Disclosed herein is a teleconferencing system that enables disabled persons to conveniently participate in teleconferences. The format converting means of the server converts text or voice data inputted from a transmitting party to the receiving method corresponding to the telephone terminal of each destination terminal registered in the registration portion to obtain transmission data matched to the receiving method of each of the telephone terminals. A transmitting portion sends the transmission data to the respective telephone terminals.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a teleconferencing server and a teleconferencing system that utilizes a plurality of telephone terminals to realize teleconferencing.
2. Description of the Related Art
There are in use today systems that enable users at respectively remote locations to hold a teleconference. In recent years, accompanying the reduction in the price of televisual phones, the spread of personal computers and the internet, and the expansion of the functionality of stationary telephones and mobile telephones, including cellular phones (hereinafter collectively referred to as telephone terminals), teleconferencing systems using a variety of types of telephone terminals have been proposed. According to these teleconferencing systems, the voice data from the telephone terminal of a teleconference participant that makes a transmission is subjected to a multiplexing process and transmitted to the telephone terminal of each participant to realize the teleconference. Among the proposed systems are systems in which an image data representing an image of the face of the transmitting party (the conference participant transmitting voice data) or an image data obtained by synthesizing an image of a virtual conference room in which an image of the face of each conference participant appears, is transmitted along with the voice data to impart a feeling close to that as if all the participants of the conference were present in the same conference room, and which record the contents of the conference and automate processes such as participant registration, billing, and the like with the aim of helping smooth the progress of the teleconference.
As the number of disabled persons hired by companies has increased in recent years, disabled and non-disabled persons are participating in the same conferences, even in international conferences. It goes without saying that under these conditions communication must be facilitated, for which it is necessary that the speech of non-disabled persons be translated into sign language or readable text for those with hearing or sight disabilities, and that sign language or written text be translated into speech so that all participants can communicate. However, such a system has not yet been realized.

Teleconferencing server and teleconferencing system


A temperature and pressure regulating biogas sample extraction system and method for providing a conditioned biogas sample for constituent analysis.

Biogas, also referred to as bio-methane, swamp gas, landfill gas, and digester gas, is the product of anaerobic digestion, e.g., the decomposition of waste material without the presence of oxygen which yields predominantly methane and carbon dioxide. After proper processing to appropriate purity, captured biogas is readily usable as a green/renewable fuel for facility heating, electrical power co-generation, and as vehicle fuel for natural gas powered vehicles. Use of such captured "waste" gas as fuel to power electrical generators, charge fuel cells, and the like, is becoming increasingly more common as the economics for the capital expenditures spurred by environmental concerns, recycling, and use of green energy sources are now justified. However, to date, adequate technology addressing the sample conditioning of biogas extracted from the typical low pressure (<1 psig) sources such as biodigesters does not exist.
Several generation and collection sources of biogas exist across a wide range of disciplines, i.e., waste water treatment, solid waste/land fill disposal and management, food processing plants, and the agricultural industry, including processing farm animal waste.
Probably one of the most common and familiar biogas generation and collection sources is from landfills. Advances have been made to promote biogas generation from those sources. For example, one process involves locating a system of pipes in the landfill to inject air into select land fill strata, effectively comprising an in situ digester/bio reactor. The injected air increases the decomposition rate of the land fill solids with a resulting increase in the production rate of methane containing biogas.
The quality and quantity of generated biogas, as would be expected, is based part, on the nature of its source. For example, studies have shown biogas production from a small landfill would be expected to produce over a million standard cubic foot per day (1,238,000 scfd or 35 cmd) for approximately 20 years. Waste water plants (sewage) produce 1.0 cf of digester gas per 100 gallons of waste water per person (2.8 cm). In the agricultural field, a single dairy cow generates the prodigious quantity of 100 cf of digester gas per day (2.8 cmd).
As noted above, anaerobic digestion (bacterial digestion carried out in the absence of oxygen) produces biogases typically from in situ digestion (e.g., landfills) or anaerobic digester systems. Biogases generated from anaerobic digestion contain a mixture of burnable hydrocarbon gas, (methane), VOC's, hydrogen sulfide, siloxanes including Volatile Methyl Siloxanes (VMS), water, and water vapor. A cubic foot of methane has an energy capacity of 1020 BTU (˜36,000/cm). Therefore, when a biogas stream is composed of 50 to 60% methane, the heat value of that gas approximates 500-600 BTU/lcf (up to ˜24,000/cm).
Before it can be used effectively as a fuel source, however, biogas must be processed. Such processing requires removal and/or minimization of typical impurities found in the biogas output stream. The cleaning begins with particulate removal, followed by removal of water, and, when the desired end product is intended to provide a high quality gas stream, H2S, sulfur species, siloxanes, CO2, digestion generated VOCs (Volatile Organic Chemicals) and oxygen content. The resulting gas is blown, under pressure through a suitable conduit, e.g., 18 inch pipe, to a storage container or directly to a utilization source (heat furnace, fuel cell, etc.). Subject to required purity standards, the resulting cleaned gas may also be utilized independently, blended with local pipeline gas, and even pressurized for use as CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) for powering vehicles.
The level and degree of processing of biogas can also vary based on the intended use of the biogas. For example, if nothing more, entrained water must be removed before biogas can be burned, and the effective removal thereof confirmed by sensor based-analysis. More modern designs of digesters/bioreactors produce biogas with reduced VOCs but increased H2S in the stream. Removal of the H2S "pollutant" is critical to use of the biogas in all applications except plant heating. Another newer technology involves conversion of biological material in waste water to electricity via a microbial fuel cell. Due to the sensitive chemistry involved in fuel cells, higher gas purity and therefore, a more rigorous level of biogas cleaning is necessary prior to being used to power the fuel cells.
If intended for use in combustion engines, substantial removal of Hydrogen Sulfide and siloxanes from the biogas is necessary and operationally critical. Failure to achieve such siloxane removal leads to damage resulting from formation of silica-based deposits and coatings on engine components. Effective removal thereof requires confirmation by sensor based-analysis.
Higher purity requirements can also be found in the use of biogas qualified for blending with other pipeline gases and or as compressed natural gas (CNG). In such cases, the gas must be dried and Carbon Dioxide removed. The highest purity requirements are established by standards such as ISO 15404-2006 in where, in addition to the above scrubbing steps, the removal of all moisture is necessary and the gas compressed to high pressures (6,000 psig) for use as Natural Gas Vehicle (NGV) fuel or compressed natural gas (CNG). The success of such processing must again be confirmed through sample takeoff and analysis.
Consequently for industrial biogas utilization, systems sensor/analyzer technology must be used to confirm to measure the composition of the feed gas and processed gas and to confirm that the cleaning steps have been successful.

Low pressure biogas sample takeoff and conditioning system


Photonic bandgap fibers are described that can be solid across the core and clad and have a large core diameter with little loss in the fundamental mode. In addition, the mode loss of the higher order modes can be much greater than that of the fundamental mode, providing high power fibers with high effective mode area. Excellent single mode output can be obtained from the fibers in length scale close to what is required for fiber laser and amplifiers.

Despite significant developments in fiber laser technology in recent years, there are still great needs to scale power in both continuous wave and pulsed lasers for use in a wide range of industrial, scientific and defense applications. Optical nonlinear effects, such as stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS), stimulated Raman scattering (SRS), self-phase modulation (SPM) and Four-wave-mixing (FWM) are some of the key limiting factors in power scaling. All of these nonlinear effects could be mitigated by effective mode-area scaling of fibers while maintaining single-transverse-mode operation. Effective mode-area scaling could also lead to high pulse energy due to an increase in stored energy in the amplification process.
Although numerous techniques have been studied for the suppression of the wide range of nonlinearities, the fundamental solution to power scaling is scaling of mode areas in fibers while maintaining sufficient single mode operation. The key problem to be overcome is that fundamental physics states that more modes are supported once the physical dimensions of waveguides are increased.
Approaches that have been studied to solve this problem generally fall into three categories. The first involves reducing the numerical aperture of the waveguide. Since the number of modes supported by a waveguide is a function of both core diameter and numerical aperture, a lower numerical aperture can be used to reduce the number of guided modes. Some early approaches of mode-area scaling, photonic crystal fibers and recent triple clad approaches fall into this category. One major deficiency of these approaches is that a lower numerical aperture weakens the fundamental mode guidance and renders it very sensitive to bending and any other mechanical perturbation on the fibers. Thus, photonic crystal fibers with lower numerical apertures and over 40 μm core diameter can only be used as straight rods.
The second category includes approaches based on the introduction of differential mode losses. Here, fundamental mode guidance is strong enough to allow coiling even at large core diameters while higher order modes are eliminated by introducing higher losses for these modes. Conventional step index large mode area fibers fall into this category and differential mode loss in this case is from coiling. This approach exploits strong mode-dependent loss to mitigate the waveguide's tendency to support more modes at large core diameters. One major benefit of this approach is that strong fundamental mode guidance can be maintained to allow coiling. The major challenge is to introduce very high losses for all higher order modes at the desired wavelength while maintaining good fundamental mode transmission.
Special waveguide designs have also been developed to further increase differential mode loss. Some recent approaches rely on resonant out-coupling of higher order modes from a conventional step-index core. A low loss is ensured for the desired fundamental modes by the conventional cores. These systems are, however, limited in terms of scaling much beyond 50 μm core diameter. The higher order mode out-coupling fundamentally relies on phase-matching, typically at a different wavelength for a different mode, and spatial overlap between the modes. However, both of these aspects become major limits very quickly in a large core fiber. As such, it becomes difficult to ensure that all phase-matching conditions are met at the same desired wavelength for all relevant higher order modes when there are a number of modes in consideration. As the core diameter increases, these higher modes in the core are increasingly more confined to the core center. This leads to much less mode coupling due to a reduced spatial overlap between the coupling modes and much stronger wavelength-dependence in phase-matching. Both make these designs hard to implement, especially at large core diameters. Other approaches in this second category include leakage channel fibers. They overcome the limitations of the resonantly-coupled approach by starting with a leaky waveguide. Because modes are no longer guided in a leaky waveguide, a significant new way for optimizing differential mode loss is possible. Since these designs do not necessarily depend on any resonant effects, they are much more tolerant in the fabrication process. Due to the delocalized nature of modes, they are more scalable to much larger core diameters. Single mode operation in a core diameter of 180 μm has been demonstrated in leakage channel fibers.
The third category of approaches for mode area scaling is based on the operation of one of the higher order modes (HOM) in a highly multimode fiber. This approach works upon the premise that the propagation of a higher order mode can be very stable even in a highly multimode fiber. Moreover, these higher order modes can offer significantly better bending performance. The main deficiency of this approach is that in an active highly multimode fiber, spontaneous emission populates all modes equally by fundamental quantum mechanical principles. This can significantly limit the operation of high gain amplifiers due to strong amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) in undesired modes. While complex techniques have been proposed recently to mitigate these limits, it is hard to completely eliminate this ASE problem. Mode area scaling to 20 μm mode field diameter using all-solid photonic bandgap fibers has been reported. A detailed theoretical investigation on the limit of mode area scaling with all-solid photonic bandgap fibers indicated an upper limit of about 500 μm2 using a more optimized seven-cell core and operating in the first bandgap. Recently, all-solid photonic bandgap fibers with up to about 700 μm2 effective mode areas have been demonstrated operating in the first bandgap.
What are needed in the art are optical fibers that can provide high power output, such as may be used in high power lasers, and methods for forming the high power optical fibers.


A data processing apparatus that is capable of reducing the garbling of characters caused by the difference among the character codes when setting data are transferred to another apparatus by the import-export function. A storage unit stores setting data for the data processing apparatus. A receiving unit receives an instruction for exporting the setting data stored in the storage unit. A converting unit converts Unicode data included in the setting data into character code data of language, which is set to the data processing apparatus. An export unit exports the character code data converted by the converting unit and the Unicode data.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a data processing apparatus that enables import/export of a setting value, a control method therefor, and a storage medium storing control program therefor.
2. Description of the Related Art
Image forming apparatuses, such as copying machines and facsimile machines, in recent years have many user set items with high performance, and tend to increase time and effort of a user who registers setting values (setting data) for the user set items. Accordingly, there is an apparatus that is provided with an import-export function that enables to bring setting data of a certain apparatus out and to register the setting data to another apparatus of the same kind or a different kind as a technique that simplifies registration of a series of setting values.
However, an import-export function of a conventional image forming apparatus did not consider a case where character codes are different among image forming apparatuses. Accordingly, import of character string data of a character code that is not supported by an import image forming apparatus causes a problem that the characters are not displayed correctly due to garbling.
On the other hand, there is a technique that converts a character code in order to absorb the difference among the character codes supported by different apparatuses. For example, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2000-207392 (JP 2000-207392A) proposes a technique that converts document data in a character code of a host into data in a character code of a printer, reads fonts corresponding to the converted data from a memory, and outputs the fonts to the printer.

Data processing apparatus that enables import/export of setting value, control method therefor, and storage medium storing control program therefor


System and method for achieving reproducibility of a simulation operation while reasonably keeping an operation speed. A peripheral scheduler clears completion flags of all the peripheral emulators to thereby start parallel operations thereof. Then, based on processing break timing set for the individual peripheral emulators, the peripheral scheduler finds one of the peripheral emulators which is scheduled to reach a processing break at the earliest. The found peripheral emulator is referred to as a peripheral P. In a case where a time of the processing break of the peripheral P is T, the peripheral scheduler continues execution of processor emulators and plant simulators up until a time point of the time T. The peripheral scheduler waits for setting of a completion flag of the peripheral P. In response to the setting, the peripheral scheduler performs data synchronization among the peripheral P, the processor emulators, and the plant simulators.

In the early 20th century which is an early stage of development of an automobile, an automobile has been constituted of mechanical parts including an engine supplying motive power, a brake, an accelerator, a steering wheel, a transmission, and a suspension, but has used almost no electrical mechanism except an ignition plug in an engine and a headlight.
However, there has arisen a need for efficiently controlling the engine in case of air pollution, oil crisis, and the like since around 1970s. Thus, an ECU has been started to be used for controlling the engine. The ECU generally includes: an input interface configured to perform, for example, A/D conversion on an input signal from a sensor; a logical computing unit (a microcomputer) configured to process a digital input signal according a predetermined logic; and an output interface configured to convert a result of the processing by the logical computing unit into a signal for starting an actuator.
Nowadays, in addition to the mechanical parts, electronics parts and software account for a significant percentage in a recent automobile, even in not only control systems for the engine, the transmission, and the like, an Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), an Electronic Stability Control (ESC), a power steering but also a windshield wiper control, a security monitoring system, and the like. It is said that development cost of the electronics parts and the software accounts for 25% or 40% in the total development cost. For a hybrid automobile, the development cost accounts for 70%.
Meanwhile, an automobile includes mechanical parts (plants) including a motive power apparatus such as an engine, a power transmission apparatus, a traveling apparatus such as a steering, a brake apparatus, a body system, and the like. Operations of the plants are dynamically determined by programs of 30 to 70 or more electronic control units (ECUs) in response to input from sensors (for speed and the like) and input from a driver (through an accelerator or the like).
Each ECU basically controls the operation of a single plant. For example, software of an engine control unit determines an amount and timing of fuel injection to the engine as well as ignition. From its nature, the software can also increase or decrease the fuel injection amount according to mode in such a luxury automobile that is provided with "sport" mode. The software can also tune the engine revolutions to down-shift timing by automatically performing blipping. In this case, the ECU of the engine and the ECU of the transmission need to operate in cooperation with each other. An integrated vehicle-posture Electronic Stability Control (ESC) system for preventing skids and the like of an automobile further requires cooperation with a braking apparatus such as a brake, and thus ECU software for the system becomes more complicated. Incidentally, from the nature of the software, such an "intervention" function can be eliminated easily.
Meanwhile, in order to fully utilize the performance of the plant and to operate the plant safely, it is important to thoroughly perform operational parameter tuning and tests in a design and development process of the ECU software. Generally, it costs too much and takes a too long time to repeat the tuning and the tests after prototyping of an actual automobile. Thus, a method is strongly desired in which a controller and plants are virtually implemented by a computer before prototyping and are operated at a high speed and accurately for checking their operations. Such ECU simulation is performed by the following four methods: (1) Model-in-the-loop Simulation (MILS) that logically represents an operation of a controller by using such a form as a state machine; (2) Software-in-the loop Simulation (SILS) that introduces some hardware restrictions such as data accuracy to the logic operation of the controller; (3) Virtual Processor-in-the-loop Simulation (V-PILS) that emulates an ECU processor with software fully implemented; and (4) Hardware-in-the-loop Simulation (HILS) in which an ECU board is completely mounted to be connected to a real-time plant simulation. The simulations become closer to a prototype in this order.
MILS and SILS are mainly used in a trial and error phase for obtaining a basic performance of each plant. However, MILS and SILS operate in a different manner from software actually to be provided to the ECU, and thus cannot be used for verifying a product. In contrast, V-PILS uses completed ECU software, and thus is very promising as a method for detecting and solving an undesirable operation (bug) of the software. However, there has been no case where a reproducible operation is achieved. HILS is always implemented for final operation check of the completed ECU board. However, even if a failure is detected, reproducibility of the failure is not guaranteed. Thus, HILS cannot be used for debugging.
The reason why an operation cannot be reproduced in HILS is not that configuration of HILS is not perfect but that ECUs are connected to each other through a network such as a CAN. Generally, a network achieves loose coupling of modules, and thus a slight timing difference among operations of the modules causes the order of data arrival to be changed. As the result, a behavior of the system might vary on the whole. Thus, even if a prototype of an actual automobile is produced, an operation thereof is not expected to be reproduced. The reason is the same as the reason why debugging of a parallel and distributed system is very difficult.
As described above, simply using the HILS configuration, that is, simply using the configuration having the loose coupling of the ECU board and the plant simulators does not achieve operational consistency, even though the components are made operate at a high speed. Achieving consistency of the order of communications is required to achieve the reproducibility of the operations. V-PILS is particularly expected to solve this problem.
FIG. 1 shows a typical V-PILS configuration according to a conventional concept. The configuration includes multiple ECU emulators, multiple plant simulators, and a global scheduler 110 configured to schedule overall operations. It should be understood that FIG. 1 illustrates two ECU emulators 102, 104 and two plant simulators 106, 108 for convenience, but more ECU emulators and plant simulators than illustrated are actually provided.
The ECU emulator 102 includes a processor emulator 102a and a peripheral emulator 102b. Since the ECU emulator 104 has the same configuration, a detailed description of the ECU emulator 104 is omitted.
As for the plant simulator 106, a clock converter 106a is connected thereto. Since the plant simulator 108 has the same configuration, a detailed description of the plant simulator 108 is omitted. For example, the plant simulator 106 is a brake simulator, and the plant simulator 108 is an engine simulator.
Meanwhile, frequencies in FIG. 1 are exemplary typical operating clock speeds. That is, the processor emulator 102a operates at a relatively high clock speed of 80 MHz. In contrast, the plant simulator 106 is a simulator for a physical mechanism, and thus operates at a relatively low speed of 10 KHz.
Next, an operation in the configuration in FIG. 1 will be described by referring to a timing diagram in FIG. 2. Each plant simulator that performs simulation in a fixed-step clock repeats input and output, for example, at 10 KHz, that is, in a time step of 100 μs. The input to the plant simulator is mainly an instruction signal from the controller and the output from the plant simulator is sent to a sensor.
Each peripheral emulator is equivalent to an I/O interface part of the ECU emulator and connects the plant simulator and the processor emulator. The peripheral emulator can be considered to typically (averagely) operate at a resolution of approximately 10 MHz. This speed is higher than that of the plant simulator but lower than that of the processor emulator. The peripheral emulator transmits a pulse signal to the plant simulator.
Each clock converter is arranged between the peripheral emulator and the plant simulator. The clock converter has a function of decreasing the frequency of a clock signal from the peripheral emulator to match the plant simulator and of gradually increasing a frequency of a signal from the plant simulator to match the peripheral emulator.
Each peripheral emulator transmits or receives data to or from the processor emulator in response to a read/write (R/W) request and transmits an interrupt (INT) to the processor emulator. In particular, a function of a network such as the CAN (controller area network) for mutually connecting the processors requires communications among peripherals.
Many of embedded processors operate at approximately 80 to 100 MHz, and thus the time resolution thereof is approximately 10 times higher than that of the peripherals. Each processor performs read and write operations on data from and to a corresponding one of the peripherals and receives an interrupt signal (INT) from the peripheral.
When viewed from one aspect, the peripheral is the center of a system, connecting the plant and the processor with each other, and the processors with each other. The processor performs the R/W operations at the higher time resolution than that of the peripheral. However, when being transmitted to the plant or another processor, a signal for any of the operations is under control of the time resolution of the peripheral. Accordingly, if synchronization processing is performed on sensor data or the like at the time resolution of the peripheral in the simulation system on the whole, the order or processing of I/O data and interrupts is correctly reproduced (minimum synchronization).
Generally, making time intervals of the synchronization shorter can achieve more correct operations. However, this increases overhead of the processing time, and thus increases the total processing time. The minimum synchronization provides an upper limit of the time resolution which does not require any shorter interval.
One of solutions is making the time intervals of synchronization longer up to a greatest common divisor in accordance with the global scheduler 110, as shown in FIG. 3. This can achieve correctness. However, this increases synchronization processing performed at unnecessary timing, and thus increases the overhead of the synchronization processing very much. Thereby, the processing rate of the simulation system is considerably decreased.
If breaks of the processing of the peripheral cannot be explicitly utilized, even the greatest common divisor is difficult to know. Thus, taking a solution of increasing the time resolution further increases the overhead.
In contrast, if the time resolution is made lower, many I/O data pieces and interrupts are included in the same time step. Thus, information on temporal relationship thereamong is lost. This is a state in which simulation is not executed properly, that is, in which the correctness is not achieved. In particular, the order of executing the interrupt processing is very important to operate the software as intended. The few existing V-PILS systems undergo the incorrect simulation state and have a serious problem that the ECU software is not satisfactorily debugged due to the loss of the order information.
Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2007-11720 has a problem to be solved that a structure of a system simulator is to be changed flexibly while a complicated structure of a system is supported. Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2007-11720 discloses that a system simulator includes three types of simulators of instruction setting simulators each simulating an operation of a CPU, bus simulators each simulating an operation of a bus, and peripheral simulators each simulating an operation of a peripheral, and is provided with interfaces by which the simulators of each type can refer to and change conditions of the simulators of the other types. However, this conventional technique does not suggest a technique of optimizing synchronization between the peripherals and the CPUs.

International Business Machines Corporation


This invention is a portable playing field for a plastic ball and bat game that can be easily set up in the backyard, park or beach, be used indoors or outdoors and professionally or a non-competitive environment. Hit markers automatically determine singles, doubles, triples and homeruns. The strike zone automatically determines if the pitch is a strike or ball. No bases are used so the game can be played with as few as 1 or 2-10 players. The field is adjustable to accommodate playing area or player use needs. A miniature size can also be used as a “table top” game that includes release buttons to pitch the ball and for the player to swing the bat.

Currently, plastic ball and bat games are played in fields or floors by using tape to map out the playing field area. Each time the game is played the playing field needs to be measured and taped, and then the tape must be removed afterwards. This is particularly a problem on indoor floors or gym floors on which the tape leaves a sticky residue when removed. The professional plastic ball and bat games also use tape to mark the field. It is critical that the professional fields be measured accurately. This product eliminates the problem of potential mis-measurement.
Since plastic ball and bat games do not have base running as baseball does, this product offers a novel solution that is all inclusive in one bag to make playing the game fair, consistent, easy to use and easy to play anywhere. This product can be used professionally in professional competitions, during school gym classes, in the park, in one's basement or almost anywhere. The product is light weight and easy to set up and take down.
Another problem that exists with the way the game is played today is it is subjective as to whether or not the unhit pitch was a strike or a ball. The strike zone of this field objectively shows if a pitch is a strike or not (i.e. if the ball falls into the strike zone net, it is a strike).
The miniature playing/table game has the same concept, with the addition of a pump mechanism that releases the ball into the air and a mini bat or player holding a bat that swings the bat from a release button. The field is the same for the above described plastic ball and bat game but includes small bean bags to secure the field on a table. A Homefield™ Mat is also available that has the same field printed on a mat that can be easily rolled out and ready to play with the batter and pump mechanism to release the ball. A scoreboard is available with dials to keep track of runs.

Portable playing field for playing a plastic ball and bat game


A method of tuning a hearing device includes sending a test signal to a model of a hearing device that may be remote from the actual hearing device being tuned. The test signal is encoded by the model and sent to the hearing device being tuned. The user of that hearing device sends a response signal based at least in part on the encoded test signal. This response is received and compared to the original test signal. Thereafter, an operational parameter is sent to the hearing device based on the comparison.

Hearing impaired persons may be fitted with a perceptual device, such as a digital hearing aid, a cochlear implant, etc., to improve or otherwise augment their hearing ability. Alternatively, the user of such a device may be fitted with only a part of a device. The device should be tuned to each user's perceptual capabilities such that each user can get the maximum benefit from his or her device. To tune the device, an agent, such as an audiologist or tuning software, such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,206,416, tests the user's perceptual ability with appropriate perceptual signals and suggests device parameter values based at least in part on the user's performance in the tests.
One example of a perceptual device is a multi-channel cochlear implant (CI) system. These CI systems include of an external headset with a microphone and transmitter, a body-worn or ear-level speech processor with a battery supply, and an internal receiver and electrode array. The microphone detects sound information and sends it to the speech processor which encodes the sound information into a digital signal. This information then is sent to the headset so that the transmitter can send the electrical signal through the skin via radio frequency waves to the internal receiver located in the mastoid bone of an implant recipient.
The receiver sends the electrical impulses to the electrodes implanted in the cochlea, thus stimulating the auditory nerve such that the listener receives sound sensations. Multi-channel CI systems utilize a plurality of sensors or electrodes. Each sensor is associated with a corresponding channel which carries signals of a particular frequency range. Accordingly, the sensitivity or amount of gain perceived by a recipient can be altered for each channel independently of the others.
In recent years, CI systems have made significant strides in improving the quality of life for profoundly hard of hearing individuals. CI systems have progressed from providing a minimal level of tonal response to allowing individuals having the implant to recognize upwards of 80 percent of words in test situations. Much of this improvement has been based upon improvements in speech coding techniques. For example, the introduction of Advanced Combination Encoders (ACE), Continuous Interleaved Sampling (CIS) and HiResolution, have contributed to improved performance for CI systems, as well as other digital hearing enhancement systems which incorporate multi-channel and/or speech processing techniques.
Once a CI system is implanted in a user, or another type of digital hearing enhancement mechanism is worn by a user, a suitable speech coding strategy and mapping strategy must be selected to enhance the performance of the CI system for day-to-day operation. Mapping strategy refers to the adjustment of parameters corresponding to one or more independent channels of a multi-channel CI system or other hearing enhancement system. Selection of each of these strategies typically occurs over an introductory period of approximately six or seven weeks during which the hearing enhancement system is tuned. During this tuning period, users of such systems are asked to provide feedback on how they feel the device is performing. The tuning process, however, is not a user-specific process. Rather, the tuning process is geared to the average user.
More particularly, to create a mapping for a speech processor, an audiologist first determines the electrical dynamic range for each electrode or sensor used. The programming system delivers an electrical current through the CI system to each electrode in order to obtain the electrical threshold (T-level) and comfort or max level (C-level) measures defined by the device manufacturers. T-level, or minimum stimulation level, is the softest electrical current capable of producing an auditory sensation in the user 100 percent of the time. The C-level is the loudest level of signal to which a user can listen comfortably for a long period of time.
The speech processor then is programmed, or "mapped," using one of several encoding strategies so that the electrical current delivered to the implant will be within this measured dynamic range, between the T- and C-levels. After T- and C-levels are established and the mapping is created, the microphone is activated so that the patient is able to hear speech and sounds in the environment. From that point on, the tuning process continues as a traditional hearing test. Hearing enhancement device users are asked to listen to tones of differing frequencies and volumes. The gain of each channel further can be altered within the established threshold ranges such that the patient is able to hear various tones of differing volumes and frequencies reasonably well. Accordingly, current tuning practice focuses on allowing a user to become acclimated to the signal generated by the hearing device.
The above-mentioned tuning technique has been developed to meet the needs of the average user. This approach has gained favor because the amount of time and the number of potential variables involved in designing optimal maps for individual users would be too daunting a task. For example, additional complications to the tuning process exist when users attempt to add subjective input to the tuning of the hearing enhancement system. Using subjective input from a user can add greater complexity to the tuning process as each change in the mapping of a hearing enhancement system requires the user to adjust to a new signal. Accordingly, after a mapping change, users may believe that their ability to hear has been enhanced, while in actuality, the users have not adjusted to the new mapping. As users adjust to new mappings, the users' hearing may in fact have been degraded.
In general, the equipment described generally above is extremely costly to purchase and is generally unavailable to a typical patient/user/client. Additionally, the user would need to know how to connect the various equipment components in order for that equipment to function satisfactorily. Many users, however, do not possess the technical knowledge to set up and operate this equipment. Since perceptual devices need only be tuned on an infrequent basis, the cost of obtaining the required equipment may be excessive. Accordingly, the equipment may be located at a facility that serves a number of users, such as the office of a doctor, audiologist, or other clinician. However, travel to these facilities for testing may be inconvenient or impossible.
What is needed, then, is a system that simplifies the tuning process for a user and reduces investment in tuning equipment, such that any perceptual device user may access and use the system. The system should utilize techniques for tuning hearing enhancement systems, including both CI systems and digital hearing aids, that bypass user subjectivity. These techniques should still allow hearing enhancement systems to be tuned on an individual basis. Further, such a technique should be time efficient.

Systems and methods for remotely tuning hearing devices

UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA RESEARCH FOUNDATION, INC.


A system for sensing a three-dimensional topology of a test surface is provided. A first illumination source generates first patterned illumination from a first point of view. A second illumination source generates second patterned illumination from a second point of view, the second point of view differing from the first point of view. An area array image detector simultaneously acquires at least first and second fringe images relative to the first and second patterned illuminations. A controller is coupled to the first and second sources and to the detector. The controller generates a height topology of the test surface based on images acquired while the first and second patterned illuminators are energized.

Circuit boards that carry electronic integrated circuits as well as discrete electronic components are well known. A circuit board substrate is prepared with predetermined conductor paths and pads for receiving the leads of electronic components such as integrated circuit chips, resistors or capacitors. During the circuit board fabrication process, solder paste bricks are placed onto the board substrate at appropriate positions. The solder paste bricks are usually applied by placing a screen onto the substrate, applying solder paste through the screen openings and removing the screen from the substrate. The circuit board electronic components are then positioned onto the substrate, preferably with a pick and place machine, with leads of the electronic components placed on the respective solder paste bricks. The circuit board is passed through an oven after all of the components are positioned on the substrate to melt the solder paste thus creating an electrical as well as mechanical connection between the components and the substrate.
The size of the solder paste bricks and the accuracy with which they must be placed on the substrate has become increasingly smaller and tighter with the increased emphasis on miniaturization in the electronics industry. Solder paste brick heights can be as small as 100 microns and the height of the solder paste brick must often be measured to within 1 percent of the designed height and size. The center-to-center spacing between solder bricks is sometimes as little as 200 microns. Too little solder paste can result in no electrical connection between the lead of an electronic component and the pad of the circuit board substrate. Too much paste can result in bridging and short-circuiting between the leads of a component.
A single circuit board can cost thousands and even tens of thousands of dollars to manufacture. Testing of a circuit board after the fabrication process is complete can detect errors in solder paste placement and component lead connection, but often the only remedy for a faulty board is rejection of the entire board. It is accordingly imperative that a circuit board be inspected during the fabrication process so that improper solder paste placement can be detected prior to the placement of the electronic components onto the substrate. Such in-process solder inspection reduces the cost of failure since expensive components have not yet been placed onto the circuit board.
Current solder paste inspection systems that employ phased profilometry have some limitations. The use of white light phased profilometry is a well known for optically acquiring topological surface height data. Typical phase profilometers used to acquire height topologies of test surfaces generally use triangulation principles combined with structured light to determine the height of the surface at every point defined by the sensor's imager. One limitation of using triangulation sensing to produce a height image of a test surface is that the source and receive optics use separate optical axes. If the test surface has height features that have an edge slope large enough that they occlude either the source or receive optical path relative to some area on the surface, the sensor will not be able to measure those areas of the surface.
One approach to mitigate the triangulation shadow effect is to use multiple sources with a normally incident single receive triangulation configuration. Each of the sources illuminates the test surface from different incident angles. If one source is occluded, or otherwise blocked, from an area of the test surface, there is a high probability that the other source will be able to illuminate that area. To capture height information, the receive sensor acquires images from each of the sources serially and then combines the results of the multiple height images to ensure all areas of the test surface contain valid height data. Typically, this will require the sensor to be stationary and will require a separate image to be acquired for each of the sources. One disadvantage to this approach is that it requires multiple image acquisition cycles to generate a single height image, which slows down the overall acquisition process when compared to a sensor that uses a single source. Implementation of multiple source white light phase triangulation sensors requires the sources to be turned on one at a time so that the image from one source, followed by acquisition of an image from another source can be acquired in sequence by the receive detector. This operation will typically require two or more image acquisition cycles of the sensor to acquire height data from all areas of the image.
Providing a multi-source sensor for three dimensional imaging using phased structured light that does not have the associated cost or speed penalty that is present in the current state of the art for multiple art phase profilometers would represent a useful advance to high-speed three-dimensional inspection.

Multi-source sensor for three-dimensional imaging using phased structured light


A method for semi-quantitatively or quantitatively detecting the presence of a microbe in a sample is provided. The method utilizes a test dye that undergoes a detectable color change in the presence of one or more microbes. For example, in one embodiment, the test dye is a solvatochromic dye (e.g., Reichardt's dye) that responds to differences in polarity between microbe components (e.g., cell membrane, cytoplasm, etc.) and the environment outside the cell. Alternatively, other mechanisms may be wholly or partially responsible for the interaction between the dye and the microbe, such as acid-base reactions, redox reactions, and so forth. Regardless, the color of the test dye may be compared to the color of a control dye, wherein the color of the control dye corresponds to a known microbe concentration.

The invention concerns processes and products for the detection of microbes like bacteria, yeast, mold and viruses.
In our everyday life we are unknowingly exposed to microbial-contaminated surfaces which can lead to illness. Studies have shown specific bacteria-contaminated "hot spots" to include public telephone, door handles, toys in doctors waiting rooms and child care facilities, hot air dryers to dry hands, towels and sponges used in the kitchen, the hands of hospital staff during routine patient care and cross contamination from food preparation surfaces and knives where raw meats and vegetables are mixed.
Recent bacterial contamination outbreaks in various locations in the United States alone have resulted in the death of children and senior citizens and sickening of others. Microbial contamination of food is also a major problem throughout the world. Salmonella, E. coli and other food-borne bacteria cause untold numbers of illness each year. Acute symptoms include nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, diarrhea, fever and headache. Chronic consequences may follow after the onset of acute symptoms. As cross-contamination of surfaces can cause transfer of bacteria from meat, fish, and poultry to uncooked food such as vegetables, the ability to easily detect the presence of bacteria on food-preparation surfaces would be of great benefit.
Similarly, the detection of harmful levels of microbes in the food processing business is very important in maintaining the health of families and customers alike. In the food processing industry, bacteria monitoring is critical. The processing of virtually all foods, from meat packing to cheese production, involves monitoring microbes levels in order to ensure the safety of the food supply.
The havoc wreaked by microbial contamination is not limited to the food industry alone. Recent decades have seen a dramatic rise in "superbugs," a problem whose epicenter exists in the hospital and healthcare community. The overuse of antibiotics as well as inadequacies in hospital cleaning have given rise to methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) and Clostridium difficile, as well as vancomycin-resistant enterococci and other gram-negative bacilli (Dancer, 2004). A recent BBC report cited that MRSA claims an estimated 5000 lives yearly. The article goes on to declare that "Cleanliness remains a major patient concern and MRSA is a growing problem." When one considers that many patients in hospitals are already immuno-compromised and therefore at greater risk of infection, the threat posed by nefarious bacteria in the hospital environment becomes even more menacing.
There are numerous reports and studies dedicated to the topic of hospital cleanliness and the prevention of nosocomial infection.
Similarly, molds such as ergot have been known to grow in certain cereals such as rye and may be potentially hazardous by dint of their production of toxic alkaloids similar to lysergic acid. Aspergillus niger and other molds have been known to produce spores that may cause allergic reactions as well as aggravate respiratory conditions such as asthma. A. niger may be particularly problematic if it begins to grow on a damp wall, or in air conditioning equipment in the home or commercial buildings.
Certain yeasts, such as Candida albicans, can represent another troublesome class of microorganisms. C. albicans has been associated with diaper rash in infants, oral thrush in children and immuno-compromised adults, and vaginal yeast infections. Yeasts may also infect the pharageal region of the body, as well as the gastro-intestinal tract.
Current methods of bacteria detection involve sampling the surfaces of equipment. In a food processing environment, the equipment could be meat cutting machinery, whereas in a food preparing environment such as a restaurant or in the home, the surface could be a table, a cutting board, the inside of a refrigerator, or a work surface. The sample is then incubated overnight to growth a culture. The overnight growth culture allows the sample to grow on an agar plate at appropriate temperature and humidity so that the bacteria grow and multiply until they form colonies large enough to be visible to the naked eye. After incubating for the prescribed time and allowing the bacteria colonies to grow, the agar plate sample is examined manually and the colony forming units (CFU) estimated by a trained technician. This method is somewhat expensive and involves a substantial time lag; a time lag in which contaminated product may have been shipped or people exposed to microbes present.
It is clear that there exists a need for a process and product which allows for the rapid detection of harmful microorganisms.


An attachment apparatus for attaching to a tubular. The apparatus may include a flexible member extending circumferentially around the tubular more than once. A tension force on the flexible member may cause the flexible member to apply a first radially-inward gripping force on the tubular. An annular sleeve may be positioned radially-outward from the flexible member. The sleeve may apply a second radially-inward gripping force on the flexible member and the tubular.

Oilfield tubulars, such as pipes, drill strings, casing, tubing, etc., may be used to transport fluids or to produce water, oil, and/or gas from geologic formations through wellbores. In various applications, a shoulder may be formed on an exterior of the tubular, e.g., for gripping the tubular and/or for connecting tools, such as centralizers, scrapers, cement baskets, etc, to the exterior of the tubular.
A variety of structures are employed to provide such shoulders. In some cases, integral pans of the tubular itself, such as expanded diameter sections, e.g., pipe joints at an end of the tubular, may be employed as the shoulder. In other cases, especially when a shoulder is needed between the ends of the tubular, a separate stop collar is generally fixed in position around the tubular to provide the shoulder. Such stop collars generally include a metal ring, which is either slid over an end of the tubular or hinged so as to receive the tubular laterally.
To fix the position of the stop collar on the tubular, the stop collars generally employ a gripping feature that engages the tubular. Such gripping features often include adhesives and/or marking structures, such as teeth or set screws. However, for some tubulars and/or applications thereof, marking the tubular may not be appropriate, either because marking the tubular damages the tubular or is otherwise incompatible with the application, or because the tubular may be too hard for marking structures to adequately bite into the tubular, resulting in inadequate holding forces. Adhesives, although suitable in a variety of stop collar applications, may lack sufficient durability or bonding strength to alone provide sufficient holding force.
In other situations, a tool may be connected directly to a tubular, such that it is movable or fixed in position relative to the tubular. Such tools may be connected to the tubular in generally the same way as a stop collar is attached to the tubular. Accordingly, gripping the tubular in the context of tool-attachment may be subject to the same or similar challenges as experienced in gripping the tubular in the context of a stop collar.

Wrap-around band and sleeve attachment apparatus for an oilfield tubular


Cloud services release orchestration with a reusable deployment pipeline. According to some implementations, responsive to receiving from a COS controller parameters from configuration information provided to the COS controller while an app aware proxy routes production traffic to a first application (app) version that communicates with a database management system (DBMS) and that runs in container orchestration system (COS) pods having first app version containers, causing a validation of a second app version using COS pods having second app version containers that are now live after having been brought up by the COS controller responsive to the provision of the configuration information. After the validation, causing the transition to sending production traffic to the second app version containers that are determined to be live instead of to the first app version containers. Then causing post-release activities using DBMS connection information for the first app version that was in the configuration information and that was provided through the COS controller.

"Cloud" services provide shared resources, software, and information to computers and other electronic devices upon request. In cloud computing environments, software can be accessible over the internet rather than installed locally on in-house computer systems. Cloud services typically involve over-the-internet provision of dynamically scalable and often virtualized resources. Technological details can be abstracted from the users, who no longer have need for expertise in, or control over, the technology infrastructure "in the cloud" that supports them.
The term "micro-services architecture" refers to an architecture in which each of the micro-services does just one thing efficiently and interacts with others of the micro-services as needed. This contrasts with monolithic architectures in which complex software is run on a single, powerful server. Each of the micro-services may use a different type of hardware and/or software to respectively perform a specialized type of processing different from the types of processing performed by the other micro-services. Moreover, the micro-services architecture allows an application to be decomposed into different ones of these smaller micro-services, improving modularity and making the program code easier to understand, design and test. For example, individual micro-services may be modified (e.g., upgraded, swapped out) without affecting the operation of other micro-services used by the application.
A container-orchestration system (COS) automates deployment, scaling and management of containerized applications (also referred to as containerized software and containerized apps); in other words, it provides a platform for automating deployment, scaling, and operations of application containers across clusters of hosts. For example, Kubernetes is a COS that works with a range of container tools, including Docker. Another example of a COS is Docker Swarm. A container is a self-contained execution environment, such as a Linux execution environment; in other words, a container is a standard unit of software that packages up code and all its dependencies, so the application runs quickly and reliably from one computing environment to another. A container image is used to create one or more containers at runtime. A container image is a lightweight, standalone, executable package of software that includes everything needed to run an application: code, runtime, system tools, system libraries and settings (e.g., a Docker container image becomes a Docker container when it is run on Docker Engine; another container engine is Rkt).
With regard to hardware, a COS may include: 1) nodes (also referred to herein as COS nodes), where a node is a representation of a single machine in a COS cluster, where that single machine can be a physical machine in a datacenter or virtual machine hosted on a cloud provider: 2) clusters (also referred to herein as COS clusters), where a cluster represents a more powerful machine resulting from pooling the resources (CPUs and RAM) of the nodes within the cluster; and 3) persistent volumes (a persistent volume is a file system that can be mounted to the cluster, without being associated with any particular node; while traditional local storage associated to each node is treated as a temporary cache to hold programs and data).
With regard to software, a COS may include: 1) containers (also referred to as COS containers, Docker containers, etc.); 2) pods (also referred to herein as "replicas," COS pods," or "kpods" in a Kubernetes implementation), where a pod is the unit of replication and wraps one or more containers that will share the same resources and local network; 3) deployments, where a deployment manages a pod, including declaring the number of replicas of the pod and monitoring the pods; and 4) ingress, where an ingress refers to a communication channel between a service running in a pod and the outside world, and is typically either an ingress controller, a load balancer, Kube-proxy (a combination of a network proxy and a load balancer). In addition, a COS has support for an abstraction (e.g., a Kubernetes Service) that defines a logical set of pods and a policy by which to access them (sometimes called a micro-service), as well as an API (e.g., Kubernetes Endpoints API) so that the service provided by one of such abstraction can call the service provided by another such abstraction.
In operation, a COS cluster of nodes is formed and a set of one or more persistent volumes is attached to that cluster; and a COS deployment is launched onto the cluster, which deployment causes the spinning up of the declared number of COS pods (where spinning up a COS pod includes executing the containerized application(s) specified in the container image(s) identified for that COS pod) and monitors them.
A COS typically includes a COS controller to control operation of the COS. A COS controller can receive an operation according to configuration information (sometimes referred to as manifests, an "application programming interface (API) object descriptions," or "application configuration information") that describes the desired state of an application in terms of COS constructs.


A rocket fairing mounted on a forward section of a rocket body included in a rocket comprises a first structure formed on the fairing-base side, and including a first side wall defining a first storage space for storing a first payload; and a second structure formed on the fairing-forward side, and including a second side wall defining a second storage space for storing a second payload. The first side wall has a plurality of first side wall segments capable of being separated from each other along a plane including the longitudinal axis of the fairing and of being turned away from the first payload when releasing the first payload from the first storage space. The second side wall has a plurality of second side wall segments capable of being separated from each other along a plane including the longitudinal axis of the fairing and of being turned away from the second payload when releasing the second payload from the second storage space.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a rocket fairing for use with a rocket for simultaneously launching a plurality of satellites, and a method of opening the rocket fairing.
2. Description of the Related Art
Two artificial satellites (hereinafter referred to simply as xe2x80x9csatellitesxe2x80x9d) are mounted on the rocket body (sometimes, referred to simply as xe2x80x9cbodyxe2x80x9d) of a rocket and the two satellites are launched simultaneously to launch the satellites efficiently.
Referring to FIG. 14 showing a conventional rocket fairing 6 for dual satellite launching in a front elevation, the rocket fairing 6 is attached to a forward section 11 of a rocket body 1 included in a rocket. The rocket fairing 6 defines two storage spaces, i.e., a first storage space 4 and a second storage space 5. The rocket fairing 6 has a first support structure 7 and a second support structure 8 respectively for supporting a first satellite 2 and a second satellite 3, and a first shell 9 and a second shell 10 respectively surrounding the satellites 2 and 3. The satellites 2 and 3 are stored in the storage spaces 4 and 5 formed in the fairing 6 and are supported by the support structures 7 and 8 disposed on the side of the rocket body 1 relative to the satellites 2 and 3, respectively.
FIG. 15 is an exploded front elevation of the fairing 6 shown in FIG. 14. The fairing 6 can be divided into a plurality of components 12 to 15. The first component 12 has the frustum-shaped first support structure 7 and a cylindrical side wall 16. The first support structure 7 is fitted in the side wall 16. The outer surface of an end portion of the first support structure 7 on the fairing-base side is continuous with the outer surface of an end portion of the side wall 16 on the fairing-base side. The first support structure 7, i.e., a component of the component 12, is also a component of the forward section 11 of the body 1. The first component 12 is attached to the forward section 11 of the body 1.
The second component 13 has the frustum-shaped second support structure 8 and a cylindrical side wall 17. The second support structure 8 is continuous with the forward end of the side wall 17 on the fairing-forward side and is tapered away from the side wall 17. The other end, i.e., the base end, of the side wall 17 of the second component 13 on the fairing-base side is connected detachably to the forward end of the side wall 16 of the first component 12 on the fairing-forward side. The components 12 and 13 define the first storage space 4. The side walls 16 and 17 form the first shell 9 surrounding the first satellite 2 stored in the first storage space 4.
The third component 14 and the fourth component 15 form the second shell 10 for covering the second satellite 3. The components 14 and 15 have semicylindrical side wall segments 18 and 19, and semiconic segments 20 and 21, respectively. The components 14 and 15 can detachably be joined together. The second shell 10 having a closed nose and the shape of a tapered shell is formed when the components 14 and 15 are joined together. The second shell 10 is put on the second component 13 with the base ends of the semicylindrical side wall segments 18 and 19 on the fairing-base side detachably connected to the forward end of the side wall 17 of the second component 13 on the fairing-forward side. When the second shell 10 is connected to the second component 13, the second support structure 8 of the second component 13 is received in a space defined by the cylindrical side wall formed by joining together the semicylindrical side wall segments 18 and 19. The components 14 and 15 and the support structure 8 define the second storage space 5. The semicylindrical side wall segments 18 and 19 of the components 14 and 15 form the second shell 10 surrounding the satellite 3.
The storage spaces 4 and 5 respectively containing the satellites 2 and 3 are opened, the satellites 2 and 3 are disconnected from the support structures 7 and 8, and the satellites 2 and 3 are released into space. More specifically, the components 14 and 15 are unfastened from each other and from the second component 13, the second shell 10 is split by a parting plane including the longitudinal axis of the fairing 6, i.e., a longitudinal parting plane, and the components 14 and 15 are moved away from the satellite 3 to open the storage space 5, and then the satellite 3 is disconnected from the support structure 8 and is released into space. Subsequently, the second component 13 is disconnected and separated from the first component 12 to split the side wall 9 along a plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the fairing 6, the second component 13 is moved away from the satellite 2 to open the storage space 4, and then the satellite is disconnected from the support structure 7 and is released into space.
Referring to FIG. 16 showing the conventional fairing 6 in a sectional view, the first storage space 4 formed on the fairing-base side to store the first satellite 2 is opened by splitting the side wall 9 by a parting plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the fairing 6. When the first storage space 4 is thus opened, the side wall 16 forming a portion of the side wall 9 and surrounding a portion of the first satellite 2 on the fairing-base side is held on the forward section 11 of the rocket body 1. When releasing the first satellite 2, it is difficult to disconnect and release the first satellite 2 from the first support structure 7 such that the first satellite 2 moves away from the first support structure 7 along the longitudinal axis of the fairing 6 without tilting its axis. Sometimes, an error in a direction in which the first satellite 2 is released, i.e., the difference between a direction in which the first satellite 2 is released and the longitudinal axis of the fairing 6, and the tilting of the first satellite occur.
If the portion of the first satellite 2 on the fairing-base side is formed in a cylindrical shape conforming to the shape of the side wall 16, it is possible that the side wall 16 interferes with the portion of the first satellite 2 on the fairing-base side due to the deviation of the direction of movement of the first satellite 2 from the correct direction and the tilting of the first satellite when the first satellite 2 is released.
To avoid such interference between the side wall 16 and the portion of the first satellite 2, an available region 27 available for receiving the first satellite 2 becomes small; that is,the size of the first satellite 2 must be reduced. Therefore, while a portion of an available region 28 available for receiving the second satellite 3 on the fairing-base side may be cylindrical, a portion of the available region 27 available for receiving the first satellite 2 on the fairing-base side must be tapered. Consequently, a cylindrical region of the same diameter as that of the available region 28 for receiving the second satellite 3 cannot be formed in the available region 27 for receiving the first satellite 2.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a rocket fairing for use with a rocket body included in a rocket mounted with a plurality of payloads, capable of forming a large space for receiving the payload disposed on the fairing-base side, and a method of opening the rocket fairing.
According to one aspect of the present invention, a rocket fairing mounted on a forward section of a rocket body included in a rocket comprises: a first structure for storing a first payload disposed on the fairing-base side, and a second structure for storing a second payload disposed on the on the fairing-forward side, connected to a forward end of the first structure on the fairing-forward side and forming a forward section of the fairing; wherein the first structure comprises a first side wall defining a first storage space for storing the first payload therein, and a first support structure disposed in the first storage space to support the first payload by its base part; the first side wall comprising a plurality of first side wall segments capable of being separated from each other along a plane including the longitudinal axis of the fairing and of being turned away from the first payload when releasing the first payload from the first storage space.
Preferably, the base end of each of the first side wall segment on the fairing-base side is pivotally joined to the forward end of the rocket by a hinge mechanism having first and second joint members capable of separating from each other when the first side wall segment is turned through an angle exceeding a predetermined angle.
Preferably, the first joint member of the hinge mechanism is a movable joint member attached to the base end of the first side wall segment and provided with a retaining pin, and the second joint member is a fixed joint member attached to the rocket body of the rocket and provided with hinge pins, the movable joint member is provided with slots for receiving the hinge pins of the fixed joint member, formed in its base end portion so as to extend from its base end toward the forward end of the fairing, and the fixed joint member is provided with a slot for receiving the retaining pin of the movable joint member, formed in its forward portion on the fairing-forward side so as to extend inwardly from its outer side.
Preferably, a plurality of first structures similar to the foregoing first structure are connected end to end, and the second structure is connected to the first structure nearest to the forward end of the fairing.
Preferably, the rocket fairing further comprises a holding means for holding the opened first side wall segments of the first side wall at an angle smaller than the predetermined angle in order that the opened first side wall segments remain on the forward end part of the rocket body.
Preferably, the rocket fairing further comprises an opening means capable of applying forces to the plurality of first side wall segments to move the same away from the first payload when opening the first side wall.
Preferably, the rocket fairing further comprises a second support structure adapted to support the second payload, the second support structure comprises a plurality of second support segments formed integrally with the plurality of first side wall segments, respectively, and the second support segments are opened together with the first side wall segments when the first side wall is opened.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, a rocket fairing opening method of opening a rocket fairing mounted on a forward section of a rocket body included in a rocket, comprising a first structure for storing a first payload disposed on the fairing-base side, including a first side wall defining a first storage space for storing the first payload therein and having a plurality of first side wall segments capable of being separated from each other along a plane including the longitudinal axis of the fairing, and a first support structure disposed in the first storage space to support the first payload by its base part; and a second structure for storing a second payload disposed on the fairing-forward side, connected to a forward end of the first structure on the fairing-forward side, forming a forward section of the fairing, and including a second side wall defining a second storage space for storing the second payload therein and having a plurality of second side wall segments capable of being separated from each other along a plane including the longitudinal axis of the fairing and of being turned away from the second payload; comprises the steps of: opening the plurality of second side wall segments of the second side wall of the second structure defining the second storage space so that the second side wall segments are moved away from the second payload; separating the second payload from the second support structure and releasing the same; and opening the first structure defining the first storage space storing the first payload by dividing the first side wall along the planes including the longitudinal axis of the fairing into the plurality of first side wall segments and moving the first side wall segments and the second support structure away from the first payload before separating the first payload from the first support structure and releasing the same.
Preferably, the first side wall segments are separated from the forward end of the rocket body of the rocket when the first side wall is opened.
Preferably, the base end of each of the first side wall segments on the fairing-base side is pivotally connected to the forward end of the forward section of the rocket by a hinge mechanism having first and second joint members capable of separating from each other when the first side wall segment is turned through an angle exceeding a predetermined angle.
Preferably, the first joint member of the hinge mechanism is a movable joint member attached to the base end of the first side wall segment and provided with a retaining pin, and the second joint member is a fixed joint member attached to the rocket body of the rocket and provided with hinge pins, the movable joint member is provided with slots for receiving the hinge pins of the fixed joint member, formed in its base end portion so as to extend from the base end toward the forward end of the fairing, the fixed joint member is provided with a slot for receiving the retaining pin of the movable joint member, formed in its forward portion on the fairing-forward side so as to extend inwardly from its outer side, the movable hinge segment turns together with the first side wall segment on the hinge pin of the fixed joint member, the retaining pin of the movable joint member moves out of the slot of the fixed joint member and the movable joint member separates from the hinge pins of the fixed joint member when the first side wall segment is turned through an angle exceeding the predetermined angle, and each of the first side wall segments separates from the forward end of the rocket body of the rocket.
Preferably, a plurality of first structures similar to the foregoing first structure are connected end to end, a plurality of first payloads are stored in first storage spaces defined by the first structures, the second structure is connected to the forward end of the first structure nearest to the forward end of the fairing, and the plurality of first structures are opened successively starting from the first structure nearest to the forward end of the fairing toward the first structure nearest to the base end of the fairing to release the plurality of first payloads successively after opening the second structure and releasing the second payload.
Preferably, the separated first side wall segments of the opened first side wall remain on the forward end part of the rocket body of the rocket.
Preferably, the base end of each of the first side wall segments on the fairing-base side is connected pivotally to the forward end of the forward section of the rocket by a hinge mechanism having first and second joint members capable of separating from each other when the first side wall segment is turned through an angle exceeding a predetermined angle when the first side wall is opened, and the first side wall segments are held at an angle smaller than the predetermined angle by a holding means to hold the first side wall segments on the forward section of the rocket body of the rocket when the first side wall is opened.
Preferably, the first joint member of the hinge mechanism is a movable joint member attached to the base end of the first side wall segment and provided with a retaining pin, the second joint member is a fixed joint member attached to the rocket body of the rocket and provided with hinge pins, the movable joint member is provided with slots for receiving the hinge pins of the fixed joint member, formed in its base end portion so as to extend from its base end toward the forward end of the fairing, the fixed joint member is provided with a slot for receiving the retaining pin of the movable joint member, formed in its forward portion on the fairing-forward side so as to extend inwardly from its outer side, the movable joint member turns on the hinge pin of the fixed joint member together with the first side wall segment when the first side wall is opened, the first side wall segment is restrained from turning by the holding means before the first side wall segments are turned through an angle exceeding the predetermined angle, and the first side wall segments are held in an opened position at an angle smaller than the predetermined angle.
Preferably, force for moving the plurality of first side wall segments away from the first payload is applied to the first side wall segments by an opening means.
Preferably, the second support structure comprises a plurality of second support segments formed integrally with the plurality of first side wall segments, respectively, and the second support segments are opened together with the first side wall segments when the first side wall is opened.
In this specification, the term xe2x80x9copenxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9copen a fairingxe2x80x9d signifies to split the fairing into a plurality of portions to release a payload stored in a storage space defined by the fairing, and to displace the plurality of potions so as to open the storage space. The term xe2x80x9cfairing-base sidexe2x80x9d signifies the side of the base end of the fairing. The term 11 fairing-forward side, signifies the side of the forward end of the fairing.

Rocket fairing and method of opening the same

National Space Development Agency of Japan


A manual tool for cutting and removing weeds and grass (11) from gardens and landscaping beds, having a cutting blade (9) and rake (1) attached to the rear and front respectively of a chassis (5) mounted on an axle (4) and wheels (3a, 3b) with a handle (6) angularly attached to the rear of the chassis (5). The cutting blade (9) is preferably concave shaped with a front concave cutting edge (13). When the tool is pushed forward by the handle (6) the concave cutting blade (9) pulls and cuts weeds and grass (11) below the surface of the ground (7). The cut weeds are then removed by pulling backward on the handle (6) which drags tines (2) on the rake (1) over the ground (7) to gather and remove the weeds (11). Optionally, the rake (1) is removeably attachable so that the tool can be used only for cutting weeds (11) as desired.

This invention relates to garden and landscaping tools, more particularly to a weeding tool designed to be used manually.
Normally, weeds or grass, which need to be removed from gardens or flower beds, must be pulled by hand, which is very time consuming and back-breaking work. An alternative to hand removal is to use a cultivator which is pushed through the dirt. However, a cultivator doesn't remove many weeds, but merely churns weeds into the ground. Furthermore, pushing the cultivator through dirt is also back-breaking work. A further alternative to the afore-mentioned approaches includes the use of a machine-powered rotor tiller which churns rather than removes weeds. However, rotor tillers are difficult to use in some gardens and around shrubs and in flower beds due to their size and difficulty in controlling the machine. Moreover, such machines are quite expensive, thus beyond means of many gardeners, and certainly not worthwhile to purchase for small gardens.
In view of the above, there is a need for a relatively inexpensive manual tool which adequately removes weeds and grass in gardens, around flower beds and for other landscaping purposes.
The prior art contains numerous patented tools, but none with the same structure and features as the present invention. Amongst the pertinent prior art tools are the following:
______________________________________ U.S. Pat. No. Inventor Date of Patent ______________________________________ 2,225,108 Glascock Dec. 17, 1940 2,591,420 Gillespie April 1, 1952 DES 262,596 Green Jan. 12, 1982 2,010,325 Sawyer Aug. 6, 1935 2,790,297 Gardner April 30, 1957 DES 230,127 Banner Jan. 29, 1974 4,854,391 Johnson Aug. 8, 1989 4,945,996 Codding Aug. 7, 1990 5,003,760 Webb April 2, 1991 4,832,132 Barcelon May 23, 1989 4,791,995 Hochlan, Jr. Dec. 20, 1988 4,821,500 MacIvergan April 18, 1989 4,483,133 Pasley Nov. 20, 1984 ______________________________________
The Glascock patent teaches a combination garden tool having multiple prongs in front and back and supported by a roller, but has no rake or weed cutter. The Gillespie patent teaches a cultivator with prongs having a blade behind it for cutting weeds, but has no rake and the blade is not properly curved for weed cutting. The Green patent illustrates a garden tool with a row digger and coverer. The Sawyer patent shows various rake attachments which convert a rake for use as a hoe or weeder, but it too has a different structure than the present invention. The Gardner patent teaches a guard attachment for a rake designed to limit the depth of penetration of the rake prongs into the ground. The Banner patent teaches a one-wheel weeder with a cutting blade, but no rake. The Johnson patent teaches a multiple use cultivator that has no weeder. The Codding patent shows a rake and soil conditioner with an entirely different structure than the present invention. The Webb patent teaches a combination garden tool for hoeing, raking and cultivating, but has no weed cutter or removal tool. The Barcelon patent teaches a hand weeder with a prong and screw portion that engages the root of the weed for removal. The Hochlan, Jr. patent teaches a manual tool for mulching and weeding having a different structure than the present invention. The MacIvergan patent teaches a manual lake rake that is not close in structure to the present invention. Finally, the Pasley patent shows a tool having raking tines and also a cutting bar in the back for use in weeding, but although it performs the same function as the present invention, it has an entirely different structure and does not have wheels which would make it difficult for use.
In contrast to the above prior patented art, the present invention fulfills the above need and provides various objects and advantages as set forth hereinafter in a different manner which are not provided in any of the afore-referenced patents.


A gaming device is provided with detectors configured to substantially reduce the potential for unauthorized manipulation of a coin output system. A pair of detectors can be used to output an error signal when the sequence or timing of detector blockages departs from that which would be expected from normal coin movement. A second optical detector is configured to provide a signal used to output an error signal when the second detector detects radiation or light during a time that a first detector is also detecting light from a paired radiation source. An error signal is preferably output when an optical detector is blocked for a period of time which exceeds a maximum blockage threshold, and preferably the threshold may be dynamically adjusted. In one embodiment, a sensor in or adjacent an output hopper is used to predict coin output from the hopper and an error signal is generated when more than a predetermined period of time passes, following a coin output prediction, without a coin being detected by a downstream optical detector.

A number of gaming devices, such as slot machines, poker or other card game machines, Keno machines and the like, are capable of operating in a mode in which some or all prizes or awards as a result of gaming are paid by dispensing a plurality of coins from the gaming terminal. Typically, gaming terminal accumulates coins and, in response to a win event, dispenses or outputs a number of coins, depending upon the type of win, as established in, e.g., a pay table for the machine. In a number of such machines, the payout is controlled by a microprocessor which initiates the payout process, then continuously compares the number of coins dispensed to the number of coins in the prize, terminating dispensing of the coins once the number of coins defined for the prize has been dispensed. For example, in a slot machine, when a predetermined reel combination, such as three 7's, appears at the reel stop positions, the microprocessor will consult a pay table such as a table stored in memory and determine that N coins should be dispensed as the prize for such result. The number N is stored in a memory, or a counter, by the microprocessor. The microprocessor will send a signal to an output hopper causing the hopper to begin dispensing coins. A signal from a coin sensor along the coin output path is used to decrement the counter or memory location until a value of zero is achieved in the counter or memory location, whereupon the microprocessor issues a signal causing the hopper to cease dispensing coins.
As can be seen from the above description, there is a potential for dispensing an incorrect number of coins as a result of, among other possibilities, the signals from the coin output sensor incorrectly reflecting the coins actually dispensed. Such inaccurate coin count, although potentially arising from hardware or software failure or errors, is sometimes the result of an unauthorized manipulation of the coin output sensing system.
Accordingly, it would be useful to provide a gaming device in which there was a reduced potential for unauthorized manipulation of the coin output sensing or control system.

Sensing of coin output from a gaming device to reduce incorrect number of coins output


An image-capturing device includes: an illumination light source configured to emit illumination light to illuminate an object; a laser light source configured to emit laser light with a peak wavelength in a range of wavelengths absorbed or reflected by at least one region of the object; an imaging device configured to take an image of the object; a speckle variable device configured to change a speckle pattern in an image acquired by the imaging device over time; and an image processing device configured to process the image acquired by the imaging device, which includes: measuring a change over time in a intensity signal from each pixel constituting the image, and dividing an imaged region of the object into a plurality of portions based on a waveform of the change in the intensity signal over time.

The present disclosure relates to an image-capturing device including a speckle variable device, and an image processing method of sorting regions of an object on the basis of a speckle pattern.
Laser light emitted from laser light sources is coherent and therefore causes strong interference. When laser light is scattered by a scattering medium such as a rough surface, scattered light has a random phase distribution and causes irregular interference. As a result, a fine-scale granular pattern having a high contrast, called a "speckle pattern," is observed.
In the case in which a laser light source is used as a light source for a display device such as a projector or as an illumination light source for a lighting device, speckles are regarded as noise that should be removed or reduced.
Laser speckle contrast imaging (LSCI) has been developed, in which biological tissue having blood cells, which are a scattering medium, is illuminated with laser light, and based on speckles obtained from the biological tissue, the moving speed of blood cells (i.e., blood flow velocity) is measured. In the LSCI technology, speckles are not noise and are used as a "signal" that is needed for the detection of the blood flow velocity.
Japanese Patent Publication No. 2014-32371 discloses a speckle contrast generator that generates speckle noise having a desired speckle contrast when laser light is scattered by a screen.

Image-capturing device and image processing method


A lighting device includes a plurality of light-transmitting guide plates 1, 2, 3 laminated in at least three layers and a plurality of light emitting elements 4, 5, 6 arranged so as to oppose to respective lateral sides of the light-transmitting guide plates 1, 2, 3 to allow luminance flux in different color with respect to each light-transmitting guide plate to be incident on the corresponding light-transmitting guide plate. Each of the light-transmitting guide plates 1, 2, 3 has a plurality of reflecting surfaces 7, 8, 9 formed on the backside of the plate to change a propagation direction of the luminance flux propagated in the each light-transmitting guide plate, allowing the luminance flux, of which propagation direction has been changed by the reflecting surfaces 7, 8, 9, to be emitted from the front side of the each light-transmitting guide plates.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a lighting device having a surface light source device and a light guide plate, and a display device having the lighting device. More particularly, the invention relates to a lighting device using a number of point light sources such as LED (light emitting diode), and a display device having the lighting device as a surface light source device.
2. Description of Related Art
There has been proposed a display device configured to display an image by illuminating a spatial light modulating element, such as LCD (liquid crystal display), using a lighting device.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the constitution of a display device using a conventional transmission TFT-LCD (thin film transistor-liquid crystal display)
FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the display device of FIG. 1.
In the display device using a non-illuminant spatial light modulating element represented by LCD, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a lighting device (backlight unit) 102 is arranged on the backside of the spatial light modulating element 101. White illumination light emitted from the lighting device 102 enters picture electrodes (transparent electrodes) for red 103R, picture electrodes for green 103G and picture electrodes for blue 103B. The illumination light via the picture electrodes for respective colors is further transmitted through color filters for respective colors 104R, 104G and 104B to be red light, green light and blue light, respectively. Then, these color lights are combined to a color image for display.
As a lighting device for such a display device, for example, there is known a so-called "direct type" lighting device having a light source and a diffuser plate of which backside is opposed to the light source. In this lighting device, illumination light emitted from the light source enters the diffuser plate through its backside. Then, the illumination light emitted from the front side of the diffuser plate enters the spatial light modulating element.
As another lighting device for the display device, for example, there is also known a so-called "edge light type" lighting device having a light source and a light guide plate of which lateral side is opposed to the light source. In this lighting device, illumination light emitted from the light source enters the light guide plate through its lateral side. Then, the illumination light from the front side of the light guide plate enters the spatial light modulating element. The illumination light transmitted to the backside of the light guide plate is reflected by a reflection sheet (reflector) and returned into the light guide plate again.
Also, the lighting device may be provided, on the front side (i.e. emitting surface) of the diffuser plate or the light guide plate, with a prism lens sheet for condensing the illumination light emitted from the front side within a view angle to thereby improve brightness or a second diffuser plate (or diffuser sheet) for equalizing brightness.
As a light source in such a lighting device, there is employed a light emitting element, such as cold cathode lamp etc. forming a linear light source and LED forming a point light source. In case of light emitting elements as the light source, a plurality of light emitting elements are arranged apart from each other so as to oppose to an incident surface (backside or lateral side) of the diffuser plate or the light guide plate, as disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Registration No. 2578529 (Citation 1) and Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 10-82915 (Citation 2).
In the lighting devices of Citation 1 and Citation 2, in order to facilitate the positioning of the light emitting elements with respect to the diffuser plate (or the light guide plate), it is provided with recesses for fitting the light emitting elements. With the engagement between the recesses and the light emitting elements, they are arranged in position against the diffuser plate (or the light guide plate).