A differentially phase shift keyed demodulator for use in an interrogator of a remote intelligent communication system. The demodulator includes a quadrature combiner delaying one of the quadrature signals and thereafter combining the delayed and undelayed signals along with a FIR matched filter, which filters the combiner output whereby the differentially phase shift keyed data on a sub-carrier can be demodulated using a simple delay and multiplying scheme in response to the filtered output.

In a remote intelligent communication system 2, with reference to FIG. 1, a host computer 10 communicates across a given communication medium 18 with a selected remote intelligent communications device 14.sub.1, for example, a plurality of remote intelligent communication devices 14.sub.0, 14.sub.1, 14.sub.2. An interrogator 12 is employed intermediate the host computer 10 and communications medium 18 for appropriately coupling the host computer to the medium. Host computer 10 has a library of commands 11 available for configuring and operating the interrogator 12, the remote intelligent communications device 14, and itself.
In an exemplary application, host computer 10, via appropriate programming, retrieves appropriate commands from within its library of commands 11 and sends associated command data to interrogator 12 by way of a digital interfacing link 16. Digital interfacing link 16 is an enhanced parallel port (EPP) digital interface. The command forwarded from host 10 to interrogator 12 can be a command for configuring the interrogator, a command for operating interrogator 12, or a command for configuring or operating a remote intelligent communications device 14.
Upon receiving the command, interrogator 12 configures itself appropriately in accordance with the command instructions and/or forwards appropriate data along a forward RF communications link 18 to a remote intelligent communications device 14. Depending upon the type of command, the remote intelligent communications device 14 may respond with an appropriate return RF transmission 18. If such a reply is received, interrogator 12 extracts digital data from the RF reply signal and forwards the reply message to host computer 10 for further analysis.
Remote intelligent communications device 14 may comprise an Ambit.TM. remote intelligent communications device, available from Micron Communications Inc. of Boise, Id.
Interrogator 12 receives digital data by way of digital interfacing port 16, which may be an enhanced parallel port. Certain commands of the "Micron RFID Library" 11 are associated with configuring interrogator 12. For example, interrogator 12 may receive a command for structuring appropriate transmit and receive antenna structures. In this regard, a receive antenna structure may include two or more separate antennas selectively configurable for receiving an RF signal. Likewise, transmitting antennas are selectively configurable for enabling two or more transmissions of RF signals away from interrogator 12. Moreover, diversity switches of the transmit and receiver communication paths are respectively configurable in accordance with configuration data received from a digital controller. The diversity switches configure the respective antenna structures of the receiver and transmitter communication links of interrogator 12.
Further details of the above-noted communication system can be found in co-pending commonly assigned application Ser. No. 08/656,530, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. Specifically, in a remote intelligent communication system, with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7, a host computer 110 communicates across a given communication medium 118 with a select remote intelligent communications device 114.sub.1 of a plurality of remote intelligent communication devices 114.sub.0, 114.sub.1, 114.sub.2. Typically, an interrogator 112 is employed intermediate host computer 110 and communications medium 118 for appropriately coupling host computer 110 to the medium 118. Preferably, host computer 110 has a library of commands 111 available for configuring and operating interrogator 112, remote intelligent communications device 114, and itself.
In an exemplary application, host computer 110, per appropriate programming, retrieves appropriate commands from within its library of commands 111 and sends associated command data to interrogator 112 by way of a digital interfacing link 116. Preferably, digital interfacing link 116 is an enhanced parallel port (EPP) digital interface. The command forwarded from host 110 to interrogator 112 can be a command for configuring the interrogator, or command for operating interrogator 112, or a command for configuring or operating remote intelligent communications device 114.
Upon receiving the command, interrogator 112 configures itself appropriately in accordance with the command instructions and/or forwards appropriate data along a forward RF communications link 118.sub.1 (as shown in FIG. 7) to remote intelligent communications device 114. Depending upon the type of command remote intelligent communications device 114 may respond with an appropriate return RF transmission 118.sub.r. If such a reply is received, interrogator 112 extracts digital data from the RF reply signal and forwards the reply message to host computer 110 for further analysis.
Host computer 110 may be a computer compatible with Microsoft DOS.TM. and may have a processor of performance equal to or greater-than an 80486.TM. processor. Preferably, host computer 110 has an enhanced parallel port (EPP) for providing a digital interface 116 with interrogator 112. A library of commands for operating interrogator 112 and remote intelligent communication devices 114, are available in a software tool "Micron RFID Library (MRL)" available from Micron Communications, Inc. of Boise, Id. "Micron RFID Systems Developer's Guide", version 3.1, May 9, 1996, of Micron Communications, Inc. of Boise, Id., provides a user's guide for identifying software commands available within the MRL software tools, and how to employ such commands for configuring and operating a remote communications system.
In one embodiment, remote intelligent communications device 114 comprises an Ambit.TM. remote intelligent communications device, available from Micron Communications Inc. of Boise, Id. In alternative embodiment of the present invention, device 114 comprises a Microstamp.TM. remote intelligent communications device, also available from Micron Communications, Inc. of Boise, Id. In most instances, the commands for operating these two devices are essentially the same; differences therebetween are described in the aforementioned "Micron RFID Systems Developer's Guide".
With reference to FIG. 8, interrogator 112 receives digital data by way of digital interfacing port 116 (e.g., EPP). Certain commands of the "Micron RFID Library" are associated with configuring interrogator 112. For example, interrogator 112 may receive a command for structuring appropriate transmit and receive antenna structures. A receive antenna structure, in one embodiment of the present invention, includes two separate antennas 120.sub.1 and 120.sub.2 selectively configurable for receiving an RF signal. Likewise, transmitting antennas structures 122.sub.1 and 122.sub.2 are selectively configurable for enabling transmission of RF signals away from interrogator 112. Diversity switches 136, 138 of the transmit and receiver communication paths respectively are configurable in accordance with configuration data received by digital controller 124. The diversity switches configure the respective antenna structures of the receiver and transmitter communication links of interrogator 112.
Amplifier 140 receives an RF input signal from the receiver antenna structure 120 (via diversity switch 138) and forwards an amplified representation of the received RF signal to a down converter 142. Down converter 142 receives a local Oscillator (LO) signal from an internal frequency synthesizer 126 via power divider 128. The LO signal mixes with the received RF input signal for providing an intermediate frequency (IF) output (e.g., I and Q outputs for full quadrature demodulation) which is forwarded to demodulator 144. Demodulator 144 demodulates the IF signal received from down converter 142 and recovers data therefrom in accordance with the modulation present on the IF Signal. Typically, digital controller 124 receives the recovered data and forwards it to host computer 110 by way of digital interface 116.
As part of a forward transmission chain, mixer 130 receives a carrier signal from frequency synthesizer 126 by way of power divider 128. The carrier signal is modulated in accordance with data established by digital controller 124. The resulting modulated output carrier is sent to amplifiers 132 and 134 for appropriate amplification before transmission to transmitter antenna structure 122 as selected in accordance with diversity switch 136. In one preferred embodiment, interrogator 112 is a 915 MHz backscatter interrogator, available from Micron Communications, Inc. of Boise, Id.
In the remote intelligent monitoring system depicted in FIG. 7, remote intelligent communications device 114 is associated with an automobile 115. However, in alternative applications, remote intelligent communications device 114 is associated with other animate or inanimate objects, including, but not limited to, luggage, a shipment package, an animal, a manufacturing assembly, a railway car, a water vessel, etc.
In the remote intelligent communications systems as described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7, remote intelligent communications device 114 generally uses a line-of-sight RF path with reference to interrogator 112 in order to maintain integrity of the associated RF communications link 118 therebetween. Should obstacles or interference be encountered along the RF communication path, the communication link may be lost. In addition, transmission power limitations of interrogator 112 and remote intelligent communications device 114 can likewise affect the integrity of, and distal range available for, the RF communications link.
In accordance with one embodiment, an alternative modem link is provided between host computer 110 and remote intelligent communications device 114, as shown in FIG. 9. A modem 152 is coupled to host 110 via an appropriate modem interface 150. Preferably, interface 150 comprises an RS-232 data interface. Likewise, remote communications device 114 is coupled to another modem device 154 by way of an appropriate digital interface 156, preferably, an RS-232 compatible interface. Modem devices 152,154 are coupled appropriately therebetween by way of an appropriate modem interfacing channel 158, preferably establishing a "transparent" alternative interfacing solution between host 110 and remote intelligent communications device 114. The alternative modem interface is alternative to the normal RF communications link 118.
Interfacing medium 158 between modem devices 152 and 154 may comprise a wireless intercommunications medium, such as an alternative RF channel, an optical medium, or an acoustic medium. Modern devices 152,154 comprise appropriate wireless modem devices for communicating therebetween via the associated wireless medium. The interfacing medium 158 may comprise a cellular network, and modem devices 152 and 154 may be cellular modem devices for interfacing to a cellular network. Typically, the cellular modem devices and the cellular network employ analog cellular modulation technology for the communications link. Alternatively, and preferably, the cellular modem devices and cellular network employ a cellular digital packet technology that is more secure than an analog cellular communications link. Modem devices 152 and 154 may also be satellite modem devices for enabling communications therebetween by way of a satellite link 158. Examples of the above modem devices are available from Motorola, Inc. and other modem manufacturers.
The above modem devices enable alternative communications between host computer 110 and remote intelligent communications device 114 in accordance with the respective wireless, cellular, and satellite links. Thus, should a remote intelligent communications device 114 be carried beyond its normal operating range associated with RF communications link 118, or should undue RF interference be encountered within the normal RF communications link 118; the host computer can attain an alternative communicate link with remote intelligent communications device 114 by way of the alternative modem devices 152, 154. Preferably, modem devices 152, 154 and associated digital interfacing, provide a transparent RS-232 interfacing solution between host computer 110 and remote intelligent communications device 114.
The remote intelligent communications device 114 is shown in greater detail in FIG. 10. In particular embodiments, remote intelligent communications device 114 comprises a Microstamp.TM. remote intelligent communications device, or an Ambit.TM., remote intelligent communications device, both of which are available from Micron Communications, Inc. of Boise, Id. The block diagram of FIG. 10 is representative, generally, of both of the two different types of remote intelligent communication devices named above. However, differences do exist therebetween, a few of which will be explained hereinbelow.
With reference to FIGS. 10 and 11, normal RF communications with remote intelligent communications device 114 is established by way of an RF port 164. In one embodiment, RF port 164 comprises a single antenna structure. In an alternative embodiment, two separate antennas are used, e.g., one for receiving and a second for transmission. Typically, receiver 166 includes appropriate down conversion, filtering, amplification, and detection circuitry. Receiver 166 is coupled to the RF port 164 for receiving an input RF signal. Receiver 166 forwards an appropriately received RF input signal to a clock and data recovery circuit 168. Clock and data recovery circuitry 168 receives an output signal as output from receiver 166 and recovers appropriate data therefrom. Additionally, clock and data recovery circuitry 168 recovers a clock signal having a frequency related to, and edges in synchronization with, the recovered data. In one embodiment of the present invention, a recovered clock 176 is sent to output frequency modulator 170. Output modulator 170 provides a carrier signal of a frequency related to the frequency of the recovered clock and modulates the carrier signal in accordance with desired data for an appropriate output transmission. Alternatively, an output transmission from remote intelligent communications device 114 utilizes the input RF signal itself as a carrier signal source within an alternative "backscatter" mode of operation, which will be described more fully hereinbelow.
In a particular backscatter, antenna port 164 of remote intelligent communications device 114 includes a pair of conductive lines, forward and return conductive lines (not shown), as an input section to a dipole or loop antenna. To enable backscatter operation, a switching element (not shown) is coupled between the forward and return conductive lines of the antenna structure proximate the antenna interface to the remote intelligent communications device 114. When the selective switch is closed, the impedance characteristics of the associated antenna will be different in comparison to the impedance characteristics thereof when the switch is open. Preferably, when the selective switch is open, the antenna provides a matched impedance, presenting an appropriate termination impedance to avoid reflections of RF signals of a given frequency as incident to the remote intelligent communications device 114. On the other hand, when the switching element is closed, preferably the device provides a short, shorting the forward and return conductive lines. Accordingly, RF signals received at the RF input port are reflected rather than terminated by the remote intelligent communications device 114. By modulating the matched and reflective characteristics of the antenna structure, via the open/short characteristics of the selective switch, a reflective RF signal can be selectively provided. The carrier frequency of the reflected RF signal will correspond to the carrier frequency of the incident RF signal, while the amplitude modulation of the reflected RF signal is established in accordance with the opening and closing of the selective switch.
In one embodiment, the selective switch is a pin diode. Alternatively, the switching device is a Schottky diode, a bipolar transistor, or a FET transistor. The respective diode or transistor is functionally modulated in accordance with data to be sent out from remote intelligent communications device 114, i.e. the retrieved data.
Data recovered by the clock and data recovery circuitry 168 is forwarded as input data 174 to microcontroller 160. Input data 174 may comprise command data, in addition to associated configuration data or other forms of information. Microcontroller 160 interprets the input data appropriately for controlling operation of remote intelligent communications device 114. Such control may include configuration of desired digital ports 184, configuration of desired analog ports 186, partialing or allocation of memory 162, configuration of appropriate antenna structures at RF port 164, selection of desired input/output frequency channels, time duration and operation of wake up circuitry 186, and/or charging of, or distribution of current from, battery 183.
In addition, microcontroller 160 controls operation of alternative modem port 180 for selectively interfacing with the alternative modem device 154. Preferably, the interface between microcontroller 160 and modem 154 is an RS-232 digital interface. In such conditions, microcontroller 160 enables the alternative modem port for external communications, and configures (104 of FIG. 13) the alternative data modem for an appropriate baud rate, e.g. 2400, 4800, or 9600 bits per second.
One method of enabling and configuring modem 154 involves sending an appropriate command and accompanying configuration data to the remote intelligent communications device 114 by way of the primary RF interface 118. Microcontroller 160 interprets the command appropriately and enables the alternative modem port 180 by forwarding appropriate configuration data to an associated control register (not shown) within the remote intelligent communications device 114. Additionally, microcontroller 160 forwards the appropriate configuration data, as might be associated with the desired baud rate and appropriate communications protocol, to modem 154 for enabling proper communications with host 110.
Alternatively, remote intelligent communications device 114 may have select pins which can be hard-wired to an appropriate voltage potential, for example, ground or V.sub.CC, Such that whenever the remote intelligent communications device 114 powers-up, microcontroller 160 senses the fixed hard wired pins and configures itself appropriately, enabling the modem port 160 and appropriately configuring modem device 154 in accordance with the condition of the hard-wired pins. Another method of providing a power tip configuration sequence comprises storing appropriate command and configuration data in nonvolatile memory within the remote intelligent communications device 114. At power-tip, the command data and appropriate configuration data are retrieved from the nonvolatile memory and executed accordingly by microcontroller 160 during a power-up configuration sequence.
In the above embodiment, the interface between the remote intelligent communications device 114 and modem device 154 was described as an RS-232 interface. In an alternative embodiment, the interface between modem 154 and remote intelligent device 114 comprises a serial data link and a synchronization clock line for sending data therebetween in synchronization with an appropriate clock signal.
In one exemplary embodiment of remote intelligent communications device 114, wake-up circuitry 182 senses when an appropriate RF input signal is received by receiver 166 and activates other portions of remote intelligent communications device 114 upon receiving a valid RF input signal and upon determining a valid interrogation protocol, compatible with the particular remote intelligent communications device 114. In an alternative embodiment of a remote intelligent communications device, wake-up circuitry 182 includes a self-timer that periodically forces an inquiry for determining the presence of an interrogation signal. When the self-timer times out at the end of a sleep mode, the wake-up circuitry 182 enables receiver 166 and clock and data recovery circuitry 168. Once these portions have been enabled, a further determination can be made as to whether or not a valid input signal is received. Upon determining a valid interrogation signal (per an appropriate interrogation protocol), the wake-up circuitry enables additional portions of the remote intelligent communications device 114 for full operation.
Battery 183 provides power to various elements of the remote intelligent communications device and is enabled appropriately by wake-up circuitry 182. During a sleep mode of operation, wake-up circuitry minimizes the amount of current drawn from battery 183. During alternative operating modes, wake-up circuitry 182 enables battery 183 to provide appropriated current flow to portions of remote intelligent communications device 114 as needed.
Additional information regarding a communication protocol between an interrogator 112 and a remote intelligent communications device 114 is available in U.S. Pat. No. 5,500,650, entitled "Data Communication Method Using Identification Protocol", issued Mar. 19,1996, filed Dec. 15, 1992, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,479,416, entitled "Apparatus and Method for Error Detection and Correction in a Radio Frequency Identification Device", issued Dec. 26, 1995, filed Sep. 30, 1993, which U.S. Patents are assigned to the assignee of the present invention and incorporated herein by reference in there entirety.
In a preferred exemplary embodiment, with reference to FIGS. 10-13, remote intelligent communications device 114 has a first digital interfacing port 184.sub.1 tied to a navigation receiver, e.g., a global positioning systems (GPS) receiver 188. GPS receiver 188 receives select GPS satellite information, by way of an appropriately tuned GPS antenna 189. An additional digital IO port 184.sub.2 is selectively coupled to other monitoring circuitry 194, such as: a "trip master".TM. of a delivery truck as is available from Rockwell International Corp., a continuity tester for monitoring a door of a delivery truck, or an analog-to-digital device that provides digital information to the remote intelligent communications device 114 representative of an analog measurement signal being sampled thereby. Analog IO port 186.sub.1 is selectively coupled to a transducer 190 (or alternatively, an accelerometer 192) for receiving an analog measurement signal in accordance with an associated continuity, pressure, magnetic field, temperature, or acceleration as measured by the respective transducer, Microcontroller 160 controls the configuration of the digital and analog IO ports 184, 186 respectively, in accordance with appropriate command and configuration data.
Preferably, remote intelligent communications device 114 also includes a comparator 196, and/or an analog-to-digital converter 198, which comparator and converter are selectively enabled by the controller in accordance with associated command and configuration data. In a select configuration, comparator 196 receives the analog signal of analog port 186, and compares this analog signal against a predetermined reference voltage V.sub.ref. Comparator 196 then triggers a flag (or an alarm) to microcontroller 160; signaling that the voltage received at analog port 186, is greater (or less) than the voltage V.sub.ref. In an alternative select configuration, the analog signal received at analog port 186.sub.1 is coupled to the input analog-to-digital converter 198. The analog-to-digital converter receives the analog input signal and converts the signal into a digital signal, i.e., measurement data representative of the analog voltage. The digital signal is forwarded to microcontroller 160 or an appropriate digital bus.
In an exemplary application, with reference to FIG. 12, a remote intelligent communications device 114 is employed for monitoring an open/close condition of a door 1102 of a cargo bay 1100 of, for example, a delivery truck. A transducer 190 is configured with cargo bay 1100, proximate door 1102, for determining when door 1102 is opened or closed. For example, transducer 190 preferably comprises a magnetic transducer for sensing magnetic characteristics as may be associated with the opening/closing of door 1102. Transducer 190 produces an analog signal representative of the open/close condition, that is forwarded to analog port 186.sub.1 of remote intelligent communications device 114. Although transducer 190 is described as a magnetic transducer, transducer 190 in an alternative exemplary embodiment is a continuity monitor, as employed and disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,406,263, entitled "Anti Theft Method for Detecting the Unauthorized Opening of Containers and Baggage", issued Apr. 11, 1995, assigned to the assignee of the present invention, and hereby incorporated by reference.
Remote intelligent communications device 114 is configured appropriately (1106 of FIG. 13) to monitor the input analog signal, perhaps via comparator 196, to determine when door 1102 has been opened. Upon determining a door opening microcontroller 160 records the condition appropriately. In accordance with one aspect of this embodiment, comparator sends an interrupt to microcontroller 160 upon sensing an excessive signal at the analog part 186.sub.1. Alternatively, microcontroller 160 examines analog port 186.sub.1 periodically and checks the condition or status of door 1102, as measured by transducer 190.
In addition to monitoring the condition of door 1102, remote intelligent communications device 114 can record (1106 of FIG. 13), per an appropriate configuration, information as received from a navigation receiver, such as GPS receiver 188, selectively coupled to digital port 184.sub.1. GPS receiver 188 receives GPS information by way of its GPS interconnect, e.g. antenna 189. Remote intelligent communications device 114 receives the GPS information and logs navigation data thereof into memory 162. In this fashion, coordinate information regarding a position of a delivery truck, i.e. cargo bay 1100, can be associated with respective openings and/or closings of door 1102. Subsequently, the stored measurement data as obtained by transducer 190, and stored coordinate data as obtained by navigation receiver 188, are retrieved from memory 162 and read (1108 of FIG. 13) by host 1110 via RF interconnect 118, or by way of an alternative modem communications channel as disclosed hereinbefore.
As data is read from the remote intelligent communications device 114, it is preferably accumulated (110 of FIG. 13) within host computer 110 for subsequent analysis. To assist this analysis, the accumulated measurement and coordinate data is imported into a given data analysis software tool. The data analysis tool provided can be a known spreadsheet analysis tool, such as, for examples, Excel.TM., Lotus.TM., Microsoft Access.TM., or similar available data analysis software tool. Alternatively, a custom data analysis program may be developed as suited for the particular remote monitoring application.
Appropriate macros are preferably developed, in a known fashion, for deriving meaningful conclusions or reports regarding the respective parameters retrieved from the remote interrogation communications device 114. In reporting (1112 of FIG. 13) the monitored characteristics, a graph or chart is preferably compiled in accordance with the derived conclusions and portrayed appropriately on a given display (or print medium) using known audio and/or visual multi-media tools.
In a preferred exemplary method, a particular measurement phenomenon, as monitored by a given remote intelligent communications device 114, is correlated with associated geographic position(s), time/date information, temperature, and/or other selective measurement event(s), in order to provide additional understanding of the particular measurement phenomenon. For example, when the particular measurement phenomenon concerns the opening or closing of a door, in can be correlated with an associated geographic position and/or time, for aiding determination of acceptable door opening/closing as opposed to an unacceptable door opening or closing. Furthermore, a temperature profile may be correlated with respective door openings and closings together with associated time intervals therebetween for determining excessive refrigeration or heating demands for temperature recovery. Thereafter, corrective actions may be taken as desired based upon the conclusions provided by the data analysis.
In the particular exemplary configuration disclosed above, transducer 190 is disclosed as a transducer external to remote intelligent communications device 114. Alternatively, a remote intelligent communications device may have an internal magnetic sensor associated therewith. The internal sensor can selectively monitor particular magnetic properties, as might be associated with door 1102.
In further aspects of the above exemplary application, remote intelligent communications device also includes: a temperature transducer for simultaneously monitoring temperature, an accelerometer for monitoring shipping stability (shock), or interfacing circuitry for obtaining additional information from a "trip master" of an associated carrier vehicle 1100. These various alternative input devices were described more fully hereinbefore with reference to FIG. 11.

DPSK demodulator which may be used in an interrogator of a remote intelligence communication system


A roller-shaped contact charging member which is in contact with and electrically charges a photosensitive drum is provided on a center shaft, and includes a roller-shaped conductive foam material portion covering the shaft, and a tubular-shaped conductive resin material portion covering the foam portion. The foam portion has an electric resistance of 9.times.10.sup.5 .OMEGA. or less, the resin portion includes conductive agents and has a surface electric resistance in a range from 1.times.10.sup.5 .OMEGA./.quadrature. or more to 9.times.10.sup.7 .OMEGA./.quadrature. or less, and a hardness of the charging roller as a whole is Asker F 90.degree. or less. An image forming unit includes the charging member and the drum. An electrophotographic image forming apparatus supplies a recording paper to the unit, transfers an image from the drum to the paper, and discharges the image-transferred paper.

This invention relates to a contact charging member which electrically charges a member, an image forming unit including the contact charging member, and an electrophotographic image forming apparatus including the image forming unit, the apparatus including a printer, a copier, and the like.
A corona discharger has been widely used as an electric charger for uniformly charging an image carrier, for example a photosensitive drum of the image forming unit of the electrophotographic image forming apparatus. Recently, the corona discharger, however, is not widely used because it generates a lot of ozone harmful to a working environment. Instead of the corona discharger, a contact charging brush and a contact charging roller have come into use.
FIG. 7A shows a conventional charging brush 1 which is known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,294,962 and FIG. 7B shows a conventional charging roller 4 which is known from Japanese Patent No. 2,632,899.
The charging brush 1 is formed by sticking a base cloth 1b to a conductive base plate 1d with a conductive adhesive 1c, and the base cloth 1b has a large number of conductive bristles 1a planted thereon. A high-voltage power supply 2 applies a high voltage, for example about 1 kv, to the conductive base plate 1d and the conductive bristles 1a of the base cloth 1b bring their tips into contact with a cylindrical surface of a photosensitive drum 3 so that the surface of the drum is charged uniformly.
The charging roller 4 is formed by providing a conductive rubber layer 4b being relatively hard on a metal rod 4a and further providing a relatively high-resistance surface layer 4c on an outer surface of the rubber layer 4b. The metal rod 4a is applied with a high voltage by the high-voltage power supply 2, and a bottom end of a cylindrical surface of the charging roller 4 is pressed against the cylindrical surface of the drum 3 so that the cylindrical surface of the drum is charged uniformly.
According to the above described Japanese Patent, the hardness of the charging roller 4 is indicated by Asker C 54.5.degree., the surface layer 4c is formed by coating nylon resin to 10 .mu.m in thickness, and a volume resistivity of the charging roller 4 is 10.sup.9 to 10.sup.10 .OMEGA..multidot.cm.
The charging brush has such a problem that it tends to become dirty with dust or remaining toner attached on the surface of the photosensitive drum, and the attached dust or toner is hard to remove. Further, the dirty charging brush sometimes presents an unstable charging characteristic. For this reason, charging rollers have begun to attract the attention of those who work in this technical field.
In order to obtain a good image by using the charging roller, pressure applied to both ends of the metal rod must be uniformly distributed along the entire length of the rod so that the roller is pressed against the photosensitive drum uniformly. If there is a slight nonuniformity of charging on the drum, it causes a distinctive irregularity in a toner image formed on the photosensitive drum and lowers a quality of the image because a resolution of an image to be formed have been improved in recent years and toner particles have been made much finer.
In order to uniformly distribute the pressure applied to the both ends of the metal rod along its entire length in such a charging roller having a relatively hard conductive rubber layer, an outer diameter of the metal rod must be made large.
The largest image formed by a conventional desktop type image forming apparatus corresponds to a paper sheet of A4 size (210 mm.times.297 mm) defined by JIS (Japanese Industrial Standard) P0138. Recently, however, it is strongly demanded to form an image corresponding to a paper sheet of A3 size (two times as large as the A4 size) defined by JIS P0138, by the desktop type image forming apparatus. To meet this demand, the photosensitive drum must be made longer and consequently the charging roller must be larger. This makes the outer diameter of the metal rod and that of the charging roller larger, further makes the outer sizes of the image forming unit and those of the image forming apparatus larger. As a result of this, in a modern desktop type image forming apparatus wherein an image forming unit is rotatably separable in a vertical direction from the remaining members of the apparatus so that apparatus maintenance can be easily performed, it becomes difficult to open the image forming unit.
To prevent the outer dimension of the unit and those of the apparatus from becoming larger, the inventors of the present invention prepared such a small charging roller which had an outer diameter of 10 mm and a surface hardness of Asker C 45.degree., a metal rod of which had a diameter of 6 mm and a rubber layer of which had a thickness of 2 mm. And, the inventors operated an image forming apparatus provided with an image forming unit using the small charging roller. As a result of this operation, the small charging roller could not be substantially uniformly pressed against the photosensitive drum. Specifically, when a force pressing the charging roller against the circular surface of the photosensitive drum was increased, the charging roller bent to separate its longitudinal center portion from the surface of the photosensitive drum so that an image formed on a recording medium, for example a paper sheet, by the apparatus had a defect at. its portion corresponding to a longitudinal center portion of the surface of the drum from which the longitudinal center portion of the bent small charging roller was separated. When the force pressing the charging roller against the cylindrical surface of the photosensitive drum was decreased, the image formed on the sheet by the apparatus had many white spots.
This invention derived from the above described circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a contact charging member which can not only charge a member uniformly but also be compact and has a long life time, an image forming unit including the contact charging member, and an electrophotographic image forming apparatus including the image forming unit.

Contact charging member, image forming unit including the contact charging member and electrophotographic image forming apparatus including the image forming unit

Casio Electronics Manufacturing Co., Ltd.


A method for producing 6,6-dialkoxy-5-hydroxy-3-oxo-hexanoic acid esters of general formula (I), wherein the dianion of an acetoacetic acid alkyl ester is reacted with an aldehyde. The 6,6-dialkoxy-5-hydroxy-3-oxo-hexanoic acid esters of general formula (I) are important synthesis building blocks for producing HMG-CoA-reductase-inhibitors.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a process for preparing 6,6-dialkoxy-5-hydroxy-3-oxohexanoic acid esters of the general formula
in which R1 and R2 are identical or different and are C1-6-alkyl.
2. Background Art
The abovementioned compounds are important synthesis building blocks for preparing numerous HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors (WO-A 92/10503).
According to WO-A 92/10503, these compounds are obtained by reacting an acetic acid ester with a xcex3-dialkoxy-xcex2-hydroxy ester. However, this synthesis has the disadvantage that the latter starting material is difficult to obtain and therefore expensive.
It was the object of the invention to develop a simpler and more cost-effective route to the abovementioned synthesis building blocks.
This object could be achieved by the process according to the invention.
According to the invention, this involves reacting an alkyl acetoacetate of the general formula
in which R1 is as defined above in the presence of a base with an aldehyde of the formula
in which R2 is as defined above.
A C1-6-alkyl group is hereinbelow understood as a linear or branched alkyl group with 1 to 6 carbon atoms, namely methyl, ethyl, isopropyl, n-propyl, n-butyl, isobutyl, tert-butyl, pentyl and its isomers and hexyl and its isomers. Preference is given to the C1-4-alkyl groups mentioned by name.
The process according to the invention has the advantage that the acetoacetic esters of the general formula II are available industrially.
Acetoacetic esters of the general formula II are obtained by reacting diketenes with the appropriate alcohol. The acetoacetic ester of the formula II may also be provided in situ, starting from diketene. Preferred acetoacetic esters of the general formula II are the methyl ester, the ethyl ester, the n-propyl ester, the isopropyl ester, the n-butyl ester, the isobutyl ester and the tert-butyl ester, particularly preferably the tert-butyl ester.
The aldehydes of the general formula III are generally commercially available. The preferred aldehyde of the formula III is glyoxal 1,1-dimethyl acetal.
The process according to the invention is advantageously carried out in an organic solvent in the substantial absence of water. Suitable solvents are ethers, such as, tetrahydrofuran, dioxane, diethyl ether, tert-butyl methyl ether, etc., aromatic compounds, such as benzene or toluene, or hydrocarbons, such as hexane, and mixtures of the abovementioned solvents.
The reaction temperature is generally chosen in a range from xe2x88x9280xc2x0 C. to 130xc2x0 C., preferably in a range from xe2x88x9240xc2x0 C. to 20xc2x0 C.
A base is used with the aim of forming the dianion of the alkyl acetoacetate of the general formula II. In principle, this dianion formation can be carried out directly using a strong base, such as, butyllithium, methyllithium, phenyllithium or sodium amide, lithium diisopropylamide or lithium hexamethyldisilazane.
In general, a two-step process is employed, by initially deprotonating the xe2x80x94CH2xe2x80x94 function using a relatively weak and also cost-effective base, and carrying out the dianion formation only in the second step using the abovementioned strong base. Suitable relatively weak bases are metal hydrides, such as, alkali metal hydrides and alkaline earth metal hydrides, preferably sodium hydride, but also secondary amines (preferably pyrrolidine), which forms an enamine as anion equivalent with the acetoacetic ester. In the latter case, the dianion is understood as the anion of the corresponding enamine.
The desired 6,6-dialkoxy-5-hydroxy-3-oxohexanoic acid ester can be obtained in a manner familiar to the person skilled in the art, for example by neutralization of the reaction mixture and subsequent extraction with a suitable solvent.

Method for producing 6,6-dialkoxy-5-hydroxy-3-oxo-hexanoic acid esters


A system and method of measurement of emissivity and radiance of a wafer in a rapid thermal processing chamber enables determination of wafer temperature and control of temperature of the wafer. Mirrors enclose the chamber and reflect radiation from lamps within the chamber to heat the workpiece of interest. One or more viewing ports are provided in one of the mirrors to allow for the egress of radiant energy emitted by the wafer. The wavelength of the exiting radiation is selected by an optical filter having a passband which passes radiation at wavelengths emitted by the wafer while excluding radiation emitted by heating lamps. A chopper having surface regions differing in their reflectivity and transmissivity is positioned along an optical path of radiation propagating through the one or more ports, this resulting in a pulsation of detected radiation. The ratio of the detected intensities of the radiation pulses is used to determine wafer reflectance based on reflectivity and transmissivity of the reflective portion of the chopper. The maximum intensity of radiation is also taken as a measure of radiance. The reflectance is employed to calculate the emissivity, and the emissivity in combination with the radiance are employed to calculate the wafer temperature.

This invention relates to temperature measurement of an object in a radiative environment, such as a semiconductor wafer in a rapid thermal processing (RTP) chamber, by computation of the temperature from noncontact in-situ measurement of emissivity and radiance of the object. As a particularly advantageous feature, the emissivity is determined in situ and in real-time by measuring wafer reflectance without an external light source through the use of a chopper having regions of different transmissivity and reflectance. The ratio of light intensities detected through the open and reflecting portions of the shutter is used to determine the emissivity of the wafer for pyrometric temperature measurement purposes. Furthermore, in situ, real-time radiance measurements are obtained through the open region of the shutter. Interference due to radiation from the heating lamps is excluded by appropriate wavelength selection and by the use of a light pipe that collects light from a defined direction. This technique enables single-point measurements of the temperature of a hot object in a radiative environment, and it can be used for precise control of temperature in this environment. Through the use of several sensors at separate locations across the wafer along with appropriate control of the lamp intensities in different zones of the reactor, it is possible to control the temperature profile (uniformity) across the wafer during the initial heating ramp as well as at steady state. Since the temperature measurement is attained in real time, it can be used advantageously to control both the heating of the chamber and the temperature of the heated object.
In manufacturing processes, the heating of a workpiece is employed often in one or more of the manufacturing steps in order to obtain a desired end product. This is particularly true in the case of manufacture of semiconductor circuits and other semiconductor products wherein a wafer is treated by various steps of etching, doping and cleaning to construct a complex configuration of circuit components on the wafer. During various stages of the manufacture, the temperature of the wafer must be elevated, for example, to temperatures in the range of 600-1200 degrees Centigrade. It is the practice to place the wafers in a furnace to obtain the desired temperature; however, more recently the use of RTP apparatus has come into use as a more attractive alternative to furnace processing of wafers because RTP provides for a rapid, single wafer processing with advantages of better control and lower manufacturing costs. However, especially in view of the short duration of many RTP steps, it becomes increasingly important to measure and to control the temperature closely. Control of temperature requires a measurement of the temperature, and it is advantageous to employ in-situ temperature measurement by a viewing of radiation of the wafer, or other workpiece, without physically contacting the wafer. Such a temperature measurement may be done at several discrete points on a wafer to obtain data of any nonuniformity in temperature, or temperature profile, across the wafer.
Accurate measurement of temperature is obtained from a combination of both emissivity data and radiance data of a workpiece or other object in a radiative environment wherein the data is obtained at a specific wavelength, and the temperature is calculated from this data. An improvement in the measurement of emissivity directly benefits the temperature measurement and allows for a more accurate determination of the temperature.
Typically, emissivity of an object has been determined from a measure of reflectance of the object. In the past, such measurement has employed directional reflectance using a filtered lamp radiation or a laser as a source of light at an appropriate wavelength. Such techniques are taught in the following U.S. patents: U.S. Pat. No. 4,647,774 (Quantum Logic Corp., Mar. 3, 1987), U.S. Pat. No. 4,956,538 (Texas Instruments, Inc., Set. 11, 1990), U.S. Pat. No. 5,156,461 (Texas Instruments, Inc., Oct. 20, 1992), and U.S. Pat. No. 4,919,542 (A.G. Processing Technology, Apr, 24, 1990). The light, typically infrared light, is directed as an incident beam at the object from a point external to the radiative environment of the object. Light from the incident beam is reflected from the object as a reflected beam. In a situation of major concern herein, the object is a semiconductor wafer, and the radiative environment is an RTP chamber enclosing the wafer. The intensities of the incident and the reflected beams in a given direction are used to derive the wafer reflectivity at the desired wavelength. The fraction of the reflected light collected in the chosen direction is also measured using scattering measurements described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,156,461 (Texas Instruments, Inc.) The measured bidirectional reflectance in combination with the specularity measurements, yield information about the total reflectivity of the wafer. A disadvantage of this method is the need for additional hardware in the form of an external light source which increases the cost and size of the temperature sensing system.
Other apparatus employed in the measurement of emissivity includes the use of two fibers mounted in an RTP chamber in such a fashion that one of the fibers views the output of lamps used to heat the wafer, and a second of the fibers views radiation coming from the wafer, the latter including thermal wafer emissions as well as the lamp radiation reflected from the wafer. This technique is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,154,512 (Luxtron Corp.). Typically, the measurements are made at 0.9-1.5 micron wavelength where the lamp intensity is high and the wafer is opaque. This method makes use of the fact that the intensity of the lamp emission, as well as the reflected lamp radiation, has an AC component due to imperfect electrical filtering in the supplying of current to the lamp, while the wafer thermal emission is continuous because of its long thermal time constant. The reflectance is then measured as the ratio of the AC components of the light from the two fibers. Emissivity is then calculated from Kirchoff's Law. In this method, since the light is collected from a fairly large region on the wafer, the signal of the reflected radiation is not extremely sensitive to surface roughness. A disadvantage of this method includes the need to modify the housing of the RTP apparatus to allow the sensors to be installed at appropriate locations.
There are several well-known and severe problems when emissivity is not measured during the RTP process due to a variation in the emissivity of the object. Such variation degrades the accuracy and repeatability of pyrometric temperature measurements by introducing errors as much as several tens of degrees Centigrade. In general, the wafer emissivity is not constant from wafer to wafer and for a given wafer during a manufacturing process because the emissivity is a function of a number of variables including wafer temperature, surface film thicknesses, films on the heating chamber wall which alter the chamber reflectivity, backside roughness of the wafer, and process history. Therefore, it is necessary to monitor the emissivity of wafers in situ and in real time, and in a non-contact manner to insure correct temperature measurement. The use of other forms of measurements wherein the object must be removed from its environment, or by use of monitor wafers to provide a substitutional form of measurement, or the use of theoretical calculations to estimate emissivity do not provide the desired amount of accuracy because of variations in the manufacturing process and in the wafer itself. It is known that, by use of Kirchoff's Law, emissivity can be determined solely from reflectance measurements for the case wherein the wafer is opaque, including the situation wherein the opacity is induced by temperature or by doping. For highly doped wafers, or for measurement of wavelength less than approximately one micron, emissivity measurement from reflectance alone is possible for objects at room temperature and above. However, for emissivity measurements conducted at longer wavelengths or for lower doping, such as at a wavelength of three microns for an undoped silicon wafer, and in the absence of films on the wafer, determination of emissivity from reflectance measurements alone can be accomplished only at temperatures higher than approximately 700 degrees Centigrade wherein the wafer is opaque.
A problem arises in that presently available apparatus and procedures are not readily implemented for standard forms of RTP apparatus without extensive modification and/or introduction of ancillary hardware to the RTP apparatus, this creating a need for measurement equipment and procedure which are easier to implement.

Combined emissivity and radiance measurement for determination of temperature of radiant object

International Business Machines Corporation


The piñata hanging and swinging apparatus includes a boom pipe that pivots about a vertical support via a pivot point. The boom pipe includes a handle such that the boom pipe can be animated to flail a piñata up/down/around the vertical support. The boom pipe includes a handle to enable articulation of the boom pipe, and a pulley is located at an end opposite of the handle through which a string extends to hang said piñata there from. The vertical support is secured to and rotates about a weight block that rests upon the base. An end user stands on the base while articulating the boom pipe in order to animate the piñata hanging from a string.

A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of piñatas, more specifically, an apparatus for mechanically swinging and hanging a piñata there from.
B. Discussion of the Prior Art
As will be discussed immediately below, no prior art discloses a piñata hoisting stand that does not rely upon a string and pulley to animate the piñata, but rather includes a string and pulley to hang said piñata from a boom pipe; wherein the boom pipe attaches to a vertical support via a pivot point; wherein a handle is included on the boom pipe and enables the animation of the piñata by swinging the boom pipe up, down, or around the vertical support in order to flail the piñata thereon; the vertical support is attached to and rotates about a weight block that rests atop a base.
The Alas Patent Application Publication (U.S. Pub. No. 2007/0099534) discloses a piñata stand having a portable frame member, a pulley member and a coupling member coupled between the portable frame member and the pulley member to allow the pulley member to rotate about an axis orthogonal to pivot axis of the pulley member. However, the piñata stand does not pivot about a pivot point and rotate about a vertical support such that the piñata can be lift, lowered, and rotated.
The Arroyo Patent Application Publication (U.S. Pub. No 2008/0073468) discloses a foldable piñata stand with a pulley mechanism. However, the stand requires the use of a pulley, and not a piñata boom that pivots and rotates about a vertical support.
The Sellars et al. Patent (U.S. Pat. No. 2,974,809) discloses a floor crane. However, the floor crane is not suited for use in rapidly flinging a piñata up, down or around.
The Woods Patent (U.S. Pat. No. 4,770,304) discloses a hoisting unit having a transportable wheeled base. Again, the hoisting unit can fling a piñata around.
The Macris Patent (U.S. Pat. No. 4,925,039) discloses a portable crane. Again, the portable crane is suited for use in suspending an engine and not rapidly flailing a piñata.
The Lopez Patent (U.S. Pat. No. Des. 542,501) illustrates a design for a piñata hoisting device, which uses a pulley.
The Blake Patent (U.S. Pat. No. 7,086,820) discloses a load lifting stand. However, the stand does not have a stand that can fling a piñata up, down, or around a vertical support.
While the above-described devices fulfill their respective and particular objects and requirements, they do not describe a piñata hoisting stand that does not rely upon a string and pulley to animate the piñata, but rather includes a string and pulley to hang said piñata from a boom pipe; wherein the boom pipe attaches to a vertical support via a pivot point; wherein a handle is included on the boom pipe and enables the animation of the piñata by swinging the boom pipe up, down, or around the vertical support in order to flail the piñata thereon; the vertical support is attached to and rotates about a weight block that rests atop a base. In this regard, the piñata hanging and swinging apparatus departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art.


A toothed belt has a plurality of teeth, which are arranged in the longitudinal direction thereof, and cords embedded in a back portion of the toothed belt. A facing fabric is covered over the teeth. The fabric used for the facing fabric is coated with latex. The solid deposition of latex is adjusted to between 50 and 200 wt % with respect to the weight of the base cloth.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fabric for a toothed belt used for a carriage feed of a copier or printer, positioning of an industrial robot, and so on.
2. Description of the Related Art
Teeth formed on a toothed belt are covered by an elastic fabric. Conventionally, in a manufacturing process, the fabric is treated with an RFL (resorcinol-formaldehyde-latex) solution to enable it to strongly bond with the teeth, and is then coated with rubber (rubberized). In the toothed belt having the fabric obtained by this processing method, however, the coated rubber adheres to or the tooth rubber exudes and is deposited on the surface of the fabric, thereby causing the frictional coefficient between the surface of the fabric and a pulley to rise, an increase in noise to occur, and rubber dust to be dispersed, because of friction with the pulley when the belt is run. Since tooth rubber includes carbon, which has a good electroconductivity, the rubber dust can cause electrical disturbances in office automation (OA) equipment and the like.
A toothed belt for preventing exudation of the tooth rubber to the fabric is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 7-190150, for example. In this toothed belt, the fabric is treated only with an RFL solution, and further, a solid deposition of RFL, having 30 to 50 wt % with respect to the weight of the base cloth, is generated on the fabric.
If the solid deposition of the RFL solution is from 30 to 50 wt %, however, exudation of the tooth rubber is not sufficiently prevented. Conversely, if the solid deposition is increased, although the exudation of the tooth rubber becomes smaller, the elasticity of the fabric is impaired. Thus, it is difficult to form the teeth of the belt into the desired shape, especially in a toothed belt requiring a small pitch, such as one used for OA equipment.


A system and method are provided for detecting acoustic echo in a telecommunications transmission. Detected acoustic echo is analyzed to determine if the acoustic echo includes characteristics indicative of use of a speakerphone by a remote party. Specific characteristics analyzed include the presence of multiple bulk delay values, echo magnitude, and the length of time for echo delays present within the telecommunications system. If the detected acoustic echo falls outside the range of acceptable parameters, or otherwise exceeds threshold limits, a warning signal is transmitted to the user indicating a high likelihood that the remote party is using a speakerphone. Warning the user of speakerphone use by the remote party can be helpful in ensuring that the communications between the parties is maintained in confidence.

Voice communication systems, including telephone systems, are subject to several sources of echo that make transmitted voice signals distorted, and thus unacceptable to listeners. Echoes can noticeably degrade the intelligibility and quality of a transmitted voice signal. Echoes associated with acoustic reverberation are particularly evident in connection with use of speakerphones. It is most often the case that users speaking into a speakerphone within small enclosed environments, such as offices or conference rooms, are unaware of the presence of such echoes.
One source of echo is simple acoustic reverberation generated at the user's physical location. For example, if the user employs a speakerphone, the user's voice may reflect off the surrounding environmental structure, such as the walls and ceiling. The reflected sound waves result in a plurality of random acoustic paths that are received by the microphone of the speakerphone. These random and time separated acoustic paths create echoes.
Another source of echo is acoustic feedback that may be created by use of a speakerphone by a remote party. Acoustic feedback originates as a voice signal generated by the user and transmitted to a remote party's location. The received voice signal is broadcast by the speaker in the remote party's speakerphone, the broadcasted voice signal reflects off the enclosed area and is picked up by the microphone of the speakerphone. The reflected voice signal is then transmitted back to the user as acoustic feedback.
Other echoes within a telecommunication system may result from hybrid unbalanced conditions within the particular communication hardware used in the communication system. More specifically for hybrid echoes, these often result from mismatches of impedances on PSTN networks.
Whether an echo is perceptible to a user is generally determined by the signal level of the echo, and the time offset or delay of the echo relative to the time in which the original signal is generated. The problem of echoes in voice communications is further aggravated by the use of packet data networks because packet data networks cause an increase in transmission delay times thereby making echoes more easily perceptible to users.
Attempts have been made to reduce echo in voice communications by the use of signal processing techniques to compensate for or remove the echoes. Generally, such techniques require the deployment of an echo canceller, a device combining hardware and firmware to achieve the signal processing. Such echo cancellers typically run on a digital signal processor that are programmed to sense echoes in voice signals and then to alter the voice signals to compensate for the presence of echoes.
With the advent of new telephony transmission protocols, echoes with increased or longer delays now reside over many communication networks. Cancellation of echoes is achieved in some echo cancellers by providing an estimate of the bulk echo delay that includes measurement by the echo canceller of the length of time of a particular echo delay as well as the magnitude of the echo. A number of telephony devices may include echo cancellation capability to include voice over IP phones, voice over IP media gateways, and PSTN gateways.
For telephone communications, there may be a need for confidentiality where one or both of the parties to a conversation may only wish for their conversation to be heard by the other party. For these types of confidential communications, it is undesirable to use a speakerphone since the relatively powerful speaker of the speakerphone may allow other parties to hear the conversation. Depending upon the particular location where and how a speakerphone is employed, a user may not know whether the remote party is using a speakerphone. Some acoustic echo is perceptible by a user, but not all. Thus, the user has no reliable way of knowing whether the remote party is using a speakerphone particularly when the user can perceive no echo. Even if the user requests the remote party to not use a speakerphone, the user has no reliable way of confirming whether the remote party has complied with the request.
Therefore, there is a need for providing an indication to a user of a telecommunication device as to the use of a speakerphone by a remote party. While echo detection and remediation is known in the use of echo cancellers, these echo cancellers do not provide a signal to the user indicating the presence of an echo, much less discriminating hybrid echo from acoustic echo for purposes of providing the signal to the user indicating the presence of a speakerphone.


An auxiliary wing and flap assembly for an aircraft which is to be extendable from a retracted position to a deployed position. Relative to the chord of the wing, the split flap is located directly adjacent the trailing edge of the wing with the auxiliary wing assembly being located at approximately the mid length of the chord of the wing. A split flap assembly extends approximately one-half the length of the aircraft wing with the auxiliary wing assembly extending the total length of the aircraft wing. The split flap is extendable to assume approximately a sixty degree angle relative to the bottom surface of the aircraft wing while the auxiliary wing assembly is extendible to assume a maximum of ninety degree angle relative to the bottom surface of the aircraft wing. The chord length of the split flap is equal to approximately 0.15 of the chord length of the aircraft wing while the auxiliary wing assembly has an airfoil-shaped member that has a chord length of approximately 0.25 the chord length of the aircraft wing.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to aircraft and more particularly to a new and novel auxiliary wing and flap assembly which permits the aircraft to land and take off in a substantially shorter distance while maintaining a high cruising speed.
2. Description of the Related Art
The use of a split flap in aircraft is exceedingly conventional. It is common that the split flaps are to be located at the trailing edge of the wing of the aircraft. The primary purpose of the split flap is to increase lift and also decrease the speed of the aircraft. Generally, these split flaps are used during landing of the aircraft.
The present invention is to be discussed primarily in conjunction with small aircraft. The present invention is of particular advantage in conjunction with small aircraft. However, it is considered to be within the scope of this invention that the present invention could be utilized in conjunction with larger aircraft and even commercial aircraft.
Small aircraft that have only a single engine have a disadvantage when compared to multi-engine aircraft. If the single engine becomes inoperative during flight, obtaining quickly adequate landing space is, at times, difficult and many times almost impossible. Also, the aircraft may be coming down to the ground at too steep of an angle to perform any kind of a "soft landing". It is for this reason that many times operators of small aircraft are killed or severely injured upon an engine problem occurring with the aircraft during flight.
Some airports are located very near congested areas. It is typical that the landing angle to be in the range of four to six degrees for most aircraft. This means that in a congested area where the airport is surrounded with buildings and houses that utilizing of a shallow angle of four to six degrees constitutes a rather dangerous situation. It would be safer if the aircraft could come in at a much steeper angle, such as between twenty and thirty degrees which would result in the aircraft avoiding the congested area located around the airport.
Also, when the aircraft is taking off in a congested location, it is desirable for the aircraft to get in the air as soon as possible and climb to a safe altitude to avoid congestion located directly adjacent the airport and to decrease noise pollution which is a frequent complaint around airports. Prior to the present invention, most aircraft have to take off and climb at a rather shallow angle and also require a significant runway length in order to get the airplane into the air. Utilizing of an extended runway length is again a potentially dangerous situation.
It would be desirable to construct an auxiliary wing and flap assembly to be deployable in conjunction with small aircraft that would permit the small aircraft to take off in a substantially shorter runway length and land also in a substantially shorter runway length. Also, it would be desirable to have the landing angle of the aircraft to be between twenty and thirty degrees which is substantially greater than the normal four to six degrees of most aircraft.

Auxiliary wing and flap assembly for an aircraft


A cable assembly for terminating a cable. The cable assembly includes a cable assembly mating end and a cable assembly cable receiving end. A metallic outer shell is positioned proximate to the cable assembly mating end of the cable assembly. The metallic outer shell has a mating contact engagement portion. A housing made of dielectric material is positioned in the metallic outer shell. Resilient contact arms are provided on the mating contact engagement portion of the metallic outer shell. The resilient contact arms extend from proximate the cable assembly mating end. Front ends of the resilient contact arms are provided proximate the cable assembly mating end and cooperate with a protection portion of the cable assembly which extends from the cable assembly mating end to prevent the front ends of the resilient contact arms from stubbing when the cable assembly is mated to a mating assembly.

Connectors, in particular coaxial connectors, serve to releasably connect coaxial cables. Coaxial connectors have the advantages of coaxial cables, specifically low electromagnetic influencing and good electrical shielding. Coaxial connectors also have an impedance which corresponds to that of the connected coaxial cable in order to avoid reflection phenomena at the transition point between the coaxial connector and the coaxial cable.
Coaxial connectors are designed to provide a predetermined characteristic impedance in order to ensure reflection-free transmission of RF signals. When mating a coaxial connector with a mating coaxial connector, impedance mismatch often results, causing a degradation in the signal transmitted there across. In addition, with many known connectors, mating the coaxial connector with the mating coaxial connector can cause damage to either the connector or the mating connector, due to issues such as stubbing and the like.
It would, therefore, be beneficial to provide a coaxial connector which provides for an improved electrical path for grounding with a mating connector. It would also be beneficial to provide a coaxial connector which reduces the possibility of stubbing when the connector is mated with the mating connector.

Protection member to protect resilient arms of a contact assembly from stubbing


There is provided an unmanned roadside signage vehicle comprising an autonomous, semiautonomous and/or remotely controllable roadside signage vehicle for various roadside signage, emergency response and maintenance applications. In accordance with one aspect, the unmanned roadside signage vehicle comprises drive motors operably coupled to driven wheels; steering coupled to the driven wheels; a controller for controlling the drive motors and steering; at least one electronic signage board for displaying roadside signage; and a data interface for receiving at least remote control instructions, the data interface operably coupled to the controller and wherein the controller is configured for controlling the drive motors and steering in accordance with the remote control instructions.

Safety signage may, for example, be utilised for the purposes of warning motorists of roadside grass cutting machinery.
In this regard, according to conventional arrangements, a maintenance plan may be formulated for a grass cutting job, taking into account various roadside factors including motorists speed.
Signage is then deployed in accordance with the maintenance plan when grass cutting. Such usually involves the placement of static roadside signs warning motorists of the grass cutting machinery ahead, regulating speed and the like.
Placement of roadside signs has problems in that the roadside signage remain stationary while the grass cutter is moving. As such, it is not atypical for roadside signage to be kilometres away from the grass cutting machinery. Usually grass cutter operators place signage, cut along one verge of the road and then cross over the road to return along the opposite verge, retrieving signage along the way.
To avoid the problems of stationery signage, marshalling vehicles may be employed, such as utility vehicles leading and following the grass cutting machinery, the utility vehicles comprising appropriate signage. A problem with this approach however is the expense in running these marshalling vehicles, not only fuel equipment cost, but also man-hours.
Furthermore, deployment of roadside signage has inherent safety risks wherein those deploying roadside signage are exposed to risk of being run over by passing vehicles or affected by other roadside hazards such as downed electrical power lines and the like.
It is to be understood that, if any prior art information is referred to herein, such reference does not constitute an admission that the information forms part of the common general knowledge in the art, in Australia or any other country.

Unmanned roadside signage vehicle system


A camera module includes a lens unit; a holder which houses the lens unit therein and is displaceable along an optical axis direction of the lens unit; a coil provided on the holder; a yoke, four main magnets and two flat plate-shaped auxiliary magnets which provide a magnetic field to the coil, in which the yoke has a roughly rectangular and relatively thin box shape of which bottom side is opened so that the yoke is defined by four side wall portions and a top plate portion, and the yoke also has an opening formed in the top plate portion for receiving the holder; upper and lower leaf springs respectively attached to the upper and lower cylindrical end portions of the holder for supporting the holder so as to be displaceable along the optical axis direction; and a base which supports the yoke and the lower leaf spring. In the camera module, the coil is formed into a roughly cylindrical shape having two opposite outer circumferential flat surfaces, each of the four main magnets has a triangle block shape and they are respectively arranged at the four corner portions inside the yoke, and the two auxiliary magnets are respectively arranged on a pair of the opposite side wall portions of the yoke so as to face the corresponding outer circumferential flat surfaces of the coil, respectively.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a camera module, and more specifically to a camera module that can be used in small-sized electronic apparatuses such as digital cameras, camera-equipped cellular phones and the like.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A camera module having a function of displacing a lens unit in a direction of an optical axis of the lens unit is used in relatively small-sized digital cameras, camera-equipped cellular phones and the like. This function is used for providing an autofocus function and/or zoom function, and is achieved by an interaction between a magnetic field generated by an electrical current flowing in a coil and a magnetic field generated by a yoke and magnets provided on the yoke. Recently, camera modules to be mounted in camera-equipped cellular phones are required to further reduce size and shape thereof.
FIG. 4 shows an actuator assembly for providing an autofocus function used in a conventional camera module. The actuator assembly 100 includes a holder 103 which houses a lens unit (not shown in the drawing), a coil 101 wound around the holder 103, a base 104 formed into a roughly square shape having four corner posts near the four corner thereof, four magnets 102 respectively arranged near the four corner posts of the base 104, and a spring 105 for resiliently supporting the holder 103.
In the actuator assembly 100, by supplying an electrical current to the coil 101 provided on the holder 103, a repellent force is generated by the magnetic fields provided by the four magnets 102 and the coil 101. Further, by utilizing a spring force of the spring 105, the holder 103 can be displaced up and down directions in the figure to carry out the autofocus function.
One example of a camera module having such an actuator assembly 100 is disclosed in a publication of Japanese Utility Model Registration No. 3124292.
In the actuator assembly 100 described above, the four magnets 102 are arranged on the corners of the roughly square-shaped base 104. Therefore, when the entire size of the camera is to be reduced, there is a problem in that sufficient thickness of each of the magnets 102 cannot be secured. This is because if the thickness of each magnet 102 is reduced, the distance between the N pole and the S pole in each magnet is shortened, thus resulting in a reduced magnetic force.
Further, in the actuator assembly 100 described above, the reduced magnetic field intensity due to the reduced size of each magnet is compensated by the provision of the spring 105. However, if the entire size of the camera module is to be further reduced, there arises another problem in that it becomes difficult to secure a space for providing the spring 105.

Camera module with axially displaceable lens unit holder


A protective cap is provided for a sensor having a sensor element, which is disposed in a housing and includes a connection side and a measuring side, for determining gases in gas mixtures. The protective cap delimits a sensor element chamber having at least one flow outlet and an antechamber that has at least one flow inlet and is in fluid connection with the sensor element chamber in order to protect the sensor element on the measuring side. A condensate separator is provided in the antechamber. A device for deviating the flow is provided between the sensor element chamber and the antechamber and a device for accelerating the flow is provided on a flow outlet side of the sensor element chamber. A gas sensor is equipped with the protective cap.

The invention relates to a protective cap for a sensor including a sensor element, which is disposed in a housing and includes a connection side and a measuring side, for determining gases in gas mixtures. The protective cap delimits a sensor element chamber and an antechamber in order to protect the sensor element on the measuring side. Furthermore, the invention relates to a gas sensor equipped with a protective cap.
Gas sensors are used for determining gases in gas mixtures by being disposed, for example, in a gas stream so that a part of the gas stream flows past the sensor element. In doing so, protective caps described at the start are used in order to protect sensor elements from undesirable components of the gas mixture and/or to ensure an optimized incident flow at the sensor element.
Gas sensors having a protective cap are the subject matter of DE 10 2004 050 222 A1 and DE 10 2005 012 449 A1 by way of example. However, it has been found that the known protective caps do not protect the sensor element to a sufficient extent and do not ensure a defined incident flow at the sensor element. For example, in a NOx sensor used in a motor vehicle for analyzing the internal combustion-engine exhaust gases, the sensor element can be exposed to condensate particularly during cold start and the warm-up phase, which results in the sensor element being damaged by the deposition of pollutants. A damaged sensor element of this type supplies incorrect or even no signals so that the operation of the internal combustion engine is very adversely affected.
It is therefore the object of the invention to provide a protective cap and a gas sensor in which an entry of undesirable components of the gas mixture is effectively avoided and a defined incident flow at the sensor element is ensured at the same time.
The object is achieved according to the invention with a protective cap for a sensor comprising a sensor element, which is disposed in a housing and has a connection side and a measuring side, for determining gases in gas mixtures. The protective cap delimits a sensor element chamber and an antechamber in order to protect the sensor element on the measuring side. A condensate separator is arranged in the antechamber. Likewise, the object of the invention is achieved with a protective cap for a sensor comprising a sensor element, which is disposed in a housing and has a connection side and a measuring side, for determining gases in gas mixtures. The protective cap delimits a sensor element chamber and an antechamber that is in fluid connection with the sensor element chamber in order to protect the sensor element on the measuring side. A device for deviating the flow is provided between the sensor element chamber and the antechamber. Furthermore, a protective cap achieves the object of the invention by providing a device for accelerating the flow on the flow outlet side of the sensor element chamber.
Particularly preferable embodiments of the invention and a gas sensor having the protective cap of the invention are further described herein.
It is particularly preferred to arrange the at least one flow inlet of the antechamber at the measuring-side end of the antechamber. This measure prevents a dead space in which particles or fluid components could be deposited.
The condensate separator is preferably formed as an annular circumferential rim, which is open axially in the direction of the at least one flow inlet of the antechamber and is disposed on the radially inner wall of the antechamber. By virtue of this arrangement, the gas stream flowing into the antechamber is deviated, particles and/or fluid components of the gas stream being separated from the same. It is very advantageous to arrange the fluid connection between the sensor element chamber and the antechamber axially on the sensor-connection side of the condensate separator. This arrangement necessitates a recirculation area of the flow and thus contributes to the particularly effective separation of particles and/or fluid components of the gas stream.
The device for deviating the flow expediently includes at least one opening with a flow-guiding device. This measure effectively prevents a direct incident flow at the sensor element and thus avoids an uneven cooling of the sensor element.
It has proved to be particularly advantageous to form the device for accelerating the flow as a conical nozzle. The gas stream flowing past the sensor element can be adjusted particularly easily with regard to flow volume and flow velocity by way of a corresponding, constructive design of the conical nozzle.
According to a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention, the ante-chamber includes at least one flow outlet in addition to the at least one flow inlet, it being possible to branch off a partial stream from an incoming gas stream from the antechamber into the sensor element chamber with the aid of the fluid connection between the antechamber and the sensor element chamber. In this way, a defined partial stream can be branched off from the gas stream and routed past the sensor element.
According to a further preferred exemplary embodiment, a baffle plate is disposed upstream of the device for accelerating the flow so that the sensor element is not located directly in front of a flow outlet and, furthermore, the flow experiences a restriction.
According to a further, preferred exemplary embodiment, an additional cap having at least one flow outlet is disposed downstream of the device for accelerating the flow. The additional cap notably prevents the entry of undesirable particles and/or fluid components of the gas stream toward the sensor element through the flow outlet.
A gas sensor including a protective cap of the invention provides special advantages.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of one or more preferred embodiments when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Protective cap for a gas sensor, and a gas sensor

Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft


A data cable for fast charging comprises: a cable for transmitting data and charging; a first connection unit which is disposed on one end of the cable so as to be connected to a power source; a second connection unit which is disposed on the other end of the cable so as to be connected to a mobile terminal; and a mode switching circuit which enables mode switching between a data transmission mode and a fast charging mode, wherein the mode switching circuit comprises: a terminal switching logic which applies an input voltage of the first connection unit; divided resistances; a switch for the mode switching between the data transmission mode and the fast charging mode; and an analog switching logic which responds to the switch for the mode switching.

In general, the type of communication port chiefly used for data transmission includes a Universal Asynchronous Receiver Transmitter (UART) and a Universal Serial Bus (USB).
The UART is a device for processing asynchronous serial communication. Each of computers includes the UART in order to manage serial ports, and each of internal modems includes the UART. More specifically, the UART provides a computer with an RS-232C interface so that the computer can communicate with a modem or other serial devices or exchange data with a modem or other serial devices.
Furthermore, the USB is a peripheral access interface standard jointly proposed by 7 companies including IBM, and an object of the USB is to commonize an interface for connecting peripheral to a personal computer. If such a USB is used, all the peripherals can be connected to a personal computer without separately configuring software or hardware when the peripherals are connected to the personal computer. Accordingly, there are advantages in that the number of ports can be significantly reduced, installation is simple, and the size of a portable computer can be reduced.
In a prior art, Recommended Standard-232C (RS-232C) performed only data transmission between a mobile phone and a personal computer, but was problematic in the transmission of a large amount of data and a transfer rate and in that data and power could not be transmitted at the same time. In order to solve such problems, data transmission and charging are performed using a USB port. However, there is a problem in that the charging time is increased compared to charging using a dedicated adaptor, that is, a DC converter, if power is supplied using a USB terminal.
In techniques related to charging using a USB data cable, there are conventional techniques regarding a USB data cable that automatically detects the type of power in order to prevent overcharge, a USB data cable capable of randomly determining a charging time in order to prevent overcharge, and a USB data cable connected to a dedicated adaptor, that is, a DC converter. However, in charging using the USB terminal of a PC the use of the USB terminal is inconvenient because the charging time is very long. In the case of the USB data cable connected to the adaptor, there is inconvenience in terms of portability because a dedicated adaptor needs to be carried.


A digital-to-analog converter adapted for use as a feedback converter in a continuous time sigma delta analog-to-digital converter. The digital-to-analog converter has a discrete time digital signal input accepting digital signal samples that are synchronized with an assertion of a first data clock signal and a discrete time clock generator that generates an output pulse in response to receiving an assertion of the first data clock. The output pulse is asserted for a fixed duration that is independent of a jitter of the first data clock. The digital-to-analog converter also includes a continuous time analog output that produces, during assertion of the output pulse, a continuous time analog output signal having a magnitude corresponding to the digital signal samples.

1. Field
This disclosure relates generally to analog-to-digital conversion circuits, and more specifically, to continuous time sigma/delta analog-to-digital conversion circuits.
2. Related Art
Sigma/delta analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) are incorporated in various signal conversion applications. Some sigma/delta analog-to-digital converters use discrete time techniques to inject a feedback analog signal into the feedback loop filter and others use a continuous time technique. Discrete feedback in a sigma/delta analog-to-digital converter is typically implemented by using switch capacitor techniques for the integrators and a feedback digital-to-analog converter. During portions of the sample clock, charge transfer is taking place on and off the capacitors inside the integrator and inside the feedback digital-to-analog converter sub-blocks. Clock jitter on the pulse width of the sample clock has the effect of modulating the pulse width of the sample clock in a random manner. Discrete time feedback techniques only require that the charge be transferred on or off the capacitor during that portion of the clock, thus eliminating the effect of jitter on the sample clock pulse width. Continuous time feedback techniques generally use current or voltage sources which are gated on or off directly by the sample clock. As sample clock pulse width jitter randomly modulates the pulse width of the sample clock, the feedback coefficients are also being effectively randomly modulated as well because the time during which current or voltage is provided to the feedback filter (and thus integrated) varies from sample to sample. Sample clock pulse width jitter therefore has a major effect on the signal-to-noise ratio of the sampled signal.
Using discrete time feedback techniques generally requires higher current drain in a sigma/delta analog-to-digital converter than using continuous time feedback techniques. The additional current drain for discrete feedback techniques is due, for example, to the fact that such circuits perform at the sampling clock rate and must support large instantaneous currents as the capacitor charge transfer takes place, without slew-rate limiting the integrator output signal. In contrast, continuous time feedback techniques are only required to respond across the band of interest. Overcoming problems associated with sample clock pulse width jitter is a challenge in realizing continuous time feedback techniques in a sigma/delta analog-to-digital converter. Sample clock pulse width jitter randomly varies the timing of the clock edges and is usually specified in pico-seconds (ps). Clock pulse width jitter affects all analog-to-digital converters by degrading the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the sampled signal and thereby effectively reducing a converter's dynamic range and increasing the noise level.

Clock jitter minimization in a continuous time sigma delta analog-to-digital converter


This invention provides compounds having the structural formula:

Synthetic glucocorticoids remain among the most effective agents for the treatment of chronic inflammatory diseases. However, major side effects severely limit their therapeutic use. Physiologic and therapeutic activities of glucocorticoids are mediated by a nuclear receptor belonging to a family of ligand-inducible transcription factors that, in addition to directly regulating their cognate gene programs, can also interfere with other signalling pathways, such as those using NF-κB.
NF-κB is an inducible transcription factor complex which regulates the expression of various genes involved in inflammatory and immune responses. It is activated upon exposure of cells to, among others, pro-inflammatory cytokines (such as TNF or IL-1), oxidants (such as hydrogen peroxide, ozone, superoxide anions), bacterial compounds, viral products, PKC activators (such as phorbol esters and platelet activating factor) and UV- or gamma-irradiation. NF-κB is therefore a promising target for anti-inflammatory and immuno-suppressive therapies. Inhibition of NF-κB activity by glucocorticoids has been well documented, although gene stimulatory effects by glucocorticoids have also been observed. Although glucocorticoids remain among the most potent immuno-suppressive and anti-inflammatory drugs currently available, and are especially effective in the treatment of chronic asthma or rheumatoid arthritis, side effects such as hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis insufficiency, diabetes, altered lipid metabolism, steroid myopathy, osteoporosis, and infectious or neuro-psychiatric complications significantly limit the therapeutic use of classical glucocorticoid agonists in a significant number of patients, especially patients having a predisposition to one or more of the above-stated disorders.
WO01/45693 discloses 2-(4-acetoxyphenyl)-2-chloro-N-methylethyl-ammonium chloride as an anti-inflammatory agent.
Therefore there is a regular need in the art for novel compounds having significant and specific anti-inflammatory properties without having the side-effects of known effective anti-inflammatory agents such as glucocorticoids. There is a regular need in the art for effective anti-inflammatory agents having improved metabolisation and/or pharmacokinetic behaviour and which therefore can be more easily formulated into effective dosage forms. There is also a need in the art for such novel compounds which can be easily produced in good yield and purity from commercially available materials through a limited number of fully reproducible synthetic process steps.
Disorders in which cells are uncontrollably proliferating are generally referred to as cancer. This kind of disorders is commonly considered to result from a deregulation of the process that control cell division, differentiation and apoptosis. A combination of surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy is usually used for the treatment of Cancer. Chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with drugs to kill cancer cells. Cytotoxic drugs usually used in chemotherapy are harming healthy tissue as well, and lead to a large variety of side effects.
Already two decades ago, natural and synthetic glucocorticoids have been identified as potential antitumor molecules in malignant melanoma, as inhibition of melanoma cell growth was observed, coinciding with reduced tumor size and weight. Glucocorticoid treatment of cancer, using Glucocorticoid Receptor (GR) agonists such as dexamethasone, aims at inducing apoptosis of cancerous cells. The GR-induced apoptotic effect has been described to require transactivation activity of that same receptor, therefore requiring a full GR agonist. E.g. systemic or local administration of dexamethasone significantly inhibits volume of brain tumors and reduces brain oedema (the latter remains a substantial cause of mortality). There is also some evidence in literature that glucocorticoids may target cancer by mediating effects in vascular functioning and angiogenesis. Various studies indicate that cytotoxic and cytostatic actions of glucocorticoids depend on GR transactivation activity that depends on GR dimerization (Sharma and Lichtenstein (2008) Blood, In Press)
Due to their high proliferation rate, cancer cells are prone to become resistant to chemical drugs. This is the case, for example, of prolonged glucocorticoid therapy, which presents the drawback that glucocorticoids induce down-regulation of their own cognate glucocorticoid receptors, which leads to therapy resistance.
Also, the success of classical glucocorticoid therapy for leukemia is overshadowed by potentially disabling side effects including e.g. hyperglycemia and a vascular necrosis of bone, especially prominent in young and adolescent patients.
As an alternative to dexamethasone treatment of cancer, prednisone, a corticosteroid with improved benefit over side effect ratio, has been used in the treatment of cancer as well. However, in some cases of severe malignancies, the use of dexamethasone in combination with radiotherapy or chemotherapy is preferred and the side effects then have to be considered as 'collateral damage' as the decision lies between survival or death.
There is a regular need in the art for novel compounds acting as anti-cancer agents that can be used, alone or in combination with another form or therapeutic treatment, for treating various forms of cancer.

Synephrine derivatives useful as anti-inflammatory agents

Abstract: wherein:                R1 is an acyl or sulfonyl group,        R2 is an acyl group selected from the group consisting of acyl groups derived from cycloaliphatic, aromatic or heterocyclic monocarboxylic acids, imidazolylcarbonyl and triazolylcarbonyl, and        R3 is hydrogen or an amino-protecting group,a stereoisomer thereof, a solvate thereof, or a salt thereof, being useful as anti-inflammatory agents and anti-cancer agents.