A mounting bracket for securing a doorway jumper apparatus having clamp contacts is provided. The mounting bracket includes a flange and a housing having a receptacle area. The housing is located at a center portion of the flange. The flange includes holes through which fasteners are insertable to affix the housing to a beam or to a wall above a doorway.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a doorway jumper apparatus, and more particularly to a mounting bracket for a doorway jumper apparatus used by babies, infants, toddlers, and small children.
2. Description of Related Art
Baby swings, bouncers, jumpers, and the like, that hang in a doorway or from the ceiling are well known in the prior art. Examples include the The First Years®—Pooh Bouncing Tigger Seat, Johnny Jump-up™ Baby Exerciser, Graco Bumper Jumper®, Twist 'n Shout™, and the suspended motor-skill training apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,093,024. The First Years® is a registered trademark of The First Years, Inc. Johnny Jump-up™ is a trademark of Evanflo Company, Inc. Bumper Jumper® is a registered trademark of Graco Children's Products, Inc. Twist 'n Shout™ is a trademark of Graco Children's Products, Inc.
FIG. 1 shows a doorway jumper 10 as known in the prior art. The doorway jumper 10 includes a seat 17 and straps 16 attached between seat 17 and spring housing assembly 15. The spring housing assembly 15 includes an internal spring attached to strap 14. Strap 14 is attached to clamp 12. Clamp 12 includes spring 13 so that clamp contacts 11 press against the wall to which the clamp 12 is attached.
FIG. 2 shows a front view of a door opening 20. The wall 21 may be made of drywall, plaster, wood paneling, or the like. The molding 22 is placed around the door opening 20 to cover gaps between the door opening 20 and the wall 21. The doorway jumper 10 hangs from the top of the door opening 20 with the clamp 12 typically attached to the wall 21 in the wall area 23 above the molding 22. A baby, infant, toddler, or a small child, herein termed "infant," may be placed into the seat 17 of the doorway jumper 10, thereby allowing the infant to be held aloft in the door opening 20. The straps 14, 16 of the doorway jumper 10 are adjusted such that the infant may be held aloft in the door area 20 such that the infant may make contact with the floor with his/her feet. The infant may then jump up and down or swing in the door opening 20.
As the infant moves in the door opening 20, the clamp contacts 11 may slide up, down, or sideways, or otherwise move around in the wall area 23. As the clamp contacts 11 move around in the wall area 23, portions of the wall 21 in the wall area 23 may be damaged. The clamp contacts 11 may strip off paint or dent or scratch the wall 21 in the wall area 23. In addition, if the clamp contacts move enough towards an edge of the vertical door jambs, an infant in the doorway jumper 10 may strike an edge of the vertical door jambs with a part of his/her body, thus possibly injuring the infant. Furthermore, if the infant makes sufficient jarring motions, the clamp 12 of the doorway jumper 10 may itself twist such that the clamp 12 detaches from the wall 21 in the wall area 23, thereby causing the infant to fall to the floor and possibly resulting in the infant being struck by the clamp 12 of the doorway jumper 10.
The Graco Bumper Jumper®, Twist 'n Shout™ product provides a clampless jumper apparatus for non-doorway areas by installing to the ceiling through a ceiling-mounted eye bolt. The Graco jumper apparatus provides strong support, however installing the jumper apparatus is difficult for the homeowner, and detaching the jumper apparatus from or attaching the jumper apparatus to the eye-bolt is difficult because it is at ceiling height.
Therefore a need exists for preventing the doorway jumper 10 from detaching from the wall 21 and for protecting the wall 21 in the wall area 23 from being damaged by the clamp contacts 11. In addition, a need exists for allowing the clamp-type doorway jumper 10 to be used in non-doorway areas, such as passageways in which there are exposed or wrapped beams. Furthermore, a need exists for a doorway jumper 10 that is easy to install and easy to attach or detach.

Mounting bracket and clamp contact for doorway jumper apparatus


A composition and method of removing hydrocarbons from a contaminated sludge which comprises hydrocarbons, solid particles and water is disclosed. The method comprises the steps of providing a contaminated sludge including hydrocarbons and solid particles such that the hydrocarbons are bound to at least some of the solid particles; applying a treatment fluid to the contaminated sludge, the treatment fluid comprising water, a silicate, a nonionic surfactant, an anionic surfactant, a phosphate builder and a caustic compound; contacting the contaminated sludge with the treatment fluid for a time sufficient to remove the hydrocarbons from at least some of the solid particles; separating the hydrocarbons from the treatment fluid and from the solid particles; recovering the hydrocarbons; and recycling the treatment fluid by applying the treatment fluid to additional contaminated sludge.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a method of removing hydrocarbons from a solid particulate material, preferably from contaminated sludge containing hydrocarbons and solid particles. Even more preferably, the invention is directed to a method of removing oil from contaminated sludge from oil refineries, ballast sludge in supertankers, and also a method of removing hydrocarbons from drill cuttings contaminated with oil-based drilling fluids.
2. Description Of Related Art
Contaminated sludge from oil refineries, drilling operations, and other chemical and industrial operations often contain solid particles of different physical and chemical compositions, hydrocarbons, and water. One object of the present invention is to efficiently remove and recover hydrocarbons from the contaminated sludge. A preferred embodiment of this invention involves treating a specific type of contaminated sludge, namely, "drill cuttings," which are collected at drilling sites. During drilling operations, the drilling fluid or "mud" is circulated down into the wellbore to lubricate the drill bit and also to remove rock particles from the formation being drilled. A problem exists regarding the disposal of these drill cuttings, particularly when the drilling fluid or mud is oil-based or hydrocarbon-based. That is, the oil from the drilling fluid (as well as any oil from the formation) becomes associated or adsorbed to the surfaces of the drilling cuttings. The drill cuttings are then an environmentally hazardous material, and disposal is often a problem. The present invention offers an advantageous method of treating the drill cuttings, preferably at the location of the drilling rig, e.g., as a separate step for the drilling cuttings.
Solid-liquid separation processes in general have been used to remove solids from liquid phases with varying degrees of success. Currently, industry uses expensive filtration and centrifuge operations as well as heat and chemical treatments to treat contaminated sludge and other waste materials. A major problem industry is facing, however, is the separation and recovery of hydrocarbons from contaminated sludge. One reason for these difficulties is the fact that hydrocarbons bind to the surface of solid particles in the contaminated sludge, and to some extent, the hydrocarbons are absorbed by the solid particles, making recovery of the hydrocarbons more difficult. Furthermore, it is difficult to remove and recover hydrocarbons from concrete particulate solid surfaces because the hydrocarbons occupy the crevices between the particles.
It is known that various chemical treatments are useful to remove hydrocarbons from solid particles. These attempts have certain shortcomings. Most notably, some of these chemical treatments contain harsh solvents, including hydrocarbon based solvents, and other toxic elements, all of which can be harmful to the environment. Also, some of these chemical treatments react with the hydrocarbon, thereby preventing recovery of the hydrocarbon. Furthermore, since some of the chemical treatments react with the hydrocarbon, the chemical treatment can often not be reused or recycled. Still further, some chemical treatments are ineffective in removing and recovering certain types of hydrocarbons from contaminated sludge. For example, some chemical treatments only allow dissolution of motor oils. Still other chemical treatments only allow dissolution of vegetable oils and animal oils. Accordingly, it is another object of the present invention to develop an alternative method to remove and recover hydrocarbons from a contaminated sludge which allows recovery of numerous different types of oils and hydrocarbons, such as crude oils, motor oils, synthetic oils, graphite oils, vegetable oils and animal oils, from the contaminated sludge, as well as allows the treatment fluid to be reused and recycled. In a preferred aspect, as discussed below, a specific version of the invention yields surprisingly effective results in removing various hydrocarbons from the solid particulates and the aqueous environment.

Method of removing hydrocarbons from contaminated sludge


A bonsai training planter structured in the form of a screen walled plant container covered with a sheet material having a preselected opacity. It is preferred that the corners thereof be provided with structural members to which screening is attached. The mesh size of the screening is small enough to hold soil placed within the planter, but large enough to permit roots to grow therethrough. The sheet material is placed over the screening in order to provide a low light environment at and near the screening which is conducive to auxin production. In operation, a seed or seedling is placed in the soil of the bonsai training planter. As dominant roots grow, they reach the screening and then commence to emerge therefrom into air. The portions of the dominant root emerging from the screening dry-out and die. The death of the emergent portion of the dominant root send auxins up the root, thereby inducing feeder root growth along the dominant root. The method according to the present invention continually repeats so as to result in development of a very complex system of feeder roots; the bonsai artist pruning branches in the usual way thereduring. The plant will develop into a bonsai in minimal time with minimal effort on the part of the bonsai artist.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to bonsai techniques used to train plants to develop a complex system of fine sized feeder roots, and more particularly to a planter structured to interact with a plant so as to cause the plant to automatically develop the desired root system characteristic of bonsai cultivation.
2. Description of the Prior Art:
Bonsai is an art form in which tress, such as pines, are grown in carefully controlled conditions so as to produce an end product in which the tree is of diminutive size suitable for placement in a table-top sized, shallow planter, and yet the plant has a very thick trunk and over-all appearance of an adult, full-sized tree. Because of the artistry and the time consuming, laborious processes involved in the attainment of a completed bonsai, these plants are highly prized and of very great value.
Tree development in nature entails the development of two kinds of roots: dominant roots, which are thick sized for providing anchorage for the tree, and feeder roots, which are fine sized for providing nutrient absorption for the tree from the surrounding soil. Only the feeder roots supply nutrients to the tree. For a tree to develop normally, the soil conditions must favor the development of both the dominant and the feeder roots. If not, such as a tree growing in a rock crevice, normal tree development will not occur. As an example, consider a small sapling planted in a small planter of conventional structure, such as a good-sized flower pot. In this case, the dominant roots will continue to grow by simply wrapping around in the soil of the pot, choking development of the feeder roots. Because the feeder roots are essential to the tree's development, in the end the sapling will grow into a stunted tree having the thin trunk and other characteristics of a sapling; it will never acquire the look of an adult tree, which is uniquely possible with bonsai.
The principle upon which bonsai operates is that a tree will grow in its normal developmental mode as long as soil conditions permit continued normal growth of its root system, and that this may be artificially achieved by adroit periodic pruning of the root system and the limbs. Conventional bonsai practice is as follows (see FIG. 1):
Seeds are tested for viability and then planted in predetermined rows in a soil composed of a sand and top soil mixture; the soil is contained in a planter that is situate in a greenhouse. In time, the seeds will germinate and develop into seedlings. Fertilizer application, watering, pest and weed control and other related steps are taken to promote growth. In spring of the second year, the seedlings are lifted from the soil and the developing dominant roots are pruned as shown in FIG. 1. Thereupon, the seedlings are replanted in mounded rows in a soil of high sand content. During the third year, branch development transpires, which is selectively controlled by pinching off unwanted buds and branch parts. In spring of the fourth year, the seedlings are lifted from the soil and again the dominant roots are pruned. After pruning, the seedlings are replanted into mounds. Normally the seedlings are not subjected to pinching in fourth year, but the branches are selectively pruned so as to encourage a desired tree shape, while promoting a thick trunk development. By spring of the fifth year, the seedlings have become saplings; the saplings are again lifted from the soil and are subjected to selective pruning of the dominant roots. The saplings are now replanted. New buds are pinched and trunk development is usually now quite rapid. Artistic pruning of the limbs ensues in following years with an eye on developing the final bonsai. The final bonsai, having a very complex feeder root system with limited dominant rooting, is placed in a shallow bonsai container where it now provides an artistic expression of the bonsai artist.
The steps outlined hereinabove are calculated to limit dominant root development while maximizing feeder root development. This is based upon the principle that if a dominant root is cut, auxins that normally would develop further dominant root length growth are caused to be sent up the root, causing development of feeder root off-shoots from the remaining portion of the cut dominant root. With the establishment of a very complex feeder root system over time, the plant is able to grow above ground not unlike the way it would in the open ground. In order to control growth above ground, the plant is selectively pruned so as to maximize trunk development and to provide an artistic branch system. Importantly, periodic selective pruning of the dominant roots is essential to the development of the feeder roots; this is known as bonsai training of the plant. Without a complexly developed feeder root system, the plant will not grow a thick trunk and otherwise assume an adult tree appearance.
As can be understood from the foregoing description of bonsai practice, the process of providing a good quality bonsai is very time consuming, excessively laborious and very costly.
Accordingly, what is needed is device which permits bonsai to be provided without all the difficulties present in the conventional practice.


A memory is organized with many memory subspaces (db<i>) each including their own read-out circuit (SA<i>). At least one redundant column (Blred) is provided within each subspace in order to compensate for at least one defective column of said subspace. A memory controller is provided for interacting with the memory via a write bus (TD) and a read bus (Q). The memory controller generates a signal (TD<i>) for enabling the redundant column. This signal is provided so as to be conveyed to the read-out circuits of the memory to which the write bus (TD) is connected. Thus, one enables, via the read-out circuits, the redundant column of the memory subspaces which are associated with a defective column address.

1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to memories made as an integrated circuit and, more particularly, to those which include column redundancy circuits. The invention more particularly, but not exclusively, applies to so-called toggle Magnetoresistance Random Access Memories (MRAM).
2. Description of Related Art
An integrated circuit memory includes many memory cells arranged in rows and columns on a very small surface. Each memory cell is then selectable by a word line associated with each row and a bit line associated with each column.
Methods for manufacturing integrated circuit memories very often introduce defects, notably those which affect the memory cells. Also, in order to avoid a too large number of rejects and with a concern to improve manufacturing yields, the manufacturers of these circuits provide a certain number of so-called redundant cells intended to replace the defective cells of the memory if need be.
In practice, for reasons of simplicity, replacement of a defective memory cell is achieved by replacing the totality of the row or of the column including this cell. The memory element, either row or column, which should be replaced, will depend on the type of detected defect. However, within the scope of the present invention, one is only interested in the redundancy of columns. It is therefore common to associate with the memory scheme, redundancy columns intended to be substituted for columns of the memory plane including one or more defects.
For memories of large capacity intended to provide data as n bit words, provision is made for the number of columns to be much larger than n, and, in this case, the columns are arranged in n subspaces of columns each including p columns of cells. Finally, each column comprises m cells, i.e., the memory includes m rows. By considering the aspect of reading data contained in the memory, each column subspace of the memory will provide one bit of the word at the output of the memory, by collecting at each read-out a datum from a determined column of the relevant subspace. Means for column decoding are then provided for each subspace of the memory, intended to select one column from p columns in the relevant subspace.
Column redundancy means, as at least a replacement bit line, are typically provided within each subspace of the memory, with which means a defective bit line from the p bit lines of the subset may be compensated. The stake then consists of enabling these redundancy means within each subspace at the right moment. More specifically, when a bit line is recognized as defective, the memory should be able to prevent its selection to the benefit of selecting the replacement bit line within the relevant column subspace.
For this purpose, the column redundancy means are put into service as a result of tests carried out before making each integrated circuit, with which all the defective bit lines may be listed. Programmable reconfiguration means are then provided in the memory at each column subspace, so that when the test has revealed a faulty element, the latter is automatically replaced with a replacement element selected from the redundant elements, this replacement should be invisible for the user and without any consequences on the performance of the memory. Thus, for the user, substitution of the columns within the memory should be transparent, i.e., he/she is allowed to send to the input for addressing the memory, an address involving a defective column. In practice, these reconfiguration means apply circuits for detecting whether the current address presented to the memory corresponds to that of a defective column and if this is the case, for selecting a redundant column as a replacement for the faulty column.
This automatic replacement is usually carried out by means of a register provided for locally storing a code of the addresses of the defective columns, downloaded beforehand into the memory. The redundancy columns may then be selected by a circuit for enabling redundancy, which essentially comprises decoding means capable of decoding the code of defective addresses locally stored, and of comparing the addresses of columns received by the memory with the addresses of defective columns decoded beforehand. In the case when a defective column address is applied to the memory, it is therefore recognized by the redundancy enabling circuit, the role of which is then to inhibit the corresponding column decoder and to select a redundancy column as a replacement for the defective column. More specifically, in a given subset of columns of the memory, the defective column is definitively inhibited and the redundancy column is definitively enabled in its place.
This state of the art typically corresponds to the redundancy configuration selected for DRAM type memories, for example. Thus, in this context, and as stated above, the column redundancy means are incorporated inside each subspace of columns of the memory, with however the drawback of having to integrate into the memory specific means for enabling these redundancy means, as an adjunct to standard elements such as read and write circuits and address decoders. These additional means which have to be integrated into the memory for managing redundancy, are formed by the local storage means for the code of addresses of defective columns, and their associated decoding means, which deliver a signal for enabling the redundancy, allowing automatic selection of the associated redundancy column and, in parallel, inhibition of selection of the defective column.
Such an architecture for enabling redundancy means inevitably causes a substantial increase in circuit bulkiness (size or area), not only at the level of the actual memory but also at the level of the peripheral circuitry where the circuit density is already very large. Considering the limited amount of space which is generally available in the integrated circuit memories, it would then be advantageous to be able to omit these additional means in order to activate column redundancy means of the memory.
There is a need in the art to find a remedy to the aforementioned drawbacks. It would be advantageous if, with respect to a column redundancy enabling system in an integrated circuit memory, access to the redundant elements did not require provision of means specifically dedicated for this purpose in the memory.

Column redundancy system for an integrated circuit memory


Disclosed herein are a noncontact single side probe and an apparatus and method for testing open and short circuits of pattern electrodes. By feeding power to one end of each of the pattern electrodes and sensing an electrical variation value using a noncontact type single side probe device including an exciter electrode and a sensor electrode as a single module, the open and short circuits of pattern electrodes can be tested by one scanning process. Since the open and short circuits of the pattern electrodes are tested using the noncontact type single side probe device, the pattern electrode can be prevented from being damaged due to a contact failure or pressurized contact and the life span of the probe device can increase compared with a contact type probe device.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a noncontact type single side probe device and an apparatus and method for testing open or short circuits of pattern electrodes using the same, and more particularly to a noncontact type single side probe device capable of testing open and short circuits of pattern electrodes by feeding AC power to one end of each of the pattern electrodes and sensing an electrical variation value using a noncontact type single side probe device including an exciter electrode and a sensor electrode of a noncontact probe electrode as a single module, and an apparatus and method for testing the open and short circuits of the pattern electrodes using the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, open and short circuit in a multi-line cable such as data transmission lines are detected by measuring a resistance between both ends of the cable after each line is separated from the other lines. Accordingly, two or more operators are necessarily required. In case of the cable including a large number of lines, occasionally, a line number is lost and the detection should be repeated, thereby lowering detection reliability and increasing the operation time.
Further, as shown in FIG. 1, in a flat plate display device 10 (e.g., LCD and PDP), open and short circuit may be detected by applying current to one end of each pattern electrode 15 and measuring a voltage at the other end of the corresponding pattern electrode 15. Also, the open and short circuit may be detected by checking conducting lines with a microscope and the like. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 20 denotes a probe block, and reference numeral 30 denotes a pin probe.
Accordingly, at least two probes are required in order to detect the open and short circuit in a single pattern electrode. Thus, a number of probes are required and the cost is increased. Further, a long pattern electrode requires two or more operators for the measurement at different positions, thereby taking a lot of time and man power.
Further, in case of a contact type probe, since the probe is in press-contact with the pattern electrode, a contact error may occur. Further, a scratch may be generated on the pattern electrode serving as a measurement target, thereby causing another error.

Non-contact type apparatus for testing open and short circuits of a plurality of pattern electrodes formed on a panel


An illumination assembly includes a first diode row having first and second multi-chip LED units, and a second diode row having third and fourth multi-chip LED units. The first through fourth multi-chip LED units each includes red, green, and blue LEDs. Light of the red, green, and blue LEDs of the first through fourth multi-chip LED units has a respective primary emission direction (PED). The PEDs of same colored ones of the LEDs of the first and second multi-chip LED units are oriented along one direction. The PEDs of the remaining two LEDs of the first and second multi-chip LED units are oriented in opposite directions from each other. The PEDs of the LEDs of the third and fourth multi-chip LED units are oriented in opposite directions as compared to those of the LEDs of the first and second multi-chip LED units, respectively.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an illumination assembly, more particularly to an illumination assembly having a multi-chip light emitting diode (LED) array.
2. Description of the Related Art
White light may be obtained using LEDs by combining a LED with other materials, or by combining a plurality of differently colored LEDs. As an example of the former method, a blue LED is used in conjunction with a phosphor powder that emits a yellow light when excited. The yellow light emitted by the phosphor powder mixes with the blue light of the LED that has not been absorbed by the phosphor powder to generate white light. In the latter method, an additive color technique is employed by using differently colored LEDs in combination, thus obtaining white light. That is, white light is obtained by combining light irradiated from red, green, and blue LEDs. Two different conventional configurations employing this latter approach are described below.
FIG. 1 schematically shows a conventional LED cluster arrangement. LEDs are arranged in a matrix of a plurality of RGB (or RGGB) clusters 10 to thereby utilize the additive color phenomenon to obtain white light. In this configuration, if it is desired to obtain a brightness roughly equal to that obtained using, for example, a cold cathode fluorescent lamp, a large number of the LEDs need to be used, thus raising costs. Further, if a small number of the LEDs in the cluster arrangement malfunction, the purity of the white light is reduced, and other non-white colors may become visible. In addition, with this configuration, a color combination distance (i.e., a minimum distance from the LEDs at which the additive color phenomenon takes effect) is approximately 30 mm, which may be considered excessive for some applications.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a conventional multi-chip LED unit. In the particular configuration shown in the drawing, three discrete red, green, and blue LEDs 11 are integrated in a single package. The LEDs 11 realize a Lambertian light distribution so that white light is obtained by combining light of the LEDs 11. A cylindrical transparent lens (not shown) is typically used in the multi-chip LED unit to enhance light-emission efficiency. However, since it is not possible for all three of the LEDs 11 to be positioned on a center axis of the transparent lens, the light emitted from each of the LEDs 11 is skewed in three different directions and is not projected vertically. As a result, the color combination distance is increased, and the additive color effect is degraded.


Devices, systems, and methods described herein can provide a simulated fluid environment similar to the mother's womb to recreate an ideal or more familiar environment for infants who are born before their ideal due date. In some embodiments, the premature infant amniotic bath incubator can comprise an incubating tank with synthetic or simulated amniotic fluid, a heating element(s), a temperature sensor(s), and/or thermostat(s) for temperature regulation.

The systems, devices, and methods disclosed herein relate to the care of infants, and particular prematurely born infants. Preterm birth affects about one of every nine infants born in the United States. This amounts to 400,000 infants each year in the US alone and nearly 15 million globally. Preterm birth is a leading contributor to infant death and the leading cause of long-term neurological disabilities in children. Of those born preterm, 75,464 babies were very preterm, or born before 32 weeks, contributing to the largest number of infant deaths. These infants on average had a length of stay of 46.2 days in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
Care of premature infants generally involves careful control of the environment surrounding the infant. Due to heightened risks of health complications, maintaining body temperature and sterility is of primary importance. Infants in general and preterm infants in particular have relatively large surface area to mass ratios, making them extremely vulnerable to heat loss. They also exhibit thin and poor thermal insulation compared to adults and a small amount of mass to act as a heatsink.
Current methods of care generally include swaddling the infant in warm clothing and providing heating apparatuses. While these apparatuses may adequately warm an infant to some degree, they fail to address issues of dermal desiccation even when humidified air is provided. They may also result in difficulty of movement due to the infant's removal from a fluid environment. Further, difficulties associated with administering medications may arise as well.
There is therefore a need for a premature infant incubator that allows movement and exercise of infant arms and legs within a fluid environment, improves thermal regulation of the infant, and surrounds the infant in a fluid environment. There is also a need for an incubation method that provides transdermal hydration of the infant and transdermal topical nutrition and pharmaceutical treatment for the infant through addition of nutritional and/or pharmaceutical content to the simulated amniotic fluid.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


Sintering die-attach materials provide a lead-free solution for semiconductor packages with superior electrical, thermal and mechanical performance to prior art alternatives. Wafer-applied sintering materials form a metallurgical bond to both semiconductor die and adherends as well as throughout the die-attach joint and do not remelt at the original process temperature. Application to either one or both sides of the wafer, as well as paste a film application are disclosed.

In order for a semiconductor device to be used in an electronic product, it must be electrically, mechanically and, in some cases, thermally interconnected to a semiconductor package. Conventionally, mechanical interconnection is achieved with an adhesive material (e.g. a polymer material) in paste or film form. Electrical connection is conventionally achieved by attaching thin gold wires or tabs between the electrical outputs of the semiconductor device and the inputs of the semiconductor package. When thermal conduction is required, such as for power devices, the conventional strategy is to replace the polymer mechanical adhesive with a solder preform that is disposed between the semiconductor device and semiconductor package at the time of assembly.
There is continuous pressure to reduce cost, increase throughput and yield, and increase performance and reliability in packaged semiconductor devices. Simplification of the package is one way to achieve these goals. If a single material, applied onto a wafer rather than to individual die that are singulated (diced) from such a wafer, can be used to create the mechanical, electrical and thermal connection between the die and a package with no compromise in performance, that would be a very advantageous configuration.
Die-attach materials are used to connect semiconductor die to lead-frames, other die, heat sinks and the like. Die-attach materials are usually solders or filled polymeric materials. The fillers may be electrically conductive or non-conductive depending on the requirements of the connection. Early versions of the die-attach material primarily provided a mechanical bond; However, as semiconductor devices have advanced to more complex and powerful uses, they have become more heat-generating during operation, and thus conduction of waste heat, has become a desired features for the die-attach material. Similarly, electrical conduction can be desirable for some applications. Early die-attach materials were primarily applied by dispensing or printing operations; but as component density has increased, achieving a more controlled and consistent bond-line with a minimal fillet, than can be provided by earlier methods, has become increasingly important. Film and wafer-back-coating (WBC) die-attach materials address the challenges posed by component density increases and also reduce the yield losses that are frequently associated with application by dispensing onto singulated die. Film- and WBC-based die-attach materials also significantly improve throughput by replacing a repetitive, die-by-die operation with a single application operation at the wafer level. The primary deficiency of conventional film- and WBC-based die-attach materials is that they do not have particularly high thermal conductivity.
For high power applications, where solder is the die-attach material of choice due to its high thermal conduction, current film and WBC die-attach materials are not a viable solution. Solders, however, have some detrimental characteristics as well. One major drawback to solders is that the only choices that will not remelt during subsequent assembly operations are gold-tin and high-lead solders. Gold-tin is, of course, very expensive and lead is becoming increasingly unacceptable in electronic products due to toxicity. Further, solders have a tendency to form voids in the bond line, both during die bonding and during subsequent thermal excursions. These voids create hot spots of poor thermal conductivity under the die and increase the requirement for post-bonding inspection to ensure acceptable results.
It would therefore be advantageous to have a die-attach material that could be applied at the wafer-level like a film or paste, while having the thermal and electrical performance of a solder die-attach material (e.g. RDS(on) stability through multiple reflow, JEDEC L1 reliability). It would also be advantageous for a wafer-applied die-attach material to provide the superior control of bond-line size and shape that film and WBC die-attach materials offer. Further, it would be advantageous if the wafer-applied die-attach material were lead-free and did not remelt like solder during subsequent assembly steps.
Thus, there remains a need for improved materials and methods that combine the desired properties of both solder and film or WBC die-attach materials. Optimally, such materials could be applied to either or both sides of a wafer by any of a variety of process techniques; could be stored for a period of time after application and suitable initial processing, prior to die singulation and placement; are b-stageable such that after b-staging or initially processing they are substantially tack-free; would maintain a controlled bond-line thickness during die attachment; would not create large fillet areas around the die during die attachment; could be applied in a pattern on the wafer or as a continuous coating; would be lead-free; could be processed at a temperature below 260° C. and would not remelt during subsequent thermal excursions (e.g. during component assembly); and provides high and stable thermal and electrical conductance between the die and the adherend to which it is joined.

Semiconductor packaging containing sintering die-attach material


The present invention provides a golf ball comprising a core and a cover covering the core, wherein the cover layer comprises a 3-dimensional shaped metal oxide having at least three needle-shaped parts. Blending the 3-dimensional shaped metal oxide into the cover layer enhances the rigidity of the resultant cover for the hardness thereof. In the case that the cover layer has the slab hardness of 57D or more in shore D hardness, this property can be used to enhance the resilience without lowering the shot feeling. On the other hand, in the case that the cover layer has the slab hardness less than 57D in shore D hardness, this property can be used to enhance the resilience without lowering the spin rate.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a golf ball, more particularly to a technique which improves the cover of the golf ball.
2. Description of the Related Art
The resilience (flight distance), durability, shot feeling, control, abrasion resistance are required for golf balls, and the various fillers are added into portions constituting the golf ball body to improve the above requirements.
For example, Japanese patent publication No. S60-53164A discloses a solid golf ball having a high resilience and improved flight performance. The solid golf ball comprises a core and a cover covering the core. The core is made from polymer blends having the gravity of not more than 1.30 in the case of the small sized golf ball, or from polymer blends having the gravity of not more than 1.5 in the case of the large sized golf ball. In addition, the cover is formed to have the gravity of not less than 1.0, or a weight ball is placed in the center of the core. Japanese patent publication No. H10-137365 discloses a golf ball comprises a cover. In the golf ball having the cover made from the cover material including a thermoplastic resin or a thermoplastic elastomer as a main component, the filamental aluminum borate whisker is formulated into the cover material. Japanese patent publication No. H10-179799 discloses a golf ball having a core comprising a thermoplastic resin or a thermoplastic elastomer, wherein the filamental aluminum borate whisker is formulated into the core.


A toner for electrophotography having good electrification stability even under high-temperature and high-humidity conditions is disclosed, which comprises toner particles having a radical-formable substance at least on the surfaces thereof and a copolymer adherent to said surfaces, said copolymer containing as monomer units at least one vinyl group-containing carboxylic acid represented by formulae (I), (II), and (III) and a fluorine-containing vinyl monomer: ##STR1## wherein R.sub.1 represents hydrogen atom or methyl group and n is an integer of 1 to 8.

Various kinds of toners are known in which fluorine-containing compounds are provided on the surfaces of toner particles for the purpose of obtaining improved development properties.
For example, JP-A-58-66950 (the term "JP-A" as used herein means an "unexamined published Japanese patent application") discloses a capsule toner in which an organic fluorine compound is provided on the capsule surfaces; JP-A-59-181358 discloses a capsule toner in which a fluorine-containing resin is provided on the capsule surfaces; JP-A-60-126657 discloses a capsule toner prepared by using a fluorine-containing compound as one of interfacially polymerizable monomers for forming the shell material; JP-A-61-120160 discloses a capsule toner having electrification properties imparted by reacting a fluorinecontaining alcohol with carboxyl or isocyanate groups present on the shell; and JP-A-63-177145, JP-A-63-177147, and JP-A-63-177148 disclose a capsule toner in which high-molecular chains have been formed on the shell surfaces by graft polymerization of a monomer containing a fluorine atom as a charge-control group.
However, all of the toners described above have been still unsatisfactory. Illustratively stated, the toner disclosed in JP-A-58-66950 is disadvantageous in that the independence of electrification on the environment, especially on humidity, is poor because the organic fluorine compound used therein contains, in each molecule thereof, a hydrophilic group besides a hydrophobic group including the fluorine atom. The toner disclosed in JP-A-59-181358 is defective in that since the fluorine-containing resin used is a polymer or copolymer whose structure is the same as hydrocarbon substituted with fluorine atoms, the adhesion between the resin and the capsule shells is so poor that the resin readily peels off. The capsule toner disclosed in JP-A-60-126657 has a drawback that it is difficult to attain satisfactory properties with respect to both the mechanical properties of shells and the electrification properties of toner by use of the same shell material and, hence, latitude in selection of the shell materials is narrow. The toner disclosed in JP-A-61-120160 has the following problems. In the case where capsule shells are formed by way of interfacial polymerization, it is difficult to allow carboxyl or isocyanate groups to be present on the shell surfaces because both of these groups are functional groups that take part in interfacial polymerization. Further, the reactions of these functional groups with an alcohol do not sufficiently proceed in an aqueous solution, resulting in necessity of use of an organic solvent. Therefore, a solvent-recovery apparatus should be provided and the production equipment should be explosion-proofed, increasing the production cost of the toner. The toner disclosed in JP-A-63-177145, JP-A-63-177147, and JP-A-63-177148 is disadvantageous in that vinyl fluoride, which is the only example shown therein as the monomer containing a fluorine atom, is gaseous at room temperature and, hence, grafting of such vinyl fluoride onto capsule surfaces necessitates a special reactor.
It has further been proposed to maintain the electrification stability of a toner by use of a metal complex or the like. However, this technique has many disadvantages. For example, it is difficult to control the dispersion of a metal complex in a toner, and since metal complexes generally have colors, they cannot be used with colored toners.

Toner for electrophotography and process for producing the same


A gas turbine has a gas turbine rotor including a plurality of rotary disks each having an opening of a circular shape formed through its central portion, the rotary disk including a pair of hub portions formed respectively on opposite sides thereof, and a pair of in-low portions formed respectively at the opposite sides thereof. The gas turbine rotor also includes a plurality of spacers each having an opening of a circular shape formed through its central portion, the spacer having a pair of in-low portions formed respectively at opposite sides thereof. The rotary disks and the spacers are alternately stacked together in such a manner that the opposite sides of each of the spacers contact opposed side surfaces of the adjacent hub portions, respectively, and that the in-low portions of each of the spacers are engaged respectively with the in-low portions of the adjacent rotary disks. The stack of rotary disks and spacers are fastened together in an axial direction by stacking bolts. A thickness of that portion of the rotary disk extending radially from an inner periphery of the hub portions to an inner peripheral surface of the rotary disk is so determined that stresses, developing at the inner peripheral surface of the rotary disk, can be made generally equal to one another over an entire area thereof.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a rotor construction of a gas turbine, and more particularly to a gas turbine rotor which can achieve a high-efficiency and large-output design of the gas turbine.
2. Description of the Related Art
A configuration of a conventional rotary disk, used in a gas turbine, is based on an idea of such a design that a hub portion, defining an abutment surface for contact with an adjacent disk, is formed on each side of a disk in the form of an equal-stress disk in which stresses, developing at radial positions, are equal or uniform in the entire radial direction.
Recently, however, in gas turbine facilities, the system has been required to have a high-efficiency in order to save energy and also to protect the environment. One method of achieving such a high-efficiency design is to increase a turbine inlet temperature.
Also, with an increased demand for electric power and particularly with the increase of peak electric power, a gas turbine has been required to produce a large output. One method of achieving such a large-output design is to increase an annular cross-sectional area of a gas flow passage.
With the increase of the turbine inlet temperature, an environmental temperature, to which the rotary disks are exposed, increases. Generally, the strength of a material of which the rotary disks are made is lowered with the increase of the environmental temperature. Therefore, it is necessary to increase the thickness of the rotary disks so as to reduce a developed stress, thereby compensating for the lowered strength of the material.
The increase of the annular cross-sectional area of the gas flow passage invites the increase of a centrifugal force acting on blades, and as a result a stress, developing at a central portion of the rotary disk, increases, and therefore in this case, also, the thickness of the rotary disk need to be increased in order to reduce a developed stress.
As shown in FIG. 8, a conventional gas turbine, in which a gas turbine rotor of the type described is used, broadly comprises a compressor portion 100, a combustor portion 200, and a turbine portion 300. In this gas turbine, the air, drawn from the atmosphere, is compressed in the compressor 100, and in the combustor portion 200, the thus compressed air is mixed with fuel and is burned, thereby producing combustion gas of high temperature and pressure. The thus produced combustion gas is expanded in the turbine portion 300 to produce power, and then is discharged as exhaust gas to the atmosphere. Part of the power, produced in the turbine portion 300, is used to drive the compressor portion 100, and the remainder of the power other than the power used to drive a compressor of the compressor portion 100 serves as driving power for the gas turbine, and a generator (not shown) is driven by this driving power of the gas turbine.
In order to deal with the above increased-thickness problem, there has been proposed a gas turbine rotor of such a gas turbine having the construction shown in FIG. 9. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing the construction of a turbine portion of a gas turbine V84.3 of Siemens made public at Yokohama International Gas Turbine Institute (1995). More specifically, FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a stacked rotor in which disks, each having a plurality of moving blades fitted therein, are stacked together in a multi-stage manner in a direction of a rotational axis, and a left side is an upstream earlier-stage side while a right side is a downstream later-stage side. In FIG. 9, reference numeral 1 denotes the disk, reference numeral 2 the moving blade, reference numeral 3 a stacking bolt, reference numeral 4 a stationary blade, and reference numeral 5 a shroud. The disks 1 are stacked and fastened together by the stacking bolt. 3 passing through holes formed respectively through central portions of the disks 1.
In order to suppress a large centrifugal stress, produced at the central portion of the rotary disk 1 of FIG. 9 in accordance with centrifugal forces acting on the moving blades 2 and the outer peripheral portion of the disk, to within an allowable range, and also to compensate for the lowered strength of the disk material due to the increase of the environmental temperature, the rotary disk 1, shown in FIG. 9, is increasing in thickness continuously (progressively) toward the central portion thereof, and is increased in thickness at its innermost peripheral portion as much as possible so that the rotary disk 1 almost contacts the adjacent rotary disks 1 at their innermost peripheral portion.
It is expected that gas turbines are required to achieve a higher efficiency and a larger output, and to meet these requirements, if the thickness of the inner peripheral portion of each rotary disk is increased as proposed in the prior art technique, it is possible that the adjacent rotary disks contact each other at their inner peripheral portions, and therefore this method of increasing the thickness of the rotary disk is limited. A surface of a circular hole or opening (hereinafter referred to as "inner hole"), formed through the central portion of the rotary disk, is pulled radially outwardly at its central portion to a larger degree by the tensile centrifugal forces acting on the outer peripheral portion of the disk and the moving blades. Therefore, there occurs the large difference in radial deformation between the central portion of the surface of the central hole and the opposite (right and left) side portions of the surface of the central hole, and the correspondent stress component in the vicinity of the central portion of the surface of the inner hole locally increases since compressive stress components in the direction of the thickness of the rotary disk act on this central portion. Thus, there has been encountered a problem that merely by increasing the thickness of the inner peripheral portion of the rotary disk, this localized peak correspondent stress can not be reduced satisfactorily.


For reduced electrical resistance of series connections between columns of photoelectric conversion elements in a flexible photoelectric conversion module, the columns are connected by a flexible connecting member which connects terminal electrodes at the ends of the columns. Manufacture of the module is especially convenient when the flexible connecting member is a conductive tape as also used for the terminals.

Amorphous semiconductor films, such as amorphous silicon films, are usually deposited on a substrate from a vapor phase, e.g., by decomposing raw gaseous material by glow discharge. Vapor phase deposition facilitates obtaining a film with a large surface area. Such amorphous semiconductor films have been utilized as photoelectric conversion films in low-cost photoelectric conversion modules. A polymer or metal film used as a flexible substrate facilitates obtaining a thin and light-weight photoelectric conversion module, and facilitates continuous growth of a photoelectric conversion film on an elongated substrate.
Japanese Patent Document No. H06-342924 discloses a module, as shown in FIG. 2, for efficiently generating electric power from an amorphous silicon photoelectric conversion film on a flexible substrate. The module includes a flexible polymer film substrate 1 and a plurality of columns of photoelectric conversion elements on the substrate. The photoelectric conversion elements are formed by dividing a photoelectric conversion film on the flexible substrate, a first electrode layer on the photoelectric conversion film and a second electrode layer between the substrate and the conversion film, into rows and columns. Third electrodes 2 are on the back surface of the substrate 1. A third electrode 2 is connected through holes in the substrate 1 to a transparent first electrode on one of two adjoining elements and to the second electrode between another one of the adjoining elements and the substrate. The third electrodes 2 are formed by dividing a metal electrode layer deposited on the back surface of the substrate 1, except the periphery thereof, into rows and columns.
To connect the columns of the photoelectric conversion elements, a connecting electrode, connected to the first electrode on an end of a column 20 of the connecting electrodes 2, is connected to another connecting electrode, connected to the second electrode on an end of an adjacent column 20 of the connecting electrodes 2. This connection is made by forming inter-column connecting portions 21 consisting of two connecting electrodes connected to each other.
A positive terminal 41 is led out from a positive electrode 31, i.e. a transparent first electrode on an end of one of the outermost columns 20 of the connecting electrodes. A negative terminal 42 is led out from a negative electrode 32, i.e. a second electrode on an end of another one of the outermost columns 20 of the connecting electrodes.
A plurality of the photoelectric conversion modules of FIG. 2 are connected in parallel with wiring 5 as shown in FIG. 3 to obtain an area sufficient to perform a desired photoelectric conversion. The methods for lead-out of the terminals and for parallel connection of the modules are disclosed in Japanese Patent Documents No. H07-22640 and H07-99336.
The photoelectric conversion modules of FIGS. 2 and 3 have the following disadvantages:
(1) For tight bonding of the metal film for the inter-column connecting portion 21, this film is made thin, e.g., of silver 1000 Angstroms thick. As a result, the inter-column connecting portion 21 has considerable electrical resistance. Since only half of the inter-column connecting portion 21 is utilized for photoelectric conversion, the other half is dead or inactive.
(2) Typically, laser patterning is used for dividing the photoelectric conversion film and the electrode layers into rows and columns. Even though the horizontal width of the module is greater than the vertical length, as shown in the figures, sufficient positional precision is still required in patterning longitudinal lines. This is difficult because the substrate tends to deform. Also, the time required for patterning is increased because of position control.
(3) The terminals 41 and 42 are often led out by soldering conductive tape, by bonding conductive tape with conductive adhesive, or by using conductive and adhesive tapes. Adhesives or adhesive tapes tend to exude from their proper locations.
(4) It is necessary to connect wiring 5, in addition to bonding the terminals 41 and 42 for parallel connection. As two kinds of conductors have to be dealt with, the connecting process is complicated, cost is increased, and yield is reduced.
(5) Since the wiring 5 is visible from the outside, the conventional flexible photoelectric conversion module has a poor appearance.

Flexible photoelectric conversion module and method for its manufacture


The present invention provides compounds of formula 1 ##STR1## or pharmaceutical acceptable salts thereof wherein A and R.sub.1 are as defined in the claims which are antibacterial agents.

Antibacterial agents such as oxazolidinones are a class of known orally-active, synthetic antibacterial agents and there are numerous references in the art disclosing a variety of oxazolidinone derivatives. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,705,799 and 5,523,403 and European Patent Application 0,316,594 disclose substituted phenyl-2-oxazolidinones, including the sulfides, sulfoxides, sulfones, sulfonamides, nitrites, acetamides and a tropone ring. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,948,801; 5,254,577 and 5,130,316 disclose arylbenzene oxazolidinyl compounds, wherein the aryl includes the (un)substituted phenyl and pyridyl groups. European Patent Applications 0,697,412; 0,694,544; 0,694,543 and 0,693,491 disclose 5 to 9-membered heteroaryl-oxazolidinones having one to three atoms selected from the group consisting of sulfur, nitrogen and oxygen.
This invention describes isoxazoline derivatives which are effective as antibacterial agents. The compounds of the invention are novel and distinct from all other oxazolidinones in that the usual oxazolidinone rings are replaced by an isoxazoline moiety. These compounds have antibacterial activity comparable to the corresponding oxazolidinones. They are effective against a number of human and veterinary pathogens, including gram-positive aerobic bacteria such as multiply-resistant staphylococci and streptococci, as well as anaerobic organisms such as bacteroides and clostridia species, and acid-fast organisms such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium avium.

Isoxazoline derivatives useful as antimicrobials


To extend the transmission distance with the voltage supply source and improve the communication performance of PLCs Solution. The power supply circuit includes a step-down DC/DC converter to which a voltage supplied from the power line is input and to which an input voltage is stepped down and output, a step-up/down DC/DC converter to which a voltage output from the step-down DC/DC converter or a voltage supplied from the power line is input and to which the input voltage is stepped up or stepped down and output to the power line communication circuit, a switch circuit for connecting an input of the step-up/down DC/DC converter to an output of the step-down DC/DC converter or power line, a voltage monitoring circuit for monitoring a voltage supplied from the power line, and a control circuit for controlling connection of the switch circuit based on the voltage value of the voltage supplied from the power line.

The present invention relates to a power supply circuit, and the present invention can be suitably applied to, for example, a power supply circuit for power line communication (PLC: Power Line Communication).
Power line communication (hereinafter, referred to as PLC as appropriate) is to perform PLC communication using AC or DC power lines.
For example, Japanese unexamined Patent Application publication JP-A-2017-168954 discloses a power supply circuit for an AC-PLC using an AC power line. The power supply circuit disclosed in JP-A-2017-168954 converts an AC voltage supplied from a voltage supply source via the AC power line to a DC voltage and supplies the converted DC voltage to a communication device.

Power supply circuit, power supply system, and control method


A continuous firing type trigger structure of a toy gun (air soft gun/BB-gun) includes a valve body disposed behind the output port of a magazine clip in air communication with the gas outlet of a high-pressure gas can, an enclosed socket connected to the rear side of the valve body, a valve tube inserted through the valve body, a spring that pushes the valve tube forwards to keep the air inlet of the valve tube not in communication with the inside space of the valve body, and a piston inserted into the enclosed socket and fixedly connected to a sliding shell on the outside of the toy gun such that the valve tube is moved with the piston forwards (or backwards) to let a high pressure gas be discharged out of the high-pressure gas can into the valve tube to drive an airsoft gun out of the toy gun and to force the piston and the sliding shell backwards after triggering of the trigger of the toy gun, for enabling the piston and the sliding shell to be immediately returned by a return spring for a next firing operation. A hammer is pivoted to the toy gun and releasably secured in place by a spring-supported sear for firing one single airsoft bullet per each hammering action.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a toy gun (air soft gun/BB-gun) and more particularly, to a continuous firing type trigger structure for toy gun (air soft gun/BB-gun).
2. Description of the Related Art
An air soft gun/BB-gun is a tool for training of shooting techniques or playing of a shooting game. An air soft gun/BB-gun utilizes a high pressure gas to drive airsoft bullets out of the gun barrel, i.e., an air soft gun/BB-gun comprises an accommodation chamber accommodating a high-pressure gas can and a valve tube for guiding out discharged high pressure gas from the high-pressure gas can to drive an airsoft bullet out of the gun barrel. However, the user must pull the firing mechanism to the initial position manually after firing of one airsoft bullet so that the air soft gun/BB-gun can be operated to fire another airsoft bullet again. This single firing mode toy gun is less attractive to most people. Therefore, continuous firing mode trigger structures are created. However, because these continuous firing mode trigger structures are commonly formed of a big number of parts, their fabrication requires much time and labor, increasing the manufacturing cost. Further, the common back sliding action of the gun barrel to cause a bullet firing action according to the continuous firing mode trigger structures does not simulate the firing operation of a real gun.

Continuous firing type trigger structure for toy gun


In the meat processing industry, maintaining a clean and efficient environment can be important. Over the years, modular conveyor belts have become a commonplace component of meat processing operations. To provide an efficient and long lasting conveyor system, sprocket driven modules are provided with improved configurations which result in improved belt tracking and reduce incidents of mechanical failure. Specifically, these improvements include a conveyor module having a central drive bar having alternating crest pairs and troughs along its top, connected by shoulders that enable improved driving and tracking while being structurally strong and easy to clean.

In the meat and meat packing industries, conveyor belts and conveyor systems are commonly utilized to transport meat in processing plants.
The most frequently employed conveyor systems comprise a number of interlocking conveyor modules linked together to form a continuous conveyor belt, which is driven by a sprocket. Some examples of these types of conveyor systems are U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,925,016, 6,423,279, 3,602,364, 4,072,062, 4,080,842, 4,213,527, and 4,556,142. Some systems both drive the belt and track the belt with the sprockets. Many of these devices, however, either lack adequate drive surfaces on the belt or provide inadequate tracking, allowing the belt to wander.
Therefore, there is a need for a conveyor system that addresses at least some of the problems associated with the conventional systems. In particular, a conveyor system is needed that is easy to drive, without fear of frequent failure, or disengagement between the sprocket and conveyor belt.


A network of scopes, including one or more lead scopes and one or more follower scopes, is provided to allow the respective scopes to track the same presumed target. A lead scope locates a target and communicates target position data of the presumed target to the follower scope. The follower scope uses the target position data and its own position data to generate electronic control signals for use by follower scope to make position movements so as to re-position the follower scope from its current target position to move towards the target position defined by the target position data received from the lead scope. At least the second scope is mounted to, or integrated into, a vehicle, which uses the target position data to move to a new location so as to allow the second scope to better view the target.

A sight or optical viewer which incorporate lenses to magnify an image or simply passes through light without magnification, also referred to as a "scope," is a sighting device that is based on an optical refracting telescope or other optical viewing device. It includes some form of graphic image pattern (a reticle or cross-hairs) mounted in an optically appropriate position in its optical system to give an accurate aiming point. Telescopic sights are used with all types of systems that require accurate aiming but are most commonly found on firearms, particularly rifles. A telescopic sight may include an integrated rangefinder (typically, a laser rangefinder) that measures distance from the observer's sighting device to a target.
A compass is an instrument used for navigation and orientation that shows direction relative to the geographic "cardinal directions,", or "points.". A "compass rose" diagram shows the directions north, south, east, and west as abbreviated initials marked on the compass. When the compass is used, the rose can be aligned with the corresponding geographic directions, so, for example, the "N" mark on the rose really points to the north. In addition to the rose or sometimes instead of it, angle markings in degrees may be shown on the compass. North corresponds to zero degrees, and the angles increase clockwise, so east is 90 degrees, south is 180, and west is 270. These numbers allow the compass to show azimuths or bearings, which are commonly stated in this notation.
GPS data typically provides a three-dimensional location (latitude, longitude, and altitude (elevation)). For example, a sample GPS of a location in Philadelphia is as follows:
Latitude: 39.90130859
Longitude: −75.15197754
Altitude (elevation) relative to sea level: 5 m
Miniaturized GPS devices are known that include a GPS receiver for providing GPS location data and an orientation sensor for providing attitude data. The orientation sensor may derive its data from an accelerometer and a geomagnetic field sensor, or another combination of sensors. One such miniaturized GPS device that is suitable for use in the present invention is a device that is commercially available from Inertial Sense, LLC located in Salem, Utah. This device is marketed as "μINS" and "μINS-2." ("INS" is an industry abbreviation for "Inertial Navigation System.") The μINS" and μINS-2 are GPS-aided Inertial Navigation Systems (GPS/INS). A GPS/INS uses GPS satellite signals to correct or calibrate a solution from an inertial navigation system (INS).
Another known miniature GPS/INS that is suitable for use in the present invention is a device that is commercially available from VectorNav Technologies, LLC located in Dallas, Tex. This device is marketed as "VN-300" and is a dual-antenna GPS/INS. The dual-antenna feature in the VN-300 allows it to provide accurate compass data.
Network technology is well known in the art. Each device in a network is often referred to as a node and nodes can be formed into a network using a variety of network topologies including hub and spoke and mesh. In a cellular based communication system, nodes communicate through one or more base stations which in turn are directly or indirectly connected to a mobile switching center (MSC). MSCs are interconnected based on industry standards which enable nodes in a cellular network to communicate with other nodes that are connected to different based stations. There are numerous cellular standards such as GSM, LTE and CDMA and a common feature in cellular networks is the capability of allowing nodes to connect to the Internet.
Broadband satellite communication systems use one or more communication satellites organized into a constellation. There are numerous commercially available satellite systems including systems operated by Globalstar, Iridium and Inmarsat. Like cellular, broadband satellite communication systems allow nodes to connect to the Internet. In cellular terms, each satellite in the constellation acts as a base station and nodes in the system connect to a satellite that is in range. One advantage of satellite systems is that coverage is sometimes better in remote areas.
Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) technology allows nodes to establish a network. Common WLAN standards including 802.11a, b, g and n. 802.11s is a WIFI based mesh networking standard. Bluetooth® is another standard for connecting nodes in a network and mesh networking capability has recently been added to the Bluetooth LE standard by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group. Accordingly, through various standards, it is possible to implement point to point, point to multipoint and mesh WLAN, all of which are suitable for use with the present invention.
Mesh network topology has significant advantages for mobile devices, particularly in remote areas where there is limited cellular service since each node can be connected to multiple other nodes and there is no required path from any node in the network to any other node. A further advantage of a mesh network is that as long as any one node in the mesh network has access to the Internet such as by way of a cellular or satellite connection, all of the nodes in the mesh network have access.
A representative wireless mesh networking chipset that is suitable for use with the present invention is the RC17xx(HP)™ (Tinymesh™ RF Transceiver Module), which is commercially available from Radiocrafts AS and Tinymesh, both located in Norway. The chipset incorporates the Tinymesh application for the creation of mesh networks. The ideal mesh network chipset for the present invention is small, and has high power and a long range, and should operate in unlicensed spectrum.

Devices with network-connected scopes for allowing a target to be simultaneously tracked by multiple other devices


Connector including a housing including a resilient portion provided with a cavity, connectors mounted in the cavity, the resilient portion deformable to increase access to the cavity to facilitate insertion and mounting of the connectors in the cavity, the connectors for mechanically and electrically engaging a first pair of terminals to which an incoming telephone line is connected and a second pair of terminals to which a telephone subscriber line is connected to mount the connector to the pairs of terminals and to electrically interconnect the incoming telephone line with the telephone subscriber line, a telephone circuit is provided in the connector which is connected to the connectors for connection to one of the lines or to both of the lines; alternate connector includes test terminal assemblies for the external testing of the incoming telephone company line and telephone subscriber line and a telephone circuit mounted internally of the connector without dismounting the connector from a connector block to which the incoming telephone company line and telephone subscriber line are connected.

This invention relates generally to a connector block mountable apparatus or connector and telephone circuit and more particularly relates to apparatus or connector for being mounted on the terminals of a connector block, such as the 66 connector block, and for interconnecting an incoming telephone company line with a telephone subscriber line and for providing and connecting a half-ringer in parallel with such lines.
Numerous apparatus or connectors are known to the art for being mounted to the terminals provided on a connector block, such as a 66 block, and which apparatus include various circuits such as attenuation circuits, maintenance terminating units (MTU's) and the like.
However, there appears to be a need in the art for apparatus or connector for being mounted to the terminals of a connector block, such as a 66 block, and which apparatus or connector interconnects an incoming telephone line with a telephone subscriber line and provides and interconnects a telephone circuit, such as a half-ringer, to such lines.

Connector block mountable connector and telephone circuit


The present invention relates to a polymer latex for dip-molding applications including: particles of a carboxylated conjugated diene nitrile latex polymer in combination or association with particles of a latex polymer including at least one oxirane-functional group, to the use of said polymer latex for the production of dip-molded articles or for coating or impregnating a substrate, to compounded compositions including said polymer latex, to a method for making dip-molded articles and to articles made by using said polymer latex.

In the art of dip-molded articles it is in general desired to achieve a high tensile strength and at the same time high elongation of the film forming the dip-molded article to provide high mechanical strength and desired softness to the article. This is particularly important for surgical gloves. Furthermore, in the recent past it was discovered that a growing number of persons show allergic reactions to dip-molded articles, for example a natural rubber latex that has been used commonly in the past in the manufacturing of dip-molded latex products contains up to 5% of non-rubber components such as proteins, lipids and trace elements. Users of natural rubber latex products have developed Type-I hypersensitivity which is caused by the residual extractable latex proteins present in natural rubber products.
Natural as well as artificially made polymer latices are commonly crosslinked using a sulfur vulcanization system including sulfur and sulfur-containing accelerators. The use of these sulfur vulcanization systems in rubber gloves manufacturing can give rise to the delay Type-IV hypersensitivity such as allergic contact dermatitis.
As a result, in the prior art several attempts were made to avoid sulfur vulcanization systems and particularly to provide polymer latices that can be used for the manufacture of dip-molded articles that do not need the standard sulfur vulcanization systems including the sulfur-containing accelerators previously used therein in order to obtain the desired mechanical properties of the final product.
U.S. Pat. No. 9,243,117 discloses a formulation for making an elastomeric rubber thin film without using sulfur and accelerators comprising a carboxylated acrylonitrile butadiene latex, a metal oxide, a pH adjuster to obtain a pH of 9 to 10, and water, wherein the water is added to provide a total solids concentration in the formulation between 18 and 30% and the carboxylated acrylonitrile butadiene latex is a self-crosslinked carboxylated acrylonitrile butadiene latex. The specification of the U.S. patent is silent with respect to what is meant by "self-crosslinked carboxylated acrylonitrile butadiene latex".
U.S. Pat. No. 7,345,111 relates to an acrylic polymer emulsion and gloves formed from this emulsion. The polymer is formed by polymerization of 100% by weight in total of a monomeric mixture comprising 50 to 90% by weight of an alkyl acrylate or an alkyl methacrylate, 9 to 49% by weight of a vinyl monomer, the homopolymer thereof has a glass transition temperature of not lower than 80° C., 0.2 to 100% by weight of a vinyl monomer having a carboxyl group, and 0.1 to 5% by weight of a crosslinkable monomer, which is poly(tetramethyleneether) glycol diglycidyl ether having a molecular weight of no less than 280.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,975,351 discloses a latex resin composition for rubber gloves without sulfur and vulcanization accelerators. The composition comprises a conjugated diene monomer, an ethylenically unsaturated nitrile monomer, an ethylenically unsaturated acid monomer, an ethylenically unsaturated monomer copolymerizable with the ethylenically unsaturated nitrile monomer and the ethylenically unsaturated acid monomer, and a reactive compound which includes two or more reactive groups. Examples of these compounds are polyether glycol diglycidyl ethers.
Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 8,044,138 discloses a carboxylic acid-modified nitrile copolymer latex prepared from, as constituent monomers, a conjugated diene monomer, an ethylenically unsaturated nitrile monomer, an ethylenically unsaturated acid monomer, and an unsaturated monomer having at least one crosslinkable functional group selected from vinyl or epoxy groups. In the examples, glycidyl methacrylate is inter alia used as monomer having at least one crosslinkable functional group.
U.S. 2010/0093913 relates to latex compositions particularly suitable for coating applications comprising a blend of a conventional latex and a nanolatex, wherein either of the latices can be made from monomers that include functional groups for post-crosslinking. In a long list of possible monomers glycidyl methacrylate is mentioned, but not exemplified in the examples of that document. Furthermore, this prior art document is unrelated to dip-molding or the use of the therein disclosed latex for producing dip-molded articles.
Despite these prior art efforts, there is still a need in the industry for a polymer latex used for the manufacturing of dip-molded articles without the necessity to employ a sulfur vulcanization system including accelerators, whereby the desired mechanical properties can be achieved without sulfur vulcanization.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a polymer latex suitable for dip-molding applications that results in improved solvent resistance, as required for industrial glove applications.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide a polymer latex that results in a more economical production of dip-molded articles in terms of reduction of total process time and reduced energy consumption.

Polymer latex for dip-molding applications


A power feeding device receives power from a vehicle and feeds the received power to a load external to the vehicle. A communication unit communicates between the vehicle and the power feeding device. A power supply unit supplies the communication unit with power. When an external power supply has failed, the power feeding device supplies the power that is received from the vehicle to the power supply unit to activate the communication unit, and the power feeding device also transmits via the communication unit to an ECU a specification regarding power supplied from the external power supply to the load. While the ECU follows a predetermined specification to control the power feeding unit, once the specification regarding power supplied from the external power supply to the load has been received, the ECU follows the received specification, rather than the predetermined specification, to control the power feeding unit.

Electric vehicles, hybrid vehicles, fuel cell powered vehicles and other similar vehicles configured to be capable of generating force via an electric motor to drive the vehicle have a power storage device mounted therein to store power to drive the electric motor. When such a vehicle is started, accelerated or the like, the power storage device supplies the motor with power to generate force to drive the vehicle, whereas when the vehicle travels downhill, is decelerated or the like, the motor's regenerative braking generates power which is in turn supplied to the power storage device.
For such a vehicle, there has been proposed a configuration electrically connectable to a commercial power grid or a similar power supply external to the vehicle (hereinafter also simply referred to as an "external power supply") to electrically charge the power storage device (hereinafter also simply referred to as external charging). For example, a so called plug-in hybrid vehicle is known that allows an electrical outlet provided in premises to be connected to the vehicle's charging port via a charging cable to allow the power storage device to be electrically charged from a power supply of an ordinary household. This can increase the hybrid vehicle's fuel consumption efficiency.
For such an externally chargeable vehicle, a concept has been discussed to consider the vehicle as a power supply source to supply power from the vehicle to a load external to the vehicle, as seen in the smart grid.
For example, Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2010-154637 (Patent Document 1) discloses a power supply system allowing a power supply equipped vehicle and premises to be connected via a power supply cable and thereby bidirectionally supply power therebetween. Patent Document 1 describes that the vehicle is provided with a controller to control supplying power. The vehicular controller communicates with that of the premises by superimposing data on a power line including the power supply cable. When the vehicle is connected to the premises via the power supply cable, the vehicular controller switches plug-out power supply which supplies power from a vehicular power supply to the premises and plug-in power supply which supplies power from a power supply for the premises to the vehicle, as based on a voltage of a commercial power supply in the premises transmitted from the controller of the premises, the vehicular power supply's state of charge, and the like.

Power supply system and power feeding device


An apparatus for inhibiting cross contamination by airborne droplets between adjacent passengers on an aircraft comprises a case in which a flexible shield can be stored, and from which the shield can be deployed in a vertical, substantially flat configuration, where it is maintained by an extension mechanism. The shield can be coiled within the case when not deployed, and can be retractable by a ratchet and spring when deployment is terminated. An attachment mechanism positions the case between the passengers by fixing the case to a structure such as an arm rest. The extension mechanism can include one or more rigid or semi-rigid rods. The case or shield can include a storage cavity for storage of the rods when not deployed. The attachment mechanism can include an arm rest clamp and/or an insertion member that can pivot downward for insertion between a seat cushion and adjacent structure.

The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, has given rise to many new challenges. Furthermore, the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 has greatly heightened public awareness of the risks that are associated with highly transmissible infectious diseases, and of the possibility that another, more virulent strain could one day appear. In particular, it is generally understood that the primary vector for spread of the pandemic, and indeed for many respiratory diseases, is via airborne droplets that are transmitted between proximate individuals, for example if an infected individual coughs or sneezes near an uninfected individual. This threat is heightened by the fact that infectious individuals may not initially have any symptoms of the disease, and indeed may never develop symptoms, but may nevertheless function as a "carrier" of the disease.
One approach is to "social distance," whereby everyone within a population attempts to remain separated from all other individuals by a specified distance, such as six feet or two meters. However, physical separation is not always possible, and by itself physical separation may not be sufficient to prevent the spread of infection.
Another approach is for everyone within a population to wear a face mask. Some masks, such as so-called "N95" masks, are known to be highly effective in protecting both the wearer and other nearby persons from cross contamination. However, such masks are in very high demand, and may not be available to the general public. Furthermore, some individuals may be unwilling to wear N95 and other highly protective masks for long periods of time, because such masks may be uncomfortable to wear, may inhibit or seem to inhibit the breathing of the wearer, may inhibit the ability of the wearer to be heard and understood by others, and may trap moisture and cause irritation to the face of the wearer. On the other hand, simpler masks and scarves that are widely available and more comfortable to wear can provide only limited protection. In particular, simple masks and scarves are mainly effective in protecting others who are proximal to the wearer, while providing only limited protection to the wearer.
Yet another approach is to place a physical barrier between individuals, such as a layer of plexiglass. This can be an effective approach, for example, when implemented in a fixed location, for example in a store or bank, to separate point-of-sale employees from customers. However, such implementations are generally not portable, and are not always practical.
One circumstance where it is especially challenging to prevent cross-contamination is between airline passengers in adjoining seats, especially when most of the seats on an airliner are occupied. Airline seats are typically small and closely packed, and cannot be easily moved or removed. Furthermore, the very compact space within an airliner renders it nearly impossible to install permanent shields between the seats, because any such installation would render the seats inaccessible to many passengers. And even if such an approach were possible, many airlines would be unwilling to bear the cost of such an implementation, under the assumption that any such modification would need to be reversed once the pandemic was ended. Unfortunately, the wearing of masks on an airliner may not provide sufficient protection to someone who is seated next to an infected passenger.
In general, the danger of cross-contamination on airliners is not limited to times of pandemic. Many individuals, especially those who have compromised immune systems or other reasons for a heightened concern regarding cross contamination, may be reluctant to fly on airliners even during "normal" times, due to concerns about the contagion of seasonal flus and other airborne pathogens.
What is needed, therefore, is an apparatus and method that can be implemented by an airline passenger for reducing the risk of cross-contamination by neighboring passengers.


The invention relates generally to the field of content authentication, and more particularly, to a system and methods for verifying the authenticity of content output to a user. In certain preferred embodiments, the content is verified by identifying the source data of the content, distributing the content, and authenticating the distributed content. Where the content has not been changed, the system may authenticate the content using a cryptographic hash. When minor changes to the content are made, the system may use a perceptual hash to authenticate the content. Further, the system may utilize machine learning algorithms to identify patterns between the same content in, for example, multiple formats and sizes. Advantageously, the content that is uploaded to the system may be used to train machine-learning models that the system may use to authenticate content that has been converted but unmanipulated.

Modem technology has enabled information to be shared through various media platforms. A media platform may include a service, website, or method that delivers content. Examples of content may include audio, video, images, structured documents, and plain text.
The authenticity of content is a top priority for many organizations including government agencies. Content authentication may be used for various purposes, such as in political contexts, which often require suitable authentication to ensure that the content is genuine. The distribution of altered content may lead to a range of negative outcomes. For example, altering a video of a conversation between two world leaders may have consequences on a global scale.
One known technique for altering videos is referred to as deepfake. Deepfake videos are typically created via two competing artificial intelligence systems—one called the generator and the other called the discriminator. The generator may generate a fake video clip and then ask the discriminator to determine whether the clip is original or altered. Each time the discriminator identifies a video clip as being altered, it provides the generator with instructions about what not to do when creating the next modified clip.
The generator and discriminator together form a generative adversarial network (GAN). The first step in establishing a GAN is to identify the desired output and create a training dataset for the generator. Once the generator begins creating an acceptable level of output, video clips can be fed to the discriminator. As the generator improves at creating altered video clips, the discriminator gets better at distinguishing authentic videos from altered ones.
Because deepfakes are typically created through artificial intelligence, they don't require the considerable and varied skills that it takes to create an original video. Unfortunately, this means that just about anyone can create a deepfake to promote their chosen agenda. The inherent danger is that as deepfakes and other forms of altered content become more sophisticated and believable, people will have an increasingly more difficult time identifying original content from its altered spawn.
As a result of the danger associated with the distribution of deepfakes, the U.S. House of Representatives' Intelligence Committee has distributed letters to various social media platforms—including Twitter, Facebook, and Google—inquiring about their plans to combat altered content. The inquiry came in large part as a result of President Trump's tweet of a deepfake video of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Certain government institutions, such as DARPA, and researchers at colleges such as Carnegie Mellon, the University of Washington, Stanford University, and the Max Planck Institute for Informatics are also experimenting with deepfake technology. These organizations are attempting to learn more about the use of GAN technology and how to combat it.
Conventional ways for combating deepfake technology include the use of machine learning. By feeding algorithms with both deepfake and authentic videos, computers are configured to identify when content has been altered. There are several problems with this approach, however. First, this approach requires the accumulation and deployment of considerable resources, in terms of training content and computing assets. Second, machine-learning technology is still in its infancy, and thus the tools that are most widely accessible are unreliable. Third, some believe that a machine-learning solution will never be the answer. Most academic and industrial research into deepfakes, for example, is currently going into how to make them, not into how to defeat them, so the sophistication of techniques to create them must always be several steps ahead of machine-learning technologies' ability to detect and defeat them.
Hence, there is a need for a system and methods for verifying the authenticity of content output to a user through source comparison. The present invention satisfies this need.

System and methods for authenticating content


A second member having an elongated shape is attached to a first member via a connecting member. The connecting member is rotatable around a first shaft in a direction intersecting with a longitudinal direction of the second member with respect to the first member and rotatable around a second shaft intersecting both the longitudinal direction and a direction along the first shaft with respect to the second member. Further, a first drive part that rotationally drives the connecting member around the first shaft is provided in the first member and a second drive part that rotationally drives the connecting member around the second shaft is provided in the second member. In this manner, a robot hand that can rotate the first member and the second member not only around the first shaft but also around the second shaft may be realized with a simpler and smaller structure.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a robot hand and a robot.
2. Related Art
A robot hand that can grasp an object using fingers has been known. The robot hand grasps the object by bending the fingers in joint parts. Note that "bending direction" here refers to a direction in which a finger is bent when a human grasps the object. In order to enable grasping of various objects in the robot hand, it is desired that the joints are adapted to move the fingers not only in the bending directions in the joint parts but also in the directions different from the bending directions.
Accordingly, a technology of forming a joint by combining a second joint shaft for moving the finger in the bending direction and a first joint shaft for rotating the finger together with the second joint shaft in the direction different from the bending direction has been proposed (Patent Document 1 (JP-A-2004-009281).
However, in the proposed technology, a main joint part is externally fitted on the first joint shaft fixed to the device main body side and a second joint movable part having an arc shape is rotatably and axially supported on the outer circumference of the main joint part. Further, the main joint part is swiveled around the first joint shaft using a first motor, and the second joint movable part is rotated using a linear step motor. Accordingly, there has been a problem that the structure of the joint parts becomes complex and the robot hand becomes larger.


A method and apparatus for recoding one or more instruction sets. An expand instruction and an expandable instruction are read from an instruction cache. A tag compare and way selection unit checks to verify each instruction is a desired instruction. An instruction staging unit dispatches the expand instruction to a first recoder and the expandable instruction to a second recoder of a recoding unit. At least one information bit based on the expand instruction is generated at the first recoder. The second recoder uses the at least one information bit generated at the first recoder to recode the expandable instruction, and the recoded expandable instruction is placed in an instruction buffer.

It is known that computer systems (e.g., main frames, personal computers, microprocessors, etc.) may be designed to execute instructions from one or more than one instruction set. In computer systems designed to execute instructions from more than one instruction set, for example, a first instruction set might be optimized for fast execution on a target system. However, instructions from this first set might have a relatively wide format (e.g., 32 or 64 bits in width) and therefore use a relatively large amount of memory space for storage. Hence, a second instruction set could be made available that is optimized for using less memory space through the use of a narrower instruction width format (e.g., 8 or 16 bits in width). Such instructions may execute routines slower than those from the first instruction set (because more and possibly different instructions are required to carry out the same function), but the narrower format contributes to a potential reduction in overall memory space required.
Additionally, a third instruction set could be made available to provide backwards compatibility to earlier generation machines that, again, may utilize instruction width formats of differing size (e.g., older 16-bit machines). Moreover, a fourth (or more) instruction set could be made available to provide upwards compatibility to new developments in instruction sets that may also require different instruction width formats (e.g., 8-bit JAVA bytecodes). The foregoing examples, of course, are not exhaustive.
In order for a single computer system to support different instruction sets as described above, the system requires the capability to accommodate different instruction sets having potentially different instruction width formats. One way that such capability has been achieved in the past is by mapping one instruction set onto another, which allows a single decoder to be used for the different instruction width formats. Such mapping is possible, for example, where the one instruction set is a subset of the other. However, this is a significantly limiting feature because most instruction sets are not so related.
Moreover, this issue is made more complex in computer systems that simultaneously fetch a plurality of instructions for processing. Mapping may be achieved in such a system through a series of operations carried out in one or more pipeline stages (of a pipelined processor). These operations include reading a plurality of instructions from a cache memory, processing such instructions by comparing the tags of each instruction, selecting a desired instruction from the plurality (based on the tag compare) and then mapping the desired instruction. However, in such a serial mapping method, the processing of these instructions results in an increased branch penalty and/or cycle time.
Therefore, what is needed is a more efficient way of processing instructions for execution by a processor of a computer system.

Multi-ISA instruction fetch unit for a processor, and applications thereof