An electronic control unit includes a first microprocessor monitoring the operation of a second microprocessor and has a monitoring operation blocking unit for preventing the second microprocessor from being reset by the first microprocessor while the second microprocessor is loading from a memory thereof so that even when a control program is loaded into the monitoring microprocessor before one is loaded into the monitored microprocessor, the control program can be loaded with certainty. Each microprocessor executes a control program stored in the memory, and when a predetermined reloading condition has been established, executes a loading process for receiving load data transmitted thereto from outside into the memory. The microprocessors use the same single communication line to conduct communication with the outside and the electronic control unit further includes a communication operation controlling unit for, when one of the microprocessors is loading, prohibiting the other microprocessors from transmitting data to the communication line. In this way, it is possible to reload a control program and control data into any of the microprocessors without the data being destroyed by data from the other microprocessors.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an electronic control unit having multiple microprocessors, and particularly to an electronic control unit where on-board loading of a control program and control data into each of the microprocessors is possible.
2. Description of Related Art
As disclosed for example in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 2-99746, electronic control units for vehicles have been proposed which include a microprocessor having a nonvolatile memory such as an EEPROM or a flash EEPROM (hereinafter referred to as a flash memory) electrically reloadable with data and are constructed so that a control program and control data stored in this nonvolatile memory can be reloaded even after the electronic control unit is supplied to the market.
In an electronic control unit of- this kind, during normal operation the microprocessor controls an object of control such as an engine by executing a control program made up of data stored in the nonvolatile memory. When the data (a control program and control data referred to in the execution of the control program) stored in the nonvolatile memory is to be reloaded, a separate memory loading unit is connected to the electronic control unit and the memory loading unit and the microprocessor are thereby connected by way of a communication line. Then, when predetermined reloading conditions are established, the microprocessor carries out a loading process wherein it receives load data (i.e., data constituting a new control program and new control data) transmitted to it from the memory loading unit and loads this load data into the nonvolatile memory as an update.
Therefore, with this kind of electronic control unit, because it becomes possible to carry out so-called onboard loading, in which a control program and control data are loaded into the nonvolatile memory of the microprocessor after the microprocessor has been mounted in the electronic control unit, even if it is necessary to change the content of the operation of the unit (the control content) after the unit is supplied to the market, this can be done easily.
Also, in the case of this kind of electronic control unit in which on-board loading is possible, in the process of manufacturing the unit it is possible to newly load a control program and control data into the nonvolatile memory of the microprocessor after the microprocessor is mounted in the unit.
However, in recent years, among electronic control units of this type, as their control content has become more complex, units having multiple microprocessors have become the norm, and there has been a need for this kind of electronic control unit to be constructed so that on-board loading is possible with respect to each of these multiple microprocessors.
Also, generally, in an electronic control unit having a microprocessor, to ensure safety of the control performed by the unit it is necessary to monitor whether or not the control program is being executed normally in the microprocessor and for the microprocessor to be reset (initialized) when an abnormality occurs.
In the case of an electronic control unit having multiple microprocessors, sometimes a specified microprocessor monitors the operation of another microprocessor (whether or not a control program is being executed normally by other than that microprocessor) and resets that other microprocessor when it detects a failure. If this kind of construction is employed, because it is not necessary to provide a hardware circuit such as a so-called a watchdog circuit for monitoring the microprocessor for each microprocessor, safety of control can be ensured with a simple unit construction.
However, when an electronic control unit in which on-board loading with respect to each of multiple microprocessors is possible as described above and also a specified microprocessor monitors the operation of another microprocessor, the following problem arises.
That is, in the process of manufacturing the electronic control unit, after the microprocessors are mounted, when first a control program and so on are newly loaded into a monitoring side microprocessor (hereinafter called the monitoring microprocessor) which is to monitor another microprocessor and then after that an attempt is made to newly load a control program and so on into a monitored side microprocessor (hereinafter called the monitored microprocessor), whereas the monitoring microprocessor executes the control program already loaded into it and performs its normal operation, the monitored microprocessor does not execute its normal control program and instead carries out a loading process, and consequently the monitored microprocessor is determined by the monitoring microprocessor to have suffered a failure. As a result, the monitored microprocessor performing the loading process (in other words in the process of loading a control program and so on) is reset by the operation of the monitoring microprocessor and it becomes impossible to carry out loading of the control program and so on with certainty.
Further, to satisfy the need for independent reloadability of multiple microprocessors by applying the related art disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. Hei 7-311603, it is conceivable to employ a method wherein for each microprocessor a communication circuit and a communication line for carrying out data communication between the microprocessor and external circuitry are provided and a memory loading unit is selectively connected exclusively to the communication circuit and the communication line corresponding to the microprocessor into which a control program and control data are to be reloaded.
However, when this kind of construction is used, data communication hardware such as a communication circuit must be provided for each microprocessor, and consequently the unit becomes large and its cost increases.
If, on the other hand, a construction is employed wherein all of the microprocessors mounted in the electronic control unit use a single communication line commonly to carry out data communication with external devices such as a memory loading unit, although less data communication hardware is required, when this kind of construction is adopted simply, the following problem arises.
That is, while reloading of data into the nonvolatile memory of any one microprocessor is being carried out, if another microprocessor transmits data to the communication line, the data being received by the microprocessor carrying out a loading process for data reloading is destroyed by the data transmitted from the other microprocessor and, as a result of this, incorrect data is loaded into the nonvolatile memory of the microprocessor that is the object of the data reloading.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an electronic control unit in which one microprocessor monitors the operation of another microprocessor, and even when a control program is loaded into the monitoring microprocessor before a control program is loaded into the monitored microprocessor a control program can be loaded into the monitored microprocessor with certainty and thus both one microprocessor monitoring another microprocessor and the ability to carry out on-board loading of control programs into each of the microprocessors individually are realized with certainty at the same time.
An electronic control unit according to a first aspect of the present invention for achieving the above-mentioned object and other objects provided by the invention includes first and second microprocessors each having a nonvolatile memory electrically reloadable with data.
During normal operation, the first microprocessor controls an object of control by executing a first control program made up of data stored in its nonvolatile memory and the second microprocessor controls an object of control by executing a second control program made up of data stored in its nonvolatile memory. Also, as it executes the first control program, the first microprocessor monitors whether or not the second control program is being executed normally by the second microprocessor and when it determines that a failure has occurred in the execution of the second control program, resets the second microprocessor. In this way, without providing a hardware circuit dedicated to monitoring the operation of the second microprocessor, it is possible to avoid program runaway in the second microprocessor and ensure safety of control.
When a predetermined reloading condition is established, on the other hand, either of the two microprocessors can carry out a loading process for loading load data transmitted to it from outside into its nonvolatile memory as an update, and in this connection this first electronic control unit includes monitoring operation blocking means. This monitoring operation blocking means prevents the second microprocessor from being reset by the operation of the first microprocessor while the second microprocessor is carrying out the above-mentioned loading process.
As a result, in the process of manufacturing this electronic control unit, even when a loading order is employed wherein, after the microprocessors are installed, the constituent data of the first control program is newly loaded into the first microprocessor (specifically, into the nonvolatile memory thereof) first and then after that the constituent data of the second control program is newly loaded into the second microprocessor (specifically, into the nonvolatile memory thereof), which is the monitored side, whereby the second microprocessor in the process of carrying out a loading process being reset by the operation of the first microprocessor that is the monitoring side is prevented.
Therefore, with this electronic control unit of the invention, even when a control program (the first control program) is loaded into the first microprocessor that is the monitoring side before a control program is loaded into the second microprocessor that is the monitored side it is possible to load a control program (the second control program) into the second microprocessor that is the monitored side, with certainty and thus whatever the order in which the control programs are loaded into the two microprocessors, loading can be carried out with certainty. As a result, both one microprocessor monitoring another microprocessor and the ability to carry out on-board loading of control programs into each of the microprocessors individually can be realized with certainty at the same time.
If the above-mentioned nonvolatile memory electrically reloadable with data is, for example, an EEPROM or a flash memory, when newly loading or reloading data into the nonvolatile memory it is necessary for a predetermined loading voltage higher than a normal operating voltage to be supplied to the microprocessor.
In this connection, in this electronic control unit of this aspect of the present the invention, when the second microprocessor carries out the above-mentioned loading process with at least a predetermined loading voltage being supplied as a condition, as in a second electronic control unit provided by the invention the above-mentioned monitoring operation blocking means can be provided to detect whether or not the loading voltage is being supplied and, when the loading voltage is being supplied, prevent the second microprocessor from being reset by the operation of the first microprocessor.
With this electronic control unit, whether or not the second microprocessor is carrying out a loading process can be detected simply, without a special process or circuit being provided.
Also, if when determining that a failure has occurred in the execution of the second control program the first microprocessor outputs a reset signal to the second microprocessor, the above-mentioned monitoring operation blocking means can prevent the second microprocessor from being reset by preventing the reset signal outputted from the first microprocessor from being inputted into the storage medium.
When this is done, resetting of the second microprocessor by the operation of the first microprocessor when the second microprocessor is carrying out the above-mentioned loading process can be prevented with certainty.
As the monitoring operation blocking means in this case, a switching device or a logical circuit device for making breaking a signal line through which the reset signal is sent from the first microprocessor to the second microprocessor can be used, and a certain effect can thereby be obtained with a simple construction.
According to another aspect of the present invention, in addition to first and second microprocessors described above, there are provided system monitoring means and blocking means, and the first microprocessor, as it executes the first control program, outputs a monitor signal indicating that it is normal at predetermined intervals of and monitors whether or not the second control program in the nonvolatile memory of the second microprocessor is being executed normally by the second microprocessor, and when determining that a failure has occurred in the execution of this second control program stops outputting the monitor signal.
The system monitoring means monitors the monitor signal outputted from the first microprocessor, and when this monitor signal is not outputted within a time set longer than the above-mentioned predetermined time, outputs a reset signal to the both the first and second microprocessors.
Also, the blocking means prevents either of the two computers from being reset by the system monitoring means while either of the two microprocessors is carrying out the loading process.
With this electronic control unit, during normal operation, i.e., when neither of the two microprocessors is carrying out a loading process, not only when a failure occurs in the first microprocessor itself but also when a failure occurs in the second microprocessor and the first microprocessor detects that failure does the outputting by the first microprocessor of the above-mentioned monitor signal stop, and along with this a reset signal is outputted to both of the microprocessors from the system monitoring means. Thus, a failure occurring in either of the microprocessors during normal operation can be -detected and resolved with a single system monitoring means only.
Furthermore, when either or both of the microprocessors is carrying out a loading process, the action of the blocking means prevents either of the microprocessors from being reset by the system monitoring means.
Therefore, with this fifth electronic control unit, whatever the order in which the control programs are loaded into the two microprocessors, that loading can be carried out with certainty, and furthermore it is possible to realize both monitoring of both of the microprocessors and the ability to carry out on-board loading of control programs into each of the microprocessors individually with an extremely simple construction.
In the electronic control unit according to this aspect of the invention, when the microprocessors are constructed to carry out the above-mentioned loading process with at least a predetermined loading voltage being supplied as a condition, the blocking means can detect whether or not the loading voltage is being supplied to either of the microprocessors and prevent either of the microprocessors from being reset by the system monitoring means when the loading voltage is being supplied to either of the microprocessors.
When this is done, the same effect as above, that is, the effect that it is possible to simply detect whether or not either of the microprocessors is carrying out a loading process without providing a special process or circuit, can be obtained.
Also, using the blocking means for preventing the reset signal outputted from the system monitoring means from being inputted into either of the microprocessors, it is possible to prevent either of the two microprocessors from being reset while it is carrying out a loading process.
If the system monitoring means is made up of a counter which performs a counting operation at intervals of a fixed period and has its count value initialized by the monitor signal outputted from the first microprocessor and reset signal outputting means for outputting the reset signal to both of the microprocessors when the count value of the counter reaches a predetermined value and the first microprocessor as it executes the first control program in its own nonvolatile memory outputs the monitor signal to the counter at intervals of a period shorter than the time taken for the count value of the counter to reach said predetermined value after being initialized, the blocking means can prevent either of the computers from being reset by forcibly stopping the counting operation of the counter.
That is, the system monitoring means is a so-called watchdog timer circuit, and the reset signal to the two microprocessors being outputted is prohibited by the counting operation of a watchdog timing counter of the watchdog timer circuit being stopped. With this electronic control unit, the two microprocessors being reset can be prevented with certainty by means of a simple construction.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide an electronic control unit with which it is possible with a simple construction and certainly to reload a control program and control data inside each of multiple microprocessors.
An electronic control unit according to this aspect of the present invention provided to achieve the above-mentioned object and other objects has multiple microprocessors each having a nonvolatile memory electrically reloadable with data and is constructed so that all of the microprocessors commonly use the same single communication line to conduct communication with the outside.
During normal operation each of the microprocessors executes a control program for controlling a predetermined object of control according to a control program and control data made up of data stored in the nonvolatile memory, whereby the control operation of the electronic control unit is carried out.
Also, each of the microprocessors, when a predetermined reloading condition is established, conducts a loading process for receiving load data transmitted thereto from external circuitry and loading it into its nonvolatile memory as an update. Thus, by the loading condition being established for one of the microprocessors at a time and load data constituting a new control program and control data being transmitted to the electronic control unit from external circuitry, the data inside the nonvolatile memory of each of the microprocessors can be reloaded one microprocessor at a time.
Here, the electronic control unit according to this aspect of the invention is provided with communication operation controlling means, and this communication operation controlling means, when any one of the microprocessors is executing the loading process, prohibits the other microprocessors from transmitting data to the communication line.
Consequently, when any one of the microprocessors is executing a loading process for reloading data, the other microprocessors are prohibited from transmitting data to the communication line, and as a result data received by the microprocessor that is the object of reloading being destroyed by data transmitted by another microprocessor is certainly prevented.
Therefore, with this electronic control unit, notwithstanding that all the microprocessors are using the same single communication line, the control program and control data stored in the nonvolatile memory of each of the microprocessors can be reloaded with certainty. Furthermore, because all the microprocessors use the same communication line, the control program and control data of each of the microprocessors can be reloaded without extra hardware for data communication such as communication circuits being provided.
The function of the above-mentioned communication operation controlling means can be realized by determining means provided in each of the microprocessors for determining whether or not another microprocessor is executing the loading process and transmission prohibiting means provided in each of the microprocessors together with the determining means for prohibiting data transmission from its microprocessor to the communication line when the determining means makes an affirmative determination.
That is, with the determining means each microprocessor determines whether or not another microprocessor is executing a loading process and when this determination is affirmative (in other words, when it is determined that another microprocessor is executing a loading process) prohibits its own data transmission to the communication line with the transmission prohibiting means and therefore when any one microprocessor is executing a loading process, the other microprocessors are prohibited from transmitting data to the communication line.
Because the function of the determining means and the transmission prohibiting means (and hence the function of the communication operation controlling means) can be realized by execution of a program in a microprocessor (so-called soft processing), the effects of the invention can be obtained without providing any special hardware.
Here, if each of the microprocessors includes identification information storing means for storing identification information concerning the microprocessor and when identification information transmitted from external circuitry matches the identification information stored in the identification information storing means, deems that the reloading condition has been established and executes the loading process, the determining means provided in each of the microprocessors need only compare the identification information transmitted from outside with the identification information stored in the identification information storing means, and when the two do not match, determine that another microprocessor is executing the loading process.
Because it is possible to specify the microprocessor that is the object of data reloading (the microprocessor to execute a loading process) by transmitting identification information into the electronic control unit from outside through the communication line and reload the control program and control data stored in the nonvolatile memory of that microprocessor with certainty, even if the number of microprocessors used in the electronic control unit increases it is possible to handle them easily without adding special circuits.
As the identification information storing means, the reloadable nonvolatile memory may be used or another nonvolatile memory inside the microprocessor may be used. Instead of the identification information being stored in the form of data, identification information may be assigned to each of the microprocessors by a predetermined input port of the microprocessor being pulled high or pulled low. In this case, since the input port is equivalent to identification information storing means, the determining means can ascertain its own respective identification code by reading the input level of that input port.
If the nonvolatile memory is reloadable with data when a predetermined loading voltage is impressed and each of the microprocessors deems that the reloading condition has been established and executes the loading process when the loading voltage is supplied to it and the electronic control unit further includes voltage supplying means for supplying the loading voltage to one of the microprocessors at a time, the determining means provided in each of the microprocessors need only monitor whether or not the loading voltage is being supplied to another microprocessor and when the loading voltage is being supplied to another microprocessor, determine that another microprocessor is executing the loading process.
By a loading voltage being supplied to any one of the microprocessors by the voltage supplying means, a control program and control data stored in the nonvolatile memory of any of the microprocessors can be reloaded, and because it is not necessary to prestore identification information in the microprocessors, the manufacturability of the unit can be increased.
That is, when the microprocessors used in the electronic control unit all have the same specifications, it is sufficient to install them in the unit without particularly distinguishing them from each other and then newly load data (a control program and control data) into the nonvolatile memory of each of the microprocessors after that, and therefore in the manufacture of the electronic control unit it is possible to cut out a management process for distinguishing the respective microprocessors.
As the voltage supplying means, a power supply circuit disposed inside the electronic control unit and outputting a loading voltage to any of the microprocessors according to an external command can be used. It is also possible to employ a construction wherein multiple power supply lines extending from loading voltage input terminals of the microprocessors outside the electronic control unit are provided as the voltage supplying means and the loading voltage is selectively supplied from outside exclusively to any one of these power supply lines.
When a construction is employed wherein the voltage supplying means outputs a loading voltage to any microprocessor according to an external command, a still greater effect can be obtained.
In this electronic control unit, the voltage supplying means is constructed so that when a power supply to the electronic control unit is switched on while the voltage supplying means is receiving from outside any one of multiple loading permission signals set in respective correspondence with the microprocessors, the voltage supplying means starts supplying the loading voltage to the microprocessor corresponding to that loading permission signal and when the voltage supplying means stops receiving the loading permission signal or the power supply to the electronic control unit is switched off, the voltage supplying means stops supplying the loading voltage.
With this construction, by switching on the power supply to the electronic control unit while applying a loading permission signal corresponding to the microprocessor that is the object of reloading, it is possible to supply a loading voltage to that microprocessor and thereby make it execute the loading process, and thus it is possible to reload the control program and control data stored in the nonvolatile memory of any of the microprocessors, while reversely, when the power supply to the electronic control unit has already been switched on, even if the above-mentioned loading permission signal is incorrectly applied as a result of an influence such as noise, the voltage supplying means does not supply a loading voltage to any of the microprocessors. Thus, it is possible to certainly prevent the content loaded in the nonvolatile memory of any of the microprocessors from being reloaded at an inappropriate time.
Each of the microprocessors may have a switching device capable of making or breaking an electrical path between the inside of that microprocessor and the communication line, and the transmission prohibiting means provided in each of the microprocessors may prohibit the transmission of data from its microprocessor to the communication line by causing the switching device to break the electrical path.
When any one of the microprocessors is executing a loading process, the other microprocessors can be certainly prohibited from transmitting data to the communication line.
Also, the transmission prohibiting means provided in each of the microprocessors may prohibit the transmission of data from its microprocessor to the communication line by prohibiting the execution by its microprocessor of a program for transmission processing provided for conducting data transmission.
When any one of the microprocessors is executing a loading process, the other microprocessors can be easily prohibited from transmitting data to the communication line.
Besides being realized by determining means and transmission prohibiting means provided in each of the microprocessors, the function of the communication operation controlling means can also be realized wherein the nonvolatile memory is reloadable with data when a predetermined loading voltage is impressed and each of the microprocessors deems that the reloading condition has been established and executes the loading process when the loading voltage is supplied to it and the electronic control unit further includes voltage supplying means for supplying the loading voltage to one of the microprocessors at a time. Also, the communication operation controlling means may consist of a connection switching circuit for specifying a microprocessor to which the loading voltage is being supplied by the voltage supplying means and connecting only the specified microprocessor to the communication line.
That is, in this eighth electronic control unit, instead of providing determining means and transmission prohibiting means in each of the microprocessors, a connection switching circuit for connecting only a microprocessor supplied with a loading voltage to the communication line and executing a loading process for reloading data is provided separately from the microprocessors.
With this construction, it is possible to certainly reload the control program and control data stored in any of the microprocessors without prestoring identification information inside the microprocessors, and in the manufacture of the electronic control unit it is possible to cut out a management process for distinguishing the respective microprocessors.
Also, it is possible to certainly prevent the content loaded in the nonvolatile memory of any of the microprocessors being reloaded at an inappropriate time.
Other objects and features of the present invention will appear in the course of the description thereof, which follows.


Methods, systems, and devices for wireless communication are described. A wireless device may perform a listen before talk (LBT) procedure on a channel bandwidth using an energy detection (ED) threshold. The ED threshold being associated with a transmission bandwidth that is narrower than the channel bandwidth. The wireless device may also, responsive to a successful LBT procedure, transmit on the transmission bandwidth according to a frequency hopping pattern during a first channel occupancy time (COT). The frequency hopping pattern comprises a first resource allocation and a second resource allocation different from the first resource allocation.

The following relates generally to wireless communication, and more specifically to methods, apparatuses, and systems for flexible channel access in a shared radio frequency spectrum (or shared spectrum).
Wireless communications systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content such as voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcast, and so on. These systems may be capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing the available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power). Examples of such multiple-access systems include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, and orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, (e.g., a Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, or a New Radio (NR) system). A wireless multiple-access communications system may include a number of base stations or access network nodes, each simultaneously supporting communication for multiple communication devices, which may be otherwise known as user equipment (UE).
In NR, it has been contemplated that the system will support some modes of communications over a shared spectrum or unlicensed radio frequency spectrum of a cellular network. In this regard, techniques and protocols for channel access, such as listen-before-talk (LBT), for a duration of time (e.g., transmission opportunity (TXOP) or channel occupancy time (COT)) have been developed to ensure fairness and coexistence among devices operating in the shared spectrum. However, new frequency bands, such as the 6 GHz band, are being considered for shared spectrum operation, and the current rules and protocols for channel access may not take advantage of the capabilities and performance of today's devices. Therefore, improved techniques for flexible channel access may be desirable.

Methods, apparatuses and systems for flexible channel access in shared spectrum


A wire neutralizing system for use with a vehicle including a frame adapted to be hitched to a vehicle. At least one wheel supports the frame while a bottom of the wheel rolls over terrain having buried wires. The system also includes a blade movable between a stowed position in which the blade is above the bottom of the wheel and a deployed position in which the blade is below the bottom of the wheel, such that the blade plows through the terrain to disable buried wires when in the deployed position.

The present invention relates to a wire neutralization system, and more specifically to a wire neutralization system for buried wires used to detonate explosive devices.
Military convoys occasionally travel through areas which may have explosive devices. These explosive devices may be triggered by a target presence sensor, a timer, or by a user controlled detonator. Examples of target presence sensors are trip wires, pressure plates, tilt sensors, and motion detectors, all of which infer the presence of a target from an input signal and automatically send a detonation signal, often through a control wire, to detonate the explosive device. Timers detonate an explosive device, usually by sending a detonation signal through a control wire, at a preselected time or within a preselected passage of time from a start time. User controlled detonators are operated by a human operator and may send the detonation signal via a control wire connected to the explosive device. The present invention is concerned with any type of explosive device that uses a buried wire of any kind to transmit a detonation signal or otherwise trigger the detonation of the explosive device. The buried wire may be buried in the terrain to mask the presence of the explosive device.
It would be useful to have a wire neutralization system that could neutralize buried wires. It would further be useful to be able to operate such a wire neutralization system while driving a vehicle designed to protect a driver from explosions. Such a vehicle could, for example, lead a military convoy to reduce the likelihood that the personnel and contents of the convoy will be harmed by an explosive device that uses a buried wire.

THE U.S. ARMY TANK AUTOMOTIVE RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT AND ENGINEERING CENTER (TARDEC)


A product of prime numbers and a quadratic non-residue of one of the prime numbers are received as a public key from a first party. The product of prime numbers comprises a first group and the prime numbers respectively comprise a first sub-group and a second sub-group of the first group. Data of the first party is automatically encrypted bit-wise using a computerized device by encrypting first bit values of the data of the first party as quadratic residue and encrypting second bit values of the data of the first party as quadratic non-residue to produce a first intermediate number. The first intermediate number is automatically multiplied by the quadratic non-residue of the public key using the computerized device to complete encryption of the data of the first party. A square root of a value is received from a second party. The second party does not have the quadratic residue and the quadratic non-residue. A single bit of the data of the first party is automatically decrypted for the second party by factoring the product of prime numbers to evaluate whether the single bit has a square root in the first sub-group or the second sub-group based on the square root of the value from the second party.

Systems and methods herein generally relate to information retrieval from an electronic storage device and, more particularly, to methods to facilitate private retrieval of information using partially homomorphic encryption.
Two-party computation is a general problem in which two parties participate to compute the value of a bi-variate function f(.,.) on two inputs i1, i2, where input i1 is contributed by the first party and input i2 is contributed by the second party. The output may become available to both parties or to only one of them. It is easy to accomplish such computation if the first party just sends its input to the second party who then computes the function on the two inputs (or vice versa); however, the problem for secure computation is for the parties to compute the output in such a manner that both parties learn nothing more about the input of the other party than what can be derived from the output value and their individual inputs.
Secure two-party computation is thus a general problem that finds vast applications in privacy preserving data mining, information retrieval, etc. An effective, efficient, and practical Homomorphic encryption scheme would enable many cryptographic constructs, as well as have enormous applications for cloud computing. Many attempts have been made to create a fully Homomorphic encryption scheme, which is one that allows arbitrary computations on encrypted data without needing the help of the decrypter. Partially Homomorphic encryption schemes allow a few different types of operations on the encrypted data but not the computation of a universal NAND gate. For practical applications, the primary method of conducting two-party computations still uses a method on garbled circuits.

Private two-party computation using partially homomorphic encryption


A MOS gate drive (MGD) integrated circuit drives a pair of MOS gated power semiconductor devices such as are used in a half bridge circuit to drive a load in a resonant power supply circuit or to drive a gas discharge lamp in a ballast circuit. The gate drive circuit includes a protection circuit which protects against damage to the components of the driver circuit when a lamp fails or is removed by disabling both of the driver outputs. When the lamp is replaced, the gate drive circuit restarts the lamp driver circuit without cycling the lamp power switch. The protection circuit disables the driver outputs when a low logic level signal falls below a threshold voltage. The lamp driver circuit is restarted when the low logic level signal exceeds the threshold voltage.

The present invention relates to lamp ballast circuits, and, more particularly, to an improved lamp ballast circuit which protects against lamp failure.
Lamp ballast circuits, such as an International Rectifier IR2155 or IR2151 IC, are known and are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,545,955 and 5,559,394 to Peter Wood and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,550,436 to Talbott M. Houk.
To properly shut down a ballast IC during certain lamp application failure modes, a means of turning off the gate driver outputs upon sensing fault conditions (such as a broken filament or a lamp which fails to strike at startup) and then turning off the output power transistors is needed.
Because of the topology of the IR2155 and IR2151 ICs, the circuits are self-oscillating under normal operation, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.
FIG. 1 shows the components of a typical lamp driver circuit. A bridge rectifier 10 derives a bus voltage (V.sub.BUS) from the ac line. The bus voltage is approximately dc and is supported by capacitors 56 and 58.
The lamp driver circuit of FIG. 1 includes an MOS gate driver chip 30 and its associated circuitry for controlling the operation of a high side MOSFET 40 and a low side MOSFET 41. The MOS gate driver chip 30 provides drive signals to the MOSFETs 40 and 42 which are connected to V.sub.BUS. Though power MOSFETs are shown, any power device which has a MOS gate, such as an IGBT or a MOS gated thyristor, may be substituted for power MOSFETs 40 and 42.
The output of the center tap of half bridge connected MOSFETs 40 and 42 drives a circuit that includes a series LC load circuit comprised of inductor 46 and capacitor 52.
The voltage supplied at terminal V.sub.BUS can range from as low as 140 volts d-c to above 600 volts d-c, depending upon the supplied AC input voltage.
The oscillating frequency of the output circuit is controlled by the resonant frequency of the inductor 46 and the capacitor 52. The desired inductance value of inductor 46 will depend on the value of the voltage V.sub.BUS and is selected so that the oscillation frequency of the circuit is within desired range.
The chip 30 may be housed in a 8-pin DIP or surface mount package and has the following pinouts:
V.sub.CC --a pin which receives a chip operating voltage from the d-c supply V.sub.BUS.
C.sub.T --a single input control pin which is connected to the node between timing capacitor 14 and timing resistor 16. The signal at pin C.sub.T controls both outputs H.sub.O and L.sub.O.
R.sub.T --a pin which is connected to the other terminal of timing resistor 16.
V.sub.B --a pin connected to the node of diode 22 and capacitor 24, which acts as a "bootstrap" circuit to provide power for the operation of the high side switch.
H.sub.O --an output pin to the gate (or a resistor 26 to the gate) of the high side MOSFET 40.
V.sub.S a pin to the center tap of the totem-pole or half bridge connected MOSFETs 40 and 42.
L.sub.O --an output pin to the gate (or a resistor 28 to the gate) of the low side MOSFET 42.
COM--a pin connected to the negative or ground terminal.
Resistor 18 and a capacitor 12 provide the IC 30 with its dc and ac power requirements. The resistor 16 and the capacitor 14 control the oscillation frequency according to the equation: ##EQU1##
A diode 22 and a capacitor 24 form the "bootstrap" supply for the floating CMOS driver circuit within the IC. Resistors 26 and 28 dampen LC ringing on the gates of the power MOSFETS 40 and 42 and also serve to buffer the IC 30 from the power stage.
The load circuit, which includes the inductor 46 and the resonant capacitor 52, also includes blocking capacitors 56 and 58, a positive-temperature-coefficient (PTC) resistor 54, and a lamp 50. A capacitor 44 normally controls the dV/dt observed at the Vs node to minimize radiated EMI.
A drawback of this basic circuit is that if the lamp is either broken (such as at the end of its operating life) or is removed from the circuit, catastrophic failure of other components within the circuit may result. Therefore, users of the gate driver IC 30 must typically design additional external circuitry to sense the fault conditions and then turn off the IC. Preferably, both outputs of the gate driver IC turn off under a turn-off condition.
Because the gate driver IC is self-oscillating, one of the gate driver outputs L.sub.O and H.sub.O -V.sub.S is always on, except for the short "deadtime" shown in FIG. 2. Under normal operating conditions, either the MOSFET 40 or the MOSFET 42 is on. As a result, turning off the gate driver IC simply by externally shunting the timing capacitor 14 to ground, as shown in FIG. 3, for example, is not sufficient to protect the circuit.
FIG. 3 shows the circuit of FIG. 1 modified to include a transistor 60 which shunts the input control capacitor 14 to ground when the lamp is removed. A voltage divider formed by resistors 62, 64, 66 and a capacitor 68 form the sensing circuit. Under normal operating conditions, the voltage at node V.sub.A is approximately equal to one-half the dc supply voltage, V.sub.BUS /2, when capacitors 56 and 58 are of identical value. The only difference between the voltage at node V.sub.A and the voltage at the node located at the midpoint between capacitors 56 and 58 results from the voltage drop across the filament of the lamp 50.
Under normal operating conditions, the voltage drop across the filament is relatively small, namely only a few volts, and the voltage at node V.sub.C is insufficient to turn on the shunt transistor 60. If the lamp is removed, however, the voltage at node V.sub.A rises, as does the voltage at node V.sub.C, such that the transistor 60 turns on. The values of the resistors 62, 64, 66 are chosen such that the circuit never turns on the transistor 60 during normal operating conditions but always turns on the transistor 60 when the lamp is removed or fails. The capacitor 68 also forms part of a low pass filter in the turn off response circuit, thereby increasing noise immunity.
The circuit shown in FIG. 3, however, does not shut down both of the power MOSFET devices 40 and 42 when the lamp is removed from the load circuit. Under this no-lamp load condition, the C.sub.T pin of IC 30 would be shunted to ground by the transistor 60, which halts the IC's internal oscillator and its output switching, as desired. However, despite having turned off the output of the half bridge, transistor 42 remains on.
Another approach to shutting down both MOSFETs 40 and 42 under a fault condition is to shunt the V.sub.CC pin of the IC ground, as shown in FIG. 4. Here, the sensing circuit is essentially the same as FIG. 3, but an SCR 70 shunts the V.sub.CC pin through resistor 72 to shut down the output.
A drawback of the circuit of FIG. 4 is that when the fault condition ends, such as when the lamp is replaced in its socket, the entire power-up sequence must be repeated because the supply voltage V.sub.CC that is supplied to the chip has been discharged below its undervoltage threshold. In fact, the circuit relies on the undervoltage lockout circuit of IC 30 to turn both of power transistors 40, 42 off.
Another drawback of the circuit of FIG. 4 is that the SCR 70 is a more expensive component than the NPN transistor 60 of FIG. 3.
Moreover, a resistor 72 must be included into the V.sub.CC capacitor discharge path to slow down the dV/dt at the V.sub.CC pin. The dV/dt must be limited because the supply voltage to the gate driver output stages may turn off before the output stages have fully discharged the gates of the power MOSFETs. For example, if the upper power MOSFET 40 is on and the supply voltage is rapidly brought to 0V, the transistor 40 cannot be turned off and is effectively left with a charge (or voltage) on its gate with only the inherent gate-to-source leakage to discharge the MOSFET. The residual charge can cause catastrophic failure if the IC 30 is restarted when the upper MOSFET 40 is still on. When the IC 30 restarts, namely, when its V.sub.CC voltage exceeds the rising undervoltage lockout threshold, the lower MOSFET 42 turns on first. If transistor 40 is still on when transistor 42 turns on, a short will be present across the dc bus and the ac line that will, at the very least, blow a fuse and more likely cause the failure of either one of or both of the power MOSFETs.


Embodiments provide an electronic device including a leadframe, a chip attached to the leadframe, and encapsulation material disposed over a portion of the leadframe. The leadframe includes a first main face opposite a second main face and a plurality of edges extending between the first and second main faces. At least one of the plurality of edges includes a first profiled element and a second profiled element different than the first profiled element. The encapsulation material is disposed over the chip and the plurality of edges of the leadframe.

Semiconductor packages provide environmental protection to integrated circuit chips enclosed within the package. Semiconductor packages include a supporting leadframe, one or more chips attached to the leadframe, encapsulating material molded over the leadframe and the chip(s), and multiple leads configured to electrically connect the chip to the "outside" world.
The leadframe supports the chip, and the encapsulation material shelters the chip(s) from the environment. During use, the chip can increase in temperature. The increase in temperature during use, and the subsequent cooling of the chip when not in use, causes thermal cycling of the chip and the package. In general, the chip, the leadframe, and the encapsulation material each have a different coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE). The differing CTE for the components of the package has the potential to delaminate the leadframe from the encapsulation material during thermal cycling. Delaminated leadframes potentially interrupt the electrical connection to the chip and between the chip and the outside world, which is undesirable for both the package manufacturer and the end-user of the package.
For these and other reasons there is a need for the present invention.

Electronic device having profiled elements extending from planar surfaces


Methods for treating hypertension and associated systems and methods are disclosed herein. One aspect of the present technology, for example, is directed to methods for therapeutic renal neuromodulation that partially inhibit sympathetic neural activity in renal nerves proximate a renal blood vessel of a human patient having a 24-hour heart rate at or above a median heart rate for a population of hypertensive patients. This reduction in sympathetic neural activity is expected to therapeutically treat one or more conditions associated with hypertension of the patient. Renal sympathetic nerve activity can be modulated, for example, using an intravascularly positioned catheter carrying a neuromodulation assembly, e.g., a neuromodulation assembly configured to use electrically-induced, thermally-induced, and/or chemically-induced approaches to modulate the renal nerves.

The sympathetic nervous system (SNS) is a primarily involuntary bodily control system typically associated with stress responses. Fibers of the SNS extend through tissue in almost every organ system of the human body. For example, some fibers extend from the brain, intertwine along the aorta, and branch out to various organs. As groups of fibers approach specific organs, fibers particular to the organs can separate from the groups. Signals sent via these and other fibers can affect characteristics such as pupil diameter, gut motility, and urinary output. Such regulation can have adaptive utility in maintaining homeostasis or in preparing the body for rapid response to environmental factors. Chronic activation of the SNS, however, is a common maladaptive response that can drive the progression of many disease states. Excessive activation of the renal SNS in particular has been identified experimentally and in humans as a likely contributor to the complex pathophysiology of hypertension, states of volume overload (such as heart failure), and progressive renal disease. As examples, radiotracer dilution has demonstrated increased renal norepinephrine (NE) spillover rates in patients with essential hypertension.
Sympathetic nerves of the kidneys terminate in the blood vessels, the juxtaglomerular apparatus, and the renal tubules. Stimulation of the renal sympathetic nerves can cause increased renin release, increased sodium (Na+) reabsorption, and a reduction of renal blood flow. These neural regulation components of renal function are considerably stimulated in disease states characterized by heightened sympathetic tone as well as likely contribute to increased blood pressure in hypertensive patients. The reduction of renal blood flow and glomerular filtration rate as a result of renal sympathetic efferent stimulation is likely a cornerstone of the loss of renal function in cardio-renal syndrome (i.e., renal dysfunction as a progressive complication of chronic heart failure). Pharmacologic strategies to thwart the consequences of renal efferent sympathetic stimulation include centrally acting sympatholytic drugs, beta blockers (intended to reduce renin release), angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors and receptor blockers (intended to block the action of angiotensin II calcium channel blockers), vasodilators (to counteract peripheral vasoconstriction caused by increased sympathetic drive), aldosterone blockers (to block the actions of increased aldosterone released from activation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) and aldosterone activation consequent to renin release), and diuretics (intended to counter the renal sympathetic mediated sodium and water retention). These pharmacologic strategies, however, have significant limitations including limited efficacy, compliance issues, side effects, and others.

Methods for treating patients with catheter-based renal neuromodulation


An instrument for measuring gravitational acceleration from within a borehole, the instrument including: a light source having a semiconductor that comprises a bandgap greater than about two electron volts (eV); and a gravimeter for receiving light from the light source and providing output light with a characteristic related to the gravitational acceleration, the gravimeter implemented at least one of a nano electro-mechanical system (NEMS) and a micro electro-mechanical system (MEMS); wherein the light source and the gravimeter are disposed in a housing adapted for insertion into the borehole.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention disclosed herein relates to well logging tools and, in particular, to an improved light source and light detector for well logging tools.
2. Description of the Related Art
In exploration for hydrocarbons, it is important to male accurate measurements of properties of geologic formations. In particular, it is important to determine the various properties with a high degree of accuracy so that drilling resources are used efficiently.
Generally, oil and gas are accessed by drilling a borehole into the subsurface of the earth. The borehole also provides access for talking measurements of the geologic formations.
Well logging is a technique used to take measurements of the geologic formations from the boreholes. In one embodiment, a "logging tool" is lowered on the end of a wireline into the borehole. The logging tool sends data via the wireline to the surface for recording. Output from the logging tool comes in various forms and may be referred to as a "log." Many types of measurements are made to obtain information about the geologic formations. One type of measurement involves determining gravitational acceleration or gravity.
Measurements of gravity can be used to determine information related to the mass of a surrounding formation. For example, measurements of gravity can be used to measure depletion of oil in the surrounding formation as water replaces the oil. When water replaces oil in the formation, the mass of the formation and, therefore, a gravitational force exerted by the formation will increase because water is denser than oil.
Measurements of gravity can also be used to determine true vertical depth in the borehole. The true vertical depth is important to know because borehole depth is a common factor among various logs. The various logs may be viewed side-by-side to form a composite picture of the geologic formations. Even small errors in determining the borehole depth can corrupt logging data. Horizontal deviations of the borehole, which can corrupt the logging data, can be accounted for by determining the true vertical depth using gravitational measurements.
A logging tool used for measuring gravity may employ a gravimeter that relates changes in gravitational acceleration to changes in light. This type of gravimeter requires a light source and a light detector. In order to obtain accurate measurements, it is important for the light source and the light detector to operate in a stable manner in the environment of the borehole.
In general, temperature in the borehole increases with increasing depth. In some instances, the temperature can be as high as 260° C. Additionally, the light source and the light detector may be subject to shocks of acceleration while traversing the borehole. To survive the rigors of the borehole environment, the light source and the light detector can be built using solid state technology. For example, the light source may include a laser diode and the light detector may include a photodiode.
Accurate measurements usually require that the wavelength of light emitted from the laser diode not shift more than ten ppm. In addition, the intensity of the light emitted from the laser diode should remain constant. With respect to the photodiode, the output should also remain stable for a stable input of light. With increasing temperature, the intensity of the light emitted from a laser diode decreases and the wavelength of the light increases to longer wavelengths. At high enough temperatures, such as temperatures within the borehole, most conventional laser diodes stop working. Providing stable laser light wavelength generally requires that the temperature of the conventional laser diode be maintained to within 0.001° C. Maintaining temperatures with this accuracy can be difficult in the borehole environment.
Therefore, what are needed are a light source and a light detector that can operate throughout a range of high temperatures and require less-stringent temperature control.

Apparatus and method for improved light source and light detector for gravimeter


A quick service limiting valve device for a freight brake control valve employing a primary valve in a fluid flow path via which brake pipe air is connected to the brake cylinder during a secondary phase of quick service to propagate the brake pipe reduction signal until the brake cylinder pressure acting on the limiting valve control piston effects closure of the primary valve to terminate the quick service flow of brake pipe air to the brake cylinder when a predetermined brake cylinder limit pressure is realized. A secondary valve is arranged to interrupt the brake pipe to brake cylinder flow path downstream of the primary valve in the event leakage at the primary valve causes the pressure acting on the quick service limiting valve control piston to exceed the predetermined limit pressure. Until this limit pressure is exceeded, the secondary valve is bypassed so that only the primary valve controls the brake pipe to brake cylinder flow path via the limiting valve, thereby reducing hysteresis due to friction to obtain more efficient limiting valve operation.

The present invention relates to railway car freight brake control valve devices and particularly to a quick service limiting valve, which provides a secondary phase of quick service brake control.
The present standard ABD and ABDW freight brake control valve devices employ a two-phase quick service function, the first phase or preliminary quick service occurring upon initial movement of the service piston from release position toward application position in response to a train line reduction of brake pipe pressure. This initial movement of the service piston establishes a communication between the car brake pipe and a quick service volume that is vented to atmosphere via a quick service exhaust choke. In this manner, a local reduction of brake pipe pressure is obtained at each car of a train to supplement the train line brake pipe reduction and accordingly encourage continued movement of the service piston to application position without hesitation.
In application position of the service piston, preliminary quick service is terminated by cutting off brake pipe pressure from the quick service volume at the service piston slide valve, and a secondary phase of quick service commences. During this secondary phase of quick service, the service piston slide valve connects brake pipe pressure to the car brake cylinder concurrently with auxiliary reservoir pressure until approximately 8-12 psi brake cylinder pressure develops. The brake pipe pressure is connected to the brake cylinder via a quick service limiting valve that is biased toward application position by a control spring.
It has been found that where relatively high pressure differentials exist between brake pipe and auxiliary reservoir during the first phase preliminary quick service, the degree of service piston movement into the service zone is such that maximum flow of the auxiliary reservoir pressure is established. Such high flow of auxiliary reservoir pressure may exceed the downstream flow capacity to the brake cylinder, consequently creating a short term back pressure surge or pulse in the brake cylinder feedback passage leading to the quick service limiting valve. Consequently, the brake cylinder pressure signal at the limiting valve control piston reaches a cut-off value of 10-12 psi prior to the actual brake cylinder pressure, which causes premature closure of the limiting valve against its control spring. When this high back pressure surge dissipates following repositioning of the service graduating valve, the quick service limiting valve is intended to quickly reapply to sustain the secondary phase quick service, it being understood that this local reduction of brake pipe pressure reinforces and hastens the initial brake pipe pressure reduction throughout the train.
The quick service limiting valve employed in the aforementioned ABD and ABDW control valves has either two or three O-ring seals on the limiting valve stem to prevent leakage of pressure from the brake pipe to the brake cylinder when the limiting valve is in its cut-off position following termination of secondary quick service. The friction of these O-rings can influence operation of the limiting valve in terms of causing operating variation and valve hysteresis, which unduly delays re-application of the limiting valve following the aforementioned premature cut-off and thereby reduces the efficiency of the quick service action in assisting the brake pipe pressure reduction.

Quick service limiting valve for freight brake control valve device


A switching power supply apparatus which includes a DC power supply, an isolation transformer having primary, secondary and tertiary windings, and a switching element, and in which, by turning the switching element on and off, the high-frequency voltage appearing in the secondary windings of the isolation transformer is rectified to obtain a DC output, power consumption can be decreased during standby (in burst mode) in particular by means of a control circuit which controls the turn-on and turn-off of the element and similar.

This invention relates to a switching power supply apparatus which obtains an insulated DC output from a DC power supply, and in particular relates to a switching power supply apparatus which is capable of reducing the power consumption during standby.
In recent years efforts have been made to reduce the power consumption of electrical equipment, as a measure to alleviate global warming. In particular, there have been numerous proposals of inventions relating to switching power supply apparatuses provided with a standby mode, to supply only the minimum necessary electric power to devices, so as to reduce the power consumed when electrical equipment is not being used (see Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 2002-136125 and Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 2004-088959 (corresponding U.S. Pat. No. 6,903,945, corresponding China Patent CN 1311618C). FIG. 10 shows an example of a switching power supply apparatus having a configuration similar to those of the apparatuses disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 2002-136125 and Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 2004-088959 (corresponding U.S. Pat. No. 6,903,945, corresponding China Patent CN 1311618C). The operation is explained referring to FIG. 11.
In standby mode, a comparator 6h compares the feedback signal VFB of the DC output voltage with threshold values Vth(H) and Vth(L), set in advance, and transmits a signal VCMP to a logic circuit 6a such that during intervals in which the feedback signal VFB is below the threshold value Vth(L), the on/off operation of the switching element 2 is stopped, and during intervals in which the feedback signal VFB is above the threshold value Vth(H), the switching element 2 is turned on and off. As a result, through intermittent application of a gate voltage VGS to the switching element 2, the number of switching operations per unit time is reduced and power consumption is reduced, in so-called burst oscillation control.
The power supply VCC for the control circuit 6 is obtained by rectifying and smoothing the voltage generated by auxiliary windings 3b provided in the isolation transformer 3; but because power is not supplied to the control circuit 6 during intervals in which switching element 2 on/off operation is halted, the power supply voltage VCC of the control circuit 6 drops depending on power consumption of the control circuit 6. If during this period the DC output voltage falls between the preset voltage, and the feedback voltage VFB exceeds the threshold value Vth(H), switching element 2 on/off operation is resumed, so that the DC output voltage rises and the power supply voltage VCC of the control circuit 6 also rises, and burst oscillation operation is continued.
FIG. 12 is another example of a switching power supply apparatus, with a configuration similar to that disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 2000-270546. In the circuit of FIG. 12, when in standby mode, by turning the switch 17 off by means of a control signal cont1 and switching the power supply of the microcomputer 15 to power from the secondary windings 3c of the isolation transformer 3, current is no longer supplied to the photodiode 8a, and the phototransistor 8b turns off. As a result, the supply of power from the auxiliary windings 3b of the isolation transformer 3 to the control circuit 6 is halted, and so power is supplied to the control circuit 6 from the startup circuit 6g.
At this time the capacitor 5 connected to the power supply of the control circuit 6 is charged, and when the power supply voltage VCC rises to a prescribed voltage, the timer circuit 6d again halts the supply of power from the startup circuit 6g. Then, the voltage across the capacitor 5 falls due to consumption of power by the control circuit 6. When the power supply voltage VCC falls to a prescribed voltage, the timer circuit 6d again starts the supply of power from the startup circuit 6g. By means of this operation, the power supply voltage VCC of the control circuit assumes a triangular wave shape which rises and falls with a prescribed voltage amplitude. The timer circuit 6d counts these triangular-wave periods, and for example controls the logic circuit 6a every two periods to apply the output of the pulse width modulation (PWM) circuit 6b to the switching element 2. Burst oscillation operation is continued by employing the discharge interval of the capacitor 5, that is, the falling interval of the triangular wave, as the period for controlling the switching element 2.
In FIG. 10, a smoothing capacitor 5 with a large static capacitance is connected such that, under conditions in which the DC output power falls below the power consumption of the control circuit 6, such as for example with no load present, the control power supply voltage VCC falls during the interval in which the level of the feedback signal VFB is lower than the threshold value Vth(H), and does not fall below the minimum operating voltage Vuv of the control circuit 6. A capacitor with a large static capacitance is physically large, and so impedes efforts to reduce the size of the switching power apparatus, and also leads to cost increases.
Further, in the circuit of FIG. 12, the power consumption of the startup circuit is the product of the voltage difference between the voltage of the DC power supply 1 and the control power supply voltage VCC, and the current flowing in the startup circuit, and tends to cause an increase in the standby power consumption. Moreover, there is also the problem that when the power supplied to the microcomputer 15 is switched by the switch 17, voltage fluctuations occur at the instant of switching, so that erroneous operation of the microcomputer 15 or similar may occur. Also, when the switching element 2 begins switching, the voltage on capacitor CS gradually rises and the pulse width of the switching element 2 gradually broadens in soft-start operation, so that sharp changes in the current flowing in the isolation transformer 3 are suppressed, and audible sounds generated by the isolation transformer 3 are reduced. However, when the switching element 2 halts oscillation, there is a sudden change from a state in which current is flowing in the isolation transformer 3 to a state in which no current flows, and so there is the problem that there is less effect in decreasing audible noise.
Hence, it would be desirable to reduce the static capacitance of the smoothing capacitor connected to the control circuit, enabling use of a small and low-cost smoothing capacitor, to reduce power consumption, and to reduce audible noises generated by the transformer.

Fuji Electric Device Technology Co., Ltd.


An absorbant animal bedding made from ground, bleached, and dried corn stalks. A method for making the animal bedding using a tub grinder for grinding raw corn stalks to ground corn stalk pieces, a spray nozzle for spraying a bleach and sanitizing solution on the ground corn stalk pieces, a dryer system for drying the ground corn stalk pieces, a fire detection and extinguishment system for detecting and extinguishing any sparks or fire in the dried corn stalks after leaving the dryer system, a cyclonic separator for separating moist air from the dried corn stalk pieces, and mechanism for removing dust before the ground stalk pieces are conveyed to a packaging location.

Many animals, such as cows, horses, mink, gerbils, rabbits, turkeys, chickens, etc. are kept in confined areas such as stalls or cages. Because accumulation of animal excreta inside of the stall or cage would be unsanitary and could cause health problems in both the animals and the people who work with the animals, it is important that the excreta be efficiently removed. Instead of washing out the inside of the stall or cage, an absorbent animal bedding can be used that absorbs and mixes with the animal excreta. Once the animal excreta is absorbed by or mixed with the absorbent bedding, the soiled bedding, along with the excreta, can be easily removed.
Many years ago, straw was used almost exclusively as a bedding material. However, straw is no longer widely used. The decline in the use of straw as an animal bedding can be attributed to the fact that straw is no longer thrashed, but combined. Combining separates the absorbent chaff from the straw portion. The absorbent chaff is then tilled into the soil. Therefore, the remaining straw does not have the absorbency of the straw product of years ago and consequently no longer makes an acceptable bedding. Additionally, straw is slow to decay and therefore massive amounts of straw and excreta commonly accumulate wherever the soiled bedding is disposed.
Today, a widely used bedding material is wood shavings, including sawdust. Wood shavings are easier to use, more economical, and much easier to clean from a stall than straw bedding. However, wood shavings are a by-product of a parent industry and are subject to the demands of that industry. Additionally, like straw, wood shavings are slow to decompose, taking approximately six years.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,519,340 to Dickey teaches an absorbant composition for animal excreta made from dried, chopped corn stalks. The composition contains dried, chopped corn stalks mixed with lime and an organic material having a density greater than the corn stalks such as wood shavings, hulls of cereal grains, chopped soybean stalks and chopped straw. The use of processed corn stalks as an animal bedding has many advantages over the use of straw or wood chips. Corn stalks are very pithy and therefore a bedding made of corn stalks is very absorbant. Additionally, corn stalks are a by-product of an annual crop and are therefore readily available.
Although corn stalks are absorbent and readily available, corn stalks are infrequently used as an animal bedding due to difficulties that arise when processing the raw corn stalks. Corn stalks typically contain excess moisture that must be removed prior to use as an animal bedding. However, corn stalks are highly flammable when dry and consequently are difficult to dry without causing a fire. A fire can not only slow production of the animal bedding, but a fire can destroy the entire processing plant. As a result, it has not been profitable to convert processed corn stalks into an animal bedding.
In addition to the problems associated with the production of animal bedding from corn stalks, the resulting bedding made from corn stalks can be dusty and infested with microbes. The dust present in the bedding, along with the microbes, can cause respiratory illness or other health related problems in the animals using the bedding.
Nonetheless, the widespread availability and absorbant nature of corn stalks makes the use of corn stalks as an animal bedding a desirable prospect. Therefore there is a need for a method to make an absorbant bedding out of corn stalks wherein the corn stalks are not ignited and the bedding is relatively free of dust and microbes.


A dual lumen IV administration set includes a first lumen having an inner diameter of a first value. A second lumen is paired with the first lumen, and the second lumen has an inner diameter of a second value that is greater than the first value. A flow merger merges flow output from a distal end of the first lumen and flow output from a distal end of the second lumen to form a single flow output in an exit lumen. An injection port intersects the first lumen, thereby providing injection access to flow therethrough, prior to merging with the flow output of the second lumen.

In the modern world, during medical procedures, particularly those involving anesthesia, it is common that saline and other health or anesthesiology-related drugs are administered to those undergoing surgery via an intravenous (IV) drip line. The techniques and variances of administration of the fluid and drugs (hereinafter referred to as "IV administration") are complex due to the many physical differences among individuals. Yet, the procedural steps taken to accommodate the differences tend to be fairly routine across various different types of procedures. That is, once the administrator knows what is needed for the individual, it is essentially a matter of monitoring the patient and administering the correct amounts or doses of fluid/drugs at the right time, using the proper procedural steps according to the situation.
However, over the many years since IV administration was conceived and implemented, the equipment available for such procedural IV administration has changed little. Of course, advancements have been made in material technology, anti-bacterial capabilities, and some structural enhancements of the apparatus used. Further, as the administrators' knowledge of how the body functions has increased, variances in the process of administration has improved as well. Nevertheless, even the most skilled administrators still make errors unintentionally, which errors might be minimized if the equipment was improved.


Method and apparatus for tunneling any existing data-, control-, or routing-related protocol through a generic Internet protocol (IP) transport are described. The method includes providing a generic messaging structure that includes at least a transport protocol, a message buffer, a source-address field and one or more data fields for transparent routing of a user protocol over the IP transport and also providing an application program interface to the generic messaging structure, the interface including a mechanism for a user to choose a desired transport and associated protocol for transparently routing the user protocol over the transport in accordance with the chosen transport protocol within the one or more data fields. Alternatively or additionally, the method includes creating a base class library including plural defined source and header files and further providing a mechanism for deriving a transaction-based protocol-specific class that is compatible with the base class library. The apparatus is an application programming interface (API), preferably coded in C/C++, for transparently routing data between sockets in such an IP transport. The API includes a message buffer data structure defining a protocol-generic parent class, message, source-address and data fields; a message creation mechanism for creating a message and adding it to the message buffer data structure; and a protocol creation mechanism for deriving a protocol-specific child class that renders new protocol-specific sub-fields of the protocol field of the message buffer data structure.

1. Field
This invention relates generally to tunneling methods and apparatus for transporting messages across a network interface. More particularly, it concerns an extensible application programming interface that provides access and control mechanisms for use in encapsulating any existing data-, control-, or routing-related protocol within a generic transport protocol.
2. Background
A method is needed for transporting Signaling System 7 (SS7) messages across a Unix domain protocol/internet protocol (UDP/IP) interface. The method should accommodate other "application control" messages. To this end, a new protocol is needed that can wrap any type of "existing" protocol into a packet and deliver the encapsulated packet across the interface.


A nanoliter rheometer is capable of operating over a wide range of temperatures and permits visual observation of extremely small amounts of various often complex and/or expensive small nanoliter size fluids over a wide viscoelastic regime. The nanoliter rheometer comprises two very thin fibers, the ends of which are in close proximity to one another and desirably parallel to one another with one fiber being moved by a drive system and the remaining fiber desirably being stationary and capable of measuring a force transferred through a nanoliter size fluid located between the two fibers ends. The transferred force can be measured either by an LCR meter or a piezoelectric crystal and recorded as by a lock-in amplifier.

Rheological studies have been found useful in several important arenas from medical diagnostics and biological sciences of cellular and tissue functions, to manufacturing of inks, paints and varnishes, and to better understand basic non-Newtonian materials such as polymers and liquid crystalline materials. However, some of these fields rely on a limited amount of material, especially in the biological fields (typically on the order of a few mL). Therefore, recent technological needs have driven a renewed interest in both shrinking the scale of rheological techniques and the amount of material needed to perform such measurements.
Classical rheological equipment can be generalized into three basic categories that utilize capillary, rotational, or falling/rolling ball techniques. While some success has been made in the shrinking the size scale of the latter two, they still rely on amounts of material on the order of a mL. Much more successful attempts have been made in shrinking the capillary methods, mainly due to the successes of micro-fabrication techniques in creating micro-fluidic channels. These methods have reported successful viscosity measurements using material volumes in the order of a μL down to about twenty nL. However these methods are typically valid for Newtonian flow regimes and low viscosities that in general limit their usage as a general Theological tool. Some improvements on this technique have allowed greater viscosity range (IcP<η<100 cP), but is still limited to Newtonian behavior. Many classical rheometers used to measure complex viscoelastic properties relied on oscillatory motion to induce shear stresses on a fluid. This technique has been applied to several micro-viscometer techniques based on resonance properties of cantilevers or piezoelectric crystals. Although many of these techniques rely on being submerged in a container of material, one method using quartz crystals could measure rheological properties of around 10 μL of material. This method, however, resonated between 5-10 MHz, resulting in very large shear rates, usually well above typical non-Newtonian behavior transitions.
In summary, although there have been numerous attempts at developing rheometers capable of measuring material properties with very small volumes, there has not yet been one flexible enough to perform generalized measurements over a wide range of material types, viscoelastic regimes, and broad temperature ranges.


A terminal positioning device of crimping tool comprises mainly a base and an elastic member. The base is provided with a pair of clamping members mounted thereon. The elastic member is mounted on a predetermined location of the crimping tool and provided with a pressing portion of a length extending downwards to form jointly with the base and the clamping members a receiving space for accommodating and holding securely a terminal of any shape.

The present invention relates to a crimping tool, and more particularly to a terminal connector positioning device of the crimping tool.
A prior art crimping tool is generally provided with clamping teeth serving to receive an end of a terminal connector. Another end of the terminal connector is arranged in a manner that it extends beyond the side of the crimping tool. It is often difficult to stabilize the terminal on the clamping teeth which have a relatively small holding area. As a result, an operator is required to hold firmly not only the crimping tool but also the terminal being worked on and the wire to be coupled, so as to prevent the terminal and the wire from moving aside. It is therefore often difficult for an operator to do a good job with such prior art crimping tool, which has inherent structural deficiencies.
With a view to overcoming the shortcomings of the prior art crimping tool described above, the U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,359,083 and 3,673,848 disclose respectively a crimping tool provided with a terminal holding means. However, such terminal holding means disclosed in the U.S. Pat. No. 2,359,083 is designed for use in adjusting the length of the portion of the terminal that extends beyond the side of the crimping tool holding the terminal. In addition, such terminal holding means is not able to hold firmly both sides of the portion of the terminal that extends beyond the side of the crimping tool. The U.S. Pat. No. 3,673,848 discloses a crimping tool equipped with a receiving space intended for accommodating the portion of the terminal that extends beyond the side of the crimping tool. However, such receiving space is limited in that it can accommodate only those terminals which have certain dimensions, in view of the fact that the receiving space is overcrowded with a spring. Moreover, a terminal of a round columnar construction or a circular fragmentary construction can not be positioned and held firmly in such receiving space.

Terminal positioning device of crimping tool


Systems and methods for automated electroplating are disclosed. An electroplating system includes a first chamber configured to receive one or more parts. The first chamber includes a vessel extending from a first end to a second end, a first cap proximate to the first end a first cathode contact coupled to the first end, a second cathode contact coupled to the second end, and a plurality of anodes formed on an inner surface of the vessel. The electroplating system further includes at least one reservoir and a first conduit and a second conduit each coupled between the at least one reservoir and the first chamber. The first conduit may be configured to transfer fluid from the first reservoir to the first chamber and the second conduit may be configured to transfer fluid from the first chamber to the at least one reservoir.

Chrome plating is a very forgiving process that generally does not require meticulous cleaning and activation that most other plating systems require. Although chrome is wear resistant, non-line-of-sight, and inexpensive, chrome suffers from poor corrosion resistance and various environmental issues. Typically for chrome plating, parts are placed directly into a plating bath without any pre-treatment solutions. Further, some electroplating systems require cleaners, activators, and multiple different plating baths. However, it may be difficult to move large machinery parts (e.g., rotors used for drills in oil and gas industry) quickly between tanks or plating baths without the plated coatings passivating. As such, there is a need for an efficient and cost effective wear and corrosion resistant electroplating process.
The present disclosure is directed to overcoming one or more of these challenges. The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Unless otherwise indicated herein, the materials described in this section are not prior art to the claims in this application and are not admitted to be prior art, or suggestions of the prior art, by inclusion in this section.

Systems and methods for enclosed electroplating chambers


A method and apparatus for establishing connectivity between a mobile node and a plurality of packet data networks. The method includes establishing a first connection between a mobile node and a first packet data network, the first connection being made through a first access network; establishing a second connection between the mobile node and a second packet data network, the second connection being made through a second access data network; establishing a third connection between the mobile node and the first packet data network, the third connection being made through the second access network; and simultaneously sending data from the mobile node to the first packet data network over the first connection and the third connection.

The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) is a collaboration between groups of telecommunications associations, to make a globally applicable third generation (3G) mobile phone system specification within the scope of the International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 project of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). FIG. 1 illustrates a 3GPP architecture for multiple access in a non-roaming scenario, and FIG. 2 illustrates a 3GPP architecture for multiple access in a roaming scenario. The architectures depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2 show the scenarios in which a client-based mobility protocol S2c—i.e., DSMIPv6 (Dual stack Mobile IPv6)—is used for connectivity and mobility between 3GPP accesses and non-3GPP accesses. S2c is described in more detail in 3GPP TS 23.402 V8.3.0 and 3GPP TS 23.401 V8.3.0, which are incorporated herein by reference. The mechanisms specified in 3GPP TS 23.402 can be used to connect a user equipment (UE) (or mobile terminal) in parallel to an evolved packet core (EPC) via a 3GPP access network and a non-3GPP access network towards different packet data networks (PDNs).
Currently, the 3GPP specifications listed above—3GPP TS 23.402 V8.3.0 and 3GPP TS 23.401 V8.3.0—do not specify how a UE can simultaneously access a network through multiple heterogeneous accesses. However, the mechanisms specified in the specifications listed above can be used to connect a UE in parallel (via different PDNs) to an EPC via 3GPP access network and a non-3GPP access network.

Method and apparatus for supporting multiple connections in 3GPP systems


The seatbelt device of a vehicle comprises at least two seatbelt mechanisms including the webbings and the first pre-tensioner mechanisms operative to wind up the webbings so as to apply the specified tension to the webbings when the crash pre-detecting device detects the vehicle crash in advance, and the control device to control the seatbelt mechanism, wherein there is provided the vehicle turning control device which operates to control the braking force of the brake device of the vehicle so that the vehicle turning state can be the target turning state, and the control device operates at least the two first pre-tensioner mechanisms when the vehicle, tuning control device operates. Accordingly, the pre-tensioner mechanisms operate additionally when the DSC operates, thereby increasing restraint force of the passengers and improving the safety of the passengers.

The present invention relates to a seatbelt device of a vehicle, particularly to the seatbelt device in which pre-tensioner mechanisms provided for a driver's seat and another passenger's seat are operated when the vehicle is in a state, such as a spin or lateral slip, and when a DSC to stabilize a vehicle turning state operates during a vehicle turning.
Conventionally, in the seatbelt device of a vehicle equipped with the pre-tensioner mechanism, when the vehicle crash has been detected in advance by the crash pre-detecting sensor comprised of a millimeter-wave radar, based on the relative speed or relative distance with respect to an obstacle, such as the vehicle running in front, the pre-tensioner mechanism operates to wind up a specified amount of the webbing, so that the specified tension can be applied to the webbing and thereby the passenger's restraint can be improved. Then, when it is determined the vehicle dangerous state of crash has been avoided, the pre-tensioner mechanism equipped with an electric motor is driven reversely, so that the webbing is withdrawn by a specified amount and thereby the tension thereof returns to the previous tension before the webbing winding up. Thus, the unpleasant feeling of too much restraint of the webbing can be lessened.
Also, passengers tend to be moved forward due to the inertia at the vehicle braking, and they tend to be moved laterally at the vehicle turning. Accordingly, increasing the webbing tension and thereby improving the passenger's restraint will be necessary in these cases. Thus, the seatbelt device performing such functions is also known. For example, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0209900 A1 discloses the device in which there are provided the lateral acceleration sensor and the longitudinal acceleration sensor, and it is determined based on these sensors whether the vehicle is in the braking state or in the turning state. Herein, when it has been determined that the vehicle is in the braking state, the pre-tensioner mechanism operates so that the tension of the webbing of the assistant's seat can be higher than that of the webbing of the driver's seat. While, when it has been determined that the vehicle is in the turning state, the pre-tensioner mechanism operates so that the tension of the webbing of the driver's seat can be higher than that of the webbing of the assistant's seat. Thereby, the tension of the webbing can be properly applied to the passenger according to the vehicle traveling state, and thus the proper restraint can be provided to the passenger without giving any unpleasant feelings.
Meanwhile, vehicles equipped with DSC (Dynamic Stability Control) have increased recently. The DSC can stabilize the vehicle traveling state by controlling the engine brake and the braking forces of four brakes when it has been detected that the vehicle travels on a slippery road or turns at a high speed and thereby the vehicle is in the dangerous state of spin or lateral slip. Herein, it is desired to provide the seatbelt device to operate the pre-tensioner mechanism additionally according to the operation of the DSC in order to further improve the safety of passengers.


The present invention provides a method for managing mobile handset portability within a telematics equipped mobile vehicle. The method includes assigning a primary telematics unit identifier to a user account, assigning the primary telematics unit identifier to a mobile handset, associating the mobile handset with any one of a plurality of telematics units operating within the mobile vehicle communication system, and operating the associated telematics unit. The step of associating the mobile handset may include coupling the mobile handset to the telematics unit, communicating the assigned telematics unit identifier of the mobile handset to a service provider, and downloading user preferences from the service provider wherein the user preferences are based on the user account associated with the communicated telematics unit identifier. The step of downloading the user preferences may include determining the user preferences at the service provider and receiving the user preferences from the service provider.

The opportunity to utilize wireless features in a mobile vehicle is ever increasing as the automobile is being transformed into a communications and entertainment platform as well as a transportation platform. Wireless features include wireless vehicle communication, networking, maintenance and diagnostic services for a mobile vehicle.
Typically, conventional wireless systems within mobile vehicles (e.g. telematics units) provide voice communication. Recently, these wireless systems have been utilized to update systems within telematics units, such as, for example radio station presets. Other systems within mobile vehicles, such as, for example a power train control may be updated as well. Information may also be collected from systems and subsystems within mobile vehicles and provided to a vehicle manufacturer for analysis, such as, for example system usage, component wear, and the like. Unfortunately, updating systems within telematics units only occurs in telematics units registered to a specific user.
The present invention advances the state of the art.

Method and system for managing mobile handset portability within telematics equipped vehicles


A valve for a pump arrangement which serves on one hand as a one-way outlet valve subject to functioning, after fluid has been dispensed, of drawing back some fluid which has been dispensed.

Fluid dispensers are known incorporating fluid pumps in which an outer one-way check valve permits flow outwardly therepast in a downstream direction yet prevents fluid flow therepast inwardly in an upstream direction. Such known pump mechanisms include various dispensers for dispensing fluid drawn from the inside of a upstanding container for dispensing out a downwardly directed discharge outlet such as, for example, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,070,844, issued Dec. 13, 2011 to Ophardt et al, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
Such known liquid dispensers suffer the disadvantage that after use of the dispenser, while the dispenser is at rest, fluid may drip from the discharge outlet.
Many dispensers of liquid such as hands soaps, creams, honey, ketchup and mustard and other viscous fluids which dispense fluid from a nozzle leave a drop of liquid at the end of the outlet. This can be a problem that the liquid may harden, as creating an obstruction which reduces the area for fluid flow in future dispensing. The obstruction can result in future dispensing through a small area orifice resulting in spraying in various directions such as onto a wall or user to stain the wall or user or more disadvantageously into the eyes of a user.
Many dispensers of material such as creams and for example liquid honey have the problem of stringing in which an elongate string of fluid hangs from fluid in the outlet and dangles from the outlet after dispensing an allotment of fluid. With passage of time the string may form into a droplet and drop from the outlet giving the appearance that the dispenser is leaking.
Pump assemblies for fluid dispensers are well known. Such pump assemblies includes those invented by the inventor of this present application including those disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,165,577, issued Nov. 24, 1992; U.S. Pat. No. 5,282,552, issued Feb. 1, 1994; U.S. Pat. No. 5,676,277, issued Oct. 14, 1997, U.S. Pat. No. 5,975,360, issued Nov. 2, 1999, and U.S. Pat. No. 7,267,251, issued Sep. 11, 2007, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
Many previously known piston pumps suffer the disadvantage that the pistons for the pump are difficult to manufacture.