A telescopic mast includes at least one first structure including a fixing portion adapted to be fixed to a drill floor. At least one second structure is mobile relative to the first structure, to obtain a telescopic mast. A moving system is adapted to extend and retract a longitudinal extension of the telescopic mast, by moving the second structure. The moving system includes at least one first actuator device, adapted to be fixed to the first structure or to the drill floor at its first end. The second structure is fixed at a first end of at least one second actuator device. At least one supply chamber is adapted to supply at least the first actuator device and at least the second actuator. At least one first actuator device and the at least one second actuator device are aligned along a single direction and operate with opposite directions.

The present invention relates to a mast for telescopic drilling and to a drilling rig for oil wells provided with a telescopic mast, preferably an oil-pressure one with double pistons.
The drilling rig according to the present invention is a high-mobility and electro-hydraulic drilling rig comprising a telescopic mast and an automatic drill pipe stowing and handling system for greater efficiency and operating safety.
The mast according to the present invention is a double-piston and double-effect telescopic mast to extend or retract the mast, thus increasing or decreasing its longitudinal extension.
The great demand for energy and the increasing depletion of producing oil fields has progressively pushed the search for oil to deeper and deeper areas that get more and more challenging. This new situation leads operators to drill geological formations that are more complex and hostile.
At the same time, the need has arisen to improve health and environmental safety quality standards, also known to a skilled person as health, safety, environmental and quality (HSEQ), as well as the operating performances of drilling rigs.
From the point of view of HSEQ improvement, of a reduction of drilling times and, above all, of a reduction of non-productive times, also known to a skilled person with the acronym "NPT", the different operators working in this field have focused their technological innovation on drilling rigs with a high degree of automation, for the purpose of optimizing the entire well drilling process.
As a person skilled in the art knows, the drilling process can be divided into three macro-step: a first preparation step, during which, for example, the drilling rig is transported; a second step, during which the drilling rig is assembled or disassembled at the drilling site, also known as rig up and rig down; and a third actual drilling step, during which operators add or remove one or more drill pipes, which are connected to one another in series and define the drilling length, wherein drilling length means, as a skilled person knows, one or more drill pipes connected to one another in series.
The market mostly requires drilling rigs that can be easily moved, namely that can be moved to different drilling sites, and that feature high performances from the point of view of the actual drilling, namely that use series of drill pipes joined to one another and inserted into the well with great drilling lengths, for example starting from 27 m. Furthermore, drilling rigs are requested to have drill pipes or series of drill pipes that can be quickly inserted and removed, also fulfilling high HSEQ standards, so as to obtain a high degree of automation.
The technical features required for the drilling, in order to reduce the trip-in time and the trip-out time of a drilling system, lead the constructors of said drilling rigs to manufacture drilling rigs that allow users to use a drill string that is as long as possible. Conventional ground rigs for deep drilling use drilling lengths, also known to a skilled person as stands, starting from 27 m. Normally, this technical feature forces constructors to manufacture drilling rigs with large dimensions.
This manufacturing feature generates a technical problem concerning the transportation of a structure with remarkable dimensions, both in terms of weight and size and in terms of ability to actually maneuver the vehicle on which the mast and the other elements of the drilling rigs are arranged.
The European patent no. EP0548900 describes a mobile drilling rig comprising a telescopic mast, which can be extended by means of a central hydraulic cylinder.
Furthermore, small and medium sized drilling rigs are known, which comprise a telescopic mast and in which, during transportation, said mast is closed and arranged horizontally, for example, on a transportation vehicle.
Drilling rigs with a telescopic mast have a mast with a longitudinal extension that, in an extended operating configuration, is significantly smaller compared to fixed masts. Normally, the longitudinal extension of these masts is directly connected to the stroke that the moving system applied can perform.
The technological limit to the extension of the stroke that can be performed by the telescopic mast—and, therefore, to its maximum longitudinal extension—is strictly connected to the limitations and to the features of the oil-pressure actuator commonly used to move to the mast to during drilling operations.
Prior art hydraulic systems for ground drilling activities, in order to speed up rig up and rig down times, reduce the height of the mast, thus leading to drawbacks in terms of drilling speed and operating safety, since series of drill pipes with a reduced drilling length (13.5 or 18 m) can be used without stopping the drilling mud pumping system to add a further length.
A prejudice of the prior art establishes that, in order to use longer series of drill pipes, one needs to increase the dimensions and the weight of the mast, so as to obtain a mast with a greater longitudinal extension, thus jeopardizing, though, rig up and rig down times and the transportation of the drilling rigs.
Another problem arising from the increase in the dimensions and, in particular, in the weight of the drilling rig and, in particular, of the mast relates to the forces acting upon the mast. As a matter of fact, structures with large dimensions produce an increase in the compression force acting upon the mast, which is transferred, through the drill floor, to the base section.
A further technological restriction establishes that the structure of the mast, which is adapted to control the movements of the carriage comprising the drilling head, must be able to counter the torsion transmitted to the drill string by the drilling head itself. Furthermore, the great length of the mast can cause a bending moment, which is generated by the lack of symmetry of the compression forces relative to the longitudinal axis of the mast.
In order to solve these technical problems and avoid damages to the structure of the mast, constructors increase the dimensions of the mast even more, so as to strengthen the structure of the mast itself. The greater sturdiness of the mast, though, worsens the technical problem concerning the increase in the mass of the drilling rig.
The increase in the overall mass and dimensions of the drilling rig leads to an increase in the costs for the installation and the removal of the drilling rig itself.
The need to have drilling rigs able to reach greater drilling lengths without loosing safety and quick handling features requires a technological improvement concerning the increase in the length of the drill pipes or drill strings to be inserted into the well, for example from 13.5 m to 27 m, which can be handled by a telescopic mast.
The increase in the length of the drill pipes or drill strings leads to an increase in the length of the mast itself and, thus, to an increase in the stroke performed by the mast moving system.
Patent applications are known, for example patent application No. U.S. Pat. No. 4,249,600, in which telescopic masts are described, which comprise more than one actuator adapted to extend and reduce the longitudinal extension of the mast.
All prior art documents, in order to increase the length of the mast so as to be able to use drill strings with a length up to 27 meters, use very complex and bulky moving systems, which reduce the rig up and rig down speed of the drilling rig, thus also jeopardizing the transportation thereof.
Furthermore, patent application Ser. No. GB2270100 discloses a moving system for a travelling block, which comprises, in an embodiment, two opposite coaxial pistons. Said travelling block moving system can be implemented only in masts with a predetermined length and not in telescopic masts. This document does not provide any technical teach that is able to suggest the use of double pistons to extend or retract the longitudinal extension of the mast.

Telescopic mast for drilling and associated drilling rig


A burglarproof device for electronic device including a fastener, a control unit, and a lock core is provided. The fastener includes a plurality of lever arms surrounding a virtual axis. The control unit moves relative to the fastener and drives ends of the lever arms to move toward each other when approaching the fastener; the ends of the lever arms move away from each other when the control unit leaves the fastener. The lock core in an unlocked status permits the movement of the control unit relative to the fastener while the lock core in a locked status restricts the control unit from moving relative to the fastener.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a burglarproof device. Particularly, the present invention relates to a burglarproof device for electronic device.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Consumer electronic products play a very important role in the modern life. Fast lifestyle and eagerness for instant information make portable electronic devices become a necessity to most people. However, since these portable devices are in high demand, wide spread, high unit price, small volume, and high portability and become more and more popular, the possibility of being stolen or lost accordingly increases.
One type of locks, which is developed to against thieves, is connected to the electronic product, wherein the lock is specifically connected to the electronic product via the fastener thereof into a lock hole on the electronic product. The electronic product connected to the lock is secured and locked by the fastener through a locking operation.

Burglarproof device for electronic device


The invention relates to a process for stabilizing organopolysiloxanes which contain phosphazenes and/or their reaction products which promote the condensation and/or equilibration of organopolysiloxanes. To stabilize any previously known organopolysiloxanes which contain phosphazenes and/or their reaction products against re-arrangements and also molecular weight changes and viscosity changes resulting therefrom, it is proposed that the said phosphorus compounds be brought into contact with at least one non-basic, solid adsorbent.

Organopolysiloxanes which have been prepared by condensation and/or equilibration of organosilicon compounds containing Si-bonded oxygen in the presence of phosphazenes as catalysts generally change their molecular weight during storage, and thus change their viscosity, if the phosphazenes are not deactivated or removed after the reaction. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,398,176 (issued on Aug. 20, 1968, Wacker-Chemie GmbH) discloses the deactivation of phosphazenes, described as phosphonitrilic chlorides, by reaction with tertiary mines. DE-A 34 28 581 (laid open on Feb. 13, 1986, Wacker-Chemie GmbH) describes the stabilization with basic lithium compounds, such as lithium hydroxide or lithium siloxanolates, of organopolysiloxanes prepared using phosphazenes. DE-A 37 42 069 (laid open on Jun. 22, 1989, Wacker-Chemie GmbH) is an example of the numerous patents describing deactivation of phosphazene catalysts using silazanes, e.g., hexamethyldisilazane or 1,3-divinyl- 1,1,3,3-tetramethyldisilazane. A further method of stabilizing organopolysiloxanes which have been prepared using phosphazene catalysts is reaction with oxides, hydroxides or carbonates of divalent and trivalent metals, e.g., magnesium oxide, which is described in DE-A 35 33 028 (laid open on Mar. 19, 1987, Wacker-Chemie GmbH). EP-B 0 117 503 (published on May 13, 1987, Wacker-Chemie GmbH) discloses deactivation of phosphazene catalysts using epoxides.
In the processes mentioned for stabilizing organopolysiloxanes prepared using phosphazenes or phosphonitrilic chlorides, use is made of compounds which react with the acid catalysts. With the exception of the neutral epoxides, these are all basic substances. In most processes, the reaction products of phosphazene catalyst and deactivation agent remain completely or partially in the organopolysiloxanes, only in the process described in DE-A 35 33 028 are they removed.

Process for stabilizing organopolysiloxanes


A method and apparatus controls the temperature of a precision resistor and, in turn, measures the flow rate of a flowing fluid mass. The precision resistor is a hot wire or hot film of an air mass meter of an internal combustion engine of a motor vehicle. Through timed current flow, the operating temperature of the precision resistor is maintained at a higher temperature than the temperature of the flowing fluid mass. The timing of the electric current for maintaining the operating temperature of the precision resistor is controlled based on the magnitude of the gating voltage supplied to heat the precision resistor.

Motor vehicles use temperature controlled precision resistors, in particular, hot wires or hot films, in air mass meters to measure the mass flow rate of air drawn into an internal combustion engine. The air stream entering the engine flows around the heated wire. The precision resistor, which is part of an electrical bridge circuit, is maintained at a constant operating temperature by timed current pluses. Because the heating current is a function of the temperature of the resistor and, in turn, the mass flow rate of air, the heating current is used as a measure of the mass flow rate of air drawn into the engine. Data corresponding to the mass flow rate of air is supplied to a control unit for setting the optimum operating points for the internal combustion engine.
In a typical method for controlling the temperature of a precision resistor for measuring the mass flow rate of air, an available voltage supply, usually the motor vehicle's power supply or battery voltage, is supplied to a voltage stabilizing circuit. The stabilized voltage is then used to control the timing of the current pulses for heating the precision resistor. Since the stabilized supply voltage is lower than the operating voltage, it takes a relatively long time after the internal combustion engine is started for the precision resistor to reach its operating temperature. Problems arise when the supply voltage drops, for example, due to a weak battery, because the voltage stabilizing circuit operates properly only when a sufficient voltage potential difference exists across its input and output terminals.
It is an object of the present invention, therefore, to overcome the problems of known methods and apparatus for controlling the temperature of a resistor for measuring mass flow rates of air.

Method and apparatus for determining the flow rate of a flowing fluid mass


A process for forming an insulation underfill for soldering semiconductor die solder balls by a solder paste on conductive traces on a support surface. The process comprises the screen printing or deposition from a syringe of thermoplastic or thermosetting epoxy columns between the solder balls, to a height equal to the standoff height of the die from the support surface. The assembly is first heated to a temperature at which the plastic becomes semifluid and before the area over which it will spread becomes contaminated with flux residue; and is next heated to the solder paste reflow temperature.

This invention relates to the mounting of semiconductor die and more specifically relates to a novel process for the manufacture of semiconductor die with an integral insulation underfill.
When semiconductor die such as flip chip die having solder ball connectors on one surface thereof are soldered to a support board, an insulation underfill is commonly provided to fill the volume bounded between the bottom of the die and the top of the board and between the solder balls to improve the device temperature cycling capability. This process usually requires an extra step by the user to deposit the insulation underfill. Commonly, the user will conventionally solder the device solder balls to conductive traces on a printed circuit board and then deposit a low viscosity epoxy material around the perimeter of the die, relying on capillary action to uniformly draw the epoxy while it is still liquid into the interior spaces between the die bottom and printed circuit board top surface.
It is also known to employ wafer level underfills in which the areas around all solder balls are flooded with an epoxy or a thermoplastic material which contains a solder flux. The wafer is then singulated with the plastic underfill in place for each die. During the solder down operation, the underfill material liquefies while reflowing the solder balls, releasing the flux to the solder and flowing around the solder balls. However, this process does not work well and is not in use.
It would be desirable to provide a novel wafer level underfill system for improving the solder down of semiconductor die, or any other product employing solder ball terminals.
In accordance with the invention, discrete spaced columns of an underfill plastic are deposited, in the wafer stage and prior to singulation, between solder balls and to a height equal to the final standoff height of the reflowed die. By standoff height is meant the final desired space between the bottom of the die and the top of the support surface receiving the die, such as a printed circuit board surface. The plastic is then engineered to become semifluid at the solder reflow temperature, attaching the die to the board through the plastic columns. Thus, the plastic columns, while not totally attaching the underside of the die to the circuit board, will add significant strength to the overall bond, reducing the direct load on the solder balls.
The underfill plastic of the invention may be a thermoplastic, or, preferably, a thermosetting epoxy. The plastic may be in pellet form. The plastic may be applied to the wafer by any desired screening or dispensing system and contains a solvent which makes the plastic material (which is solid at room temperature) fluid and compatible with dispensing or printing. Once deposited, the solvent will be driven off, leaving a solid epoxy, this occurring before the wafer or die are supplied to an end user. The die will be mounted by a user who mounts the device into a conventional solder paste used for connecting solder balls.
During solder reflow the plastic becomes at least semi-fluid at about 80xc2x0 C., forming the connection between the die and the PCB. The reason for this early phase change is that flux in conventional solder paste starts to become mobile at temperatures in excess of about 80xc2x0 C. and the epoxy should make its connection between die and PCB before the area becomes contaminated with flux residue. The epoxy will then begin its cure by raising the temperature to 150xc2x0 C. or more.
Several methods for depositing thermosetting epoxies can be employed.
In a first method, a screen with clearance cut outs which align with and fit over the solder balls align central openings with the areas to receive insulation pillars. A thermosetting material which is solid at room temperature is thinned with solvents and is printed onto the wafer substrate in a screen printing type process so that plastic columns are printed between solder balls. The solvent is then driven off in a low temperature bake in the oven, leaving solid pillars of thermosetting plastic between the solder balls.
In a second method, the thermosetting plastic can be thinned with a solvent so it can be conveniently dispensed from a syringe, depositing self supporting columns of plastic between solder balls. The solvent is then driven off in a low temperature step, leaving solid plastic columns.
In a third method, very shallow columns of thinned thermosetting plastic are first deposited between solder balls, and, very small diameter pellets of the solid plastic (small in relation to the diameter of a column) are then scattered, or dusted over the wafer surface, adhering mainly to the area coated with the solvent rich shallow dots of plastic. The pellets outside of these areas are removed, as by inversion of the wafer or by air flow over the surface, and the solvents are then driven off in a low temperature bake to complete the process.

Wafer level insulation underfill for die attach


A communication apparatus performing communication in a noncontact manner is provided. The communication apparatus includes a transmission control unit configured to transmit a command; a timeout period checking unit configured to check whether a timeout period during which a response to the command is waited for has elapsed; a retransmission control unit configured to retransmit the command only after the timeout period has elapsed; an error checking unit configured to check whether data received within the timeout period has an error; and a processing unit configured to regard the data received within the timeout period as a correct response to the command if the data does not have an error and perform a process in accordance with the response. If the data received within the timeout period has an error, the retransmission control unit does not retransmit the command and the timeout period checking unit continues to check whether the timeout period has elapsed.

The present application relates to a communication apparatus, a communication method, and a program. Particularly, the present application relates a communication apparatus, a communication method, and a program that enables a reader/writer communicating with an IC (integrated circuit) card in a noncontact manner to easily communicate with the IC card even if interference occurs between the reader/writer and another reader/writer.
Recently, a noncontact IC card system, in which an IC card and a reader/writer communicate with each other in a noncontact manner through electromagnetic waves, has rapidly become widespread.
In the noncontact IC card system, a reader/writer outputs electromagnetic waves. When an IC card is held over the reader/writer, the IC card operates by obtaining power from mutual induction caused by the electromagnetic waves output from the reader/writer and starts communication with the reader/writer. The reader/writer transmits data to the IC card by modulating electromagnetic waves output therefrom. On the other hand, the IC card transmits data to the reader/writer by modulating non-modulated electromagnetic waves output from the reader/writer by so-called load modulation.
As described above, in the noncontact IC card system, the IC card and the reader/writer communicate with each other in a noncontact manner. This system is highly convenient and is now widely used in, for example, automatic ticket gates in stations.
The automatic ticket gates are required to deal with entrance/exit of many people in short time and thus are required to be provided with many readers/writers. However, readers/writers functioning as automatic ticket gates are placed in a limited space of a gate of a station. If many readers/writers are to be placed, the readers/writers are inevitably close to each other.
In such a case where readers/writers are close to each other, if the readers/writers use carrier waves of the same frequency, electromagnetic waves output from the readers/writers cause mutual interference, so that the readers/writers may not be able to communicate with an IC card held thereover.
FIG. 1 shows a state where a plurality of readers/writers are causing interference.
In FIG. 1, an IC card C is held over a reader/writer A, and thus the reader/writer A should communicate with only the IC card C.
However, if another reader/writer B exists close to the reader/writer A, as shown in FIG. 1, electromagnetic waves output from the reader/writer A and those output from the reader/writer B cause mutual interference, and as a result, the electromagnetic waves that caused mutual interference are received by the reader/writer A as electromagnetic waves that are load-modulated by the IC card C. Accordingly, the communication between the reader/writer A and the IC card C is interfered.
In order to prevent such interference of communication between the reader/writer A and the IC card C, a first method is suggested. In the first method, the readers/writers A and B are placed with a predetermined distance therebetween so that the electromagnetic waves output therefrom do not cause mutual interference.
In the first method, however, the number of readers/writers that can be placed in a gate reduces. As a result, it becomes difficult to deal with entrance/exit of many people in short time.
There are also suggested a second method of providing an interference detecting unit to detect interference in a reader/writer so that data communication is not performed while interference is caused (e.g., see Japanese Unexamined Patent Invention Publication No. 10-293824); a third method of inverting the phase of a radiation field between adjacent readers/writers (e.g., see Japanese Unexamined Patent Invention Publication No. 11-345294); and a fourth method of providing a function to change the frequency of carrier waves in a reader/writer (e.g., see Japanese Unexamined Patent Invention Publication No. 2000-20651).
However, in the second method, a hardware device serving as the interference detecting unit needs to be provided in the reader/writer, which increases the cost of the reader/writer.
In the third method of inverting the phase of a radiation field between adjacent readers/writers, a hardware device to invert the phase needs to be provided. Further, in the third method, a setter needs to set readers/writers by designing the setting positions thereof so as to satisfy a setting condition in which the radiation field is absolutely inverted in adjacent readers/writers, which is inconvenient.
In the fourth method, a setter of readers/writers needs to manage the frequency of carrier waves of the readers/writers. Particularly, a heavy load is imposed on the setter when a reader/writer is added or when the positions of the readers/writers are changed.
Further, a fifth method is suggested. In the fifth method, if a reception error occurs, that is, if a reader/writer cannot receive a correct response packet from an IC card, the reader/writer retransmits a command packet to the IC card (make a retry to transmit the command packet).
More specifically, packets are transmitted/received through noncontact communication between a reader/writer and an IC card constituting a noncontact IC card system. The reader/writer transmits a command packet, which is a packet including information of a command to execute a predetermined process, to the IC card. The IC card transmits a response packet, which is a packet including a response to the command packet from the reader/writer, to the reader/writer.
In the fifth method, the reader/writer transmits a command packet, waits for and receives a packet (response packet), and checks whether the packet has an error. If the packet received by the reader/writer has an error, the reader/writer immediately retransmits the command packet. After that, the reader/writer repeats receiving a packet (response packet), error check of the packet, and retransmission of the command packet until receiving a correct response packet from the IC card.
The fifth method is effective for the interference caused in the following example. For example, an IC card exists near an IC card held over a reader/writer. Under this condition, both IC cards react to a command packet transmitted from the reader/writer and transmit response packets to the command packet, which causes interference.
However, when interference is caused between the two readers/writers A and B close to each other, as described above with reference to FIG. 1, the communication performance between the reader/writer A and the IC card C held thereover cannot always be improved by the fifth method of retransmitting a command packet. Rather, the communication performance may degrade.
FIGS. 2 and 3 show the operations of the readers/writers A and B and the IC card C performed when the IC card C is held over the reader/writer A among the two readers/writers A and B close to each other.
Referring to FIG. 2, the reader/writer A transmits a command packet PA1 having a command code of 0x10 ("0x" indicates that the character (string) following thereafter is a hexadecimal number) in step S1. Then, the process proceeds to step S2, where the reader/writer A enters a reception waiting state to wait for receiving a response packet to the command packet PA1.
Each packet transmitted/received between the reader/writer A or B and the IC card C includes a command code or a response code representing the type of the packet. The command code or the response code indicates that the packet is a command packet or a response packet.
In FIG. 2, the reader/writer A transmits the command packet PA1 having a command code of 0x10 in step S1. Assuming that a response code of a response packet to the command packet having the command code 0x10 is 0x11, for example, the reader/writer A waits for receiving a packet (response packet) having a response code of 0x11 in the reception waiting state in step S2.
On the other hand, the IC card C receives the command packet PA1 having the command code 0x10 transmitted from the reader/writer A and starts a process in accordance with the command packet PA1 in step S11. After performing the process in accordance with the command packet PA1 from the reader/writer A, the IC card C transmits a response packet having a response code of 0x11 in response to the command packet PA1.
On the other hand, the reader/writer B performs polling to detect that an IC card is held thereover (that an IC card exists at a nearby position). Specifically, the reader/writer B periodically transmits a command packet having a command code of 0x80.
In FIG. 2, the reader/writer B transmits a command packet PB1 having the command code 0x80 in step S21. Further, the reader/writer B periodically transmits a command packet having the command code 0x80.
When the reader/writer B transmits the packet PB1 in step S21, the reader/writer A is in the reception waiting state in step S2 and thus receives the packet PB1 from the reader/writer B in step S3.
However, the packet PB1 from the reader/writer B is a command packet having the command code 0x80 and is not a response packet to the command packet PA1 to be received, that is, a packet having the response code 0x11. Therefore, the reader/writer A determines that the packet PB1 received in step S3 has an error and retransmits the command packet in step S4. In other words, the reader/writer A transmits a command packet PA2 having the command code 0x10.
In this case, if the IC card C transmits a response packet to the command packet PA1 while the reader/writer A is retransmitting the command packet having the command code 0x10, the reader/writer A cannot receive the response packet from the IC card C.
A packet transmitted between a reader/writer and an IC card constituting a noncontact IC card system may include a sequence ID (identification). The sequence ID is a value that is incremented by one by authorized reader/writer and IC card in order to prevent so-called masquerading, in which an unauthorized reader/writer or IC card interrupts the communication performed by the authorized reader/writer and IC card and masquerades as an authorized reader/writer or IC card.
FIG. 3 shows the operations of the readers/writers A and B and the IC card C in a case where packets including a sequence ID are transmitted between the reader/writer A or B and the IC card C.
In step S31, the reader/writer A transmits a packet (command packet) PA1 having a sequence ID of 11 and enters a reception waiting state to wait for receiving a response packet to the command packet PA1, as in the case shown in FIG. 2.
In step S41, the IC card C held over the reader/writer A receives the packet PA1 from the reader/writer A and starts a process in accordance with the packet PA1.
On the other hand, the reader/writer B performs polling as in FIG. 2. In FIG. 3, the reader/writer B transmits a packet (command packet) PB in step S51.
When the reader/writer B transmits the packet PB in step S51, the reader/writer A is in the reception waiting state. Then, in step S32, the reader/writer A receives the packet PB from the reader/writer B.
The packet PB from the reader/writer B is a command packet and is not a response packet to the command packet PA1 to be received by the reader/writer A.
Therefore, as in FIG. 2, the reader/writer A determines that the packet PB received in step S32 has an error, and retransmits a packet (command packet) in step S33. That is, the reader/writer A transmits a packet PA2 as a retransmission of the packet PA1.
At this time, the reader/writer A increments the sequence ID by one. Specifically, since the sequence ID of the previously transmitted packet PA1 is 11, the sequence ID of the packet PA2 is set to 12.
In step S42, the IC card C receives the packet PA2 from the reader/writer A.
After the IC card C completes the process in accordance with the packet PA1 including the sequence ID 11 received in step S41, the IC card C transmits a packet PC in response to the packet PA1 in step S43.
The packet PC is a response packet to the packet PA1 including the sequence ID 11 from the reader/writer A. Therefore, the IC card C increments the sequence ID of the packet PC by one into 12.
In step S34, the reader/writer A receives the packet PC from the IC card C. However, the sequence ID of this packet PC is 12, which is not a value (13) generated by incrementing the sequence ID 12 of the packet PA2 that was previously transmitted by the reader/writer A by one.
Therefore, the reader/writer A determines that the packet PC received in step S34 has an error (in this case, the packet PC is determined to be an incorrect packet), and retransmits a packet in step S35. That is, the reader/writer A transmits a packet PA3 as a retransmission of the packet PA1.
At this time, since the sequence ID of the previously transmitted packet PA2 is 12, the reader/writer A sets the sequence ID of the packet PA3 to 13 by incrementing 12 by one.
The packet PC that is received by the reader/writer A in step S34 is a correct response packet to the packet PA1 that is transmitted by the reader/writer A in step S31. However, the packet PC is transmitted from the IC card C after the reader/writer A transmitted the packet PA2 in step S33 as a retransmission of the packet PA1. Therefore, the reader/writer A regards the response packet PC, which is a correct response packet to the packet PA1, as an incorrect response packet to the packet PA2, determines that an error has occurred, and retransmits the command packet.
As described above, if the reader/writer A retransmits a packet immediately after detecting an error in a received packet, retransmission of the packet frequently occurs every time an error is detected in a packet received by the reader/writer A due to interference caused between the readers/writers A and B. This interferes with the communication between the reader/writer A and the IC card C held thereover. Accordingly, the communication performance (responsibility of the IC card C) degrades, which results in a decrease in the reliability of the entire noncontact IC card system.

Communication apparatus, communication method, and program


Disclosed is a method of determining in real-time an estimate of a Sound Pressure Level or Sound Exposure corresponding to sound produced in an acoustic environment by multiple loudspeakers of a sound system in response to an input signal to the sound system. The method comprises determining in real-time the estimate of the Sound Pressure Level or Sound Exposure on the basis of the input signal. The sound system is a level-calibrated sound system. Also disclosed is a real-time sound level estimator. Also disclosed are a method and a real-time sound level estimator where the estimation is based on an approximation of system properties based on microphone measurements, or established for multiple listening positions, respectively. Also disclosed are methods of calibrating and monitoring a sound system and calibration and monitoring devices therefore.

The present invention relates to estimation of sound level.
Many rooms or halls have a sound system installed, so that, for example, music or announcements can be played out to the audience or guests in the hall. Similarly, a concert venue would have a PA system installed, a movie theater would have a cinema sound reproduction system, and a studio would have its audio monitoring system.
A modern studio, cinema or home theater would have some type of surround sound system, supporting at least 5.1 or 7.1 channel sound reproduction. Bars, cafés, clubs, and discotheques would typically have a "house" sound system installed, comprising numerous loudspeakers—tens or even hundreds. In larger installations, different audio sources could be played in different zones, such that the "audience" at two different locations would hear either the same audio but at different sound levels, or different audio entirely.
In all the above cases, it is desirable to know the sound pressure level (SPL) at different positions in the acoustic environment, which the sound system covers. The SPL could be monitored, for instance to ensure that a maximum SPL is not exceeded. Or the SPL at different locations or zones could be checked against the intended SPL in each zone. Monitoring the SPL may be useful for both the owner of the venue, the arranger of the event, and the audio engineer, DJ, or operator mixing or controlling the levels of the sound sources and/or of the amplifiers powering the loudspeakers.
To measure the SPL, at some position, a sound level meter is normally employed (e.g. as specified in IEC 61672). Either a stand-alone device (e.g. Brüel & Kjær's Sound Level Meter—type 2250), or a measurement-microphone with omnidirectional characteristic, connected to sound level measurement software running on a PC having an audio i/o-interface with calibrated A/D converters installed. FIG. 1 illustrates a prior art embodiment where a sound level meter is employed to measure the SPL in an acoustic environment. FIG. 2 illustrates a prior art embodiment where the SPL is measured at two different listening positions. If the SPL is steady or reproducible the SPL at the listening positions may be measured sequentially by using only one sound level meter, but if the SPL needs to be monitored or maximum SPL during some period needs to be determined, then a sound level meter is required for each listening position.
A stand-alone sound level meter, often handheld or setup on a tripod, would be well-suited for "spot checks" of the SPL. But making such a device a permanent installation would be impractical—both due to the cost of purchase and maintaining the device, and due to the inconvenience of having, for example the sound level meter on a tripod installed at the center of a café or concert venue. Maintenance would include ensuring correct operation of the device, as well as calibration of sensitivity vs absolute level, at regular intervals.
Moreover, the measurements would need to be collected or downloaded onto a central storage in order to keep records of the SPL corresponding to different days or events. Having only the measurement-microphone at the location of interest and the actual sound measurement device stored somewhere else, would be another approach. In this case, the microphone and the measurement device would need to be connected by a cable carrying the audio signal and usually "phantom power" to the microphone.
In a real acoustic environment, i.e. with furniture and reflective surfaces of different materials, the combined effect of the multiple loudspeakers would mean that the resulting SPL, as well as coloration of the sound, could vary considerably between different locations. Hence, multiple sound level meters would be required—one for each measurement location—each with its own measurement microphone, hence suffering from the same problems as a single location, only multiplied.
When measuring the SPL, several different measures may be of interest: The peak SPL would reflect the maximum instantaneous acoustical level. Furthermore, the SPL may be averaged over the most recent (say) 15 minutes time period, and reported as an Leq, "equivalent continuous sound level", often A or C frequency weighted. Regional authorities may limit the maximum permitted Leq over one or more time periods, for public events.
The integrated sound pressure is generally known as Sound Exposure, and may further be A-weighted and calculated for a normalized 8 hour working day (ISO 1999; IEC 61252). Such measures are employed in regulations by national and international authorities to control and limit noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL), especially related to noise (including music) in the workspace. A recent example is: Directive 2003/10/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 Feb. 2003 on the minimum health and safety requirements regarding the exposure of workers to the risks arising from physical agents (noise).
Some prior art methods exist for estimating and limiting e.g. the SPL that the user of a certain headset or personal media player would be exposed to. They are based on prior knowledge of technical characteristics, such as sensitivity of the amplifier and/or transducer in the specific device. Often they employ rather crude means, such as simply limiting the voltage of the output signal or limiting the amplification gain of the device. These procedures do not directly correspond to controlling or limiting the actual Sound Exposure. FIG. 3 illustrates a prior art personal sound system with sound level control, where an SPL/SE estimator uses knowledge about the audio amplifier and the headphone transducers to control the SPL based on the fact that the sound will be delivered right into the user's ears and not interact with a more open acoustic space.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,737,630 discloses a system for estimating the sound exposure to reduce risk of noise induced hearing loss when listening to music through earphones or headphones. The estimation may be based on microphone measurements in the earphone or measurements of the audio signal before or after the amplifier. U.S. Pat. No. 7,013,011 discloses a system for limiting the possible sound pressure level which a user may experience from a telephone headset. The system uses a predetermined transfer function including the amplifier, headset and ear coupling characteristic to estimate the SPL which the input audio signal will cause, and attenuates the input audio signal if the estimated SPL is above a threshold.
A problem with the prior art methods is that they are bound to the specific device, for instance, a certain MP3-player or a certain headset. Furthermore, a most severe limitation is that these prior art methods cannot be applied to loudspeakers in an acoustic environment, because they are based on the assumption that the transducer (e.g. headset or in-ear headphone) is "coupled directly" with the ear of the user/listener. This is even more limiting when considering acoustic environments with multiple loudspeakers interacting in producing varying sound levels at different positions, as opposed to the headphone environments with basically one loudspeaker per ear.
Other prior art devices exist for measuring the Sound Exposure that one person is exposed to, typically during a working day; such a device may be known as a Personal Noise Dosimeter. These devices are self-contained and portable, and must be "worn" the whole time by the user, typically on his or her shoulder. Each device would contain a microphone used to continually measure the noise or sound level, to which the user is exposed, and then accumulate and display the "dose". If the dose would exceed a certain limit, the device could issue a warning, and the user might for example be encouraged to wear hearing protection.
Three principal limitations of such devices are: 1) the initial cost, 2) the maintenance (e.g. calibration and recharging), and 3) the discipline required for each person to always possess and wear the dosimeter.


An uninterruptible power supply provides internal or external connection of an auxiliary power source to a main power supply so as to provide continuous device power without requiring any modification to the main power supply itself and without duplicating its power circuit. The uninterruptible power supply (UPS) comprises a switch power supply (SPS) including a rectifier, DC to DC converter and at least one holdover capacitor connected across the input terminals of DC to DC power converter. A backup system supplies DC power from a battery to the holdover capacitors, and a back up control circuit supplies high voltage DC energy to the SPS at fixed time intervals and ensures smooth transition to AC utility power upon resumption of such power following a failure. An auxiliary AC power output signal is maintained for a video monitor or other device during operation of the uninterruptible power supply.

Presently available uninterrupted power supplies are based on a modular architecture whereby the uninterruptible power supply (UPS) is connected between an AC utility power line and a switch power supply (SPS). The SPS is continually fed AC power which it converts to appropriate regulated and unregulated DC output voltages, as required. Conventional design of such systems is based on a four-fold conversion of electrical energy, as follows:
(1) the incoming AC power is converted to DC at approximately the level of the backup battery voltage, with a small residual charge being available in order to ensure that the battery remains charged at all times; PA1 (2) DC to AC conversion of the DC voltage so as to provide an AC voltage level which approximates to that of the incoming AC line; PA1 (3) conversion of the AC voltage level to a high voltage DC level for energizing the high frequency converter in the SPS; and PA1 (4) multi-channel conversion of DC voltage to DC voltage so as to provide the required DC voltage outputs. PA1 the main power supply comprising:
The switch power supply receives power all the time either from the AC utility power line or, in the event of a power failure, from a backup battery. Such systems must work at relatively high power levels of typically 200-300 watts and are typically only 75-80% efficient. Moreover, the multi-stage mode of power conversion in most existing UPS systems require large and expensive components and, more particularly, duplication of regulation and switching circuits. Such duplication adds significantly to the resulting costs of the UPS.
In order to avoid such duplication, U.S. Pat. No. 5,289,045 (Lavin et al.) discloses an uninterruptible power supply which provides internal connection to an auxiliary power supply so as to provide continuous device power without duplicating regulation and switching circuits. The power supply includes an AC to DC converter, a transformer and a switch applying DC power from the converter to the transformer. A pulse width modulation control circuit assures a regulated output voltage which application of auxiliary power is controlled by a fixed time interval one-shot that assures a smooth transition to AC utility power upon resumption of such power following a failure. An auxiliary AC power output signal is maintained for a video monitor or other device even while operating on auxiliary power.
Whilst duplication of the regulation and switching circuits is indeed avoided in the UPS proposed by Lavin et at., this is at the expense of necessitating that either the main power supply and the auxiliary power supply are designed as an integral unit or, alternatively, that the main power supply be modified in order to allow effective connection thereto of the auxiliary power supply. Specifically, the main power supply proposed by Lavin et al. employs a transformer having a single primary winding and two sets of center-tapped secondary windings, each arranged as a push-pull winding pair. The primary winding is connected to a high voltage switched DC voltage whilst the first set of secondary windings is selectively wound to produce a 5 volt output, the second set of secondary windings being wound to produce plus and minus 12 volt outputs. In the event of a main power failure, the appropriate 12 volt levels are fed to the secondary windings of the transformer via a backup or auxiliary power supply energized by a pair of 12 volt batteries via a power switch. The power switch operates in response to pulse width control signals from the pulse width modulator circuit to drive alternately opposite sides of the 12 volt secondary transformer winding with the nominal 24 volt auxiliary power from the batteries.
Duplication of circuitry is avoided by using the same pulse width modulator circuit to regulate the secondary winding voltages during both battery operation and during normal AC utility power operation. However, it will be understood that this is made possible only by designing both the main power supply and the auxiliary power supply as an integral unit and this, in turn, means that the auxiliary power supply proposed by Lavin et al. is unsuitable for direct connection to conventional off-the-shelf power supplies such as are commonly used in computers and the like. It should also be noted that the solution proposed by Lavin et al. requires access to the transformer secondary windings in order to connect the auxiliary power supply thereto. This again implies redesign of the secondary transformer, thereby greatly increasing the manufacturing cost of the main power supply.
Yet a further consideration relates to the fact that the transformer 24 V secondary winding is designed for producing 12 V DC at a power rating of approximately 100 W, whilst the 12 V secondary winding is employed for producing 5 V DC at a power rating typically in the order of 200 W. When a power failure occurs in the AC power line, auxiliary power is supplied via the transformer 12 V secondary winding. The auxiliary power must be sufficient not only to produce the standard .+-.12 V DC and .+-.5 V DC levels which are produced by the main power supply, but must also provide sufficient power for allowing connection of a peripheral device, such as a video monitor, to the AC output of the power switch. Even if only the original 300 W is supplied via the transformer 12 V secondary winding, this still exceeds its power rating by a factor of 3. Bearing in mind that additional power may also be required for driving auxiliary circuitry, the total power which must be provided by the UPS may well exceed the maximum power rating of the 12 V transformer secondary winding by a factor of more than 3. Thus, the transformer 12 V secondary winding must be rewound with larger gauge wire and this requires dismantling the transformer laminations. It may then be impossible to accommodate thicker windings on the existing transformer core, requiring replacement of the whole transformer with a larger transformer having a higher power rating. A larger transformer occupies more space and usually cannot be accommodated on the original printed circuit board, requiring replacement of the complete PCB.
Furthermore, since a quasi alternating voltage is applied by the power switch to the transformer secondary winding when the main AC power fails, it is necessary to ensure that the signal supplied by the power switch is in phase with the original AC at the moment of changeover: both when the main AC power fails and also when it is restored. This requires that the power switch be synchronized by PWM control signals which are common to both the SPS and the auxiliary power supply. It is not feasible merely to hard-wire the output of the PWM in the SPS to the auxiliary power supply because of the susceptibility of stray mains frequency 60/50 Hz pickup by the wires and thus the whole of the PCB must be redesigned, thereby greatly increasing the cost of the SPS.
The manufacturing cost of a conventional power supply for use with a personal computer, for example, is of the order of US$ 8.00. To build the power supply proposed by Lavin et al. which enables connection thereto of a UPS, bearing in mind the above considerations, would increase the manufacturing cost of the main power supply by a factor of approximately 10 owing to the required redesign of the main power supply.
Even apart from cost considerations, safety factors militate against employing the auxiliary power supply proposed by Lavin et al. with a conventional power supply unless the two are co-designed as an integral UPS. Thus, the standard short circuit protection circuitry in the switch power supply cannot function to interrupt current to the load if the power switch connected to the battery backup fails, because the current supplied by the battery does not flow through the switch power supply. Consequently, a short circuit across the output of the auxiliary power supply may have irreparable and possibly dangerous consequences unless, of course, separate short circuit protection is provided within the auxiliary power supply, again adding to the overall cost.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,728,808 (Bet-Esh et al.) also discloses an uninterruptible power supply system having input terminals connectable to an AC power source and leading to an AC to DC converter for producing a first DC voltage source and a second DC voltage source operationally connected to the first source. The system supplies at the output of the second source a voltage normally primarily provided by the first DC source. A capacitive accumulator device is connected in parallel with a voltage sensing and controlling circuit and with the output of the two DC sources. The sensing and controlling circuit controls the output of at least the second of the DC voltage sources so as to provide at the output terminals of the system a substantially constant output voltage even when the AC power source to which the system is connected is interrupted.
The system disclosed by Bet-Esh et al. also requires that the UPS be designed as a composite device and does not allow connection of the second DC voltage source, constituting the backup or auxiliary DC voltage, to a conventional off-the-shelf main power supply without significant modification thereof.

Uninterruptible power supply based on non-invasive connection of backup circuit to switch power supply


A honeycomb regenerator is constructed by (a) honeycomb structural bodies arranged in a high temperature portion, in which a temperature is over 1250.degree. C. during a normal operation, made of aluminum-titanate or a combination of aluminum-titanate and mullite, and (b) honeycomb structural bodies arranged in a low temperature portion, made of cordierite and/or mullite, or by (a) honeycomb structural bodies arranged in a high temperature portion, to which an exhaust gas having a high temperature is contacted, made of aluminum-titanate or a combination of aluminum-titanate and mullite, (b) honeycomb structural bodies arranged in a middle temperature portion made of alumina and (c) honeycomb structural bodies arranged in a low temperature portion made of one material or a combination of materials selected from a group of cordierite, mullite and a porcelain. The honeycomb regenerator according to the invention can perform a heat exchanging operation effectively even in an exhaust gas having a high temperature and also in an exhaust gas having a high temperature and a corrosive property.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a honeycomb regenerator for recovering a waste heat in an exhaust gas by passing the exhaust gas and a gas to be heated alternately therethrough, which is constructed by stacking a plurality of honeycomb structural bodies and especially relates to the honeycomb regenerator used in an exhaust gas having a high temperature or a corrosive exhaust gas having a high temperature.
2. Related Art Statement
In a combustion heating furnace used for an industries such as a blast furnace, an aluminum melting furnace, a glass melting furnace or the like, a regenerator used for improving a heat efficiency, in which a firing air is pre-heated by utilizing a waste heat of an exhaust gas, has been known. As such regenerators, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 58-26036 (JP-A-58-26036) discloses a regenerator utilizing ceramic balls, and also Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 4-251190 (JP-A-4-251190) discloses a regenerator utilizing honeycomb structural bodies.
In the known regenerator mentioned above, at first an exhaust gas having a high temperature is brought into contact with the ceramic balls or the honeycomb structural bodies to store a waste heat of the exhaust gas in the regenerator, and then a gas to be heated having a low temperature is brought into contact with the thus pre-heated regenerator to heat the gas to be heated, thereby utilizing the waste heat in the exhaust gas effectively.
Among the known regenerators mentioned above, in the case of using the ceramic balls, since a contact area between the ceramic balls and the exhaust gas is small due to a large gas-flowing resistivity of the ceramic balls, it is not possible to perform a heat exchanging operation effectively. Therefore, there occurs a drawback such that it is necessary to make a dimension of the regenerator large.
Contrary to this, in the case of using the honeycomb structural bodies, since a geometrically specific surface thereof is large as compared with a volume thereof, it is possible to perform the heat exchanging operation effectively even by a compact body. However, in an actual industrial heating furnace such as a glass melting furnace and a ceramic firing furnace, an operating temperature becomes over 1400.degree. C. Therefore, if a honeycomb regenerator constructed by cordierite honeycomb structural bodies, which are widely used in a field of automobiles as a catalyst carrier, is applied to the heating furnaces mentioned above, the cordierite honeycomb structural bodies become soft and in an extreme case melted. This is because a softening temperature of the cordierite honeycomb structural bodies is about 1400.degree. C. In this case, the honeycomb regenerator cannot be used.
Moreover, in order to improve anti-corrosive properties, a prior art honeycomb regenerator is known, which is constructed by stacking anti-corrosive honeycomb structural bodies and cordierite honeycomb structural bodies. However, the honeycomb regenerator mentioned above cannot be used in a blasting furnace where the temperature reaches about 1300.degree. C. and foreign substances such as an iron scale are included in an exhaust gas. For Example, if use is made of an alumina honeycomb structural body as the anti-corrosive honeycomb structural body, the alumina honeycomb structural body is not reacted with the iron scale, and thus it is no problem. However, in the blasting furnace, an abrupt temperature change occurs during a normal operation. In this case, the alumina honeycomb structural body is susceptible to breakage by the abrupt temperature change mentioned above, since alumina has a high thermal expansion coefficient and a low thermal shock resistance. Further, if the other anti-corrosive honeycomb structural bodies such as mullite, SiC are used, mullite and SiC have a high thermal expansion coefficient, and thus the honeycomb structural bodies are also susceptible to breakage due to an abrupt temperature change as is the same as the alumina honeycomb structural body. Moreover, in order to improve anti-corrosive properties, it is thought that the size of one honeycomb structural body is made small, but in this case a handling operation of the honeycomb regenerator becomes troublesome.
Further, in a heating furnace using a heavy fuel oil, SOx is generated due to a sulfur component included in the heavy oil and is reacts with a water component at a temperature under a dew point of SOx, so that a diluted sulfuric acid is generated. Therefore, if use is made of the cordierite honeycomb structural body in the atmosphere mentioned above, the cordierite honeycomb structural body is corroded.


An apparatus and method for force-controlled fatigue testing of a specimen or material. A driver is used to generate a load force which is applied to the test specimen. Physical property changes of the test specimen are measured over time and a feedback signal is generated as a function of the measured physical property changes. A motion command signal is computed as a function of the feedback signal. A computer processes the feedback signal and emits the motion command signal to an actuator. The driver responds to the motion command signal and maintains the load force at an approximately constant magnitude during the physical property changes of the test specimen.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an relates to an apparatus and method for controlled fatigue testing of a specimen wherein a magnitude of a load force applied to the specimen is varied over time so that the load force upon the test material is maintained constant during physical property changes of the test material.
2. Description of Prior Art
It is crucial to be able to create accurate and stable loading conditions during fatigue testing of a specimen or sample material. According to conventional apparatuses and methods, arbitrary force profiles cannot be generated without elaborate tuning of a force controller designed for a specific class of materials, which defeats the purpose of the testing activity since such conventional apparatuses and methods require prior knowledge of the physical properties of the specimen or material. With such conventional apparatuses and methods, even if they could be properly tuned, it would be very difficult to compensate for slow dynamic changes in the physical properties of the specimen, such as those caused by geometric deformations and propagation of cracks, which can lead to undetected instability of loading conditions.
It is important to distinguish between the control mechanisms of fatigue testing systems and those of other control systems, such as numerical controllers that are employed in machine tooling systems, temperature controllers, liquid level controllers and the like. In such other control systems, the control input variable, such as pulse frequency, coil current or valve position, is independent of the controlled variable, such as position, temperature and liquid level. However, in fatigue testing systems, the control variable, such as displacement, and the controlled variable, such as the load, interact through the unknown test specimen. The displacement variable plays a dual role, a control variable and a response variable of the test. Thus, the load becomes a test signal that directly depends upon the physical properties of the test specimen or other test material.
In some conventional fatigue testing equipment controlled variables other than displacement are used to control the load on the test specimen, which limits the force profiles that can be generated and often results in overheating of drive motors. Also, such conventional fatigue testing apparatuses use torque motors which provide relatively low positioning resolution, due to analog control circuits, and thus less stable load profiles.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,154,085 discloses a tension type dynamic viscoelasticity measuring apparatus which applies a prescribed force to a viscoelastic test material. Over time, due to molecular relaxation effects, the applied force diminishes. In order to correct for an anticipated relaxation-induced or time-dependent reduction in the force acting on the test specimen, the apparatus taught by the '085 patent exerts additional displacement or extension at a magnitude which is computed as a function of time. The control system taught by the '085 patent is considered to be open loop with respect to the tensile force. Since the apparatus taught by the '085 patent does not measure the actual force acting on the test specimen, adjustments in the specimen displacement tend to promote relaxation-induced force reductions. According to the apparatus of the '085 patent, the accuracy of the actual force magnitude relies on the predictive power of the time function.
It is well known that the intensity of stressed-relaxation of a polymer depends upon its molecular structure and its physical state. The number of common types of polymers and their corresponding physical states are so large that a preset time function cannot account for such variance.
The displacement-based feedback control taught by the '085 patent cannot be used to generate constant load magnitude which is essential for fatigue testing. The load prescribed by the moving mechanism taught by the '085 patent diminishes not only due to stress relaxation, a molecular process, but also due to cracks and other plastic deformation processes which cannot be compensated for by any known time function. The force acting on a polymer specimen under fatigue testing usually diminishes due to dimensional changes of the specimen, such as thinning, which cannot be compensated for through a time function. Fatigue testing involves complex specimen geometries, such as a plastic pipe section or a fused joint, wherein actual response to the applied force must be measured and corrected in real time. Fatigue testing requires intermittent application of tensile force and/or compressive force, thus the motion mechanism and control taught by the '085 patent is ineffective.

Apparatus and method for force-controlled fatigue testing


An electrical machine with an axial-flow fan and a two-part ventilator encasing is disclosed. One part of the ventilator encasing is non-moveable with respect to the fan blade of the axial-flow fan. The second encasing part is moveable with respect to the fan blade, and can be moved from a first position in which the moveable encasing part is adjacent to the fan blade to a second position axially displaced from the first position. The axial movement of the moveable encasing part facilitates maintenance and disassembly work on the machine which require a significant clearance between the fan blade and the encasing. The moveable encasing part is moveably mounted on a bearing bracket associated with the shaft of the rotor of the machine. The shaft of the rotor is used to coaxially position the moveable encasing part with respect to the axial-flow fan and the axial-flow fan blade. Means are provided to lock the moveable encasing part in the first axial position, and to maintain the quality of a seal between the moveable and non-moveable encasing parts during machine operation.

This invention relates generally to rotating electrical machinery, and more particularly to a self-ventilated electrical machine with an axial-flow fan and a ventilator encasing associated with the fan.
In conventional electrical machines with axial-flow fans, the clearance between the fan blade and the encasing associated with the fan are kept as small as possible in order to avoid pressure losses. Generally, the clearance is approximately 0.5 mm. However, maintenance and disassembly work in which the rotor of the machine has to be lifted, such as maintenance work involving the bearings, require substantially more clearance for motion between the fan and the encasing. As a result, maintenance and disassembly work generally require extensive and time-consuming measures in order to disassemble the encasing or to regulate the position of the encasing with respect to the fan. Such measures often include breaking through the machine casing in order to reach the ventilator encasing.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide an electrical machine with an axial-flow fan and a ventilator encasing which facilitates maintenance and disassembly work.
According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the encasing includes two encasing parts, one of which is axially moveable with respect to the axial-flow fan blade. The axially moveable encasing part can be moved away from the fan blade to facilitate maintenance and disassembly work. The non-moveable encasing part is fixedly connectly to the machine casing or to stator sheet-metal plates of the machine. The moveable encasing part is moveably mounted on a bearing bracket associated with the rotor shaft of the machine and with the machine casing, and can be removed together with the bearing bracket from the machine. The moveable encasing part is so mounted on the bearing bracket that the moveable encasing part can be moved away from the fan blade even when the bearing bracket is fixedly connected to the machine casing.

Electrical machine with an axial-flow fan


A sleeve assembly for forming a lined opening in molded structures made from concrete or the like. The sleeve provides the lining. During formation of the structure, the sleeve is held in place by a pair of generally hemispherical end cups having tapering and/or curving surfaces for supporting sleeves of a variety of sizes. The end cups are preferably held in place by a retainer which passes through the sleeve and is connected to the end cups by loose fitting clips which are mounted in the end cups. The sleeve assembly is adapted to be secured between a pair of generally parallel panels between which a molded structure such as a wall is formed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, generally, to a sleeve assembly for forming a lined opening in molded structures made, for example, from concrete and, more particularly, to such a sleeve assembly which may be arranged between a pair of spaced-apart panels defining surfaces of a molded structure to be formed therebetween.
2. Prior Art
One type of structural construction technique is to use poured concrete or the like. In this technique, portions of such structures are formed with one or more panels (or forms) defining various surfaces of the structure. For example, a vertical concrete wall is generally poured between two spaced-apart, vertically arranged panels. A floor may be similarly formed when concrete (or other material) is poured upon one horizontally arranged panel. The upper surface of the floor is normally finished manually and an upper form or panel is not always required.
In the formation of molded structures, particularly in concrete walls or the like, it is commonly necessary to provide a relatively large number of accurately located and shaped openings to permit the passage of conduits of various types through the finished structure.
It is desirable to be able to form and maintain such openings through the structure in a relatively simple manner which does not interfere with formation of the structure. Some of the problems encountered in this regard include the specific arrangement and shape of the openings to be formed in the structure. For example, the forms or panels may not always be perfectly aligned. Thus, the sleeve may not always be easily installed.
Likewise, the structures may have different thicknesses in any particular job, or from job-to-job. In this case, a large number of sleeves of different lengths is required. This has the disadvantage of a large inventory of sleeves which is cumbersome to store and expensive to maintain. Moreover, it is desirable that an element defining an opening through the structure be capable of simple, and rapid installation between two vertical panels.

Sleeve assembly for forming openings in molded structures


A surgical cutting and stapling instrument has an improved blade. The surgical instrument has a handle with a moveable firing trigger, a shaft extending from the handle, and a stapling head at the end of the shaft. An array of staples are located within the stapling head. An anvil is coupled to the stapling head and has staple forming pockets facing and in alignment with the staples. A breakaway washer is located within the anvil assembly and has a pair of parallel spaced walls with a thin web extending therebetween. The thin web faces the distal face of the stapling head. A blade is located within the distal face of the stapling head and has a distal cutting edge and at least one wedge spike facing the annular thin web of the breakaway washer. When the anvil is moved adjacent to the stapling head and the firing trigger is closed, the staples are formed and the blade is moved to sever the breakaway washer in a two step process. First, the wedge spike of the blade penetrates the thin web of the breakaway washer and weakens the thin web by propagating a crack within the thin web. Second, once the breakaway washer is cracked, the distal cutting edge of the blade severs the thin web.

Circular surgical staplers are well known in the surgical field for the ease with which the instrument performs a previously difficult anastomotic stapling operation--the hemostatic joining of two pieces of tubular tissue together with a ring of staples. Such an instrument is ideally suited for intestinal or bowel surgery, and an instrument of this type is the Endopath.TM. ILS Endoscopic Curved Intraluminal Stapler manufactured by Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Cincinnati, Ohio. The circular stapling instrument has a distal stapling head that is available in a variety of sizes to match the organ size of the patient.
Circular stapling instruments are best known for their ability to anastomose or attach two pieces of intestinal or bowel tissue together in an end-to-end fashion. In general, staples are known to provide a good degree of hemostasis when applied to tubular tissue such as intestine or bowel. Circular stapling instruments hold a plurality of staples in an annular array of concentric rings within a body of the distal stapling head. A moveable anvil is used to compress or clamp the pieces of intestinal tissue together between the body and the anvil of the stapling head. A firing trigger is operatively coupled to the stapling head and actuation of the trigger ejects the annular array of staples from the body of the stapling head. The ejected staples pierce the clamped tissue and are formed into a ring of "B" shaped staples that securely join the pieces of intestinal tissue together. A circular blade or scalpel of generally cylindrical shape is located within the stapling head and is advanced distally to sever a small ring or "donut" of excess tissue from between the annular array of formed staples. Severing the donut of tissue opens a passageway between the joined pieces of intestinal tissue. The anastomosed tissue is released from the circular instrument by distally advancing the anvil away from the staple holder and drawing the anvil out through the passageway within the annular array of formed staples. Such a device was disclosed by Becht in U.S. Pat. No. 4,207,898 and by Rothfuss in U.S. Pat. No. 4,319,576.
One improvement to the circular stapler that has been well received by surgeons is the inclusion of a breakaway or backup washer within the anvil of the surgical stapler. The breakaway washer is an annular member of semi-rigid material located within the anvil in a location directly opposite to the circular blade. The annular ring has a pair of spaced annular walls joined together at the proximal end by a thin web of material. The thin web of material faces the circular blade and supports tissue as the circular blade is advanced. The advancing circular blade severs the clamped tissue and is slowed by contact with the thin web of the breakaway washer. A cutting edge of the circular blade is substantially parallel to the thin web of the breakaway washer such that the entire cutting edge contacts the thin web of the breakaway washer in a circular ring of contact. Continued application of force partially severs the thin web of material and the remaining thin web material abruptly breaks due to the applied pressure. As the breakaway washer breaks, the load or force required to advance the circular blade drops abruptly. This abrupt force change provides the surgeon with a clear tactile and an audible indication that the instrument has been fired. A circular stapling instrument having a breakaway or backup washer is taught in U.S. Pat. No. 4,289,133, by Rothfuss.
It is important to note that U.S. Pat. No. 4,289,133 discloses a circular blade having an annular cutting edge that is generally parallel to the thin web of the breakaway washer. The parallelism of the cutting edge to the thin web maximizes the contact area of the blade with the thin web and maximizes the input force required to sever the breakaway washer.
Whereas the breakaway washer was indeed a breakthrough device providing the surgeon with an audible and tactile indication that the anastomosis of the tubular organs is complete, the force required to sever or break the breakaway washer amounted to a large portion of the firing force of the instrument. The force required to break the breakaway washer rises to an abrupt peak over a narrow portion of the firing trigger stroke. An alternate embodiment of the circular blade disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,289,133 is a circular blade having an undulating cutting edge. The undulating cutting edges has both peaks and valleys, and the peaks of the cutting edge contact and slices the breakaway washer before the valleys. The undulating cutting edge does not cut the entire thin web simultaneously and this distributes the cutting of the breakaway washer over a larger part of the firing stroke. This reduces the peak cutting forces, and the blade slices rather than penetrates or punches through the thin web.
Whereas the undulating cutting edge does indeed reduce the load or force to break the washer, it is accomplished by spreading the load over a larger portion of the firing stroke. Testing has indicated that an undulating cutting blade gradually slices the breakaway washer and does not provide the tactile and audible feeling that that is preferred by many surgeons.
Thus, an invention that reduces the peak firing force and provides a tactile and audible signal to the surgeon would be more acceptable. Presently, there is no known surgical anastomosis stapling instrument that can provide an improved interaction between the circular blade and the breakaway washer such that the surgeon is provided with both the desired tactile and audible feedback, and a reduction of the force needed to fire the instrument.

Cutting blade for a surgical anastomosis stapling instrument


The invention relates to a device, a method and a corresponding computer program product for transmitting data to a carrier. The device (1) comprises a control system (2), a holding surface (3) which is used to hold the carrier (4) and a transmission head (5) for transmitting data from a data memory (6) to said carrier (4). The holding surface (3) is arranged in such a way that it can be rotated about an x-axis (8) by means of a first drive device (7) and the transmission head (5) is arranged in such a way that it can be moved along a y-axis (10) by means of a second drive device (9). Both the holding surface and the transmission surface are controlled by the control system (2) in a coordinated manner. The invention is characterized in that the device (1) comprises an additional computer (16) in which a computer program product can be installed, said computer program product comprising software code segments with which, when this computer program product is running on said additional computer (16) and by means of generating polar co-ordinates, data is read out of, in a circular manner, a linear file read into or stored in the working memory (RAM) of the computer (16). The data determined in this way is allocated via the memory store (6) to the transmission head (5) for transmission to the carrier (4).

The primary field of application of the invention is the printing industry, in which the transmission of data to data carriers, in particular, the exposure of information carriers such as offset printing plates, lithography films or setting copies for flexographic printing processes, represents a very important process step. Since the source data used for the printing process are more and more frequently stored on a computer and then transmitted from this computer to the setting copy or a data carrier, this technology is referred to as the "Computer-to-Plate" (CtP) technology.
CtP devices known from the state of the art utilize data transmission principles, in which a flatbed or a drum is provided as the holding surface for the data carrier. The transmission head for transmitting the data and the data carrier that receives the data are always moved relative to one another in such a way that data can be transmitted over the largest portion of the data carrier surface possible.
It is known that flatbed systems operate relatively slow. Exposure systems that operate in accordance with the capstan principle transmit data with a single laser beam. In this case, each round exposure point becomes elliptical at a high deviation such that the resolution is limited depending on the distance from the central axis. Systems that operate with a X/Y coordinate table tend to form exposure strips that can only be prevented with complicated and costly machines. Although the utilization of multiple exposure heads with a series of laser diodes makes it possible to shorten the exposure times, it is very difficult to prevent this strip formation that is also referred to as "digital-optical banding."
Interior drum systems, in which a laser beam is deviated by means of a mirror in such a way that it can sweep over the data carrier, require the utilization of particularly expensive and high-power YAG lasers, the focusing of which is relatively complicated because the lens system is situated far from the data carrier. The polygon mirror used needs to revolve with high speeds (approximately 20,000-30,000 rpm). This requires a complicated and expensive bearing arrangement for the mirror, wherein vibration-free guides and special foundations are also absolutely imperative.
An exterior drum system makes it possible to move the transmission head toward the plate surface until they are spaced apart by only a few millimeters. This allows the utilization of inexpensive laser diodes that can also be easily focused and utilized as multi-channel exposure heads. However, the installation of the data carrier on the outside of the drum is complicated with respect to constructive considerations and the handling (placing the plates into the centering pins). Damages (bending) may occur when handling thin offset plates with a thickness of 0.15 mm. In addition, the drum needs to be balanced differently-depending on the size of the plates to be exposed. When using thermal plates, dust particles are created during the exposure, wherein said dust particles are directly thrown onto and soil the lens system due to the centrifugal force.
The combined interior/exterior drum system proposed by the applicant for the present invention combines the advantages of interior and exterior drum systems and eliminates the respectively cited disadvantages. However, the bending of the plate which occurs during their installation on the drums may cause certain disadvantages to persist: offset printing plates with a thickness of 0.15 mm make it possible to produce a very intimate contact with the inside of the drum, but are very sensitive to bending such that they must be handled very carefully. Offset plates with a thickness of 0.30 mm are less sensitive to bending, but relatively stiff in the marginal region. This means that the plates do not always produce an intimate contact with the drum up to the edge. This can negatively influence the focus during the exposure, as well as the suction vacuum. In addition, the manufacture of these devices is relatively complicated and expensive. One also has to take into account that up to a third of the exposure time may be lost because the interior of the drum is open at the top in order to install the plates.

Device, method and computer program for transmitting data


A semiconductor device includes a semiconductor body with a front-sided surface. An active cell region with a semiconductor device structure and an edge region surrounding the active cell region are arranged in the semiconductor body. The front-sided surface of the semiconductor body includes a passivation layer over the edge region and over the active cell region. The passivation layer includes a semiconducting insulation layer of a semiconducting material, the bandgap of which is greater than the bandgap of the material of the semiconductor body.

For achieving potential properties at the surface of a semiconductor device which are stable in the long term, it is possible to apply a suitable passivation layer to the surface of the semiconductor device. The semiconductor device includes a semiconductor body which contains an active cell region and an adjoining inactive edge region, which encloses the active cell region and which extends to the edge of the semiconductor body.
For these and other reasons, there is a need for the present invention.

Semiconductor device with semiconductor body and method for the production of a semiconductor device