A vibrator includes a frame, a swing unit, and an elastic member. The swing unit is disposed within the frame and holds a magnet. The elastic member connects the swing unit and the frame. The swing unit is movable with respect to the frame while deforming the elastic member. The frame, the swing unit, and the elastic member are integrally molded with each other.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to vibrators and vibration generators, and in particular to a vibrator capable of performing reciprocatory movement to generate vibration as well as to a vibration generator.
Description of the Related Art
A vibration generator that generates vibration by moving a vibrator is used. For example, a vibration generator that causes a vibrator having a magnet to perform a reciprocatory motion using a magnetic force is used.
The Document 1 listed below discloses a linear motor of a structure having a magnet as a moving unit within a frame unit as a stationary unit and a plate spring provided between the magnet and the frame unit to hold the magnet. In this linear motor, the magnet moves with respect to the frame unit by a coil unit disposed so as to sandwich the magnet from above and underneath being excited.    [Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication Laying-Open No. 2010-36131
In the meantime, the vibration generator as described in the Document 1 moves the magnet by urging the magnet by the plate spring. Accordingly, it is necessary to secure a relatively large space for the plate spring to deform. However, there is a limit to increase a size of the vibrator relative to the vibration generator, and it is difficult to increase a vibration amount. In other words, it is necessary to increase a size of the vibration generator itself in order to increase the vibration amount.
Further, the vibration generator as described in the Document 1 is configured by assembling the magnet, the plate spring, and the frame unit that are separate members from each other. Accordingly, the number of steps required in order to assemble the vibration generator is large, and a process for manufacturing the vibration generator becomes relatively complicated. Further, it is relatively difficult to ensure assembly accuracy, and variation in performance of vibration generators (individual variability) increases.
The present invention is made in order to address the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vibrator that can be easily and accurately assembled and provide a large vibration force relative to a size of the vibration generator, as well as a vibration generator.

Vibration generator having swing unit, frame and elastic member


The present invention provides a dilator/hair implanter device comprising a wedge-shaped hollow body, said body having one end for engageably penetrating the scalp of a patient and wherein said body contains hair grafts for implantation into the scalp of said patient. Further provided is a dilator/hair implanter device comprising a body having at least two parts, said body having one end for engageably penetrating the scalp of a patient and wherein said body contains hair grafts for implantation into the scalp of said patient. Also provided are various methods of transplanting hair.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the fields of dermatologic surgery, hair transplantation and medical devices. More specifically, the present invention relates to a novel dilator/hair implantor device for use during hair transplantation procedures.
2. Description of the Related Art
Hair transplantation using hair grafts (standard, minigrafts and micrografts) has increased in popularity in recent years. The goal of hair transplantation using hairgrafts is to replace scarce or lost hair in one area of the scalp with hair taken from another area. Although numerous descriptions of techniques exist, the procedure is basically the same in most instances. Usually, the hair to be transplanted is taken from the back of the head where it is generally in abundance, even in those individuals with very thin or absent hair elsewhere. This is typically accomplished through removal of a relatively narrow strip of scalp from that area. As the resulting wound is likewise narrow, it can be closed by suturing. The resulting scar is minimal and the scar is generally well hidden by the surrounding hair. Many tiny hair grafts are then taken from the strip of scalp, using either a scalpel or a razor blade. These can be micrografts (1-3 hairs), minigrafts (usually 4-6 hairs) or standard grafts (up to 4 mm). These hair grafts are implanted into the desired area of the scalp, usually in front. Alternatively, hair grafts can be obtained by using a punch instrument (either manual or electric) which is a round cutting instrument, analogous to a cookie cutter, and excising hair grafts directly from hair bearing skin from the scalp or other hair-bearing regions of the body. These hair grafts can then be directly implanted as standard grafts or cut into smaller grafts, i.e., minigrafts or micrografts as desired. From this point on, the surgical techniques used varies.
There are 50 to 1,000 donor grafts per hair transplant session, which are implanted into an equal number of recipient sites. Before any hair graft can be transplanted, a small hole or opening into the scalp must be made. Recipient sites can be prepared with a variety of instruments: needles, small blades, or small punches. Appropriate size needles (to create microholes) or scalp blades (to create slits), as well as small skin punches (to create standard holes) have been used in the past by hair transplant surgeons.
Slits or microholes are typically placed between existing hair follicles or on the periphery of the scalp, performed with sharp scalpel blades or with 20, 18, 18 Nokor, or 16 Nokor needles. These slits or microholes are sometimes employed in individuals with earlier thinning or previous micrograft sessions. On the other hand, holes (1 mm to 4 mm in diameter) are sometimes used in individuals with starkly bald scalps or to remove bald skin from between plugs. However, the creation of holes, including the removal of bald scalp skin is more time consuming. Grafts generally are ejected, i.e., "pop out of the scalp" more easily from holes than from slits, but compression often results from grafting into slits. Some surgeons place a small notch at one end of the circle to alter the hole into an ellipse, sigma shaped or "q" shaped or place a second small slit, using a small blade, at an angle relative to the initial slit with the intention of greatly decreasing graft extrusion and compression. One may employ slits and holes in different recipient areas in the same patient, or in subsequent sessions in the same area. Hair graft insertion is typically performed using forceps or similar grasping instruments to take hold of the hair graft and push the graft into the recipient slit or hole while avoiding compression of the hair root.
After the cuts in the scalp have been made, some surgeons will then insert an instrument into the hole in order to dilate the hole, i.e., use a dilator. Examples of prior art dilators include small diameter solid metal tubes and wooden dowels. The objective when using a dilator is to facilitate placement of the hair graft which must be gently placed into the hole in the scalp. Microdilators, by expanding the size of recipient sites (holes, slits and microholes) facilitate micrograft placement, and can be helpful in some hands. Dilators are used to keep the donor slit or hole open, facilitate graft insertion by stretching the recipient site, act as markers for accurate spacing, aid in hemostasis, and prevent missed recipient sites and aid in quantifying the number of recipient sites prepared. However, because dilators involve two additional steps in hair transplantation, i.e., hair placement and removal prior to graft insertion, many surgeons find these extra steps time consuming.
Although surgeons have used dilators, it is time consuming for the hair transplantation surgeon to place the dilators into the scalp and then remove them. Although dilators save time during the actual placement of each graft into its recipient site, overall, the use of the dilators is viewed by many of those having ordinary skill in this art as taking more time than is desirable. Mainly for this reason, dilators are often omitted despite the above advantages.
Eberhard (German Patent No. 1,953,026) discloses a hair implantation device. Applicant's invention is an improvement over Eberhard by combining the necessary actions of cutting, dilating and inserting of the tissue into the scalp. Dilation is an important feature of tissue grafting to, e.g., minimize bleeding, ease the placement of grafts by making grafting faster and less traumatic, and prevent subsequent compression. The wedge design of Applicant's hairplanter is important for dilation and for gentle transfer, features not addressed and in some ways opposite of what Eberhard designed.
Applicant's device facilitates a gentle transfer of the hair follicle not necessary with artificial hairs, with efforts to minimize vertical and lateral forces through employment of Applicant's wedge design so at to dilate the recipient site and facilitate a gentle sliding implantation of graft. By contrast, Eberhard's claims relate to foreign/artificial hair that has different handling and physical requirements. This is illustrated clearly by the impaling of the artificial graft which is an integral feature of technique of transplantation disclosed in Eberhard and the anchor that has no biological counterpart for tissue transfer. Moreover, Applicant's device is not limited structurally to a cylindrically symmetric device like the needle/cannula system disclosed by Eberhard.
The actual insertion or placement of the hair grafts into the scalp hole or slit is the most difficult and important part of hair transplant surgery. The prior art is deficient in the lack of simple, cost-effective means of dilating hair graft sites and easily inserting hair grafts during hair transplant surgery. The present invention fulfills this longstanding need and desire in the art.


A method for producing a result prepared from asynchronous external events, wherein two mutually independent counting processes are activated, the temporal coincidence of the ends of counting of these two processes are verified and, on the basis of the information elements pertaining to the verification of each of these two counting processes and according to a specific sequencing of the application considered, a non-consolidated intermediate action is activated for each of the two sequencing processes and, after the verification of the temporal coincidence of the intermediate actions, and taking account of possible external priority actions, a resultant action is produced if all the necessary conditions are fulfilled.

The present invention relates to a method for producing a result and a device to implement this method.
In certain systems such as devices used in aircraft comprising several machines, instruments, sensors and the like that transmit and/or receive optical or electrical signals, these signals are transmitted asynchronously, namely in a manner that is completely independent with respect to one another. In general, these signals travel on a bus known as an "aircraft bus". In order to avoid overlapping of these signals on the bus, a standardized transmission protocol (ARINC 629) controls the timing of transmission from the devices having information to be sent. Each of these devices generally comprises counting and sequencing units, whose pace is set by an external clock. These units receive signals representing various mutually independent external events (signals from sensors, commands, etc.). The sequencer implements an algorithm which, on the basis of different external events and information elements generated by the counting unit, prepares a single result signal representing for example a command or authorization for transmission on the bus to one or more other devices. The various devices have to generate, each in turn, their result signal to prevent any overlapping of information on the bus: this is the task of the ARINC 629 transmission. However, it may happen that, as a result of drifts in the components of the counters and sequencers, the resultant signals from the devices are transmitted outside the temporal windows that are assigned to them. To avoid the detrimental consequences of such phenomena, it is possible to widen the temporal windows. This is not appropriate in certain applications. It is also possible to choose components with reduced drift, but this substantially increases the cost of the devices.

Method for producing a result and device for the implementation thereof


Protecting user credentials from a computing device includes establishing a secure session between a computing device and an identity provider (e.g., a Web service). Parameters of the secure session are communicated to a credential service, which renegotiates or resumes the secure session to establish a new secure session between the credential service and the identity provider. User credentials are passed from the credential service to the identity provider via the new secure session, but the computing device does not have the parameters of the new secure session and thus does not have access to the passed user credentials. The credential service then renegotiates or resumes the secure session again to establish an additional secure session between the credential service and the identity provider. Parameters of the additional secure session are communicated to the computing device to allow the computing device to continue communicating securely with the identity provider.

As computers have become increasingly commonplace, it has become desirable for users to access resources or other services on the World Wide Web (also referred to as simply the Web) from a variety of different computers. These resources or other services oftentimes require a user to provide user credentials, such as a user name and password, in order to access the resource or service. Users oftentimes desire to access these resources from multiple different computers, many of which may not be trusted by the user because they do not belong to the user. Furthermore, even computers that may be trusted by the user can become infected by a malicious program. User credentials entered by the user are thus exposed to a level of risk due to theft by a malicious program, reducing the security of such resources or other services and the overall Web as well.


A console for receiving an entertainment machine thereon is disclosed, which includes side- and rear walls that are defining a space for use as a foot rest space, which space is illuminated by associated lighting.

The present invention relates to a console and in particular to a console for use in conjunction with a coin operated entertainment machine of the type that are placed in casinos, arcades and salons.
From DE 38 02 600. A1 a console is known for use in conjunction with a coin operated entertainment machine. Such consoles are also used in particular in gaming casinos, arcades or salons, where the entertainment machines are placed next to each other in rows. In many cases, the machines are placed next to each other in a meandered pattern in an attempt to obtain a space efficient arrangement.
Some gaming machine operators have a tendency to spend a considerable amount of time in front of such a machine. It is therefore important that they are able to sit in a comfortable position while at the machine. However, in many cases the sitting arrangement in front of the machine is not the most comfortable and the operator becomes uncomfortable because the sitting arrangement does not include a suitable placement for the feet of the operator.
It would therefore be desirable and advantageous to provide an improved console and entertainment machine to obviate prior art shortcomings and to provide a more comfortable sitting position, especially relative to the placement of the operator's feet.

Console for use in combination with an entertainment machine


Systems, apparatuses, and methods for supporting a touch-enabled video wall are provided. In one embodiment, a video wall support system may include a first frame of support members (12) to support an array of monitors (16) and a second frame of monitors (18) to support a touch-enabling optical system (40, 42). The first frame of support members (12) may support the array of monitors (16) such that display screens of the monitors (18) are substantially aligned in a first plane. The second frame of support members (14) may support the touch-enabling optical system (40, 42) such that the touch-enabling optical system (40, 42) may detect a user touch location through a second plane formed by the second frame of support members (14). This second plane may be substantially parallel to the first plane. The second frame of support members (14) may be disposed a distance from the first frame of support members (12).

Very large electronic displays, such as those large enough to cover a wall, may be formed from an array of monitors in an arrangement referred to as a "video wall." Some video walls may include, for example, 2×2 or 3×3 arrays of monitors that collectively display content across the array, creating the appearance of one single large monitor. Support scaffolding for typical video walls may generally hold the monitors in relatively loose alignment. While differences in monitor alignment could potentially be discernible to viewers, these differences may not impact the performance of the video wall.
A touch-enabled video wall, rather than simply passively displaying information, may allow users to interact with the information displayed on the video wall by touch. Certain touch-enabled video walls may determine when a user has touched a specific location of the video wall using an optical system. For example, such an optical system may use imaging devices and a reflective strip to determine when and where an object, such as a finger, crosses a plane directly in front of the monitors of the video wall. If the imaging devices and reflective strip become misaligned with the monitors of the video wall, perhaps by as little as 1-2 mm, the accuracy or precision of the touch interactivity of the touch-enabled video wall may. drop dramatically.
Existing monitor array mounting solutions are generally used to mount monitor arrays for non-touch-enabled video wall applications. These existing monitor array mounting solutions may not attempt to keep the alignment of the monitors of the monitor array fully stable. That is, using the existing monitor array mounting solutions, when a monitor screen is touched, that monitor may move, albeit slightly, relative to other monitors of the video wall array. In addition, the weight of the monitor array may create a downward force in front of the supporting structure, creating a moment that causes the support structure to lean forward from a mount or even causing a wall upon which the monitor array is mounted to lean. Under such conditions, the monitor array and the optical system of a touch-enabled video wall may become misaligned. Since even slight misalignment between the various monitors of the monitor array and the optical system could impact the accuracy or precision of the touch-enabled video wall, the existing monitor array mounting solutions may not ensure the proper operation of a touch-enabled video wall.

Touch-enabled video wall support system, apparatus, and method

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


A motorcycle headlight assembly that has simplified structure that cost less to manufacture and assemble than a conventional headlight. The headlight assembly may enhance the rigidity of the headlight assembly and decrease the number of components. The headlight assembly can include a headlight, a right indicator, left indicator and a bodywork cover. The bodywork cover is connected to the headlight cap and configured to overlay the front part of the vehicle.

1. Field of the Inventions
The inventions relate to a headlight assembly structure for motorcycles, especially to a headlight assembly structure for scooter-type motorcycles.
1. Description of the Related Art
Scooter-type motorcycles are often used for transportation. These motorcycles can easily maneuver in high traffic areas and are convenient to park. Motorcycles typically have headlights for increasing the motorcycle driver's visibility and/or for alerting other people to the presence of the motorcycle. Turn indicators of the motorcycle can be used to inform other drivers that the motorcycle is going to change lanes, make a turn, and the like.
FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a conventional headlight assembly for scooter motorcycles. A headlight cap covering 80 is formed by matching and mounting several covers, such as a headlight cap 81, a pair of indicator-mounting covers on the two sides of the cap 81, and a bodywork cover 83. FIG. 2 illustrates an indicator-mounting cover 82 assembled with a corresponding indicator 84. Although not illustrated, another indicator-mounting cover 82 and indicator 84 can be positioned on the other side of the cap 81. The indicator-mounting covers and corresponding indicators are then matched with the headlight cap 81 and bodywork cover 83 and fixed by screw(s), thereby forming a headlight cap assembly.
With continued reference to FIG. 2, a bracket 85 is used hold the pair of indicators. To couple the indicators (e.g., the indicator 84) to the bracket 85, the locking part 86 can be passed through a hole 87 of the bracket 85. Nuts 88 can be threadably coupled to the locking part 86 to securely attach the indicator 84 to the bracket 85. A power wire 89 can extend inwardly from each locking part, such as the locking part 86. The wires 89a, 89b can converge and meet at the middle of the bracket 85 and are used to provide power from a power supply to the indicators.
Unfortunately, the illustrated headlight cap covering 80 is assembled by matching and mounting the headlight cap 81, the pair of indicator-mounting covers on the two sides of the headlight, the bodywork cover 83, etc. Therefore, the headlight assembly is a complex assembly with many components and, thus, may be difficult and extremely time-consuming to assemble. Additionally, gaps may be formed between components of the headlight assembly due to manufacturing tolerances and/or inappropriate component arrangement and assembly. Furthermore, some regulatory schemes for motorcycle fixtures may require that the indicators be separated by a relatively large distance, resulting in relatively large moments being applied to the headlight cap covering 80. After extended use, the jointed components may become loose, and the indicators may sway, therefore adversely influencing the overall rigidity of the headlight assembly. Additionally, conventional headlight assemblies may have an unsuitable appearance and may not be waterproof.
Additionally, the indicators of conventional headlight assemblies are often fixed by an elongated member, such as the bracket 85. The pair of indicators and the bracket 85 may be moved rearwardly to avoid contacting the headlight 90. However, this increases the longitudinal length of the headlight cap and the overall size of the headlight cap covering 80.
Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 2, the power wires 89a, 89b of the pair of indicators may be bent near the middle of the bracket 85. The bent portions of the power wires 89a, 89b may be vulnerable and be prone to damaged. For example, the power wires 89a, 89b may become worn during the manufacturing process and/or aftermarket maintenance.

Headlight assembly structure for a motorcycle


The endovascular graft includes a tubular structure having a first end and a second end. The tubular structure has a wall which defines a lumen between the first and second ends. A fenestration is located between the first and second ends to extend through the wall of the tubular structure. A sealing ring is circumferentially disposed within or on, including without limitation secured to, the tubular structure. The sealing ring is adjacent to the fenestration. The sealing ring may be inflatable.

An aneurysm is a medical condition indicated generally by an expansion and weakening of the wall of an artery of a patient. Aneurysms can develop at various sites within a patient's body. Thoracic aortic aneurysms (TAAs) or abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) are manifested by an expansion and weakening of the aorta which is a serious and life threatening condition for which intervention is generally indicated. Existing methods of treating aneurysms include invasive surgical procedures with graft replacement of the affected vessel or body lumen or reinforcement of the vessel with a graft.
Surgical procedures to treat aneurysms can have relatively high morbidity and mortality rates due to the risk factors inherent to surgical repair of this disease, as well as long hospital stays and painful recoveries. Due to the inherent risks and complexities of surgical repair of aortic aneurysms, endovascular repair has become a widely used alternative therapy, most notably in treating AAAs. Early work in this field is exemplified by Lawrence, Jr. et al. in "Percutaneous Endovascular Graft: Experimental Evaluation", Radiology (May 1987) and by Mirich et al. in "Percutaneously Placed Endovascular Grafts for Aortic Aneurysms: Feasibility Study," Radiology (March 1989). Commercially available endoprostheses for the endovascular treatment of AAAs include the Endurant® stent graft system manufactured by Medtronic, Inc. of Minneapolis, Minn., the Zenith® stent graft system sold by Cook, Inc. of Bloomington, Ind., the PowerLink® stent graft system manufactured by Endologix, Inc. of Irvine, Calif., and the Excluder® stent graft system manufactured by W.L. Gore & Associates, Inc. of Newark, Del. A commercially available stent graft for the treatment of TAAs is the TAG™ system manufactured by W.L. Gore & Associates, Inc.
Aneurysms and the like in the vasculature are a condition manifested by expansion and weakening of the walls of one or more vessels of the vasculature. Such conditions require intervention due to the severity of the sequelae. Methods of treating aneurysms have included invasive surgical methods with placement of a vascular graft within a vessel as a reinforcing member thereof. However, such a procedure requires a surgical cut of the vessel for access thereto which, in turn, can result in a rupture of the aneurysm due to the decreased external pressure from the organs and tissues surrounding the vessel, which are moved during the procedure to gain access thereto. Accordingly, surgical procedures have disadvantages due to the possibility of the rupture of the aneurysm in addition to other factors. Such other factors can include a declined physical condition of the patient due to blood loss, anuria, and low blood pressure associated with the aneurysm.
Aneurysms may occur in a section of the vessel near a central section thereof from which one or more branch vessels extend. A vascular graft that is deployed in a section of the vessel near the central section preferably accommodates such one or more branch vessels by providing for the flow of blood that is within the graft into the branch vessels as would occur in the absence of the graft. Also, the vascular graft preferably provides for the flow of blood that is within the branch vessels into the central section also as would occur in the absence of the graft.
An aneurysm located near one or more branch vessels may result in a graft landing zone in the aneurysm's central section that has a relatively short axial length for supporting the vascular graft. Consequently, providing a seal between the vascular graft and central section in this landing zone may be difficult. Such a seal is advantageous to obstruct the flow of blood from the branch vessels through an annular clearance which may be present between the vascular graft and central section to the aneurysm. Preventing the flow of blood into the aneurysm is advantageous since the aneurysm is a weakened section of the wall of the vessel and, consequently, normally has limited capability to contain blood therein.


Disclosed are implantable electronic devices and systems including a pair of microstimulators. The microstimulators include coils that are energized to generate magnetic fields aligned along a common axis.

The present disclosure relates to implantable electronic devices and systems.
Implantable electronic devices and systems, such as neurostimulators, create an electrical stimulus that is transferred to the nerves and tissues of a patient's body in order to treat a variety of biological disorders. For example, pacemakers can be used to treat cardiac arrhythmia, defibrillators can be used to treat cardiac fibrillation, cochlear stimulators can be used to treat deafness, retinal stimulators can be used to treat blindness, muscle stimulators can be used to treat paralysis in limbs, spinal cord stimulators can be used to treat chronic pain, cortical and deep brain stimulators can be used to treat motor and psychological disorders, and other neural stimulators can be used to treat disorders such as urinary urge incontinence, sleep apnea, and sexual dysfunction.
As there are a number of different applications, there are similarly varying types of implantable electronic devices and systems. For example, a spinal cord stimulator can be used to treat chronic pain, while a microstimulator can be used to treat disorders such as urinary urge incontinence, sleep apnea, or sexual dysfunction. As such, the features of the implantable electronic device, such as, for example, the size, shape, orientation, and functional components of the device, can vary with the nature of the application for which it is used. It is generally desirably that the aforementioned features are configured to render the device as compact as possible so as to consume a small amount of space when implanted in the body.

Boston Scientific Neuromodulation Corporation


An electrostatic grounding system electrically grounds a conductive member of a fixture separated from ground by a supradissipative resistance. The fixture is arranged to be placed in electrical contact with a conductive portion of a disc drive assembly that is in electrical contact with a magnetic head of the disc drive assembly. An electrically conductive engagement device mechanically and electrically engages the conductive member in electrical contact therewith. An electrically conductive coupler is mechanically and electrically connected to the engagement device, and electrically conductive connection means is electrically connected between the conductive coupler and a source of ground potential. In one form, the fixture is a fluid dispenser and an electrically conductive receptacle engages the dispensing member. An electrically conductive mounting member is on the dispenser body, and an electrically conductive arm extends from the mounting member to the conductive receptacle. An electrically conductive glove contacts the mounting member, and a circuit connects the glove to ground. In another form, an electrically conductive rod is supported by the conductive member of the fixture. A conductive receptacle is interference fit with the electrically conductive rod.

The present invention relates to devices and instruments for use in assembling a disc drive assembly and its sub-assemblies. In particular, the present invention relates to an electrical grounding device electrically coupled to a dispenser for dispensing fluids, such as glue and epoxy, upon a surface of the disc drive assembly which is in electrical contact with a magnetic head of the assembly.
The magnetic head stores and retrieves information on a magnetic disc. Several types of magnetic heads are currently in use, including metal-in-gap (MIG) heads, thin film (TF) heads and magnetoresistive (MR) heads. Due to the continual drive to increase storage density in magnetic disc drive units, magnetic heads have become increasingly advanced and sensitive.
Typically, a magnetic head consists of a slider and a transducer. The slider carries the transducer and flies over the surface of the magnetic disc as the disc rotates. The transducer reads and/or writes to the magnetic disc. Electric signals are provided to and received from the transducer via conductors which are typically insulated wires. A glue, such as fluid epoxy, attaches or tacks the wires to bonding pads and sides of the slider. This tacking process, otherwise known as conformal coating, actually coats the wire where the wire is attached to the slider. As a result, the conformal coating process prevents the wires from being pulled loose and also protects the wires from corrosion.
The slider of the magnetic head is supported above the magnetic disc as part of a head/gimbal assembly. As described in Hagen U.S. Pat. No. 5,027,239, herein incorporated by reference, the head-gimbal assembly typically includes at least one support arm, a load beam, a gimbal and the magnetic head discussed above. The support arm is attached to the load beam by a well-known technique referred to as swaging or ball staking. The load arm carries the load beam. The load beam is attached, preferably by laser welding, to the gimbal. Lastly, the gimbal is preferably glued to the slider of the magnetic head by fluid epoxy or other conventional adhesive materials. Typically, the fluid, such as glue or fluid epoxy, applied to surfaces of the slider and the gimbal is dispensed onto the surface from a dispensing syringe which is positioned and controlled either manually or by an automated process.

Electrostatic grounding system for a manually operated fluid dispenser


An enhanced information collage having a surface for detachable support of a plurality of collage components. The enhanced information collage comprises an identification unit, a location unit, and an information processing system. The identification unit is for determining informational content of at least some of the plurality of collage components. The location unit is for tracking position of at least some of the plurality of collage components. The information processing system is connected to the identification unit and the location unit for storing sate records of position and informational content of at least some of the plurality of collage components, with the information processing being updatable to reflect changes in position and information content of the at least some of the plurality of collage components.

Information collages are physical artifacts that are assembled, manipulated, and maintained to create, alter, preserve, share, or coordinate information. For example, wall mounted pin boards or magnetic boards can be used by an individual or group to transiently or semi-permanently display documents, calendars, task schedules, phone number lists, project proposals, informational flyers, meeting announcements, photographs, maps, or any other desired information. In some cases, small physical artifacts such as keys or magnetic icons can even be attached to the surface.
Advantageously, such information collages allow for ready manipulation of surface mounted documents or artifacts through addition, removal, replacement, reordering, or stacking. For example, a team's project schedule might be represented on a wall mounted pin board by pin attached task cards arranged in a timeline format. Such task cards can be easily altered or physically moved with respect to a displayed timeline as people leave a project, schedules slip, or any other problems develop. Unfortunately, this easy alteration of information in the collage by individuals or group members presents its own set of problems. Attached task cards can be inappropriately removed, misplaced, or obscured. Recording state of the pin board at a given time for electronic archival or tracking purposes can require substantial efforts, and it is difficult to synchronize and transfer the information in the collage to group members not physically present at a site.
Accordingly, the present invention automatically or semi-automatically integrates a computational system with an information collage to preserve the advantages of conventional information collages while alleviating many problems associated with such collages. A physical information collage (e.g. a pin board with spatially differentiated pin mounted task cards, each card having a detectable identity tag) can be made part of a computational system by sensing the identity, position, and contents of the component artifacts. In effect, each task card has its content and position stored in a database, with movement of a particular task card automatically resulting in update of the database to record the new position of that task card.
In certain embodiments, an enhanced information collage has a surface that supports a plurality of detachable collage components. These collage components are typically documents, but may be physical icons, or other small physical artifacts attachable by magnets, pins, adhesives, frictional forces, or other conventional attachment mechanisms. An identification unit determines informational content of at least some of the plurality of collage components using various sensing modalities (including but not limited to camera, radio, infrared, radio, acoustic, or electrical based techniques). Information can be directly determined by transfer/reading of information (which may be either an address to an electronic document, or the document information itself) from a collage component, or determined by position based associations maintained between an electronic document and a collage component.
Position of the document can be determined by a location unit for tracking position of at least some of the plurality of collage components. Like the identification unit, the location unit can use various sensing modalities alone or in combination (including, but not limited to camera, radio, infrared, radio, acoustic, or electrical techniques) to track position of collage components. The identification unit and location unit together provides an information maintenance and archival system with information necessary for constructing a series of time dependent snapshots of position and informational content of at least some of the plurality of collage components. This information maintenance system is updateable to reflect changes in position and informational content of at least some of the plurality of collage components, while still retaining a time/action addressable record of state changes of the plurality of collage components. This allows, for example, a user to digitally replay changes in a collage, or determine the collage state a day, a week, or a month earlier.
As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, certain collage components may not be merely associated with electronic data (e.g. an electronically available text document or picture), but may actually "operate" on other collage components to define data relationships between collage components. Data can be altered, combined, erased, saved, augmented, transferred, or otherwise modified through provision of various digital services associated with "operator icons". In operation, a collage component having associated electronic data is physically associated with an operator icon, causing modification of that associated electronic data in response to physical association of the operator icon with collage component. For example, consider a first collage component representing a document and a second collage component representing user of the information collage. An operator icon symbolically configured as a pointing arrow can be positioned on the surface of the information collage to point from the first collage component to the second collage component. This association causes the system to electronically mail the first document to the user. Reversal of the arrow so that the arrow points from the user to the document can result in modification of document properties so that the user is linked to the document and informed of any updates, changes, or alterations to the document. Alternatively, an arrow shaped operator icon can be used to link a document to a printer or other external digital service, depending on the particular operation or digital service previously registered with the information maintenance and archival system.
As those skilled in the art will appreciate, registration of operator properties can be dynamically defined by a user interacting with collage components. For example, a user can dynamically define a digital service associable with an operator icon by physically associating at least one additional operator icon with the operator icon; by associating user definable text with the operator icon; by associating audibly announced actions with the operator icon; by associating gestural actions with the operator icon; by associating a spatially discrete zone of the information collage with the operator icon, with the spatially discrete zone having an associated digital service (e.g. print, group, save), or by any other suitable user definable action interpretable by the system as an instruction to link a digital service to a generic operator icon. After the particular digital service linked to a digital service has been transiently, semi-permanently, or permanently defined by a user, the physical association between the operator icon and the collage component is used to determine the particular required data modifications (which may include digital services or other data parametrizable functions).
For example, in one possible embodiment of the present invention a generic bar shaped physical icon can be used as an audio level control for a sound system connected to the information collage. A user registers linkage of the bar shaped physical icon to the audio level control system by writing "VOLUME" next to the physical icon. These characters can be automatically recognized by a camera based character recognition and analysis system viewing the information collage, and necessary modifications made to registry databases in the information maintenance system. The actual level adjustments can be made by moving another physical icon along the bar shaped physical icon, an action that is interpreted as changing audio levels.
Advantageously, the foregoing system allows applications such as workflow organizers, spreadsheets, in/out boards, geographical information systems, outliners, software construction kits, software verification systems, or any other general or special-purpose software application (with or without connection to external digitally controlled or monitorable physical systems) to execute operations based on some interpretation of user activities ("events") on the information collage. These events can be interpreted implicitly; through use of explicit operator icons; through generic, user definable, operator icons; or as part of a "visual language".
As will be appreciated, any sensed user action at the surface of an information collage can implicitly evoke an operation by an application. For example, putting a person icon next to a task card can assign the task to the person and email a reminder to the person. This is accomplished by a special-purpose application that knows how to interpret actions on the particular information collage, which in this case is used for group task management. The implicit actions on the board of the information collage will generally require the system to recognize and interpret spatial relationships (e.g., adjacency, alignment, enclosure) among collage components, diagrammatic annotations (e.g., encirclements or links), manual gestures, or other modes of interactions with the collage.
In contrast, operations can be explicitly invoked through operator icons that direct data flow or otherwise initiate invocation of application mediated services. For example, an operator icon can be associated with a particular operation (e.g., print). Actions on or with that icon can cause particular operations (i.e. the operator on specific operands) to be invoked. The actions may involve placing the operator icon in various spatial relationships, binding the operator to certain actions or objects (e.g., a link drawn between it and an operand), or acting in a temporal sequence (e.g., touching an operator icon and then touching another icon on which the operation is performed), etc.
Explicit operator icons can be defined in advance of use (e.g., a printer shaped icon that "prints" documents to which it is touched). Alternatively, operator icons can be dynamically defined by a user of an information collage (e.g., a square icon on which a user first writes the word "print" thereafter causes printing of documents to which it is touched). Sets of icons can be grouped together by touching, stacking, aligning, etc, to form user-defined "packages" of icons that can be to define various particular actions (e.g. using stacked icons for printing and saving to file for invoking an application to print and save to file a document touched by the compound icon). In a broad sense, operator icons and other information collage components can define a visual language. For example, a user can construct an interpretable command ("imperative sentence") through spatially or temporally arranged groups of icons.
Additional functions, objects, advantages, and features of the present invention will become apparent from consideration of the following description and drawings of preferred embodiments.


An inexpensive optical time domain reflectometer is disclosed that comprises a variable delay device and that is capable of identifying the location of a damage portion of a fiber optic cable with great accuracy and minimal power consumption. A method of providing a vehicle with an on-board optical time domain reflectometer is also disclosed.

(1) Field of the Invention
This invention pertains to optical time domain reflectometers and to the use of such devices in determining the location of damaged portions of fiber optic cables. More particularly, this invention pertains to an inexpensive and simple configuration of an optical time domain reflectometer and the use of such a device as an integral component of a fiber optic system.
(2) Background
It is well known in the field of fiber optics that a damaged portion of a fiber optic cable will reflect at least a portion of the light traveling along the cable, back along the cable in a direction opposite the direction from which such light came. Using this phenomenon, optical time domain reflectometers (OTDR(s)) are able to locate damaged portions of fiber optic cables, at least to within a given range distance relative to known points along such cables. OTDRs typically operate by sending a very short-duration, high-power laser pulse along the optical cable, and by thereafter observing the returned reflections from the pulse. Although portions of the pulse are also reflected back by such things as connectors that are used to join individual sections of a fiber optic cable, by comparing the observed time domain reflection response to the time domain response that would be expected had the cable not been damaged, the portion of the pulse reflected by the damaged portion of the cable can be ascertained. The time delay between the emission of the laser pulse and the detection of its partial reflection back from the damaged portion of the cable can then be utilized to determine how far such light traveled, and hence the distance to the damaged portion.
Although OTDRs have been proven to be very useful, such devices are generally quite expensive due to the fact that they require components that can produce relatively high-power, short-duration laser pulses, and require multiple components that can sample relatively low-amplitude reflections during relatively small time domains with considerable precision. Additionally, such devices typically consume an appreciable amount of power.

Optical time domain reflectometer and method of using the same


Systems, methods, devices and techniques can be used in networks including resilient packet ring networks and other types of ring topology networks to adjust the flow of data traffic to MAC clients associated with stations on the network. In one example, adjusted fairness rates and/or messages associated with a network communication protocol are used to reduce traffic destined for a particular station and/or a MAC client associated with that station. In another example, station MAC clients or other components implement virtual destination queues and transmit information associated with the rate at which they receive data. The information and queues are used to reduce traffic destined for a particular station and/or a MAC client associated with that station.

An important trend in networking is the migration of packet-based technologies from local area networks (LANs) to metropolitan area networks (MANs). In the simplest terms, a MAN is a network that spans a metropolitan area. Generally, a MAN spans a larger geographic area than a LAN, but a smaller geographic area than a wide area network (WAN). The rapidly increasing volume of data traffic in MANs is challenging the capacity limits of existing transport infrastructures based on circuit-oriented technologies such as SONET, SDH, and ATM. Inefficiencies associated with carrying increasing quantities of data traffic over voice-optimized circuit-switched networks makes it difficult to provision new services and increases the cost of building additional capacity beyond the limits of most carriers' capital expense budgets. Packet based transport technology is considered by many to be one of the best alternatives for scaling metropolitan networks to meet the demand.
One leading packet based transport technology is Ethernet. Various different standard Ethernet interfaces operate at 10 Mbps, 100 Mbps, and 1 Gbps, thus providing scalability of the service interface. Moreover, as nearly all Internet data packets begin and end as Ethernet frames, carrying data in a consistent packet format from start to finish throughout the entire transport path can eliminate the need for additional layers of protocol and synchronization that result in extra costs and complexities. In addition to efficient handling of IP packets, Ethernet has the advantages of familiarity, simplicity, and low cost.
Although Ethernet is well suited for point-to-point and mesh network topologies, it can be difficult to deploy Ethernet in ring configurations and as a shared media. Rings network configurations act as a shared media and typically use media access control (MAC) mechanisms to manage access across multiple users. Ethernet, in contrast, has evolved to support full duplex switched infrastructures and lacks this type of MAC mechanism. However, much of the existing optical fiber network infrastructure in metro areas is in ring form, largely because incumbent transport technologies, e.g., SONET, are typically deployed over fiber rings.
Ring topologies also enable SONET to implement a fast (sub 50 ms) protection mechanism that can restore connectivity using an alternate path around the ring in case of fiber cuts or equipment failure. Unlike SONET, Ethernet does not have a built-in fast protection mechanism. There are, therefore, great benefits in new technologies that can fully exploit fiber rings (in particular, ring resiliency) while retaining all the inherent advantages of a packet-based transport mechanism like Ethernet.
A number of emerging technologies target metro data transport applications. Among these are the Dynamic Packet Transport/Spatial Reuse Protocol (DPT/SRP) and the IEEE 802.17 Resilient Packet Ring (RPR) standard currently under development. Dynamic Packet Transport is a resilient packet ring technology designed to deliver scalable Internet service, reliable IP-aware optical transport, and simplified network operations. Principally for metropolitan area applications, DPT-based solutions allow service providers to cost effectively scale and distribute their Internet and IP services across a reliable optical packet ring infrastructure. DPT is based on SRP, which is a MAC-layer protocol developed by Cisco Systems for ring-based packet internetworking.
The IEEE 802.17 Resilient Packet Ring (RPR) standard, which may include aspects of both DPT and SRP, offers several important features that have heretofore been exclusive to SONET: efficient support for ring topology and fast recovery from fiber cuts and link failures. RPR technology is expected to provide data efficiency, simplicity, and cost advantages that are typical to Ethernet. In addition, RPR technology solves problems such as fairness and congestion control that have not been addressed by incumbent technologies.
As outlined by the current draft IEEE 802.17 Resilient Packet Ring (RPR) standard (the "standard"), the RPR layer model can be described in terms of the open systems interconnect (OSI) reference model familiar to those having ordinary skill in the art. A simplified block diagram showing the ring and station structure of an RPR implementation is shown in FIG. 1.
Medium access control (MAC) control sublayer, MAC datapath sublayer, and reconciliation sublayers are specified within standard, as are the MAC service interface, and PHY service interface supported by the sublayers. The MAC service interface provides service primitives used by MAC clients to transfer data with one or more peer clients on an RPR ring, or to transfer local control information between the MAC and MAC client. The MAC control sublayer controls the datapath sublayer, maintains the MAC state and coordination with the MAC control sublayer of other RPR MACs, and transfer of data between the MAC and its client. The MAC datapath layer provides data transfer functions for each ringlet. The PHY service interface is used by the MAC to transmit and receive frames on the physical media. Distinct reconciliation sublayers specify mapping between specific PHYs and the medium independent interface (MII).
Resilient packet ring system 100 includes a number of ring stations (station 0 130, station 1 140, station 2 150, . . . and station N 160) interconnected by a ring structure utilizing unidirectional, counter-rotating ringlets. Each ringlet is made up of links between stations with data flow in the same direction. The ringlets are identified as ringlet0 110 and ringlet1 120. This standard allows a data frame to be transmitted on either of the two connected ringlets. For example, a unicast frame is inserted by a source station and copied by the destination station. For efficiency, the destination also strips the now irrelevant stale frame. The portion of a ring bounded by adjacent stations is called a span, and thus a span is composed of unidirectional links transmitting in opposite directions. The RPR dual-ring topology ensures that an alternate path between source station and destination station(s) is available following the failure of a single span or station. Fault response methods include pass-through and protection, as described in the standard.
In order to manage traffic and bandwidth on the ring, one or more fairness algorithms are implemented for data traffic designated as fairness eligible. In general, a station is not permitted to use more than its fair share of available capacity for the insertion of fairness eligible traffic when congestion has been detected on a ringlet. This restriction prevents a station from utilizing a disproportionate share of available capacity by virtue of its relative position on the ring. However, the algorithms specified assume that a client associated with a particular station, e.g., MAC client 170, can accept data at ring rate. If this is not the case, packets may get dropped before they get to packet processor 175 and/or the main buffers of the client where more intelligent dropping algorithms, e.g., the random early drop (RED) algorithm, can be used. One solution is to make intermediate buffers, such as burst buffer 177, very large so that packets are never dropped. However, the cost of adding sufficient memory to support such a solution makes it a less desirable solution.
Accordingly, it is desirable to have mechanisms by which data flow to ring station MAC clients can be controlled. Moreover, it is desirable that such mechanisms operate, to the extent possible, within existing and emerging ring transmission schemes.

Systems and methods for alleviating client over-subscription in ring networks


The present invention relates pharmaceutical compositions comprising a conjugate of an active substance, a linker and a carrier for the treatment and/or diagnosis of inflammatory diseases. The present invention further relates to methods using such pharmaceutical compositions for treating and diagnosing inflammatory diseases including, but not limited to, infectious diseases, autoimmune diseases, skin diseases, and inflammatory neovascularization.

For treating inflammatory diseases such as infectious and/or autoimmune and/or skin diseases, pharmaceutical preparations which have to be administered in very high doses have been used so far. This represents a major load for the liver. In addition, these pharmaceutical preparations concentrate in many tissues which represents a further load for the body.
DE-A 39 12 792 and DE-A-40 17 439 disclose conjugates of the above kind which can be used for treating and/or diagnosing tumors.
Surprisingly, it has not been found that these conjugates are also suitable for treating and/or diagnosing inflammatory diseases such as infectious and/or autoimmune and/or skin diseases and/or inflammatory neovascularizations, e.g., in the cornea of the eye, without being accompanied by the drawbacks of the pharmaceutical preparations used for this purpose so far.
Thus, the above conjugates are used according to the invention for the treating and/or diagnosing inflammatory diseases such as infectious and/or autoimmune and/or skin diseases, such as psoriasis, and/or inflammatory neovascularizations, e.g., in the cornea of the eye.

Conjugate for treating inflammatory diseases

Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum Stiftung des offentlichen Rechts


A device for mounting and driving a tubular spindle (10) has first and second axial-flux radial active magnetic bearings (60, 70) disposed respectively at a first end of the tube (10) and at a second end thereof. Each of the radial active magnetic bearings (60, 70), between which an electric motor (80) is interposed, includes a stator magnetic circuit made up of two subassemblies (61, 62; 71, 72) each of four axial-flux slot-free touching elements distributed around the tube (10). A mechanism is also provided for establishing a reduced pressure, of the order of a few hundreds of Pascals to a few thousands of Pascals, inside the spindle in the air gaps of the radial magnetic bearings (60, 70) and of the electric motor (80).

Various types of spindle are known that are required to rotate at high speed, in particular textile spindles for spinning. An example of such a spindle comprises a vertical tube that may have an inside diameter of the order of 30 mm to 40 mm, that is mounted in a frame inside a housing with predetermined clearance so as to allow the tube to rotate without making contact with the wall of the housing. The top portion of the tube is extended by a portion of smaller diameter mounted on conventional bearings such as ball bearings, and it is rotated by an electric motor. A thread to be put into the form of a spool is inserted into the tube within which it can be driven by centrifugal force against the inside wall of the tube so as to make up a spool of thread inside the tube, which spool is subsequently extracted from the tube via the opening at the bottom. The tube is rotated by the motor at rotary speeds of about 300 revolutions per second (rps), for example.
Spindles of this type, fitted with a mechanical suspension based on ball bearings and mounted in a cantilever configuration are subjected to instabilities of rotation that lead to disturbances in the centrifugal effect and that reduce the lifetime of the device. In addition, the dimensions of the spindle and its speed of rotation are limited by the mechanical suspension used, thereby reducing production capacities and rates.

Device for mounting and driving a spindle, particularly a textile spindle


A braking force detector detects the braking force of a vehicle or a value based on which the braking force can be calculated. A steering torque sensor detects a steering torque of a steering wheel. A lateral acceleration sensor detects a lateral acceleration of the vehicle. A turning/braking judgment unit judges whether or not the vehicle is braking while turning. When the vehicle has been judged to be braking while turning, an abnormality judgment unit judges based on the steering torque and the lateral acceleration whether or not an abnormality has occurred in the braking force detector.

Conventional brake-by-wire systems such as an ECB (Electronically Controlled Brake) system are known in which the target deceleration is calculated based on the stroke value of depression of a brake pedal detected by a brake pedal sensor and the master cylinder pressure detected by a master hydraulic pressure sensor. Thus, if an abnormality (e.g., a gain abnormality) occurs in the master hydraulic pressure sensor, the hydraulic brake system is required to detect such an abnormality in an early stage.
For example, Patent document 1 discloses an apparatus comprising an estimation unit that estimates a first vehicle deceleration based on a brake hydraulic pressure detection value detected by a brake hydraulic pressure detection apparatus, and a detector that detects a second vehicle deceleration which is the actual vehicle deceleration, wherein judgment of whether or not an abnormality has occurred in the brake hydraulic pressure detection value is made based on the difference between the first vehicle deceleration and the second vehicle deceleration.

Abnormality detection apparatus for braking force detector


In a write-once recording medium, an optimum updating of the management information and a simple matching processing are to be achieved. To this end, in a system of a write-once medium, rendered accessible at random by employing the write/non-write indicating information, the management information, including a space bitmap and the last recording position information (LRA) indicating the last position of the recorded user data, is updated on the disc responsive to the generation or extinction of a gap (unrecorded area) in a region ahead of the LRA. The state of matching between the management information on the disc and the recording state of the user data is confirmed, responsive to the updating of the management information on the disc by the generation or extinction of the gap in the management information, by detecting whether or not the gap in the management information (gap indicated by the space bitmap) or the LRA is coincident with the gap or the LRA on the actual disc. Lacking the matching, the management information is updated to match the space bitmap or the LRA.

As a technique for recording and/or reproducing digital data, there is a data recording technique employing, as a recording medium, an optical disc, inclusive of a magneto-optical disc, such as CD (Compact Disc), MD (Mini-Disc) or DVD (Digital Versatile Disc). The optical disc is a generic term of the recording medium comprising a disc of a thin metal sheet protected with plastics. The disc is illuminated by laser light and a signal is read out in terms of changes in the reflected laser light.
The optical disc may be classified into a read-only type, such as CD, CD-ROM or DVD-ROM, and a recordable type, allowing a user to record data thereon, such as MD, CD-R, CD-RW, DVDR, DVD-RW, DVD+RW or DVD-RAM. The recordable type disc allows for data recording by exploiting the magneto-optical recording system, a phase change recording system or a dye film change recording system. The dye film change recording system, also termed a write-once recording system, allows for data recording only once, while it does not allow for data rewriting. Thus, the dye film change recording system may conveniently be used for data saving. The magneto-optical recording disc or the phase change recording system allows for data rewriting and may be used for various application, including, first of all, recording various contents data, such as music, pictures, games or application programs.
Recently, a high-density optical disc, termed the Blu-ray Disc, has been developed to increase the recording capacity significantly.
This high-density disc records and/or reproduces data under a condition of the laser light with a wavelength of 405 nm (so-called blue laser) and an objective lens with the NA equal to 0.85. A data block of 64 kB (kilo-bytes) is used as a recording reproducing unit, with the track pitch of 0.32 μm and a line density of 0.12 μm/bit. If the format efficiency is 82%, a data volume of 23.3 GB (gigabytes) may be recorded and/or reproduced on a disc with a diameter of 12 cm.
With this high-density disc, a write-once type or a rewritable type has been developed.
For recording data on a recordable disc, such as a disc of the magneto-optical recording system, a dye film change recording system or a phase change recording system, it is necessary to provide a guide for tracking relative to a data track. To this end, a groove is formed from the outset as a pre-groove and the groove or a land (a part with a trapezoidal cross-section, defined between neighboring grooves) is used as a data track.
It is also necessary to record the address information to allow for data recording at a preset location on the data track. This address information is sometimes recorded by wobbling (meandering) the groove.
That is, the sidewall of a track, formed as a pre-groove for data recording, is wobbled in agreement with the address information.
In this case, the address can be read out from the wobbling information, obtained as the reflected light information during recording or reproduction, such that data may be recorded or reproduced for a desired location even if no pit data representing the address is pre-formed on the track.
The absolute time (address) information, represented by the wobbled groove, is termed the ATIP (Absolute Time In Pregroove) or ADIP (ADdress In Pregroove).
In such data-recordable recording medium (which is not read-only), there is known a technique providing an exchange area to exchange data recording positions on the disc. This technique is a defect management technique allowing optimum recording and/or reproduction by providing an exchange recording area which takes the place of a defect area unsuitable for data recording, such as a flaw, if such defect is present on the disc.
Meanwhile, if attention is directed to a write-once type optical recording medium, which allows recording only once, such as CD-R, DVD-R or a high density disc, such write-once type optical recording medium suffers from various constraints, because no data can be recorded on a prerecorded area.
In particular, in the write-once recording medium, the technique of updating the management information responsive to the data recording poses a problem.
That is, as a usual practice, the management information must be properly updated responsive to the recording of user data. On the other hand, management of the recording state of the user data based on the management information helps improve the processing speed in writing data on a disc or reading data from the disc.
However, with the write-once recording medium, it is not proper to update the management information each time user data is recorded on the recording medium, because the area for recording the management information is consumed excessively.
Considering that limitations are imposed on the size of the recording area for the management information, certain preset conditions need to be imposed on the recording of the management information on the disc.
For example, in the DVD-R, the management information, updated in the recording apparatus responsive to data recording, is recorded on the disc, subject to the write volume of the user data surpassing a preset volume.
Under these conditions, there is a time lag until the management information recorded on the disc is rewritten to a state reflecting the latest recording state of the user data actually recorded on the disc. That is, there is a time period during which the management information recorded on the disc does not reflect the recording state of the user data on the disc.
If, due to supply interruption, power down by the user operation or failure in writing, the management information cannot be properly updated on the disc, the management information is unmatched to the user data on the disc, such that unmanageable user data, that is, non-reproducible user data, is produced.
For preventing this from occurring, a variety of techniques have been proposed for holding the management information, even on power down, using e.g. a non-volatile memory, to enable the management information to be updated later on the disc, or to verify the non-matching between the management information and the user data on the disc to effect restoration processing, as described for example in the following Patent Publication 1:
[Patent Publication 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-3122940
Meanwhile, in a recordable disc, the last address of the user data (last recording position information specifying the last position of recording of the user data) is sometimes provided as such one management information. This last address is termed the LRA (last recorded address), as an example. This last address is that of the area where user data has been written on the disc.
In the write-once optical disc, the usual practice is to pad user data sequentially from the leading end of the user data area for recording. Thus, in newly recording data, it is sufficient to record the data as from an address (LRA+1) next following the address LRA.
If it is desired to record data as from an address further in rear of LRA+1, such a technique is needed which consists in writing dummy data, such as zero data, for a domain as from the address LRA+1 to a recording start address, or registering the domain as an unrecorded area.
Meanwhile, the reason the data is padded sequentially from the inner rim of the write-once disc is that the conventional optical recording disc has been developed on the basis of a ROM type disc and hence replay cannot be made if there is an unrecorded area on the disc.
These circumstances impose limitations on the random access recording on the write-once recording medium.
In order to render a write-once disc more accessible at random, the present inventors have proposed in an international application (filing number: JP04/003212) such a technique consisting in providing the written/unwritten indicating information (space bitmap information) indicating whether or not data has been written, from one data unit in the recording area to another, as the management information, to enable a recorded area and a non-recorded area to be verified by this written/unwritten indicating information.
This enables data to be recorded in a desired address in a write-once disc, without being limited to sequentially padding the data for recording. It is then unnecessary to record dummy data to expedite the write processing and to reduce the processing load on the device.
However, even with the system exploiting the space bitmap, proper updating of the management information (space bitmap or LRA) on the disc poses a problem. That is, there is a demand for proper management information write processing whereby not only the management area on the disc is not wastefully consumed but also the time period of non-matching between the management information and the state of recording of the user data is not protracted excessively.
There is a also demand for facilitated setting of the matched state even in case the management information on the disc and the state of recording of the user data has become non-matched due to e.g. the power down of the device.
In this respect, there is a technique of holding the management information to be written on the disc by exploiting the conventional non-volatile memory. However, there is also a demand for a system not employing the non-volatile memory because the current non-volatile memory suffers from limitations on the number of times of data update events and hence is not suitable for recording frequently updated data.

Recording and/or reproducing method and apparatus


A lithium battery characterized in that the anode (1) is formed from a carbon fibril material comprised of an aggregate of fibrils or non-aggregated mass of fibrils having an average particle diameter of 0.1 to 100 microns in which fine, filiform carbon fibrils of 3.5 to 75 nm an in diameter are intertwinned with each other, and fibrils being intercalated with lithium. The cathode (3) also contains carbon fibrils.

A great deal of research has been conducted on lithium secondary batteries in which metallic lithium is used as the negative electrode because high voltage and high energy density are anticipated. A family of batteries, called variously lithium ion or rocking chair or swing systems, has been developed which include a carbon anode into which lithium intercalates. The ability to intercalate lithium is critical. Classically this requires a relatively good graphite structure. The intercalate is a true compound corresponding to a composition of C.sub.6 Li. It thus has safety and other advantages over a metallic lithium anode. However, the problem with batteries in which metallic lithium is used for the negative electrode is that cycle life is decreased because of reactions between the lithium and the solvent during charging and because of dendrite growth.
In order to eliminate this problem, studies have been conducted of Li-Al alloy and of various types of carbon fiber materials as negative electrode materials. However, new problems such as decrease in mechanical strength and deterioration of self-discharging characteristics have arisen with these materials.
As to the "rocking chair" cell, lithium is the only ionic species moving back and forth between the electrodes during charging and discharging. Specifically, during charging, intercalated lithium ions from the cathode e.g., LiMn.sub.2 O.sub.4, move through the electrolyte to the anode where they pick up an electron in the process of intercalating the carbon. During discharge the reverse reaction takes place, i.e., the uncharged lithium in the carbon loses an electron to the external circuit as it ionizes to Li+ which migrates to and enters the cathode concurrent with local reduction of the oxide lattice by an electron from the external circuit. The half cell reaction are shown below doing discharge.
LiC.sub.6 .fwdarw.Li+e.sup.- +C.sub.6 anode PA1 Li.sup.+ +Mn.sub.2 O.sub.4 +e.sup.- .fwdarw.LiMn.sub.2 O.sub.4 cathode
The prior art lithium ion system is characterized by an intercalatable carbon anode and an intercalatable variable valence metal oxide cathode usually also admixed with carbon for conductivity. It is the use of the carbon anode that sets the rocking chair system apart from earlier configurations using lithium metal anodes. These latter suffered from safety problems related to dendrite formation, flaking and spalling of lithium metal, leading, in turn to dangerously high reaction rates and to side reactions with the electrolyte. These safety problems have been largely sidestepped by the absence of a bulk lithium phase.
Development of new more oxidation resistant electrolytes and, longer range, the development of polymer electrolytes also contributes to safer Li cells. Nevertheless, these batteries utilize very reactive electrode materials and systems. Studies of even the Li intercalation electrode suggest it must be properly engineered to avoid runaway reaction under damage or short circuit conditions.
Although both electrodes of the lithium ion cell use carbon, these carbons, like most electrode materials, were selected from those commercially available. That neither anode nor cathode performance was satisfactory is seen from the poor power density and from the poor approach to theoretical energy density. The lithium ion battery as presently available has commercial utility only because of its inherent thermodynamics and rather in spite of less than optimal kinetics and engineering.
A target use for fibrils is electrodes and current collectors. Fibrils are ca. 100 .ANG. diameter, catalytically grown, graphitic fibers, typically several microns long. While fibrils are graphitic, geometric constraints force some differences with pure graphite. Like graphite, fibrils are composed of parallel layers of carbon but in the form of a series of concentric tubes disposed about the longitudinal axis of the fibers rather than as multi-layers of flat graphite sheets. Thus, because of the geometric constraints in the narrow diameter of the fibrils, the graphite layers cannot line up precisely with respect to the layers below as flat graphite sheets can. Convergent beam electron diffraction has confirmed that the (002) graphitic planes are oriented along the tube adds with high crystallinity.
The structure of fibrils compares quite closely with the much studied buckytubes. However, unlike buckytubes, fibrils are produced as indispersable aggregates uncontaminated with amorphous carbon allowing fibrils to be fashioned into electrode structures with only minimal processing. The fibrils are grown by contacting catalyst particles with gaseous hydrocarbon in a hydrogen rich atmosphere. Their diameters are determined by the size of the catalyst particles and average 7-12 nanometers. Lengths are several micrometers. They are hollow tubes with wall thicknesses 2 to 5 nanometers. The walls are essentially concentric tubes of individual graphite layers rolled into cylinders. At intervals along the length of a fiber some of the inner layers may curve into hemispherical cepta spanning the hollow interior. Near these, the walls may for a short distance change into nested cones. These reflect changes in the catalyst/carbon interface during growth of the fibril. Unlike other catalytic vapor grown carbon fibers they are free of less organized pyrolytic carbon on their surfaces.
Buckytubes, however, are grown by condensation of carbon vapor in an arc. They usually have a wider distribution of diameters from single layer walls to many tens of layers. The arrangement of graphite layers in the walls is very similar to fibrils. Some have only concentric cylinders (or polygonal cross sections). Others also have septa and nested cones. It is likely that some buckytubes are grown catalytically on catalyst particles derived from impurities in the source carbon or from the apparatus. It is not yet certain beyond doubt that any are self assembled without catalyst--spark temperatures are sufficient to vaporize iron or other particles after growth. Less organized carbon is deposited at the same time in the form of polygons or turbostratic carbon some of which may coat the buckytubes.
As would be expected from their structure and similarity to graphite, fibrils are conductive. While the conductivity of individual fibrils is difficult to measure, a recent attempt has yielded an estimated resistivity value of 9.5 (.+-.4.5) m.OMEGA.cm, a resistivity slightly higher than typically measured for graphitized carbon, but consistent with what has recently been recently measured for buckytubes.
Fibrils can be assembled into macrostructures composed of interconnected fibril nanotubes, similar to felt mats. The large number of contacts between individual, conductive fibrils in the fibril mat results in mats with high conductivities as well.
The porosity of homogeneous fibril mats is determined by overall mat density. Porosity can be further modified by co-slurrying fibrils with macrofibers (e.g., glass or carbon) before formation of the mat. This technique for forming both homogenous and co-slurried fibril mats is both convenient on the laboratory scale and is readily amenable to scale-up using fiber wet-laying (e.g., paper making).
Because of their small diameter, fibrils have a surface area of ca. 200 m.sup.2 /g as determined by BET measurement. The value for the surface area can also be arrived at by calculation based on average fibril dimensions. This agreement between calculation and the BET measurement demonstrates that the 200 m.sup.2 /g. is all on the external surface of the fibrils. Analytical electrochemistry of fibril mat electrodes demonstrate that all of the fibril surface area is available for electrochemical processes. For example, the double layer charging capacitance of fibril mat electrodes varies linearly with the mass of fibrils in the electrode over a wide range of fibril mat densities. Fibrils allow for a combination of constant pore size and high surface area that is not available in other conductive carbons.
Such open nets of fibrils impose their high external surface area and consequent electrochemical availability on any chemical system that can be deposited on or physically entangled within mats of them.
Currently available lithium ion batteries use an intercalatable carbon as the anode. The maximum energy density of such batteries corresponds to the intercalation compound C.sub.6 Li, with a specific capacity of 372 A-hours/kg.
The ability to intercalate lithium is critical. Classically, this requires a relatively good graphite structure. This intercalate is a true compound corresponding to a composition of C.sub.6 Li.

Lithium battery with electrodes containing carbon fibrils


A pack for cigarettes and a process and apparatus for the production thereof is described. Due to several reasons (cigarette) packs quite often have greater (inner) dimensions than the pack contents (cigarette block 23). In order to fill a cavity formed hereby within the pack, a filling piece (39) is provided which is formed from a flat blank (40) folding up outer blank portions. The filling piece is formed to have a three-dimensional shape by being displaced in a folding shaft (57) with laterally arranged folding members. The filling pieces (39) produced in this way are conveyed along a filling piece track (78) and are introduced into a block track (79) in transverse direction so they can each be united with a cigarette block (23).

The invention relates to a cuboidal pack made of (thin) cardboard, especially a hinge lid box for accommodating a group of cigarettes wrapped in an inner blank (cigarette block), the dimensions of said group of cigarettes being smaller in depth than the depth of the pack, with a filling piece being arranged in a cavity formed hereby within the pack, said filling piece consisting of (thin) cardboard, and with a filling piece wall abutting the pack contents (cigarette block), and with upright side panels and an upper cross-panel folded transversely relative to said filling piece wall. The invention furthermore relates to a process for producing the filling piece and for introducing the same into a pack. Finally, the invention relates to an apparatus for conducting said process.
Hinge lid boxes are used world-wide as cigarette packs. The structure of this pack type is mostly standardized. This applies to the dimensions as well. Any changes in size have far-reaching consequences. Vending machines for cigarette packs would for instance have to be altered. In some countries, revenue markings are stamped on the packs. The stamping machines are designed for standard pack dimensions.
On the other hand, cigarettes with a substantially smaller diameter than standard cigarettes are increasingly introduced. Consequently, an identical number of such cigarettes forms a pack filling, i.e. cigarette block, with a smaller dimension. The arrangement is mostly such that the cigarette block has a smaller depth then the inner space of the hinge lid box. As a result, a cavity is formed within the pack which is (partially) filled by filling pieces made of foamed material or corrugated cardboard.
Known in the art is also a pack of the aforementioned type, in which the filling piece facing the rear wall consists of three-dimensionally folded (thin) cardboard. The filling piece is part of a blank for a collar which is commonly used with packs of this type. The filling piece is connected with the collar blank and comprises a filling piece wall, transversely folded side panels and an upper crosspanel which is also transversely folded (EP-A-346 026).
By forming a uniform and single-piece blank from collar and filling piece, this known proposal requires a considerable expenditure of material, even more so since the portion of the blank designed for forming the collar is considerably larger than in ordinary packs. Moreover, the production of the pack, especially of the filling piece, and the filling of the pack is more complicated and disadvantageous in terms of machine technics.
Setting out from this state of the art, the invention is based on the object to further develop and improve a pack of the aforementioned kind, such that filling pieces made of folded (thin) cardboard can be simply produced and accomodated in the pack in a material-saving manner.

Pack for cigarettes or the like and process and apparatus for the production thereof


A device for determining the bearing of a vehicle using Inertial Reference Unit (IRU) and Traffic Alert Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) data. The device includes a means to communicate with the vehicle such as a transmitter, receiver, and antenna. The device also includes a processor configured to receive the IRU and TCAS data from the vehicle via the communication means and then generate a bearing value using the received data.

Data available for determining azimuth value of Traffic Alert Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) consists of raw TCAS data sampled at 1 Hz, all ownship data provided at mission computer rates, and Inertial Reference Unit (IRU) data from an othership reported over a standard Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B) data-link at 2 Hz. TCAS and/or IRU data alone do not provide sufficient accuracy and precision to maintain flight formation within desired limits. Current TCAS devices provide reported azimuth data having a RMS (root mean square) error in the range of 6 to 7 degrees.
An improved TCAS azimuth computing device with smaller error is desirable for increased flight formation capability.

Traffic alert collision avoidance system (TCAS) devices and methods


An arbiter employs both an address bus arbiter and a data bus arbiter for supporting pipelined, split bus transactions. The address arbiter may be implemented using a state machine. A first through third states of the state machine grant the address bus to a respective first through third bus masters, each having a different priority associated therewith. Idle states are interposed between states. The data bus arbiter may be implemented using a circular FIFO having a plurality of pointers to keep track of present and future bus masters using the data bus.

The present invention relates generally to digital computers and, more specifically, to bus arbitration in digital computers.
As the performance demands on digital computers continue to increase at a meteoric pace, processors have been developed which operate at higher and higher clock speeds. The instruction sets used to control these processors have been pared down (e.g., RISC architecture) to make them more efficient. Processor improvements alone, however, are insufficient to provide the greater bandwidth required by computer users. The other computer subsystems which support the processor, e.g., I/O devices and memory devices, must also be designed to operate at higher speeds and support greater bandwidth. In addition to improved performance, cost has always been an issue with computer users. Thus, system designers are faced with the dual challenges of improving performance while remaining competitive on a cost basis.
Buses convey data and instructions between the elements of a digital computer. Commonly, three types or portions of buses are provided, i.e., control, address and data, each of which convey the different types of information connoted by their names. Local buses provide data transmission capability within a device, whereas system buses interconnect devices, such as I/O subsystems, memory subsystems and a central processor, together. In many systems, several devices compete for use of the system bus. In industry parlance, devices which can control the system bus are termed bus masters, while other devices, which are passive and respond to requests from the bus masters, are termed slaves. Some devices may operate at different times either as a slave or a bus master to accomplish different objectives.
In order to avoid bus contention, the situation where two bus masters have simultaneous control over the system bus, a bus arbiter can be provided to prioritize requests to use the bus. In such systems, a device which wishes to become a bus master will send a bus request signal to the arbiter over a dedicated line in the control bus. If the arbiter grants the bus request, then an acknowledgement or granting signal is transmitted back to the requesting device over another control line. The methodology by which the arbiter prioritizes requests is called the bus protocol. These protocols can be implemented as an ordered list of bus masters (i.e., the highest requesting bus master on the list receives a bus grant) or as state machines inside the arbiter.
In many conventional systems, the time periods during which a bus master controls the address bus (address tenure) and the data bus (data tenure) are the same. This concept is illustrated in FIG. 1 wherein the address tenures for memory cycles 1 and 2 are the same as the data tenures for those cycles. Cycles 3 and 4 are "address-only" cycles which are used by the system for operations which require address information but no other data. Since the address and data tenures are synchronized in these conventional systems, a joint arbiter suffices for these systems since only one transaction occurs at a time.
If the address was not continuously driven until the end of the data tenure, it would then be possible to begin another cycle, for example an "address-only" cycle which uses the address bus but not the data bus, while a previously initiated data cycle was being completed on the data bus. This type of overlapping address and data tenure (not shown in FIG. 1) is referred to as pipelining and can improve bus throughput. However, arbitration becomes correspondingly more complex when using pipelining, since arbitration of the data bus and the address bus can now differ. Moreover, if a split bus technology is used, different bus masters can use the address and data buses at the same time which further complicates arbitration issues.

Address and data bus arbiter for pipelined transactions on a split bus


A bedding assembly may comprise a touch layer, a warmth layer, and a decorative layer. The touch layer and warmth layer may functionally correspond to a top sheet and a duvet insert in a conventional bedding system, respectively. The decorative layer is different than conventional duvet covers, since it does not enclose a duvet insert. The layers may be stacked and attached to one another through a series of fasteners that are located largely along the edges of each layer. The upper surface of the touch layer may attach to the lower surface of the warmth layer, and the upper surface of the warmth layer may attach to the lower surface of the decorative layer. A top portion of the touch layer may also fold over the warmth layer and attach to a top portion of the upper surface of the decorative layer.

Individuals may toss and turn while sleeping, which tangles sheets and shifts a duvet over time. To relieve frustrations with sheet tangling, many people sleep without a top sheet (also sometimes referred to as a flat sheet). This can be unsanitary, as many people rarely wash duvet covers or thick comforters or quilts. Warmth may also be lessened if an individual foregoes a top sheet.
Some systems attach a top sheet to a duvet cover. These systems, while they may address the tangling problem somewhat, do not alleviate other issues inherent in duvet covers—such as duvet shifting and the need for assembly—and they still leave much of the duvet cover exposed in a way that does not significantly reduce the need to launder it. Other systems include covers with corner ties to attach the duvet to the cover from the inside. These attachments are often insufficient to eliminate duvet shifting within the cover. Another method of dealing with duvet shifting is to use an uncovered blanket or duvet, eliminating the cover entirely. However, uncovered blankets and duvets are difficult to launder because of their size and composition.
The laundering of bedding can also be difficult. Hindrances and frustrations related to frequent linen laundering include the tedium of disassembling and reassembling all bedding and the challenge of washing larger items, whether due to their poor fit in a household laundry machine or a lack of desire to transport and pay for washing at a laundromat. To deal with this, people tend to launder their bed linens far less frequently than is recommended.
Further, bed making sometimes takes substantial time and effort. To avoid this, many people simply do not make their beds, leaving their beds disheveled and sloppy looking.


An image-capturing apparatus and method, displaying apparatus and method that provides full-parallax images having high spatial resolution in real time. An image-capturing optical unit includes a plurality of prismatic mirrors which rotate at a predetermined period. The side surface of each of the prismatic mirrors reflects a light beam from an object. A camera receives the light beam from the object reflected by the prismatic mirrors in order to capture an image of the object. A display optical unit includes a plurality of prismatic mirrors which rotate in phase with the image-capturing optical unit's prismatic mirrors at the same period. A projector emits a light beam corresponding to the image of the object captured by the camera, and such a light beam is reflected by the display optical unit's prismatic mirrors. A user may view an image corresponding to the light beam reflected by the display optical unit's prismatic mirrors.

One known full-parallax image display system that provides selectable viewpoints and presents an image of an object as seen from a viewpoint of a user is, for example, the IP (Integral Photography) 3D-image system developed by NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation).
FIG. 1 illustrates an example of the IP 3D-image system.
In the IP 3D-image system, a camera (video camera) 2 captures an image of an object through a lens array 1.
As shown in FIG. 2A in plan view and FIG. 2B in cross-sectional view, the lens array 1 has multiple microlenses disposed in a plane. The camera 2 captures the image of the object through each of the lenses.
In the IP 3D-image system, the image captured by the camera 2 is displayed on a display apparatus 3, such as a liquid crystal display. A lens array 4 having the same structure as the lens array 1 is disposed over the front face of a display screen of the display apparatus 3. A user may see the image displayed on the display apparatus 3 through the lens array 4. Thus, the user is able to view the image of the object from a certain viewpoint.
This means that the image captured by the camera 2 is a combination of image elements (referred to as microlens image-elements hereinafter) of the object seen through the microlenses of the lens array 1. Thus, the image displayed on the display apparatus 3 is a combination of the microlens image-elements. The combination of the microlens image-elements viewed from a certain viewpoint through the lens array 4 having the same structure as the lens array 1 forms an image of the object seen from that particular viewpoint. Such an image is formed of the microlens image-elements seen through the microlenses of the lens array 4, and each of the microlens image-elements includes pixels.
Accordingly, the IP 3D-image system presents an image that can be viewed from the actual viewpoint of the user.
To briefly (or theoretically) describe the IP 3D-image system, an image of an object as seen from a certain viewpoint is a combination of microlens image-elements. The microlens image-elements are gathered by the microlenses of the lens array 4, and include pixels that form the overall image of the object.
This means that the image resolution presented to a user depends on the microlenses of the lens arrays 1 and 4. However, there are limits to reducing the size of the microlenses and also to the number of the microlenses included in each of the lens arrays 1 and 4. This leads to difficulties in providing users with images having high spatial resolution.
Specifically, in the IP 3D-image system, the product of the number of the selectable viewpoints multiplied by the spatial resolution value of an image of one screen (one frame or one field) cannot exceed the spatial resolution value in the display apparatus 3. For this reason, increasing the viewpoints may lead to deterioration of the spatial resolution of an image.

Imaging device and imaging method, and display unit and display method