The invention relates to a grinding machine for the edges of spectacles lenses, comprising at least one grindstone and one driven shaft for holding the spectacles lenses, said shaft being able to move radially and axially relatively to the grindstone. The inventive grinding machine comprises at least one operational support which is placed in such a way that it can rotate coaxially on a spindle designed for a shaft of the grinding machine or on at least one pivoting lever which is placed in a non-aligned position on a spindle designed for a shaft of the grinding machine, said operational support being free to pivot in the space between the grindstone and the shaft holding the spectacles glasses.

The invention relates to a spectacle-lens edging machine having at least one grinding wheel and a rotatable spectacle-lens retaining shaft radially and axially adjustable relative to the grinding wheel. Function carriers may be integrated in such spectacle-lens edging machines in order to carry out additional functions, for example measuring functions or additional machining steps, in addition to the edging.
Described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,363,597 of the same applicant, issued Nov. 15, 1994 for example, is a spectacle-lens edging machine having two coaxial half shafts for retaining and rotating a spectacle lens, a grinding spindle arranged in an axially parallel manner relative to the half shafts and movable radially and axially with its bearing housing relative to the latter and having a rough-grinding wheel and a finish-grinding wheel for grinding the spectacle-lens periphery, and if need be having a groove for grinding a top facet, and a form-turning tool arranged on the bearing housing and following its radial and axial movements relative to the half shafts with the spectacle lens, or a cutting tool which rotates about an axis running radially relative to the spectacle lens and is intended for producing a groove or channel in the spectacle-lens periphery and/or for beveling the edges of the spectacle-lens periphery. In this known spectacle-lens edging machine, the cutting tool is arranged next to the grinding wheel, so that the spectacle lens to be machined has to be moved axially and radially into the region of this cutting tool. U.S. Pat. No. 5,363,597 is hereby incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.
Furthermore, described in DE 196 16 572 C2 of the same applicant is an arrangement for measuring a facet groove in a spectacle-lens opening of a spectacle frame, or a predetermined spectacle lens having a non-circular shape, or a form wheel in a spectacle-lens edging machine having at least one grinding wheel, a rotatable spectacle-lens retaining shaft radially and axially adjustable relative to the grinding wheel, a holder for the spectacle frame, the holder being rotationally coupled to the spectacle-lens retaining shaft and being fixed relative to the spectacle-lens retaining shaft, a feeler head which is largely rigidly connected to a bearing arrangement for the grinding wheel, is fixed relative to the grinding wheel, can be brought into engagement in the facet groove and is intended for measuring the facet groove with regard to its radius and, if need be, its axial value, and/or at least one measuring shoe which is arranged in an axially offset manner next to the grinding wheel, is fixed relative to the grinding wheel, interacts in a contacting manner with a peripheral-contour-ground spectacle lens and is intended for measuring a form wheel or the contour of the spectacle lens with regard to its radius value and, if need be, the axial value of a top facet on the spectacle lens, a position encoder for recording the radius values of the facet groove of the spectacle frame or the spectacle lens or the form wheel at the bearing arrangement for the grinding wheel or the spectacle-lens retaining shaft, an angle encoder for recording the angles of rotation of the spectacle-lens retaining shaft, if need be a position encoder for recording the axial values of the facet groove or the top facet, a computer for storing the measured values and for controlling the spectacle-lens edging machine, in which arrangement the drives for the radial and axial adjustment of the spectacle-lens retaining shaft relative to the grinding wheel and for the rotation of the spectacle-lens retaining shaft consist of stepping motors which at the same time perform the function of position encoders and angle encoders. However, position encoders and angle encoders which are independent of the drives for the radial and axial adjustment of the spectacle-lens retaining shaft relative to the grinding wheel and for the rotation of the spectacle-lens retaining shaft may also be provided.
The spectacle-lens edging machines described in these publications may be provided with a compound-slide guide for the grinding wheels with their drive; however, spectacle-lens edging machines in which the grinding wheels only rotate, but are otherwise fixed, whereas the spectacle-lens retaining shafts are mounted so as to be radially and axially movable relative to the grinding wheels, can also be used.
The spectacle-lens edging machines of the same applicant which are provided with the additional functions described above have proved successful; however, they require additional mechanical attachments and a relatively large control input and are therefore worth improving in this respect.
Described in EP 0 820 837 A1 is a spectacle-lens edging machine which has a set of grinding wheels arranged on a shaft and a crude-lens retaining device. The crude lens can be brought into contact with the grinding wheels by means of the crude-lens retaining device. Furthermore, the machine comprises an additional grinding wheel, which is arranged so as to be freely rotatable on a carrier. The carrier is arranged on a housing part of the spectacle-lens edging machine so as to be pivotable about an axis parallel to the grinding-wheel shaft and can be actuated in such a way that the additional grinding wheel moves between a swung-out rest position and a swung-in working position, in which the axis of rotation of the additional grinding wheel runs parallel to the axis of the shaft and in which the additional grinding wheel is in drive contact with the drive pulley which is arranged on the grinding-wheel set. A drilling tool can be attached to the shaft for the additional grinding wheel, so that it is possible with this arrangement to bevel the form-ground spectacle lens and to provide it with a peripheral channel or with bores. This known arrangement can only be used on spectacle-lens edging machines in which the relative movement between the spectacle lens to be machined and the grinding-wheel stack is effected by appropriate control of the holder for the crude lens. Use on a spectacle-lens edging machine having a compound-slide guide for the grinding-wheel stack is not possible. Furthermore, this known arrangement requires complicated adaptation of the housing of the spectacle-lens grinding machine and a corresponding configuration of the pivot drive for the additional grinding wheel.


A wheel chair with a rotating tray which may be rotated from a first position generally parallel to a back or rear support member. In an alternative position of the rotating tray, the tray is rotated from the first position generally parallel to the arm supports through ninety degrees into a vertical position whereby the user of the wheel chair is able to get up from and return to a bottom seat of the wheel chair.

Heretofore, it has been known to use tray members attached to a wheel chair, usually to the arm supports, and then detach the tray when not in use. The principal uses of the tray itself is to provide a support for food trays, to provide a writing back up surface, or to provide a support for books, magazines or the like.
The tray itself is in the way of the user once the foregoing uses have terminated and it is desired simply to move the user from one place to another. An additional shortcoming of presently used devices is that the tray becomes separated from the wheel chair so that it becomes necessary to remember where it has been stored and to retrieve it when a tray usage is desired.


A power supply control apparatus for controlling an electric generator of a vehicle limits the rate of change of a power supply voltage to a predetermined variation rate range, when the change is caused by operations to control the charge condition of the vehicle battery, and controls the generated power to match the drive torque applied by the engine to the generator. When the electrical load demand changes, the generated power is controlled to limit a resultant momentary change in the power supply voltage caused by an engine response delay, while minimizing a resultant momentary amount of engine speed variation.

1. Field of Application
The present invention relates to an electrical power supply system (referred to in the following simply as a power supply system) installed in a motor vehicle, for regulating the electrical power produced from an electric generator that is driven by the vehicle engine.
2. Description of Related Art
Due to the increased amount of electrical equipment installed in motor vehicles in recent years, with an accompanying increase in the level of electrical power that must be generated for operating such equipment, it is becoming necessary for the engine-driven electric generator of a vehicle to produce a higher level of electrical power. A correspondingly higher level of torque must be applied by the engine to the electric generator, to effect an increase in electrical power output, and this results in an increase in the engine fuel consumption. It would be desirable to reduce the extent of such increased fuel consumption.
In the prior art, as a technique for reducing engine fuel consumption, the costs of generating electrical power under various operating conditions are calculated, and electrical power generation is concentrated on periods when the cost is low. Such a technique has been proposed for example in Japanese patent publication No. 2004-260908 (pages 8 to 13, FIGS. 1 to 8), referred to in the following as reference document 1.
However with the method described in reference document 1, the variations in the generated electrical power may be greater and occur more frequently than those which occur with a conventional type of voltage regulation, so that the problem arises that the power supply voltage (i.e., which is both the generator output voltage and the voltage of the vehicle battery) may vary rapidly, with large-scale fluctuations. As a result, the power supplied to electrical equipment such as the vehicle headlamps will fluctuate. Problems such as flickering of the headlamps may thereby occur, which can be annoying to the vehicle driver.
Furthermore, due to such large-scale variations in electric generator output power, the level of engine torque that is absorbed by the generator will vary significantly. In particular, when there is a sudden large increase in the torque load on the engine within a short period of time, a substantial lowering of the engine speed may occur. Hence the problem arises that momentary deceleration or acceleration of the vehicle may occur due to changes in the load torque on the engine that result from operations to control the state of charge of the battery to a suitable level, i.e., performed during periods when battery charging can be performed with minimized fuel consumption.
This may cause annoyance to the vehicle driver. In addition, lowering of the engine speed over a long period of time, with insufficient power being thereby produced by the generator, may cause problems with the operation of vehicle equipment.
Furthermore, with prior art types of power supply control apparatus for an electric generator of a vehicle, changes in the load power demand (i.e., amount of power consumed by electrical loads) can result in momentary changes in the power supply voltage, while the resultant variations in the torque load on the engine can result in changes in the engine speed, causing momentary acceleration or deceleration of the vehicle.

Electrical power supply system for motor vehicle


An input/output device used as a transfer request source outputs a data transfer set command for specifying each transfer channel, each transfer address, the number of transfers, etc. onto a bus together with a data transfer request without being involving use of the CPU. According to the data transfer set command, data transfer control information is set to direct memory access control means, and DMA transfer is started between the input/output device and a memory designated by the transfer address, for example. When the input/output device used as a data transfer request source desires to perform data transfer without regard to a state of processing by the microcomputer, it can perform data transfer processing with its own timing and the data transfer with the input/output device as a principal base is allowed.

The present invention relates to a microcomputer having direct memory access control means incorporated therein, peripheral devices electrically connected to the microcomputer, and a data processing system using the microcomputer. The present invention also relates to a technique which is effective for use in a computer system intended to provide multitask-based high-speed operations.
There has recently been a demand for improvements in data throughput in a microcomputer. If the quantity of processed data to be loaded on a CPU (Central Processing Unit) increases, it is difficult to improve the data throughput of the microcomputer. Therefore, an attempt has been made to incorporate a peripheral module for performing data transfer control into a microcomputer in place of the CPU to thereby distribute the burden of data processing on the CPU. As such a peripheral module, a DMAC (Direct Memory Access Controller), for example, is known.
In the conventional microcomputer having a DMAC incorporated therein, the CPU is given the task of initially setting control information (such as transfer addresses, the number of transfers, transfer modes, transfer directions, etc.) necessary for data transfer into the DMAC.
As an example of such a direct memory access controller reference is made to a publication entitled xe2x80x9cConfiguration and Design of Computer (Last Volume)xe2x80x9d published by Nikkei BP corporation, pp. 520-521, Apr. 19, 1996.
However, according to an investigation carried out by the present inventors, there are cases in which an excessive time is required to initially set the data transfer control information into the DMAC using the CPU, depending on the state of data processing by the CPU or the state of utilization of an external data bus. It has been proven that, in such a consequence, excessive time has been taken for data transfer processing. Therefore, there may be cases in which data transfer cannot be started and ended with the timing required by a data transfer request source. There is also a possibility that, since the CPU is used to set the data transfer control information, the CPU cannot be distributed to other processes during that time, so that the microcomputer will exhibit a reduced data processing performance. This becomes one factor which will reduce the performance of the entire system.
An object of this invention is to provide a microcomputer and a data processing system which are capable of setting data transfer control information without placing a burden on the CPU, thereby to carry out a direct memory access with increased system performance.
Another object of this invention is to provide a microcomputer and a data processing system which are capable of immediately responding to a request made from a data transfer request source to start data transfer based on a direct memory access.
A further object of this invention is to provide a peripheral device which is suitable for the issuance of a data transfer request.
The above and other objects and novel features of the present invention will become more apparent from the description provided in the present specification and from the accompanying drawings.
Typical features of the present invention as disclosed in the present application will be briefly described as follows.
That is, when data transfer is carried out, an input/output device (65), used as a transfer request source, outputs a data transfer set command (DTR) for specifying a data transfer channel, a data transfer address, the number of data transfers, a data transfer mode, a data transfer direction, etc. to a bus (60) together with a data transfer request (TR) without involving the CPU (3). According to the data transfer set command, data transfer control information is set into the direct memory access control means (8, 100) and hence data transfer placed under direct memory access control is started between the input/output device used as the data transfer request source and a memory specified by a transfer address. Thus, when the input/output device used as the data transfer request source desires to perform a data transfer, the input/output device can carry out data transfer processing at its own timing without regard to the state of processing of the microcomputer (1), whereby data transfer using the input/output device as a principal part or base can be carried out. Since the CPU is not required to effect the initial setting of the data transfer control information at this time, no load is imposed on the CPU, and the CPU can be distributed to other processes during that time, thereby contributing to an overall improvement in the data processing performance of the microcomputer and the data processing performance of the data processing system.
A data processing system comprises a microcomputer (1), a memory (600), an input/output device (65), and at least one bus (60, 61) commonly connected to the microcomputer, the memory and the input/output device. The microcomputer includes a central processing unit (3), direct memory access control means (8, 100) having a plurality of data transfer channels for performing data transfer control based on data transfer control information supplied from the central processing unit or the outside through the bus, and a bus state controller (5) for arbitrating competition between bus right requests supplied from the central processing unit, the direct memory access control means and the input/output device and for controlling a bus cycle for the bus. The input/output device acquires a bus right to send a data transfer request (TR) to the direct memory access control means and outputs a data transfer set command (DTR) for controlling the operation of the direct memory access control means to the bus, and the input/output device further performs the operation of inputting data to or outputting data from the bus in synchronism with a response (TDACK) corresponding thereto issued from the microcomputer, operating as a data transfer source for the control of the data transfer by the direct memory access control means. The direct memory access control means can execute a first operation (first normal data transfer operation) for performing data transfer control in accordance with the data transfer control information initially set by the data transfer set command.
In the first operation as described above, the input/output device, which makes a request for data transfer, can set data transfer control information and start data transfer control without involving the CPU. Here, the processing of the CPU ranges over various diverse operations. It has been considered that heretofore in the conventional microcomputer when the CPU is performing another processing at the time data transfer control information is to be set to the direct memory access control means, the processing of the CPU must be allowed to continue until the other process is ended or be interrupted by or through the issuing of an interruption or the like, so that an extended time is often required to set a data transfer control condition. It is estimated that since the timing for the start and end of data transfer is not taken, an influence will be exerted on the performance even upon the construction of a system. However, in accordance with this invention, owing to the direct setting of the data transfer control information by the input/output device without involving the CPU, as described above, the data transfer can be started regardless of the state of processing of the CPU, whereby the data transfer processing performance can be improved and the data transfer processing time can be shortened.
After the first operation, the direct memory access control means detects that the data transfer set command (DTR) supplied together with the data transfer request (TR) from the input/output device has been placed in a specific first state (MD1, MD0=xe2x80x9c0, 0xe2x80x9d), thereby making it possible to execute a second operation (first handshake protocol transfer operation) for performing data transfer control according to the initially set data transfer control information, using the same data transfer channel as that used for the first operation. A data transfer request at the time, in which it is unnecessary to change the initialization condition, can be simply made.
After the first operation or the second operation, the direct memory access control means is supplied with a data transfer request (TR) from the input/output device without the delivery of the data transfer set command, thereby making it possible to execute a third operation (second handshake protocol transfer operation) for performing data transfer control according to the initially set data transfer control information, using the same data transfer channel as that used for the immediately preceding data transfer operation. Since, in this case, the immediately preceding data transfer channel and the data transfer control information are used for data transfer, the input/output device can start the data transfer, even if it is not able to acquire a bus right to set such information.
Further, the direct memory access control means is supplied with the data transfer request (TR) from the input/output device with the data transfer set command (DTR) after the data transfer control information has been initialized by the CPU, thereby making it possible to execute a fourth operation (second normal data transfer operation) for performing data transfer control according to the data transfer control information initialized by the CPU, using a data transfer channel specified by the data transfer set command. The input/output device itself can start up the data transfer even by using the state of initialization by the CPU.
After the data transfer control information has been initially set by the CPU, the direct memory access control means is supplied with a data transfer request (TR) from the input/output device without the delivery of the data transfer set command, thereby making it possible to execute a fifth operation (third normal data transfer operation) for performing data transfer control according to the initially set data transfer control information, using the same data transfer channel as that used for the immediately preceding data transfer operation. Since the previously set data transfer control information is used in this case, the input/output device can start data transfer without acquiring a bus right.
The direct memory access control means detects that a data transfer set command supplied from the input/output device is placed in a specific second state (ID1, ID0=xe2x80x9c0, 0xe2x80x9d, MD1, MD0=xe2x80x9c0, 0xe2x80x9d and SZ2, SZ1, SZ0=xe2x80x9c1, 1, 1xe2x80x9d), thereby making it possible to force-complete a data transfer control operation. Thus, when data transfer is required, the input/output device can stop the data transfer operation of the already-activated direct memory access control means and request a data transfer with the highest priority.

Data processing system and microcomputer


In a system and a method for profiling a digital-image input device, profiling of the digital-image input device is performed based at least on an image of a color chart and an estimated illumination of the color chart generated by comparing illumination of device-dependent coordinate values for the image of the color chart with illumination of device-independent coordinate values of the color chart. Because the estimated illumination of the color chart is performed on data pertaining to the color chart, the present invention may generate a profile without reference to data pertaining to scenery in the image outside of the color chart. Consequently, the present invention may generate a profile irrespective of the relative exposure of the color chart with respect to other scenery in the image.

A digital-image input device, such as a digital camera or a scanner, converts light reflected from an object into digital data representing an image of the object. Typically, the digital data is divided into units, each unit describing the color of a portion, or pixel, of the image. Accordingly, the image may be described as a two-dimensional array of pixels (x, y). Further, each unit of digital data typically describes the color of a pixel by describing the amount, or intensity, of each primary color red, green, and blue, present in the pixel. For example, the digital data may indicate that the pixel at x=0 and y=0 has a red intensity of 200, a green intensity of 134, and a blue intensity of 100, where the intensity of each primary color is represented by eight bits. (Eight bits allows 256 combinations, so each primary color may have a value of 0-255, in this example, where 255 indicates the highest level of intensity and zero indicates no intensity, or black.)
The digital data produced by a digital-image input device is referred to herein as "device dependent data," because different digital-image input devices typically produce different digital data representing the same image acquired under the same conditions. For example, a first digital camera may indicate that a first pixel of an image has a red component of 200, whereas a second digital camera may indicate that the same pixel of an equivalent image taken under the same conditions has a red component of 202. For another example, the first digital camera may record the red in an apple as 200, and the second digital camera may record the red in the same part of the apple (as imaged under the same conditions) as 202. Because the device-dependent data generated by a digital-image input device typically specifies the red, green, and blue color components associated with each pixel, it is often referred to as "RGB" data.
The differences between device-dependent data from two different devices arise from minute differences in the imaging components in each device. These differences create problems when the images are output by a digital-image output device, such as a color ink-jet printer, a CRT monitor, or an LCD monitor. For example, the image of the apple taken by the first digital camera discussed above will appear differently than the image of the apple taken by the second digital camera when output to the same color ink-jet printer.
To further complicate matters, digital-image output devices also have the same types of discrepancies between each other that digital-image input devices have. For example, a user may want to view an image of a red square on one CRT monitor while a customer simultaneously views the same image on another CRT monitor. Assume that the digital-image input device used to image the red square recorded all pixels of the red square as red=200, green=0, and blue=0. Commonly, when the two monitors display the same image, each monitor displays a slightly different red color even though they have received the same digital data from the input device.
The same differences commonly exist when printing the same image to two different printers. However, it should be noted that the digital image data processed by printers typically describes each pixel in an image according to the amount, or intensity, of each secondary color cyan, magenta, and yellow, as well as black present in the pixel. Accordingly, the device-dependent digital image data processed by printers is referred to as "CMYK" data (as opposed to RGB device-dependent data associated with digital-image input devices.) (Monitors, on the other hand, display data in RGB format).
Color profiles provide a solution to the color discrepancies between devices discussed above. Each digital-image input device typically has its own color profile that maps its device-dependent data into device-independent data. Correspondingly, each digital-image output device typically has its own color profile that converts device-independent data into device-dependent data usable by the output device to print colors representative of the device-independent data. Device-independent data describes the color of pixels in an image in a universal manner, i.e., a device-independent color space. A device-independent color space assigns a unique value to every color, where the unique value for each color is determined using calibrated instruments and lighting conditions. Examples of device-independent color spaces are CIEXYZ, CIELAB, CIE Yxy, and CIE LCH, known in the art. Device-independent data is sometimes referred to herein as "device-independent coordinates." Device-independent data in the CIEXYZ color space is referred to herein as "XYZ data," or just "XYZ." Device-independent in the CIELAB color space is referred to herein as "LAB data," "CIELAB" or just "LAB."
Theoretically, color profiles allow a user to acquire an image of an object using any digital-image input device and to output an accurate representation of the object from a digital-image output device. With reference to FIG. 1, for example, an image of an object 101 is acquired using a digital-image input device 102. The image is represented in FIG. 1 as RGB 103. Then, the image RGB 103 is converted into device-independent data (XYZ 105, for example) using the digital-image input device's color profile 104. The device-independent data XYZ 105 is then converted using the output device's color profile 106 into device-dependent data (CMYK 107, for example) specific to the output device 108. The output device 108 uses its device-dependent data CMYK 107 to generate an accurate representation 109 of the object 101.
Conventionally, a color profile is generated by acquiring a test image of a color chart located in front of scenery under a standard lighting condition. For example, a digital camera may be used to acquire a test image of a color chart with a basket of fruit in the background. A color chart generally is a physical chart that includes different color patches, each patch associated with a device-independent color value, such as a color value identifying a CIELAB color, when viewed under a standard lighting condition, such as D50, known in the art.
By comparing the device-dependent data acquired from the test image with the device-independent data known to be associated with the color chart, a color profile for the digital-image input device may be generated. However, many conventional schemes have difficulty or fail altogether when the color chart is illuminated differently than the scenery in the test image, or when the color chart, the scene, or both are over-exposed. Further, several of the better conventional schemes for generating a color profile need to operate on uncorrected raw 16-bit RGB device-dependent data to be successful, because more standard 8-bit image formats, such as TIFF or JPG, tend to exhibit clipping. Accordingly, a need in the art exists for quality color profiling capable of operating on (a) over-exposed or under-exposed color charts relative to scenery and (b) standard 8-bit formatted device-dependent data.

System and method for profiling digital-image input devices


An array organization and architecture for a content addressable memory (CAM) system. More specifically, a circuit is provided for that includes a first portion of the CAM configured to perform a first inequality operation implemented between 1 to n CAM entries. The circuit further includes a second portion of the CAM configured to perform a second inequality operation implemented between the 1 to n CAM entries. The first portion and the second portion are triangularly arranged side by side such that the first inequality operation and the second inequality operation are implemented between the 1 to n CAM entries using the same n wordlines.

CAM is a hardware module that either acts as a separate integrated circuit module or is embedded in another integrated circuit such as computer processing unit (CPU). More specifically, CAM is an application specific memory that allows its entire contents to be typically searched within a single clock cycle. CAM typically compares input search data against a table of stored data, and returns the address of the matching data. CAMs having a single clock cycle throughput make them faster than other hardware and software based search systems. Therefore, CAMs can be used in a wide variety of applications requiring high search speeds (e.g., image coding, parametric curve extraction, and Lempel-Ziv compression). The primary commercial application of CAMs today is to classify and forward Internet protocol (IP) packets in network routers.
There are two basic forms of CAM, the binary CAM (BCAM) and ternary CAM (TCAM). Binary CAMs support storage and searching of binary bits, and perform exact-match searches by storing either logic bit "0" or logic bit "1". TCAMs support storing of logic bit "0", logic bit "1", or a don't care logic bit "X". The don't care logic bit acts as a wildcard during searches, and allow TCAM to be attractive for implementing pattern-matching algorithms such as routing table rules (e.g., longest-prefix-match and range-match searches).

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Array organization and architecture to perform range-match operations with content addressable memory (CAM) circuits

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION


The present invention relates to a steering wheel having a stationary hub mounted portion. The steering wheel has an armature with a hub and is coupled to a vehicle steering shaft. The hub is provided with an opening through which a coiled element passes. A non-rotating housing is assembled with the hub. The coiled element connects the non-rotating housing to a stationary component of the vehicle. The coiled element screwing or unscrewing itself to or from the hub via the opening when the steering wheel is rotated.

A typical driver airbag module is mounted on a vehicle steering wheel usually fixed to a hub, which in turn is coupled to a steering shaft. Consequently a driver airbag rotates in unison with the steering wheel. Since the deployment of the airbag may occur at different rotational orientations of the steering wheel with respect to the vehicle driver, the driver airbag has to be circular or symmetrical shaped to provide always the same shape of protection surface to the driver.
In some motor vehicles, for instance sport cars, the maximum diameter of the airbag is limited by the high inclination of the windscreen and the front door jambs. Recently, steering wheel assemblies have been provided that allow the driver airbag module to remain in a stationary position with respect to the vehicle during rotation of the steering wheel. This type of module is known as a non-rotating, or static, driver airbag module. Advantageously, non-rotating driver airbags may provide airbags having shapes other than circular, since there is no rotation of the airbag with respect to the driver. Non-rotating driver airbag modules allow for localized increases of the airbag volume. Thus driver airbags may be designed to fit the internal volume of a particular vehicle when deployed to better protect the driver regardless of the angular orientation of the steering wheel.


A leak detection cable for detecting aqueous based liquids that contain a surfactant is composed of an insulated wire conductor (1 and 2) wrapped with a water resistant yarn (3) and a braided second conductor (4).

The piping from cleaning and storage tanks which store aqueous solutions frequently are exposed to the elements of weather. An aqueous solution leak detection system for such piping therefore needs to be water resistant but must still be able to detect the presence of water in a solution. Aqueous solutions frequently have detergents in them, and it would be beneficial to have a leak detection system that was based on the presence or absence of a surfactant in the leaking liquid. This is especially true for aqueous acids or bases that contain a surfactant. Many systems for detecting leaking acids or bases depend on the corrosive effect of the acid or base on a metal conductor for detection means. For example, EPA 017174 measures a capacitance change that occurs upon destruction of an aluminum shield when the cable is attacked by acid; and in PCT WO 89/05446 an insulation between two conductors is impregnated with an acid-sensitive additive which reacts with acid and changes the impedance of the insulation. However, such systems tend to act only slowly or only with concentrated acids and may be liable to breakdown through contact with environmental corrosives.


A reclaiming apparatus includes: a container in which reclaiming process of an absorption liquid is performed; a waste liquid line configured through which a waste liquid from the container flows; a waste liquid cooler, installed in the waste liquid line, for cooling the waste liquid from the container; and a cleaning-water supply line for supplying the waste liquid cooler with cleaning water for cleaning the waste liquid cooler.

As a method of recovering CO2 contained in exhaust gas from a power generation facility or the like, a chemical absorption method is often used.
In a chemical absorption method, exhaust gas containing CO2 and an absorption liquid containing an absorption agent make contact, and the absorption liquid absorbs CO2 in the exhaust gas. Accordingly, CO2 is removed from exhaust gas. The absorption liquid having absorbed CO2 releases the absorbed CO2 to be regenerated, by being heated by steam or the like, and is re-utilized as an absorption liquid. As the absorption liquid is re-utilized repeatedly, impurity substances from exhaust gas and depleted materials from the absorption liquid accumulate in the absorption liquid. Reclaiming is performed to remove such depleted materials or the like accumulating in the absorption liquid from the absorption liquid.
According to Patent Document 1, the above described reclaiming includes supplying a reclaimer (container) with water and an absorption liquid which has absorbed CO2 in the exhaust gas, and heating the liquid (absorption liquid and water) inside the container, thereby recovering the evaporated absorption liquid, returning the absorption liquid to the regeneration tower, and separating condensed depleted materials in the absorption liquid from the absorption liquid.
Further, in Patent Document 1, when a high-temperature condensed waste containing depleted materials separated from the absorption liquid in the reclaimer is discharged outside of the system, the condensed waste is cooled proactively through a cooler, in order to cool the condensed waste to be discharged in a short period of time.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering, Ltd.


A system and method for multiplexing a plurality of digital programs for transmission to a plurality of remote locations is claimed. An encoder is provided that first generates a plurality of subframe data streams each comprising a continuous sequence of subframes. Each subframe in each subframe data stream comprises at least a transport layer region and a program data region. For each subframe data stream, portions of the program data region of each of the subframes in that subframe data stream are allocated to selected ones of the plurality of programs. Mapping information is provided in the transport layer region of each subframe for use by a decoder in extracting a selected program from each subframe. A multiplex data stream is then generated at the encoder that comprises a continuous sequence of superframes. Each superframe comprises a superframe transport layer region and a subframe data region. A portion of the subframe data region of each superframe is allocated to at least one subframe from each of the plurality of subframe data streams. A superframe map is then generated and transmitted with each superframe that specifies at least the location of each subframe within the superframe. The multiplex data stream is then transmitted to the plurality of remote locations. According to one embodiment, at an intermediate location, subframe data streams may be extracted from one multiplex data stream for re-routing within other multiplex data streams.

The background of the present invention is described herein in the context of subscription television systems, such as cable television and direct broadcast satellite (DBS) systems, that distribute a variety of program services to subscribers, but the invention is by no means limited thereto except as expressly set forth in the accompanying claims.
In the subscription television industry, "programmers" produce "programs" for distribution to various remote locations. A "program" is a collection of related video, audio and other services, such as closed-captioning and teletext services. A single programmer may wish to supply many such programs. Typically, a programmer will supply these services via satellite to either individual subscribers (e.g., DBS subscribers), cable television operators, or both. In the case of cable television operators, the services transmitted via satellite are received at the operator's "cable head-end" installations. A cable operator typically receives programs and other services from many programmers and then distributes them to its subscribers. In addition, a cable operator may insert locally produced services at the cable-head end. The selected services and locally produced services are then transmitted to the individual subscribers via a coaxial cable distribution network. In the case of DBS subscribers, each subscriber is capable of receiving a satellite down-link from the programmers directly.
In the past, subscription television systems, including cable and DBS systems, have operated in the analog domain. Recently, however, the subscription television industry has begun to move toward all digital or hybrid analog/digital systems wherein prior to transmission, all or some of the analog signals are converted to digital signals. Digital signal transmission offers the advantage that digital data can be processed at both the transmission and reception ends to improve picture quality. In addition, digital data compression techniques have been developed that achieve high signal compression ratios. Digital compression allows a larger number of individual services to be transmitted within a fixed bandwidth. Bandwidth limitations are imposed by both satellite transponders and coaxial cable distribution networks, and therefore, digital compression is extremely advantageous.
In some prior art digital service transmission systems, various digital services, such as video services and audio services, are multiplexed into a single multiplex data stream for transmission to subscribers and cable operators. Unfortunately, these prior art systems are inflexible in many respects and cannot be easily adapted to meet the continuously changing requirements of the industry. There is a need, therefore, for a system and method of multiplexing a plurality of digital services that provides a high degree of flexibility so that the system can easily be adapted to meet the diverse and ever changing demands of the industry. In particular, such a system should be capable of multiplexing a wide variety of digital services. As those skilled in the art know, digital services vary widely in individual data rates. For example, digital audio service rates differ substantially from digital video service rates. A digital services delivery system must therefore be flexible in service data rate allocation within the system. Also, such a system should have an overall data transmission rate that is "scalable," i.e., that is adjustable over an almost continuous range. As those skilled in the art can appreciate, digital service delivery may take place via satellite, cable distribution networks, or even optical fiber networks. Each of these mediums has a unique bandwidth limitation, and therefore, accommodates a different maximum data rate. It is desirable, therefore, that a digital services delivery system provide adjustability (i.e., scalability) in the overall data transmission rate of the system.
In addition to service rate flexibility and overall data transmission rate scalability, a program services delivery system should provide for easy and cost efficient demultiplexing and re-multiplexing of the individual services being transmitted. Cable operators typically receive "programming" (i.e., related digital services) from a multitude of "programmers." Cable operators rarely provide their subscribers with every service provided by every programmer; more typically, cable operators select various services from each programmer and then provide only those selected services to their subscribers. Consequently, there is a need for a digital services delivery system and method that provides easy and cost-efficient de-multiplexing and re-multiplexing of various services. Regional hub distribution techniques will further emphasize this need.
As described hereinafter, the system and method of the present invention achieves each of the aforementioned objectives.

System and method for multiplexing a plurality of digital program services for transmission to remote locations


A system for opening and closing a resealable cartridge having a tray and a flexible cover resealably engaged with the tray. The system comprises: a base for receiving the tray of the cartridge; a roller shaft having means for engaging the cover of the cartridge; positioning means operably connected to the roller shaft to affect positioning of the roller shaft relative to the cartridge between a first position wherein the roller shaft is spaced from the cartridge and a second position different from the first position wherein the roller shaft is not spaced from the cartridge; and a motor for rotating the roller shaft in a first rotational direction to wind the cover about the roller shaft, thereby removing at least a portion of the cover from the tray, and for rotating the roller shaft in a second rotational direction to unwind the cover from the roller shaft thereby resealably engaging the cover with the tray.

Resealable cartridges have been employed in various applications for transporting articles. Such resealable cartridges are desirable features, including preventing exposure of the transported articles to environmental elements. For example, laser imaging machines use resealable cartridges to transport photosensitive media, such as x-ray and other types of medical imaging photographic film, since it is sometimes necessary to load a laser imaging machine with a different type or size of photosensitive media. Such laser imaging machines are well known in the art for forming an image by scanning a modulated laser beam across the photosensitive media. Prior to the formation of the image, a cartridge containing one or more photosensitive media is loaded into the laser imaging machine. The cartridge includes a tray having a supply area for containing the photosensitive media, a media access opening, and a flexible cover adhesively attached to tray to extend over the media access opening to form a light-tight seal of the cartridge. The light-tight seal enables the cartridge to be transported in light conditions that would otherwise cause exposure of the photosensitive media within the cartridge. U.S. Pat. No. 5,132,724 (Lemberger), U.S. Pat. No. 5,473,400 (Lemberger), and U.S. Pat. No. 5,480,134 (Weber) show examples of a resealable cartridge, each of these being incorporated herein by reference.
The interior of a laser imaging machine provides a light-tight environment. To carry out an imaging operation, the laser imaging machine withdraws one or more photosensitive media from the access opening of the cartridge. Therefore, the laser imaging machine requires a system that can open the cartridge within the laser imaging machine to allow withdrawal of the photosensitive media from the access opening, and close/reseal the cartridge within the laser imaging machine to effect the light-light seal. In the ordinary course of use, the cartridge must be opened and closed several times.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,132,724 (Lemberger) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,480,134 (Weber) show examples of mechanisms for opening and closing a resealable media cartridge. While such systems may have achieved certain degrees of success in their particular applications, they employ a relatively complicated mechanism that can be expensive to manufacture and have other disadvantages.
Accordingly, there is a need for a system which is capable of reliably performing the opening/closing functions, commercially viable, reduced in size, provides good resealing, and efficiently manufacturable.
The present invention provides a system for opening and closing a resealable cartridge which is capable of reliably performing the opening/closing functions, commercially viable, reduced in size, provides good resealing, and efficiently manufacturable.
In addition, wrinkles in the cartridge cover can occur while closing, and such wrinkles can decrease the usable life of the cartridge. In addition to wrinkles, laser imaging machines which use high sealing forces tend to displace the cover adhesive. The present invention increases the usable life of the cartridge by reducing/eliminating both wrinkles and displaced cover adhesive.
Additional features and advantages of the present invention will be set forth in part in the description that follows, and in part will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The advantages of the invention will be realized and attained by the system particularly pointed out in the written description and claims thereof, as well as in the appended drawings.

System for opening and closing a resealable cartridge


There are included a toilet body including a bowl part that receives waste; a function unit that is arranged in a rear portion of the toilet body; a panel member that covers a side surface of the function unit; a magnet that is provided to the panel member; and a magnetic material that is provided to an attachment part of the toilet body, wherein the magnetic material is elastically deformable, and is attached to the attachment part to put the attachment part therebetween.

Conventionally, with respect to a flush toilet in which a function unit is covered with a panel member, there has been known a flush toilet in which a panel member and a toilet body are held to each other by magnetic force (see Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2020-165173, for example).
As disclosed in Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2020-165173, in a case where a magnet or a magnetic material is attached to a toilet body that is made of pottery, adhesive agent is commonly used. However, in the method for using adhesive agent, there presents problem that the number of working processes is large and/or there presents problem in workability that correction is difficult.


The detonating device for a secondary explosive charge includes energy reservoir means and exploding foil igniter means coupled to the energy reservoir means by an optical commutator functioning in photo-conduction mode. The device may be extended to any number of separate detonation channels, and each detonation channel may be supplied with optical pulse beams generated by a single laser source or by separate, dedicated laser sources. The optical pulse beams are guided via optical fibers that may vary in length in accordance with preprogrammed detonation timing sequences. The invention finds particular application in the field of high safety detonation systems.

The present invention concerns a detonating device for a secondary explosive charge. It applies notably to high-safety detonation systems including one or more exploding foil igniters used to detonate secondary explosive charges, such as hollow charges, slug- or fragment-generating charges, for example, quasi-simultaneously or respecting a precise timing sequence, which may either be pre-established or programmed during the mission depending on the target to be destroyed.
According to the present state of the art, a high-safety detonating system generally comprises an energy reservoir, an energy commutator, switching control and verification circuits and a detonator. In order to function properly, high-safety detonators require the switching of energies of a few hundred millijoules, even one joule, in a few tens of nanoseconds. In the electric circuits this switching implies currents of several kilo-amperes and applied voltages of several kilo-volts. The switching device in use at present is a gas or vacuum discharger. It allows the flow of several kilo-amperes under several kilo-volts when it is in closed mode, but the changeover from open mode to closed mode involves a switching time which is too long for certain applications. The changeover from open mode to closed mode is made by the activation of a third electrode called the "trigger" and under high voltage, 3 to 4 KV for example. This trigger provokes a disruptive discharge between the main electrodes of the discharger, accompanied by interference due to the phenomenon known as "jitters". These "jitters" delay the establishment of the closed mode and provoke switching times generally longer than 100 ns. The times obtained with gas or vacuum dischargers and the jitter phenomenon are incompatible with sequenced or synchronized multipoint initiation systems which require perfect control of the timing and the jitters, and also switching times of the order of a few nanoseconds.
In order to improve the timing precision between the different detonations, and in fact reduce the switching times, one solution consists in using the optical energy of a pulsed laser to trigger the energy switching through the discharger. This method of triggering has been widely described in the following publications: V. A. VUYLSTEKI JAP 34, 1615 (1963), L. L. STEINMETZ, The Review of Scientific Instrument, 39, n.degree.6 (1968), pages 904/909, H. C. HARGES Texas University Report n.degree.LLL 2257509-1 (1979), R. A. DOUGAL et al., J. Phys D.Appli. Phy., 17 (1984), pages 903/918.
The main drawback of the discharger triggered by an optical pulse is that it requires a high power pulsed laser, for example between 100 kW and 1 MW corresponding to energies of between 1 and 10 millijoules transmitted in approximately 10 ns, each discharger having an associated laser which is specific to it.
Today, the most compact laser sources known, whose volumes are of a few tens of cubic centimeters, limit the functioning ranges to a frequency of around 1 kHz and so do not allow rapid sequenced triggering, for example sequences with 100 ns between each pulse. What is more, the powers used for triggering dischargers, notably those of more than 100 kW, impose the use of special wide optical fibers for certain system structures, which are fragile and difficult to use due to the limited curvature they can tolerate without breaking.

Detonating device for a secondary explosive charge

by Diane M. Winaver, legal representative


The present invention provides a method of detecting or measuring trans-Resveratrol (tRV) in a sample, comprising: contacting a sample to be tested with an antibody against tRV, or an antigen binding fragment of such an antibody; and detecting or measuring any tRV bound by the antibody or antibody fragment. The invention also provides an antibody against trans-Resveratrol.

There is substantial interest in trans-Resveratrol (tRV). It is thought that the health benefits of drinking red wine may largely be due to the presence of trans-Resveratrol. Such benefits include the lower rate of cardiovascular heart disease (CVD) associated with the consumption of red wine. Research is also ongoing into potential anti-aging, anti-cancer and anti-diabetic effects of trans-Resveratrol. Given those potential benefits, the production of foods, beverages and food supplements with high trans-Resveratrol levels is highly desirable.
Despite the high level of interest in trans-Resveratrol and its effects from the wine-making and pharma industries, reflected in the thousand of publications related to trans-Resveratrol, the only method for measuring trans-Resveratrol to date is High Performance Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectroscopy (HPLC-MS). Although HPLC-MS is a specific and sensitive assay method it has significant limitations, primarily due to the cost of equipment for performing HPLC-MS and low through-put rates. For instance, despite the fact that wine makers want to be able to assess levels of trans-Resveratrol at individual stages of wine production, and also to produce vines giving high levels of trans-Resveratrol, there are only a handful of HPLC-MS facilities in France, meaning analysis is costly and slow, making it difficult to analyse trans-Resveratrol levels over time.

Antibody specific for trans-resveratrol and use thereof


A sensor including at least one rotary magnetic coder with first and second rotary tracks, at least two detection cells, and logical resources for processing of digital signals delivered by the cells. At least the detection cell located in relation to a magnetic track with a singular pole is a single-element detection cell, and the generator elements of the magnetic tracks and the detection cells are arranged in dependence on the logical processing resources such that the digital output signal has the same constant period, both on its regular coding part and on its irregular coding part, and the regular coding part and the irregular coding part have cyclic ratios that are unbalanced and different from each other.

The subject of the invention concerns the technical area of rotary magnetic sensors, of the type that includes a coder element moving close to a detection cell and designed to read off at least one angular position in the general sense.
The subject of the invention finds a particularly advantageous application in the automobile area in which such a sensor can be used, for example, in the context of ignition functions.
In the above preferred area, it is common to produce a magnetic sensor designed to measure changes in the intensity of a magnetic field, when a coder equipped with a series of elements generating a variable magnetic field moves in front of one or more measurement or detection cells. Each detection cell, such as, for example, a Hall-Effect or magneto-resistive probe, delivers a periodic electrical signal corresponding to changes in the intensity of the magnetic field generated by the elements. Each detection cell is associated with a hysteresis type level comparator, such as Schmitt trigger, in order to obtain sharp transitions of the output voltage for distinct values of the magnetic field, according to whether it varies upwards or downwards.
In order to constitute a sensor for detection of a speed of rotation, it is common to create a coder that is equipped with elements that generate a variable magnetic field, arranged in a regular manner along a circumference.
According to a first form of implementation, the generating elements are composed of elements that disrupt a magnetic field created by a fixed magnet placed close to such disruptive elements. As an example, such disruptive elements are composed of teeth arranged in a ferromagnetic ring.
According to a second form of implementation, the generating elements of a variable magnetic field are formed by magnetic poles, regularly spaced with a given pitch. Such a coder thus comes in the form of a multipolar magnetic ring.
To allow the determination of at least one position, corresponding, for example, to the top dead centre point in the ignition of a cylinder, it is common to create a marker on the magnetic coder which is commonly known as a singular or irregular pole. It is also common, for example, to remove two teeth from the ferromagnetic ring. In the implementation variant using a coder made in the form of a multipolar magnetic ring, it is possible to envisage either removing several magnetic poles leaving an empty space, or replacing one or more poles of a given polarity with one or more poles of an opposite polarity. One thus creates a given magnetising pole which has, between its two adjacent poles of opposite polarity, a spacing pitch that differs from the spacing pitch of the other poles.
Such a sensor thus delivers a digital output signal with a regular coding part with a constant period and an irregular coding part with a different and longer period. In practice, this leads to a difficulty for the exploitation of such a signal given, in particular, its non-periodic character at the level of the singular pole.

Position sensor with unbalanced cyclic ratio


In one aspect, a battery pack and a method of minimizing voltage deviations between battery cells within the battery pack is disclosed. The battery pack comprises a plurality of battery racks where each of the battery racks in turn comprises a plurality of battery cells. The battery pack also comprises a bidirectional inverter and a plurality of switch sets, where each of the switch sets are connected to one of the battery racks and is configured to electrically connect the bidirectional inverter and the battery racks. The battery pack additionally comprises a plurality of battery rack management systems, where each of the battery rack management systems is electrically connected to one of the battery racks and is configured to minimize voltage deviations between the battery cells. The battery rack management systems are also connected to a main battery management system configured to minimize voltage deviations between the battery racks.

1. Field
The disclosed technology relates to a battery pack and a method for minimizing voltage deviations between battery cells of the battery pack.
2. Description of the Related Technology
In general, motor vehicles that derive their power from electromotive force such as electric vehicles, hybrid electric vehicles, and electric scooters require large-capacity batteries capable of outputting high power and correspondingly high voltage and current ranges. The required voltage may be in the range of tens of volts to hundreds of volts and the required current may be in the range of tens of milliamps to hundreds of amps to be able to supply power in the range of several tens of watts to several kilowatts. To meet these requirements, battery packs including a plurality of battery racks are often employed. A battery rack in turn includes a plurality of battery cells that are connected to each other in series and/or parallel to output a desired amount of power.
In order to improve safety, improve the lifetime of the battery pack, and obtain a high voltage output throughout the lifetime of the battery pack, it is desirable to maintain a uniform voltage across the battery cells included in each of the battery racks. To this end, many battery packs have battery management systems for performing cell balancing to minimize voltage deviations between the battery cells.
However, battery management systems are generally designed to monitor voltage deviations between the battery cells and perform voltage balancing at the cell-to-cell level do not address voltage deviations that exist between battery racks nor perform voltage balancing at the rack-to-rack level. Thus, there is a need for a battery pack having a battery rack management system which addresses the cell-to-cell voltage deviations within a battery rack, as well as rack-to-rack voltage deviations within a battery pack.

Battery pack and method for minimizing cell voltage deviations


A motor-driven compressor includes a housing assembly, a compression mechanism, an electric motor, a discharge port, an outlet, a discharge passage, discharge valve and a valve device. The compression mechanism is accommodated in the housing assembly. The electric motor drives the compression mechanism. The discharge chamber is formed in the housing assembly. The discharge port is formed in the housing assembly for communication between the discharge chamber and the compression mechanism. The outlet is formed in the housing assembly for communication with an external circuit. The discharge passage is formed in the housing assembly for communication between the discharge chamber and the outlet. The discharge valve is disposed in the discharge chamber for opening and closing the discharge port. The valve device is configured to adjust an opening of the discharge passage.

The present invention relates to a motor-driven compressor including a housing, a compression mechanism accommodated in the housing and an electric motor configured to drive the compression mechanism and also to an air conditioner in which the motor-driven compressor is connected.
Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 8-258548 discloses a heat pump system in which a motor-driven compressor forming a part of refrigeration cycle is applied to a heat pump for heating. Referring to FIG. 5 showing a refrigerant circuit in a heat pump system 80 according to a background art, refrigerant discharged from the motor-driven compressor 81 of the heat pump system 80 is flowed through the selector valve 82 to the outside heat exchanger 83, as indicated by dotted arrow Y1, where the refrigerant is condensed. Then, the refrigerant is decompressed by the expansion valve 84 and evaporated in the inside heat exchanger 85, thus cooling of an interior space being accomplished by the air cooled by the evaporation. Then, the refrigerant is flowed through the selector valve 82 and the accumulator 86 and returned to the motor-driven compressor 81.
During heating operation of the system, on the other hand, refrigerant discharged from the motor-driven compressor 81 is flowed through the selector valve 82 and condensed by the inside heat exchanger 85, as indicated by solid arrow Y2. Heating of the interior space is accomplished by the air heated by the heat exchange in the inside heat exchanger 85. Then, the refrigerant is decompressed by the expansion valve 84, evaporated by the outside heat exchanger 83, flowed through the selector valve 82 and the accumulator 86 and returned to the motor-driven compressor 81.
According to the above-cited Publication, when the motor-driven compressor 81 is used in a heat pump for heating, refrigerant discharged from the motor-driven compressor 81 causes discharge pulsation which is transferred to the inside heat exchanger 85 during the heating operation of the motor-driven compressor 81 (under a specific condition). The discharge pulsation transmitted to the inside heat exchanger 85 through pipes causes development of a noise in the vehicle interior. For reducing the discharge pulsation, it may be so arranged that the motor chamber doubles as a discharge chamber in the motor-driven compressor 81. In this structure wherein high-pressured compressed refrigerant is introduced into the motor chamber, however, the electric motor is hardly cooled. In the electric motor having a permanent magnet, the permanent magnet of the electric motor is hardly cooled thereby to be demagnetized, so that performance of the electric motor is deteriorated and the torque of the motor reduced. Accordingly, the performance of the electric motor is deteriorated. For reducing the discharge pulsation of refrigerant, the discharge chamber of the motor-driven compressor 81 may be formed with an increased volume. Such discharge chamber only increases the size of the motor-driven compressor 81 and affects the ease of installation of the compressor in a vehicle.
The present invention is directed to providing a motor-driven compressor configured to reduce the discharge pulsation of refrigerant under a specific condition.

Motor-driven compressor and air conditioner


A removable grip adapted to be fixed on the existing conventional grip of a golf club is provided with hollows and protuberances enabling the player to adopt automatically a correct position of the hands on the grip.

The present invention relates to a removable grip which can be fitted to existing golf club grips, according to the preamble of claim 1, and which in particular is adapted to the correct position of the fingers of the two hands of the player addressing the ball, that is to say when the hands are holding a golf club during the preparation and execution of the swing.
In known manner golf clubs have a heavy end provided with a face for striking the ball, a shaft of variable diameter which ends in a handle, generally covered with a nonslip material and sometimes marked with a reference line extending from the bottom end of the nonslip material to the end of the club remote from the heavy end.
It is known that instructors of this sport use in their equipment a utensil which is useful to beginners, but only to beginners, this utensil comprising a handle or grip provided with hollows corresponding to the optimum positions of the fingers of the two hands and, in a complementary arrangement, with protuberances corresponding to the gaps between fingers and hereinafter referred to as ribs.
These utensils are used only during the very early lessons, and the instructor quickly passes to so-called practice exercises performed with real clubs having a conventional grip consisting of a handle covered with a nonslip material, followed by exercises on a real course.
This entails disadvantages for novice players:
too brief or incomplete apprenticeship in the correct positioning of the fingers,
the acquirement of bad habits once the first lessons have been forgotten or are imperfectly assimilated,
a consequent deterioration of performance with all clubs having a conventional grip consisting of a handle covered with a nonslip material.
The document U.S. Pat. No. 1,664,257 (McCullough) describes a process for converting a golf club having a normal smooth grip into a grip having hollows and ribs adapted to the position of the fingers. Nevertheless, this process necessitates the sacrificing of a club in order to replace the grip definitively, which is a disadvantage. Removable golf club grips fitted over a smooth grip, such as that described in the documents U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,869,511 or 4,878,667, serve other purposes, such as for example increasing the weight of the grip or protecting it, and do not contribute towards better positioning of the fingers.


Features are disclosed for sealing system which is dynamically activated based on a vehicle's location within a geofence via a custom access application. Mobile application features are provided to securely adjust the seal state. Requests to change state are verified against location permissions indicating time or place where the seal may be disabled. The requests may also include specific a code known only to system users for authenticating requests.

Many companies use vehicles to move items within and between facilities. A transport vehicle may include a cargo area or carry a cargo container to hold the items. It is common to leave the storage container for the items unsecured. If sealed, each stop would require unsealing upon arrival and resealing upon departure. Leaving the storage container unsecured may increase the efficiency of the transport process, but it also increase the likelihood of unauthorized access or theft. One option is to use traditional padlocks with the key or combination given to the operator. This secures the cargo from theft by parties other than the operator. But the padlocks introduce additional logistical friction because the key or combinations must be shared and physically presented. If a key is lost or combination forgotten, the padlock may need to be cut to access the storage container. This can be expensive and time consuming. Furthermore, unlike a seal, a lock simply secures a cargo container, and may not provide evidence of tampering with, or unauthorized access to, the cargo container.


The invention relates to a carrier for administering biologically active compounds comprising one or more C1-C4 alcohols, polyols and polymers thereof, water and one or more di and/or mono-(electron transfer agent) phosphate derivatives or complexes thereof. The carrier may be used in administering biologically active compounds, in particular pharmaceuticals including cosmetic agents.

In this specification where a document, act or item of knowledge is referred to or discussed, this reference or discussion is not an admission that the document, act or item of knowledge or any combination thereof was at the priority date, publicly available, known to the public, part of common general knowledge; or known to be relevant to an attempt to solve any problem with which this specification is concerned.
The major objective in pharmaceutical delivery is to obtain an appropriate biological effect at a desired site of action. The choice of formulation can be critical to the efficacy of a pharmaceutical since the bioactivity of a pharmaceutical will be sub-optimal if it does not possess the correct physiochemical properties to allow release from the formulation at the target site of action.
Enteral delivery involves administering the pharmaceutical via the GI tract where the pharmaceutical is absorbed and distributed via the bloodstream to the target site of action. For example, pharmaceuticals delivered orally are absorbed through the intestine.
The chemical environment of the GI tract is also important to external pharmaceutical delivery. The pharmaceutical must be in a form which is stable at the different pH of the various parts of the GI tract. If the pharmaceutical forms a non-absorbable complex or is degraded chemically or enzymatically then this will decrease absorption. The pharmaceutical must also be in solution in the GI fluids to be absorbed. Sedimentation of the pharmaceutical involves the pharmaceutical forming solid particles and thus leaving the solution. Adsorption onto luminal solid particles involves solids adsorbing the pharmaceutical; that is, removing the pharmaceutical from solution. Both sedimentation and adsorption decrease absorption of the pharmaceutical. In many cases, degradation and complexation can be circumvented, or at least minimized, by chemical or formulation approaches so that they do not present a limitation to pharmaceutical uptake.
Further, if a pharmaceutical is absorbed through the intestinal or stomach wall, it then must pass through the liver. The liver is designed to eliminate foreign compounds from the body. As a result, a significant proportion of the pharmaceutical (for example, 40-50%) may be metabolised and excreted before its reaches the bloodstream. It is possible to reduce the effect of the liver on enteral administration by having the pharmaceutical absorbed through the lining of the mouth (bucchal/sublingual) or the lining of the rectum (suppositories), however these routes are not always appropriate.
Attempts to improve the bioavailability of enterally administered pharmaceuticals involve either the formation of prodrugs, for example morphine sulphate or the use of excipients which improve absorption.
Topical delivery involves administering the pharmaceutical to a membrane of the body where the pharmaceutical is absorbed and distributed. For example, pharmaceuticals delivered transdermally are absorbed through the skin.
The skin is the largest organ of the body, which functions to protect the internal organs from external chemical, physical and pathological hazards. Normal skin is divided into three layers: the epidermis, the dermis, and subcutaneous tissue. The outer cornified layer of the epidermis, the stratum corneum, possesses properties of strength, flexibility, high electrical impedance and dryness that retards penetration and proliferation of micro-organisms. The stratum corneum is also the principle barrier to transdermal pharmaceutical absorption. There is a layer of sebum protecting the skin which is considered to be a barrier to all aqueous based pharmaceutical formulations.
When travelling through the skin, a diffusing pharmaceutical molecule has three potential routes of entry to the deeper skin layers: the intercellular route, the transcellular route, and the transappendageal route. While shunt diffusion of electrolytes and large molecules through appendages may be significant, the relatively small area available for transport (0.1% of skin surface) means this route has a negligible contribution to steady state pharmaceutical flux. The main route for the permeation of the majority of molecules is commonly believed to be the intercellular route, and hence many enhancing techniques are aimed at disrupting the strong "brick and mortar" construction of the strata corneum. Current theories regarding the transport route point to two possible mechanisms: (i) passive transcellular and (ii) intracellular epidermal transport.
Pharmaceuticals are topically applied to the skin in a number of ways including ointments, patches, solutions, subcutaneous depots, poultices, plasters and transdermal delivery devices.
Interest in transdermal pharmaceutical delivery may be increasing but some fundamental limitations restrict broader application of the technology. The main limitation to the use of transdermal delivery is the rate of transport of the pharmaceutical through the skin.
Not every pharmaceutical can be administered transdermally at a rate sufficiently high enough to achieve blood levels that are therapeutically beneficial for systemic medication. Pharmaceuticals with similar molecular weights and sizes for example may absorb across the skin at different rates. Fentanyl for example permeates the skin at 2 mg/cm2/hr compared to ephedrine at 200 mg/cm2/hr. The large size of a transdermal delivery system required for fentanyl would therefore be neither practical nor economical despite the advantages of the administration route.
Skin enhancers and various formulation techniques have been developed to improve pharmaceutical absorption through the skin. Skin enhancers can include compounds like capric acid, oleic acid, azone, decylmethyl sulfoxide and hydroxy cinnamates that typically function to modify structure especially of the stratum corneum by dissolving the lipid matrix to improve permeability of pharmaceuticals. Dermal absorption of progesterone for example increases by 143% when the stratum corneum is delipidized. The enhancement increases to 843% when the stratum corneum is totally eliminated. With such aggressive modification, commonly reported problems with repeated use of such systems are therefore evident, including contact dermatitis, reddening of the skin, itching and burning that requires movement of the patch, or application of the pharmaceutical, around the body to prevent local irritation. The reddening is said to disappear within hours of removing the patch. But concern has been raised with respect to long term risk and safety with use of this type of transdermal delivery systems, mainly because increased pharmaceutical permeability is achieved at the cost of damaging a fundamentally important protective layer of the skin.
There is a need for formulations which further improve the bioavailability of biologically active compounds.

Carrier comprising one or more di and/or mono-(electron transfer agent) phosphate derivatives or complexes thereof


Optical parametric oscillator including a semiconductor microcavity being configured to spatially localize polaritons of at least three quantized polariton energy levels to effect an optical parametric oscillation.

Optical parametric oscillators (OPOs) are frequently used as tunable infrared light sources. Conventionally they are realized by an optically pumped laser cavity including a non-linear crystal. The parametric oscillation is effected by irradiating the nonlinear crystal with an intense pump beam having a frequency ν3. In the nonlinear crystal quantum correlated photons of frequencies ν1 and ν2 are generated spontaneously by parametric scattering according to the relation ν3=ν1+ν2, wherein ν1 is the photon frequency. The generated modes are denoted as signal and idler modes.
Conventional OPOs usually require a lengthy and inconvenient initial alignment procedure and during their operation a continuous feedback control of the cavity length in order to compensate for cavity length fluctuations. Furthermore, in OPOs of this conventional type signal and idler photonic emissions comprise strongly unequal intensities.

École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne


An object is to carry out abnormality diagnosis of a wide range air-fuel ratio sensor to a high accuracy, with a relatively simple construction. Judgment is made as to whether abnormality diagnosis permit conditions have materialized, and if materialized, a detection value of an air-fuel ratio sensor is monitored. It is then judged if the responsiveness of a change in the detection value of the air-fuel ratio sensor subsequent to changing a target air-fuel ratio is within a predetermined range. If so, an OK judgment is given. If not, an NG judgment is given and a warning lamp is illuminated to advise the driver of the abnormality in the air-fuel ratio sensor so as to take action. With this arrangement, abnormality diagnosis of a wide range air-fuel ratio sensor can be carried out to a high accuracy with a relatively simple construction.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for carrying out abnormality diagnosis of a so-called wide range air-fuel ratio sensor.
2. Description of the Related Art
As a conventional so-called wide range air-fuel ratio sensor, there is for example the devices disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication Nos. 1-123141, and 1-124758.
With these devices, a specific constituent concentration (for example oxygen concentration) in the engine exhaust is detected, and based on this, the air-fuel ratio can be detected over a wide range (in both the lean and rich air-fuel ratio regions).
However, technology for diagnosing for example that such a so-called wide range air-fuel ratio sensor is able to operate normally, or that the performance has not deteriorated, has not yet been established. Hence it cannot be known if a wide range air-fuel ratio sensor can correctly detect the air-fuel ratio. There is thus the possibility of a fault for example in the air-fuel ratio control of an internal combustion engine, and hence the possibility that operating performance, exhaust performance, fuel consumption performance and the like cannot be suitably maintained.

Method and apparatus for diagnosing an abnormality in a wide range air-fuel ratio sensor


A phase change memory apparatus includes a phase change memory array in which a plurality of phase change memory devices are arranged, and a pulse generator that supplies a writing current pulse, an erasure current pulse, and a reverse repair current pulse to the phase change memory devices in the phase change memory array. The reverse repair current pulse has opposite direction to the writing current pulse and the erasure current pulse of the phase change memory devices, and is of such a size that resultant Joule heat and electromigration move the elements of the reverse repair current pulse. The reverse repair current pulse has a width equal to or more than a smaller one of duration of a normal writing operation and duration of a normal erasure operation.

Phase change memory devices, such as phase change RAM (Random Access Memory), use as nonvolatile data a difference in electrical resistivity due to a reversible phase change between amorphous and crystalline in a phase change material of chalcogenide series. Such phase change memory devices have been suggested by Ovonyx, Inc. and ECD (Energy Conversion Devices), Inc. in U.S.A. (see U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,359,205, 5,414,271, 5,536,947, and 5,534,712).
A writing operation of a memory, which is also referred to as "reset", changes the phase of a phase change material in a phase change memory device to an amorphous state. During the writing operation, the phase change material is heated to a melting point or more using Joule heat produced by an electrical pulse, and is then rapidly quenched. In this way, the phase change material in the phase change memory device is changed to the amorphous state. This state is called a reset state, in which electrical resistance is high.
An erasure operation of a memory, which is also referred to as "set", changes the phase of the phase change material to a crystalline state. During the erasure operation, thermal energy is supplied to the phase change material in accordance with Joule heat produced by an electrical pulse, and the phase change material is heated to a crystallization temperature or more and then maintained for a predetermined time or more. In this way, the phase change material in the amorphous state is changed to a crystalline state. This state is called "set state", in which electrical resistance is low.
A reading operation of a memory is performed by reading resistance of the phase change memory device or a change in voltage across a bit line.
Similarly to other semiconductor memory devices, the phase change memory device has a limited writing life time. At the beginning of development, it has been reported that the writing life time of the phase change memory device is about 1013 (see S. R. Ovshinsky, Tutorials in 2003 Material Research Society Fall Meeting).
FIG. 1 shows a test result of cycling endurance of a phase change memory device (see Stefan Lai, IEDM Tech. Dig., 2003, pp. 255-258).
Advancement of device integration causes a decrease in cycling endurance of the phase change memory device. A latest report shows that the cycling endurance of the phase change memory is about 105, which is much the same as a flash memory (see J. H. Oh et. al., in IEDM Tech. Dig., 2006, 346905).
In regard to a phase change memory device that is put into an unwritable state due to repetition of the writing and erasure operations, an analysis result shows that the unwritable state is caused by a change in composition of the phase change material (see Jong-Bong Park et. al., Jour. Electrochem. Soc. 154, H139). The writing and erasure operations of the phase change memory device are accompanied by heat and high current. Heat and high current lead to thermal atomic diffusion or collision against electrons at high temperature, resulting in electromigration. The electromigration causes the movement of atoms of the phase change material, resulting in a change in composition of the phase change material.

Phase change memory apparatus having an improved cycling endurance and programming method therefor

Korea Institute of Science and Technology


A system for cooling one or more discrete superconducting devices wherein a primary refrigerator subcools cryogenic liquid for desubcooling in the devices and subsequently resubcools this liquid in a recirculation loop, and additional cryogenic liquid is maintained in a subcooled condition within a reserve storage container by diversion of some of the refrigeration generated by the primary refrigerator into the reserve storage container.

Superconductivity is the phenomenon wherein certain metals, alloys and compounds, such as YBCO, REBCO and BSCCO, at very low temperatures lose electrical resistance so that they have infinite electrical conductivity. It is important in the use of superconducting devices that the cooling, i.e. refrigeration, provided to the superconducting device not fall below a certain level lest the wire lose its ability to superconduct and the function of the device be compromised. Often this refrigeration is supplied by a cryogenic liquid and consumed in the device by warming of the liquid. Most devices will not tolerate a gas phase of the coolant due to electrical considerations.

Cryogenic refrigeration system for superconducting devices


A torque limiter limits transmission of torque between a drive shaft and an output shaft. The torque limiter includes a first rotational plate connected to the drive shaft, a second rotational plate facing the first rotational shaft and connected to the output shaft to be movable along an axial direction thereof, a ball ramp portion provided between the first rotational plate and the second rotational plate, a ball retained in the ball ramp portion, and a spring portion for pressing between the first rotational plate and the second rotational plate. A ball channel is formed in at least one of the first rotational plate and the second rotational plate. The ball in the ball ramp portion falls in the ball channel when the torque between the drive shaft and the output shaft exceeds a predetermined value to shut off the transmission of the torque.

The present invention relates to a power transmission system for a general industrial device and an aircraft. More specifically, the present invention relates to a torque limiter in which a coupling portion for transmitting a rotational force shuts off or separates when a load exceeds a predetermined value.
A movable wing surface forming a part of a flight control system of an aircraft is called a rudder surface (flying wing surface or moving wing), and includes an aileron provided on a main wing as a main rudder surface, and an elevator and a rudder provided on a tail wing. The movable wing surface also includes a slat, a posterior-border slap, a flight spoiler, a gland spoiler and so on provided on the main wing as an accessory rudder surface. The main wing is composed of a wing and respective rudder surfaces (slat, slow speed aileron, high speed aileron, flight spoiler, gland spoiler and posterior-border slap). An aircraft body is controlled through an operation of the rudder surfaces and the tail swing.
FIG. 3 shows a high-lift system of an aircraft. The high-lift system is a system in which a rudder surface of a flap/slat provided in a main wing is operated in order to obtain lift of the aircraft when the aircraft takes off and lands. It is necessary to operate each rudder surface of the right and left wings simultaneously (left rudder surfaces 33a and 34a, and right rudder surfaces 33b and 34b). A drive motor 30 is disposed in the middle portion of the aircraft for rotating right and left torque shafts 32 simultaneously through a gear box 31. In view of safety, it is necessary to operate the right and left rudder surfaces symmetrically (left rudder surfaces 33a and 34a, and right rudder surfaces 33b and 34b).
FIG. 4(a) is a view showing a high-lift system equipped with torque limiters (left wing torque limiter 35a and right wing torque limiter 35b). The high-lift system has power for operating the right and left rudder surfaces with one drive motor 30. The torque limiter limits torque transmitted to the left and right sides only as necessary and prevents excess torque from being transmitted. With the torque limiters, it is possible to reduce a size and weight of a component at a downstream side of the torque limiter as the torque limiter limits the maximum output torque.
The torque limiter of the high-lift system needs to shut off torque greater than a required torque for driving one wing, and needs to rotate the right and left shafts symmetrically within a predetermined level. The torque limiter mainly includes one type in which a shaft is fixed to a case and the other type in which a shaft becomes free for shutting off torque. In the high-lift system, since it is necessary to operate the right and left wings symmetrically, the type in which a shaft is fixed to a case is used. In the torque limiter in which a shaft is fixed to a case, it is necessary to stop the shaft instantly. Accordingly, when the torque limiter is operated, a large surge torque is generated due to inertial energy of the drive motor 30, so that a measure for controlling the surge is separately required.
FIG. 4(b) is a view showing a high-lift system equipped with a surge torque buffering apparatus 36. In the high-lift system, a torque limiter in which a shaft is fixed to a casing is provided on an output shaft of each of left and right wings (left wing torque limiter 35a, right wing torque limiter 35b). The surge torque buffering apparatus 36 is provided for reducing the surge torque generated by inertial energy. The surge torque buffering apparatus 36 is formed of a spring and the like.
FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view of a torque limiter in which an output shaft 2 is to be fixed. An input plate 3 connected to a drive shaft 1 is fitted in a bearing provided in a housing 9. At an opposite side, the output shaft 2 is supported on a bearing provided in the input plate 3 and a bearing provided in a housing 10. The input plate 3 is connected to the drive shaft 1 to rotate, and the output plate 4 is capable of rotating and moving on the output shaft 2 in an axial direction. An output plate 4 is fitted into the output shaft 2 to be movable back and forth. A ball ramp portion 5 is disposed between the input plate 3 and the output plate 4, and has lamp channels wherein a ball 6 is retained. A preload spring 7 is provided for pressing the ball ramp portion 5 in an axial direction so that the ball ramp portions 5 is not activated up to a certain torque. A brake portion 8 increases a torque according to a load in an axial direction generated when the ball ramp portion 5 is activated.
FIG. 6 shows a structure of the ball ramp portion 5. An upper portion in FIG. 6 is a side of the input plate 3, and a lower portion in FIG. 6 is a side of the output plate 4. Lamp channels with smooth slopes are provided on both sides for sandwiching the ball 6. The preload spring 7 presses the output plate 4. A depth and a size of the lamp channel and a size of the ball 6 are determined such that the ball ramp portion 5 is not activated up to a certain torque.
When the input plate 3 rotates, the lamp channel at a side of the input plate 3 moves in the right direction in FIG. 6. As a result, a driving force (torque) acts in an arrow direction through the ball 6, and a pressing force acts in an arrow direction on the output plate 4. When a torque greater than a predetermined value is applied, the input plate 3 moves further in the right direction in FIG. 6. As a result, the ball 6 rolls against resistance of the output plate 4 pressed by the preload spring 7 with a certain force, and increases a distance between the both plates. Accordingly, the brake portion 8 stops the output plate 4, thereby shutting off the torque to the output shaft 2. As described above, when a rotating torque greater than a predetermined value is applied to the drive shaft 1, the coupling portion for transmitting the rotational drive limits the torque transmission.
Another type of torque limiter is able to shut off a torque when an overload is applied and maintain a position of the shut off (for example, refer to Japanese Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 07-293576).
In the conventional torque limiter with the structure described above, when the transmitting torque exceeds a predetermined value, the torque limiter instantly stops the rotational shaft, thereby generating a torque surge due to inertia of the rotational body. In order to reduce the torque surge, it is necessary to provide the surge torque buffering apparatus 36 such as a slip clutch as shown in FIG. 4(b), thereby increasing cost and weight, and lowering reliability.
In the view of the problems described above, the present invention has been made, and an object of the present invention is to provide a torque limiter with low cost, light weight and high reliability, wherein a downstream portion of a system is not affected when the transmitting torque exceeds a predetermined value due to the torque surge and so on.
Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of the invention.


A partition structure having a screen includes a pair of main wall members disposed in parallel to each other with a predetermined interval, a pair of side wall members connected at end portions thereof to the end portions of the pair of main wall members to connect said main wall members to each other and provide a partition space defined by said main wall members and said side wall members, and one or more spacer members disposed in said partition space and fixed to said main wall members to hold the main wall members in positon. At least a part of at least one of the main wall members and the spacer members being a screen. The partition structure may further include a top member and a bottom member closing the partition space, and a communicating tube communicating with the partition space through the top plate.

This invention relates to a partition structure having a screen and a method for using the same.
In building an underground construction such as an underground part of a building, it is necessary to pump out underground water in the construction site and thereby lower the underground water level before starting the underground construction. Known in the art of drainage works is a method called "deep well method". According to this method, as shown in FIG. 15, sheet piles b are driven into the ground around the site a. Then, a plurality of deep well screens c are buried into the ground in the site a to a level under the underground water level. Pumps P are connected to the deep well screens c and underground water flowing into the deep well screens c is pumped out by the pumps P to lower the underground water level in the site a to a desired water level L.
As described above, the deep well method requires two stage works of (1) construction of a partition wall by driving in of sheet piles and (2) burying deep well screens in the site surrounded by the partition wall and, therefore, this method requires much labor and time resulting in a high construction cost.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to overcome the above described problem in the conventional deep well screen engineering process.