A tubular tank cleaning tool for use in an R.V. waste storage tank or the like is provided with a rotating nozzle affixed to a tubular body for connection at its opposite end to a conventional garden hose. The improvement includes a flexible section of the tubular body having a coil spring within to allow the tool to be easily bent around corners and tight angles. The coil spring prevents the flexible section from kinking while a nozzle guard at the distal end of the tubular body prevents the nozzle from catching as the tool is inserted or withdrawn from a waste storage tank.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention herein pertains to cleaning tools for recreational vehicle (RV) waste tanks and the like, and particularly pertains to cleaning tools having rotating nozzles which are attached to flexible water hoses.
2. Description of the Prior Art and Objectives of the Invention
Cleaning tools for use in RV waste collection and storage tanks and otherwise have become increasingly popular in recent years with more and more people using recreational vehicles for travel and leisure purposes. Garden and other hoses are threadably attached to the handle end of such tubular cleaning tools, sometimes referred to as "wands", which may have a rotating nozzle for spraying clean water at a relatively high pressure. Such cleaning tools are inserted through the commode bowl, and drain pipe into the waste collection tank below whereby the tank can be rinsed free of bacteria containing sludge. Such cleaning tools are generally formed from a straight plastic tube having a diameter comparable to the attached water hose and usually, but not always, include an opening for spraying water to assist in the cleaning operation. It is not uncommon to encounter a bend in the drain pipe or connection between the toilet bowl and tank, making the cleaning job more difficult, especially with a rigid, linear cleaning tool. In addition, certain tanks are installed with an offset which can cause problems when the cleaning tool is removed, since the offset may have edges which catch the tool nozzle as it is being withdrawn, causing the nozzle to bend or break. Also, tank cleaning tools are regularly used for other cleaning purposes, for example, to clean gray water drainage lines and other fittings. Thus, conventional, rigid cleaning tools are limited in their uses and it is therefore one objective of the present invention to provide a cleaning tool which is more versatile and convenient to use than cleaning tools now on the market.
It is another objective of the present invention to provide a tank cleaning tool which includes a flexible tubular section to allow the tool to be curved or bent during use.
It is still another objective of the present invention to provide a cleaning tool having a resilient coiled spring within the flexible section to prevent the section from kinking, thus stopping the flow of water therethrough during use.
It is yet a further objective of the present invention to provide a tank cleaning tool which includes a nozzle guard which will help prevent damage to the nozzle as it is being inserted or removed from a sewage storage tank or otherwise.
Various other objectives and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art as a more detailed description is set forth below.


A surface-acoustic-wave filter couples a two-port surface-acoustic-wave resonator filter circuit coupled in parallel or in series with a two-port impedance circuit. The two-port impedance circuit has an impedance that creates a pole of attenuation, by making the open-circuit impedance of the surface-acoustic-wave filter equal to the short-circuit impedance. High attenuation over a wide range of stopband frequencies is obtained in this way, combined with steep roll-off between the passband and stopband.

The present invention relates generally to surface-acoustic-wave filters having poles, and more particularly to surface-acoustic-wave filters of the resonator type used, for example, in mobile communications equipment.
Like integrated circuits, surface-acoustic-wave filters, referred to below as SAW filters, are small and lightweight, and can easily be mass-produced. For these reasons, SAW filters are widely used as radio-frequency (RF) filters in devices such as portable telephone sets and pagers.
A portable telephone set of the code division multiple access (CDMA) type, for example, transmits in one frequency band and receives in an adjacent frequency band. The set accordingly requires an antenna duplexer with a pair of filters, one filter passing frequencies in the transmitting band and rejecting frequencies in the receiving band, while the other filter performs the opposite function. Each filter which must provide low passband insertion loss, steep roll-off between the passband and the adjacent stopband, and high attenuation across the full width of the stopband. These requirements are conventionally met by the use of a ladder filter, comprising one or more series-arm SAW resonators and one or more shunt-arm SAW resonators, with stopband attenuation produced by poles in the filter's transfer function.
As increasing performance demands are placed on mobile communications equipment, however, it is becoming difficult to meet the above requirements satisfactorily with a SAW ladder filter. One reason is that the passband width, insertion loss, stopband attenuation, and steepness of the roll-off depend on the properties of the piezoelectric substrate on which the SAW resonators are formed. Providing wide stopbands with the necessary high attenuation is particularly difficult.
These problems are difficult to solve by using the relationships between the passband and stopbands and the resonant frequencies (series resonance frequencies) and antiresonant frequencies (parallel resonance frequencies) of the SAW resonators in a SAW ladder filter, because of restrictions on the width, placement, and spacing of the passband and stopbands. It is particularly difficult to place wide stopbands with high attenuation close to the passband and still maintain a low insertion loss in the passband.

Surface-acoustic-wave filters with poles of attenuation created by impedance circuits


A new animal doll with detachable parts for providing a animal toy that can be constructed to form different types of animals or creatures of original creation. The inventive device includes a torso member with detachable cat, pig and bunny head members, a pair of detachable elongate arm members, a pair of detachable elongate leg members, a detachable first tail member, and a detachable elongate second tail member.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to dolls and more particularly pertains to a new animal doll with detachable parts for providing a animal toy that can be constructed to form different types of animals or creatures of original creation.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The use of dolls is known in the prior art. More specifically, dolls heretofore devised and utilized arc known to consist basically of familiar, expected and obvious structural configurations, notwithstanding the myriad of designs encompassed by the crowded prior art which have been developed for the fulfillment of countless objectives and requirements.
Known prior art dolls include U.S. Pat. No. 4,579,537; U.S. Pat. No. 4,208,832; U.S. Pat. No. 5,232,369; U.S. Pat. No. 5,195,917; U.S. Pat. No. 4,504,240; and U.S. Pat. No. Des. 307,613.
While these devices fulfill their respective, particular objectives and requirements, the aforementioned patents do not disclose a new animal doll with detachable parts. The inventive device includes a torso member with detachable cat, pig and bunny head members, a pair of detachable elongate arm members, a pair of detachable elongate leg members, a detachable first tail member, and a detachable elongate second tail member.
In these respects, the animal doll with detachable parts according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in so doing provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of providing a animal toy that can be constructed to form different types of animals or creatures of original creation.


Network policies can be used to optimize the flow of network traffic between virtual machines (VMs) in a hybrid cloud environment. In an example embodiment, one or more policies can drive a virtual switch controller, a hybrid cloud manager, a hypervisor manager, a virtual switch, or other orchestrator to create one or more direct tunnels that can be utilized by a respective pair of VMs to bypass the virtual switch and enable direct communication between the VMs. The virtual switch can send the VMs network and security policies to ensure that these policies are enforced. The VMs can exchange security credentials in order to establish the direct tunnel. The direct tunnel can be used by the VMs to bypass the virtual switch and allow the VMs to communicate with each other directly.

Industry trends indicate a growing movement among enterprises and other entities towards hybrid cloud architectures. These enterprises and other entities may be choosing such systems so that they can acquire additional on-demand computing, storage, and network resources, and eliminating the need to build for peak capacity within their own data centers. A potential advantage of leveraging public clouds is that they may not have the same initial capital investments that may be necessary to build out a company's own private data center. Another potential benefit for public cloud is that they may better absorb a company's need for elasticity by providing almost unlimited pay-as-you-grow expansion. Although hybrid cloud designs can be conceptually and financially attractive, enterprises may be reluctant to place mission-critical applications in the public cloud because of a perception that migrating workloads from an on-premises network to a public network may significantly reduce control, security, and efficiency of enterprise applications.

Policy-driven switch overlay bypass in a hybrid cloud network environment


To realize a plasma display panel having display performances of high precision and high brightness with low power consumption, after formation of base film (91), a metal oxide paste made of metal oxide particles, an organic component including a photopolymerization initiator, a water-soluble cellulose derivative, and a photopolymerization monomer, and a diluting solvent is applied. By exposing, developing, and firing the paste film, agglomerated particles as a plurality of metal oxide particles agglomerated are formed so as to be attached on base film (91). The content of the metal oxide particles included in the metal oxide paste is 1.5% by volume or less.

A plasma display panel (hereinafter referred to simply as "PDP"), among other flat panel displays (FPD), allows achieving a high-speed display as well as a large-size display with ease. The PDP is thus commercialized in various fields such as video display devices and display devices for public communication.
In general, an AC-drive and surface discharge type PDP adopts 3-electrodes structure, and is formed of two glass substrates, i.e. a front panel and a rear panel confronting each other with a given space therebetween. The front panel includes display electrodes formed of scan electrodes and sustain electrodes, both of which are shaped like stripes and formed on the glass substrate, a dielectric layer covering the display electrodes and storing electric charges for working as a capacitor, and a protective film formed on the dielectric layer and having a thickness of approx. 1 μm. The rear panel includes multiple address electrodes formed on the other glass substrate, a primary dielectric layer covering the address electrodes, barrier ribs formed on the primary dielectric layer, and a phosphor layer painted onto display cells partitioned by the barrier ribs for emitting light in red, green and blue respectively.
The front panel confronts the rear panel such that its electrode-mounted surface confronts an electrode-mounted surface of the rear panel, and peripheries of both the panels are sealed in an airtight manner to form a discharge space therebetween, and the discharge space is partitioned by the barrier ribs. The discharge space is filled with discharge gas of Neon (Ne) and Xenon (Xe) at a pressure ranging from 53 kPa to 80.0 kPa. The PDP allows displaying a color video through this method: Voltages of video signals are selectively applied to the display electrodes for discharging, thereby producing ultra-violet rays, which excite the respective colors of the phosphor layers, so that colors in red, green, and blue are emitted, thereby achieving the display of a color video (Refer to Patent Document 1).
The protective layer formed on the dielectric layer of the front panel of the foregoing PDP is expected to carry out the two major functions: (1) protecting the dielectric layer from ion impact caused by the discharge, and (2) emitting primary electrons for generating address discharges. The protection of the dielectric layer from the ion impact plays an important role for preventing a discharge voltage from rising, and the emission of primary electrons for generating the address discharges also plays an important role for eliminating a miss in the address discharges because the miss causes flickers on videos.
To reduce the flickers on videos, the number of primary electrons emitted from the protective layer should be increased. For this purpose, silicon (Si) or aluminum (Al), for instance, is added to MgO.
In recent years, the number of high-definition TV receivers has increased, which requires the PDP to be manufactured at a lower cost, to consume a lower power, and to be a full HD (high-definition, 1920×1080 pixels, and progressive display) with a higher brightness. The characteristics of emitting electrons from the protective layer determine the picture quality, so that the control over the electron emission characteristics is vital for the picture quality.
In such a PDP, an attempt to improve the electron emission characteristic by making impurity mixed in a protective layer was made (Patent Document 2). However, in the case where impurity is mixed in the protective layer to improve the electron emission characteristic, simultaneously, charges are accumulated on the surface of the protective layer, and the attenuation rate that charges when used as a memory function decrease with time increases. Consequently, a countermeasure to increase application voltage is needed for suppressing the attenuation rate.
As described above, there is a challenge to satisfy two conflicting characteristics of the protective layer; high electron emission capacity, and low attenuation rate of charges as the memory function, that is, high charge retention characteristic.
[Prior Art Document]
[Patent Document]
    [Patent Document 1] Unexamined Japanese Patent Publication No. 2007-48733    [Patent Document 2] Unexamined Japanese Patent Publication No. 2002-260535

Method for producing plasma display panel


A computer-implemented method includes causing a computer system to execute instructions for providing a first data set and a second data set, each derived from a common object, providing a first tomographic image object associated with the first data set providing a second tomographic image object associated with the second data set, generating a multimodal pixon map for pixon smoothing on the basis of the first data set, the first tomographic image object, the second data set, and the second tomographic image object, and outputting the multimodal pixon map.

Tomographic-image reconstruction is the reconstruction of three or more dimensional images (herein also referred to as image objects) in various medical imaging fields, including computer tomography (CT), Single Photon Computed Tomography (SPECT), Positron Emission Tomography (PET), and Magnetic Resonance (MR) Tomography. An overview of SPECT systems, PET systems, and their combination with CT systems as well as iterative image reconstruction for emission tomography is given in chapter 7, chapter 11, and chapter 21 of M. Wernick and J. Aarsvold, "Emission tomography: the fundamentals of PET and SPECT," Elsevier Academic Press, 2004, the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference.
An overview of different reconstruction methods including a pixon method is given in R. C. Puetter et al., "Digital Image Reconstruction: Deblurring and Denoising," Annu. Rev. Astro. Astrophys., 2005, 43: 139-194; the pixon method is described in R. C. Puetter et al., "The pixon method of image reconstruction," Astronomical Data Analysis Sottware and Systems VIII., edited by D. M. Mehringer, R. L,. Plante D. A. Roberts, Astronomical Society of the Pacific, San Francisco, ASP Conference Series 1999, 172, 307-316, the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference. An application of the pixon method to medical planar imaging is discussed in C. A. Wesolowski et al., "Improved lesion detection from spatially adaptive, minimally complex, pixon® reconstruction of planar scintigraphic images", Comput. Med. Imaging Graph., 2005, 29, 65-81, the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference.

Determining a multimodal pixon map for tomographic-image reconstruction


A toilet seat and training system specifically designed for cats. The instant seat includes a circular sitting member having a center orifice therethrough, a wide platform formed on opposite sides thereof so a cat can be well balanced thereon, and a series of concentric annular tray members attached to an inner rim of the sitting member and formed having progressively smaller sizes, and which can be successively removed to vary the size of the center orifice, and is designed to releasably attach to an existing toilet and fit underneath a human toilet seat, so people can still have use of their toilet seat without interference from the cat's seat. This seat can be used in conjunction with specialized dissolving litter, a pet urine odor eliminator, and a urine detector light.

As independent as cats can be, they still need our assistance with things like food, water, and comfortable living conditions, so they in turn, will enjoy being around us. There is one thing that is very unpleasant for both cats and people, a stinky litter box. This is a problem for everybody who has a cat. As strange as it may sound, this problem is something we have created ourselves when litter boxes were first introduced back in 1947.
In following, cats can become stressed because of the odor that is often left behind when people clean the litter box. This is because people usually only clean what they can see in the litter box. When a cat has no alternative but to use a dirty litter box it can cause aggressive and neurotic behavior and is the leading cause of cat homelessness.
Another concern with old style litter boxes is that the cat can get some of the litter caught in its paws and then drag it around the person's house.
Furthermore, it is a tedious job to continuously have to clean an old style litter box, and then have to dispose of the dirty litter in an environmentally friendly way. The most common cat litter is still clay-based and makes up about 80% of cat litter sold today. This is very detrimental to our environment for two reasons. Firstly, each year, over a hundred and fifty thousand acres of land is strip-mined when harvesting clay for cat litter. Soil is extracted from only the first few feet of soil, which damages vegetation and trees in the process in order to gain access to the clay. And secondly, used litter gets deposited into landfills and never decomposes. In the U.S. alone, over 9 million tons of used cat litter is deposited in landfills every year.
Therefore, there became an obvious need to offer an alternative device and system that would be healthier for cats and people, be more pleasant to be around, be easier to operate, and better for the environment.
The instant toilet seat and training system was specifically designed for cat owners to overcome the aforementioned issues, and unlike other toilet training products, never tries to force a cat to use a human toilet seat. Instead the instant seat and training system was developed with a cat's comfort in mind.


Numerous aspects concerning a blow film system are improved by the present invention.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention concerns an interior cooling body for a blown film system, a blown film system, and a process for producing a blown film.
2. The Prior Art
Blown film systems are used for producing large scale films in the form of tubes from thermoplastic synthetic material.
DE 1 211 379 shows a system wherein a tube is produced from an annular slit valve. The tube is widened by introducing blown air between the valve and a water-operated cooling body.
DT 26 08 311 A1 shows a system wherein the tube is cooled down at its interior side by a water-operated cooling body, whereas at its exterior side, the tube is in direct contact with the water. The exterior cooling water runs downwards along the tube. Thus, the system is used for plants extruding from top to bottom.
DE 39 03 174 A1 shows a blown film system with a cooling cylinder within the tube with four cooling air grooves running around the cooling cylinder at four discrete points of height.
DE 29 24 897 A1 shows a cylindrical stabilizer for a resin bubble which heats and widens the bubble from the interior side. On the outside, there is a cooling air fan. The interior stabilizer has concave and convex engraved and cut patterns, especially in the form of grooves.
DE 1 504 648 shows a system for cooling a film tube by blown air running along a water-operated interior cooling body with a sand-blasted surface.
Further systems are known from U.S. Pat. No. 3,650,644, AT 315 472, DE 26 39551 A1, and DE 38 15415 A1.

Interior cooling body for a blowfilm system, blowfilm system, and process for producing a blowfilm


An apparatus for pyrolysis of a sample of a composite material containing a combustible binder includes a combustion chamber configured to receive a sample of the composite material and having an outlet. A heater is associated with the combustion chamber for heating the chamber to a temperature sufficient for pyrolysis of the binder. A blower is in fluid communication with the combustion chamber for creating an airflow through the outlet to remove airborne pyrolysis products from the combustion chamber. An adjustable airflow regulator is operable to adjustably control the airflow to provide a desired minimum residence time within the combustion chamber sufficient for complete pyrolysis of the airborne pyrolysis byproducts.

When employing composite materials, for example, a bituminous mixture such as asphalt concrete, it is generally desirable to test the composition of the materials before installation to ensure that the installed material has desired properties of structural strength, durability and the like. For example, the "hot-mix" asphalt concrete used to pave roads, airport runways and the like desirably has a predetermined proportion of asphalt binder to aggregate and a predetermined gradation of aggregate size to help ensure that the material will have adequate and uniform application and wear properties. Accordingly, in the paving industry, determination of asphalt content and aggregate gradation in batches of asphalt concrete typically are critical quality assurance procedures.
Solvent extraction techniques have been widely used to determine asphalt content and aggregate gradation in asphalt concrete. According to these techniques, a sample of asphalt is weighed and then washed using a suitable solvent to remove the asphalt binder in the sample and leave a clean aggregate residue. The residue may then be weighed and compared to the prewashed weight of the sample to determine the asphalt content of the sample. The clean aggregate may also be sieved using a series of predetermined sieves to determine aggregate gradation.
Although solvent extraction techniques can effectively be used to determine asphalt content, they can have serious shortcomings. The solvent washing process typically is slow, a characteristic which undermines the utility of solvent extraction techniques in mass production environments in which rapid testing is desirable to ensure continuous quality control. The solvent washing process also tends to generate hazardous effluents which may pose a disposal problem, and traditionally employs chlorinated solvents traditionally which have been categorized as hazardous materials and accordingly have been banned in some governmental testing facilities. Alternative biodegradable solvents such as terpenes may be used, but tend to work in an even slower fashion than the chlorinated solvents they replace. Another alternative, the nuclear asphalt testing gauge, is an effective tool for measuring asphalt content but typically cannot perform aggregate gradation testing.
Promising alternative techniques which provide for both content and gradation analysis are pyrolysis techniques in which the asphalt binder in a sample of asphalt is burned off to leave an aggregate residue. Pyrolysis techniques are generally described in "Historical Development of Asphalt Content Determination by the Ignition Method," by Brown et al., and in "Solvent-Free, Nuclear-Free Determination of Asphalt Content and Gradation of Hot-Mix Asphalt Concrete, " by Todres et al., ASTM Journal of Testing and Evaluation, November 1994, 564-570. According to these techniques, a sample of asphalt concrete is placed in an oven or similar apparatus and heated to volatilize and combust the asphalt binder, thus separating the binder from the sample and leaving an aggregate residue. The temperature and other conditions at which pyrolysis occurs tend to be factors which strongly influence the accuracy of tests, as insufficient temperatures may not completely separate the binder and excessive temperatures can lead to aggregate loss and gradation changes induced by chemical changes in the aggregate and thermal shock. Several furnace-type apparatus have been developed for performing asphalt pyrolysis, including furnaces which incorporate an integral weighing scale in order to allow measurement of a sample of asphalt concrete during pyrolysis as described in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,081,046 to Schneider et. al.
The asphalt binder in asphalt concrete typically includes a significant proportion of low-end hydrocarbons and impurities which are difficult to completely combust. Thus, one of the most vexing problems associated with asphalt pyrolysis is dealing with the volume of noxious, high particulate content smoke typically generated by the combustion of the asphalt binder. Although this noxious smoke may be exhausted out of the testing furnace using a fan or similar device, the smoke generated by heating of an asphalt sample generally is too noxious to directly exhaust into a laboratory exhaust system or similar environment, as direct discharge may produce an unacceptable level of pollution and may foul the exhaust system of the site in which the furnace is installed.
Several techniques for dealing with the smoke problem have been proposed. For example, an analyzing furnace previously developed by Troxler Electronic Laboratories, Inc. of Research Triangle Park, N.C., assignee of the present application, includes an afterburning chamber which receives and treats smoke and other byproducts of asphalt pyrolysis produced within a main furnace chamber connected thereto, exhausting cleaner gases from the afterburning chamber into a plenum and out of the furnace via a blower mounted on the plenum. Another furnace design employs filters designed to filter combustion products created by combustion of an asphalt sample within a combustion chamber of a furnace, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,558,029 to Peake.
Although these approaches may help combust smoke generated by pyrolysis of an asphalt sample, they may not provide optimal combustion conditions and thus, may render inaccurate and nonuniform results. Variations in exhaust characteristics at installation sites may lead to variation in combustion conditions. For example, a specimen of hot-mix asphalt may be divided into several samples which may be processed in different furnaces, even different furnaces at different testing sites. Variable combustion conditions in any of the furnaces may lead to inaccurate results, and nonuniform combustion conditions may result in nonuniform results among the furnaces. Moreover, nonoptimal combustion may lead to deleterious side effects such as poor emissions quality, formation of soot deposits in the furnace and exhaust system, and gaseous discharges into the testing site which may be harmful to personnel and equipment. Afterburners and filters may trap or burn some pollutants which otherwise might be discharged, but still may not produce the combustion and exhaust characteristics needed to reduce pollution and unwanted backflow emissions to an acceptable level.

Adjustable apparatus for pyrolysis of a composite material and method of calibration therefor


The present invention relates to an ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus for radiating ultrasonic waves in a cross section of a subject by color Doppler scan, detecting the intensity of reflected echo, and brightness-modulating the intensity of the reflected echo, thereby obtaining a tomogram of the subject, and also for detecting a frequency-deviation (Doppler shift) of the reflected echo and detecting the direction and flow velocity of a blood flow in the subject, thereby displaying the blood flow two-dimensionally by coloring the blood flow portion in the tomogram in accordance with the detected flow velocity and direction. The apparatus of the present invention has a control means for controlling the scan-timings for B-mode scanning and CFM scanning independently, and thus, the frame rate for B-mode scanning and that for CFM scanning are controlled independently. The B-mode scanning frame rate can be controlled to be higher than CFM scanning frame rate. Therefore, the realtime following ability for displaying B-mode image is improved compared to the conventional color Doppler scan.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus for radiating ultrasonic waves in a cross section of a subject by color Doppler scan, detecting the intensity of the reflected echo, and brightness-modulating the intensity of the reflected echo, thereby obtaining a tomogram of the subject, and also for detecting a frequency-deviation (Doppler shift) of the reflected echo and detecting the direction and flow velocity of a blood flow in the subject, thereby displaying the blood flow two-dimensionally by coloring the blood flow portion in the tomogram in accordance with the detected flow velocity and direction.


A solar thermal power generator includes an inclined elongated boiler tube positioned in the focus of a solar concentrator for generating steam from water. The boiler tube is connected at one end to receive water from a pressure vessel as well as connected at an opposite end to return steam back to the vessel in a fluidic circuit arrangement that stores energy in the form of heated water in the pressure vessel. An expander, condenser, and reservoir are also connected in series to respectively produce work using the steam passed either directly (above a water line in the vessel) or indirectly (below a water line in the vessel) through the pressure vessel, condense the expanded steam, and collect the condensed water. The reservoir also supplies the collected water back to the pressure vessel at the end of a diurnal cycle when the vessel is sufficiently depressurized, so that the system is reset to repeat the cycle the following day. The circuital arrangement of the boiler tube and the pressure vessel operates to dampen flow instabilities in the boiler tube, damp out the effects of solar transients, and provide thermal energy storage which enables time shifting of power generation to better align with the higher demand for energy during peak energy usage periods.

Solar thermal power plants and systems using DSG processes are known for use in various applications, including for example powering a steam turbine and generating electricity. DSG systems typically use solar concentrators or collectors, such as parabolic trough collectors or dish collectors known in the art, to focus solar radiation onto a vessel or tube in which, for example, water is flowed or otherwise present, to heat the water into steam. In such systems, work is then typically produced by expanding the steam in an expander, such as a turbine, after which the working fluid may be condensed in a condenser for recirculation in the case of closed systems, or expelled in the case of open systems.
One example of a closed system solar power generator using a DSG-like process is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,391,100 to Smith, with a solar concentrator 40 directly illuminating water 11 contained in a globular boiler 10 by focusing sunlight through lens 44 of the boiler. Steam from this boiler then powers a turbine 25 to generate electricity. Spent steam from turbine 25 is then condensed into water at radiator 29 and condenser 30, and subsequently collected at reservoir 32. The higher elevation of the water in the reservoir relative to a second turbine 35 is used to turn the second turbine and generate electricity. Water emerging from the second turbine is then returned to the globular boiler through a check valve.
A more modern example of a solar thermal power system using a DSG process is discussed in the article "Direct Steam Generation in Solar Boilers" by L. Valenzuela et al, published in IEEE Control Systems Magazine. Here the authors describe the relatively complex control systems needed in all three approaches to DSG, the once-through mode, the injection mode, and the recirculation mode. In each case, concentrated sunlight is focused onto substantially horizontal tubular boilers that lie along the axis of a parabolic trough mirror. A mixture of gaseous and liquid phase water, i.e. steam, is produced and after super-heating to purely gas phase is provided to a steam turbine for the generation of electricity. According to these authors, "the investment costs and complexity of the once-through mode are lowest, and this mode has the best performance. On the other hand, the once-through mode is not easy to control, requiring a more complex control system." Indeed, these authors needed to implement a set of four control loops for the once-through mode.
The difficulty of controlling DSG systems stems from the combined effects of predictable variations in solar illumination through the diurnal cycle, the unpredictable variations produced by transients from passing clouds or other obscurations, and the effects of the fundamental two-phase fluid flow Ledinegg instability. As is known in the art, as heat is applied to a conventional boiler tube, there is a tendency for the boiling water to "chug and spit" in an irregular and unstable fashion as it boils. This fluid flow instability causes the familiar gurgling and sputtering noises often heard in coffee percolators. The combination of fluid flow instability and solar transients tends to have as a consequence the formation of potentially damaging "hot spots" along the boiler tube. The origin of this so-called Ledinegg instability is due to the tendency for a sudden, rapid increase in the liquid flow rate as bubbles of gas phase steam are produced and tend to propel uncontrolled "slugs" of liquid water at high speed along the flow direction.
Another issue known in the art is the lack of suitable thermal energy storage technology for DSG processes and systems In a presentation at the Parabolic Trough Workshop in Denver in 2007, "Overview on Direct Steam Generation (DSG) and Experience at the Plataforma Solar de Almeria (PSA)", Zarza states that a suitable thermal energy storage technology for DSG is still to be developed. One of the most significant motivations for the use of thermal energy storage in connection with a solar thermal power plant is that, whereas the maximum solar flux typically occurs at near noon, the maximum electric power consumption typically occurs about four hours later. The greatest burden on the electric power grid occurs during these times of greatest electricity consumption. This burden is especially great for the sunniest, hottest days of the summer months. The economic manifestation of this phenomenon is that the market value of electric power is greater during periods of peak need. For example, in the Mar. 8, 2007 publication entitled, "A Utility's Perspective, Procuring Renewable Energy" published by the Pacific Gas and Electric Company, the multiplier on the market value for electric power between the work day hours of noon and 8 p.m., for the months June through September, is described as being a factor of two. Thus, besides addressing the electric power needs in a more timely manner (when observing the demands on the power grid as a whole), there is in addition, great economic incentive (to the individual consumer) for the incorporation of inexpensive thermal energy storage for solar thermal power plants. In other words, for the individual consumer it is cheaper to produce/consume your own electricity during these peak times, than to buy it.
In summary, there is therefore a need for a DSG type solar thermal power generation system which provides a solution to the problems of solar field control under solar radiation transients and the related problem of the instability of two-phase flow inside the receiver tubes, as well as provides suitable thermal energy storage technology for DSG systems that enables time shifting of the available thermal energy to better align supply with demand.

Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC


A redoxcatalyst system capable of being used for free-radical emulsion polymerization of ethylenically unsaturated compounds, comprising at least one oxidizing agent and at least one reducing agent, said reducing agent comprising an at least bifunctional aldehyde having at least 3 carbon atoms which is completely masked as a bisulfite adduct.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a novel redox catalyst system, and a process for preparing dispersions by emulsion polymerization of vinyl compounds with the aid of this catalyst system. Furthermore, the present invention is directed to dispersions, and in particular, to those based on polyvinyl esters, which have been prepared with the aid of a catalyst system of the present invention and also to the use of the dispersions as water-resistant and formaldehyde-free adhesives for porous and semiporous substrates.
2. Description of the Related Art
Redox catalyst systems are widely used for the initiation of the free-radical emulsion polymerization of vinyl compounds. Their advantages compared with single-component thermally dissociative initiators include a short induction period and a low activation energy which allows polymerization at low temperature and results in high molecular weights of the polymers. Numerous combinations of redoxcatalyst systems have been described both in the scientific literature and in the patent literature. Frequently used redox pair combinations comprise the oxidizing agents hydrogen peroxide, benzoyl peroxide, alkyl hydroperoxides, peroxodisulfates on one hand. On the other hand, reducing agents such as transition metal ions may also be used. Example of reducing agents include Fe.sup.2+, carboxylic acids such as ascorbic acid or tartaric acid, sulfur compounds such as sodium hydrogen sulfite, zinc or sodium formaldehyde sulfoxylate, and the like. Comprehensive reviews of redox polymerizations may be found in the technical literature, for example by G. S. Misra and U. D. N. Bajpai in Prog. Polym. Sci. 8, 61-131 (1982).
For preparing homopolymeric and copolymeric polyvinyl- ester dispersions, for example for the adhesives sector, use is likewise frequently made of redox catalyst systems for the initiation of the polymerization. In particular, systems which are stabilized with protective colloids such as polyvinyl alcohol may be used. This is made clear by the documents DE-A 44 20 484, which discloses tert-butyl hydroperoxide/sodium formaldehyde sulfoxylate, EP-A 0 623 661, which discloses ammonium peroxodisulfate/Fe.sup.2+ /sodium formaldehyde sulfoxylate, and DE-A 39 42 628, EP-A 0 394 774 and DE-C 26 20 738 which all disclose tert-butyl hydroperoxide/sodium formaldehyde sulfoxylate. According to DE-C 26 20 738, the use of a redoxcatalyst system, viz., tert-butyl hydroperoxide/sodium formaldehyde sulfoxylate, offers the particular advantage of an improvement in the water resistance of the film derived from the dispersions. This improvement is achieved by means of a grafting reaction of the vinyl ester onto the protective colloid polyvinyl alcohol.
The use of redox catalyst systems for preparing vinyl acetate-ethylene emulsion copolymers in which the reducing component can be a bisulfite adduct of a carbonyl compound is generally known. Examples include a ketone, glyoxal or a glyoxal derivative such as methylglyoxal or else an adduct of various further sulfur compounds with glyoxal or methylglyoxal. DE-A 32 39 212 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,360,632 describe the preparation of lattices with the aid of a formaldehyde-free redoxcatalyst system. This catalyst system comprises an oxidizing agent such as tert-butyl hydroperoxide, and a water-soluble adduct of sodium hydrogen sulfite with a ketone having from 3 to 8 carbon atoms as reducing agent, such as acetone-sodium hydrogen sulfite. The monomer system preferably used comprises vinyl acetate, ethylene and further functional comonomers.
The documents DE-A 26 49 532, JP-A 55 709/77 and JP-A 99 096/85 relate to formaldehyde-free redoxcatalyst systems which contain, apart from an oxidizing agent, reaction products of glyoxal or methylglyoxal with reducing sulfur/oxygen compounds. Examples of reducing sulfur/oxygen compounds disclosed include alkali metal, ammonium or zinc salts of thiosulfuric acid, dithionous acid, disulfurous acid, sodium hydrogen sulfite or potassium hydrogen sulfite. Specific compounds used are alkali metal hydrogen sulfite adducts of glyoxal. The polymers concerned are vinyl acetate-ethylene copolymers which may contain further crosslinkable copolymers such as n-butoxymethylacrylamide. The products are suitable as formaldehyde-free binders for nonwovens and paper, but do not possess the desired degree with respect to water resistance can be achieved using glyoxal derivatives (See Comparative Example 1).
Furthermore, U.S. Pat. No. 3,438,941 discloses the use as a reducing agent of an adduct of sodium hydrogen sulfite and polyacrolein acidified to a pH of less than 1.5 using hydrochloric acid. These compounds are used in combination with an oxidizing mixture of ammonium persulfate and tert-butyl hydroperoxide, specifically for the emulsion polymerization of .alpha.,.beta.-unsaturated aldehydes such as acrolein. The adduct used as reducing agent simultaneously functions as stabilizer when correspondingly larger amounts are used. However, due to the low pH level, the polymerization conditions described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,438,941 are unsuitable for the polymerization of vinyl esters.
In addition, the relatively recent literature describes work on the development of redoxcatalyst systems for emulsion polymerization of vinyl esters in the presence of polyvinyl alcohol functioning as a protective colloid, particularly pure vinyl acetate. Bisulfite adducts of monofunctional carbonyl compounds are used as reducing components in combination with peroxodisulfates. In Pigment and Resin Technology, issue July/August, pp. 4-6, 17 (1993), R. M. Mohsen et al. describe the preparation of polyvinyl acetate dispersions stabilized with polyvinyl alcohol as adhesives with the aid of the redoxcatalyst system potassium peroxodisulfate/octanal (sodium hydrogen sulfite). A. S. Badran et al. describe emulsion polymerizations of vinyl acetate in the presence of polyvinyl alcohol with the aid of the various catalyst systems. Potassium peroxodisulfate/salicylaldehyde (sodium hydrogen sulfite) is described in Acta Polym. 42, 1 (1991). Potassium peroxodisulfate/ acetone(sodium hydrogen sulfite) is described in Acta Polym. 41, 187 (1990). Potassium peroxodisulfate/cyclohexanone (sodium hydrogen sulfite) is described in J. Polym. Sci. A 28, 411 (1990). Redoxcatalyst systems comprising the reducing agents benzaldehyde (sodium hydrogen sulfite), acetaldehyde-(sodium hydrogen sulfite) and (methyl propyl ketone)-(sodium hydrogen sulfite) are described by A. S. Badran et. al. in J. Appl. Polym. Sci 49, 187 (1993). A disadvantage of the use of monofunctional bisulf ite adducts as reducing agents in redox systems is that, as described above with respect to many other possible systems, such adducts are not capable of attaining the desired degree with respect to the water resistance in the gluing of wood (See Comparative Example 3).
Polyvinyl ester dispersions which are used as adhesives for semiporous and porous substrates are employed for water-resistant bonding in accordance with standards. Subsequent addition of various crosslinkers, can greatly improve the water resistance of the films derived from the polyvinyl ester dispersions, even to boiling water. In particular water resistance is increased in the presence of Lewis acids, compounds which can be complexed by the protective colloid, for example aluminum(III) salts, with the aqueous phase becoming acid. For example, masked polyfunctional aldehydes having at least 3 carbon atoms as taught by DE-A 44 20 484, which is non-prior art, can be used. In addition, the use of masked polyfunctional isocyanates as taught by EP-A 0 206 059, crosslinkable comonomers such as N-methylolacrylamide or related compounds as taught by DE-C 26 20 738, DE-A 39 42 628 and EP-A 0 394 774 or a combination of both measures as disclosed in DE-A 44 20 484 and EP-A 0 623 661 are possible.
In recent times, for toxicological reasons, efforts are being made in industry to avoid where possible the use of components which contain formaldehyde in free or bound form as depot formaldehyde which can be liberated in a crosslinking step. Examples of such components include formaldehyde resins, N-methylol(meth)acrylamide as monomer or sodium formaldehyde sulfoxylate as constituent of a redox catalyst system. This also applies to the adhesives sector and the glue sector.

Redox catalyst system for the initiation of emulsion polymerization


Methods, systems, apparatus, and computer program/software code products, operable in a computer graphics system designed to render images and to apply shading to images, enable the following: during rendering of an image, modifying the shading normal in the region of a corner of an object in the image, such that when shading is applied to the image, the shaded image is capable of providing to a human viewer, when viewing the corner in the image, the appearance or visual illusion of a rounded corner, wherein the modifying comprises: calculating an amount of modification to be applied to an original shading normal in the region of the corner to simulate the appearance of a given fillet radius R, the calculating comprising: interrogating surfaces within a distance R of the corner for their shading normal, and calculating a new normal that is a weighted blend between the shading normal of the original surface and the shading normal of the interrogated neighboring surface, thereby, by the shading effect, to simulate at render-time a rounding by varying the shading normal, creating a variation of the surface normal consistent with the appearance the object would have had, had it actually been rounded.

The use of computer graphics systems and software for computer graphics systems, particularly such systems and software adapted for the generation and rendering of three-dimensional images, continues to grow at an explosive rate, as demand from the motion picture industry and others increases.
Users of software for the realistic rendering of three-dimensional images demand the highest possible realism in the resulting images. Yet the modeling tools at their disposal tend to create model objects with an unrealistic mathematical precision, where every edge is completely sharp and angular. Edges in the "real world" are typically rounded or worn, if ever so slightly.
One solution to this problem has been to explicitly model these roundings as chamfers or fillets in the actual 3D model. Although this approach results in more natural looking edges, it also causes higher complexity, i.e., an increase in polygon count, and a much more complex model.
It would be desirable to provide methods and systems capable of rendering more realistic three-dimensional images, with the appearance of rounded corners or filleted edges, without significant increases in process complexity or storage requirements.

Computer graphics methods and systems for generating images with rounded corners


A bleed air duct joint insulation means is disclosed in which a leak vent comprises valve means.

Aircraft powered by jet engines commonly comprise bleed air systems that extract hot pressurised air from the engines for use in various functions around the aircraft such as de-icing systems, cabin pressurisation systems or various pneumatically actuated systems. The bleed air is usually both high temperature and high pressure and as a result requires careful management so as to avoid the associated hazards. Bleed air systems thus comprise one or more safety systems arranged, for example, to detect leakage of the bleed air. Such leakage represents a serious operational issue and generally requires immediate shutdown of the bleed air system and rectification prior to significant further operation of the aircraft. Therefore, it is important for safety systems that detect leakage of bleed air are accurate and robust.


An apparatus for measuring volume- or mass-flow of a medium flowing through a measuring tube in the direction of the measuring tube axis, and includes: a magnet system, which produces a magnetic field passing through the measuring tube essentially transversely to the measuring tube axis; at least one measuring electrode, which contacts the medium in a defined surface region; and a control/evaluation unit, which provides information concerning volume- or mass flow of the medium in the measuring tube on the basis of a measurement voltage induced in the at least one measuring electrode. At least the medium-contacting surface region of the at least one measuring electrode is manufactured of a chemically inert and electrochemically and mechanically resistant material.

Magneto-inductive flow measuring devices utilize the principle of electrodynamic induction for volumetric flow measurement: charge carriers of the medium moved perpendicularly to a magnetic field induce a measurement voltage in measuring electrodes likewise arranged essentially perpendicularly to the flow direction of the medium. The measurement voltage induced in the measuring electrodes is proportional to the flow velocity of the medium averaged over the cross section of the measuring tube; it is, thus, proportional to volume flow. The measurement voltage is usually tapped via a measuring electrode pair, which is arranged in the region of maximum magnetic field strength, where, thus, the maximum measurement voltage is to be expected. The measuring electrodes are coupled with the medium either galvanically or capacitively.
In the case of application of medium-contacting, measuring electrodes, there form, at the interface between the metal measuring electrode and the medium flowing through the measuring tube, galvanic elements, which cause an electrochemical disturbance potential. This electrochemical disturbance potential varies over time, since it depends on different, changing, environmental conditions, such as temperature, pressure, composition of the medium, material of the measuring electrodes and material of the measuring tube. Thus, for example, the composition of the surface of the measuring electrodes can change as a result of formation of a passivating layer or as a result of corrosion. The varying electrochemical disturbance potential superimposes itself on the actual measurement voltage proportional to the flow velocity of the medium flowing through the measuring tube. It is clear, that an electrochemical potential changing as a function of time influences negatively the accuracy of measurement of a conventional, magnetically inductive, flow measuring device. Methods are, therefore, needed, which eliminate these disturbance signals. It is especially critical, when the medium to be measured is a medium having a small electrical conductivity flowing through the measuring tube with a relatively high flow velocity. Due to the influence of the relatively large disturbance voltage on the measurement voltage, there is then the danger, that the measurement voltage will disappear in the noise, whereby a reliable and repeatable, flow measurement becomes impossible.


A current-mode analog-to-digital converter includes: a current input node; a current-mode sample and hold circuit configured to output a steady source of electrical current having an analog value proportional to a sampled analog value of an electrical current at the current input node; and at least one current comparator that compares the electrical current output by the current-mode sample and hold circuit to at least one reference current to produce a digital representation of the sampled analog value of the electrical current at the current input node.

Historically, engineers have been trained to design circuits in terms of voltage. While analyzing circuits, a designer typically concentrates on the voltage at each node. When doing integrated circuit analysis, designers look at the voltage change on the output due to a voltage change on the Input. Circuit simulators also follow this approach by constructing matrices of nodes to solve for node voltages. On the test bench, voltage sources are used to operate circuits under test, and test equipment measures voltage.
Over the years, integrated circuits have seen incredible increases in density. With each reduction in feature size, there has also been a reduction in optimal operating voltage. These decreases in operating voltage have required reductions in threshold voltages in an attempt to maintain noise margins. Analog circuits, particularly analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) have suffered from this reduction, and are typically designed with higher voltage transistors and operating voltages than are available to digital designers.
In a typical voltage mode ADC, the voltage being sampled is stored on a capacitor. It can be shown that the minimum size of the capacitor storing the voltage must be >kT/(Vn^2), where k is Boltzman's constant, T is temperature in Kelvin, and Vn is the size of the largest noise signal, usually less than ¼ of the ADC's least significant bit (LSB), that can be tolerated to give a low probability of error. As the operating voltage is reduced due to newer processes, the minimum capacitor size increases. This increases both the size of the circuit and the power used.
The accuracy of a voltage mode circuit, including a voltage mode ADC, is determined by the size of the capacitance used to store the voltage. The speed of a voltage mode circuit is consequently affected by circuit capacitance and parasitic capacitance. The nodes of a voltage mode circuit must change voltage during operation of the circuit over a range that is often approximately the entire voltage range of the power supply voltage. Changing the voltage requires that the circuit and parasitic capacitances must charge and discharge. Smaller integrated circuit geometries have been able to reduce circuit capacitance, at the cost of smaller supply voltages, which has a negative impact on noise margins.
Throughout the drawings, identical reference numbers designate similar, but not necessarily identical, elements.

Current mode analog-to-digital converter


A distorted image (S) is acquired through a photographing operation using a wide-angle lens or an omnidirectional mirror. A cutting reference point (P) for cutting a partial cut region from the distorted image is set. The cut region is set according to the cutting reference point. An eye vector (n) corresponding to the cutting reference point is set with a photographing viewpoint of the distorted image as a base point. The cut region is shifted by a predetermined distance from the cutting reference point. The shifted cut region is transformed through image transformation to transform the distorted image into a planar regular image (T′) according to the eye vector. The shifted cut region (E′) is transformed.

A camera using a wide-angle lens or an omnidirectional mirror is used to allow a driver of a vehicle to check obstacles or various situations. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a rear view display device that includes a wide-angle lens camera provided at a low position of a rear side of a vehicle, a narrow-angle lens camera provided at a high position of the rear side of the vehicle, and a vehicle state detection unit configured to switch and display a necessary image according to a state of the vehicle.

Image processing device, image processing method, program for image processing device, recording medium, and image display device


Device and method for driving a plasma display panel, wherein scanning pulses are progressively applied to the plurality of scanning/sustain electrode lines divided and driving in two or more than two blocks such that the scanning pulses are overlapped to each other, and first data pulses each with a first logic value and second data pulses each with a second logic value each having a data pulse width different from the first data pulse, are progressively applied to the plurality of address electrode lines, for causing address discharges at the plurality of discharge cells selectively, thereby permitting fast addressing, and minimizing power consumption.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to device and method for driving a plasma display panel, and more particularly to device and method for driving a plasma display panel, which permits fast addressing, and minimizes power consumption.
2. Background of the Related Art
The plasma display panel (hereafter called as 'PDP') is a display using a visible light emitted from a fluorescent material excited by a UV ray generated by gaseous discharge. The PDP has advantages in that the PDP is thinner and lighter than a cathode ray tube (CRT) that has been major displaying means up to now, and facilitates a large sized high resolution picture.
FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of a discharge cell of a related art 3 polar AC surface discharge type PDP.
Referring to FIG. 1, the discharge cell is provided with scanning/sustaining electrodes 12Y and common sustaining electrode 12Z on a bottom of an upper substrate 10, and an address electrode 20X formed on a lower substrate 18 perpendicular to the scanning/sustaining electrodes 12Y and common sustaining electrode 12Z.
There are an upper dielectric layer 14 and a protection film 16 stacked under the scanning/sustaining electrodes 12Y and common sustaining electrode 12Z formed parallel to each other of the upper substrate 10. The upper dielectric layer 14 accumulates wall charges generated at a time of plasma discharge, and the protection film 16 formed of, in general, MgO prevents the upper dielectric layer 14 suffering from damage caused by sputtering of the plasma discharge, and enhances a secondary electron emission efficiency.
There are a lower dielectric layer 22, a barrier 24 on the lower substrate 18 having the address electrode 20X formed thereon, and there is the fluorescent material 26 coated on surfaces of the lower dielectric layer 22 and the barrier 24. The barrier 24 is parallel to the address electrode 20X for preventing the UV ray and the visible light from leaking to adjacent discharge cells, and the fluorescent material 26 is excited by the UV ray emitted at the time of plasma discharge, to emit one of visible lights of red, green, and blue. There is an inert gas injected in a discharge space between the barriers for gaseous discharge.
FIG. 2 illustrates electrode arrangement of a PDP having the discharge cell in FIG. 1.
Referring to FIG. 2, the discharge cells, arranged in a form of a matrix, are formed at crossing parts of scanning/sustaining electrode lines Y1–Ym, common sustaining electrode lines Z1–Zm, and address electrode lines X1–Xn.
A PDP driving device for driving the discharge cells is provided with a scanning/sustaining electrode driving part for driving the scanning/sustaining electrode lines Y1–Ym, a common sustaining electrode driving part for driving the common sustaining electrode lines Z1–Zm, and an address electrode driving part for driving the address electrode lines X1–Xn.
The scanning/sustaining electrode lines Y1–Ym are driven progressively, the common sustaining electrode lines Z1–Zm are driven in common, and the address electrode lines X1–Xn are driven divided into odd numbered lines and even numbered lines.
The 3 polar AC surface discharge type PDP divides one frame into a plurality of sub-fields having different number of discharges for expressing gray levels of a picture. For an example, when it is intended to display a picture of 256 gray levels by using 8 bit video data, one frame period (about 16.7msec) corresponding to 1/60 seconds is divided into 8 sub-fields (SF1–SF8) as shown in FIG. 3.
Each of the 8 sub-fields (SF1–SF8) is divided into a reset period, an address period, and a sustain period, wherein while the reset period and the address period are identical for all the sub-fields, the sustain period increases at a ratio of 1:2:4:8: . . . 128 for the sub-fields. The reset period is a period for initializing the discharge cell, the address period is a period for scanning whole screen progressively and writing a data, and the sustain period is a period for sustaining light emitting states of the cells having the data written thereon.
FIG. 4 illustrates waveforms of a related art method for driving a PDP.
Referring to FIG. 4, after all the discharge cells are initialized by discharge in the reset period (not shown), scanning pulses SP are applied to the scanning/sustaining electrode lines Y1–Ym progressively in the address period, and data pulses DP synchronous to the scanning pulses SP are supplied to the address electrode lines X1–Xn.
In this instance, the common sustaining electrode lines Z1–Zm have a preset level of DC voltage supplied thereto, for stable causing stable address discharge between the address electrode lines X1–Xn and scanning/sustain electrode lines Y1–Ym.
Then, in the sustain period, the scanning/sustain electrode lines Y1–Ym and the common sustaining electrode lines Z1–Zm have sustain pulses SUSPy and SUSPz supplied thereto alternately, for light emission of the discharge cells selected during the address period.
However, if the address period is prolonged, the sustain period becomes very short to drop a luminance in a high definition PDP that has an increased number of scanning/sustain electrode lines Y.
If widths of the scanning pulses and the data pulses are reduced for making the address period short, there can be miss-writing and mal-discharge because an adequate discharge current can not flow to the scanning/sustain electrode lines Y1–Ym the scanning pulses are applied thereto.
In order to solve such a problem, a driving waveform is suggested, which uses the address driving part for generating main data pulses and supplementary data pulses. A related art driving waveform in FIG. 5 will be explained.
When a main data pulse MDP is applied to a plurality of adjacent discharge cells, one supplementary data pulse ADP having a width Tad smaller than a width Td of the main data pulse MDP is applied to parts between the main data pulses MDP as shown in FIG. 5 'A'. When any one of the discharge cells has the main data pulse applied thereto, the supplementary data pulses ADP are applied to parts in front and rear of the main data pulse MDP as shown in FIG. 5 'B' and 'C'. When no main data pulse is applied to the discharge cell, no supplementary data pulse ADP is applied.
The scanning pulse Vs progressively applied to the scanning/sustain electrode lines has a main scanning pulse MSP with a width (Tad+Td=Ts) of the main data pulse MDP and the supplementary data pulse ADP, and a supplementary scanning pulse with a width (Tad=Tas) of the supplementary data pulse ADP.
At the end, the driving waveform provides an effect of a prolonged address discharge period because the address discharge is occurred for Tad+Td+Tad time period at the discharge cell the main data pulse MDP is supplied thereto, and can reduce the address time period as much as the scanning pulses Vs supplied to the scanning/sustain electrode line Y are overlapped with each other for a preset time period.
However, the address driving part that supplies both the main data pulse MDP and the supplementary data pulse ADP has an increased power consumption as the two data pulses MDP and ADP are generated, independently.

Device and method for driving plasma display panel


A method for refining and casting metals and metal alloys includes melting and refining a metallic material and then casting the refined molten material by a nucleated casting technique. The refined molten material is provided to the atomizing nozzle of the nucleated casting apparatus through a transfer apparatus adapted to maintain the purity of the molten refined material. An apparatus including a melting and refining apparatus, a transfer apparatus, and a nucleated casting apparatus, in serial fluid communication, also is disclosed.

Not applicable.
Not applicable.
The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for refining and casting metal and metal alloy ingots and other preforms. The present invention more particularly relates to an apparatus and a method useful for refining and casting large diameter ingots and other preforms of metals and metal alloys prone to segregation during casting, and wherein the preforms formed by the apparatus and method may exhibit minimal segregation and lack significant melt-related defects. The apparatus and method of the invention find particular application in, for example, the refinement and casting of complex nickel-based superalloys, such as alloy 706 and alloy 718, as well as certain titanium alloys, steels, and cobalt-base alloys that are prone to segregation when cast by conventional, state-of-the-art methods. The present invention is also directed to preforms and other articles produced by the method and/or apparatus of the present invention.
In certain critical applications, components must be manufactured from large diameter metal or metal alloy preforms exhibiting minimal segregation and which are substantially free of melt-related defects such as white spots and freckles. (For ease of reference, the term xe2x80x9cmetallic materialxe2x80x9d is used herein to refer collectively to unalloyed metals and to metal alloys.) These critical applications include use of metal components as rotating components in aeronautical or land-based turbines and in other applications in which metallurgical defects may result in catastrophic failure of the component. So that preforms from which these components are produced are free of deleterious non-metallic inclusions, the molten metallic material must be appropriately cleaned or refined before being cast into a preform. If the metallic materials used in such applications are prone to segregation when cast, they are typically refined by a xe2x80x9ctriple meltxe2x80x9d technique which combines, sequentially, vacuum induction melting (VIM), electroslag remelting (ESR), and vacuum arc remelting (VAR). Metallic materials prone to segregation, however, are difficult to produce in large diameters by VAR melting, the last step in the triple melt sequence, because it is difficult to achieve a cooling rate that is sufficient to minimize segregation. Although solidification microsegregation can be minimized by subjecting cast ingots to lengthy homogenization treatments, such treatments are not totally effective and may be costly. In addition, VAR often will introduce macro-scale defects, such as white spots, freckles, center segregation, etc., into the ingots. In some cases, large diameter ingots are fabricated into single components, so VAR-introduced defects cannot be selectively removed prior to component fabrication. Consequently, the entire ingot or a portion of the ingot may need to be scrapped. Thus, disadvantages of the triple melt technique may include large yield losses, lengthy cycle times, high materials processing costs, and the inability to produce large-sized ingots of segregation-prone metallic materials of acceptable metallurgical quality.
One known method for producing high quality preforms from melts of segregation prone metallic materials is spray forming, which is generally described in, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,325,906 and 5,348,566. Spray forming is essentially a xe2x80x9cmoldlessxe2x80x9d process using gas atomization to create a spray of droplets of liquid metal from a stream of molten metal. The process parameters of the spray forming technique are adjusted such that the average fraction of solid within the atomized droplets at the instant of impact with a collector surface is sufficiently high to yield a high viscosity deposit capable of assuming and maintaining a desired geometry. High gas-to-metal mass ratios (one or greater) are required to maintain the heat balance critical to proper solidification of the preform.
Spray forming suffers from a number of disadvantages that make its application to the formation of large diameter preforms problematic. An unavoidable byproduct of spray forming is overspray, wherein the metal misses the developing preform altogether or solidifies in flight without attaching to the preform. Average yield losses due to overspray in spray forming can be 20-30%. Also, because relatively high gas-to-metal ratios are required to maintain the critical heat balance necessary to produce the appropriate solids fraction within the droplets on impact with the collector or developing preform, the rapid solidification of the material following impact tends to entrap the atomizing gas, resulting in the formation of gas pores within the preform.
A significant limitation of spray forming preforms from segregation prone metallic materials is that preforms of only limited maximum diameter can be formed without adversely affecting microstructure and macrostructure. Producing larger spray formed preforms of acceptable quality requires increasingly greater control of the local temperature of the spray to ensure that a semi-liquid spray surface layer is maintained at all times. For example, a relatively cooler spray may be desirable near the center of the preform, while a progressively warmer spray is desired as the spray approaches the outer, quicker cooling areas of the preform. The effective maximum diameter of the preform is also limited by the physics of the spray forming process. With a single nozzle, the largest preforms possible have a maximum diameter of approximately 12-14 inches. This size limitation has been established empirically due to the fact that as the diameter of the preform increases, the rotational speed of the surface of the preform increases, increasing the centrifugal force experienced at the semi-liquid layer. As the diameter of the preform approaches the 12 inch range, the increased centrifugal force exerted on the semi-liquid layer tends to cause the layer to be thrown from the preform face.
Accordingly, there are significant drawbacks associated with certain known techniques applied in the refining and casting of preforms, particularly large diameter preforms, from segregation prone metallic materials. Thus, a need exists for an improved apparatus and method for refining and casting segregation prone metals and metal alloys.
In order to address the above-described need, the present invention provides a method of refining and casting a preform including the steps of providing a consumable electrode of a metallic material and then melting and refining the electrode to provide a molten refined material. At least a portion of the molten refined material passes through a passage that is protected from contamination by contact with oxygen in the ambient air. The passage preferably is constructed of a material that will not react with the molten refined material. A droplet spray of the molten refined material is formed by impinging a gas on a flow of the molten refined material emerging from the passage. The droplet spray is deposited within a mold and solidified to a preform. The preform may be processed to provide a desired article such as, for example, a component adapted for rotation in an aeronautical or land-based turbine.
The step of melting and refining the consumable electrode may consist of at least one of electroslag remelting the consumable electrode and vacuum arc remelting the consumable electrode to provide the molten refined material. The passage through which the molten refined material then passes may be a passage formed through a cold induction guide. At least a portion of the molten refined alloy passes through the cold induction guide and is inductively heated within the passage. In less demanding applications, e.g., applications in which some small level of oxide contaminants in the alloy can be tolerated, a cold induction guide need not be used. Components used in such less demanding applications include, for example, static components of aircraft turbine engines. In cases in which a cold induction guide is not used, the passage may be an unheated passage protected from the atmosphere and including walls composed of a refractory material. The passage may be adapted to protect the molten refined material from undesirable impurities. The molten refined material emerging from the passage is then solidified to a preform as noted above.
The present invention also addresses the above-described need by providing an apparatus for refining and casting an alloy. The apparatus includes a melting and refining apparatus that includes: at least one of an electroslag remelting apparatus and a vacuum arc remelting apparatus; a transfer apparatus (such as, for example, a cold induction guide) in fluid communication with the melting and refining apparatus; and a nucleated casting apparatus in fluid communication with the transfer apparatus. A consumable electrode of a metallic material introduced into the melting and refining apparatus is melted and refined, and the molten refined material passes to the nucleated casting apparatus via a passage formed through the transfer apparatus. In the case where the transfer apparatus is a cold induction guide, at least a portion of the refined material is retained in molten form in the passage of the cold induction guide by inductive heating.
When casting a metallic material by certain embodiments of the method of the present invention, the material need not contact the oxide refractories used in the melting crucibles and pouring nozzles utilized in conventional casting processes. Thus, the oxide contamination that occurs on spalling, erosion, and reaction of such refractory materials may be avoided.
The electroslag remelting apparatus that may be a part of the refining and casting apparatus of the present invention includes a vessel having an aperture therein, an electric power supply in contact with the vessel, and an electrode feed mechanism configured to advance a consumable electrode into the vessel as material is melted from the electrode during the electroslag remelting procedure. A vacuum arc remelting apparatus differs from an electroslag remelting apparatus in that the consumable electrode is melted in a vessel by means of a DC arc under partial vacuum, and the molten alloy droplets pass to the transfer apparatus of the apparatus of the invention without first contacting a slag. Although vacuum arc remelting does not remove microscale inclusions to the extent of electroslag remelting, it has the advantages of removing dissolved gases and minimizing high vapor pressure trace elements in the electrode material.
The cold induction guide that may be a part of the casting and refining apparatus of the invention generally includes a melt collection region that is in direct or indirect fluid communication with the aperture of the vessel of the melting and refining apparatus. The cold induction guide also includes a transfer region defining the passage, which terminates in an orifice. At least one electrically conductive coil may be associated with the transfer region and may be used to inductively heat material passing through the passage. One or more coolant circulation passages also may be associated with the transfer region to allow for cooling of the inductive coils and the adjacent wall of the passage.
The nucleated casting apparatus of the casting and refining apparatus of the invention includes an atomizing nozzle in direct or indirect fluid communication with the passage of the transfer apparatus. An atomizing gas supply is in communication with the nozzle and forms a droplet spray from a flow of a melt received from the transfer apparatus. A mold, which includes a base and side wall to which the preform conforms, is disposed adjacent to the atomizing nozzle, and the position of the mold base relative to the atomizing nozzle may be adjustable.
The method and apparatus of the invention allow a refined melt of a metallic material to be transferred to the nucleated casting apparatus in molten or semi-molten form and with a substantially reduced possibility of recontamination of the melt by oxide or solid impurities. The nucleated casting technique allows for the formation of fine grained preforms lacking substantial segregation and melt-related defects associated with other casting methods. By associating the refining and casting features of the invention via the transfer apparatus, large or multiple consumable electrodes may be electroslag remelted or vacuum arc remelted to form a continuous stream of refined molten material that is nucleation cast into a fine grained preform. In that way, preforms of large diameter may be conveniently cast from metallic materials prone to segregation or that are otherwise difficult to cast by other methods. Conducting the method of the invention using large and/or consumable electrodes also makes it possible to cast large preforms in a continuous manner.
Accordingly, the present invention also is directed to preforms produced by the method and/or apparatus of the invention, as well as articles such as, for example, components for aeronautical or land-based turbines, produced by processing the preforms of the present invention. The present invention also is directed to preforms and ingots of segregation prone alloys of 12 inches or more in diameter and which lack significant melt-related defects. Such preforms and ingots of the invention may be produced by the method and apparatus of the present invention with levels of segregation characteristic of smaller diameter VAR or ESR ingots of the same material. Such segregation prone alloys include, for example, alloy 706, alloy 718, alloy 720, Rene 88, and other nickel-based superalloys.
The reader will appreciate the foregoing details and advantages of the present invention, as well as others, upon consideration of the following detailed description of embodiments of the invention. The reader also may comprehend such additional advantages and details of the present invention upon carrying out or using the invention.

Refining and casting apparatus and method


A method providing enhanced heat integration in isomerization processes having an isomerization reactor operating at a temperature less than about 232.degree. C. (450.degree. F.) and an adsorption zone operating at a temperature greater than about 260.degree. C. (500.degree. F.) has been developed. The method begins with flowing a fresh feed stream containing normal and non-normal hydrocarbons to either the isomerization reactor or the adsorption zone. A variable mass flow desorption effluent containing at least normal hydrocarbons is flowed to the isomerization reactor to form a reactor effluent containing normal hydrocarbons and isomerized non-normal hydrocarbons. The reactor effluent is cooled and separated into an adsorber feed stream and a hydrogen purge gas which are each conducted to an adsorption zone. In the adsorption zone, the normal hydrocarbons are adsorbed and the non-normal hydrocarbons are withdrawn and collected. The normal hydrocarbons are then desorbed from the adsorption zone using the hydrogen purge gas to produce the desorption effluent. The adsorber feed stream, the hydrogen purge gas, or both, are heat exchanged with the desorption effluent so that the desorption effluent flowing into the reactor is at about the operating temperature of the reactor and the adsorber feed stream, the hydrogen purge gas, or both, are partially heated. The partially heated adsorber feed stream, hydrogen purge gas, or both, are further heated using a controlled variable heat providing stream such as a steam or hot oil stream so that the temperature of the adsorber feed stream and hydrogen purge gas flowing into the adsorption zone are closer to the operating temperature of the adsorption zone.

Hydrocarbon isomerization processes are widely used to convert normal hydrocarbons to more valuable non-normal hydrocarbons. The more valuable non-normal hydrocarbons may be used as gasoline blending components to boost the octane number of the gasoline or as intermediates for such oxygenate products as methyl tertiary butyl ether, ethyl tertiary butyl ether, and tertiary amyl ethyl ether. One class of vapor phase hydrocarbon isomerization processes uses adsorption technology to remove non-isomerized normal hydrocarbons from the isomerization reactor effluent. The adsorbed normal hydrocarbons are desorbed using hydrogen and recycled to the isomerization reactor. The overall production of the process is enhanced by keeping reactants in circulation within the process until the desired products are formed. Typically this class of isomerization processes is referred to as total isomerization processes, or TIP. Detailed descriptions of variations of this isomerization technique may be found in Crusher, N. A. In Handbook of Petroleum Refining Processes 2.sup.nd ed.; Meyers, R. A. Ed.; McGraw-Hill: New York, 1997; pp 9.29-9.39, U.S. Pat. No. 4,210,771, U.S. Pat. No. 4,709,117, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,929,799 which are all incorporated by reference.
As with most processes, significant operational costs to be considered in total isomerization processes include the cost of utilities. Innovations to reduce the utilities' costs are continuously sought and those that are successful can greatly improve the economics of the process. Heat integration is one technique used to reduce utilities' costs. U.S. Pat. No. 4,210,771 discloses using specific heat integration in an isomerization process such as described above. The reference discloses a variable fresh feed that is combined with the desorption effluent from an adsorbent bed used to adsorb normal hydrocarbons. The combined streams are then flowed to an isomerization reactor. Before the adsorbed normal hydrocarbons elute from the adsorbent bed, an adsorption effluent containing non-normal hydrocarbon product is withdrawn from the adsorbent bed. The adsorption effluent is heat exchanged with the fresh feed to partially heat the fresh feed before it is combined with the desorption effluent and introduced into the reactor.
Utility consumption and therefore cost has also been reduced by new catalysts developed for use in the isomerization reactor; see U.S. Pat. No. 5,036,035 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,120,898 both of which are incorporated by reference. Traditional temperatures in the isomerization reactor have been in the range of 245.degree. C. to 370.degree. C., but newer catalysts are efficient at significantly lower temperatures such as from about 70.degree. C. to about 250.degree. C.; see U.S. Pat. No. 5,120,898, incorporated by reference. However, current adsorbents used in the adsorption zone require that the adsorption zone continue to be operated at the higher temperatures in order to prevent capillary condensation in the adsorbent pores.
The newer catalysts and the resulting temperature variation between the adsorption zone and the isomerization reactor have provided the opportunity for enhanced heat integration. The temperature of the stream carrying normal hydrocarbons from the adsorption zone to the isomerization reactor, the desorption effluent, must be reduced from the operating temperature of the adsorption zone to the operating temperature of the isomerization reactor while at the same time, the reactor effluent is cooled and separated to form an adsorber feed stream and a hydrogen purge gas each of which must be increased to that of the adsorption zone. The present invention reduces the utility costs of the overall process through heat exchanging the adsorber feed and/or the hydrogen purge gas with the desorption effluent. However, because the desorption effluent is not a constant mass flow stream, traditional heat exchanging techniques are insufficient. The present invention requires traditional heat exchanging techniques to be used in conjunction with a variable steam or hot oil flow or in conjunction with a surge drum.

Total isomerization process with enhanced heat integration


In order to take into account the effect of load resistance applied to an electromagnetic field in analyzing an electromagnetic wave oscillator, the present invention arranges a resistance equivalent to the load resistance in the analytical region, and converts a voltage applied to the load and the current flowing therein into an electric field component and a magnetic field component to analyze the electromagnetic field distribution of the entire analytical region. The motion of an electrical charge is thus analyzed taking into account a force applied to the electric charge by the electromagnetic field distribution. This compound analysis of both the electric charge motion and the electromagnetic field is alternately and repeatedly performed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electromagnetic field analyzer for electromagnetic wave oscillators, such as klystons and magnetrons, and to a method of analyzing an electromagnetic field.
2. Description of the Related Art
A general method of analyzing the motion of an electric charge (or electron) in an electromagnetic field is known. One such analytical method includes a method for analyzing the trajectory of the electric charge in an electromagnetic field not changing with respect to time (N. J. Diserens, "A space charge beam option for the PE2D and TOSCA packages", IEEE Transactions on Magnetics, vol. Mag-18, No. 2, March, 1982).
Also, another analytical method is known which is used to analyze the operation of electromagnetic wave oscillators. In this method, an electromagnetic field that is changing with respect to time is analyzed every moment in an unloaded condition. The results are used to analyze the motion of the electric charge therein (J. Rodney, M. Vaughan, "A model for calculation of magnetron performance", IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices, vol. ED-20, No. 9, September, 1973).
However, in the above-mentioned methods, no electromagnetic field analysis can be performed taking into account the effect of the load resistance applied to the electromagnetic wave oscillators when operated. That is, load resistance when the electromagnetic wave oscillator is operated affects the motion of the electric charge in the oscillator. Such phenomenon cannot also be analyzed.

Electromagnetic field analyzer for devices in which an electromagnetic field is present near a conductor and an electric charge moves in the electromagnetic field, and method of analyzing an electromagnetic field

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A method and apparatus for use in read/write operations by a processor that reads and writes information in first and second address formats. The method and apparatus include a memory and a memory mapper for remapping according to a predetermined scheme those memory fragments not containing information stored in the first address format. Memory fragments are thus accessible to the processor for reading and writing information in the second address format. Such remapping operation results in the memory fragments appearing logically contiguous. In the preferred embodiment, the first address format is an x-y address format and the second address format is a linearly addressable format. An alternative embodiment discloses the use of a second memory for reading and writing information in the second address format. In that embodiment, the memory mapper remaps the memory fragments to appear logically contiguous with said second memory. The invention finds particular utility in conjunction with a graphics processor system. In such a system, the memory mapper is a programmable array logic device and the memory is VRAM memory. In certain situations it is preferred to remap that portion of the memory where information is to be stored in the first address format so that the first information signal is stored in locations which are physically contiguous.

Computer graphics products are now available which allow the researcher to study or view various types of data on a display screen. Such graphic systems typically incorporate a graphics processing unit (GPU) in conjunction with several types of memory as well as various latches, buffers and transceivers. The graphics system is generally utilized in relation to a host processor. The host processor generates the "raw data" which the graphics system places into a desirable video format for display purposes.
One such system has been developed in relation to the TMS34020 graphics processor manufactured and sold by Texas Instruments Corporation of Dallas, Tex. In that graphics display system, the GPU is connected via latching transceivers and buffers to separate video memory, dynamic program memory and static interface memory. The video memory includes a series of VRAMs arranged for parallel reception of display information generated by the GPU. The data stored in video memory is placed in serial form by way of a serial register and operated upon by a so-called palette device prior to final provision to a video device. The program memory is described as including a series of dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips. The video memory is arranged in an x-y addressable format while the program memory is arranged for linear addressing. The program memory is intended for program execution information.
The problem with such graphics display systems is that not only are multiple memories provided for different address formatted information, but typically a good portion of the VRAM memory is wasted. As used herein, the term "display memory" refers to that portion of the memory which is utilized to store display type information and the term "offscreen memory" is used to refer to that portion of memory contained in the video memory which does not contain display information. Consider for the moment a 1280.times.1024 resolution display which utilizes eight bits per pixel. Such a display would most likely use two megabytes of VRAM in order to store display information in an x-y addressable block. Such a video memory will result in approximately 0.75 megabytes of useless offscreen memory. In the past, such memory has been used for x-y addressable purposes such as font storage, rectangular blits, etc. Consequently, the use of multiple memories with the resulting waste of offscreen memory is both inefficient and costly. Additionally, the use of dynamic ram in the program memory is not without its own difficulties, for example the use of multiplex addresses. See for example P. Horowitz, et al., The Art of Electronics (2nd Edition), New York, Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge, 1989, p. 813-816.
It is noted that the TMS 34020 does support a so-called packed pixel array scheme by providing a midline reload capability which results in a contiguous unused memory beginning at the address after the last pixel. Using such a scheme, it may be possible to utilize the remaining memory for other purposes. Unfortunately, several problems result from such use. A strong penalty in graphics performance is incurred if the screen pitch is not a power of two. For example if the screen pitch were 1280, the packed pixel array scheme results in a 33% reduction in speed performance. Speed performance is worse if the screen pitch is not a sum of two numbers each of which are a power of two. Additionally, the packed pixel array scheme provides no mechanism for using unused portions of the video memory in a manner which is contiguous to any system memory.
Consequently, a need exists for a graphics system which maximizes memory usage, but yet is flexible enough to permit the use of additional memory devices.

Method and apparatus for the mapping of physically non-contiguous memory fragments to be linearly addressable


A plasma display apparatus and a method of driving the same are provided. The plasma display apparatus comprises a plasma display panel, a scan driver, and a data driver. The plasma display panel comprises a scan electrode, a sustain electrode, a first address electrode, and a second address electrode. The scan driver supplies a pulse to the scan electrode between a reset period and an address period. The data driver supplies a data pulse to the first address electrode and the second address electrode at different points of time.

1. Field
This document relates to a plasma display apparatus and a method of driving the same.
2. Related Art
In general, a plasma display apparatus has a plasma display panel, and drivers for supplying driving signals to electrodes of the plasma display panel.
In the plasma display panel, a barrier rib formed between a front substrate and a rear substrate forms one unit cell. Each cell is filled with an inert gas containing a main discharge gas, such as neon (Ne), helium (He), and a mixed gas of Ne+He, and a small amount of xeon.
When discharge is generated as a high frequency voltage is applied to electrodes, the inert gas generates vacuum ultraviolet rays. The vacuum ultraviolet rays emit phosphors formed between the barrier ribs, so that images are implemented. The plasma display apparatus can be made light and thin and thus has been in the spotlight as next-generation display devices.
If the drivers of the plasma display apparatus supply the driving signals to the electrodes of the plasma display panel, wall charges are formed on the electrodes of the plasma display panel. Images are displayed by wall voltage formed by the wall charges and external voltage supplied to the electrodes.

Plasma display apparatus and driving method thereof