A process is disclosed for treating textile materials with selected amine oxides in order to change the aesthetics and/or make the materials more receptive to dyes. In particular, the treatment causes cellulosic materials to become more cationic and thus more receptive to anionic dyes with or without stiffening. In a preferred embodiment, the process of the present invention is directed to treating fabrics containing cotton fibers but will work to a useful extent on wool, nylon and polyester. The process is carried out by contacting said fibers or fabric with selected amine oxide compositions. The amine oxide compositions can be padded onto the fabric or printed onto the fabric. If printed onto the fabric according to a particular design, the design then becomes visible on the fabric once dyed.

In general, the present invention is directed to a process for dyeing textile fibers, yarns and fabrics, especially cotton, cellulosic, wool, nylon and polyester products. More particularly, the present invention is directed to a process for increasing the absorptivity of textile materials in order to increase their receptiveness to dyes.
In the past, various and sundry methods and processes have been developed in order to improve the dyeability of cotton and other fibers. Further, many attempts have also been made to develop a process for dyeing fibers where the amount of dye used in the process is minimized. Decreasing the amount of dye used to dye fibers can lead to significant cost savings especially in view of the ever increasing prices of dyes and the problem of handling and disposing of spent dyebaths.
For instance, many attempts in the past to reduce the amount of dye used in a dying process for cotton fabrics or otherwise to improve the process have involved placing various chemical agents into the dye bath. Such chemical agents have included wetting agents and salts that primarily assist or facilitate exhaustion of the dyes to the fabrics. These agents also assist in leveling or uniformly applying the dye to the fabric.
Another problem that those skilled in the art have attempted to solve is the ability to dye xe2x80x9cdead cottonxe2x80x9d. Dead cotton refers to immature cotton fibers contained within cotton fabrics. Dead cotton does not readily accept dyes. Consequently, cotton containing dead cotton has sold for substantial discounts over higher quality cotton and can not be employed to manufacture fine garments.
In view of the above, various needs currently exist for methods that will improve cotton, cellulosics, wool, nylon and polyester dyeing processes. In particular, a need exists for a process for dyeing fabrics in which less amounts of dye are used during the process or deeper shades are required that are achieved by increasing dye absorption above the normal level. A need also exists for a process for dyeing cotton fabrics that contain dead cotton so that the dead cotton becomes dyed to the same extent as the other cotton fibers.
The present invention recognizes and addresses the foregoing disadvantages, and drawbacks of prior art constructions.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved process for dyeing cellulosic materials, such as cotton, wool, nylon and polyester fibers.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a process for treating materials so that they will have a greater affinity for dyes.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a process for chemically treating cotton fibers to make the cotton fibers appear more cationic so that the fibers will be more receptive to anionic dyes.
These and other objects of the present invention are achieved by providing a process for making textile fibers more receptive to dyes. The process includes the steps of contacting the fibers with selected amine oxides. It is believed that the amine oxide reacts with cellulosic fibers, making the fibers appear as if they are more cationic. Once contacted with an amine oxide, the cellulosic fibers are heated to a specific temperature for optimum yield and at least partially dried. The said fibers are then dyed with an anionic dye. It has been discovered that by treating the said fibers with an amine oxide makes the fiber absorb anionic dyes quicker, and dye to a deeper shade versus the untreated fiber.
Materials that can be treated in accordance with the present invention include cotton, and other cellulosic materials. Wool, nylon and polyester also respond positively albeit by what we think is an alternative mechanism such as the amine oxide functions like a carrier plasticising and swelling the fibers. The materials treated can be fibers, yarns, or fabrics. The amine oxides used in the process of the present invention can vary. For most applications, the amine oxides can be represented by the following formula:
wherein
R1, R2 and R3 are C1 to C8 linear or branched alkane radicals or hydroxyalkyl groups.
R1 and R2 can be linked to form five and six membered heterocyclic rings.
R1, R2 and R3 can be the same or different.
Examples of amine oxides includes: N-methylmorpholine oxide, N-(2-hydroxyethyl)morpholine oxide, N,N-dimethylethanolamine oxide, N-ethylmorpholine oxide, N,N-dimethyloctylamine oxide, and mixtures thereof. In one embodiment of the present invention, the amine oxide can be a trialkylamine oxide, such as trimethylamine oxide. Most amine oxides besides making cellulosic fibers more cationic have a tendency to dissolve the fibers causing the fibers to bond together, creating a stiffer product. It has been discovered, however, that trimethylamine oxide does not cause the cellulosic fibers to dissolve resulting in an even softer hand than the untreated fiber.
In order to apply the amine oxide to the textile material, the material can be dipped into an aqueous solution or dispersion containing the amine oxide. For instance, the aqueous solution can contain an amine oxide in an amount from about 20% to about 50% by weight. The aqueous mixture can be applied to the textile material so that the add on causes the weight of the material to increase up to 120%, and particularly from about 50% to about 120%.
In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, an amine oxide composition can also be printed onto the textile material. For instance, the amine oxide can be combined with a thickener for forming a printing paste. The printing paste is applied to a fabric containing textile fibers according to a particular design. Once the fabric is dyed, the design will then appear on the fabric as a more deeply dyed area.
Once the amine oxide is applied to the textile material, the textile material is then heated, such as to a temperature of from about 140xc2x0 F. to about 300xc2x0 F., and particularly from about 200xc2x0 F. to about 250xc2x0 F. After being heated, if desired, the textile materials can then be rinsed.
In order to dye the textile materials after treatment with the amine oxide, the materials can be dipped into a dye bath containing an anionic dye. In general, any suitable anionic dye may be used. In one embodiment, the dye bath can contain a salting agent, such a metal salt, that facilitates exhaustion of the dye to the textile material. Such salting agents have been used in the past. However, it has been discovered by the present inventors that less salting agent is required to achieve the required shade if the textile materials have been previously contacted with an amine oxide. For instance, a salting agent can be present in the bath at a concentration of less than about 120 grams/liter, and particularly from about 5 grams/liter to about 120 grams/liter.
Other objects, features and aspects of the present invention are discussed in greater detail below.
The present invention is generally directed to a process for treating textile fibers namely cotton, cellulosics, wool, nylon and polyester fibers, in order to make them more receptive to dyes. More particularly, it is believed in the case of cotton and cellulosics, the process of the present invention increases the cationic charge of the cellulosic materials making them have a greater affinity for anionic dyes. In this manner, less dye and salt is required when dyeing the materials. The process of the present invention generally includes the step of contacting the cellulosic materials with an amine oxide. The amine oxide we believe chemically reacts with the cellulosic material causing the cellulosic material to have an increased cationic charge.
In the past, amine oxides have been used in order to dissolve cellulose from wood and other sources and then form cotton-like fibers from the dope after extrusion into water, which is a solvent for the amine oxide but not for the cellulose.
As opposed to the above prior art, in one embodiment, the present invention is directed to treating cotton fibers with amine oxides without substantially dissolving the fibers. It is believed the mechanism in the case of cotton is that the amine oxide increases the cationic charge of the fibers increasing their affinity for anionic dyes. Besides minimizing the amount of dye used to dye cotton fibers and other cellulosic materials, the process of the present invention offers many other advantages and benefits.
For instance, the present inventors have discovered that dead cotton contained within fabrics will react with the amine oxide making the dead cotton capable of receiving dyes. In the past, fabrics made with dead cotton were considered inferior in that the dead cotton would not dye to the same extent as the other cotton fibers and would leave light spots on the resulting fabric. The process of the present invention, however, can be used to overcome the disadvantages associated with fabrics containing dead cotton.
In certain circumstances, the process of the present invention can also remove pilling on fabrics containing cotton fibers. For example, the amine oxide can be used to plasticize the fine fibrils that cause pilling. The treated fibrils will then weld to other fibers contained in the fabric.
Because it has been discovered that some amine oxides plasticize cellulosic materials while others will not, the process of the present invention can also be engineered to create a fabric having particular desired hand characteristics. Specifically the hand characteristics of a fabric can be controlled by selecting particular amine oxides for use in the process and by controlling the concentration of the amine oxides in the solution that is contacted with the fabric.
Various other advantages and benefits of the present invention will be made apparent from the following description.
The following is one embodiment of a process according to the present invention for treating cellulosic materials for increasing their affinity to dyes. The following description will be primarily directed to fabrics containing cotton fibers. It should be understood, however, that the process of the present invention is also applicable to treating fibers themselves, to yarns made from the fibers, or to other textile materials, such as wool, nylon and polyester or mixtures of said fibers. The mechanism in the case of the other fiber types is believed to be based on the xe2x80x9csuper solventxe2x80x9d characteristics of the amine oxide water combination causing the fibers so treated to be less crystalline and more amorphous. Further, although the following description will discuss treating cotton fibers, the process of the present invention can also be used to treat other cellulosic materials such as wool.
As described above, in general, the process of the present invention is directed to treating cotton, cellulosics, wool, nylon and polyester fibers contained in fabrics with one or more amine oxides. The fabric treated in accordance with the present invention can also be a blend of fibers. For instance, it is believed that the process can be used advantageously to dye fabrics containing a mixture of cotton and polyester fibers.
Various amine oxides can be used in accordance with the present invention for treating textiles. For instance, amine oxides that dissolve or plasticize cellulosic materials and amine oxides that do not dissolve or plasticize cellulosic materials can both be used. In one embodiment, an amine oxide can be used that has the following formula:
where
R1, R2 and R3 are C1 to C8 linear or branched alkane radicals or hydroxyalkyl groups.
R1 and R2 can be linked to form five and six membered heterocyclic rings.
R1, R2 and R3 can be the same or different.
Particular examples of amine oxides that dissolve cellulosic materials include N-methylmorpholine oxide, and N,N-dimethylethanolamine oxide.
The present inventors discovered various amine oxides that do not dissolve cellulosic materials. To the inventors"" knowledge, all amine oxides used in the past to treat cellulosic textiles dissolved and plasticised the materials. Amine oxides, however, that generally do not dissolve cellulosics include trialkylamine oxides, such as trimethylamine oxide. The use of amine oxides that do not dissolve cellulosic materials offer various benefits and advantages in certain applications. For instance, if the amine oxide were to dissolve or plasticize the cotton fibers, the resulting fabric would become stiffer. Using amine oxides that do not dissolve or plasticize the cotton fibers results in fabrics having a softer hand.
In order to apply the amine oxide to the textile materials, various methods and processes can be used. For instance, the amine oxide can be sprayed or printed onto a fabric. In an alternative embodiment, the fabric can be dipped into an aqueous solution containing an amine oxide.
For instance, in this embodiment, one or more amine oxides can be combined with water. The amine oxides can be present in the aqueous solution in an amount from about 20% to about 50% by weight. The amine oxide can be added to the aqueous solution as a preformed composition or can be added to the solution as separate reactants that later form an amine oxide. For instance, a tertiary amine and hydrogen peroxide can be added to the solution which will then form the amine oxide.
Although not necessary, the aqueous solution containing the amine oxide can contain other ingredients if desired. For instance, the aqueous solution can contain surfactants, wetting agents, thickening agents and/or deaerating agents. The solution can be pH adjusted with common acids and bases.
Once the aqueous solution is formed containing the amine oxide, a fabric containing cotton fibers is dipped into the solution and the solution is padded onto the fabric. The temperature of the solution will vary depending upon the ingredients contained within that solution. For most applications, however, the solution need only be at room temperature.
The add on rate to the fabric will also vary depending upon the particular application. Such factors to consider are the concentration of the amine oxide in the aqueous solution, how much stiffening of the fabric is desired if the solution contains an amine oxide that plasticizes cellulosic materials, the shade of dye that is to be used, plus various other factors. For most applications, however, the add on rate will be such that the fabric increases in weight after being dipped into the solution in an amount from about 50% to about 120%, and particularly from about 50% to about 75%.
Once the amine oxide is applied to the fabric, the fabric is heated in order to substantially dry the fabric and to ensure the amine oxide has plasticized or reacted with the cotton fibers. To ensure uniformity of the treatment throughout the fabric, the fabric should be substantially dry. During the drying cycle, the fabric will reach the optimum amine oxide content (typically 9-12%) for optimum performance. For instance, the fabric can be heated to a temperature of from about 1400 F. to about 300xc2x0 F., and particularly from about 200xc2x0 F. to about 250xc2x0 F. In general, lower temperatures require longer drying times. In one embodiment, the treated fabric is concentrated by being contacted with steam. We believe that there is an optimum high concentration of amine oxide in water that is the most effective concentration with some water being important for efficient use of the amine oxide.
After being heated, the fabric can then be rinsed with water in order to remove any unreacted materials. In general, the fabric can simply be rinsed with water or with water containing a surfactant or soap.
After being rinsed, the fabric is then ready to be dyed. For most applications, in order to dye the cotton fabric, the fabric will be immersed in a dye bath containing one or more anionic dyes. In general, any suitable dye may be used in the present invention including sulfur dyes, direct dyes, fiber reactive dyes, vat dyes (indigo), and the like.
Besides containing one or more dyes, the cotton dye bath can contain various other ingredients. For instance, in one embodiment, the dye bath will contain a salting agent that facilitates application of the dye to the fabric. Specifically, the salting agent when present in the dye bath shields the cotton negative charge and makes the dye less soluble so that the dye can be absorbed onto the fabric. Salting agents that may be used according to the present invention include various metal salts, such as sodium salts. Particular salting agents include sodium chloride or sodium sulfate.
These salting agents have been used in the past in dyeing processes. It has been discovered by the present inventors, however, that smaller amounts of salting agents are needed when cotton fabrics have been treated with an amine oxide in accordance with the present invention. Specifically, better results are obtained with 30 to 50 percent less salting agents. In this regard, the salting agents can be present in the dye bath at a concentration of up to about 120 grams/liter, and particularly at a concentration of less 100 grams/liter. More particularly, the salting agents can be present within a dye bath in an amount from about 5 grams/liter to about 100 grams/liter. Such a reduction in salt results in a significant and beneficial reduction in dye-bath wastes.
Besides salting agents, various other ingredients can also be present in the dye bath. Such other ingredients include lubricants, softeners, wetting agents, pH adjusters, and buffers.
In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, instead of applying the amine oxide to the fabric by dipping the fabric into a solution, a composition containing the amine oxide can be printed onto the fabric. In this embodiment, the amine oxide can be combined with a thickener to form a print paste. Thickeners that can be used, for instance, include gums or well known acrylic thickeners like the cross-linked polyacrylic acid types.
Once the print paste is formed, the paste can then be printed onto the fabric using, for instance, a gravure printing device. The amine oxide composition can be applied uniformly to a surface of a fabric or can be applied to the fabric according to a predetermined pattern. If applied according to a predetermined pattern, once the fabric is dyed, the pattern will become visible. Specifically, the areas of the fabric treated with the amine oxide composition will have a darker shade than the remainder of the fabric. Through this process, various unique and aesthetic fabrics and dye patterns can be formed.
In still another alternative embodiment of the present invention, an amine oxide composition can be used to emboss a design into a fabric containing cellulosic fibers. In this embodiment, the fabric is treated as described above with an amine oxide that readily plasticizes cotton such as NMMO or DMHEAO. Once treated, a heated stamp is pressed into the fabric according to a desired design. The temperature and pressure of the stamp will cause cellulosic fibers contained in the fabric to plasticize and bond together. The area of the fabric contacted with the stamp thus becomes stiffer than the remainder of the fabric. In this manner, a design can be embossed into the fabric much like a watermark on a paper product. Further, once the fabric is dyed, the embossed pattern will have a darker shade.
As described above, besides cellulosic materials, the process of the present invention can also be used to facilitate dying other textile materials, such as wool, nylon and polyester. In this embodiment, it is believed that the amine oxide acts as a solvent and is absorbed into the textile material. In this manner, the textile material has a greater affinity for dyes. Thus, when dying textile materials such as wool, nylon and polyester, the amine oxide chosen for the process is preferably an amine oxide that has solvent-like qualities. For instance, preferably an amine oxide is used having a relatively low molecular weight.
The present invention may be better understood with reference to the following examples.

Utility of selected amine oxides in textile technology


In one aspect, a system for controlling an air intake system for a work vehicle may generally include a filter assembly having a pre-cleaner configured to separate particulates from air received by the filter assembly. The pre-cleaner may define a pre-cleaner outlet. The system may also include an electric aspirator in fluid communication with the pre-cleaner outlet. The electric aspirator may include a motor configured to rotate a fan so as to create a vacuum for scavenging the particulates separated from the air within the pre-cleaner. In addition, the system may include a controller communicatively coupled to the electric aspirator. The controller may be configured to vary a rotational speed of the motor based on changes in a load-based parameter of the work vehicle.

Work vehicles typically include internal combustion engines that require clean air for use within the combustion process. Since many work vehicles, such as tractors and other agricultural vehicles, operate in fields and other harvesting environments in which the ambient air contains large amounts of dust, plant material and other particulates, an air intake system having an effective filter assembly is required. For example, conventional filter assemblies for work vehicles typically include a vortex or cyclone pre-cleaner configured to separate large particulates from the intake air and a porous air filter downstream of the pre-cleaner to provide the final stage of filtering prior to delivering the air into the engine.
To prevent the air filter from clogging, the large particulates separated from the intake air by the pre-cleaner must be removed from the filter assembly. Typically, such particulates are removed from the filter assembly via an outlet duct using a vacuum generated by the exhaust flow from the engine. However, the vacuum generated by the exhaust flow is often insufficient to meet the performance requirements of the filter assembly, thereby causing the air filter to plug within a short period of time.
To address this issue, the use of an electric aspirator has been proposed as a means for generating a stronger vacuum to allow for effective removal of the particulates from the pre-cleaner. For example, international application number PCT/US13/58367 (Chlystek et al.), filed on Sep. 6, 2013 and entitled "Air Intake System for a Work Vehicle," discloses an electric blower for aspirating the pre-cleaner, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety for all purposes. Specifically, the electric blower and related system of Chlystek et al. provides a means for effectively removing particulates from the pre-cleaner while also decreasing the risk of damage to the electric blower's motor.
However, while such a system certainly provides numerous advantages, a need continues to exist for refinements and improvements to electrically aspirated air intake systems. For instance, current control methodologies require that the motor associated with the electric aspirator run at a constant speed that is selected to accommodate the most extreme conditions. As a result, a significant amount of energy is wasted by forcing the alternator to continuously produce the power necessary to run the aspirator at the fixed speed. Moreover, by running the electric aspirator at the same speed for all operating conditions, the aspirator often provides more aspiration than is needed, which can lead to more flow restriction within the system and can cause the restriction sensor(s) within the system to be prematurely activated.
Accordingly, an improved system and method for controlling an electric aspirator used within an air intake system of a work vehicle would be welcomed in the technology.

System and method for controlling an electric aspirator of an air intake system for a work vehicle


A seat cushion or other resilient structure includes a foam inner core combined with layers of varying density fiber batts to impart desirable comfort characteristics, support features and durability thereto. In one embodiment, the foam core is positioned between intermediate layers of low loft fiber batts of relatively high densities. In turn, the intermediate batts are sandwiched between outer high loft fiber batts having relatively low densities. Alternately, the foam core comprises one or more intermediate layers of relatively high density fiber batts that are positioned within the foam core to create one or more fiber batt subcores. The outer high loft fiber batts sandwich the foam core comprising the fiber batt subcores to create the resilient structure.

Nonwoven fiber batts are useful as filler materials in personal comfort items. A high loft fiber batt, which generally has a relatively low density, is desirable for its cushioning ability and soft, plush feel to the touch. The high loft batt has a large amount of air space held within the batt materials. The air space defined within the fiber batt acts as a thermal insulation layer, and the batt's resilience, compressibility and softness provide a degree of comfort. High loft fiber batts are, however, somewhat susceptible to flattening out and lose compressibility and resilience over a period of use. A low loft fiber batt, on the other hand, generally has relatively high density to provide sufficient firmness or rigidity to impart a degree of support and durability for long term wear. The relatively high density fiber batt provides back, seat or body support to one seated or reclining on the furniture, or otherwise using the personal comfort item. In addition, the relatively high density fiber batt provides stability to the personal comfort item. The relatively high density fiber batt, however, has little air space and thus is somewhat uncompressible and less comfortable than a high loft batt.
Foam materials are also useful in the construction of seat cushions, furniture backs, comforters, pillows and other personal comfort items. Traditional foam material includes flexible polyurethane foam. While foam imparts cushioning and resilience, it is relatively firm and thus suitable for applications where support is desirable to one using the personal comfort item. Over a period of wear, however, the foam loses its resilience and can disintegrate, resulting in a foam product that is hard and flat.

Cushion having plural zones with discrete compressibility characteristics


An integrated circuit having a metal interconnect layer, and also having a conductive line and a boundary defined with a uniform distance from the conductive line that defines a “keep out” distance between the boundary and the conductive line. A set of first fill elements are uniformly arranged along the boundary outside of the “keep out” distance, and a set of second fill elements further from the conductive line than the first fill elements are arranged in a pattern that would be uniform, but for having some fill elements missing from the pattern.

Integrated circuits, also referred to as "chips", must have a multi-layer interconnection structure, including a plurality of interwoven conductive lines to electrically connect elements in the semiconductor layers. Different techniques are used to build this structure, depending on whether the chip is aluminum-based or copper-based. A problem that is encountered in building an aluminum interconnection structure is varying dielectric thickness. For a copper interconnection structure, however, a problem of varying copper thickness can be encountered.
Copper-based chips are produced, in part, using a damascene or dual-damascene process. In this process, the underlying dielectric material layer is patterned with open trenches that are created in the desired locations of the prospective conductive lines. A thick coating of copper that significantly overfills the trenches is deposited on the dielectric material, and chemical-mechanical planarization or polishing (CMP) is used to remove the copper to the level of the top of the insulating layer.
With successive layers of insulator and copper, the multilayer (5-10 metal layers or more) interconnection structure is created. Unfortunately, it has not yet been possible to equalize the rate at which copper is removed during CMP with the rate at which the dielectric material is removed, with the copper generally being removed more rapidly than the dielectric. Consequently, an area with more embedded copper lines will generally be removed more quickly, potentially leading to an uneven surface and uneven copper line thickness. In turn, this could affect the integrated-circuit performance in an unpredictable manner, because the electrical characteristics of the copper lines are affected by their thicknesses. More specifically, the thickness affects conductivity, capacitance, inductance, signal attenuation, and timing for a signal traveling through the structure.
With respect to the CMP process, ideally all of the dielectric would be uniformly exposed at the same moment, and the process would be brought to a stop at that moment. Sometimes, however, the dielectric layer is exposed in one region, but not exposed in another. The CMP process must continue until the dielectric is exposed across all regions. This causes some copper to be recessed relative to the dielectric ("dishing", or local "step height"), and removal of dielectric ("erosion", or global "step height").
For aluminum-based chips, aluminum structures are constructed first, and then covered with dielectric. Typically, however, before CMP the topography of the dielectric layer roughly follows the topography of the underlying aluminum structures. Although CMP is used to create a flat top surface, the post-CMP top surface of the dielectric will tend to be lower where the dielectric is covering a low density of aluminum structure, and higher where a high density of aluminum structure is covered. This variation is undesirable because the distance between layers becomes uneven and unpredictable, adding an element of uncertainty to the electromagnetic effects between layers. Also, such variation results in yield loss, because of the greater depth of focus uncertainty added into the fabrication process. Individual chips may be nonfunctional due to either an unwanted short or unwanted open circuit. Dummy or "fill" elements are typically added to a layout to reduce variation in the vertical position of the dielectric top surface. Unlike the situation with respect to a copper-based chip, however, metal structure thicknesses are not affected.
Frequently, non-functional metal elements ("fill") are added to the layout by the designer, thereby increasing the uniformity of the density of the metal pattern. This, in turn, prevents unevenness that could be caused by the CMP process as explained above.
Typically, after a preliminary layout, including fill, is completed, an optical proximity correction (OPC) program is executed to determine a set of mask aperture shape adjustments designed to enhance the effect of the masking process in photolithography. Running the OPC program is time-consuming, with the amount of time consumed, as well as the quality of the OPC solution, generally related to the spatial complexity of the preliminary layout. It is problematic if the spatial complexity of fill complicates and compromises the quality of the OPC solution for a given wire. Additionally, fill elements on a first layer can affect electrical characteristics of conductive lines on a second, typically neighboring, layer.
Other manufacturing steps for IC interconnects, specifically, the etching process, are strongly affected by the pattern context of a given manufactured wire. Thus, the chips actually produced by etch processes are more likely to match the design characteristics assumed in the Electronic Design Automation (EDA) tools, if the fill postulated by the EDA tools and used in the analyses performed by these tools is changed in a manner designed to minimize the effect on electrical characteristics.

Arrangement of fill unit elements in an integrated circuit interconnect layer


Systems, methods, and devices for use with active/reactive power control in power conditioning systems. To provide quick active/reactive power control by way of a grid-connected inverter, an estimator estimates the P and Q coefficients based on an instantaneous power from the grid-connected inverter. The estimator receives grid current and voltage and estimates of the P and Q coefficients are used with reference P and Q values to determine whether active or reactive power needs to be injected to the grid. The P coefficient is a DC offset of the instantaneous power of the grid and the Q coefficient is the coefficient of a sine component of the instantaneous power.

In the near future, renewable energy sources such as wind energy and solar energy will be the main sources of power used in distributed generation platforms. Nowadays, renewable energy power conditioning systems primarily deliver active power to the utility grid, which means that the generated current is in phase with the grid voltage. However, the growing prevalence of renewable energy sources requires faster and more flexible active/reactive power control. Since renewable energy sources are intermittent in nature, fast active/reactive power control can compensate for deficiencies in the reliability of such energy sources. For example, if there is a fluctuation in the utility grid voltage, the immediate injection of reactive power can stabilize the voltage. Thus, for renewable energy sources to replace mainstream power generation and to become a reliable alternative, renewable energy power conditioning systems must be able to provide rapid active/reactive power control.
In single-phase power conditioning systems, active/reactive power control is conventionally performed either in the stationary reference frame or in the synchronous reference frame (i.e. synchronous with the grid voltage angle). FIG. 1 shows a control system in the stationary reference frame while FIG. 2 shows a control system in the synchronous (rotating) reference frame. In FIG. 1, the control variables are in the stationary reference frame and the control system consists of two cascaded loops. The first loop is a fast internal current control loop, which is responsible for regulating the converter output current (the grid current). This loop deals with power quality issues and current protection. The second loop is an external power control loop, which is responsible for regulating the active/reactive output power. In FIG. 2, the control variables are in the synchronous reference frame and the structure of the control system is similar to that of the stationary reference frame with one notable difference. Since the control variables are DC values, simple PI controllers can be used to regulate the output current. However, the necessity of having cross-coupling terms in the synchronous reference frame diminishes the precision of the control method.
The control system in the stationary reference frame and the control system in the synchronous reference frame both use the same method to determine whether active/reactive power is required. This method consists of measuring the average values of the active and reactive power for the external power control loop. In single-phase power conditioning systems, measuring the active/reactive power requires a low-pass filter with a low bandwidth in order to filter out the double frequency ripple inherent in the output power. This low-pass filter introduces a delay into the control system. This delay and its attendant slowness in reacting to conditions is the main drawback associated with conventional control systems as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. However, as renewable energy sources inevitably become more numerous and replace mainstream power generation, such energy sources must meet demands to provide smart grid functionality. Unfortunately, such functionality cannot be achieved with a sluggish control system. What is needed is a control system that is able to provide smart grid functionality using a fast and reliable closed-loop control system.
For clarity, it should be noted that smart grid functionality includes the following features: active voltage regulation, active power control, and fault ride-through capabilities. Active voltage regulation is implemented by controlling the reactive power injected into the utility grid in order to stabilize the grid voltage. Active power control is provided by controlling the active power injected into the utility grid in order to stabilize the grid frequency. Finally, fault ride-through is provided by allowing the renewable energy power conditioning system to remain connected to the utility grid and supply reactive power to support the utility grid voltage during fault/disturbance conditions. These features of smart grid functionality require rapid active/reactive power control. Thus, in order for a power conditioning control system to provide smart grid functionality, it must also be able to achieve fast active/reactive power control.

System and method for active/reactive power compensation


A brake (10) which is adapted to be rotationally coupled with an output shaft includes a housing (11). An inner shaft (33) is adapted to be attached to the output shaft for rotation therewith. A disc assembly (64) includes a plurality of stationary discs (63) carried by the housing (11) and a plurality of rotating discs (62) carried by the inner shaft (33). The rotatable discs (62) are positioned to be engaged by the stationary discs (63). A least one spring (26) biases the stationary discs (63) to engage the rotatable discs (62). A piston (53) is movable to oppose the force of the spring (26). A spacing assembly (80) is positioned on the inner shaft (33) and rotatable therewith. The spacing assembly (80) includes a plurality of o-rings (83) to separate the rotating discs (62) a predetermined axial distance from an adjacent rotating disc (62).

Many forms of heavy equipment require failsafe brake systems in order to ensure safe operation. In general, failsafe brake systems include a plurality of springs which urge a disc assembly to clamp together, thereby applying a braking torque to a shaft. A piston opposes the spring force, and when pressure is supplied to the piston, the brake is released for normal operation. In this manner, if during operation, power is lost to the equipment, the springs clamp the disc assembly together preventing rotation of the shaft until power is restored.
In one particular application, the shaft which requires a failsafe brake is positioned in a substantially vertical orientation, such as is found in drilling operations. In these applications, prior art, failsafe brakes perform poorly. Specifically, gravity causes the disc assembly to clamp together when the brake is supposed to be released. While the forces of gravity do not create enough clamping force to stop shaft movement altogether, the gravitational clamping of the disc assembly causes unwanted heat and friction and leads to premature brake failure.
In view of these problems, it is evident that the need exists for a vertical mount fail-safe brake which provides a means of separating the disc assembly while in an unactuated state.

Vertical mount disc brake with disc separator


A computer-implemented route planning method comprises determining source and destination nodes in a graph data structure based on a route planning query, executing an initial graph search on the graph data structure using graph costs based on real-time traffic data, wherein the initial graph search starts at the source node and settles nodes until it stops, and computing one or more routes to the destination node from one or more of said settled nodes using precomputed data based on traffic prediction data, thereby to determine a route from the source node to the destination node via one of said settled nodes.

Computer-implemented route planning methods have been developed which generate a route from a start location to a destination location.
Known route planning methods have a precomputation phase (ie: a computation phase prior to query time) in which map data is processed to form a graph data structure representing possible routes between locations. Costs may be assigned to arcs of the graph to apply weights based on the travel time between locations, and may take into account the distance between particular locations, the type of road, traffic conditions, and other factors which may affect travel time. Costs can alternatively or additionally be assigned to other parts of the graph, e.g: to nodes or subpaths.
Optimal routes may be calculated by way of a graph search algorithm on the weighted graph. Known graph search algorithms include Dijkstra's algorithm and the A* search algorithm, which compute a connected sequence of arcs from a source node to a target node such that the sum of the arc costs is minimal over all such paths.
More recently, speed-up algorithms such as the contraction hierarchies (CH) algorithm have been developed, in which shortest paths (called shortcuts) are precomputed to improve speed at query time. A problem with such speed-up algorithms is that it is necessary to have information regarding arc costs at precomputation time, which means that it is not possible to account for real-time traffic conditions.
It has been proposed to take real-time traffic data into account by way of a Dijkstra-based search at query time, with costs on the graph determined based on the real-time traffic data. However, this approach does not scale to large graphs, because the query computation time becomes unacceptable long.


A real-time data transport protocol directed to aggregating multiple packets of a real-time protocol session and transmitting redundant copies of the packets as defined by a sliding window. In particular implementations, a method comprising accessing a plurality of packets of a real-time protocol session; aggregating, over a sliding window, a contiguous sequence of packets in the plurality of packets into real-time data transport packets, and transmitting the real-time data transport packets to a receiving node.

Market adoption of wireless LAN (WLAN) technology has exploded, as users from a wide range of background and vertical industries have brought this technology into their homes, offices, and increasingly into the public air space. This inflection point has highlighted not only the limitations of earlier-generation systems, but also the changing role that WLAN technology now plays in people's work and lifestyles across the globe. Indeed, WLANs are rapidly changing from convenience networks to business-critical networks. Increasingly users are depending on WLANs to improve the timeliness and productivity of their communications and applications, and in doing so, require greater visibility, security, management, and performance from their network.
Voice codecs usually operate with a loss rate up to 10-15 percent, which in wireless networks may only be guaranteed with a very good signal (e.g., −65 dbm) and low interference. Such conditions are typically not met in wireless mesh network, where the error rate may be as high as 25%, which is why some claim that many wireless mesh networks do not adequately support voice sessions. A problem is that codecs are tuned for relatively reliable networks (e.g., wired networks) and are optimized for small packets as opposed to redundancy and latency. In particular, codecs may have difficulties adapting to sequential multiple packet loss. On the other hand, a radio network is not as reliable as wired networks. In addition, wireless mesh networking has a multiplying effect since it relies on multiple radio hops using multiple radio technologies.
A radio mesh network can be tuned to retry packets many times at each hop. However, a retry has a good chance of meeting the same interference as the original packet for some amount of time. Also, each retry costs as much as sending a new packet over a given hop, causing congestion at portions of the mesh network that operate at the same frequency. As a result, those retries add latency to both the original packet and all other packets in the mesh network, and degrade the mesh network capacity at the expense of other voice sessions.

Real-time sessions for wireless mesh networks


An organic light emitting diode (OLED) display device is disclosed. In one aspect, the device includes a plurality of pixels. Each of the pixels includes 1) a driving transistor controlling a driving current supplied to an OLED, 2) a first capacitor connected to a first electrode of the driving transistor and 3) a switching transistor connecting the first capacitor and the data line. Each pixel further includes a first light emission transistor transmitting a first power source voltage to the first electrode of the driving transistor and a second capacitor connected between the gate electrode of the driving transistor and the first power source voltage. When the first power source voltage is applied to the first electrode of the driving transistor, the corresponding scan signal of a gate-on voltage is supplied and thus the corresponding data voltage is stored in the first capacitor.

(a) Field
The described technology generally relates to a display device and a driving method thereof.
(b) Description of the Related Technology
An organic light emitting diode (OLED) display uses an OLED of which luminance is controlled by a current or a voltage. The OLED generally includes an anode and a cathode layer for forming an electric field, and an organic light emitting material emitting light by the electric field.
Generally, an OLED display is classified into either a passive matrix OLED (PMOLED) or an active matrix OLED (AMOLED) according to how the diodes are driven.
In view of resolution, contrast, and operation speed, the AMOLED that is selectively turned-on for every unit pixel is preferred for most commercial applications. One frame of the active matrix type display device includes a scan period for image data programming and a light emission period for light emission according to the programmed image data.

Pixel, display device comprising the same and driving method thereof


A portable carpet binding machine comprising a housing defining an interior region, a drive mechanism supported by the housing and at least partially disposed in the interior region, a prime mover operatively coupled to the drive mechanism for providing motive power to the drive mechanism, a sewing assembly driven via the drive mechanism for sewing a strip of material to a piece of carpet, the sewing assembly including a binder guide, a sewing needle and a looper, the binder guide operating to fold the strip of material around an edge portion of the piece of carpet, the sewing assembly, when driven, operating to stitch the strip of material to opposite sides of the edge portion of the piece of carpet using first and second pieces of thread. The portable carpet binding machine includes a carpet feeding assembly including a feed driver mechanism and a coacting puller mechanism operating in substantially synchronous movement to linearly feed the piece of carpet relative to the sewing assembly. The feed driver mechanism includes a feed-dog driven via the drive mechanism that intermittently engages the bottom of the piece of carpet to thereby advance the piece of carpet forward. The coacting puller mechanism includes a feed roller driven via the drive mechanism that intermittently engages the bottom of the piece of carpet which, in turn, pulls the piece of carpet forward substantially simultaneously with respect to the advancement by the feed-dog of the feed driver mechanism.

Carpet binding machines are used to sew binding material, or tape, to the top and bottom of a piece of carpet to bind the edge of the carpet. Oftentimes, in a wall-to-wall carpet installation, a four or six inch strip of contrasting carpet will be used as coving instead of wood or rubber cove molding. In such an installation, the upper edge of the carpet cove needs binding material sewn thereon to present a finished appearance and so that the edge does not unravel. The stitch utilized by most carpet binding machines is the type 401 chain stitch because of its streamlined appearance and effective binding capability.
Carpet binding machines are generally classified as being portable or stationary. Stationary machines are heavy, often weighing between 55 and 65 pounds. The weight of such machines forces them to be used at a single location, for example, in a carpet installer's warehouse, to sew binding material onto a carpet edge. While such machines tend to be durable, their lack of portability limits their usefulness in situations where the carpeting cannot be precut into appropriate length pieces for the job and bound in the installer's warehouse. Also, such stationary machines tend to be costly compared to their portable counterparts.
Portable carpet binding machines have the advantage of being capable of being transported and used at installation sites by installers. They do not require the carpeting to be precut and prebound as with a stationary machine and are lower in cost than stationary machines. However, the durability and reliability of prior art portable carpet binding machines has been unsatisfactory.
Portable carpet binding machines are manufactured by modifying a standard household sewing machine. While such sewing machines are suitable for sewing clothes and similar light fabrics, subjecting such machines to the rigors of sewing carpeting characterized by heavy backing material and a plush pile results in an undesirable rate of skipped or otherwise malformed stitches, carpet feed problems, or even sewing machine breakdowns.
A skipped or malformed stitch can be corrected at the installation site. However, because such problems recur with frequency, oftentimes taking the time to restitch a piece of carpet can result in substantial delays and inconvenience.
A skipped stitch may occur in a type 401 stitch sewing cycle, for example, if the needle loop is not properly formed and the looper misses the opening of the needle loop as a result. Because portable carpet binding machines typically use a plastic needle thread, there is a greater tendency for the needle thread to flex in an unpredictable manner and, therefore, create unpredictable sewing results. Oftentimes, a single skipped stitch will cause the succeeding stitch to be missed because the previously improperly formed needle loop generates additional slack in the needle thread making it difficult to form the next needle loop. A series of missed stitches can cause an unsightly gap in the stitching of the binding material and a risk of the carpet edge unraveling.
A malformed stitch may occur, for example, if there is too much slack in the needle thread or looper thread. A household sewing machine incorporates thread take-up mechanisms to remove slack in the threads. These thread take-up mechanisms, however, are not designed to be used in a portable carpet binding machine. Some prior art portable carpet binding machines that modify such household sewing machines fail to adequately modify the thread take-up mechanism which, in turn, can cause such malformed stitches.
A malformed stitch can also occur when the piece of carpet is not fed properly through the sewing machine. Portable carpet binding machines that are made from a modified household sewing machine utilize what is known in the art as a presser foot and feed-dog to feed the carpet. It has been found that this single feed assembly is unsatisfactory for feeding a piece of carpet. Furthermore, the rigors of carpet binding may subject components of the machine to undue stress and cause excessive wear or failure in the components.
Since most carpet installers can only afford a single carpet binding machine, a breakdown of the machine requires the installer to quit working on the installation, take the machine to a repair shop, procure needed repairs and then return to the installation site to finish the job. The downtime of a portable carpet binding machine, whether due to restitching or repairing, results in downtime of the installer in addition to the expense of repair of the machine. Since most installers are paid by the job, downtime has a direct impact on the number of jobs completed by the installer and his or her net income.
What is needed is a portable carpet binding machine that is adapted to sewing light or heavy pile carpeting, that is lightweight and that is more durable and reliable than prior art portable carpet binding machines. Such a machine must also be easy to manufacture and repair and be competitively priced with prior art portable carpet binding machines.


In an internal core lifter for molding and ejecting plastic parts, a core blade having a first and second end section is provided. The first end section is configured to cooperate with a mold used to produce the plastic parts and includes undercut forming portions to produce undercuts in a finished plastic part. At least one mounting member is coupled to the second end portion of the core blade and extends outwardly therefrom. A bracket mountable to a mold ejector plate slidably and pivotally receives the mounting member, thereby coupling the core blade to the bracket.

The present invention is generally related to the injection molding of plastic parts and is more particularly directed to an internal core lifter for molding and ejecting plastic parts having an undercut and a mold incorporating the core lifter.
Core lifters are typically employed in plastic injection molds to aid in the formation of plastic parts having an undercut which could not normally be formed without employing a mold element that moves out of engagement with the plastic part when the mold is moved from a closed to an open position where the part is ejected. Most internal core lifters consist of a core blade inclined at a predetermined angle and having one end permanently mounted to, or integral with a coupling. Usually, the coupling is mounted to one half of the mold and can slide relative thereto. In known core lifters, the coupling and therefore the core blade is mounted to a support for sliding movement relative thereto when the mold is moved between the open and closed positions.
Historically, the core blade of a core lifter includes a first end that is incorporated into a mold cavity to mold and eject the plastic part. In order for the core blade to assist in the ejection of a plastic part without damaging the undercut therein, the core blade which is oriented at a specific molding angle, and the coupling are compelled to move along the support as the mold opens, to maintain the molding angle. As the core lifter moves, the first end moves away from the undercut, thereby allowing the plastic part to be ejected.
A difficulty associated with prior art core lifters is that each lifter was custom made for use with a particular mold, requiring an injection molding facility to maintain a large inventory of core lifters. In addition, since each core lifter was individually and custom manufactured, they tended to be expensive. Accordingly, there is a present need for an internal core lifter, wherein one lifter finds utility in a plurality of different injection molds.
Based on the foregoing, it is the general object of the present invention to provide an internal core lifter that overcomes the problems and drawbacks of prior art core lifters.
It is a more specific object of the present invention to provide an internal core lifter which with little modification, can be employed in a plurality of different injection molds.
The present invention resides in an internal core lifter for molding and ejecting plastic parts. The internal core lifter includes a core blade defining a longitudinal axis and having a first end section and an opposing second end section, the first end section being configured to cooperate with a mold used to produce the plastic parts. Means for forming an undercut in the molded plastic part are also part of the first end section. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, a mounting member is coupled to the second end section at least a portion of which projects outwardly from the core blade. A bracket fixedly mountable to a mold ejector plate includes means for slidably and pivotally receiving the mounting member thereby coupling the core blade to the bracket. The ejector plate is movable between a raised and a lowered position. Accordingly, upon completion of a molding operation, the mold is moved from the closed to the open position, and the ejector plate is moved from the lowered to the raised position. This motion of the ejector plate causes the core blade to move upward and away from the undercut, thereby ejecting the part.
Preferably, the means for forming an undercut in the molded plastic part includes a slot extending at least partway through the first end section of the core blade, approximately perpendicular to the core blade""s longitudinal axis. During an injection molding operation, the slot is filled with plastic, which upon solidification forms the undercut in the plastic part. While a slot perpendicular to the core blade axis has been described, the present invention is not limited in this regard as other configurations such as inclined surfaces, or slots oriented at different angles can be employed without departing from the broader aspects of the present invention.
In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the mounting member is in the form of a pin that extends transversely through the second end section of the core blade. Portions of the pin project outwardly from opposing sides of the core blade approximately perpendicular to the blade""s longitudinal axis. In this embodiment of the present invention, the bracket has a first slot that extends from an upper surface of the bracket partway therethrough and is defined by a pair of opposed sidewalls. The bracket also includes a second and third slot, each in communication with the first slot and extending from a respective one of the pair of sidewalls approximately perpendicular to the first slot. When the internal core lifter is assembled in a mold, the above-described portions of the pin that project outwardly from the core blade are slidably and pivotally received within the second and third slots while a heel defined by the second end section of the core blade resides in the first slot.
A pair of support guides is also provided in this embodiment of the present invention, each defining an edge adapted to engage an outer surface of the core blade. When the internal core lifter is assembled in an injection mold, the core blade extends through an aperture defined by a part of the injection mold referred to by those skilled in the pertinent art to which the invention pertains as a xe2x80x9ccavity blockxe2x80x9d. Each support guide is coupled to the cavity block with the edges of the support guides extending into the aperture and engaging the core blade extending therethrough. Accordingly when the mold is moved from a closed to an open position, the ejector plate to which the above-described bracket is mounted can be moved from the lowered to the raised position so that the core blade slides relative to, and pivots about the edges of the support guides.
The present invention also resides in the mold for producing plastic parts that includes first and second mold halves adapted to move between an open and a closed position. Each mold half defines surfaces that cooperate with surfaces in the other mold half to form a shaped mold cavity. The mold includes an internal core lifter as described above with the core blade extending at least partway through each of said first and second mold halves. The bracket is mounted on an ejector plate forming part of one of the first and second mold halves and slidably and pivotally receives the mounting member coupled to the core blade. The ejector plate is movable between a lowered and raised position. Accordingly, when the first and second mold halves are moved between the closed and open positions, the ejector plate is moved from the lowered to the raised position, causing the mounting member, and thereby the core blade, to slide and pivot relative to the bracket.
Preferably, the ejector defines a recess having a shape complementary to a shape defined by the periphery of the bracket. When the mold is assembled, the bracket is positioned and secured within the recess, preventing any movement of the bracket relative to the ejector plate.

Internal core lifter and a mold incorporating the same


A motor holder includes a motor housing segment, a plurality of radial ribs and a venturi ring segment. The motor housing segment receives and supports the motor. The radial ribs extend radially outwardly from an outer peripheral surface of the motor housing segment. The venturi ring segment is connected to radially outer ends of the radial ribs and circumferentially surrounds the motor housing segment. The motor holder further includes a plurality of oblique ribs. Each one of the oblique ribs is arranged between and is connected to each adjacent two radial ribs. Furthermore, each one of the oblique ribs is oblique to a radial direction that extends from the motor housing segment.

This application is based on and incorporates herein by reference Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-124337 filed on Apr. 25, 2000.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a motor holder for holding a motor.
2. Description of Related Art
A motor holder for holding a vehicular blower motor to be secured to a vehicle body has been generally manufactured from an iron plate material. However, recently, a resin material is predominantly used for manufacturing the motor holder for the purposes of weight reduction and standardization.
One example of such a motor holder will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8. FIG. 7 is a front view of a previously proposed motor holder 21 and a blower motor 20 received in the motor holder 21. FIG. 8 is a bottom plan view of the motor holder 21 (seen in a direction of an arrow A in FIG. 7).
With reference to FIG. 7, a motor case 22 of the blower motor 20 is a generally cylindrical hollow body. An armature (not shown) is rotatably supported within the motor case 22 via a rotatable shaft 23. Magnets (not shown) for generating a rotational force of the armature are secured to an inner peripheral surface of the motor case 22.
The motor holder 21 is made of a resin material. Furthermore, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the motor holder 21 includes a motor housing segment 25 for receiving the blower motor 20, a venturi ring segment 26 and a plurality of connecting members 27 that connect the motor housing segment 25 to the venturi ring segment 26. With reference to FIG. 8, the venturi ring segment 26 is constructed to circumferentially surround an outer peripheral surface of the motor housing segment 25. The connecting members 27 extend radially outwardly from the outer peripheral surface of the motor housing segment 25. Radially outer ends of the connecting members 27 are connected to the venturi ring segment 26.
In the motor holder 21, a thickness of each segment is minimized (1-3 mm thick) to achieve both the weight reduction of the motor holder 21 and the improved moldability of the resin material. Since the thin resin material that has a lower rigidity than the iron plate material is used in manufacturing of the motor holder 21, the motor holder 21 is prone to generate vibrational noise during operation of the blower motor 20. However, as described above, the radial connecting members 27 are formed to extend in the radial direction in the motor holder 21. Thus, the rigidity of the motor holder 21 is improved, so that the vibrational noise generated during the operation of the blower motor 20 is reduced.
However, as shown in FIG. 8, in the motor holder 21 having the radial connecting members 27, although the rigidity in an axial direction (direction of an arrow B in FIG. 7) is fairly sufficient, the rigidity in a circumferential direction (direction of an arrow C in FIG. 8) is insufficient, so that relatively large vibrational noise can still be generated. Thus, there is still a need to further reduce the vibrational noise.
The present invention addresses the above disadvantages. Thus, it is an objective of the present invention to provide a motor holder having a reduced vibrational noise level during operation of a motor that is received in the motor holder.
To achieve the objective of the present invention, there is provided a motor holder for holding a motor. The motor holder includes a motor housing segment, a plurality of radial connecting members and a venturi ring segment. The motor housing segment receives and supports the motor. The radial connecting members extend radially outwardly from an outer peripheral surface of the motor housing segment. The venturi ring segment is connected to radially outer ends of the radial connecting members and circumferentially surrounds the motor housing segment. The motor holder further includes a plurality of oblique connecting members. Each one of the oblique connecting members is arranged between and is connected to each adjacent two radial connecting members. Furthermore, each one of the oblique connecting members is oblique to a radial direction that extends from the motor housing segment.

Motor holder including radial and oblique connecting members


According to the present description, data of a user can be detoured (offloaded) to a wired network such as a public communication network even through a Home (e)NodeB. In addition, when the data of the user is detoured (offloaded) to the wired network such as the public communication network even through the Home (e)NodeB, a local IP access (LIPA) service can be selectively supported according to the user or a UE.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a server in charge of a control plane in a mobile communication network and a method of controlling services in the server.
2. Related Art
To respond to new technologies and various forums relating to 4G mobile communication, 3GPP, which defines technology standards for 3G mobile communication systems, started research on long term evolution (LTE)/system architecture evolution (SAE) technologies from later 2004 as a part of its effort to optimize and enhance performance of 3GPP technologies.
SAE, which is primarily led by 3GPP SA WG2, is a network technology directed toward supporting mobility between heterogeneous networks and determining the network structure together with the LTE task of 3GPP TSG RAN. Recently, SAE is one of critical issues regarding 3GPP standardization. For 3GPP systems to be able to support various radio access technologies based on IP, this task has been targeting optimized packet-based systems which can minimize transmission delay with enhanced data transmission capacity.
The SAE upper level reference model defined by 3GPP SA WG2 includes non-roaming cases and various scenarios of roaming cases, and their details are disclosed in 3GPP standard document TS 23.400a and TS 23.400b. One brief network structure is shown in FIG. 1
FIG. 1 is a view illustrating an evolved mobile communication network.
One critical feature of the network structure shown in FIG. 1 is that the network is based on a 2-tier model consisting of eNodeB of evolved UTRAN and gateway of core network. The eNodeB 20 includes, but not exactly comply with, the functions of a NodeB and RNC of the existing UMTS system, and the gateway may have the functions of SGSN/GGSN of the existing system.
Another critical feature is that a control plane and a user plane between an access network and a core network are exchanged with different interfaces. In the existing UMTS system, one interface is present between an RNC and an SGSN, whereas the mobility management entity (MME) 51 in charge of processing a control signal is separated in structure from the gateway (GW), so that two interfaces, S1-MME and S1-U, are used. The GW includes a serving gateway (hereinafter, 'S-GW') 52 and a packet network gateway (hereinafter, 'PDN-GW' or 'P-GW') 53.
FIG. 2 is a view illustrating a relationship between an (e)NodeB and a Home (e)NodeB.
In the 3G or 4G mobile communication systems, an effort to increase cell capacity goes on in order to support bilateral services and high-capacity services, such as multimedia content processing and streaming
The growth of communication and multimedia technologies demands various high-capacity transmission technologies. To increase wireless capacity, more frequency resources may be assigned to users, but assignable frequency resources are limited.
To increase cell capacity, there is an approach of using higher frequency bandwidth and reducing cell coverage. When a cell with small cell coverage—such as pico cell—applies, a higher frequency band than that used in the existing cellular system may be used so that more information may be transmitted. However, more base station needs to be installed in the same area, thus resulting in costs increasing.
As a recent approach to increasing cell capacity using small cells, femto base stations, such as Home (e)NodeB 30, have been suggested.
Starting with RAN WG3 of 3GPP Home (e)NodeB, Home (e)Node 30 is recently being intensively researched by SA WG.
The (e)NodeB 20 shown in FIG. 2 corresponds to a macro base station, and the Home (e)NodeB 30 may be a femto base station. As used herein, the 3GPP terms are basically used, and the term "(e)NodeB" refers to NodeB or eNodeB. Further, the term "Home (e)NodeB" refers to Home NodeB or Home eNodeB.
The interface denoted in dotted lines is provided for control signal transmission between the (e)NodeB 20 and the Home (e)NodeB 30 and the MME 510. The interface denoted in solid lines is provided for data transmission of a user plane.
FIG. 3 illustrates problems with the conventional art.
As shown in FIG. 3, in case traffic at the interface between the (e)NodeB 20 and the S-GW 52 is under overload or congestion or in case traffic at the interface between the Home (e)NodeB 30 and the S-GW 52 is under overload or congestion, downlink data to the UE 10 or upload data from the UE 10 is not correctly transmitted.
Or, even in case the interface between the S-GW 52 and the PDN-GW 53 or interface between the PDN-GW 53 and an internet protocol (IP) service network of a mobile communication service provider is overloaded or congested, the downlink data to the UE 10 or upload data from the UE 10 may not be correctly transmitted.
Further, when UE is handed over from a current cell where the UE is serviced to another cell, if the other cell is in the overloaded state, the service to the UE may drop.
To address such problems, the mobile communication service providers upgrade the S-GW 52 and the PDN-GW 53 to high-performance ones or install new equipment. However, this may result in high costs. As times go by, the amount of data transmitted/received exponentially increases, thus causing overload.
Meanwhile, there are suggested various schemes to optimize the S-GW 52 and the PDN-GW 53 without further establishing mobile communication networks. For example, SIPTO has been suggested—a technology of transmitting specific IP traffic (e.g., internet services) of the UE through a selected optimal path in a macro access network and detouring, in a femto access network (e.g., Home (e)NB), it to a public network, not the mobile communication network—that is, along a path through nodes of a wired network—without transmitting or receiving it through the mobile communication network.
FIG. 4 illustrates the concept of selected IP traffic offload (SIPTO).
Referring to FIG. 4, there is shown a mobile communication system, such as evolved packet system (EPS). The EPS system includes an (e)NodeB 20, an MME 51, an S-GW 52, and a P-GW 53. Further, an Home (e)NodeB 30 is shown.
At this time, as shown, the SIPTO technology detours specific IP traffic (e.g. internet services) of the UE 10 to nodes of a wired network 70 without going through nodes in an IP service network 60 of a mobile communication service provider.
For example, if the UE 10 is allowed to access the (e)NodeB 20, the UE 10 generates a session for passing through the wired network 70, such as a public communication network, through the (e)NodeB 20 and may perform an IP network service through the session. At this time, a service provider's policy and enrollment information may be considered.
In order to be able to generate the session, a gateway—that is, a local gateway in charge of some of the functions of the GGSN in case of UMTS or a local gateway in charge of some of the functions of the P-GW in case of EPS—may be used as one being installed adjacent to the (e)NodeB 20.
As such, the local gateway is called local GGSN or local P-GW. The functions of the local GGSN or local P-GW are similar to those of GGSN or P-GW.
As described above, the SIPTO technology has suggested a concept of generating a session to detour (offload) UE data to a wired network, such as a public communication network, through the (e)NodeB 20, i.e., a macro base station.
However, the conventional SIPTO technology still leaves some problems when the (e)NodeB 20 is overloaded since the technology allows users' data to pass through the macro base station, i.e., the (e)NodeB 20.

Server in charge of control plane within mobile communication network and method for controlling service in server


A binding tape member and a wire harness having a binding tape member configured to having the same function of conventional wire harnesses without the need for corrugated tube, pre-wrapping or post wrapping. The binding tape member has a tape member body that covers a group of electrical lines by being wrapped around the group of electrical lines. The tape body has a trapezoidal upper surface portion with an upper side and a lower side that correspond to the tape width end edges and a trapezoidal lower surface portion facing a direction opposite to the trapezoidal upper surface portion are alternatingly arranged in the tape length direction. Also, in a trapezoidal upper surface portion and a trapezoidal lower surface portion that are adjacent to each other, sides thereof in the tape length direction are connected to each other in an integrated manner by a rectangular side wall portion.

Conventionally, in this type of wire harness, a group of electrical lines has been covered and protected by either a binding tape member or a slit corrugated tube, or both (e.g., see JP 2004-296336A).
FIGS. 5A to 5C are process diagrams showing a conventional general method of protecting a group of electrical lines, in which the protection method is substantially equivalent, with respect to the wire harness disclosed in FIG. 5 of JP 2004-296336A. First, as shown in FIG. 5A, in a wire harness 10, an adhesive tape member 11 is cylindrically wrapped 2 or 3 times in the circumferential direction around a group of electrical lines 12 at two locations a predetermined distance apart from each other as auxiliary wrapping, and then an adhesive tape member 13 is roughly wrapped between the cylindrical windings so as to form a pre-wrapping. Subsequently, a slit corrugated tube 14 is placed over the group of electrical lines 12 as shown in FIG. 5B. Next, as shown in FIG. 5C, an adhesive tape member 15 is wrapped around the slit corrugated tube 14, wherein generally half the width of the adhesive tape member 15 overlaps itself, so as to form a post wrapping. Alternatively, it should be appreciated in the step shown in FIG. 5A, the pre-wrapping may be replaced with the post wrapping, and in the step shown in FIG. 5C, the post wrapping may be replaced with rough wrapping.
As described above, conventionally, a method of protecting a group of electrical lines using the slit corrugated tube 14 has been applied particularly in the case where a burr or edge is included along the wiring path for the wire harness.
FIG. 5 in JP 2004-296336A shows an example of related art.
However, in the method of protecting a group of electrical lines using the conventional slit corrugated tube 14 shown in FIGS. 5B and 5C, the slit corrugated tube 14 is placed over the group of electrical lines with the slit facing downward such that intruding water is drained to the outside through the slit in the corrugated tube 14, and therefore it has not been possible to avoid pre-wrapping the group of electrical lines 12 with the adhesive tape member 11 to prevent one or more of the lines in the group of electrical lines 12 from passing through the slit and hanging outside.
Also, in the method of protecting a group of electrical lines using the conventional wire harness 10, it is not possible to avoid performing post-wrapping by roughly wrapping or half-overlap wrapping the adhesive tape member 15 around the outer surface of the corrugated tube 14 to prevent the slit in the corrugated tube 14 from spreading, thus requiring the operation of pre-wrapping the group of electrical lines 12, the operation of attaching the corrugated tube 14, and the operation of post-wrapping the outer surface of the corrugated tube 14, which is time-consuming and costly.
Also, in the method of protecting a group of electrical lines using the conventional wire harness 10, it is necessary to prepare various sizes of corrugated tubes to match the diameter of the group of electrical lines in accordance with various trunk lines and branch lines of wire harnesses and various wire harnesses, and it is necessary to prepare in advance corrugated tubes that have been cut to various lengths in accordance with the length of the group of electrical lines that needs to be protected by the adhesive tape member.
Furthermore, in the method of protecting a group of electrical lines using the conventional wire harness 10, in the case of half-overlap wrapping that adhesive tape member 15 around the corrugated tube 14, intruding water is less likely to be drained to the outside, and in the case where the wire harness is supported to a vehicle panel in the vicinity of the engine or the like, vibration is transmitted from the vehicle panel to the corrugated tube and the group of electrical lines, and abnormal noise is generated due to interference between them. In particular, there has been the problem of high-volume abnormal noise being generated due to the corrugated tube being thick-walled and hard.
The present invention was achieved in order to solve issues such as those described above, and an object thereof is to provide a wire harness and a binding tape member that, by merely performing tape wrapping, have a protection function equivalent to a protection function for a group of electrical lines obtained by the conventional combination of a slit corrugated tube and pre-wrapping and post-wrapping with a binding tape member, that do not require a corrugated tube or pre-wrapping and post-wrapping material and operations for attachment thereof, that enable water intruding into the wire harness to be favorably drained, and that can reduce the generation of abnormal noise.


High speed high data interconnect apparatus includes a stiffening plate with optical fiber mounting groove defined on a surface thereof. The apparatus further includes a length of optical fiber mounted in the groove on the surface of the stiffening plate in a longitudinally extending direction generally parallel to the surface of the stiffening plate. A reflecting surface is positioned adjacent one, or both, of the opposed ends of the optical fiber to direct light at an angle of approximately ninety degrees to the optical path. A printed circuit board laminate is used to encase the stiffening plate and the optical fiber and includes a light via for the passage of light reflected by the reflecting surface. Bond pads are formed on a surface of the printed circuit board laminate adjacent the light via for the electrical connection of a light element, e.g. a VCSEL or photodiode, in communication with the light via.

In the electronic industry, there is a need for high speed optical interconnects to pass signals from semiconductor chip to semiconductor chip and board to board in order to fully utilize the emerging capabilities of microprocessors, digital signal processors, etc. A Pentium 4™ microprocessor, for example, operates at 2.4 GHz but the data travels on a bus operating at only 400 MHz. The speed picks up again on an optical fiber telecommunication network. In accordance with to Moore's Law, single chip microprocessors can eventually achieve speeds of tens of teraflops. However, the speed limitation of current copper bus structures is limited at best to 10 GHz. High speed optical interconnect applications are primarily in computers (commercial and military), telecommunications switches, etc.
A number of problems need to be overcome to produce high performance manufacturable optical interconnects that can utilize the existing surface mount manufacturing infrastructure. In any product using optical interconnects there will be a large number of Silicon die. The reason for this is, at the present time, there is only one way to bring software into a system and that is with Silicon. Thus, in the present technology, economics require that any board with optical interconnects be surface mount compatible.
For distances of up to 500 meters, 850 nm emitters and detectors are currently the emitters and detectors of choice. For these distances, data rates far in excess of 1 GHz are readily achievable using glass optical multimode fiber. Optical glass fiber is preferred over organic optical fibers both from an optical power loss and achievable data rate.
It would be highly advantageous, therefore, to remedy the foregoing and other deficiencies inherent in the prior art.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved printed circuit board with embedded optical fiber for use as a high speed, high data rate interconnect.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved printed circuit board with embedded optical fiber that is highly manufacturable.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved printed circuit board with embedded optical fiber that is compatible with surface mounting techniques.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved printed circuit board with embedded optical fiber that is highly manufacturable.


An improved contact image sensor (CIS) which uses a two-phase shift register is disclosed. The shift register is clocked by both phases of the clock signal, thereby doubling its speed. A transmission gate in the shift register is eliminated and combined with one of the inverters to allow two-phase operation and reduce the number of transistors required to implement the shift register.

The present invention relates to contact image sensors for digitizing images on a paper.
Image sensors are used in a number of applications, such as photocopiers, facsimile machines, optical character readers, and scanners. One type of system uses a self-scan photodiode array with good uniformity of the pixels, but limited gain. Such a system is used, for instance, by Hitachi in its camcorder.
Another technology used for image sensors is the charge injection device (CID). These operate similarly to the self-scan photodiode arrays, but charge is injected into the substrate by the light, which is then read out.
Another type of technology used is the charge coupled device (CCD) array. CCDs have been widely used in fax and scanner applications for a long time. Since the presently achievable length of a charge coupled device is about 1 inch, for an A4 paper of 8.5 inch width, a concave lens is needed to focus the images on the paper to the CCD sensors. This results in a bulky module because the CCD array must be placed several inches behind the paper. Moreover, for a flat-bed scanner application, since the whole module is required to scan over the full length of the paper, the module needs to be moved by a high power stepper motor, which suffers from a non-smooth movement that causes distortion.
In addition, by using a single CCD chip for the fax or scanner applications, only 300 DPI resolution can be achieved for the A4 size paper. For higher resolution, the charge transfer efficiency will be degraded even more, since a smaller sensor area is required. Moreover, by decreasing the sensor area (typical size is about 11 .mu.m.times.11 .mu.m), the sensitivity of the sensor, which is proportional to the size of the area, is also degraded. This always results in a longer time to scan over the document (several seconds for A4 size document).
FIG. 1 is a diagram of a contact image sensor (CIS) module 10 which uses a self-scanned photodiode array 12. Such a system is manufactured by Mitsubishi. A light emitting diode (LED) array 14 reflects light off an image on a paper 16 through glass 18 to rod lens array 20 which provides the reflected light to photodiode array 12.
FIG. 2 shows a top view of a portion of this module with LED array 14 and rod lens array 20 visible. As can be seen, the rod lens array is composed of a line of individual glass rods 22. Each rod of the rod lens will cover approximately 16 photodetectors and will direct the reflected light it receives down to those photodetectors. The rod lens serves to focus the light on the photodetectors. The rod lens will not cause a mirror image to be presented like a typical rounded lens. The rod lens array is used rather than simply placing the photodetectors closer to the paper because a rod lens array provides better image quality.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the electronic circuitry in CIS module 10 of FIG. 1. LED 14 and rod lens array 20 are shown. Sensor array 12 is also shown, composed of any number of individual sensors 24. These are shown connected to a shift register and analog switches 26. The shift register functions to sequentially enable each analog switch in series to connect each of the individual sensors 24 in series to an amplifier 28. The output of the amplifier provides the pixel signals corresponding to each sensor in series.
The shift register in FIG. 3 propogates a single "1" value which connects each of the sensors in sequence to the amplifier. This is in contrast to a shift register used with a CCD array, which has the entire contents of the CCD array downloaded into it, and then shifts the data out. One such shift register using two clock phases is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,194,213. Another device where the two phase shift register is an integral part of the memory itself is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,720,815.

Silicon butting contact image sensor with two-phase shift register


Generator rotor comprising a rotor rim and a plurality of permanent magnet modules and a plurality of anchors arranged at an outer or inner circumference of the rotor rim such that the anchors substantially fix the permanent magnet modules to the rotor, wherein the permanent magnet modules comprise a base having a bottom surface, two axially extending side surfaces and a top surface, and one or more rows of magnets mounted on said top surface, wherein the two side surfaces of the permanent magnet modules each comprise an axially extending groove, and wherein the anchors have a shape that substantially fits exactly in axially extending grooves of neighboring permanent magnet modules.

Generators having a rotor carrying permanent magnets are known. They are generally deemed to be reliable and require less maintenance than other generator topologies.
Modern wind turbines are commonly used to supply electricity into the electrical grid. Wind turbines of this kind generally comprise a rotor with a rotor hub and a plurality of blades. The rotor is set into rotation under the influence of the wind on the blades. The rotation of the rotor shaft either directly drives the generator rotor ("directly driven") or through the use of a gearbox. For offshore wind turbines, direct drive systems employing permanent magnets are usually chosen.
Such a direct drive wind turbine generator may have e.g. a diameter of 6-8 meters and a length of e.g. 2-3 meters. Hundreds of magnets may need to be screwed or glued to the circumference of the rotor. It will be clear that this manufacturing process can be cumbersome.
Furthermore, if one or more magnets is damaged and needs to be replaced, the access to these magnets can be complicated (especially with large size generators), such that maintenance can become very expensive.
This size and type of generator however is not limited to the technical field of wind turbines only. Generators of considerable dimensions may also be found e.g. in steam turbines and water turbines.

Method of assembling a generator rotor of a generator