The present invention relates to stable adsorber granules which have a high mechanical stability, and also to the use thereof.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to stable adsorber granules which haves high mechanical stability, and also to the use thereof.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Catalyst and adsorber granules, also those based on iron oxides and/or iron oxyhydroxides have already been described. They are used predominantly in continuous processes, in which they are customarily found in tower- and column-like apparatuses through which the medium to be treated flows, where on the outer and inner surfaces of the granules and the accessible pores, the chemical and physical reaction and adsorption processes take place. For this purpose, pulverulent materials cannot be used, because they compress in the direction of flow of the medium and as a result incresse the flow resistance up to blocking of the apparatus.
If an apparatus is cleaned by back-flushing, large amounts of the powder are discharged, are lost, and lead to an intolerable pollution of the wastewater.
The flowing media, however, also exert forces on the granules which can lead to abrasion and/or movement up to vigorous agitation of the granules. As a result the granules impact one another and as a consequence unwanted abrasion results. This leads to loss of catalyst or adsorber material and to contamination of the medium to be treated.
Iron oxide and iron hydroxide-containing adsorption media/reaction media can be used advantageously, for example in the sector of water purification or gas purification. In the case of water purification, this composition is used in filters or adsorber columns through which flow passes horizontally or vertically, or, by addition to the water to be treated for the precipitation of dissolved, suspended or emulsified organic or inorganic phosphorus, arsenic, antimony, sulphur, selenium, tellurium, beryllium and also cyano and heavy metal ions and compounds from, for example, drinking water, service water, process water, industrial wastewater, domestic wastewater, pit water, mineral water, holy water, thermal water and therapeutic water and also aquarium water, garden pond water and agricultural water. Use is also possible in what are termed reactive walls for precipitating the said pollutants from groundwater conduits and leachate water conduits from contaminated sites such as landfills.
In gas cleaning, the composition is used in adsorbers for binding unwanted constituents such as hydrogen sulphide, mercaptans and prussic acid, and also other phosphorus, arsenic, antimony, sulphur, selenium, tellurium and cyano and heavy metal compounds in off-gases. It is also possible to adsorb gases such as HF, HCl, H2S, SOx, NOx.
It is also possible to remove phosphorus, arsenic, antimony, selenium, tellurium and also cyano and heavy metal compounds from used oils and other contaminated organic solvents.
Catalyst granules and adsorber granules based on iron oxides and/or iron oxyhydroxides are also used for the catalysis of chemical reactions in the gas phase or in the liquid phase.
Various processes are also known for removing the trace substances and pollutants from aqueous systems using adsorption media.
For water treatment, preferably continuously operated adsorbers are used which are frequently operated in groups arranged in parallel. To free, for example, drinking water from organic impurities, such adsorbers are charged with activated carbon.
As regards the removal of pollutants such as arsenic from water, iron oxides and/or iron oxyhydroxides are superior to all other known adsorption media. The adsorption of arsenic compounds by iron hydroxide gel has been known for a relatively long time (R. W. Bunsen, A. A. Berthold, 2nd edition, Göttingen, 1837).
DE 4 320 003 A1 describes a process for removing dissolved arsenic by means of solid iron(III) hydroxide.
WO 02/47811 A1 describes a process for producing an iron-containing sorption material with pressure elevation at a temperature below 5° C.
DE 4 320 003 A1 and WO 02/47811 A1 disclose the use of granulated iron hydroxide as adsorber material for a fixed-bed reactor. The granulated iron hydroxide is produced via a freeze-conditioning (freeze drying) of iron hydroxide obtained by neutralization of acidic iron(III) salt solutions at temperatures below minus 5° C. This production process is energetically costly to a great extent and leads to highly salt-polluted wastewaters. Furthermore, as a result of this production process, a very broad particle size spectrum is obtained which also comprises very small particles of low mechanical stability. In the case of use in a fixed-bed reactor, this leads to the grain size spectrum being significantly decreased in the course of the operation due to mechanical abrasion of the particles, which in turn causes finely dispersed particles of loaded or unloaded adsorption medium to be discharged from the reactor. A further disadvantage of these granules is that the adsorption capacity towards arsenic compounds is considerably reduced if the granules lose water, for example owing to a relatively log dry idle time. If the granules are delivered, for example, in the moist state, they have a tendency to stick and are difficult to transport.
In addition the stability of the granules decreases with a high water content which becomes noticeable as an adverse aspect in particular in transport. A high water content also increases the transport costs of the medium. Moist medium offers, in addition, an ideal nutrient base for bacteria which can be washed out into the drinking water during operation. If moist medium comes onto the market, care must be taken that it does not lose moisture in an uncontrolled manner, for instance in drying in air or in the sun, as otherwise the mode of action can be lost and the granule size distribution as a result of shrinkage, and the bulk density, are no longer reliable.
Furthermore, it is known that ageing, for example of amorphous Fe(OH)3 proceeds more rapidly in the aqueous environment than in the dry state. Associated therewith is crystallization and possibly a reduction of the adsorption capacity and stability.
A further disadvantage in this process has proved in practice to be the quality of the granulated material, because the material is comparatively soft and fine-grained. As a result, during backwashing of the filter charged with the material, a considerable material loss occurs. Therefore, at each backwashing, new material must be added, as a result of which the expenditure for carrying out the process is considerably increased. In addition, the water or wastewater to be treated must be relatively clean, since otherwise precipitates of solid constituents of the water on the granules occur due to the filter action and thus the removal of the desired constituents is impaired.
The iron oxide granules or iron oxyhydroxide granules described in WO 92/126630 A1 and WO 02/12663 A1, however, are outstandingly suitable for use in fixed-bed adsorbers. The fines fraction which is possibly abraided off from the. granules by improper mechanical stress of the granules is discharged from the bed from time to time by backwashing together with algae, iron flakes and other fines fractions originating from the groundwater and is collected in a separate vessel end sedimented there. However, in closed water purification containers, for example cartridges or sieve baskets, such a separate extraction of the fines fraction, which could contaminate the treated water, is not possible without further steps. Closed water purification containers comprise the adsorption medium in a bed.
Since the described granules and also the inventive granules can be free from foreign binders, the material is comparatively simple to dispose of after use.
However, the stability of compacted powders is unsatisfactory with relatively long use in adsorbers, and is in need of improvement. Therefore, these formulations come into consideration for use in adsorbers, for example, in particular continuously operated adsorbers, in the purification of water, only with restrictions. In particular in the maintenance or cleaning of the adsorber units by backwashing (see below), such granules, owing to the associated agitation, lose the same large amounts of substance. The backwashing wastewater is highly turbid as a result of the abrasion. This is not acceptable for a plurality of reasons: first, adsorber material is lost which is heavily loaded with impurities after a relatively long service life and is therefore toxicologically harmful. Then, the wastewater stream is polluted with the abraded material which can sediment and thus leads to impairment of the piping systems, and finally the sewage treatment plant is undesirably loaded physically and toxicologically, to name only some reasons.
Frequently, the problem is encountered, especially in regions where well water, mains water or drinking water in general is polluted with arsenic or other heavy metals, that no suitable drinking water treatment plant is available in the vicinity or no suitable system is available which would continuously remove the pollutants.
The company Brita Wasser-Filter-Systeme GmbH has disclosed, for example, cartridges and apparatuses for treating liquids (DE 19 905 601 A1; DE 19 915 829 A1; DE 19 814008 A1, DE 19 615 102 A1, DE 4 304536 A1, U.S. Pat. No. 6,099,728). These apparatuses are very suitable for the complete or partial desalination of drinking water in domestic jugs immediately before use of the drinking water. However, for the easy handleability of the granules in transport, on changing or charging the adsorber tanks, it is necessary that the granules have as low a moisture content as possible, since these otherwise have a tendency to stick together and can no longer flow freely.
The object underlying the present invention, therefore, is to produce improved granules based on iron hydroxide, which granules have a high mechanical stability combined with a high binding capacity for pollutants present in liquids and gases and which have flowability and low water content and which achieve sufficient mechanical stability even without organic binders or inorganic foreign binders.

Method of using stable adsorber granules to remove pollutants from flowable media


Disclosed is a mobile terminal apparatus which includes: an upper housing in which a display portion having a display screen is disposed; a lower housing having an inner major surface in which an operating portion including a plurality of kinds of input keys is disposed; and a connecting portion which connects the upper housing with the lower housing such that the upper housing and the lower housing are turnable away from and toward each other to open and close the apparatus. In this apparatus, the inner major surface of the lower housing is recessed at an area where input keys of a first group that corresponds to a particular one of the kinds is disposed, so as to increase a level difference between a keytop of each of the input keys of the first group and the inner major surface.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mobile terminal apparatus, and more particularly to a structure of a mobile terminal apparatus having an upper housing and a lower housing that are connected to each other such that the upper and lower housings are relatively displaceable away from and toward each other to open and close or fold the mobile terminal apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Typically, a mobile terminal apparatus (hereinafter simply referred to as "terminal") of fold type or clamshell type, such as mobile phone terminal of the type, includes an upper housing, a lower housing, and a hinge portion that connects the upper and lower housings such that the upper and lower housings are turnable about the hinge portion away from and toward each other so that the terminal is openable and closable or foldable. The upper housing has a display screen on an inner major surface thereof, and the lower housing has on an inner major surface thereof an operating portion including various input keys. Fold-type terminals are widely used these days because of their advantages that the screen and key area of the terminals are wide when used, and the terminals are compact when closed to be carried.
When closed or folded, an operating portion of such a fold-type terminal is opposed to a display screen in the form of a transparent plate. A thickness of the terminal becomes inevitably larger when the terminal is folded than when the terminal is not folded, since the upper housing is superposed on the lower housing in the folded state of the terminal. To minimize the thickness of the terminal as folded, it is desirable to minimize a clearance between the upper and lower housings as superposed on each other, in addition to reduce a thickness of each of the upper and lower housings. However, contact of any of the input keys with the display screen leads to contamination or damage of the display screen. When an input key excessively protrudes from the inner major surface, that input key may be unintentionally pressed upon deformation of one or both of the upper and lower housings, thereby causing a false operation of the terminal.
In a common remote controller for a television set or an audio system, input keys or manual operation buttons are disposed in a surface of the remote controller to protrude there from to facilitate operation or pressing thereof by a user.
However, in the fold-type terminal, the keytops of the input keys are substantially flush with the surface in which the input keys are disposed, for the above-described reason. The shape of the keytop of each of the input keys is substantially flat, so as not to form a clearance around each input key. As described above, it is difficult to form the keytop in a rounded shape.
Usually, to alleviate an impact imposed on the upper and lower housings upon folding of the terminal with a clearance left between the upper and lower housings, a shock-absorbing member such as that of rubber is disposed at an end portion of the inner surface of one or both of the upper and lower housings. Increasing a height of the shock-absorbing member allows the input keys to further protrude from the surface in which the input keys are disposed. However, the clearance between the upper and lower housings while the terminal is folded or closed increases with an increase in the amount of the protrusion, or the height, of the input keys, thereby increasing the thickness of the terminal as folded, while making the terminal prone to introduce dust and dirt into the clearance.
JP-A-11-112627 discloses a mechanism in a fold-type mobile terminal having an upper housing and a lower housing, which mechanism is configured such that an operating portion thereof is retracted into the lower housing when the upper and lower housings are turned toward each other, that is, the terminal is folded or closed, and the operating portion comes out of the lower housing when the upper and lower housings are turned away from each other, that is, the terminal is opened.
According to the terminal disclosed in the above-mentioned publication, the usability of the operating portion is enhanced by the mechanism, in exchange for increases in the complexity of the mechanism and the cost of the terminal. Further, although a clearance formed between the upper and lower housings when the terminal is folded can be made relatively small, a space for allowing movement of input keys a direction of a thickness of the lower housing is necessary in the lower housing, and thus it is inevitable that the thickness of the lower housing is relatively large.


Disclosed is a wireless charging apparatus for a cable-type secondary battery. The wireless charging apparatus for the cable-type secondary battery according to the present disclosure includes a socket having a space formed inside for mounting the cable-type secondary battery, a first terminal that is electrically connected to an outer current collector of the cable-type secondary battery mounted in the socket, a second terminal that is electrically connected to an inner current collector of the cable-type secondary battery mounted in the socket, and a secondary coil for wireless charging having one end connected with the first terminal and the other end connected with the second terminal, and wound along an outer circumferential surface of the socket. According to the present disclosure, even if a secondary coil for wireless power reception is absent from a cable-type secondary battery, charging may be performed by a method for wireless power transmission and reception.

With the technology development and the growing demands for a mobile device, an electric vehicle, a hybrid electric vehicle, an energy storage system, an uninterruptible power supply, and the like, the demand for a secondary battery as an energy source is dramatically increasing, and in this context, many studies are being conducted on batteries to meet various needs.
A secondary battery is a device that stores electrical energy in chemical form and converts the stored chemical energy into electrical energy to generate electricity when needed. The secondary battery is also referred to as a 'rechargeable battery' because it can be recharged repeatedly. A common secondary battery includes a lead accumulator, a NiCd battery, a NiMH accumulator, a Li-ion battery, a Li-ion polymer battery, and the like. When compared to a disposable primary battery, not only is the secondary battery more economically efficient, it is also more environmentally friendly.
Generally, most secondary batteries have a cylindrical, prismatic, or pouch shape. These secondary batteries are classified into pouch-type, cylindrical, and prismatic secondary batteries based on a type of an outer case. The secondary batteries have advantages of easy fabrication and low manufacturing costs because the secondary batteries are fabricated by mounting an electrode assembly composed of an anode, a cathode, and a separator in a cylindrical or prismatic metal can or a pouch-shaped case of an aluminum laminate sheet, and by injecting an electrolyte into the electrode assembly. When a predetermined mounting space for the secondary battery is required, there is a drawback in that adaptation in shape is limited. Thus, the cylindrical, prismatic or pouch shape of the secondary battery is a limitation in developing various shapes of mobile devices. Accordingly, there is a need for a new type of secondary battery that is easily adaptable in shape.
To fulfill this need, suggestions have been made to develop a cable-type secondary battery having a very high ratio of length to cross-sectional diameter. Korean Patent Application publication No. 2005-99903 discloses an adaptable battery consisting of an inner electrode, an outer electrode and an electrolyte layer interposed therebetween. Such secondary battery is mainly characterized by having a so-called cable structure which is constructed in an elongated shape and is flexible in a lengthwise direction.
Meanwhile, intensive studies have been conducted on an apparatus for charging a cable-type secondary battery that supplies power to the cable-type secondary battery.

Wireless charging apparatus for cable-type secondary battery


A medical device system performs a method for determining presence of scar tissue through an implanted lead having an electrode for cardiac pacing and sensing. A sensing module senses heart activity with the electrode to produce a unipolar electrogram (EGM) waveform. A processor receives the unipolar EGM waveform and extracts two or more features representative of heart activity at the electrode. Scar tissue is identified at the site of the first electrode based upon at least two of the extracted features indicating scar tissue.

Myocardial ischemia or myocardial infarction can produce areas of scar tissue in the myocardial substrate that will be unresponsive to cardiac pacing. If a patient having myocardial scar tissue requires cardiac pacing, the location of the scar tissue is preferably avoided in positioning pacing electrodes. However, the location of the scar tissue may be unknown without performing imaging procedures, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which may be costly, require catheterization or contrast agents, and may not be readily available in some geographic areas.
Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) is one type of cardiac pacing therapy that is used as a treatment for heart failure patients in which one or more heart chambers are electrically stimulated (paced) to restore or improve heart chamber synchrony. Achieving a positive clinical benefit from CRT is dependent on several therapy control parameters including selection of pacing site(s) and the relative timing of pacing pulses delivered in the right and/or left ventricles. For example, selection of a CRT pacing site that avoids myocardial scar tissue is important in achieving clinical benefit. Systems and methods are needed for identifying myocardial scar tissue versus healthy myocardial substrate at a potential pacing site in a patient receiving CRT or other pacing therapy without requiring costly imaging technology.

Identification of healthy versus unhealthy substrate for pacing from a multipolar lead


A system for testing or debugging a device under test having an embedded logic analyzer. In one embodiment, the system includes software stored in non-transitory memory for testing a device under test having an embedded logic analyzer, the software program product having instructions which, when executed by a computing device associated with the device under test cause the computing device to reconstruct signals of interest in the device under test based at least in part upon signals captured by the embedded logic analyzer during the test or debug session, and cause the computing device to display the reconstructed signals of interest to a user of the computing device.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an embedded logic analyzer, and particularly to a programmable embedded logic analyzer for analyzing an electronic circuit.
2. Description of the Related Art
A logic analyzer is an electronic instrument that is used to capture and display data signals of an electronic circuit. Generally, the logic analyzer captures the data signals that are too fast to be observed by a user. The user observes the data signals captured by the logic analyzer to effectively analyze the electronic circuit and to take preemptive actions or to debug based on the analysis.
Logic Analyzers may be broadly classified as external logic analyzers and embedded logic analyzers. The embedded logic analyzer is generally included within a programmable logic device or an integrated circuit (IC), e.g., a complex programmable logic device (CPLD), field programmable gate array (FPGA), application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc. The embedded logic analyzer has the ability to capture large amounts of high speed data signals within the IC.
The embedded logic analyzer may include a memory to store the captured data signals. Usually, the embedded logic analyzer is programmable to capture and store the data signals specified by the user. The data signals stored by the embedded logic analyzer may be transferred to a computer for further analysis. The data signals are generally transferred to the computer through an interface provided on the IC.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a conventional embedded logic analyzer (ELA) 100 included within an integrated circuit (not shown). The ELA 100 includes an interconnect module 110 to receive a plurality of data signals within the integrated circuit. The interconnect module 110 is programmable to select a plurality of signals to be sampled and at least one trigger signal to enable sampling from the plurality of received signals. The at least one trigger signal is transferred to a trigger module 120. The trigger module 120 is programmable to set a trigger condition and to detect if the at least one trigger signal satisfies the trigger condition. If the trigger condition is satisfied, the trigger module 120 initiates a sampling process. Upon the initiation of the sampling process, a memory controller 130 starts sampling the plurality of signals to be sampled from the interconnect module 110. The sampled signals may be stored in a memory 140 for further analysis. Therefore, the ELA 100 operates to execute a general code given below:IF (<TRIGGER CONDITION>) THEN (SAMPLE SIGNALS(X)),wherein the TRIGGER CONDITION is any logical operation or a series of logical operations and the SIGNALS (X) are the plurality of signals to be sampled from the interconnect module 110. According to the code executed by the ELA 100, when the trigger condition is satisfied, the ELA 100 samples at least one sampled signal and stores the sampled signal in the memory 140. Once signals are captured by the logic analyzer, they may be provided to a test system for analysis.
In order to provide useful insight into a system, an ELA, such as ELA 100, desirably has a lot of information available to it for capture. This means that ELA 100 typically has many signals connected to it inside of the IC in which ELA 100 is located. The circuitry of interconnect module 110 can grow exponentially in size as the number of inputs thereto increases. The majority of the gates that make up the circuitry of ELA 100 may be made up of interconnect module 110. In addition, the routing congestion from having a large number of signals routed to ELA 100 alone can make the IC containing ELA 100 either unroutable or cause the size and therefore manufacturing cost of the IC to undesirably substantially increase. The size requirements for getting the desired amount of information to ELA 100 for selection thereby could increase the overall cost of the IC to unreasonable levels.
It is desirable, then, to effectively provide more signals than provided to an ELA by conventional ELA techniques.

System and method for analyzing an electronics device including a logic analyzer


Protein microspheres are produced by contacting an aqueous solution of a macromolecule and a polymer with a surface at a high surface area to volume ratio, and heating the solution. The microspheres are useful for preparing pharmaceuticals of defined dimensions which can be delivered to a patient by inhalation therapy.

This invention relates to a process for preparing protein microspheres having a high protein content. The protein microspheres of this invention are prepared by contacting an aqueous mixture of the protein and a polymer with a surface having a high ratio of surface area to volume. The protein microspheres are suitable for preparing pharmaceutical compositions which can be delivered to a patient, principally by pulmonary, parenteral and oral administration routes. The process can be operated as a continuous process for increased efficiency and productivity.
The preparation and delivery of therapeutic proteins of interest is an area of concentrated research and development activity in the pharmaceutical industry. It is highly desirable to formulate proteins with select release characteristics in the patient with maximum clinical effectiveness. For pulmonary administration, the protein is ideally prepared in the form of discrete microspheres, which are solid or semi-solid particles having a diameter of between 0.5 and 5.0 microns. It is also desirable for the particles to have a protein content as high as possible for maximum therapeutic effectiveness.
Microspheres have been commercially available for biochemical and biotherapeutic applications for many years. For example, antibodies conjugated to beads produce relatively large particles which are specific for a particular ligand. These large antibody-coated particles are used to bind receptors on the surface of a cell for cellular activation, for binding to a solid phase for immunoaffinity purification, and for the delivery of therapeutic agents to a target using tissue or tumor-specific antibodies. The beads can be formed from synthetic polymers or proteins, although synthetic polymers are sometimes preferred due to durability and cost.
Microparticles produced by standard production methods frequently have a wide particle size distribution, lack uniformity, fail to provide adequate release kinetics, and are difficult and expensive to produce. Furthermore, the polymers used to prepare these microspheres are usually soluble in organic solvents, requiring the use of special facilities designed to handle organic solvents. The organic solvents can denature proteins or peptides contained in the microspheres, and may also be toxic when administered to humans or animals.
In addition, the microparticles may be large and tend to form aggregates, requiring a size selection process to remove particles considered to be too large for administration to patients by injection or inhalation. This requires sieving and resulting product loss. Large size particles can also require the use of large gauge needles for injection, often causing discomfort for the patient.
Currently available microspheres are designed to release proteins in an aqueous medium, by incorporating the proteins into a hydrophobic erodible or non-erodible matrix. Many particles exhibit release kinetics based on both erosion and diffusion. In this type of system, an initial burst or rapid release of the drug is observed. This burst effect often results in unwanted side effects in some patients.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,981,719, U.S. Pat. No. 5,849,884 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,090,925, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety, describe microparticles formed by combining a macromolecule, such as a protein or peptide, and a polymer in an aqueous solution at a pH near the isolelectric point of the macromolecule. The solution is heated to prepare microparticles having a protein content of greater than 40%. The microparticles thus formed comprise a matrix of substantially homogeneous, intertwined macromolecules and polymers, which permit the aqueous medium to enter and solubilize the components of the microparticle. The microparticles can be designed to exhibit short-term or long-term release kinetics, providing either rapid or sustained release characteristics.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,051,256 relates to processes for preparing powders of biological macromolecules by atomizing liquid solutions of the macromolecules, drying the droplets, and collecting the resulting particles. Biological macromolecules which can be used in this process include insulin and calcitonin.
It will be appreciated that there is a continuing need for a process for preparing and delivering biological agents as microspheres to maximize their effectiveness and minimize the safety concerns for the therapeutic agent.


Visually appealing heterogeneous puffed flaked Ready-to-Eat (“R-T-E”) cereal products with varied texture and density have a first continuous denser portion and a second discontinuous portion in the form of more highly puffed discrete regions. The R-T-E cereal products are fabricated from a dried heterogeneous cooked cereal mass comprising a continuous phase provided by macerated cooked cereal ingredients, e.g., cut whole wheat and a discontinuous phase containing added discrete hydrated intact parboiled medium grain rice. The cereal products are made by preparation methods involving forming the workable heterogonous cooked cereal dough into wet pellets having discrete pieces of the parboiled rice; drying the wet pellets to form dried pellets; flaking the dried pellets to form wet flakes; and, heating the wet flakes to dry and puff the flakes to form puffed flakes having 2-5% moisture and bulk density of 270-480 g/liter. The flakes can be pre-sweetened.

The present invention relates to food products and to their methods of preparation. In particular, the present invention relates to food products prepared from a cooked cereal dough, especially ready-to-eat or breakfast cereals in flake form and to their methods of preparation.
A wide variety of food products are prepared from cooked cereal doughs especially ready-to-eat ("R-T-E") or breakfast cereals, as well as a variety of snack products. Generally in the preparation of the cooked cereal dough, cereal or farinaceous ingredients such as various cereal flours are first admixed with other dry ingredients such as salt, minerals, starch, sugars, to form a dry blend of ingredients and then is further blended with various liquid ingredients, including moisture and heated to gelatinize or cook the starch fraction of the cereal ingredients and other starchy materials. The gelatinized or cooked mass is then worked to form homogenous or well blended cooked cereal dough. A wide variety of blending cooking, working apparatus and techniques are well known. Also, known cooked cereal dough formulation and preparation methods include formulation and processing condition variations such as those intended to increase or minimize shear depending upon desired end product attributes and skilled artisan's beliefs of such variations and their interactions on end product attributes.
More recently, the preparation of a cooked cereal dough using a cooker extruder especially a twin screw extruder has become commonplace. The cooked cereal doughs so prepared can be processed to form finished products of various size, textures, and shapes. Typically, the post, cooked cereal dough formation step involves forming suitably sized and shaped individual pieces and drying to form finished cereal base pieces such as shreds, flakes, biscuits or puffs. Thereafter, the finished dried cereal base pieces can have a topical coating applied to provide desired taste and texture attributes. For example, in the preparation of a breakfast cereal, the topical coating can include a sugar coating. In other variations, such as for seasoned snack products, the topical coating can include salt alone or in combination with various seasoning blends.
The present invention is directed to improved flake type RTE cereal products. Typically, in the cooked cereal dough is first formed into pellets in a pelletizing step. The pellets are then dried or otherwise conditioned for flaking into thin wet flakes in a flaking or flake forming step. Thereafter, the wet thin flakes are finish dried and optionally toasted.
The present invention is particularly directed to formulating selected cereal ingredients and cooking to provide a particularly heterogeneous cooked cereal dough. The present invention further includes pelletizing the heterogeneous cooked cereal dough with minimal shear to form pellets than have maintained the heterogeneous nature of their cooked cereal dough. The novel pellets can then be flaked and then finish dried in a particular manner to provide the present improved puffed heterogeneous flaked RTE cereal products.
Surprisingly, it has been found that parboiled medium grain rice can be used as a key ingredient in the preparation of cooked cereal doughs and finished food products prepared there from. It has been more surprisingly been discovered that selection of medium grain parboiled rice and use without pr hydration can be conveniently used to prepare a desirable heterogeneous RTE cereal flake.

Puffed grain flake and method of preparation


A method for making structural foam parts having continuous aligned fibers includes placing an assemblage of fiber-bundle-based preforms in an injection mold, creating a melt flow of resin and, optionally, short, loose fiber, and adding foaming agent to the melt flow. When the foaming agent/melt flow mixture is introduced into the injection mold, the foaming agent foams. The assemblage is structured and positioned so that fibers therefrom adopt a desired alignment and position in the final part. Structural foam fills the remainder of the volume of the part.

Composite Injection Molding (CIM) is a well-known process that involves melting a composite precursor, and using high pressure to inject the melted material into a mold cavity. The mold is initially entirely empty, and the volume of the injected precursor is appropriately specified to fill the empty mold. The precursor consists of polymer matrix and fibers of limited length (c.a., <25 mm), and the injection process results in randomized fiber orientations in the final part. A required injection pressure is typically supplied by an auger screw, which imparts significant shear to the melted material (i.e., "melt flow") as it passes through a nozzle into the mold cavity. This shear, and the diameter of the injection nozzle, limit the allowable fiber length. Specifically, fibers greater than 25 mm would break or clog the nozzle. CIM can produce relatively complex parts, but strength and stiffness are limited due to the short fibers and lack of control over fiber orientations with the final part.
Structural Foam Molding (SFM) is similar to CIM in that a melted composite (or neat resin) precursor is injected into an empty mold cavity at high pressure (although at considerably lower pressure than CIM). The critical difference from CIM is that for SFM, in addition to injecting the composite melt, a foaming agent is also introduced and diffused into the melt flow, typically before the flow exits the nozzle but after the precursor is melted.
The foaming agent is typically inert, such as nitrogen or carbon dioxide, and is mixed and diffused into the melt flow in a liquid or gaseous state. The required volume of composite precursor is reduced compared to the same CIM process due to the extra volume of foaming agent. Flow exiting the nozzle and entering the mold cavity undergoes rapid expansion due to a significant pressure drop across the nozzle outlet. If the foaming agent is initially in a liquid state, this expansion involves a phase change to a gaseous state. Whether the foaming agent is provided as a liquid or a gas, the result is 'bubbles' of gas within the mold cavity. The bubbles create a porous structure (i.e., foam) amidst the melt flow within the interior of the mold cavity during the injection process. Any bubbles that reach the mold surface "pop" as surface tension breaks due to contact, leaving a 'skin' on the surface of the final part, while the core is a porous foam structure.
Relative to CIM, equivalent parts produced through SFM exhibit a lower density due to a porous foam core, and thus typically possess higher specific strength and stiffness. On an absolute rather than per unit mass basis, however, they are generally less strong and stiff due to the lesser integrity of the foam compared to solid material. Similar to CIM, fibers within SFM parts are also limited in length and have a randomized orientation.
Although there are differences in the parts produced by CIM and SFM, these processes have several shared limitations or drawbacks. In particular, both of these processes require the use of relatively short fibers (c.a., <25 mm), which significantly limits the type of parts that they can make. In particular, these processes are generally not suitable for structural parts with high stress loading conditions, as the fibers are too short to distribute stress throughout the matrix. Despite its name, the 'structural' description of SFM is used to designate the load-bearing aspect of the foam core, rather than the nature of the end use of the part being produced by the process. (For example, the foam core can withstand stress unlike soap foam.)
A further limitation of both of these processes is that they are constrained to random fiber orientations. The injection process is a turbulent fluid dynamic, in which fibers align to the complex flow vectors therein. As the fluidic filling of the mold cavity varies during every repetition of the process, fiber orientation cannot be controlled.
Beyond SFM, structural foam is employed in applications of structural foam-core sandwich panels. Such applications involve a method of using typical laminate-ply constituents adhered to a structural foam sheet that is supplied by an upstream process. Laminate plies can be unidirectional, bi/tri-directional, woven, etc. The plies are adhered to foam core via thermoset adhesive sheets rather than by bonding of the matrix (i.e., resin) materials. Relative to CIM and SFM, structural foam-core panels are limited in geometric design latitude. Neither the foam core nor the laminate plies are very compliant, so the panels are relatively flat in shape.
In an area of related art, overmolding processes have been employed to integrate wires, fibers, and cloths/weaves into tires and timing belts. Such overmolded wires and fibers give timing belts and tires improved strength, stiffness, and toughness along their major axes. In existing applications, these wires and fibers are bare, and are not pre-impregnated with a matrix material. As such, the material into which they are overmolded is, in fact, their matrix material. Given the non-structural nature of tires and timing belts, such applications do not lend themselves to SFM.
While SFM addresses some problems of CIM (mainly density and mass specific properties), it does not address the inability of parts produced by the process to withstand high stress. The short, randomized fibers in both CIM and SFM limit the type of parts produced by the process. High-strength structural components are generally not suitable for CIM or SFM. Structural foam-core sandwich panels are capable of integrating a structural foam core between layers of aligned composites laminates, but are severely limited in geometric complexity. Furthermore, integration of the composite laminate plies to the foam core is accomplished through adhesives, which is relatively less robust than matrix (resin) bonding.

Structural foam molding method using continuous fiber composites, and parts formed therefrom


Described herein is a system and method for flow state save/restore of a virtual filtering platform. A first instance of a driver manages policy and flow state for ongoing flows between client device(s) and virtual machine(s). The virtual filtering platform is transitioned from the first instance of a driver to a second instance of the driver by serializing the policy and state for the ongoing flows on the first instance of the driver using a one pass algorithm. The serialized policy and state for the ongoing flows can be de-serialized with the ongoing flows re-established and/or reconciled on the second instance of the driver in accordance with the de-serialized policy and state for the plurality of ongoing flows. In some embodiments, a memory management technique can use a single operating system memory allocation call to allocate memory for the transition, with the technique managing utilization of the allocation memory.

Cloud-based networks allow computer processing and storing needs to be moved from on premises networks to hybrid cloud or fully cloud-based networks while satisfying data security access requirements. A cloud-based network may include physical machines (PMs) and virtual machines (VMs). Cloud applications may be implemented via the PMs and/or the VMs. The cloud applications can be accessed from client stations of organizations at remote locations.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Network policy and flow state save/restore for highly available servicing


The present disclosure describes micromechanical resonator, a resonator element for the resonator, and a method for trimming the resonator. The resonator comprises a resonator element having a length, a width, and a thickness, where the length and the width define a plane of the resonator element. The resonator element comprises at least two regions (52, 53) in the plane of the resonator element, wherein the at least two regions have different thicknesses.

Because of manufacturing non-idealities (e.g. variations in thicknesses of material layers and non-uniformity of patterning and etching processes), frequency and temperature coefficient of frequency (TCF) of a resonator may deviate from their target values. For high accuracy timing applications, these properties may have to be corrected in some manner, with accuracy depending on the application. However, it may be difficult to reach these goals economically.
Quartz resonators may be individually trimmed to the correct frequency by measuring the frequency, and by applying etching and/or by trimming of parts of gold electrode by a laser while monitoring the frequency. In silicon-based micromechanical resonators, the frequency and temperature behavior of the resonator may be recorded in memory, and a frequency synthesizer on an ASIC may be used for producing the desired oscillation frequency assuming that the non-accurate resonator frequency stays the same. However, a drawback of this approach is increased power consumption and degraded phase noise performance.

Micromechanical resonator and method for trimming micromechanical resonator


An instructional drum practice pad overlays a larger polygon base containing preferably twelve typical rudiments used in teaching musical drum playing to students. Preferably the polygonal base is a twelve sided polygon, known as a dodecagon. The lightweight durable base has a diameter of preferably about 13 inches and a height of about ½ inch, with the upper pad having a diameter of about 10 inches and being preferably a ⅜ inches thickness pad of 40 durometer gum rubber. There is a bottom base of neoprene that is about 3/16 inch thick. Rudiments, or symbolic music note symbols to teach the proper drum music beats, are provided in a peripheral array around the base frame, while leaving the striking pad free of any visual distractions. Optionally, multiple rudiment bearing rings can be stacked over the upper drum practice pad.

Among related patents is U.S. Design Pat. No. Des 407,103 of Contos, known in the music education trade as "RUDI-PAD®", which discloses a circular drum practice pad, with the entire surface of the pad covered with visually distracting music rudiment symbols.
U.S. Design Pat. No. D480,416, of Wilfer '416 describes a circular practice pad with a grid pattern of rudiments, covering substantially most, but not all, of the circular surface of a drum practice pad. U.S. Pat. No. 5,744,737 of Carter describes a drum practice kit where the rudiments are displayed on a separate chart away from the view of the student, who has to take his or her eyes away from the practice pad to read the selected rudiment notes and symbols.
A drum practice pad with a twelve sided polygonal base is sold under the trade name "VIC FIRTH" but it bears no images of rudiments imprinted thereon to observe and practice with.
Thus, the aforementioned practice pads in general are not visually ergonomically suitable for easy learning of rudiment music notes and symbols, and either have the detrimental effects of distracting the music student's clear view of the surface of the practice pad with too many rudiments, or lack any rudiments at all.

Instructional drum music practice device


A vehicle alignment assistance device which enables a towing vehicle to be aligned with a trailer in such a manner that the towing ball at the rear of the vehicle will be vertically aligned with the towing socket attached to the trailer. A visible target is located at the forward end of an extendable rod located within a box to be attached to the front of the trailer. A sighting mark is located on the rear window of the towing vehicle. When the target-carrying member (rod) is extended from the box so that the target is in contact with the sighting mark on the towing vehicle, the towing socket will be vertically aligned with the towing ball. A driver of the vehicle backs the vehicle toward the trailer until the target carried at the end of the extended rod touches the sighting mark on the rear window. The rod can be pivotally mounted in the box, which can provide a waterproof storage for the rod when not in use as an alignment aid.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention is concerned with the provision of assistance to vehicle drivers in aligning a towing or tractor vehicle with a trailer to be attached thereto.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There are many forms of attachments for connecting trailers to towing vehicles, but one for which the invention is particularly, though not exclusively, intended is that in which an upwardly directed ball is mounted at the rear of the towing vehicle and a downwardly directed socket is mounted at the front of the trailer. The socket is usually at the forward end of a towbar projecting from the trailer and the ball is usually projecting behind the rear bumper of the towing vehicle. In the case of a lightweight trailer with one axle, it is possible to lift the front of the trailer by the towbar and manoeuvre the trailer until the socket is over the ball and can be lowered onto it and attached thereto. However, in the case of close-coupled twin axle trailers, this is not so easy and a jockey wheel of adjustable height is often provided on the towbar, by which the height of the towbar can be adjusted so that the socket clears the ball for detachment and attachment. The jockey wheel can also be used to lift the front of the trailer, so that one of the pairs of wheels is lifted clear of the ground to make manoeuvring easier. Nevertheless, with heavy loads in the trailer, such as horses, boats of the contents of a caravan, it is much easier to leave the trailer at the point of detachment and to reverse the towing vehicle into position with the ball under the socket when attachment is again required.
However, it is still not easy to reverse the towing vehicle exactly into the position required to within a few centimeters. This is particularly the case when the driver of the towing vehicle is trying to attempt the manoeuvre alone. It may not be so difficult to align the towing vehicle in the lateral direction, though experience suggests that even this may require several attempts. But in order to place the ball exactly under the socket, it is necessary to align the vehicle with the trailer in the fore-and-aft direction. Without being able to see the ball or socket, as they are too low in most cases, this is very difficult.
By the invention, the alignment of a towing vehicle with a trailer in the lateral and/or fore-and-aft direction is rendered much easier.


A cooling device for cooling plastic particles includes a casing having a hub extended upward from an inner and lower portion for forming an annular chamber between the casing and the hub. A water is supplied into the annular chamber for moving the plastic particles upward and out through the hub, such that the plastic particles may be cooled by the water. A housing is secured on top of the casing and a pipe is coupled to the housing for supplying the plastic particles into the housing and for cooling the plastic particles in the housing by the air flowing into the housing.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cooling device, and more particularly to a cooling device for cooling plastic particle materials.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Typical plastic particles, after produced by plastic particles manufacturing machines, are hot and should be cooled before they are supplied into the molding machines or the like. The plastic particles are typically cooled for a long time by circulating air and may not be quickly cooled down, such that the manufacturing speed is greatly decreased.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages of the conventional plastic particles cooling devices.


A cassette system for disks to be manufactured into hard disks for computer memory storage includes a pair of end portions and a pair of side wall portions spanning between the end portions, defining a disk receiving region. The side wall portions together define a plurality of axially aligned slots for holding the disks. At least one of the end portions includes a test disk receiver, which may be a slot or pocket.

Substrate carriers configured for holding multiple hard disk substrates during fabrication and shipping are well known in the data storage device industry. Examples of such prior art carriers are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,921,397; 5,704,494; 4,669,612; and 5,348,151, each of which is hereby fully incorporated herein by reference.
During processing of hard disks using known prior art carriers, a typical quality control practice involves designating one of the disks as a "test disk" for quality control inspection and lot identification. Testing may require the compromise or destruction of the test disk under examination. As a result, the yield of finished hard disks per batch is reduced at least by one disk, and the complexity of disk processing is increased due to post-processing tracking and handling of the designated test disk.
Also, disk processing often involves the baking of the disks at temperatures of up to 300° C. or higher. Consequently, handling of the disk carrier during processing is generally automated. A relatively high degree of precision in carrier positioning is desirable to minimize disk damage and particulate generation from improper indexing of the robotic tooling. Prior art carriers, while offering a generally workable degree of precision in positioning, are still sometimes mispositioned, resulting in disk damage or excessive particulates in the processing environment.
What is needed in the industry is a disk carrier that addresses the above-identified deficiencies in the prior art carriers.


The method for wrapping a steel coil applies to wrapping a coiled material, particularly sheets of steel, aluminum and other metals which have been wound into a coil, in paper or a polymeric packaging material which contains a volatile corrosion inhibitor for storage or transport. The wrapper includes a cover piece, folded and sealed along one side, leaving two open sides, and a base piece. The base piece is placed on a pallet and the coil is placed on the base with the coil's axis of rotation perpendicular to the pallet. The base is secured to the coil and the coil is secured to the pallet with straps. The cover is placed over the coil with an open side traversing the width of the coil. A first edge of the open side is secured to the coil by adhesive tape, and the second edge is wrapped around the coil to overlap the first edge and also secured by tape. The two peaked corners of the cover are folded down over the top of the cover and secured by adhesive tape.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for wrapping rolled material, particularly a roll or coil of metal, such as steel, aluminum, or other metal.
2. Description of the Related Art
In steel mills the steel is often made in sheets having a length many times greater than its width. The sheets are wound into coils for compactness during storage. The coils of steel may be stored on pallets for ease in moving and manipulating the coils. It is desirable to wrap the coils of steel in material which is relatively impermeable to water to prevent corrosion of the steel during storage and transport. The present invention relates to a method of wrapping steel coils in a material which is water resistant and which contains a volatile corrosion inhibitor.
Several methods of wrapping cylindrical objects and coils are known. U.S. Pat. No. 2,371,858, issued Mar. 20, 1945 to Tuthill, et al., describes a method of wrapping a roll of adhesive tape using two square sheets of cellophane by placing one sheet under the roll and wrapping the corners up the sides and extending over the top of the roll, placing the second sheet over the top with the corners of the second sheet between the corners of the first sheet, pulling the corners of the second sheet down the sides and under the bottom of the roll, and heat sealing with adhesive.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,565,049, issued Jan. 21, 1986 to DeLigt, et al., teaches a process for wrapping paper rolls which puts header sheets over the ends of the rolls, pulling the headers a short distance up over the rolls, pleating the headers, and securing the headers to the rolls by placing a strip of adhesive on the paper and pressing the headers against the paper, followed by capping the ends of the rolls.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,020,664, issued Jun. 4, 1991 to Hughes, et al. shows packaging a cylindrical broom with bristles inside a polygon shaped container with end caps which support the axial core of the broom so the bristles don't contact the package. U.S. Pat. No. 5,071,501, issued Dec. 10, 1991 to Doi, et al., discloses a method of wrapping a roll like article in which a core extends from both ends of the roll.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,477,659, issued Dec. 26, 1995 to Conrad, et al., describes another method for wrapping rolls of paper in which an inner end cover is affixed to a core by stapling or by nails, the roll is covered by a shroud which is wrapped and pleated over the ends, and outer end covers are glued to the pleated shroud, air being removed by heating during the process.
European Patent No. EP 538,907, published Apr. 28, 1993, and Japanese Patent 5-4627, published Jan. 14, 1993, show similar methods of wrapping annular ring shape articles with heat shrink packaging by wrapping a cylinder of material around the outside of the ring, folding the ends over the sides, passing metal rings through the inside of the article, and heat sealing the inside of the ring. Japanese Patent No. 3-29764, published Feb. 7, 1991, teaches a method of wrapping a coil of wire with covers using string to secure the covers.
My own prior patent, U.S. Pat. No. 5,657,613, issued Aug. 19, 1997, describes a method of wrapping steel coils with their axis of rotation parallel to the ground, involving folding and pleating a sheet of tear resistant material, punching a hole through the top and bottom ends, threading a first rope or string through the holes in the top end and a second rope through the holes in the bottom end, placing the coil on the sheet so that the ropes parallel the edges of the coil, wrapping the ends around the coil and securing them with adhesive tape, pulling the strings taut so that the ends of the sheet form a circle of smaller diameter than the core of the roll, and securing the ends of the sheets inside the core.
Various methods of making packaging materials which describe means for inhibiting corrosion include U.S. Pat. No. 4,290,912, issued Sep. 22, 1981 to Boerwinkle, et al. (a volatile corrosion inhibitor having (1) a polyolefin polymer, (2) an inorganic nitrite salt, (3) a trisubstituted phenol, and (4) fumed silica, in order to avoid problems with sodium nitrite in environments which lack carbon dioxide); U.S. Pat. No. 5,426,916, issued Jun. 27, 1995 to Grigsby, et al. (composite material impregnated with a liquid such as mineral oil which slowly releases and coats the article to avoid corrosion); and Soviet Invention Certificate No. 863,468 (a press filled with polystyrene foam tablets and smeared with an oil containing a corrosion inhibitor, the oil penetrating the foam and the inhibitor being baked into the polystyrene).
None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singularly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed. Thus a method for wrapping steel coils solving the aforementioned problems is desired.


An adjustable handlebar assembly for a saddle-type vehicle includes a base member, a support member, a left handlebar and a right handlebar. The support member is rotatably coupled to the base member and each of the left handlebar and the right handlebar is attached to the support member. The support member is configured to permit the left handlebar and the right handlebar to be selectively moved relative to the support member and the base member, independently of one another, to selectively adjust each of the left handlebar and the right handlebar in respective, generally longitudinal directions along a saddle-type vehicle, when the adjustable handlebar assembly is pivotally coupled to a frame of the saddle-type vehicle.

Handlebars of known saddle-type vehicles, such as motorcycles, include those that are made from steel or aluminum tubing that is bent to match a specific shape corresponding to a desired operator ride position and handling characteristics. Although known handlebars of this type have been successfully used, they can be subject to certain disadvantages. For instance, creating a prototype to match a new specification, with respect to desired operator ride position and handling characteristics, can be expensive and time-consuming.
Known handlebars also include those that have a single axis of adjustability. For example, mount members of the handlebar assembly can be adjusted to achieve a desired handlebar rake. However, adjustment of rake can also result in a change of sweep and rise of the handlebars, which can be undesirable.

Adjustable handlebar assembly for a saddle-type vehicle


Provided are methods for treating a NAD comprising administering to a patient suffering from a NAD a composition comprising an eIF5A inhibitor compound in an amount effective to prevent intracellular hypusination of eIF5A, whereby gene expression of NMD-susceptible mRNA is increased.

Nonsense-mediated decay ("NMD") is a cellular mechanism that selectively degrades faulty messenger RNA ("mRNA") containing an out-of-place stop (nonsense) codon. If translated, such mRNAs would produce a shortened version of the encoded protein. The NMD surveillance mechanism reduces or prevents the formation of these defective proteins and peptides. While NMD helps to protect against occasional mistakes that occur during RNA production, it also contributes to a number of genetic disorders collectively termed nonsense-associated diseases ("NADs"). Examples of NADs are cystic fibrosis and Hurler's syndrome. Depending on the gene affected and the mutation, prematurely terminated proteins may have low biological activity, no biological activity, or may even be harmful to biological functions.
In NADs there is usually an insufficient amount of the full-length protein as a result of two processes: (1) the destruction of the defective mRNA by NMD; and (2) the synthesis of truncated protein from mRNA that escapes the destruction. Currently, there are a number of drugs that are partially effective against NADs and function by suppressing nonsense codon recognition (i.e., inhibition of process (2)). NMD is triggered by a premature stop codon located at least 50-55 nucleotides upstream of a splice junction in a multi-exon mRNA. Several proteins are involved in NMD, such as Upf1, an essential protein that directly controls mRNA decay, and eIF5A, a eukaryotic initiation factor that is tightly associated with actively translated ribosomes and is an RNA-binding protein. eIF5A is the only protein known to contain the amino acid hypusine. The protein usually occurs in two isoforms, of which eIF5A-1 is usually the more abundant.
Currently, there are a number of compounds that are partially effective against NADs and function by suppressing nonsense codon recognition. While recent reports also indicate involvement of NMD in NADs and certain compounds that suppress NMD function, there is a need in the art for the further characterization of the NMD mechanism associated with various NADs, particularly with respect to inhibitors of eIF5A. There also remains a need for compounds and methods that repress NMD and thereby significantly increase the level of NMD-susceptible mRNA, thereby potentially mitigating NAD symptoms. The instant invention addresses these needs.

Method of inhibiting nonsense-mediated mRNA decay

RUTGERS, THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW JERSEY


A method is provided of an institution creating a substitute check using check image data from a remote check image capture device. The method comprises receiving from the remote check image capture device binary image data which is representative of a binary image of a check, receiving from the remote check image capture device grayscale image data which is representative of a grayscale image of the check, determining if the binary image of the check is usable, and creating a substitute check based upon the grayscale image data if the binary image of the check is determined to be unusable.

The present invention relates to substitute checks, and is particularly directed to a method of creating a substitute check using check image data from a remote check image capture device, such as an image-based check depositing automated teller machine (ATM), and an apparatus therefor.
A typical check depositing ATM allows an ATM customer to deposit a check (without having to place the check in any deposit envelope) in a public access, unattended environment. To deposit a check, an ATM customer inserts a customer identification card through a user card slot at the ATM, enters the amount of the check being deposited, and inserts the check through a check slot. A check transport mechanism receives the inserted check and transports the check in a forward direction along a check transport path to a number of locations within the ATM to process the check. If the check is not accepted for deposit, the check is returned to the ATM customer via the check slot. If the check is accepted for deposit, the amount of the check is deposited into the ATM customer's account and the check is transported to and stored in a storage bin within the ATM. An endorser printer prints an endorsement onto the check as the check is being transported to the storage bin.
Checks stored in the storage bin within the ATM are periodically (usually daily) picked up and physically transported via courier to a back office facility of a financial institution. At the back office facility, the checks are prepared at a document preparation workstation for subsequent processing in an image-based check processing system located at the back office facility. In a first pass of checks through the image-based check processing system, check image data which is representative of images of the checks is captured. Then in a second pass of checks through an image-based check processing system, the checks are encoded and sorted and matched up with their corresponding check image data which was previously captured during the first pass of checks. The second pass of checks may be made through either the same image-based check processing system that the first pass of checks was made or a different image-based check processing system. Checks are processed in the first and second passes through the image-based check processing system(s) for purpose of clearing checks between financial institutions, as is known.
As an alternative to capturing check image data in a first pass of checks through an image-based check processing system located at the back office facility (which requires the checks to be physically transported from the ATM to the back office facility before the first pass of checks can be performed), proposals have been made to initially capture check image data at the ATM. An image-based check depositing ATM is needed to capture check image data which is representative of checks deposited at the ATM. In a typical image-based check depositing ATM, check image data is initially captured in a "first pass" of checks through the ATM. The remotely-captured check image data is then sent electronically to the back office facility. At a later time (typically weekly), the checks may be picked up at the ATM and physically transported via courier to the back office facility. Then, in a "second pass" of checks through an image-based check processing system located at the back office facility, the checks are matched up with their corresponding check image data which was previously captured at the ATM. The checks are then further processed as required.
From time to time, a check image represented by check image data which has been captured in the "first pass" through the image-based check depositing ATM may be of suspect image quality. For example, after the remotely-captured check image data has been sent electronically to the back office facility, an operator at the back office facility may determine that the quality of the image represented by the check image data is of insufficient quality. If this should occur in known image-based check depositing ATMs, a service operator may need to be dispatched to the particular ATM to retrieve the particular check and process the retrieved check as an exception item through a normal exception processing infrastructure. The cost of dispatching a service operator to an ATM to retrieve a particular check, so that the retrieved check can be processed as an exception item, is usually relatively high. It would be desirable to reduce the number of service trips which need to be made by service operators to remote check image capture devices such as image-based check depositing ATMs.

Method of creating a substitute check using check image data from a remote check image capture device and an apparatus therefor


A semiconductor testing circuit of the present invention includes a signal line which is connected to a terminal not to be tested and a plurality of terminals to be tested of a semiconductor device; switch circuits for controlling electrical connection/disconnection between the signal line and the terminals to be tested; and a resistor connected to one end of the signal line. With this configuration, in a test on the AC characteristics of an input signal, a test signal generated by an LSI tester can be inputted to the terminals to be tested through the terminal not to be tested and the signal line by turning on the switch circuits.

In a test on the AC characteristics of a semiconductor device, measurements of a propagation delay time, a setup time, a hold time, a response time and so on are made on an input signal and an output signal of the semiconductor device. Generally, in the test configuration, the power supply unit and the measuring unit of an LSI tester are respectively connected to a power supply terminal and a terminal to be tested of the semiconductor device.
A method of testing the AC characteristics of a semiconductor device will be simply described below. As an example, the following will describe a test on the AC timing characteristics of a logic LSI and so on. When the AC timing characteristics of an input signal are tested, first, a test signal is inputted to a terminal to be tested (an input terminal or an input/output terminal) and a clock signal having a given phase difference beforehand from the test signal is inputted to a clock terminal. Next, a signal latched by a first stage flip-flop connected to the terminal to be tested is compared with an expected value. After that, the delay time and the phase difference of the input signal relative to a reference signal are measured based on the comparison result. On the other hand, when the AC timing characteristics of an output signal are tested, the internal circuit of the semiconductor device is operated to transmit the output signal from a terminal to be tested (an output terminal or an input/output terminal) to the outside of the semiconductor device. After that, the delay time and the phase difference of the output signal relative to the reference signal are measured by comparing the output signal having been transmitted to the outside with the expected value at a desired time.
Moreover, in tests on the AC characteristics of semiconductor devices, a plurality of semiconductor devices have been simultaneously tested in order to suppress the cost of the tests. In other words, the power supply unit and the measuring unit of an LSI tester are respectively connected to the power supply terminal and a terminal to be tested of each semiconductor device, and power and signals are supplied to the semiconductor devices at the same timing, so that the plurality of semiconductor devices are simultaneously tested.
However, in recent years, semiconductor devices have had a larger number of pins and the number of measuring units has been more frequently deficient in simultaneous tests on a plurality of semiconductor devices. This is because in tests on AC characteristics in the prior art, the number of measuring units has to be at least as many as the total number of terminals to be tested of a plurality of semiconductor devices to be simultaneously tested.
Further, in a proposed method, a path connecting one terminal to terminals to be tested is provided in a semiconductor device, so that the AC characteristics of a large number of terminals to be tested can be tested using a small number of terminals (for example, see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-288647).
This method can suppress the number of terminals of semiconductor devices connected to the measuring units of an LSI tester. Thus it is possible to test the AC characteristics of semiconductor devices with a small number of measuring units and increase the number of semiconductor devices which can be simultaneously tested.
However, only with the path connecting one terminal to terminals to be tested in a semiconductor device, the terminals to be tested have to be tested one by one, so that the test time increases and the test efficiency does not improve.

Semiconductor testing circuit and semiconductor testing method


A method and apparatus for separating components from a mixture includes a condensing surface located in a high vapor concentration region above the source of evaporated liquid. The evaporated liquid is condensed on the condensing surface. The condensed liquid is removed from the condensing surface while it remains liquid, using substantially capillary forces. A plurality of open grooves are formed on the condensing surface. The grooves channel the condensed liquid on the condensing surface away from the mixture. The grooves can be capillary grooves which satisfy the Concus-Finn Inequality.

Condensation is a common separation mechanism for many industrial processes. It is typically used with a heat transfer surface that is controlled at a temperature that will remove specific vapors from a gas stream. When vapors condense on these surfaces they form a combination of a liquid film, rivulets, or droplets that drain by gravity to the lowest point of the surface and then typically fall from the surface in droplet form. In most cases the heat transfer surface must be remote from the original high concentration source of the vapor to prevent the droplets from being reintroduced to the process. Locating the surface at a distance from the original source generally requires that the condensing operation occurs at a lower vapor concentration. This leads to inefficiencies that require colder operating temperatures, more surface area, or reduced rates of condensation.
In some processes, active systems remove the condensed liquid from the surface. For example a rotating surface with a scraping blade to remove the condensed liquid film. These systems can be located close to the process since the liquid is removed by mechanical means and will not be reintroduced to the process. However, these systems are complex, expensive, and have limited design flexibility to fit a particular process.
One example of a component separation system are the conventional dryers of coated substrates which direct large volumes of gas to the coated surface to evaporate the liquid and remove it in vapor form. In many cases, due to environmental or economic reasons, the vapors in the gas stream must be removed before exhausting to the atmosphere. Condensation is a common method of removing these vapors from the gas stream.
Systems using condensation typically are large heat exchangers or chilled rolls with wiping blades. They are located away from the web in-the bulk gas flow stream. Typically a heat exchanger is placed in the bulk gas flow stream and the surface temperature is reduced to a point where the vapors condense, removing them from the process.
The vapor concentration in the bulk gas flow stream must be kept below flammable limits, typically 1-2% of the gas stream. To obtain acceptable recovery efficiencies with low vapor concentration, the heat transfer surface must be large and the operating temperatures must be very low, on the order of -30.degree. C. -0.degree. C. This is very expensive and there are numerous process problems such as ice formation on the heat transfer surfaces. Significant effort has been expended in raising the vapor concentration to improve the efficiency of this process. An example is the use of inert gas as the gas flow stream which allows the vapor concentration to be increased, because the flammability limit is removed. However, these methods are also very expensive and create additional process problems that have limited their use in the industry. The vapor concentration at the surface of the coating, or gas/liquid interface, is very high and it drops off rapidly within several centimeters of the surface.
It would be ideal for maximum recovery efficiency to locate the heat transfer surface within several centimeters of the gas/liquid interface. Condensing surfaces generally cannot be located this close to the surface as the condensed liquid would drain by gravity back onto the coating surface. Active systems such as a rotating roll with a scraping blade could be close to the process but their shape does not fit the flat surface characteristic of the moving substrate and they are relatively complicated and expensive. There is a need for a system of removing the liquid from condensing surfaces in a component separation system.

Component separation system including condensing mechanism


A surveying instrument includes a sighting telescope for sighting an object; an optical distance meter which includes a light-transmitting optical system for transmitting a measuring light toward the object via the sighting telescope, a light-receiving optical system for receiving light reflected by the object, and a light-receiving element which receives the measuring light reflected by the object and received by the light-receiving optical system; and a light shield mask positioned on an optical axis between the eyepiece and the light-receiving element to cut off incoming rays from the eyepiece.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a surveying instrument having an optical distance meter.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional surveying instrument such as a total station has a function to measure the distance between two points and also horizontal and vertical angles. Such a conventional surveying instrument generally measures the distance between two points with a distance meter, usually an electronic distance meter (EDM) incorporated in or attached to the surveying instrument.
The electronic distance meter incorporates an optical distance meter which calculates the distance from the phase-difference or the time difference between a measuring light (externally-projecting light), which is projected toward a target, and an internal reference light. The optical distance meter includes a light-transmitting optical system for transmitting a measuring light to the target via the objective lens of a sighting telescope provided as a component of the electronic distance meter, and a light-receiving optical system for receiving light reflected by the target. The light-receiving optical system includes a wavelength selection filter for reflecting the measuring light which is reflected by the target to be passed through the objective lens of the sighting telescope, toward a light receiving element. The measuring light and the internal reference light are alternately incident on the light receiving element during operation of the optical distance meter.
To improve the precision of the optical distance meter by increasing the signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) of a signal of a received light, the light receiving element preferably receives only the measuring light and the internal reference light. However, in conventional surveying instruments which incorporates an electronic distance meter, it is sometimes the case that ambient light enters into the sighting telescope via the eyepiece thereof. This is a leading cause of deteriorating the precision of the optical distance meter.
The present invention has been devised in view of the problem noted above, and accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a surveying instrument having an optical distance meter, wherein ambient light which enters into the sighting telescope via the eyepiece thereof has no adverse effect on the precision of the optical distance meter.
To achieve the objects mentioned above, according to an aspect of the present invention, a surveying instrument is provided, including a sighting telescope for sighting an object; an optical distance meter which includes a light-transmitting optical system for transmitting a measuring light toward the object via the sighting telescope, a light-receiving optical system for receiving light reflected by the object, and a light-receiving element which receives the measuring light reflected by the object and received by the light-receiving optical system; and a light shield mask positioned on an optical axis between the eyepiece and the light-receiving element to cut off incoming rays from the eyepiece.
Preferably, the light-transmitting optical system includes a wavelength selection filter which reflects the measuring light reflected by the object and passed through an objective lens of the sighting telescope, in a forward direction along an optical path of the sighting telescope; and a mirror which reflects the measuring light reflected by the wavelength selection filter outside the optical path of the sighting telescope.
The light shield mask can be fixed to the wavelength selection filter. Alternatively, the light shield mask can be fixed to the mirror.
In an embodiment, the surveying instrument further includes a focus detecting device for detecting a focus state of the sighting telescope; and a controller for controlling the sighting telescope to automatically focus on the object in accordance with the focus state detected by the focus detecting device.
Preferably, the focus detecting device is a phase-difference detection focus detecting device which detects an in-focus state from a correlation between a pair of images respectively formed by two light bundles which are respectively passed through two different pupil areas of the phase-difference detection focus detecting device and passed through different portions of an objective lens of the sighting telescope. The light shield mask is positioned so as not to interfere with the two different pupil areas.
In an embodiment, the sighting telescope includes a focus adjustment lens having a negative power, which is moved in accordance with the focus state detected by the focus detecting device.
In an embodiment, the light shield mask is fixed to the focus adjustment lens.
In an embodiment, the wavelength selection filter reflects only a portion of light having specific wavelengths which is reflected by the object and passed through the objective lens.
Preferably, the mirror is made of a parallel-plate mirror having front and rear surfaces parallel to each other. The rear surface which faces the wavelength selection filter reflects the measuring light reflected by the wavelength selection filter toward the outside of the optical path of the sighting telescope.
In an embodiment, the objective lens of the sighting telescope is moved to bring the object in focus in accordance with the focus state detected by the focus detecting device.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a surveying instrument is provided, including a sighting telescope for sighting an object; a light emitting element which emits a measuring light toward the object via the sighting telescope; an optical distance meter having a light-receiving element which receives the measuring light reflected by the object and passed through an objective lens of the sighting telescope; and a light shield mask positioned on an optical axis between the eyepiece and the light-receiving element to cut off incoming rays from the eyepiece.
The present disclosure relates to subject matter contained in Japanese Patent Application No.2000-138312 (filed on May 11, 2000) which is expressly incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Surveying instrument having an optical distance meter


An exhaust purification system of an internal combustion engine comprises an HC adsorbent 20 arranged adsorbing HC in exhaust gas, an NOx adsorbent 20 adsorbing NOx in exhaust gas, a catalyst 24 removing HC and NOx at a predetermined air-fuel ratio, an air-fuel ratio control part 31 configured to control an air-fuel ratio of exhaust gas, and an HC concentration calculating part 32 configured to calculate a concentration of HC desorbed from the HC adsorbent. A peak of a desorption temperature of HC at the HC adsorbent and a peak of a desorption temperature of NOx at the NOx adsorbent are substantially the same. The air-fuel ratio control part is configured to control an air-fuel ratio of inflowing exhaust gas flowing into the catalyst to the predetermined air-fuel ratio based on the concentration of HC calculated by the HC concentration calculating part when HC is desorbed from the HC adsorbent.

It has been known in the past to provide a catalyst for removing harmful substances in exhaust gas in an exhaust passage of an internal combustion engine so as to keep harmful substances from being discharged into the atmosphere. However, when the temperature of the exhaust gas is low such as at the time of cold start of the internal combustion engine, the catalyst becomes deactivated and the exhaust purification performance of the catalyst falls.
In the exhaust gas purification system described in PTL 1, the catalyst is provided with an HC adsorbent for adsorbing HO and an NOx adsorbent for adsorbing NOx. In such an exhaust gas purification system, the desorption start temperature of HC and the desorption start temperature of NOx are the same and the NOx is removed at the catalyst by the HC as a reducing agent.

Exhaust purification system of internal combustion engine and exhaust purification method


Laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometer (“LDI-TOF-MS”) devices, and methods, that accurately measure the mass of analytes contained in a sample and which also measure the quantities of analytes present in a sample in a consistent manner from instrument-to-instrument and over time on a single instrument. In particular, the invention provides LDI-TOF-MS devices and methods in which: 1) the energy of the laser pulse and the area of the sample illuminated (fluence) is consistent and controlled so as to produce consistent conditions for analyte desorption and ionization; 2) the mass analyzer behaves in a reproducible manner; and 3) the detection system produces a signal that consistently represents the arrival of ions of different masses.

The present invention relates in general to mass spectrometers, and in particular to laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometers ("LDI-TOF-MS").
Mass spectrometers can be excellent analytical tools for the detection and differentiation of analytes. As such, they have found increasing use in the analysis of biomolecules and, in particular, proteins. However, mass spectrometry has fallen short as a tool for quantitative biomolecular assays. This is mainly due to the fact that mass spectrometers do not perform with sufficient quantitative reproducibility from assay-to-assay. Furthermore, different mass spectrometers can produce different quantitative results given substantially similar samples and data acquisition protocols.
This drawback must be overcome if mass spectrometers are to become useful as assay platforms for proteins and, in particular, protein patterns. For example, scientists have found that protein profiles can provide better diagnostic power than single proteins in detecting disease. Mass spectrometers can be used to generate the protein profiles of both the afflicted individual and the reference populations, and a successful diagnosis is facilitated if the response of the mass spectrometers used are well matched. In particular, it is advantageous if the mass spectrometers used to generate protein profiles generate substantially similar masses and detected quantities for each protein present in substantially similar samples. It is further desirable that these results be of high quality, maximizing figures of merit such as signal-to-noise ratio and resolution. It is further desirable that the process of adjusting parameters to cause instruments to produce standard outputs be substantially automated.
Laser desorption time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TOF-MS) is particularly useful for protein profiling because it enables the detection of proteins with masses as high as hundreds-of-thousands of Daltons. This method involves using a laser to desorb and ionize analyte molecules from a surface, accelerating ions to a particular energy and then measuring the time required to traverse a free-flight path of fixed length to a detector. Since lighter ions arrive at the detector before heavier ions, a time record of the arrival times can then be converted into a mass spectrum. As is the case with most mass spectrometers, an LDI-TOF-MS includes three major components: (1) an ion source, (2) a mass analyzer, and (3) a detection system.

Laser desorption and ionization mass spectrometer with quantitative reproducibility


The present invention refers to a high tonnage ultra light mining truck with a greater load efficiency for off-road applications that, in addition to the body, comprises a lightweight curved dump body and a knuckle joined lightweight power and traction system, a steering system, and a lateral suspension and tipping system for the lightweight curved dump body. The truck of the present invention has a payload capacity up to three times greater than that of similar trucks of the prior art.

Trucks built on the basis of a very strong structure of the chassis type, especially freight trucks such as high tonnage trucks, are very well known. The structure of said trucks comprises a rigid axle or axles mounted at the back and a front axle or axles mounted at the front, wherein front wheels turn about two vertical shafts located at the front axle ends of the truck.
In applications of trucks over 100 tons it is not possible to use a double axle or back cross-member due to their huge gross weight that prevents lateral gliding of the tires in the double cross-member when taking curves; this makes driving on curves unsafe because the vehicle tends to move on in a straight direction. For this reason, in this area the prior art makes use of only six tires per vehicle, two on the front axle and four on the rear axle, limiting its payload capacity.
Trucks in the prior art are equipped with electric motors or other types of motors only on the back wheels as it is unfeasible to mount electric motors or motors of other types on the front wheels of the freight vehicle with the steering systems known, limiting in this way its power and consequently, its payload capacity.
The maximum capacity obtained in freight trucks of the prior art is limited by the maximum weight that may be carried by the tires provided in the state of the art, and by the power that may be transmitted by the power and traction systems developed to the present date. The maximum payload a high tonnage truck may carry is given by the equation: Maximum tire and power system capacity (gvw) minus Empty weight of the truck or tare (evw). The truck with the greatest payload efficiency is that with the highest (gvw evw)/evw ratio.
The maximum payload capacity offered by the state of the art is that of a truck of the following characteristics:
gvw=568 tons.
evw=228 tons.
load=gvw−evw=340 tons.
(gvw−evw)/evw=1.49.
Thus, there is still in the area a need of freight trucks, and more particularly, of lighter high-tonnage freight trucks equipped with a more powerful system, that are more efficient, and that may be used for off-road applications; they must also be provided of a greater number of tires in order to improve the payload capacity and lower the cost per hauled ton. For this reason, lighter power and traction systems are needed to reduce transportation costs while preserving the safety and maneuverability levels of the freight truck.
The truck of the present invention manages to avoid all the abovementioned disadvantages with the replacement of the traditional chassis system for a knuckle joined lightweight, frameless power and traction system.
In this area there is also a need for a dump tipping system that allows to carry out a quicker and more efficient dumping of the materials in freight trucks, and avoids the traditional problems associated with dumping such as having to move from the lane followed during transport to another, forcing the operator to drive in reverse in order to dump the transported load from the back of the truck.
Finally, it is necessary to have lightweight dump bodies that increase payload capacity and allow the implementation of said tipping system. The lightweight curved dump body further comprises a lightweight suspension system that efficiently allows carrying out smooth loading and dumping operations of the material carried in the lightweight curved dump.

High tonnage ultra light mining truck with a greater load efficiency for off-road applications that comprises a lightweight power and traction system, a steering system and a lateral suspension and tipping system for the lightweight curved dump


The present invention provides a method for producing wash-free rice which does not require washing before cooking. The method comprises the following steps: preparing polished rice from brown rice polished by a built-in rice polishing machine and sifted by a built-in sifting machine and/or polished rice from outside sources; preparing rice polishing bran (parched bran) used as an abrasive; preparing a mixture consisting of the polished rice and the abrasive in a desired ratio; stirring the mixture in a tank by revolving stirring blades such that the polished rice and the abrasive are mutually rubbed in order to strip sticking bran including skin bran and foreign debris from the surfaces of the rice grains; sifting the stirred mixture in order to separate bran from the rice; separating residual sticking bran and foreign debris from rice grains in order to obtain finished wash-free rice; and recovering the separated bran for recycling as the abrasive.

Most of the methods for producing wash-free rice employ washing (by water) steps (i.e. wet processes). However, some methods employ dry processes. One of such dry processes disclosed in Japanese laid open patent No.2001-286773 (hereinafter referred as Ref.1) is invented to provide a simply structured compact waterless rice washing apparatus which can be constituted at a low cost and be used by small food service industries, restaurants, hotels, hospitals and the like. The disclosed waterless rice washing machine comprises supply units for supplying polished rice and interposing matter to be mixed with the rice, a rice washing container for accommodating a mixture of the polished rice and the interposing matter and a separating unit for separating pure polished rice, the interposing matter and bran from the washed mixture, wherein: the supply units are arranged above the rice washing container, the separating unit is arranged below the rice washing container and a plurality of baffle plates are arranged in the rice washing container.
Japanese laid open patent No.2001-96177 (hereinafter referred as Ref.2) discloses polished rice washing apparatus which can remove oxidized layers and bran layers formed on the surfaces of polished rice grains, and bran deposited in grooves of polished rice grains without damaging the surfaces of polished rice grains. The disclosed polished rice washing apparatus comprise a rice inlet, a rice polishing chamber, a pair of rice polishing plates in which brushes are buried, a cover for preventing rice from spilling out of the rice polishing plates, a driving means for driving the polishing plates, another cover for preventing bran from spilling out of the rice polishing chamber and a polished rice outlet, wherein: the rice inlet and the rice outlet are communicated each other via the rice polishing chamber, the rice polishing plates are arranged inside of the rice polishing chamber such that tips of the brushes respectively arranged on the rice polishing plates are directed to each other and the cover for the polishing plates are perforated. The apparatus obtained by the disclosed invention can remove oxidized layers and bran layers formed on the surfaces of polished rice grains and bran deposited in grooves of polished rice grains by brushes arranged in the upper part and lower part of the apparatus without damaging the surfaces of polished rice grains.

Method for producing wash-free rice and apparatus therefor