An apparatus for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. A method for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. A suture. A grommet for a bone. A method for securing a suture through a bone.

The present invention is related to the closure of hard or soft tissue that has been separated. More specifically, the present invention is related to the closure of a sternum with the use of wire sutures inserted through grommets or sleeves and placed into the sternum.
There are various circumstances in which separated tissue of a patient needs to be brought together so it can heal. Tissue is defined as bone, muscle or fascia that has been divided to gain access the thoracic cavity, mediastinum, or abdomen. For instance, in chest surgery, many times the sternum is separated so a surgeon can again gain access to the chest cavity and organs, muscle and tissue therein. After the surgeon has finished his procedure regarding the chest cavity, the sternum needs to be closed. Key to the healing process of the sternum is the proper stabilization and contact of the two severed sides together. Heretofore, there have been many techniques used to bring the separated sides of the sternum together and maintain them in contact so the healing process can occur. However, these techniques generally limit the movement the patient can experience without damaging or affecting the healing sternum. Furthermore, the process of introducing tools to bring the separated sides of the sternum together can itself create risk or cause damage to the sternum.
The present invention provides for bringing the separate sides of the sternum together while minimizing damage to them and maintaining them while also allowing some flexibility and movement by the patient without disturbing the healing process.
The present invention pertains to an apparatus for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. The apparatus comprises a first bendable hollow sleeve adapted for insertion into the first portion of the bone. The apparatus comprises a second bendable hollow sleeve adapted for insertion into a second portion of the bone. The apparatus comprises a suture which is threaded through the first and second sleeves. The apparatus comprises a pusher for pushing the first and second sleeves into the first and second portions of the bone, respectively, wherein when the suture is tightened, the first and second portions are pulled together and the first and second sleeves bend and protect the first and second portions from the suture.
The present invention pertains to a method for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. The method comprises the steps of inserting a first bendable hollow sleeve into the first portion of the bone. Then there is the step of inserting a second bendable hollow sleeve into the second portion of the bone. Next there is the step of threading a suture through the first and second sleeves. Then there is the step of pulling the first portion and second portion together with the suture and causing the first and second sleeves to bend and protect the first and second portions from the suture contacting the first and second portions.
The present invention pertains to an apparatus for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. The apparatus comprises a first bendable hollow sleeve adapted for insertion into the first portion of the bone. The first sleeve having a cap adapted to seat on a top surface of the first portion. The apparatus comprises a second bendable hollow sleeve adapted for insertion into a second portion of the bone, the second sleeve having a cap adapted to seat on a top surface of the second portion. The apparatus comprises a suture which is threaded through the first and second sleeves.
The present invention pertains to an apparatus for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. The apparatus comprises a first bendable hollow sleeve adapted for insertion into the first portion of the bone. The apparatus comprises a second bendable hollow sleeve adapted for insertion into a second portion of the bone. The apparatus comprises a suture which is threaded through the first and second sleeves. The apparatus comprises an implantor which holds the first or second sleeve and inserts the first or second sleeve into the first or second portion, respectively.
The present invention pertains to an apparatus for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. The apparatus comprises a hollow tube adapted to extend from the first and second portions. The apparatus comprises a suture which is adapted to extend through the hollow tube when the hollow tube extends through the first and second portion. The apparatus comprises a first bottom cap and second bottom cap disposed on the suture and adapted to fit in the bottom of the first and second portion, respectively. The apparatus comprises a first top cap and second top cap through which the suture is inserted when the tube is removed. The first and second cap is adapted to fit in the top of the first and second portions, respectively.
The present invention pertains to a method for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. The method comprises the steps of inserting a first end of a hollow tube into the top surface of the first portion, through the first portion and out the bottom of the first portion. Then there is the step of inserting a second end of the hollow tube into the top surface of the second portion, through the second portion and out the bottom of the second portion. Next there is the step of inserting a first end of the suture having a first bottom cap and second bottom cap on the suture into the first end of the hollow tube until it extends past the top surface of the first portion. Then there is the step of inserting a second end of the suture having the first bottom cap and second bottom cap on the suture into the second end of the hollow tube until it extends past the top surface of the second portion. Next there is the step of removing the tube from the suture and the first and second portion. Then there is the step of sliding the first bottom cap along the suture to the bottom surface of the first portion. Next there is the step of placing the first bottom cap into the bottom surface of the first portion. Then there is the step of sliding the second bottom cap along the suture to the bottom surface of the second portion. Next there is the step of placing the second bottom cap into the bottom surface of the second portion. Then there is the step of placing a first top cap over the first end of the suture and into the top surface of the first portion. Next there is the step of placing a second top cap over the second end of the suture and into the top surface of the second portion. Then there is the step of moving the first portion and second portion together. Next there is the step of closing the first end and second end of the suture together to hold the first portion and second portion together.
The present invention pertains to a suture. The suture comprises a wire adapted to extend through bone of a patient. The suture comprises an insulation portion disposed about the wire and adapted to protect the bone from the wire.
The present invention pertains to a method for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. The method comprises the steps of extending a suture comprising a wire and an insulation portion about the wire through the first portion and the second portion. Then there is the step of pulling the first portion and second portion together. Next there is the step of securing the first and second portions together with the suture wherein the insulation of the suture protects the first portion and second portion from the wire.
The present invention pertains to a grommet for a bone. The apparatus comprises a top cap having a top flange that is adapted to seat on the top surface of the bone and a threaded portion which extends from the top flange and is adapted to be disposed in the bone, the top flange and threaded portion having a top channel extending through them. The apparatus comprises a bottom cap having a bottom flange that is adapted to seat on the bottom surface of the bone and a bottom strut which extends from the bottom portion and engages with the threaded portion to hold the top cap to the bottom cap and is adapted to be disposed in the bone, the bottom flange and a strut having a bottom channel extending through them, the top channel and bottom channel adapted for a suture to extend through the top channel and bottom channel.
The present invention pertains to a method for securing a suture through a bone. The method comprises the steps of placing a bottom cap of a grommet into the bone wherein a bottom flange of the bottom cap seats on the bottom surface of the bone and a bottom strut of the bottom cap connecting to the bottom flange extends into the bone. Then there is the step of placing a top cap of a grommet into the bone wherein the top flange of the top cap seats on the top surface of the bone and a threaded portion of the top cap is connected to the top flange and extends into the bone and contacts the bottom strut. Next there is the step of screwing the threaded portion of the top cap into the bottom strut. Then there is the step of passing a suture through the bone via a channel of the top cap and bottom cap.
The present invention pertains to an apparatus for holding together a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone for the bone to heal. The apparatus comprises a wire having a first end and a second end. The apparatus comprises a first needle attached to the first end. The apparatus comprises a second needle attached to the second end. The apparatus comprises a first bottom cap with a flange adapted for placement into the bottom of the first portion with the wire through it. The apparatus comprises a second bottom cap with a flange adapted for placement into the bottom of the second portion with the wire through it. The apparatus comprises a first top cap with a flange adapted for placement into the top of the first portion with the wire through it. The apparatus comprises a second top cap with a flange adapted for placement into the top of the second portion with the wire through it.
The present invention pertains to a method for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. The method comprises the steps of passing a first needle attached to a first end of a suture through the first portion. Then there is the step of passing a second needle attached to a second end of a suture through the second portion. Next there is the step of guiding a first bottom cap through which the suture is disposed along the suture until it contacts the first portion. Then there is the step of inserting the first bottom cap into the bottom of the first portion. Next there is the step of guiding a second bottom cap through which the suture is disposed along the suture until it contacts the second portion. Then there is the step of inserting the second bottom cap into the bottom of the second portion. Next there is the step of separating the first needle from the first end. Then there is the step of separating the second needle from the second end. Next there is the step of passing the first end through a first top cap. Then there is the step of guiding the first top cap along the wire. Next there is the step of inserting the first top cap into the top surface of the first portion. Then there is the step of passing the second end through a second top cap. Next there is the step of guiding the second top cap along the wire. Then there is the step of inserting the second top cap into the top surface of the second portion. Next there is the step of securing the suture in place about the first and second portion by connecting the first and second ends.
The present invention pertains to an apparatus for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. The apparatus comprises a strap made of a memory metal having a central portion with a right side and a left side, a right portion that extends angularly downward from the central portion adjacent to the right portion, and a left portion that extends angularly downward from the central portion adjacent to the left side. The right and left portion is adapted to extend into and through the first and second portion of the one, respectively, with the central portion disposed along the top surface of the first and second portions. The bottom of the right and left portions curling and hooking into the first and second portions, respectively, to grip the first and second portions.
The present invention pertains to a method for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. The method comprises the steps of inserting a right portion of a strap made of a memory metal into and through the first portion of the bone and a left portion of the strap into and through the second portion of the bone with a central portion of the strap connecting the right portion and the left portion and extending over and between the first and second portions. Then there is the step of heating the right portion and left portion until they curl and the bottom of the right and left portions hook into the first and second portions, respectively.
The present invention pertains to an apparatus for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. The apparatus comprises a plurality of grommets, each grommet having a channel, a flange adapted to seat on the surface of the bone, and a tube which extends from the flange and is adapted to be disposed in the bone. The apparatus comprises a suture which extends through at least two of the plurality of grommets which oppose each other when they are disposed in the first and second portions of the bone, respectively. The apparatus comprises a poker which removably fits in the channel of a grommet and has a pointed end adapted to pierce the bone and to install the grommet into the bone. The apparatus comprises a platform against which the tube of one of the grommets with the poker through it is pressed to cause the end of the tube to flare out and form a bottom flange that seats on the bottom surface of the bone.
The present invention pertains to an apparatus for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. The apparatus comprises a plurality of grommets, each having a channel and a top portion and a bottom portion, each portion having a flange adapted to seat on the surface of the bone, and a tube which extends from the flange and is adapted to be disposed in the bone. The apparatus comprises a poker which removably fits in the channel of the top and bottom portions and has a pointed end adapted to pierce the bone and to install the top portion into the bone and along which the bottom portion fits to be guided into the bottom of the bone.
The present invention pertains to a method for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. The method comprises the steps of placing a poker having a pointed end through a channel of a first grommet having a top flange and a tube which extends from the top flange. Then there is the step of inserting the poker, pointed end first, with the first grommet on it through the top surface of the first portion until it contacts a platform disposed adjacent the bottom surface of the first portion and the tube of the grommet is disposed in and extends through the first portion. Next there is the step of pressing the poker against the platform until the bottom of the tube flares out and forms a bottom flange. Then there is the step of removing the poker from the first grommet leaving the first grommet in the first portion with the top flange and bottom flange adjacent to the top surface and bottom surface, respectively. Next there is the step of implanting a second grommet having a channel in the second portion. Then there is the step of extending a suture through the channels of the first and second grommets. Next there is the step of bringing the first and second portions together. Then there is the step of securing the first and second portions together with the suture.
The present invention pertains to a method for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone to heal. The method comprises the steps of placing a poker having a pointed end through a channel of a top portion of a first grommet having a top flange and a tube which extends from the top flange. Then there is the step of inserting the poker, pointed end first, with the top portion of the first grommet on it through the top surface of the first wherein the flange seats on the top surface of the first portion and the tube is disposed in the first portion. Next there is the step of placing a tube of a bottom portion of the first grommet on the pointed end. Then there is the step of sliding the bottom portion along the poker until a flange of the bottom portion seats on the bottom surface of the first portion and the tube of the bottom portion is in the bottom of the first portion. Next there is the step of removing the poker from the first grommet leaving the first grommet in the first portion with the top flange and bottom flange seated on the top surface and bottom surface, respectively. Then there is the step of implanting a second grommet having a channel in the second portion. Next there is the step of extending a suture through the channels of the first and second grommets. Then there is the step of bringing the first and second portions together. Next there is the step of securing the first and second portions together with the suture.
The present invention pertains to a grommet for a bone. The grommet comprises a top cap having a top flange adapted for placement on the top surface of the bone and a top strut adapted for placement in the bone extending from the top flange, the top strut having slots disposed along its outer surface. The top cap having a channel for a suture to extend through. The top strut adapted for placement in the bone. The grommet comprises a bottom cap having a bottom flange adapted for placement on the bottom surface of the bone and a bottom strut adapted for placement in the bone extending from the bottom flange, the bottom strut having a catch extending from its inner surface to engage a slot to secure the top cap and bottom cap together.
The present invention pertains to a method for holding a first portion of a bone and a second portion of a bone together for the bone when to heal. The method comprises the steps of inserting a top strut of a top cap of a first grommet into a hole in the top surface of the first portion until a top flange of the top cap seats on the top surface of the bone. Then there is the step of inserting a bottom strut of a bottom cap of the first grommet into the hole in the bottom surface of the first portion until a catch extending from the inner surface of the bottom strut of engages a slot disposed along the outer surface of the top strut wherein the top cap and bottom cap are secured together. Next there is the step of inserting a second grommet having a channel into a second portion of the bone. Then there is the step of threading a suture through a channel of the first grommet and the channel of the second grommet. Next there is the step of pulling the first portion the second portion together. Then there is the step of securing the suture wherein the first portion and second portion are secured together.
The present invention pertains to a grommet for insertion in a bone. The grommet comprises a housing having a channel for a suture. The housing is adapted for placement in the bone. The housing has at least one pre-crimp in its wall which expands outward and collapses when the housing is compressed in an axial direction.
The present invention pertains to a method for placing a suture through a bone. The method comprises the steps of inserting a grommet into a bone. Then there is the step of compressing the grommet axially from its top and bottom causing a pre-crimp in the housing wall to extend outward and collapse to form an anchor in the bone. Next there is the step of threading a suture through a channel in the grommet.
The present invention pertains to a grommet for implantation into a hole in hard or soft tissue of a patient. The grommet comprises a spring having a head flange adapted to seat on the top portion of the tissue. The grommet comprises a tail flange adapted to seat on the top portion of the tissue. The grommet comprises an elongate central portion connected to the head flange and the tail flange.


An image forming apparatus includes: a first image bearer for bearing a toner image formed by a toner image forming device; a second image bearer for bearing the toner image which is transferred from the first image bearer; a first transferring device for transferring the toner image borne on the first image bearer onto the second image bearer or a front side of a transfer material; a second transferring device for transferring the toner image borne on the second image bearer onto a back side of the transfer material; a fixing device for fixing toner images transferred on both sides of the transfer material which is conveyed on the second image bearer and separated therefrom; and a separating claw for separating the transfer material from the second image bearer. The separating claw is provided facing a curvature portion provided at an end portion of the second image bearer on a side of the fixing device, and provided on a side of the second image bearer with respect to a tangential plane of the curvature portion passing an entrance of a nip portion for nipping the transfer material of the fixing device.

The present invention relates to an electrophotographic type image forming apparatus such as a copier, printer, facsimile device, or the like, in which a charging means, an image writing means and developing means are arranged around an image bearing body, and a toner image formed on the image bearing body is transferred onto a transfer material and fixed, and specifically relates to an image forming apparatus by which images can be formed on both sides of the transfer material.
Conventionally, in the double-sided image formation, a method is adopted in which a one side image formed on the image bearing body is transferred onto a transfer material and fixed; the transfer material is temporarily accommodated in an intermediate feeding device; the transfer material is fed from the intermediate feeding device in timed relationship with an image formed again on the image bearing body; and the image is transferred onto the other side of the transfer material and fixed.
As described above, in this double-sided image forming apparatus, the transfer material is fed to the intermediate feeding device and the transfer material is conveyed in such a manner that it passes trough the fixing device twice, thereby, reliability of the transfer material conveyance is low, resulting in a cause of jamming or wrinkling of the transfer material.
In contrast to this, a method in which, after toner images are formed on both sides of the transfer material using a first image bearing means and a second image bearing means, fixing is carried out only once, is proposed in Japanese Patent Publication Nos. 37538/1974, 28740/1979, Japanese Patent Publication Open to Public Inspection Nos. 44457/1989, and 214576/1992.
The present inventors are investigating an image forming apparatus and image forming method in which, after toner images are formed on both sides of the transfer material using a first image bearing means and a second image bearing means, fixing is carried out only once. In this connection, when this method is applied to the color image formation, double-sided color images are formed by the following method: plural sets of toner image forming means composed of a charging means, image writing means, developing means, etc., are arranged around a photoreceptor drum (the first image bearing means); after superimposed color toner images formed on the photoreceptor drum have been collectively transferred once onto a belt-like toner image receiving body (the second image bearing means) by a first transfer means, superimposed color toner images are formed again on the photoreceptor drum; a transfer material fed in timed relationship with the toner image on the photoreceptor drum and the toner image on the toner image receiving body, is electrically charged by a transfer material charging means and is attracted to the toner image receiving body; the toner image on the photoreceptor drum is transferred onto one side of the transfer material, conveyed by the toner image receiving body, as a front side image by the first transfer means and the toner image on the toner image receiving body is transferred onto the other side of the transfer material as a reverse side image by a second transfer material; after that, the transfer material is separated from the toner image receiving body by the curvature of a roller member which is provided on a side of a fixing device (fixing means) and around which the toner image receiving body is trained, and by electrical discharging of a transfer material separating means, which is provided as needed; and the toner image on the transfer material is fixed by the fixing device and the double-sided color images are formed.
However, in the doubled-sided image forming apparatus using the belt-like toner image receiving body as described above, the transfer material just after the back side toner image has been transferred onto the transfer material by the second transfer means, is electrostatically attracted to the toner image receiving body strongly, therefore, the transfer material is very hardly separated when the transfer material is separated from the toner image receiving body. Accordingly, in order to secure easy separation of the transfer material, the radius of curvature of the roller member at the end portion on the fixing device-side, around which the toner image receiving body is trained, is reduced and the curvature separation is carried out, or a transfer material separation means (AC discharger for paper separation) is provided for the electrostatic separation, however, there is a problem in which a separation failure occurs when environmental conditions are changed, or when thin paper is used.
Corresponding to this, it is considered that a separating claw to serve the separation of the transfer material from the second image bearing means is provided for ensuring the separation. However, there occurs a problem in which the transfer material after separation is in contact with the separation claw even while the transfer material is being fixed by the fixing means, therefore, an unfixed toner image on the transfer material, specifically the toner image on the reverse side is disturbed (rubbed), thereby, desirable double-sided images can not be formed. Reversely, a problem occurs in which unfixed toner adheres onto the separating claw when the back side image passes and the separation claw is stained.
Further, in the above image forming apparatus or image forming method, because the transfer material having unfixed toner images on both sides thereof is conveyed to the fixing device, the toner image receiving body is positioned adjacent to the fixing device, and the transfer material separated from the toner image receiving body is directly sent to the fixing device. However, when the toner image receiving body is positioned adjacent to the fixing device, problems occur in which the toner image receiving body is deformed by heat from the fixing device, or the toner image transferred onto the toner image receiving body is fused to some degree and thereby, sometimes transferring becomes difficult, or toner fixedly adheres onto the toner image receiving body. For this reason, it is considered that the second image bearing means and the fixing means are located apart from each other, and a conveyance means with a spurred wheel is located between them. However, in this case, there is a case in which the unfixed toner image on the transfer material, specifically the reverse side toner image is disturbed (rubbed), thereby, the double-sided images can not be finely formed. Further, depending on kinds of transfer materials, the transfer material separated from the toner image receiving body is not uniformly conveyed and conveyed irregularly, therefore, when the transfer material having unfixed toner images on both sides (also on the back side), which is separated from the toner image receiving body, is conveyed to the fixing device, there is also a problem in which the toner image on the reverse side is disturbed (rubbed), thereby, the double-sided images can not be finely formed.


A composition for accelerating calcium absorption containing water-soluble chitosan as an active ingredient is disclosed. The composition is useful as an additive for foods, feed, and pharmaceutical preparations.

According to the results of the nation-wide survey of nutrition made by the Ministry of Public Welfare, Japan in 1991, a Japanese calcium intake is 540 mg/day in average, which is considerably lower than the recommended calcium allowance specified by the same ministry, i.e., 600 mg/day. Shortage of calcium intake recently turned out to cause serious diseases, such as osteoporosis, hypertension, and large bowel cancer. In particular, osteoporosis easily causes fractures, and it is very likely that an aged patient suffering from a fracture of femoral neck or a compression fracture of the lumber vertebra gets bed-ridden. In fact, the second cause of making the aged become the bed-ridden is a fracture. It is said that the number of patients with osteoporosis has reached about 5,000,000 and will be increasing steadily to pose a serious social problem in an aging society ahead.
What is wanted to ameliorate the present situation is to increase a calcium intake so as to always supply sufficient amount of calcium to the body. However, an average Japanese' calcium intake per day has never exceed the recommended allowance (600 mg) according to the survey taken by the Ministry of Public Welfare every year, revealing difficulty to assure a sufficient level of a calcium intake through daily food. While calcium-containing pharmaceuticals and calcium-enriched foods are available, they are inferior in palatability and difficult to take habitually.
Under these circumstances, it is important, the inventors thought, that orally taken calcium be absorbed efficiently through the intestine, the absorption site for calcium. It is considered that the ratio of calcium absorbed through the intestine and utilized for maintenance of a living body in the total calcium orally taken is about 20 to 50%, while somewhat varying depending on the origin of calcium, so that the most of orally taken calcium is excreted without being absorbed. Therefore, an increase in percent absorption of calcium in the intestinal tract would fulfill the calcium requirement without forcing unnatural calcium intake.
Vitamin D and lactose are commonly used as a component which accelerates calcium absorption in the field of foods and pharmaceuticals. Because vitamin D is biosynthesized, administration of vitamin D is not expected to act for acceleration of calcium absorption in those who can synthesize sufficient vitamin D in their own body. Lactose is not favorable to those who suffer from lactose intolerance because of side effects, such as diarrhea.
Additionally, peptide of bone origin (see JP-A-4-16165, the term "JP-A" as used herein means an "unexamined published Japanese patent application") and a composition mainly comprising butyric acid (see JP-A-4-108360) have been proposed as a component for calcium absorption acceleration. However, neither of them has been put to practical use due to involvement of problems in production and use.
It is known that oral intake of calcium in combination with other food components results in a slightly increased calcium absorption as compared with single calcium intake. This phenomenon is accounted for as follows. Food entering the stomach stimulates secretion of gastric juice to lower the gastric pH value so that calcium, which is generally water insoluble, is dissolved by the action of the acid and thereby becomes ready to be absorbed. However, in what manner a food component takes part in absorption of calcium through the intestine has not been studied intensively.

Method of accelerating intestinal absorption of calcium in mammals


A pair of profile wheels 14, 18 in which concavely shaped grinding surfaces 141, 181 asymmetrical to each other are opposed to each other at right angle so as to form a concavely shaped grinding surface having a substantially semi-circular section, a guide plate 13 which is mounted on a spindle 11 of an electric or air tool side of the profile wheel 14 freely rotatably for guiding a grinding direction by bringing the edge of the circular shaped member into contact with a reference face of a grinding object material and a stopper ring 16 which is mounted to a spindle between the pair of the profile wheels 14 and 18 freely rotatably for controlling a grinding distance Y from the edge by bringing its outer peripheral end face 161 into contact with the edge of the grinding object material, are fixed to the spindle 11 with a lock nut such that they are set at right angle to the spindle.

As interior construction material or kitchen top and vanity material in construction site, various kinds of natural stones, engineered stone and the like (hereinafter, referred to simply as "grinding object material" or "stone material" depending on the situation) have been widely used. These stone materials as construction material are marketed as a slab plate 1800 mm–3000 mm on one side and the thickness is usually 20 mm, 30 mm or 40 mm which is presented by laminated in two layers 20 mm pieces and a slab plate composed of stone material used most generally has a thickness of 30 mm.
In recent years, the construction materials represented by these stone materials have been widely used not only for wall surface and floor surface of living space but also as interior materials of bath room and toilet because high grade appearance of its finish surface and excellent heat insulation are preferred. However, because these stone materials are extremely hard and brittle material and the edge corner acts just like a sharp edge blade, these edges which can make direct contact with the human being or the like are chamfered preliminarily to avoid a danger. For example, for the outdoor table and the like, a number of measures have been adopted to implement design esthetic preference as well as safety countermeasure by grinding the edges into a round configuration having a semi-circular section. The processing method for grinding the slab plate edge into a round configuration having semi-circular section is called full bullnose processing in this field, which has been known as one of special processing methods since before.
As a tool for implementing the full bullnose processing on the edge of a slab plate composed of stone material, so-called profile wheel (sometimes called "rounter bit") in which ultra abrasive brazing layer for defining its grinding surface is formed into a configuration corresponding to the processing surface of a grinding object material, has been widely used. As for the profile wheel whose grinding surface is formed into a substantially semi-circular concave configuration, the grinding surfaces opposing each other are formed into a symmetrical configuration including the concave shape so that a pair of the profile wheels are defined by the two pieces or there is a single unit profile wheel in which the grinding surface in the concave shape having the substantially semi-circular section is formed integrally (see, for example, Catalogue of Gran Quartz co.).
Because the medium of the aforementioned stone material is of particular hard/brittle material, originally its processability is extremely bad and thus various devices have been taken since before to grind a grinding object material at a specified accuracy with a diamond tool or CBN tool fixed to the spindle of an electric or air tool rotating at high or low speeds. For example, there have been proposed a rotary grinding tool in which elastic body is interposed between a cutter blade and a spindle so as to absorb vibration or deflection of axis (see, for example Japanese Patent Application laid-open No. 2001-300855) and an offset type grinding tool in which a plurality of ultra abrasive brazing layers are formed on the outer periphery of its substrate and by forming and sintering the ultra abrasive brazing layer while pressurizing at least a portion near the outer periphery of a drawn substrate by means of dies, distortion of the substrate is removed by the sintering to reduce vibration originating from that distortion (see, for example Japanese Patent Application laid-open No. 2002-205274) and these have been actually realized.
It is not easy to fix the profile wheel on the spindle of a rotary electric or air tool such as a polisher in the same way as described above and carry out the so-called full bullnose processing on edges of a plurality of slab plates by manual operation to provide with a round shape having a semi-circular section by securing a specified curvature and a grinding distance Y. It is not sufficient to absorb a vibration or deflection of axis with the above-described method and even a skilled worker can hardly continue the full bullnose processing stably at a good accuracy. Thus, according to a conventional way, generally, slab plates subjected to the full bullnose processing by means of the profile wheels mounted on a special machine have been purchased in a necessary quantity and processed to a predetermined dimension on site and assembled together.

Grinding tool for edge circular processing


An improved computer telephony (CT) server which utilizes a standard message structure to communicate with applications, but may interface such applications to a variety of different telephony environments by translating the standard message structure used by such applications into the specific message structure required by each such telephony environment. The aforementioned telephony environments may include PBXs, ACDs, packet telephony environments and public switched telephone networks. The desired telephony environment may be chosen by the application, or by the computer telephony server, some combination of both, or entirely automatically.

The industry of computer telephony has experienced extensive growth over the last several years. One aspect of computer telephony involves software computer telephony applications which communicate over a local area network (LAN) or computer bus with a computer telephony (CT) server. The CT server then communicates with a private automated branch exchange ("PABX" or "PBX") for the purpose of implementing certain computer telephony functions. For example, "screen pop" is an example of a computer telephony application which may run on a personal computer (PC) and which may be implemented using a computer telephony server. In such an arrangement, a caller who dials in to a call center would have his telephone number read by a PBX. The telephone number is then forwarded through a local area network to a CT application program, which utilizes a table look-up in order to map the telephone number to a particular account number and account information. The account information is then read from a database and placed upon a computer screen to make it available to an agent for handling the incoming telephone call.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,414,762 assigned to Q-sys describes a computer telephony server that can be implemented as a layer of software and assists with the interface between various PBXs and applications. Specifically, as described in the Q-sys patent, each of the variety of PBXs available on the market today may have differences in its command set, message structure and other features. Accordingly, it is highly desirable that applications developers who write CT applications be able to write such applications independent of the particular PBX being utilized. Otherwise, each time an application is to work with a different PBX, the application would have to be rewritten.
The foregoing Q-sys patent solves the problem by offering a CT server that is capable of communicating with a variety of PBXs available on the market. The Q-sys telephony server has a standard message structure for communicating with applications over a local area network or a computer bus. Additionally, the arrangement taught by the Q-sys patent provides a means for translating the messages received from CT applications into the particular language and message structure of the particular PBX being utilized by the system.
The arrangement of the Q-sys patent provides a solution to the problem that applications developers used to face, namely, that each time their application was connected to a different PBX, it would have to be rewritten in order to understand and interpret the particular message structure, protocol, etc., of the PBX. By utilizing the Q-sys technique, a common language can be used by all applications, and a layer of independence is achieved between the CT application and the PBX. Systems like that taught by the Q-sys patent were available nearly ten (10) years ago from Digital Equipment Corporation.
One problem with the Q-sys arrangement is that it does not take into account the fact that a PBX is only one particular type of telecommunications system capable of establishing a call between users. Specifically, the Q-sys system, while being capable of communicating with a variety of PBXs, is limited to situations where a PBX is the means by which arriving telephone calls are connected to users. In view of the foregoing, there exists a need in the art for an improved CT server which can operate in an environment where there are not only PBXs being utilized to establish calls between users, but rather, where a variety of telephony systems (packet telephony networks, public switched telephony networks, etc.) may be utilized alternatively or simultaneously to construct such cells.

Computer telephony server with improved flexibility


The present invention relates to a small four-stroke gasoline engine with oil mist lubrication. The lubrication oil way of the engine includes a crankshaft chamber B, a camshaft chamber C, an upper rocker arm chamber D and a condensation chamber E. The camshaft chamber C communicates with the upper rocker arm chamber D via a tappet cavity 13. The upper rocker arm chamber D communicates with the condensation chamber E. An oil mist chamber A is surrounded by an upper case body 3 and a lower case body 4 at the side of the crankshaft chamber B, the bottom of the oil mist chamber A communicates with the crankshaft chamber B. An oilsplash impeller 2 is fixed on a crankshaft, which extends into the oil mist chamber A. An oil way 12 is provided on the upper case body 3 between the oil mist chamber A and the camshaft chamber C. An oil return way 15 is provided on a cylinder head assembly 5. An oil return way 14 is provided on the upper case body 3. An upper interface of the oil return way 15 communicates with the upper rocker arm chamber D, a lower interface of the oil return way 15 communicates with the oil return way 14, and a lower interface of the oil return way 14 communicates with the crankshaft chamber B. The conventional lubricating mode is changed by the structure of the invention, which makes use of the pressure change during the reciprocating movement of a piston assembly 8 to attain the circulation of oil. The structure is simple, reliable in operation and has small consumption in power.

The present invention relates to a gasoline engine and more particularly pertains to a small four-stroke gasoline engine with improvements on its lubricant passage ways and its mode of lubrication.
It is known that existing small four-stroke gasoline engines apply splashing lubrication in conjunction with pressure oil injection as its mode of lubrication, that is, to splash or make use of pressure to spread lubricants onto the surfaces of parts for lubrication. This mode is characterized in that it is required to dispose on the machine the structures of the lubricant pumps and splashing devices, which are relatively complicated. While the lubricating effects are general, there are dead angles and power consumption is large.

Small four-stroke gasoline engine with oil mist lubrication


A system and method for clustered failover of storage appliances is provided. In the event of a failover of one storage appliance to a surviving storage appliance, the surviving storage appliance assumes the identity of the failed storage appliance. This assumption of the identifier is accomplished by activating a network interface controller or host bus adapter with a network address associated with the failed storage appliance and by mapping a iSCSI name from the failed storage appliance to the surviving storage appliance.

A storage system is a computer that provides storage service relating to the organization of information on writeable persistent storage devices, such as memories, tapes or disks. The storage system is commonly deployed within a storage area network (SAN) or a network attached storage (NAS) environment. When used within a NAS environment, the storage system may be embodied as a file server including a storage operating system that implements a file system to logically organize the information as a hierarchical structure of directories and files on, e.g. the disks. Each "on-disk" file may be implemented as a set of data structures, e.g., disk blocks, configured to store information, such as the actual data for the file. A directory, on the other hand, may be implemented as a specially formatted file in which information about other files and directories are stored.
The file server, or filer, may be further configured to operate according to a client/server model of information delivery to thereby allow many client systems (clients) to access shared resources, such as files, stored on the filer. Sharing of files is a hallmark of a NAS system, which is enabled because of semantic level access to files and file systems. Storage of information on a NAS system is typically deployed over a computer network comprising a geographically distributed collection of interconnected communication links, such as Ethernet, that allow clients to remotely access the information (files) stored on the file server. The clients typically communicate with the filer by exchanging discrete frames or packets of data according to pre-defined protocols, such as the well-known Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP).
In the client/server model, the client may comprise an application executing on a computer that "connects" to the filer over a computer network, such as a point-to-point link, shared local area network, wide area network or virtual private network implemented over a public network, such as the well-known Internet. NAS systems generally utilize file-based access protocols; therefore, each client may request the services of the filer by issuing file system protocol messages (in the form of packets) to the file system over the network. By supporting a plurality of file system protocols, such as the conventional Common Internet File System (CIFS), the Network File System (NFS) and the Direct Access File System (DAFS) protocols, the utility of the filer may be enhanced for networking clients.
Conversely, a SAN is a high-speed network that enables establishment of direct connections between a storage system and its storage devices. The SAN may thus be viewed as an extension to a storage bus and, as such, a storage operating system of the storage system enables access to stored information using block-based access protocols over the "extended bus." In this context, the extended bus is typically embodied as Fibre Channel (FC) or Ethernet media adapted to operate with block access protocols, such as Small Computer Systems Interface (SCSI) protocol encapsulation over FC (FCP) or TCP/IP/Ethernet (iSCSI). A SAN arrangement or deployment allows decoupling of storage from the storage system, such as an application server, and some level of storage sharing at the application server level. There are, however, environments wherein a SAN is dedicated to a single server.
It is advantageous for the services and data provided by a storage system such as a filer, to be available for access to the greatest degree possible. Accordingly, some computer storage systems provide a plurality of file servers (or filers) in a cluster, with a property that when a first filer fails, the second filer is available to take over and provide the services and the data otherwise provided by the first filer. When a first filer fails, the second filer in a cluster assumes the task of processing and handling any data access requests normally processed by the first filer. One such example of a cluster configuration is described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/625,234 entitled NEGOTIATING TAKEOVER IN HIGH AVAILABILITY CLUSTER by Samuel M. Cramer, et al., the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
In certain known file server cluster implementations, the transport medium is Ethernet cabling utilizing the TCP/IP protocol for transport of data. Various file service protocols can execute on top of the TCP/IP protocol, such CIFS or NFS. In known failover techniques involving clusters of filers, Network Interface Controllers (NIC) contain the capabilities to support multiple Media Access Control (MAC) addresses. When one of the file servers in a cluster detects a failure of its partner file server, for example, by sensing the partner file server is no longer emitting a heart beat signal, the surviving file server proceeds to take over the partner's disks. The surviving file server then executes a failover script, which involves obtaining the IP address of the failed file server and determining each MAC address associated with the failed file server. Each NIC on the surviving file server is then assigned a MAC address that was normally associated with a NIC of the failed file server. Thus, transfers with IP addresses which are mapped to a MAC address of the failed file server, are no longer routed to the failed file server, but instead are directed to the surviving partner file server.
However, in accordance with the iSCSI specification, each device attached to an iSCSI network requires an iSCSI name, which is unique within a given operating environment. Using conventional failover techniques, such as those described above, an iSCSI client will not properly failover to a surviving partner file server as the iSCSI name of the surviving partner file server will not be identical to that of the failed file server. As the surviving partner file server does not have the proper iSCSI name, clients of the failed file server will not have their data access requests properly routed to the surviving partner file server. In addition to the iSCSI name, the surviving file server must also have several other blocks of data for it to be able to transparently operate on the failed file server's behalf This additional data includes the LUN maps/masks associated with the failed filer for use during processing of data access requests and various types of iSCSI security information may include, for example, a list of which iSCSI initiators which may communicate with the failed target and what methods of authentication the target required. Instead, an error condition may occur as the iSCSI name or other information is not associated with the same device as the network address to which the client is directing data access requests.
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a system and method for transport-level failover of iSCSI devices.

System and method for transport-level failover for loosely coupled iSCSI target devices


An improved umbrella rod structure of multiple tubes, in which the locating assembly includes a spring, a main body, and a plunger. The locating assembly is plugged into an inner tube, with a stop flange of the main body abutting against the lower end of the inner tube. Then, the conical front end of the plunger will retractably project out of a through hole of the inner tube. Using the recessed groove of the outer tube sliding over the elongated guide groove of the inner tube, the projecting end of the plunger will first engage with the lower aperature of the outer tube and then as the inner tube is drawn upwards to have a short rib of the main body abut against the upper segment of the recessed groove, which has a smaller curvature, the plunger will engage with the upper aperature to lock the inner tube and the outer tube in position. With such an arrangement, the inner tube and the outer tube can cooperate with each other to open or close an umbrella, without relative rotation motion therebetween.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a prior known umbrella rod consisted of multiple tubes including at least an outer tube (2a) and an inner tube (1a) between which a connector (3a) is used to combining both. The connector (3a) includes two stoppers (4a), (5a) having springs (41a), (51a) there around to engage with the outer tube (2a) and the inner tube (1a) respectively. The two stoppers (4a), (5a) are at different levels, which makes the manufacturing and assembling of the umbrella rod become difficult and troublesome.

Umbrella rod structure of multiple tubes

No. 27-1, Lane 188, Sec. 3, Chin Mar Rd.


An instrument panel and method of making an instrument panel for use in a vehicle having a passenger side airbag module is disclosed. The instrument panel comprising: a first outer layer having a show surface and an inner surface; an intermediary layer disposed on the inner surface; an inner layer disposed on the intermediary layer; a plurality of cuts in the show surface, the plurality of cuts defining a deployable door in the instrument panel and the plurality of cuts in the show surface are not visually perceivable. The plurality of cuts being in the show surface of the first outer layer and the plurality of cuts do not extend all the way through the first outer layer.

Vehicles are now equipped with some type of inflatable cushions or airbag modules and other vehicle components have been modified to accommodate the use of such systems. For example, most passenger side airbag modules are disposed within and behind an instrument panel which extends across at least a portion of the width of a vehicle compartment. During assembly and/or manufacture, an instrument panel in a vehicle having a passenger side airbag module requires a discrete door which covers an opening formed in the instrument panel for the inflatable cushion to deploy through upon actuation of the airbag module. This separate door is designed to open in response to the force of the expanding inflatable cushion. In other words as the pressure in the inflatable cushion increases, the volume of the cushion increases and applies a force to a portion of the door wherein the door selectively separates from the remaining portion of the instrument panel to permit the inflatable cushion to deploy therethrough.
Typically, the manufacture of the instrument panel involves forming an opening in the instrument panel adjacent to the location of the airbag module. The opening is then covered by a separate door which is secured to the instrument panel and faces the occupants of the vehicle. Thus, the instrument panel itself is manufactured in view of the shape and size of the door and the door is separately manufactured and installed in the instrument panel using known techniques. However, the outer periphery of such a door is clearly visible to the vehicle occupant and may create an unpleasing appearance to the instrument panel.
Due to ongoing desires for improving the aesthetics of the passenger compartment, it is desirable to provide aesthetically pleasing, functional alternatives to the conventional instrument panels having a separate door covering the airbag module.

Instrument panel with integral hidden door cover and method of manufacture thereof


A method for producing a substrate for a photoconductive member includes etching the substrate with a self-limiting acid that removes the metal oxides from but does not affect the surface roughness of the substrate inner and outer surface.

Electrophotographic machines, such as, for example, copiers and printers, produce images by forming a latent image charge pattern on a photoconductive surface. The photoconductive surface carries the latent image through a developing station wherein pigmented toner particles are drawn by electrostatic attraction onto the latent image charge pattern on the photoconductive surface. An electric field is applied to transfer the image from the photoconductive surface onto either an intermediate transfer member or an image substrate, such as, for example, a piece of paper. Thereafter, the image is fixed, such as, for example, by fusing, to the image substrate.
In some electrophotographic machines, the photoconductive surface may be disposed upon a photoconductive member configured as an endless-loop belt having a photoconductive layer or surface. In other electrophotographic machines, the photoconductive surface is disposed on a photoconductive member configured as a cylindrical roller or drum, variously referred to as an image cylinder, photoconductive drum or photoconductive roller. Generally, the photoconductive drum includes an inner roller or mandrel over which a photoconductive sleeve is disposed. The mandrel is typically constructed of aluminum. The photoconductive sleeve is typically constructed from a metal substrate, such as, for example, nickel, onto which several layers of material, including a photoconductive layer, are disposed.
The substrates are typically formed by electroplating, and initially have a very smooth inside and outside surface. In fact, the surfaces are so smooth that an acid etching process is conventionally used to improve adhesion of the photoconductive and/or other layers to the substrate. The acid etching process removes metal oxides from the substrates and thereby desirably increases adhesion of materials to and increases the conductivity of the substrate. However, the acid etching process may increase the surface roughness of the inside and/or outside surfaces of the substrate to an undesirable degree. A substrate having an outer surface that is too rough or which has a roughness in excess of a certain limit can cause the thickness of the photoconductive layer disposed thereon to vary and cause localized differences in the response of the layer to the charging and exposing processes which, in turn, may result in undesirable image artifacts appearing on the image substrate. A substrate having an inside surface that is too rough or which has a roughness in excess of a certain limit may render the photoconductive sleeve less compatible with the air-mounting process by which the sleeves are typically mounted onto a drum or mandrel to thereby assemble the photoconductive drum.
Moreover, acid etching processes are generally not self-limiting and therefore significant process variation can occur. More particularly, the amount of etching that occurs is dependent at least in part upon the concentration of the acid bath, temperature of the bath, time in the bath, and the microcomposition of the nickel substrate. The process variation occurs not only between substrates, i.e., from one substrate to another, but also occurs within a single substrate.
Therefore, what is needed in the art is an improved acid etching process for preparing the surfaces of a substrate to be used as the photoconductive surface of the photoconductive drum in electrophotographic machine.

Photoconductive member for an electrophotographic machine and method of forming same


An assembly is used for chemical injection through a wellhead to a capillary line in a well. A capillary hanger installs in the wellhead to support the capillary line. A no-return valve of the capillary hanger prevents fluid communication uphole from the supported capillary line. An injection module mounts above a gate valve on the wellhead and includes a movable mandrel disposed therein. Hydraulic pressure applied to a piston chamber in the module extends the mandrel through the open gate valve so that a distal end of the mandrel can open the no-return valve. At this point, chemical injection introduced into the module can communicate through a flow bore of the extended mandrel, through the open non-return valve, and on through the supported capillary line in the well.

At times, well operations require capillary lines to be run downhole from an existing wellhead into a live well. In some situations, a capillary line needs to be run downhole extending from the wellhead so chemical injection can be performed downhole. In other situations, a hydraulically-actuated tool needs to be run downhole and needs to be controlled by a new control line extending from the wellhead. For example, an existing safety valve installed downhole may stop functioning because an existing control line to the safety valve has become blocked or damaged. When the hydraulic pressure is lost, the existing safety valve closes so that production from the well stops. Operators then need to run and install a surface-controlled subsurface safety valve and an alternate control line through the wellhead and into the production tubing so production can be restored.
These and other situations require operators to extend a capillary line from the wellhead and to communicate control fluids, chemicals, or the like into the capillary line. Doing this for a live well in an effective way can be challenging. To that end, the subject matter of the present disclosure is directed to overcoming, or at least reducing the effects of, one or more of the problems set forth above.

Assembly method for communicating with line in wellhead


A threading apparatus for threading tape from a single reel magnetic tape cartridge through a tape transport machine. The threading apparatus includes a leader block and a take-up reel. The take-up reel includes a leader block receiving section that is adapted to receive the leader block during a threading operation. Upon the take-up reel receiving the leader block, the take-up reel and leader block form a smooth winding substrate for subsequent wraps of magnetic tape.

For purposes of this application, a read or write operation of information to a magnetic tape is referred to in general as a "read-write" operation.
Data, programs, and other information are often read or stored to a magnetic tape (tape) by the use of a tape transport machine ("transport machine") that is able to perform read-write operations to the tape. Typically, these transport machines include one or more read-write heads and make use of two reels to transport the tape. In order to perform read-write operations to the tape, the tape is wound onto one reel while unwound from the other reel in a manner so that the tape is controllably moved through a guide positioned between the reels and in proximity to the heads.
Some transport machines are designed to operate with tape from a tape cartridge. When the tape cartridge is loaded, the transport machine can interface with tape in the cartridge in order to perform the desired read-write operations. After performing these operations, the transport machine allows the tape cartridge (with the tape) to be unloaded.
One common type of tape cartridge (alternatively referred to herein as a "single reel cartridge") houses tape wrapped onto a single reel (alternatively referred to herein as the "source reel"). Typically, transport machines designed to accept a single reel cartridge include a take-up reel and threading apparatus. Upon loading the cartridge into the transport machine, the threading apparatus operates to thread the tape appropriately through the transport machine and establish a connection with the take-up reel. Further transport of tape is then accomplished by the coordinated winding and unwinding of tape onto the take-up reel and source reel.
As is known in the art, it is highly desirable that the winding substrate (referred to herein as the "take-up reel winding substrate") for tape wrapped onto a take-up reel be acceptably smooth so that irregularities are not created in the tape. Irregularities in the tape can make read-write operations to the tape less reliable, especially in the area where the irregularity is present. In the case of high storage capacity tapes wherein data density on the tape is high, even a small irregularity can affect the reliability of a large amount of read-write operations to the tape.
One popular technique for threading tape from a single reel cartridge makes use of a leader block permanently connected to the free end of the tape in the cartridge. During a threading operation of a loaded single reel cartridge, threading apparatus (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,335,858 incorporated herein by reference) residing in the transport machine operates to move the leader block out of the cartridge and through a threading path in the transport machine in a manner so as to thread the tape. The threading apparatus further operates to insert the leader block into a slot in the take-up reel. When the leader block is so inserted, an exposed curved surface of the leader block and the outer cylindrical surface of the take-up reel form the take-up reel winding substrate. Thus, the smoothness of the take-up reel winding substrate is in part a function of a component (i.e., the tape cartridge leader block) of the loaded cartridge.
Typically, transport machines that make use of the threading technique just described can operate with single reel cartridges from a wide range of manufacturers. These manufactures may or may not include leader blocks in their tape cartridges that provide for an acceptably smooth take-up reel winding substrate. This situation can create unacceptable variations in transport machine reliability that are outside the control of the transport machine manufacturer.


A WDM bidirectional self-healing optical ring network is provided in which an outer ring network and an inner ring network can both handle N optical signals. The network includes a node; an optical add/drop multiplexer having a 1×N demultiplexer and a 1×N multiplexer; a pair of optical switching devices each connected to an optical fiber link intervening between the optical add/drop multiplexer and another node on the both ends of the optical add/drop multiplexer; and, a pair of circulators each connected between the optical add/drop multiplexer and a particular optical switching device in the optical switching device pair, each circulator having three ports, two of the three ports being connected to a corresponding optical switching device and remaining one port being connected to the optical add/drop multiplexer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an optical network, and in particular, to an optical network based on a wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) technology.
2. Description of the Related Art
As a WDM technology for transmitting a plurality of wavelengths through a single-strand optical fiber and its related fabrication techniques, including routing, switching, and adding/dropping of optical signals in a ring network, have dramatically improved, it is now possible to build an optical network, which provides a super high-speed transmission.
In general, a WDM optical network is divided into a mesh network consisting of optical cross connectors (OXCs) and a ring network consisting of optical add/drop multiplexers (OADMs). In the mesh network, as each network node is connected to a plurality of optical fibers, the switching mechanism used to address the link failure is complex and tend to degrade the recovery rate. However, in the ring network, as an optical add/drop multiplexer and a network node is connected to a 2-strand or 4-strand optical fiber, the switching mechanism is simple. Therefore, the ring network is more widely implemented.
A node provided in the WDM optical ring network can be comprised of optical add/drop multiplexers with an optical switching element for adding or dropping an optical signal, and switching devices for performing the protection-switching of the network. The ring network uses a 2-strand or 4-strand optical fiber corresponding to the number of input/output optical fibers. In addition, the ring network can be divided into a unidirectional transmission network and a bidirectional transmission network.
FIG. 1A illustrates a structure of a general WDM optical ring network, and FIG. 1B is a diagram illustrating the switching operation to address the link failure. In particular, FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrate the structure of a bidirectional optical ring network having a 4-strand optical fiber. The conventional WDM optical ring network comprised of a 4-strand optical fiber for transmitting an optical signal bidirectionally uses a link protection switching method based on a loop-back principle. As shown, a first outer ring network 4 of the optical ring network is used during a normal operation. If there is a link failure in the first outer ring network 4, a second outer ring network 3 of the optical ring network is used to perform the bypass of the optical signals based on the loop-back principle. In this regard, 2×2 optical switching devices 110a–180a are connected to the first outer ring network 4 and the second outer ring network 3 at both ends of the optical add/drop multiplexers 10a–40a. Similar to the configuration of the outer ring networks 3 and 4, the inner ring networks 1 and 2 1 also include a network 1 for a normal operation and a network 2 for recovery switching operation. Likewise, 2×2 optical switching devices 110b–180b are provided for the loop-back operation and also connected to the first inner ring network 1 and the second inner ring network 2 at both ends of optical add/drop multiplexers 10b–40b.
In the conventional optical ring network consisting of a 4-strand optical fiber, as the outer ring networks 3 and 4 and share no resource with the inner ring networks 1 and 2, it is possible to set the wavelengths used for transmission of an optical signal to the same value. That is, the outer ring transmits optical signals having wavelengths of λ1, λ2, λ3, . . . , λN, and the inner ring also transmits optical signals having wavelengths of λ1, λ2, λ3, . . . , λN. If a bidirectional transmission is provided, the outer ring transmits the optical signals clockwise, while the inner ring transmits the optical signals counterclockwise.
In the event of a link failure, a switching is performed by looping back the optical signal using the two 2×2 optical switching devices located on both sides of the failed link in the opposite direction. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 1B, if a failure occurs in an optical link of the network 4, which connects an optical add/drop multiplexer OADM1a (10a) to an optical add/drop multiplexer OADM2a (20a), optical signals of λ1, λ2, λ3, . . . , λN, which were transmitted from the optical add/drop multiplexer OADM1a (10a) to the optical add/drop multiplexers OADM2a (20a), are looped back to the second outer protection switching ring network 3 through an optical switching device sw12 (120a), thus traveling in a counterclockwise direction through the second outer ring network 3. Ultimately, the optical signals of λ1, λ2, λ3, . . . , λN transmitted through the second outer protection switching ring network 3 are delivered to the optical add/drop multiplexer OADM2a (20a) via an optical switching device sw21 (130a).
As illustrated by the optical switching device sw12 (120a) of FIG. 1A, when a optical transmission link normally operates, the 2×2 optical switching device is in a bar (parallel) state, so that a signal applied to an input#1 (i1) is delivered to an output#1 (o1), and a signal applied to an input#2 (i2) is delivered to an outpt#2 (o2). However, when a failure occurs in the optical link, the optical switching device is in a cross state, causing signal applied to an input#1 (i1) to be delivered to an output#2 (o2), and a signal applied to an input#2 (i2) is delivered to an output#1 (o1). At this time, an optical switching device which is not adjacent to the failed link, is still in a bar state.
As explained above, for a bidirectional self-healing optical ring network to work, a 4-strand optical fiber is necessary, thus complicating and increasing the cost of the network. Therefore, there is a need to provide an improved network that is simple and less expensive to implement.


A vehicle room lighting device having a lamp housing 2 and a lamp lens 3. An elastic piece 12 having a predetermined elasticity in a direction of a rotary shaft O-O of the lamp lens 3 is provided at the lamp lens 3. A shaft portion 15 is provided at the elastic piece 12. A shaft hole 23 is provided at the lamp housing 2. The shaft portion 15 is inserted into the shaft hole 23 so as to be rotatable around the rotary shaft O-O of the lamp lens 3. The vehicle room lighting device is capable of rotatably mounting the lamp lens 3 on the lamp housing 2 without a backlash.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle room lighting device (a vehicle room lamp) for rotationally operating a lamp lens and then making an operation of pushing a push switch to thereby cause a light source to be turned ON/OFF.
2. Description of the Related Art
A vehicle room lighting device of such type is conventionally known (for example, Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-open No. 58-181634). Hereinafter, a conventional vehicle room lighting device will be described. The conventional vehicle room lighting device is provided with: an edge which is arranged at the periphery of a housing; a bulb which is partitioned by the lens and the housing; and a lens which is arranged to enable tilting at a front face opening portion of the housing; and a push button switch which causes the bulb to be turned ON/OFF, wherein a pin portion of the lens is rotatably engaged with a recessed portion which is formed by the housing and the rim. When the lens is pushed, the lens rotates around the pin portion and then the rotating lens causes a push button switch to be turned ON/OFF (open/close), whereby the bulb is turned ON/OFF.
The vehicle room lighting device of such type causes the bulb to be turned ON/OFF by operating the push button switch to be turned ON/OFF through a rotating operation of the lens, and thus, the rotating operation of the lens needs to be precious. Therefore, in the vehicle room lighting device of such type, it has been important to rotatably mount the lens on the housing without a backlash.


A ride vibration system includes a rider support feature coupled to a ride vehicle and accessible to a rider positioned in the ride vehicle. The system includes a vibrator with a motor that rotates an eccentric mass to generate vibrations. The vibrator is at least partially integrated with the rider support feature and transfers the vibrations to the rider support feature. An input device receives a vibration intensity selection. A controller couples to the vibrator and to the input device. The controller receives the vibration intensity selection and controls the motor to control an intensity of the vibrations.

The present disclosure relates generally to amusement park rides.
Many amusement park-style rides include ride vehicles that carry passengers along a ride path, such as a track. As the ride vehicle travels along the ride path, the ride vehicle may be subjected to a variety of ride path features, such as turns, loops, twists, and so forth, that are part of the ride path.
It is common for ride vehicles and amusement park-style attractions to include other features that enhance the ride vehicle experience for passengers. For example, ride vehicles, ride paths, and/or other elements of the ride system may include lights, speakers, interactive elements, specialized environments, and/or other features that provide sensory stimulation for the passenger in the ride vehicle to enhance the ride experience. It will be appreciated that passengers enjoying the ride vehicle experience may desire different levels of sensory stimulation.
This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present disclosure, which are described below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.


A birefringent material have two major parallel surfaces and a method of making such a material, wherein the said material comprises plural identical uniaxial birefringent polymeric films, each of said uniaxial films having an optical axis, or comprising plural identical biaxial birefringent polymeric films, each of said biaxial films having an acute bisectrix of the optical axes, wherein the material is formed from a stack of said films, with the optical axes or the acute bisectrixes of the films in the stack being aligned, and wherein said stack has been cut or skived at an angle to the optical axes or the acute bisectrixes thereof, such that when incident light passes through said material in a direction perpendicular to said major surfaces of the material, the incident light having a first plane of polarization is displaced relative to the incident light having a second plane of polarization, the first and second planes of polarization being perpendicular to each other.

A birefringent material can be used for many purposes. One example is to separate light, such as light rays, images, or the like, and/or to change the direction or location of such light. Such separation and such direction or location changing can be used for a variety of purposes. Examples of devices using birefringent materials are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,572,341 and 5,715,029 and commonly owned U.S. application Ser. No. 08/817,846, filed Apr. 25, 1997, the entire disclosures of which hereby are incorporated by reference. In several embodiments of devices disclosed in such patent applications either the light is transmitted directly through a birefringent material without a change in direction or the direction or location of the light is shifted.
An example of a conventional birefringent material is a crystal made of calcite (calcium carbonate) CaCO.sub.3. In the above-mentioned exemplary devices calcite or other birefringent material is able to transmit light directly through the device or to shift or to translate the location of the light, for example, depending on the direction of the electric vector of plane (linear) polarized light relative to the axis of the calcite.
The calcite crystal used in such exemplary devices is birefringent and it is cut or so arranged that it has coplanar surfaces on which light is incident and from which light exits. The direction of incident and exiting light relative to the coplanar surfaces may be normal (perpendicular) to the respective planes of those surfaces. For exemplary descriptive purposes, one axis of the calcite is horizontal and the other is vertical, and the vertical axis either tips forward or backward such that it does not lie in a plane that is parallel with the mentioned coplanar surfaces. For incident plane or linearly polarized light which is incident on one of the coplanar surfaces, if the plane of polarization is perpendicular to the mentioned tilted axis of the calcite crystal, then the light is transmitted directly through the calcite crystal without a change in direction or location of the light; but if the plane of polarization is aligned with the mentioned axis, then there is a shift in the direction of the light and the location where the light exits the calcite crystal is different from the location that the first-mentioned light exits the calcite crystal. The displacement between the two light beams or light rays exiting the calcite crystal depends on the birefringence of the crystal and the thickness of the crystal.
Calcite crystal material of optical quality is relatively expensive. Also, usually the area or size of calcite crystal material is relatively small.
It would be desirable to obtain or to make birefringent material, especially that of good optical quality, that can be used in visual display and viewing devices, for example, while reducing the cost of that material relative to the cost of calcite crystal material. It also would be desirable to facilitate making such material and to enable the making of the material in a variety of sizes, both in terms of area on which light may be incident and thickness.
Birefringent material has different indices of refraction characteristics for different directions or different directions of plane of polarization of light transmitted therethrough. Various film or sheet materials, especially those that are stretched, are known to have birefringence characteristics. For example, a stretched film of polyvinyl alcohol is known to be uniaxial, birefringent, and optically positive. The optical axis usually is in the direction of stretch. Polystyrene is another example of a uniaxial, birefringent material, but polystyrene usually is referred to as being optically negative. The uniaxial films usually have two indices of refraction, one which is in the direction of stretch and the other which is generally perpendicular to the stretched direction.
A polyester film material, such as that sold under the trademark Mylar, is a biaxial material. The biaxial material typically has three indices of refraction. Looking at a top plan view of the material, one axis or index of refraction would be in the direction of stretch or linear extent of the film material and generally in the plane of the material; a second would be perpendicular to the first and also in the generally in the plane of the material; and a third index of refraction would be looking through the material at an edge view of it. In a biaxial film material, such as Mylar, there are two axes along which there is no birefringence exhibited by the material. Those axes typically are referred to as the optical axes or optic axes.

Stacked films birefringent device and method of making same


A high density flexible wiring connection device comprises a flexible flat cable (FFC) having narrow-pitch conductors and a flat cable connector (FC connector) having a double-sided contact designed for narrow-pitch wiring and having upper and lower contact terminals. A supplementary wiring board having upper and lower wiring terminals is introduced to connect alternate ones and the other alternate ones of the narrow-pitch conductors of the FFC to alternate ones of the upper contact terminals and alternate ones of the lower contact terminals of the FC connector, respectively, thereby making the pitch of each of the upper and lower wiring terminals twice the narrow pitch of the FFC and the FC connector. The use of the supplementary wiring board to thus convert the wiring pitch makes it possible to prevent whiskers, even if formed on the contact terminals, from causing short-circuits between adjacent contact terminals and between adjacent wiring terminals.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a high density flexible wiring connection device using a high density flexible flat cable, such as flexible flat cable (hereafter referred to as FFC), including a flexible printed circuit board (hereafter referred to as FPC), which is capable of high-density wiring, and can be attached to and detachable from a socket-type flexible cable connector.
2. Description of the Related Art
There have been advances in size and weight reduction in electronic equipment such cellular phones, personal computers and thin displays. Many electronic components including wiring boards or connection devices used in such electronic equipment use copper or copper alloys as wiring materials. For electrically connecting the electronic components e.g. to other wiring boards or connection devices, connectors such as FPC connectors are often advantageously used because they allow easy size reduction and circuit connection. When such connectors are used for connection, copper wiring terminals are normally subjected to surface treatment by electrolytic plating of e.g. gold or a tin-lead alloy. However, they have problems in that the cost of the gold plating is high, while the plating treatment of a lead-containing alloy may cause lead to dissolve out to contaminate the environment so that lead-free alloys are desired. Thus, studies have been made on pure tin plating and on plating of tin alloys containing no lead.
However, when the pure tin plating or the plating of a tin alloy containing no lead is applied on a copper wiring terminal e.g. of a flexible board to be press-fit into an FPC connector so as to form a plated film on the copper wiring terminal, needle-like crystals called "whiskers" are rapidly formed on the plated film around portions thereof which are pressed by pins of the FPC connector. The whiskers are also formed on various surfaces such as a plated surface of a flexible board, a plated surface of the FPC connector, and a surface of a burr produced by inserting the flexible board into the FPC connector. All such whiskers are considered to be caused by the press-fit force which is generated between the flexible board and the FPC connector, pressing the flexible board from both sides, and which acts as external stresses to each other, i.e. to the flexible board and the FPC connector including the produced burr. The thus formed whiskers may cause short-circuits e.g. between copper wirings, causing failures e.g. in electronic equipment.
A conventional flexible wiring board or connection device uses a resin film to suppress the formation of whiskers to be caused by the press-fit with an FPC connector having pins. For example, assume that a copper wiring terminal of an FPC or an FFC electrolytically plated with pure tin or tin alloy is to be press-fit with a ZIF (Zero Insertion Force) type connector which requires only a small force. For this purpose, it is known to form a thin resin film layer in advance on a portion of the copper wiring terminal which portion is to be electrically connected to a pin of the ZIF type connector so as to suppress the formation of whiskers (refer to e.g. Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication 2005-302575). However, this technology requires that the thin resin film layer be formed with high accuracy on the FPC or FFC copper wiring terminal. Furthermore, there is a risk that the contact resistance of the formed resin film layer to the pin of the ZIF type connector may change and increase due to variations in thickness of the resin film layer. In addition, it is difficult to suppress whiskers formed by repetitive use.
An example of a conventional flexible connector has an insulating sheet with pin contact arrays formed of flexible conductive plates bonded on both sides of the insulating sheet so as to form a dense three-layer structure (refer to e.g. Japanese Laid-open Utility Model Publication Hei 7-11783). Another example of a conventional flexible connector uses an FPC with a base film having a portion which corresponds to the connector, and on the upper and lower surfaces of which connector wirings are formed to be close and parallel to each other so as to form dense electrode arrays (refer to e.g. Japanese Laid-open Utility Model Publication Sho 64-16083).
Yet another example of a conventional flexible connector uses an FPC with a film-based contact portion having two sets of parallel land portions formed thereon as well as lead patters provided on the upper and lower surfaces thereof and connected to the land portions in order to form a flexible board with dense electrode arrays to be used for connector interconnection (refer to e.g. Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication 2001-177206). Also known is a connector to be connected to a flexible wiring board or connection device, in which the connector uses an FPC with an insulating film base having lead patterns printed on upper and lower surfaces thereof to increase the number and density of contacts (refer to e.g. Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication 2003-59560). However, all of these conventional flexible cables or wiring boards or connection devices are aimed at increasing the number and density of contact electrodes, so that they are likely to be affected by whiskers which may cause short-circuits.


One or more embodiments of a document organization system quickly and conveniently provide digital documents to a user on a client device based on a physical object. In particular, the document organization system can receive an image of a physical document and an identifier from a first client device, identify digital documents that match the physical document, and provide the matching digital documents to a second client device, which displays the identifier. In another embodiment, the document organization system allows a user to bind digital documents to a physical object and later recall the digital documents using the physical object. In addition, the document organization system can store and recall the layout arrangement of digital documents on a client device when binding and recalling the digital documents to the physical object.

Many users interact with both digital and physical documents on a daily basis. In many instances, however, as computers improve and technology advances, users are shifting away from physical space to digital space. For example, photographers almost exclusively work in digital space when capturing and editing pictures. As another example, many offices are going "paperless" by eliminating the need to store paper copies of files. Indeed, working with digital documents provides users with a convenience, collaboration, and accessibility not provided by physical documents. As part of the transition from physical space to digital space, however, certain disadvantages have arisen.
To illustrate, the human mind excels at understanding spatial connections in the physical world, especially connections that are visually apparent. For example, a user who has various stacks of files and folders in his or her office, when asked for the location of a particular file, can quickly and accurately locate the exact location of the file. The same user, however, may struggle to locate a digital copy of the file in the digital realm. As such, the user may resort to external sources for help, such as a search function on a computer, which can often be slow and unreliable.
As another example, a user may be working with a number of digital documents on a computing device, for example, as part of a work project. If the user needs to switch to another project, the user often closes the documents from the first project and opens the documents for the other project. Upon switching back to the first project, the user must re-locate, re-open, and often re-arrange the documents from the first project on one or more display devices. Accordingly, the user is often much more efficient at storing, locating, and retrieving documents in the physical realm.
Accordingly, there are a number of considerations to be made in document management and organization when working with digital documents.

Intelligently identifying and presenting digital documents


Provided is directed to a high voltage generation circuit capable of improving a yield by controlling a defect due to a write recovery time tWR margin shortage, by including: a first high voltage generation unit for generating a first high voltage during an active operation and then applying it to a cell word line; and a second high voltage generation circuit for generating a predetermined voltage during a precharging operation, and then applying a second high voltage higher than the first high voltage to the cell word line.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a high voltage generation circuit, and more particularly to, a high voltage generation circuit capable of improving a yield by controlling a defect due to a write recovery time tWR margin shortage, by generating a first high voltage during an active operation and generating a second high voltage higher than the first high voltage, in sequence, during a precharging operation.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Dynamic Random Access Memory DRAM is a volatile memory device storing data in a cell comprised of a transistor and a capacitor. In order to read and write data in the DRAM cell, a high voltage Vpp higher than an external supply voltage Vcc is generated and applied to a cell word line. As a result, a cell transistor is turned on/off. However, when the high voltage is too high, it has a bad influence to reliability of the cell transistor. Accordingly, the DRAM device has used a voltage a little bit higher than a voltage that adds the external supply voltage Vcc and a threshold voltage Vt of the cell transistor.
The high voltage is generated by using a high voltage generation circuit as shown in FIG. 1. The high voltage generation circuit is basically comprised of an oscillator 11, a pumping circuit 12, and a level detection circuit 13. The oscillator is operated by an enable signal EN, generating an oscillation signal OSC with a constant period. The pumping circuit 12 generates a high voltage Vpp by a pumping operation using an external supply voltage Vcc in response to the oscillation signal OSC. Furthermore, the level detection circuit 13 detects whether or not the high voltage is risen to a target value by comparing a reference voltage and the high voltage Vpp, and according to the result, the level detection circuit 13 controls the operation of the oscillator 11 and maintains a constant potential of the high voltage.
However, as a design rule is getting smaller, the sizes of a a storage node contact and a bitline contact of a cell transistor are getting smaller as well. As a result, as cell threshold voltages have different values according to a manufacturing process, and thus there are many cells which can't transfer data of the bitline to a cell capacitor within a constant time, a yield of the device is decreased thereto. Especially, during a data write operation, a defect by a write recovery time tWR margin shortage, as a time fixed for storing data in the cell capacitor before precharing operation, is becoming a serious problem these days when the manufacturing process is getting sub-micron design-rule.


An electric drill having a function for preventing drilling of unexpected oblique hole. Further, in the electric drill, when the direction of drilling is displaced in drilling work using the electric drill, it is sensed automatically to stop the drilling. The electric drill (1) performs drilling in the direction perpendicular a workpiece (7) and has a tilt sensor (10) mounted on a tilt sensor mounting surface (8) defined in parallel to the ground surface. When the rotation axis (C) of the drill positioned perpendicular to the surface of the workpiece is tilted to an angle equal to or greater than a predetermined angle, the tilt sensor (10) senses the tilt to shutoff a drive current of the electric drill.

In the back ground art of this technical field, the following are known as to an electric drill with a means for sensing a boring direction.
Publication 1: Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication No. Hei-7-214408 entitled as "Hand-type electric drill with level" (published on Aug. 15, 1995)
Publication 2: Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication No. Hei-10-225810 entitled as "Handy-type electric drill" (published on Aug. 15, 1998).


This application discloses a communication method and apparatus. A terminal device determines a frequency position of a random access resource based on at least one of an initial frequency offset, a random access resource configuration period, an uplink channel bandwidth, a bandwidth of the random access resource, a time period of a random access resource, a time period of the random access resource, and a frequency index of the random access resource that are configured by a network device, and the terminal device sends a random access signal to the network device at the determined frequency position.

Development of mobile services has higher requirements for a data rate and a capacity in wireless communication. To support a higher data rate and a larger user capacity, multi-beam communication is performed in a next-generation communications system (for example, NR (new radio)). Before communicating with a terminal, a base station first needs to perform uplink synchronization and downlink synchronization. In a downlink synchronization process, the base station sends a downlink synchronization signal through a plurality of transmit beams, and the terminal receives and detects the downlink synchronization signal through one or more receive beams, and determines an optimal pair of downlink transmit beam and receive beam, a downlink time, and system information. The uplink synchronization is completed with the help of a random access process. The terminal first sends a random access signal, and the base station detects the random access signal, to obtain an optimal pair of uplink transmit beam and receive beam, an uplink time, and the like, and implements uplink synchronization between the base station and the terminal.
In a current new radio (NR) communications system, there is no suitable method for determining a frequency position of a random access resource. Therefore, when the terminal sends the random access signal, the terminal shoots in the dark on a random access resource, and beams may not match when the base station receives the random access signal, leading to relatively low efficiency of the random access process.