A charging accessory for a portable electronic device having a device input connector includes a main charger body portion having a power supply connection to an AC wall outlet that receives an AC power supply voltage. Power conversion circuitry converts the AC power supply voltage to a DC power supply voltage. A device connector is electrically coupled to the DC power supply voltage and configured to couple the DC power supply voltage to the device input connector of the portable electronic device. The main body also has a battery pack connector that is electrically coupled to the DC power supply voltage. The battery pack connector couples to a battery pack through a charging body connector that electrically connects to the battery pack connector and receives the DC power supply voltage when the battery pack is mounted on the main charger body portion. A rechargeable battery in the battery receives the DC power supply voltage to recharge the rechargeable battery. A device connector allows the battery pack to be directly coupled to the device input connector on the portable electronic device to provide an addition portable power supply for the device.

Chargers for portable electronic devices are well known devices that condition power received from a power supply into the form needed by a particular device. These chargers typically have a voltage converter that converts an AC wall voltage into a DC voltage required to charge the device. Battery packs that can be coupled to a portable electronic device to charge the device when no connection to a wall outlet is available are also known. Unfortunately, these battery packs either use disposable batteries, or have rechargeable batteries that require a different charger than the portable device for which the battery pack is designed. In addition, many chargers involve clumsy cables and ascetically unpleasing designs.
In light of the above discussed problems with the prior art, what is needed is an improved charger that can charge a portable device and provide an additional portable power supply for the device.

Multiple interface device charger with removable battery pack


An improved magnetic-recording disk and a process for manufacturing magnetic-recording disks are disclosed. An electrically conductive hard coating is deposited upon a ceramic substrate. This coating can be one from the group including the nitrides, carbides, and borides of titanium, zirconium, hafnium, vanadium, niobium, tantalum, chromium, molybdenum, or tungsten. Graded interfacial diffusion or pseudo-diffusion layers are formed between the ceramic substrate and the coating by the elemental metal present in the coating. Magnetic-recording media is then deposited upon the electrically conductive coating. Optionally, a texturable coating that is softer than the hard coating can be placed over the electrically conductive hard coating before the magnetic-recording media is deposited. This texturable coating limits the depth to which abrasive tape texturing can take place.

In a disk file, the most common recording medium is a very flat and smooth aluminum-alloy substrate disk having both of its surfaces coated with a magnetic-recording material such as a ferrimagnetic or ferromagnetic oxide powder dispersed in a resin binder or a plated or sputter-deposited thin film of ferromagnetic cobalt alloy.
Typically, an aluminum-alloy substrate of a magnetic-recording disk has surfaces that are either diamond tool turned on a lathe or ground by a surface grinder. These machined surfaces result in matte finishes. Alternatively, substrate disks may be precision blanked from flat precision cold-rolled aluminum-alloy sheet or other metal strip whose surface finish would replicate that of the work rolls used in the finishing pass of the rolling mill. For example, with work rolls that have been ground and polished to a mirror-bright finish, a metal strip with a mirror-bright surface finish would result.
Aluminum is a soft metal and, therefore, can be damaged by a read/write head impacting the disk too forcefully. To provide for protection against defects caused by impacts of a read/write head, an aluminum-alloy substrate is typically first coated with a hard, nonmagnetic material before the magnetic-recording material is applied. A nickel-phosphorus alloy, electroless-deposited from an aqueous solution, is the hard material commonly used for this application. In order for this protective plating to adhere properly to the surface of an aluminum-alloy substrate, a zincate solution is used to dissolve the surface aluminum oxides, hydroxyoxides, and hydrous oxides, and to provide a zinc metal layer by replacement reaction. After coating, the surface of the nickel-phosphorus-alloy-coated disk is lapped and polished to provide a flat and smooth surface for the application of the magnetic layer.
Apart from the need to lap and polish the disk after application of the nickel-phosphorus alloy, the application of this hard coating presents additional difficulties. For example, it is extremely difficult to obtain flaw-free electroless-deposited nickel-phosphorus-alloy coatings. Nodules, pits, and bumps occur in these coatings and such defects cause recording errors.
Another problem is that the electroless-deposited nickel-phosphorus alloy is very prone to recrystallization upon heating, where the nonmagnetic (actually, superparamagnetic) single phase of nickel and phosphorus, separates into two equilibrium crystalline phases, namely, nickel, which is ferromagnetic, and nickel phosphide. The resulting ferromagnetism renders the media useless for the magnetic-recording application.
Moreover, such a disk is also subject to warpage upon heating because of stress concentrations at the coating-substrate interface. This warpage also renders the media useless.
Another problem associated with the use of an aluminum alloy as a substrate includes the added cost for time and labor involved in its processing. Furthermore, entire disks can be rendered useless through a myriad of heat-related effects.

Method for making ceramic substrates for magnetic-recording media


An oil pumping device includes an oil storage tank. An upright pump is installed between the upper cover and lower cover of the oil storage tank. The interior of the pump is installed with a piston and a unidirectional air inlet valve. The outer peripheral surface of the oil storage tank has a recess. The recess has an air inlet hole which is hollowed radially. Therefore, when the piston rod is pulled upwards or downwards repeatedly, the oil in the oil tank can be absorbed to the oil storage tank.

The present invention relates to an oil pumping device, and particularly to an oil pumping device which can be assembled easily.
Referring to FIG. 8, a plurality of handhold oil absorbing device is illustrated. The device has an oil storage tank 7. The upper cover 71 and lower cover 72 of the oil storage tank are connected to an upright pump 8. The pump 8 has a piston 81 therein. The piston rod 82 of the piston 81 passes out of the upper cover 71 of the oil storage tank 7 and a handle 83 is installed for being operated by the user. The upper cover 71 has an air inlet channel 711. The channel 711 is communicated with the pump 8 and the oil storage space 73 of the oil storage tank. The inlet 712 of the air inlet channel 711 of the upper cover 71 has a unidirectional air inlet valve 713. The unidirectional air inlet valve 713 is installed with a ballcock 714. The lower cover 72 is installed with a unidirectional pressure relief valve 9. The pressure relief valve 9 is within the pump 8.
When the handle is pulled upwards so as to lift the piston 81, the air above the piston 81 will be extruded to flow to the lower side of the piston 81. When the piston rod 82 is pushed so that the piston 81 descends, then the air below the piston 81 will be released from the pressure relief valve 9, and the air above the piston 81 will decrease so that air in the oil storage space 73 flows through the unidirectional air inlet valve 713 to enter into the pump 8. Therefore, oil flows to the oil storage space 73 through an air absorbing tube. When the piston rod 82 is pulled upwards and downwards repeatedly, oil in the oil storage tank is absorbed and flows to the oil storage tank 7. When the oil in the oil storage tank has achieved to a predetermined height, the ballcock 714 moves upwards to close the unidirectional air inlet valve 713 to prevent oil from entering into the pump 8.
The prior oil pumping device has the following disadvantages.
1. In assembly, the unidirectional air inlet valve 713 and pressure relief valve 9 and other components are installed to the upper cover 71 and lower cover 71 individually. Then the upper cover 71, lower cover 72 and pump 8 are assembled together. The process is complex.
2. Since the upper cover 712 must have an inlet 712 and an air inlet valve 713, oil tubes and other components are necessary. Therefore, a predetermined thickness and cross section are necessary. The cost in material is increased. Furthermore, the gravitational center is high, and thus it is unstable.
3. The upper cover 71 is formed with an air inlet channel 711.
The air inlet channel 711 must be communicated with the pump 8 and the oil storage space 73 so as to have an approximate L shape. The process is complex. To install a unidirectional air inlet valve 713 to the upper cover 71, more machining processes are necessary.
4. Although the ballcock 714 is used to prevent oil from flowing into the pump 8, more parts are necessary for installing the ballcock. The assembly work is complex. Besides, since the ballcock 714 is connected to a driven device so that as the ballcock lifts, the air inlet valve is closed. If the assembly work is not very precise or some parts have faults. The driven device can not work in normal so that the unidirectional air inlet valve can be not closed.
Accordingly, the primary object of the present invention is to provide an oil pumping device, wherein an unidirectional air inlet valve is installed directly in a pump. The pump has an air inlet hole and an oil storage tank formed by air inflation is used in the present invention. Therefore, the process and cost in manufacture is reduced.
To achieve above objects, the present invention provides an oil pumping device including an oil storage tank. An upright pump is installed between the upper cover and lower cover of the oil storage tank. The interior of the pump is installed with a piston and a unidirectional air inlet valve. The outer peripheral surface of the oil storage tank has a recess. The recess has an air inlet hole which is hollowed radially. Therefore, when the piston rod is pulled upwards or downwards repeatedly, the oil in the oil tank can be absorbed to the oil storage tank.
The various objects and advantages of the present invention will be more readily understood from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the appended drawing.


An alfalfa valve telemetry system for regulating irrigation fluid to an irrigation-dependent field provides an alfalfa valve that operates over an opening to a fluid supply pipe in a field, so as to selectively discharge fluid to the field. The alfalfa valve telemetry system provides a telemetry-controlled valve actuation assembly that axially or pivotally displaces the alfalfa valve between an open position and a closed position over the opening in the pipe. A valve actuation assembly displaces the lid, axially, or pivotally, over the opening of the pipe. A mounting portion anchors the valve actuation assembly to the pipe. Environmental sensors and fluid sensors in the field communicate data signals with a primary controller that controls the valve actuation assembly. The position of the alfalfa valve is based upon the data signals received from the sensors, indicating fluid levels, fluid flow rate, and environmental conditions on and near the field.

The following background information may present examples of specific aspects of the prior art (e.g., without limitation, approaches, facts, or common wisdom) that, while expected to be helpful to further educate the reader as to additional aspects of the prior art, is not to be construed as limiting the present invention, or any embodiments thereof, to anything stated or implied therein or inferred thereupon.
Typically, agricultural irrigation is the method in which water is supplied to plants at regular intervals for agriculture. Irrigation is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall. In contrast, agriculture that relies only on direct rainfall is referred to as rain-fed or dry land farming. Often, alfalfa valves are used in an agricultural field to regulate supply of fluid from subterranean pipes, so as to allow fluid to flow into the field. The valves can be controlled manually, or automatically to open and close, based on environmental and water conditions.
Irrigation systems have been previously provided for the remote control of irrigation systems and components thereof. One prior art device for remotely controlling irrigation systems is the base station control. The base station control utilizes RF telemetry or cell phone telemetry to read the status of and control irrigation components from a personal computer. The base station can regulate the release of water into the field remotely, and after certain conditions have been met.
Other proposals have involved irrigation of a field through telemetry means. The problem with these irrigation systems is that they do not provide both axial and pivotal articulation of the lid for the alfalfa valve. Also, they do not utilize environmental data, fluid level data, and fluid flow data to derive a data signal that actuates the alfalfa valve. Even though the above cited irrigation systems meet some of the needs of the market, an alfalfa valve that operates over an opening to a fluid supply pipe in an irrigation-dependent field; whereby the system provides a telemetry-controlled valve actuation assembly that axially or pivotally displaces the alfalfa valve between an open position and a closed position over the opening in the supply pipe to regulate the flow of fluid to the field; and whereby the position of the alfalfa valve is based upon data signals received from environmental and fluid sensors that provide data signals, indicating fluid levels, fluid flow rate, and environmental conditions at the field, is still desired.


A partial weight-bearing scale including a planar weighing surface and a fixed load supporting platform to one side of the weighing surface. The combination enables a user to stand on the support platform with one foot while applying measured pressure to the scale with the other foot. A visual display is provided to indicate the amount of pressure applied to the scale.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to medical care devices, and in particular to the field of physical therapy for accurate measurement of the partial weight placed on the foot, ankle, or leg.
2. Background of the Invention
Hospitals, convalescent homes, and even patient's homes are used for patient rehabilitation after medical operations and procedures. Patients that have had recent medical treatment involving a leg, hip, or foot need to be instructed on how much weight they can safely place on their leg while standing during their recuperation. The danger is that the patient is susceptible to prolonging the recovery period or re-injuring the affected leg, hip or foot if too much weight is placed on it. Usually, the medical doctor will specify what weight can be applied to the recuperating limb without risk of further injury. Many times, that information is passed on to a physical therapist, who is then responsible for properly supervising the patient's recovery. Part of that responsibility involves instructing the patient on how to avoid placing excessive weight on the affected limb.
The inherent danger of injury or re-injury lies in the fact that patients normally do not appreciate just how much pressure they apply to a leg simply by resting it on the ground, or applying what they think is just "a little" weight. Doctors usually instruct their patients to avoid applying more weight to the leg than a specified safe weight. When that specified weight is low, there is a high danger that the patient will put excessive weight on their leg without realizing it. This increases the risk of reinjuring the limb. It is therefore necessary for the medical worker to use a weighing scale to help patients teach themselves what the maximum safe weight "feels" like. The common method used today by health care workers is to instruct patients to step onto a weighing scale with their injured limb and apply weight on it until the maximum amount of allowable pressure is applied on the weighing scale readout.
For patients to effectively gauge the "feel" of the maximum safe weight that can be placed on their injured leg, they must step with their injured leg onto a weighing surface level with the adjacent surface that supports their other foot. Using a conventional weighing scale does not serve this purpose. Weighing scales have a significant thickness to them. Therefore, when a patient places his or her injured leg on the scale, the patient is really stepping up onto a higher surface. This process, therefore, gives the patient the "feel" of the desired weight when stepping up on a higher surface. It does not give the patient the "feel" of the desired weight when resting his or her foot on level ground. Fashioning a temporary adjacent step or support platform of equal height next to the weighing scale does not fully solve the problem because medical workers need a complete scale unit that they can take with them when they go from patient to patient. These workers travel from room to room or to the patient's home. This requires to bring the scale with them. There is a need for a portable scale that measures the weight applied by a patient onto his foot or leg without the patient having to step up to the weighing surface, and without a need for the medical worker to fashion a temporary step of near equal height every time he wants partial weight measured.
Another problem is that when a patient first uses a scale to measure partial weight, there is a tendency for the patient to initially step too hard on their leg and injure themselves. Reactions to weighing scale displays may not be fast enough. There is a need to give the patients quick stimulus to enable them to quickly remove excessive pressure when applied while using the partial weight bearing scale.


A wide-angle image taking lens system includes an aperture stop and an optical assembly including: in order from an object side to an image side: first, second, third, fourth and fifth lens elements, the system has a total of five lens elements with refractive power, wherein Abbe numbers of the first and fifth lens element are V1, V5, a distance along an optical axis between the first and second lens element is T12, a central thickness of the first lens element is CT1, focal lengths of the system, second and third lens elements are f, f2, f3, maximum effective diameters of an object-side surface of the first lens element and an image-side surface of the fifth lens element are CA11, CA52, satisfying: 1.5<V1/V5<3; 1.1<T12/CT1<2.5; 0.2<|f/f3|+|f/f2|<1.5; 0.2<CA11/CA52<0.5.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wide-angle image taking lens system, and more particularly to a miniaturized wide-angle image taking lens system applicable to electronic products.
2. Description of the Prior Art
With the development of high-standard mobile devices, such as, smartphone, tablet computer and so on, small image taking lens system with high image quality has become the standard equipment. In addition, with the popular of social networks, more and more people like to take photographs or take selves and share with others, and recreational machine, driving recorder, security camera lens and so on need wider angle of view, therefore, there's an increasing demand for angle of view and image quality. The image taking lens system disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,335,043 and 8,576,497 are all provided with five to six lens elements in order to provide wider angle of view, which, however, causes large distortion. The image taking lens system disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,593,737, 8,576,497 and 8,395,853 are all provided with a maximal field of view (FOV) that is smaller than 85 degrees, and the total track length of these image taking lens system is also too long.
The present invention been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems.


A wireless communication device (10) includes a dielectric base (50), a circuit board (70), an antenna (30), and a case (20). The dielectric base includes a first surface (508), a second surface (509) opposite to the first surface, a plating area (502), and a non-plating area (504). The plating area and the non-plating area are disposed on the first surface. The circuit board is disposed on the second surface. The antenna is plated on the plating area by a plating process. The circuit board and the dielectric base are received in the case.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to wireless communication devices, and particularly to a wireless communication device with an antenna formed by a plating/electroplating process.
2. Description of Related Art
Wireless communication devices such as mobile telephones, personal digital assistants, and hand-held scanners having wireless communication capabilities are currently available in several different forms. In these wireless communication devices, antennas are used for transceiving electromagnetic wave signals, and thus the antennas in these electronic devices are necessary.
Referring to FIG. 3, an isometric view of a conventional wireless communication device 90 is shown. The wireless communication device 90 comprises a tridimensional antenna 92, a dielectric base 94, a circuit board 96 and a connecting portion 98. The tridimensional antenna 92 is disposed on one side of the dielectric base 94. The circuit board 96 is disposed on another side of the dielectric base 94. The connecting portion 98 electrically connects to the antenna 92 and the circuit board 96. The antenna 92 may be stamped from a metal plate.
However, the above fabricating process results in a thickness of the antenna 92 and a length of the connecting portion 98 requires excess space D under mechanical constraint, thus increasing space requirements preventing efforts to further reduce the size of the wireless communication device 90. Besides, it costs much when the antenna is necessary to be separately made.
Therefore, a heretofore unaddressed need exists in the industry to overcome the aforementioned deficiencies and inadequacies.


A grasping glove for fine motor skills therapy of a hand of a user. The grasping glove includes a main covering having a palm side and a back side. The grasping glove includes a little finger covering extending from said main covering. The grasping glove includes a ring finger covering extending from said main covering. The grasping glove includes a palm side to finger covering attachment between said little finger and said palm side of said main covering. The grasping glove includes a palm side to finger covering attachment between said ring finger and said palm side of said main covering. A method of treating deficiencies in finger fine motor skills of hand of a person by restraining a little finger of the hand toward a palm side of the hand and restraining a ring finger of the hand toward the palm side of the hand.

The present invention generally relates to devices and therapy to improve the grasp ability of a person. More specifically, the present invention relates to gloves and finger restraining therapy to improve the grasp ability of a person.
Some children can have delays in development of finger fine motor skills, as well as there being learning and physically disabled children who do not properly develop their finger fine motor skills. Certain hand injuries would have a better outcome for recovery if specific finger isolation movements which have been lost due to the injury can exercised. People who have suffered a stroke tend to recover with significant gross upper extremity movement regained, while developing "substitution" movements and losing any possibility of regaining finger fine motor skills. Finger fine motor skills require isolated finger movements as well as specific grasps such as the tripod grasp and pincer grasp. Therapists need a development tool to aid in developing finger fine motor skills for all of those mentioned above.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a glove as a development tool to aid in developing finger fine motor skills for those who need to develop or have lost finger fine motor control and coordination due to learning disabilities, illness or hand injuries.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method of finger restraining therapy to improve finger fine motor skills.

Grasping glove and method of finger restraining therapy


An image processing apparatus groups distance measurement areas for every group of distances close to each other based on a photographing distance obtained for each distance measurement area and assigns the same distance number to the distance measurement areas belonging to the same group. The image processing apparatus further divides a photographed image into a plurality of blocks to calculate an average value of hue of each block and sets a plurality of blocks having similar average values of hue among the blocks that are adjacent to one another as the same (one) color area. The image processing apparatus then divides the color area based on the distance number overlapping with the color area.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, and a computer program, and more particularly, to an image processing apparatus and an image processing method, which are suitable for use in dividing a photographed image on photographing distance basis to process the photographed image.
2. Description of the Related Art
Along with the development in technique of a digital still camera, there is hitherto developed a technique of enhancing representational power of a photographed image by performing image processing on the photographed image. In Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-110137, there is disclosed a technique involving performing a shading process based on a photographing distance to a photographing target that is calculated for each partial area within an image pickup area. Specifically, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-110137, a plurality of distance measurement frames of a well-known contrast AF system are arranged on a picture image, among small areas divided in accordance with a color of an image or the like, small areas that have photographing distances close to each other, which distances are obtained as a result of distance measurement, are combined to extract an object, and a shading process is performed for each object. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-110137 is described as being able to generate an image with more effective blurring expression like that made in a single lens reflex camera even in the photographing with a compact digital camera having a large depth of field by obtaining a result of area division according to the distance from the photographing target to an image pickup position as described above.
However, with the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-110137, other photographing targets having similar colors are undesirably treated as a single photographing target, and hence the same blurring amount is undesirably set for other photographing targets positioning at different distances. Accordingly, the result of the shading process contradicts the photographing distances in some cases up to now.
In addition, with the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-110137, when the photographing distance is determined for each of the small areas divided in accordance with the color of the image or the like, the photographing distance of a distance measurement frame in which the distance is erroneously measured is undesirably specified in some cases up to now. Accordingly, an appropriate area in which the small areas having substantially the same photographing distance are combined cannot be generated in some cases up to now.

Image processing apparatus, image processing method, and computer program


A conductive connection such as a flexible printed circuit board (FPC) or flexible flat cable is disclosed. The conductive connection has a substrate and conductive wires provided on the substrate. After the conductive connection is cut to be put into application, ends of the wires extend out of an edge of the substrate due to the cutting. In accordance with the present invention, the substrate edge from which the wire ends extend out has protrusions provided. Accordingly, when the conductive connection is applied to a flat display of a mobile phone, for example, short circuit resulting from the wire ends extending out of the substrate edge improperly contacting metal portion of other phone parts is avoided.

Thin Film Transistor Liquid Crystal Displays (TFT LCDs) and other types of flat displays have been widely utilized in various devices such as portable devices (e.g. mobile phone, digital camera, PDA, etc.) For example, there are currently multifarious mobile phone products of various types available. The requirements fore display panels are of small amount but diversification. In addition, the flat display panels of the same specific resolution and size are usually used in different mobile phone designs. Accordingly, connections between the panel and the mobile phone system are various. It will be great cost and expense for a panel manufacturer if different production and testing equipments must be disposed for various connections. Furthermore, a risk of mistake in production will be increased. Therefore, a scheme that the same production and testing equipments can be commonly applied to connections of different sizes and specifications is developed.
To be adaptable to the same production and testing equipments, a flexible printed circuit board (FPC) is designed as shown in FIG. 1. In this drawing, reference number 10 indicates a flexible substrate, 11 indicates wires, which are made of copper foil, for example, 12 indicates a custom-required section, 13 indicates a testing end, and 14 indicates a custom-designated connector. FPCs are manufactured based on such a design, and tested at the testing ends 13 by the same testing equipment. After testing is accomplished, the FPC is then cut according to the customer's requirement for the connection size. FIG. 2 shows an example of a cut FPC.
However, there is a problem resulted from such a scheme. FIG. 3 shows a side view of a cut FPC. As shown, the wire and substrate of the FPC fail to be flush with each other in cutting since the materials thereof are different. As a result, a terminal of the cut wire 11 extends out of an edge of the substrate 10. In other words, the cut FPC is subjected to a condition of wire-exposure. When such an FPC is applied to a mobile phone, for example, the wire-end which extends out of the edge of the substrate may contact a metal portion of another component in the mobile phone, resulting in improper short-circuit.

Conductive connection and cutting method thereof


A trouble sensing device has a first unit and a second unit. The first unit determines a total sum of driving current of two or more of a plurality of driving mechanisms that are turned on. The second unit judges whether trouble has arisen based on the total sum of the driving current.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a trouble sensing device of mechanical driving mechanisms driven by supplying driving current.
2. Description of the Related Art
Motors, solenoids, clutches, fans for cooling, and the like are mechanical driving mechanisms driven by supplying driving current and these are provided at an image forming device, a copier, or the like.
When there is trouble with these driving mechanisms, it is necessary to detect the trouble of each part of the mechanisms.
Conventionally, the following was proposed as a method for diagnosing trouble: a polygon motor, a solenoid, and a clutch are each driven independently under instructions from a CPU. The currents supplied to the respective drivers and motors and the like are sensed by the potential differences at the both ends of the resistors, and the current values which are sensed are monitored at the CPU. On the basis of inputted voltage values, the CPU carries out trouble diagnosis of the polygon motor, the solenoid, and the clutch (see, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) No. 2001-228056).
Carrying out trouble sensing of a part as follows has also been proposed: a reference current, which shows that a given, specific part is functioning correctly, is stored in a computer memory. While only that specific part is consuming current, the current which is supplied to an image forming device which includes that specific part is read. The read current value and the reference current stored in the memory are compared, and trouble sensing of the part is carried out in accordance with whether the read current value matches the reference current (see, for example, JP-A No. 2003-228419).
However, in accordance with the aforementioned technique disclosed in JP-A No. 2001-228056, each part must be operated one-by-one in order to measure the currents of the respective parts. There is therefore the problem that a specific inspection mode or trouble diagnosing mode must be implemented.
There is also the problem that a very long time is needed in order to operate each part one-by-one, and the period of time over which the user cannot utilize the image forming device (the down time) is long.
Further, in the technique disclosed in JP-A No. 2003-228419, the trouble sensing can be carried out while the user is using the device. Therefore, although the problem of down time for trouble sensing arising does not occur, the trouble sensing cannot be carried out unless there is a state in which only the specific (one) part is being operated. Therefore, there is the problem that trouble sensing is hardly carried out at all in devices, such as image forming devices, in which, when the start button is pressed, plural parts immediately carry out operation almost simultaneously.


A coated printing paper the product of whose basis weight, density, Young's modulus in the machine direction and breaking length in the machine direction is within the range of no less than 1.0×1021g2·N/m6 but not greater than 4.0×1021g2·N/m6, and which offers excellent pliability, superior print gloss in the image area regardless of lower white-paper gloss, minimal small-scale gloss variations in the image area, and excellent workability with the printing machinery, more particularly a matte coated paper, is provided.

Concurrent with the advanced visual and color features that have found applications in printed materials during recent years, there has been an increased demand for printing papers having higher quality. On the other hand, there is a great demand for weight reduction in printed materials for the sake of reduced costs in transportation and mailing. Traditionally these two demands have been mutually contradictory, given that high-quality coated printing papers are conventionally characterized by higher basis weight of the base paper and greater coating weight, as well as higher density for a given basis weight due to smoothing through surface treatment. A paper with a lower basis weight may be selected in order to reduce the weight of a printed material. However, that is not an ideal solution, since using such a means of weight reduction without changing the density will result in thinner paper and diminish the feeling of bulk expected of a book. For the above reasons, the market is presently demanding high-quality coated papers that ensure higher bulk; in other words, which offer greater paper thickness at a given basis weight or a lower basis weight at a given paper thickness, and which meet the criteria required of coated papers used for upscale printing applications.
Recently there has also been a trend of public preference for small-size, handy information magazines such as the so-called "mook" (magazine-format book) and "pocket guide." Pliability is one of the important features required of papers used for these publications. If a rigid paper is used for such magazines, the smaller the size of the book becomes, the more easily the pages will stand straight as they're flipped up and over, making it extremely inconvenient to open and read the book while holding it with one hand, for example, when one is on the road. One of the indicators used to measure the level of paper pliability is the Clark stiffness tester. Paper stiffness increases in proportion to the cube of the paper thickness. If the paper thickness is increased to gain higher bulk at a given basis weight, the paper stiffness increases accordingly. Given the above, it has traditionally been considered extremely difficult to achieve a paper offering excellent pliability and higher bulk at the same time.
The possible means of achieving higher bulk include the manufacturing of a bulky coated base paper through the use of a bulk pulp and bulk filler material, a reduction of the coat weight, and the lessening of surface treatment for the coated paper thus obtained.
Pulps for paper production are generally classified into chemical pulps and mechanical pulps. Chemical pulps are produced using a chemical that extracts the lignin from the fibers. Mechanical pulps, which are made without the use of chemicals, include the ground wood pulp—which is produced by grinding wood chips with a grinder—and the thermo-mechanical pulp, which is made by crumbling wood chips into fibers in a refiner. Generally, the mechanical pulp has stiffer fibers than the chemical pulp and is therefore more effective in providing higher bulk (lower density). However, the mechanical pulp will result in problems such as decreased whiteness if it's blended in a high-quality paper, and will easily cause printing defects such as picking due to shives if it's blended in a medium-quality paper. Thus there is a limit to the amount of mechanical pulp content that can be used in the paper. Furthermore, pulp from recycled paper is increasingly being used due to the recent public trend toward environmental preservation and the need to protect natural resources. Generally, however, recycled paper pulp is often produced by mixing fine paper, newsprint, magazine paper, coated papers and other used papers, and thus has a higher density than virgin mechanical pulp (unused pulp that has never made into paper) and cannot provide higher bulk.
As explained above, it is difficult to achieve sufficient paper bulk by working solely with pulp factors, especially when one considers the preservation of wood resources and the quality design of paper. Moreover, a simple blending of the above-described pulps for the sake of higher bulk results in greater stiffness, which makes it impossible to obtain sufficient pliability in the paper.
An example of the use of a bulky filler material in the base paper for use in a coated stock, in order to achieve higher bulk, is described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 5-339898, which discloses a technique used to achieve lower density through the blending of hollow synthetic organic capsules. However, such synthetic organic matter degrades the paper strength and causes printing problems such as picking and tearing, while a greater percentage of said matter needs to be blended to achieve a sufficient bulk effect, resulting in a higher production cost. A method of using a shirasu balloon is proposed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 52-74001. However, the shirasu balloon does not mix well with the pulp, and the paper blended with it causes print variations and other problems. In short, it is impossible to achieve pliability in the paper even through the use of any of the techniques so far discussed in this document.
The coating layer of the coated paper generally has a higher density than the base paper. Therefore, the coated paper has a higher density than the printing paper with no coating layer. A coated paper with higher bulk may be achieved by applying a smaller amount of coating composition. This is due to a smaller percentage of the coating layer relative to the overall coated paper. However, there has traditionally been a limit to the use of the coating layer in a smaller percentage as a means of reducing the amount of coating while maintaining the target quality, since it will also diminish the coverage of the base paper by the coating layer, thereby reducing the print quality such as white-paper gloss, smoothness and print gloss.
Enhancing the smoothness of the coated paper is one of the effective means of improving the print quality of the coated paper, particularly the degree of ink receptivity and gloss of the image area (hereinafter referred to as "print gloss"). Therefore, the process of smoothing the surface of the paper, such as super-calendering or soft nip-calendering, is generally used for glossy paper and the dull-coat paper having a level of white-paper gloss falling between those of the matte and glossy papers. However, such processes involve pressing the paper to achieve a smoother surface, thereby reducing the paper thickness and often making it impossible to gain a degree of bulk sufficient to achieve the target print quality.
The method of manufacturing general matte coated papers, on the other hand, is mainly intended to minimize sheet gloss, and therefore has conventionally used coatings blended with pigments having higher average particle diameters. For example, the primary pigments used in the coating disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 8-60597 feature larger particle diameters and include 30 parts by weight of Escalon 1500, a type of ground calcium carbonate (average particle diameter: 1.65 μm) and 50 parts by weight of Hydrasperse, a No.2 kaoline (average particle diameter: 1.61 μm), thereby making it difficult to increase the smoothness, white-paper gloss and print gloss of the paper to the respective target levels.
The dull-coat paper, which is generally obtained through the application of a slight surface treatment to the matte coated paper, provides a higher print gloss than the matt coated paper but requires the enhancement of surface-treatment conditions if greater print gloss must be obtained. Therefore, as with the case of matte coated paper, it has been difficult to maintain the bulky feel of the dull-coat paper by manufacturing a stock of lower density. For example, as is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 7-119086, there is a technique for improving smoothness while minimizing white-paper gloss by selecting a higher roughness setting for the roller surface of the super-calender, which is commonly used as a surfacetreatment device. However, if the paper is finished with a calender having a stack of six or more rolls, the paper's density increases and bulk decreases, making it impossible to obtain a matte coated paper having the target bulk level.
Additionally, one technique for improving print gloss while producing a lower density and minimizing the sheet gloss is the use of a calender combining metal and resin rollers having rough surfaces. It is the process of surface treatment at a temperature of 100° C. using metal rollers having rough surfaces, as disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open Nos. 6-73685, 6-73686, 6-73697 and 7-238493. However, even with the use of such technologies it remains difficult to obtain a printing paper that offers the level of bulk targeted in the present invention.
Given the above circumstances, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a coated printing paper that provides higher bulk (lower density) yet excellent pliability, great workability with the printing machinery, higher print gloss regardless of lower sheet gloss, minimal small-scale gloss variations in the image area, and superior print quality.


In accordance with the present invention, it has been discovered that the adhesion properties and/or colorfastness of ink jet formulations when applied to a variety of substrates can be improved by adding a specific class of additives thereto. Invention formulations enable application of water-resistant (e.g., washable), colorfast images to a wide variety of substrates employing ink jet methodology.

Ink jet printing is a non-impact and non-contact printing method in which an electronic signal controls and directs droplets or a stream of ink that can be deposited on a wide variety of substrates. Ink jet printing is extremely versatile in terms of the variety of substrates that can be treated, as well as the print quality and the speed of operation that can be achieved. In addition, ink jet printing is digitally controllable. For these reasons, ink jet methodology has been widely adopted for industrial marking and labeling. In addition, ink jet methodology has also found widespread use in architectural and engineering design applications, medical imaging, office printing (of both text and graphics), geographical imaging systems (e.g., for seismic data analysis and mapping), signage, in display graphics (e.g., photographic reproduction, business and courtroom graphics, graphic arts), and the like.
Both dyes and pigments have been used as ink colorants for ink jet formulations. However, such materials do not always adhere well to the substrate to which the ink is applied. For example, dyes may dissolve upon contact with water. Thus, images applied employing ink jet methodology may tend to run or smear upon repeated contact, or may actually be removed from the printed surface if exposed to substantial quantities of aqueous media (e.g., if an ink jet printed article is laundered). Moreover, images applied employing ink jet methodology may also tend to fade or washout upon prolonged exposure to visible, ultraviolet and/or infrared light.
Accordingly, there is still a need in the art for ink jet formulations which have improved adhesion properties and/or colorfastness when printed on a variety of substrates.

Methods for improving the adhesion and/or colorfastness of ink jet inks with respect to substrates applied thereto, and compositions useful therefor


An apparatus for manufacturing chains of linked food products such as sausages with twisted portions and having a plurality of stuffing tubes, includes a plurality of stuffing tubes 2 provided at equal intervals about a rotational axis Xo; a stuffing tube moving body 4 which rotates through predetermined angles about the rotational axis Xo so that the respective stuffing tubes 2 sequentially move to a filling position III; and a stuffed casing conveying means 50 which conveys in a suspended state a stuffed casing C formed by the stuffing tube 2 positioned at the filling position III.

Conventionally, apparatuses for manufacturing chains of linked food products such as sausages, which are commonly employed widely, are so constructed as to manufacture food products such as chains of linked food products by discharging a material of a food product such as sausage into a casing by using a rotating stuffing tube. However, manufacturing apparatuses which have a plurality of stuffing tubes for the purpose of improving the productivity of the apparatus and use the plurality of stuffing tubes by changing them over are known in patent documents which will be described later.
In the process of manufacturing sausages, a leading end and a trailing end of a chain of linked sausages with twisted portions are tied manually so as not to cause the filled material to leak therefrom. Normally, twisted portions of natural intestine sausages, as compared with artificial casing sausages, are likely to be untwisted, and the stuffed casing is likely to be broken, so that operations of repairing or removing these defective portions are performed in addition to the above-mentioned manual operation. The extent of the occurrence of these defects differs among individual natural intestine casings, and a large difference can occur in the operating time for the above-described required processing with respect to the stuffed casings. If the operating time becomes long, a delay occurs in starting the stuffing of an ensuing casing, so that idle time occurs in the machine.
A manufacturing apparatus disclosed in JP-B-59-50294 (see particularly FIG. 3 in that document) is comprised of a sausage making apparatus 1 having two tubes 22 (stuffing tubes) and a pickup 461 for forming the sausage into loop form and suspending it from a guide shaft 471. In this manufacturing apparatus 1, the two tubes are mounted on a turret 113, and the arrangement provided is such that after the tubes are moved by the rotation of the turret, the tubes are alternately communicated with a metering pump 3, to thereby use the tubes after being changed over. In this manufacturing apparatus, a gear 112 provided on the tube is meshed with a gear 114 on the main body side of the apparatus by the rotation of the turret.
However, although the manufacturing apparatus in accordance with JP-B-59-50294 forms the sausage into loop form, since a rotatively driving device for rotating the turret 113 having two stuffing tubes is not provided, this manufacturing apparatus has a problem in the enhancement of the operation rate of the apparatus in using natural intestine casings in which the variation of the quality of the casings is large among individual intestines. Namely, the time required for the manual processing operation by an operator, which is performed with respect to the natural intestine sausage formed into loops, depends on the good or bad quality of the natural intestine casings. Although in the case where only one stuffing tube is provided, it is necessary to allow the casing to be loaded onto the stuffing tube after the stuffing of one casing, in the case of this manufacturing apparatus an ensuing casing can be loaded in advance onto the other stuffing tube during stuffing by one stuffing tube, thereby making it possible to prevent the occurrence of idle time which is otherwise caused. However, since the device for rotatively driving the turret is not provided, in low-quality natural intestine casings requiring a long time in the manual processing operation, a time lag occurs in the timing of rotatively driving the turret by the operator, and idle time increases by that portion. Thus, the manufacturing apparatus disclosed in the patent document 1 is unable to prevent the occurrence of the idle time which can occur due to the variation of the processing time.
Further, in the manufacturing apparatus in accordance with JP-B-59-50294, since the driven gear is meshed with the drive gear by rotating the turret, it is preferable to rotate the turret at a relatively low speed in order to complete the meshing of these gears without trouble.
In a manufacturing apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,964,236, two stuffing tubes 62 and 64 are mounted on a stuffing tube support 48 which is rotatably supported on a shaft 46, and the arrangement provided is such that after the stuffing tubes are moved by the rotation of the support, the stuffing tubes are alternately communicated with a spindle 26, to thereby use the stuffing tubes after being changed over. In this manufacturing apparatus, by moving the entire support in the axial direction of the shaft while rotating the support, a collar 68 to which the stuffing tube is attached is brought into pressure contact with O-rings 36.
In the manufacturing apparatus in accordance with U.S. Pat. No. 3,964,236, since it is necessary to move the entire support in the axial direction of the stuffing tube while rotating the support in order to couple the stuffing tube to the spindle, it is preferable to rotate the support 48 at a relatively low speed in the light of the inertia of the support which can be generated.
As described above, in the manufacturing apparatuses disclosed in JP-B-59-50294 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,964,236, the arrangement provided is such that the stuffing tube side is coupled to the driving source side while rotating the turret or the support for moving the two stuffing tubes. Therefore, in either apparatus, substantial time is required in the movement and coupling of the stuffing tubes, so that there is a problem in the productivity of the apparatus.
Furthermore, in the manufacturing apparatus in accordance with U.S. Pat. No. 3,964,236, the arrangement provided is such that, during the movement of the stuffing tubes, an end face of the color with the stuffing tube attached thereto has a gap with a sealing surface of a plate 40. Therefore, there is a possibility that the leakage of the material of such as sausage from that gap can occur, resulting in a hygienic problem.
In addition, a manufacturing apparatus disclosed in JP-A-2001-352897 is known which is aimed at improving the productivity of the apparatus. The manufacturing apparatus in accordance with JP-A-2001-352897 is adapted to continuously perform the production of natural intestine sausages as well as the transporting of a chain of natural intestine sausages in the form of loops and the processing of its ends. However, in a case where, at the time when the end of the chain of sausages is passed through a heating tank, the loop of sausages is manually removed from suspending members to immerse the end of the chain of sausages in the heating tank, the apparatus has a problem in that the period of time for performing that operation is limited.
JP-A-47-43379 discloses a sausage manufacturing apparatus which has four nozzles and in which these nozzles are capable of sequentially moving to a position in front of an outlet of a filling machine along a circular path. In this manufacturing apparatus, during filling by a nozzle 36 communicating with the outlet of the filling machine, a sausage casing with one end already closed is loaded on another nozzle 36 located at a lowermost position. In this apparatus, a sausage consisting of only one link is manufactured with one sausage casing by closing the other end as well. Further, this apparatus has a structure in which each nozzle does not rotate about its own axis, and twisted portions are not formed in the casing. Accordingly, in this manufacturing apparatus, the operator needs not to process the end of the filled casing during filling, and needs not to perform the processing operation which would normally be required in the manufacture of a chain of linked sausages with twisted portions. In other words, the manufacturing apparatus in accordance with JP-A-47-43379 does not address the technological problems of the invention.
In a manufacturing apparatus disclosed in JP-B-41-5899, a clamp consisting of a pair of V-shaped members opposing both sides of a casing is provided in such a manner as to be capable of coming into contact with and moving away from the both sides of the casing in a horizontal direction. Further, a hopper with a plurality of casings accommodated therein is disposed above one of the members, and the aforementioned both V-shaped members approach and clamp the casing and dispose the casing at a predetermined position. A stuffing tube moves toward the casing disposed at the predetermined position and is inserted into a bore of the tubular casing.
The casing loading apparatus disclosed in the manufacturing apparatus in accordance with JP-B-41-5899 is effective with respect to the sausage manufacturing apparatus of the type in which the stuffing tube moves in its longitudinal direction. However, the casing loading apparatus cannot be applied to the apparatus of the type in which the stuffing tube does not move in its longitudinal direction, as in the apparatus in accordance with JP-B-63-62170, which will be described below.
A casing loading apparatus disclosed in a manufacturing apparatus in accordance with JP-B-63-62170 has a guiding chute for setting the casings horizontally and arranging a plurality of such casings in a vertical direction. A receiving plate is located below an opening of the guiding chute at a spacing corresponding to one casing, and a finger 18 mounted to a pushing member for allowing a lowermost casing positioned on the receiving plate to be pushed out in its longitudinal direction and for moving that casing to the stuffing tube on standby in the outside. The lowermost casing is fed out in its longitudinal direction in a state in which it is sandwiched by another casing placed thereon and the receiving plate.
In the casing loading apparatus in accordance with JP-B-63-62170, the lowermost casing moves in its longitudinal direction while being brought into rubbing contact with the casing placed thereon, so that there is a possibility that the folds of the upper and lower casings bite onto each other, causing deformation of the folds. Furthermore, during the returning movement of the pushing member 27, the finger 18 moves in a state of being in contact with an outer periphery of the sausage skin 10 located at the lowermost position, there is a possibility of the outer periphery of the casing becoming damaged by the finger 18.
Furthermore, a casing loading apparatus disclosed in JP-A-5-192068 is known. In the apparatus in accordance with JP-A-5-192068, a gut caterpillar is fed to a centering means having a conveyor means, and the gut caterpillar is arranged in front of a stuffing tube so as to be in substantial alignment with the stuffing tube, and is placed on the stuffing tube from this position. A centering element provided above and immediately in front of the stuffing tube is adapted to effect the centering of the gut caterpillar placed on a conveyor belt with respect to the stuffing tube. However, in the apparatus in accordance with JP-A-2001-352897, if a difference is caused in the driving force acting on the gut caterpillar due to the conveyor and the centering element, there is a possibility of loosening the gathers of the gut caterpillar.

Apparatus for manufacturing chains of linked food products such as sausages with twisted portions and having a plurality of stuffing tubes and method of manufacturing the same


An auxiliary system for a manual brake in a vehicle includes a controlling unit to receive and analyze signals indicating current vehicle status and whether a driver is away from the vehicle so as to initiate necessary actions, a pressure sensor adapted for a driver's seat to sense pressure from the driver and then send a signal to the controlling unit to determine whether the driver is at the driver's seat, a speed interface to communicate an input of the controlling unit with an onboard vehicle speed sensor (VSS) to allow the controlling unit to acquire a speed signal as a reference for determination of whether the car is in movement and a server mechanism to mechanically control the brake system via a motor under control of the controlling unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle manual brake auxiliary system, and more particularly to a vehicle manual brake auxiliary system to automatically stop movement of the vehicle when the driver is not at the driver's seat and the manual brake is not engaged.
2. Description of Related Art
Automobiles regardless of stick-shift gear change type or the automatic type are introduced to the world to bring fast paced lifestyle and convenience to the people. Distance seems not to be a problem between two persons far away from each other because of the convenient transportation opportunities we now have.
However, despite all the conveniences we have in our lives due to the introduction of cars, there is still something which is not so convenient to the user (the driver). That is, whenever the car is stopped, the driver has to apply the manual brake before leaving the car, otherwise, the car will move due to the slope of the road. If the driver forgets to apply the manual brake, the car might be damaged or even endanger a passersby. This kind of danger originates from the total dependence to the driver's concern to safety and the danger arising from a driver's forgetfulness is not addressed.
To overcome the shortcomings, the present invention tends to provide an improved auxiliary braking system to mitigate the aforementioned problems.


The invention relates to a method to produce steel from a ferrous material, by using one furnace divided into, at least, two vessels which are connected to each other at least by ducts for the off-gases and ducts for the melted metal. The vessels have a growing capacity starting from the first one; the material to be cast is divided into a first charge for the first vessel and a second charge for, at lesast, a second vessel of the furnace, the charge of the material in the first vessel of the furnace is melted using electric energy and/or combustion energy; the off-gases from the first vessel of the furnace are sent to the second vessel of the furnace in order to heat the charge of material in said second vessel, and the off-gases in the second vessel are sent to the first vessel to heat the material in this first vessel; the metal melted in the first vessel is poured in the second vessel of the furnace in order to contribute with its own thermal energy and with combustion energy to the melting of the material charged in the, at least, second vessel; the metal melted in the second vessel is poured for the use.

Nowadays, the Electric Arc Furnaces (EAF) are the most frequently used method for the steel production. With such method there are however problems related to energy consumption, thermal losses, electrode consumption, maintenance costs, quality of the steel obtained in this way and, last but not least, the environmental situation for the workers.
Till now the steel plants management has tried to increase the EAF capacity in order to increase the quantity of the produced steel and consequently to reduce the unit cost, dividing the total cost on a larger quantity of produced material.
The electric steel industry demand is a technology to improve the product quality and to reach higher productivity, also considering:
lower costs and consumption for the electric energy; PA1 lower electrode consumption; PA1 lower maintenance requirements, i.e. higher availability production time; PA1 max. flexibility in the utilisation of alternative power sources as gas, carbon, post-combustion energy, etc; PA1 max. utilisation of the off-gases to pre-heat the scrap to be melted; PA1 environmental situation improvement for the steel-making facility in respect to noise, off-gases volume, amount of dust, etc; PA1 reduction of the flicker in connection with higher productivity; PA1 possibility to retrofit in the existing steel plants. PA1 the capacity of the different vessels increases starting from the first one, and PA1 the row material (scrap) to be cast is divided into a charge for the first vessel and a second charge for the at least second vessel of the furnace; PA1 the charge of the first vessel of the furnace is melted using electric energy and alternative combustion energy; PA1 the off-gases from the first vessel can be conveyed to the second vessel of the furnace in order to pre-heat the scrap present in the second vessel, and the off-gases of the second vessel, in different time, can reach the first vessel to pre-heat the present scrap; PA1 the molten steel of the first vessel is poured in the second (at least) vessel to contribute, with its thermal energy, to cast the scrap present in the second vessel; PA1 the melted metal of the second vessel of the furnace is discharged for the use.
One part of these requirements are already fulfilled by the several developments in the last years, but always with certain compromises without complete answers to all demands.


A hinge assembly includes a shaft, a leaf, a rotatable joint, a positioning member, an elastic engaging member, and a fastening member. The leaf is non-rotatably mounted on the shaft, and the rotatable joint is rotatably mounted on the shaft. The positioning member includes an engaging surface, and is non-rotatable relative to the rotatable joint. The elastic engaging member includes an engaging surface, and is non-rotatably sleeved on the shaft. The fastening member is engaged on the shaft. One of the engaging surfaces of the positioning member and the engaging member forms an engaging protrusion, and the other one of the engaging surfaces of the positioning member and the engaging member defines an engaging slot engaging with the engaging protrusion.

1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure generally relates to hinge assemblies and, particularly, to a hinge assembly used in a foldable electronic device having a top cover and a main body.
2. Description of the Related Art
Foldable electronic devices, such as notebook computers, are popular for their portability. In the foldable electronic device, a cover is rotatably connected to a main body via a typical hinge assembly.
The typical hinge assembly often includes a shaft, a rotary bracket, a fixed bracket, a cam, a cam follower, a plurality of friction members, and a resilient member. The rotary bracket, the fixed bracket, the cam, the cam follower, the friction members, and the resilient member are sleeved on the shaft. The cam forms two peaks, and the cam follower defines two valleys for engaging with the peaks. The cam and the cam follower resist each other caused by forces of the resilient member. When the peaks of the cam engage in the valleys of the cam follower, the rotary bracket is positioned at desired positions relative to the fixed bracket.
However, the cam and the cam follower are usually made of powder metallurgy alloy steels having high rigidity and made by injecting powder metallurgy alloy. The material and injecting process are costly. Thus, the hinge assembly has a relatively high cost.
Therefore, a new hinge assembly is desired to overcome the above-described shortcomings.

Hong Fu Jin Precision Industry (ShenZhen) Co., Ltd.


The present invention is directed to a high voltage field effect transistor (FET) constructed on the major surface of a substrate of a first conductivity type. The FET includes a drain region of a second conductivity type located in the major surface and a generally annular drift region of the second conductivity type, located in the major surface and outside of the drain region. A generally annular gate is located on the major surface and outside of the drift region, and a generally annular source region is located in the major surface and outside of the gate. A first channel stop is located in the major surface and outboard of the source region, and a second channel stop located in the major surface and beneath the gate, having at least two portions in close proximity to each other. A channel region is located in the major surface and between the two second channel stop portions. The second channel stop blocks communication between the source region and the drift region except through the channel region.

This invention relates to high voltage field effect transistors (FETs), and more particularly to a method of forming a high voltage FET having a relatively small ratio of channel width to channel length (W/L), and to an FET made using this method.
High voltage FETs are used in a wide variety of applications, most of which require the FET to handle relatively large currents. The ability to handle relatively large currents is a function of the ratio of the channel width to the channel length (W/L) of the FET, with high current handling ability indicated by a large W/L. All high voltage FETs, whether designed to handle large currents or not, share design features necessitated by high voltages. A typical design for a high voltage FET places an annular source in the major surface of a semiconductor substrate. Outside of the source is a channel stop that isolates the FET from other devices on the substrate. Inboard and in contact with the source is a gate. Inboard of the gate is a drift region with an overlying region of field oxide. Inboard of the drift region and the drift field oxide is a circular drain region, the center of the FET. The annular and circular shapes of the elements of the FET act to diffuse field lines. The FET can be either depletion mode or enhancement mode, depending on whether the channel is doped with the same impurity type as the source, drain and drift region (i.e., depletion mode), or whether the channel is of opposite type (i.e., enhancement mode).
A typical high voltage FET designed to handle large current will have an annular gate. Beneath the gate is a channel, which is separated from the gate by a gate insulator. The channel is the portion of the substrate controlled by the gate, and hence is annular like the gate above. The annular shape of the channel gives the device a relatively large W/L, since the length is the radial thickness of the gate, and the width is approximately the circumference of the gate. To make the annular channel, the annular gate is used to mask the implanting of impurities to form source and drain regions. In this manner, the source region, channel region and drain region are self-aligned.
The present designs of high voltage FETs have generally proven adequate, as have the methods of making them. However, the designs and methods are optimized for FETs that handle relatively large current.

High voltage field effect transistor having a small ratio of channel width to channel length and method of manufacture


Collections identifying associated content objects, such as user-defined collections, are stored. A request to display or play a seed content object is received. A plurality of seed collections are identified based on the seed object. A plurality of candidate content objects are identified based on the identified seed collections, for instance by identifying the content objects that are identified by the seed collections. Properties of the seed object are identified, such as the categorization of the seed object, or the tags associated with the seed object. The candidate objects are ranked based on the identified seed collections and the identified properties of the seed object, and a candidate object is selected for recommendation to the user based on the ranking. The ranking of candidate objects can also be determined based on the coherence of the seed collections and the centrality of the seed object to the seed collections.

The Internet has become a medium for the display and playback of various forms of content objects. As used herein, "content object" can refer to digital text (such as a document, a poem, a book, an article, a spreadsheet, and the like), a digital image (such as a digital version of a photograph, a painting, a drawing, a computer-made image, and the like), digital video (such as a digital feature film, a home-video or other amateur-captured video, a music video), a digital sound recording (such as a digital song, a speech, or any other audio clip), a digital animation (such as a .GIF animation, a cartoon, still-motion video, and the like), or any other form of content that is displayed, viewed, or played on a user device over the internet.
Content hosting services on the Internet allow users to access content on the content hosting services for display and playback. Content hosting services can allow users to upload content objects to the content hosting services. The content objects uploaded by users may be user-generated content objects, such as images of real-world physical artwork created by the user or images including digital artwork created by the user. Content hosting services can also retrieve content objects from other entities, such as professional movie studios, professional music studios, libraries, and the like.
Once content is stored at a content hosting service, users can browse and view or play the content. In order to aid a user in viewing content of interest to the user, a content hosting service can recommend various content to the user. Selecting relevant content to recommend to a user is very challenging, particularly in the field of digital art, as a user's visual tastes can vary in a difficult-to-predict way.

Selecting content objects for recommendation based on content object collections


An apparatus for estimating a wavefront parameter includes a light source, a lenslet array, a detector for detecting light generated by the light source and passed through the lenslet array, a wavefront corrective element disposed between the lenslet array and the light source; and a data analyzer configured to estimate at least one wavefront parameter at a plane located on the light source side of the corrective element. The lenslet array and the sensor array are arranged to form a wavefront sensor, and the wavefront corrective element is configured to correct an aberration of the wavefront.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for estimating optical wavefront parameters, such as wavefront shape and aberration.
2. Description of the Related Art
Wavefront measurements are typically used to test the quality of optical surfaces and evaluate optical performance of optical elements. Wavefront measurements are also used for alignment of high-accuracy optical systems. A wavefront is the locus (a line, or in a wave propagating in 3 dimensions, a surface) of points on which all light rays have the same phase. The simplest form of a wavefront is that of a plane wave, where rays of light are parallel to each other and strike a sensor with a planar wavefront. Propagation of a wavefront through optical elements, such as lenses and mirrors, generally changes the shape of the wavefront due to lens thickness, imperfections in surface morphology, variations in refractive index, and other factors. Undesired changes in the shape of the wavefront are known as aberrations. Thus, knowledge of the wavefront profile and correction of aberrations thereof are very important when designing optical elements, and evaluating the performance of newly designed optical systems. For example, before assembling a complete imaging system, it is necessary to verify performance of each optical unit (unit lens) included in such a system. Since each unit lens or single lens itself may have certain aberrations, it is necessary to control the quality of imaging lenses with high precision. One application for measuring large wavefront aberrations is in the testing of the center of curvature of aspheric optical elements, such as lenses or mirrors.
A conventional method of measuring the wavefront quality of a light beam employs interferometric wavefront sensors in which spatial filtering of a small portion of the light source beam is used to produce a spherical reference wave that is subsequently combined with the original wavefront to produce an interferogram. As it is well understood in the art, interference fringes in the interferogram can be analyzed to evaluate the quality of the light beam. However, dividing the original beam and recombining it with the reference beam tends to introduce system aberrations, for example due to optical-path errors and improper alignment of optical components. An alternative conventional method of wavefront measurement uses non-interferometric wavefront sensors (NIWFS), such as a Shack-Hartman wavefront sensor, which do not require dividing and recombining the original beam.
NIWFS, such as Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensors (SHWFS), have a greater dynamic range than interferometric sensors. One basic and commonly used configuration of a SHWFS sensor consists of a lenslet array and an optical detector (typically a CCD camera) located at the back focal plane of the lenslet array. The Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor divides the wavefront of an incident beam being measured into a plurality of beamlets by using a two-dimensional (2D) lenslet array. Each lenslet in the lenslet array generates a separate and independent focus (spot) on the surface of the optical detector. The centroid position of each spot is displaced by a distance and direction indicative of the wavefront aberrations between a reference and distorted beam. Therefore, wavefront measurement by a SHWFS is based on an estimation of the local slopes of the aberrated wavefront relative to a reference (plane) wavefront. Generally, the wavefront estimation procedure may be categorized as either zonal or modal, depending on whether the phase is presented as a set of local slopes of the wavefronts or as a set of coefficients of some modal functions determined across the whole aperture. In the latter, displacements of focal spots can be represented in terms of Zernike polynomials.
There are several advantages to using SHWFS over interferometric counterparts. SHWFS have greater dynamic range than interferometric sensors. The incident radiation does not have to be coherent. Since the SHWFS can acquire all of the wavefront information from a single image, exposure times can be short, which reduces sensitivity to vibration. More importantly, both irradiance and phase distributions can be obtained with a SHWFS.
FIG. 1 illustrates an example of the configuration of a wavefront measurement apparatus 100 using a SHWFS. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the wavefront measurement apparatus 100 may typically include, a light source 102, a neutral density (ND) filter 104, a beam expander 106, a projection lens 108, test optics (test element or sample) 110, a lens group 112, a lenslet array (micro lens array) 114, an optical detector 116 (CCD sensor), and a data analyzer 118. Arranged in this manner, the wavefront measurement apparatus 100 is configured to characterize the effects that the sample (test optics 110) exerts on a wavefront of light that travels through it.
The optical configuration of a SHWFS is illustrated with more detail in FIG. 2. In FIG. 2, the optical detector 116 includes a sensor array 210, whereupon light passed through lenslet array 114 is incident. Locations of focal spots 250, 251, 252, 253 and 254 on the sensor array 210 are dependent on a local tilt of an incoming wavefront 150. The local tilt of the wavefront 150 is caused by aberrations in the test optics 110 in FIG. 1. The local tilt can be calculated by variation of focal spot location. The wavefront can be reconstructed by using the local tilt information obtained from lenslets of the lenslet array 114.
When the amount of wavefront deviation is within the dynamic range of the SHWFS, positions of each focal spot on the sensor array 210 can be detected separately and assigned to the correct lenslet; and a wavefront profile can be easily determined. However, if the wavefront deviation exceeds the dynamic range of the SHWFS, as illustrated in FIG. 3, the sensor array SHWFS cannot analyze the wavefront anymore. Specifically, in FIG. 3, the lenslet array 114 forms focal spots 350, 351, 352, 353 and 354. However, due to a highly aberrated wavefront 160, the focal spot 350 extends beyond the surface range of the sensor array 210; and focal spots 353 and 354 have crossed each other (spot crossover). That is, the beams forming the focal spots 353 and 354 overlap each other and are focused at crossover locations on the sensor array 210. In the situation illustrated in FIG. 3, since focal spot 350 is beyond the range of sensor array 210, focal spot 350 cannot be detected; and because of spot crossover, focal spots 353 and 354 cannot be unambiguously assigned.
FIG. 4 illustrates an example of output data from the sensor array 210 upon detecting an aberrated wavefront. In FIG. 4, a region of interest S, showing focal spots at the outer region thereof, has been enlarged to better illustrate the effects caused by focal spots crossing over each other or extending beyond the effective area of sensor array 210.
Techniques for extending the dynamic range of the SHWFS or for analytically compensating for wavefront aberrations have been previously proposed and continue to be developed. Some of the more popular techniques are summarized below.
(1) Null Lens
A null lens includes a set of optics specifically designed to compensate or nullify an expected wavefront aberration. Since the null lens technique can completely compensate the wavefront aberration of test optics (provided that there are no manufacturing errors), it can effectively cancel wavefront deviation on the lenslet array. However, with this technique, it is necessary to fabricate a highly accurate null lens for an accurate measurement. Therefore, the fabrication cost of a null lens can become prohibitively expensive. Furthermore, such a null lens is designed for specific test optics with an expected wavefront aberration, thus this technique may be not applicable to other wavefronts formed by test optics of different shapes or characteristics. An example of the null lens technique is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,233,174 to Zmek, which is incorporated herein by reference.
(2) Estimation Techniques
Instead of the null lens technique, wavefront estimation techniques have been proposed for measuring aberrated wavefronts, and a corrective algorithm is typically used to correct or compensate for aberrations. One example of an estimation technique is disclosed in Ref. 1: Michael C. Roggemann, Timothy J. Schulz, Chee W. Ngai, and Jason T. Kraft, "Joint processing of Hartmann sensor and conventional image measurements to estimate large aberrations: theory and experimental results," Appl. Opt. 38, pp. 2249-2255 (1999).
Another wavefront estimation technique uses Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE) for wavefront reconstruction. An example of the MLE technique is disclosed in Ref. 2: Harrison H. Barrett, Christopher Dainty, and David Lara, "Maximum-likelihood methods in wavefront sensing: stochastic models and likelihood functions," J. Opt. Soc. Am. A. 24, 391-414 (2007).
(3) Stitching
U.S. patent application publication No. 2009/0284753 describes a technique in which a series of wavefront measurements are "stitched" together using mathematical methods. For each measurement, a different focus, wavefront tilt or reference aberration is used in conjunction with a dynamic-range-limiting aperture. Purportedly, this technique can effectively extend the dynamic range of the sensor. However, those of ordinary skill in the art should readily appreciate that performing a series of wavefront measurements and stitching those measurements together using mathematical methods is a computing-intensive process.
In view of the foregoing state of the art, the inventors herein have developed a novel technique for estimating wavefront parameters that can, among other advantages, shorten the time required for the measurement and analysis of such parameters while correctively canceling wavefront errors.

Apparatus and method for estimating wavefront parameters

The Arizona Board of Regents on Behalf of the University of Arizona


A vertical SiC trench MOSFET power switching FET includes a gate electrode in the trench. The MOSFET adds a buried region of a first conductivity type, more heavily doped than a base layer of the first conductivity type, to the base layer except adjacent to the trench. The buried region is preferably disposed in the base layer, or between a drift layer of a second conductivity type and the base layer. The region of the first conductivity type is optionally disposed below the bottom of the trench to encourage expansion of the depletion layer of the MOSFET. A depletion-type vertical SiC MESFET of the invention includes a buried region of the first conductivity type in a base layer of a second conductivity type. A Schottky electrode on a portion of the base layer above the buried region ensures adequate expansion of a depletion layer.

This invention relates to a field effect transistor (hereinafter referred to as an "FET") made of silicon carbide (hereinafter referred to as "SiC") that operates under severe conditions, including elevated temperatures and elevated levels of ionizing radiation. In particular, this invention relates to SiC power semiconductor devices such as a vertical FET and a MESFET.
Silicon carbide has a wide band gap and is chemically stable. Semiconductor devices made from SiC operate successfully at higher temperatures and higher levels of ionizing radiation than silicon devices. The maximum operating temperature of conventional silicon devices is around 150.degree. C. In contrast, some prototype SiC element devices such as p-n junction diodes and MOSFET's (FET's having a gate with a metal-oxide film-semiconductor structure) have been fabricated and operated successfully above 400.degree. C. SiC devices operable at such high temperatures are quite useful for robots and computers in environments too severe for humans, such as near nuclear reactors or beyond the earth's atmosphere.
Conventional silicon devices require cooling to prevent overheating during operation. The cooling typically involves bulky radiator fins which complicate silicon device structure. In contrast, using SiC instead of Si in an FET permits simpler and smaller semiconductor packages. Use of SiC reduces weight and improves fuel consumption in those instances where semiconductor devices make up a large part of an apparatus, such as in an automobile. Thus, SiC devices are useful where environmental considerations are important.
Certain technical problems exist in manufacturing SiC power devices. The most difficult problem is obtaining deep impurity diffusion. The diffusion coefficients for impurities in SiC are much smaller than those for silicon. Therefore, high temperature heat treatment at 1500.degree. C. or more is needed in order to achieve sufficiently deep diffusion in SiC. However, materials which tolerate such high temperatures are quite limited. It is also difficult to operate an electric furnace at that high a temperature with sufficient stability. Moreover, air reacts vigorously with the specimen at high temperatures, significantly affecting the device surface. Therefore, inventing a SiC device structure that eliminates the above difficulties is desirable.
Referring to FIG. 8, a vertical MOSFET according to the prior art is shown. The vertical MOSFET is an important device structure for applying SiC to power semiconductor devices. Since the vertical MOSFET is voltage driven, its driving circuits are simple. The vertical MOSFET is a monopolar device which switches at high speed. Although deep diffusion is difficult on SiC, epitaxial growth is relatively easy. Therefore, a trench MOSFET is popular for SiC devices.
A p-type base layer 83 is more easily formed by epitaxial growth than by thermal diffusion. An n-type drift layer 82, more lightly doped than an n.sup.+ substrate 81, is epitaxially grown on the n.sup.+ substrate 81. The p-type base layer 83 is epitaxially grown on the n-type drift layer 82. The n.sup.+ substrate 81, the drift layer 82, and the p-type base layer 83 constitute a SiC base plate. An n-type source region 84, which is heavily doped, is selectively formed in a surface portion of the SiC base plate. A trench 85 is formed from a part of the surface of the n-type source region 84 down into the n-type drift layer 82. A gate insulation film 86 covers the trench 85, with a gate electrode 87 fixed to the gate insulation film 86. A source electrode 88 contacts both the n-type source region 84 and an exposed surface portion of the p-type base layer 83. The n.sup.+ substrate 81 has a drain electrode 89 disposed on its back surface.
During operation of the vertical MOSFET, a positive voltage that exceeds a threshold value is applied to the gate electrode 87. At the same time, a voltage is applied between the drain electrode 89 and the source electrode 88, creating an inversion layer in the surface portion of the p-type base layer 83 beside the gate electrode 87. An electron current flows from the source electrode 88 to the drain electrode 89 through this inversion layer. The gate insulation film 86, formed from silicon dioxide, is made by thermally oxidizing SiC.
A hole current flowing through the p-type base layer 83 during switching of the SiC vertical MOSFET causes a voltage drop across the resistance of the p-type base layer 83. This voltage drop forward biases a p-n junction between the n-type source region 84 and the p-type base layer 83, and drives a resulting parasitic npn transistor to cause the device to break dove.
The usual power devices are required to withstand an avalanche current of a certain value. However, the capability of the conventional SiC vertical MOSFET to withstand avalanche, as defined by the insulation breakdown of the gate insulation film, is small since the breakdown starts from the trench of the gate portion.
Referring to FIG. 9, a MESFET (metal semiconductor field effect transistor) according to the prior art is shown. The MESFET is an important application of SiC to power semiconductor devices. (See, e.g., J. W. Parmer et al., "Diamond, Silicon Carbide, and Nitride Wide Band Gap Semiconductors", Proceedings of Materials Research Society, (1994).)
A p-type epitaxial layer 95 is formed on an n.sup.+ substrate 91. An n.sup.- layer 93 is grown on the p-type epitaxial layer 95. A heavily doped n.sup.+ layer is formed on the n.sup.- base layer 93. The heavily doped n.sup.+ layer is then selectively removed leaving a heavily doped n.sup.+ source layer 94 and an n.sup.+ drain region 90. A Schottky electrode 97 is disposed on an exposed surface portion of the n.sup.- base layer 93. A nickel film is deposited on the heavily doped n.sup.+ source layer 94 and the n.sup.+ drain region 90 by sputtering, forming a source electrode 98 and a drain electrode 99.
During operation of the MESFET, a current flows when a voltage is applied between the drain electrode 99 and the source electrode 98. A depletion layer is expanded into the n.sup.- base layer 93 beneath the Schottky electrode 97 by applying a negative voltage exceeding a certain threshold value to the Schottky electrode 97. The current is interrupted when the depletion layer reaches the p-type epitaxial layer 95.
Since the current carrying region of the conventional MESFET has to be narrow enough so that a depletion layer sufficiently expands therein in the OFF state of the MESFET, the ON-resistance of the current carrying region is too high to permit the high current required from power devices.

Silicon carbide field effect transistor with increased avalanche withstand capability


Isoxazole compounds having the following general formula: ##STR1## wherein R.sup.1 represents an optionally substituted aryl group or aromatic heterocyclic group; R.sup.2 represents a hydrogen atom, a halogen atom, an optionally substituted alkyl group, an alkenyl group, an alkynyl group, a cycloalkyl group, a cycloalkenyl group, an alkoxy group, a cyano group, a carboxyl group, an alkanoyl group, an alkoxycarbonyl group or an optionally substituted carbamoyl group; R.sup.3 represents an optionally substituted amino group or a saturated heterocyclic group; X represents an oxygen atom or a sulfur atom; and n is an integer of from 2 to 6. These compounds have excellent monoamine oxidase inhibitory activity and are useful as a therapeutic agent or a preventive agent against nervous diseases such as depression.

Depression is a disease which shows a typical condition of suppressed mood among mood disorders, and one of its causes is considered to be functional disorders in the central serotonergic and noradrenergic nervous systems. Serotonin and noradrenaline are decomposed and metabolized by monoamine oxidases (mainly by type A-monoamine oxidase) to lose their biological activities. Type A-monoamine oxidase inhibitors are considered to be useful as antidepressants and such inhibitors have been studied and developed intensively. Recently, Moclobernide has been supplied clinically as a selective type A-monoamine oxidase inhibitor.

Isoxazole compounds useful for the prophylaxis or treatment of nervous diseases


This refrigerating compressor comprises a sealed chamber delimiting a suction volume and a compression volume arranged respectively either side of a body contained in the chamber, and an oil injection circuit arranged to inject oil into the compression volume. The oil injection circuit comprises a moving blocking piece, operated by a centrifugal force, between a first position enabling oil injection into the compression volume and a second position preventing or limiting oil injection into the compression volume, the blocking piece being arranged to be displaced into its second position when the speed of the compressor exceeds a predetermined value.

The subject of the present invention is a refrigerating compressor with variable-speed coils.
The document FR 2 885 966 describes a coil compressor, also known as a scroll compressor, comprising a sealed chamber delimited by a shell and containing a suction volume and a compression volume arranged respectively either side of a body contained in the chamber. The shell delimiting the sealed chamber comprises a refrigerating gas inlet.
An electric motor is positioned inside the sealed chamber, with a stator located on the outside, mounted fixed relative to the shell, and a rotor in a central position, joined to a drive shaft, in the form of a crank shaft, a first end of which drives an oil pump feeding, from oil contained in a pan situated in the bottom part of the chamber, a lubrication pipe provided in the central part of the shaft. The lubrication pipe comprises lubrication orifices level with the various bearings guiding the drive shaft.
The compression volume contains a compression stage comprising a fixed volute fitted with a coil engaged in a coil of a moving volute, the two coils delimiting at least one compression chamber of variable volume. The second end of the drive shaft is fitted with an eccentric driving the moving volute in an orbital movement, to compress the refrigerating gas that is sucked in.
From a practical point of view, the refrigerating gas arrives from outside and penetrates into the sealed chamber. A portion of the gas is directly sucked in towards the compression volume, whereas the other portion of the gas passes through the motor before flowing towards the compression stage. All of the gas arriving either directly at the compression stage, or after passage through the motor, is sucked in by the compression stage, penetrating into at least one compression chamber delimited by the two coils, the inlet being at the periphery of the compression stage, and the gas being conveyed to the center of the coils as and when compression occurs by reduction of the volume of the compression chambers, resulting from the movement of the moving volute relative to the fixed volute. The compressed gas leaves in the central part towards the compressed gas recovery chamber.
According to the internal flow conditions of this type of compressor, the refrigerating gas entering into the compressor can be charged with oil, and this oil can originate, for example, from leaks from the bearings, from scrubbing of the surface of the oil pan by the gas.
It should be noted that the oil ratio in the refrigerating gas changes according to the rotation speed of the rotor of the electric motor.
Thus, at low rotor rotation speed, the quantity of oil circulating with the refrigerating gas is low, which can degrade the performance of the compressor and reduce the lubrication of the various parts of the compressor.
On the other hand, at high rotor rotation speed, the oil ratio in the refrigerating gas leaving the compressor can become excessive. The direct consequence of this excessive oil ratio in the gas is loss of efficiency of the heat exchange of the exchangers located downstream of the compressor, given the fact that the oil droplets contained in the gas have a tendency to be deposited on the exchangers and form a layer of oil on the latter.
Furthermore, an excessive oil ratio in the gas can also cause the oil pan to empty, which could lead to the destruction of the compressor.

Oil injection control in a compressor with variable-speed coils


A battery includes a separator with a trapping layer that traps dissolved metal ions.

Batteries, such as alkaline batteries, are commonly used as electrical energy sources. Generally, a battery contains a negative electrode (anode) and a positive electrode (cathode). The anode contains an active material (e.g., zinc particles) that can be oxidized; and the cathode contains an active material (e.g., manganese dioxide) that can be reduced. The active material of the anode is capable of reducing the active material of the cathode. In order to prevent direct reaction of the active material of the anode and the active material of the cathode, the electrodes are electrically isolated from each other by a separator.
When a battery is used as an electrical energy source in a device, such as a cellular telephone, electrical contact is made to the electrodes, allowing electrons to flow through the device and permitting the respective oxidation and reduction reactions to occur to provide electrical power. An electrolyte in contact with the electrodes contains ions that flow through the separator between the electrodes to maintain charge balance throughout the battery during discharge.