A low pressure liquid chromatographic cartridge is provided having a tubular polymer container adapted to receive a chromatographic packing material. The container has an outlet port located at a downstream end of the container and container threads formed on an upstream end of the container. A polymer cap having cap threads located on the cap threadingly engage the container threads. An inlet port is located on an upstream end of the cap. A flange depends from the cap and mates with the lip of the container to form a fluid tight seal between the polymer cap and container suitable for use in low pressure liquid chromatography. A locking tab on a skirt of the cap engages a recess on the container when the seal engages the cap and container to lock the cap in position relative to the container. Alternatively, continuous screw threads on the cap and container may hold the parts together.

This invention relates to method and apparatus involving cartridges for use in flash chromatography and low pressure liquid chromatography equipment.
Chromatographic analysis passes fluids through columns containing specially treated sorbent which allows the chemicals in the fluid to be eluted at different times and thus form separated peaks on a chromatogram. In order to prepare or clean up the fluid being analyzed the fluid is often passed through a sorbent under pressure. Further, for low pressure liquid chromatography (LPLC) or flash chromatography the fluid may be passed through a sorbent at a pressure of 20-100 psi. This operating pressure is sufficiently high that these cartridges, which have relative large diameter bodies leak at the seams. Threaded connections are thus not used to form the body when the body is made of polymers. Thus, these cartridges are traditionally made of plastic and have sonically welded ends. But even that welded construction will leak if there are defects in the welds. That welded construction and the accompanying manufacturing and material costs cause in undesirably high costs, especially as the cartridges must be either discarded, or must under go extensive and thorough cleaning after a single use, or at most after a few uses with similar fluids. There is thus a need for a low cost, disposable cartridge.
Further, the welded construction requires the chromatographic packing material be placed in the cartridge before it is welded, or it requires careful packing of the column under pressure, both of which limit the usefulness of the cartridge and increase its cost.
Recently one company has introduced a disposable cartridge made of molded polypropylene having an end fitting that uses openings in a number of cantilever members to engage detent members which fit into the openings to create an interference fit to snap-lock the end fitting onto the cartridge. This is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,565,745. But this interference fit is created at the factory and again creates a cartridge that does not allow the user to easily vary the contents of the cartridge. There is thus a need for a cartridge that allows a user to easily vary the contents.
Secondary cartridges are sometimes tied into the system for use, but these secondary cartridges are limited in size to 70 ml (or between 20-25 g of material). These secondary cartridges lie with tubing 1 to 2 feet away from the sample. The use of secondary cartridges increases the amount of run time and expensive solvent, due to elution of the sample. It causes dilution of sample because the cartridge is 1 to 2 feet away from the sample. The tubing and secondary cartridge also allows the addition of air which may or may not affect the chemical composition or performance. Also secondary cartridges have a capacity limit of 20-25 g which does need meet the needs of all users since at times up to 60 g is needed to be loaded. This forces an end user to separate the chemicals into several separate cartridges. The secondary cartridge is also an additional expense, and requires additional time for loading.
There is thus a need for a cartridge that can be sealed to function under LPLC pressures but which allows the user to access the inside of the cartridge before it is sealed.
Moreover, welded cartridges are limited by being pressure rated to only about 45 psi, due to leaking and instability at higher pressures. This pressure limits the end user, because high pressures are desirable for separating chemical compositions that are thick and viscous. Without these higher pressures these thick, viscous chemicals can not be distinguished. There is thus also a need for a larger capacity cartridge that can be used at higher pressures, especially for viscous fluids.
In LPLC the fluid sample is sometimes prepared by passing it through one or more cartridges of different material, each of which has a different sorbent to clean the fluid of particular undesirable materials or chemicals. Because the fluid sample can vary, a wide variety of cartridges with different sorbents sealed in the cartridges must be maintained. Further, the removal and reconnection of these various cartridges is cumbersome and time consuming, and the cost of each cartridge is expensive. There is thus a need for a way to reduce the complexity and cost of using different sorbents.
Sometimes a Y fitting is used to inject one or more fluids into the LPLC cartridge. The connection and use of these Y fittings is cumbersome. Further, the fitting must be either discarded or cleaned after each use. There is thus a need for a better and less expensive way to introduce fluid or materials into the cartridge.


An insulated conductor of the present invention is an insulated conductor having a conductor and an insulating film provided on a surface of the conductor, in which the insulating film has a low-concentration fluorine layer disposed on a surface side of the conductor and a high-concentration fluorine layer disposed on at least a part of an outside surface of the low-concentration fluorine layer, the low-concentration fluorine layer includes a cured product of a thermosetting resin and a fluororesin and has a fluorine atom content relatively lower than that of the high-concentration fluorine layer, and the high-concentration fluorine layer includes a cured product of a thermosetting resin and a fluororesin and has a fluorine atom content relatively higher than that of the low-concentration fluorine layer.

Insulated conductors obtained by coating a conductor such as a copper wire with an insulating film are used for electric coils for a variety of electric devices such as a motor or a transformer. As a material of the insulating film of the insulated conductor, thermosetting resins, particularly, polyimide-based resins such as a polyamide-imide or a polyimide are broadly used.
At the time of producing an electric coil by winding the insulated conductor around a core, there is a case where adjacent turns of the insulating film of the insulated conductor rub each other and a crack is generated in the insulating film or the insulating film exfoliates. Therefore, studies are underway regarding the improvement of the lubricity of the surface of the insulating film.
For example, Patent Literature 1 describes an insulated conductor in which a lubricative layer is formed on an insulating layer formed on the surface of a conductor. In Patent Literature 1, as an insulating coating for the formation of the lubricative layer, an insulating coating including a polyamide-imide resin and a lubricant component is described.
In addition, Patent Literature 2 describes an insulated conductor having an insulating layer that is made up of a thermosetting resin and a fluororesin and in which the mass ratio between the thermosetting resin and the fluororesin is 90:10 to 10:90. In Patent Literature 2, as the insulating layer, a layer formed by mixing a thermosetting resin solution and a fluororesin organosol, applying the obtained liquid mixture onto a conductor, and baking the liquid mixture is used. Patent Literature 2 describes that, when the insulating layer is formed from the liquid mixture obtained by mixing the thermosetting resin solution and the fluororesin organosol, a thermosetting resin and a fluororesin are uniformly dispersed in the insulating layer.
Patent Literature 3 describes an electric insulated wire in which an insulating film provided on a conductor is formed of at least two kinds of resin components and an interface between the two or more kinds of resins does not have a clear interface, but has an interface having a continuous or stepwise concentration of the resin component. In Patent Literature 3, a fluororesin is described as the resin component. In addition, in Patent Literature 3, as an electric insulated wire manufacturing method, a method including a step of forming an extruded insulating layer on the surface of an electric wire provided with a conductor or an insulating layer using a melt obtained by melting and mixing at least two kinds of thermoplastic resins and then, or simultaneously, holding the extruded insulating layer for a certain period of time at a temperature lower than the melting point or softening point of a resin having the highest melting point or softening point among the thermoplastic resins by 0° C. to 100° C. is described.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Insulated conductor and insulated conductor manufacturing method


A process for preparing optically active allylic alcohol derivatives comprises reacting a racemic mixture of the following formula I ##STR1## wherein R is alkyl, alkenyl, or substituted or unsubstituted aryl or arylalkyl;. with acetate or anhydride under the catalysis of Pseudomonase AK, PS or K-10 lipase in the presence of an organic solvent.

The prostaglandins (PGs), a group of natural products occurring in animal tissues, have attracted widespread attention over the past thirty years because of their diverse pharmacological properties and potential clinical applications in a number of therapeutic areas. Samuelsson, B. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl. 1983, 22, 805; Vane, J. R. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl. 1983, 22, 741; Bergstorm, S. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl. 1993, 22, 858 and Nelson, N. A.; Kelly, R. C.; Jhonson, R. A. Chem. Eng. News 1982, 33(60), 30 are referrend to herein for reference. Since the elucidation of their structures in the early 1960s, tremendous efforts have been made for the realization of an efficient chemical synthesis. This is because a sufficient supply of such is very rare, and naturally occurring local hormones rely solely on their total synthesis. Roberts, S. M.; Scheinmann, F. New Synthetic Routes to Prostaglandins and Thromboxanes, Academic Press: New York, 1982; Newton, R. F.; Roberts, S. M. Tetrahedron 1980, 36, 2163; Nicolaou, K. C.; Gasic, G. P.; Barnette, W. E. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl. 1978, 17, 293; Bindra, J. S.; Bindra, R. Prostaglandin Synthesis, Academic Press: New York, 1977 and Mitra, A. Synthesis of prostaglandins, Wiley-Interscience: New York, 1977 are referred to herein for reference.
For the time being, the potentially most direct and flexible route to prostaglandins is the three component coupling approach. The approach relates to reacting optically active 4-oxygenated 2-cyclopentenone derivatives 3 with organocopper reagents having .omega.-chain (R.omega.Cu) to obtain the enolate 4. Then, the PGs are obtained by the alkylation of the enolate 4 with alkyl halides having .alpha.-chain (R.alpha.-X) (see Scheme 1, Path A). The references concerning the three component coupling approach include Gooding, O. W.; Beard, C. C.; Cooper, G. F.; Jackson, D. Y. J. Org. Chem. 1993, 58, 3681-3686; Gooding, O. W. J. Org. Chem. 1990, 55, 4209-4211 and Suzuki, M.; Yanagisawa, A.; Noyori, R. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1988, 110, 4718-4726. Exploitation of this three component coupling methodology has, however, been impeded by the inability to directly alkylate the enolate 4 with the alkyl halides having .alpha.-chain (R.alpha.-X). Thus, the desired product, prostaglandins cannot be obtained because of the by-reaction (see Scheme 1, Path B). ##STR2##
Suzuki, M.; Yanagisawa, A.; Noyori, R. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1985, 107, 3348 and Morita, Y.; Suzuki, M.; Noyori, R. J. Org. Chem. 1989, 54, 1785 have successfully overcome the abovementioned problem by employing copper to tin transmetallation at the enolate 4 stage affording a less basic stannyl enolate which retained its reactivity toward .alpha.-chain alkyl iodide (R.alpha.-X).
Accordingly, it is a prerequiste for further synthetic application of prostaglandins to further silylate the prepared optically active allylic alcohol derivatives to the compound 5 and provide a direct and effective organocopper reagents having .omega.-chain (R.omega.Cu) (see Scheme 2). Noyori, R.; Suzuki, M. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl. 1984, 23, 847-876; Caton, M. P. L. Tetrahedron 1979, 35, 2705-2742 and Taylor, R. J. K. Synthesis 1985, 364-392 are referred to herein for reference. ##STR3##

Process for preparing optically active allylic alcohol derivatives


A method of generating generic protocol handlers includes receiving a user request in a middleware, generating a request payload by analyzing the request in a protocol handler of the middleware, transforming the request payload into a set of canonical types, transmitting the set of canonical types to a path module, receiving a response payload, transforming the response payload in a second protocol handler of the middleware, and transmitting the response to the user.

Software applications are becoming more pervasive. For example, in the Internet of Things (IoT), software applications are commonly being provided in cellular phones, televisions, wrist watches, household appliances, etc. Each of the applications in these devices may "speak" one or more of a plurality of application protocols, such as Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), HTTP over Transport Layer Security (HTTPS), interactive voice response (IVR), short message service (SMS), simple mail transfer protocol (SMTP), etc. Within each application protocol, data may be encoded in one or more sub-protocols. For example, in HTTP/S, common sub-protocols/data formats may include representational state transfer (REST), simple object access protocol (SOAP), JavaScript Object Notation (JSON), etc.
Software applications are also increasing in number. For example, some software applications may be implemented as dynamic user experience (UX) applications. Because dynamic UX applications comprising complex user interface behaviors and customizations may be easily and quickly created, the number of applications in existence may outstrip an organization's ability to create middleware to handle the volume of requests generated by the dynamic UX applications.
The proliferation of protocols and sub-protocols and the increase in the number of dynamic UX applications causes great complexity in large software systems. To craft a new application, a software developer must write code to individually manage all of the possible protocols and sub-protocols with respect to the application, and must do so at an unsustainable pace. What is needed are methods and systems for generating generic protocol handlers for exchanging data in a common format, based on converting requests to canonical data types.

Method and system of generating generic protocol handlers

State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company


An optical transceiver module which includes circuitry for detecting ambient light conditions in addition to circuitry for processing received optical data.

Infrared transceivers modules are often incorporated into electronic devices to enable bi-directional wireless communication with other electronic devices. For example, it is known for a portable digital assistant (PDA) to communicate with a laptop computer, a printer, or another PDA via a standard Infrared Data Association (IrDA) link. Similarly, IR transceivers are becoming increasingly popular for use in hand-portable telephones, enabling telephone users to swap stored numbers, play wirelessly-linked games, or wirelessly link their telephones to IR-enabled accessories. Other devices which have IR transceivers include, for example, pagers, digital cameras, printers and personal computers.
The advantages of using an IR link over standard electrical connectors are numerous and well documented. These advantages include: 1) greater alignment tolerance; 2) the ability to hermetically seal the data interface; 3) no cables susceptible to RF interference; and 4) no electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) issues.
An IR transceiver module typically comprises a light emitting diode (LED) and a photodiode, packaged together with appropriate supporting circuitry to form a self-contained unit. Electrical terminals are exposed on the outside of the package to enable the module to be electrically coupled to external circuitry.
By combining the various components of an IR transceiver into a single package or module, the size or form-factor of the transceiver system can be considerably reduced. Furthermore, the modules tend to be more durable and often consume less power than equivalent transceivers consisting of discrete components.
When an IR link or communication channel is created between two IR transceiver modules, the LED in the first transceiver optically couples with the photodiode in the second transceiver, and the LED in the second transceiver optically couples with the photodiode in the first transceiver. FIG. 1 illustrates two spaced apart devices 10, 20 which are communicating via such an IR link 30. Although the transceivers typically operate in the infrared optical frequency band it is equally possible for other optical frequency bands to be used in forming the communication channel 30.
FIG. 2 is an internal view of the device 10 of FIG. 1, showing the IR transceiver module 200 mounted on an end portion of a main printed circuit board (PCB) 250. The transceiver module 200 comprises a main body 240 including a first molded lens shape 210 over the LED and a second molded lens shape 220 over the photodiode. Leads 230 provide mounting supports and electrical interconnections between the IR transceiver 200 and the printed circuit board 250. A typical length for the IR transceiver body is approximately 10 mm, a typical depth is 5 mm, and a typical height is 4 mm.
It is known to include an ambient light detector in certain electronic devices to detect the ambient light conditions in the environment of the device. For example, the model CB-21Q20ET television available from LG Electronics, Korea includes a light detector which detects ambient light conditions so that the television picture contrast can be set appropriately.

Optical transceiver module with ambient light circuitry

Avago Technologies ECBU IP (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.


Described is a system and method that provides a data protection risk assessment for the overall functioning of a backup and recovery system. Accordingly, the system may provide a single overall risk assessment score that provide an operator with an “at-a-glance” overview of the entire system. Moreover, the system may account for changes that occur over time based on leveraging statistical methods to automatically generate assessment scores for various components (e.g. application, server, network, load, etc.). In order to determine a risk assessment score, the system may utilize a predictive model based on historical data. Accordingly, residual values for newly observed data may be determined using the predictive model and the system may identify potentially anomalous or high risk indicators.

Data backup and recovery systems often implement various techniques to mitigate the potential risk for data loss. For example, these systems often employ tools that monitor various functions of components within the storage system. Accordingly, these tools may alert an operator when a protection failure is identified in a backup or recovery operation, or when a protection policy compliance gap is identified (e.g. no backup occurring within a predefined time period). When providing various configurations, providers often include monitoring components with a generic policy. These policies, and the alerts derived from such policies, often rely on relatively rudimentary analysis techniques such as rule-based policies and static manually defined thresholds. Accordingly, these policies are often hard to configure and need to be manually adjusted to account for changes to a system.
Moreover, these tools often do not provide the ability to compare the overall protection health over time to different parts of a backup and recovery system. As a result, it is often difficult to obtain an overall assessment of the functioning of the system. Accordingly, there is a need to provide an improved mechanism for monitoring a data backup and recovery system that accounts for changing dynamics over time, and yet provides the ability to provide an overall assessment of the system.

Generating a data protection risk assessment score for a backup and recovery storage system


A bulb socket including a center electrode contact and a side electrode contact, each having elastic contact members at the forward end thereof, and a socket body wherein a bulb insertion portion and an electrode contact housing are formed having an inclination angle. The electrode contact housing includes a center electrode contact housing chamber and a side electrode contact housing chamber inclined relative to the bulb insertion portion. Each contact housing chamber has flexible retaining members retaining engaging portions of corresponding electrode contacts. Thus, the ease of assembling the bulb socket can be improved.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the construction of a bulb socket used in automobiles and the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional bulb sockets used for lighting of automobiles and the like are constructed as follows: a water-proof plug is fit to the bottom of the socket, and the plug has a center hole at its center within which the hole a plurality of annular projecting portions are formed, and through which a wire is passed and held. A core of the wire is soldered to a tip contact electrode provided at the center of a disk with a substantially smaller diameter than the bore of the socket. A coil spring is inserted between the disk and the water-proof plug, thereby the disk having the tip contact electrode is held elastically towards a bulb insertion portion of the socket.
Since the conventional bulb socket is constructed as above-described, the following assembly procedure must be observed; the wire having an end portion of the core thereof exposed therefrom is passed through the center hole of the water-proof plug, the coil spring is disposed around the wire, and the core at the end is soldered to the mated side of the tip contact electrode at the center of the disk. Then, the water-proof plug through which the wire is passed is fit into the bottom of the socket, and the wire is laid out of the water-proof plug. A retaining protrusion provided on the disk is engaged with an engaging recess portion of the socket while the disk compresses the coil spring. Thus, the assembly of the bulb socket is completed.
As to inserting the bulb into the socket and fixing it, the bulb is rotated with inserting the engaging protrusion provided on the side electrode contact of the bulb into an L-shaped retaining groove formed inside of the socket body, whereby the tip contact electrode of the bulb is brought into contact with the tip contact electrode of the disk as the former presses down the disk.
As will be clearly understood from the foregoing description of the related art, the assembly of the conventional bulb socket is extremely troublesome for the following reasons. After the wire is passed through the center hole of the water-proof plug, the coil spring is disposed around the wire, and the core is soldered to the tip contact electrode of the disk. The retaining protrusion is engaged with the engaging recess portion of the socket body while the disk compresses the coil spring.


A tillage implement spanning a lateral distance relative to a forward direction and having a plurality of carrier frames, each for supporting a plurality of soil engaging tools. A pivoting wheel assembly positions the carrier frames at a variable distance from the soil and an actuator is connected between the carrier frame and each support wheel assembly to vary the height of the carrier frame. The actuator has a sensor for generating a signal reflecting the displacement of the actuator. The sensor element is mounted in an adjustable sensor support and countersunk by the required clearance between the sensor element and encoded information on the output shaft so that the sensor support may be adjusted to abut the shaft and accurately position the sensor element.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to agricultural implements, and, more particularly, sensors for use with actuators in such implements.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the continuing quest for providing greater efficiency in the operation of farm implements, machines have been constructed to have ever increasing lateral spans relative to a tractor or central unit propelling the unit over a field. When the span increases to realize greater efficiency and speed, the criteria of having a uniform and level tool contact with the soil becomes extremely critical. Equipment with significant lateral spans has many different joints and is usually articulated to enable transport to and between fields.
An area of special importance to level positioning of farm implements is found in the tillage field. The desirable outcome is a uniform physical depth of the tillage and a uniform entry of the disk blades or harrows into the soil. The need to have a level positioning of the implement is made more challenging with the use of hydraulic actuators which control the depth of penetration of the disk blades or other tools. In current practice, hydraulic actuators are connected in series and it is possible through normal operation for hydraulic fluid leakage to make the actuators out of sync with one another.
It is current practice to counter this occurrence by fully elevating the implement to the point where bypass lands in the actuators allow full flow of hydraulic fluid to pass through the actuators and again synchronize the multiple units. However, this adds an additional step to the operation, particularly in the field, thereby decreasing the efficiency and speed with which the particular task is accomplished. It has been proposed in co-pending application entitled "Remote Leveling of Tillage Implements", of common assignment with the present invention, to incorporate position sensors into hydraulic actuators to achieve remote leveling. With such an arrangement, the accuracy of the displacement sensors used in the system is important. Current displacement sensors are employed by fixing them at a minimum clearance from the actuator output shaft to read signals reflecting displacement of the output shaft. In the agricultural environment, the positioning of the sensor is a problem because the current practice of inserting the sensor until contact with the shaft and then backing it off may result in alteration of the sensor signal.
What is needed in the art therefore, is the accurate and safe installation of a sensor used with an agricultural implement actuator.

Agricultural implement actuator sensor projection


A method for producing strip cast, austenitic stainless steel strip comprises providing a strip cast strip having an initial microstructure including a detrimental amount of delta ferrite and a detrimental amount of dendritic structure is provided. The strip may have a composition comprising the following ingredients: 0.4 wt. % max. carbon, 5-38 wt. % nickel, and 15-28 wt. % chromium. The strip is subjected to a cold rolling step prior to any annealing step. Upon subsequent annealing, (a) the amount of delta ferrite in the strip is reduced to substantially below the detrimental amount of delta ferrite that was in the strip prior to cold rolling and (b) the amount of dendritic structure in the strip is reduced to below the detrimental amount of dendritic structure that was in the strip prior to cold rolling. By employing the method of the present invention, an austenitic stainless steel strip having a high quality surface is produced. After cold rolling and annealing, the microstructure of the strip may comprise austenitic and less than about 10% delta ferrite by volume.

The present invention is directed generally to stainless steel strip casting. More particularly, the present invention is directed to Cr--Ni austenitic stainless steel strip and methods for producing the same employing strip casting.
One conventional method for producing stainless steel strip employs ingot casting. In ingot casting, molten steel is brought to a pouring stand in a steel ladle that usually holds about 200 tons of liquid steel. A series of ingot molds are positioned next to the pouring stand on top of ingot cars. Each ingot mold sits on a mold base which prevents leakage of the molten metal from the bottom of the ingot molds. The ingot molds are hollow tubes, rectangular in cross-section, made of cast iron. The ingot mold cross-sections are usually about 2 feet by 3 feet (0.6 m by 0.9 m), and the heights of the ingot molds are about 8 feet (2.4 m). The total weight of the steel required to fill a mold is usually about 10 to 20 tons.
Because the cross-section of an ingot mold is very large and the mold is not cooled by any means other than convection from the exterior surface of the mold, the cooling rate for most of the metal in the ingot mold is very low. Therefore, very large, branched crystals, called dendrites, form upon solidification, and hence, a very large grain size exists in the as-cast microstructure. The formation of large dendrites as a result of the slow cooling rate results in large volumes of segregated liquid solidifying around the branches of the dendrites (dendritic segregation), making the casting susceptible to internal cracking and voids.
After solidification and substantial cooling, the ingot is separated from the ingot mold and placed into a heating zone called a soaking pit where the ingot is reheated to a temperature above 2000.degree. F. (1093.degree. C.) to prepare the ingot for hot rolling. During an initial hot rolling operation called blooming, the ingot is reduced in width from about 2 feet (0.6 m) to approximately 7 to 10 inches (18 cm to 25.4 cm). The resulting semi-finished product is called a slab. The microstructure of the slab is very similar to that of the ingot and includes, predominantly, large dendrites and other large grains from the as-cast microstructure. Some of the as-cast microstructure was eliminated by the blooming operation, but not a significant portion because the amount of reduction resulting from the blooming operation is only about 2:1.
The slabs are transported to a hot strip mill where each slab is reheated to above 2000.degree. F. (1093.degree. C.) before undergoing additional hot rolling into a strip. After reheating, the slabs are sent through a series of roughing stands and then through a series of finishing stands in the hot strip mill to produce a strip having a thickness of about 0.1 inches (0.25 cm) which is then coiled. The hot working which the strip undergoes in the roughing and finishing stands usually is sufficient to break up almost all of the as-cast microstructure because the amount of reduction is about 100:1. The resulting grain size in the strip is usually rather large and can be controlled to some extent by controlling the cooling rate the strip undergoes after hot working in the hot strip mill and prior to coiling.
To produce a final product, the hot rolled strip is subjected to processing steps that include a first anneal, a first cold rolling, a second anneal, a second cold rolling, and a third anneal. The anneals may all be performed at temperatures in the range 900.degree.-1150.degree. C., for example, and the cold rolling steps may each produce a reduction of 50-65%. After the third anneal, typically a skin pass is performed on the strip. The skin pass is a cold rolling operation that produces small amounts of reduction (e.g., 0.5-2%) in the strip. The surface quality of the resulting strip, in terms of surface defects, roughness, reflectability and other conventional surface parameters, is generally very good. Ingot casting, however, is a relatively inefficient and uneconomical method for producing stainless steel strip.
Another method for producing stainless steel strip employs strip casting. In strip casting, molten metal is cast directly into a strip that is about 1.5-6 mm thick. One type of strip casting is twin roll casting. Twin roll casting is typically performed on apparatus comprising a pair of horizontally spaced rolls mounted for rotation in opposite rotational senses about respective horizontal axes. The two rolls define a horizontally disposed, vertically extending gap therebetween for receiving molten metal. The gap defined by the rolls tapers arcuately in a downward direction. Molten metal in the gap forms a pool. The rolls are cooled and, in turn, cool the molten metal as the molten metal from the pool descends through the gap. A solidified metal strip emerges from the gap.
Procedures employing strip casting, in contrast to procedures employing ingot casting, do not employ hot rolling. Consequently, the resulting Cr--Ni austenitic stainless steel strip generally has a typical as-cast microstructure (i.e., a microstructure having detrimental amounts of dendrites and delta ferrite). The subsequent processing steps performed on the as-cast strip in conventional processes that employ strip casting are similar to those steps performed after the hot rolling step in processes that employ ingot casting. These steps include a first anneal followed by a first cold rolling, a second anneal followed by a second cold rolling, a third anneal and, typically, a skin pass.
Strip casting is more efficient and economical than ingot casting. However, the stainless steel final product of processes employing strip casting and conventional annealing and cold rolling practices, generally has a surface quality inferior to that of stainless steel strip produced by processes employing ingot casting and hot rolling followed by annealing and cold rolling. The inferior surface quality includes less reflectability, more roughness and less homogeneity. Microstructural factors contributing to the inferior surface quality include residual or inherited dendritic structure at the surface, chemical non-homogeneity at the surface, crystallographic non-homogeneity at the surface (i.e., bands with different crystal orientation or crystalline texture at the surface), and residual delta ferrite. Chemical and crystallographic non-homogeneity are caused, in part, by the dendritic segregation which occurred during strip casting.
The crystal structure of delta ferrite (body-centered cubic) is different than the crystal structure of austenitic (face-centered cubic), the difference contributing to the non-homogeneous surface appearance. The body-centered cubic delta ferrite has a different deformability than the austenitic, leaving a "streaked" surface appearance after cold rolling.
In procedures employing ingot casting, the subsequent hot rolling of the ingot cast steel breaks down the as-cast microstructure, causing dendritic homogenization and delta ferrite dissolution. Homogenization is mainly a diffusion-based process in which the dendrites, which are austenitic in the as-cast orientation, become austenitic that is no longer in the as-cast orientation. More particularly, during homogenization, the branches of the dendrites become smaller and more similar in chemical composition to the surrounding metal. Delta ferrite dissolution is the conversion of delta ferrite to austenite. Thus, very little or no dendritic structure and very little delta ferrite is present in the microstructure of stainless steel strip which has been ingot cast and then hot rolled. In contrast, in procedures employing strip casting, there is no hot rolling step, and the resulting as-cast strip generally has an as-cast microstructure including detrimental amounts of dendritic structure and delta ferrite.
Stainless steel strip made by processes employing strip casting followed by conventional annealing and cold rolling practices has relatively poor surface quality. The poor surface quality of such strip, compared to strip produced by processes employing ingot casting, has been attributed to the presence of detrimental amounts of dendritic structure and delta ferrite in the final product. In contrast, a desired, final product microstructure generally comprises a relatively low amount of delta ferrite and comprises essentially austenite, with very little or none of the austenite being dendritic. A desirable, final product microstructure has an amount of delta ferrite near the equilibrium amount which, in an austenitic stainless steel, is about 3-5% by volume.
To reduce the amount of delta ferrite in the strip cast product, attempts have been made to cool the strip quickly, immediately after casting, down to about 1100.degree. C. Once the strip has cooled to about 1100.degree. C., the cooling rate of the strip is drastically reduced to allow solid state diffusion to transform most of the remaining delta ferrite into austenite. Such fast cooling, however, risks crackling the surface of the strip if the cooling is not performed very carefully.
As described above, conventional cold rolling practice following the strip casting step typically includes three anneals, the first anneal being performed on the strip prior to any cold rolling step. Three anneals are necessary in the conventional methods in order to reduce, by dissolution and recrystallization, the amount of delta ferrite in the final product to a desired level and to reduce, by homogenization, the amount of dendritic structure. Employing three annealing steps, however, consumes a large amount of time and energy, resulting in a relatively inefficient overall process. Moreover, even after the third anneal, the final strip product often has poor surface quality. Thus, it is desirable to improve the surface quality of the final strip product and to reduce the number of processing steps in the strip casting of stainless steel strip.

Method for cold rolling and annealing strip cast stainless steel strip


The present invention relates to a computer system for managing the allocation of mortgage pool risk between a mortgage originator and a funding institution. The mortgage originator issues a mortgage and the funding institution agrees to assume certain risks such as interest rate and credit risk for the mortgage up to a certain percentage. The mortgage originator and the funding institution enter into a Master Commitment agreement which has an overall credit enhancement value for mortgage funding by the mortgage originator. The system has an input device capable of receiving mortgage data from the mortgage originator. A memory has a database storing the data relating to the mortgage loan, Master Commitment, financial institution and rate and fees. A processor calculates a credit enhancement value as a function of the probability of foreclosure and the severity of loss indicated by mortgage data. An output device produces a delivery commitment in which the mortgage originator assumes obligation for losses up to the credit enhancement value and the funding institution assumes obligation for additional losses.

Presently mortgages are issued by mortgage originators such as banks, savings and loans, etc. Homeowners apply for mortgages from the financial institution for the purchase of a housing unit. The mortgage is a loan from the mortgage originator which produces a principal return and an interest stream of income. Individual mortgages may be pooled and the interest stream from the mortgages may be bundled to create mortgage backed securities which may be sold by the mortgage originator. By obtaining favorable funding through pooling many individual mortgages, the mortgage originator may be able to offer competitive interest rates on mortgages for its customers.
Presently, mortgage originators have two choices with regard to issued mortgages. The institution can hold the mortgage in a portfolio or it can sell the mortgage for securitization. By holding the mortgage in a portfolio, the mortgage originator must hold the interest rate risk involved in mortgage portfolios. If interest rates increase, the mortgage originator risks incurring higher funding costs on the mortgages, the revenues from which are locked at a lower interest rate. Additionally, current regulatory capital requirements discourage portfolio lending since a mortgage originator must hold twice as much capital against a whole loan as it does against a mortgage backed security, thereby requiring twice the net return to achieve the same return on equity. Finally, a mortgage portfolio owner has an options risk since mortgagees may prepay the principal more rapidly then expected.
As an alternative to holding mortgages, most mortgage originators sell many of the mortgages they originate into the secondary market. In the process they pay a guarantee fee to the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) or the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac). The guarantee fee is paid by the mortgage originator to either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac to take the credit risks associated with the mortgage. The guarantee fee is typically calculated as 20-25 basis points of the outstanding principal on the mortgage. The payment of the guarantee fees results in a lower capital requirement but provides a lower profit to the mortgage portfolio seller.
Many such mortgage originators obtain funds to finance the mortgage they own from a funding institution such as a Federal Home Loan Bank. These funds allow mortgage originators to extend mortgages to home buyers and retain the mortgage loan on their own balance sheets. The funding institution such as a Federal Home Loan Bank helps mortgage originators to manage the risk of falling interest rates by making long term advances to match the term of home loans or by providing interest rate swaps or other financial contracts to hedge the risk of such rates. However, due to intense competition for mortgage loans and the high cost of managing interest rates, the return on holding mortgage loans is often not acceptable. Mortgage origination institutions are very efficient at performing many of the tasks associated with originating mortgages, but not as efficient at managing the interest rate risk.
Therefore, a need exists for a system which enables a funding institution to manage the allocation of interest rate risk of mortgages between itself and a mortgage originator. Furthermore, a need exists for a system to allow a mortgage originator to transfer the necessary data affiliated with a mortgage loan to a funding institution. Also, a need exists for a system to generate reports on funding between a funding institution and a mortgage originator reflecting the allocation of risk.

Management system for risk sharing of mortgage pools


A MEMS device having a support frame positioned on a substrate surrounding a first electrode. A rigid flange portion at the top of the support frame is closely space from, and is connected to, a second electrode by relatively short spring members. RF conductors connected to respective first and second electrodes complete an RF switch. A dielectric layer on the first electrode forms a capacitive type device and includes an electrostatic shield layer on its surface. This electrostatic shield layer is connected to ground by a multi megohm bleeder resistance.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention in general relates to miniature switches, and more particularly, to a capacitive type MEMS switch useful in radar and other microwave applications.
2. Description of Related Art
A variety of MEMS (microelectromechanical systems) devices are used as switches in radar and communication systems, as well as other high frequency circuits for controlling RF signals. These MEMS switches are popular insofar as they can have a relatively high off impedance, with a low off capacitance, and a relatively low on impedance with a high on capacitance, leading to desirable high cutoff frequencies and wide bandwidth operation. Additionally, the MEMS switches have a small footprint, can operate at high RF voltages and may be constructed by conventional integrated circuit fabrication techniques.
Many of these MEMS switches generally have electrostatic elements, such as opposed electrodes, which are attracted to one another upon application of a DC pull down control voltage. In a capacitive type MEMS switch one electrode is on a movable bridge while the opposed electrode, generally the one with a dielectric layer, is on a substrate member. Upon application of the DC pull down control voltage, the bridge is deflected down and, by the particular high capacitive coupling established, the electrical impedance is significantly reduced between first and second spaced apart RF conductors on the substrate member, thus allowing a RF signal to propagate between the first and second conductors.
With this arrangement, the full pull down voltage appears across the dielectric layer resulting in a relatively high electric field across the dielectric. Over time, this high field may lead to charge accumulation on the surface, as well as in the bulk dielectric. Once the dielectric accumulates enough charge, the switch may fail because the charge causes the switch to remain closed even after the pull down voltage is removed.
Additionally, any presence of water vapor molecules may result in positive ions being formed, due to the electrostatic fields generated, with these positive ions migrating across the substrate and on the dielectric. These positive ions induce corresponding negative charges on the undersurface of the movable bridge and its electrode. Further consequences of these charges include, a pull down voltage shift with time, an incomplete, non uniform pull down across the electrode, resulting in a decrease or increase in capacitance and electrode drop out.
It is a primary object of the present invention to obviate the drawbacks associated with the typical prior art MEMS device.


Methods and apparatus for generating a secondary pool of data are disclosed. A primary pool of data is obtained or identified, where the primary pool of data includes a primary seed and one or more generations of data, wherein each of the generations of data in the primary pool of data includes one or more data blocks that have changed with reference to a safeset corresponding to a previous backup, the safeset corresponding to the previous backup including (e.g., referencing) the primary seed. A secondary pool of data is generated and at least a portion of the data in the primary pool of data is transferred to the secondary pool of data.

The present invention relates to the use of secondary pools for storing backup data. More particularly, the present invention relates to generating a secondary pool and transferring data to a secondary pool from another pool of data by a network device responsible for storing backup data.
In order to backup data, data backups are often performed via what is commonly referred to as a "backup application." In order to backup the data, the backup application sends the data to be stored either to a local storage medium or via a network interface for remote transmission. The amount of data that is stored by the backup application varies with the method implemented by the backup application. For instance, some backup applications backup all data in the specified directory, database or file, while other applications attempt to increase the efficiency of the backup process by storing only the data that has been modified since the last backup. One commonly used method is the fixed position delta reduction method, which determines which fixed position segments of data have been modified since the last backup and stores the data reflecting those changes. In other words, the fixed position delta reduction method determines which segments of data have been modified (e.g., added, modified, or deleted) by comparing one segment of data at a fixed position in a file or data stream received during a current backup with the segment of data previously at that same fixed position in the file or data stream during the last backup for that particular file.
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary system in which a delta reduction backup application may be implemented. As shown in FIG. 1, a backup client 102 running a client component of a delta reduction backup application sends backup data 104 to a backup server 106 running a server component of a delta reduction backup application. More particularly, when a backup job that defines a set of files to be backed up is executed, a new generation of data is sent to the backup server 106. In other words, each time the same job is executed, a new generation of data is sent to the backup server 106.
The first generation of data for a backup job will typically include all data for all of the files that are being backed up by the backup job. Subsequent generations of data may each include only that data that has been modified since the previous generation of data for that backup job.
When the backup server 106 receives the backup data 104, the backup server 106 may then store the backup data 104. More particularly, the backup server 106 saves each generation of data that is sent by the backup client 102. In this manner, the backup server 106 saves only those blocks of data that have been modified since the previous backup.
A safeset is a full set of data corresponding to all files that are backed up by a backup job. There may be one safeset for each instance of a backup job. For example, if a job were scheduled to backup nightly for five days in a row, there would be five safesets stored by the backup server 106. A generation of data may be defined as a snapshot of a set of data in time. From the safesets of data that are stored by the backup server 106, it is possible to restore those safesets of data to the client at 102 via 108.
In order to store each of the safesets of data, it is possible to store each of the safesets in its entirety. However, a large amount of the data will be common to all of the safesets associated with a particular backup job. As a result, the safesets associated with a particular backup job may be stored in a pool that stores only one physical copy of the common segments of data.
Since a single backup job may be run any number of times over an extended period of time, the pool of data will eventually include data for numerous safesets. Over a long period of time, the size of the storage pool will get large, and the value of the older data for retrievals falls close to zero.
In view of the above, it would be beneficial if an improved mechanism for storing data associated with safesets could be implemented.


The present invention discloses an edge-lit panel for emergency lighting using dual mode illumination. The panel includes active lighting by the own light source of the equipment and passive lighting by photo-luminescent pigments coated on various surfaces of the panel. Thus, this edge-lit panel provides an improved and extended visibility of electrically energized edge-lit emergency signs during power failures.

The edge-lit panels with emergency light signs such as a lighted exit sign are well known in the art. Exit signage using photo-luminescent (PL) materials are becoming more and more popular in the industry. The majority of these products are not internally powered and the PL coating of the legend in the panel is charged in the ambient light. During a power failure the EXIT legend provides passive illumination (glow) for several hours. The main disadvantage of this method is that the performance of the exit sign depends on the ambient light level. Furthermore, the equipment must be installed at a specified distance from a permanent light source, which has to deliver a specified minimum luminance level.
Other solutions such as in U.S. Pat. No. 6,364,498 use EXIT signs with translucent legends where the PL coating is energized by the equipment's own light source, and is positioned behind the legend i.e., back-lit. This solution does not need ambient lighting for functioning. It uses a dual mode illumination, the active lighting with its own light source installed behind the display and passive lighting with photo-luminescent pigment coated on the display panel.
Alternative solutions of EXIT signage for emergency lighting use display panels with the active light source positioned on the edge of the display i.e. edge-lit, instead of back-lit. One such solution is shown and described in a co-pending commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/898,649, filed Jul. 23, 2004 entitled, "Cold-Cathode Fluorescent Lamp Assembly for Lighting Applications". This application is incorporated by reference herein for all purposes. FIGS. 1 and 2 show typical methods of manufacturing edge-lit panels 10 for EXIT signs with a legend 11 and a contour 12. The light source 13 is applied on the panel edge, perpendicular to the display surface. The display i.e. legend 12 is illuminated as an effect of the multiple reflections 14 and refractions 15 of the light beams on the panel front 10a and back surfaces 10b. The legend coating 12 is applied either on the back 10b of the panel 10 as shown in FIG. 1 or on the panel front face 10a as shown in FIG. 2, with this second option allowing for a better background illumination.
It is thus desirable to provide an improved edge lit panel having improved and extended visibility.

Edge-lit panel with photo-luminescent features


The invention provides a control device and a controlled device capable of reducing a management burden on a manufacturer by means of an easy-to-use method. A TV is a control device which controls a DVD recorder, including: a device ID acquisition unit which requests the DVD recorder to transmit a device ID, and receives the device ID from the DVD recorder; a device ID determination unit which determines whether or not the device ID is an initial value; a device ID generation unit which generates a new device ID in the case where the device ID is determined to be the initial value; a device ID update unit which requests the DVD recorder to update to the new device ID; a device ID/attribute information storing unit which stores the new device ID as the device ID of the DVD recorder; and a connected device control unit which controls the DVD recorder by using the device ID stored in the device ID/attribute information storing unit.

The present invention relates to a technique in which a control device controls a plurality of controlled devices, and in particular, to a technique in which a control device identifies a plurality of controlled devices.
In order for a control device to identify a plurality of controlled devices, it is typical to assign a unique ID such as EUI-64 to each controlled device. EUI-64 is a 64-bit-long ID which uniquely identifies a device, and the address system thereof is standardized by IEEE. Namely, in a 64-bit-long identifier, the high 24-bit part is called Organizationally Unique Identifier (OUI) or company_id, which is a number assigned uniquely to a manufacturer by IEEE. The remaining low 40-bit part is called an extension identifier, and IEEE is not involved in the assignment thereof. If a manufacturer to which OUI has been assigned observes a rule of assigning numbers without any, all devices having EUI-64 identifiers will have unique identifiers, respectively.
Further, a system in which a central management device assigns an identification code dynamically to an image forming device has also been proposed (for example, refer to Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 2003-169059). The identification code is adapted to be switched depending on whether or not the central management device is connected to an outside management device.
However, assigning unique identifiers to all devices at the time of shipment places a heavy management burden on the manufacturer. This problem becomes prominent as the number of manufactured devices increases.
It is true that according to the system proposed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 2003-169059, an identification code is assigned to a terminal device each time the image forming device is connected to the central management device, and so a problem of the management burden placed on the manufacturer being heavy is solved. However, if an identification code is assigned to a terminal device each time the image forming device is connected to the central management device, another problem is caused that the number of processing steps increases in both of the central management device and the image forming device.


In an Internet facsimile 1, scanned and stored image information is broadcasted in facsimile and electronic mail communications according to one transmission instruction of the user.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an Internet facsimile and a control method thereof, and in particular those for improving the operability to perform facsimile (FAX) transmission and electronicmail (e-mail) transmission at the same time and making it possible to correctly check the communication result as with facsimile communications also in electronic mail transmission.
2. Description of the Related Art
In an Internet facsimile (iFAX) in the related art, to give a facsimile transmission instruction and an electronic mail transmission instruction, the instructions have to be given separately,
In the Internet facsimile (iFAX) in the related art, data communications are conducted directly with the associated party in facsimile (FAX) transmission and thus it is not difficult to check that the transmission is completed; electronic mail (e-mail) transmission is executed via a server, etc. Thus if the transfer operation to the server is normally completed, it is not easy to check whether or not the electronic mail has been sent to the correct destination to which the electronic mail should be sent.
Thus, in e-mail transmission, the check result as to whether or not e-mail has been transmitted to the associated party is unknown upon completion of the transmission operation from the facsimile, and a report different in meaning of the communication result of good transmission is output in FAX and e-mail.
In the Internet facsimile in the related art, to give a facsimile transmission instruction and an electronic mail transmission instruction, the instructions rust be given separately as described above; the operation is time-consuming operation for the user.
In the Internet facsimile (iFAX) in the related art, in e-mail transmission, the check result as to whether or not e-mail has been transmitted to the associated party is unknown upon completion of the transmission operation from the facsimile, and a report different in meaning of the communication result of good transmission is output in FAX and e-mail, and thus the user cannot correctly check the communication result of e-mail transmission.

Internet facsimile and control method thereof


Systems, methods and apparatus are provided through which in some embodiments a reference display receives reference information and displays the reference information from a digital image detector, wherein the reference display is in close proximity to the digital image detector.

In conventional imaging apparatus, a subject of an imaging procedure is imaged by an X-ray beam from an X-ray source. An X-ray image is captured by an imaging receptor. The imaging receptor may be a film-based receptor, or increasingly so, a digital image receptor. The source and the imaging receptor are located in a room often referred to as an "imaging room."
In these conventional imaging systems, an imaging console is located outside the imaging room. The imaging console includes a visual display of information describing the imaging procedure.
The information displayed on the visual display of the imaging console is reviewed by an operator of the imaging system after the imaging procedure is complete. The information is reviewed to determine the quality of the image. If the image is not of acceptable quality, the image procedure is repeated.
A human subject of the imaging procedure often feel puzzled, confused and in a quandary about the success of the imaging procedure because the human subject does not have access to the information on the visual display of the imaging console. In a society that increasingly values access to information, some human subjects feel very out-of-place when they have no direct access to information on the imaging procedure that could have a big effect on their life. This lack of information sometimes leads the human subject a feeling that the imaging procedure is somewhat mysterious, and in turn leads the human subject to a lack of confidence on the success of the imaging procedure.
In regards to digital image receptors, the digital image receptors weigh less than ten pounds and thus are fairly easy to move around. The portability of the digital image receptors is a very helpful and useful attribute of the digital image receptors, but the portability also has the effect of bringing the digital image receptors with contact with more objects. Contact with other objects can result in damage to the exterior housing of the digital image receptors.
For the reasons stated above, and for other reasons stated below which will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading and understanding the present specification, there is a need in the art for improved access to the imaging information by the operator in order to reduce the time of completing the imaging procedure. There is also a need for improved access to the imaging information by a human subject of the imaging procedure in order to reduce the mysteriousness of the imaging procedure and improve the confidence of the human subject in the success of the imaging procedure. In addition, there is a need to protect the exterior housing of digital image receptors from damage by contact from other objects.

Systems, methods and apparatus for a reference display of a digital image detector


Techniques and tools for video frame interpolation and motion analysis are described. The techniques and tools may be implemented separately or in combination in software and/or hardware devices for various applications. For example, a media playback device uses frame interpolation and motion analysis in real time to increase the frame rate of streamed video for playback. The device uses feature/region selection in global motion estimation, local motion estimation to correct the global motion estimation at an intermediate timestamp for a synthesized frame, and vector switching in the local motion estimation.

Streaming video over the Internet has become more popular, helped by the greater availability of on-line video content and the increased use of high-bandwidth connections with which to obtain the content. Providers of streaming video often use low frame rates (as well as small frame dimensions and low fidelity) to reduce bitrate and thus make viewing or downloading the video practicable, even for high-bandwidth connections. For example, streaming video often has a frame rate of 15 frames per second ["fps"] or slower. To viewers accustomed to television frame rates of 25 fps, 30 fps, or higher, the streaming video may appear jerky or choppy.
Outside of streaming video applications, it is sometimes necessary to convert video content from one frame rate to another for reasons unrelated to bandwidth limitations. Examples include converting from cinematic 24 fps content to the CCIR-601 video rates (telecine conversion), converting between PAL, NTSC and HDTV rates, and generating frames for slow motion playback.
Traditional methods of rate conversion have used frame or field repetition, such as the commonly used 3:2 pull-down method for telecine conversion. In these methods, the nearest source frame/field to the desired output time-stamp is displayed. For instance, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,929,902 to Kwok, a sequence of frames at 24 fps is converted to 60 fields per second video by producing three video fields for the first frame and two fields for the second frame, etc., with the fields alternating between odd and even frames. The first field produced could be an odd field from the first frame, the second an even field from the first frame, the third field an odd field from the first frame (identical to the first field), the fourth an even field from the second frame, the fifth an odd field from the second frame, and so on.
It is also possible to use simple temporal filtering to generate a new output frame at a correct time-stamp. This may suffice for low-motion video, but does not work as well if there is temporal aliasing of high spatial frequency components in the source sequence. Typically, low frame-rate video content contains plenty of temporal aliasing, and simple temporal filtering may produce obvious ghosting artifacts. Ghosting artifacts are an unintended result of blending two images. For example, when a foreground object and background at the same location in different frames are blended, a faint version of the foreground object may appear over the background where it should not. Such duplicate or out-of-place objects appear similar to those produced from the double exposure of still image film.
Motion compensated temporal filtering has been used to alleviate this problem. Matching regions from one source frame to another by motion estimation allows a new frame to be synthesized at an intermediate time by temporal filtering of the aligned and positioned source regions. Numerous techniques for motion compensated temporal filtering have been tried. The quality of the resulting frame is critically dependent on the accuracy of the motion estimation. For this reason, numerous approaches to motion estimation have been suggested. Whatever the merits of previous frame interpolation and motion analysis techniques, however, they do not have the advantages of the techniques and tools of the present invention.

Increasing motion smoothness using frame interpolation with motion analysis


A system for automatically managing vulnerabilities may determine vulnerability data describing vulnerabilities in an information technology environment and then assign each vulnerability to a stakeholder for remediation. The system may receive a remediation proposal from the stakeholder, obtain approval for the remediation proposal, and facilitate remediation of the vulnerability based on the proposal.

IT assets, particularly key ones, are often spread over very diverse geographical locations. In such an environment, keeping the network safe from external/internal threats and meeting compliance requirements are daunting tasks, especially when critical vulnerabilities are tracked manually for remediation, which can be very time consuming.
Existing solutions for vulnerability management suffer from several risks and/or challenges. These risks include leaving vulnerabilities un-remediated for extended periods of time, sharing specific vulnerabilities with malicious entities, providing limited/inadequate user access controls, lacking monitoring of data access/download, reporting inconsistently across different business units, failing to require accountability from teams who remediate the vulnerabilities, etc. The challenges include relying on manually managed spreadsheets for reporting and tracking vulnerabilities, storing vulnerability data on an unsecured/unsupported share-point site/shared network folders, providing weak access controls around vulnerability data, releasing vulnerability reports inconsistently on a recurring basis, consistently assigning vulnerabilities to the wrong groups, relying on emails/phone calls/meetings to follow-up on and/or escalate vulnerabilities, using a tedious and difficult paper-based exception/suppression processes, using email to approve exception and/or suppression requests, failing to provide compliance audit trails, lacking integration with any ITIL (IT Infrastructure Library) processes, lacking scalability, lacking integration with a service provider's knowledgebase (used for remediation), etc.
Given the sheer size an enterprise IT environment can have, hundreds if not thousands or more vulnerabilities can be detected on a monthly basis, which further exacerbates the above-listed risks and challenges. As a result, there is a need for an automated vulnerability management and compliance system that can expedite and reliably manage vulnerability remediation.


A multi-antenna system includes: a server; a first antenna group, provided on a base station and including multiple first antennas including a first representative antenna and a first non-representative antenna, the base station performing intra-group channel estimation to obtain and transmit to the server multiple first inner channel estimation coefficients between the first representative antenna and the first non-representative antenna, and serving a user device; and a reference device, communicating with the server and the first antennas, performing channel estimation between the reference device and the first representative antenna to obtain and transmit to the server multiple first outer channel estimation coefficients between the reference device and the first representative antenna. The server calculates a precoding matrix according to the first inner and first outer channel estimation coefficients, and the base station performs data transmission with the user device according to the precoding matrix.

Base stations are densely deployed in an ultra-high density network to enhance system transmission efficiency. However, these base stations are distanced extremely close to one another that they may also interfere one another, causing low system performance.
An ultra-high density network can use joint transmission to increase signal strength and reduce interference. However, the ultra-high density network also faces a challenge of issues of synchronization between base stations and channel calibration for multiple base stations. Therefore, it is also one of the goals of industry as how to improve spectrum utilization efficiency for a multi-antenna system.

Multi-antenna system and channel calibration method thereof

INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH INSTITUTE


A wave absorber comprising a foamed resin and a dielectric loss material dispersed therein, wherein the foamed resin is a foamed melamine resin obtained by foaming a resin composition comprising, as the main components, a melamine-formaldehyde condensate and a foaming agent. The wave absorber alleviates the problems of the prior art, and is lightweight and superior in self-extinguishing property, and shows an excellent wave-absorbing property owing to a uniformly dispersed dielectric loss material.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wave absorber. More particularly, the present invention relates to a wave absorber which is lightweight and superior in self-extinguishing property, and shows an excellent wave-absorbing property owing to a uniformly dispersed dielectric loss material.
2. Prior Art
Anechoic chambers have been widely used for applications such as measurement of properties of antennas, testing of electromagnetic field intensity testers, measurement of jamming wave intensity, and the like. Each anechoic chamber is provided, at the wall, ceiling, floor, etc., with a wave absorber(s) (an example thereof is shown in FIG. 1) having, at the surface, a wave-absorbing portion consisting of a plurality of projections of circular cone shape, triangular pyramid shape, square pyramid shape, wedge shape or the like.
As such a wave absorber, there is in general and wide use one comprising (1) a foamed resin having the above-mentioned projections, consisting of a foamed polystyrene resin, a foamed polyurethane resin, a foamed polyethylene resin or the like and (2) a dielectric loss material (e.g. carbon black) dispersed in the foamed resin (1). The wave absorber is used in an anechoic chamber by adhering its back side to the wall, floor and ceiling of the anechoic chamber with an adhesive or the like.
Of various wave absorbers each comprising a different foamed resin, a wave absorber comprising a foamed polystyrene resin has the following problems. This wave absorber is obtained by adding a dielectric loss material (e.g. carbon black) and a binder to prefoamed polystyrene resin beads and then molding the mixture. Since the beads are particles of relatively large diameters (about 0.1-1 mm), the resulting foamed material has large-diameter cells, which requires addition of a large amount of a dielectric loss material (e.g. carbon black) in order for the final wave absorber to exhibit sufficiently high wave absorbability. Moreover, the wave absorber using a foamed polystyrene resin is applicable only in a relatively low-frequency zone and cannot be used in a high-frequency zone of, for example, 10 GHz or higher.
Meanwhile, a wave absorber comprising a foamed polyurethane resin has an advantage in that it is usable in a high-frequency zone because the foamed polyurethane resin has small cell diameters. However, this wave absorber has the following problems. That is, a foamed polyurethane resin has cells of nonuniform diameter and a large number of cell walls in skeleton of foamed resin, and this makes impossible the uniform dispersion of dielectric loss material (e.g. carbon black) in the foamed resin, by a process of impregnating the foamed and molded polyurethane resin with a latex containing a dielectric loss material and then drying the impregnated material, which process is necessary to produce a wave absorber comprising a foamed polyurethane resin.
In any wave absorber, an electric wave entering the absorber is converted into heat energy by dielectric loss, whereby the electric wave is absorbed by the absorber. In a wave absorber comprising a foamed polyethylene resin, since the polyethylene resin has a low softening point, heat build-up in the resin invites deformation or collapse of the foamed resin; moreover, since the polyethylene resin is flammable to inflammable, heat build-up in the resin may cause fuming, fire-catching, combustion, or harmful gas generation. These problems have become serious in recent years because the output of electric waves is becoming larger.
In order to alleviate the above-mentioned problems, there were proposed a method of producing a wave absorber by packing inorganic particles tightly (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Kokai! No. 5-243781) and a method of producing a wave absorber by using a foamed phenolic resin (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Kokai! No. 6-314894). However, these methods have problems as well. In the former method, the cell diameters are large as in the above-mentioned prefoamed polystyrene resin beads and the wave absorber produced is applicable only in a low-frequency zone. In the latter method, it is necessary to use a flame retardant of phosphorus or halogen type, giving a heavy foamed material (density: about 100 kg/m.sup.3); this, together with the pyramid shape of the wave absorber produced, gives an oppressive feeling to the users of the wave absorber.


A semiconductor processing method of providing a doped polysilicon layer atop a substrate includes, a) depositing a layer of substantially amorphous silicon having a dopant concentration of less than or equal to about 1.times.10.sup.16 atoms/cm.sup.3 over a substrate to a thickness of less than or equal to about 30 Angstroms; b) depositing a layer of silicon over the amorphous silicon layer in a manner which in situ dopes such layer to a dopant concentration of greater than about 1.times.10.sup.16 atoms/cm.sup.3 ; and c) providing the deposited silicon layers to be polycrystalline. Preferably, the substantially amorphous layer is entirely undoped as-deposited. The invention is believed to have greatest applicability to provision of thin film doped polysilicon layers having thicknesses of less than or equal to about 100 Angstroms. Accordingly, the combined thickness of the deposited silicon layers is preferably less than or equal to about 100 Angstroms. The preferred method for providing the deposited silicon layers to be polycrystalline is by rapid thermal processing. Such, or other processing, also effectively dopes the first deposited silicon layer by out-diffusion from the second deposited layer.

The reduction in memory cell size required for high density dynamic random access memories (DRAMs) results in a corresponding decrease in the area available for the storage node of the memory cell capacitor. Yet, design and operational parameters determine the minimum charge required for reliable operation of the memory cell despite decreasing cell area. Several techniques have been developed to increase the total charge capacity of the cell capacitor without significantly affecting the chip area. These include structures utilizing trench and stacked capacitors, as well as the utilization of new capacitor dielectric materials having higher dielectric constants.
One common material utilized for capacitor plates is conductively doped polysilicon. Such is utilized because of its compatibility with subsequent high temperature processing, good thermal expansion properties with SiO.sub.2, and its ability to be conformally deposited over widely varying topography.
As background, silicon occurs in crystalline and amorphous forms. Further, there are two basic types of crystalline silicon known as monocrystalline silicon and polycrystalline silicon. Polycrystalline silicon, polysilicon for short, is typically in situ or subsequently conductively doped to render the material conductive. Monocrystalline silicon is typically epitaxially grown from a silicon substrate. Silicon films deposited on dielectrics (such as SiO.sub.2 and Si.sub.3 N.sub.4) result in either an amorphous or polycrystalline phase. Specifically, it is generally known within the prior art that silicon deposited at wafer temperatures of less than approximately 580.degree. C. will result in an amorphous silicon layer, whereas silicon deposited at temperatures higher than about 580.degree. C. will result in a polycrystalline layer. The specific transition temperature depends on the source chemicals/precursors and the reactor used for the deposition.
The continued increase in circuit density continues to drive the thickness of the capacitor and gate layers in DRAM cells to smaller dimensions. Yet, the application of doped polysilicon films in DRAM memory cells demands high quality thin films. Historically, very thin polysilicon films (i.e., less than or equal to about 100 Angstroms) are fundamentally difficult to achieve, and the necessity of conductively doping such thin films is even more problematic. Generally, there are two basic approaches to doping thin film polysilicon, namely a) ion implantation, and b) in-situ doping during silicon film deposition. It has usually been easier to control the doping concentration through ion implantation than by in situ doping. However, ion implantation of dopants is typically limited to lower dopant concentrations, such as less than or equal to about 1.times.10.sup.16 atoms/cm.sup.3. In many applications, desired dopant concentrations to render polysilicon films suitably conductive exceeds 10.sup.20 atoms/cm.sup.3. Therefore, in situ doping (which is capable of much higher level doping without damage as compared to ion implantation) continues to be a desired form of processing for thin polysilicon films.
In-situ doping is commonly achieved by feeding a dopant gas to a chemical vapor deposition reactor simultaneously with feeding of a suitable silicon source gas. Example silicon source gases include silane (SiH.sub.4), disilane (Si.sub.2 H.sub.6), trisilane, and organosilane, while example conductivity enhancing dopant gases include phosphine (PH.sub.3), diborane (B.sub.2 H.sub.6), arsine (AsH.sub.3) and certain organometallic precursors. However, the resultant silicon film from the high level doping can suffer serious drawbacks. Such include the degradation of the interface of such film to the substrate, which in the presence of the dopant atoms can initiate local undesired strains in the resultant silicon film. Such local strains can further propagate to induce gathering of dopant atoms which can be particularly problematic the thinner the desired resultant polysilicon film. The situation is magnified where a polysilicon film is being provided over a SiO.sub.2 layer, which is typically the case. The result of the above mentioned situations can be a non-uniformity of the film thickness and in the sheet resistance from position to position and in wafer to wafer.
Accordingly, needs remain for producing improved polysilicon layers which are effectively in situ conductively doped during provision of the silicon on the substrate. Although the invention principally arose out of concerns specific to the art area of provision of thin doped polysilicon films, the artisan will appreciate applicability of the invention to thicker polysilicon films as well. The invention is limited only by the accompanying claims appropriately interpreted in accordance with the Doctrine Of Equivalents.

Semiconductor processing method of providing a doped polysilicon layer


The present disclosure includes various apparatus and method embodiments for vehicle recovery. One embodiment includes at least one inflatable member having a target area for impact of a vehicle thereon and wherein the at least one inflatable member is inflated with a fluid provided by an inflation source.

Recovering vehicles, for example, where space for recovery may be limited, while preventing damage to the vehicle and/or its payload, which can include valuable electronic components and/or information stored thereon, is desirable in many instances. Such vehicles, which can include various unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) among other air, land, and/or water vehicles, can often be reused. As such, safe recovery of such vehicles can provide cost, manufacturing, supply, and/or materials savings, among other benefits.
Some current methods of recovery of UAVs include using parachutes, parafoils, nets, cable arresting devices, or a combination thereof. Some such methods and/or devices can be complicated, time consuming, difficult to erect/teardown, and/or can be difficult to integrate in small areas (e.g., on a ship deck having limited area).


A process and system that maximizes the sale price of a set of fungible items by allowing multiple independent parties to input purchase or sale orders for the items, which orders may be either dependent on or independent of the results of the maximization of the sale price of another set of fungible items for which multiple independent parties input purchase and sale orders that may be dependent on or independent of the results of the price maximization of a third set of items and where the price maximization of the secondary set of items may be dependent upon the result of the maximization of the first set of items and the maximization of the sale price of the third set of fungible items for which multiple independent parties input purchase and sale orders may be dependent upon the maximization of the sale price of the secondary set of items; thus allowing the sale price of up the three sets of fungible items to be interdependent.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and system for establishing and maximizing the price of fungible items through the use of two or more interdependent auctions of two or more sets of fungible items conducted substantially simultaneously. More specifically, the present invention relates to such a process and system implemented in an electronic trading network wherein the fungible items in preferred embodiments may be securities such as stocks, bonds and instruments related thereto.
2. Description of Background Art
Convertible bonds, by their nature, are sensitive to the common stock into which they are convertible (underlying securities). Many investors in convertible securities purchase them at the original issuance as well as in the secondary market. However, many potential investors in securities do not have the opportunity to purchase convertibles upon original issuance in a manner consistent with their investment philosophies, specifically hedge funds. In order to understand the uses of the invention, one must understand that increasing the number of potential buyers of an issue could have a positive impact on the ability of the issuer or underwriter to attain a higher price level and that each buyer will attempt to attain its own objectives.
Currently, new issues of convertible securities are managed by underwriters who are contracted by issuers to sell convertible securities on the issuers' behalf into the capital markets. Underwriters have many tools at their disposal when selling securities, salesmen, road shows, management's time, and relationships with customers among a few. Typically, at the end of the selling process, customers of the underwriter will indicate a level of interest in the securities by indicating the amount they would like to purchase. Some of these indications will be price sensitive and some will be noncompetitive. The underwriter and issuer decide the price of the newly issued securities and allocate the issue to buyers. Most securities are priced and allocated while the market is closed.
In the past few years, a new mechanism for issuing corporate securities has emerged: the Dutch auction. While the Federal Reserve Bank has used a similar process to issue government bonds for years, the process has been reinvented for corporate and municipal securities with the most recent offering being the auction of a municipal bond issue. The procedure involves the establishment of a single price for all allocations in a Dutch auction offering of securities. Generally, anyone bidding below the final price received no allocation and anyone bidding above the price receives a full allocation up to his indicated buy interest (those who were bidding the same price as the established price are given a proration.) Buyers can place multiple bids for different quantities at different prices. The issue price is established by searching for the first price in which the cumulative quantities for which bids at that price or higher equal or exceed the quantity to be sold in the auction.
Hedge funds in the convertible securities space are, by their nature, relative value participants. They attempt to purchase convertible securities when they believe they are cheap relative to the underlying common stock. When they make a purchase they generally sell or short the underlying stock in some "hedge" ratio in order to lock-in the value (cheapness) until the convertibles can be sold and the stock simultaneously re-purchased. These participants generally like to purchase convertibles while simultaneously selling the underlying common stock, but the new issue process, by its nature, precludes this practice. Firstly, the markets are closed when pricing occurs so they cannot sell or short the underlying common, and secondly, they are considered a less desirable buyer in any underwriting because of their after-market selling tendencies. Accordingly, a need in the art exists for a process that alleviates both problems provides the underwriter and issuer a more visible picture of demand for the new issue.

Double dutch auction for establishment and maximization of sales price of generic fungible items


A booth-type seating arrangement with fore and aft seats for airplanes and aircraft. A cabinet with a stowable video monitor and pull-up table can be positioned between the seats. Sliding gates integrated into the aisle seat end base can be deployed to form an enclosed play area for children. Theater-style seat bottoms can be provided which flip-up to provide more floor space. Child booster seats can be built into the seatbacks. The seatback and bottom cushions can articulate and slide within fixed frame members to combine with opposite cushions to form a flat sleeping configuration for passengers.

The present invention relates to aircraft, and more particularly to passenger seating and accessory systems for aircraft.
Passenger seating arrangements in commercial airlines and aircraft today is relatively standardized. Pluralities of sets of passenger seats are provided with the seats all facing in the forward direction and with some areas of seats separated by bulkheads or service facilities. Such seating arrangements, however, do not allow for practical interaction or shared activities for families with children or groups who are traveling together. Business travelers also do not have access to seated conference areas, which would allow more personal access and interaction. Further there is no play space available in commercial airlines today for young children.
Thus, there is a need for different seating accommodations and configurations, as well as related accessories, which allow families, groups traveling together, and businessmen to have more interaction and a more pleasurable flying experience.
There also is a need for better rest accommodations for passengers. Conventional airline seats typically do not fully recline, thus making it difficult for passengers to rest or sleep comfortably.

Interior seating architecture for aircraft


Various embodiments of an ultrasonic tire mounting machine and system are disclosed.

Pneumatic tires are often mounted on a wheel having a one-piece rim. Mounting or demounting a pneumatic tire on a one-piece rim requires significant effort, as the outer diameter of the rim's flange is larger than the inner diameter of the tire's bead. As a result, the tire and its bead must be deformed and stretched over the flange.
Further, following the mounting of a tire on a one-piece rim, the bead of the tire must be forced into contact with the bead seat portions of the rim. This process is commonly referred to as "bead seating." Many installers apply high air pressure within the tire for bead seating, in an attempt to force the tire's beads into the bead seat portions of the rim.
Rubber tires often have high coefficients of friction. Accordingly, the tire mounting/demounting and bead seating processes require significant forces to overcome the friction between the rubber tire and the rim.
An improved system is needed for reducing friction between a pneumatic tire and a rim during the mounting/demounting and bead seating processes.

BRIDGESTONE AMERICAS TIRE OPERATIONS, LLC


A method is for matching a set of first classes assigned to a first data set with a set of second classes assigned to a second data set. The method includes constructing, via a set of pre-processing functions, a plurality of alignment profiles such that at least one alignment profile is assigned to each of the first classes and each of the second classes. The method includes generating a comparison matrix for each group of the alignment profiles, such that each group includes at least one of the first classes and at least one of the second classes. The method includes training a first machine learning model, through supervised training, based on the generated comparison matrices and based on probabilistic labels generated by a second machine learning model.

In the past, many IT systems or platforms have been built up individually for different application purposes and very often each of them just becomes an isolated data silo. This happens across domains and organizations, and even across different departments within the same organizations. There is a need to integrate and link those data silos so that the value of existing data could be further increased and maximized by enabling new services and applications across silos.
An approach is to integrate data and services across silos at the semantic level, which requires the ontologies used by different silos to be aligned. Ontology matching is one of the key problems for ontology alignment. The target of ontology matching is to find the semantic mappings between two classes from two given ontologies, which are usually called as source ontology and target ontology.
There have been lots of existing studies to ontology matching in the state of the art, which include the following two types of approaches:
(1) Supervised learning that relies on manually labelled data sets to train a learning model and then utilizes the trained model to decide whether a class in the source ontology could be mapped with another class in the target ontology. However, manually labelling the data is expensive and time-consuming. Due to this reason, many of existing models for ontology matching are just trained with small labelled data sets. This often leads to unstable performance when being applied across domains.
(2) Unsupervised learning that relies on some heuristic similarity functions to perform either ranking or clustering and then selects the top candidates as the matched options. However, since the unsupervised learning approach does not use any labelled data, its accuracy is difficult to measure such that its reliability and effectiveness are difficult to quantify.

Ontology matching based on weak supervision


A vertical rotisserie sub-assembly, comprising: (a) a housing; (b) a motor; (c) an energy source; (d) a switch; (e) a rotating member; (f) a lower suspending member; and (g) an upper suspending member.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to a vertical rotisserie sub-assembly, and more particularly, to a vertical rotisserie sub-assembly which facilitates substantially more uniform heating when associated with conventional grill assemblies.
2. Background Art
Cooking grills and grill assemblies have been known in the art for several years, and may include charcoal grills, gas grills, grill assemblies positioned over an open fire, such as a campfire, etcetera. Typically, cooking grills and grill assemblies are utilized for cooking food, such as meat, vegetables, bread, etcetera, while outdoors. Individuals may use such cooking grills and grill assemblies at home or during travel, camping, or outdoor barbecues in order to enjoy a unique cooking experience and the distinctive flavor of grilled food. However, a plurality of drawbacks and/or deficiencies are associated with conventional cooking grills and grill assemblies.
In normal operation of conventional cooking grills and grill assemblies, food is placed on a cooking grid and is cooked while in a stationary position over a fire or heating element. However, conventional cooking grills and grill assemblies typically have uneven heating associated with them inasmuch as the fire or heating element below the cooking grid may be more or less intense in some areas. For example, hot and cold spots are often present on the cooking grid of a cooking grill or grill assembly, which leads to food being either under-cooked or over-cooked. Therefore, in order to remedy the uneven heating associated with conventional cooking grills and grill assemblies, a vertical rotisserie sub-assembly which facilitates substantially more uniform heating of food when associated with conventional cooking grills and grill assemblies is highly desirable.
In addition, cooking grills and grill assemblies are often placed outside and are therefore subject to a variety of weather conditions and the decline, decay, and/or deterioration that may naturally result. Therefore, a vertical rotisserie sub-assembly which can easily be removed from an outdoor cooking grill or grill assembly is highly desirous.
Furthermore, individuals who enjoy grilled food often enjoy grilling on a variety of types of grills, including charcoal grills, gas grills, or grill assemblies positioned over an open fire, such as a campfire. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a vertical rotisserie sub-assembly which can be easily modified for association with any one of a variety of types of cooking grills or grill assemblies.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to overcome the deficiencies of the prior art and to satisfy the commercial demand for a vertical rotisserie sub-assembly which facilitates substantially more uniform heating when associated with conventional grill assemblies.
These and other objects of the present invention will become apparent in light of the present specification, claims, and drawings.