Method for actuating a reversible belt pretensioner for pretensioning a belt webbing, the belt pretensioner having a drive which acts on the belt reel, and the seat belt having, as a belt extraction lock, a locking device which acts on the belt reel in the unwinding direction and whose locking can be released only if the belt reel is rotated through a specific angle of rotation in the winding-on direction. After the triggering of the belt pretensioner, the drive of the belt pretensioner for opening the locking device is actuated in an opening mode such that firstly, in a winding-on phase, the belt reel rotates through the specific angle of rotation in the winding-on direction. In a subsequent holding phase, the drive of the belt pretensioner is actuated for a predefinable holding time TH such that the belt reel is held in its angular position.

This application claims the priority of International Application No. PCT/EP01/14328, filed Dec. 6, 2001, and German Patent Document No. 100 61 040.4, filed Dec. 8, 2000, the disclosures of which are both incorporated by reference herein.
The present invention relates to a method for actuating a reversible belt pretensioner.
Seat belts which are nowadays usually installed in motor vehicles have a mechanism for automatically winding on the loose belt webbing onto a belt winding-on roller which is arranged on a belt reel. The automatic winding on ensures that the belt which is being worn rests loosely against the body of the vehicle occupant, and when the seat belt is not in use it is rolled up on the belt winding-on roller. The unwinding of the belt from the belt winding-on roller takes place counter to a torque which is generated by a return spring and is also possible when the belt is being worn in order to permit the vehicle occupant to make a largely free movement.
Furthermore, a locking device which acts as a belt extraction lock is usually present. This locking device is triggered by an actuation device with a belt-webbing sensitive and vehicle-sensitive sensor when the belt is being unwound rapidly from the belt winding-on roller, starting from a predefined acceleration of the belt winding-on roller in the unwinding direction or starting from a predefined acceleration of the vehicle. The belt winding-on roller is fixed in the present position in such a way that the belt is prevented from unwinding. A customary locking device is composed, for example, of a locking toothing of the belt reel and a locking latch which is pivotably mounted and can be pivoted into the locking toothing of the belt reel by means of the actuation device. The toothings on the belt reel and the locking latch are of self-locking design, causing the extraction of the belt to be locked for as long as tensile loading is applied to the belt. If the belt is relieved of this tensile loading, the locking mechanism can open, that is to say it can be returned into its inactive state. This return takes place magnetically, electromotively, or usually mechanically, for example by means of a restoring spring on the pivotably mounted locking latch. Such a locking device and a method for actuating a belt pretensioner with such a locking device are described in the post-published German Patent Document No. DE 100 61 040 A1.
In addition, in many seat belts there is a belt pretensioner which increases the protective effect of the seat belt. The belt pretensioner has a drive which can be actuated in order to drive a mechanical device which shortens the loose belt webbing and/or pulls the vehicle occupant backwards. In the case of a pyrotechnic energy store, for example a chemical substance is caused to undergo an exothermic reaction by means of a firing element. In this reaction, a gas flow, which drives the mechanical device, is generated. The driven device is, or can be, mechanically connected to the belt reel, for example by means of a clutch. By means of this connection, the mechanical device exerts a torque on the belt reel. Owing to this torque, the belt reel rotates with the belt winding-on roller arranged on it and pretensions the unwound belt webbing.
Apart from the usually pyrotechnic belt pretensioners which are used nowadays in motor vehicles, it is also possible to use reversible belt pretensioners in vehicles which can be triggered repeatedly, even rapidly in succession. These reversible belt pretensioners can have different drives, for example such a belt pretensioner can be driven by an electric motor which acts on the belt reel permanently or in a way which can be controlled by means of a clutch. Other reversible belt pretensioners are driven with compressed air from a pressure accumulator or by means of a tensioned spring, it being possible to refill the pressure accumulator during the travel mode and to stress the spring again during the travel mode.
Reversible belt pretensioners which are driven in this way permit the seat belt to be pretensioned to a predefinable degree, with a predefinable velocity and for a predefinable period of time. The multiple triggering capability of the reversible belt pretensioner permits it to be triggered preventatively. Preventative triggering means that the belt pretensioner is triggered in safety-critical travel situations which are detected, for example, by vehicle-movement dynamics sensors or vehicle-surroundings sensors or which are determined by means of the evaluation of the actuation of the brake pedal, of the steering angle or of a driver observation. In addition to preventative triggering, a reversible belt pretensioner can also be used for haptic warning of the driver in safety-critical situations. When there is preventative triggering of the belt pretensioner which may occur before a collision is detected or when the belt pretensioner is triggered for warning purposes, it is desirable that the belt should rest loosely against the vehicle occupant again after pretensioning has taken place, after the hazardous situation has ended and when the normal travel mode has been safeguarded. The normal travel mode is safeguarded if the evaluation of the situation by a control unit or a hazard computer does not reveal that there is a safety-critical situation or if the condition which is necessary for the triggering of the belt pretensioner is no longer fulfilled. Such a condition may be the presence or the absence of a specific signal on a data bus or a data line.
After reversible pretensioning of the seat belt by means of a reversible belt pretensioner it is possible that the belt extraction lock has become active owing to a belt-webbing-sensitive sensor or a vehicle-sensitive sensor which actuate the locking device electrically or mechanically. Examples of belt-webbing-sensitive sensors are a mechanical centrifugal-force sensor in the belt winding-on mechanism, an electromechanical centrifugal-force sensor and an electronic belt extraction sensor which senses the extraction velocity of the belt webbing or its acceleration. In particular, a belt-webbing-sensitive sensor can respond if, after belt pretensioning, the pretensioned belt is released which is under tensile loading. This tensile loading of the pretensioned belt is in particular dependent on the degree of the pretensioning operation which has previously occurred and on the sitting position of the vehicle occupant before the pretensioning operation. As a result of this tensile loading, the belt is unwound again from the belt winding-on roller after the pretensioning operation and once the torque exerted on the belt reel by the belt pretensioner drive decreases. If the unwinding of the belt webbing takes place too quickly, the belt-webbing-sensitive sensor responds and the locking device is actuated—usually mechanically—so that it closes. That is to say the belt extraction lock becomes active. The belt extraction lock can already become active if the belt-webbing-sensitive sensor responds owing to the winding-on operation during the pretensioning of the belt, or the vehicle-sensitive sensor responds owing to the movement of the vehicle. If the belt extraction lock is active, it is no longer possible to unwind the pretensioned belt webbing and the freedom of movement of the vehicle occupants is greatly restricted. The belt webbing is therefore to be released again if the cause of the triggering of the belt pretensioner no longer applies or if a normal travel mode is ensured. In order to release the belt webbing again, in locking devices which are customary today in motor vehicles, the locking latch has to be released from the locking toothing. The belt webbing can be released only if the vehicle-sensitive and the belt-webbing-sensitive sensor do not actuate the locking device in order to close it.
The object of the invention is to improve the convenience when applying a reversible belt pretensioner.
In the method according to the invention for actuating a belt pretensioner, the belt pretensioner is actuated to open the locking device in an opening mode after the belt pretensioning operation which has taken place owing to a hazardous situation in order to protect a vehicle occupant, and when a predefinable condition, which is indicative of the ending of the hazardous situation and thus indicative of a normal operating state of the vehicle, applies. This actuation takes place in such a way that the belt reel firstly rotates, in a winding-on phase, through a specific angle of rotation in the winding-on direction, as the locking device can open only if the belt webbing no longer exerts any force on the locking mechanism, and for example in the case of a locking device with undercut locking toothing, a rotation of the belt reel at least through the undercut of the teeth takes place, the belt webbing being slightly wound on. In a holding phase which follows the winding-on phase, the drive of the belt pretensioner is actuated for a predefinable holding time TH in such a way that the belt reel is held in its angular position during this holding time TH, that is to say the belt reel does not rotate and the belt is not unwound or wound on. Here, the locking device is relieved, for a predefinable holding time TH of the tensile loading which originates from the pretensioned belt which is resting tightly against the vehicle occupant. After the holding phase, the belt webbing is released in an unwinding phase in order to unwind. The advantage of the invention is that the holding time TH can be defined in such a way that up to its end the belt webbing can be unwound with a desired probability.
As the locking device has to be opened, and the vehicle-sensitive sensor must not respond so as to be able to unwind the belt webbing, the holding time TH is, for example, predefined in such a way that these conditions are fulfilled with the predefined probability.
In one refinement of the method, the holding time TH is predefined in such a way that it is ensured that at the latest up to the end of the holding time TH, the vehicle-sensitive sensor of the belt extraction lock permits the opening of the locking device. This ensures that the actuation of the belt pretensioner drive is terminated, and the motor current of the belt pretensioner drive motor reduced, only if the belt reel rotates in the unwinding direction and can release the belt webbing for unwinding, without the belt extraction lock being active. A repeated actuation of the belt pretensioner drive which is necessary to release the locking device as a result of an active belt extraction lock, and an associated repeated belt webbing winding-on operation, which could disturb or irritate the vehicle occupant, are prevented.
In one development of the method, a variable which is indicative of the opening of the locking device is registered. The holding time TH will last at least until it is determined that the locking device is opening, by means of the variable which is indicative of the opening of the locking device. This refinement has the advantage that the holding time TH does not need to be predefined, independently of the situation, with such a magnitude that in all, or at least the most frequently occurring, situations, the opening of the locking device is ensured within the holding time TH. The holding time can as a result be shortened significantly depending on the travel situation, in order to increase the convenience for the vehicle occupants.
A variable which is indicative of the opening of the locking device is, for example, the signal of a contact switch on the locking device which closes a contact precisely if the locking device assumes one of the two states Opened or Closed, and which opens the contact if the locking device assumes the other of the two states.
In one refinement of the method, the holding time TH is predefined as a function of at least one vehicle-movement-dynamics parameter. The predefined parameter or parameters are registered, and the holding time TH is determined in accordance with the predefined function by means of the registered parameter or parameters. In a simple case, the function can, for example, be such that in the case of full braking from a velocity above a velocity threshold value, the holding time TH is higher than in the case of full braking from a velocity below the velocity threshold value. The advantage of this refinement is that the holding time TH is adapted to the respective situation.
In one refinement of the method, the longitudinal acceleration or its profile is used as a parameter for determining the holding time TH. The longitudinal acceleration of the vehicle which occurs, for example, during a braking maneuver, is registered and the belt pretensioner is actuated in such a way that the belt reel is held, by the belt pretensioner drive, in the position in which the locking device can open, until the registered longitudinal acceleration is smaller for a predefinable time period than a predefinable threshold value. The advantage of this refinement of the method is that, with the vehicle longitudinal acceleration, a variable is used which also influences the locking device of a belt system: if the longitudinal acceleration is above a predefined threshold, the locking mechanism cannot open owing to an acceleration-sensitive sensor which responds, for example, starting from a vehicle acceleration of 0.3 g. Instead of the longitudinal acceleration (or its profile) or preferably in addition to the longitudinal acceleration, the transverse acceleration (or its profile) can also be used in the same way.
In another refinement, in order to determine the time period during which the belt reel is held in a position in which the locking device can open, a brake pressure (or its profile) and/or a coefficient of friction between the tire and road and/or the vehicle's own velocity (or its profile) and/or the position of the accelerator pedal and/or the steering angle and/or the yaw angle and/or the transverse acceleration are registered. Alternatively, or in addition hereto, a signal of a brake booster system or a signal of a vehicle-movement dynamics control system is registered and used to determine the holding time TH.
In one simple refinement, the holding time TH is a function of the longitudinal acceleration, in which case, when there is a change in acceleration from negative acceleration (deceleration, for example due to a braking intervention) to positive acceleration (for example due to activation of the accelerator pedal), the holding time TH=0 is set.
In a further refinement of the method, the holding time TH is a function of the velocity of the vehicle and of a signal of a brake booster system. The outputting of this brake booster signal by the brake booster system brings about full braking and triggering of the reversible belt pretensioner in order to protect a vehicle occupant. The holding time TH is then equal to a first time period T1 if, after the disappearance of this brake booster signal and/or after termination of the full braking, the vehicle has a velocity which is less than or equal to a velocity threshold value, and the holding time TH is equal to a second time period T2 if, after the disappearance of the brake booster signal, the vehicle has a velocity which is higher than the velocity threshold value. The velocity threshold value is preferably equal to zero. A plurality of different velocity threshold values and a plurality of holding times T1 to Tn can also be predefined in order to refine the method.
In one simple example, a distinction is made between two cases by means of the velocity threshold value zero: if full braking takes place up to the stationary state of the vehicle, the full braking will be considered to be terminated starting from the time from which the vehicle no longer has any intrinsic velocity. The intrinsic velocity when the vehicle is in a stationary state is equal to zero, that is to say equal to the velocity threshold value so that the holding time is equal to T1. If the full braking does not take place up to the stationary state of the vehicle, the vehicle has an intrinsic velocity greater than zero, and the holding time is equal to T2, after the disappearance of the brake booster signal. As the vehicle takes up energy in the chassis during full braking with sufficient friction on the underlying surface, the vehicle oscillates in the stationary state for a short time (up to approximately1 sec). During this time, accelerations occur on the chassis and they allow the belt extraction lock to become active owing to the vehicle-sensitive sensor, so that the unwinding operation cannot take place. The holding time T1 is selected to have a corresponding magnitude, for example equal to T1=1 sec. If the full braking does not take place as far as the stationary state of the vehicle, these oscillations do not take place or only, take place very weakly, which is due to continuous loosening of the brake linings which takes place for design reasons in contemporary vehicles. The holding time T2 can consequently be selected to be significantly shorter, and is for example T2=0.3 sec.
In the holding mode, the belt pretensioner drive is actuated in such a way that the belt reel is held, by the belt pretensioner drive, in a position in which the position of the toothing against a locking latch and a gear wheel which is located on the belt reel permits the opening of the locking device.
The belt reel is preferably rotated by means of the belt pretensioner drive only just until a position in which the locking device can open is reached for the first time. This position can be determined by registering the angle of rotation of the belt reel, for example by means of an angle-of-rotation sensor, or the profile of the motor current is evaluated. The rise in force in the belt which is brought about by the actuation in order to open the locking device is kept as small as possible by rotating the belt reel as little as possible.
In addition, it is advantageous if the actuation of the belt pretensioner takes place in such a way that, in an unwinding phase which follows the holding phase, the torque of the belt pretensioner drive is not reduced suddenly but rather slowly. As a result, the unwinding operation takes place in such a way that the belt-webbing-sensitive sensor does not respond and the locking device does not become active again. The slow reduction of the torque takes place, for example, by continuously reducing the motor current of an electromotive belt pretensioner. After the unwinding phase, the vehicle occupant is in the state in which he is wearing a belt with the belt resting loosely against him.


A valve sizer having a movable element mounted to the distal end of a shaft. A valve sizing portion includes the movable element so that the valve sizing portion may be adjusted to correspond to a number of different available replacement valve sizes. An indicator mounted to the proximal end of the shaft indicates the valve size corresponding to the outer dimension of the valve sizing portion.

Replacement of a diseased or malfunctioning cardiac valve requires accurate sizing of the valve annulus. After the diseased or malfunctioning cardiac valve has been removed, the surgeon measures the patient's valve annulus to determine the appropriate replacement valve size.
A conventional system for measuring a patient's valve annulus includes a number of varying size discs, which can be attached to a rod. Each of the discs has a size which corresponds to an available valve size. The surgeon attaches one of the discs to the rod, inserts the disc into the patient's valve annulus and checks the fit of the disc within the valve annulus. If the surgeon is not satisfied with the fit, the surgeon removes the disc from the rod, attaches another disc to the rod and inserts the new disc into the valve annulus. This procedure is repeated until the surgeon is satisfied that the appropriate valve size has been identified.
A problem with the known method and apparatus for sizing a patient's valve annulus is the time required to try a number of discs. For each valve size the surgeon tries, the surgeon must remove one of the discs and attach another one. This procedure increases the overall surgery time which increases the risk to the patient and also increases the cost of the procedure.
Thus, it is a specific object of the present invention to reduce the amount of time required to size a patient's valve annulus by providing a device which can identify a number of different appropriate valve sizes without requiring withdrawal of the device from the patient.


A simple short-time method for modifying a fluorine resin film so that hydrophilicity is not likely to deteriorate over time. The method for modifying a fluorine resin film is characterized in that the surface of the fluorine resin film is provided with hydrophilicity by bringing the fluorine resin film into contact with a process gas, which contains gas containing fluorine atoms and at least one of gas containing oxygen atoms or inert gas.

As aback sheet material for a solar battery, use is made of a fluorine resin film such as a polyvinyl fluoride (PVF) film, an aluminum foil laminate, a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film subjected to aluminum vapor deposition or Si vapor deposition, or some other film in order to improve the weather resistance and the gas barrier performance. In this way, solar battery cells, which are weak in humidity, are protected from water vapor.
Of the back sheet materials, the fluorine resin film is excellent from the viewpoint of long-term endurance. Therefore, demands of the film as a back sheet material have been increasing. In general, however, material made of a fluorine resin having a C—F bond has problems that the material is small in surface energy and shows water repellency and oil repellency, so as to be low in adhesiveness.
Examples of a technique for improving the adhesiveness of such fluorine resin films include plasma discharge treatment, corona discharge treatment, and flame treatment. In these surface-modifying techniques, a hydrophilic functional group (such as a —COOH group, —OH group, SO3H group, or SO2Fx group) is introduced into any surface of the resin, thereby improving the adhesiveness thereof.
However, according to these treating methods, a large-scale apparatus is required, and costs for the production increase. Moreover, there remains a problem that after the surface modification, the film deteriorates heavily with the passage of time, and the adhesive performance thereof cannot be kept over a long term.
Patent document 1 described below describes a surface-modifying method of selecting, as a synthetic or natural polymeric material, a material which has a specific gravity of 1.6 or less and does not contain an ether bond, carbonate bond, amide bond or urethane bond at all, and then bringing a mixed gas composed of fluorine gas and a single gas containing an oxygen element into contact with the synthetic or natural polymeric material, thereby giving hydrophilicity thereto. This publication includes a disclosure that according to the surface-modifying method, the contact angle of any surface of the synthetic or natural polymeric material to water is made small by 10 degrees or more.
However, this conventional technique cannot be applied to any fluorine resin having a specific gravity of about 1.6 to 2.2 for the following reason: in synthetic polymeric or natural polymeric material having a specific gravity more than 1.6, the crystal structure thereof is grown or developed; therefore, fluorine gas does not diffuse therein easily, so that a surface-modification function is not easily expressed.

Method for modifying fluoring resin film


A firearm apparatus that is operable to provide faster reloading of an ammunition magazine through operable engagement of the trigger, the hammer or the bolt carrier. The firearm apparatus of the present invention includes a magazine that is configured to receive and store a plurality of bullets within the interior volume thereof on an ammunition support member. The ammunition support member is movable intermediate a first and second position and in the second position, an engagement member operably coupled to the ammunition support member is operable to engage the arm member. The arm member is moved to its second position wherein the arm member in its second position inhibits the firing of the firearm and maintains the bolt in a closed position. The arm member can be provided in alternative embodiments so as to operably coupled with the aforementioned elements of the firing assembly.

Millions of individuals regularly utilize firearms. There are two general types of firearms, long guns and handguns. For both of the aforementioned types there can be various types of firing actions. Some long guns are configured as single action bolt mechanisms wherein the long gun is configured to fire one round of ammunition and then the user must manually engage the bolt carrier to reload a round of ammunition. Many conventional handguns are configured as revolvers wherein the handgun utilizing a cylindrical mechanism that is rotatably moved to provide a subsequent round of ammunition for the hammer/firing pin. Both long guns and handguns are provided in semi-automatic and fully automatic configurations. As is known in the art semi-automatic and fully automatic weapons utilize a carrier bolt that can be driven by gas or mechanical elements wherein the carrier bolt is cycled in a rearward-forward direction so as to expel a spent ammunition cartridge and load a new ammunition cartridge from a magazine. The magazines are typically vertical in configuration and are mounted underneath the firing chamber.
As round of ammunition is fired, the carrier assembly will move in a rearwards direction and expel the spent cartridge. The magazine has a spring underneath a plurality of ammunition cartridges and the spring will exert an upward force that is operable to move the next round of ammunition cartridge into the firing chamber with this action being completed by the carrier assembly moving forward. When a user has fired all of the ammunition in a magazine, the carrier assembly will typically remain in the rear position. The user must then remove the magazine and load another magazine and reset the carrier to a forward position and with some gun models cycle the bolt carrier to load a round of ammunition into the firing chamber. The aforementioned can take time and during certain firearm activities this can be undesirable.
It is intended within the scope of the present invention to provide a firearm apparatus that is operably integrated with a firearm wherein the firearm apparatus of the present invention is operable to detect the last round of ammunition in a magazine and inhibit the firing thereof so as to facilitate the faster reloading of a subsequent magazine.


A communication session between two or more computing devices is monitored. One or more share actions, that include one or more media documents, are identified in the communication session responsive to the media documents and based on the monitoring the communication session. Reaction data, that is related to the share actions, in the communication session is analyzed in response the share actions and based on the media documents. One or more relevant media documents are determined based on the analyzing the reaction data. The relevant media documents are analyzed based on the media documents. A first depiction rendered by a first of the devices of the communication session is modified based on the relevant media documents.

The present disclosure relates to processing multimedia content, and more specifically, to differentiation of content in a communication session.
Messaging applications may include software and applications that facilitate sharing text and multimedia. Users may share numerous messages and perform relatively high amounts of sharing in various communication sessions that are a part of a messaging application. It may be difficult to find or navigate through the various messaging applications.

International Business Machines Corporation


A glass substrate includes a pair of main surfaces including a first main surface and a second main surface opposed to the first main surface; an edge surface arranged along a direction orthogonal to the pair of main surfaces; and a connecting surface arranged between the first main surface and the edge surface. The connecting surface has a plurality of pores. A difference between a 50% particle diameter of the pores in a portion 20 μm distant from the first main surface and a 50% particle diameter in a portion 20 μm distant from the edge surface is 10 μm or less.

Conventionally, a cover member for protecting a display panel such as liquid crystal panel has been used in a display device.
For enhancing the visibility of the display panel, a functional layer such as antireflection layer and antifouling layer is often provided in the cover member.
A light-shielding layer is often provided on the outer periphery of the cover member so as to enhance the design property or conceal wiring.
Meanwhile, an in-vehicle display device such as a car navigation system or an in-vehicle display device for a rear seat (specifically, a rear seat entertainment (RSE) device on which a rear seat passenger watches video, etc.) is mounted on a vehicle such as automobile. The RSE device is often used by fixing it to the rear surface of a front seat.
Also in such an in-vehicle display device, a cover member is provided from the viewpoint of protecting a display panel and recently, in view of texture, use of not a film-made cover member but a glass-made cover member is desired.
From a safety standpoint, a glass substrate used as the cover member of an in-vehicle display device is required to have such high impact resistance as to cause no cracking even if it is hit by the head, etc. of a passenger in the event of a traffic accident such as automobile crash.
Above all, when the head of a passenger hits an edge portion of the cover member from not a vertical direction but an oblique direction relative to the main surface of the cover member, cracking starting from the edge portion sometimes occurs in the cover member.
Patent Literature 1 discloses a technique where the edge impact resistance against hitting from an oblique direction is enhanced by configuring a boundary surface disposed between a main surface and a side surface to have a plurality of concave portions and specifying the frequency of a maximum curvature in the frequency distribution of curvatures at the bottom of the concave portion to be less than 3%.

Glass substrate and in-vehicle display device


A wireless communication apparatus includes a transmitting device configured to transmit burst data of a plurality of transmission data, a receiving device configured to receive an acknowledgement status of the burst data transmitted by the transmitting device, a retransmitting device configured to control the transmitting device to retransmit any of the plurality of transmission data contained in the burst data, in accordance with the acknowledgement status received by the receiving device, and a retransmission limiting device configured to limit the retransmission for each frame exchange sequence of the burst data.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wireless communication apparatus suited to a cellphone or wireless LAN apparatus and, more particularly, to a retransmission limiting method used when a communication apparatus for wired or wireless data transmission and reception transmits a plurality of transmission data by burst transmission, and retransmits the burst data in accordance with the acknowledgement status of the burst data.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the conventional wireless communication systems of a CSMA/CA method represented by wireless LAN communication defined in the IEEE 802.11, if an Ack frame which is an acknowledgement frame for transmission data cannot be received, the transmission data is retransmitted. When each transmission data is thus retransmitted, the number of times of retransmission and lifetime unique to the transmission data are used. In this manner, the retransmission can be limited by using the number of times of retransmission of the transmission data and the time during which the data can be transmitted.
Also, Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2003-60562 describes the invention which controls retransmission by adjusting the frame length of a burst frame in wireless burst communication.
Unfortunately, if the retransmission limiting method for each transmission data defined in the existing IEEE 802.11 is used as the retransmission limiting method for burst transmission such as the Block Ack method defined in the conventional IEEE 802.11e, burst data transmission excessively concentrates to the same terminal.
Also, if the transmission opportunities of data having a plurality of priorities are distributed in accordance with the priorities as defined in the conventional IEEE 802.11e, transmission opportunities are excessively given to the same priority.

Retransmission control of burst transmission by wireless communication apparatus


Active matrix liquid crystal displays, mainly applicable to screens with small dimensions, fabricated for example starting from silicon substrates, are especially applicable to display operation in color sequential mode. The pixel comprises a pixel electrode controlled by a control transistor and counter-electrodes situated on the same side of the liquid crystal as the pixel electrode and parallel to the pixel electrode; the liquid crystal is composed of molecules having a natural rest orientation in the absence of a voltage between the pixel electrode and the counter-electrodes and a different orientation in the presence of an electric field created between the pixel electrode and the counter-electrodes. Erase electrodes are situated on either side of the pixel in a transverse direction with respect to the counter-electrodes and are designed to produce, during an erase phase, an erase electric field tending to return the molecules of the liquid crystal to their rest orientation.

FIG. 1 shows the general structure of such a matrix, where CL denotes a liquid crystal cell and Q denotes the transistor associated with this cell, the whole assembly of the cell and of the transistor forming the pixel. The counter-electrode of the cell is denoted by CE, and the electrode of the pixel is denoted by Ep. The row control conductors are denoted by L1 to Ln for a matrix with n rows. The column conductors are C1 to Cm for a matrix with m columns. A row decoder DEC addresses the various rows successively. During the addressing of a row, a digital-analog conversion circuit DAC applies a set of analog voltages to the column conductors representing the image to be displayed by this row. The conversion circuit establishes these analog voltages starting from a digital signal. A sequencing circuit SEQ ensures the synchronized operation of the row decoder and of the conversion circuit DAC.
In most liquid crystal displays, the liquid crystal is placed between a plane containing the counter-electrode and a plane containing the pixel electrode and the control transistor. The counter-electrode is common to all the pixels of the matrix and covers the whole matrix. The pixel electrodes each cover a large part of the pixel. The pixel electrode and the counter-electrode are transparent (made of indium-tin oxide ITO) in the case of a transmissive display; one of the two is reflecting in the case of a reflective display. The electric field applied is perpendicular to the plane of the display. At rest, in other words in the absence of this field, the molecules tend to be oriented in the plane (or respectively perpendicularly to this plane, depending on the type of molecule). In the presence of an electric field, their orientation re-aligns so as to become perpendicular (respectively parallel) to the plane.
The use of indium-tin oxide involves costly fabrication operations; the material is costly; moreover, this material has a high optical index (almost equal to 2) and causes undesirable reflections and hence losses of light; lastly, it is not perfectly transparent, notably in the green wavelengths where the eye is particularly sensitive; its thickness cannot be reduced too much in order to make it more transparent because it needs to remain sufficiently conducting in order to establish uniformly the desired electric field.
In order to avoid the drawbacks of indium-tin oxide, displays have already been provided in which the applied electric field is in the plane of the display rather than perpendicular to this plane. These displays are referred to as "In-Plane Switching Displays". At rest, the molecules are for example oriented in a direction Ox of this plane; when an electric field is applied in a direction Oy different from Ox but still in the same plane, the molecules of the liquid crystal tend to rotate in the plane and to orient themselves in the direction Oy. The polarization of the light which results from this rotation of the molecules is modified. Upstream and downstream polarizers allow the intensity of light which passes through the display to be modulated in proportion to the variations in orientation of the molecules.
In these displays, the electric field is applied between two electrodes situated in the plane of the display. The counter-electrodes are placed along the edges of the pixel. If the dimensions of the pixels are small (a few micrometers on a side), a single electrode placed in the middle of the gap between the counter-electrodes suffices for establishing an electric field capable of making the molecules rotate with a reasonably low voltage (a few volts). For pixels with larger dimensions, pixel electrodes and counter-electrodes may be interleaved in order to establish this field. The electrodes and counter-electrodes do not need to be transparent because they only occupy a fraction of the surface area of the pixel. They can be formed prior to the installation of the liquid crystal using a non-transparent metal conventionally used in microelectronics technologies (aluminum, copper, etc.).
In-plane switching displays are furthermore better from the point of view of the angle under which they can be viewed. This comes from the fact that the ellipsoid of the indices of the molecules used is oriented with its large axis in the plane both at rest and when an electric field is applied; the variations in optical delay of the light as a function of the viewing angle are smaller than when the molecules have their index ellipsoid oriented vertically (as is the case for conventional switching displays using an electric field perpendicular to the plane).
However, one drawback of in-plane switching displays is the fact that the return forces exerted on the molecules to return them to their rest position after removal of the electric field are not very high. The reason for this is that only the twist forces act but not the splay forces or the bend forces which are exerted in the case of rotations out of the plane.
This results in a limitation in the speed with which it is possible to go from one image to another.
This flaw is particularly sensitive if the display has to operate in color sequential mode. It is recalled here that this mode consists in successively displaying on the same liquid crystal matrix three images corresponding to the three primary colors to be displayed and in illuminating the matrix with a source of one primary color in strict synchronism with the display of the image corresponding to this color. Color sequential mode is advantageous because it avoids having three different matrices for displaying the three colors or having a mosaic of colored filters on a single matrix. However, on the downside, in order to display color images at a given rate (24 images per second for example), the matrix has to display partial images at a rate that is three times higher (72 images per second).

Liquid crystal display comprising erase electrodes

COMMISSARIAT A L'ENERGIE ATOMIQUE ET AUX ENERGIES ALTERNATIVES


An image forming apparatus which includes an image forming unit and an image scanning unit. The image forming unit includes a document-contact face, a light-source unit which arrays a plurality of light-emitting elements in the main scanning direction with a pitch to emit light beams to the document-contact face, and a light-guiding member which is provided between the light-source unit and the document-contact face and guides the light beams from the plurality of light-emitting elements to the document-contact face. The light-guiding member has a length in the main scanning direction which is defined with the pitch of the plurality of light-emitting elements, and lengths of the document-contact face and the light-source unit in the main scanning direction.

1. Field of the Invention
The following disclosure relates generally to a document lighting unit and an image scanning unit for use in an image processing apparatus.
2. Description of the Background Art
Increased development activities on a light emitting diode (hereinafter referred as an "LED") have led to a development of an LED element having an increased light intensity.
A typical LED element has favorable properties such as longer lifetime, higher efficiency, and monochromatic light (i.e., emitting of light energy within a very narrow wavelength band), which can be applied in a variety of lighting applications. Applications using an LED element include a document lighting unit for use in an image scanning unit provided in an image forming apparatus such as a digital copier and image scanner.
FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of an image forming apparatus 1000 including an image scanning unit. As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming apparatus 1000 includes an image forming section 100 and an image scanning section 200.
The image forming section 100 includes an image carrying member 111 in drum-shape, a charge roller 112 for charging the image carrying member 111, a developing unit 113, a transfer roller 114, a cleaning unit 115, a fixing unit 116, a light scanning unit 117, a feed cassette 118, a pair of registration rollers 119, a feed roller 120, a transport route 121, an ejection roller 122, and an ejection tray 123.
The charge roller 112 can be a corona charger, for example.
The feed cassette 118 stores a transfer sheet "S" and is detachable from the image forming section 100.
The light scanning unit 117 scans a surface of the image carrying member 111 with a laser beam (LB) based on document information transmitted from the image scanning section 200 so that an electrostatic latent image can be written on the image carrying member 111.
The image forming apparatus 1000 conducts an image forming as now described.
The image carrying member 111 made of a photoconductive material rotates in a clockwise direction, with an uniform angular velocity. During such rotation, the charge roller 112 charges the surface of the image carrying member 111 uniformly. Then, the light scanning unit 117 scans the surface of the image carrying member 111 with the laser beam LB to write an electrostatic latent image on the image carrying member 111.
The electrostatic latent image on the image carrying member 111 is developed by the developing unit 113 as a toner image with toners.
The transfer sheet S stored in an upper most position of the feed cassette 118 is fed to the feed roller 120, and an edge of the transfer sheet S is sandwiched by the pair of registration rollers 119. The pair of registration rollers 19 feeds the transfer sheet S to a transfer position, defined by the image carrying member 111 and the transfer roller 114, to transfer the toner image to the transfer sheet S by synchronizing a sheet feed timing of the transfer sheet S to the transfer position. The transfer sheet S receives the toner image from the image carrying member 111 at the transfer position by an operation of the transfer roller 114. Then, the transfer sheet S is fed to the fixing unit 116 to fix the toner image on the transfer sheet S, and is then ejected to the ejection tray 123 via the transport route 121 and the ejection roller 122.
After transferring the toner image, the surface of the image carrying member 111 is cleaned by the cleaning unit 115 to remove deposits such as toners and paper powders.
As shown in FIG. 1, the image scanning section 200 includes a contact glass 201, a first moving unit 203 having a first mirror 203a, a second moving unit 204 having a second mirror 204a and a third mirror 204b, a focus lens 205, and a line sensor 206.
As shown in FIG. 1, the first moving unit 203, the second moving unit 204, the focus lens 205, and the line sensor 206 are provided under the contact glass 201, for example.
When a document 202 is placed on the contact glass 201, a lighting device (not shown) provided to the first moving unit 203 illuminates the document 202.
A reflection light from the document 202 reflects at the first mirror 203a in the first moving unit 203, and then reflects at the second mirror 204a and the third mirror 204b in the second moving unit 204, and then goes to the focus lens 205, and focuses on the line sensor 206. The line sensor 206 functions as a photoelectric converter and conducts image scanning in main scanning direction.
As shown in FIG. 1, when scanning a document, the first moving unit 203 moves in a direction shown by an arrow with a velocity of V, and the second moving unit 204 simultaneously moves in the same direction with a velocity of ½ V to scan the document, wherein the velocity of ½ V is one half speed of the velocity of V.
To illuminate a document, a document lighting unit of an image scanning unit generally has a width which is substantially the same as a document width. Therefore, when LED elements are used for a document lighting unit, a plurality of LED elements are arranged in an array manner.
Although the LED element has favorable properties as above-mentioned, a further improvement is required for light intensity of the LED element so that the LED element can efficiently supply light intensity for a lighting device of an image scanning unit.
Therefore, an image scanning unit employing LED elements is mainly marketed as a low-speed scanning unit and compactness-oriented scanning unit, for example, whereas an image scanning unit employing a cathodoluminescent lamp is mainly marketed as a high-speed scanning unit and large-scale scanning unit.
FIGS. 2A and 2B show a background configuration for illumination. Such a configuration includes LEDs 101, a contact glass 102, and a document-contact face 103.
In FIG. 2A, a dotted-curve line represents a light intensity distribution of each LED element 101 in the main scanning direction, and a solid-curve line represents a light intensity distribution which synthesizes the light intensity distribution of each LED element 101 in the main scanning direction. In FIG. 2B, a solid-curve line represents a light intensity distribution of LED element 101 in the sub-scanning direction.
To decrease the above-mentioned drawback (i.e., light intensity) of LED element 101, an LED array is placed in a position which is closer to the document-contact face 103 to increase light intensity on the document-contact face 103, for example. However, such positioning leads to an uneven light intensity distribution in the main scanning direction as shown in FIG. 2A because of an effect of a light intensity distribution curve of the each LED element 101.
On the other hand, if the LED array is placed in a position which is far from the document-contact face 103, a light intensity on the document-contact face 103 may decrease because of diffusion of lights coming from each LED element 101.
In another case, a number of LED elements 101 is increased to increase a number density of the LED elements 101 in the LED array having a width which is substantially the same as the document width. In this case, the LED array emits light in a similar manner of a cathodoluminescent lamp, which is a bar-shaped light source.
However, light intensity distribution in the main scanning direction becomes uneven when such a bar-shaped light source is used. Specifically, light intensity around the center portion of the bar-shaped light source becomes a maximum strength, and light intensity decreases from the center portion to the edge portion of the bar-shaped light source.
This is caused by a so-called shading effect. Specifically, the shading effect occurs because an effective number of LED elements 101 that contribute to the light intensity around the center portion of the document-contact face is larger than an effective number of LED elements 101 that contribute to the light intensity around the edge portion of the document-contact face 103. In other words, the center portion of the document-contact face 103 receives light from two directions in the main scanning direction (i.e., right and left direction with respect to the center portion), but the edge portion of the document-contact face 103 receives light from only one direction.
Furthermore, the focus lens 205 is provided in the image scanning section 200 as shown in FIG. 1, and thereby a drop of light intensity at a peripheral area on the line sensor 206 becomes more significant with an effect of the fourth-power-of-cosine law.
To cope with the above-mentioned drawbacks, a background art uses a lighting unit which can uniformly conduct an efficient illumination by providing a light-guiding member having a substantially plate-shape.
In this case, at least one diffraction grating is attached to a face of the light-guiding member to achieve a uniform distribution of the light intensity in the main scanning direction. However, such a configuration having a diffraction grating on the light-guiding member (i.e., a transparent member) leads to an increase of a manufacturing cost. Furthermore, such a configuration may not cope with a drop of light intensity at a peripheral area which is associated to a focus lens.
Another background art uses a shading correction plate to cope with a drop of light intensity at a peripheral area. However, such a configuration leads to an increase in the number of parts.
Still another background art uses a configuration that slants an LED array with respect to a to-be-scanned document to cope with a drop of light intensity at a peripheral area. However, such a configuration may lead to a larger mechanism, and may not increase the light intensity.
FIGS. 3A and 3B show a configuration for illumination using a bar-shaped light source in a background art. Such a configuration includes a bar-shaped light source 301 such as a cathodoluminescent lamp, mirror-face members 302 or 302a, a document-contact face 303, wherein the mirror-face members 302 or 302a are shaped in a semi-cylindrical shape having a concaved mirror portion, and the document-contact face 303 contacts with a document to be scanned. A curve line 304 shows a light intensity distribution in a sub-scanning direction on the document-contact face 303. As shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the mirror-face members 302 or 302a reflects light emitted from the bar-shaped light source 301. The background art uses the bar-shaped light source 301 and the mirror-face member 302 or 302a to achieve an adequate light intensity distribution by illuminating document-contact face 303 broadly or by a combination of a plurality of planes in the mirror-face member 302 or 302a.
As shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the background art increases light intensity by reflecting lights emitted from the bar-shaped light source 301 at the mirror-face member 302 or 302a shaped in a semi-cylindrical shape and focusing such lights on the document-contact face 303.
The semi-cylindrical shape includes an opening portion and a cross-sectional shape expressed by a quadric curve such as a circle, ellipse, parabola, and hyperbola, and has a length which is substantially the same as a length of the bar-shaped light source 301 or a length of the document-contact face 303 in the main scanning direction.
FIG. 4 shows a schematic configuration of a light-receiving element included in an image processing apparatus such as a digital copier and image scanner. FIG. 4 shows a configuration of a focus lens 305 and a light-receiving element 306.
As shown in FIG. 4, in the image processing apparatus such as a digital copier and image scanner, a light reflected from the document is received by the light-receiving element 306 via the focus lens 305. The light-receiving element 306 includes a CCD (charge coupled device), for example, and has a width of from 0.05 to 0.1 mm, which is relatively smaller. In case of a 1:1 image focusing, only the above-mentioned small area having the above-mentioned width can be scanned on the document-contact face 303.
When the light from the light source is focused sharply, the focused light has a relatively smaller focused area. Under such a condition, if the lighting unit cannot maintain an adequate lighting position due to some factors such as deviation of a mirror angle from an adequate angle, the light intensity distribution curve line deviates from its adequate position. This may result in a significant change of the light intensity to be received by the light-receiving element 306, and consequently may affect an image to be produced.
Although FIG. 4 shows a case using a 1:1 image sensor, similar constrains can be observed for a reduction optical system. For example, if an image size is reducingly focused on the light-receiving element 306 to one tenth of an image size on the document-contact face 303, a width of image size on the document-contact face 303 is only about 1 mm, for example. Therefore, the above-described drawback on the light intensity deviation may be also observed.
FIGS. 5A, 5B, 5C, and 5D show relationships between a change of light intensity distribution curve line and a scanning area.
FIGS. 5A and 5B show cases in which a width of the light intensity distribution curve line is relatively small, and FIGS. 5C and 5D show cases in which a width of the light intensity distribution curve line is relatively large. The term "relatively" is used because the width of the light intensity distribution curve line is compared with the width of the scanning area.
FIGS. 5A and 5C show cases in which an illumination is conducted under a normal condition. In case of a digital copier, the light receiving element 306 has a smaller width such as 0.1 mm, for example. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5B, if the center portion of the light intensity distribution curve line deviates from the scanning area, the light intensity at the scanning area may decrease significantly.
Accordingly, as for an image forming apparatus (e.g., a digital copier and image scanner), a document lighting unit, which has the light intensity distribution curve line having a larger span in the sub-scanning direction as shown in FIGS. 5C and 5D, is preferred to maintain the light intensity at the scanning area at a stable level even if the center portion of the scanning area deviates from the original position.
Specifically, a light intensity distribution curve line preferably has a flat portion around a peak of the light intensity distribution curve (i.e., portions having less unevenness of the light intensity).
In a background art, a first width required for scanning (e.g., approximately 1 mm) and a second width required for coping with a mechanical error (e.g., at least ±1 mm deviation is set for an effective scanning area) is combined and set as a minimum length to secure a flat portion around a peak of the light intensity distribution. The flat portion of the light intensity distribution is not strictly limited to a design value which can be defined by determining a mechanical configuration. The flat portion of the light intensity distribution can include some variation of the light intensity within a practicably permissible range that can be compensated with an electrical correction method, for example.
When the image forming apparatus is used for processing a monochrome image, for example, a variation of the light intensity of about 30% is permissible. When the image forming apparatus is used for processing a color image, the above-mentioned variation of the light intensity is permissible around 12% to maintain a balance of the three primary colors within a correctable range.
As above-mentioned, a background art uses a lighting unit which can uniformly conduct an efficient scanning by providing a light-guiding member having a substantially plate-shape. In this case, as above-mentioned, at least one diffraction grating is attached to reflecting faces to achieve a uniform distribution of the light intensity in the main scanning direction.
However, such a configuration having a diffraction grating on a transparent member leads to an increase of a manufacturing cost. Furthermore, such a configuration may not produce a flat portion in the light intensity distribution in the sub-scanning direction if an arrangement is not maintained appropriately.

Document lighting unit, image scanning unit, and image forming apparatus


A traction control system is provided for controlling wheel spin of a vehicle. The amount of wheel spin is determined for each driven wheel and compared with a threshold. When the threshold is exceeded, drive to the driven wheel is immediately reduced by a predetermined amount. Drive is restored as soon as the wheel spin is brought under control.

Wheeled vehicles depend upon the maintenance of an adequate frictional contact between the driven wheels of the vehicle and the ground. When the driving force at the driven wheels exceeds a value which is related to the weight acting on the driven wheels and the co-efficient of friction of the ground surface, the driven wheels slip with respect to the ground, thus exhibiting the phenomenon known as wheel spin. During normal operation of a vehicle on surfaces of relatively high co-efficient of friction, such as dry tarmac, wheel spin is not a problem. However, on surfaces of relatively poor co-efficient of friction, such as water logged tarmac, ice, and muddy surfaces, poor driving technique can give rise to wheel spin. When a wheel spins excessively, the loss of proper frictional contact with the ground allows the wheel to slip sideways and, in extreme cases, can result in spinning or excessive yawing of the vehicle i.e. lateral instability. Small amounts of wheel spin do not result in substantial lateral instability and may even be beneficial for maximizing acceleration of the vehicle or preventing damage to the vehicle transmission caused by careless or over-enthusiastic driving techniques. However, excessive amounts of wheel spin should be avoided and, for this purpose, so-called "traction control" systems have been developed.
A known type of traction control system reduces the output demand of an internal combustion engine as a predetermined function of the amount of wheel spin above a predetermined threshold value. For instance, a proportional/integral/differential control function of wheel spin is used to reduce the engine output demand. However, in some circumstances, such a control function does not allow the energy stored in the vehicle engine to be reduced sufficiently quickly, so that loss of vehicle stability can occur.

Method of and apparatus for controlling wheel spin


A rotary coupling for connecting a control device housing to a support arm or an elbow of a support arm system, having a rotating ring fixedly connected to the control device housing and partially rotatable in relation to a coupling piece which is connected to the support arm or the elbow. For equalization of tolerances caused by insufficient twist rigidity of the support arm system, the invention provides that the coupling piece forms a peripheral bearing ring which is convexly arched outwardly and is received in and supported by two shell rings. The shell rings are connected to each other and have concavely arched bearing surfaces. The shell rings are rigidly mounted on the bearing ring of the coupling piece by a clamping cheek. The rotating ring is rotatably maintained on the shell rings by a support ring which is connected to the shell rings.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a rotary coupling for connecting a control device housing to a support arm or an elbow of a support arm system, said rotary coupling comprising a rotating ring fixedly connected to the control device housing and partially rotatable in relation to a coupling piece connected to the support arm or the elbow.
2. Description of Prior Art
Such a rotary coupling is known from German Patent Disclosure P 40 33 747.2. This known rotary coupling permits pivoting of the control device housing around a vertical pivot axis. The selected pivot position can also be locked in. Pivoting is limited to 360.degree., since supply lines are fed through the rotary coupling.
The disadvantage of such rotary couplings is that the pivot axis no longer extends vertically because of insufficient twist rigidity of the support arm system, particularly with heavy control devices. The result is that the control device housing takes up a more or less canted position which, depending on the pivot direction, also is additionally upwardly changed.

Rotary coupling for connecting a control device housing to a support arm or an elbow


A grabbing apparatus comprises a first arm, a first proximal end, a first distal end, a first anchor arm affixed at the first distal end, a second arm, second proximal end, a second distal end, and a second anchor arm affixed at the second distal end. The second anchor arm is affixed to the first anchor arm, and a flexible attachment member is deformably affixed to the first anchor arm and the second anchor arm. The first arm and second arm are affixed to the base at an affixation point. When a force vector is applied to at least one of the first arm and the second arm, the flexible attachment member deforms, moving the first arm and the second arm towards one another and engages the lock, to connect the grabbing apparatus to a docking location.

Grabbing apparatuses act to assist a person or machine to attach to or latch on to an object not within reach. Grabbing apparatuses may be used in a number of fields and vary in shape and size. A typical apparatus can include a handle, an opening, and elements for manually closing the opening near the object.


In one embodiment, a method includes assigning an identifier to a route computation at a network device, grouping route updates for the route computation, marking at least one route update for each group of route updates with the identifier, tracking flow of marked route updates at a plurality of routing components within the network device, and storing tracking data at the network device for use in convergence monitoring. An apparatus and logic are also disclosed herein.

In conventional networks, measurement of network convergence involves injecting probes throughout the network. Such techniques do not scale well and hence suffer from accuracy issues (not enough probes are sent to measure at a millisecond timescale) and completeness issues (probes cannot be sent on all the possible paths through the network). Also, probes may simply report of a problem without the ability to pin point its location and provide details for use in analyzing the root cause.
Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

Route convergence monitoring and diagnostics


Imaging systems may be provided with stacked-chip image sensors. A stacked-chip image sensor may include a vertical chip stack that includes an array of image pixels, control circuitry and storage and processing circuitry. The image pixel array may be coupled to the control circuitry using vertical metal interconnects. The control circuitry may provide digital image data to the storage and processing circuitry over additional vertical conductive. The stacked-chip image sensor may be configured to capture image frames at a capture frame rate and to output processed image frames at an output frame rate that is lower that the capture frame rate. The storage and processing circuitry may be configured to process image frames concurrently with image capture operations. Processing image frames concurrently with image capture operations may include adjusting the positions of moving objects and by adjusting the pixel brightness values of regions of image frames that have changing brightness.

This relates generally to imaging systems, and more particularly, to imaging systems with stacked-chip image sensors.
Image sensors are commonly used in imaging systems such as cellular telephones, cameras, and computers to capture images. In a typical arrangement, an image sensor is provided with an array of image sensor pixels and control circuitry for operating the image sensor pixels. In a conventional imaging system the control circuitry is laterally separated from the image sensor pixels on a silicon semiconductor substrate. Each row of image sensor pixels typically communicates with the control circuitry along a common metal line on the silicon semiconductor substrate. Similarly, each column of image sensor pixels communicates with the control circuitry along a common metal line.
In this type of system, the rate at which image pixel data can be read out from the image sensor pixels and the rate at which control signals can be supplied to the image sensor pixels can be limited by the use of the shared column and row lines. This type of limitation can limit the rate at which image frames may be captured. Transient image signals such as image light from flashing light sources or from moving objects may be improperly represented in image data due to the limited frame rate.
It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide improved imaging systems with enhanced pixel communication efficiency.

Detecting transient signals using stacked-chip imaging systems

Semiconductor Components Industries, LLC


Cement finishing tool cover is provided that is configured to cover a cement-finishing tool having a bundle of fibers affixed to a frame at one. The case having a pair of spaced opposite substantially parallel face panels having an inside surface and an outside surface. At least one of said inside surface of the pair of spaced opposite substantially parallel face panels is equipped with a hanging element that is designed to engage at least portion of the frame of the cement finishing tool so as to prevent the bundle of fibers from coming in contact with a surface when the case is placed on a surface. This protects the fibers from becoming disfigured and adversely affecting the finishing of a cement surface when used.

When completing a cement surface arguably the most important part is the finishing of the surface. A cement walkway with a poor finish, although functional, is often regarded as poor work by the homeowner or landowner requesting the job. One way used by almost all masonry workers is the use of cement finishing tools such as fine bristle brooms that are used to smooth out the surface to provide a clean surface that is pleasing to the customer's eye. In order to get a clean, uniform surface, the finishing tools used must have a clean, uniform bristle surface so as not to reflect the imperfections in the bristle head in the surface face it is being used create. The cost of a good quality cement-finishing tool could be $100 dollars or more and is designed for multiple jobs as long as the bristles are properly cleaned and protected from damage.
In addition, when on a job time and money is wasted when the finishing tool is removed from the truck and it has bent/deformed bristles form being thrown in the back of the truck. The head of the finishing tool that has bristles can be removed for storage. If the finishing tool's head were stored on an uneven surface, the sheer weight of the head itself would cause the bristles to become disfigured and most likely stay that way. This makes the tool unusable for its intended purpose. That is if the tool is used in this condition the uneven bristles will create marks/lines/uneven tracks in the cement that is considered to be a poor finish.
Often, it is first realized that the finishing tool used to finish the surface of the cement is defective at the end of the job when it is time to use the tool to finish the surface. At this time, if the cement is already poured, there is no time to get another finishing tool and the defective one must be utilized. This leads to a poor finish and extra work to try to make the surface look as good as possible. Not to mention adding an addition cost to the job to replace the finishing tool for the next job.
Accordingly, it is very important that the cement-finishing tool utilized for smoothing concrete surfaces is stored carefully so as to not damage the bristles. However, since these tools are often stored in a work trucks, even storing the bristled heads with care cannot prevent shifting of tools when in transit which usually cause damage to the bristles and therefore rendering the finishing tool unusable. Even if the bristles are covered for protection, the finishing tools own weight will damage the bristles in transit.
Therefore, what is needed is a cover specifically designed to not only protect the bristles of the cement finishing tools from being damaged from other objects stored along side the tools, but to protect the bristles from becoming damaged when stored. The cover must also be made to fit finishing heads made from different manufactures and be configured to allow air to circulate about the bristles, since the bristles are often stored wet after cleaning. The present invention is configured to address the problems in the field today.


Apparatus, systems, and methods to implement a virtual serial presence detect operation for pooled memory are described. In one embodiment, a controller comprises logic to receive a request to establish a composed computing device, define a plurality of virtual memory devices to be associated with a composed computing device, allocate memory from a shared pool of physical memory to the plurality of virtual memory devices, create a plurality of virtual serial detects (vSPDs) for the plurality of virtual memory devices, and store the plurality of vSPDs in a linked list in an operational memory device. Other embodiments are also disclosed and claimed.

Some high performance computing architectures are adopting a model of physical disaggregation of computing resources. Disaggregated resources may then be combined logically, e.g., by control plane software, to define virtual compute resources, sometimes referred to as composed servers, or more broadly as composed computing devices. Such a model enables computing resources to be assigned dynamically to computing tasks in accordance with resource requirement of the computing tasks.
Computing systems which implement a disaggregation model may implement a pooled memory model in which physical memory is disaggregated into a shared memory pool. The shared memory pool may be managed by a shared memory controller, which assigns memory from the pool of memory to composed servers. Accordingly, techniques to manage pooled memory resources may find utility, e.g., in memory systems for composed computing devices.

Virtual serial presence detect for pooled memory


An information management system for managing the execution record of information processing includes a first storage unit, and a second storage unit storing the execution record at a lower speed than the first storage unit. An acquisition unit stores the execution record in the first and second storage units. An output unit refers to the execution record on the first or second storage unit and outputs the execution record to a predetermined output destination. A switching unit switches over the reference source of the execution record for the output unit between the first and second storage units.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information management system for managing execution records of information processing.
2. Related Background Art
A journal acquisition system for managing journals occurred from transaction processes may be exemplified as an information management system for managing the execution records of the information processing. This type of journal acquisition system has hitherto been applied to a case of structuring a new operation in a different category of operation within a server and in operations of other server by utilizing data of backbone system. The journal acquisition system is utilized, for example, in the case of gathering some items of information of the whole company on a division-by-division basis, i.e., when extracting a necessary database from within a plurality of databases.
Further, the journals occur from transaction processes and are therefore outputted in such a sequence that their transaction processes have been finished. Namely, the journals are edited for every utility purpose in the transaction process finishing sequence and outputted to external storage devices (journal utility files) coincident with their purposes.
Herein, the transaction is generally defined as a unit of processing in updating the database. The journal is defined as a result of processing of this transaction.
The control of this journal acquisition system aims at providing the journal to a user as soon as possible.
Then, the control of the journal acquisition system is executed in a way that refers directly to a buffer (a journal acquisition buffer) on a main memory stored with the journals occurred from the transactions.
A processing method in the conventional journal acquisition system will be described referring to FIG. 1. To start with, upon an end of a transaction 5, the journal is outputted to a journal acquisition buffer 12 (S101). Then, a journal acquisition unit 1 output the journal to a journal acquisition file 13 from on the journal acquisition buffer 12 (S102). Thereafter, the outputting of the journals to the journal acquisition file 13 from on the journal acquisition buffer 12 has been finished, thereby completing the transaction 5 (S103).
On the other hand, the journal acquisition unit 1, when finishing outputting of the journals to the journal acquisition file 13 from on the journal acquisition buffer 12, outputs the journals to a journal edit unit 3 from within the journal acquisition buffer 12 (S104).
Then, the journals edit unit 3 outputs the journals outputted from the journal acquisition unit 1 to journal utility files 6, corresponding their applications (S105)
Thus, the users set the journals in a status utilizable.
Further, a flow of the journals in the conventional journal acquisition system will be explained referring to FIG. 2.
Upon an end of a transaction T1, a journal J1 is outputted to the journal acquisition buffer 12 (S201), and the journal edit unit 3 outputs the journal J1 to the journal utility file corresponding to its application (S202).
When a different transaction T2 is finished in parallel with the process that the journal J1 is outputted to the journal utility file, a different transaction J2 is outputted to the journal acquisition buffer 12 (S203). Subsequently, this different journal J2 on the journal acquisition buffer 12 waits for being edited till the process of the journal J1 is terminated in the journal edit unit 3 (S204).
A memory space on the journal acquisition buffer 12 becomes deficient due to the process as executed in S204. Then, a journal J3 outputted from a transaction T3 with its processing finished waits for an available space on the journal acquisition buffer 12 (S205).
Therefore, the journal J3 of the transaction T3 with its processing finished is not outputted to the journal acquisition buffer 12. Thus, the processing of the transaction is delayed.
In the journal acquisition system according to the prior art, as a transaction quantity and a journal quantity increase, a quantity of the journals staying on the journal acquisition buffer rises.
Namely, the process that the journal edit unit edits the journal and outputs it to the journal utility file is time-consuming, and the journal on the journal acquisition buffer comes to a status of waiting for being edited. Then, the journals occurred as results of the transactions are successively stored on the journal acquisition buffer.
The quantity of the journals that can be handled by the journal acquisition buffer is limited, and hence, if the transaction quantity increases, the memory area of the journal acquisition buffer becomes deficient.
Accordingly, when there is a large transaction quantity, the journals from the transactions come to a status of waiting for being outputted. As a result, there arises a problem that a transaction processing time elongates, and a transaction throughput of the system as a whole decreases.
Namely, the processing of the journal edit unit is a bottleneck, then the processing of the transaction has been finished, and nevertheless the journal is kept in the status of waiting for the available space on the journal acquisition buffer. This leads to a delay of the transaction processing.

Information management system, information management method, and storage medium for managing execution records


Manufacturing equipment and manufacturing process steps that improve upon prior art processes for the manufacturing of filament tube and arc tube light sources, their components and subassemblies, and lamps employing said light sources. A double ended, tipless filament tube or arc tube light source incorporates a drawn-down tubular body, and one piece foliated leads with spurs for process handling and for spudding into a filament with stretched-out legs. Bugled ends on the body provide a novel cutoff means, facilitate a flush-fill finishing process, and enhance mounting and support of the light sources in lamps. The foliated leads are made from a continuous length of wire in a process including foil hammering and two-bath AC electrochemical etching. Cost-reduced light source and lamp production enables affordable household consumer lamps, even when containing two series-connected halogen filament tubes. Safety benefits ensue from series connection, especially in combination with disclosed body and filament constructions.

Although a variety of compact light sources are available, those with improved energy efficiency (lamp efficacy) are generally accompanied by proportionally higher manufacturing costs, and therefore by higher purchase prices that often outweigh their perceived benefit to ordinary consumers. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,524,302 (Berlec; 1985) discloses a general service incandescent lamp with improved efficiency having an outer envelope and an inner envelope. The inner envelope comprises what is generally known as a halogen lamp: a filament tube of quartz or high temperature glass, hermetically sealed around an incandescent filament, and filled with a relatively high pressure fill-gas including a halogen gas. Among the objects of this invention are to provide a relatively inexpensive general service incandescent lamp, to improve the arc-out resistance of the filament, and to operate at a low voltage so as to extend the life of the lamp while maintaining its wattage and even increasing its efficacy. The reduced voltages relative to a typical 120 volt AC source may be developed, for example, by an electrical transformer.
It is known that low voltage incandescent filaments are more rugged than higher voltage filaments having the same wattage, especially for coiled-wire filaments, because for any given wattage, as the design voltage is decreased the length of wire in the filament decreases, and the diameter of the wire in the filament increases. Two patents exemplify incandescent lamp designs that take advantage of this fact by providing multiple filament tubes that are series-connected within an outer envelope. This reduces the voltage drop across each filament tube without requiring a transformer, however the cost of the inner light source is multiplied by the number of filament tubes provided. U.S. Pat. No. 4,498,124 (Mayer et al.; 1985) discloses a dual halogen bulb rectangular lamp assembly with the two halogen bulbs electrically connected in series for simultaneous bulb energization. The use of two 12-volt halogen bulbs in a 24 volt reflector lamp significantly reduces the possibility of bulb burn-out because the filaments required in 12-volt halogen bulb units are made from shorter, thicker wire that can be coiled much more loosely than the filaments required in 24-volt halogen bulb units. PCT publication WO98/14733 (Katougi et al.; 1998) discloses a light bulb with a plurality of baseless small bulbs series-connected within a globe envelope, for improved earthquake resistance. FIG. 8, for example, shows two double ended filament tubes with wire loop outer leads hanging in parallel arrangement on opposite sides of a central support post.
Another factor that adds to the cost of lamps that incorporate filament tubes (e.g., halogen lamps) is the desire to protect consumers from possible non-passive failure of the filament tube. When an incandescent filament fails at end of life, an electric arc may form between broken ends of the filament. Once started, an arc has very low electrical resistance and will draw as much current as the power supply allows. In arc lamps, the power supply includes some form of ballast to limit the current to a desired amount. Incandescent power supplies do not generally provide much ballasting effect, and rely instead on fuses and/or lamp construction to quench an end-of-life arc before it can produce violent failures that may, for example, rupture the filament-containing envelope(s)—i.e., to "explode". For filament tubes there is a small possibility of non-passive failure due to an arc that overheats the filament tube before the arc can be quenched by a fuse. A common solution is to make the outer lamp envelope out of a thick glass expected to contain a potentially rupturing inner envelope. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,133,676 (Chen; 2000) discloses a double enveloped halogen bulb wherein the outer glass envelope has a thickness ranging between 2 mm and 8 mm that is intended to protect a person or an animal contiguous to the bulb from a bodily injury in the event that the tubular halogen bulb explodes. Chen's FIG. 6 shows an embodiment of his outer envelope that is shaped somewhat like a common household light bulb. Obviously, the heavy glass envelope is much more expensive than a standard bulb.
Another solution for containing rupturing filament tubes is taught by related arc lamp art. For lamps that incorporate arc tubes as the light source (e.g., high intensity discharge lamps), non-passive failure is even more of a concern, particularly when the light sources are intended for household use and/or wherever they will not be contained in protective "closed" lighting fixtures. U.S. Pat. No. 5,446,336 (Gleixner et al.; 1995) discloses an explosion-protected high-pressure discharge lamp comprising a protective body surrounding the discharge vessel and located within an outer bulb. The protective body comprises one or two transparent concentric glass sleeves or tubes, at least one of which, preferably, is of quartz glass. The sleeves or tubes have open ends, and they radially surround the discharge vessel, with the open ends being capped by ceramic centering and holding elements which are retained on a lamp holder structure.
A solution for preventing rupturing filament tubes is disclosed by the present inventor in the November/December 2001 issue of IEEE Industry Applications Magazine (incorporated by reference herein), wherein a mockup of a 1972 experimental "Gemini lamp" is pictured and described as having "small twin tubes paralleling the central glass stem—these low-pressure, 60-V halogen capsules would not explode . . . . [The] two small 60-V capsules [are] in series . . . " (pg. 16). The pictured mockup has empty glass capsules, and the design of a filament for the capsule is not disclosed. Likewise, the capsule's shape is indeterminate, and no lead wires or sealing foils are present.
FIGS. 2, 4, and 5 of the Berlec '302 patent illustrate some common features of filament tubes. FIG. 2 shows a typical quartz filament tube (22) with 1 mm thick walls that is double ended with an exhaust tube tip on the side of the tube. The tube ends are hermetically sealed by being pinched closed over a thin molybdenum foils (28, 32) that are micro-welded to inner (24c, 24e) and outer (30, 34) molybdenum lead wires. The inner lead wire may alternatively be tungsten, and is typically welded to the filament, however FIG. 3 illustrates a technique of using the inner lead wire (24c, 24e) as a spud that is forced into the single coiled end (24b, 24d) of the filament (24). It is known that this spudding process is difficult to automate given that a blunt wire end must be screwed into the coil in a way that expands the coil diameter. FIG. 4 illustrates a single ended filament tube (36) that is also made out of a high temperature glass other than quartz. In this case, sealing can be accomplished on the round lead wires (38, 40) without needing foils. The illustrated filament tubes (22, 36) are relatively bulky and heavy, and therefore require substantial mounting structures (16, 18, 20, 42, 44, 46, 48) within the outer envelope (12). FIG. 5 illustrates a somewhat smaller filament tube that is only suitable for very low voltage filaments that are consequently short enough to be mounted crosswise in the filament tube.
Several patents assigned to General Electric are indicative of the industry's efforts toward cost-reducing the manufacturing process for both filament tubes and arc tubes, particularly those small enough to be included in smaller lamps. U.S. Pat. No. 4,389,201 (Hansler and Fridrich; 1983), incorporated by reference herein, discloses a method of manufacturing metal halide discharge lamps (arc tubes) on a horizontal glass blowing lathe which is indexed by a turntable through angularly spaced work stations. A length of quartz tubing is formed into a lamp body having an enlarged bulbous midportion defining an arc chamber with tubular necks projecting in opposite directions. FIGS. 9 and 10 show the bulbous midportion (32) being formed by heating (132) while longitudinally gathering the quartz (120) and then blowing it out into a mold (134). Exhausting, flushing, and filling are all accomplished through the length of quartz tubing while it is captured in the lathe, thereby eliminating exhaust tube tips on the side of the arc tube. U.S. Pat. No. 4,810,932 (Ahlgren et al.; 1989), incorporated by reference herein, and other related patents adapt and enhance the '201 patented processes to disclose flush and pump flush processes yielding light sources for both incandescent and metal vapor discharge lamps, particularly tipless double ended filament tubes that are suitable for deposition of a reflective coating on their outer surfaces. FIGS. 1(a)–1(p) show the flush process implemented in a horizontal lathe. FIG. 1(d) shows the filament assembly (12) having a hook-shape section (12C) on one end and a loop extension section (12F) on the other for handling during the manufacturing process. FIG. 1(f) shows the filament assembly (12) being self-heated by the passage of electric current while flushing the surrounding tube (10) with an inert gas containing hydrogen. This step in the process removes oxygen contamination from within the confines of the light source body (10) and crystallizes the filament (12A) itself. By applying direct current to the filament positioned so that magnetic forces counter balance the force of gravity on the filament, the crystal structure of the filament may be set so that filament sag is avoided. FIG. 1(h) shows the filament tube's midportion (10A) being blown into a mold (30) for precise dimensional control. FIGS. 1(m) and 1(n) show liquid nitrogen (46) being used to condense a gas filling in the central portion (10a) while a torch (20) "shrink seals" the quartz body (10) around the foil sealing members (48, 50). The quartz shrinks without excessive heat because condensing the fill gas reduces the internal pressure of the body below atmospheric pressure. FIGS. 2(a)–2(l) and 3(a)–3(k) show the pump flush process implemented vertically for filament tubes and arc tubes, respectively. Minor differences from the horizontal flush process include straight ended lead wires handled by rods (72, 74) in an unspecified manner. Especially in the vertical process, the filament assembly (12) or electrodes (92) are held in place by first and second seal members abutting up against and respectively occupying the first and second neck portions of the tube body, such that bent edges of the foils (e.g., 12D, 12G) serve as springs to position and maintain the assembly (e.g., 12) on the central axis of the light source body. The seal members (12D, 12G, 92B, 94B) may be of the type described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,254,356 of Karikas, (further described hereinbelow). In preparation for mounting a finished filament tube or arc tube in an outer envelope, ends of the tube are removed by diamond saw cutting or scoring and snapping, thereby exposing a suitable length of the inlead wire extending beyond each end of the tube. As illustrated in FIGS. 6–10, the exposed lead wires are attached to a crossed lamp lead wire on at least one end, and where appropriate, to the base eyelet at the other end to provide a simplified mount structure.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,254,356 (Karikas; 1981), incorporated by reference herein, discloses inleads having a foil portion which is stiffened by reversely folded lateral edges, i.e., bent in opposite directions out of the medial plane. In making a discharge lamp, the electrode-inlead assembly is self-centering as a result of making the overall width of the foil portion and its reversely folded edges exceed slightly the internal diameter of the quartz tube or neck. The inlead assembly (1) comprises a one-piece molybdenum wire portion (2, 3) wherein the central portion (4) is foliated by longitudinal rolling to a thickness of about 0.0009″ at the center. Karikas further teaches that the foliated portion (4) may also be produced by cross rolling and by swaging or hammering of the original wire, or may also use a composite foil comprising a cut length of molybdenum foil to one end of which is welded a molybdenum wire and to the other end a tungsten wire. No further details are provided about the proposed hammering process, and the present inventor is not aware of any practical mass production implementations of a foliation-by-hammering process in the lamp-making industry.
It is an overall object of the present invention to significantly reduce the manufacturing cost of high-efficacy light sources, particularly those intended for household use, and more particularly those incorporating incandescent filament tubes contained within a protective outer envelope. Accordingly, it is an object to effectively eliminate the likelihood of non-passive failure for filament tubes in lamps made according to the invention. Accordingly, it is an object to mass-produce inexpensive filament tube envelopes. Accordingly, it is an object to mass-produce inexpensive foil/leadwire assemblies. Accordingly, it is an object to simplify leadwire-to-filament assembly and the handling of said assembly. Accordingly, it is an object to improve manufacturing efficiency for the flush-fill process. Accordingly, it is an object to improve the mounting of filament tubes within an outer envelope. Other subsidiary objects may become evident from the foregoing specification of the present invention.
A further object of the invention is to utilize suitable features of the inventive filament tubes in order to cost-reduce double ended arc tube lamp manufacturing.

One piece foliated leads for sealing in light sources


Disclosed is a camera optical lens comprising, from an object side to an image side in sequence: a first lens having a positive refractive power; a second lens having a negative refractive power; a third lens having a positive refractive power; and a fourth lens having a negative refractive power; the camera optical lens satisfies: −0.40≤(R1+R2)/(R1−R2)≤−0.20; 1.50≤(R3+R4)/(R3−R4)≤2.00; 1.20≤(R5+R6)/(R5−R6)≤1.80; and 1.52≤d3/d2≤1.80; where, R1 and R2 denote central curvature radii of object and image side surfaces of the first lens respectively; R3 and R4 denote central curvature radii of object and image side surfaces of the second lens respectively; R5 and R6 denote central curvature radii of object side surface and image side surface of the third lens respectively; d2 denotes an on-axis distance from image side surface of first lens to object side surface of second lens L2; and d3 denotes an on-axis thickness of the second lens.

With the emergence of smart phones in recent years, the demand for miniature camera lens is increasing day by day, but in general the photosensitive devices of camera lens are nothing more than Charge Coupled Device (CCD) or Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor Sensor (CMOS sensor). As the progress of the semiconductor manufacturing technology makes the pixel size of the photosensitive devices become smaller, and with the current development trend of electronic products towards better functions and thinner and smaller dimensions, miniature camera lens with good imaging quality therefore have become a mainstream in the market.
In order to obtain better imaging quality, the lens that is traditionally equipped in mobile phone cameras adopts a three-piece or four-piece lens structure. The common four-piece lens has good optical performance, but the design on focal power, lens spacing and lens shape is not reasonable, thus the lens structure could not meet the requirements for having a large aperture, a wide angle and ultra-thinness while having good optical performance.


The present invention provides a dual mode DIN rail latch for an electrical component chassis that provides a tactile feedback warning to the user of the impending snap point placing the latch in the open position. In one embodiment of the present invention, the latch has a locking tab mounted to the chassis for slidable movement. The locking tab has a pair of springs that extend into an opening formed in the locking tab and engage a nub formed as an integral part of the chassis. The springs impinge upon sidewalls of the opening as the locking tab approaches an impending mode change. The impinging action provides tactile feedback to the user of the impending change in mode.

The field of invention is DIN rail latches for mounting components on a DIN rail, more particularly a dual mode DIN rail latch having tactile feedback.
A DIN rail being characterized by an elongate channel having opposed coplanar flanges along its length is used in the art for mounting electrical components in electrical panels. The rail is mounted in a panel using screws and the like. Components incorporating one or more DIN rail mounting latches are then detachably mounted to the rail.
Various latches have been developed for detachably mounting components to a DIN rail. A typical latch assembly has a lip integrally formed part of an electronic component chassis that engages an upper or lower flange of a DIN rail and a spring biased locking tab mounted to the chassis for slidable movement engages the opposing flange of the DIN rail. To mount the chassis on the DIN rail, the user hooks the lip over the upper DIN rail flange and then snaps the chassis in place by applying pressure to the chassis forcing it toward the DIN rail. To detach the chassis from the DIN rail, the user pries the locking tab downward disengaging the tab from the DIN rail lower flange allowing the chassis to swing away from the rail and disengage the lip from the upper flange.
Single mode latches have a locking tab that is continuously urged toward the DIN rail by springs. Large components, such as an Allen-Bradley MicroLogix.TM. 1000 programmable controller, available from Rockwell Automation/Allen-Bradley, Milwaukee, Wis., have two or more latches for mounting the controller to the DIN rail. In order to detach the MicroLogix.TM. 1000 controller from the DIN rail all the locking tabs must be pried downwardly. If the latches are the single mode type, all the tabs must be pulled away from the DIN rail and held in that position while swinging the controller away from the DIN rail. This is a difficult task for a user with only two hands. The task becomes even more difficult when multiple components are interlocked together, such as in a "tongue and groove" configuration, forming a long module assembly having multiple rail latches.
Dual mode latches have been developed to overcome this problem. These dual mode latches, such as described in Japanese Patent Application 1-75815, filed on Mar. 28, 1989 and laid open on Oct. 15, 1990 have a first mode (closed position), for mounting to the DIN rail, and a second mode (open position), for detaching from the DIN rail. In the first mode, the latch continuously urges the locking tab toward the DIN rail as in the single mode type. In the second mode, the locking tab is held away from the DIN rail using means, such as described in Japanese Patent Application 1-75815, thus freeing the user's hands to swing the mounted component away from the DIN rail.
In certain situations, a user may desire to pull the tab downwardly without switching from the first mode to the second mode. The present dual mode latches do not provide any indication of an impending mode change.

Dual mode din rail latch with tactile feedback