A cylindrical device connected to the nose of a projectile for imparting n to the projectile fired from a non-rifled bore of a cannon. The device has at least two coaxial, adjacent, and integrally connected cylindrical segments of different diameter. The segment having the larger diameter is positioned most rearwardly of the projectile, relative to the nose of the projectile, and the periphery of this segment has circumferentially spaced angled slots for catching air moving past the projectile to spin the projectile. The segment with the smaller diameter attaches the cylindrical device to the aft end of the nose of the projectile and directs the flow of air to and through the angled slots of the segment having the larger diameter.

In the science of ballistics, it is conventional wisdom that shock waves, emanating from a projectile in flight and traveling faster than the speed of sound, interfere with and break-up the flow of air close to the aft or back end of the projectile. The disruption of air flow affects the flight of the projectile. In order to compensate for or overcome such perceived interference and to impart spin to a projectile fired from a non-rifled or smooth bore system, the projectile 120, as shown in prior art FIG. 1a, is manufactured to include a boom or extension 122 which provides distance between the nose 124 and fins 126. In effect, the boom ensures that the fins, which do not extend beyond the diameter of the body of the projectile, will contact intact air flow.
Alternatively, a projectile, as shown in FIG. 1b may have expanding fins 128. In such a case, the fins are hinged and spring loaded to the body of the projectile so that as the projectile exits the bore of a cannon on firing, fins 128 expand beyond the caliber or diameter of the body of the projectile to engage intact air flow causing the projectile to spin.
The prior art projectiles may have an ogive or rounded nose 124 as shown in FIGS. 1a and 1b or a spine nose discussed infra.
The structures described above add expense to the manufacture of the projectile and may require movable parts that are subject to failure, as in the case of the expanding fins of FIG. 1b.
It has now been found that the device of the present invention, having a diameter no greater than the diameter of the projectile to which it is attached, and which can be attached at the aft end of the projectile, can successfully use the air flow near the aft end of the projectile to spin the projectile. Accordingly, the invention eliminates the need for a "boom" or expandable spring loaded fins.

The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army


The movement of persons is indicated at least at two predefined locations in a building with motion detectors intended for monitoring each location and fastened to the building. By means of the detections, the movement of each person is detected from a predefined initial location to a predefined destination location in a predefined time without raising an alarm if the detected locations of the person form a line of predefined consecutive locations. Otherwise, an alarm is raised.

The movements of people suffering from dementia or mental disorders in hospital buildings, nursing institutions, service homes, their wards or in corresponding premises can be monitored by means of a wristband attached to the person's wrist. The wristband may have a wireless radio connection to base stations in the building, which may be part of an exit and access control system. A display in a control room of the system may show the ongoing situation in the building by means of a graphical representation. The system may alert the control room, if someone removes the wristband from his or her wrist, tries to open a door, the opening of which is prohibited to him or her, or tries to use an elevator, the use of which is prohibited to him or her. The control room can inform the personnel of the institution in general, where the alarm has been triggered and, depending on the characteristics of the wristband, possibly also who has triggered the alarm.
However, there are problems involved with this type of control system. Having the wristband on the wrist or in some way with you all the time is not very comfortable for the person being monitored, and many refuse to use it, or try to take it off as soon as possible. In some cases, taking the wristband off may be necessary due to treatment or some other reason, and if the person being monitored forgets to put is back on the wrist, s/he may unintentionally wander outside or enter forbidden locations without anybody realizing it. A reliable operation of the system is also hampered by the fact that maintaining the charge of dozens, even thousands, of wristband batteries or accumulators at a sufficient level all the time is extremely difficult, or even impossible, and the nursing staff uses a lot of time in replacing the batteries or charging the accumulators.

Method and system for guarding a person in a building


Provided are a class of compounds as shown in formula (I) as FGFR4 inhibitors, and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof, preparation methods therefor and the use thereof in the preparation of drugs for treating FGFR4-related diseases.

Fibroblast growth factor receptor 4 (FGFR4) is a kind of human protein encoded by FGFR4 gene. This protein is a member of the fibroblast growth factor receptor family the homology of amino acid sequences among FGFR1-4 members is very high, with a high degree of similarity which is a glycoprotein composed of extracellular immunoglobulin (Ig)—like domains, hydrophobic transmembrane domains and a cytoplasm portion including tyrosine kinase domains. The binding of extramembrane domain to FGF leads to the dimerization of FGFR, autophosphorylation occurs on the receptors, which activates the downstream signal path, and finally affects the division and variation of cells.
FGFR4 is distinctly different from FGFR1-3 in terms of genetic structure, which is of a specific structure of cysteine 552 (CYS552), thus being capable of selectively inhibiting FGFR4, while not inhibiting the development of FGFR1-3 inhibitors, and being capable of reducing the potential toxicity caused by FGFR1-3 inhibition; it has been demonstrated from recent studies that FGFR4-FGF19 signal axes are closely related to liver cancer, renal cancer, colon cancer, breast cancer, etc., allowing FGFR4 become one of potential targets for treating liver cancer, renal cancer, colon cancer, breast cancer, etc.
In clinical, FGFR4 inhibitors are not limited to be used for treating liver cancer with high expression of FGFR4, also may be applied to other solid tumors with abnormal FGFR4 signal paths, meanwhile there is also a possibility of being used in combination with other therapies. Therefore, the development of FGFR4 inhibitors has a more extensive market space and application prospect.

FGFR4 inhibitor and preparation method and use thereof


A method and imaging device are provided. A pixel output signal is obtained for each green pixel in a group of pixels of an image. The group of pixels includes a plurality of pixel arrays, where each pixel array of the plurality of pixel arrays includes a first green pixel and a second green pixel. A green imbalance value is determined for the group of pixels based on the obtained pixel output signals. For each pixel array, a difference between the pixel output signal for the first green pixel and the pixel output signal for the second green pixel is calculated. An average of the calculated differences is determined. The pixel output signal of at least one of the green pixels in the group of pixels is adjusted based on the green imbalance value.

Semiconductor image sensors are used to sense radiation that includes, for example, visible light. Complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensors and charge-coupled device (CCD) sensors are widely used in digital cameras and mobile phone cameras. These sensors utilize an array of pixels located in a substrate, where the pixels include photodiodes and transistors. The pixels absorb radiation projected toward the substrate and convert the absorbed radiation into electrical signals.

System and method for green imbalance compensation in images


An elevator group management system for managing a plurality of elevators is disclosed wherein the system comprises a plurality of control devices for executing overall assignment processes of the elevators in response to hall calls which take place on particular floors and a plurality of sub tasks, distributedly disposed in the control devices. for calculating times for which the elevators respond to the hall calls. When the control devices receive hall calls at the same time or nearly at the same time, they in parallel activate sub tasks distributedly disposed in the control devices and determine most suitable elevators in response to the hall calls.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an elevator group management system and an elevator assignment method for assigning a most suitable elevator from a plurality of elevators which respond to an elevator call which takes place on a particular floor (hereinafter named a "hall call").
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, a most suitable elevator is rationally and quickly assigned from a plurality of elevators which respond to a hall call which takes place on a particular floor by means of a small computer such as a microcomputer or the like.
In addition, recently, the assignments of such elevators are controlled by using a plurality of group management control devices. An advantage of this method is that a task group for calculating a time for which each elevator responds to a hall call is distributed to a plurality of group management control devices and thereby a large number of processes can be shared by them. The task group is activated with a control command by a main task with which one of the group management control devices is provided. The main task is a task for controlling the overall assignments of the elevator group. The main task executes a process for determining an elevator which should respond to the hall call in accordance with information collected from the task group.
Nevertheless, in such an elevator group management system, as the scale of the elevator system becomes large, that is, the number of hall calls due to an increase of floors and elevators becomes large, the group management control device having main task is concentratedly loaded. Thus, when a plurality of hall calls take place nearly at the same time, the later hall calls are processed with a long time delay.

Elevator car assignment using a plurality of calculations


A sensor having an input to an interferometer. The input may receive emissions from a detected fluid. The output of the interferometer may be focused on an array of light detectors. Electrical signals from the detectors may go to a processor. The output of the processor may include a spectrum of the detected fluid. Also, the identity of the fluid may be determined.

This present application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/324,314, filed Dec. 19, 2002, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,946,644, by R. A. Wood, and entitled "MULTI-BAND SENSOR".
The invention may pertain to sensors and in particular to sensors for detecting the presence of fluids and other substances. More particularly, the invention may pertain to sensors that have detector sensitivities of several bandwidths. "Fluid" is a generic term that includes liquids and gases as species. For instance, air, water, oil, gas and agents may be fluids.
The related art might detect at several wavelengths; however, the results of detection may not be sufficiently accurate because of sensor structure or other impediments resulting in different fields of view for detection at different wavelengths.

Chemical agent sensor having a stationary linear fringe interferometer


The cycle seat with adjustable sides includes a base plate having a forward and optionally a rearward guide plate thereon. Each guide plate includes laterally adjustable left and right arm extensions, with each arm having a generally vertical wing extending upwardly therefrom. The arms of each pair simultaneously adjust inwardly and outwardly opposite one another, permitting a single adjustment to adjust both wings of a set equally. Each wing pair includes a latch mechanism, which is adjustable as the cyclist rides the cycle. The seat may be installed per se upon a bicycle or other cycle, or may be installed in combination with a longitudinal and/or arcuate and vertical adjustment mechanism for the seat. The cycle seat greatly reduces or eliminates the need for a pommel, while assuring that the seat remains in contact with the hips and/or thighs of the cyclist at all times to assure more complete control.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to seating devices for bicycles and other pedal powered cycles. More specifically, the present invention comprises various embodiments of a cycle seat having laterally adjustable side panels or wings, which provide lateral support for the hips and upper thighs of the rider. The cycle seat per se may be installed upon a cycle, or may be installed in combination with other seat adjustment mechanisms, as desired.
2. Description of the Related Art
Cycle seats, particularly for relatively unstable vehicles such as bicycles and unicycles, must provide reasonable security for the cyclist while also providing the cyclist with leverage for maneuvering the cycle. This has been accomplished conventionally by means of a relatively small seating surface with a forwardly extending pommel that fits between the upper thighs of the cyclist, enabling the cyclist to brace against the pommel to a certain extent while pedaling and/or maneuvering. The forwardly extending central pommel has its disadvantages, however, with perhaps the chief disadvantage being the pressure applied to the perineal area of the cyclist during certain riding conditions.
As a result, a number of cycle seat configurations have been developed which greatly reduce or eliminate the forwardly extending central pommel. Most such seats provide some other means for the cyclist to stabilize himself or herself on the cycle, e.g., by means of generally vertical, laterally disposed side panels or wings extending upwardly from the opposite left and right edges of the seat. Such laterally disposed wings can be of some assistance in providing better control for the rider, but this is generally true only under a relatively narrow set of conditions. For example, when the cyclist stands on the pedals for greater leverage when accelerating or hill climbing, he or she must perform all other control functions with the arms, as there is no seat contact. Even in the case of an articulating seat, the seat must contact different parts of the cyclist's body at different times, i.e., the hips when the rider is standing on the pedals during hard pedaling operations, with contact reverting to the upper thighs when the cyclist is seated upon the seat. Moreover, a seat with fixed lateral side members or wings cannot possibly fit all cyclists; some form of adjustment is required, and such adjustment should be achievable by the cyclist while actually cycling, as the cyclist adjusts his or her position relative to the seat during different cycling conditions.
The present inventors are aware of a number of adjustable cycle seating configurations that have been developed in the past. An example is found in German Patent No. 10,253,575, published on May 13, 2004. This publication describes (according to the drawings and English abstract) a bicycle having a longitudinally and vertically adjustable seat by means of a pivotally mounted seat post structure and a turnbuckle link having an adjustable length. The seat configuration per se is only generally indicated.
Thus, a cycle seat with adjustable sides solving the aforementioned problems is desired.


The present invention provides a novel joint which includes an anchoring system between composite plate side walls of a trailer body. The anchoring system includes track members which are provided at multiple points on each side wall. Beams extend between the respective track members by attachments and are attached thereto. The beams can be moved up and down along the tracks and support cargo or a removable deck which supports the cargo. The track members can also be removed from the joints without dismantling the entire joint. Splicing members are attached at the joints on the outside of the trailer body.

Many different kinds of anchoring systems exist for use in the interior of trailers for supporting cargo or a removable deck which supports cargo. Two such systems are provided by Kinedyne Corporation and Ancra International LLC.
Each of these anchoring systems have a number of elongated track members which generally run along the interior side walls of a trailer, from a position proximate to the roof of the trailer to a position proximate to a top of a scuff plate provided on the respective side wall proximate to the floor of the trailer. The track members are attached to the interior surface of the side walls and, thus, extend into the interior space of the trailer body. As a result, the track members can be easily damaged by forklifts or other means. In addition, because the track members extend into the interior space of the trailer body, the track members take up room within the trailer body, thus leaving less room for cargo to be stored within the trailer body.
Thus, there is a need for a track member of an anchoring system that will have a lower profile on the inside of the trailer body such as to help prevent the damage of the track member by forklifts or other means and to allow for more cargo to be stored within the trailer body. The present invention provides such an anchoring system.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Integrated anchoring system and composite plate for a trailer side wall joint


A cycloidal pin wheel harmonic transmission device includes camshaft, flexible bearing, flexible wheel, roller pins and rigid wheel. The flexible bearing is mounted on the camshaft with elliptical shape. The flexible wheel has inner ring cooperated with outer ring of the flexible bearing, and outer teeth surface contacted with each roller pin. The roller pins are evenly disposed inside semicircular groove of the rigid wheel. The flexible wheel is fixedly connected with inner ring and the rigid wheel is fixedly connected with outer ring of the main bearing. Both teeth height and root have cycloidal teeth profiles reduces the risk of breakage failure, possible to obtain larger engagement without deep engaging distance. Teeth width is large, used for the engagement, the surface specific pressure is small. It is possible to withstand large torque to reduce the amount of deformation of the flexible wheel, and to greatly improve the longevity.

In fields of industrial robot and various precision machines, precision reducer is an important component. In these fields, the reducer is required to have the characteristics of small size, light weight, high rigidity, overload resistance and smoothness, as well as to have large speed ratio, small clearance, small angle transmission error and good acceleration performance.
K-H-V(N) type involute planetary transmission is a structure with less teeth difference. A pair of planetary gears is mounted on the two eccentric journals of the input shaft with difference of 180°. Two planetary gears are engaged with a same internal gear, which has a same teeth difference as those of the planetary gears. If the internal gear is fixed, the planetary gear itself will also rotate at a certain angle, along with the revolution of the planetary gear. The rotation angle of the planetary gear itself is determined by the number of the teeth difference. The planetary gear performs both revolution and rotation movement, and because of the complex movement, it is needed to offset the revolution through the output mechanism and only output the rotation by the differential movement. Compared with the reducer with conventional structure, the K-H-V(N) type involute planetary reducer with less teeth difference has a large transmission ratio, a compact structure, a light weight and good acceleration performance. The first stage gear ratio may be up to i=100. Compared with the cylindrical gear reducer with the same transmission ratio and the same power, the quality may be significantly reduced.
The harmonic transmission is a transmission which applies flexible involute gear with a controllable elastic deformation, a rigid internal gear and an elliptical wave generator as main mechanical structures. There is a difference in the teeth number between the flexible gear and the rigid internal gear, and thus the harmonic wave transmission is also regarded as a differential transmission. The principle of the harmonic transmission may also be understood as K-H-V (N) type involute planetary transmission with less teeth difference, the flexible gear may be understood as the fusion deformation of two planetary gears, the wave generator may be understood as a variant of the eccentric shaft, while the housing of the flexible wheel functions as a output mechanism of K-H-V(N) type involute planetary transmission with less teeth difference. Therefore, in essence, the harmonic transmission is also a K-H-V (N) type involute planetary transmission with less teeth difference. This invention seeks to improve the structure of the K-H-V(N) type involute planetary transmission with less teeth difference, so as to achieve a simpler structure, a more compact volume and a lighter weight.
The involute planetary transmission with less teeth difference and the harmonic transmission have the following disadvantages that, when the difference in the teeth numbers is too small, there may be an overlap interference of the teeth profile and an interference of the teeth top at the other end of the joint, which needs to be solved by reducing the teeth height and increasing the pressure angle. However, the problem still cannot be solved fundamentally.
With respect to the cycloidal pin wheel planetary transmission, the teeth profile of the K-H-V(N) type involute planetary transmission with less teeth difference is completely changed, and the involute internal gear and the involute planetary gear are replaced as the pin wheel and the cycloidal wheel. Due to the unique relationship among the formation principle of the cycloidal gear profile, the diameters of the roller pins and the radius of the eccentric movement, the cycloidal pin wheel planetary transmission with one teeth differential theoretically has the roller pins simultaneously engaged, though a half number of teeth thereof, with the cycloidal wheel. All roller pins are in contact with the cycloidal wheel at the same time. This teethed engaging transmission completely solves the problem of overlapping interference of teeth profile and the interference of the teeth top at the other end of the joint of the involute planetary transmission with less teeth difference. Also, the transmission precision and the rigidity of the mechanism are significantly improved, and the noise is reduced.
At present, a transmission form of harmonic transmission in which applies cycloidal pin wheels engagement has yet not been found. Based on the above background, the present invention proposes a cycloidal pin wheel harmonic transmission. In the involute teethed harmonic transmission, the difference between the lengths of the long axis and the short axis of the wave generator of the harmonic transmission needs to be as large as possible, in order to avoid the overlapping interference of teeth profile and the interference of the teeth top at the other end of the joint; while the flexible wheel and the material properties of the bearing require that the difference between the lengths of the long axis and the short axis of the wave generator needs to be as small as possible. This contradiction makes the harmonic reducer sacrifice rigidity and impact resistance in the design. The present invention may improve the above contradiction problem, and simultaneously improve the coincidence of the engaging and increase the rigidity.

Cycloidal pin wheel harmonic transmission device


A mirror apparatus that includes a mirror that is at least partially covered by a decorative door that is movable away from the mirror so that the mirror can be cleaned. The mirror apparatus includes a frame having an inner surface that defines a display opening. The mirror which is coupled to the frame may have a reflective front surface that is exposed within the display opening. The decorative door may be pivotably coupled to the frame between a closed state whereby the decorative door overlies the mirror and an open state whereby the decorative door does not overlie the mirror. In the open state, the mirror is completely exposed for cleaning. The mirror apparatus may also include a locking assembly for locking the decorative door in the closed state.

Mirrors are hung in many rooms throughout a home and office to enable a person to view themselves and also to create a desired aesthetic. Thus, mirrors have been developed with many different ornamental appearances so that a user can select the mirror that matches and enhances the aesthetic within the environment in which the mirror is to be hung. Typically, such ornamentation appears in a frame or border that surrounds the mirror itself. This is because blocking portions of the mirror with a decoration can make cleaning the mirror a frustrating and difficult task. Thus, a need exists for a mirror apparatus that has a desired aesthetic without affecting a user's ability to clean the mirror surface.


An interlock switching circuit for protecting an electrical on-board power supply for an electrically drivable vehicle includes a conductor loop, a first current source, a first current mirror and a second current mirror. The first current source is configured to drive a current flowing out of an input of the first current mirror into an input of the second current mirror. The conductor loop is connected between an output of the first current mirror and an output of the second current mirror.

The present disclosure relates to an interlock switching circuit for protecting an electrical on-board power supply of an electrically drivable vehicle. In particular, the present disclosure relates to improvements in efficiency during the operation of an interlock switching circuit.
Interlock switching circuits are utilized in battery systems in order to ensure the high-voltage safety of an electrical system, such as, for example, an electrical drive train. Another known name for an interlock switching circuit is the term "pilot line". In this case, a low-voltage conductor loop is installed through the components to be monitored. If this conductor loop is interrupted, for example, by the opening of a connection between the components, current can no longer flow through the conductor loop and this is detected by an evaluation unit. The evaluation unit can be disposed, for example, in a battery module within a battery housing. Typically in this case, so-called contactors are then opened, and so the entire high-voltage network in the vehicle is switched to a de-energized state. Current sources for generating the interlock signals have been used to an increasing extent recently in the prior art, since these have the advantage that, when a current is known, other evaluation circuits can also monitor the integrity of the interlock switching circuit. In this regard, FIG. 1 shows a typical interlock current source circuit 1, in which a current source is realized with a bipolar transistor T and an operational amplifier OP and the current direction is set by the four switches S1, S2, S3, S4. The external components are depicted in the figure by the resistor ZL within the conductor loop 2. On the input side, the operational amplifier OP is supplied by a reference voltage source URef and a voltage dropping at an ohmic resistor R which is disposed between the transistor T and the electrical ground. The disadvantage of the depicted circuit topology is the voltage drop across the current source T, which adversely affects the mode of operation in the case of low supply voltages and high-resistance loads ZL. It is also disadvantageous that a short-circuit protection for the two switches S1, S2, for example by connecting a resistor to the output in series, further increases the required supply voltage UB.

Interlock switching circuit for protecting an electrical on-board power supply


A block copy sheet for lithographic printing plate to be interposed between a plate cylinder and a lithographic printing plate having a front surface and a back surface, at least the back surface being made of a material other than metals, wherein the block copy sheet have convex portions provided on a surface thereof, the convex portions having a predetermined shape so as to concave the back surface of the lithographic printing plate when pressed against the back surface of the lithographic printing plate, and wherein (1) the convex portions comprises a composite particle having protrusions provided on the surface thereof and having a hardness greater than that of the back surface of the lithographic printing plate and a particle diameter of from 1 xcexcm to 100 xcexcm, or (2) the convex portions comprises non-spherical fillers having an average length of from 1 xcexcm to 200 xcexcm and the contact area of the convex portions and the back surface of the lithographic printing plate is from 0.6% to 3.0% of the area of the back surface of the lithographic printing plate.

The present invention relates to a block copy sheet for lithographic printing plate for preventing the positional deviation of the lithographic printing plate on a plate cylinder of a printing machine.
In a lithographic printing machine, a lithographic printing plate is generally wound on and mechanically fixed to a plate cylinder to effect printing.
Heretofore, as the support for lithographic printing plate there has been used one made of metal, plastic film, paper or the like. A lithographic printing plate comprising a support made of a material other than metal exhibits an excellent handleability but an insufficient dimensional stability as compared with one comprising a support made of a metal.
Such a lithographic printing plate comprising a support made of a material other than metal at least on the back surface thereof, if mounted on a lithographic printing machine, tends to be poorly positioned when caught by the forward end of the plate cylinder because the support is soft. As a result, the precision in longitudinal positioning (precision in positioning in the direction along the circumference of the plate cylinder) is deteriorated. In some cases, the lithographic printing plate may be fixed obliquely deviated. Furthermore, there is a problem that the lithographic printing plate shows a deformation at some areas due to friction with the plate cylinder during printing to thereby cause deterioration of precision in positioning with respect to printing paper.
Accordingly, such a lithographic printing plate comprising a support made of a material other than metal at least on the back surface thereof is used only for printing of so small a number of sheets that no significant problems occur even if the precision in registration on printed matter is low. When used in multi-color precision printing or in printing of a large number of sheets using a large-sized printing machine, misregistration of colors may be caused.
On the other hand, plate-making method and printing method by CTP (computer to plate), which has recently spread, are advantageous in that the precision in dimension and positioning of image (exposure) with respect to the plate material, making registration in multi-color printing easy, as compared with the conventional plate making method and printing method (by contact exposure of plate material using a lithographic film).
However, due to the foregoing problems, the lithographic printing plate comprising a support made of a material other than metal such as plastic film and paper cannot make the best use of the advantage of CTP that registration in multi-color printing is easy.
In recent years, it has been proposed to provide a sheet material having an initial elasticity of 300 kg/mm2 or less interposed between the printing plate and the plate cylinder to solve the foregoing problems (JP-A-11-20130 (The term xe2x80x9cJP-Axe2x80x9d as used herein means an xe2x80x9cunexamined published Japanese patent applicationxe2x80x9d)). This sheet has fine glass beads adhered thereto so that the central line average roughness Ra is 2 or more.
However, as can be seen in the description of the above cited patent application that the sheet is prepared by densely and uniformly fixing fine glass beads or the like to the surface of a sheet-like material, the formation of roughness on the sheet material requires the use of a high concentration dispersion of fine particles.
In general, this kind of fine particles is expensive. Accordingly, in order to densely and uniformly fix such fine particles to the sheet-like material, a large amount of fine particles is required, adding to the cost of the sheet. Further, it is difficult to disperse fine particles in a liquid in a high concentration. Moreover, when dispersed in a high concentration, such fine particles can agglomerate in the liquid to form coarse particles that deteriorate the print quality.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a block copy sheet for lithographic printing plate for preventing the positional deviation of a lithographic printing plate which can securely prevent the positional deviation of a lithographic printing plate on the plate cylinder of a press, making it possible to apply a lithographic printing plate comprising a support made of a material other than metal also to multi-color printing or printing of a large number of sheets, prevent the positional deviation of the printing plate, reduce the production cost and give an excellent productivity.
Other objects and effects of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description.
The above-described objects of the present invention have been achieved by providing the following block copy sheets.
In a first aspect, the present invention is directed to a block copy sheet for lithographic printing plate to be interposed between a plate cylinder and a lithographic printing plate having a front surface and a back surface, at least the back surface being made of a material other than metals,
wherein said block copy sheet have convex portions provided on a surface thereof, said convex portions having a predetermined shape so as to concave the back surface of the lithographic printing plate when pressed against the back surface of the lithographic printing plate, and
wherein said convex portions comprises a composite particle having protrusions provided on the surface thereof and having a hardness greater than that of the back surface of the lithographic printing plate and a particle diameter of from 1 xcexcm to 100 xcexcm.
The composite particle may comprise an inorganic material, an organic material, or an organic-inorganic composite material.
The sum of the maximum sectional area of said convex portions parallel to the surface of the sheet per unit area is preferably from 0.05% to 4%.
In a second aspect, the present invention is directed to a block copy sheet for lithographic printing plate to be interposed between a plate cylinder and a lithographic printing plate having a front surface and a back surface, at least the back surface being made of a material other than metals,
wherein said block copy sheet have convex portions provided on a surface thereof, said convex portions having a predetermined shape so as to concave the back surface of the lithographic printing plate when pressed against the back surface of the lithographic printing plate,
wherein the contact area of said convex portions and the back surface of the lithographic printing plate is from 0.6% to 3.0% of the area of the back surface of the lithographic printing plate, and
wherein said convex portions comprises non-spherical fillers having an average length of from 1 xcexcm to 200 xcexcm.
The non-spherical fillers may be tabular-shaped, acicular-shaped or tetrapod-shaped.

Block copy sheet for lithographic printing plate


The disclosure relates to display technology field, especially relates to a polymer dye and a method for preparing the same, a photoresist composition, a color photoresist, and a display device. The polymer dye is formed by the copolymerization of an acrylated dye represented by General Formula I and an acrylic acid or acrylate represented by General Formula II, in General Formula I, Dye represents a residue of a dye containing an aromatic hydroxyl group or an aromatic amino group, R1, R2, and R3 are each independently selected from a hydrogen atom or an alkyl group having from 1 to 10 carbon atoms; in General Formula II, R4, R5, R6, and R7 are each independently selected from a hydrogen atom or an alkyl group having from 1 to 10 carbon atoms; the mole numbers of the acrylated dye represented by General Formula I and the acrylic acid or acrylate represented by General Formula II are x and y, respectively, and x:y=1:0.05-10; and the weight average molecular weight of the polymer dye is 2000-50000. The color photoresist produced employing the technical solution of the present disclosure avoids flooding, and improves the display quality of the display.

At present, the primary structure of Thin Film Transistor Liquid Crystal Display, (abbreviated to TFT-LCD) comprises an array substrate and a color film substrate (CF) which are box aligned each other, wherein the color film substrate mainly comprises a glass substrate, a black matrix, a color photoresist, and a protection film. In general, the black matrix is arranged in a form of grating, stripe, or dapple between the color pattern formed of the color photoresist. The main function of the black matrix is for blocking scattering light, to avoid the light leak between pixels; the main function of the color photoresist is to produce red-green-blue tricolors by means of color filtering, and then mixing red-green-blue tricolors in different strength ratios to present various colors, such that TFT-LCD displays the full color.
Generally, the main components of a photoresist composition comprise a colorant, an alkali soluble resin, a multi-functional monomer, a photo initiator and so on. In the existing photoresist compositions, a pigment is generally employed as the colorant, and the color mixing is generally performed by adding yellow pigment into the red photoresist and the green photoresist, respectively, and by adding purple pigment into the blue photoresist. However, the contrast of the presently available purple pigment is low, and thereby a purple dye is used for replacing purple pigment in some companies in the art. The photoresist composition is subjected to coating, exposure, and development to form a color photoresist. The dye generally has good solubility in a solvent, therefore in the subsequent development process after the photoresist composition is subjected to exposure, the dye is easily carried away with the developer; in addition, in the further subsequent process of coating the protection film, the dye may enter into the protection film. Therefore, both of the above described two situations may bring about markedly flooding and color shift to the pixel unit.
The defect of the prior art is that, it is easy for the dye in the existing photoresist composition to form flooding, leading to the degradation of the display quality of the display panel.

Polymer dye and method for preparing the same, photoresist composition and display device


A forging method and forging apparatus able to improve a dimensional precision of a forged article and able to reduce the machining processes to a minimum and thereby reduce costs are provided. That is, a forging method placing a workpiece inside of a die, pressing the workpiece by a top part of the die in the axial direction toward the bottom part side of the die, and making the material of the end face of the workpiece flow to form the end face of the workpiece into a recessed/projecting shape, which forging method characterized by using independent pressing and holding means for pressing and holding the workpiece in the axial direction independent for the top part and the bottom part at the time of the press forming.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a forging method and forging apparatus enabling improvement of the precision of a forged article and reduction of the cost of production.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the past, the method of shaping a forging use material which imparts pressing force to a material made of a metal so as forge the material into a predetermined shape has been known.
Further, in the general forging method, obtaining a forged article of the desired dimensional precision is difficult, so the forged shaped article is finished by machining it in a separate process to give it a desired dimensional precision. When performing this additional machining to secure the desired dimensional precision, there is the problem of that the machining increases the number of production processes.
To solve this problem, there is the technique of ironing the outer circumferential portions of a workpiece to improve the dimensional precision of the outer circumferential portions (see Japanese Patent Publication (A) No. 2004-3449311). However, when making the material of the end face of the workpiece flow to forge it into recessed/projecting shapes, in particular when forming a groove shape not point symmetric with the end face of the workpiece (hereinafter referred to as a "non-point symmetric shape") (see FIG. 3), the thickness becomes uneven, so it becomes hard to make the internal stress at the different positions inside the material of the workpiece uniform. In this case, underfill and other defects occur. Further, the walls of the groove are not formed vertical, but end up being formed at a slant, so there were also the problems that the desired precision could not be secured and the required performance could not be satisfied without machining.
This problem will be explained in detail. FIGS. 3A to 3C are views showing a shaped article obtained by shaping a workpiece, wherein FIG. 3A is a view of the shaped article as seen from the X-direction, FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view of a shaped article, and FIG. 3C is a view of the shaped article as seen from the Y-direction. FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a groove part of a shaped article. FIG. 6 is a view showing the precision of a groove part of a shaped article forged by a conventional forging method based on actual measurement data. FIG. 8 is a view of the appearance of a workpiece worked by a conventional method. FIG. 9 is a view for explaining the conventional forging method and a view in the state in the middle of plastic deformation of the workpiece.
As shown in FIGS. 3A to 3C, the shaped article 90 is for example an automobile brake part and forms a substantially columnar shape overall. It has a groove 93 and outside wall part 91 having a "non-point symmetric shape" with respect to the axial center Z of the column. That is, the substantially circular shaped curves of the groove walls 93a and 93c form "non-point symmetric shapes", so do not overlap with the original substantially circular shaped curves when rotated halfway about the axial center Z of the column. That is, the center of the substantially circular shaped curve of the groove wall 93a or 93c is offset from the axial center Z of the column. By the formation of the groove 93, an elliptical island part 94 is formed at the center, while an embankment shaped outside wall part 91 is formed at its outer circumference. The outside wall part 91 has a wide part (thick part) 91a and narrow part (thin part) 91b.
On the other hand, in FIG. 9, 50 shows a conventional shaping apparatus. 51 indicates a top punch forming the die top part, 52 indicates a bottom punch forming the die bottom part, 3 indicates a die, W indicates a workpiece before forging (end face of workpiece before forging shown by one-dot chain line), W1 indicates the workpiece in the state in the middle of the forging (shown by solid line), and C indicates a die cavity for forming recessed/projecting shapes at the end face of the workpiece W. Note that the top punch 51 and bottom punch 52 are substantially identical members, while the cavities C of the top punch 51 and the bottom punch 52 are shaped the same.
The top punch 51 and bottom punch 52 are assembled slidable with respect to the die 3. The bottom punch 52 and die 3 are fastened to the body of the forging apparatus (not shown) and will not move. When a workpiece W is set on the bottom punch 52, the top punch 51 is inserted into the center hole 3a of the die 3 and set right above the workpiece W. Next, the top punch 51 presses the workpiece W by a drive apparatus (not shown) by a load P0 to move it downward in the axial direction. The top punch 51 moves downward to a predetermined position, then rises. In this way, the shape of the bottom end face of the top punch 51 (including cavity C) is transferred to the top end face of the workpiece W.
When the top punch 51 starts to press the workpiece W, the material of the two end faces of the workpiece W is plastically deformed by the pressing forces of the projection 51a of the top punch 51 and the projection 52a of the bottom punch 52 and flows into the cavity C. At this time, the shape of the workpiece W is expressed by W1. Note that the width of the projection 51ax of the top punch 51 is wider than the width of the projection 51ay, while the width of the cavity C2 part is wider than the width of the C3 part.
As shown in FIG. 9, the amount of flow of the workpiece W into the wide width cavity part C2 is large, while the amount of flow of the workpiece W into the narrow width cavity part C3 is small. This is due to the facts that the resistance to the flow of the material to the wide width cavity part C2 is smaller than C3 and that the width of the projection 51ax is wide, so there are many parts of the workpiece material receiving the pressing load. Further, the portion of the workpiece abutting against the projection 51ax becomes high in internal stress. For this reason, at the narrow width cavity part C3, the workpiece material does not fill the inside of the cavity and underfill, where part of the portion corresponding to the workpiece after forging is missing, easily occurs.
As shown in FIG. 8, it is learned that in a shaped article obtained by a conventional forging method, the arrow part becomes too thin. Further, the wall 93ay at the island part 94 side corresponding to the narrow groove part 93 is not formed vertically but is formed at a slant. According to experiments, in a shaped article of a diameter of 40 mm, a height of 30 mm, and a groove depth of 5 mm, the maximum amount of slant relating to the wall 93ay was about 100 μm (see FIG. 6). Note that the required target value of this maximum amount of slant is within 50 μm. In a shaped article made by the conventional method, the required target value was not achieved.
On the other hand, FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a groove part 93 of a shaped article 90. Further, FIG. 6 is a view expressing the precision of a shaped article forged by a conventional method based on actually measured data. FIG. 4 is a view for explaining the definitions of the abscissa x and ordinate y of FIG. 6 (and later explained FIG. 5). In FIG. 4, s is the reference point, and t is the measurement position. Further, x indicates the distance from the reference point s at the measurement position t, while y indicates the amount of slant of the groove wall 93a from the reference point s at the measurement position t. As shown in FIG. 6, the maximum amount of slant of the groove wall of the location B corresponding to the thin part 91b (see FIG. 3(a)) was, by actual measurement value, about 100 μm, while the maximum amount of slant of the groove wall of the location A corresponding to the thin part 91a was about 60 μm. It will be understood that the location A and location B greatly differ in amount of slant of the groove wall. Note that the target value of the maximum amount of slant of the groove wall is 50 μm.


The present invention is intended to provide a technique which is capable of contributing to the suppression of the deterioration of surface electrodes in an electrically heated catalyst. The electrically heated catalyst according to the invention is provided with a heat generation element to heat a catalyst, and a pair of electrodes to supply electricity to the heat generation element. Each of the pair of electrodes has a surface electrode which spreads along a surface of the heat generation element, and the surface electrodes are arranged in opposition to each other with the heat generation element being sandwiched therebetween. Then, when a frequency becomes large in which a condition was satisfied in which a difference in temperature between two points located at a predetermined distance from each other on surfaces or in insides of the surface electrodes exceeds a predetermined temperature difference, an electric power supplied to the heat generation element is decreased, and an amount of heat supplied to the EHC by an exhaust gas is increased, as compared with when the frequency is small.

In the past, as an exhaust gas purification catalyst arranged in an exhaust passage of an internal combustion engine, there has been developed an electrically heated catalyst (hereinafter, may also be referred to as an EHC) in which a catalyst is heated by means of a heat generation element which generates heat by electrical energization thereof.
In the EHC, the heat generation element is provided with a pair of electrodes for supplying electricity thereto. Each of the electrodes has a surface electrode which spreads along the surface of the heat generation element. The surface electrodes are arranged in opposition to each other with the heat generation element being sandwiched therebetween. With the surface electrodes being arranged in this manner, electricity is supplied to a wide area of the heat generation element. As a result, the heat generation element generates heat uniformly as much as possible over the wide area.
In Patent Document 1, there is disclosed a control system of an energization heating type honeycomb body. In this control system of the energization heating type honeycomb body, a resistance value of the energization heating type honeycomb body is calculated from a voltage and a current value. Then, a voltage and/or an electric current to be supplied is controlled based on the resistance value thus calculated, whereby the temperature control of the energization heating type honeycomb body is carried out.
In Patent Document 2, there is disclosed a catalytic heater energization control device which controls electric power supplied to an electrically energized heater. In this catalytic heater energization control device, the richer becomes the air fuel ratio of an air fuel mixture in an internal combustion engine, the lower the value of electric power supplied to the electrically energized heater is set.
In Patent Document 3, there is disclosed a catalyst deterioration degree detection device. In this catalyst deterioration degree detection device, an air fuel ratio at the upstream side of a catalyst is changed over from either one of a preset air fuel ratio of a lean side with respect to a stoichiometric air fuel ratio and a preset air fuel ratio of a rich side with respect to the stoichiometric air fuel ratio to the other. Then, after the change over of the air fuel ratio, an absolute amount of oxygen stored and held by the catalyst is calculated from an amount of catalyst flow-through gas which will flow through the catalyst by the time a detected value of an air fuel ratio sensor arranged at the downstream side of the catalyst reaches the above-mentioned preset air fuel ratio after the change over of the air fuel ratio, and a deviation of the above-mentioned preset air fuel ratio after the change over of the air fuel ratio with respect to the stoichiometric air fuel ratio. The degree of the deterioration of the catalyst is detected from this absolute amount.

Control device for an electrically heated catalyst, and electrode deterioration degree estimation device for an electrically heated catalyst


A charge control system of one or more batteries B is electrically connected with one or more solar panels S, so configured to obtain the maximum transfer of power from such one or more solar photovoltaic panels S and for controlling the charge of the one or more batteries B. The control system includes: at least one tracking device of the point of maximum power or MPPT 2 adapted to adjust one of its input impedance seen from panels S for a power adaptation with panel S; at least one protection circuit of the system 3 adapted to avoid damages to the charge control system caused by inverted currents, coming from such battery B and from one or more electric equipment 8 connected with it.

The present invention relates to a charge controller, obtained through photovoltaic solar panels, adapted for recharging a battery and preferably applied to automotive sector.
Normally the recharge of the batteries present in motor vehicles occurs through one or more alternators, which generate a very high power.
Said power is used for the recharge of the batteries.
Such alternators are electric devices which intrinsically are sources of electromagnetic noise.
Such noise generated by the alternator must be so limited in order to avoid damaging the electronic devices comprised inside the motor vehicle.
In the automotive field, the devices and electronic circuits present in the motor vehicle, must fulfill numerous Standards regarding electromagnetic compatibility.
Every circuit and electronic device is in fact an involuntary source of electromagnetic noise which, through the connection lines among the various devices, spread in the various circuits and neighboring devices.
The electronic devices, when subject to electromagnetic conducted or radiated noise, can modify their behavior so causing problems to the circuit in which they are operating.
Such problems can be different as for example when wrong data are received or one or more devices are damaged when not the entire circuit.
Systems of solar panels are further known, which through the tracker of the point of maximum power, known with the abbreviation MPPT, reach the maximum of the performances of the solar panel, by varying the working point on the voltage/current function of the photovoltaic solar panel, in function of the level of solar radiation.
Usually solar panels are placed on the top of buildings and in solar fields.
In such applications the power with which the panels are irradiated, varies slowly during the day.
Usually the solar panels are used for generating electric energy which, when suitably converted, is input into the grid as an alternate current (50 Hz or 60 Hz).
The control circuit in such applications comprises an MPPT which must follow the even slow variations of the irradiation of the panel, so that the maximum transfer of power is guaranteed; downstream of it the inverter device converts such energy from continuous current to alternate current inputting it thereafter in the electricity supply.
Said inverters further play a protective role for the system upwards, and in particular for the MPPT device, from the noise in the electricity network.
Solar panels applied on vehicles are further known, as for example automobiles defined as hybrid in which in addition to the internal combustion engine an electric motor is present which, by cooperating with the internal combustion engine, reduces the fuel consumption of the vehicle.
The electric motor of such hybrid cars is supplied by solar panels and batteries.
Said batteries usually cumulate the energy produced by the panels when the energy produced by the panels is not instantaneously exploited neither by the electric engine, nor by other electronic devices present on the vehicle.
Patent application US2010084208A1 actually describes such application but it does not give a technical solution to the control of the energy produced by the solar panels, to the achievement of the maximum power from such panels when boundary conditions vary, nor it indicates devices for the control and preservation of the system itself from the noise.
The batteries are very sensitive devices which rapidly and very easily lose their technical features so reducing their useful life.
Furthermore the voltage at the ends of the battery varies as a function of at least: the temperature, the external temperature and the level of charge of the battery itself.
It is known that an overcharge and/or over-discharge of the battery penalizes the future performances of the battery itself by consequently reducing the useful life of such device.
Normally the solar panel is adapted in power, in order to transfer the maximum power to the circuits downwards, so totally exploiting the normally limited power produced by the panel itself.
So it is very complicated to interface a solar panel with a battery, as the voltage at the ends of the two devices varies even with the variation of the temperature but following different functions.
Furthermore it is difficult to preserve the overall system, in addition to the solar panel and the battery, from possible damages which can compromise the useful life of the devices.
A further problem of the application of solar panels to the automotive field relates to the safety of the device as the MPPT device which, in this kind of applications, is more subject to noise which can cause its malfunction if not its breaking.
In particular, in the automotive field the battery is subject to particular electric impulses, as for example the impulse generated when a power source device is left in open circuit condition for more than a determined period of time and to which a charge is subsequently connected.
Such impulse is known as Load-dump and has a limited duration as defined by the automotive Standard ISO7637.
Said problem arises from the lack of a protection device from the noise which, in its classical applications was made by the inverter.
Patent WO2010/083460A1 describes a control system of the charge produced by a solar panel for managing various devices comprised in a motor vehicle as air conditioning, lights fans etc., without describing in detail neither the control nor the protection circuits of the system itself from possible electromagnetic noise which can damage the system itself.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,204,645B1 describes a control circuit of the charge produced by solar panels for storing and/or instantaneously using such charge, which does not provide for the use of a MPPT for always obtaining the maximum power transfer.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION


A composition comprising follicle basement membrane is described. The composition can be utilized as a cell culture substrate for proliferating cells in vitro.

The present invention relates to a basement membrane composition and method for its preparation and use. More particularly, the present invention is directed to the basement membrane of avian and reptile follicles and the use of same to support the growth and differentiation of eukaryotic cells cultured in vitro.
There has been much research effort directed to finding natural and synthetic materials having the requisite properties for use as cell culture substrates. Cellular morphology and metabolic activity of cultured cells are affected by the composition of the substrate on which they are grown. Presumably cultured cells function best (i.e. proliferate and perform their natural in vivo functions) when cultured on substrates that closely mimic their natural environment.
One biological tissue that can potentially be used to culturing cells is the basement membranes of vertebrate tissues. Basement membranes, also known as basal lamina, are extracellular matrices (ECMs) that compartmentalize tissues and provide important signals for the adhesion, growth, differentiation, migration of cells they support. In addition, basement membranes influence several physiological and pathological processes. Accordingly, complete and intact basement membrane is naturally functions as a substrate for cell proliferation and growth. However, intact basement membranes are not commercially available for research.
The ability of complex substrates to support cell growth in vitro has been previously reported, and matrix products supporting such growth are commercially available. For example, Becton Dickinson currently offers two such products: Human Extracellular Matrix, and MATRIGEL(copyright) Basement Membrane Matrix. Human Extracellular Matrix is a chromatographically partially purified matrix extract derived from human placenta and comprises laminin, collagen IV, and heparin sulfate proteoglycan. (Kleinman, H K et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,829,000 (1989)) MATRIGEL(copyright) is a soluble basement membrane extract of the Engelbreth-Holm-Swarm (EHS) tumor, gelled to form a reconstituted basement membrane. Both of these matrix products require costly biochemical isolation, purification, and synthesis techniques and thus production costs are high. In addition these matrix products are reconstituted from extracts of basement membranes and thus do not represent the structure of the basement membrane as it exists in the body.
Accordingly, the study of cellular function by culturing cells in vitro is limited by the availability of cell growth substrates that present the appropriate physiological environment for the proliferation and development of the cultured cells.
The present invention is directed to the use of vertebrate basement tissue-derived matrices as substrates for the growth and attachment of a wide variety of cell types. The extracellular matrices for use in accordance with the present invention comprise highly conserved collagens, glycoproteins, proteoglycans, and glycosaminoglycans in their natural configuration and natural concentration. The extracellular matrix is derived from ovarian follicular tissue of a vertebrate species, and in particular ovarian follicular tissue of vertebrate species that lay eggs.
In accordance with one embodiment, a composition comprising intact basement membrane of follicle tissue of a vertebrate is described. The composition comprises basement membrane is substantially free of cells of the source vertebrate wherein the basement membrane is retained in its natural three dimensional shape. Follicle basement membrane (FBM) prepared in accordance with the present invention is use to induce the proliferation and growth of cells. In one embodiment the invention is directed to a composition and method for culturing eukaryotic cells in vitro.

Biomaterial derived from follicle basement membranes


An elegant process for the synthesis of 2-nitratoethyl acrylate is a single reactive step. A 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate having only one hydroxyl group is nitrated in a 1:1 volumetric mixture of nitric acid and sulfuric acid therein forming 2-nitratoethyl acrylate. The 2-nitratoethyl acrylate is minimally soluble in a quenched cold acid water mixture, which enables relatively easy isolation of about 96% purity 2-nitratoethyl acrylate at a yield of about 85%.

Nitration has been around since before Alfred Nobel. One of the first documented examples was the synthesis of Ethylene Glycol Dinitrate (EGDN), which was synthesized in 1870 by Belgian chemist Louis Henry. EGDN was formed by dropping a small amount of ethylene glycol into a mixture of nitric and sulfuric acid, therein converting each of the hydroxyl groups into a nitrato group. Nitroglycerine was made using a similar process, except with glycerin.
Straessler et al in U.S. Pat. No. 8,658,818 teach a process for forming poly nitrate esters of aliphatic di, tri, and tetra polyols using a mixture of sulfuric acid, ammonium nitrate and a metal nitrate.
Joseph W. Lawrence and Harold F. Bluhm teach in U.S. Pat. No. 3,179,644 that 2-nitratoethyl acrylate can be formed by reacting β-nitratoethanol with acrylyl chloride. A reaction by-product is hydrogen chloride which hydrates to hydrochloric acid. The β-nitratoethanol (a.k.a. 2-nitratoethanol) can reputedly be made by reacting ethylene oxide with nitric acid forming mono-nitratoethanol and di-nitratoethane (a.k.a. mono-nitroglycol and di-nitroglycol) according to Orlova, E Y (1981), Chemistry and technology of high explosives: Textbook for high schools (3 ed.); Khimiya. p. 278. Note, dinitroglycol is another name for ethylene glycol dinitrate (Louis Henry's EGDN). EGDN is one the first known aliphatic nitrate explosives, and it is sensitive to heat and shock. Lastly, these conventional generally two-step processes, which use commercial starting materials, have an overall yield of between about 21-42% (percent).

Process for the synthesis of 2-nitratoethyl acrylate (2NEA)

The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy


A head chip and a head unit, in which manufacturing cost is reduced and also manufacturing steps are simplified, are provided. In a head chip 10 in which: partition walls 12 made of piezoelectric ceramic are arranged on two upper and lower sheets of a first board 11 and a second board 16 with predetermined intervals; chambers 13 are defined between the respective partition walls 12; a driver voltage is applied to electrodes 14 provided on the side surfaces of the partition walls 12 to change the capacity in ink flow paths; and the ink filled in the ink flow paths is jetted from nozzle openings, the first board 11 and the second board 16 are formed of a dielectric material; wiring lines 15 which are electrically conducted to the electrodes 14 and elongated to the outside of the end portions of the partition walls 12 in the longitudinal direction, are provided on the surface of any one of the first board 11 and the second board 16; and further the wiring lines 15 include an inorganic conductive film 15a as the lowermost layer and metal films 15b and 15c formed thereon.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a head chip which is mounted on an ink-jet type recording apparatus applicable to, for example, a printer and a facsimile.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, an ink-jet type recording apparatus is known in the technical field, in which a recording head for jetting ink droplets from a plurality of nozzles is employed to record characters and/or images on a recording medium. In such an ink-jet type recording apparatus, the recording head positioned opposite to the recording medium is provided on a head holder, and this head holder is mounted on a carriage so as to be scanned along a direction perpendicular to a transport direction of the recording medium.
In FIG. 12, there is shown an exploded/perspective view of one example of such a recording head. FIGS. 13A and 13B are sectional view of a major portion of this recording head. FIG. 13A is a sectional view of the recording head taken along the longitudinal direction of side walls. FIG. 13B is a sectional view of the recording head taken along the thickness direction of side walls. A plurality of grooves 102 are arranged in a piezoelectric ceramic plate 101 in a parallel manner. The respective grooves 102 are separated from each other by side walls 103. One end portion of each of the grooves 102 in the longitudinal direction is elongated up to one end surface of the piezoelectric ceramic plate 101, whereas the other end portion is not elongated up to the other end surface of this piezoelectric ceramic plate, and a depth thereof gradually becomes shallow. Also, an electrode 105 used to apply a driving electric field is formed on surfaces of both the side walls 103 on the opening side within each of the grooves 102 along the longitudinal direction.
A cover plate 107 is jointed via an adhesive agent 109 to the grooves 102 of the piezoelectric ceramic plate 101 on the opening side. This cover plate 107 has an ink chamber 111 that constitutes a concave portion which is communicated to the shallow other end portion of each of the grooves 102 and an ink supply port 112 that is penetrated through a bottom portion of this ink chamber 111 along a direction opposite to the direction of the grooves 102.
A nozzle plate 115 is jointed on an end surface of a joint member made by the piezoelectric ceramic plate 101 and the cover plate 107, at which the grooves 102 are opened. Nozzle openings 117 are formed in the nozzle plate 115 at such positions located opposite to the respective grooves 102.
It should be noted that a wiring board 120 is fixed on such a surface of the piezoelectric ceramic plate 101, which is located opposite to the nozzle plate 115 and also opposite to the cover plate 107. A wiring line 122 which is electrically connected to each of the electrodes 105 by employing a bonding wire 121 or the like is formed on the wiring board 120. A driver voltage may be applied via this wiring line 122 to the electrode 105.
In the recording head constituted in this manner, when ink is filled from the ink supply port 112 into the respective grooves 102 and a predetermined driving electric field is applied via the electrode 105 to the side walls 103 on both sides of a predetermined groove 102, the side walls 103 are deformed, so that a capacity formed within this predetermined groove 102 is change. As a result, the ink filled inside the grooves 102 may be jetted from the nozzle opening 117.
For example, as shown in FIG. 14, in the case where ink is jetted from a nozzle opening 117 corresponding to a groove 102a, a positive driving voltage is applied to both electrodes 105a and 105b provided in the groove 102a, and also electrodes 105c and 105d located opposite to these electrodes 105a and 105b are grounded. As a consequence, a driving electric field directed to the groove 102a is effected to the side walls 103a and 103b. When this driving electric field is positioned perpendicular to the polarization direction of the piezoelectric ceramic plate 101, both the side walls 103a and 103b are deformed along the direction of the groove 102a due to the piezoelectric thickness slip effect, so that the capacity defined inside the groove 102a is reduced to there by increase pressure. Thus, the ink may be jetted from the nozzle opening 117.
However, since such a head chip employs a large amount of high-cost ceramic, there is a problem in that the manufacturing cost of the head chip is high.
To solve such a problem, Japanese Patent Examined Publication No. Hei 6-6375 has proposed such a head chip which is manufactured by the plate shaped board made of glass, piezoelectric ceramic plate made by arranging the pressure chambers in the array form on this plate-shaped board, and ink chamber plate made of glass.
In accordance with this head chip, since both the plate-shaped board and the ink chamber plate are made of low-cost glass materials, this head chip can be manufactured in low cost and also the manufacturing time can be shortened.
However, the above-explained head chip with employment of the glass board owns such a problem in that since the electrode for applying the voltage to the piezoelectric ceramic plate has to be formed by way of the oblique vapor deposition, the manufacturing cost is increased.
Also, when the wiring lines electrically conducted to this electrode are extracted, these wiring lines are processed by metal plating such as nickel plating or gold plating, and thereafter the metal plated-wiring lines has to be cut one by one by using a laser. Thus, there is another problem in that the process step becomes cumbersome, and the manufacturing cost is increased.
Furthermore, even when the wiring lines are directly formed on the glass board by way of the metal plating, there is another problem in that the fitting characteristic is deteriorated, and thus, the formed wiring lines may readily peel off from the glass board.
The present invention has been made to solve such problems, and therefore, has an object to provide a method of manufacturing a head chip, while manufacturing cost is reduced, and also a manufacturing step is simplified.
In order to solve the above problems, according to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a head chip in which: partition walls made of piezoelectric ceramic are arranged on two upper and lower sheets of a first board and a second board with predetermined intervals; chambers are defined between the respective partition walls; a driver voltage is applied to electrodes provided on side surfaces of the partition walls to change the capacity in the chambers; and the ink filled in the chambers is jetted from nozzle openings, characterized in that:
the first board and the second board are formed of a dielectric material, and also wiring lines, which are electrically conducted to the electrodes and elongated to the outside of the end portions of the partition walls in the longitudinal direction, are provided on the surface of either one of the first board and the second board; and
Further, the wiring lines include an inorganic conductive film as the lowermost layer and metal films formed thereon.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a head chip characterized in that the dielectric material is glass.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a head chip characterized in that the inorganic conductive film is made of at least one sort of material selected from the group consisting of ITO, SnO2, ZnO, and ATO.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspects of the present invention, there is provided a head chip characterized in that the inorganic conductive film is elongated between one of the first board and the second board and end portions of the partition walls in the width direction, and also end portion of the elongated inorganic conductive film in the width direction and the electrodes are electrically conducted to each other.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a head chip characterized in that the thickness of the inorganic conductive film is set to be equal to or less than 3 xcexcm.
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspects of the present invention, there is provided a head chip characterized in that the electrodes and the metal films are formed by selective electroless plating.
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspects of the present invention, there is provided a head chip characterized in that the electrodes and the metal films are formed of a nickel layer and a gold layer.
According to a eighth aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspects of the present invention, there is provided a head chip characterized in that a nozzle plate having the nozzle openings is provided at the end portions of the partition walls in the longitudinal direction, at which the chambers are opened, and also an ink chamber that communicates with the respective chambers is provided on the other end portion side of the partition walls.
According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a head chip characterized in that the nozzle plate is formed of a dielectric material.
According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspects of the present invention, there is provided a head chip characterized in that the partition walls are formed by jointing two sheets of piezoelectric ceramic having different polarization direction in the thickness direction.
According to a eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspects of the present invention, there is provided a head chip characterized in that the regions corresponding to the chambers are provided with concave portions in one of the first board and the second board, which is provided with the wiring lines.
According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspects of the present invention, there is provided a head chip characterized in that a driver circuit is provided with the region corresponding to the wiring lines in one of the first board and the second board, which is provided with the wiring lines.
According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspects of the present invention, there is provided a head unit characterized in that the head unit comprises the head chip as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 12 and a head holder that mounts the head chip.
According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, in the thirteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a head unit characterized in that the head holder may detachably hold an ink cartridge in which ink is stored.
According to the present invention, while the board made of the dielectric material is employed, the inorganic conductive film, that has the better fitting characteristic with the dielectric material, is provided at the lowermost layer of the wiring line.
As a consequence, the manufacturing step can be made simple, and also the manufacturing cost can be reduced. Moreover, the wiring lines can be easily conducted to the electrodes without fail.


Improvement of pupil luminance distribution includes: a fifth process in which an index value obtained from the illumination pupil, using evaluation method of a first process to fourth process; a sixth process wherein a unit change amount of the index value in the discrete data acquired in the previous process is acquired for each unit pupil area; a seventh process wherein discrete data modulated by an improving technique using the unit change amount so that the index value nears a target index value is acquired; and an eighth process wherein an index value obtained corresponding to the modulated discrete data in the seventh process is acquired, using the evaluation method of the first process to the fourth process, and by repeatedly performing the sixth process to eighth process so an error of the index value obtained corresponding to the modulated discrete data falls within permissible range.

In exposure apparatuses used for manufacturing devices such as a semiconductor device and the like, a light emitted from a light source forms a secondary light source (a predetermined light intensity distribution on an illumination pupil in general) serving as a substantial surface light source consisting of multiple light sources, via a fly-eye lens serving as an optical integrator. Hereinafter, light intensity distribution on the illumination pupil will be referred to as "pupil luminance distribution". The illumination pupil is defined as a position where by a function of an optical system between an illumination pupil and an irradiation target surface (a mask or a wafer in the case of the exposure apparatus), the irradiation target surface becomes a Fourier transform plane of the illumination pupil.
The light from the secondary light source, after being condensed by a condenser optical system, illuminates in a superimposed manner a mask on which a predetermined pattern is formed. The light having passed through the mask forms an image on the wafer via a projection optical system, and a mask pattern is projected and exposed (transferred) on the wafer. The pattern formed on the mask is fine, and in order to accurately transfer this fine pattern on the wafer a uniform illuminance distribution must be obtained on the wafer.
Conventionally, an illumination optical system is known that realizes a desired pupil luminance distribution using a movable multi-mirror which is configured of multiple minute mirror elements arranged in an array form and whose angle of inclination and inclination direction are driven and controlled individually. In this illumination optical system, because the movable multi-mirror used serves as a spatial light modulator, degrees of freedom is high regarding an outer shape and a distribution change of the pupil luminance distribution, which allows a pupil luminance distribution that is decided appropriately according to characteristics of the pattern that should be transferred having a complex outer shape and distribution to be achieved with good precision.
It is difficult, however, to achieve a desired imaging performance corresponding to a designed pupil luminance distribution, because the pupil luminance distribution which is actually formed on the illumination pupil turn outs to be slightly different from a designed pupil luminance distribution due to various causes, or optical properties other than the pupil luminance distribution turn out to be different from the conditions when the pupil luminance distribution was designed. Therefore, a method of performing optimization on the pupil luminance distribution is proposed (refer to PTL 1), so as to bring an imaging performance according to the actual pupil luminance distribution closer to a desired imaging performance according to the designed pupil luminance distribution.

Method for evaluating and improving pupil luminance distribution, illumination optical system and adjustment method thereof, exposure apparatus, exposure method, and device manufacturing method


An illuminated natural gas display panel assembly simulates the generation and transmission of natural gas to different classes of users by means of a plurality of elongated strips of light-transmitting arrays, each strip made up of a plurality of LEDs and with different light-sequencing circuits for individually controlling the rate and direction of sequencing of the lights to represent a desired pressure level and direction of flow along each said array; and different colored light elements are employed to aid in giving the optical illusion of different pressure levels along each of the light-transmitting arrays.

Various systems have been devised for illustrating fluid flow along different paths of travel and many of these systems take the form of illuminated displays. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 4,667,427 to T. S. Been discloses a display panel having light-transmitting holes to represent one or more fluid flow paths and wherein the light elements may be of different colors to represent the different fluids or flow characteristics of the fluids.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,439,818 to J. J. Scheib there is disclosed the use of LED lighting strips in which the LEDs are connected in parallel with one another in series with a resistor mounted on each segment of a strip. U.S. Pat. No. 3,715,822 to L. B. Hansen, Jr. et al is directed more to a display utilizing a series of lights to simulate a particular pattern of movement, such as, fluid flow in which the lights are sequentially activated or flashed along a particular path.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,839,804 to J. R. Amend et al, a display panel is provided for simulating the consumption of energy. U.S. Pat. No. 3,359,652 to Prosser et al is directed more to a display module for a pipeline network and utilizing independent pockets in a framework to provide valve openings and particular fluid flow restrictions to simulate demand characteristics. Another U.S. Pat. No. 3,054,204 to D. N. Yates discloses a polarized transparency for simulating the flow of fluids, the transparency being employed in combination with a linear polarizer to create the effect of continuous motion along different lines of a viewing screen. Other representative patents are U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,888,706 to W. F. Rush et al and 3,379,864 to P. N. Petersen.
To our knowledge, no has successfully devised a complete natural gas display system to simulate the generation and transmission of natural gas at different rates of flow to different natural gas facilities or users, such as, industrial, commercial and residential users as well as to represent the energy source and flow patterns through individual gas appliances in a home and having the ability to independently activate and control the lighting to each section to be displayed. A display system of this type can serve as a valuable aid in educating the public on the nature and characteristics of natural gas as well as conservation and safety measures to be employed in the use of natural gas.

Illuminated natural gas flow display panel assembly


An autonomous inspector mobile platform robot that is used to inspect a pipe or network of pipes. The robot includes a locomotion device that enables the device to autonomously progress through the pipe and accurately track its pose and odometry during movement. At the same time, image data is autonomously captured to detail the interior portions of the pipe. Images are taken at periodic intervals using a wide angle lens, and additional video images may be captured at locations of interest. Either onboard or offboard the device, each captured image is unwarped (if necessary) and combined with images of adjacent pipe sections to create a complete image of the interior features of the inspected pipe. Optional features include additional sensors and measurement devices, various communications systems to communicate with an end node or the surface, and/or image compression software.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to robotic devices and methods for inspecting and mapping the interior of pipes and pipe networks, and, more specifically, the present invention is directed to autonomous pipe inspection robots that navigate through pipe networks gathering image data for forming a complete picture of the network, and methods for utilizing the same.
2. Description of the Background
The oldest pipes in the United States date to the late 1800's, and the average non-rehabilitated water and sewer pipe is more than 50 years old. However, depending on the type of material used, pipe operating life ranges from only 50 to 125 years. Much of the existing pipe, therefore, needs to either be replaced or rehabilitated (relined or otherwise repaired) in short order.
A major problem in the U.S. sewer systems is inflow and infiltration ("I&I"). I&I is caused by the inflow of rainwater into the sewer system due to heavy rains and/or the fact that many sewer lines lie below the water table. I&I increases costs at sewage treatment plants, and, in a number of cases, the additional water injected during a rainstorm outstrips the capacity of treatment plants. This often results in the diversion of raw sewage into rivers and streams.
Along the same lines, the biggest problem in the U.S. potable water system is leaky pipes. For example, estimates hold that 35% to 50% of drinking water in the U.S. is unaccounted for once it leaves a water treatment facility, the vast majority of which is lost through leaky pipes. The urgent need to rehabilitate water pipes exists to reduce water leakage from the system, reduce costly emergency break repairs and increase water quality at the consumer's tap.
Government regulation is also increasing in these areas. In June 1999, the GASB (Government Accounting Standards Board) issued "Statement 34" requiring state and local governments to report the value of their infrastructure assets such as buried pipes, storm sewers, bridges and roads. Additionally, the EPA is actively pursuing consent decrees—forcing cities to eliminate sewage overflow into rivers and other bodies of water during heavy rainfalls and to increase water quality nationwide. Finally, the Safe Drinking Water Act, first passed in 1974, requires municipal water suppliers to guarantee that the water quality at the tap is the same as the water quality at the purification plant. The decay, sediment and leakage taking place in either water pipes or water storage tanks accounts for impurities in drinking water that enter the system after the water leaves the water purification plant, and prevents the satisfaction of these government regulations.
In general, the three main functions required to maintain our piping infrastructure are: (1) cleaning; (2) inspecting; and (3) rehabilitating. Cleaning involves the removal of obstructions and debris that blocks the flow of water and sewage. Inspecting involves mapping the pipe interior, characterizing the pipe's defects, and developing a maintenance plan for the pipe. Rehabilitating the pipe involves maintaining and fixing faulty piping.
In total, there are over 1.2 million miles of sewer pipe in the United States. Over time these pipes deteriorate—the pipes crack and corrode and the pipe joints become dislodged—requiring replacement or refurbishment. Traditionally, pipes have been replaced, repaired or refurbished using "trenched" methods. In trenched methods, the land above the targeted pipe is removed along its entire length, typically with an excavator. This often requires closing a roadway and removing the earth and pavement underneath it, which is later replaced at great cost.
Alternatively, in trenchless methods the pipe is accessed via manholes—or in some instances by digging access holes at both ends of the pipe—and is repaired/refurbished via relining or grouting. In most cases, trenchless technology completely eliminates the need to dig up roads and land and is significantly less expensive. As a result, trenchless methods are rapidly gaining market share and are becoming the preferred methods in the U.S. and throughout the world. Generally, old trenched methods are still employed only when specification engineers are not trained in trenchless methods or the subject pipe is so deteriorated it requires the dig and replace method (which is only required a small percentage of the time).
Although they are gaining momentum, traditional (i.e., current) trenchless pipe rehabilitation methods are quite limited. For example, contractors currently use dedicated trucks equipped with remote controlled video capture systems typically mounted on small wheeled or tracked platforms. Such systems typically cost over $100,000 and are highly specialized to the task. These mobile camera platforms trail a wire tether to bring control signals and power for the platform motors and camera from the truck, and to return video signals to be recorded on tape in the truck. The operator directs the view of the camera and the forward motion of the platform that carries it. During the process of inspecting, the operator continuously views the image, stopping to classify features such as laterals, and defects in accordance with descriptive industry standards. The efficiency of this approach is limited by the embedding of the classification process and the platform controls within the task of collecting video data. There is also a high degree of variability in the classification results depending on the skill and experience of the operator.
New robotic devices and methods are continually sought to address these and other limitations of the prior art. Specifically, robotic devices that can perform inspection and surveillance of subterranean or otherwise located pipes that are difficult to access without the need for extensive operator interaction are greatly desired. The present invention, in its many preferred embodiments addresses these and other limitations of the prior art.


A high performance rubber composition using a plasticizer derived from resources other than petroleum and a pneumatic tire using the same are provided. The rubber composition includes a rubber component containing at least 50% by weight of a natural rubber and/or a modified natural rubber and a terpene (co)polymer having a number average molecular weight of at most 700, and a pneumatic tire containing the same.

The present invention relates to a rubber composition and a pneumatic tire.
Aromatic oil has been conventionally used as a plasticizer in a rubber composition for a tire, however, since aromatic oil is required to be replaced because of carcinogenicity problem and the like, respective tire companies are going to implement countermeasure in Japan at present to a direction of changing to use various oils (alternative aromatic oil) derived from petroleum having a similar structure. However, the alternative aromatic oil also still depends on petroleum resources. Further, when petroleum oil is compounded in a rubber composition containing a natural rubber in particular, rolling resistance of tires is increased (rolling resistance property is deteriorated) and fuel cost tends to be poor. Further, both of the aromatic oil and alternative aromatic oil still have problems to be improved in performance such as filler dispersibility, abrasion resistance in tread use and crack resistance in sidewall use, in particular, in a rubber composition containing a natural rubber, in particular, a rubber composition containing a natural rubber and silica.
Further, global environmental problems have been recently emphasized and since a new plasticizer replacing the petroleum oil has been required, it is preferable to replace it with a vegetable oil and the like which are ecological to environments. JP-A-2003-64222 discloses a rubber composition containing a vegetable oil and fat such as a soy bean oil and a palm oil. This is excellent in the viewpoint of considering environments, but abrasion resistance, filler dispersibility and crack resistance were greatly inferior in comparison with a case of compounding an aromatic oil.

Rubber composition and pneumatic tire using the same


A liquid droplet deposition method of consecutively depositing a plurality of droplets of liquid, which contains solvent and particles dispersed in the solvent and having a substantially uniform size, onto a recording medium includes the steps of: determining target positions at which the plurality of droplets are to be deposited on the recording medium; depositing an X-th droplet of the droplets at an X-th target position of the determined target positions on the recording medium, X being a natural number; and depositing an (X+1)-th droplet of the droplets at an (X+1)-th target position of the determined target positions on the recording medium subsequently to the X-th droplet, after the particles contained in the X-th droplet are aggregated to form an X-th particle aggregate on the recording medium due to liquid bridging force, wherein in the determining step, the target positions are determined so as to satisfy following conditions:L(CX, CX+1)≦rX+r_maxX+1, andL(PX, CX+1)≧r_maxX+1,where CX is the X-th target position, CX+1 is the (X+1)-th target position, L(CX, CX+1) is a distance between CX and CX+1, rX is a radius of the solvent of the X-th droplet on the recording medium at a time of depositing the (X+1)-th droplet on the recording medium, r_maxX+1 is a radius of the solvent of the (X+1)-th droplet at a time of maximumly spreading on the recording medium, PX is a position of an edge of the X-th particle aggregate on a line connecting CX and CX+1, and L(PX, CX+1) is a distance between PX and CX+1.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid droplet deposition method and a liquid droplet deposition apparatus, and more particularly, to a liquid droplet deposition method and a liquid droplet deposition apparatus for an inkjet recording system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Technology has been known in which liquid containing particles of uniform particle size dispersed therein is ejected in the form of liquid droplets by an inkjet method, thereby depositing the droplets on a recording medium. The particles contained in the droplets deposited on the recording medium then aggregate due to a self-organizing action caused by a liquid bridging force, resulting in the formation of an aggregate of the particles on the recording medium.
Here, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2001-239661 discloses using the technology described above to create a printed object by means of interference colors, rather than normal generation of colors based on light absorption.
Although Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2001-239661 discloses that the droplets are deposited in mutual proximity on the recording medium when liquid droplets are ejected continuously, it does not disclose concrete conditions, such as the time interval between the ejection of mutually adjacent liquid droplets, or the distance between deposited liquid droplets.
Here, if droplets are deposited in mutual proximity on the recording medium, without specifying concrete conditions, such as the time intervals between the ejection of mutually adjacent liquid droplets, and the distance between droplet depositing positions, then depositing interference occurs between the mutually adjacent liquid droplets. In particular, since the recording medium in the Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2001-239661 has hydrophobic properties, then marked depositing interference appears. Consequently, it becomes difficult to deposit liquid droplets at desired positions, and in particular, it is difficult to create thin lines on the recording medium.

Liquid droplet deposition method and liquid droplet deposition apparatus