The present invention is directed to forms II, III, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX and X of sertraline hydrochloride and novel methods for their preparation. According to the present invention, sertraline hydrochloride polymorph II may be produced by slurrying sertraline hydrochloride polymorph VI in aprotic organic solvent. Sertraline hydrochloride polymorphic form III may be produced by heating sertraline hydrochloride polymorphs V and VI. Sertraline hydrochloride forms V and VI may be produced from either sertraline hydrochloride or sertraline base by crystallization. Sertraline hydrochloride Form VII may be produced by suspending sertraline chloride polymorph V in water, followed by filtration. Sertraline hydrochloride Forms VIII and IX may be produced by suspending sertraline base in water followed by acidification and filtration. Sertraline hydrochloride Form X may be produced by suspending sertraline hydrochloride in benzyl alcohol with heating, followed by filtration.

The present invention relates to novel crystalline forms of sertraline hydrochloride, (1S-cis)-4-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-N-methyl- 1-naphthalenaminehydrochloride, denominated Forms VI through X, an amorphous form and novel, reproducible methods for preparing them and for preparing previously reported polymorphs II, III and V.
Sertraline hydrochloride, (1S-cis)4-(3,4 dichlorophenyl)-1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-N-methyl-1-naphthalenamine hydrochloride, having the formula
is approved, under the trademark Zoloft(copyright), by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, for the treatment of depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder and panic disorder.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,536,518 describes a synthesis of sertraline hydrochloride. U.S. Pat. No. 5,248,699 describes five crystalline forms of sertraline hydrochloride, designated Form I, Form II, Form III, Form IV and Form V.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,536,518 (xe2x80x9cthe ""518 patentxe2x80x9d) describes the preparation of sertraline hydrochloride with a melting point of 243-245xc2x0 C. by treating an ethyl acetate/ether solution of the free base with gaseous hydrogen chloride. The solid state properties of the sertraline hydrochloride so produced are not otherwise disclosed.
According to U.S. Pat. No. 5,248,699 (xe2x80x9cthe ""699 patentxe2x80x9d), the sertraline hydrochloride produced by the method of the ""518 patent has a crystalline form denominated xe2x80x9cForm IIxe2x80x9d. The ""699 patent discloses four other polymorphs I, III, IV, and V, and characterizes them by single crystal x-ray analysis, powder x-ray diffraction, infra-red spectroscopy, and differential scanning calorimetry. The ""699 patent reports that Form II is produced by rapid crystallization of sertraline hydrochloride from an organic solvent, including isopropyl alcohol, hexane, generally describes methods for making sertraline hydrochloride Forms I-V. According to this patent, the preferential formation of Forms I, II or IV in an acidic solution consisting of isopropyl alcohol, hexane, and acetone, methyl isobutyl ketone, glacial acetic acid, or preferably, ethyl acetate depends on the rapidity of crystallization. Form I is described as being made by crystallizing sertraline hydrochloride in an acidic solution using an organic solvent such as those listed above. The crystallization of Form I is carried out at a temperature from about 20xc2x0 C. to about the solvent reflux temperature, preferably from about 40xc2x0 to 60xc2x0 C. The only method described in this patent for making Forms II and IV is by the rapid crystallization of sertraline hydrochloride from an organic solvent such as those listed above. Slow crystallization or granulation of sertraline hydrochloride will produce Form I. Form III is described as being formed by heating Forms I, II or IV to temperatures above about 180xc2x0 C. Granulating either of Forms II, III or IV in isopropyl alcohol, ethyl acetate, hexane or any of the solvents listed above at a temperature from about 40xc2x0 to 60xc2x0 C. causes conversion to Form I. The only method described in this patent for making Form V is by sublimation of sertraline hydrochloride Form I at reduced pressure and at a temperature from about 180-190xc2x0 C. onto a condenser. However, in our hands attempts to repeat this procedure to obtain Form V have been unsuccessful.
It has now been discovered that sertraline hydrochloride Form V can be formed by crystallization from various solvents rather than by sublimation. The existence of new crystal forms of sertraline hydrochloride, denominated Forms VI, VII, VIII, IX and X, and an amorphous of sertraline hydrochloride have been discovered. Form VI is a useful intermediate in the formation of previously reported sertraline hydrochloride Forms I, II and V.
The present invention also relates to sertraline hydrochloride ethanolate and processes for making sertraline hydrochloride ethanolate.
The present invention also relates to sertraline hydrochloride methanolate and processes for making sertraline hydrochloride methanolate.
The present invention also relates to sertraline hydrochloride solvate and processes for making sertraline hydrochloride solvate.


A dispenser for granular material such as sugar and salt or other granular ingredients, including a collection portion and metering chamber. A metering cartridge located in the metering chamber includes a portion recess which collects a predetermined amount of granular material to be dispensed. The metering chamber is actuated and the granular material located in the portion recess is dispensed.

The present disclosure relates to granular dispensers. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to granular dispensers, with metered portion control.
It is known that most restaurants and food services strive to maintain product consistency, reduce preparation time, and control production costs. It is also known that many products produced in restaurants and food services are prepared using various types of granular materials.
Granular materials are applied to various food products by a variety of ways. The amount of granular materials applied to a food product may be inconsistent and the granular material distribution across a food product may not be uniform depending on the method of application selected. The amount of granular material added to a food product may not be uniform and oftentimes depends on the operator applying the granular material. Additionally, the portion of granular material added to a specific food product may need to be consistent across operators to maintain high standards of consistency in a restaurant or food service establishment. This is especially true in restaurant establishments where consistency among products at the same location necessarily need to be consistent as well as from restaurant to restaurant within the chain. A granular material dispenser able to provide consistent and controllable granular material applications would be an improvement over the prior art.


An air conditioning system may comprise an air handler, heat pump or fossil fuel furnace and may include a variable speed blower for conducting air through the system and operably connected to a controller which is also connected to a thermostat and/or humidity sensor. A discharge air temperature sensor may be disposed downstream of or embedded in a heat exchanger of the air conditioning system and connected to the controller for controlling the blower speed and airflow through the system. The amount of heating or cooling effect produced by the heat exchanger or blower speed may be adjusted to provide a constant discharge temperature or lower the humidity of air returning to a controlled space.

In forced airflow air conditioning systems, a longstanding problem has been one of attempting to set the proper airflow rate for an air handler, furnace or heat pump or a combination thereof to match system capacity at the time of installation. This is a difficult and nettlesome problem to overcome and often the proper airflow is not set thereby causing poor system efficiency and discomfort to occupants of the space being served by the system.
For example, on startup of air conditioning systems, such as heat pumps, as well as systems which incorporate other types of heating sources, a constant speed circulating blower will deliver relatively cold air to the controlled space before the heat pump heating coil is at a stabilized operating condition and outputting sufficient heat to the controlled space. Thus, the occupants of the space will experience relatively cold air circulation and discomfort. In other situations, such as when operating in the cooling mode, it is desirable to adjust the air temperature of the system to improve humidity control and to provide lower system discharge temperatures. However, even if automatic control can be achieved to alleviate the problems described above, it is also desirable to provide for a system installer or service person to be able to adjust airflow rates to override any automatic settings of the system. It is to the above-mentioned ends that the present invention has been developed.

Controlling airflow in an air conditioning system for control of system discharge temperature and humidity


A positive side main contactor serving as a contact switching device on the positive side, which is connected between a positive electrode terminal of a battery pack and a high potential input terminal of an inverter, and a negative side main contactor serving as a contact switching device on the negative side, which is connected between a negative electrode terminal of the battery pack and a low potential input terminal of the inverter, are arranged so that moving contacts of these are moved forward and backward in directions that are different from each other, e.g. by 90 degrees. Thus, a situation in which the two main contactors are simultaneously turned ON upon external impact can be avoided, and consequently, it is possible to achieve the same impact resistance as was previously possible with a smaller spring force than was previously required. Therefore, it is possible, for example, to reduce the number of turns of the winding in an electromagnetic coil of each of the main contactors or to reduce the winding diameter. The size and the cost of the contact switching device are reduced while maintaining reliability.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to electric vehicles, such as pure electric vehicles (PEVs) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), in particular hybrid electric vehicles having a fuel cell and a secondary cell, that run by converting a dc power from a battery pack, which is a driving power source mounted on such electric vehicles, into an ac power using an inverter and supplying the ac power to a motor. Moreover, the present invention particularly relates to a technique for preventing moving contacts of a positive side main contactor and a negative side main contactor that are provided between the battery pack and the inverter from being welded simultaneously.
2. Description of the Related Art
In so-called hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and the like that carry an engine and a motor, there is provided, between a battery pack, which is formed by combining a plurality of secondary cells, and an inverter, which is a power drive, a pair of contact switching devices (hereinafter, referred to as "main contactors") for conducting/interrupting electric power from the battery pack. These main contactors include a positive side main contactor that is provided between a positive electrode terminal of the battery pack and a high potential input terminal of the inverter and a negative side main contactor that is provided between a negative electrode terminal of the battery pack and a low potential input terminal of the inverter. See JP 2003-36776A, for example.
FIG. 8 is a lateral cross-sectional view showing the configuration of a main contactor. In FIG. 8, the main contactor is constituted by a pair of terminals 81 and 81 that are threaded. Ring terminals of wiring harnesses can be screwed thereto onto the terminal 81. The main contactor also includes a pair of terminal electrodes 81a and 81a that are brazed to tips of the pair of terminals 81 and 81, a moving contact 82 for contacting the pair of terminal electrodes 81a and 81a, a shaft spring 83 and an electromagnetic coil 84 for moving the moving contact 82 forward and backward with respect to the pair of terminal electrodes 81a and 81a.
Main contactors having such a configuration are mounted on an electric vehicle, such as a HEV, as a pair of positive side and negative side main contactors, with the directions in which the moving contacts are moved forward and backward being identical. When the main contactors are mounted on the HEV or the like, the two functions below are required for the case that the moving contacts are closed and for the case that the moving contacts are open.
First, in the case where the HEV is running and the moving contacts are closed, when the moving contacts bounce upon impact on the main contactors due to an external force (e.g., when the vehicle goes over a bump, or a collision of the vehicle), an arc occurs between the terminal electrodes and the moving contacts (hereinafter, these are simply referred to as "contacts"), and thus a part of the contacts is melted. When the contacts come into contact again, the contacts are cooled and fixed (short-circuited), and become incapable of performing the function of interrupting electric power. In order to prevent this, it is necessary to push the moving contacts against the terminal electrodes with a strong electromagnetic force.
On the other hand, in the case where the HEV is being parked and the moving contacts are open, when the contacts come into contact upon impact on the main contactors due to an external force (e.g., when another vehicle collides with the HEV), an excessive inrush current (e.g., an inrush current of 1200 A when assuming that the terminal voltage of the battery pack is 360 V and the internal resistance of the battery pack is 0.3 Ω) relative to the allowable current for the contacts flows from the battery pack to a large-capacity smoothing capacitor that is provided in the inverter. Thus the contacts are welded and become incapable of performing the function of interrupting electric power. In order to prevent this, it is necessary to push the moving contacts down off the terminal electrodes with a strong spring force.
As described above, for conventional main contactors mounted on electric vehicles such as HEVs, it was necessary to enhance both of two conflicting functions in such a way as to increase the electromagnetic force of the electromagnetic coil as well as increase the spring force of the shaft spring, in order to provide resistance against external impact for the main contactors, and thus there were problems that the sizes of the electromagnetic coil and the shaft spring are increased and the cost is increased.


A tire repairing assembly for inserting a resilient tire puncture plug into a punctured pneumatic tire. The assembly being adapted to be rolled over by the tire while still mounted to the wheel and the wheel mounted to the automobile. The tire repairing assembly having an arcuate base member and an insertion pin mounted to the base member. In an alternative embodiment, the insertion pin is moveably or pivotally mounted to the base member.

The present invention relates generally to a device for plugging a tubeless pneumatic tire. More particularly, the present invention relates to a device for plugging a tubeless pneumatic tire wherein a plugging means is inserted into a tire puncture without dismounting the tire from either the automobile or the wheel.
Tubeless tires are tires which are mounted on a wheel wherein the wheel forms a part of the seal to hold in air under pressure. The side of the tire has a bead which butts against a corresponding portion of the wheel rim forming an air-tight seal. As a result tubeless tires are difficult to remove from the wheel rim, even when they are flat. Special tools are generally required to remove the flat tire from the rim to enable a hole in the tire to be repaired. In recent years with the increase of price for oil and oil derived products, there has been a greater focus on repairing of tires when only slightly damaged.
Therefore, it is desirable to have a tool which allows a hole or puncture in a tubeless tire to be repaired without removing the tire from the wheel rim. Devices for repairing holes in tubeless tires without removing them from the rim are well known. A primary type of device for repairing holes in tubeless tires without removing the punctured tire from the rim on which they are mounted employ a substantially cylindrical rubber "plug" and a tool for inserting the plug into a hole. Several prior methods for repairing punctures in tubeless tires are known to have several disadvantages, including removal of the wheel assembly from the automobile. Additionally, tires of late include several layers of metallic and/or synthetic reinforcing cords. Thus, repairing tubeless tires where such repair devices attempted to place rubber elements into a puncture hole have not been practical, typically making insertions difficult and positioning uncertain. This procedure is more difficult to perform when the vehicle ride height is low, the puncture is on the inner edge of the tire, the tire is very large with thick treads, or the puncture hole is very narrow.
Prior attempts to produce a tire puncture device have resulted in devices that enlarge the opening initiated by the penetrating object. Generally, such devices include some means by which a person must forcibly insert a pointed device into the puncture. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,990,736; 3,029,671; and 4,009,624 disclose hand tools having a probe member or shaft that expands the hole, and a plug carrier or insertion channel. The tools include a pressure head or knob suitably configured to facilitate pressing the hand against it for forcing the shaft and plug into the hole.
However, a drawback of such tire puncture devices is that they have multiple components that include a tube or channel for inserting the plug. Such devices are cumbersome, generally require the tire to be, at a minimum, removed from the automobile and are expensive to fabricate.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,548,102 describes a tool for plugging a punctured tire where the plug is inserted from the inside of the tire. However, this requires not only the removal of the wheel from the automobile, but additionally the separation of the tire from the wheel rim.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,716,792 describes a screwdriver-type tool for plugging a punctured tire. The tool includes a hollow tubular shaft for providing support to the plug during compression or insertion of the plug into the puncture. The plug includes a pointed, hardened tip that has a shoulder for engaging the tubular shaft so that the plug can be manually pushed or forced into the hole from the penetrating object.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,170,361 discloses a tire repair device having a handle that includes a compartment defined therein for storing extra plugs, ratcheting means secured to the handle, a shaft attached to the ratchet means and having a plug hooking means and a reamer at an end of the shaft opposite from the point where the shaft attaches to the ratchet means.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,202,510 discloses a multi-component tire repair device having an elongated handle and a flanged wheel-engaging shaft pivotally and adjustably mounted in a slot provided in one end of the handle. The flanged wheel-engaging shaft removably engages the cupped rim or hub of the wheel after it is removed from the automobile. An adjustable tire plug carriage sleeve is mounted on the handle. A plug insertion shaft having a bifurcated distal end is suspended downwardly from a pivotal attachment to the carriage sleeve. As the flanged bottom end of the vertical wheel engaging shaft is caused to engage the hub of the wheel, the handle is extended horizontally over the width of the tire tread. The tire plug carriage sleeve and suspended plug insertion shaft are adjusted and then secured on the handle in the appropriate location to facilitate alignment of a band-shaped, resilient repair plug. The plug is inserted between the bifurcations of the plug insertion shaft. Subsequent insertion of the repair plug in and removal of the plug insertion shaft from the opening is by lever operation of the handle. A problem with this tire repair device is that the flanged wheel-engaging shaft may assist in providing an anchoring point for the inserting lever, however, the flanged wheel-engaging shaft provides no such point during the extraction of the plug insertion shaft. Thus, the tool becomes cumbersome during at least half of the plugging operation.
Another problem with the prior tire repair devices is that some require specific types or designs of resilient plugs to be used, limiting the utility of the device to the availability of the specific resilient plugs. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,062,323 discloses a puncture repair device that uses a plug that is generally cylindrical with enlarged end portions and an interconnecting cylindrical shank portion. One end has a cylindrical head portion and a circumferential groove for engaging the insertion tool. The other end has a spherical portion.
Another problem with the aforementioned devices is that to facilitate the insertion of the tool into the tire tread, the hole is usually enlarged to the appropriate size of the plug by using a reaming device or a drill and following the hole of the penetrating object.
Another problem associated with the prior art devices and plugging means, is if the puncture is enlarged or reamed to accept the tire plugging device and/or plugging means, the enlarged hole further weakens the tire, which also requires a larger, stronger plugging means to stop the leak.
An additional disadvantage of the previously described devices is the obvious and unmistakable danger of personal injury when inserting the plug. As noted, the prior described tools include a pointed end that may slip during the course of attempting to insert the plug.
Thus, there is a need for a mobile tire plug insertion device that would allow the user to keep the wheel assembly on the automobile and safely allow the user to insert the plugging means into the hole or puncture from the penetrating object.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a pneumatic tire puncture repair tool that allows the user to safely facilitate inserting a plugging means of suitable size, configuration and resiliency into a tire having a hole from a penetrating object.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a pneumatic tire puncture repair tool that allows the user to safely facilitate inserting a plugging means of suitable size, configuration and resiliency into a tire having a hole from a penetrating object wherein the wheel does not have to be removed from the automobile or from the wheel rim.
Yet another object of the present invention to provide a pneumatic tire puncture repair tool that allows the user insert a plugging means of suitable size, configuration and resiliency into a tire having a hole from a penetrating object wherein the wheel is not removed from the automobile and the weight of the automobile is utilized to facilitate inserting the plugging means while the user's hands are in a position of safety during the plug insertion step of the process.
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent to those skilled in the art in view of the following description and the accompanying drawings wherein like parts and objects in the several views have similar reference numerals. It is to be understood that the inventive concept is not to be considered limited to the constructions disclosed herein but instead by the scope of the appended claims.


A perpendicular recording medium having a magnetic layer comprising cobalt, platinum, and at least one of molybdenum and chromium. In a preferred embodiment, the perpendicular recording medium comprises granular magnetic regions having oxygen-containing grain boundaries. The magnetic layer of the present invention preferably exhibits improved corrosion resistance while maintaining the magnetic properties suitable for high density perpendicular recording.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to perpendicular magnetic recording media and to a method of manufacturing the media. The invention relates to high areal density perpendicular magnetic recording media having a magnetic layer exhibiting high corrosion resistance. Furthermore, the invention relates to magnetic materials particularly suitable for forming a magnetic layer exhibiting high corrosion resistance in granular perpendicular recording media applications.
2. Description of the Related Art
Perpendicular recording media are being developed for higher density recording as compared to longitudinal media. The thin-film perpendicular magnetic recording medium comprises a substrate and a magnetic layer having perpendicular magnetic anisotropy, wherein the magnetic layer comprises an easy axis oriented substantially in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the magnetic layer. Typically, the thin-film perpendicular magnetic recording medium comprises a rigid NiP-plated Al alloy substrate, or alternatively a glass or glass-ceramic substrate, and successively sputtered layers. The sputtered layers can include one or more underlayers, one or more magnetic layers, and a protective overcoat. The protective overcoat is typically a carbon overcoat which protects the magnetic layer from corrosion and oxidation and also reduces frictional forces between the disc and a read/write head. In addition, a thin layer of lubricant may be applied to the surface of the protective overcoat to enhance the tribological performance of the head-disc interface by reducing friction and wear of the protective overcoat.
Granular perpendicular recording media is being developed for its capability of further extending the areal recording density as compared to conventional perpendicular recording media which is limited by the existence of strong exchange coupling between magnetic grains. In contrast to conventional perpendicular media wherein the magnetic layer is typically sputtered in the presence of inert gas, most commonly argon (Ar), deposition of a granular perpendicular magnetic layer utilizes a reactive sputtering technique wherein oxygen (O2) is introduced, for example, in a gas mixture of Ar and O2. Not wishing to be bound by theory, it is believed that the introduction of O2 provides a source of oxygen that migrates into the grain boundaries forming oxides within the grain boundaries, and thereby providing a granular perpendicular structure having a reduced exchange coupling between grains. However, the migration of oxygen and the oxidation process produces a granular perpendicular magnetic layer having a porous structure significantly more susceptible to corrosion.
The continuing drive for increased areal recording density in the magnetic recording media industry mandates reduction of the head-to-medium separation, or more particularly the head to magnetic layer separation. As such, an increase in areal density usually requires a reduction in the thicknesses of the intermediary layers, namely the protective overcoat and the lubricant layer, that constitute part of the head to magnetic layer separation. One role of the protective overcoat is to prevent corrosion of the underlying magnetic layer, which is an electrochemical phenomenon dependent upon factors such as environmental conditions, e.g., humidity and temperature. A suitable protective overcoat must prevent migration of ions, such as cobalt (Co) and nickel (Ni), from underlying layers to the surface of the magnetic recording medium which can form defects such as asperities. However, as the protective overcoat thickness is reduced to below 40 Å, the magnetic layer becomes more vulnerable to corrosion. Such low thicknesses reduce the ability of the protective overcoat to maintain adequate corrosion protection.
Accordingly, there exists a need for perpendicular magnetic recording media having a high recording areal density, and a significantly reduced head-to-medium separation while simultaneously providing adequate resistance to environmental attacks, such as corrosion. There exists a particular need for high recording areal density magnetic recording media having a combined protective overcoat and lubricant film thickness less than about 60 Å and exhibiting improved corrosion resistance. There is a need for granular perpendicular recording media having a magnetic layer exhibiting improved corrosion resistance while maintaining the magnetic properties suitable for high density perpendicular recording.

Perpendicular media with improved corrosion performance


Apparatus 10 discloses a baby bottle 44 and nipple 46 cleaner having a plurality of interchangeable brush members 14 that attach to an electrically operated handle 12 that serves to oscillate or rotate the brushes to more effectively remove debris from the object being cleaned. Other brush attachments may be adapted for cleaning other objects such as dishes and the like. Apparatus 10 may be available in any number of colors such as child friendly soft pastels. Decorative figures such as teddy bears 52, clowns, cartoon characters and the like may also adorn the handle 12 and/or charger 48.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to baby bottle cleaning brushes and, more specifically, to a baby bottle and nipple cleaning apparatus having a plurality of interchangeable brush members that attach to an electrically operated handle that serves to oscillate or rotate the brushes to more effectively remove debris from the object being cleaned. Other brush attachments may be adapted for cleaning other objects such as dishes and the like.
The present invention may be available in any number of colors such as child friendly soft pastels. Decorative figures such as teddy bears, clowns, cartoon characters and the like may also adorn the handle and/or charger.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There are other brushes designed for cleaning. Typical of these is U.S. Pat. No. 2,911,660 issued to S. Klemas et al on Nov. 10, 1959.
Another patent was issued to J. C. Price on Mar. 27, 1962 as U.S. Pat. No. 3,026,552. Yet another U.S. Pat. No. 4,237,570 was issued to W. B. Brock, Jr. on Dec. 9, 1980 and still yet another was issued on Feb. 16, 1988 to R. A. Fry et al. as U.S. Pat. No. 4,724,563.
Another patent was issued to S. Aiyar on Dec. 5, 1995 as U.S. Pat. No. 5,471,695. Yet another U.S. Pat. No. 5,636,400 was issued to K. L. Young on Jun. 10, 1997. Another was issued to G. A. O'Brien on Nov. 4, 1997 as U.S. Pat. No. 5,682,637 and still yet another was issued on Nov. 10, 1998 to H. Dunn as U.S. Pat. No. 5,833,014.
Another patent was issued to D. T. George et al. on Jan. 9, 2001 as U.S. Pat. No. 6,170,107. Yet another U.S. Pat. No. 6,202,247 was issued to M. A. Lorenz, Jr. on Mar. 20, 2001. Another was issued to O. H. Dolah on Oct. 2, 2001 as U.S. Pat. No. 6,295,681 and still yet another was issued on Feb. 26, 2002 to R. S. Randolph et al as U.S. Pat. No. 6,349,443.

Baby bottle and nipple cleaning apparatus


One way to deliver increased wireless communication device performance without using a higher performance processor is to offload processor functions in a wireless communications device. In one example a wireless device selects a processor function to be performed for the wireless device and evaluates the selected processor function to determine whether to offload the processor function. If it is determined that the processor function can be offloaded the wireless device transmits a wireless request to a remote processor to perform the offload processor function. After performing the processor function at the remote processor and generating a result the wireless device receives the result.

The increased number and complexity of operations performed in a wireless communication device requires a corresponding increase in processor performance and memory to implement the operations. One particular complex set of operations involves the generation of displays for a wireless device screen. An example is displaying World Wide Web pages associated with the use of an Internet browser in a wireless device. Wireless device Internet browsers generally accept Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) and HyperText Markup Language (HTML) messages containing text-based Web pages, graphic information such as page layout and fonts, and hypertext links from an Internet site. Converting WAP and HTML messages to a format suitable for display on a wireless device user interface requires large amounts of processor performance and memory.
It is known to use the processor and memory in a wireless device to generate displays, for example, to process WAP and HTML messages. It is also known to use a processor with increased performance and to increase the amount of memory in a wireless device to facilitate the generation of displays and the processing of WAP and HTML messages. However, there are disadvantages associated with using a wireless device processor and memory and increasing wireless device processing performance and memory. Using the wireless device processor increases the complexity of the software required in the device and can reduce the time available for processing other software tasks. In addition, wireless device batteries have limited capacities for storing and supplying power, and processor operations consume battery power. Using wireless device memory reduces the amount of memory available in the wireless device for other purposes. Additionally, larger memories drive up costs.
Advances in technology and manufacturing techniques permit wireless communication devices to be made increasingly smaller, creating in turn, a need to generally reduce the number and size of components in the devices. Unfortunately, increasing processor performance and memory in a wireless device can increase the number and size of processor and memory components in a wireless device. The subsequent increase in space usage can limit the size to which a wireless device can be reduced, or can limit the space available in a wireless device for other components. Increasing processor performance and memory in a wireless device usually increases the cost of processor and memory components for the wireless device, adding to the cost of producing the wireless device. In addition, since general reliability decreases as parts count and complexity in a wireless device increase, increasing processor performance and memory as noted above, may tend to decrease the reliability of the wireless device.
It would be advantageous if functionality in wireless communication devices requiring large amounts of processor performance and memory, such as displays on a wireless communication device screen, could be implemented in a wireless device with minimal use of the wireless device processor and memory.

System and method for increased wireless communication device performance


A print server may include an application manager configured to receive a print job from a user and associate the print job with a printer. The print server may include a presence manager configured to provide a presence code for the print job and the printer, and to receive the presence code from the user in conjunction with a physical presence of the user at the printer, and a print job router configured to release the print job for printing by the printer, based on the receipt of the presence code.

Cloud printing provides users with an ability to print content from virtually any application or device, using any authorized and capable printer. Consequently, users may be provided with previously-unavailable or infeasible options for printing content.
For example, users, or an entire class of users, may gain access to a large number and variety of printers, e.g., public printers. With access to such printing resources, some users may utilize the printing resources in a wasteful, unauthorized, or otherwise undesirable fashion.
For example, some users may print documents to remote printers, but may then neglect to actually retrieve the printed documents, so that the printer paper and other printing resources are wasted. In other examples, users may attempt to send mass printings to one or more printers, e.g., as part of an unsolicited marketing campaign. Such printings, in addition to being a wasteful and inefficient use of printing resources, may be an annoyance to the owner/provider of the printers, as well as to other, legitimate users.
Thus, in these and other scenarios, the features and advantages of cloud printing platforms may potentially be utilized in a manner that is inefficient at best, and malicious at worst. Consequently, adoption and use of cloud printing platforms and related technologies may be impeded, and enjoyment thereof may be lessened.

Remote printing management for cloud printing


Systems and methods for producing carbohydrate (e.g., sugar) streams (and recycling enzymes) from a pretreated or untreated biomass such as cellulosic feedstock, including, for example, “brown stock” feedstock, or waste or recycled fiber sludge produced in the pulp and paper industry, such as for biochemical (e.g., biofuel) production, are provided. In one example, the system and method can produce high purity C6 (glucose and/or fructose) and/or C5 (xylose) sugar streams, and other carbohydrates and/or fibrous materials, from cellulosic feedstocks, such as brown stock or waste fiber sludge, that can be effectively converted into various biochemical products, such as ethanol.

The cellulosic ethanol, advanced biofuels, and biochemical industries have been unable to meet commercialization expectations for many years due to prohibitive economics concerning capital and operational expenditures and due to technical challenges including pretreatment of cellulosic feedstocks required to produce carbon 5 and/or 6 (C5 and/or C6) sugars, and other carbohydrates and/or fibrous materials, which may be able to be converted into a bio-based (e.g., a biochemical) product. Typically, a cellulosic feedstock must be "pretreated" or conditioned prior to introducing the feedstock into an industrial sugar producing system. But again, the capital and/or operational expenditures, and technical challenges, oftentimes frustrate the cost-effectiveness of this approach compared to conventional grain-based sugar production methods.
Also, the pulp and paper industry, within the last two decades or so, has been challenged with economic adversity. The capital expenditures and the processes developed for production of virgin pulp, for example, do not necessarily provide the return on investment that would justify the original and ongoing expenditures required to run a paper-producing pulp operation. Such virgin pulp (and other types) could be a ripe source of C6/C5 cellulosic sugars for the bio-based or biochemical industry, such as the cellulosic ethanol and biofuels industries.
Yet further, pulp and paper industries have lost significant market share due to the advent of electronic media. In fact, over the last two decades, the detriment has been so severe that several large producers started taking major permanent closures and even began a practice of pre-emptive shutdowns to balance a market in permanent decline before operating rates and prices collapsed.
In this context, it has been crucially necessary to consider other options for the various products and byproducts typically produced by the paper industry and other bio-based industries. Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide systems and methods that could economically benefit the above respective industries such as by synergistically combining, utilizing, and/or improving upon the various systems and methods in various bio-based areas, such as the cellulosic ethanol and biochemical (e.g., biofuels) industries and pulp and paper industries.

System and method for producing a carbohydrate stream from a cellulosic feedstock


The invention provides methods and reagents for the metathesis of secondary amides via a transacylation mechanism employing catalytic quantities of an imide initiator and a Brønsted base. Equilibrium-controlled exchange between various amide reactant pairs is demonstrated for substrates bearing a variety of N-alkyl and N-aryl substituents.

Reactions that interconvert strong covalent bonds, termed "dynamic covalent chemistry" (DCC), offer a powerful approach for thermodynamically controlled synthesis of organic molecules with interesting structures and/or properties. DCC involving esters, thioesters, imines and disulfides, among other functional groups, has provided access to useful new molecules and molecular insights. Such efforts to date have focused on bonds that were previously known to be readily exchangeable. Extension of the DCC approach to other types of functional groups will require advances in organic reactivity and catalysis. It would be valuable, for example, to implement DCC with carboxamide-containing molecules, but the low intrinsic reactivity of the carboxamide group has hampered efforts to achieve this goal. Identifying catalysts that induce amide metathesis, i.e., the interconversion of carboxamides based on cleavage and formation of the N-acyl bonds [(Eq. 1)], represents a fundamental challenge in organic reactivity. The inventors recently described metal-catalyzed transamidation reactions [(Eq. 2)], which, in principle, offer a pathway to amide metathesis. Subsequent studies, however, revealed that secondary amide metathesis is not successful under the original transamidation conditions.

One of the few previous examples of amide metathesis involves the use of proteases under conditions compatible with both peptide hydrolysis and synthesis. Limitation associated with these reactions include limited substrate scope and long reaction times.
As can be appreciated, there is a long felt need in the chemical arts for methods and reagents, such as small-molecule catalysts, that facilitate secondary amide metathesis. Such desirable technologies would certainly broaden the practical applications of dynamic covalent chemistry.

Catalytic metathesis of secondary amides


Some embodiments of the present disclosure provide a semiconductor device including a semiconductive substrate, a metal gate including a metallic layer proximal to the semiconductive substrate. A dielectric layer surrounds the metal gate. The dielectric layer includes a first surface facing the semiconductive substrate and a second surface opposite to the first surface. A sidewall spacer surrounds the metallic layer with a greater longitudinal height. The sidewall spacer is disposed between the metallic layer and the dielectric layer. An etch stop layer over the metal gate comprises a surface substantially coplanar with the second surface of the dielectric layer. The etch stop layer has a higher resistance to etchant than the dielectric layer. A portion of the etch stop layer is over the sidewall spacer.

In today's fast advancing of technology for semiconductor manufacturing, integration levels are increasing, device features are reduced, and greater demands are increasing for device performance.
As a semiconductor industry has progressed into nanometer technology process nodes in pursuit of higher device density, higher performance, and lower costs, challenges from fabrication issues have also appeared.
In a fabrication process, a chemical mechanical planarizing (CMP) is used to polish a surface of a semiconductive structure. However, CMP process will induce dishing on the surface and complicate a manufacturing process.

Metal gate and manufuacturing process thereof

TAIWAN SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING COMPANY LTD.


A device that uses homomorphic encryption is disclosed. The device includes a public key data generator configured to generate public key data, and a secret key data generator configured to generate secret key data that includes, as a secret key, an integer that is an element of a matrix obtained as a product of the first public key matrix element and an inverse matrix of the secret key matrix and that is not a multiple of the plain text space size.

Today, the protection of personal information and confidential information has been becoming more and more important, and the market of services that use personal information or confidential information has been expanding. Examples of such services include a service that utilizes position information of an individual user that can be obtained from a smart phone, etc. This has generated attention for information concealing techniques, which enable the utilization of personal information/confidential information while keeping such information in a protected state. Examples of information concealing techniques include a technique that uses a cryptography technique or a statistics technique in accordance with data type or service requirements.
As a concealing technique that uses cryptography, a homomorphic encryption technique is known. A homomorphic encryption technique is one public key encryption method that uses a pair of different keys for encryption and decryption, and has a function of permitting data manipulation while keeping the data in an encrypted state.
By using a homomorphic encryption method, when addition or multiplication is performed on an encrypted text, it is possible to obtain an encrypted text, which is a computation result after performing addition or multiplication, without decrypting an encrypted text. This feature of a homomorphic encryption method is considered to be utilized in the field of electronic voting/electronic cash and recently in the cloud computing field. As homomorphic encryption methods related to addition or multiplication, an RSA encryption method, which only permits multiplication, and an Additive ElGamal encryption, which only permits addition, are known. In a multiplication homomorphic encryption method, when encrypted texts of plain texts (messages) a and b are E(a) and E(b), encrypted text E(a·b) of the product of plain texts a·b can be calculated from E(a) and E(b). Also, in an addition homomorphic encryption method, when encrypted texts of plain texts a and b are E(a) and E(b), the encrypted text E(a+b) of the sum of the plain texts a+b can be calculated from E(a) and E(b). By using a homomorphic encryption method to perform addition or multiplication on encrypted texts, it is possible to obtain an encrypted text as a computation result of performing addition or multiplication without decrypting an encrypted text. This feature of a homomorphic encryption method is expected to be utilized in the field of electronic voting/electronic cash and recently in the cloud computing field.
In recent years, as an encryption method having homomorphy for both addition and multiplication, a fully homomorphic encryption method is known. When addition and multiplication are possible while keeping targets in an encrypted state, operations such as exclusive OR, AND, and NOT are possible while keeping targets in an encrypted state. In other words, a fully homomorphic encryption method has homomorphy for all operations performed by logical circuits. Although, at first, only a theoretical implementation method was introduced and practical configurations were not made public, examples of specific configurations of generating a key and a cryptography method that expanded types of data that can be encrypted have also been proposed. In these examples of specific configurations of generating a key, keys such as a public key and a secret key are in the form of matrix.
A homomorphic encryption method can be used in a system that checks the similarity between two pieces of information.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2011-145512
Non-Patent Document 1: C. Gentry, "Fully Homomorphic encryption using ideal lattices", STOC 2009, pp. 169-178, 2009
Non-Patent Document 2: C. Gentry and S. Halevi, "Implementing Gentry's Fully Homomorphic Encryption Scheme", EUROCRYPT 2011, LNCS 6632, pp. 129-148, 2011
Non-Patent Document 3: Yasuda, Yajima, Shimoyama, and Kogure, "Secret totalization of purchase histories of companies in cloud" SCIS 2012

Cryptography processing device and cryptography processing method


A climate system for providing air to a cab of a vehicle includes a first conduit, an outlet end of the first conduit being adapted to be arranged inside of the cab, a pressurized air source, an inlet end of the first conduit being connected to the pressurized air source for supplying compressed air into the cab by the first conduit.

The invention relates to a climate system for providing air to a cab of a vehicle. The invention also relates to an arrangement comprising such a climate system and a cab, and also to a vehicle comprising such an arrangement.
The invention is applicable on working machines within the fields of industrial construction machines or construction equipment, in particular wheel loaders. Although the invention will be described with respect to a wheel loader, the invention is not restricted to this particular machine, but may also be used in other working machines such as articulated haulers, excavators and backhoe loaders. The invention can also be applied in heavy-duty vehicles, such as trucks, buses and construction equipment. The invention may also be used in other vehicles such as cars.
A working machine, e.g. a wheel loader or an articulated hauler, is usually provided with a bucket, container or other type of implement for digging, carrying and/or transporting a load.
For example, a wheel loader has a lift arm unit for raising and lowering an implement, such as a bucket. The lift arm comprises hydraulic cylinders for movement of a load arm and the implement attached to the load arm. Usually a pair of hydraulic cylinders is arranged for raising the load arm and a further hydraulic cylinder is arranged for tilting the implement relative to the load arm.
In addition, the working machine is often articulated frame-steered and has a pair of hydraulic cylinders for turning/steering the working machine by pivoting a front section and a rear section of the working machine relative to each other.
The hydraulic system generally further comprises at least one hydraulic pump, which is arranged to supply hydraulic power, i.e. hydraulic flow and hydraulic pressure, to the hydraulic cylinders. The hydraulic pump is driven by a power source, such as an internal combustion engine or an electric motor.
A working machine normally comprises a climate system to provide a comfortable air climate for a driver in a cab of the working machine. The climate system distributes air with a suitable temperature and humidity to the cab. The climate system should also be adapted to provide a suitable air quality for wind shield defrosting. Climate systems are also used in vessels such as vehicles, boats and aircraft. An example of a vehicle climate system is presented in US2015197135.
A problem with climate systems is that they include ducts which may be space consuming. For example in working machines such ducts may be difficult to fit during a design phase since they require large volumes under instrument panels and interior trim panels. A good visibility for an operator of a working machine is important for safety reasons, but air ducts may contribute to obstruction of operator visibility.
It is desirable to provide more space in a cab of a vehicle, in particular a working machine. It is also desirable to increase the visibility in a cab of a vehicle, in particular a working machine.
An aspect of the invention provides a climate system for providing air to a cab of a vehicle, the climate system comprising a first conduit, an outlet end of the first conduit being adapted to be arranged inside of the cab, characterized in that the climate system comprises a pressurized air source, an inlet end of the first conduit being connected to the pressurized air source for supplying compressed air into the cab by means of the first conduit.
The cab may be a driver's cab, i.e. arranged to house a driver of the vehicle. The cab may define a space, the outlet end of the conduit being located in the space, whereby the conduit communicates with the space. Although the climate system of the invention may be adapted to provide air to a cab of a vehicle, the climate system may also be adapted to provide air to a cab of some other type of vessel, such as a boat or an aircraft.
Since the inlet end of the first conduit is connected to the pressurized air source for supplying compressed air into the cab, the first conduit may be provided with a substantially thinner cross-section, compared to those of conduits and ducts in known climate systems. Using the climate system according to the invention a cab climate system will take up much less space in the cab. The invention makes it possible to route air ducts in very narrow areas, thereby avoiding obstruction of the visibility for the driver/operator.
The invention allows the first conduit to be provided as a thin, flexible hose. Such a hose can be cut to desired length making adaptations to different cab designs very easy. Air ducts may be installed similarly to the installation of electrical wiring. Also, the invention may allow more space for servicing. Also, it the first conduit is provided as a flexible hose, handling it and removing it during service will be much easier compared to handling of ducts in traditional vehicle climate systems.
Preferably, the pressurized air source is arranged to compress air so as for it to present a pressure of at least 1 bar, more preferably at least 3 bars, above the atmospheric pressure. The pressurized air source may be arranged to receive air and to compress the received air so as for it to present a pressure of at least 1 bar above the pressure of the air when received. Preferably the air is compressed to a pressure which is substantially above the atmospheric pressure. Thereby, a compression ratio is, provided securing that a flow in the first conduit may be substantially larger than in ducts of traditional climate systems, in turn securing said advantageous possibility of providing the first conduit as a thin conduit. It is understood that the atmospheric pressure is the pressure of immediate surrounding atmosphere.
Preferably, a valve is provided functionally between the pressurized air source and the outlet end of the conduit for controlling the supply of compressed air into the cab. Thereby an effective means of controlling the air flow through the first conduit is provided. It should be noted that the valve being provided functionally between the pressurized air source and the first conduit outlet end means that the valve may control the communication between the pressurized air source and the first conduit outlet end. However, it is understood that the valve does not necessarily have to be located spatially between the pressurized air source and the first conduit outlet end.
The climate system may comprise a second conduit, an inlet end of the second conduit being connected to the pressurized air source or the first conduit, an outlet end of the second conduit being adapted to be arranged inside of the cab. Thereby, pressurized air may be distributed to different parts of an internal space delimited by the cab.
Where a valve is provided as described, the second conduit may branch off from the first conduit at a branching point, the valve being located functionally between the pressurized air source and the branching point. Thereby, the valve may fill the function of a main valve by means of which the flow through the first conduit as well as the second conduit may be controlled by the single valve.
In advantageous embodiments the climate system comprises a first valve being located functionally between the inlet end and the outlet end of the first conduit, or, where the second conduit branches off from the first conduit at a branching point, between the branching point and the outlet end of the first conduit. The climate system may comprise a second valve being located functionally between the inlet end and the outlet end of the second conduit. Thereby, the first and second valves may be used to individually control the flows through the first and second conduits.
The pressurized air source preferably comprises an air compressor. The compressor may be of any suitable type, e.g. a piston compressor, a centrifugal compressor, a rotary screw compressor, or a vane compressor. Suitably an air filter is provided upstream of the compressor. Preferably, the pressurized air source comprises a pressure tank arranged functionally between the air compressor and the first conduit so as for the pressure tank to store air compressed by the air compressor. Thereby, an advantageous compressed air storage is provided, allowing an effective control of the air distribution to the cab. Where the climate system is provided in a hybrid electric vehicle, and the air compressor is arranged to be driven by an internal combustion engine therein, the pressure tank may be particularly advantageous. More specifically, since the engine in a hybrid electric vehicle typically is repetitively shut down and started at relatively high frequencies, the pressure tank may provide the function of a buffer for storing compressed air during periods where the compressor in inactive due to the engine being shut down.
Preferably, the first conduit presents a transport air flow cross-sectional area, the first conduit comprising a first nozzle forming the outlet end, the first nozzle presenting a nozzle air flow cross-sectional area being substantially larger than the transport air flow cross-sectional area. Thereby, a widening flow cross-section is provided at the first conduit outlet end. This means that the compressed air, allowing a thin first conduit but resulting in a high air speed through the first conduit, may be advantageously slowed down before entering the interior space of the cab.
Preferably, the nozzle air flow cross-sectional area is at least five times larger, more preferably at least ten times larger, than the transport air flow cross-sectional area. Thereby a nozzle is provided, the outer cross-sectional area of which is substantially larger than the cross-sectional area of the first conduit, allowing a particularly high air speed reduction from a high level of air compression. More generally, the nozzle air flow cross-sectional area is preferably at least two times larger than the transport air flow cross-sectional area. For example, the nozzle air flow cross-sectional area may be 2-200, preferably 15-50, times larger than the transport air flow cross-sectional area. The nozzle air flow cross-sectional area is preferably substantially larger than the transport air flow cross-sectional area.
The ratio of the nozzle air flow cross-sectional area and the transport air flow cross-sectional area is preferably adapted to the air compression ratio of the pressurized air source. I.e. when designing the climate system, it is preferably taken into account that with an increasing compression ratio of the pressurized air source an increasing ratio of the nozzle air flow cross-sectional area and the transport air flow cross-sectional area may follow. Advantageously, the ratio of the nozzle air flow cross-sectional area and the transport air flow cross-sectional area is preferably also adapted to the length of the first conduit. I.e. with an increasing length of the first conduit a decreasing ratio of the nozzle air flow cross-sectional area and the transport air flow cross-sectional area may follow, given that the compression ratio of the pressurized air source remains the same. It is understood that for a given ratio of the nozzle air flow cross-sectional area and the transport air flow cross-sectional area, an increasing length of the first conduit may be followed by an increased capacity of the pressurized air source, i.e. an increased compression ratio thereof.
Where the climate system comprises a second conduit, an outlet end of the second conduit being adapted to be arranged inside of the cab, an inlet end of the second conduit being connected to the pressurized air source or the first conduit so as for the second conduit to supply compressed air into the cab, the second conduit may present a transport air flow cross-sectional area, the second conduit comprising a second nozzle forming the outlet end of the second conduit, the second nozzle presenting a nozzle air flow cross-sectional area being substantially larger than the transport air flow cross-sectional area of the second conduit. Thereby, an advantageous air speed reduction may be provided at the second conduit outlet end, similarly to what was described above.
In advantageous embodiments, the climate system comprises a first fluid circuit and a first heat exchanger arranged so as for heat to be exchanged between the air supplied by the first conduit from the pressurized air source into the cab, and a fluid in the first fluid circuit. The first heat exchanger is preferably located at the outlet end of the first conduit. Thereby, the temperature of the air transported through the first conduit may be effectively controlled.
Preferably, where a first nozzle is provided as described above, the first heat exchanger is located inside the first nozzle. Thereby a particularly advantageous embodiment is provided, wherein the above described wider shape of the nozzle may be used for, in addition to slowing down the air speed and mentioned, cab the first heat exchanger. The also, heat may be exchanged close to where the air is delivered to the cab interior, so that heat loses at fluid transport may be reduced or eliminated.
Preferably, where the climate system comprises a second conduit, an outlet end of the second conduit being adapted to be arranged inside of the cab, an inlet end of the second conduit being connected to the pressurized air source or the first conduit so as for the second conduit to supply compressed air into the cab, the climate system comprises a second heat exchanger arranged so as for heat to be exchanged between the air supplied by the second conduit into the cab, and the fluid in the first fluid circuit or a fluid in a second fluid circuit of the climate system.
Thereby, each conduit outlet end can be controlled separately with regards to air temperature. Thus, different temperatures may be obtained at different locations in the cab. For example, where a second fluid circuit is provided, each of the first and second fluid circuits may be provided with a respective valve for controlling the flow in the respective of the first and second fluid circuits. Thereby, by adjusting the valves the rate of the heat exchange at the respective of the first and second heat exchangers can be controlled individually by the driver or a climate system control system.
In alternative embodiments, the fluid circuits for the first and second heat exchangers may be partially or fully integrated. For example, the first and second heat exchangers may share the first fluid circuit, in which case a single valve could be provided to control the flow in the circuit.
Preferably, the climate system comprises a further heat exchanger and also a heat source and/or an air conditioning circuit, the further heat exchanger being arranged so as for heat to be exchanged between on one hand the fluid in the first fluid circuit and on the other hand a fluid in a further circuit connected to the heat source and/or a fluid in the air conditioning circuit. Thereby, heat may be provided to the cab via the air supplied by the first conduit, the first heat exchanger, the first fluid circuit, the further heat exchanger, and the heat source. Alternatively, by means of the connection to the air conditioning circuit, heat may be removed from the air supplied to the cab by the first conduit, via the first heat exchanger, the first fluid circuit, the further heat exchanger, and air conditioning circuit.
The fluid in first fluid circuit may be water, e.g. with an anti-freeze liquid, or oil. Thus, the first fluid circuit may be provided with simple conduits, e.g. flexible hoses, for guiding the fluid. The provision of the further heat exchanger provides a particular advantage when the climate system comprises an air conditioning circuit. The further heat exchanger may be positioned outside the cab. Thereby, during service of the vehicle, the cab may be removed without any need to break and empty the air conditioning circuit, which requires special costly equipment, is complicated and not easily done outside a service establishment arranged for this purpose. With the further heat exchanger included in the climate system, it may be possible to simply break the water or oil carrying first fluid circuit, and the remove the cab from the vehicle. Breaking a water or oil based circuit may be much simpler than breaking an air conditioning circuit.
In advantageous embodiments, both the further circuit connected to the heat source and the air conditioning circuit are connectable, e.g. via suitable valve arrangements, to the further heat exchanger. Thereby, the further heat exchanger may be arranged so as for heat to be exchanged selectively either between the fluid in the first fluid circuit and the fluid in the further circuit connected to the heat source, or between the fluid in the first fluid circuit and the fluid in the air conditioning circuit. This allows a selective delivery of heat and cold air to the cab, depending on whether the further heat exchanger is connected to the heat source or to the air conditioning circuit.
In other embodiments, only the further circuit connected to the heat source is connectable to the further heat exchanger. In further embodiments, only the air conditioning circuit is connectable to the further heat exchanger.
In some embodiments, where the climate system comprises a heat source, the climate system is arranged so as for heat to be exchanged between the fluid in the first fluid circuit and the heat source. Thereby, heat may be exchanged directly between the heat source and the fluid in the first fluid circuit, e.g. by means of an additional heat exchanger arranged at, in or adjacent to the heat source. Thereby, and simple and reliable solution for heating the air guided by the first conduit may be provided.
Where the climate system comprises an air conditioning circuit, the climate system may be arranged so as for heat to be exchanged between the fluid in the first fluid circuit and the air conditioning circuit. Thereby, heat may be exchanged directly between an evaporator of the air conditioning circuit and the fluid in the first fluid circuit. Similarly to embodiments with the further heat exchanger described above, embodiments for such a direct heat exchange provide a particular advantage when the evaporator is positioned outside the cab. Thereby, during service of the vehicle, the cab may be removed without any need to break and empty the air conditioning circuit Instead, it may be possible to simply break the water or oil carrying first fluid circuit, and the remove the cab from the vehicle.
Advantageously, the climate system may comprise a valve arrangement and also a heat source and an air conditioning circuit, the valve arrangement being arranged so as for the fluid in the first fluid circuit to be selectively directed to the heat source and to the air conditioning circuit. Thereby, a simple solution is provided for heat to be exchanged selectively either between the fluid in the first fluid circuit and the heat source, or between the fluid in the first fluid circuit and the fluid in the air conditioning circuit. This allows a selective delivery of heat and cold air to the cab, depending on whether the first fluid circuit is connected to the heat source or to the air conditioning circuit.
Further advantages and advantageous features of the invention are disclosed in the following description and in the dependent claims.

Climate system for providing air to a cab of a vehicle


A method for producing, in the presence of both monomers, a block copolymer of a polymer block of a vinyl aromatic hydrocarbon (and/or a conjugated diene) and a block of polydimethysiloxane which comprises adding a vinyl aromatic hydrocarbon, an organo alkali metal promoter, hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane and a polar promoter to a solvent (or to the styrene if no solvent is to be used) at a temperature of 0.degree. to 60.degree. C., allowing the polymerization of the vinyl aromatic hydrocarbon to proceed until the color of the vinyl aromatic hydrocarbon - Li.sup.+ species which is initially produced fades, then raising the temperature to 60.degree. to 120.degree. C. wherein the hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane polymerizes at the end of the polystyrene polymer blocks and then terminating the polymerization.

This invention relates to a process for making block copolymers of vinyl aromatic hydrocarbons and/or conjugated dienes and polydimethylsiloxane.
Linear block copolymers of polystyrene and polydimethylsiloxane have been synthesized, both by graft and block copolymerization. In block copolymerization of such linear polymers, polystyrene is produced by anionic polymerization with an organo lithium promoter in a solvent and the living polymer (PS.sup.- Li.sup.+) created thereby is reacted with hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane, (Me.sub.2 SiO).sub.3, in the presence of a polar promoter, also in a solvent, wherein a block of polydimethyl-siloxane grows on the end of the living vinyl aromatic hydrocarbon polymer block.
Such polymers incorporate the strength of vinyl aromatic hydrocarbons such as polystyrene and the high flexibility of polydimethylsiloxane and its extremely low solubility parameter compared with polystyrene. These polymers are useful for surface-inactive coatings and in impact modification of engineering thermoplastics. The present invention produces linear block copolymers of vinyl aromatic hydrocarbons and polydimethylsiloxane which are highly phase separated and have a very low Tg for the rubber black.
The manufacture of block copolymers of polystyrene and polydimethylsiloxane has, to date, necessarily involved two separate polymerization steps. First, polystyrene-is anionically polymerized to the desired molecular weight and only then can the hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane be added to polymerize the polydimethylsiloxane block on the polystyrene polymer. This multiple polymerization method has been used extensively for block copolymers of vinyl aromatic hydrocarbons and conjugated dienes because polymerizing such polymers in the presence of both monomers at the same time leads to tapering between the blocks which causes poor phase separation and broad molecular weight distribution in the final polymer, thereby affecting properties negatively, e.g., low strength. It would be advantageous to be able to produce block copolymers of vinyl aromatic hydrocarbons and polydimethylsiloxane in the presence of both monomers if the polymer produced had no tapering between the blocks and an acceptably narrow molecular weight distribution.

Method of synthesis of block copolymers of vinyl aromatic hydrocarbons and polydimethylsiloxane


Aspects of the disclosure relate to generation of network topology information for a network of assets, and management of such information. The management can comprise analysis and/or diagnostics of topology condition of a plurality of assets. In addition or in the alternative, the management can comprise consolidation of at least a portion of the network topology information in a data layer of the network of assets, or a network functionally coupled thereto. Integration of at least some of the network topology information with higher network layers also is disclosed.

Conventional approaches to generation of network topology information, e.g., location information, connectivity information, or a combination thereof, in a network of functional elements rely extensively on human intervention and, as a result, are error prone and generally static. Such approaches fail to provide current network topology information in a cost effective manner. In addition, such approaches generally fail to be integrated across various layers of a network of functional elements.

Generation and management of network connectivity information


An dome-shaped extrusion die for use in forming honeycomb monolith structures is disclosed. The die is formed by deforming an extrusion die having a flat cross section to obtain a dome-shaped cross section. Alternatively, the die may be fabricated from sinterable ceramic or metal powders in which case the holes and slots may be formed either in the green state, or in a chalk-hard state after partial densification.

The invention relates to a method of fabricating dome-shaped dies. Typically, dies for cellular extrusions are formed from solid steel blocks by drilling feed holes in the entrance portion of the die and cutting slots in the exit portion of the die such that the holes generally intersect the slots. Dies can also be made by stacking plates which have the appropriate feed holes and slots so that they generally intersect when stacked.
Monolithic dies for extruding cellular structures are usually made using straight round feed holes which communicate from the inlet side of the die to the slots in the outlet face of the die. This is because straight round feed holes are often easier and least expensive to make. However, straight round holes can lead to problems since shoulders are formed where the holes intersect with the slots. In addition to the problem of high wear, this creates high back pressure during extrusion. There are other problems associated with the traditional method of forming dies. For example, for very thin-walled cellular extrusions which require thin slots, dies made by the above methods have proved both difficult and expensive due to the extra processing steps often required to produce useful dies. For example, it has been suggested to coat the slots in certain dies to achieve the desired wall thickness.
To avoid the sometimes abrupt changes in cross-sectional area of the feed holes at their junctions with the discharge slots, it has been suggested in co-assigned U.S. Pat. No. 5,066,215 issued to Peters et al., to form feed holes having a gradual transition of flow cross-sectional area and shape commencing at the entrance portion or end of the feed hole and terminating at the exit portion or end of the feed holes, where longitudinal and lateral flow through discharge slots commences. In the reference die, the cross-sectional area at any location along the length of any feed hole is less than at any location upstream thereof. While the suggested die eliminates the high bending forces on the die and also substantially reduces abrasive wear, it is relatively expensive to manufacture since each hole and slot combination must be cut individually.
To reduce the costs associated with such dies, in co-pending, co-assigned patent application (U.S. Ser. No. 08/021,487), I have disclosed a relatively inexpensive and easy method of making geometrically complex dies having ultra-thin slots for extruding very thin-walled cellular structures. While the method described therein reduces the cost of making such dies, there continues to be the need for easier and inexpensive methods for fabricating complex-shaped structures such as thin-walled cellular or honeycomb structures which will not deform or break under pressure.
Accordingly, it is the object of the present invention to provide a die for making complex thin-walled cellular structures which die will not deform or break under pressure, and a method of producing such die.


A food cooking container, with means for monitoring the operating temperature thereof, comprises, in the handle support (3) and/or in the handle (2) of the container, temperature monitoring and indicating means for monitoring and indicating a preset operating temperature of the container.

The present invention relates to a food cooking container with monitoring means for monitoring the operating temperature thereof.
The prior art already discloses the use of different heating sources for cooking food, such as gas sources or electrically operated heating sources.
Some of the above mentioned heating sources can be adjusted to provide a set temperature, thereby preventing, for example, water contained in a container from fully evaporating, or preventing a food article, such as a steak, from charring.
The above mentioned prior heating or heat sources, however, have the drawback that they require a continuous monitoring of the container or vessel containing the food article to be cooked, since, in a case of a poor monitoring, it could happen that the container, such as a casserole or saucepan, would be excessively over-heated, thereby damaging not only the food article held therein, but also the container itself, for example its anti-adhering lining, thereby greatly decreasing the operating life of the cooking container or vessel.

Food cooking container with monitoring means for monitoring the operating temperature thereof


Method of distributing data from a transmitting electronic device to multiple receiving electronic devices is performed. The method comprises receiving, at the transmitting electronic device, an incoming signal and data, the data being intended to be processed by a plurality of geographically distributed receiving electronic devices; and jointly transmitting the incoming signal and the data from the transmitting electronic device to the receiving electronic devices over a communication network. The communication network is a broadcast or multicast network and each receiving electronic device is capable of receiving said incoming signal from the transmitting electronic device over the communication network. One or more instructions for performing, at the receiving electronic devices, computing operations on the data are transmitted from the transmitting electronic device to the receiving electronic devices over the communication network and/or over an IP network.

Volunteer computing is a kind of distributed computing in which computer owners can donate their spare computing resources (e.g., unused central processing unit (CPU) and graphics processing unit (GPU) cycles, unused computing power, available storage medium, Internet connection) to one or more data processing projects, including, for example, scientific research projects. The ever-increasing demand for computing resources has promoted the scientific communities to research and develop newer and more efficient frameworks for volunteer computing. All these frameworks rely on the volunteer resources of individual users and companies distributed worldwide. Among the best known platforms are, for example, the Berkeley Open Infrastructure for Network Computing (BOINC) and the World Community Grid (WCG).
In particular, BOINC is a distributed computing infrastructure based on a centralised server that coordinates volunteer computer resources. Most BOINC projects use volunteer compute resources coordinated by a centralized server to which work tasks are also returned upon completion. A controlling server for a particular project hands out blocks of work on request, records the returned results and tracks the effort of each participant. The volunteered resources can come from a variety of types of systems ranging from general-purpose computing on GPU (GPGPU) to multiple powerful CPUs. A BOINC app also exists for Android and allows every person owning an Android device (e.g., smartphone, tablet, Kindle) to share their unused computing power.
In particular, WCG enables anyone with a computer, smartphone or tablet to donate their unused computing power to advance cutting-edge scientific research on topics that benefit humanity and are, for example, related to health (e.g., new improvements in medical treatments and therapy for cancer, HIV/AIDS and neglected tropical diseases), poverty (e.g., low-cost water filtration systems) and sustainability (e.g., new materials for capturing solar energy efficiently).
As other example projects, a list of recommended distributing computing projects can be found on the Internet at: http://www.openscientist.org/p/distributed-computing-project-open-for.html.
However, computationally intensive or data intensive tasks, such as scientific calculations, engineering calculations, video and/or audio processing, simulations, cryptographic calculations, statistical calculations, financial calculations, medical calculations and data analysis among others, requires extensive processing power. This kind of processing job is usually done on supercomputers, computer farms or wide-area distributed or grid computing platforms to speed up. The supercomputers and computer farms require high initial costs, thereby impacting the price per computation unit/time, while the wide-area distributed platforms require distributing data to the computing devices and using conventional network infrastructure, such as Internet protocol (IP) networks, thereby complicating the process. Moreover, on wide area networks (WAN) such as Internet, delivery of data or data portions to be processed via broadcasting and/or multicasting is not permitted. Indeed, only Internet Server providers (ISPs) can transmit broadcast and/or multicast messages, but only through control packets and only to their own backbone, thereby limiting the data distribution tasks. Moreover, there is an ever-increasing number of Internet of things (IoT) devices and content size (such as high definition (HD) video) which daily use the available network bandwidth, thereby reducing its availability.

Method, apparatus, system and computer program for data distribution

VESTEL ELEKTRONIK SANAYI VE TICARET A.S.


The invention relates to a process for the preparation of racemic citalopram free base or an acid addition salt thereof and/or R- or S-citalopram as the free base or an acid addition salt thereof by separation of a mixture of R- and S-citalopram with more than 50% of one of the enantiomers into a fraction consisting of racemic citalopram and/or a fraction of S-citalopram or R-citalopram characterized in that i) citalopram is precipitated from a solvent as the free base or as an acid addition salt thereof; ii) the precipitate formed is separated from the mother liquor; iia) if the precipitate is crystalline it is optionally recrystallised one or more times to form racemic citalopram, and then optionally converted into an acid addition salt thereof; iib) if the precipitate is not crystalline, steps i) and ii) are optionally repeated until a crystalline precipitate is obtained and the crystalline precipitate is recrystallised one or more times to form racemic citalopram, and then optionally converted into an acid addition salt thereof; iii) the mother liquor is optionally subjected to further purification and S-citalopram or R-citalopram is isolated from the mother liquor and optionally converted into an addition salt thereof.

S-citalopram (escitalopram) is the active component of the product citalopram, which is a racemic mixture of the R- and S-enantiomers. The compound is a valuable antidepressant of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) type.
Both racemic citalopram and S-citalopram are marketed as antidepressant agents.
It has now surprisingly been found that a mixture of R- and S-citalopram containing more than than 50% of one or the enantiomers, i.e a non-racemic mixture, may be separated into a fraction of racemic citalopram and a fraction of S- or R-citalopram by precipitation of citalopram as the free base or as an acid addition salt thereof. The surplus of S-citalopram or R-citalopram may be isolated from the mother liquor of the precipitation.
This is an important and very useful process, in particular because it allows the preparation of racemic citalopram and S-citalopram from mixtures of R- and S-citalopram obtained from manufacturing processes which result in mixtures which do not meet the specifications of the marketing approval of neither racemic citalopram nor S-citalopram (in escitalopram, the amount of R-citalopram compared to S-citalopram should be less than 3%, preferably less).
S-citalopram may be prepared by separation of the R- and S-4-[4-(dimethylamino)-1-(4′-fluorophenyl)-1-hydroxybutyl]-3-(hydroxymethyl)-benzonitrile (the R- and S-diol) followed by ring closure of the S-diol with retention of configuration, as described in EP-B1-347 066.
Other processes for the preparation of S-citalopram including chromatographic separation of enantiomers are also available. It is for example possible to separate the corresponding bromo-derivative, 1-(4-Bromo-2-hydroxymethylphenyl)-4-dimethylamino-1-(4-fluorophenyl)butan-1-ol from the corresponding R-diol, followed by ring closure with retention of configuration and cyanation to form S-citalopram. Cyanation processes for citalopram are well known and have been described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,136,193, WO 00/11926 and WO 00/13648.
Depending on the specific process used and the conditions used, the enantiomeric purity of the S-citalopram product obtained may have to be improved.
Other processes for stereo-selective synthesis of S-citalopram may also result in mixtures of R-and S-citalopram which do not fulfil the specifications of the marketing approval of S-citalopram.
Thus, according to one aspect of the invention, the invention provides an easy way to improve the enantiomeric purity of S-citalopram obtained by such processes.
During the production of S-citalopram by chromatographic separation of R- and S-4-[4-(dimethylamino)-1-(4′-fluorophenyl)-1-hydroxybutyl]-3-(hydroxymethyl)-benzonitrile followed by ring closure of S-4-[4-(dimethylamino)-1-(4′-fluorophenyl)-1-hydroxybutyl]-3-(hydroxymethyl)-benzonitrile, the R-enantiomer of formula (I)
is formed as a by-product.
It has now been found that ring closure of a compound of formula I in an acidic environment provides a reaction mixture containing a surplus of S-citalopram compared to R-citalopram. In other words, ring closure in an acidic environment proceed with partial inversion of configuration.
Accordingly, the by-product of formula (I) may be used for the preparation of S-citalopram and racemic citalopram and the method for the production of S-citalopram has thereby become more rational and more economical in the utilisation of reagents and resources.

Process for the preparation of racemic citalopram and/or S-or R-citalopram by separation of a mixture of R-and S-citalopram


A pressure sensing apparatus which utilizes an electrolytic droplet retained between a first and second sensing electrode within a housing. Contact between the electrolyte droplet and the electrodes form electric double layers (EDL) having interfacial EDL capacitance proportional to interface contact area which varies in response to mechanical pressure applied to deform exterior portions of the housing. The electrolyte contains a sufficient percentage of glycerol to prevent evaporative effects. Preferably, the sensing electrodes are modified with depressions, hydrophilic and/or hydrophobic portions to increase central anchoring of the electrolyte droplet within the housing. The inventive pressure sensor provides high sensitivity and resolution which is beneficial to numerous applications, and is particularly well-suited for medical sensing applications.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains generally to pressure sensing devices, and more particularly to a droplet-based capacitive pressure sensing device.
2. Description of Related Art
Microfluidic-based sensors have been an active area of research for their excellent flexibility, high sensitivity, simple fabrication, and wide adaptability. A variety of sensing and actuation mechanisms have been incorporated in the development of microfluidic sensing devices, the majority of which rely on sensing changes in a physical property (e.g., optical, electrical or mechanical) induced by fluidic displacement, and/or new material functionality introduced to working fluids (e.g., as optical and electromagnetic waveguides).
However, the existing microfluidic sensors suffer from one or more shortcomings, such as being influenced by environmental effects, and/or insufficient pressure sensitivity and resolution.
Accordingly, the present invention provides ultrahigh levels of pressure sensitivity and resolution, while overcoming numerous environmental sensitivity issues of prior microfluidic sensors.

Droplet-based capacitive pressure sensor

THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA


A method of processing a visible light communication (VLC) signal using a single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) includes detecting photons of a VLC signal at a SPAD detector, counting the photons detected by the SPAD detector to generate a combined VLC signal comprising a data signal and an ambient signal, extracting the ambient signal from the combined VLC signal, subtracting the ambient signal from the combined VLC signal to generate the data signal, and outputting the data signal as a bitstream.

Visible light communication (VLC) is an emerging and expanding technology which may be motivated by energy efficiency in comparison to radio frequency communication and a present status of being unrestricted by regulations. VLC technology may utilize light with wavelengths not only in the region of the electromagnetic spectrum visible to human eyes, but also in the infrared and ultraviolet regions as well. VLC may allow for ubiquitous communication between many devices and can potentially make use of existing light infrastructures. VLC also utilizes direct line-of-sight between the transmitter/receiver of interacting devices which may make it a safer candidate for use in applications where security is a priority such as secure payment methods. Direct line-of-sight communication such as VLC also finds potential application in safer Wi-Fi for planes, hospitals, and other environments where interference might jeopardize crucial functions.
As applications for VLC devices become more widespread VLC devices that are small and energy efficient become more and more desirable. Additionally, as VLC technology is used in more varied applications, the number of different types of ambient environments within which VLC devices are expected to operate increases. However, conventional VLC systems include analog circuit implementations that can be bulky and inefficient. Therefore, an efficient VLC system with a smaller footprint and compensation for ambient noise may be desirable.

Single-photon avalanche diode-based light communication devices

STMICROELECTRONICS (RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT) LIMITED


A universal multi-outlet power strip adapter having a series of removable power adapters in electro-mechanical communication with a respective series of receptacle assemblies. The receptacle assemblies are disposed within a casing, in electrical communication with a power input plug extending outward from the casing. Each removable power adapter includes an adapter body, an adapter receptacle, and an adapter contact configuration. Each adapter contact configuration is configured to mate with a power outlet receptacle of a different country outlet configuration. The adapter receptacle is configured to electro-mechanically engage with each of the various country outlet configurations. In use, an individual user removes the removable power adapter for a desired country and inserts the removable power adapter between the power input plug and the power supply outlet. The user connects power plugs from electrically operated devices to the series of removable power adapters connected to the respective receptacle assembly within the casing to distribute power to the devices.

A power strip (also known as an extension lead, power board and by many other variations) includes a series of sockets, which allows multiple devices to be plugged in. The series of sockets are in electrical communication with a flexible power cable. The series of sockets are disposed within a casing, wherein the flexible power cable extends from the casing.
As technology advances, the number of electronic devices requiring power increases. The power strip provides a means for distributing power from a single power outlet to multiple electronic devices. Therefore, the desire and applications for use of power strips continues to increase.
The need for multiple power outlets is not limited at one's home or office. The plug strips are designed to plug into a single power outlet configuration. The series of sockets are normally the same configuration as the plug, thus limiting the application to countries having the respective power outlet configuration. Travelers frequently encounter situations where a plug strip would be beneficial. Hotel accommodations, cruise ship cabins, and the like offer a limited number of power outlets. The traveler would benefit from having a plurality of power outlets available in a close proximity for such uses as a hair dryer, a curling iron, a razor power adapter, a computer power adapter, a cellular telephone power adapter, and the like.
Additionally, common plug strips include a series of sockets in a fixed configuration. Much of today's electronics require a transformer. Plug strips are not configured to accommodate a plurality of transformers.
Portable electronic devices, such as cellular telephones utilise charging interfaces through a Universal Serial Buss (USB) interface.
Therefore, it would be desirable to have a power strip capable of powering a series of electrically operated devices throughout the world.


A light bar for mounting on an emergency vehicle has a modular construction using trays for mounting lights. The trays are integral members having cells formed therein for receiving components of light fixtures. The light bar has two lighting tiers. The lights on the lower tier are received in the cells of the trays. The tops of the trays provide a platform for mounting lights on the upper tier. Alternatively, the upper-tier lights may be mounted on the upper shell of the housing of the light bar. Snap-fit fasteners are formed on the trays for mounting components of the lights. In one configuration, the light bar includes a speaker which has a driver mounted inside the light bar housing and a horn which fits in an opening in the housing and is coupled to the driver for transmitting audio signals.

Light bars for mounting on emergency vehicles such as police cars, ambulances, fire trucks, etc. for providing warning signals come in a variety of sizes, shapes, configurations, and functions. Some light bars have a plurality of lights of different types enclosed in one housing (which may have several sections). An important advantage of such light bars over simple domeshaped warning lights is their versatility. Many different types of lights, such as stationary, strobe, oscillating, and rotating lights, can be packaged in the housing of a light bar to provide a variety of light options having different colors, intensity variations, and timing sequences for different purposes. For example, a light bar may be equipped with transient lights for warning signals, an array of stationary lights sequentially flashed to provide traffic management signals, and flood lights for illumination purposes. It is also common to include a speaker in a light bar for providing audio warning signals.
The lights enclosed in a light bar are typically customized according to the specific combinations desired by customers. Due to the different budgets, applications, and preferences of the customers, the specific combination of lights in a given light bar model may differ significantly from order to order. Thus, the light components in a light bar are typically mounted in an ad hoc fashion one by one into the housing. Such an assembling process can be rather labor intensive and slow, thereby increasing the cost of the light bar.
Moreover, it is difficult to design the layout of a given light bar model to be sufficiently universal to accommodate all different combinations desired by customers. In existing light bars with a plurality of lights enclosed in a housing, the light fixtures are typically fastened by screws onto a metal structural support member, and the number of lights and the possible combinations of lights are significantly restricted by the length and structure of the metal structural member. In some cases, significant modifications of the metal structural member or the shells of the housing would be required in order to accommodate certain light combinations. Such modifications, however, can be prohibitively expensive.
A related common problem with existing light bars is that the access to individual components in a light bar may become blocked as more components are packed in the housing of the light bar, thereby compromising the serviceability of the light bar. This problem is especially prominent in certain existing two-level light bars, in which the lights mounted on the upper level and the dividers separating the two levels tend to block direct access to the lights on the lower level. Thus, even simple service jobs, such as replacing a light bulb or removing a color filter, can be rather time consuming and inconvenient.
Another unsatisfactory aspect of existing light bars is the way speakers are incorporated in the light bars. Light bars with speakers commonly have multiple sections, and the section containing the speaker is separated from other sections containing lights. The speaker section is typically covered by a formed sheet-metal cover which has perforations or slots to allow sound to be transmitted to the exterior. Light devices, which can be damaged by water, dust, etc., cannot be used in the speaker section. This not only results in significant waste of valuable interior space but also compromises the flexibility in combining lights into different patterns.