According to one embodiment, an embodiment of a pixel conversion device of the invention improves outlines of edge peripheries of characters, etc., of a color digital image signal. The device includes a histogram extraction module, a picture characteristic extraction module which detects a luminance boundary in a luminance signal block on the basis of histogram information, sets a color-difference boundary of the same pattern as that of the luminance boundary to a virtual color-difference signal block, and generates a control signal for unifying the same area by pixel data of the same value, and a data rate conversion module which converts a color-difference signal block before conversion into the same data rate as that of the luminance signal block to correlate the converted color-difference signal block to the virtual color-difference signal block, corrects resolution and obtains a color-difference signal for a format of 4:4:4.

1. Field
One embodiment of the invention relates to a pixel conversion device and a pixel conversion method, and the invention is effective to reduce color smears of characters, for example.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a terrestrial digital broadcast, a digital image signal including a digital luminance signal and a digital color-difference signal is transmitted in a format of 4:2:0. In recent years, the resolution of a digital television device has improved, so that opportunities to transmit a digital image signal including many characters through a digital broadcast have increased.
Therefore, in the digital television device, it has been desired to apply image-quality improving processing to the image signal including the characters. As regards a device for applying the image-quality improving processing, various techniques have been developed. For instance, patent document 1 (Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2004-304635) has disclosed a technique which creates a histogram of a luminance signal to set a background level for an object pixel. This technique applies prescribed image processing on the basis of the prescribed background level to improve contrast between the characters or the like and the background.
In patent document 1, as regards the luminance signal, the contrast between the characters and the background is good and the image quality of the image including the characters is improved. However, the digital image signal consisting of the luminance signal and the color-difference signal produces a problem that color smears occur at the peripheries of the characters. More specifically, if colored characters exist on a colored background, there is some possibility that the characters become vaguely-outlined.

Pixel conversion device and pixel conversion method


The present disclosure relates to a method of controlling gear selection in a transmission of a vehicle in response to a directional shift requested by an operator and to a control system for controlling gear selection to manage directional shifts in vehicles, from a first direct to a second direction (e.g. forward to reverse). The method compares the current transmission output speed with a predetermined direction shift threshold transmission output speed. If the current transmission output speed is less than or equal to the predetermined direction shift threshold transmission output speed, the transmission is caused to execute a direction shift from the initial first direction gear to the same second direction gear, or a next highest second direction gear if there is no second direction gear which corresponds to the initial first direction gear. If the current transmission output speed is greater than the predetermined direction shift threshold transmission output speed, the direction shift is inhibited until the current transmission output speed slows to less than or equal to the predetermined direction shift threshold transmission output speed.

Many vehicles, such as work machines, mining equipment and other work vehicles may include a powershift transmission coupled to a power source, such as an internal combustion engine or an electric motor, in order to provide more flexible use of the power output of the power source. The transmission for such a vehicle typically comprises a plurality of speed and direction changing clutches, and a plurality of transmission gears, wherein combinations of pairs of direction and speed changing clutches effectively recruit transmission gears to provide a plurality of transmission gear ratios. The transmission may provide not only a number of gears having gear ratios that enable the work machine to travel at a relatively wide range of speeds or conditions that might be impractical without a transmission, but also for a change of vehicle direction between forward and reverse. Some transmissions are configured to change gears automatically in order to improve ease of operation of the vehicle through its speed range.
The direction of vehicle travel may be selectable by an operator via a suitable control device, such as a joystick. Operator selected direction shifts, to change the direction of travel while the vehicle is moving, are common especially with vehicles such as backhoe loaders and forklifts. Operators may decelerate during a change of direction by selecting the drive direction opposite to that of travel. Although some direction changing shifts may be acceptable, certain shifts, for example high speed direction changing shifts from high speed transmission gears in one direction to low speed transmission gears in a reverse direction, may be undesirable as they may cause damage to one or both of the proposed incoming speed and direction changing clutches when engaged.
During a transmission shift, energy is transmitted to the clutch plates and the amount of energy is proportional to the speed differential of the clutch plates. In a high speed direction shift, the clutch plates are rotating in opposite directions with a high speed differential before engagement. Therefore, in the time it takes for the clutch to fully lock up, a large amount of energy may be transmitted to the clutch plates, being converted from kinetic energy to heat energy due to friction. The increased energy requirement may cause increases in the heat generated at the transmission clutches during the velocity change, and can result in premature clutch failure when the clutch temperature repeatedly exceeds the material durability limits of the clutch components. Similar issues can arise when the vehicle accelerates and clutches cause the vehicle to upshift and when the vehicle decelerates and clutches maintain the current gear or downshift for engine braking. In some powershift transmissions, the incoming direction changing clutch is often most prone to damage during high speed direction changing shifts as much of the energy of the vehicle is effectively absorbed by the direction changing clutch during such a shift.
One option to mitigate this behaviour is to raise a warning, but this may still allow the potential damage to occur. Another option is to inhibit a direction shift. Inhibiting a shift includes holding the original gear but limiting engine speed to slow the machine or selecting neutral to slow the vehicle. Inhibiting a shift may be problematic as the vehicle's behaviour may not be as the operator expects. Where the operator expects a rapid deceleration, if only a moderate or no deceleration is realised, this may lead to degradation of control or the need to employ inconvenient stopping mechanisms, such as dropping work tools or employing the parking brake.
Thus, there is a need for a control strategy to slow the vehicle down to a speed where a transmission direction shift is appropriate and hence prevent the transmission damage whilst maintaining vehicle control.
U.S. Pat. No. 9,689,490B2 describes a method for velocity change gear selection and shift execution for a motor grader, including a method for controlling directional shift gear selection. When the rotational speed of the transmission output shaft is greater than a predetermined limit, the transmission is prevented from shifting directly to a reverse gear. Instead, the transmission initially downshifts to a lower forward gear (e.g. from 4F to 3F) and a retarding force is applied to slow the work machine until the rotational speed of the transmission output shaft is less than the predetermined maximum velocity limit. When the speed is less than the predetermined limit, the directional shift is completed by shifting the transmission to a lower reverse gear (e.g. from 3F to 1R). This is a combinational direction shift, i.e. there is a direction and gear number change. In some cases the direction shift is prohibited until the operator slows the machine to below the predetermined speed.
However this control strategy may not be suitable for all types of machines and all types of transmission systems.


A self-supported optical correlator has a first holder having two opposite ends, one of the opposite ends being provided with anchor points, the other end being provided with a light source. The correlator also has a second holder having two opposite ends, one of which is provided with anchor points, the other being provided with a light receiving element, and a plurality of intermediary holders, each having two opposite ends provided with anchor points, at least one of the intermediary holders being provided with a spatial light modulator for projecting an image and another of the intermediary holders being provided with another spatial light modulator for projecting a filter. Each of the intermediary holders is provided with optical components secured within the holders. The said anchor points are adapted to secure the first, second and intermediary holders together linearly end to end; so that when the intermediary holders are assembled end to end, and the first holder is assembled at one extremity and the other holder is assembled at another extremity, the resulting assembly forms said optical correlator. The optical components are toleranced, and the anchor point serve to assemble a structure which does not require additional adjustments.

Various screening tasks require massive computing capabilities. Although computing devices have shown ever increasing processing power, there is still a need for high speed computing, especially when it comes to the screening of images. Optical correlators could eventually fill the gap between the applications and the processing requirements.
An optical correlator takes advantage of the powerful capabilities of light to perform real-time computation. As illustrated in FIG. 7 (Prior Art), a light beam incoming from a laser source is directed through a first set of lenses to expand its diameter. The light passes through a first spatial light modulator on which an image is displayed. Then, the modulated beam will undergo a first Fourier transform by passing through another lens. The Fourier transform is performed simply by the propagation of the light and as such is realised very rapidly.
It is an inherent property of a lens to perform a Fourier transform on an input image that will be observed at the front focal plane of the lens, provided that this image is displayed at the back focal plane of the lens. The optically-computed 2D Fourier transform signal will cross the filter plane. It is on this second spatial light modulator that the reference template corresponding to the searched object (the target) will be displayed. In fact, it is the Fourier transform of the reference template that is recorded. So after travelling trough this second spatial light modulator, a multiplication of two Fourier transforms is obtained. In the spatial domain this corresponds to a correlation. In order to achieve the conversion between the frequency and the spatial domains, a second Fourier lens is used and the beam exits the optical system in a parallel way. The camera is the last component of the correlator and detects the intensity all over the correlation plane. Basically, the system processing speed is limited only by the refresh rate of the electro-optic components (spatial light modulator, camera), because the computation itself is performed using the light.
The optical correlator principle has been known since the work of Vander Lugt. Since then, a lot of work has been spent on generating filters to enhance specific recognition performances such as multiple target recognition with composite filters, enhanced discrimination with phase-only filters, or rotation invariant recognition with circular harmonic filters. Various optical correlator types have also been proposed such as a Vander Lugt correlator. In this correlator architecture, similar to the one illustrated in FIG. 7, the image is displayed in the input plane whereas the filter is displayed in the frequency plane. The correlation is acquired at the output plane. The filter was at that time recorded on a spatial carrier. A Joint Transform correlator (JTC) was also proposed. In a JTC, both the image and the reference template are recorded in the input plane. The interference pattern is recorded in the frequency plane and sent back to the input plane to obtain the correlation in the frequency plane, after a second pass through the correlator. Despite extended work on optical correlator filters and architectures, it did not result in solutions which address the critical opto-mechanical structure required to obtain satisfactory optical correlation performances.
Various architecture implementations have been proposed for optical correlators, such as "Coherent Optical Correlator" (U.S. Pat. No. 4,277,137), and the optical correlator principle taught in "Holographic Information Storage and Retrieval" (U.S. Pat. No. 3,608,994). Architectures have also been proposed to make the overall system more compact, such as "Compact 2F Optical Correlator" (U.S. Pat. No. 5,073,006).
These solutions usually result in optical set-ups where each individual optical element is inserted in a holder fixed on an optical table. This results in excessive production cost.
Furthermore, although optical correlator architectures were addressed in these patents, little or no consideration was devoted to the opto-mechanical structure that influences production cost and ease of alignment.
Nowadays, optical correlators are not widely spread either in terms of commercial applications or availability as commercial products. This is mainly due to the high production cost related to the aforementioned opto-mechanical structure and to the difficulty of alignment of the optical correlator.
Lack of market penetration has also left unaddressed other considerations of optical correlation implementation, such as heat dissipation and heat stabilization.
The possibility to achieve multichannel optical correlators has been addressed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,802,762. However, this possibility is limited by the availability of powerful laser sources that can drive multiple correlators simultaneously and by the interference that can be produced between the various channels.


An alarm clock device includes a monitor for monitoring a transmission of a selected station, a detector for detecting, in the transmission of the selected station, at least one milestone. A controller operating in response to detection of the milestone is provided to store, in a memory, data of the transmission after the milestone was detected, and to initiate playing of the data at a selected wakeup time. According to the present invention, the data is recorded in response to detecting a transmission of a selected station selected from a plurality of stations.

Electronic alarm clocks are well known in the art. An alarm clock is typically set to produce a loud sound at a certain time in order to wake up a user.
Some alarm clocks are implemented to switch on a built-in radio and use the audio sound of the radio as a wakeup sound. These alarm clocks allow the user to select the radio station and volume.
A user typically has preferences regarding the audio content that is played in his or her ears. These preferences are the reason that he or she will prefer one radio station over another. Moreover, the user's preferences extend to specific content of the selected radio station. By way of example, the user may prefer to hear the beginning of the most recent news program on the selected station, rather then the real-time content that is broadcast when he wakes up.
The ability to buffer and store streaming data, and the ability to play them with a delay, is well known in the art and is taught by US Patent Application No. 20040042103 to Mayer, which is incorporated by reference for all purposes as if fully set forth herein. The Mayer patent application relates to retroactive recording and/or replaying events after such events have been broadcasted and also to a situation of switching between channels.
However, the only way for a user to wake to a broadcasted event, such as the beginning of a news program, using prior art alarm clocks is to set the wake up time of the alarm clock to the exact time in which this event is broadcasted.

Initiating playing of data using an alarm clock


A doublet lens which, on being inserted between the light rays, can perform deviation correction in an afocal state without its focal length being changed. The doublet lens is arranged so that, if the radius of curvature of the concave surface of a plano-concave lens 10X is r1, the refractive index of the plano-concave lens 10X is n1, the magnitude of a gap between the plano-concave lens and the plano-convex lens is .DELTA., the refractive index of the gap is n2, the radius of curvature of the convex surface of a plano-convex lens 10Y is r2 and the refractive index of the plano-convex lens 10Y is n3, the following relation: ##EQU1## is met. The angle between opposite planar surfaces is changed by rotating the plano-convex mirror, for example, of the doublet lens about its center of curvature as the center of rotation.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a doublet lens, a variable apex angle prism and a deviation correction device, usable with advantage for correction of optical deflection in, for example, a camera device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, for suppressing oscillations of an imaged picture by oscillations transmitted to a camera during imaging by a television camera, there is marketed a device comprised of an acceleration sensor in a camera device for detecting the an angular position of the camera device and the apex angle of the prism placed in the light path of the imaging camera lens is varied responsive to an output of the sensor for canceling the oscillations of the image due to the oscillations of the camera device by tilting the optical axis. For example, there is disclosed in Japanese Laying-Open Patent Publication 61-269572 a deviation correction device in which a special liquid is sealed on an optical axis of the lens by being sandwiched between two glass plates and a bellows interconnecting the two glass plates and in which the angular position of one of the glass plates is changed for varying the apex angle of the prism for correcting the optical axis by an angle corresponding to the angular deviation of the camera device.
There is also marketed a concave-convex lens variable-apex-angle prism, as a deviation correction optical system, in which a plano-convex lens and a plano-concave lens having equal refractive index and curvature values are set with the spherical surfaces thereof facing each other with a small gap in-between and in which one of the lenses is rotated along the spherical surface for varying the angle of two planar surfaces facing each other with the interposition of the spherical surfaces. In Japanese Laying-Open Patent Publication 6-281889, there is disclosed a deviation correcting optical system employing a variable prism comprised of the combination of convex and concave lenses.
However, in the above-mentioned variable prism of the liquid sealing type, since the liquid is sealed in a space defined between two glass plates and the bellows interconnecting the glass plates, the liquid operates as viscous resistance in case the glass plate angle is changed to render it difficult to follow up with high-speed deviations.
On the other hand, the variable apex angle prism by the combination of the convex and concave lenses has not been used to date extensively. The reason is that the curvature of the concave and convex lenses cannot be reduced sufficiently and hence the prism cannot be held for rotation about the center of curvature in a limited space, and that, if the prism is slid on a spherical surface having the same center as the concave and convex lenses, the prism is apt to be deteriorated in responsiveness due to slip or be damaged thereat.
In actuality, the method for rotationally supporting the convex lens as disclosed in the Japanese Laying-Open Patent Publication 6-281889 resides in arranging a shaft passing through the center of curvature of the lens parallel to the imaging plane outside of the lenses and the lenses are held by an arm rotatably formed on the shaft for rotationally supporting the lenses.
With this method, however, the combinatory concave and convex lenses cannot be rotated in contact with each other in view of reducing the resistance. On the other hand, the system of sealing the liquid having substantially the same refractive index as that of two glass plates between the lenses cannot be used because of increased viscous resistance. Thus, a gap needs to be formed as long as the two lenses face each other with the convex and concave surfaces thereof facing each other.
Thus the variable apex angle prism comprised of a combination of the plano-concave lens and a plano-convex lens facing each other with a gap in-between ceases to be afocal (infinite light collection type) by the combination of two lenses despite the fact that the spherical surfaces facing each other are of the same radius.
This poses no problem if the variable apex angle prism is built into an imaging optical system lying ahead and at back of the imaging optical system without the necessity of dismounting. However, if the variable apex angle-prism is mounted as when a deflection follow-up mechanism is added while the prism can be dismounted from a pre-existing lens, such an inconvenience arises that the overall flange back or the focal length be changed.

Doublet lens, variable apex angle prism and deviation correction device


A method and apparatus for controlling power in a low-power multi-core system, including receiving task information from an Operation System (OS) kernel upon start and end of a task, estimating a future CPU usage using a current CPU usage in the task information, monitoring memory-related information in the task information, comparing a change in the current CPU usage with the monitored memory-related information, establishing a policy for power control based on the estimated CPU usage and the monitored memory-related information, and controlling on/off of multiple cores according to the established policy. By doing so, it is possible to solve the problems caused by performing DPM using only the CPU usage.

In line with the need for low-power design to reduce power consumption while satisfying performance of various applications, there is growing importance of multi-core processors. The world's leading processor manufacturers, such as Intel and AMD (Advanced Micro Devices), have introduced high-performance, low-power multi-core chips, their associated solutions, and products based thereon. In particular, NVIDIA, TI (Texas Instruments), Qualcomm, etc. have released multi-core products for high-performance mobile terminals, presenting road maps for sustainable development thereof.
Meanwhile, there are known low-power techniques for single-core processors. However, in the multi-core environment, there are limits to minimizing power of multi-core systems with the low-power techniques used in the single-core environment. Accordingly, there is a need to modify and compensate the existing low-power techniques used in the single-core environment to be suitable for the multi-core environment.
Multi-core low-power control reduces power consumption by means of estimating a future Central Processing Unit (CPU) usage of a task by analyzing a CPU usage of the task being executed, and adjusting operation or performance of the cores by applying predetermined low-power policies.
This multi-core low-power technique may be roughly classified into Dynamic Power Shutdown (DPS) and Dynamic Voltage Frequency Scaling (DVFS). DPS is a technique of dynamically turning on/off power of cores according to the statuses of cores and the situations of applications, while DVFS is a technique of dynamically adjusting voltages and frequencies of cores according to the core statuses and the application situations. In addition, a technique of adjusting power in combination of these two techniques is called Dynamic Power Management (DPM).
FIG. 1 illustrates a DPS-based power management method, FIG. 2 illustrates a DVFS-based power management method, and FIG. 3 illustrates a DPM-based power management method.
As illustrated in FIG. 1, DPS prevents an unnecessary waste of power by adjusting the number of cores to be turned on, according to the amount of computation. As illustrated in FIG. 2, DVFS reduces the total power consumption of a system by lowering frequencies of cores on the whole. As illustrated in FIG. 3, DPM may maximize low-power control by adjusting both on/off of cores and frequencies of cores according to the amount of computation.
FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a low-power control apparatus for DPM.
As illustrated in FIG. 4, the low-power control apparatus for DPM includes a main controller 410, an Operation System (OS) kernel 420, a CPU usage estimator 430, an execution controller 440, and a policy manager 450.
The main controller 410 controls the CPU usage estimator 430 and the execution controller 440 depending on task status information received from the OS kernel 420. The CPU usage estimator 430 estimates a future CPU usage by monitoring information about a CPU usage during execution of tasks. The policy manager 450 exchanges information about policy control with the CPU usage estimator 430 and establishes a policy for controlling cores. The execution controller 440 directly controls cores according to the information received from the policy manager 450, thereby enabling low-power execution.
Advantageously, this multi-core low-power technique based on the CPU usages may directly check the status of the CPU and control power depending thereon. However, this technique has limits in accurately estimating a change in CPU usage that varies according to applications, and in case of significant error, may degrade performance of the system due to unnecessary core control. Besides, for an application, a change in CPU usage of which is significant, even though the change is accurately estimated, the core control speed may not keep up with the pace of the change in CPU usage, causing possible performance degradation of the system. Furthermore, as cores are frequently controlled depending on the usage change, system overhead may occur unexpectedly, increasing power consumption.
FIG. 5 illustrates a change in CPU usage when a multi-core CPU with 4 ARM11 cores operates on Linux.
In FIG. 5, Scenario A represents a case where an arbitrary application such as a game is run and closed, Scenario B represents a case where a video file is played by a multimedia player, and Scenario C represents a case where an arbitrary application is run and closed, and at the same time, a video file is played by a multimedia player. A CPU usage 1.0 means that the CPU is used 100%. Therefore, it is possible to perform low-power control without performance degradation of the scenarios by enabling one core between 0˜0.25 of the CPU usage, two cores between 0.25˜0.5, three cores between 0.5˜0.75, and four cores between 0.75˜1.00. In FIG. 5, margins at the boundaries are unconsidered.

Method and apparatus for controlling power in low-power multi-core system


Biological inspection procedures and surface sanitization procedures are incorporated with a garment providing service to look for and monitor the presence of microbes, such as bacteria in particular, and to eliminate such microbes within the garment service. Biological inspection procedures can be conducted on the garments themselves, or any surface of the garment facility, such as a surface onto which the garments may come into contact after laundering. Preferably, a washing procedure is conducted based upon a cleaning formulation to also minimize the presence of microbes. Garments are preferably inspected after they are laundered and ready for delivery to the customer. Facility surfaces, such as sorting and/or folding tables that may be utilized after laundering, are sanitized and then may be tested in accordance with the present invention to minimize the potential for contamination of garments from such surfaces. Optionally, the equipment that is used after laundering for such activities can be dedicated for processing garments in accordance with the biological inspection service as such garments are to be delivered to a customer, such as a processor within the food industry.

Garments are provided for many different service providers and industrial applications where workers are given garments, such as uniforms, protective clothing, or the like, for purposes of personal safety, product safety, cleanliness and many other practical reasons. A service industry exists for delivering clean garments to facilities in many such other industries and services and for subsequently picking up soiled or used garments, replacing them with clean garments, and laundering the soiled garments as part of a cycle. Customers of such a garment service typically purchase or lease a sufficient quantity of clothing articles so that they will have clean garments ready on a daily or other periodic basis to its employees, which quantity takes into account the full processing cycle. As such, the garment service can be laundering one or more garments per employee while each employee is adequately provided with a supply of garments ready for wearing based upon the frequency of the delivery cycle. Typical garments that are provided from such garment services include shirts, pants, smocks, frocks, coats, suits, coveralls, aprons, gloves, headwear and footwear.
The laundering or washing and drying steps of such a garment supply service is normally a selective process based upon the garment to be cleaned. Such selection may include a sorting of the garments to be laundered in different ways based upon factors including colors, durability, and the classification of the dirt or stains on the garments. The selection also applies to wash parameters of any such laundering step, of which, a service may have a number of different wash processes that may be selectively conducted on a selected classification of garments. Basic parameters of a typical selective wash process or cleaning formulation include water temperature, wash time, chemistry and mechanical action. By chemistry, it is meant the use of desired quantities of detergents and other cleaning additives like bleach and alkalinity adjusters. Other chemical solvents or other additives are sometimes added based upon a specific cleaning formulation as desired for a particular stain removal process. Wash time controls include not only the wash time, but also the timing aspects of the chemical delivery and the mechanical action. Moreover, many different types of washing equipment are commercially available with many different mechanical agitation and wash cycles and manners of movement of the garments within the washers during the wash process. In these commercial washing machines, the chemicals that are used as the detergents, bleach, and other additives are typically injected into a temperature controlled water supply to be active within the washing compartment of the washing machine based upon a selected cleaning control process.
The laundering step for a selective class of garments is normally controlled to include the cleaning formulation with the wash timing aspects such as wash and rinse periods and the number and duration thereof. Likewise, the drying of the garments may be controlled for selective drying temperatures and time aspects.
A class of garments is often importantly characterized by the industry within which the garments are used. As examples, coveralls usable within the semiconductor processing industry must be cleaned to remove possible particular contaminants, clothing worn within the automotive repair industry must be cleaned of particular oils, silicone and grease, and clothing worn in certain food processing industries, such as meat processing or dairy production, require the removal of organic matter like blood and dairy stains. As such, a basic wash process is typically modified based upon such a classification to develop a cleaning formulation that will remove the required matter and/or stains by adjusting the chemical detergents, alkalinity, bleach, water temperature, and wash/rinse cycle timing and duration aspects. Moreover, it is known to control one cleaning formulation from another within a washing machine by utilizing a microprocessor having multiple formulations stored within memory and from which a desired formulation control process can be selected.
The food industry is a specialty industry like many others that raises distinct considerations for laundering. Food processing is distinct from most in that food stains or food matter and moisture on a garment can provide the basis for growth of microbes, in particular bacteria, that can be considered contaminants in food processing and potentially cause food safety issues. Thus, cleaning formulations have been developed in particular for the purpose of reducing microbes, and in particular certain bacteria, on garments after laundering and for delivery to customers within the food service industry. The use of organic-killing laundering chemicals, like bleach, wash solution alkalinity, and higher temperature water are known for killing certain bacteria. The food service industry includes food processors like meat, dairy, baked goods and other prepared food producers, food packers and packages, food preparers like bakers and cooks in production facilities as well as in food service caterers and restaurants, food retailers, wholesalers and service providers, including grocery stores and the like.
A typical prior art process for a garment service starts with the delivery of clean garments to a customer and pick up of soiled garments and further includes the steps of transporting the soiled garments back to a processing facility, sorting the garments, washing the garments in accordance with a chosen cleaning formulation, inspecting the garments for need of repair or replacement, and preparing the garments for clean shipment to the customer. For a specific industry, such as food service, the sorting and cleaning formulation wash steps can be specific to that industry, as described above. The step of preparing the garments for the customer is usually based upon customer specifications as to how the garments are to be delivered. Transportation of the garments from the customers to the processing facility is typically done by putting the soiled garments into large bags or slings, or bins, which are then loaded onto trucks. Once the garments arrive at the processing facility, the slings are emptied and the soiled garments are sorted according to a desired classification based upon the way they are intended to be washed. Sorted garments are then typically reloaded into separate slings. Inspection for repair or replacement of garments normally is done after washing and drying process. Required or replacement garments may be subsequently put back into the service cycle for washing and drying. In preparing garments for delivery to the customer, many different post-wash steps are known to be conducted for the purpose of providing the garments to the customer in a desired way. As an example, for wrinkle removal, steam tunnels have been developed so that garments can be hung on hangers and conveyed as they are hung through the steam tunnel. Or, garments may be individually pressed using pressing equipment. The garments may be further folded and packaged or kept on hangers for delivery to the customer. Transportation containers are also known within which the garments can be stored for delivery of the clean garments to the customer.

Garment processing with biological inspection procedures


The invention concerns a piston arrangement having a piston with a piston head and a piston skirt with a circumferential surface, and a connecting rod, which is connected with the piston via a ball joint comprising a ball, and penetrated by an oil supply channel, which is connected with a bearing surface of the ball joint.

Such a piston arrangement is known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,070,122. On the end next to the piston, the connecting rod has a ball cup, in which the ball is inserted, being fixed at the piston head by means of a rivet. Oil flowing through the oil supply channel is then able to lubricate the contact face between the ball cup and the ball. Exactly like the piston arrangement of the present invention, the known piston arrangement is meant for use with refrigerant compressors.
JP 55-148985 A shows a further piston arrangement, in which the ball is located at the end of the connecting rod and made in one piece with the connecting rod. The oil supply channel does not only penetrate the connecting rod, but also the ball, and is connected with grooves, which are located on the surface of the ball. Through these grooves, lubricating oil can be distributed evenly in the bearing surface between the ball and the ball cup.
JP 56-012073 shows a piston arrangement, in which the ball is also made in one piece with the connecting rod. The connecting rod has a stepped oil supply channel, which expands in the direction of the piston. The steps are intended to hold the oil back during a compression stroke.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,006,652 shows a ball joint in a piston arrangement of a refrigerant compressor, in which the ball is held in a ball cup, whose end facing the connecting rod is bordered on the ball. An oil supply to the bearing surface takes place from the compression chamber through openings in the piston head or the piston skirt, respectively.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,913,001 shows a piston arrangement with a ball joint, in which the ball is also held in the ball cup by bordering a part of the piston head. In the area of the bordering, the ball cup has lateral openings, through which oil, which is sprayed into the inside of the piston, can flow to or from the ball joint, respectively.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,137,431 shows a further refrigerant compressor with a piston arrangement, whose ball joint is supplied with oil via a channel branching off from a gap between the piston skirt and the inner wall of the cylinder, in which the piston is moving.
It is an object of the present invention to improve upon or overcome the problems associated with the prior art.


The present invention relates to modified ADAMTS4 proteins having improved stability comparing to the corresponding native, unmodified proteins. The modified ADAMTS4 proteins can be expressed and isolated in large quantities, thus allowing further characterization of the proteins, such as crystallographic and enzyme kinetic studies. The purified, stable proteins would also facilitate the production of anti-ADAMTS antibodies and the development of inhibitors to ADAMTS enzymes.

Aggrecan is a major extracellular component of articular cartilage. It is a proteoglycan responsible for providing cartilage with its mechanical properties of compressibility and elasticity. The loss of aggrecan has been implicated in the degradation of articular cartilage in arthritic diseases such as osteoarthritis.
Aggrecan contains two N-terminal globular domains, G1 and G2, separated by a proteolytically-sensitive interglobular domain, followed by a glycosaminoglycan attachment region and a C-terminal globular domain, G3. At least two enzymatic cleavage sites have been identified within the interglobular domain of aggrecan. One enzymatic cleavage site within the interglobular domain of aggrecan (asn341-phe342) has been observed to be cleaved by several known metalloproteases. Cleavage at a second aggrecan cleavage site within aggrecan (glu373-ala374) has been attributed to aggrecanase activity. The cleavage site (glu373-ala374) is therefore referred to as the aggrecanase cleavage site.
A number of aggrecanases have been cloned in recent years. These enzymes belong to a subfamily of zinc metalloproteases referred to as "ADAMTS," an abbreviation for A Disintegrin-like And Metalloprotease domain with ThromboSpondin type I motifs. The ADAMTS family currently consists of 19 members that are related to one another on the basis of their common domain structure. Typical ADAMTS proteins contain a classic signal sequence upstream of a pro-sequence ending in a furin cleavage site, a metalloprotease domain that is well conserved among family members, a disintegrin-like motif whose functional relevance is still unknown, and at least one thrombospondin type I (TSP 1) domain. ADAMTS family members differ in the number of TSP-1 domains they contain, which can range from 1 to 15 (Cal et al., 2002; Somerville et al., 2003). The most diverse region of the ADAMTS sequence is the 'spacer' domain located downstream of a cysteine-rich region containing 10 structurally conserved cysteine residues. ADAMTS proteins are capable of associating with components of the extracellular matrix through interactions within the spacer domain and the TSP-1 motif(s) (Kuno and Matsushima, 1998; Tortorella et al., 2000).
ADAMTS4 (aggrecanase-1) is synthesized by IL-1 stimulated cartilage (Tortorella, et al., Science, 284:1664–1666, 1999) and is related to the degradation of aggrecan during degenerative joint diseases such as osteoarthritis (Abbaszade et al., J Biol Chem, 274: 23443–23450, 1999). ADAMTS4 is also involved in the cleavage of brain-enriched hyaluranan binding (BEHAB)/brevican, a protein that is dramatically increased in human gliomas (Matthews et al., J. Biol. Chem. 275:22695–22703, 2000). It is thus possible to ameliorate osteoarthritis and any other ADAMTS4-related diseases by inhibiting the aggrecanase activity of ADAMTS4. However, research effects on ADAMTS4 have been hampered by the instability of purified ADAMTS4 proteins.

Modified ADAMTS4 molecules and method of use thereof


The invention relates to a laser based printing apparatus (100) using laser light sources (111, 112, 113, 402, 404, 406, 604, 606, 808, 810) for supplying energy to a target object (120) to form an image. The printing apparatus (100) comprises a laser light source arrangement (110, 400, 600) comprising a plurality of laser light sources (111, 112, 113, 402, 404, 406, 604, 606, 808, 810) arranged such that laser beams (114, 410, 805, 806) of the laser light sources (111, 112, 113, 402, 404, 406, 604, 606, 808, 810) intersect a surface (121) of a target object (120) at different target points (123, 24, 125, 412, 414, 416, 616, 610, 802) along a moving direction (122), a transport mechanism (130) for moving the target object (120) and the laser light sources (111, 12, 113, 402, 404, 406, 604, 606, 808, 810) relatively to each other in the moving 10 direction (122) and a controlling arrangement (140), which is realized to control the laser light sources (111, 112, 113, 402, 404, 406, 604, 606, 808, 810) and/or the transport mechanism (130) based on image data (150) in such a way, that the energy level of a target point (123, 124, 125, 412, 414, 416, 616, 610, 802) is stepwise increased by irradiation of at least two different laser light sources along the moving direction (122). The invention also describes a method for controlling such a laser based printing apparatus (100).

Laser printing is of increasing interest for many applications including printing on packages, offset plate writing and laser sintering of three-dimensional structures.
There are references to laser printing with lasers irradiating a target object and changing the electrical properties or simply heating the target object. For example, United States patent US 2004/0046860 A1 discloses a device and a corresponding method for inputting energy to a printing-ink carrier comprising a plurality of individual controllable laser light sources.
The easy controllability and the cost-effectiveness of small laser light sources, such as Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Laser (VCSEL) arrays makes them an ideal candidate for the use in a printing apparatus. Unfortunately their power density is relatively low. On the other hand, for fast moving target objects (e.g. paper, goods) in a printing process the period in time for the laser irradiation is very limited. Therefore most often a comparatively high laser power density would be required.
One possible solution may be to superimpose the beams of several laser light sources at one point of the target object. However, this requires a specific optical arrangement of the laser light sources and/or the use of additional lenses. Geometrical restrictions limit the number of lasers beams, which can be superimposed and there are general limitation in terms of solid angles and Etendue. A further disadvantage is that the lasers beams coming from the sides have non-perpendicular incidence angle and therefore can be absorbed differently and can show a distorted illumination pattern.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and a method to form an image, which allows for supplying sufficient energy to target objects in an economical and straightforward way without the necessity of complex optical arrangements.

Printing apparatus and method for controlling a printing apparatus


An object of the present invention is to provide a suspension for a sound transducer which has a central portion serving as a center diaphragm and which has a cover layer and a copper pattern partially removed to prevent a decrease in sound pressure from being caused by an increase in weight of a vibration system. According to the present invention, there is provided a suspension for a sound transducer which includes a central portion, a peripheral portion, and a support portion for connecting the central portion to the peripheral portion, the suspension comprising: a base film, a conductive film attached on the base film by means of an adhesive, and a cover layer attached on the conductive film by an adhesive, wherein at least part of the cover layer disposed on the central portion is removed.

Sound reproducing technologies of mobile multimedia have been developed along with mobile communication technologies, which require high performance, high sound quality, and high output of a microspeaker.
In most cases, a conventional microspeaker does not employ a suspension so as to achieve a light weight of a diaphragm, and a lead wire of a voice coil is bonded to the diaphragm so that external electrical signals can be applied to the voice coil. Thus, a partial vibration often occurs due to the absence of the suspension, and the lead wire of the coil is often down due to a tensile force in high outputs, which makes it difficult to use the microspeaker in high output applications.
In order to solve the foregoing problem, a microspeaker has been suggested that uses a suspension made of an FPCB with a conductive pattern for transferring electrical signals. FIG. 1 shows a general suspension made of an FPCB, wherein a conductive film 20 made of copper or the like is disposed on a base film 10 made of a PI having good thermal properties, and a cover layer 30 is attached thereon to protect the conductive film 20. In addition, the base film 10, the conductive film 20 and the cover layer 30 are attached to one another by means of adhesives 41, 42, 43 and 44.
With respect to the microspeaker using the suspension, an increase in weight of the vibration system, which results from the application of the suspension, causes a decrease in sound pressure of the microspeaker. Additionally, cracks may be formed on the conductive film 20 in high outputs, which leads to defects. In order to prevent a decrease in sound pressure, it is possible to reduce the weight of the vibration system by appropriately adjusting the shapes of the cover layer 30 and the conductive film 20 of the suspension. However, as the diaphragm gets thinner, a local vibration mode of the diaphragm occurs in high frequency regions, to which has a detrimental effect on sound properties. Therefore, it is necessary to appropriately adjust the shapes of the cover layer 30 and the conductive film 20 to prevent such a local vibration mode.


A piezo-actuator is actuated in a first operating mode (B1) by pulsed supply of a first electrical variable for charging or discharging of the piezo-actuator taking into account at least one actuation parameter (P) for the piezo-actuator. The piezo-actuator is actuated in a second operating mode (B2) by non-pulsed introduction of the first electrical variable for charging or discharging of the piezo-actuator, to be precise with the first electrical variable having a predetermined profile which is substantially independent of any load change on the piezo-actuator (1). A profile of a second electrical variable of the piezo-actuator is recorded during at least one measurement time period while the predetermined profile of the first electrical variable is being applied. The at least one actuation parameter (P) of the piezo-actuator is determined as a function of the recorded profile of the second electrical variable.

Piezoelectric actuators are driven by supplying or removing an electrical quantity, e.g. an electrical voltage, an electrical current or electrical energy or an electrical charge. Due to tolerances, driving different piezoelectric actuators of similar type in a predefined manner can lead to said actuators traveling by different lengths of stroke. This results, for example, in different opening and closing times or degrees of opening of valves that are actuated by a piezoelectric actuator of this kind. The stroke of the piezoelectric actuator is dependent on a mechanical load which counteracts the extension of the piezoelectric actuator.
DE 199 21 456 A1 discloses a method and a device for controlling a piezoelectric actuator by means of which overshooting and bouncing of an injection valve equipped with the piezoelectric actuator are avoided. A circuit arrangement for controlling the piezoelectric actuator is embodied for charging and discharging the piezoelectric actuator in a plurality of time intervals for the purpose of opening and closing the injection valve respectively. The piezoelectric actuator is charged or discharged in such a way that it executes a partial stroke at a maximum gradient and, after a short delay, executes a further partial stroke at a lesser gradient, such that an aperiodic transition to a final value is approached for a mechanical system of the injection valve, said system being actuated by the piezoelectric actuator and comprising the same.

Method and apparatus for operation of a piezo-actuator


A method for diffusing errors in a display device. Each frame of an input video signal is separated into at least two independent subframes. An error diffusion process is applied to each subframe of at least two independent subframes. The errors transmitted reciprocally from subframes are partially mixed, and the error diffusion process is applied to the mixed errors at each independent subframe.

(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for diffusing error in a display device, and more particularly, to a method for performing high-speed error diffusion, and a plasma display panel driving apparatus using the same.
(b) Description of the Related Art
Generally, in various display devices, such as Plasma Display Panels (PDPs), Liquid Crystal Displays (LCDs), and Organic Electro Luminescence Displays (OLEDs), error diffusion methods are usually applied for compensation when the amount of displayable gray data is less than that of gray data for display. Particularly, the error diffusion method is usually used for inverse gamma correction or for false contour reduction. The error diffusion method transmits errors to surrounding pixels, which occur from displayable gray data and gray data desired for display, and express the gray data desired for display on an average in a certain area.
An example of a conventional error diffusion method is described in Korea Patent Publication No. 2002-18900 entitled "A gamma display correction apparatus for plasma display panel, and method using the same".
FIG. 1 shows a conventional error diffusion method for inverse gamma correction applied for driving a plasma display panel. In the conventional plasma display, analog video signal 10 is inputted. The analog signal is converted to an N-bit digital signal by A/D (Analog/Digital) conversion 20, and is outputted. The signal outputted for each pixel is outputted through A/D conversion, and a frequency of the pixel signal outputted becomes 60×n×m (Hz) by the National Television Standard Committee (NTSC) method of 60 Hz. Further, the size of the frame outputted becomes width×length=n×m.
The signal outputted by A/D conversion is inverse gamma corrected 40 for compensating gamma correction performed for display in a Cathode Ray Tube (CRT). Then, when the inverse gamma corrected signal is converted to gray data displayable on the PDP, conventional error diffusion 50 is applied to the converted gray data for compensating loss of gray data, and the signal is outputted to PDP 60 for displaying a corresponding image.
Further, as the evolution of video display devices progresses, the number of frames for display increases in order to display a high quality image. As such, the number of pixels for operating in a limited time frame increases as the display devices are further developed. Error diffusion is performed at each inputted pixel by the conventional error diffusion method, and thus it is difficult to perform a real-time error diffusion process.
Thus, as the number of pixels for operating in the limited time frame increases in the high definition display device, a method for performing high-speed error diffusion is required.

Method for performing high-speed error diffusion and plasma display panel driving apparatus using the same


Various embodiments provide systems and methods among wireless nodes in a wireless communication network that enable pairing a third-party device to all wireless devices of a composite electronic device in a single user step. A first wireless node may negotiate a first wireless pairing with third-party device for a second wireless node, and pairing information may be relayed to the second wireless node to enable the second wireless node to communicate with the third-party device as if the second wireless node had itself directly negotiated the wireless pairing.

Mobile and wireless technologies have seen explosive growth over the past several years. This growth has been fueled by better communications, hardware, and more reliable protocols. Wireless service providers are now able to offer their customers an ever-expanding array of features and services, and provide users with unprecedented levels of access to information, resources, and communications. To keep pace with these enhancements, mobile electronic devices (e.g., cellular phones, watches, headphones, remote controls, etc.) have become smaller, more powerful and more feature-rich than ever. Many of these devices now have impressive processing capabilities, large memories, and radios/circuitry for wirelessly sending and receiving information.
Wireless communication technologies have also improved over the past several years. Wireless local area networks are now replacing wired networks in many homes and offices. Short-range wireless technologies, such as Bluetooth® and WiFi, enable high speed communications between mobile electronic devices (e.g., cellular phones, watches, headphones, remote controls, etc.) that are within a relatively short distance of one another (e.g., 100 meters or less).

Smart pairing using bluetooth technology


A casing for a drive unit has a casing base body which is sealed by means of a cover unit. The casing base body consists of plastic, while the cover is produced from metal. It is desirable to form the edge of the casing in such a manner that the cover is supported on the casing base body in a flat manner. Since, within molding technology, there are a few difficulties in forming a continuous edge, a number of elevations, which serve as a support surface for the cover, jut out onto the edge of the cover. By means of a finishing of the casting mold, it can be achieved, in a simple manner, that the sealing surfaces of the elevations come to lie in one plane. The sealing of the casing cover relative to the casing base body is carried out by way of a sealing unit which is supported on the edge of the casing and leaves the elevations free.

The invention relates to a casing of plastic, particularly for a drive unit with a depression, which is encircled by an edge onto which a metallic cover is placed.
In a number of cases of application--particularly if shafts or axes of the drive unit are supported on the cover--it is necessary for the cover to be able to be placed onto the casing aligned in a flat manner.
This causes a number of difficulties in forming the casting mold for a plastic casing in such a manner that the entire support border proceeds in a plane.
The invention thus relates to the object of forming a plastic casing, particularly for a drive unit, in such a manner that the cover is placed on the drive unit casing in a defined plane.


A detector for a tomography unit, in particular an X-ray computer tomograph, includes a number of detector modules arranged next to one another in a z-direction and in a φ-direction running perpendicular thereto. In order to specify the adjustment, the detector modules bear against an adjusting plate on the beam input side. First adjusting devices are provided on the detector modules on the beam input side engaging with second adjusting devices, corresponding thereto and provided on the adjusting plate, for the purpose of accurately positioning the detector modules.

A detector is known from EP 0 819 406 A1. The known detector is constructed from a number of modules both in the z-direction and in the φ-direction. This is a so-called multirow detector in which a number of rows of detector elements are arranged sequentially in the z-direction. This enables a number of images to be produced simultaneously in parallel sectional positions during a single measurement path.
In order to simplify the mounting, the detector elements are usually combined to form detector modules. In order to achieve the highest possible measuring accuracy, it is necessary for each detector module or collimator attached thereto on the beam input side to be aligned exactly with an X-ray machine arranged opposite the detector.
DE 101 58 021 A1 discloses a detector module that is composed of a collimator module and a sensor module. The detector module has lateral projections of opposing arrangement and with adjusting devices that cooperate with further adjusting devices, provided on a fastening frame, for accurately positioning the detector module on the frame. The proposed detector module is suitable for producing a detector in which in the z-direction only relatively few rows, that is to say four rows, are sequentially arranged.
DE 197 53 268 A1 describes a detector for an X-ray computed tomograph in which the collimator is designed in the form of thin metal plates that are mounted on a detector frame. An auxiliary device of comb-like design is provided for adjusting the metal plates.
In multirow detectors with a high number of rows, for example 16 rows, it has proved to be expedient in practice to attach a number of detector modules sequentially in the z-direction. It is necessary in this case to keep the interspaces between the detector modules as small as possible, in particular smaller than 300 μm. The accurate arrangement of such detector modules, and their precise adjustment to the focus of the X-ray machine require a relatively high outlay in practice.


Carbon-ion electrolytes, combined into a fuel cell containing an electrode of liquid metal into which carbon or coal has been dissolved, can be used for producing electric power by the flameless combustion of coal via an electrochemical process. The resulting device is an electrochemical cell consisting of a cathodic electrode in contact with oxygen, an anodic electrode of liquid metal solvent containing dissolved carbon, and a carbon-ion electrolyte separating the anode and cathode electrodes.

This invention relates to electrochemical cells made possible by a carbon-ion electrolyte. Additionally, an improved process for producing electric power is disclosed. Preferred use of the invention is set forth in producing electric power, with fuel for the process being the utilization of carbon dissolved in a liquid solvent, preferably liquid iron.

Carbon-ion on fuel cell for the flameless combustion of coal


The present invention discloses a transmission method and system for a Relay Physical Downlink Control Channel (R-PDCCH). The method comprises the steps of: an eNB bearing downlink grant information of a relay node onto an available Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplex (OFDM) symbol of a first slot of a pre-allocated Physical Resource Block (PRB) pair used for bearing the R-PDCCH, wherein available OFDM symbols in the PRB pair, other than the OFDM symbol used for the downlink grant information, are used for bearing a Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) of each relay node; the eNB transmitting the PRB pair bearing the downlink grant information and the PDSCH to the relay node. The present invention is well applicable to a link between an eNB and a relay node, and meanwhile enables backhaul resources to be used adequately.

A Long-Term Evolution (LTE) system, an LTE-Advance (LTE-A) system and an International Mobile Telecommunication Advanced (IMT-A) system are all based on Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM). In an OFDM system, data are in a form of two dimensions, i.e., time domain and frequency domain. In the OFDM system, one subframe consists of two slots. If adopting a normal Cyclic Prefix (CP), each slot consists of seven OFDM symbols; and if adopting an extended CP, each slot consists of six OFDM symbols. A Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) is located on the former one or two or three or four OFDM symbols. In an LTE communication system, the information transmitted by the PDCCH consists of Downlink grant (DL grant) information and Uplink grant (UL grant) information.
At present, in the LTE system, a mapping process of the PDCCH is that: at a transmission end, an Enhanced NodeB (eNB) first encodes the PDCCH (comprising DL grant and UL grant) of each piece of User Equipment (UE) belonging to the eNB independently, that is, the PDCCH of each UE can adopt a different code rate; then the eNB concentrates all encoded PDCCHs in series and scrambles them using a cell-specific sequence to obtain a series of Control Channel Elements (CCEs); later the eNB performs Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (QPSK) modulation on the series of CCEs above, and then interleaves the symbols above with a Resource Element Group (REG) as a unit and finally maps the symbols to the former one or two or three or four OFDM symbols in a manner of first time domain and then frequency domain. At a receiving end, the UE demodulates the PDCCH using Cell-Specific Reference Signals (CRSs) and performs blind detection on the CCE to finally obtain respective PDCCH.
FIG. 1 shows an architecture diagram of a mobile communication system introducing a relay node. In the mobile communication system, a link between an eNB and a Relay Node (RN) is called a relay link (backhaul Link or Un link); a link between the RN and a user in the coverage of the RN is called an access link (or Uu link); and a link between the eNB and a UE in the coverage of the eNB is called a direct link. For the eNB, an RN equals a UE; for the UE, the RN equals an eNB.
So called inband relay means that the backhaul link and the access link use the same frequency band. Therefore, when inband relay is adopted, in order to avoid the transmission-receiving interference of the RN itself, the RN can not perform transmission and receiving simultaneously on the same frequency resource. When the RN transmits a physical downlink control channel to a UE belonging to the RN, the RN can not receive a physical downlink control channel from the eNB. Therefore, on a downlink backhaul subframe (that is, the subframe on which the eNB transmits data to the RN), the RN first transmits a PDCCH to the UE belonging to the RN on the former one or two OFDM symbols, and then performs handover from transmission to receiving in a time period, after handover is completed, the RN receives data from the eNB on the latter OFDM symbols, the data comprising an R-PDCCH and a Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) of the relay, as shown in FIG. 2.
The R-PDCCH transmitted from the eNB to the RN is borne on a Physical Resource Block (PRB), the R-PDCCH comprising information such as uplink/downlink scheduling grant of the RN. On a downlink backhaul subframe, as shown in FIG. 3, the eNB semi-statically reserves a number of PRBs for transmission of the R-PDCCH. The inventor finds that in relevant art there is no reasonable mapping solution when bearing the R-PDCCH using the PRBs, thus resource conflict or overflow might be caused and backhaul resources can not be effectively utilized.

Transmission method and system for relay physical downlink control channel


An aerobic system provided to treat sewage generated by a modern larger home which does not have access to a municipal sewage connection The features of this system are adaptable to upgrade and/or replace existing systems. In a preferred embodiment the system uses two 1000 gallon tanks, a first pretreatment tank to receive raw sewage, remove settleable and floatable solids from the sewage, and discharge into a second tank in which the pool of sewage is aerated. The second tank contains a motor driven aerator and a unique self-cleaning filter driven by an outgoing liquid stream from the aerator. After passing through the filter, the liquid is then discharged into a leaching field or nearby stream as permitted by the proper regulatory agency. The self-cleaning rotating filter features a rotating drive energized from the pressurized stream of liquid ejecting from the aerator and impinging upon a side of the filter structure (similarly to a paddle wheel), rotating the filter assembly about its supporting tube as the stream enters spaces between blades of the filter structure, also impinging upon, and passing through a filter cloth, leaving particulate matter on the impinged side of the cloth to be brushed away into the pool of sewage undergoing aeration, during rotation of the filter structure.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,620,925 issued 4 Nov. 1986, which is assigned to the assignee of this application, discloses an earlier version of an aerating unit for incorporation in an aerobic sewage treatment system. U.S. Pat. No. 5,451,316 issued 19 Sep. 1995, also assigned to the assignee of this application, discloses a later invented combination of the aerating unit into a single tank aerobic system in which one or more directed streams from the aerating unit are arranged to achieve a desired flow of aerated effluent returning from a settling chamber into the aerobic treatment chamber.


A tufting machine control system for controlling the tension applied to a backing material as it enters the tufting zone of the tufting machine, including a pair of driven backing feed rolls for feeding the backing material. The drive motors for the backing feed rolls are monitored by the control system and are adjusted to control the amount of tension applied to the backing material as it enters the tufting zone of the tufting machine.

Conventional tufting machines for forming tufted articles such as carpets typically include one or two needle bars having a series of spaced needles that extend across the width of the tufting machine and which insert a series of yarns into a backing material that is being passed through a tufting zone of the tufting machine. Typically, the backing material used will be a woven or knitted synthetic fabric material that is fed from a supply roll over front and rear backing feed rolls into and through the tufting zone of the tufting machine. Due to the inherent ability of most backing materials to stretch, there is a tendency of the backing material to "neck in," which is where the side edges of the backing material are drawn inwardly as the backing material is pulled through the tufting zone, causing it to be stretched longitudinally. This necking in of the backing material can cause side matching problems in finished carpets, especially patterned carpets, such that the patterned elements formed along the side edges of carpets cannot be properly matched together. In addition, in staggered needle tufting machines, due to necking in of the backing material, the gauge of the needle tuft rows becomes narrowed, leading to differences in texture and color of the carpets also can be created along the sides of the carpets.
Accordingly, attempts have been made to try to pre-stretch the primary backing material as it is fed into the tufting zone of the tufting machine such as through the use of tenter frames and magnetic clutches or brakes added to the spike rolls of the tufting machine. Other attempts to solve these tensioning problems have further included the use of load cells on the rear backing feed roll for the tufting machine, which roll generally has been gear driven off the main shaft of the tufting machine or electronically ratioed with a servomotor, with adjustments being based upon the operation of the main shaft of the tufting machine. However, a problem still exists with respect to maintaining tension on the backing material as it is fed through the tufting machine, especially as the amount, and thus the weight, of backing material remaining on the supply roll decreases, which can accordingly decrease the drag or tension applied to the backing material by the weight of the supply roll itself and vary the load on the front spike roll.
Accordingly, it can be seen that a need exists for a system and method of controlling tension in a backing material being fed to a tufting machine that addresses the foregoing and other related and unrelated problems in the art.

System and method for pre-tensioning backing material


A new and distinct cultivar of Xerochrysum plant named ‘Bondre 1051’, characterized by its rose-colored inflorescences, dark green-colored foliage, and moderately vigorous, compact-mounded growth habit, is disclosed.

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Xerochrysum plant botanically known as Xerochrysum bracteatum and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name 'Bondre 1051'.
The new cultivar originated in a controlled breeding program in Yellow Rock, New South Wales, Australia during August 2009. The objective of the breeding program was the development of Xerochrysum cultivars with unique flower coloration, and compact, upright-mounded growth habit.
The new Xerochrysum cultivar is the result of cross-pollination. The female (seed) parent of the new cultivar is the proprietary Xerochrysum bracteatum breeding selection coded 09-20, not patented, characterized by its medium reddish-orange colored inflorescences, medium green-colored foliage, and moderately vigorous, upright growth habit. The male (pollen) parent of the new cultivar is the proprietary Xerochrysum bracteatum breeding selection coded 09-72, not patented, characterized by its red-colored inflorescences, medium green-colored foliage, and vigorous, mounded growth habit. The new cultivar was discovered and selected as a single flowering plant within the progeny of the above stated cross-pollination during March 2010 in a controlled environment in Yellow Rock, New South Wales, Australia.
Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by terminal stem cuttings since March 2010 in Yellow Rock, New South Wales, Australia, Arroyo Grande, Calif., and West Chicago, Ill. has demonstrated that the new cultivar reproduces true to type with all of the characteristics, as herein described, firmly fixed and retained through successive generations of such asexual propagation.


A positively charged liquid developer comprised of a nonpolar liquid, thermoplastic resin particles, pigment, a charge director, and a charge control agent comprised of a PEO:PPO, preferably in a solid form.

This invention is generally directed to liquid developer compositions and the excellent developed images obtained thereof, especially in electrographic image on image printing processes wherein a stylus provides, or writes the image pattern on a dielectric receptor, and more specifically, the present invention relates to a liquid developer containing certain charge control agents. More specifically, the present invention relates to positively charged liquid developers comprised of a nonpolar liquid, pigment, or dye, poly(ethylene oxide-b-propylene oxide) block copolymer (PEO:PPO), especially PEO:PPO Pluronic F-108, charge control agent (CCA) and a charge director, and which developers possess a number of advantages including the development and generation of images with improved image quality, especially with respect to four color, four pass ionographic development systems like the Xerox ColorgrafX 8900 printers, and wherein the developed images are of high quality and excellent resolution. The developers of the present invention in embodiments provide images with excellent, for from about 1.3 to about 1.4 reflective optical density (ROD) and/or especially lower residual voltages (V.sub.out), for example less than about 45, and for example from about 25 to about 45. Higher reflective optical densities provide images with deeper, richer desirable color or more extended chroma. Lower residual image voltages enable the printing of subsequently applied layers to a higher reflective optical density and decrease or eliminate image defects, such as smearing and shifts in L*a*b* color space (hue shifts), when one colored layer is overlaid on a second layer of different color. Series-Capacitance Data was utilized as a means of measuring the total charge in the liquid developer formulation, and which measurements indicate that placing too much charge on the toner or developer particles can cause lower RODs to occur, which is a manifestation of inferior image quality because less chroma occurs. Moreover, there can be added to the liquid developers of the present invention in embodiments thereof charge directors of the formulas as illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,563,015, especially a mixture of Alohas, an abbreviated name for aluminum-di-tertiary butyl salicylate, and EMPHOS PS-900.TM., or Alohas alone, an aluminum-di-tertiary butyl salicylate, the disclosure of this patent being totally incorporated herein by reference.

Liquid developer compositions with copolymers


An oil separator that separates mist oil from processing-target gas containing mist liquid includes a plurality of separation disks. The plurality of separation disks rotate around an axis, and are stacked and spaced in an axial direction. The separation disk includes an inner peripheral part and an outer peripheral part. The inner peripheral part forms a surface of a frustum of a hypothetical cone or pyramid coaxial with the separation disk, and is inclined with respect to a radial direction toward one side in an axial direction. The outer peripheral part forms a surface of a frustum of a hypothetical cone or pyramid coaxial with the separation disk, and continuously extends outward from an outer peripheral edge of the inner peripheral part. The outer peripheral part is inclined with respect to the radial direction toward another side in the axial direction.

Patent Literature 1 discloses an oil separator that employs a plurality of stacked separation disks. That is, when processing-target gas flows in clearances between the separation disks from inside the rotating separation disks, mist oil contained in the processing-target gas aggregates on surfaces of the separation disks due to centrifugal force. Thus, the oil contained in the processing-target gas is separated from the processing-target gas.
The separation disks employed for the oil separator described in Patent Literature 1 are each constituted of a plate member having a truncated cone shape. That is, the outer peripheral part of each separation disk forms the surface of the frustum of a hypothetical circular cone. The inner peripheral part, which is located on the center side with respect to the outer peripheral part, is an annular plate. Therefore, the inner peripheral part of the separation disk is parallel to a particular circumferential and radial plane. The outer peripheral part of the separation disk is inclined with respect to a particular circumferential and radial plane.


A conveyor belt cleaning assembly includes an array of stripper blocks which are coupled to a rigid crossbar by resilient connecting arms. The resilient connecting arms are characterized by high compressive strength, but exhibit a structural collapsing response to off center deflection forces which exceed a predetermined load level. The collapsed connecting arms thus provide a reduction in length of the stripper assembly in response to a belt reversing condition. One side of each connecting arm has the ability to collapse in response to a relatively low deflection force and the other side has the ability to deflect and withstand substantial compression loading without collapse. In the preferred embodiment, the connecting arms are constructed of a resilient material, such as polyurethane, with the body of each connecting arm being intersected by a large aperture, thereby defining a forward collapsible wall and a load bearing rear wall. A reduction in length of the entire connecting arm is achieved by collapsing the forward wall in response to the loading imposed by engagement of the stripper block against a reverse moving conveyor belt.

In the operation of bulk material conveyors, a belt scraper assembly is provided for removing adherent material from the conveyor belt and depositing it into a discharge area. In the absence of a cleaning device, or as a result of a poorly functioning belt scraper, carry-over spillage material will be accumulated beneath the conveyor belt. In addition to constituting a nuisance, a large amount of valuable product will be deposited beneath the conveyor and may build up sufficiently to interfere with operation of the conveyor. For example, a volume of spillage material 1/16 inch (1.6 mm) deep and 1 inch (25 mm) wide will produce approximately 21/2 cubic feet (0.075 cubic meters) of carry-over per 100 feet per minute (0.48 meters per second) of belt speed each hour. At a conveyor speed of 500 feet per minute (2.5 meters per second), this small stream produces approximately 10 tonnes of carry-over spillage every eight hours, based on a density of 100 pounds per cubic foot (1500 kg/cubic meter).
Consequently, there is considerable interest in improving the operation and efficiency of conveyor belt cleaning devices.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventional conveyor belt cleaning devices generally include one or more blades disposed in a plane transverse to the conveyor belt and are urged toward the belt so as to cause engagement of an edge of the blade against the belt surface. Such conveyor belt cleaning devices must be located rearwardly of the head pulley drum on the return path of the conveyor belt so that sufficient flexibility in the belt is provided to permit transverse movement thereof when protruding objects pass the cleaning device. The belt cleaning device is hampered constantly by obstructions such as mechanical fasteners moving at high speeds, which are often driven by hundreds of horsepower.
One of the major causes of failures in conveyor belt cleaning equipment is reverse operation of the conveyor belt. If the belt reverses, the reverse movement of the belt can drive the blades into the belt and cause tearing of the belt and damage to the scraper. This problem occurs frequently on inclined conveyors where the hold back allows the belt to reverse a few inches before locking. It also occurs when a traveling tripper is moved forward when the belt is stopped. A reversing belt condition can occur in the operation of reversible conveyors, single direction conveyors having a "traveling tripper", with the belt reversing over the pulley if the tripper is moved forward while the belt is stopped, and in the operation of single direction conveyors having a telescoping discharge section.
A common situation in which belt damage occurs frequently is in an inclined conveyor which is shut down with a load on the belt. The load tends to pull the conveyor in a reverse direction, sliding downhill. To prevent the belt from running away downhill with a load on it, a device called a "hold-back" is incorporated either onto the shaft that drives the pulley or within the gearing. The hold-back device does not operate with 100% efficiency, and it is common for the belt to creep backward. A very short distance of creep back or roll back, for example, 1/8 inch of roll back, is sufficient to impose tremendous loads on the scraper blades since the scraper is usually working at an angle the belt. Such compression loads will damage the weakest link first, with the weakest link usually being the belt scraper. If the belt scraper is solid and strong enough, it will cause tearing damage to the conveyor belt. Because of this condition, most belt scrapers are designed to engage an unsupported section of the belt after it has left the pulley. In such arrangements, the belt does not have a solid backing, and the belt itself can lift, thereby relieving the forces that would be imposed on the scraper in response to a reversing condition.
Various improved belt scrapers have been proposed or are now in use for engagement against a supported section of the conveyor belt, for example, see U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,349,098; 4,498,577; 4,662,507; and 4,821,867 by Willem Dirk Veenhof. According to those arrangements, a flexible belt scraper assembly is positioned beneath the overhang defined by the discharge pulley drum. The foregoing flexible scraper assemblies have proven effective and efficient in cleaning conveyor belt surfaces in a wide variety of applications. However, severe tension loads may be induced within the flexible scraper strands under certain load conditions which can cause accelerated wear of scraper components and failure.
Some of the means that have been used or are presently being used to permit yieldable engagement of a flexible scraper against the conveyor belt in the pulley drum overhang region is a mounting frame which is counterweighted or spring-loaded to apply yieldable pressure against the belt. Extensive testing and operational experience have shown that the counterweight and spring bias arrangements are subject to damage from the reaction forces transmitted to the support assembly which tend to cause its destruction, and the scraper itself may damage the conveyor belt during reverse operation.
Consequently, there is considerable interest in providing a belt scraper which can operate effectively and efficiently against a drum supported conveyor belt, and which includes means for automatically yielding to prevent damage to the scraper or to the conveyor belt in response to a reversing condition.
It has been determined that the ideal scraper location for maximum efficiency is beneath the overhang defined by the discharge pulley drum, with the scraper engaging the conveyor belt surface which is supported by the face of the pulley drum. Moreover, because of mounting space limitations and the potential for accumulation of load material on exposed scraper components, it is desirable to have the scraper mounting framework rigidly mounted on the pulley drum support frame, with the exposed structure of the scraper assembly being supported beneath the overhang of the pulley drum to minimize exposure to discharged load material. Since the conveyor belt itself is rigidly fit into contact against the cylindrical face of the pulley drum at the point at which scraping and cleaning occur, it is essential that the scraper be modified to enable it to accept a reversing condition without causing damage to the conveyor belt, the scraper itself or its supporting structure.


Systems and methods for incrementally repairing physical locality for live or active data are provided. Files that are enumerated to determine their locality are identified using dataless consistency points. The files are walked in order to measure their locality or at least the locality of their data segments. Locality repair is performed when the locality is greater than a threshold locality.

In general, computing systems must deal with a large amount of data. This is particularly true for computing systems that provide computing services such as backup services, content management, contact management, and the like, for many different clients. The amount of data can be terabytes and larger in sized.
The data managed by these computing systems may be accessed frequently depending on the service. Further, some of the data changes over time and may be de-duplicated. As a consequence of these changes, the data tends to become fragmented over time. When data in a file system becomes overly fragmented, the performance of the computing system begins to degrade.
Locality is a way to measure how fragmented a file is in a file system. When a file is stored as a segment tree having segment levels (e.g., L(0)-L(6)), the performance of locality measurement is sensitive to segment locality. Poor locality in the L(0) level, which includes data segments, results in multiple index lookups. This can impact performance. As the locality of the system continues to degrade, it takes a longer time to repair the locality. Further, locality measurement is not incremental in conventional systems. Systems and methods are needed to improve locality measurement and locality repair in a file system.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Incremental physical locality repair for live data


According to the present invention, there is provided an aircraft control including a control lever having a handle and a base, where the base is operatively mountable for movement between predetermined control lever positions, and a vernier adjusting mechanism for incrementally displacing the control lever between the positions. Additionally, the present invention provides for a vernier adjusting mechanism including a friction drive mechanism for finely adjusting the control lever""s position.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to the field of aircraft control devices and specifically towards a fine adjustment mechanism for controlling a throttle control lever, fuel mixture control lever, and a propeller control lever of an aircraft.
2. Description of Related Art
In a conventional twin engine aircraft, particularly a turbocharged aircraft, each engine is controlled individually through its own throttle, fuel mixture, and propeller control levers. The throttle control lever adjusts air intake into each engine, the fuel mixture control lever controls fuel intake into the engine, and the propeller control lever controls the propeller revolutions. All of these controls regulate the overall thrust of each engine.
The control levers are integrated into the console of the aircraft and move either forward toward the nose of the aircraft for more thrust or backward towards the tail of the aircraft for less thrust. For example, as the throttle control lever is moved forward, more air enters the aircraft engine, which in turn generates more thrust from the aircraft engine. Since there are three control levers for each engine, a typical twin engine aircraft has a total of six control levers for the throttle, fuel mixture and propeller controls. The control levers for each function are adjacent to each other, but move independently from each other.
Due to various factors, each engine will require more or less thrust in order to maintain altitude, control, and direction. Additionally, each engine needs to be precisely adjusted to match the other engine""s power and to synchronize the two engines. During a flight, each aircraft engine is adjusted constantly by an operator. The operator changes the throttle, fuel mixture, and propeller control lever positions slightly, until a correct balance is achieved. These adjustments made during a flight are performed in minor increments. But, because the control levers are large levers, making fine or minor adjustments to the control levers is very difficult. As a result, over or under adjustment of any of the control lever frequently occurs.
Accordingly, there is a need for a device or apparatus that can finely adjust the throttle, fuel mixture, and propeller control levers"" positions, so that over or under adjustment of any of the control lever position is minimized. Moreover, there is a need for a device or apparatus that performs fine adjustments without interfering with the normal operation of the control levers. Thus, the fine adjusting device or apparatus needs to be capable of being over-ridden by the normal operational movement of the control lever by the operator.
According to the present invention, there is provided an aircraft control including a control lever having a handle and a base, where the base is operatively mountable for movement between predetermined control lever positions, and a vernier adjusting mechanism for incrementally displacing the control lever between the positions. Additionally, the present invention provides for a vernier adjusting mechanism including a friction drive mechanism for finely adjusting the control lever""s position.


Surfactant compositions comprising an alkoxylate, a sulfate, or ether sulfate of a C10-C12 monounsaturated alcohol are disclosed. The alkoxylate, sulfate, or ether sulfate may derive from undecylenic acid or undecylenic alcohol. Compared with their saturated analogs, the monounsaturated alkoxylates, sulfates, and ether sulfates are less irritating, making them valuable for personal care, laundry, cleaners, and other household applications. Microscopy studies show that the alkoxylates, sulfates, and ether sulfates have favorable phase behavior over a wide range of actives levels, expanding opportunities for products with greater compaction. When combined with cationic surfactants, the alkoxylates, sulfates, and ether sulfates exhibit synergy, and they have improved solubility compared with their saturated analogs. The surfactants find value for the personal care, laundry and cleaning, emulsion polymerization, agricultural products, oilfield applications, and specialty foams industries.

Fatty alcohol derivatives, particularly alkoxylates, sulfates, and ether sulfates, are versatile surfactants. They are used across a broad array of industries and end uses, including personal care, laundry and cleaning, emulsion polymerization, agricultural uses, oilfield applications, industrial compositions, and specialty foamers.
Fatty alcohols are usually made by reducing the corresponding fatty acids or esters, typically by catalytic hydrogenation. Often, the catalyst includes zinc or copper and chromium. U.S. Pat. No. 5,672,781, for instance, uses a CuCrO4 catalyst to hydrogenate methyl esters from palm kernel oil, which has substantial unsaturation, to produce a mixture of fatty alcohols comprising about 52 wt. % of oleyl alcohol, a monounsaturated fatty alcohol. For additional examples, see U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,865,968; 3,193,586; 4,804,790; 6,683,224; and 7,169,959.
The fatty acids or esters used to make fatty alcohols and their derivatives are usually made by hydrolysis or transesterification of triglycerides, which are typically animal or vegetable fats. Consequently, the fatty portion of the acid or ester will typically have 6-22 carbons with a mixture of saturated and internally unsaturated chains. Depending on source, the fatty acid or ester often has a preponderance of C16 to C22 component. For instance, methanolysis of soybean oil provides the saturated methyl esters of palmitic (C16) and stearic (C18) acids and the unsaturated methyl esters of oleic (C18 mono-unsaturated), linoleic (C18 di-unsaturated), and a-linolenic (C18 tri-unsaturated) acids.
Among fatty alcohols with internal unsaturation, oleyl alcohol has been used as a starting material to make ether sulfonates that have surfactant properties (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,427,588 and 7,629,299).
Monounsaturated feedstocks having reduced chain length have potential value for making surfactants, but the feeds have not been readily available. Recent improvements in metathesis chemistry (see, e.g., J. C. Mol, Green Chem. 4 (2002) 5 and U.S. Pat. Appl. Publ. Nos. 2010/0145086, 2011/0113679, and 2012/0071676) will soon make such reduced chain unsaturated feedstocks available, but alternatives are needed.
Undecylenic acid (10-undecenoic acid) is produced industrially along with heptaldehyde by pyrolyzing the ricinoleic acid in castor oil (see U.S. Pat. No. 1,889,348; J. Chem. Ed. 29 (1952) 446; J. Sci. Ind. Res. 13B (1954) 277; and J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 66 (1989) 938). It is used primarily to manufacture pharmaceuticals, fragrances, and cosmetics.
Undecylenic acid is easily reduced to undecylenic alcohol with hydride reducing agents (e.g., lithium aluminum hydride) or selective hydrogenation catalysts (see, e.g., J. Am. Chem. Soc. 59 (1937) 1. It is known to ethoxylate undecylenic alcohol for possible use in laundry detergents (JP 10140195). Undecylenic alcohol ethoxylates have also been studied as principal components of self-assembled monolayers, which can mimic membrane structure and function (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 6,809,196 and J. Am. Chem. Soc. 113 (1991) 12).
Undecylenic alcohol has been converted to sodium 10-undecenyl sulfate, and this compound has been used as a monomer for making polymerizable surfactants (see, e.g., Electrophoresis 25 (2004) 622; New J. Chem. 16 (1992) 883; and Langmuir 9 (1993) 2949).
Sulfation of alcohols produces alcohol sulfates, which have an C—O—SO3X group, where X is typically an alkali metal or ammonium ion from a subsequent neutralization step. Sulfonation of unsaturated hydrocarbons gives sulfonates, which have a C—SO3X group. When an unsaturated alcohol is the starting material, the unsaturated sulfate can be produced under some conditions (see, e.g., WO91/13057). With other reagents, alcohol sulfation and carbon-carbon double bond sulfonation may compete, with most of the reaction product resulting from sulfation, although the nature of the sulfonated by-products is generally not well understood (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,446,188). Because of the competing side reactions, unsaturated alcohols are usually avoided when the goal is to make an alcohol sulfate or ether sulfate.
In sum, despite the known value of longer-chain fatty alcohols and shorter-chain saturated fatty alcohols for making ethoxylates, sulfates, and ether sulfates for use as surfactants, it is less clear what value the surfactants would have if they were made using shorter-chain unsaturated (e.g., C10-C12) fatty alcohols. The availability of undecylenic acid and undecylenic alcohol as feedstocks invites further investigation.

Surfactants based on monounsaturated fatty alcohol derivatives


A rubber locking device for a bicycle seat bag is composed of a rubber strip which is fastened to the top of the seat bag by a clamp board, two hook bases correspondingly provided at two sides of the seat bag for fastening to the two ends of the rubber strip. The rubber strip is provided with pluralities of locking holes so that when the rubber strip goes through above the shafts under the bicycle seat, the two ends of the rubber strip are extensively pulled and the most appropriate locking holes can be fastened to the hook bases at the two sides of the seat bag to efficiently bind with the shafts under the seat and to obtain a preferred shock-absorbing function. A U fastener base provided at the front of the seat bag is composed of a U frame and a resilient rubber ring. The U fastener base is provided with locking hooks at two ends, such that after the U frame is leant against the seat post, the rubber ring is resiliently pulled and held around the other side of the seat post to lock with one of the hooks at the other side to firmly fasten to the underside of the seat.

(a) Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a rubber locking device for a bicycle. By way of the locking device, the seat bag can be installed and detached easily and instantly. Besides, as the locking device has the function of shock absorbing and can be firmly fastened to the bicycle, it is extremely applicable to bicycles.
(b) Description of the Prior Art
Among locking devices of the prior art, U.S. Pat. No. 5,245,517 disclosed a T clamp shaft which is fastened to the top of the seat bag, while a U clip is provided at the front end of the seat bag, thereby the T shaft is clamped to the two shafts under the seat, pulled forward to allow the U clip to smoothly lock onto the seat post under the seat for fastening purposes.
However, as the T clamp shaft must be leant against the underside of the seat and turned by force to clamp with the shaft, it is rather inconvenient in operation to those unskilled in the art.

Rubber locking device for bicycle seat bag