magnitude or amount of the difference in voltage potential. For purposes of this discussion, the terms "electrical testing apparatus" may be broadly interpreted to mean any type of electrical instrument which is commonly used to determine a difference in electrical potential.
Although the human body varies from person to person, it is generally accepted throughout the electrical industry that a level of around 500ma of current passed through the heart can stop the heart and cause severe injury or, in some cases, death. A certain level of voltage will be required to push the current through the resistance of the human body as described by Ohm's law where voltage/resistance=current. When a technician uses an electrical testing apparatus against a known voltage source, the technician maybe taking a risk that is more significant than the risk of working on a circuit without testing the circuit to determine if it is energized or not. For example, in attempting to verify the operability of his equipment, the technician might use a known 480V 100 A source when the actual circuit to be worked on is a 50V 5 A circuit. In this situation, the technician is in greater danger from the current associated with the 480V source than the 50V circuit to be worked on.
An electrical testing apparatus, such as a voltmeter, is generally considered to be a very high resistance device so that very little current flows through the electrical testing apparatus when determining if a difference in potential exists. Therefore, a standard electrical testing apparatus consumes very little power during use. To use the electrical testing apparatus, a first electrical sensing test probe or lead will be applied to one point in the circuit and a second electrical sensing test probe or lead will be applied to a second point in the circuit. With the electrical testing apparatus activated, an illuminated light or audible sound or voltage indication seen on a voltage meter will generally signify that there is a measurable difference in potential between the two points being tested. In this fashion an electrical testing apparatus can be utilized to determine whether or not a circuit is energized or de-energized and an appropriately configured voltage measuring meter can determine the magnitude of the voltage present.
An electrical testing apparatus, such as a voltmeter, may be routinely used in the electrical and power generation industries to facilitate equipment diagnostics and repair. In these applications, a worker will utilize a voltmeter to ensure a piece of equipment or a circuit is de-energized prior to disassembling or working on the equipment since working in an energized environment can lead to undesirable consequences. An electrical testing apparatus that does not provide an accurate indication or reading of the electrical potential in an electrical circuit can inadvertently lead a user to believe that a circuit is de-energized when, in fact, the circuit is energized. This situation is quite dangerous and can lead to many hazards with varying consequences, ranging from the very minor to the very serious, including damage to electrical equipment, shocks and bums or even death for the user of the faulty electrical testing apparatus as well as his/her co-workers.
In an attempt to avoid the dangers described above, the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) has adopted certain regulations including Standards 29 CFR under which "Selection And Use Of Work Practices 1910.333" has been incorporated. Paragraph 1910.333(b) (2) (iv) (B) states: "A qualified person shall use test equipment to test the circuit elements and electrical parts of equipment to which employees will be exposed and shall verify that the circuit elements and equipment parts are de-energized. The test shall also determine if any energized condition exists as a result of inadvertently induced voltage or unrelated voltage backed even though specific parts of the circuit have been de-energized and presumed to be safe. If the circuit to be tested is over 600 volts, nominal, the test equipment shall be checked for proper operation immediately after this test."
For compliance with this directive, an electrical testing apparatus such as a voltmeter is commonly used to test the circuit elements and electrical parts of the circuit or electrical equipment to verify that they are de-energized prior to any activity with the circuit or equipment that might expose a worker to potentially dangerous level of voltage. This is known throughout the industry as a "test before touch" philosophy. Even though the OSHA guidelines specifically point out that the test equipment used to verify voltages above 600 volts need only be checked for proper operation immediately after testing for energized circuits has occurred, many companies have adopted this safety practice for all voltages in excess of 50V.
Before working on a circuit, a common "safe working practice" is to check the functionality of the electrical testing apparatus on a known energized voltage source to verify that the electrical testing apparatus is in fact operational. These checks also verify that the electrical testing apparatus's test probes and test leads are functional. The electrical testing apparatus is then used to check and verify whether or not the circuit and/or equipment to be worked on is de-energized. As a last check to verify it did not fail during the circuit testing, the electrical testing apparatus is again checked against the known energized voltage source. This testing procedure is commonly referred to as a live-dead-live (LDL) check.
Currently known techniques for performing the LDL check of an electrical testing apparatus generally require that the user locate a known and quantified energized source and verify that the electrical testing apparatus is operating properly by testing it on the known voltage source. The user then uses the electrical testing apparatus to check the circuit or equipment to be worked on to verify it is de-energized, as evidenced by the visual or audible indication provided by the electrical testing apparatus. Finally, before starting to work on the circuit/equipment, the user re-verifies that the electrical testing apparatus is operating properly by re-checking it against the known voltage source. If the electrical testing apparatus operates properly during the final check against the known voltage source, then the user would know that the electrical testing apparatus had not suffered a failure during the testing process. If the LDL check is performed correctly, with properly functioning equipment, the possibility of accidental exposure to electrical energy can be minimized or eliminated.
The known techniques and methods of performing a LDL check of an electrical testing apparatus set forth herein can be very time consuming and, in certain circumstances, may provide a false sense of security to the user. For example, if there is an intermittent problem with the electrical testing apparatus or its test leads and no voltage is indicated during the LDL check, the user may not know if the circuit is de-energized or if the electrical testing apparatus is simply malfunctioning. Additionally, if the circuit or equipment to be worked on is located in an area where a known voltage source is not present or readily available, the user must leave the area to verify the electrical testing apparatus is operating properly. Accordingly, in cases where both AC and DC voltage may need to be verified, the LDL process may have to be repeated twice, so that the user can verify that the electrical testing apparatus is operating properly for both types of voltage. This technique/methodology is obviously inconvenient and time consuming and, in some cases, may tempt the user to skip the LDL checks entirely. This decision could lead to undesirable consequences, as the unverified electrical testing apparatus then becomes the sole barrier in preventing personnel injury and/or equipment damage.
In addition to the obvious inconvenience, the electrical testing apparatus could theoretically pass an LDL check but still be inoperative at the time of testing the circuit or equipment. For example, due to an intermittent problem that presents itself only while moving from the location where the initial electrical testing apparatus verification was performed to the work location, a faulty electrical testing apparatus could still indicate the circuit/equipment is de-energized when it is in fact energized. The user may attempt to minimize this possibility by carrying a portable voltage source to the work area to perform the LDL checks. This procedure requires that the user carry a portable AC and/or DC source, which is often large and heavy, and possibly an extension cord to the work area. He or she may also need to locate a reliable power source to feed the portable power unit to avoid inaccurate results while performing the LDL checks. In addition, many industrial and commercial facilities utilize circuits and/or equipment that are located in somewhat hazardous environments. Normally, for safety and environmental reasons, every effort is made to minimize both the amount of time spent in the hazardous work area as well as the amount of test equipment taken into the work area. Once again, this technique/methodology is obviously inconvenient and time consuming.
As shown by this discussion, while certain techniques currently exist to perform operability and LDL tests using electrical testing apparatuses, challenges still exist and certain limitations remain. Accordingly, without improved apparatus and methods for performing operability and LDL checks, inadvertent exposure to live electrical current will remain a very real possibility.

Apparatus and method for operability and live-dead-live testing


A display device is arranged to cause a display part to display, on an image plane, an index for selecting a part of the image plane which is arranged to display an image thereon, to cause a moving part to move the index in a predetermined direction on the image plane, and to cause a control part to control the direction of movement of the index in such a manner that the direction of movement is changed according to an aspect ratio of the image plane of the display part, whereby a high-quality display can be provided irrespective of the aspect ratio.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a display device for use in a viewfinder of a camera-integrated type VTR or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the arrangement of the conventional camera-integrated type VTR (video tape recorder). Referring to FIG. 1, a lens 1 is arranged to form an image of an object of shooting. An iris 2 is composed of iris blades arranged to adjust the quantity of incident light. An image sensor 3 which is a CCD or the like is arranged to photo-electrically convert into a video signal an image which is formed by the lens 1 and the quantity of light of which is adjusted by the iris 2. An automatic gain control circuit (hereinafter referred to as an AGC circuit) 4 is arranged to electrically amplify the video signal outputted from the image sensor 3. A video signal processing circuit 5 is arranged to convert the video signal into a standardized video signal by carrying out a predetermined signal processing action on the video signal. A video tape recorder (abbreviated to VTR) part 6 is arranged to record the video signal on a tape. A moving direction selecting circuit 7 is arranged to move the display position of an index or area which is provided for selection of a part of the video signal (hereinafter referred to as a "selection frame") in the direction intended by the operator of the VTR in response to an input from such input means as a joy stick, a track ball, a mouse, a touch panel or the like. A position designating circuit 8 is arranged to designate a display position of the above-stated selection frame with respect to the moving direction selected by the moving direction selecting circuit 7. The position designating circuit 8 is composed of a microcomputer disposed within the camera part of the VTR. A display signal forming circuit 9 is arranged to form a selection frame display signal for displaying the selection frame in a position designated by the position designating circuit 8. A signal adding circuit 10 is arranged to add the selection frame display signal to the video signal to obtain a sum signal. An electric viewfinder (abbreviated to EVF) 11 is arranged as a monitor device for allowing the operator to monitor the sum signal obtained by the signal adding circuit.
FIG. 2 shows a selection frame 111 which is displayed on an image plane of the EVF 11. The selection frame 111 is provided for selecting an area to be used for distance measurement or light measurement on the image plane 110 of the EVF 11 in carrying out automatic focusing (AF) or an automatic exposure (AE). In this example, the selection frame 111 is arranged to permit selection, by the moving direction selecting circuit 7, of any of eight directions which differ from each other by 45 degrees as shown in FIG. 2.
The conventional camera-integrated type VTR operates as follows. Referring to FIG. 1, an optical image obtained by the image forming lens 1 is photo-electrically converted into a video signal by the image sensor 3 through the iris 2. After photo-electric conversion, the video signal is amplified by the AGC circuit 4. The amplified video signal is sent to the video signal processing circuit 5. At the video signal processing circuit 5, the video signal is subjected to various processes such as gamma correction, color separation and color-difference matrixing processes. After these processes, synchronizing signals are added to the video signal to convert the video signal into a standard TV signal. The TV signal is supplied to the VTR part 6, where the TV signal is recorded on a tape.
One of the eight moving directions of the selection frame 111 is selected by the moving direction selecting circuit 7. The position designating circuit 8 determines the display position of the selection frame 111 and the selection frame 111 is moved accordingly. At the display signal forming circuit 9, a selection frame display signal for displaying the selection frame 111 in the display position determined by the position designating circuit 8 is formed and applied to the signal adding circuit 10. At the signal adding circuit 10, the selection frame display signal from the display signal forming circuit 9 is added to the video signal from the video signal processing circuit 5 to obtain a sum signal. The sum signal thus obtained is supplied to the EVF 11 to be displayed there. The EVF 11 then permits the operator to monitor the selection frame 111 along with a video image.
Referring to FIGS. 3(a) to 3(f), in a case where a moving direction is selected by the moving direction selecting circuit 7, for example, for an "obliquely upward direction to the right" to move the selection frame 111 from a left lower end to a right upper end on the image plane 110 of the EVF 11, the VTR operates as follows. It is to be noted that the aspect ratio of the image plane 110 of the EVF 11 shown in FIGS. 3(a) to 3(f) is 4:3.
Assume that the selection frame 111 is placed in a position (1) as shown in FIG. 3(a) before the commencement of moving the selection frame 111. Further, assume that the moving direction selecting circuit 7 is caused to select a "45.degree. obliquely upward direction to the right" as a moving direction and that the selection frame 111 is moved in that moving direction. FIG. 3(b) shows a locus of movement of the selection frame 111 from the position (1) to another position (2). In this instance, the selection frame 111 is thus moved in the "45.degree. obliquely upward direction to the right", which is a moving direction selected by the moving direction selecting circuit 7. FIG. 3(c) shows a locus of movement of the selection frame 111 from the position (2) to a position (3). As the selection frame 111 is caused to continue its movement in the "45.degree. obliquely upward direction to the right" in this manner, the selection frame 111 comes to a stop when the upper side of the selection frame 111 impinges on the upper side of the image plane 110. If it is desired to further move the selection frame 111 from this position up to the right upper end of the image plane 110, the moving direction selecting circuit 7 is caused to select a "horizontal direction to the right" as a moving direction. FIG. 3(d) shows a locus of movement of the selection frame 111 from the position (3) to a position (4). FIG. 3(e) shows a locus of further movement of the selection frame 111 from the position (4) to a position (5). As the selection frame 111 is allowed to continue its movement in the "horizontal direction to the right" in this manner, the right side of the selection frame 111 comes to impinge on the right side of the image plane 110. The selection frame 111 then comes to a stop at the right upper end (5), as shown in FIG. 3(f). In this position, the upper side of the selection frame 111 coincides with the upper side of the image plane 110 and the right side of the selection frame 111 coincides with the right side of the image plane 110. It is, therefore, impossible to move the selection frame 111 any further even if an instruction is given for moving the selection frame 111 in the "horizontal direction to the right". The selection frame 111 thus can be moved up to the right upper end part of the image plane 110.
In the display device of the camera-integrated type VTR described above, a movement of the selection frame 111 in the moving direction selected by the moving direction selecting circuit 7, however, has presented a problem, which is as follows. For example, in moving the selection frame 111 from the left lower end to the right upper end of the image plane 110 having the aspect ratio of 4:3 in the TV viewfinder, as shown in FIGS. 3(a) to 3(f), a locus of movement of the selection frame 111 is such that the selection frame 111 first comes to the upper side of the image plane 110 and, after that, reaches the right upper end by moving in the horizontal direction to the right. Such a locus of movement of the selection frame 111 is not only disadvantageous in terms of operability for the operator but also degrades the quality of the display device as the movement appears to be unnatural.

Display device having index movement direction in correspondence with aspect ratio


A service locator technique is described. According to a specific embodiment, the service locator technique may be configured to provide a distributed DNS-based service which may be used for locating services in a given enterprise, network and/or sub-network. According to one implementation, an ESL device of the present invention may be configured to use Microsoft Active Directory replication topology to determine, for example, the locality of the requester, and/or to determine a network address of the closest or most optimal service provider for that requester. Moreover, according to specific embodiments of the present invention, the service locator technique of the present invention may provide a proxy management mechanism in order to allow various network devices (e.g. DNS servers, etc.) to query selected ESL servers for desired information on behalf of any number of clients and/or proxies.

The present invention relates generally to data networks, and more specifically to a service locator technique implemented in a data network.
An efficient distributed computing environment benefits from having a place to store information about people, machines, and applications that are in the environment or that use the environment. When a user logs in to a computer, for example, the computer needs to find information about the user's account, such as user authentication information (e.g., password, user ID, etc.). Additionally, when the user attempts to access an application in a network, the user's machine needs to locate the server on which the application executes. While these issues can be resolved separately, a single solution is preferable.
Directory services have been developed to address these issues. A directory service typically has two main components: a database that contains the information in the directory, and protocols that are used to access that information. One example of a directory service is the Domain Name System (DNS), which primarily functions to map names to machine addresses. DNS can perform machine address lookups rapidly and efficiently. However, DNS is less effective at generalized searches relating to machines, applications or users in the network. The Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP), and the ITU X.500 directory standard from which LDAP was derived, offer more comprehensive directory services. LDAP, unlike DNS, is explicitly designed for directories that store and access complex data, i.e., data much more complex than names and machine addresses. Most contemporary directory services are based on LDAP, which is controlled by the Internet Engineering Task Force and defined in Request For Comments (RFC) 1777 (for LDAP version 2) and RFC 2251 (for LDAP version 3).
In the Microsoft® Windows® 2000 computing environment, a service called Active Directory is intended to provide a single solution to the foregoing problems and to augment the benefits of the DNS with an LDAP-based directory. Active Directory is an LDAP-compatible directory service that is intended to provide a standard way for every application to store and retrieve information in a distributed Windows 2000 environment. Detailed information about Active Directory is provided in D. Chappell, "Understanding Microsoft® Windows® 2000 Distributed Services" (Redmond, Wash.: Microsoft Press, 2000), and is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes.
The term Active Directory Server refers to a specific installed instance of one or more software elements that implement the Active Directory service. In a Windows 2000 environment, the term "domain" may be used to refer to a set of network resources (e.g., applications, printers, etc.). Typically, domains are configured to facilitate management of access to the set of resources. Furthermore, for fault tolerance and redundancy purposes, each domain is typically controlled by multiple domain controllers (DC). Each domain controller stores and uses a complete copy of the Active Directory database for its associated domain. Active Directory allows replication, which refers to storing and synchronizing copies of the directory database on multiple domain controllers within a single domain. Replicating directory data increases availability of that data in case of system or network failures, and can improve performance by spreading client requests across more than one directory server.
Since each domain typically has two or more domain controllers, each domain controller has a complete copy of the Active Directory database for that domain. Further, Active Directory uses multi-master replication. A client can make changes to any copy of the Active Directory database on any domain controller, and the changes automatically propagate to the directory databases maintained by all other domain controllers in that domain.
In order for Active Directory to operate effectively, the replication process requires management. Active Directory uses information about "sites" and "site links" for describing the replication topology. Sites are collections of sub-networks, or subnets, with fast, reliable connectivity, which typically means high-speed LAN connections. Thus, for example, a site may comprise a plurality of Ethernets that are at the same general physical location. In addition, multiple subnets can be represented by a single high-level network prefix or "address block". Site links are connections between sites, and typically have an associated cost. The use of sites allows clients to find the closest desired network device for a particular application. For example, the use of sites allows clients to find the closest domain controller, global catalog server (GC), distribute file system (DFS) share point or application distribution point (via Short Message Service [SMS]), etc.
A common problem associated with many large corporate IT departments relates to distributed service location techniques for providing a scaleable way to have clients and/or servers locate the closest server which is providing a particular function or service (e.g., DNS, VOD, WEB, etc.). Cisco Systems of San Jose, Calif., currently offers a Distributed Director (DD) product for implementing distributed service location functionality. Distributed Director distributes Internet services among globally dispersed Internet server sites by using information obtained from Internet router-based infrastructure, standard domain name services (DNS), and hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP).
FIG. 1 shows an example of a conventional network topology 100 which may be used to implement a recursive DNS process using Distributed Director. It is assumed in the example of FIG. 1 that the network 100 corresponds to a portion of a company wide area network (e.g., cisco.com). In the example of FIG. 1, a plurality of different logical network sites 102 are depicted. Various links (e.g. 101, 103, 105, 107) between each site are also shown, with each link having an associated cost with regard to specific routing metrics. In the example of FIG. 1, it is assumed that a user at client 108 desires to access a specific service or service provider having an associated name of "Service_A".
As used in this application, the term service or service provider may be used to describe to a device or system which provides a specific type of service or function. Each different type of service provider may have an associated name for identifying the type of service or function provided. In the example of FIG. 1, it is assumed that a user a client 108 desires to access a service provided identified as "Service_A". Accordingly, client 108 (whose associated IP address is 184.108.40.206) sends a DNS query to the nearest (i.e. least costly) DNS server in the network, which, in the example of FIG. 1, is DNS server 104a. The DNS query from client 108 will include a lookup request for the domain name "Service_A.cisco.com".
When DNS server 104a receives the lookup request for the domain name Service_A.cisco.com, it recognizes the domain name as a delegated domain, and passes the DNS query to the Distributed Director device 110a. Conventionally, when the Distributed Director device receives a lookup request for a delegated domain from a particular DNS server, it will respond by providing the IP address of the closest service provider to the requesting DNS server which provides the requested service. Thus, in the example of FIG. 1, the Distributed Director device 110a recognizes that DNS server 104a is requesting the location of the closest service provider associated with the service "Service_A". The Distributed Director device 110a has no knowledge that the DNS server 104a is requesting this information on behalf of client 108. Accordingly, the Distributed Director device 110a responds to the DNS query by providing an IP address of 126.96.36.199 to the DNS device 104a. This IP address corresponds to Service_A service provider 106b located at the London site, which represents the least costly link to a Service_A service provider from DNS server 104a. The DNS server 104a will then respond to the DNS query from client 108 by providing the IP address of Service_A service provider 106b (e.g., 188.8.131.52). Thereafter, client 108 will communicate directly with Service_A 106b, even though there is a closer, less costly service provider for Service_A at 106c.
As illustrated in the example of FIG. 1, one problem associated with conventional service location protocols (such as Distributed Director) is that such protocols provide only limited service location functionality which do not necessarily result in locating a closest or most optimal service provider on behalf of a particular client (e.g. client 108). Additionally, another problem is that Distributed Director does not lend itself to be a programmatic interface. For example, one cannot easily use a service configured in Distributed Director to provision servers with IP addresses of the closest server.
Other protocols and methodologies (besides Distributed Director) have been proposed which attempt to provide service location functionality. Such other protocols include Service Location Protocol (RFC 2165), and Service Location Protocol, Version 2 (RFC 2608). However, these other proposed solutions do not provide true "optimal" service location, and are typically much more difficult to deploy than conventional service location techniques such as Distributed Director. Moreover, most conventional service location protocols are dependent upon real-time agents being deployed and queried in order to maintain updated network topology information. This is undesirable since it increases complexity and requires utilization of additional resources.
Based on the foregoing, it is apparent that there exists a need to improve upon distributed service locating techniques in order to facilitate communication between devices in data networks.

Service locator technique implemented in a data network


An electric submersible pump (ESP) power cable. The ESP power cable has a first plurality of electric conductors encased in a first protective armor wherein a first void area is defined between the first plurality of electric conductors and the first protective armor, has a second plurality of electric conductors encased in a second protective armor wherein a second void area is defined between the second plurality of electric conductors and the second protective armor and wherein each one of the second plurality of electric conductors is spliced to a corresponding one of the first plurality of electric conductors, has a first filler positioned at least partially in the first void area, and comprises a second filler positioned at least partially in the second void area.

Wells may be drilled to access hydrocarbons pooled in subterranean formations. Sometimes the hydrocarbons may flow naturally to the surface, at least after initially bringing a well on-line after completion. As reservoir pressure drops, however, many wells apply an artificial lift mechanism to assist production of hydrocarbons to the surface. Artificial lift methods comprise electric submersible pumps (ESPs), rod lift, plunger lift, gas lift, charge pumps, and other lift methods. ESPs may receive electric power via an electric power cable that couples the ESP to an electric power source at the surface, for example from a variable speed drive or other electric power conditioning equipment.

Electric submersible pump (ESP) power cable splice containment filler


A liquid ejecting head unit including a plurality of liquid ejecting heads is disclosed. A platform on which the plurality of the liquid ejecting heads are mounted in a staggered arrangement in the first direction, each liquid ejecting head being partially adjacent to each in a second direction, which is orthogonal to first direction. A common trunk passage communicates with the liquid passage ports. A plurality of branch passages communicates with the trunk passage. A plurality of branch circuit wiring sections connects to connectors of the liquid ejecting heads. The plurality of liquid ejecting heads are mounted such that liquid passage ports of each partially adjacent liquid ejecting head are not adjacent to each other in a second direction, and such that the connectors of each partially adjacent liquid ejecting head are not adjacent to each other in the second direction.

The present invention relates to a liquid ejecting head unit and a liquid ejecting apparatus, in which a plurality of liquid ejecting heads are mounted on a platform, the liquid ejecting heads ejecting liquid from nozzle openings.
A liquid ejecting apparatus represented by an ink jet recording apparatus, such as an ink jet printer or plotter, includes a liquid ejecting head unit (hereinafter, also referred to as head unit) in which a plurality of liquid ejecting heads are mounted, the liquid ejecting heads being capable of ejecting liquid, e.g., ink, reserved in a cartridge or a tank, as liquid droplets.
The plurality of liquid ejecting heads are mounted on a platform, which is a common holding member. The plurality of liquid ejecting heads are arranged such that nozzle arrays, each of which has nozzle openings arranged in a line, of the liquid ejecting heads are continuously arranged in an arrangement direction of the nozzle openings (for example, see JP-A-5-57965 and JP-A-2000-25207).
However, when the plurality of liquid ejecting heads are mounted on the platform, supply pipes connected to liquid passage ports of the plurality of liquid ejecting heads interfere with circuit substrates connected to connectors of the liquid ejecting heads. Piping of the supply pipes and wiring of the circuit substrates may become complicated, resulting in increase in size of the liquid ejecting head unit.
Also, when the piping of the supply pipes and the wiring of the circuit substrates become complicated, working efficiency of attachment of the supply pipes and the circuit substrates becomes low. The attachment time may be long and an attachment error likely occurs.
A liquid ejecting head unit which ejects liquid other than ink may involve similar disadvantages.

Liquid ejecting head unit and liquid ejecting apparatus


An image forming apparatus includes an image carrier for carrying a toner image and a transfer device. In the transfer device, a voltage applier applies a predetermined voltage to a transfer electric field generator. A potential measurement device measures a surface potential of the transfer electric field generator when a predetermined time period elapses after the voltage applier applies the predetermined voltage to the transfer electric field generator. A controller determines a transfer bias to be applied by at least one transfer member to the transfer electric field generator based on the measured surface potential of the transfer electric field generator. The at least one transfer member applies the transfer bias to the transfer electric field generator to generate a transfer electric field. The toner image is transferred from the image carrier onto a toner image receiver by the transfer electric field generated by the transfer electric field generator.

1. Field of the Invention
Exemplary aspects of the present invention relate to an image forming apparatus and an image forming method, and more particularly, to an image forming apparatus and an image forming method using the image forming apparatus for controlling a voltage of an electric field to transfer a toner image.
2. Description of the Related Art
Related-art image forming apparatuses, such as copiers, facsimile machines, printers, or multifunction printers having at least one of copying, printing, scanning, and facsimile functions, typically form a color image on a recording medium (e.g., a transfer sheet) based on image data using electrophotography. Thus, for example, chargers uniformly charge surfaces of image carriers. An optical writer emits light beams onto the charged surfaces of the image carriers to form electrostatic latent images on the image carriers according to the image data, respectively. Development devices supply yellow, cyan, magenta, and black toner particles to the electrostatic latent images formed on the image carriers to make the electrostatic latent images visible as yellow, cyan, magenta, and black toner images, respectively. A transfer member transfers the toner images directly from the image carriers and superimposes the toner images onto a transfer sheet conveyed on a conveyance belt in a direct transfer method to form a color toner image on the transfer sheet. Alternatively, a first transfer member transfers the toner images from the image carriers and superimposes the toner images onto an intermediate transfer member in an indirect transfer method to form a color toner image on the intermediate transfer member, and a second transfer member transfers the color toner image from the intermediate transfer member onto a transfer sheet. Cleaners clean the surfaces of the image carriers after the toner images are transferred from the image carriers. Finally, a fixing device applies heat and pressure to the transfer sheet bearing the color toner image to fix the color toner image on the transfer sheet, thus forming the color image on the transfer sheet.
In each of the direct transfer method and the indirect transfer method, the transfer member, including the first transfer member and the second transfer member, applies a transfer bias having a polarity either identical to or opposite to a polarity of the toner image to a transfer electric field generator, that is, the conveyance belt in the direct transfer method and the intermediate transfer member and the transfer sheet in the indirect transfer method, so as to generate a transfer electric field. An electrostatic attractive force or an electrostatic repulsive force generated by the transfer electric field transfers the toner image onto the intermediate transfer member or the transfer sheet.
The transfer member and the transfer electric field generator generally include a semi-conductive material whose resistance fluctuates with environmental conditions such as temperature and humidity. The resistance also changes gradually over time due to deterioration of the semi-conductive material. Accordingly, the transfer bias applied by the transfer member to the transfer electric field generator changes, resulting in decreased transfer efficiency and formation of a faulty toner image.
To address these problems, the transfer bias is adjusted to a predetermined constant voltage or a predetermined constant current by measuring a voltage or a current flowing in the transfer member contacting the transfer electric field generator or a surface potential of the transfer electric field generator, for example. However, such measurements may not be precise due to changes in speed of an image forming operation and measurement error caused by movement of the transfer electric field generator.
Obviously, such decreased transfer efficiency and its resulting formation of a faulty toner image are undesirable, and accordingly, there is a need for a technology to generate a stable transfer electric field regardless of change in resistance of the transfer electric field generator and the transfer member.

Image forming apparatus and image forming method capable of generating stable transfer electric field


Methods are described for removing contaminates from aqueous industrial wastewater process streams, specifically industrial laundries to yield a less contaminated aqueous effluent for discharge to a sewer and reduce the sludge generated therefrom. A premixed medium/high molecular weight and medium/high charged cationic coagulant solution polymer and an inorganic aluminum species is injected into the wastewater, and after at least a two second delay, a high molecular weight highly charged anionic flocculent polymer solution is injected into the wastewater which reduces sludge generation, while maintaining or exceeding effluent quality. Also, no coagulant, flocculent or sludge aids are needed to attain the results and the sludge can be dewatered in a plate and frame press.

In the laundry wastewater treatment field of solids/liquid separation, suspended and emulsified solids are removed from water by a variety of processes, including sedimentation, straining, flotation, filtration, coagulation, flocculation, and emulsion breaking among others. Additionally, after solids are removed from the wastewater they must often be dewatered. Liquids treated for solids removal often have as little as several parts per million (ppm) of suspended solids or dispensed oils, or may contain several thousand ppm of suspended solids or oils. Solids being generated as sludge may contain anywhere from 0.1 to 6 weight percent solids prior to dewatering, and from 20 to 50 weight percent solids material after dewatering by a plate and frame press. Solids/liquid separation processes are designed to remove solids from liquids and the more solids generated in the process, the more costly its disposal.
While strictly mechanical means have been used to effect solids/liquid separation, the modern methods often rely on mechanical separation techniques that are augmented by synthetic and natural polymeric materials to accelerate the rate at which solids can be removed from water. These processes include the treatment of wastewater with cationic organic and inorganic coagulants that coagulate suspended particulates to form larger particles that then may be brought together by an anionic flocculent to create particles large enough to be removed from the waste stream by mechanical means, i.e., flotation or clarification, and make the effluent suitable for industrial reuse or disposal in compliance with local permit discharge requirements.
In the industrial laundry industry, the chemical treatment of wastewater to a typical municipal standard of 100 ppm of oil and grease (EPA method 1664) prior to the introduction of this invention has been: the hydraulic equalization of untreated wastewater followed by the metered flow of the wastewater through a pipe or tanks to provide for retention time for the injection of a variety of chemicals including combinations and individually, both organic and inorganic coagulants and aids, followed by an organic component flocculent to produce coagulation and flocculation. These inorganic components used for coagulation or coagulation aids, typically have simple hydration factors of approximately 6-12 water molecules and may also be used in conjunction with a separate component, i.e. perlite or diatomaceous earth or bentonite clay, to act as a "body builder" to produce sludge so that in down stream processes it may be dewatered. A variety of organic and inorganic coagulants and aids exist throughout the marketplace. Historical data has shown that used in correct combination these chemistries can produce suitable effluent with sludge generation of approximately 1.1 to 2.5% of influent flow, whereas by use of this invention sludge production is reduced to approximately 0.25 to 1.0% of influent flow.
Chemical treatment generally refers to the removal of nonsettleable material by coagulation and flocculation. Chemical treatment for wastewater clarification is typically employed when colloidal and microemulsified solids need to be removed so that the total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH), fat, oil and grease (FOG), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total suspended solids (TSS), and other contaminants being discharged to a receiving stream need to be minimized. Typically, such treatment comprises using a cationic coagulant with one or more inorganic components, injected in combination or individually, followed by an anionic flocculent. Coagulation is the process of destabilization of the colloid waste particle by causing the coagulant (at 50-1000 ppm) to absorb by means of charge neutralization to form microfloc and impart residual cationic surface charge of the coagulated particles. The second step is to introduce a coagulant aid, i.e., ferric chloride, aluminum sulfate, ferrous sulfate, calcium chloride, polyaluminum chloride, typically at a rate of 75-700 ppm depending on the species, to increase the ability to form a more highly cationic surface that will cause the further adsorption of the coagulated particles onto the surface of an additional chemical, usually bentonite clay, at 200-900 ppm through a "sponge" effect. Flocculation occurs when the highly charged anionic flocculent bridges the previously formed cationic particles. Once neutralized, particles no longer repel each other and can come together to form larger agglomerated solids or sludge, which may then be removed from the water. The third step that is occasionally taken is the addition of sludge thickeners that assist in allowing the sludge to dewater, i.e. perlite, bentonite clay, diatomaceous earth and others. This invention is specifically directed to eliminating the second and/or third steps, i.e., the addition of coagulant aids and/or sludge thickeners and a resultant reduction of the formation of sludge by up to 80% compared to previous historically used methods.
Clarification chemicals are typically utilized in conjunction with mechanical clarifiers including dissolved air flotation systems (DAFs), induced air flotation systems (IAFs), and settlers for the removal of solids from the treated water. The clarification chemicals coagulate and/or flocculate the suspended solids into larger particles, which can then be removed from the water by gravitational settling, flotation, or other mechanical means.
Processes for the preparation of high molecular weight cationic dispersion polymer flocculents are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,006,590 and 4,929,655. High molecular weight, high active polymer cationic solution polymers for water clarification, dewatering and retention and drainage are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,171,505.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method for clarifying industrial wastewater while minimizing sludge


A system having a user configurable and sizeable planar sensor pad having electrical circuits thereon, adjacent to a trough or groove formed in the sensor pad. These circuits are energized upon the application of a conductive fluid into the trough and once activated initiates a wireless communication device to transmit an alarm to a mobile device of the user, such as a smart phone, alerting the user of the detected fluid leak. The device may be self contained, operating on its own DC power source and may not require the use of a computer, a WI-Fi signal, or the internet.

Water leaks have been an ongoing and common problem associated with hot water heaters, washing machines, sinks, and various other water-dependent appliances, widespread in homes, townhouses, apartments, mobile homes, and offices. Water leaks have accompanied such water employing or generating appliances for as long as such modern appliances and indoor plumbing have been installed in buildings. Frequently the leaks result a considerable amount of structural damage to the building, as and their contents.
Because such water leaks can develop slowly, frequently they are not discovered until significant damage has already occurred, or upon the substantial accumulation of water has developed.
Consequently, it would be advantageous for building occupants to have an early-warning alarm system for detecting such common and frequently slowly-developing water leaks before costly repairs become necessary.
While leak detection systems have been previously developed, most such systems are not easily installed and monitored and either employ too small sensors which may or may not come into contact with fluid due to their placement under the large footprint.
A few pad sensors are known that have attempted to remedy this problem of lack of detection by providing a larger footprint with a plurality of sensors upon it. However, such conventional pad sensors are not adjustable in overall size due to wiring for sensors and other factors, so they are provided in fixed sizes, which may not be suitable for certain configurations. If they are available in various sizes, it increases the retailer's inventory and also drives up manufacturing costs.
Because of this lack of adjustability, users must seek sensing pads and components which are of a sufficient size to cover the footprint area of concern, and adequately sense a small and slow leak. Even then, such users will frequently find they are unable to find a proper sized sensing pad resulting in a choice between one which is too small to adequately sense the entire footprint area, or too large to properly position in a smaller footprint area underneath the associated appliance.
As a further problem, the prior art sensors utilize local audible alarms and operate on electrical power, which may or may not be available nearby and which can become unplugged or unpowered in the event of a power outage.
As such, there is a long felt need for a leak detection system which employs a sensing component configured to sense the smallest of fluid leaks in the largest possible footprint area of the appliance or plumbing of concern and be able to wirelessly transmit a self powered, alarm signal to the owner's smart phone, tablet or computer. An improved leak detection alarm system is provided by the embodiments set forth below. This new invention utilizes and combines known and new technologies in a unique and novel configuration to overcome the aforementioned problems and accomplish this.


A television apparatus having a liquid crystal display includes a signal processing portion for reproducing a received video signal, a liquid crystal cell for displaying a video reproduced by the signal processing portion, backlight light sources arranged on a back surface side of the liquid crystal cell for illuminating the liquid crystal cell, drivers for driving the liquid crystal cell, and an inverter for driving the backlight light sources. A transmittance of the liquid crystal cell can be increased because low color-purity cells having a color purity in a range of 40% to 60% is used as the liquid crystal cell. Also, reduction in a color reproductivity of the video caused due to the low color purity can be avoided because a color correcting circuit is provided to the signal processing portion to execute color correcting process on the video signal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a television apparatus having a liquid crystal display, and more particularly to a liquid crystal television apparatus a transmittance of liquid crystal cells of which is high and which is excellent in color reproductivity.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, a television apparatus using an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) as a display is spreading. The television apparatus having the liquid crystal display (hereinafter referred to as "liquid crystal television apparatus") has such an advantage that the apparatus is thin in thickness, light in weight, and small in power consumption rather than the television apparatus using a conventional CRT (Cathode Ray Tube). Also, normally a backlight light source is built in the liquid crystal television apparatus, and a color video is displayed on a screen of liquid crystal cells by irradiating a light emitted from the light source to the liquid crystal cells provided in the front via a diffusing plate, a prism sheet, etc., to pass through a color filter provided to the cell.
FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of a display unit in a conventional liquid crystal television apparatus. Here, 1 is a rear frame that is formed of a metal plate. A wiring substrate (not shown) on which a signal processing IC is mounted is provided to the backside of the rear frame 1. Then, 2 is a reflecting sheet mounted on the rear frame 1 and is formed of a white synthetic resin plate. The reflecting sheet 2 acts to reflect lights emitted from backlight light sources 53 to 55 described later. Then, 3 is a reflection frame that is constructed by a metal or synthetic resin frame member, and its inner surface is coated in white to reflect the lights emitted from the backlight light sources. Then, 4 is a rubber spacer that serves as a buffer material when it is interposed between an upper edge of the reflection frame 3 and a liquid crystal cell 12 described later. Then, 53 to 55 are three cold cathode fluorescent tubes constituting backlight light sources, which are shaped into a U-shape respectively. Then, 63 to 65 are holders that hold the cold cathode fluorescent tubes 53 to 55 and are made of an elastic member such as silicon rubber. The holders 63 to 65 have slits 63a to 65a into which the cold cathode fluorescent tubes 53 to 55 are fitted respectively. Then, 7 is a socket into which each end portion of the cold cathode fluorescent tubes 53 to 55 is inserted. The cold cathode fluorescent tubes 53 to 55 and external circuits are electrically connected mutually via the sockets 7.
Then, 8 to 11 are optical members that guide the lights emitted from the cold cathode fluorescent tubes 53 to 55 forward (upward in FIG. 5) and are constructed by a diffusing plate 8 and a diffusing sheet 9 for diffusing the light, a prism sheet 10 for collecting the diffused lights to direct them forward, and a polarization reflecting sheet 11 for passing only the light in the particular direction out of the lights collected by the prism sheet 10 and reflecting remaining lights. Then, 12 is a liquid crystal cell that has a known structure including a pair of glass substrates, and a liquid crystal, transparent electrodes, color filters that are provided between the glass substrates. The detailed structure of the liquid crystal cell is disclosed in JP-A-2002-323698 and JP-A-2003-5175, for example. Also, the color filter is disclosed in JP-A-11-248931. Then, 13 is a front frame that is made of metal and is formed like a frame in such a manner that the front frame 13 can cover an edge portion of the liquid crystal cell 12 while leaving a portion that serves as a display screen of the liquid crystal cell 12. Then, 14 is a masking tape that is pasted onto an edge portion of the surface of the liquid crystal cell 12. The masking tape 14 prevents the lights emitted from the cold cathode fluorescent tubes 53 to 55 from leaking from peripheries of the liquid crystal cell 12.

Television apparatus having liquid crystal display


A system for facilitating communications over a network among participants and a moderator includes a question module for asking questions, receiving responses, grouping participants, and providing responses to other participants in a group for further response.

The present invention relates to a system for communicating among a moderator, participants, and others in a collaborative exchange over a network.
There are a number of settings in which it is desirable for participants in a collaborative setting to be able to communicate and exchange ideas, comments, and/or suggestions electronically. For example, while a traditional classroom setting facilitates discussion which can be organized and directed by a teacher, the possibilities are more limited if the students are in different physical locations and participate electronically. In a business context, members of a development team or other group may not be able meet in one physical location or at one time, but may desire to engage in a structured collaborative project.
While it is currently possible for people to communicate by email, it would be desirable to have a system that includes multiple messaging applications grouped together, and a system that allows significant flexibility for a moderator of a discussion to control the flow of messages among participants. In addition, it would be desirable to have different types of messaging that could be used among participants or between participants and a moderator.


A system and methods are provided for depicting on-line transactions. Transactions may be represented as a connected graph with various visual and/or aural attributes indicating different statuses for various transaction parameters. Nodes may represent entities providing or receiving value, while edges represent transactions conducted between entities. The relative magnitude of value of a transaction may be represented by the thickness or pattern of an edge, while a time period during which it occurred may be indicated by color. Different types of entities may be represented by nodes of different shapes, and/or specific entities within a type may have other unique attributes (e.g., color, size). A graph may be generated by starting with an initial account, entity or transaction that meets one or more criteria (e.g., value amount, frequency of activity). The system may then trace the source and/or destination of value transferred from/to the initial entity to identify a set of related or connected transactions.

This invention relates to the fields of computer systems and electronic commerce. More particularly, a system and methods are provided for depicting or representing on-line transactions (e.g., visually, aurally) in order to facilitate analysis of the transactions for fraud and other purposes.
As the on-line community expands, the number and value of electronic financial transactions conducted on-line will likely keep pace. More specifically, on-line purchases of goods and services and transfers of funds are becoming more and more popular. Part of the reason for the increased willingness to conduct such transactions on-line is that there is an increasing perception that such transactions are conducted safely, and that the risk of loss of funds or financial data is steadily decreasing.
In reality, however, on-line fraud is, if not pervasive, then at least a significant concern to the entities most likely to bear the burden of that fraud. In particular, merchants that accept credit card transactions on-line run the risk of a chargeback with each such transaction. In a chargeback, the merchant that accepted a credit card as payment for a good or service is not paid or reimbursed for the transaction. When the credit card is stolen, for example, the rightful holder of the credit card is absolved of responsibility for charges made by the thief, and the merchant loses the merchandise that was "purchased." In order to keep their account holders placated, credit card issuers are usually quite willing to assess a chargeback to a merchant when an account holder alleges that his or her credit card was stolen, cloned or otherwise used without permission.
Some on-line merchants or entities may be at more risk than others, or may be more attractive targets to credit card thieves and unscrupulous credit card holders. In particular, on-line businesses now exist that allow one person or entity to transfer money to another person or entity, on-line, and charge the amount of the transfer to his/her/its credit card. A chargeback may be made as late as six months after the charge transaction occurs, and the recipient naturally expects to receive the funds very soon after the transaction. Therefore, with very little time to verify that a credit card that appears valid (e.g., the credit card number is authentic and/or is issued to the person or entity allegedly conducting the transaction) actually is valid, the on-line business is at substantial risk of losing the funds that it credits to the recipient.
Thus, what is needed is a method of detecting fraudulent on-line transactions that attempt to transfer money from or charge funds to an invalid or stolen credit card or other financial account or instrument.

System and method for depicting on-line transactions


A hobnail structure is composed of a connection rod and a cap installed on the connection rod, wherein the connection rod is a bolt, one end of which is provided with a ring of larger diameter with slant grooves having a same direction of deflection as that of threads of the aforementioned bolt located at rims of the ring. The cap is a cover, the bottom surface of which is provided with a slot hole, the diameter of which is smaller than that of the ring of the connection rod, and the slot hole is latched to the ring of the connection rod, so as to form a hobnail structure. Accordingly, the connection rod will not escape from the cap, resulting from an excessive exertion of a rotation force upon tightening, when the hobnail is screwed to a hole seat on a sole.

(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a hobnail structure, and more particularly to a hobnail structure that can be screwed to a hole seat at sole of a sports shoe, so as to enhance a tight assembling of the hobnail and sole.
(b) Description of the Prior Art
As a promotion of sport quality, all kinds of sports shoes are designed according to requirements of characteristics of each kind of sport. For example, soccer is a kind of world-wide sport wherein fast movements and instant stand-stills are required for a player during offense or defense. Therefore, a plurality of hobnails is installed on the soles of sports shoes to enhance their grip. However, to facilitate a replacement and maintenance of hobnails, the hobnail structures are provided with threads that can be screwed to the hole seats.
Referring to FIG. 1, for a conventional hobnail structure, a plurality of hole seats 60 is specifically located at pre-determined positions on a sole, and each hole seat is screwed with a hobnail 61 which is provided with a bolt 62 having external threads. A ring 63 of a larger diameter is located at one end of the bolt, and a plurality of grooves 64 is located radially at rims of the ring. The exterior of the grooves is compulsively latched with a cap 65, the lower end of which is latched with a decorative ring 66 at the same time. By way of screwing the bolt 62 to the hole seat, the hobnail can be conveniently replaced and maintained. However, upon screwing the conventional hobnail to the sole, it is often that the bolt 62 will be continuously shifted downward due to a function of the threads, such that the cap 65 is pushed against an end surface of the hole seat to form an reaction force when the decorative ring 66 is locked into an extremity, resulting from an excessive exertion of a rotation force with an auxiliary wrench. As the grooves 64 are located radially, it is very easy for the cap 65 to displace outward along a shifting of the radial grooves of the ring, and a gap will be created (as shown in FIG. 2) due to that the bolt 62 is moving in a direction opposite to that of the cap 65. In addition, it is easy to create a strip phenomenon, such that the cap will detach from the ring and be damaged, which is imperfect.
In view of the disadvantages existent in the prior art, the inventor has researched to improve the hobnail structure and experienced a number of tests. Accordingly, a hobnail structure that can be tightly locked and firmly fixed has been invented.


Systems and methods are disclosed for identifying resources responsible for events. In one embodiment, a method may include determining a number of unique actors in a plurality of actors that have accessed the resource. The method may further include identifying from the plurality of actors a set of affected actors that has been affected by an event and identifying from the set of affected actors a subset of resource-affected actors that accessed the resource prior to being affected by the event. The method may further include determining a number of resource-affected actors in the subset of resource-affected actors and, based on the number of unique actors and the number of resource-affected actors, determining an event score for the resource. The event score may be a lower bound of a confidence interval of a binomial proportion of the number of resource-affected actors to the number of unique actors.

The discovery that a computer system has been compromised can occur well after the occurrence of the compromising event. The delay between the event and the discovery of compromise can make identifying the compromising event difficult, as many other innocuous events may have occurred since the compromising event. Furthermore, systems may have experienced a compromising event but may appear unaffected. For example, attackers may not exploit every occurrence of a compromising event, or may not yet have exploited an occurrence of a compromising event. So many computer systems may have been exposed to a comprising event, but only some may show signs of having been compromised.
For example, a webserver may have been hijacked to inject malicious code into the web browsers of users visiting a webpage hosted by the webserver. But by the time the malicious code is detected, the user may have visited web pages hosted by many other webservers, making identification of the hijacked webserver difficult. Even a security service having access records for numerous users may have difficulty identifying the hijacked webserver, because the webserver may be programmed to attempt the attack randomly, or the attack may depend on a user behavior or equipment configuration that is only intermittently present. Thus the webserver may not inject the malicious code into the web browser of every user that visits the webpage. Similarly, the malicious code may not be triggered immediately. So a security service may not know which web browsers are uninfected and which are infected, but yet to be triggered.
As a similar example, an ATM skimmer may be configured to store the account information of users that perform transactions at the ATM account. A criminal may later use this stored account information to perform unauthorized transactions. But during the time between the skimming of the account information and the unauthorized access, a user may visit several ATMs. Likewise the criminal may only perform unauthorized transactions in some of the accounts for which the ATM skimmer stored account information. As in the prior example, these factors may make it difficult to determine which ATM is compromised by a skimmer.
As another example, an unscrupulous merchant or employees of the merchant may acquire credit card information from customers during transactions that occur with the merchant. The acquired credit card information may later be used for unauthorized purchases. Given the delay between the unauthorized acquisition of credit card information and subsequent unauthorized purchases, it can be difficult to determine when the theft occurred and by whom. Many transactions with other merchants may precede the unauthorized use. Moreover, only a subset of the stolen credit card accounts may be subject to unauthorized purchases.
As shown in the above examples, a method for detecting events that compromise resources is provided. In a general case, it is desirable to determine a resource that is responsible for a given event. For example, when accounts are breached, it may be desirable to determine a database at which the breach occurred. As still another example, when financial account information is stolen and used without authorization, it may be desirable to determine a merchant or an automated teller machine (ATM) from which financial account information was skimmed or otherwise intercepted.
However, large-scale storage and exchange of electronic data poses a unique challenge for isolating resources that are responsible for events. In many cases, it is straightforward to determine a physical resource that is responsible for an event that affects physical actors. For example, a physical merchant is likely responsible for check fraud conducted using a physical check provided to the merchant. But with the advent of storage and exchange of electronic data, including the transmission of electronic data over networks such as the Internet, isolation of resources becomes more complex. An account found to have been breached may have been accessed through any number of channels. These channels may include one or more databases, financial institutions, and merchants, as well as any communication path between them. Therefore isolating where a security breach occurred among many electronic transactions has become very difficult. Moreover, monitoring large data sets in real-time provides unique problems.
Due to the continuous and complex exchange of electronic data in modern transactions, conventional systems may be unable to isolate specific resources in real-time in order to determine whether one resource over another is responsible for an event. By the time an event is detected, electronic data may have reached any number of resources, many of which may be separated in time and/or in geography from the event and/or from an affected actor (e.g., an account, a customer, and/or a financial card). Conventional systems may therefore be unable to determine the resource responsible for the event.

Systems and methods for detecting resources responsible for events


Methods in a radio network node (110) and a user equipment (120) as well as a radio network node (110) and a user equipment (120) for providing access restriction information about restricting access to a cell (C1), managed by the radio network node (110), for at least the user equipment (120) are provided. The radio network node (110) encodes a downlink control information message by using a user equipment identifier associated with the access restriction information. Next, the radio network node (110) sends the downlink control information message to the user equipment (120). Next, the user equipment (120) decodes the downlink control information message to obtain the user equipment identifier associated with the access restriction information.

It is desired to control access to many existing cellular radio communication systems in order to more efficiently use radio resources available. By controlling the access, load on the communication systems may be controlled, i.e. a reduced number of users implies a reduced load. Since radio resource often is a limited resource, it may be desired to allow some users of the cellular radio communication system access at the expense of not allowing some other users access to the cellular system.
For a Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, one such known method is called Access Class Barring (ACB). The LTE system may comprise a user equipment (UE) and a radio base station, often referred to as eNodeB (abbreviated eNB). The UE is a member of an Access Class (AC), which is stored in the universal subscriber information module (USIM). It shall be noted that the UE may be a member of one or more Access Classes. The eNB may announce an ACB state in a cell, managed by the eNB, through system information (SI). The system information may be broadcast by the eNB. A System Information Block Type 2 (SIB 2) of the system information lists the state of each AC through an Access Class Barring Factor (ACBF) associated with each AC. The ACBF has a value between 0 and 1. When the UE receives an SI and finds an AC in the SI, the UE checks if the AC, found in the SI, corresponds to the AC stored in the USIM. If the ACs match, the UE generates a random value between 0 and 1. If the random value is lower than the ACBF of the AC, the UE considers the cell as barred. That is, the UE is not allowed to send an access request to the cell for a random time period with a mean value governed by the Access Class Barring Time (ACBT) parameter included in the SI, more specifically in SIB 2.
The SIB 2 of the SI is transmitted with a periodicity of 80 ms or more. This may cause the access restrictions to be too slowly updated. Furthermore, updates of the SI is restricted by certain rules, which limit the frequency with which updates may occur and how fast an update may occur after being triggered. These rules include the concept of modification period, whose length is configurable in the SI and may be as long as 41 seconds. In addition, with certain exceptions, such as Earthquake and Tsunami Warning System (ETWS) information, and Commercial Mobile Alert System (CMAS) information and certain regularly changing parameters, it is not allowed to update the SI more than 31 times in a 3 hour period.
In WO 2010/057540, there is disclosed a method for providing a contention based data transmission from user equipments. In general, contention based data transmission refers to a transmission mode where a wireless entity, e.g. a user equipment, transmits data without having a dedicated radio resource allocated for this transmission. Instead, a radio resource is used, which may also be used by other wireless entities. If two or more wireless entities simultaneously attempt to transmit data using the same radio resource, a collision occurs (i.e. the transmissions interfere with each other), which typically means that the receiver(s) of the transmissions cannot correctly receive all the transmissions and, in the worst case, fail(s) to correctly receive even one of them. Hence, in order to allow the receiver to correctly receive the data of an incorrectly received transmission, the sender has to retransmit the data. In line with this general description of contention based data transmission, WO 2010/057540 discloses how user equipments are adapted to transmit data using resource blocks allocated by a radio network for contention based data transmission. The radio network is adapted to allocate resource blocks to a dedicated one of the user equipments or to a plurality of user equipments, with the latter being used for contention based data transmission. The radio network node allocates at least one resource block, which will be referred to as a contention based resource in the paragraph following the next paragraph, that is not allocated to any dedicated user equipment, but to a first plurality of the user equipments. The allocation is signalled to the user equipments. A first user equipment of said plurality of user equipments obtains data for transmission and transmits it using said at least one resource block. When two or more user equipments of said plurality of user equipments attempt to transmit data at the same time a collision occurs, i.e. more than one user equipment attempt to access the contention based resource at the same time. A collision frequency may be measured to keep track of how often collisions occur. In this manner, contention based data transmission in the uplink is enabled without prior scheduling request and scheduling grant. As a result, delays in uplink transmission resulting from scheduling request and scheduling grant are reduced.
Such contention based data transmission may be useful in conjunction with machine-to-machine communication involving large numbers of Machine Type Communication (MTC) devices, because a MTC device may infrequently access the radio network to send small pieces of data, such as measurement data in case the MTC device is equipped with a temperature sensor or the like. The MTC device will therefore in such scenarios have an undesirably high signalling-to-user data volume ratio. This means that control signalling overhead is undesirably large. Moreover, the MTC device is typically power constrained, i.e. the MTC device may be powered by a battery which eventually will be drained from power. Thus, there is a need for reduced control signalling overhead and this may be achieved through the contention based data transmission described above.
Moreover, if load on the contention based resources increases, the collision frequency will also increase and will eventually become so high that its negative impact on system properties, such as throughput, access delay and resource efficiency, as well as increased overhead on the UEs' data transmissions due to retransmissions, outweighs the benefits of the contention based (CB) mode. As a countermeasure, the eNB may limit the number of access attempts using the CB resources. The ACB mechanism described above cannot be used for this purpose, because it restricts access to the entire cell, i.e. to all access resources in the cell rather than only the contention based resources. Therefore, it has been proposed to allow the eNB to associate an access probability with a CB resource. The access probability is announced in the SI or signalled to the UEs via radio resource control (RRC) signalling. For MTC devices it may not be a completely satisfying solution, since large and rather rapid load variations on the CB resources may often occur for MTC devices. A reason for this may be that many MTC devices may more or less synchronously be triggered to send an uplink (UL) data transmission. Such synchronization may result from, for example, when multiple sensors of respective MTC devices detect that alarms need to be transmitted as uplink transmissions, or when multiple sensors detect that a failure, or a sequence of related failures, has/have occurred and hence need to transmit notifications of the failure as uplink transmissions. As another example, groups of MTC devices running the same application with synchronized periodic reporting periods may also generate such synchronization of uplink data transmission.
Therefore, there is a need for an alternative or additional method of providing access restriction information to a user equipment, such as an MTC device, which allows the MTC device to consume less power and which may update the access restriction information more frequently than with present methods, such as Access Class Barring.

Transfer of access restriction information between a radio network node and a user equipment


Provided is a game system capable of discriminating types of action performed by a game character in more detail. A reproduction data acquiring section (46) saves a game situation obtained within a reproduction subject period as reproduction data if a shooting action is performed, an action determining section (48) determines based on the reproduction data whether or not a dummy action was performed by an operation subject object other than an operation subject object that performed the shooting action, and a playback video outputting section (50) performs an output based on a determination result by the action determining section (48) in accordance with outputting of a playback video based on the reproduction data.

In a game (for example, soccer game) in which a plurality of game characters perform an action, outputting of a playback video that reproduces actions which each of the game characters performed is carried out.
For example, Patent Document 1 described below discloses a baseball game in which: (1) each time the game character performs an action, the action is identified; (2) if the action is a fixed action, an evaluation score corresponding to the fixed action is determined; and (3) if the evaluation score is high, the playback video is output. For example, in this baseball game, if the game character steals a base, it is detected that base stealing has been performed by the game character. Then, if the base stealing is the fixed action, an evaluation score corresponding to the base stealing is determined.
Patent Document 1: JP 3227447 B

Game system, game device control method, program, and information storage medium