A road restraint system part is made of polyolefin material having an energy absorption of at least 10 kJ/m2 at +23° C. and at least 5 kJ/m2 at −20° C. (determined according to ISO 179/1eA with notched specimens).

The invention relates to road restraint system parts, in particular poles for road safety barriers.
Various types of road safety barriers have been developed. One such type comprises horizontally disposed rails mounted on spaced-apart poles let into the ground.
Conventional poles for road safety barriers are normally made of steel, aluminium, wood, concrete, or natural stone. These materials are expensive due to the material costs, their installation, transport, and repairing costs. In addition, wooden poles can form dangerous sharp broken pieces which in the event of a collision may flung around in the area of the accident so that they constitute a danger in themselves. Above that, sharp pieces of wooden poles can penetrate the car body and create an additional risk for passengers. Since wooden poles are impregnated with toxic chemicals to provide better weather resistance and rot protection, they also cause environmental concerns. For instance in Norway an additional fee has to be paid upon of these toxically impregnated poles.
Since it is the purpose of road safety barriers to prevent a vehicle which goes out of control from driving into the roadside ditch, down a slope, over a drop, or into a lane with traffic in the opposite direction, it is important that these barriers are able to withstand the force in order to keep the vehicles on the road. Thus, a high energy absorption of the poles is one of the crucial factors of road safety barriers. However, wooden poles are rigid and poles made of concrete and stone are rigid and brittle. Thus, when the conventional poles break the energy absorption will mainly be taken case of by the vehicle giving also large damages on the vehicle and the driver/passenger. Poles of galvanised steel and zinc may leak out, especially since the poles are in direct contact with the soil. When steel poles are bent to the ground they are not more active in the energy absorbing process due to their plastic behaviour. Plastic poles are acting more as an elastic object which is recovering to its original position when the load is not active, i.e. the same poles are ready for absorbing additional energy, also during the same collision event due to the whole system of poles and guard rails.
To overcome at least some of the drawbacks of conventional poles, the use of plastic poles for road safety barriers has been proposed. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 5,507,473 discloses a pole for a road safety barrier comprising a metal pipe with lugs embedded into a plastic material consisting of a blend of high-density polyethylene and low-density polyethylene to give the necessary temperature stability. U.S. Pat. No. 5,660,375 discloses a multi-layer pole of polyester veils and fibreglass nets filled with recycled plastic. U.S. Pat. No. 5,152,507 proposes a pole consisting of a rod of fibre-reinforced plastic filled with foamed plastic which is inserted into a pipe of fibre-reinforced plastic embedded into concrete. Compared to conventional poles as of wood, for instance, these poles are much too expensive.
In addition, poles for road safety barriers are known as being one-piece moldings of plastic material such as a mixture of high- or low-density polyethylene or polypropylene (U.S. Pat. No. 5,219,241) or a hollow plastic pipe (WO99/61708). However, these poles bend upon collision with a car. To overcome this problem, WO99/61708 suggests a specific system for fastening the guard rail to the poles which leads the car back to the road when the poles are bent, i.e. WO99/61708 is utilising the bending for energy absorption.
Since it is a well known property of poles made of plastic such as polyethylene to bend easily, poles of plastic are also widely used as traffic guide poles (CH-A-471940, CH-A-546862, DE-C-2649911).
Because of their unsatisfactory energy absorption, the prior art poles made of plastic fail when a vehicle crashes at high speed into the safety barrier, particularly under cold climate-conditions. Under these conditions, plastic becomes brittle and will practically make no contribution to the energy absorption badly needed. In addition, loose parts of the safety barrier as well as remaining sharp pieces of the poles may injure the involved people in such an accident.


A medicine vaporizer apparatus comprises a base with an upwardly extending heating element disposed within a rigid tube. Air is drawn into the rigid tube through an aperture in the rigid tube below the heating element and directed over the heating element to then be drawn through a flexible tube and through a filter or screen comprising an amount of medicine. Heated air flows over the amount of medicine and vaporizes the same, wherein the medicine is thereafter drawn into the lungs of a patient pulling the air therethrough with his or her mouth. Thermal separation and cooling of various parts prevents accidental injury to users and provides an inert air path for the air therethrough. The apparatus further provides controlled incineration and/or vaporization of the medicine.

Incinerators and/or vaporizers are generally known for introducing medicine into a patient's lungs. Indeed, there are many vaporizers on the market today, especially for purposes of introducing various drugs into a patient's bloodstream. Indeed, cigarettes, cigars, hookahs and other like "dry herb" incinerators may be considered crude incinerators intended to deliver a drug into a user's bloodstream.
Today, electronic vaporizers are used to deliver drugs into the lungs of users, whether for wellness, medicinal or recreational purposes. For example, vaporizers are often used to deliver medicine that may be used for aiding a user in their breathing, such as vaporizers that deliver albuterol or other like drugs to asthma patients. Indeed, certain herbs, such as damiana has been used for centuries to treat asthma and depression while peppermint is popular for its soothing flavor and is used to treat a wide variety of ailments.
Moreover, vaporizers are widely known and used as e-cigarettes to deliver nicotine and soothing flavors to a user. More recently, as more and more U.S. States have legalized cannabis for wellness and medicinal purposes and for recreational use, vaporizers are becoming more commonly used for delivering doses of cannabinoids to users thereof. Medicinally, cannabinoids are becoming popular to aid in many various ailments, due to its propensity to provide relief to an array of symptoms including pain, nausea, anxiety, and inflammation.
However, today's vaporizers often do not provide sufficient control for users. Indeed, oftentimes, medicine that is vaporized and components of the vaporizers may be heated to too high a temperature and may burn or scorch, causing unwanted byproducts and impurities within the delivery stream. Therefore, a need exists for an improved apparatus for vaporizing medicines. Specifically, a need exists for an improved apparatus for vaporizing medicines that provides better thermal control thereof. More specifically, a need exists for an improved apparatus for vaporizing medicines that prevents or minimizes unwanted by-products or impurities within a delivery stream.
Moreover, oftentimes in typical vaporizers, the thermal element that is used to vaporize medicines is not sufficiently thermally separated from other components thereof. Because the heating element must be sufficiently heated, the heat may transfer to other elements of the apparatus that may be touched by a user, which may lead to injury. Therefore, a need exists for an improved apparatus for vaporizing medicines that may have sufficient thermal separation between regions of the apparatus that may be touched by a user. Specifically, a need exists for an improved apparatus for vaporizing medicines that may aid in preventing or minimizing injuries to users thereof.
In addition, typical vaporizers often draw air that passes directly overheating elements and other components that may off-gas or otherwise decay under intense heat. Particles that may be introduced into a delivery stream may be toxic and harmful to a user thereof. Therefore, a need exists for an improved apparatus for vaporizing medicines utilizing inert materials. Specifically, a need exists for an improved apparatus for vaporizing medicines that prevents or minimizes harmful substances from entering the delivery stream that may be caused by the heating element and/or heating of surrounding materials. More specifically, a need exists for an improved apparatus for vaporizing medicines that provides a clean, inert air path for delivering medicine to a user's lungs.
Typical vaporizers utilize heating elements that may insufficiently controlled, and may consequently burn or overheat medicines. Indeed, certain medicines must typically be vaporized, and not combusted, but insufficient control of heating elements may lead to combustion thereof. Combustion causes many chemical reactions, and the creation of impurities that may detrimental, if not antithetical to the user attempting to obtain relief through the medicines. In addition, oftentimes medicines may act differently to a user based on their heating profiles during the vaporization process. For example, because medicines often contain complicated mixtures of chemicals, the temperature profile during vaporization may cause more or less of certain chemical compounds to be vaporized together, leading to undesirable effects. A need, therefore, exists for an improved apparatus for vaporizing medicines that provides precise control of the heating profile of vaporization of the medicines. Specifically, a need exists for an improved apparatus that minimizes or prevents combustion of medicines or other chemicals that can lead to undesirable impurities. Moreover, a need exists for an improved apparatus for vaporizing medicines that allows users to control specific temperature profiles to deliver desired combinations of chemicals after vaporization of the same.

Medicine vaporizer apparatus and methods of using the same


A storage firewall architecture, method and system that works in parallel with existing security technologies and, inter alia, provides application software authentication, user authentication & authorization in the execution of an application, examination, verification, and authentication of all storage access requests, monitoring of protected storage to detect & repair anomalous changes, encryption of protected storage, both data and software, provisioning (deployment) of patches, configuration changes, and software through a secure synchronization link to a configuration and patch management server, and server-based system administration & configuration to prevent malware from penetrating local configuration mechanisms.

Network firewalls have been around for long enough that most IT professional define them as means for protecting computers on a network by filtering at the network perimeter that which is permitted to enter a local area network (LAN) from an external network. Network firewalls are usually deployed so that they can filter all attempts to reach any of the computers on the internal network. This filtering is usually aft of the IP (Internet Protocol) packet level, though more recent technologies extend this approach to higher levels of the IP network stack. (The IP network stack is the way in which the Internet protocols are layered on top of each other in order to provide a modular design to these protocols. At the bottom is the hardware layer, and at the top is the application layer. Near the bottom are the layers that are responsible for communicating with adjacent computers on the same local network, and for tunneling through to computers and other devices on non-local networks). The trend is toward an integrated network perimeter defense system that scans and filters at all levels of the IP stack. In general concept, intrusion detection systems (IDSs) and similar defensive systems have a similar mandate and approach, but they work at higher levels of the IP network stack.
Generally, network firewalls are deployed as hardware appliance implementations, though software implementations running on multi-purpose servers are still common. There is also a class of local software firewalls, so-called personal firewalls, that sit at a computer's network interface to the external world and attempt to prevent malware and undesired network access to the protected computer. These work in a manner quite similar to the network firewalls, but with differences; such as the responsibility to monitor activities on the local computer, and to detect and filter out certain behavior such as attempts by local software to access the network.
Anti-Virus (A-V) software and local software firewalls have a somewhat similar mission, i.e., to filter out malware before it can do anything, with the assumption that most viruses these days are network borne. In addition, most desktop A-V software still check floppy disks and other removable media when they are first mounted, presumably before the possibly infected contents can do any damage. It is interesting that we still need A-V software for network access protection, since one would assume that adequate firewalls would filter out all of the attempts to penetrate the protected system, including invasion attempts by viruses.
To simplify the concept, most anti-virus software focuses on what happens to files (monitoring changes to file systems, boot sector, etc.), while network firewalls focus on network sockets (ports, addresses, packets, protocols, etc.). Of course, there are other kinds of malicious software (malware) than just viruses, e.g., trojans, backdoors, worms, etc. These can be divided into 2 sets, or rather their functionality can be considered as falling into 2 basic classes: malware that knows how to propagate itself, and malware that does not.
For purposes of this description, all of the firewall, IDS, and similar mechanisms are lumped into the general category of "firewall" since the industry seems to be going this way, with tighter integration among the various layers of perimeter defenses and internal defenses. The architecture of software that protects at the network access point(s) necessarily corresponds to the architecture of the network access protocols, so the firewalls and related mechanisms filter network traffic at the same layers (i.e. they assume the same semantics) as the protected network transport layers. This is to say that at each layer in the network stack there are layer-relevant attack vulnerabilities, and well designed network defenses have defensive elements at each layer. The defenses at each higher layer are designed, in part, to protect against the vulnerabilities of the lower layer(s). Most of the innovation in firewall design over the past 15 years has essentially been to move the analysis of layer n traffic up one level, so as to capture and analyze multiple pieces of layer n traffic, in order to assemble a more complete understanding of whether a set of layer n traffic segments corresponds to an attack using that layer.
As the defenses are gradually moved up the network stack, they must have a greater understanding of the semantics of the protected layer. To take this to its logical conclusion, since the top layer is the application, the outcome of this historical progression will be defenses that know how to protect applications; by understanding the normal state and behavior (i.e. network access, file access, disk access and on-disk presence, and memory access) in and out of the protected applications.
Malware that knows how to propagate itself falls generally into 2 behavior categories, though often malware that can do one, can also do the other. The first is inter-system propagation, such as through email systems, and the second is on-system propagation, such as copying itself into many files on a hard drive.
Roughly speaking, there are 3 kinds of anti-virus (A-V) mechanisms: network filters, file system scanners, and monitors. The network filter has an architecture roughly similar to that of the firewall architecture covered above, since it has the same goal of filtering out penetration attempts; it provides a defense against inter-system propagation The file system scanner looks for on-system viruses in all file accesses (and can be used to sieve through file sets to look for viruses, perhaps comparing against a 'signature' database, i.e., an exhaustive set of defined attributes of known virus and similar malware), while the monitor attempts to detect and block on-system viruses from doing virus-like behavior such as loading itself into memory, infecting files and operating system disk blocks, etc.
The monitor portion of an A-V tool set has an interesting challenge—ideally it would attempt to determine whether any running software is doing any virus-like behavior, but new viruses are generally able to outwit most A-V software This vulnerability to successful infections from new viruses is part of the "Zero Day" risk, There have been well documented successful Zero Day attacks from all sorts of malware, including viruses; details are available on the Internet.
With respect to the current situation of PC security defenses, although the architectures described above are interesting from a system defense perspective, it is interesting to note that even with the latest system defenses, successful malware attacks and infections are on the rise, and that installing defensive software on an infected system will not eliminate the current infection.
New, and therefore unprotected, PCs are infected within a few minutes of being put on the net, and they have to be put on the net in order to download and install the latest security defense updates and operating system security-related patches. Moreover, any PC that has been offline for several weeks is similarly vulnerable, during the time period from when it is connected to the net until the latest operating system (O/S) patches, virus signatures, and firewall updates are installed and active.
In addition, even machines that are Constantly connected, with automatic download & updates, are at risk from so-called Zero Day attacks This is because it takes time for the security patches and updates to be created in response to new malware and newly discovered vulnerabilities, and all PCs on the net during this intervening period are vulnerable to these new malware attacks. And even later, when there are available' patches and updates, with automatically scheduled downloads & updates it often takes a few days for all at risk PCs to get the latest versions.
And to make this situation even more serious, there are new threats daily. Not almost daily, as it was Only a year or so ago, but with at least one new serious threat each day. Many experts expect this situation to become worse, with new malware attack threats coming even more frequently, perhaps hourly.
As a result, one can not depend on the current generation of network and PC defensive mechanisms to prevent the infection of PCs This situation puts at risk our data and other assets, and therefore our willingness to use the Internet.
In order to provide a secure computing environment, it is necessary to defeat malware propagation. This alone will not provide a secure computing environment, but it is a necessary element. Older security technologies are still necessary, but they are not sufficient to prevent system penetration (unauthorized access), which is why there are so many successful penetrations.
This is a significant problem. Successful penetration may leave no tracks or evidence, or a rootkit (i.e. trojan or backdoor program) may use active camouflage to prevent detection. And successful penetration leads to the installation of the virus, rootkit, or spyware, as well as to successful theft and/or damage to data.
Each day there are new attacks, new exploits, newly discovered vulnerabilities. It is thus probably impossible to prevent zero day (brand new) attacks from successful penetration of any network connected computer systems. Given the expectation that at any given moment a computer may be infected with some variety of malware, in order to protect the confidentiality and integrity of data, it is clear that something new is needed.

Firewall+storage apparatus, method and system


To prepare a metallic surface for adhesive bonding, surface irregularities and contaminants are removed. This first step is followed by repeated cleaning of the metallic surface with a solvent and testing of the metallic surface for uniformity. Next, new surface material is exposed by blasting or abrading the surface material. Subsequently, the surface is cleaned and again tested for uniformity. Finally, the surface is treated with a silane solution and dried prior to bonding.

Surface preparation is a key factor in the bonding of two or more materials. Since bonding occurs at the surface of the two materials to be bonded, the condition of those surfaces are of critical importance. The foregoing is particularly true for the cases involving the bonding of at least one metallic surface (e.g., composites-to-metal, glass-to-metal, etc.) with an adhesive. The quality, and hence reliability, of boding of the materials achieved will be directly related to the surface roughness and cleanliness of the surfaces to be bonded.
The preparation of metallic surfaces for adhesive bonding is typically accomplished by one of two methods well known in the industry: phosphoric acid etching or sulfuric acid etching. For example, as the names suggest, Phosphoric Acid Anodizing (PAA), Phosphoric Acid Non-Tank Anodizing (PANTA) and Phos-Anodizing Containment System (PACS) methods of surface preparation all employ phosphoric acid etching. On the other hand, the Forest Product Laboratory (FPL) method of metallic surface preparation utilizes sulfuric acid etching.
Use of these existing techniques pose serious health and environmental problems. The threat presented by the use of toxic substances in these prior art techniques has resulted in current Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) policies to reduce, and eventually eliminate, the use of phosphoric and sulfuric acids for adhesive bonding purposes. Additionally, the existing methods often preclude simple and inexpensive preparation of the surface due to the complex procedures and equipment involved with the use of toxic substances. Finally, the exacting procedures and complicated equipment necessitated by use of toxic substances allows very little tolerance for error.
Thus a need has arisen for a safe, simple and inexpensive method of metallic surface preparation for adhesive bonding, whereby the use of complicated procedures and potentially dangerous toxic substances is significantly reduced or eliminated.

Method of metallic surface preparation utilizing silane for adhesive bonding


A drop cable includes a jacket having first and second opposing sides. The first side has a concave surface. At least one strength member is disposed in the jacket. An optical transmission component is disposed within the jacket and proximate the concave surface. The optical transmission component includes a plurality of optical fibers.

Drop cables for optical fibers are typically used for short lengths to provide the last or second to last connection from the distribution cable to the end user. Because of the large number of cables and cable access requirements of drop cables within optical network architecture, a key requirement of drop cables is craft friendliness. This includes easy access to the optical fibers for connection, through removal of protective jacketing and tubes. Also, the use of ribbonizing technology allows for mass fusion splicing of the optical fibers in the drop cable. Rather than splicing one fiber at a time, multiple fibers can be spliced at one time.
One prior art type of drop cable used for bundles and ribbons of optical fiber is round, as shown in FIG. 1. The drop cable 101 has a round jacket 110. In the center of the jacket 110 is the optical transmission component, which includes an optical ribbon 102 contained inside of a buffer tube 130. The optical transmission component is further protected by a protective sheath 120, which may be metal or another strong, ductile material. For further rigidity, strength members 141 are provided on opposing sides of the optical transmission component. Because of the round design, the load path during transverse loading passes through the buffer tube 130. Further, access to the optical fibers inside of the drop cable can be difficult with the design shown in FIG. 1 because of the protective sheath 120.
Prior art drop cables often contain metallic elements, such as the protective sheath, that must be grounded at each end during the installation process to prevent the buildup of an electrical charge within the drop cable. This grounding is often labor intensive and requires additional parts. Many times the metallic element is a toning wire, which is in the drop cable only for locating purposes. In order to locate an underground drop cable, the a tone is applied through the toning wire. The tone is sensed by detection equipment and the exact location of the underground drop cable can be determined.
Also, access to the optical ribbons is known to be difficult with the prior solutions. Many designs do not incorporate ripcords and require a labor intensive shaving or stripping procedure to remove the jacket along the radial strength members in order to access the optical ribbons. Thick jackets surrounding the optical ribbons can make access to the optical ribbons more difficult as well.

Fiber optic cable with a concave surface


A voice-actuated machine body control apparatus for a construction machine is provided. The voice-actuated machine body control apparatus comprises speech recognition means (1a) capable of speech-recognizing a voice command representative of an instruction by voice regarding a movement of a machine body (80), machine body control means (1e) capable of controlling the machine body movement based on a result of the recognition by the speech recognition means (1a), obstacle recognition means (1b) capable of detecting the presence of an object outside the machine body which may possibly make an obstacle to the machine body movement, and avoidance means (1c) capable of inhibiting, when the presence of an object outside of the machine body is detected by the obstacle recognition means (1b), the machine body movement in accordance with the voice command preferentially to the control by the machine body control means (1e) thereby to avoid an inappropriate movement of the machine body (80). Thus, the construction machine (80) can be operated appropriately with voice uttered by the operator while the operator does not operate an joystick, a pedal or the like and does not perform an inputting operation using a switch or the like.

Generally, a construction machine such as a hydraulic excavator has a construction wherein it includes, as schematically shown in FIG. 5, an upper revolving unit 100 with an operator cab (cabin) 600 provided on a lower traveling body 500 having caterpillar members 500A, and further, a joint type arm mechanism composed of a boom 200, a stick 300 and a bucket 400 is provided on the upper revolving unit 100.
And, the boom 200, stick 300 and bucket 400 can be driven suitably by hydraulic cylinders 120, 121 and 122, respectively, to move the move the boom 200 in the direction denoted by a or b, move the stick 300 in the direction denoted by c or d and move the bucket 400 in the direction denoted by e or f.
Further, various equipment and materials used for operation and display are provided in the operator cab 600 of the hydraulic excavator.
FIG. 6 is a schematic view of functional blocks of the hydraulic excavator. An operation unit 160 of the hydraulic excavator shown in FIG. 6 includes an electronic control apparatus 150. A joystick 6 and a pedal 9 are connected to the input side of the electronic control apparatus 150, and a monitor 10, a solenoid controlled proportional valve 3 and an ON/OFF valve 13 are connected to the output side of the electronic control apparatus 150.
Here, the joystick (also referred to as operation lever) 6 is an operation member for operating the hydraulic excavator and is operated by an operating person (hereinafter referred to sometimes as operator), and an electric signal corresponding to the operation amount of the joystick 6 is inputted to the electronic control apparatus 150. And, the electric signal detected by the joystick 6 is used to operate the cylinders 120 to 122 (hereinafter described with reference to FIG. 1) through the electronic control apparatus 150 and the solenoid controlled proportional valve 3.
Meanwhile, the pedal 9 is an accelerator pedal, and also an electric signal corresponding to the operation amount of the pedal 9 is inputted to the electronic control apparatus 150. In addition, the monitor 10 receives an electric signal outputted from the electronic control apparatus 150 and displays thereon information such as an engine speed or an operating oil temperature which the operator wants to know. Furthermore, the ON/OFF valve 13 is a main control valve and controls operation of the cylinders 120 to 122. And, the solenoid controlled proportional valve 3 utilizes a hydraulic pressure to control the spool position of the ON/OFF valve 13.
The electronic control apparatus 150 is connected to the monitor 10, solenoid controlled proportional valve 3, ON/OFF valve 13 and so forth described above, and displays control information to the operator and controls the cylinders 120 to 122 in accordance with a control mode. The electronic control apparatus 150 is composed of a microprocessor, memories such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) and a RAM (Random Access Memory), suitable input/output interfaces and so forth.
Thus, when signals from various sensors and the operation panel are inputted to the electronic control apparatus 150, the engine speed, operating oil temperature and so forth are displayed on the monitor 10. Further, the ON/OFF valve 13 is controlled through the solenoid controlled proportional valve 3 so that the boom 200, stick 300 and bucket 400 are controlled so as to exhibit desired expanded/contracted displacements.
Further, usually, in order to assure a high reliability in working, the operator is put under an obligation to normally aurally call confirmation items representative of machine body movement instructions during operation of the hydraulic excavator. The confirmation items (hereinafter referred to aural call items) are, for example, "engine start", "electric system check" and so forth, and those aural call items are aurally called by the operator upon movement of the machine body.
In addition, in an operating instruction manual or an operation manual, matters that demand attention of the operator are disclosed sufficiently so that the machine body may move appropriately.
With the conventional construction machine, however, since voice is not used to control the movement of the machine body, the operator is obliged to operate the complicated operation panel and so forth and must confirm the monitor screen. Therefore, the conventional construction machine has a subject in that, if working continues for a long time, it becomes bothering to the operator and the burden to the operator increases.
The conventional construction machine further has a subject that, if it is operated inappropriately by the operator, then there is the possibility that the machine body may operate in accordance with the inappropriate operation irrespective of a situation such as the position of the machine body or the working posture or the environment.
Also it is a subject of the conventional construction machine that, since the operation members such as the joystick 6 and the pedal 9 occupy a space of the operator cab 600, they reduce the range of operation of the operator.
The present invention has been made in view of such subjects as described above, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a voice-actuated machine body control apparatus for a construction machine by which the construction machine can be operated appropriately by voice uttered by an operator while the operator does not operate a joystick, a pedal or a like member and does not perform an inputting operation using a switch or a like device.

Voice-actuated machine body control apparatus for construction machine


Antibacterial compounds having the formula ##STR1## and the pharmaceutically acceptable salts, esters and amides thereof, as well as pharmaceutical compositions containing such compounds and the use of the same in the treatment of bacterial infections.

There is a continuing need for new antibacterial agents. Although many compounds are known which are useful in the treatment of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial infections as well as other microbial infections, the widespread use of such compounds continues to give rise to resistant strains of microorganisms, i.e., strains of microorganisms against which a particular antibiotic or group of antibiotics, which was previously effective, is no longer useful. Also, known antibiotics may be effective against only certain strains of microorganisms or have limited activity against either Gram-positive or Gram-negative, aerobic or anaerobic organisms.
The therapeutic use of certain quinolizinone derivatives has been described previously. For example, Y. Kitaura et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 4,650,804, issued Mar. 17, 1987, have disclosed quinolizinone compounds having a tetrazolylcarbamoyl substituent which are useful for the treatment of allergic and ulcer diseases. J. V. Heck and E. D. Thorsett, in European Patent Application No. 0308019,published Mar. 22, 1989, have disclosed the use of certain 4-oxo-4H-quinolizine-3-carboxylic acids and derivatives thereof for treating bacterial infections. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,726,182; 5,599,816; and 5,580,872 disclose certain quinolinzinone type compounds and derivatives thereof for antibacterial activity. However, some of the compounds disclosed therein may not have desirable in vivo safety profile and pharmacokinetics. Therefore, there remains an ongoing need for novel compounds which have improved antimicrobial potency, saftey and/or different spectra of activity.

Pyridone antibiotic with improved safety profile


An optical transceiver that copes with both the enhanced heat dissipation from heat generating components and the electrical isolation of components processing faint signals from other components generating EMI noises is disclosed. The optical transceiver provides, in addition to a bottom of a frame, a bottom cover made by material with higher thermal conductivity. The former components are directly mounted on the bottom cover through openings in the frame, while, other component to be electrically isolated from the chassis are mounted by putting an insulating support between them and the bottom cover.

1. Field
Embodiments of the present application relate to an optical transceiver, in particular, the application relates to a physical arrangement of a housing of the optical transceiver.
2. Description of Related Art
An optical transceiver generally includes an optical transmitter to transmit an optical signal, an optical receiver to receive another optical signal, a circuit to communicate with the optical transmitter, the optical receiver and the host system, and a housing, typically made of metal, to install the optical transmitter, the optical receiver, and the circuit therein. Thus, an optical transceiver realizes the full-duplex optical communication. As the transmission speed of an optical transceiver continuously increases, components installed within an optical transceiver have generated more heat, which leads to needs for a mechanism for the optical transceiver to dissipate heat further efficiently.
On the other hand, both of the optical transmitter and the optical receiver process electrical signals but signal levels are far different. That is, the optical transmitter switches a large current to drive a light-emitting device, while, the optical receiver receives a faint signal converted from the received optical signal. Accordingly, the optical receiver is necessary to be isolated from EMI noises caused by the optical transmitter. Generally, this isolation is carried out by distinguishing the receiver ground from the transmitter ground. However, when all the housing of the optical receiver, that of the optical transmitter and the transceiver housing are made of metal, the electrical isolation of the optical receiver from the optical transmitter has been left to be a subject to be solved.

Optical transceiver with optical receiver electrically isolated from housing and optical transmitter with enhanced heat dissipation to housing


Provided is: a thermally conductive silicone gel composition which has a high thermal conductivity, and is less likely to flow out and slip off/drop off from a surface on which the gel composition is placed, even when the composition that has not been cured is placed on a sloped surface or in a vertical direction, and has excellent gap-filling ability with respect to a heat dissipation part, etc., and excellent repairability if desired; a thermally conductive member comprising the thermally conductive silicone gel composition; and a heat dissipation structure using the same. The thermally conductive silicone gel composition comprises: (A) an alkenyl group-containing organopolysiloxane; (B) an organohydrogenpolysiloxane; (C) a catalyst for a hydrosilylation reaction; (D) a thermally conductive filler; (E) a silane-coupling agent; and (F) a specific organopolysiloxane having a hydrolyzable silyl group at one end thereof. The gel composition has certain viscosity properties as disclosed herein.

In recent years, the density and integration of printed circuit boards and hybrid ICs on which electronic components such as transistors, ICs and memory elements are mounted, and the capacity of secondary batteries (cells) have increased significantly. In order to more efficiently dissipate the heat generated by electronic and electrical devices such as these electronic components and batteries, thermally conductive silicone compositions comprising organopolysiloxanes, aluminum oxide powders, and thermally conductive fillers such as zinc oxide powder are increasingly being used. In particular, thermally conductive silicone compositions containing large amounts of thermally conductive fillers have been proposed to address the issue of higher heat dissipation.
For example, thermally conductive silicone compositions with higher thermal conductivity have been realized in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2. These documents propose that by treating the surface of a thermally conductive filler with a hydrolyzable silane having a long-chain alkyl group, the increase in the viscosity of these thermally conductive silicone compositions can be reduced despite a higher thermal conductive inorganic filler content to improve moldability, and flexibility and heat-resistant mechanical properties can be imparted to molded products. A thermally conductive silicone composition containing a thermal conductive filler surface-treated with two or more treatment agents with different molecular weights has been proposed in Patent Document 3. This document proposes that by adjusting the timing of addition of these treatment agents, the fluidity of the compound is not impaired despite high thermally conductive filler content.
However, the fluidity of these thermally conductive silicone compositions is still insufficient despite these reductions in viscosity and improvements in moldability. As a result, these compositions cannot be applied with precision to the structures of highly refined electric and electronic materials, and gaps occur with electronic components whose heat is to be dissipated, causing insufficient heat dissipation and latent heat buildup. When an electronic member requires repairability with respect to positioning and circuit rearrangement, thermally conductive silicone compositions of the prior art form thermally conductive cured products that readily adhere to the member, so it is difficult to peel off these thermally conductive cured products from the electronic member without leaving behind a residue. As a result, yield may decline during production, and the repair and reuse of electronic and electrical devices such as electronic components and batteries may be impaired.
In recent years, there has been an increasing demand for space saving measures and diversification of internal structures. As a result, there is growing need for heat-dissipating structures in the layout of electric and electronic devices such as heat-dissipating electronic components and batteries not only in the horizontal direction, but also on inclined surfaces and vertical surfaces (vertical wall surfaces). Onboard electrical and electronic devices in vehicles such as engine control units (ECUs) require structures vertically sandwiched between heat-dissipating members such as heat sinks as part of a layout in which a thin-film heat conductive member (such as grease) is placed on a heat-radiating component or on a circuit board with a mounted heat-radiating component. However, in these heat dissipation structures, the amount of heat dissipation from these heat dissipation components is increasing, and materials in the higher heat dissipating region of 3.5 W/mK or more are required.
The thermally conductive silicone compositions proposed in Patent Documents 1-3 have excellent thermal conductivity and have fluidity that has been improved to a certain extent. However, because of their low viscosity and fluidity, when they are arranged on an inclined surface or on a vertical surface, these compositions run or drip on these surfaces while in an uncured state or semi-cured state and often cannot be arranged at the desired site. However, when the viscosity of these thermally conductive silicone compositions is increased, gaps are more likely to occur between electronic members that radiate heat, and these compositions cannot sufficiently fill gaps between heat-dissipating components. Therefore, it can be very difficult to arrange these thermally conductive silicone compositions on an inclined surface or vertical surface (vertical wall surface) in an uncured state, provide excellent gap filling properties for heat-dissipating components, and prevent misalignment during use.
In Patent Document 4, the present applicant has proposed a thermally conductive silicone composition using reinforcing silica fine powder that has excellent vertical retention and hardly runs or drips even when arranged vertically in a severe temperature environment. However, this thermally conductive silicone composition has insufficient gap filling properties and repair properties with respect to heat-radiating components, the use of reinforcing silica fine powder tends to cause the amount of thermally conductive filler that can be used and the heat-radiating properties of the composition to plateau, and the realization of high thermal conductivity of 3.5 W/mK or more has not been disclosed (see the examples). Also, the subject of Patent Document 4 is a heat-radiating grease so a composition that is cured to provide a gel-like flexible thermally conductive member is neither mentioned nor suggested.

Thermally-conductive silicone gel composition, thermally-conductive member, and heat dissipation structure


A headboard that includes a cushioning member and a flexible cover substantially enclosing the cushioning member. The flexible cover includes at least first and second opposite panels. The first panel is formed of a fabric that has a plurality of loops. A support includes a fastener disposed thereon. The fastener is formed of a plurality of hooks that engage the plurality of loops of the first panel, thereby releasably engaging the first panel with the support.

Conventional headboards for beds are often bulky and heavy making them difficult to move. Additionally, many conventional headboards are attached directly to the frame of the bed, thereby requiring assembly to the frame to use the headboard and disassembly before moving the headboard. Furthermore, conventional headboards can often only be purchased with the bed frame and not purchased separately.
Examples of headboards are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,618,876 to Murphy et al.; 6,374,440 to Thim, Jr.; 6,371,190 to Owens; 6,182,307 to Rutrick; and 5,269,032 to Flocks; and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0135928, the subject matter of each of which is herein incorporated by reference.


A display comprising:                a) a substrate;        b) first transparent conductors;        d) second conductors patterned to form segments;        e) inter-segment material disposed between said second conductors, electrically conductive and having optical properties similar to said second conductors;        f) an imaging layer comprising a light-modulating material disposed between said first and second conductors, electrically switched between two field-stable optical states and having a third as-coated optical state; and        g) applying an electrical field to said inter-segment material and said first conductors to write said light-modulating material from the as-coated optical state to a different optical state more closely matching one of the two field-stable optical states.

Currently, information is displayed using assembled sheets of paper carrying permanent inks or displayed on electronically modulated surfaces such as cathode ray displays or liquid crystal displays. Printed information cannot be changed. Electrically updated displays are often heavy and expensive. Other sheet materials can carry magnetically written areas, for example, to carry ticketing or financial information. Such magnetically written data, however, is not visible.
Media systems exist that maintain electronically changeable data without power. Such system can be electrophoretic (Eink), Gyricon, or polymer dispersed cholesteric materials. An example of such electronically updateable displays can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 3,600,060 issued Aug. 17, 1971 to Churchill et al., which patent shows a device having a coated, then dried emulsion of cholesteric liquid crystals in aqueous gelatin to form a field-responsive, bistable display. U.S. Pat. No. 3,816,786 also to Churchill et al. discloses a layer of encapsulated cholesteric liquid crystal responsive to an electric field. The electrodes in the patent can be transparent or non-transparent and formed of various metals or graphite. It is disclosed that one electrode must be light absorbing, and it is suggested that the light absorbing electrode be prepared from paints contains conductive material such as carbon.
Fabrication of flexible, electronically written display sheets is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,435,047 issued Mar. 6, 1984 to Fergason. A substrate supports a first conductive electrode, one or more layers of encapsulated liquid crystals, and a second electrode of electrically conductive ink. The conductive inks form a background for absorbing light, so that the information-bearing display areas appear dark in contrast to background non-display areas. Electrical potential applied to opposing conductive areas operates on the liquid crystal material to expose display areas. Because the liquid crystal material is nematic liquid crystal, the display ceases to present an image when de-energized, that is, in the absence of a field. The patent discloses the use of dyes in either the polymer encapsulant or liquid crystal to absorb incident light. The patent further discloses the use of a chiral dopant. The dopant improves the response time of the nematic liquid crystal, but does not cause the nematic host to operate in a bistable light-reflective state.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,251,048 to Doane et al. discloses a light-modulating cell having a polymer-dispersed chiral-nematic liquid crystal. The chiral-nematic liquid crystal has the property of being electrically driven between a planar state, reflecting a specific visible wavelength of light, and a focal-conic state, transmitting forward scattering light. Chiral-nematic liquid crystals, also known as cholesteric liquid crystals, potentially in some circumstances have the capacity of maintaining one of multiple given states in the absence of an electric field. Black paint can be applied to the outer surface of a rear substrate to provide a light-absorbing layer forming a non-changing background outside of a changeable display area defined by the intersection of segment lines and scanning lines.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,636,044 to Yuan et al. discloses a seven-segment display, using cholesteric liquid-crystal material, which display has two substrates. The substrates are rigid glass with patterned transparent electrodes on each of two facing surfaces. A continuum of cholesteric liquid crystal fills the gap between the two electrode sets. The first substrate is divided into segmented and non-segmented areas which are defined by gaps in transparent, electrically conductive Indium-Tin-Oxide (ITO) disposed on the substrate. The second substrate is divided into common electrodes in an ITO coating corresponding to segmented and non-segmented areas on the first substrate. The device can change the state of the segmented areas as well as non-segmented areas, permitting the display of a positive or negative image. Both electrodes are transparent electrodes, requiring an additional light-absorbing layer on the back of one substrate. Inter-segment material, or gaps in the electrode materials, requires electrode contacts to each segment area to write; requiring separate electrical connection to each segment area. It would be useful to have a structure that could provide simple electrode connect to each segment area, in a matrix fashion, without requiring point connection to each segment area.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,236,442 to Stephenson et al. discloses a display sheet with a metallic conductive layer over a cholesteric layer. A process is disclosed for vacuum depositing a continuous metallic layer and laser patterning the metallic layer to form segment electrodes. Moralized areas remain between electrically driven areas. However, those areas between etched segments remain in an as-coated state. A circuit board with contacts is pressed against each segment electrode. The circuit board provides electrical drive to segment electrodes.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,394,870 to Petruchik et al discloses an opaque conductive material with non-conductive areas to delineate images stored in polymer-dispersed cholesteric liquid crystal. The patent discloses printing the opaque conductive material, and providing contact to each image-bearing area. No conductive material is provided between segments. In one embodiment, a dielectric area with openings to each opaque conductive area is printed over the opaque conductive material. Traces are then printed over the dielectric layer to eliminate a circuit board with contacts. Areas between etched segments remain in an as-coated state.
There is a need for a display using polymer-dispersed cholesteric liquid crystals having background material with optical properties matching optical properties of the written segments.

Segmented display having uniform optical properties


An arrangement, for installing an electric component of a printed board, contributing to a reduction in size of a camera. Between a cover of a camera body, and a film pressure plate, is installed the printed board which is larger than the film pressure plate and which extends beyond an outer wall of a spool chamber in a direction in which a film is fed. On the printed board, some electric components such as a step-up transformer and a transistor are mounted. The outer wall of the spool chamber has a concave part in which a part of the electric components is positioned. The dimension of the part of the electric component is absorbed in the thickness of the outer wall of the spool chamber.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a camera with a spool chamber, and particularly relates to a structure for mounting an electronic component, such as a transistor and a step-up transformer, of a printed board in the camera.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventionally, there has been provided a type of a camera with a spool chamber and a printed circuit board for controlling its operation electronically.
Meanwhile, to attempt to manufacture a thin, compact-sized camera is a never-ending, technical object in a field of developing a camera. In order to realize such a thin, compact-sized camera, there has been contrived various types of structures and arrangements of the printed boards, and various types of modifications for mounting such electronic components on printed circuit boards. For example, Japanese Laid-Open Utility Model Publication No. 63-187130 discloses a camera with a structure in which a printed circuit board is provided in a space inside most of an exterior cover on a rear side of the camera, including a gap between a film pressure plate and an inner surface of the exterior cover.
Also, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 4-285946 discloses a camera with a structure in which a film pressure plate has a concave part in which electronic components of a printed circuit board are accommodated so that the printed circuit board and the film pressure plate contact each other.
According to the structure of the camera disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Utility Model Publication No. 63-187130, it is possible to make larger the space to accommodate the electronic parts. However, the enlargement of the space to accommodate them also brings an enlargement of the exterior cover of the camera. Thus, the structure described therein does not realize a thin, compact-sized camera.
On the other hand, according to the structure of the camera disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 4-285946, all the electronic components of the printed circuit board are housed in the concave part of a plain, flat member, which is the film pressure plate. With the structure, the concave part of the member cannot help but be relatively large, which may induce a relatively large reduction in strength of the member. With the structure, it is not possible to realize a thin, compact-sized camera, if it is desired that more electronic components be mounted thereon.


A retainer that is attachable to a set of interfacing cables prevents physical separation of the cables while allowing electrical disconnection of the cables. The retainer uses a body member with a hinged end cap on each end. The end caps include a snap pin and the ends of the body include receiving voids for the snap pins. The end caps can be locked into place by rotating around the hinged attachment until the snap pins engage the receiving voids. Either one or both of the end cap and elongated body have notches that form restraining voids when the end caps are locked in place.

Hands-free headsets are invaluable in office and call center applications where a user requires use of hands while conversing on the telephone. The headset is typically connected to a base unit, amplifier, or other electrical equipment via a cable. The cable usually includes a quick disconnect which provides a removable electrical connection to the base unit.
Although a quick disconnect is useful in making removal and replacement of headsets convenient, it has drawbacks, especially in a workplace setting such as a call center. The headsets can be expensive and are pilferable items. Also, the user may decide it is easier to disconnect the headset and wear it when leaving the workspace, rather than removing the headset from the user's head. This can lead to unintentional loss of the headset.
Electrical connectors are available that are permanent or difficult to remove without tools. These connectors can solve the problems of loss and theft, but make troubleshooting and replacement of the headset difficult. Further, such connectors may be non-standard, increasing manufacturing and maintenance costs.
Prior art solutions have utilized fasteners, lanyards (e.g. steel wire) and two piece clamps that, while effective, are expensive and time consuming to install. What is needed is an inexpensive, easy to install retainer for headsets and other electrical devices that are coupled using quick-disconnect connectors. Further, the retainer should allow an electrical disconnection for easy troubleshooting while still providing a mechanical restraint when electrically disconnected.


The invention relates to a device for detecting the position of a rotor relative to a stator, wherein at least one electrode is arranged on the rotor and at least one electrode is arranged on the stator, such that the electrodes at least partially overlap in at least one rotational position of the rotor relative to the stator, and encompasses a method for measuring the rotational position of a rotor including at least one rotor electrode relative to a stator including at least one stator electrode, wherein the rotational position is detected using a capacitive coupling between the rotor electrode and the stator electrode.

The present invention relates to a device and a method for detecting the position of one element relative to another element, in particular for detecting the position of a rotor relative to a stator.
More particularly, in some embodiments, the invention relates to a device for dispensing a liquid in doses, in particular in the area of medicine, e.g., an infusion or injection apparatus, wherein the set dosage of the dispensed liquid or liquid to be dispensed can be ascertained by the position of a rotor, such as a threaded rod, relative to a stator, such as a casing, device body, or portion of an injection device, including those known as injection "pens". In general, a dosage to be dispensed by a pen is set by turning for example a dosing button and dispensed by then pressing the dosing button.
In order to dose a liquid—for example insulin, hormone preparations or the like—to be dispensed from a medical injection instrument or device as exactly as possible, it is necessary to be able to monitor the process of setting a dosage, in order—for example, in the event of an incorrect dosage—to output a warning signal or to prevent the dosage from being dispensed. Since the dosage is usually set by turning a rotor situated in a casing of device pen, the rotor generally being provided with a thread, the advance of the rotor can be ascertained from the turns made in order to set the dosage, and a dosage to be dispensed or a dispensed dosage thus determined.
Known devices for measuring this turning movement are based on mechanical principles and are therefore costly and relatively imprecise.


Provided is a connector converter, comprising a shell a digital signal board, a power source board and a connecting wire, wherein the digital signal board and the power source board are respectively integrated with a digital circuit and a power source circuit, the digital signal board and the power source board are both provided in the shell and electrically connected to each other, an inner end of the connecting wire is electrically connected to the digital signal board, an outer end of the connecting wire extends out of the shell and is provided with an input interface, the digital signal board is provided with a plurality of output interfaces, and the shell is provided with an outer pocket. The digital signal board and the power source board are respectively integrated with the digital circuit and the power source circuit.

A connector converter is a device that can convert connectors to each other for the purpose of signal conversion or charging interface conversion. An existing connector converter generally comprises a shell, a printed circuit board provided in the shell, an adapter socket mounted on the printed circuit board, and a wire welded to the printed circuit board and used for receiving electrical signals or other signals. However, the existing connector converter has the problem of signal interference during operation, thus affecting the use effect of the connector converter.


A method of and an apparatus for controlling a molten metal surface in a mold that are effective to various disturbances are provided. The method and the apparatus for controlling a molten metal surface level in a mold according to the present invention perform the following operations of: measuring the molten metal surface level in the mold of a continuous-casting machine; changing a reference position of oscillation of the mold based on the difference between a molten metal surface setting value set in advance as a desired value of the molten metal surface and a measured value of the molten metal surface level; and making the reference position of oscillation follow molten metal surface fluctuations.

When the height (i.e. level) of a molten metal surface in a casting mold (mold) greatly fluctuates, impurities such as powder on the molten steel surface will be included into the steel that is in contact with the mold and being solidified. When the impurities are included into the steel, defects and/or cracks occur on the surface of the steel piece and are exposed in the form of a flaw or a scab on the steel plate at the time of rolling, having a significant influence on quality and yield. For this reason, it is required to suppress the fluctuations of the molten metal surface in the mold.
As an example of such a method of controlling the molten metal surface level in a mold, there has been disclosed in Patent Document 1, "a method of controlling a molten metal surface level in a mold of a continuous-casting machine", for example.
The "method of controlling a molten metal surface level in a mold of a continuous-casting machine" disclosed in Patent Document 1 is "a method of controlling the molten metal surface level by measuring a molten metal surface level in a mold of a continuous-casting machine, inputting the difference between the measured value and a setting value into a feedback controller, operating an actuator based on the control output from the feedback controller, controlling, with the use of the driving power output from actuator, the amount of opening of a sliding nozzle that is provided for a tundish and used to supply molten steel, characterized by including: an estimation and calculation step of estimating periodic disturbance that causes molten metal surface level fluctuations based on the difference of the measured value of the molten metal surface level from the setting value and calculating the manipulated variable of adaptive control for cancelling the molten metal surface level fluctuations caused by the estimated periodic disturbance; and an operation step of operating the actuator, in which the calculated, manipulated variable of adaptive control is added to the control output from the feedback controller as a feed-forward value for changing the amount of opening of the sliding nozzle" (see claim 1 of Patent Document 1).

Method of and apparatus for controlling molten metal surface in mold of continuous-casting machine and continuous-casting machine including the apparatus


A capless writing instrument (1), wherein a writing element (5) is arranged inside a barrel cylinder (2) so that a pen point (6) of the writing element (5) can come out and retract through a front end opening of the barrel cylinder (2), is characterized in that an inner cap (20) formed of rubber or elastic resin is provided at the front end opening of the barrel cylinder (2), and the inner cap (20) is composed of: a closing portion (21) disposed on the pen point projecting side with respect to the axial direction of the barrel cylinder for closing the front end opening and having a slit (25) for allowing the pen point (6) to project and retract; and forward projected portions (27) that are projected from the outer periphery of the closing portion (21) toward the front end opening, and the inner cap is fitted inside the barrel cylinder so that, in the slit (25) closed state, force which is directed approximately perpendicular to the slit surfaces will act inward from the outer periphery of the forward projected portions (27).

Conventionally, writing instruments, such as water-based and oil-based marker pens and water-based ball-point pens and fountain pens, are generally provided with a cap for sealing the tip part, in order to prevent the writing instrument from becoming unable to write due to dryout of ink at the tip of the writing element.
In the case of a writing instrument having a cap as above, it is necessary to remove and attach the cap every time the pen is used and this work bothers the user if the pen is used frequently. This is why many types of so-called capless writing instruments, which do not need to have a separate cap, have been proposed.
However, such capless writing instruments, in place of a cap, need to have a sealing mechanism for sealing the front end part, in the narrow hollow interior of the writing instrument body, but such sealing mechanisms of conventional configurations are all complicated, needing many components, this results in complexity in assembly and increase in production cost.
To deal with the above problem, as a sealing method of the writing tip, Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open Sho 49 No. 32731 (which will be called prior art example 1, hereinbelow) discloses a configuration in which a valve plate having cuts formed radially outwardly from the center therein is arranged at the front end part inside the barrel cylinder of the writing instrument so that the writing tip can be projected through the cuts. Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open Sho 49 No. 107421 (which will be called prior art example 2, hereinbelow) discloses another configuration in which packings are arranged at the proximal and front ends inside the barrel cylinder of the writing instrument so that the barrel cylinder interior can be sealed and the writing tip can be projected out through the front end packing against which the tip is abutted. Still another disclosure is proposed in Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open Sho 63 No. 23084 (which will be called prior art example 3, hereinbelow), in which an elastic self-closing element having an opening is provided at the front part of a cap body so that the pen point of the barrel cylinder front end can projected out.
There are still other methods. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Hei 1 No. 281999 (which will be called prior art example 4, hereinbelow) discloses a configuration in which a sealing means is provided at the front end inside the barrel cylinder of a writing instrument so as to open and close the front end side of the sealed compartment in which the pen point of the writing element is held and the front end side of the sealed compartment is opened when the pen point is projected from the front end. Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open Sho 58 No. 89394 (which will be called prior art example 5, hereinbelow) discloses a method in which a sealing structure for sealing the pen tip is hermetically fitted to the front end part of the front barrel at the front end inside the barrel cylinder of the writing instrument so that it opens and closes the front part of the fixed sealing structure as the front barrel moves.
However, according to the above prior art examples 1, 2 and 3, since openings have been formed from the beginning at their sealing portions through which the pen point is projected, any of these configurations involves problems in sealing.
On the other hand, the method described in the prior art example 4 has the problem that the arrangement of the sealed compartment, seal opening and closing mechanism and the like becomes complicated. Similarly, the arrangement described in the prior art example 5 needs to provide separate parts for the sealed compartment with an opening mechanism, hence cannot avoid becoming complicated.
The present invention has been devised in view of the above conventional problems and it is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a capless writing instrument with a simple structure that can assure the sealability at the front end part inside the barrel cylinder.


A movable member of a linear slide assembly includes a slide member having two legs to mount the slide member to a rail. Two covers are respectively connected to two ends of the slide member. A track is formed between the legs of the slide member and the rail. Rolling members are installed in the circulation path of the slide assembly and drive the movable member along the rail back and forth. Two reinforcement plates are respectively connected to outside of the two covers and each reinforcement plate has a side plate and two bent extensions which are fixed to the legs of the slide member. The bent extensions each have an engaging portion which is engaged with the protrusion on the slide member. The engaging portions bear axial force applied to the rolling members to secure the connection between the covers and the slide member.

The conventional linear slide assembly is used on precise machine of large scale so as to increase the precision, smoothness, stability and life of use of the parts movable along the slide assembly.
The linear slide assembly is composed of a rail and a movable member which is movably mounted to the rail. The movable member has a slide member and two endcaps which are connected to two ends of the slide member. The slide member provides two legs which are cooperated with the slide to form a track. The endcaps form a turning path connected with the track. The slide member further provides a returning path which is connected with the turning path such that the track, the turning path and the returning path form an enclosed circulation path. The rolling members are installed in the circulation path and drive the movable member along the rail back and forth. The related inventions are disclosed in Taiwan Utility Model No. M392890, I32036 or M347492.
The relative inventions have a drawback which is that the endcaps are made by way of plastic injection so as to obtain their complicated shapes, however, the plastic material cannot bear large load so that the rolling members moving in the circulation path apply a component force to the endcaps when the rolling members enters into the returning path from the returning path or the track. When the slide member moves at high speed, the force applied to the endcaps is increased and the endcaps sometimes are deformed or even disengaged from the slide member. This makes the slide member to be damaged or unstable when moving along the rail. The drawback also restricts the speed of the slide member because the higher speed that the slide member moves, the rolling members also move at higher speed and which makes the endcaps to bear higher axial force. In order to avoid from damage to the endcaps, the speed of the slide member is restricted.
In order to improve the weak connection between the endcaps and the slide member, and the speed restriction of the slide member, the application has filed Taiwan Patent No. 1285244 and Taiwan Patent Application No. 201118271, and a metallic reinforcement plates is provided on the outside of the endcap to bear higher load by the high strength of the metal material such that the connection between the endcaps and the slide member, and the speed of the slide member can be increased.
However, the connection between the reinforcement plate and the endcap is made by using screws connecting the bent extensions of the legs of the slide member and the reinforcement plate. The static friction of the screws bears the axial force of the endcap. However, when the axial force is larger than the static friction, the endcap may loose from the slide member.
The present invention intends to provide a movable member of a linear slide assembly in response to the requirement of high speed movement of the slide member. The reinforcement plate has an engaging portion which is engaged with the protrusion of the slide member such that the reinforce plate is connected to the slide member by engagement in the form of recess and protrusion to bear larger axial load. The connection between the endcap and the slide member is more secure and the slide member is allowed to move faster.

Movable member for linear slide assembly


Concept for transmitting payload data from a transmitter to a receiver via a communication channel within a time interval, wherein channel-coded data packets are generated from the payload data, wherein each of the channel-coded data packets has packet core data corresponding to a packet identification of the respective channel-coded data packet, and wherein the packet core data is coded with a channel code of higher redundancy than the payload data. The channel-coded data packets are sent without any return channel to the receiver, which decodes packet core data of a first received channel-coded data packet of the time interval. If error-free decoding of the first channel-coded data packet fails, packet core data of at least one second received channel-coded data packet of the time interval are decoded to determine a suitable further channel-coded data packet for combination with the first channel-coded data packet to acquire, on account of the combination, an increased code gain for decoding of the payload data.

The present invention relates to a concept for transmitting payload data (useful data, Nutzdaten) in the form of a plurality of coded data packets that may be combined, at the receiving end, such that they are adapted to a transmission quality, so as to adapt a coding gain to the transmission quality and/or to a transmission situation. Embodiments of the present invention may be employed, in particular, in unidirectional multipoint-to-point transmission systems.
For transmitting small payload data quantities as arise, e.g., with measuring devices, such as heating, electricity or water meters, for example, two different transmission modes may be employed, in principle. For one thing, sensor and/or payload data may be transmitted from a transmitter associated with the measuring device in question to a central receiver by means of unidirectional transmission (multipoint-to-point transmission). With such unidirectional transmission, the transmitter cyclically transmits its transmitter identification and a current sensor value at specific transmission times, which in most cases are selected randomly. Time lags between the transmission times are mostly adapted to a battery characteristic and selected such that a battery life becomes maximal. In this context, the transmitter will receive no confirmation whatsoever from the central receiver concerning the receipt of the sensor value, i.e. it has no knowledge of whether or not a transmission packet containing the sensor value has arrived at the receiver and/or has been able to be decoded. If, however, such an acknowledgement of receipt (ACK/NAK) is desired, one may fall back on bidirectional transmission.
In bidirectional transmission, a transceiver is provided at the sensor end. The transceiver transmits its sensor data and/or data packets only when asked to do so by a remote-side sensing device (central receiver). To this end, the sensor-end transceiver must constantly listen in to a radio channel to find out whether or not there is a transmission request directed at it.
For sensor and/or payload data transmission, so-called (wireless) sensor networks are also being used more and more frequently, wherein information about individual subscribers or nodes of the network are relayed until they eventually arrive at the desired information receiver. In this manner, data may be routed over a long distance if sensor nodes exist accordingly.
For sensor and/or payload data transmission, simple low-cost telemetry transceivers comprising amplitude (ASK) or frequency modulation (FSK) are mostly employed in the above-mentioned system approaches. In this context, reception is often not coherent, and in most cases no channel coding is utilized.
In contrast, in more complex digital wireless communication systems, transmission modes are used nowadays which transmit information and/or payload data such that they are distributed to different data packets that are sent out in a temporally and/or spatially offset manner, and such that they have different redundancy information, i.e. are channel-coded differently. Given high signal quality, i.e. a high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), the coded data packets may be received and decoded individually. If the SNR at the receiver decreases, a code gain or coding gain may be realized by combining two or more data packets received. In coding theory, the code gain describes a difference of a required bit energy in relation to a noise power spectral density between an uncoded and a coded message in order to achieve an identical bit error rate. The uncoded message represents the reference with which the message coded by means of channel coding is compared. Such transmission modes, which are also referred to as code-combining and/or incremental-redundancy transmission modes, have been frequently applied, in conventional art, with so-called packet-oriented automatic repeat request protocols (ARQ protocols). If an error arises, at the receiving end, in decoding a data packet, a further data packet with redundancy, i.e. a further coded data packet, is requested at the transmitter via a return channel.
ARQ protocols are used in communication networks to guarantee reliable data transmission by means of repeat transmissions. By means of a possibility of error recognition, a receiver may ascertain any transmission errors that have occurred in data packets. Via the return channel, said receiver may communicate the result of the error recognition to the transmitter of the data packet. This is usually effected by transmitting so-called ACK/NAK signals (acknowledgement or negative acknowledgement, i.e. correct receipt confirmed, or request for repetition). If need be, a disturbed message is retransmitted until such time as it has reached the receiver without any errors.
So-called hybrid ARQ protocols (HARQ) represent an extended variant of the ARQ protocol, which comprises combining ARQ mechanisms, such as check sum formation, block confirmation and/or block repetition, with error-correcting coding. In this context, payload data may be channel-coded with an error-correcting block code or an error-correcting convolution code. I.e., unlike ARQ methods, wherein only error-recognizing redundancy information (e.g. CRC) is transmitted in addition to the payload data in a data packet, HARQ methods additionally comprise transmission of error-correcting redundancy information in the data packet in accordance with forward error correction methods (FEC methods). One may basically distinguish between three different types of HARQ methods:
The simplest version, type I HARQ, adds both error-recognizing and error-correcting redundancy information to the payload data prior to each transmission so as to obtain a coded data packet. When the coded data packet is received, the receiver first of all decodes the error-correcting channel code. Given sufficient transmission quality, all of the transmission errors should be correctable, and the receiver should thus be able to obtain the correct payload data. If the transmission quality is poor, and if, consequently, not all of the transmission errors can be corrected, the receiver may ascertain this by means of the error-recognizing code. In this case, the coded data packet received is discarded, and repeat transmission is requested via a return channel. Thus, type I HARQ designates transmission with perfectly identical repetition of the data sent in the initial transmission. Upon renewed reception of the data, information that was generated in the previous reception of said data may be reused. A possible principle for this is known from IEEE Transactions on Communications, Vol. COM-33, No. 5, May 1985, D. Chase, "Code Combining—A Maximum-Likelihood Decoding Approach for Combining an Arbitrary Number of Noisy Packets". In this context, payload data is transmitted in data packets that are coded with a code having a relatively high code rate R and that are repeated to achieve reliable communication if the redundancy of the code is not sufficient to overcome, e.g., channel interference problems. The receiver combines received noisy data packets to obtain a combined data packet having a code rate R′<R small enough to ensure reliable combination even with transmission channels that cause extremely high error rates. In this context, one tries to reduce the delay (caused by packet repetitions) to a minimum by combining a minimum number of data packets while realizing a sufficiently good and high code rate in order to reliably decode the payload data transmitted.
In accordance with a further conventional method, logarithmic likelihood ratios (LLR—log likelihood ratios) for payload data of the previously transmitted data packet, said payload data having to be decoded, are determined during a decoding attempt of a previously transmitted data packet. If a decoding attempt fails, renewed transmission of the corresponding data packet is effected. For decoding the payload data of the newly sent data packet, the LLRs determined during the previous decoding attempt are utilized as a-priori information in a forward-moving procedure, similar to the known turbo-code principle.
With type II HARQ, a repeat transmission does not involve repeating precisely the data of the initial transmission, but involves transmitting additional redundancy that would not be decodable on its own without the data of the initial transmission (non-self-decodable). Such type II HARQ methods are typically also referred to as incremental-redundancy HARQ methods. In this context, the payload data and error-recognizing bits (CRC) are initially coded at the transmitter end, for example by means of a systematic "parent" code. This results in a code word consisting of systematic bits and so-called parity bits. In the first data packet sent, the systematic portion of the code word and a specific number, i.e. not all, of the parity bits which together form a code word of a parent code are sent. Said code word is coded at the receiver end. If this is not possible and if repeat transmission is requested, the transmitter will transmit, in a subsequent data packet, additional parity bits of possibly different powers and/or at altered channel conditions. Upon reception of the subsequent data packet, a new decoding attempt is made, which involves combining the additional parity bits with the ones previously received. This process can be repeated until such time as all of the parity bits of the parent code have been transmitted.
As was already described at the outset, there are simple digital wireless communication systems comprising only unidirectional transmission from the transmitter to the receiver, i.e. without any return channel. Such unidirectional multipoint-to-point communication systems are particularly suitable for low-cost transmission of small quantities of payload data as arise, e.g., with measuring devices, for example heating, electricity or water meters. However, with such communication systems, wherein a multitude of transmitters communicate with one receiver (multipoint-to-point), there is the problem that substantial interference may result at the receiver, depending on the number of transmitters and their random transmission times. Due to random transmission times of the transmitters and their number, which is often not predictable either, the interference or reception quality achieved at the receiver is not predictable. Nevertheless, it is to be ensured that transmitter-specific payload data can be decoded fast, efficiently and reliably at the central receiver even under most diverse receiving conditions.

Concept for combining coded data packets

Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der angewandten Forschung e.V.


A method is provided for synchronizing the counter of an electronic control device with the zero position, defined by a mechanical stop, of a pointer in an indicating instrument. The pointer is driven via a step-down gearing by a stepping motor having two windings perpendicular to each other and a two-pole rotor. The two windings are connected alternately to a source of voltage and to a measuring mechanism for determining the voltage induced in a winding not traversed by current. The pointer moves stepwise up to the mechanical stop, and the counter is set to zero in the absence of an induction. The method is substantially less expensive than prior methods. Upon an assembling of the stepping motor and the indicating instrument, a given alignment of the two-pole motor is associated with the zero position of the pointer, and the rotor is brought into this given alignment each time upon the start of the method. Thereupon the determination of the induction is effected each time only in the position of the rotor which follows this given alignment by one step.

The present invention refers to a method for synchronizing the counter of an electric control device with the zero position, defined by a mechanical stop, of a pointer of an indicating instrument which is driven via a stepdown gearing by a stepping motor having two windings perpendicular to each other and a two-pole rotor. The two windings are connected alternately to a source of voltage and to a measuring mechanism for determining the voltage induced in the winding not traversed by a current, the pointer being moved step-wise up to the mechanical stop and the counter being set to zero in the absence of an induction.
Such a method is described in German OS 39 21 462. As a result of the interpositioning of the gearing, no dependable conclusions can be derived from the position of the rotor in the stepping motor as to the position of the pointer in the indicating instrument. That position is represented only by the counter of the electronic control device, the reading of which, however, may be disturbed for various reasons. In order that no erroneous indications can result therefrom the counter must be constantly resynchronized with the position of the pointer, for which purpose, in the known method the zero position of the pointer defined by a mechanical stop is used in combination with a test program in which the stepping motor is controlled for movement of the pointer in the direction of the zero position until the end of movement of the pointer is detected by the absence of an induced voltage in the winding of the stepping motor which is not traversed at the time by current for the driving of the pointer. The counter can then be set to zero or to the value corresponding to the zero position of the pointer.
In accordance with this prior method, the windings of the stepping motor are alternately acted on by the full drive voltage and connected to a measuring mechanism. With two windings arranged at right angles to each other, there are obtained hereby 90.degree. steps of the two-pole rotor. Since the test method is based on the evaluation of the induced voltage, the individual rotor steps must have a given minimum size in order for the induced voltage to be sufficiently large to be able to distinguish reliably from an absence of the induction.
The known method operates satisfactorily, but it is still considered capable of improvement. For each revolution of the rotor, four switching and four test routines are present in the case of 90.degree. steps, which is too complicated from a circuit standpoint.

Method of synchronization for an indicating instrument with electromagnetically controlled stepping motor


A medication management system (100) comprises a portable device (10) attachable to a user (30) and a medication dispenser (20). The portable device comprises a lighting means (50) for providing a visual stimulus (55) to indicate an approaching medication intake moment or period. The medication dispenser (20) comprises further lighting means (40, 41) for providing a further visual stimulus (45) to draw the attention of the user. The visual stimulus and the further visual stimulus have a same predetermined color and the visual stimulus (55) is provided a predetermined time before the medication dispenser provides the further visual stimulus (45).

Programmable pill dispensers are known in the art. Such a pill dispenser may have a display to provide a visual reminder signal to the user to indicate that according to a preprogrammed schedule a medication should be taken thereby helping the user to prevent forgetting to take the medications at the moment prescribed by the doctor. Due to the size of the pill dispenser the user may not be able to continuously carry the dispenser with him when for example he moves around the house. Therefore it is common use that the pill dispenser is positioned at a frequently visited location somewhere in the user's house. This may result in the user failing to see a visual reminder signal to take his medication when he is out of the room where the pill dispenser is located, or the user forgetting to check the pill dispenser's display for the presence of the reminder signal when he returns to said room.