The present invention involves the addition of a device attached to each of the follower block side walls in order to prevent metal-to-metal contact between the follower block side walls and the center sill side walls. The preventative device comprises an elastomeric wear pad attached to a base plate, a base plate being anchored to each of the follower block side walls. The pads are made of a softer, low-friction material, compared to the carbon steel side walls. Since the elastomeric wear pads are softer than the center sill side walls, only the restrictive means will wear, thereby preventing destruction of the center sill side walls no matter how much slack has been developed in the coupling system. The present invention is also adaptable to either E or F type couplers.

In the development of modern passenger and freight railcar equipment, it has been found desirable to reduce free slack which develops from wear on the car's coupling system components that are mounted within the car center sill. Reduction of wear and the resulting slack on these components, particularly on the follower block, will either eliminate or greatly reduce costly sill side wall repairs.
Coupler assemblies are well known in the art and are independent units mounted on each adjacent railcar end for interconnection with one another to form a connection. They are located on the car undercarriage and are attached within the car's center sill structure. Besides holding the cars together, the coupler assemblies function to transmit generally longitudinally-directed forces to the car understructure.
In any car using a center sill, a cast yoke member is retained within the center sill cavity and it plays an important part in transferring the forces from the coupler head into the car understructure. Yoke castings typically include an upper and lower yoke strap member connected to a front and rear yoke wall, in order to form a longitudinal pocket. Yoke castings are well known in the industry and have been standardized dimensionally by the American Association of Railroads (AAR). Also standardized by the AAR are the couplers which are partially mounted within the yoke casting pocket. Typically, the coupler portion of a coupler system is a cast member consisting of an elongate shank portion. A head portion is formed at one end of the shank and a butt end portion is formed at the other end. Typically, the coupler portion can either be a fixed or rotary system, with the butt end portions of each system varying slightly in shape and method of attachment to the yoke casting. In a fixed system, the butt end is typically pinned to the yoke, while in the rotary system, the butt end is typically held inside the yoke by specially shaped retention keys.
It is also another standard of the AAR that a follower block be retained within the yoke casting pocket between the top and bottom yoke straps, internally of the coupler rear butt end portion. The follower block serves as a large bearing surface for communicating the large forces experienced by the coupler head into other coupling system members for final communication into the car understructure. The follower block is generally a solid member having a rectangular shape and the front face of the follower is held against the butt end of the coupler by a draft gear arrangement biasing the rear side of the follower block. The draft gear is typically a frictional energy absorbing and dissipating member which protects the car understructure from the impact forces imparted longitudinally on the coupler. The follower block and draft gear assembly are designed to coaxially and longitudinally move in unison with each other within the yoke casting pocket each time the coupler experiences an external force. In this manner, in response to draft (pulling), and buff (pushing) forces, particularly buff forces, the forces exerted against the coupler are transmitted through the butt end portion directly into the follower block where they are then transmitted into the draft gear and thereby cushioned. The forces absorbed by the draft gear are likewise transmitted into a pair of stationary rear center sill stops. Draft forces are transmitted essentially the same way, except that the follower block functions to transfer the forces pulling on the yoke casting into the center sill side walls through contact with a pair of stationary front center sill stops. The draft assembly now functions to keep the follower biased in place against the butt end portion of the coupler.
The lateral forces experienced by the coupler are not as severe as the longitudinal forces and they are transferred into the center sill in a much different fashion. Since lateral forces tend to push the coupler head in a lateral direction with respect to the longitudinal centerline of the car, the butt end of the coupler also moves, but in the opposite, lateral direction relative to the coupler head. This also means that when the coupler head end is laterally moved, the follower block also moves laterally in unison with the butt end, since the follower block is held against the butt end by the biasing means of the draft gear.
One of the problems with known follower blocks is that the AAR approved follower is designed to have large tolerances between the side walls of the block and the center sill side walls. More particularly, the follower is free to laterally travel within the center sill cavity until it makes contact with the center sill side walls. When a coupler system is new and initially installed within the car understructure, the clearances between the aforementioned system components, known in the art as controlled slack, are minimal. This is true even when the forces on the coupler are reversed, such as when the car is accelerated or decelerated. Eventually however, the extreme forces experienced by the car will cause wear to occur in the entire coupling system such that small gaps will begin to appear between each of the coupler system components. These gaps are known in the art as free slack, and the cumulative affect of the free and controlled slack is to magnify all impact forces experienced during the acceleration and deceleration of the car. It has been known that the lack of confinement of the follower block within the center sill cavity has proved inadequate because the slack between the center sill side walls and the follower block will cumulatively accelerate the wear between the center side walls and the follower block. The end result is that the harder, cast steel follower block eventually wears the softer, steel center sill side walls. If this condition is not detected, the follower block can wear the center sill side walls thin enough so that the car center sill structure will be weakened in the immediate contact area such that the follower block can wear completely through the center sill side walls. If this happens, the coupling system will no longer function as designed. Ultimately, the railcar will have to be removed from service in order to patch and weld the center sill. This method of repair is both time consuming and very expensive because the car must be removed from service and disassembled. Furthermore, the integrity of the railcar center sill is diminished.
A review of certain known patents also shows that little effort has been made to address the center sill wear problems caused by the lateral follower block movement.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,947,936 to Glascodine discloses an outdated coupling system wherein metal liner plates were mounted against the center sill side walls, with a resilient rubber insert being held between the liner and the center sill walls. The rubber insert was to be protected by the liner plates and was intended to absorb the lateral stresses imparted to the side walls by a front and rear follower block. Each follower block side wall peripherally extended into metal-to-metal engagement with the liner plates such that abrasive metal-to-metal contact was not eliminated, leaving the system vulnerable for destructive metal wearing.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,176,268 to Manley is the only known art to address the lateral movement problem as presented in more modern and AAR-approved coupling assemblies recommended today. In that disclosure, Manley addresses the above-mentioned problems by providing an improved follower block which confines the position of the yoke casting within the center sill. The purpose of this follower is to prevent movement of the coupling system components so that free slack does not develop and eventually cause destruction of the center sill side walls. The follower disclosed in the Manley patent is constructed such that it is wider than the AAR standardized follower, making it essentially span the width of the center sill cavity with much less initial controlled slack than before. Furthermore, the rectangularly shaped follower is provided with an outwardly extending tab at each corner of the follower block. The tabs extend upwardly and downwardly, respectively, from the top and bottom sides of the follower, and each of the tabs are lined with an elastomeric wear insert. The respective top and bottom yoke strap is tightly confined between the respective top and bottom pairs of tabs so that in spite of the application of stresses which normally cause lateral follower and yoke movement, the follower maintains the confined configuration of the follower-yoke-side wall interface. However, such efforts to confine the yoke are not the most effective because of the extreme forces placed upon the relatively small bearing surface area of the tabs. Since free slack eventually develops in all coupling components, the tab wear inserts experience extreme and concentrated stress loading, thereby being prone to wear in a relatively short time period and generating additional free slack. Once the additional free slack is introduced in this arrangement, the wear inserts deteriorate at a cumulatively faster rate and the center sill side walls will eventually experience substantial metal-to-metal frictional contact with the side walls of the follower block since this design does not eliminate the potential for metal-to-metal contact between the follower block and center sill side walls. Once again, the problem of a metal follower block potentially wearing the metal center sill side walls is present.

Coupler follower with elastomeric wear pad for preventing metal to metal contact between the follower and the center sill side walls


One or more multi-service network traffic controllers are established for a distributed system. The controllers are connected to traffic control implementation units at a first service and a second service. Based at least in part on data collected from a traffic control implementation unit deployed at the second service, a modification to be made to a parameter of a traffic control implementation unit deployed at the first service is determined at the controllers. The modification is applied at the first service, and results in a change to a traffic flow of the second service.

Many companies and other organizations operate computer networks that interconnect numerous computing systems to support their customer-facing applications and services, such as with the computing systems being co-located (e.g., as part of a local network) or instead located in multiple distinct geographical locations (e.g., connected via one or more private or public intermediate networks). For example, data centers housing significant numbers of interconnected computing systems have become commonplace, such as private data centers that are operated by and on behalf of a single organization, and public data centers that are operated by entities as businesses to provide computing resources to customers. Using large distributed systems comprising combinations of such resources spread over many data centers, Internet-scale applications for potential customers throughout the world (such as retail web sites, content distribution web sites, and the like) are being implemented.
At least some request-response data flows of a customer-facing application may utilize resources of a number of separate services implemented within such a large distributed system. For example, for an online retailer's web sites, one or more services may be responsible for rendering the web pages presented to customers, another set of services may be responsible for implementing purchasing transactions, inventory management so on, and yet another set of services may be responsible for database or storage-related operations of the retailing data flows.
Different combinations of services may be invoked for respective task data flows, with network messages flowing between the services at varying rates to accomplish respective tasks on behalf of potentially large numbers of concurrent customers. In many distributed systems, each service of a group of services that collectively implements a given data flow may have its own set of application programming interfaces which are invoked over network connections during a given instance of the task, and each service may have its own local service-level objectives for availability, performance and the like. In some cases, individual services may be designed, developed and modified over time by a respective group of engineers. Dozens or even hundreds of services may sometimes be utilized within a distributed system to implement a single type of task. Local network traffic management decisions made at some services may potentially have unintended negative consequences at other services. Managing the flow of network traffic in such complex multi-service environments may present a non-trivial technical challenge.
While embodiments are described herein by way of example for several embodiments and illustrative drawings, those skilled in the art will recognize that embodiments are not limited to the embodiments or drawings described. It should be understood, that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit embodiments to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope as defined by the appended claims. The headings used herein are for organizational purposes only and are not meant to be used to limit the scope of the description or the claims. As used throughout this application, the word "may" is used in a permissive sense (i.e., meaning having the potential to), rather than the mandatory sense (i.e., meaning must). Similarly, the words "include," "including," and "includes" mean including, but not limited to. When used in the claims, the term "or" is used as an inclusive or and not as an exclusive or. For example, the phrase "at least one of x, y, or z" means any one of x, y, and z, as well as any combination thereof.

Unified network traffic controllers for multi-service environments


Concepts and technologies are disclosed herein for creating and using network coverage models. A request for a predicted coverage model that represents a first signal propagation in a first portion of a network that covers a first area associated with a first geographic location can be received. An aerial image that depicts the first area can be obtained. The aerial image can be provided to an existing coverage model. The existing coverage model can include a neural network, and the existing coverage model can be based on a second signal propagation in a second portion of the network that covers a second area associated with a second location. The predicted coverage model for the first area can be obtained from the existing coverage model.

In some instances, signal strength may affect network quality and/or quality of service. As such, signal strength may be used as a measure of quality of service in some instances. Signal strength, or more accurately perceived signal strength at some point in space by a receiver, may be impacted by geospatial parameters such as the terrain, buildings, vegetation, or the like. When network hardware is deployed, the location may be set for the hardware based on various considerations (e.g., zoning, real estate cost, etc.).
When evaluating a particular installation site, an expected signal strength may be predicted using one or more prediction algorithms, simulations, or the like. While these approaches may provide some prediction of signal strength, real world measurements are the only way to accurately know the signal strength and/or other signal measurement parameters. Measuring, however, may not be possible before installation, and at any rate may require manual surveys, which may be an expensive and slow process.
Another approach used to measure signals in a particular area can include polling user devices (e.g., mobile phones or the like) in a particular area to measure and report their perceived signal strength. Again, prior to installation of network hardware, such an approach may not provide any meaningful data. Also, some devices may be unable to communicate such data and/or a lack of enough data samples from such an area may render such information useless.
When construction work in a particular area and/or seasonal effects like rain, snow, and/or temperature are to be analyzed for impact on signal parameters, however, there may be no way to accurately model such impacts.

Creating and using network coverage models


The known can seamer is improved so that replacement and adjustment of seaming rolls, a seaming chuck and a knock-out pad may be facilitated at the time of type-change work or the like in a can seamer. In the improved can seamer, after a control mode of a drive motor has been switched to a type-changing mode, if an action button is depressed, in response to signals issued from a rotational position sensor, the drive motor moves can seaming mechanisms one pitch by one pitch via a center shaft and makes them stop at predetermined positions. At the stopped position, an actuator is operated to depress the top end of a seaming roll shaft. By this operation, a gap clearance is formed between a rotary frame and a seaming lever, then seaming rolls and are mounted, also the seaming lever connected with a seaming chuck via a bracket is removed, and thereby a type-changing work can be carried out. In addition, in the type-changing work of a can seamer, it has been made possible to carry out vertical position adjustment in the fitting between a seaming lever and seaming rolls easily. Furthermore, in the type-changing work of a can seamer, it has been made possible to replace a knock-out pad by a one-touch operation.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a can seamer available in a can filling line, and more particularly, to a can seamer provided with means for facilitating replacement of seaming rolls, a seaming chuck and a knockout pad required as a result of change of a can size or the like.
2. Description of the Prior Art
At first, a construction and an operation of a conventional can seamer in the prior art will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 14. FIGS. 11 to 13 illustrate a structure of a seaming chuck and seaming rolls in a can seamer in the prior art, FIG. 11 is a plan view of a seaming mechanism in a conventional rotary seamer, FIG. 12 is a side view of seaming rolls, and FIG. 13 is a vertical cross-section view of a seaming mechanism. In these figures, reference numeral 11 designates a first seaming roll, numeral 12 designates a second seaming roll, and numeral 13 designates a seaming chuck. In addition, reference numeral 14 designates a seaming lever, which is inserted around a seaming roll shaft 15 via splines (serrations) 15a, which can be extracted downwards, but which is fixed to the same shaft 15 so as to be integrally rotatable, and to the same lever 14 is fixed a shaft 16. Each of the seaming rolls 11 and 12 is rotatably suspended at the center of the same shaft 16 via a bearing 18 fixed to the shaft 16 by means of a screw 17. On the other hand, the seaming chuck 13 is mounted via splines (or serrations) 22 to the bottom end of a rotary cylinder 21 which is rotatably supported from a rotary frame 19 via a bearing 20, so that the seaming chuck 13 can rotate integrally with the same rotary cylinder 21. Also, within the rotary cylinder 21, a knock-out rod 23 penetrates so as to be slidable in the vertical direction. Reference numeral 27 designates a connecting bracket,.which integrally connects the seaming lever 14 and the seaming chuck 13. More particularly, the same bracket 27 is connected with the seaming chuck 13 via flanges 28 provided along its outer circumference, and is connected with the seaming lever 14 via a ring 29, and this ring 29 is rotatably fixed by means of a lock nut 30 engaged with the connecting bracket 27. In addition, reference numeral 31 designates a bolt for positioning the seaming chuck 13 in the vertical direction with respect to the rotary cylinder 21.
At the time of seaming a can, normally the can exerts upon the seaming chuck 13 a push-up force, and the seaming rolls 11 and 12 are also exerted a reaction force generated upon pushing a can lid during the operation of seaming a can, and are pushed upwards. In addition, in order to prevent the seaming lever 14 from slipping out of the seaming roll shaft 15, a cam 35 rotatable about a shaft 37 mounted to the seaming lever 14, is provided, and by rotating a lever 36, the cam 35 is made to enter a notch groove provided on the seaming roll shaft 15 to serve as a stopper.
On the other hand, the top end of the seaming chuck 13 butts against a flange of the rotary cylinder 21, and this rotary cylinder 21 is rigidly supported in the vertical direction with respect to a seamer main body via a bearing 20. Furthermore, with regard to the structure of the seaming roll shaft 15, for the sake of convenience, description will be made with reference to FIG. 1. Since the seaming roll shaft 15 is pushed upwards by means of a compression spring 43 via a cam lever 39, when the seaming lever 14 supporting the seaming rolls 11 and 12 is fixed to the seaming roll shaft 15, its top end butts against a washer 38 mounted to the rotary frame 19 (shown at E). Also, between the cam lever 39 and the rotary frame 19 is formed a gap space F.
By means of the above-mentioned arrangement, vertical positions of the seaming chuck 13 and the seaming rolls 11 and 12 can be insured. It is to be noted that in FIG. 1, reference numeral 41 designates a cam follower, numeral 42 designates a seamer main body frame, numeral 42a designates a cam groove, and when a can seaming mechanism rotates, as a result of the action of the cam groove 42a and the cam follower 41, the seaming roll shaft 15 rotates, hence the seaming lever 14 swings, and the seaming rolls 11 and 12 alternately perform seaming operations.
Next, description will be made on operations for changing a type of cans. When it is necessitated to replace the seaming rolls 11 and 12 and the seaming chuck 13 in response to change of a can lid diameter, under the condition where a can is not present, the can seamer is rotated to move the seaming rolls up to a position where working is easy, the top end of the seaming roll shaft 15 is depressed by means of a tool, and after a gap space has been formed between the seaming lever 14 and the washer 38, the bolt 31 is loosened. Simultaneously therewith, the cam 35 is disengaged from the notch groove in the seaming roll shaft 15 by turning the lever 36, and the seaming rolls 11 and 12 and the seaming chuck 13 are pulled down as gripped by hands. Then, since the seaming lever 14 and the seaming chuck 13 are integrally connected by the connecting bracket 27, the seaming lever 14 is disengaged from the seaming roll shaft 15 via the splines 15a, also the seaming chuck 13 is disengaged from the rotary cylinder 21 via the splines 22, and they are integrally pulled down via the connecting bracket 27.
Subsequently, when it is intended to mount a seaming lever having seaming rolls of changed sizes assembled and a seaming chuck of changed sizes, since the spline diameters are identical to those of the used ones, after the splines of the seaming lever 14 were aligned with the splines 15a of the seaming roll shaft 15, the splines of the seaming chuck 13 were aligned with the splines 22 of the rotary cylinder 21, and they were pushed in, the seaming chuck 13 is fixed by fastening the bolt 31, the seaming lever 14 is fixed to the seaming roll shaft 15 by turning the lever 36 to insert the cam 35 into the notch groove in the seaming roll shaft 15, and if a depressing force is removed from the top end of the same shaft 15, the mounting work is finished.
Another example of a can seamer in the prior art is seen in Laid-Open Japanese Utility Model Specification No 54-9137 (1979), and in the following, this will be explained with reference to FIG. 14. In this figure, reference numeral 101 designates seaming rolls, which are rotatably mounted respectively around shafts 103 and 104 fixed to a seaming lever 102. Reference numeral 105 designates a seaming chuck, which is threadedly fixed to a bottom end of a rotary cylinder 106, and a knock-out pad 109 is fixed by a screw 108 to the bottom end of a knock-out rod 107 which penetrates through the same rotary cylinder 106 in a vertically slidable manner. This knock-out pad 109 is projectable from a recessed portion 110 at the bottom of the above-mentioned chuck 105. In addition, the upper portion of the above-mentioned knock-out rod 107 is inserted via a ball bearing into a knock-out carrier 112, the same knock-out carrier 112 is guided by a knockout carrier guide 111, and is prevented from rotating by means of an anti-rotation guide pin not shown which is parallel to a center axis of the knock-out rod 107. Also, to the knock-out carrier 112 is mounted a cam follower 113, and provision is made such that when the can seamer is operated the cam follower 113 may move up and down following a profile of a groove cam 114 and the movement may be transmitted via the ball bearing to the knock-out rod 107. Parallel twin faces for engaging with a spanner are machined on a shaft 107a at the top of the same knockout rod 107.
In order to remove the knock-out pad 109 from the knock-out rod 107 for the purpose of changing the type of the knock-out pad as a result of change of can sizes, while the top shaft 107a of the knock-out rod 107 is held by means of a spanner, the screw 108 is loosened, and thereby the knock-out pad 109 is removed. When a knock-out pad to be replaced is mounted, it is only necessary to perform the above-mentioned steps of operation in the reverse sequence.
As will be seen from the above description, the type-changing work at the time of changing can sizes in the can seamer in the prior art as shown in FIGS. 11 to 13 had a shortcoming that it necessitated a lot of time and labor because of the fact that a manually operated handle was used for rotating a seaming mechanism and at the time of replacement of seaming rolls also the top end of a seaming roll shaft had to be held by means of a hand tool.
In addition, mounting of a seaming lever and positioning in the vertical direction in the heretofore known can seamer as shown in FIGS. 11 to 13 relied upon the method of aligning a horizontal notch groove cut in a seaming roll shaft with a cam 35 provided on a seaming lever and fixing them by inserting the cam plate into the notch groove, and with such structure, it necessitates a lot of time to adjust a clearance in the vertical direction of the seaming roll shaft when can sizes are changed. Explaining the reasons, a seaming chuck is spinning at a high speed and also is making rotary movement at a high speed along a circumference as accompanied by seaming rolls, and so, if the clearance in the vertical direction of the seaming roll shaft should deviate from a predetermined tolerable value, baking would arise or unacceptable seaming caused by vibration would occur. Therefore, in a seaming process between a can and a can lid, the seaming chuck pressing the can lid and the seaming roll for carrying out seaming would necessitate a high precision in positioning. However, in the seaming lever mounting structure in the prior art, clearance adjustment involved problems such as requiring a lot of labor and time because each time the seaming lever must be extracted from the seaming roll shaft to replace or grind a shim.
Also, in the heretofore known apparatus shown in FIG. 14, since seaming chucks mountable to a single seamer are many, if it is intended to replace a knock-out pad, each time the top end 107a of a knock-out rod must be restrained by means of a spanner and the knock-out pad 109 must be disengaged by releasing the screw 108, and so, there was a problem that a lot of labor and time were necessitated for mounting and dismounting of the same pad.
It is therefore one object of the present invention to provide a can seamer, in which at the time of replacement of a seaming roll, positioning of a seaming roll shaft can be achieved automatically, and hence an efficiency of a replacement work for a seaming roll can be improved.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a can seamer, in which vertical alignment of a seaming lever and a seaming roll shaft for fitting can be adjusted in a simple manner.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a can seamer, in which replacement of a knock-out pad can be done in one-touch operation.
According to one feature of the present invention, there is provided a type-changing apparatus in a can seamer, in which a plurality of can seaming mechanisms are disposed at an equal pitch along a circumference that is equidistant from a vertical center axis, the same can seaming mechanism is provided with a can table for pushing up a bottom of a can while it is rotating, a seaming chuck for supporting a can lid from the above while rotating at the same speed in the same direction as the aforementioned can table, and a set of two seaming rolls swinging about a seaming roll shaft separate from the above-mentioned seaming chuck, and provision is made such that during the period when a can covered with a can lid fed at a proper timing by means of a conveyor is being transported along a circumference that is equidistant from the center axis while rotating about a vertical axis as gripped between the aforementioned can table and the above-described seaming chuck, the top edge of the can and the can lid are seamed by the aforementioned seaming roll and then carried out to the next step of process; improved in that the above-described type-changing apparatus comprises a control mechanism which can arbitrarily drive the same can seaming mechanisms one pitch by one pitch after it has detected a rotational angle of the seaming roll shaft and has stopped the can seaming mechanism at a predetermined position by controlling a drive motor, and an actuator mounted on a can seamer main body frame and capable of depressing the top end of the aforementioned seaming roll shaft at one of the can seaming mechanism stop positions.
According to another feature of the present invention, there is provided the above-featured type-changing apparatus in a can seamer, wherein a rotational angle detector for the seaming roll shaft consists of a disc rotating as interlocked with rotation of the seaming roll shaft, and an approach sensor for detecting a rotational angle of the same disc.
According to still another feature of the present invention, there is provided the first-featured type-changing apparatus in a can seamer, wherein a rotational angle detector for the seaming roll shaft is a fixed position sensor for detecting the top end of the seaming roll shaft.
According to a further feature of the present invention, there is provided a seaming roll mounting/dismounting mechanism in a can seamer, in which a plurality of can seaming mechanisms are disposed at an equal pitch along a circumference that is equidistant from a vertical center axis, the same can seaming mechanism is provided with a can table for pushing up a bottom of a can while it is rotating, a seaming chuck for supporting a can lid from the above while rotating at the same speed in the same direction as the aforementioned can table, and a set of two seaming rolls swinging about a seaming roll shaft separate from the above-mentioned seaming chuck, and provision is made such that during the period when a can covered with a can lid fed at a proper timing by means of a conveyor, is being transported along a circumference that is equidistant from the center axis while rotating about a vertical axis as gripped between the aforementioned can table and the above-described seaming chuck, the top edge of the can and the can lid are seamed by the aforementioned seaming roll and then carried out to the next step of process; improved in that the same mounting/dismounting mechanism comprises a seaming roll shaft having a tapered bore drilled towards a center axis of the shaft on a vertical plane portion formed at the lower portion of the shaft, a seaming lever holding the seaming rolls and externally fitting around the lower portion of the aforementioned shaft, a set shaft threadedly engaged with a threaded hole formed in the same lever, a cylindrical adjusting screw provided within a cylindrical space of the same set shaft, and a center pin penetrating through a cylindrical inner space of the same adjusting screw and constructed so as to be freely inserted and extracted, so that the vertical positioning of fitting between the seaming lever and the seaming roll shaft can be adjusted by a degree of fitting of the same center pin into the tapered bore.
According to a still further feature of the present invention, there is provided a knock-out pad mounting/dismounting mechanism in a can seamer, which includes a plurality of seaming mechanisms making rotational movement along a horizontal circumference and which performs seaming while making rotational movement; improved in that the aforementioned can seamer includes a knock-out rod, a knock-out pad that is detachably mounted to the same knock-out rod, and a braking mechanism for stopping rotation of the knock-out rod, at the bottom end of the same knock-out rod are formed an anti-rotational protrusion for the knock-out pad, a bore for inserting a headed shaft provided in the knock-out pad, and a step portion capable of supporting a pin provided on the headed shaft, on the other hand, in the knock-out pad are formed a headed shaft mounted in a vertically slidable manner, and a grooved portion for engaging with the pin mounted to the same headed shaft and the above-mentioned protrusion of the knock-out rod, so that by inserting the headed shaft of the above-mentioned knock-out pad into the bore of the knock-out rod and rotating the same shaft, the pin mounted to the same shaft is supported by the step portion formed in the knock-out rod, and the both members can be assembled.
In the can seamer according to the above-mentioned first feature of the present invention, at the time of type-changing work upon can size change, as a measure for rotating the seaming mechanisms, when the respective can seaming mechanisms have come to predetermined positions on the frame of the can seamer main body, a drive motor for the can seamer is stopped and thereby the seaming mechanisms are stopped by means of a control apparatus formed by combining a detector for detecting a rotational angular position of a rotary center axis (vertical axis), the drive motor of the can seamer and a manually operated switch for the same motor. Thereafter, if the above-mentioned manually operated switch is pressed, the seaming mechanisms would move by a distance corresponding to one pitch, and would stop again. In addition, at the predetermined positions on the frame of the aforementioned can seamer main body are mounted actuators, which would act to press the top end of the seaming roll shaft of the stopped seaming mechanisms and thereby facilitate the replacement work of the seaming rolls.
In the can seamer according to the above-mentioned fourth feature of the present invention, at the bottom portion of the seaming roll shaft is formed a plane portion by grinding flat a several teeth of splines (serrations) around which the seaming lever is externally fitted, and also a tapered bore is drilled at right angles to this plane. On the other hand, a threaded hole is formed in the seaming lever, and a set shaft containing therein a center pin having an adjustable projection length and having its tip end tapered similarly to the above-mentioned tapered bore, is threadedly engaged with the threaded hole. After the seaming lever has been fitted to the splines at the bottom of the seaming roll shaft, if this set shaft is screwed in to press the plane portion of the above-mentioned seaming roll shaft, when the seaming lever can be fixed to the seaming roll shaft. In addition, as the diameter of the center pin is made smaller than the inner diameter of the tapered bore, if the center pin is inserted or extracted with the taper on the underside of the center pin aligned with the underside of the tapered bore, the vertical position of fitting between the seaming lever and the seaming roll shaft can be adjusted. In other words, the clearances above and under the seaming roll shaft can be adjusted by positional adjustment of this seaming lever. Also, since the center pin is pressed by a compression spring contained in the center pin projection length adjusting screw within the above-mentioned set shaft, the seaming lever can be dismounted in a simple manner by extracting the center pin from the tapered bore in the seaming roll shaft by externally pulling the center pin.
In the can seamer according to the above-mentioned fifth feature of the present invention, a stepped through-hole is drilled in the shaft portion of the knock-out pad, a short cylindrical portion for centering and a horizontal groove for preventing rotation are provided at the top of the same shaft portion, a compression spring is inserted in the stepped through-hole, a headed shaft machined with a minus groove or a cross groove for engaging with a driver is pushed into the stepped through-hole of the knock-out pad so as to place the same compression spring therebetween to be biased by the compression spring, and a pin is inserted into a lateral hole in the projected headed shaft to retain the same. At the bottom of the knock-out rod is drilled a cylindrical bore concentric with the same rod, a ring-shaped groove is formed at a deep portion of the same bore, two vertical grooves are machined symmetrically in parallel to the center line of the bore from the entrance of the cylindrical bore up to the ring-shaped groove, on the lower surface of the ring-shaped groove is formed a semicircular groove at a position at right angles to the positions of the aforementioned vertical grooves, and at the bottom surface of the knock-out rod are formed a step for centering with the knock-out pad and an anti-rotational horizontal protrusion. The top end of the shaft of the knock-out pad is joined with the bottom end of the knock-out rod, the headed shaft contained in the knock-out pad is pushed into the knock-out rod so that the pin mounted at the tip of the same shaft may be guided along the vertical grooves of the knock-out rod, and when the above-mentioned pin has reached the ring-shaped groove in the knock-out rod, if the headed shaft is rotated by 90.degree. and the headed shaft is released at the position where the pin has aligned with the semi-circular groove of the ring-shaped groove, then mounting of the knock-out pad is finished.
In order to prevent the knock-out rod from rotating at the time of replacement of the knock-out pad, a disc is mounted to the top of the knock-out rod, an actuator such as a pneumatic actuator or the like acting downwards is mounted to the frame of the seamer main body at an appropriate position on the circumference depicted by a point on an upper extension of the center axis of the knock-out rod, and a braking pad is mounted to the tip end of the action rod of the actuator. Upon replacement of a knock-out pad, the seamer is operated in such manner that a turret having the seaming mechanisms mounted thereon may be rotated one pitch by one pitch and knock-out rods may successively come right under the actuator and then may stop, and when the seamer has stopped, the actuator is operated to press the disc at the top of the knock-out rod with the pad mounted at the tip of the action rod to brake the disc, and the knock-out pad is removed by turning the headed shaft from the underside of the knock-out pad by means of a driver. Subsequently, while the knock-out rod is kept braked by the actuator, a new knock-out pad to be replaced is inserted into the knock-out rod and turned, and thereby replacement is completed.
According to the first to third aspects of the present invention, in a type-changing work of a can seamer, since a seaming roll shaft can be automatically constrained by means of an actuator, remarkable advantages that as compared to the can seamer in the prior art in which the seamer was rotated by a manually operated handle and the seaming roll shaft was constrained by means of a hand tool, labor and time can be greatly reduced, are obtained.
According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, in a type-changing work of a can seamer, since setting of a gap clearance in the vertical direction of a seaming roll shaft can be achieved easily by merely adjusting a fitting condition between a tapered bore formed in a seaming roll shaft and a center pin provided in a seaming lever even in the case where dimensions are varied delicately due to temperature variations, remarkable advantages that labor and time necessitated for adjustment of the gap clearance can be saved, are obtained.
According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since replacement of a knock-out pad accompanying change of can sizes can be carried out by a one-touch operation in a can seamer, remarkable advantages that it is possible to spare labor and time even in a multiple can seamer.
The above-mentioned and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent by reference to the following description of preferred embodiments of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.


A method of testing an electronic tag includes: embedding the electronic tag within an elongate carrier strip composed of a material having material properties simulating an end product material within which the tag resides embedded during end product use; positioning the embedded tag substantially within the carrier strip at a mid-portion between opposite end portions of the strip; positioning the mid-portion of the strip and the embedded tag over at least one curved support surface; engaging the end portions of the strip; and positioning a reader in a position operative to receive information from the electronic tag during a testing transmission sequence; reciprocally moving the strip mid-portion in a forward direction and a reverse direction over the curved support surface; and rendering the reader operational to receive information transmitted from the electronic tag as the strip mid-portion reciprocally moves in the forward and reverse directions.

It is desirable to mechanically ensure that different RFID tag designs perform as intended and are durable when subjected to stresses and strains attendant use of the tags in a product environment. Such RFID tags are commonly embedded within a particular carrier material or medium when used in conjunction with various products. An economical and reliable testing procedure and method is accordingly desired to ensure the durability of embedded RFID tags for their intended purpose.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


A variable displacement vane pump includes: an adapter ring (a cam ring housing member) that defines a first fluid pressure chamber and a second fluid pressure chamber relative to an outer periphery of a cam ring, the cam ring being moved relative to a rotor by a differential pressure between the first fluid pressure chamber and the second fluid pressure chamber; a seal housing groove formed in an inner periphery of the adapter ring; and a slipper seal which is inserted into the seal housing groove and with which an outer periphery of the cam ring comes into sliding contact when the cam ring moves, whereby the slipper seal partitions the first fluid pressure chamber from the second fluid pressure chamber, wherein the slipper seal is formed in a thin plate shape having a square cross-section.

In a variable displacement vane pump, a cam ring swings using a pin as a fulcrum so as to vary an amount of eccentricity of the cam ring relative to a rotor, and as a result, a discharge volume of a working fluid is varied.
In a variable displacement vane pump disclosed in JP2005-337146A, first and second fluid pressure chambers are provided on an outer periphery of a cam ring, and the cam ring swings in accordance with a differential pressure between the first and second fluid pressure chambers.
A seal housing groove opposing the outer periphery of the cam ring is formed in an adapter ring that houses the cam ring, and a seal member is inserted into the seal housing groove. The seal member partitions the first and second fluid pressure chambers by coming into sliding contact with the outer periphery of the cam ring.
This type of seal member is constituted by a resin slipper seal that comes into sliding contact with the outer periphery of the cam ring, and a rubber elastic member that presses the slipper seal against the outer periphery of the cam ring.
Space is limited inside the variable displacement vane pump, and therefore the size of an opening cross-section (a groove depth) of the seal housing groove formed in the adapter ring is limited. Hence, the slipper seal is formed in a flat, thin plate shape having a rectangular cross-section so that space for inserting the elastic member is secured in the seal housing groove behind the slipper seal.


An optical device and a display are disclosed that include an illumination source which provides unpolarized light. An array of polarizing plates have an entrance surface, which receives the unpolarized light at an oblique angle, and an exit surface which provides a polarized light having a first polarization and exiting the array at a substantially perpendicular direction to the exit surface. A light valve selectively rotates the polarized light to form an image forming light, and an imaging lens receives the image forming light and forms an image. Each of the polarizing plates in the array has opposing surfaces that are tilted relative to its entrance and exit surfaces. Each polarizing plate includes a polarizing layer formed on one of the opposing tilted surfaces, and a half-wave optical retardation layer formed on the polarizing layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to an optical system for illuminating and imaging a reflective light valve, and more particularly, to systems having compact, lightweight, and efficient frontlighting for polarization-based reflective light valves and backlighting for transmissive light valves used, for example, in miniature displays.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
Typically, conventional miniature displays, such as head mounted displays (HMDs), are based on miniature cathode ray tube (CRT) or transmission-based liquid crystal light valve technology. The CRT-based systems are bulky, expensive, and heavy, and primarily used for military helmet-mounted applications. This technology is not suitable for lightweight, compact personal displays.
Transmission-based liquid crystal (LC) technology is the preferred technology for these portable miniature displays today. Although appropriate for the low resolution displays currently available, such as 640.times.480 pixels, this transmission-based LC technology is not adequate for high resolution miniature portable displays.
A transmission technology based display requires a clear aperture for transmission of light through the display. A transparent substrate is also required which incorporates all the display driving circuitry (such as active matrix circuitry). Typically, the driving circuitry uses amorphous silicon on glass technology or poly-silicon on quartz technology. The requirements of transparent substrate, clear aperture, and display control circuitry limit the minimum size of the display panel, thus preventing further display size reductions. To achieve smaller size display panels, reflective liquid crystal (LC) light valves are used.
Reflective liquid crystal light valves do not have the size limitation of transmission-based LC light valves. For reflective LC light valves, using crystalline silicon CMOS technology, the active matrix driving circuitry can be fabricated on 10 micron pixel dimensions or smaller. Furthermore, by using reflection liquid crystal devices, the requirement for a clear aperture in the display panel, needed for transmissive LC devices, is dispensed with. Instead, the reflective device incorporates a mirror array that is fabricated over the underlying CMOS circuitry. In this case, the entire surface of the device is available for display aperture. Thus, the pixel size is only limited by the CMOS technology required to fabricate the drive circuitry, which today is less than 10 microns per pixel. The functioning reflective display panel is completed when the liquid crystal and top glass are assembled over the mirror array. Thus, miniature high resolution displays can be fabricated using silicon-based reflection liquid crystal devices. However, reflection-based light valves, such as liquid crystal (LC) spatial light modulators (SLMs) have complex illumination requirements. In the reflection mode, the SLM must be illuminated and imaged from the same side. A simple backlight structure typically used in transmission-based displays is not directly applicable for reflective SLMs.
The illumination system provides normal incident illumination onto the SLM. This requirement causes the illumination system for both reflective and transmissive SLMs to increase the size and thickness of the display. Accordingly, there is a need for an SLM illumination system that is compact, yet highly efficient.

Highly efficient and compact frontlighting for polarization-based reflection light valves

International Business Machines Corporation


A resonance circuit includes a capacitor, a coil element and a primary coil of a transformer. A connection between the resonance circuit and a vehicle-mounted battery is connected and disconnected by a switching transistor at a predetermined duty cycle. Output voltage of a secondary coil of the transformer is supplied to an exciting winding of a resolver.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a resolver exciter for providing alternating current power to an exciting winding of a resolver.
2. Description of Related Art
A resolver, which includes a stationary exciting winding and a rotating output winding, produces an output voltage in accordance with an angle of rotation of its output winding. The resolver is commonly used in various control devices for detecting angle of rotation.
Normally, a 7 KHz alternating current signal of about 20-30 V must be provided to the exciting winding to drive the resolver. Conventional resolver exciters include a sine wave oscillator, which uses operational amplifiers and the like, and a line driver circuit for amplifying the resulting sine wave oscillating signal and for providing the amplified signal to the exciting winding.
Moreover, when the resolver exciter is to be installed in a vehicle, there is a need to provide a DC/DC converter for boosting the rated voltage (approximately 12 V) of a vehicle-mounted battery to the necessary voltage level.
Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 3, U.S. Pat. No. 5,304,909 discloses a resolver exciter which includes a sine wave oscillator IC 71, a low-pass filter 72 for filtering the oscillating signal of the IC 71 and a push-pull type line driver circuit 73 for amplifying the filtered signal and for providing the amplified signal to the exciting winding of the resolver.
However, one problem with the above-described conventional resolver exciters is with regards to their costs because they need relatively complicated sine wave oscillators and line driver circuits.
While the device disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,304,909 has a reduced size and a simple circuit construction because of its use of the sine wave oscillating IC, reduction in costs is minimal because this device needs a line driver circuit and a power source for driving the same line driver circuit.

Resolver exciter having a simple power source unit


A video image feature generation system includes a processor; and a memory which stores a plurality of instructions, which when executed by the processor, cause the processor to execute, extracting a frame feature value featuring a frame, which is a unit of an input video image, based on a pixel value of the frame; and generating a phase of each frequency as a video image feature based on at least two frequencies, the frame feature value obtained in the extracting, and generation information for generating phases of the frequencies according to the frequencies and the frame feature value.

There is a posting site that allows anybody to view a posted video image at any time. There is a possibility that a video image is illegally posted. For example, posting of a copy of a TV program, a movie, or the like infringes a copyright. In recent years, a huge number of video images have been posted on sites. In such a situation, it is very difficult to determine whether posted video images are legal or illegal by visually checking the video images or performing a search using keywords. Thus, there is a desire for a technique that allows it to efficiently evaluate identity of video images or similarity between video images.
A technique to determine whether video images are identical is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2011-118498. In this technique, relative luminance is calculated for various sub-areas of a video image, and a result is represented by one of three values, −1, 0, and 1 as a feature value for each video image. The calculated feature values are compared between video images to determine whether the video images are identical. More specifically, when the comparison indicates similarity higher than a threshold value, the video images are determined to be identical. In a technique disclosed, for example, in Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2009-3889 or Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2001-109494, the comparison is performed using a phase of a frequency.

Video image feature generation system and video image feature generation method


According to a preferred aspect of the instant invention, there is provided a system and method that allows the user to automatically utilize the embedded location data of digital image files in the production of a multimedia work. The system allows the user to select a transition from among a plurality of provided transitions, wherein the embedded location data of a selected digital image file is then used to adapt the selected transition to a location-based transition, which is then subsequently inserted into the multimedia work.

In recent years digital photo devices have begun a technological revolution that will carry forward for many years to come. One recent trend is the incorporation of GPS capable receivers into the photo devices. GPS chip sets that are onboard the camera make it possible for these devices to automatically embed location data into the metadata of images. Online photo and other websites have quickly adapted to utilize this location information and have made it possible to generate interactive photomaps that display the locations where each photo was taken.
However, the multimedia editing software that is used by most users does not utilize the embedded location data in the editing process. In some cases, the user might be able to access and display (e.g., on a map) the embedded location data, but little use is otherwise made of this information.
Thus, what is needed is a system and method that allows a user to utilize the embedded data in his or her digital photos when editing and creating a multimedia work. The system and method will provide the user with an efficient, simple and quick way to utilize the embedded location data to generate location based transitions between individual digital photo images.
Heretofore, as is well known in the media editing industry, there has been a need for an invention to address and solve the above-described problems. Accordingly it should now be recognized, as was recognized by the present inventors, that there exists, and has existed for some time, a very real need for a system and method that would address and solve the above-described problems.
Before proceeding to a description of the present invention, however, it should be noted and remembered that the description of the invention which follows, together with the accompanying drawings, should not be construed as limiting the invention to the examples (or preferred embodiments) shown and described. This is so because those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains will be able to devise other forms of the invention within the ambit of the appended claims.

System and method for utilizing geo location data for the generation of location-based transitions in a multimedia work


A vehicle safety belt pre-tensioning system includes a slider to which a cable is attached. The slider is affixed to a safety belt buckle and to a cable for pulling the buckle forcibly downward to secure a seat occupant upon occurrence of an emergency condition. The cable is arranged parallel to a guide groove of a guide plate and is guide into a sensor mechanism via a roller. The other end of the cable is affixed to a piston. A portion of the cable is fixed in a tube which is arranged in the sensor mechanism. The sensor mechanism activates a trigger upon detecting an emergency condition. Between the sensor mechanism and the piston, a coil spring is held in a compressed state. Within the sensor mechanism, the tube is retained by a pawl which also contacts a link which is positioned proximate a pin, or trigger, associated with a sensor mass. When vehicle motion indicatives an emergency condition, the sensor mass moves so as to cause the pin to break the link. Thus, the pawl moves so as to release the tube. When the tube is released the piston is moved away from the sensor mechanism by the sudden expansion of the compressed coil spring. This pulls the cable, causing the slider and buckle to be pulled rapidly downward, tightening a safety belt attached to the buckle for securing the seat occupant. The assembly is attached to a side of an upper rail of a seat mounting.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a safety belt for automotive vehicles. Particularly, the present invention relates to a vehicle safety belt and buckle with emergency retraction capability.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In modern automotive technologies, emergency lock safety belt arrangements have been developed in various constructions. Emergency lock safety belt arrangements generally operate to lock a safety belt for preventing extraction of the belt in response to an extraordinary magnitude of deceleration which can be caused upon vehicle collision. Such a so-called, passive safety belt arrangement is generally successful in protecting a seat occupant from colliding into vehicular structural components during collision impact.
On the other hand, these arrangements tend to tightly restrict a seat occupant onto the seat even when no emergency condition exists. This may lead to discomfort and restricted freedom of movement of the seat occupant and may degrade riding enjoyment or, through discomfort, lead a vehicle occupant to neglect to use the safety belt entirely.
In order to address this situation, some modern safety belt arrangements are provided with a tension reducing capability to permit locking the safety belt at a position extracted in length to slightly more than that required for firmly restricting the seat occupant. This so-called active safety belt arrangement reduces tightness of the belt under normal driving conditions and improves riding comfort. For establishing an emergency lock function, a belt retractor is normally employed. The emergency lock safety belt retractor is sensitive to an inertial moment exerted on the vehicular body to establish locking of the safety belt when a length of the inertial moment exceeds a predetermined time. Some emergency lock safety belt retractors also employ a webbing sensor, which senses an extraction speed of the safety belt, to establish locking when the belt extraction speed is extraordinary high. With such an arrangement, locking is necessarily established after extraction of a certain length of belt.
As such arrangements allow a greater degree of slack, a certain magnitude of movement is available to the seat occupant. Particularly when the safety belt arrangement employs the aforementioned reduced tension arrangement, a magnitude of movement allowed the seat occupant in response to extraordinary deceleration becomes greater. As can be appreciated, upon vehicular collison, it is preferred to restrict the seat occupant to the seat as firmly as possible. Therefore, advanced safety belt systems utilize such types of arrangements in combination with a pre-loader which forcingly retracts the belt for firmly restricting the seat occupant with increased tension upon collision, or with an air bag system which forms an air cushion for preventing the seat occupant from colliding with vehicular structural components located in front of the seat. One example of such a pre-loader mechanism is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application First Publication (Unexamined) Showa 57-128169, for example.
Such additional equipment of course necessitates added production costs. In order to avoid these, there has been proposed mechanical buckle pretensioners which draw a safety belt buckle in a tensioning direction to provide additional tension for the belt. Such types of mechanical buckle pre-tensioners have been disclosed in Japanese Patent Application First (unexamined) Publications Nos. 61-241234 and 62-289451, for example. The mechanical buckle pre-tensioner employs a trigger mechanism for causing pre-tensioning operation in response to collision shock. However, the trigger mechanism is relatively bulky. Since the trigger mechanism needs to be associated with the safety belt buckle, it must be positioned proximate the buckle. Due to the bulky nature of the mechanism, this causes interference with the positioning of vehicle structural components, such as a console box, and so forth. Furthermore, since modern vehicle seats usually employ a reclining mechanism for adjusting a seat angular position, in addition to the safety belt mechanism, the structural assembly around the seats become complicated and difficult to install, increasing the space and expense required as well as the weight of the vehicle.

Safety belt system with emergency retraction capability


Pump apparatus and method. The pump can include a valve assembly and a diaphragm. In some embodiments, the diaphragm can include a convolute that can deform in order to increase a volume of a pumping chamber to provide an internal fluid bypass when a pressure in the pumping chamber exceeds a bypass pressure. In some embodiments, the pump can include a fluid reservoir at least partially defined by a wall with a flow-restrictive conduit in fluid communication with an outlet chamber. A shut-off switch can include an actuator in fluid communication with the fluid reservoir. The fluid reservoir and the flow-restrictive conduit can substantially isolate the shut-off switch from pressure pulses in the outlet chamber.

Wobble plate pumps typically include pistons that move in a reciprocating manner within corresponding pumping chambers. The pistons are generally coupled to a wobble plate and are reciprocated by a cam that is rotated by a motor or other driving device. The reciprocating movement of the pistons pumps fluid from a fluid inlet to a fluid outlet of the pump. The pistons of the pump are often coupled to a diaphragm that is positioned between the wobble plate and the pump chambers. In some such pumps, each one of the pistons is an individual component separate from the diaphragm, requiring numerous components to be manufactured and assembled. A convolute is sometimes employed to connect each piston to the diaphragm, so that the pistons can reciprocate and move with respect to the remainder of the diaphragm.
Some conventional pumps (including wobble plate pumps) have a bypass port which allows for fluid entering the pump to bypass the pumping chambers when the pressure at the outlet side of the pump is high. This helps to reduce the "water hammering" noise that occurs when a downstream valve is limiting the flow rate but the pump is still trying to push water at its nominal flow rate. However, the bypass of fluid comes at the expense of pump efficiency. It also requires the design and manufacture of a separate fluid path.
Many conventional pumps include a controller or switch for controlling the on-off state of the pump, especially for shutting off the pump in response to increased pressure (i.e., a shut-off pressure). For example, an actuator of a mechanical switch is typically positioned in physical communication with the fluid in the pump. When the pressure of the fluid exceeds the shut-off pressure, the force of the fluid moves the actuator to open the pump's power circuit to turn off the pump.
Mechanical pressure switches may be susceptible to breakdown due to overuse. For example, during repeated opening and closing of the pump's power circuit, arcing and scorching often occurs between the contacts of the switch. Due to this arcing and scorching, an oxidation layer forms over the contacts of the switch, and the switch will eventually be unable to close the pump's power circuit. Repeated switching may occur because mechanical pressure switches may react to pressure pulses within the pump. For example, if a wobble plate pump has three chambers, each rotation of the motor will cause three pressure pulses or pumping strokes. If the pressure switch reacts to a pressure pulse rather than the net operating fluid pressure at the outlet, unnecessary cycling will occur. Complex circuits and/or programming have been used in some applications to determine the net pressure and avoid unnecessary cycling, but this solution is often too complex and costly. Repeated cycling results in louder operation with the motor being energized and de-energized frequently. This is particularly undesirable in a non-industrial application, such as a pump in a recreational vehicle or in a home.


A multi-purpose toothbrush for promoting oral hygiene includes an elongated shaft having a brushing section that includes a plurality of bristles extending radially outwardly therefrom. The brushing section is coated with a predetermined quantity of a tooth-cleaning agent that is activatable via water. The shaft further includes an accessory dispensing section integral with a gripping section and oppositely spaced from the brushing section for providing dental floss and mouthwash. A plurality of protective wrappers are removably positioned about the toothbrush for maintaining same in a substantially sanitary condition during non-use conditions.

1. Technical Field
This invention relates to an oral care device and, more particularly, to a disposable oral care device.
2. Prior Art
It is well known that a proper care of teeth and mouth hygiene requires the brushing of the teeth after every meal. This rule is of course not practiced by most persons who go to school or to work, so are obliged to neglect such care after a lunch away from home. It is also well known that proper oral hygiene is a necessary component of good health.
However, while most people have ample supplies available at home to maintain proper oral hygiene, they find it inconvenient to transport these items while away from home for short periods. Sometimes, people traveling about forget to pack their toothbrush, floss, or mouthwash. Other times, people find themselves in positions where a dose of oral hygiene could work miracles, but have no means to accomplish this.
Thus, people tend to practice less-than-optimal oral hygiene while at work, in school, or on short trips. It is also well known that without proper dental hygiene, one risks contracting gum disease and a number of tooth ailments relating to oral hygiene.
Prior attempts to remedy this problem have resulted in designs so intricate and complicated that the production cost tended to be more than what one would wish to pay for one of these devices.
Accordingly, a need remains for a disposable oral care device that overcomes the above noted shortcomings.


An optical monitoring unit includes a transmitting unit having plural light emitting diodes that are connected together two at a time in respective diode pairs. Each diode of each diode pair is respectively selectively connectable to a current source so as to operate as an active transmitting diode, or to a load resistor across which a voltage may be measured so as to operate as a monitoring diode. When any selected single diode is operated as the transmitting diode, its light output is measured and evaluated by operating the other diode of the pair as the monitoring diode, which receives optical crosstalk from the light output of the transmitting diode and correspondingly generates a photoelectric current through the load resistor.

The invention relates to a method and a circuit arrangement for receiving and evaluating the light output of a light emitting diode of an optical monitoring unit.
Optical monitoring units which operate on the reflection principle and which include a transmitting unit for transmitting light to an object and a physically remote receiving unit for receiving the light reflected from the object, are known, for instance from DE 196 20 147, DE 197 04 793, EP 0 312 788 A2 or EP 0 112 498 A2, and are used for a variety of applications such as, for example, measurement of visibility range, optical seat occupation detection in motor vehicles, reflected light barriers and the like. The light output to be transmitted is determined by means of the diode current and stabilized through a control loop for keeping the diode current constant. The actual light output of the transmitting diodes depends, however, not only on their diode current but also on other influencing quantities, especially degradation and manufacturing tolerances. The light output is important for optical monitoring units because the if, light components reflected from the object must be noticeably emphasized relative to the unavoidable interference light, especially ambient light. To some extent also, a certain proportion of the emitted light is used to assess other quantities, for instance the distance of the object or the contamination in the beam path, for instance on a translucent cover. Even if a component of light reflected from a translucent cover within a housing of the monitoring unit as the result of contamination is guided back to the receiving unit, as proposed in DE 197 04 793, it is quite possible that this light component, which is interpreted there as a contamination signal, might not be influenced by a fluctuating transmitted light output. The light reflected from the object to be monitored is also not suitable for the purposes of detection of light output variations, because the object range to be monitored can change.
Light output measurement involving additional measuring arrangements with further light-sensitive components cannot be considered for cost reasons.
It is an object of the invention to avoid or overcome the above problems of the prior art. According to the invention, a simple method is specified for detecting the light output of a light emitting diode without using additional light-sensitive components. Furthermore, a circuit arrangement for. performing the method according to the invention is extremely simple and permits, in particular, the integration of the transmitting diodes together with this circuit arrangement on a semiconductor substrate. Finally, two particularly preferred possible applications of the method according to the invention are presented.
The invention is based on the known property of all light-emitting diodes that when the polarity is reversed the diodes are light-sensitive at least to a small extent and at least for a specific wavelength range, and generate a photoelectric current or a photoelectric voltage across a resistor. Initially, each light-emitting diode emits light in the forward direction if the voltage is sufficiently high. In this form, diodes are generally used as transmitting diodes and are optimized according to this function in terms of material selection and design. Under appropriately intensive light influence of suitable wavelength being received by the diode, however, every light-emitting diode also generates a photoelectric current flowing in the reverse direction. Apart from light-emitting diodes, components with a physically comparable function, laser diodes for example, can transmit active optical fields or the like. In the article by Mr. Mathias Handwerker in Funkschau 20/1984, p. 83 ff., a reflected light barrier is described, for example, in which two LEDs are used in a housing where one of these LEDs serves as a receiver for the light reflected outside. Reference is made here already to the relatively high photoelectric voltage that can be achieved with certain LEDs and is comparable with photodiodes. Crosstalk of the light to be transmitted automatically occurs here onto the receiver; this is suppressed by appropriate circuit devices.
It is precisely this optical crosstalk between diodes however, that can be utilized in order to detect the light output of a given diode in an optical monitoring unit with a plurality of transmitting diodes in a transmitter unit. For detecting the light power, only one of the diodes is operated as a transmitting diode to emit light at any one time, while at least one other diode is connected. as a receiver to receive the light component reflected inside the transmitting units, which is recorded as a signal that is proportional to the light output. The light output is derived from this.
With all light-emitting diodes, it is possible to detect the light output with at least sufficient accuracy to decide whether light is still being emitted at all, because the crosstalk is relatively powerful compared with influences due to ambient stray light. Precisely because of this direct coupling, the intensity of the reflected light component also can be distinguished for a wide range of light power with the simplest of circuit devices. This form of measurement is in any case considerably more accurate and reliable than derivation from the current flow.
Naturally, it is only important for measuring the light output that only one of the transmitting diodes transmits in order to void influences from the other diodes on the receiver. However, it is sufficient to perform measurement of the light output at certain intervals, and in normal operation all transmitting diodes can be operated as such, also at the same time where applicable.
It is particularly preferable to use the diode immediately adjacent to the transmitting diode as the receiver because the optical crosstalk is particularly high here, and also because no allowance need be made for the distance between the active transmitting diode and the adjacent diode used as the receiver. For this method, a particularly preferred circuit arrangement results, in which two transmitting diodes at a time are connected together in pairs.

Method and circuit arrangement for measuring the light output of an emitter diode of an optical monitoring unit


Composition, which includes a dye that changes color when contacted with a suitable amount of an organic substance, in conjunction with a matrix, paste, support or web, can indicate visually or photometrically the presence of the organic substance. An organic spill absorbing material may be present. For instance, the dye may be selected from the class of anthracene, azo, anthraquinone, pyrazolone, and quinone dyes, and be hydrophobic and organic oleophilic. For an example, the dye may be Oil Red “A.” The matrix, paste, support or web may include a microfiber cloth, which may be coated with an adhesive for attachment of the dye, and/or include a water-dissolving paper which may envelope the dye. A device for ascertaining whether an organic substance is present includes the dye or composition with the dye at a certain locale, and a light-transmissive pathway in communication with the location and a detection site external the location. A spectral instrument may be included for the detection, and a remote monitor site may be in communication with the instrument. Various organic substances can be detected, to include oils and gasoline.

There exist many sorption type materials used as wipes, pick up devices for organic spills such as' imbibing polymer bead filled booms, discs and pillows, and so forth, which are used on land and water and underwater installations as well as in portable units in transport including safe shipping containers, on board boats, planes, cars, trucks, and so forth. Many hazardous materials are used which have inhalation, ingestion, and/or body surface contact properties detrimental to people and their safety as well as desirable animal and plant life, and the environment in general, and many of these are organic in nature.
It is unfortunate, however, that, aside from self-indicating materials such as, for example, darkly colored crude oil and dyed fuels, a relatively unmistakable and easy to identify visual indication is unavailable to help one ascertain as to whether or not an organic contaminant may be undesirably present. What is lacking and needed, therefore, is a simple, easy to identify visual type indication that a spill or other release of a contaminating organic substance has taken place or overwhelmed a protective sorbent barrier that has been used as a preventive or prophylactic material or device for containing the contaminant.


The present invention provides a polyarylene sulfide resin composition which shows high dielectric constant and low dielectric dissipation factor, has excellent moldability, and has improved corrosive property to metal parts. More specifically, to 100 parts by weight of (A) polyarylene sulfide resin, compounded are 10 to 400 parts by weight of (B) an alkaline earth metal titanate showing 50 or higher relative dielectric constant and 0.05 or lower dielectric dissipation factor at 1 MHz, and containing less than 500 ppm of metal ion which is extracted by hot water; and 0.01 to 15 parts by weight of (C) one or more compound selected from hydroxides and oxides of alkaline earth metals.

Since polyarylene sulfide (hereinafter, it may be abbreviated as PAS) resin represented by polyphenylene sulfide (hereinafter, it may be abbreviated as PPS) resin has high heat-resistant properties, mechanical physical properties, chemical-resistant properties, dimensional stability and flame-resistant properties, it is widely used for part materials of electric and electronic devices. Meanwhile, recently, technologies have accomplished significant development in information and communication fields such as cellular phone or wireless LAN, or ITS technologies such as GPS, VICS or ETC. In accordance with this, there increases needs for electronic parts for high frequency waves with high performance that can be applied in high frequency wave regions such as microwave and extremely-high frequency wave. Materials constituting these electronic parts are required to have appropriate dielectric properties answering to respective designs.
Thermoplastic resins including the PAS resin are widely used for injection molding applications, and, since they have high moldability to make it easy to form parts having a relatively complex shape, they have such superiority that the degree of freedom in design becomes dramatically high, which has been restricted in the case of metal, thermo-setting resin and ceramic having conventionally been used as a material of electronic parts for high frequency wave. In addition, it is possible to say that they have advantages also from an environmental standpoint such as recycle properties.
On the basis of such background, there are proposed various kinds of high dielectric constant resin compositions of specific properties including PAS resin as a matrix (JP-A 3-281574, JP-A 8-41247, JP-A 2005-93096 and JP-A 2005-94068). According to these techniques, although a PAS resin composition having high relative dielectric constant can be obtained, the resin composition described in JP-A 3-281574 has a relatively high dielectric dissipation factor, and resin compositions described in JP-A 8-41247, JP-A 2005-93096 or JP-A 2005-94068 have high melt viscosity, therefore, it can not necessarily be said that they are suitable for injection molding application. In addition, no measures are taken to the generation of corrosive gas caused by the decomposition of the PAS resin when the resin composition is molten and kneaded.


A fire stop for use with a light fixture in a suspended ceiling or wall. It prevents flames and smoke from passing through the light fixture and spreading throughout a building by moving above the ceiling or behind the walls. The fire stop has a lightweight enclosure that defines an interior space disposed above the suspended ceiling, or behind the wall. Contained within the interior space are a portion of the light fixture and a layer of intumescent material. The intumescent material forms a material with a relatively low thermal conductivity that substantially fills the interior space, impeding the movement of flames or smoke, when the intumescent material reaches at least a pre-determined activation temperature.

Recessed lighting fixtures are disposed within a hole or trough cut into a wall or suspended ceiling. In particular, a "can" housing a light bulb is disposed within the hole or trough and the wiring is above the ceiling or behind the wall. The can has trim that covers the hole if the hole's diameter is larger than the can's.
Fires often spread through a building by passing through the light fixture or a portion of the hole and then moving through the space above the ceiling or behind the wall. The recessed light fixture itself provides little resistance to a spreading fire because it is often made from materials that conduct heat and the trim does not adequately seal the opening in the ceiling.
There are structures that attempt to prevent the fire from passing into the space above the ceiling. Such structures include a box usually made of a relatively heavy and bulky, thermally insulating material, such as compressed mineral wool or plaster board sheet rock


A vehicle behavior control apparatus includes: a pair of underbody airbags that is provided in a lower portion of a vehicle on both sides in a vehicle width direction, and is inflated and deployed toward a road surface when being supplied with gas.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle behavior control apparatus.
2. Description of Related Art
A technique has been known in which a body airbag is provided in each of right and left side members in a manner to be operable independently and the body airbag on a collision side is operated when an offset collision is predicted (see Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2001-058552 (JP 2001-058552 A), for example).
Here, if a behavior of a vehicle can be controlled in accordance with a mode of a collision during a collision or before a collision of the vehicle, it contributes to improvement in collision safety performance of the vehicle.


The present disclosure relates to a novel family of dicationic bis-hydrazone compounds that may be used as direct dyes, and to a dye composition for dyeing keratin fibers, for example, human keratin fibers such as the hair, comprising, in a suitable dyeing medium, at least one such compound. Also disclosed are dyeing processes implementing this composition and uses thereof.

It is known practice to dye keratin fibers, such as human hair, with dye compositions containing oxidation dye precursors, which are generally known as oxidation bases, such as ortho- or para-phenylenediamines, ortho- or para-aminophenols and heterocyclic compounds. These oxidation bases are colorless or weakly colored compounds, which, when combined with oxidizing products, may give rise to colored compounds by a process of oxidative condensation.
It is also known that the shades obtained with these oxidation bases may be varied by combining them with couplers or coloration modifiers, the latter being chosen, for instance, from aromatic meta-diamines, meta-aminophenols, meta-diphenols and certain heterocyclic compounds such as indole compounds.
The variety of molecules used as oxidation bases and couplers allows a rich palette of colors to be obtained.
The process of oxidation dyeing comprises applying to the keratin fibers oxidation bases or a mixture of oxidation bases and of couplers with an oxidizing agent, for example aqueous hydrogen peroxide solution, leaving the mixture to act and then rinsing the fibers. The colorations resulting therefrom are typically permanent, strong and resistant to external agents, such as to light, bad weather, washing, perspiration and/or rubbing. The compositions, which are generally applied at basic pH, allow dyeing and simultaneous lightening of the fiber to be obtained, which is reflected in practice by the possibility of obtaining a final coloration that is lighter than the original color. In addition, lightening of the fiber has the advantageous effect of generating a unified color in the case of grey hair, and, in the case of naturally pigmented hair, of bringing out the color, i.e., of making it more visible.
It is also known practice to dye keratin fibers by direct dyeing. The process conventionally used in direct dyeing comprises applying to the keratin fibers direct dyes, which are colored and coloring molecules that have affinity for the fibers, leaving the dyes to act and then rinsing the fibers.
It is known practice, for example, to use direct dyes of the nitrobenzene, anthraquinone or nitropyridine type, dyes of the azo, xanthene, acridine or azine type or triarylmethane dyes, for example.
The colorations resulting therefrom are colorations that are particularly chromatic, but which are, however, temporary or semi-permanent. Specifically, the nature of the interactions that bind the direct dyes to the keratin fiber, and their desorption from the surface and/or from the core of the fiber, are such that the dyeing power and the wash-fastness or perspiration-fastness of the colorations may still be considered insufficient. Certain direct dyes may also be light-sensitive due to the low resistance of the chromophore to photochemical attack, and may lead to fading of the coloration of the hair over time.
It is known practice to use direct dyes in combination with oxidizing agents. However, direct dyes may be sensitive to the action of oxidizing agents such as aqueous hydrogen peroxide solution, and reducing agents such as sodium bisulfite, which makes them generally difficult to use under these conditions.
There is thus a real need to find chromatic direct dyes which can dye keratin fibers just as strongly as oxidation dyes, which are just as stable as oxidation dyes to light, which are also resistant to bad weather, washing and perspiration, and/or which are also sufficiently stable in the presence of oxidizing agents and reducing agents to be able to simultaneously obtain lightening of the fiber either by using lightening direct compositions containing them, or by using oxidation dye compositions containing them. There is also a real need to find direct dyes which can dye keratin fibers to obtain a very wide range of colors, in particular very chromatic colors, without forgetting the "fundamental" shades such as blacks and browns and shades with glints.

Dicationic bis-hydrazone compound, dye composition comprising at least one such compound, implementation process therefor and uses thereof


A directed multiport jetting nozzle in an eductor having a focal point of the motive fluid inside the throat of a venturi-diffuser body of the present eductor provides an efficient pump and mixer providing substantial surface contact area between the motive flow and the bulk material for movement through the outlet of the eductor. The result of this design provides a homogeneous mixture of the motive fluid and the bulk material which may be hydrating or wetting, or the creation of a slurry.

The present invention relates to a fluid jetting device; specifically, to a multiport nozzle directing a motive flow into the throat of a venturi-diffuser thus permitting homogeneous mixing, shearing or wetting of a bulk fluidal material with the motive flow to an outlet of the diffuser.
Eductor arrangements have long been used to provide pumping, mixing, blending, hydrating and shearing in a wide variety of industries, including chemical, petrochemical, pulp and paper, food, water and waste water treatment facilities. These types of eductors can be used for lifting, pumping, mixing or agitating liquids or other flowable materials such as powders or slurries. Eductors use a venturi design which permits small eductors to move large volumes of fluids or fluidal materials. Because the motive flow provides the kinetic energy necessary to entrain and move another fluid after thoroughly mixing the two, the mixture and discharge of the combined material is accomplished with lowered motive energy usage than if the volume was pumped with a conventional centrifugal pump.
The low pressure section or mixing chamber of the eductor pulls the flowable bulk material into the venturi neck of the eductor and out the diffuser or belled end of the eductor. Most prior art eductor bodies provided a single nozzle extending into the neck of the venturi, thereby hindering mixing in the vacuum or mixing chamber of the eductor body. The present invention separates the multiple directed nozzle ports from the venturi neck, thereby opening the mixing chamber to the rapid and unimpeded bulk material flow which is thereafter carried into the neck of the venturi. Eductor systems have long been recognized as providing lower capital costs because they have a simple design and limited size, require less energy to drive the pump providing motive force, provide less heating of the transported material, provide less settling because of the volume of circulation or movement provided, and provide better control when the bulk material and inlet side are properly sealed to outside air. These advantages are improved with this new directed multiport nozzle design when combined with the characteristics of the venturi-diffuser of the present invention.

Directed multiport eductor and method of use


A system for building a software application may comprise a database and a hardware processor. The database may be configured to store a plurality of object definitions, each object definition being configured to cause an executing processor to perform specific processing when executed. The hardware processor may be configured to cause a user interface to be displayed; receive, from the user interface, a selection of a plurality of the object definitions and an input specifying at least one relationship between the plurality of the object definitions; create an application definition based on the selection and the input; and provide an application interpreter configured to enable the executing processor to process the application definition. The software application may include the application definition and the application interpreter.

As the availability of personal computers and computing devices has grown, data-connected software applications with user interfaces have grown increasingly familiar to a broad range of people. Accordingly, many people and businesses have ideas for implementing applications of this type but lack the skills or resources to implement their ideas. Many systems have been developed to aid in the development of this type of application. However, these systems present many deficiencies.
Basic graphical user interface (GUI) platforms and libraries like the Java Swing framework, Microsoft .NET framework and the document object model of a web browser offer a developer a number of GUI components that may be used to build an interface for an application. However, a developer using a GUI platform or library is still required to have a high level of programming skill and knowledge of a programming language to implement such a system.
Web browsers have evolved to be similar to a GUI platform. Web pages have evolved from the early static web site model, to dynamic web pages using a distributed system requiring server interactions to control the appearance and behavior of an application, and now to single page web applications that can act as stand-alone applications using a server only to retrieve data etc. as required. These single page web applications use the document object model (DOM) of a web browser like a GUI platform. As the speed of personal computers and mobile devices like smart phones and tablets has increased, the implementation of single page web applications has also increased. Accordingly, many people and businesses have ideas for implementing applications of this type, but lack the skills or resources to implement their ideas.
Systems have been developed that create dynamic web applications using distributed systems. Content management systems (CMS) may provide a developer with templates, defined on and processed by a web server, that may be modified without the use of code by defining parameters. However, the ways that these templates may be modified are limited by the nature of the templates. Developers using such systems quickly find limitations that can only be overcome by writing custom code. Also, the use of a distributed system like this is costly, slow and unnecessary, when similar, single page web applications can be built.
Applications like Bootstrap Studio have been developed that allow a developer to build a web page by arranging a limited number of predefined components. This type of system provides a developer a higher level of control over the appearance of a web page but drastically limits a developer's ability to control the behavior of a page without writing custom code. This type of system also does not offer a user any way of storing data or accessing resources external to an application, without writing custom code and developing server applications.

System for creating data-connected applications


The present invention concerns systems, a kit and methods for monitoring coupling of a vehicle and a trailer or a trailer and another trailer. The system includes two sensors associated with a turntable of a towing vehicle, said sensors consisting of: a contact sensor configured to detect when a skid plate of a vehicle to be towed is in contact with the turntable; and a locking sensor configured to detect when the locking mechanism is in a locked configuration. The system further including a controller operatively connected to the two sensors and configured to receive output signals from the contact sensor and the locking sensor and to determine whether safe coupling has been achieved based on the output signals.

Heavy road transport vehicles, such as, e.g., a prime mover and semi-trailer combination or road train combination, are commonly used to transport freight over long distances all over the world.
Typically, such combinations involve the coupling of a prime mover to a semi-trailer or a semi-trailer to another semi-trailer with a wide coupling plate commonly referred to as a "fifth wheel coupling" or "turntable". In such couplings, the wide coupling plate is bolted to a rear portion of a chassis of the towing vehicle and couples with a kingpin extending from an underside of a front of the vehicle to be towed. To couple the vehicles, the towing vehicle is reversed towards the vehicle to be towed until the kingpin slides into a rear facing slot of the wide coupling plate and the jaws of the wide coupling plate lock around the kingpin.
Correct coupling is imperative to the safety of the driver, the vehicle and vehicles, structures and people near the coupled vehicle and trailer or trailers. For example, a faulty coupling can cause a semi-trailer to disconnect from a prime mover during transit, which can result in damage to other vehicles on the road and possibly injury or death to the drivers of these vehicles as well as damage to the trailer, loss of cargo and damage to surrounding buildings and structures.
Earlier trailer safety systems have been developed to monitor such couplings.
For example, Australian Innovation Patent No. 2016100223 B4 discloses a monitoring system having a plurality of coupling plate sensors, including a kingpin sensor and opposed tilt sensors located on each side of the coupling plate.
Likewise, International Patent Publication No. WO 2017/152234 A1 similarly discloses a monitoring system having a plurality of coupling plate sensors, including a kingpin sensor and opposed plate (pivot) sensors located on each side of the coupling plate.
The applicant has recognised that such monitoring systems are overly complicated and thus prone to failure, particularly when a kingpin sensor inevitably becomes covered in grease and/or metal filings or the vehicle and trailer or trailers to be coupled are not on flat ground.
For example, a greasy kingpin sensor may lead to existing systems reporting a false negative result, i.e., that the kingpin is not present when it is, or worse yet, may lead to the systems reporting a false positive, i.e., that the kingpin is present when it is not.
Likewise, the applicant has identified that such systems having pivot or tilt sensors located on opposed sides of the coupling plate are prone to reporting false negative results when coupling on uneven ground.

Trailer safety system and methods of use thereof