System and methods for predicting time-dependent rock properties are provided. Seismic data for a subsurface formation is acquired over a plurality of time intervals. A value of at least one rock property of the subsurface formation is calculated for each of the plurality of time intervals, based on the corresponding seismic data acquired for that time interval. At least one of a trend or a spatio-temporal relationship in the seismic data is determined based on the value of the at least one rock property calculated for each time interval. A value of the at least one rock property is estimated for a future time interval, based on the determination. The estimated value of the at least one rock property is used to select a location for a wellbore to be drilled within the subsurface formation. The wellbore is then drilled at the selected location.

In hydrocarbon exploration and production, seismic imaging techniques may be used to gain an understanding of the depth and structures of subsurface geological formations. Various seismic sources, such as dynamite, "thumper" trucks, air guns, and other noise sources located at the surface of a hydrocarbon bearing formation, may be used to propagate waves of seismic energy through an underground formation. The propagated waves are reflected through the formation and acquired using various seismic signal receiver devices, for example, geophones, hydrophones, and the like. A record of the seismic wave reflections acquired from the underground formation at different points in time may then be used to estimate the rock properties of different formation areas that may be of interest for hydrocarbon exploration and/or production. For example, seismic data can be used to generate three-dimensional (3D) models of subsurface geological structures, including faults and other stratigraphic features that may trap hydrocarbon and mineral deposits, within an area of interest. Such 3D models may be used to simulate the flow of fluids within the subsurface formation. The results of such a simulation may then be used for performing various activities related to hydrocarbon production and economic evaluation including, but not limited to, predicting future production, placing additional wells, and evaluating alternative reservoir management scenarios.
Various seismic modeling and simulation techniques may be used for enabling the quantitative integration of field data into an updateable reservoir model. Such techniques may include, for example, integrated petrophysics and rock physics to determine the range of lithotypes and rock properties, geostatistical inversion to determine a set of plausible seismic-derived rock property models at sufficient vertical resolution and heterogeneity for flow simulation, stratigraphic grid transfer to accurately move seismic-derived data to the geologic model, and flow simulation for model validation and ranking to determine the model that best fits all the data. The seismic simulation performed using such techniques may be considered successful if the underlying model accurately reflects the original well logs, seismic data and production history. However, the integration of seismic data from the field into a model as part of a simulation workflow is not always successful as the seismic data may be inaccurate, incomplete, or unavailable altogether.

Seismic rock property prediction in forward time based on 4D seismic analysis


A method and apparatus for facilitating spinal alignment is disclosed. The contoured sleep system facilitates alignment of a person's spine along the Sagittal plane when laying in a sleep-on-side position. An exemplary contoured sleep system has a trunk rest having a trunk rest surface and a trunk rest face.

Various sleeping problems are commonly experienced by many people. For example, a person sleeping on a flat mattress may experience back aches and pains due to the nonalignment of their spine while sleeping. Furthermore, if the person's spine is not in alignment during sleep, discomfort, or injury may occur to the vertebrae disks, back muscles, and/or connecting ligaments.
As another example of a sleeping problem, if a person is sleeping on top of their arm, circulation to portions of the arm may be hindered. Such reduced circulation may result in a tingling, numbness, or even pain in the blood-deprived regions of the arm.
Nasal and sinus congestion may be exacerbated by sleeping on a flat mattress when the person is suffering from a cold or the flu. Further, acid reflux or the like are known to be more damaging at night when the afflicted person is sleeping.
FIG. 1 shows a lateral view 102 and a posterior view 104 of a spine 106. The names of the various portions of the spine 106 are illustrated. FIG. 2 shows anatomical reference planes of a person 202, namely the Sagittal plane 204, the coronal plane 206, and the axial plane 208.
The lateral view 102 of person 202 illustrates a natural, healthy curvature of the spine 106 with respect to the coronal plane 206. The posterior view 104 of person 202 illustrates a natural, healthy alignment of the spine 106 with respect to the Sagittal plane 204. When spine 106 is aligned along the Sagittal plane 204 in the illustrated straight-line orientation, the person 202 will be in a relatively comfortable position (absent other spinal injury, such as herniated vertebrae disks, arthritis, or the like). When the spine 106 is not in the straight-line alignment along the Sagittal plane 204, the person 202 may experience some level of discomfort. If the nonalignment of the spine 106 along the Sagittal plane 204 is maintained for a relatively long period of time, such as when the person 202 is sleeping at night or resting in bed during recovery from an illness or the like, the level of discomfort may increase to a very undesirable level. As noted above, injury to the vertebrae disks, back muscles, and/or connecting ligaments may result.
FIG. 3 shows a front view of a person 202 laying in a sleep-on-side position 302 on a prior art mattress 303. The person's head 304 is laying on the person's lower arm 306. Pillow 308 is supporting the person's lower arm 306 and head 304. The person's upper shoulder 310, upper arm 312, upper hip 314, lower hip 316, upper leg 318, lower leg 320, upper foot 322, and lower foot 324 are illustrated for the person 204 laying in the sleep-on-side position 302. The trunk 326 is that portion of the person 202 from the shoulder blades 406, 408 to the hips 314, 316.
FIG. 4 shows a rear view of the person 202 laying in the sleep-on-side position 302 on the prior art mattress 303. The person's spine 106 (illustrated conceptually as a series of line-connected squares) is not in alignment along the Sagittal plane 204 while laying in the sleep-on-side position 302. The spine 106 is oriented in a curve about an upper region 402 near the shoulders (cervical and thoracic portions of spine 106) and in a curve about the lower region 404 near the hips (lumbar and sacrum portions of spine 106). The person's upper shoulder blade 406 and lower shoulder blade 408 are also conceptually illustrated, and are aligned along the illustrated plane 410.
While laying in the sleep-on-side position 302, the spinal curvatures 402 and 404 may result in compression of the vertebrae disks (not illustrated, but well known as the soft tissue separating individual vertebrae of the spine 106). Such compression of the vertebrae disks is undesirable, and may even result to injury of the vertebrae disks. Further, if the vertebrae disks are already injured, the compression of the vertebrae disks caused by the spinal curvatures 402 and 404 may exacerbate the pain and further injure the vertebrae disks.
As is apparent from FIG. 4, the plane 410 of the shoulder blades 406, 408 is oriented at a non-perpendicular angle with respect to the spine 106. This orientation of the shoulder blades 406, 408, alone or in combination with the spinal curvatures at regions 402 and/or 404, may result in discomfort and/or injury to the person's muscles and/or ligaments (not illustrated). For example, the person 202 may experience muscle spasms, cramping, and/or other types of back pain.
Accordingly, it is desirable to facilitate alignment of the spine 106 along the Sagittal plane 204 when the person 202 is laying in a sleep-on-side position 302. Further, it is desirable to facilitate alignment of the spine 106 along the Sagittal plane 204 when the person 202 is confined to bed rest during recovery from an illness or injury.


A combination of tools for use in adjusting the valves in an internal combustion engine, and particularly the movement of the valve contacting end of a rocker arm in a motorcycle engine, comprises a socket, a hollow rod sized to fit in the opening in the top of the socket and a screw driver sized to fit through an upper opening in the rod so that the valve adjustment screw can be adjusted while the locking nut thereon is easily unlocked using the socket.

Typical internal combustion engines include one or more intake and/or exhaust valves at each cylinder in the cylinder head. Means are provided to permit quantities or air/fuel mixtures to enter a combustion chamber. The exhaust valves open to allow combustion products to exit the combustion chamber. The timing of the opening and closing of these valves, and the area of the exhaust space between the chamber and the valve when opened are variables which are mechanically adjusted to obtain good fuel burning and maintain appropriate pressure in the combustion chamber. The valve stems extend outward through the cylinder head. Resting on or above the external end of each valve stem is one end of a pivotally mounted rocker arm. A second end of the rocker arm is operatively connected to a push rod and/or a cam shaft. Movement of the push rod or cam shaft causes the rocker arm to move in an actuate path (rock) around its pivot point, in turn pushing the valve stem downward, causing the valve to move down (open). A spring arrangement typically causes the valve to close when the rocker arm rotates upward away from the valve stem. The amount of movement of the valve, and its ability to seal the chamber, is usually controlled by adjustment of an adjustment screw (valve adjuster stem) and locking nut (valve adjuster lock nut) combination, also referred to as tappet adjustment, mounted within the end of the rocker arm and in contact with the top of the valve stem or the push rod or both as the arm rotates downwardly.
One of the fundamental problems in adjusting valve clearance is the difficulty of manipulating the adjustment screw and locking nut, particularly because of the confined space in which the mechanic must operate and the tendency of the adjustment screw to move during tightening of the locking nut. Typically, the locking nut must be grasped by a wrench, loosened and held in that loosened position while the screw is adjusted and a gap between the valve stem and screw bottom is being set using a gap gauge. The nut must then be tightened while the screw is held fixed so the adjustment (the desired gap) does not change.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,229,999 to Rottigni describes a valve adjustment tool which includes an elongated barrel having a bore therethrough, an externally threaded upper barrel and an integral collet which forms a valve lock nut socket on the lower end of the barrel. The collet is surrounded by a compression collar. An elongated internally threaded sleeve is placed over the barrel abutting the compression collar. Threading the sleeve downward on the barrel compresses the collet. An elongated valve adjuster driver is placed through the bore of the barrel. This driver has a large disc shaped knob at its upper end and an engagement lug at its lower end. When assembled the collet locks on the adjustment nut so that the nut can be loosened and tightened and the driver is used to turn the adjustment screw.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,544,520 shows a one piece tool for simultaneously grasping the locking nut and turning the adjustment screw.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,601,796 shows a third example of a tool used for tappet adjustment. It includes a sleeve member for gripping the locking nut, a hollow socket member which slides onto and grips the shaft of the sleeve member and a screw driver placed through the center of the socket member to engage the adjustment screw. The sleeve member is held stationary during the adjustment process by a conventional box wrench.
Each of these prior tool assemblies have multiple components that make the adjustment process cumbersome. The valve adjustment tool described herein simplifies the adjustment process and allows the user to simultaneously measure, adjust clearances and lock the tappet assembly in the new adjusted state. A user can untighten and tighten a valve stem lock nut and adjust and simultaneously measure clearances without removing the tool from engagement with the lock nut during the adjustment, measuring and locking procedure.


A microscope including an optical unit and a collimator. The collimator is arranged preceding or following the optical unit in a beam path of the optical system. The optical unit imposes a predetermined longitudinal chromatic aberration on a beam supplied to a beam path and the beam impinges on the collimator as a diverging beam or a parallel beam and is converted by the collimator into a parallel beam or a converging beam. The collimator includes at least one lens as well as a curved mirror which folds the beam path such that the supplied beam passes twice through the lens.

Such optical system is, for example, a fluorescence correlation spectroscope or a laser-scanning microscope. In a laser-scanning microscope, there is often the problem that, due to the longitudinal chromatic aberration characteristic of the optical unit (the objective), excitation undesirably occurs at different depths in a sample.
It is known from DE 102 17 544 A1 to construct a collimator using at least two lenses of different optical materials, which collimator serves to reduce the longitudinal chromatic aberration of the objective. However, since the collimator is constructed using at least two lenses of different optical materials, its production is complex and costly.
In view thereof, it is an object of the invention to provide an optical system comprising an optical unit and a collimator, said system allowing the above-described disadvantages to be overcome.

Optical system, in particular microscope


An apparatus and a method for controlling oil of a multi-compressor installed in an air conditioner includes a microcomputer for sequentially stopping compressors installed in the air conditioner for a preset time and then sequentially operating the compressors when the preset time elapses; and oil pipes connected to the compressors and balancing oil in the compressors, so that damage of the compressors due to imbalance of refrigerating machine oil is prevented by uniformly dividing oil of a multi-compressor installed in the air conditioner.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an air conditioner, and particularly, to an apparatus and a method for controlling oil of an air conditioner.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In general, an air conditioner cools warm air or heats cool air in a room. Hereinafter, a construction of an air conditioner having two compressors in accordance with a conventional art will now be described with reference to FIG. 1. Herein, the two compressors are selectively operated according to a cooling load of a room.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a construction of an air conditioner having two compressors in accordance with the conventional art.
As shown therein, an air conditioner having two compressors includes a first compressor 18A and a second compressor 18B selectively operated according to a cooling load of a room to vary compressing capacity; a condenser 1 for radiating heat of a refrigerant compressed by the first and second compressors 18A, 18B; an expansion valve 2 for expanding the refrigerant discharged from the condenser 1; and an evaporator 3 receiving the refrigerant expanded by the expansion valve 3 and generating cool air. Assuming that the first compressor 18A is a compressor of small compressing capacity and the second compressor 18B is a compressor of high compressing capacity, the construction of the air conditioner having the two compressors will now be described.
First, suction pipes 9, 13 respectively connected to the first compressor 18A and the second compressor 18B are connected by hoses 5, 7 diverged from a suction hose 4 connected to the evaporator 3. In addition, discharge pipes 11, 14 respectively connected to the first compressor 18A and the second compressor 18B are connected by hoses 10, 16 diverged from a discharge hose 17 connected to the condenser 1.
To the diverged hoses 5, 7, 10, 16 are respectively connected suction valves 6, 8 and discharge valves 12, 15 which are selectively opened/closed by hand or a control means such as a microcomputer or the like.
Accordingly, the air conditioner having the two compressors controls a cooling cycle by operating the first compressor 18A or/and the second compressor 18B according to the cooling load. That is, capacities of the compressors are changed in such a manner than the air conditioner operates only the first compressor 18A when an indoor cooling load is small, operates only the second compressor 18B when the indoor cooling load is large, and operates both the first and second compressors 18A, 18B when the indoor cooling load is maximum.
When a refrigerant is compressed by the first compressor 18A and/or the second compressor 18B, refrigerating machine oil in the first and second compressor 18A, 18B is mixed with the refrigerant to perform a cooling cycle and then is sucked into the first and second compressors 18A, 18B via an accumulator (not shown).
Recently, an air conditioner having four compressors has been used. General operations of the air conditioner having four compressors are the same as those of the air conditioner of FIG. 1. The four compressors may be designed to have the same compressing capacity or may be designed to have different compressing capacities.
However, when the four compressors are operated according to the conventional art, most of refrigerating machine oil is sucked into a certain compressor, thereby causing insufficiency of refrigerating machine oil in other compressors. That is, the amount of the refrigerating machine oil collected in a common accumulator is slightly different depending on suction pipe laying and performance variations of the compressors. In case of simultaneously operating four compressors for many hours, refrigerating machine oil in compressors is not uniform, thereby causing damage of compressors having insufficient refrigerating machine oil.
An air conditioner having a multi-compressor in accordance with the conventional art is disclosed in detail in U.S. Pat. No. 6,519,957 issued in Feb. 18, 2003.

Apparatus and method for controlling oil of air conditioner


The present invention provides a recording apparatus which can determine a position of a carriage on which a recording head is mounted with high accuracy without enhancing positional accuracy of a carriage position detecting system. In this recording apparatus, a rod-like member is moved upwardly to be engaged by a recessed portion formed in the carriage. A deviation amount of the carriage generated by such engagement is detected by a linear encoder and is used as a correction value when the carriage is moved next time.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a recording apparatus, and more particularly, it relates to a recording apparatus having an encoder for detecting a position and a speed of a carriage on which a recording head is mounted.
2. Related Background Art
In so-called serial recording apparatuses wherein recording is effected by moving a carriage on which a recording head is mounted along a guide shaft, a magnetic linear encoder, an optical linear encoder or the like has been used to detect a position and a speed of the carriage.
In the recording apparatuses having the magnetic linear encoder, a magnetic scale portion is arranged in the apparatus, and a detection portion comprised of an MR element (ferromagnetic reluctance effect element) is arranged on the carriage shiftable relative to the scale portion. On the other hand, in the recording apparatuses having the optical linear encoder, a scale portion formed from a slit-shaped film is arranged in the apparatus, and a reading portion having a sensor of light-permeable type or light-reflection type is attached to the carriage shiftable relative to the scale portion.
In such recording apparatuses, in order to determine address of the scale of the (magnetic or optical) linear encoder, the following method has been adopted.
That is to say, a photo-interrupter is arranged in the apparatus independently from the linear encoder, so that all of the addresses on the entire area of the scale can be determined on the basis of a reference position of the scale where an optical axis of the photo-interrupter is blocked by a portion of the carriage. And, on the basis of the address of the scale determined by this method, a shift position of the carriage is determined and the recording is effected by the recording head mounted on the carriage at that shift position. Further, when the recording head is of ink jet type, a sucking operation or a capping operation is effected at a predetermined position on the basis of the address of the scale as ink discharge recovery treatment for the recording head.
By the way, in the above-mentioned conventional techniques, since the photo-interrupter is arranged in the apparatus independently from the linear encoder to determine the address of the scale of the linear encoder, in order to correctly or accurately determine the address of the scale, dimensional accuracy of parts of the photo-interrupter itself, attachment accuracy of the photo-interrupter to the apparatus and switching accuracy of signal output when the optical axis of the photo-interrupter is blocked by the portion of the carriage must be enhanced.
Further, in consideration of the ink jet recording apparatus wherein the sucking operation and the capping operation for the recording head are required, in order to perform positive sucking and capping operations, attachment accuracy of a recovery unit (for effecting the sucking and capping operations) with respect to the attachment position of the photo-interrupter must also be enhanced, as well as the above-mentioned accuracies.
Accordingly, if various dimensional errors are accumulated, sure capping operation and/or sucking operation cannot be performed.

Recording apparatus with enhanced positional accuracy of recording head carriage


An electrolytic cell and method of electrolysizing and heating water containing a conductive salt in solution. The electrolytic cell includes a non-conductive housing having an inlet and an outlet and spaced apart first and second conductive foraminous grids connected within the housing. A plurality of non-conductive microspheres each having a uniformly thick outer conductive palladium layer thereon are positioned within the housing in electrical contact with the first grid adjacent the inlet. An electric power source is operably connected across the first and second grids whereby electrical current flows between the grids within the water solution.

1. Scope of Invention
This invention generally relates to electrolytic cells, and more particularly to an improved electrolytic cell for electrolysis of water and the production of heat.
2. Prior Art
The present invention utilizes microspheres formed on non-metallic beads which are plated with a uniformly thick coating of palladium. These palladium coated microspheres are taught in my previous U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,943,355 and 5,036,031. In these above-recited previous patents, which are incorporated herein by reference, cross linked polymer microspheres having a plating of palladium are taught to exhibit improvements in the absorption of hydrogen.
The use of a palladium sheet to form one electrode within an electrolytic cell to produce excess heat, the electrolytic cell being a Pons-Fleischmann-type is taught by Edmund Storms. The description of the Storms electrolytic cell and his experimental performance results are described in an article entitled Measurements of Excess Heat from a Pons-Fleischmann-Type Electrolytic Cell Using Palladium Sheet appearing in Fusion Technology, Volume 3, March 1993. In a previous article, Storms reviewed experimental observations about electrolytic cells for producing heat in an article entitled "Review of Experimental Observations About the Cold Fusion Effect" FUSION TECHNOLOGY, Vol. 20, December 1991.
None of the previously reported experimental results or other prior art devices known to applicant have utilized palladium coated (or other metals which will form "metallic hydrides" in the presence of hydrogen) non-conductive microspheres within an electrolytic cell for the production of heat and the electrolysis of water into its hydrogen and oxygen components. The present invention discloses various embodiments of palladium coated microspheres within an electrolytic cell in conjunction with an electrolytic media containing either water or heavy water, particularly deuterium.

Method for electrolysis of water to form metal hydride


Operating voltages to a group of memory cells in an array are supplied via access lines such as word lines and bit lines. The capacitance of associated nodes of the memory cells can latch some of these voltages. Memory operation can continue using the latched voltages even when the access lines are disconnected. In a memory have an array of NAND chains, the capacitance of the channel of each NAND chain can latch a voltage to either enable or inhibit programming. The bit lines can then be disconnected during programming of the group and be used for another memory operation. In one embodiment, the bit lines are precharged for the next verifying step of the same group. In another embodiment, two groups of memory cells are being programmed contemporarily, so that while one group is being programmed, the other group can be verified with the use of the bit lines.

Memory and storage is one of the key technology areas that is enabling the growth in the information age. With the rapid growth in the Internet, World Wide Web (WWW), wireless phones, personal digital assistant, digital cameras, digital camcorders, digital music players, computers, networks, and more, there is continually a need for better memory and storage technology. A particular type of memory is nonvolatile memory. A nonvolatile memory retains its memory or stored state even when power is removed. Some types of nonvolatile erasable programmable memories include Flash, EEPROM, EPROM, MRAM, FRAM, ferroelectric, and magnetic memories. Some nonvolatile storage products include CompactFlash (CF) cards, MultiMedia cards (MMC), Flash PC cards (e.g., ATA Flash cards), SmartMedia cards, and memory sticks.
A widely used type of semiconductor memory storage cell is the floating gate memory cell. Some types of floating gate memory cells include Flash, EEPROM, and EPROM. The memory cells are configured or programmed to a desired configured state. In particular, electric charge is placed on or removed from the floating gate of a Flash memory cell to put the memory into two or more stored states. One state is an erased state and there may be one or more programmed states. Alternatively, depending on the technology and terminology, there may be a programmed state and one or more erased states. A Flash memory cell can be used to represent at least two binary states, a 0 or a 1. A Flash memory cell can store more than two binary states, such as a 00, 01, 10, or 11; this cell can store multiple states and may be referred to as a multistate memory cell. The cell may have more than one programmed states. If one state is the erased state (00), the programmed states will be 10, 10, and 11, although the actual encoding of the states may vary.
The memory device typically comprises one or more memory chips that may be mounted on a card. Each memory chip comprises an array of memory cells supported by peripheral circuits such as decoders and erase, write and read circuits. The more sophisticated memory devices also come with a controller that performs intelligent and higher level memory operations and interfacing.
There are many commercially successful non-volatile solid-state memory devices being used today. These memory devices may be flash EEPROM or may employ other types of nonvolatile memory cells. Examples of flash memory and systems and methods of manufacturing them are given in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,070,032, 5,095,344, 5,315,541, 5,343,063, and 5,661,053, 5,313,421 and 6,222,762. In particular, flash memory devices with NAND chain structures are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,570,315, 5,903,495, 6,046,935. Also nonvolatile memory devices are also manufactured from memory cells with a dielectric layer for storing charge. Instead of the conductive floating gate elements described earlier, a dielectric layer is used. Such memory devices utilizing dielectric storage element have been described by Eitan et al., "NROM: A Novel Localized Trapping, 2-Bit Nonvolatile Memory Cell," IEEE Electron Device Letters, vol. 21, no. 11, November 2000, pp. 543-545. An ONO dielectric layer extends across the channel between source and drain diffusions. The charge for one data bit is localized in the dielectric layer adjacent to the drain, and the charge for the other data bit is localized in the dielectric layer adjacent to the source. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,768,192 and 6,011,725 disclose a nonvolatile memory cell having a trapping dielectric sandwiched between two silicon dioxide layers. Multi-state data storage is implemented by separately reading the binary states of the spatially separated charge storage regions within the dielectric.
Despite the success of nonvolatile memories, there also continues to be a need to improve the technology. It is desirable to improve the density, speed, durability, and reliability of these memories. It is also desirable to reduce power consumption.
As can be seen, there is a need for improving the operation of nonvolatile memories. Specifically, by allowing background operation of the nonvolatile memory cells, this will speed up operations and reduce power consumption.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

NAND flash memory with a programming voltage held dynamically in a NAND chain channel region


This disclosure provides a process for making transition metal carboxylate compositions by combining in an polar aprotic first solvent a transition metal precursor and a Group 1 or Group 2 metal carboxylate under substantially acid-free and substantially anhydrous conditions, to generate a mixture comprising the transition metal carboxylate composition. Optionally, the transition metal carboxylate composition can be purified, for example, by substantially removing the first solvent provide a residue comprising the transition metal carboxylate composition, and also optionally, further by extracting the transition metal carboxylate composition from the residue with a non-coordinating second solvent to provide an extract comprising the transition metal carboxylate composition.

The trimerization of ethylene to produce 1-hexene constitutes a commercially significant process for the selective preparation of this alpha olefin, which in turn is useful for preparing a range of polyolefins, usually as a comonomer with ethylene. One widely employed catalyst system utilizes chromium carboxylates as a component. For example, tris(2-ethylhexanoate) chromium(III) compositions are utilized as a component of some effective chromium (III) catalyst system for the selective trimerization of ethylene to 1-hexene.
Batch-to-batch variations in the quality of commercial chromium(III) 2-ethylhexanoate, and the attendant inconsistency in catalytic system performance, have prompted the search for new synthetic approaches to chromium carboxylates. This search for alternative preparative approaches is further motivated by the desire to improve productivity and selectivity of a catalyst system and to attempt to reduce catalyst system cost. Therefore, there remains a need for new synthetic approaches to produce transition metal carboxylates.

Preparation of transition metal carboxylates


A mower unit of grass cutting machine has at least two blades. The left blade is rotatable clockwise, while the right blade is rotatable counterclockwise. A grass discharge passage is formed between the two blades. An endless rotational belt for transmitting drive to the two blades is offset forwardly in a region between the blades, thereby forming, between the blades, a space without the endless rotational belt. The grass discharge passage has an upper surface inclined rearwardly and upwardly to extend from a position forwardly of a pair of pulleys corresponding to the two blades.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an improvement in the construction of a mower unit for discharging grass clippings.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a conventional mower unit, as shown in FIGS. 14 and 15, an endless rotational belt 29 has a moving path including a straight path portion L1 between pulleys 26 and 28. A deck plate 17 defines an upper surface 40a of a grass discharge passage 40 inclined upward and rearward from adjacent a position over the straight path portion L1. The rear end of the upper surface 40a is located above the endless rotational belt 29. Thus, the upper surface 40a of grass discharge passage 40 defines a ceiling wall 41 not interfering with the rear moving path portion L1. Grass clippings cut by rotary blades 16 are carried along the grass discharge passage 40 by airflows generated by rotation of the rotary blades 16, to be discharged in batches from a grass discharge opening 20 at the rear end of the grass discharge passage 40.
It may be necessary for the grass clippings discharged in batches from the grass discharge opening 20 to be blown to a higher level than the discharge opening 20. In this case, the discharge opening 20 should preferably have an upper edge 20a located at an elevated level. In the above construction, the upper surface 40a of grass discharge passage 40 must extend with a steep gradient in order to raise the upper edge 20a of discharge opening 20 while maintaining the ceiling wall 41 of grass discharge passage 40 out of interference with the endless rotational belt 29. However, the steeper the upper surface 40a of grass discharge passage 40 is, the greater is the chance of airflows stalling while moving along the upper surface 40a. Especially, damp grass clippings carried by the airflows through the grass discharge passage 40 tend to adhere to the upper surface 40a of the discharge passage 40 to impair transporting efficiency.
The object of this invention is to provide a mower unit which overcomes the disadvantage noted above, and a grass cutting machine having such a mower unit.
The above object is fulfilled, according to this invention, by a mower unit comprising a first blade rotatable clockwise in plan view, a first pulley rotatable with the first blade to drive the first blade, a second blade disposed rightward from the first blade and rotatable counterclockwise, the second blade being level with or displaced from the first blade in a fore and aft direction, a second pulley rotatable with the second blade to drive the second blade, an endless rotational belt for transmitting drive at least between the first pulley and the second pulley, and a grass discharge passage disposed between rotary shafts of the first pulley and second pulley and having an inclined upper surface. A portion of the endless rotational belt extending between the first pulley and the second pulley is offset forwardly, in the fore and aft direction, of a phantom line extending between the rotary shafts of the first pulley and second pulley. The upper surface of the grass discharge passage begins to incline in a position forwardly of the phantom line.
In the above construction, the endless rotational belt is offset forward, and the upper surface of the grass discharge passage has a ceiling wall thereof which may be inclined from a forward position within a range not interfering with the endless rotational belt.
Thus, in an embodiment of this invention, the upper surface of the grass discharge passage has a rising end located more forwardly than in the conventional mower unit. The rear end of the grass discharge passage is located at a correspondingly elevated plane even where the upper surface extends with the same gradient as in the prior art.
The upper surface of the grass discharge passage may be less steep than in the conventional mower unit. It is also possible to elevate the rear end of the upper surface of the grass discharge passage to a higher level than in the conventional mower unit.
Consequently, while avoiding lowering of the efficiency of transporting grass clippings, the rear end of the upper surface of the upwardly inclined grass discharge passage may be elevated to an increased height.


A pinch grip hanger mechanism dispenses pinch grip hangers, one at a time, and then opens the pinch grips for insertion of a garment. The insertion of a garment triggers the closing of the pinch grips, and reciprocation of a hanger feed push plate to dispense another hanger. The device may also automatically attach size indicia to the hanger as the hanger is dispensed. The closing of the pinch grips is initiated by safety triggers, which are triggered by insertion of a garment. This provides a safety feature for the device, since the operator needs to use both hands to hold the garment taut for insertion. Thus, both hands are away from the device at the time the pinch grips are opened and closed.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates generally to a pinch grip hanger mechanism, and more particularly pertains to a clip hanger loading mechanism providing a fast and efficient mechanism and method for loading garments into pinch grip clip hangers.
2. Description of Related Art
Consumer taste and fashion have dictated a desire for mass-produced, but well-fitted garments, which are distributed and sold throughout the United States. Large national retailers of clothing generally contract with a plurality of clothing manufacturers to produce uniform standardized clothing, which is essentially identical from batch to batch, even though manufactured by different entities. These manufacturers in turn produce the clothing at their own plants, or in many cases, subcontract the production of the garments to manufacturers based in the Far East, for instance, in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and South Korea.
In the retail clothing industry clothing is typically suspended from hangers at the point of purchase. Such hangers are often inexpensive ship-on types and under prevailing garment-on-hanger programs, the garment is shipped from the manufacturer to the retailer while suspended from a hanger. However, the time and labor costs associated with the operation of taking each hanger, loading a garment into the hanger and then placing the hanger with the garment affixed thereon in a suitable form for shipment is not insignificant at the manufacturing level.
For these reasons the industry has developed a variety of devices partially automating the operation of suspending garments from hangers. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,349,127 to Savard a device is provided which holds a stack of hangers and, when the operator is ready for the operation of affixing the garment thereon, feeds the hangers one by one in a position suitable for carrying out the operation. After one hanger with the garment affixed thereon is removed, the device permits the next hanger to be automatically fed to the operator who affixes the next garment thereon.
Another device which automatically advances hangers, one at a time, to an operator is the Hangermatic 589 manufactured by Trim-Master, 4860 North 5th Street Highway, Temple, Pa. The Hangermatic 589 includes a pair of magazine towers, which contain a vertical stack of hangers there between. The hangers rest on a plate member and are selectively engaged by a reciprocating plate, which selectively engages the lowermost hanger and urges it outwardly to a stop means on an outer plate, which becomes extended. The hanger is thereby held in an extended position at which point the operator may affix a garment to the hanger and then remove the hanger. After removal of the hanger the outer plate, which is spring loaded returns to the inner plate activating a control, which returns the reciprocating plate to its original position. In a fully automatic mode, the reciprocating plate returns to pick up another hanger from the magazines and advance it to the extended position.
A modified form of this device that provided automatic feed for pants hangers having a steel spring clam shell design was also developed. In this hanger, a steel retaining clip was manually clamped over the clam shell to secure the garment. Use of the hangers in this device required a manual operation to slide the steel clip over the clam shell to close the retention clip on the garment.
For purposes of displaying garments suspended on hangers in an orderly and attractive manner to the retail customer, it is often desired to affix an indicating means on the hanger in a position visible to the retail customer while the hanger is suspended on a rack. The indicating means identifies some attribute of the garment suspended from the hanger, such as size, quality, color, manufacturing data, or pattern.
To accommodate the various types of hangers available in the industry numerous indicating means have been developed in a variety of shapes, sizes and materials. For instance, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,322,902, Des. 341,947 and Des. 332,180 and World Publication No. 90/09651 all disclose plastic indicia-bearing caps attached to the top of the hook. In U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,115,940, 5,096,101, 5,199,608 and 5,238,159, indicia-bearing flanges which attach an indicia-bearing sizer substantially at the junction of both the hook and the body member are disclosed.
Typically, the indicating means are manually affixed. However, a system for automatically affixing indicating indicia-bearing size caps to the top of a garment hanger is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,272,806 and 5,285,566 to Marshall, et al. which are assigned to the assignee of the present invention.
The system disclosed in the Marshall, et al. patents discloses an improvement to the Hangermatic 589 device and includes a third magazine to receive a bundle of size caps which are individually attached to the hangers as they are dispensed. Each of the magazines on the improved Hangermatic are independently adjustable to configure the device to variety of hanger configurations. In the Marshall et. al. device, the configuration of the reciprocating plate is altered to provide a cutout which conforms to the exterior dimension of the color and index-coded size cap. In operation, a single index size cap and a single hanger are withdrawn from their respective magazines and the index cap is secured to the hanger as the plate reciprocates forwardly to the extended position for attachment of a garment.
However, none of the above-mentioned devices can accommodate newer model pants hangers, which have a spring action pinch grips. These prior art devices are unsuitable for use with the pinch grip hangers since both pinch grips are normally biased to a closed position by a spring and both must be opened to load a garment into the grips. At the present time this requires an operator to perform four steps. Using one hand the operator must open the first pinch grip and then using the other hand to suspend the garment, one side of the garment is placed in the grip. This process is then repeated for the other pinch grip. With the second pinch grip the operator must also simultaneously tension the garment between the clips, and since both hands are already occupied, the tensioning step may require additional manual movements. At a minimum, four manual steps or movements are required.
Further, some pinch grip hangers have plastic hooks, adapted to receive a size cap related to a characteristic of the garment to be loaded into the hanger. The placement of the size cap on each device requires either a separate machine, such as the previously described prior art device, or manual application of the size caps. Therefore, the labor required to correctly load or secure and size the garment is increased, resulting in higher labor costs and lower productivity.
The object of the present invention is to overcome these obstacles with a mechanism which automatically presents the hanger to the operator and automatically opens and closes the new style hanger clips for insertion of the garment. Optionally, the invention can automatically attach the size cap on the hanger as it is presented to the operator for garment loading. The invention promotes safe and efficient operation of the placement of garments and size indicias on pinch grip hangers.


There is disclosed an electronic filing apparatus which allows to handle files, prepared by different application programs, as the files common to these programs in easy and inexpensive manner. The drawing information, transmitted from each application program activatable by the computer system, is converted into a predetermined print data format, defined by the operating system, by the printer driver. Then the QuickDraw-common document conversion device converts the print data, converted into the predetermined print data format, into the common document file format which can be directly referred to by the plural application programs, and the common document in thus converted common document file format is stored in the data base.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electronic filing apparatus, an electronic filing system and an electronic filing method, for filing documents with electronic means.
2. Related Background Art
The conventional electronic filing apparatus, a large-sized expensive exclusive apparatus, is not necessarily convenient for use as it is designed with an exclusive operating method which requires a specially trained operator, and is incapable of managing the documents in common with desk top printed documents, as it is independent from the personal computer.
To realize a compact and inexpensive electronic filing apparatus, it is conceivable to apply the filing technology on a commercially available personal computer. The functional elements required for the electronic filing apparatus are a scanner, an OCR, a keyword searching function, a disk device such as a magnetooptical disk device etc. A document printed on "paper" is read by the scanner, then the character information is converted into codes by the OCR, also the key words are automatically picked up and stored in the disk device together with said codes. These functions are sufficient for an apparatus designed exclusively for electronic filing, but, in case of electronic filing on a personal computer, the documents to be handled would not be lemeted to those printed on "paper". Thus, it becomes necessary to handle desk top printed documents, prepared by entry from the keyboard. However such desk top printed (DTP) documents are completely different in file formats, depending on the application software used in their preparation. This will result in the following drawbacks if such documents are stored in the form of files:
(1) In case of access, from plural personal computers, to the DTP documents stored in a server provided on a network, the application software used in the preparation of the document may not be present on all such personal computers. Even a difference in version of such application software will present difficulty; PA1 (2) In case personal computers of different architectures are present on the network, even files prepared by the same application software cannot be accessed mutually as they are usually different in the file format; PA1 (3) The commercially available application softwares are not usable for electronic filing, as most lack the function of extracting the key words; PA1 (4) If an exclusive search software is prepared and the filing operation is conducted in an indirect manner from a commercially available software through said search software, the document information is transmitted through a file or through a cut-and-paste function, but the procedure required for such an operation is cumbersome, requires a long time, and is difficult to automate; PA1 (5) The conventional electronic filing apparatus, being independent from the personal computer, is incapable of managing the files and the DTP documents on common basis.
To resolve some of these drawbacks, various filters been provided.
The number of filters required varies according to the number of applications to be used. For example, for 10 applications, .sub.10 C.sub.2 combinations of the filters will be required, so that there will be an enormous number of filter processes involved.
Also, the data exchange between applications of quite different character, such as a scanner application, word processing application, table calculating application is extremely difficult if it is conducted through files, because the file formats generated by such different applications are arbitrarily determined by the vendors of the software and have no mutual interchangability.
Also certain standard formats such as "TIFF", "PICT", "EPS", "GIF", "TGA" etc., not dependent on the application are not universal, being compatible only with a part of such applications.
Also, some personal computers such as MaCintosh or Windows-based machines are designed to effect data exchange through the "cut and paste" function, but with a format limited to "PICT" or "GIF".

Electronic filing system using different application program for processing drawing commands for printing


The various technologies presented herein relate to detection of a lock is being tampered with, cut, removed, etc. An electrical circuit can be incorporated into a lock portion and a securing portion (e.g., a bar, a cable, etc.) of the lock. The electrical circuit can include a conductive element located along the length of the bar, cable, etc., with an electrical charge applied to the conductive element. Upon damage to the conductive element, e.g., during an attempt to cut or remove the lock, a change in the electrical charge from an initial state can be determined, which can further generate an alarm. The alarm can be a light, speaker, etc. An alarm notification can be transmitted from the lock to a remote device, e.g., a mobile phone, a central monitoring system, etc. A trembler switch can be incorporated into the lock to detect movement of the lock.

While bicycle riding increases in popularity across the globe there has also been an according rise in bicycle theft. A number of systems are available to prevent such theft from locking up a bicycle (e.g., with a lock, chain, cable, and the like), to individual marking of bikes with unique serial numbers.


A roll-cage assembly for fitting to a motor vehicle, particularly one of the type having no fixed roof structure. The assembly has a space-frame structure constructed from a number of tubular members joined together and at least one airbag assembly that is attached to one or more of the tubular members. The airbag assembly performs two functions: during normal use it provides a relatively soft covering for the tubular member to which it is fastened; and in the event of an accident an airbag is released to provide full head impact protection.

It is well known for example from GB-A-2,306,408 to provide a roll-cage assembly for a motor vehicle.
Such an assembly is often used to strengthen the upper body structure of a motor vehicle and particularly when the motor vehicle has no significant body structure above a waist level of the motor vehicle. Such vehicles include convertible motor vehicles, tractors and recreational vehicles such as those manufactured by Land-Rover™.
It is a problem with such prior art roll-cage assemblies that the roll-cage is manufactured from rigid tubular components that are not particularly occupant friendly in the event of contact between a body part of the occupant and a structural part of the roll-cage.
It is well known for example from WO-A-01/92068 to provide an inflatable rollover cushion for use in a motor vehicle to prevent the head and torso of an occupant of a motor vehicle with a roof from striking a side window or going out through an open side window in the event of a side impact.
Such an airbag assembly cannot be used in a recreational vehicle of the type having no permanent roof structure because is designed to be concealed behind a roof liner which is not present in this type of vehicle.

Roll-cage assembly and a motor vehicle incorporating same


A clutch engagement booster system is an apparatus used to support and improve clutch engagement on motor vehicles, both as a modification to existing clutch assemblies or as a standalone installation in various embodiments. The clutch engagement booster system utilizes a casing and pressure housing supporting a diaphragm, an expansion chamber, an engagement member, and at least one clutch element. The expansion chamber is formed between the diaphragm and the pressure housing in fluid communication with at least one pressure source through the at least one regulator device. The at least one clutch element is positioned within the casing, opposite the diaphragm across the engagement member. As the expansion chamber is pressurized the diaphragm deforms towards the engagement member, thereby forcing the at least one clutch element into engagement to transfer power through a host transmission.

Clutches are used in automobile or engine transmissions to synchronize two rotating shafts that are spinning at different speeds, generally acting as a selective engagement between an output shaft of an engine and a variable gearbox. A clutch can connect two such shafts so that they spin simultaneously, transferring power from the engine to another part of the machine, or decouple them so that they spin at different speeds, preventing transfer of power within the machine without also stopping the engine.
Automobiles are commonly provided with a clutch actuator connected to a clutch assembly that is configured to selectively separate frictionally coupled elements and to transfer energy from a power source. A clutch incorporates a set of components used to make the engine move, allowing the driver to control the car. When the clutch is engaging and disengaging, the clutch generates heat and wear because of the friction created between the clutch disc, pressure plate, and flywheel. The hotter the clutch disc gets, the more rapidly it wears. If some components (e.g., clutch disc) overheat, the springs in the clutch system can become weak, compromising the clamping force, so that the clutch slips.
Clutches can include a mechanical actuation system, but such a system offers limited clamping force and torque. Smaller vehicles can use mechanical clutches, but pneumatic clutches, which employ tightly compressed air to transfer energy from one moving part of a machine to another, offer advantages for operation of many machines in a variety of situations.
Accordingly, various companies have developed pneumatic clutches that offer a number of advantages, including not only greater clamping force but also superior thermal capacity—for they do not generate heat during extended periods of engagement.
In addition, pneumatic clutches can be designed to direct air across the clutch plates for cooling. Accordingly, there is a need to develop a pneumatic device that can provide existing clutch systems with additional clamping force.
The present invention is intended to address problems associated with and/or otherwise improve on conventional devices through an innovative pneumatic device that is designed to provide additional clutch clamping force in an existing engine while incorporating other problem-solving features.
Additional advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. Additional advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the detailed description of the invention section. Further benefits and advantages of the embodiments of the invention will become apparent from consideration of the following detailed description given with reference to the accompanying drawings, which specify and show preferred embodiments of the present invention.


An apparatus for enzymatic hydrolysis and fermentation of pretreated lignocellulosic material, in the form of a tower bioreactor, having mixers to achieve intermittent mixing of the material. Precise mixing of the material is important for effective heat and mass transfer requirements without damaging or denaturing the enzymes or fermenting microorganisms. The pretreated material, generally in the form of a slurry, is pumped through the bioreactor, either upwards or downwards, and is mixed periodically as it passes through the mixing zones where the mixers are located. For a thin slurry, alternate mixing can be achieved by a pumping loop which also serves as a heat transfer device. Additional heat transfer takes place through the reactor heat transfer jackets.

Lignocellulosic materials, such as wood, herbaceous material, agricultural residues, corn fiber, waste paper, pulp and paper mill residues, etc. can be used to produce ethanol. Generally, production of ethanol from lignocellulosic material requires four major steps. These four steps are pretreatment, hydrolysis, fermentation and recovery.
The first of these steps, pretreatment is also known as pre-hydrolysis. During this step the lignocellulosic material is heated to break down the lignin and carbohydrate structure, solubilize most of the hemicellulose and make the cellulose fraction accessible to cellulase enzymes. This heating is done either directly with steam or in slurry. Also, a catalyst may be added to the material to speed up the reactions. Catalysts suitable for this include strong acids, such as sulfuric acid and SO.sub.2, or alkalis, such as sodium hydroxide.
The second step is hydrolysis, more specifically enzymatic hydrolysis. After the pretreatment step, enzymes are added to the pretreated material to convert the cellulose fraction to glucose. This is also known as saccharification and is generally done in stirred-tank reactors or fermentors under controlled pH, temperature and mixing conditions.
The third step is fermentation of the sugars to ethanol. The sugars, released from the material as a result of the pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis, are fermented to ethanol by a fermenting organism, such as yeast, for example. The fermentation can also be carried out simultaneously with the enzymatic hydrolysis in the same vessels, again under controlled pH, temperature and mixing conditions. When saccharification and fermentation are performed simultaneously in the same vessel, the process is generally termed simultaneous saccharification and fermentation or SSF.
The fourth step is the recovery of the ethanol from the fermentation broth by distillation.
The enzymatic hydrolysis and fermentation processing steps have the following common requirements, particularly when the cellulosic material is in the form of a slurry:
The slurry is maintained at a set temperature for a predetermined time.
Adequate mixing is required to ensure effective and uniform heat and mass transfers. However, overly vigorous mixing can damage and denature the enzymes and fermenting organisms due to high shear. See Shear Inactivation of Cellulase of Trichoderma ressei by Reese and Ryu, Enzyme Microb. Technol., July, 1980, Vol. 2, p. 239-240 and Effects of Agitation on Enzymatic hydrolysis of Cellulose in a Stirred-Tank Reactor by Mukataka, Tada and Takahashi, Ferment, Technol., 1983, Vol. 61, no. 6, p. 615-621. Also, vigorous mixing requires large agitators and considerable power consumption which, in turn, significantly affects the economics of plant operation. Such economic considerations are quite considerable. For example, for a 2,000 ton/day plant, the capital cost of the SSF operation using continuous stirred-tank reactors (CSTR) in series was estimated at 16% of the fixed capital investment. See Preliminary Estimate of the Cost of Ethanol Production for SSF Technology by Hinman et al., Appl. Bio. and Biotech., 1992, Vol. 34/35, p. 639-649. This value represents the third largest investment after pretreatment and utilities capital costs. The high capital cost of the fermentors is attributed to the large total SSF volume resulting from a typical 4-5 day retention time needed to complete the hydrolysis and fermentation using continuous stirred tank reactors connected in series. Based on pilot plant data and using a scale up exponent of 0.3, the mixing power requirement to keep pretreated sawdust particles (10 wt % insoluble solids) in suspension in a 1 million liter fermentor is estimated at 120 HP (or 0.5 HP/1000 gal). The estimated increase in mixing cost is $0.05/gal of ethanol when compared to the target mixing power of 0.1 HP/1000 gal. See Technical and Economic Analysis of an Enzymatic Hydrolysis Based Ethanol Plant--Draft by. Schell et al., 1991, SERI TP-232-4295, p. 54-55. This cost increase is significant for a process that is targeting $0.67/gal of ethanol as a cost goal. The projected high mixing energy requirement not only is costly but also presents a challenge in scaling up to very large-sized fermentors of 1 million gallons or larger, since the heat generated by the SSF process and by the agitators would be difficult to remove without using extensive cooling loops designed specifically for slurry. Depending on the extent of the cellulose hydrolysis and the lignin content in the material, the insoluble solid concentration in the SSF fermentors would gradually drop from about 12 wt % to only about 4 wt % in the last fermentor. As a result, there is a significant cost savings if the total volume of the fermentors and the mixing power requirement are reduced. These two factors form the basis for this invention.

Tower reactors for bioconversion of lignocellulosic material


A gate for irrigation pipes adapted to be moved between open and closed positions over an opening in the pipe. The gate includes a carrier plate having a sealing boot around its periphery which will engage with the interior of the pipe. A slide member engages the exterior of the pipe and is connected to the carrier plate by a plastic screw. The screw includes long pitch square threads so that the slide member and carrier plate may be quickly drawn together for installation or adjustment. The screw head is received in a circular recess in the slide member. As the screw is tightened a pair of small buttons on the underside of the screw head interact in ratcheting fashion with ridges formed in the recessed area of the slide member to prevent the screw from loosening in service. The recessed area is formed at an angle such that the screw head engagement tends to place more pressure on one end of the gate, which is further from the screw. The screw head includes a pair of spaced opposed walls which define a slot. The screw may be turned by use of a screwdriver or coin in the slot, or by engaging the exterior of the walls manually or with pliers. A diffusion adapter allowing attachment of a diffusion sock to prevent erosion may be removably secured to the gate without removing the gate or screw.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates in general to crop irrigation. In particular, it relates to gates which are used to open and close outlet openings in irrigation pipe.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the irrigation of crops it is known to move the water into the fields through irrigation pipes, which typically have a circular cross section. At spaced points along these pipes openings are formed to allow the water to escape therefrom. To allow the fields to be selectively irrigated, these openings are provided with gates which may be opened and closed as desired. Examples of such gates are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,918,251, 3,455,533 and 3,989,224.
These patents show sliding gates which may be moved between extreme open and closed positions to control the discharge of water through the outlet openings of the irrigation pipes. Although this type of gate has performed in a generally satisfactory manner, it has not been wholly without problems.
In gates which have components formed of plastic or aluminum, the use of metal screws to maintain the component together have been a particular problem. Such screws corrode and tend to lock within the components, eliminating the ability to adjust or use the gates. In such situations the gate components typically must be broken to remove them from the irrigation pipe.
Additionally, where the gate components are formed of plastic, the metal screws tend to cut and otherwise damage the plastic threads. The result is a failure in the holding ability of the screw, which in turn causes leakage because the sealing element of the gate is not firmly held against the inside of the pipe wall. It is also not uncommon for the screw to loosen in service, creating similar leakage problems.
Gates in which the components are snapped together avoid the problems associated with metal screws, yet are subject to improper tolerances and size variations in service, causing leakage, and also are susceptible to separation when subjected to external forces. Also, this type of gate cannot be accurately adjusted as to the tightness with which it is held against the pipe.
Another problem with the gates that are currently available is their relatively high cost and their lack of versatility.


A field-effect transistor has a source region, a drain region, a gate electrode, and a low resistivity layer. The source and drain regions are of a first conductivity type and formed as surface regions of a semiconductor layer formed on one of an insulating substrate and a semi-insulating substrate. The gate electrode is formed on a channel region between the source region and the drain region. The low resistivity layer serving as a shield layer is disposed underneath and spaced apart from the source, drain and channel regions, and overlaps the source region with an overlap area being larger than an overlap area between the low resistivity layer and the drain region. The arrangement enables the prevention of noise margin reduction and erroneous operation.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to planer field-effect transistors (FETs) formed n insulating or semi-insulating substrates, and more particularly to field-effect transistor structures which can suppress the influence as much as possible of charging and discharging due, to deep levels introduced into the substrate.
FETs using compound semiconductors such as GaAs and InP are usually fabricated on semi-insulating substrates. One of the reasons for this is that with these semiconductors it is difficult to obtain controlled low carrier concentration substrates due to impurity concentration or naturally occuring crystal defects, and the substrates become semi-insulating unless high concentration impurities are positively added. Another reason is that the semi-insulating substrate is convenient for high speed operation which is a feature of compound semiconductors because the electrostatic capacitance between it and transistors or interconnects is low. For the latter reason, semiconductor devices of silicon, which are required to preform high speed operation, are formed on insulating substrates such as those of SiO.sub.2 and sapphire.
The semi-insulating substrate is formed by introducing deep levels. With deep levels, charging and discharging are performed extremely slowly as compared to the transistor operation. With an element formed on silicon on insulator or semiconductor on insulator (hereinafter referred to as SOI), the same effects as above are obtained because interface levels are formed at the interface between the semiconductor and the insulator. This phenomenon poses no substantial problem so long as a single frequency is used. In the case of frequency mixers or in the case where a plurality of frequencies or wide-band signals involving such signals as pulse RF signals and digital signals are used, however, such problems as noise margin reduction and erroneous operation are posed by hysteresis of transistor characteristics. The phenomenon is usually observed as variations of the drain conductance G.sub.DS of transistor with frequency. In this specification, the phenomenon will be referred to as frequency dispersion of G.sub.DS or merely as frequency dispersion.
The occurrence of the frequency dispersion is attributable to the modulation of the FET current by the slow charging and discharging because of deep levels or interface levels because of the coupling of electric force lines due to the charge at the deep levels or the interface levels with FET channel charge. To solve this problem, it is conceivable to reduce the deep levels or interface levels such that the effects thereof can be ignored or to take the levels to a remote place where the effects can be ignored. In practice, however, a deep level called EL2 is always present in ordinary compound semiconductor substrates and, in SOI, it is difficult to completely eliminate the interface levels even by using thermal oxide films. In order to take the levels to a place remote from the transistor channel, it is necessary to form a high purity, thick epitaxial growth film. However, it is difficult to form a high purity thick layer even by using such epitaxial growth processes as MBE. Therefore, the above method is practically almost infeasible.
Accordingly, it has been proposed to cut electric force lines from the deep levels or interface levels by providing a conductive layer between the channel and the deep levels or interface levels and producing a constant potential on the conductive layer. It is necessary, however, to hold such a shield layer at a constant potential. In other words, shield layer potential variations will constitute variations of transistor current, and thus it is not possible to achieve the intended suppression of the frequency dispersion. It is conceivable to hold the shield layer at a constant potential by making a direct electrical contact to it. The formation of the contact to the shield layer, however, is accompanied by such problems as complication of the fabrication process and chip area increase. Accordingly, a process for an easier method of fixing the shield layer potential is needed.

Method for forming a field-effect transistor having difference in capacitance between source and drain with respect to shield layer


The present disclosure relates to an improved electrocoating coating composition wherein the improvement is the addition of a non-water reducible anticrater agent. The non-water reducible anticrater agent is a polyesterurethane that is the reaction product of an aliphatic carboxylic acid anhydride, a monofunctional epoxy compound, a monofunctional alcohol and a diisocyanate and/or a polyisocyanate. The improved electrocoating composition provides cured coatings that have fewer craters and have a smooth surface when compared to coatings utilizing other anticrater additives.

The coating of electrically conductive substrates by an electrocoating process is a well-known and important industrial process. The electrocoating of primers to substrates is widely used in the automotive industry. In this process, a conductive article, such as an automobile body or an automobile part, is immersed in a bath comprising an aqueous emulsion of film forming polymer and acts as an electrode in the electrocoating process. An electric current is passed between the article and a counter-electrode in electrical contact with the aqueous emulsion, until a desired coating is deposited on the article. In a cathodic electrocoating process, the article to be coated is the cathode and the counter-electrode is the anode.
Film forming polymer compositions used in the bath of a typical cathodic electrocoating process are well known in the art. These polymers are typically made from polyepoxides which have been chain extended using bisphenol compounds. The chain extended polyepoxides can then be reacted with amines to form an epoxy amine adduct. These polymers are blended with a crosslinking agent and then neutralized with an acid to form a water emulsion, which is usually referred to as a principal emulsion.
The principal emulsion can be combined with a pigment paste, coalescent solvents, water, and other additives to form the electrocoating composition. The composition is placed in an insulated tank containing the anode. The article to be coated is the cathode and is placed in a tank containing the electrocoating composition. An electrical current is applied to the system and a layer of the electrocoating composition is deposited onto the article. The thickness of the applied layer of electrocoating composition that is deposited on the article is a function of, for example, the bath characteristics, the electrical operating characteristics and the immersion time.
The resulting coated article is removed from the bath after a period of time and is rinsed with deionized water. The coating on the article can then be cured, typically in an oven, at sufficient temperature to produce a crosslinked finish on the article.
Cathodic electrocoating compositions, resin compositions, coating baths and cathodic processes are disclosed in Jarabek et al U.S. Pat. No. 3,922,253 issued Nov. 25, 1975; Wismer et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,419,467 issued Dec. 6, 1983; Belanger U.S. Pat. No. 4,137,140 issued Jan. 30, 1979 and Wismer et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,468,307 issued Aug. 25, 1984.
A continuing problem with cathodic electrocoating compositions has been the presence of craters in the cured finish. A number of anticrater agents have been used in the past to eliminate craters. However, the presence of conventional anticrater agents in electrocoating compositions has had a negative impact on the adhesion of subsequent coating layers applied thereto, such as automotive PVC sealers used for sealing joints and primer surfacers, particularly where the electrocoating film has been cured in an oven without the presence NOx (nitrogen oxides), such as in an indirect gas or electric oven. There is a continuing need for electrocoating compositions that can produce crater-free, smooth and even finishes that do not adversely affecting the adhesion of coatings that are subsequently applied to the electrocoated substrate.

Anticrater agent for electrocoating composition


A processing system comprising a loading/unloading section, a processing section and an interface section. The system further comprises a convey mechanism and at least two waiting sections. The convey mechanism can move in either direction between between the loading/unloading section and the interface section, for conveying objects to the processing units included in the processing section and conveying objects in either direction between the loading/unloading section and the interface section. The waiting sections are provided for temporarily holding an object before the convey mechanism conveys an object to the interface section.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a system for processing objects.
2. Description of the Related Art
Semiconductor devices are manufactured by performing a number of processes on semiconductor wafers (hereinafter referred to as "wafers") to a number of processes. To save space in the factory, the processing systems are laid out in the best possible manner. For the same purpose, the conveyer units designed to convey wafers from one process unit to another and the interfaces connecting the processing systems are made as small as possible. Further, to enhance the throughput of manufacture, it is necessary to convey wafers at the highest efficiency possible.
FIG. 1 shows a conventional resist-processing system which is designed to form a resist film on a wafer and to develop the resist film. As shown in FIG. 1, the system comprises a process unit A and an interface unit B. The process unit A has two convey paths 11 and 12 at its center section and two convey arms 13 and 14 provided in the convey paths 11 and 12, respectively. The process unit A further comprises an adhesion section, two baking section, a cooling section, two coating sections, and two development sections. The adhesion section and the first baking section are located on one side of the first convey path 11, and both coating sections on the other side thereof. The second baking section and the cooling section are arranged on one side of the second convey path 12, and both development sections on the other side thereof. (These sections are designated at the same reference numeral of "15."). The process unit A has a table 16 located between the convey paths 11 and 12, for holding wafers W that are to be conveyed from the process unit A to the interface unit B, or vice versa.
The interface unit B is positioned adjacent to the process unit A. The interface unit B is provided for transport wafers W between an exposure apparatus (not shown) and the process unit A. The interface unit B has an intermediate table 21, two buffer cassettes 22, a convey mechanism 23, a wafer-receiving table 24 and a wafer-sending table 25. The intermediate table 21 is located adjacent to the process unit A, can be moved up and down and can be cooled. The buffer cassettes 22 are provided on the sides of the intermediate table 21. The convey mechanism 23 is located at the back of the intermediate table 21 and can move along X, Y and Z axes and can rotate in the direction of arrow .theta.. The wafer-receiving table 24 and the wafer-sending table 25 are arranged farther from the intermediate table 21 than the convey mechanism 23. In other words, they are closer to the exposure apparatus (not shown) than the convey mechanism 23.
In operation, the first convey arm 13 conveys a wafer W onto the table 16, and the second convey arm 14 conveys the wafer W from the table 16 onto the intermediate table 21. The wafer W is cooled, if necessary, while mounted on the intermediate table 21. Thereafter, the convey mechanism 23 conveyers the wafer W from the intermediate table 21 onto the wafer-sending table 25. The wafer W is conveyed from the table 25 to the exposure apparatus (not shown).
A wafer W subjected to exposure process in the exposure apparatus is conveyed onto the wafer-receiving table 24. Then, the convey mechanism 23 conveys the wafer W from the table 24 onto the intermediate table 21. If wafers W are conveyed from the exposure apparatus to the resist-processing system at a higher rate than from the resist-processing system to the exposure apparatus, wafers W will be kept stored temporarily in the buffer cassettes 22.
A wafer W not exposed to light yet may rest on the intermediate table 21, while a wafer W already exposed to light rests on the wafer-receiving table 24. In this instance, the convey mechanism 23 conveys the unexposed wafer W from the intermediate table 21 into the buffer cassettes 22. Then, the mechanism 23 is moved to the wafer-receiving table 24, takes the exposed wafer W from the table 24, is moves back to the intermediate table 21, and places the exposed wafer W on the table 21. Next, the mechanism 23 is moved to the buffer cassettes 22, takes the unexposed wafer W out of the cassette 22 and mounts it on the wafer-sending table 25. This done, the convey mechanism 23 is moved to the intermediate table 21 and stays there until another unexposed wafer W is placed on the table 21.
The convey mechanism 23 needs to move twice to the buffer cassettes 22 in order to convey each unexposed wafer W to the wafer-sending table 25. Obviously, it takes longer to convey the unexposed wafer W to the table 25 than in the case where the mechanism 23 needs to move only once to the cassette 11. To make matters worse, the mechanism 23 cannot convey the next wafer unless no wafers are mounted on the intermediate table 21.
An example of the interface unit B is disclosed in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 1-318247. The interface unit disclosed the publication cannot work if the process unit A has only one convey through which wafers W are conveyed toward or from the process unit A. Since the interface unit has no buffer cassettes, time is wasted when the timing of conveying wafers in the process unit A greatly differs from the timing of conveying wafers between the interface unit B and the exposure apparatus.

System for processing a plurality of objects contained in a plurality of cassettes


A tube support member that puts a tube connected to an ink jet head and an ink tank in a bent state is provided. Accordingly, when a pulling force acts between the bent support member and the tube, a component force acting as contact force occurs at the surface that makes contact with the tube, and a high degree of friction is generated in response to this component force. The tube is thus strongly supported in a state in which the tube does not shift with the dimensions of the tube changing. Meanwhile, when the pulling force is released, the component force is also eliminated, and the tube is freed; the dimensions of the tube return to normal, and the tension is eliminated. An ink jet recording apparatus that prints using an ink jet head that is housed in a carriage is provided. The apparatus includes an ink tank that is provided outside of the carriage and is capable of being refilled. The apparatus includes an ink tube that is connected to the ink jet head and the ink tank and that has various flow paths that are arranged in a horizontal direction on a downstream side in a medium conveying direction. The ink tube has curved portion that forms a turn shape upward from the ink tank toward the ink head when the carriage reciprocates.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus that, when a pulling force has acted in the extension direction of a tube whose extension direction from a support location is regulated within a predetermined angular range, supports the tube so as to prevent the tube from shifting in the extension direction.
2. Related Art
Thus far, a tube support member that includes a tube receiving opening into which a tube is inserted and that supports the tube by the inner circumferential surface of the tube receiving opening making contact with the outer circumferential surface of the tube is known as a tube support member used in an ink jet recording apparatus (for example, see JP-A-2006-231837).
Incidentally, with such a configuration, when a pulling force acts on the tube, friction and the like between the outer circumferential surface of the tube and the inner surface of the tube receiving opening causes antagonism with the resulting tension while causing the dimensions of the tube to deform; in this state, even if the pulling force is released, the dimensional deformation will not be completely ameliorated due to the friction acting on the tube, and the dimensional change will to an extent remain. In other words, with the stated configuration, there is a problem in that the residual tension continues to act even after the pulling force has been released, and thus not only does the cross-sectional surface area of the tube change, but the tube deteriorates more easily, is more susceptible to failures, and so on.


An image-sensing apparatus has a zoom lens system for forming an optical image of an object with variable magnification, which zoom lens system includes a plurality of lens units and achieves zooming by varying distances between the lens units, and an image sensor for converting the optical image formed by the zoom lens system into an electrical signal. The zoom lens system has, from the object side, a first lens unit that has a positive optical power, includes a reflective member for turning the optical path, and is kept stationary relative to the image sensor during zooming, a second lens unit that is disposed on the image side of the first lens unit and has a negative optical power, an aperture stop that is disposed on the image side of the second lens unit and is kept stationary relative to the image sensor during zooming, and at least one lens unit that is disposed on the image side of the aperture stop and is moved relative to the image sensor during zooming.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image-sensing apparatus. More specifically, the present invention relates to an image-sensing apparatus (a main component of a digital camera, video camera, or camera incorporated in or externally fitted to a digital video unit, personal computer, mobile computer, cellular phone, personal digital assistant (PDA), or the like) that optically takes in an image of a subject through an optical system and that then outputs it in the form of an electrical signal by means of an image sensor, and in particular to an image-sensing apparatus provided with a compact high-zoom-ratio zoom lens system that covers from a wide-angle range to a telephoto range.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In zoom lens systems that cover from a wide-angle range to a telephoto range, high zoom ratios and compactness are eagerly sought. As zoom lens systems of this type, there are conventionally known five-unit zoom lens systems of positive-negative-positive-positive-positive and positive-negative-positive-negative-positive types. In these zoom lens systems, the first lens unit is kept stationary during zooming, and focusing in close-up shooting is achieved by moving the succeeding lens units. This helps avoid excessive enlargement of the front lens diameter. On the other hand, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H8-2483118 proposes a four-unit zoom lens system of a positive-negative-positive-positive type wherein the optical path is turned with a prism inserted between lenses to make the zoom lens system compact along its optical axis.
In recent years, as image sensors are made increasingly small, further miniaturization has been sought in zoom lens systems. This, however, cannot be achieved with the five-unit zoom constructions mentioned above. On the other hand, the zoom lens system proposed in the patent publication mentioned above has a large number of lenses, and neither its optical performance nor its compactness along the optical axis is satisfactory.

Image-sensing apparatus having a zoom lens system that folds an optical path


A toy set is disclosed herein the toy set including: a first object configured to transmit a plurality of codes wirelessly, each of the plurality of codes being transmitted at a different predetermined power level; a second object configured to detect the plurality of codes, the second object providing one of a plurality of audio outputs when at least one of the plurality of codes is detected by the second object; and wherein the one of the plurality of audio outputs is selected by determining which of the plurality of codes detected by the second object has a weakest predetermined power level.

Various exemplary embodiments of the present invention are related to a toy having a locating feature and method of using the locating feature.
Toys involving skill and/or luck have been popular for many years. Children, Adults and Adolescents enjoy hind and seek games wherein a person or object is hidden and the winner is the person who has determined the location of the hiding person or object.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a toy with a locating feature wherein a hidden object may be found using the locating feature of the toy.


Provided are a method and apparatus for evaluating the effectiveness of a test case used for a program test on the basis of error detection capability. The method includes: receiving a target program used for evaluating the effectiveness of the test case; generating an error program by inputting errors to the target program; detecting the errors by executing the test case on the generated error program; and calculating evaluation points of the test case using a ratio of the number of the detected errors to the number of the input errors. Thus, the capability of the test case used for a program test to detect errors can be evaluated.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to program test technology and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for evaluating the effectiveness of a test case used for a program test.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Conventional embedded systems are mostly employed for simple repetitive work, but they have recently been applied in more various fields, for example, portable phones, automobiles, medical equipment, and various electronic devices. In addition, since the safety of embedded systems significantly affects the commercial availability of products, not only development and production processes, but also inspection processes are accepted as critical. In particular, a program test for inspecting the quality of a program (e.g., a device driver) embedded in an embedded system and a program test for inspecting the quality of hardware of the embedded system are becoming more important.
A program test includes executing test cases on a test target program and determining if the test target program is properly embodied based on the execution result. Accordingly, it is important to evaluate the effectiveness of the test case used for the program test.
However, a conventional program test is performed without evaluating the capability of a test case to detect errors. In other words, the test case is executed on a test target program irrespective of the error detection capability of the test case, so that the test case is only evaluated depending on whether the test case performs all source codes of the test target program or all branch statements of the test target program.
Especially, in the case of a device driver, content to be tested and detected errors vary with the usable environment of an embedded system including the device driver. However, since conventional evaluation systems evaluate test cases based on equal standards, it is difficult to evaluate the test cases based on specific standards appropriate for the usable environment of the device driver.
Therefore, it is necessary to develop a new technique of evaluating the error detection capability of a test case used for a program test.

Method and apparatus for evaluating effectiveness of test case

Electronics and Telecommunications Research Insitute