A received query is analyzed to provide a set of potential bushy tree operation plans that include the creation of one or more “sub-joins” that provide intermediate resultant “sub-tables”, and using these sub-tables as operands in the other predicates of the query. The received query is analyzed to identify “satellite” tables and “seed” tables. A satellite table is a table of the database that is filtered by a selective predicate, and is connected to only one other table in the database via at least one linking predicate, and a seed table is a table of the database that is connected to a satellite table and at least one other table. Multiple candidate operation plans are formulated as bushy trees that include a sub-join of each seed table and its connected satellite table. A least cost operation plan is selected for execution from among these candidate operation plans and the conventional least cost linear operation plan based on the costs associated with each operation plan.

This invention relates to the field of database management and query processing, and in particular to a method for improving a computer's efficiency in executing a received query by recasting the query using one or more bushy joins of the tables involved in the received query.
The use of computer databases to organize information is ever-growing. This growth includes the expansion of fields of data and the relationships among these various fields of data. Correspondingly, the complexity of queries submitted by users to retrieve specific information based on such relationships has also increased.
Conventionally, a database comprises a number of Tables that include rows and columns, each row being an identifiable "instance" of a record in the table, and each column being the value of the attributes included in each row. Data is retrieved from the database by executing a query that defines the selection of records from the database, and the operations that are to be performed on these selected records. The selection of records is performed by applying the search criteria, or "predicates" to the tables of the database. Predicates may address one or two tables. A predicate that addresses one table is termed a "single-table predicate", wherein a particular value is specified for selection from the table. For example, single-table predicates include such terms as "Table.column=Constant", "Table.column IN (Constant1, Constant 2, . . . ", "Table.column BETWEEN (Constant1, Constant2)", and so on.
A predicate that addresses two tables is termed herein a "linking predicate", to distinguish it from the selective predicate. A linking predicate establishes a connection between the two tables, and is typically of the form "Table1.columnA=Table2.columnB", which filters both tables for records in which the value of columnA in Table1 is the same as the value of Table2. Applying a linking predicate forms a table that includes all of the matched records of Table1 and Table2, and is termed a "join" of these tables. A join of tables may also be formed without a predicate, wherein all of the entries of Table2 are joined with Table1.
Queries are typically executed by a sequential execution of the predicates and other operations (such as joins without predicates) in the query, wherein each predicate or other operation is applied to the table formed by the previous predicates or operations in the query. Consequently, the order of processing each join of a query can significantly affect the speed at which the computer that executes the query will provide a result. For example, in a query that addresses two different tables in the database, executing a predicate in the query on a first table that substantially reduces the number of 'candidate' records in the resultant table before executing a predicate related to the second table will significantly reduce the number of records that the computer must compare to the second table. Conversely, executing a predicate on the first table that is not expected to significantly reduce the number of candidate records in the resultant table will not significantly reduce the number of records that need to be compared to the second table.
Accordingly, the order of executing predicates in the query is generally determined based on the expected reduction in 'costs' of executing subsequent predicates. The total cost of sequentially executing a query is commonly determined based on the cost of executing each predicate, and the cost of accessing and moving data, in light of the order of execution of the predicates. The costs of different orders of execution are determined, and an order of execution that minimizes this cost is selected as the preferred order to execute the particular query. The order of execution of predicates in the query may be represented as an "operation tree", an "operation plan", or a "query tree". The sequential execution of each predicate on the results of the execution of each prior predicate results in a "linear" join tree, such as illustrated in FIG. 1C (detailed further below).
In addition to controlling the order of executing predicates in a query, conventional query processors may also optimize performance by such techniques as "Column Elimination" transformation, which removes any columns in the resultant table that are not subsequently used in the query, and "Predicate Pushdown", which finds predicates that can be "pushed down" in the operation tree to be applied to a smaller resultant table. Other techniques for optimizing linear operation trees are common in the art. As used herein, the terms 'optimization' and 'least cost' are used loosely, and should be interpreted as the application of techniques that are either known to reduce costs, or are structured to assess a variety of options and select the least costly option from among the selected variety of options.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,438,152, issued 7 May 2013 to Rafi Ahmed, (hereinafter Ahmed) and incorporated by reference herein, discloses that improvements in performance may be obtained by recasting a linear join tree into a bushy join tree. The bushy tree comprises two or more independent sub-trees that are joined to form the query. Ahmed addresses "snowstorm" queries that can be characterized as having large 'fact' tables and small 'dimension' tables, and discloses that the sub-joins should be formed by joining large fact tables to small dimension tables, and then choosing the combination of such sub-joins that produces the least costly tree.
However, in a typical query that addresses multiple large fact tables, the evaluation of all such combinations is likely to consume a substantial amount of 'pre-processing' to determine the least costly tree. Ahmed does not provide specific guidance for further selecting candidate sub-joins; presumably, all joins between large and small tables should be considered and all the trees formed by different combinations of such joins should be evaluated to select the least costly tree.
In a subsequent technical paper ("Of Snowstorms and Bushy Trees", Ahmed et al., Proceedings of the VLDB Endowment, Vol. 7, No. 13, included by reference herein), Ahmed notes that a query with five tables provides 1,680 possible permutations (using Ahmed's formula, a query with six tables will provide 30,340 possible permutations). Ahmed discloses that this number can be substantially reduced by pre-grouping the tables, but does not disclose techniques for such pre-grouping. It appears that each large table, with its related small tables, would form each group. However, a query that addressed five large tables would still have 1,680 possible permutations to be evaluated, the cost of which would likely preclude the application of Ahmed's bushy join recasting process.
It would be advantageous to further improve the performance of a computer in executing a database query by providing a bushy tree recasting process that substantially reduces the number of bushy tree combinations that need to be evaluated and compared. It would also be advantageous to provide a bushy tree recasting process that is not dependent on the relative sizes of the tables, and is not limited to the recasting of "snowstorm" queries. By efficiently selecting the bushy tree combinations that are to be evaluated and compared, a bushy tree combination can be provided for execution of the database query that substantially enhances the database management system's performance by reducing the total processing time, the total data transfer time, or other costs in responding to the received query.
These advantages, and others, can be realized by recasting an original query into a set of potential bushy tree operation plans that include the creation of one or more "sub-joins" that provide intermediate resultant "sub-tables", and using these sub-tables as operands in the other predicates of the query. That is, as contrast to the conventional ordering of joins in the received query by providing a least-cost linear join tree corresponding to the received query, the process of this invention includes the efficient selection of sub-tables that are the result of applying predicates of the received query to select tables of the database, and then using these sub-tables as components of a rewritten operation plan that reduces the costs associated with executing the received query by the database management system. As contrast to the prior art technique of forming sub-joins of every 'large' table and its associated 'small' tables, the process of this invention selects joins that are likely to improve the execution of the query (hereinafter "selective joins") without regard to the size of the tables being joined, and without regard to the 'type' of query being processed.
In an embodiment of this invention, a received query is analyzed to identify "satellite" tables and "seed" tables. A satellite table is a table of the database that is filtered by a selective predicate, and is connected to only one other table in the database via at least one linking predicate, and a seed table is a table of the database that is connected to a satellite table and at least one other table. Multiple candidate operation plans are formed as bushy trees that include a sub join of each seed table and its connected satellite table. A least cost operation plan is selected for execution from among these candidate operation plans and the conventional least cost linear operation plan based on the costs associated with each operation plan.
Throughout the drawings, the same reference numerals indicate similar or corresponding features or functions. The drawings are included for illustrative purposes and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.

Bushy joins to improve computer efficiency executing queries


A linearly-overlapping light measurement system “measurement head” having one or more linearly-overlapping modular light sources each having individual light sources arranged in a geometric pattern, the light sources being single- or multi-wavelength and programmable to generate light that is transmitted through and/or reflected from a work piece to be detected by linearly-overlapping modular light detectors having individual light detectors arranged in a geometric pattern. The “measurement head” also has linearly-overlapping modular light detectors arranged in a geometric pattern to receive light emitted by the light sources. A computer controller coordinating the operation of the light source array and light detector array to automatically sense and record the light transmittance and/or reflectance of one or more spectral ranges in real time from the work piece and then adjust the work being performed on the work piece to attain pre-determined standards. Reference feedback circuitry is provided for monitoring the light sources in each light source module. The reference feedback circuitry adjusts the operating parameters of a light source module to ensure that the intensity and the chromatic output of the light therefrom remains at a consistent level.

The prior art, as exemplified in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,626,724, 5,073,028, 4,003,660, and 3,995,958, provides methods and apparatus to measure light for the purpose of monitoring light transmittance through a work product and light reflectance from a work product. This prior art utilizes a moving platform to exhaustively sample a linear segment of a work product, as well as expensive detector filtering and/or light dispersion
The prior art, as exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 6,671,052 describes a static, multi-point densitometer with between 1 and 8 sensors per probe for monitoring and quality control of work product by measuring the transmissive or reflective optical density. Adjustments are then determined and made to achieve the desired optical density value.
The prior art does not teach, and there is a need, for a light measurement system head ("measurement head") having elongated, modular, interlocking modules, each module having a linearly-overlapping orientation of a plurality of light sources or light detectors. Multiple light source modules are interlocked together and multiple light detector modules are interlocked together into a chosen length and used to exhaustively map a linear segment of a work product of a given width passing lengthwise beneath the interlocked light source modules and the interlocked light detector modules.
The prior art also does not suggest or teach, and there is a need, utilizing an onboard light source reference function to maintain consistent light intensity output from the light source modules of the "measurement head".
The prior art also does not suggest or teach, and there is a need, for a peripheral temperature function to monitor and control for temperature impacts on both the light source modules and light detector modules.
Thus, there is a need in the prior art for an improved light measurement system "measurement head" for monitoring the transmittance of light through a work product or the reflectance of light from a work product that meets the above described need in the prior art. This improved light measurement system "measurement head" provides an end to end interlocking design of a plurality of light source modules and an end to end interlocking design of a like plurality of light detector modules. This permits a linearly-overlapping orientation across multiple modules that can be used to exhaustively map a linear segment of a work product of a given width passing lengthwise beneath the interlocked light source modules and the interlocked light detector modules. There is an onboard light source reference function to maintain consistent light intensity output from the light source modules, and a peripheral temperature function to monitor and control temperature impacts on both the light source modules and light detector modules.

Measurement head for a linearly overlapping light measurement system


The invention provides a capacitive sensor circuit in which a capacitance to be sensed is selectively coupled into a ring oscillator circuit. The ring oscillator frequency is measured with the capacitance coupled and not coupled, and a capacitance is derived from the change in ring oscillator frequency.

The invention is of particular interest for pixellated capacitive sensing systems, which can be used to determine material properties.
This type of pixellated capacitive sensing system can for example consist of an electronic circuit capable of measuring extremely small capacitances, originating from a chemical substance which changes its dielectric constant under the influence of a material to be detected. To obtain as much information as possible the sensor is not one big component, but an array of "pixels" (like image sensors). The pixellation enables measurement of gradients, and detection of material boundaries and imperfections.
An example is measuring the amount of CO2 in ambient air.
There are a number of different ways to measure capacitance. The capacitor under measurement can be driven with either a voltage or a current excitation signal. The output signal can be the current or voltage that flows as a result of the excitation, but it can also be a ratio or difference signal.
Examples of possible combinations of excitation signal and readout signal are:
(i) AC voltage drive, measurement of the AC current through capacitor;
(ii) AC current drive, measurement of the AC voltage across capacitor;
(iii) AC voltage drive, measurement of the DC current through switched capacitor;
(iv) AC current drive, measurement of the DC voltage across switched capacitor;
(v) AC voltage drive, measurement of the capacitance ratio using a bridge circuit;
(vi) AC current drive, measurement of the capacitance ratio using a dual slope converter;
(vii) AC voltage drive, measurement of the capacitance difference using a switched difference integrator;
(viii) AC current drive, measurement of the capacitance difference;
(ix) Determination of an oscillation frequency dependent on the capacitance, for example using an oscillator.
Known pixelated sensors (also known as array impedance sensors) generally use AC voltage driving with measurement of the AC current through a capacitor (method (i) above). The change of the capacitance is interpreted to determine substance properties. A known biosensor makes use of AC voltage drive with measurement of the DC current through a switched capacitor (method (iii) above).
There is a need for a measurement approach which is accurate and can be implemented with simple circuitry.


Low-power access points are used to identify traffic congestion zones in a network. The low-power access points collect metrics that are used identify high demand areas. The locations of the traffic congestion zones are then determined based on the locations of the low-power access points that identified high demand. In some embodiments, metrics are collected and processed in a distributed fashion at each femtocell. Each femtocell then outputs an indication of high demand in the area and/or takes action to address the high demand at an identified traffic congestion zone. Alternatively, the femtocells may collectively take action to address the high demand at one or more identified traffic congestion zones. In other embodiments, metrics may be collected from the femtocells at a central entity and processed to identifying any traffic congestion zones near the femtocells, whereby the central entity takes appropriate action to address the high demand.

1. Field
This application relates generally to wireless communication and more specifically, but not exclusively, to traffic congestion control.
2. Introduction
A wireless communication network may be deployed over a defined geographical area to provide various types of services (e.g., voice, data, multimedia services, etc.) to users within that geographical area. In a typical implementation, access points (e.g., corresponding to different macrocells) are distributed throughout a network to provide wireless connectivity for access terminals (e.g., cell phones) that are operating within the geographical area served by the network.
In practice, user (e.g., user access terminal) distribution and demand for wireless connectivity is typically not uniformly distributed throughout the area served by the network. For example, there may be areas with much higher user density than average, or locations where the data demand from users is above average. These so-called traffic congestion zones (or hot spots) generally require special solutions to maintain a similar type of user experience as the rest of the network. However, it is difficult for network planners to accurately identify the congestion zones since network planners conventionally monitor loading on a macrocell level.

Using low-power access points to identify traffic congestion zones


A hand-held percussion instrument. A hollow, elongate cylindrical member has a plurality of musically-pleasing sound producing beads disposed therein, in free-flowing disposition so that oscillation or other movement of the member causes said beads to impinge upon the internal walls of the instrument, thereby producing said sound.. A pair of symmetrically positioned convex walls are juxtaposed mid-length of the instrument, interiorly thereof, and therefore define a bi-convex-shaped volume therebetween. A plurality of circumferentially spaced ports open the volume defined by the walls to atmosphere so that sounds generated by the impinging of said beads against said convex walls flows to the listener through said ports.. The instrument preferably has opposed frusto-conical ends and a support stand adapted to releasably engage either of said ends is provided.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to hand-held percussion instruments, more particularly to such instruments of the type having sound-generating balls or bead-like members disposed interiorly thereof in free-flowing disposition, and specifically to such an instrument having a tubular configuration with a volume substantially mid-length thereof defined by a pair of internal baffle wall members, said volume open to atmosphere through radially disposed ports formed about the periphery of said instrument.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The known hand-held percussion instruments have a single bead-containing chamber. Accordingly, when such an instrument of the prior art is oscillated axially, the beads must travel from one end of the instrument to the other in order to impinge upon the end walls of the instrument. Such lengthy travel time restricts the musical capabilities of the instrument and accordingly restricts the creative expression of the musician attempting to play such a device. Further, the known instruments, perhaps in part due to the provision of a single bead-containing chamber, produce insufficient levels of sound and thus require the musician to shake the instrument somewhat violently to generate the desired level of sound. Accordingly, the musician's physical energies are overtaxed, to the detriment of his or her creative energies.

Multi-chambered hand held percussion instrument


Extraneous metal ions in a source of water can often make the water unsuitable for use as the continuous phase of an aqueous fracturing fluid. Extraneous metal ions can be a particular issue for produced water and other process water sources. Methods for treating water and forming a fracturing fluid therefrom can comprise: providing a metal-laden water comprising a quantity of one or more metal ions; combining an N-(phosphonoalkyl)iminodiacetic acid or a salt thereof with the metal-laden water to form a remediated water, the remediated water comprising the N-(phosphonoalkyl)iminodiacetic acid, the salt thereof, a metal complex thereof or a combination thereof; and formulating the remediated water into a fracturing fluid comprising a gelled polymer.

The present disclosure generally relates to water remediation and management, and, more specifically, to methods in which the presence of various metal ions in a metal-laden water is mitigated.
Treatment fluids can be used in a variety of subterranean treatment operations. Such treatment operations can include, without limitation, drilling operations, stimulation operations, production operations, remediation operations, sand control treatments, and the like. As used herein, the terms "treat," "treatment," "treating," and grammatical equivalents thereof refer to any subterranean operation that uses a fluid in conjunction with achieving a desired function and/or for a desired purpose. Use of these terms does not imply any particular action by the treatment fluid or a component thereof, unless otherwise specified herein. More specific examples of illustrative treatment operations can include, for example, drilling operations, fracturing operations, gravel packing operations, acidizing operations, scale dissolution and removal operations, sand control operations, consolidation operations, and the like.
Many types of subterranean treatment operations use treatment fluids containing a continuous phase that is "viscosified" or "gelled." These terms will be used synonymously herein. In illustrative examples, gelled fluids may be used in fracturing operations, gravel packing operations, fluid diversion and fluid loss control operations, well kills, and the like. Common gelling agents can include viscoelastic surfactants and viscosifying polymers, including polymers that are crosslinked with a crosslinking agent. Polymeric gelling agents can include biopolymers or synthetic polymers. Gellable synthetic polymers can include acrylamide polymers, copolymers and their derivatives, for example. A multitude of gellable biopolymers and biopolymer derivatives are known in the art. Biopolymers and their derivatives may be particularly desirable in subterranean treatment operations due to their degradation into environmentally benign byproducts over time. Gelled fluids may be further classified as described below in reference to fracturing fluids.
Although non-crosslinked polymers may increase the viscosity of a fluid, a more pronounced viscosity increase may be obtained upon crosslinking adjacent polymer chains. A variety of crosslinking agents are available for forming a crosslinked polymer. Depending upon a number of factors such as, for example, the chemical and physical conditions to which a fluid subject to gelation is to be exposed, the desired time to gelation, the desired gel strength and gel stability, and the like, a particular class of crosslinking agent may be chosen for use in conjunction with a given gellable polymer to best accomplish the gel's intended purpose. Polyalkyleneimines and polyalkylenepolyamines are organic crosslinking agents that may be used to form a gelled polymer, particularly with acrylamide polymers and their derivatives. Transition metal ions (e.g., chromium, vanadium, titanium, zirconium, and the like) and main group metal ions (e.g., aluminum, antimony, tin, and the like) may also be used to affect crosslinking in the course of forming a gelled fluid. Metal ion crosslinking agents often function most effectively in a circumneutral to modestly acidic pH range, such as a pH of about 4.5 to about 8. At modestly basic pH values, such as pH values above about 8.5, boric acid, boronic acid and borate crosslinking agents may also be used to affect crosslinking.
Fracturing fluids and gravel packing fluids are often viscosified in order to provide the fluid with sufficient capability to convey particulate matter (e.g., proppant particulates or gravel particulates) into a wellbore. Water frac or "slickwater" fracturing operations are run at high pump rates using a fluid phase containing a relatively low concentration of a non-crosslinked acrylamide polymer or copolymer. Linear gels with higher viscosities may be formed at increased polymer concentrations, particularly when using a non-crosslinked biopolymer or an incompletely crosslinked biopolymer. Linear gels remain flowable and are frequently used in fracturing operations and gravel packing operations. Even higher fluid viscosities may be obtained by extensively crosslinking the biopolymers of linear gels with metal ions, thereby forming a crosslinked gel. Crosslinked gels are much more difficult to flow due to their higher viscosity values. Although crosslinked gels may be used in fracturing operations, they have a higher propensity to promote subterranean formation damage than do linear gels and they require even higher pump rates.
In some cases, it can be desirable to form a crosslinked gel within a subterranean formation. For example, it may sometimes be desirable to form a temporary or permanent fluid seal within a wellbore using a crosslinked gel. However, if the formation of a crosslinked gel occurs unexpectedly or in an improper location within a wellbore, for example, the situation can be very difficult to address and may necessitate a remediation operation. In illustrative examples, unwanted gelation may occur upon the gelling agent encountering higher than expected temperature conditions or inadvertently contacting extraneous crosslinking metal ions. Unwanted contact of a gelling agent with crosslinking metal ions can preclude the use of some types of water for forming a viscosified fluid, as discussed hereinafter.
Water conservation and management are becoming increasingly important concerns for the oilfield industry. On the treatment side of subterranean operations, immense volumes of water (millions of gallons per well) are used in the course of drilling, treating and producing a wellbore. Sourcing and transportation requirements for the water can represent a significant cost liability. On the production side, at least a portion of the introduced water may be subsequently produced from the wellbore in the course of producing a desired hydrocarbon resource, such as oil. Groundwater may also be produced from a wellbore in conjunction with a hydrocarbon resource. Increasingly strict environmental regulations have made disposal of produced treatment fluids, produced groundwater and other process water sources a significant issue. The complex chemical nature of produced water and other process water sources often necessitates long-term storage of the water while awaiting chemical analyses, and oftentimes remediation to make the produced water suitable for disposal. These factors can significantly expand the required infrastructure at a job site and increase the time and expense needed for producing a hydrocarbon resource from a subterranean formation. Of particular note, a multitude of metal ions of varying types may be present in produced water and other process water sources, which may be difficult to remediate effectively due to the chemical complexity of potentially interfering metal ions. Organic constituents may also be present in the produced water, alone or in combination with metal ions.

Methods and systems for forming a fracturing fluid from a source of metal-laden water


There is disclosed, for use in a packet switched network, a redundant switch comprising 1) a primary packet router for routing a first stream of data packets from an input interface to an output interface of the redundant switch; 2) a secondary packet router for routing a second stream of data packets corresponding to the first stream of data packets from the input interface to the output interface; 3) a packet ID generator for attaching a unique identifier to each data packet in the first stream of data packets and attaching the same unique identifier to each corresponding data packet in the second stream of data packets; and 4) a comparator for comparing a first unique identifier associated with a first data packet processed by the primary packet router with a second unique identifier associated with a second data packet associated with the secondary packet router. The comparator, in response to a determination that the first and second unique identifiers match, causes the second data packet associated with the secondary packet router to be deleted.

The present invention is directed, in general, to packet routing systems and, more specifically, to a system for providing a seamless switchover from a primary packet routing device to a secondary packet routing device.
Information systems have evolved from centralized mainframe computer systems supporting a large number of users to distributed computer systems based on local area network (LAN) architectures. As the cost-to-processing-power ratios for desktop PCs and network servers have dropped precipitously, LAN systems have proved to be highly cost effective. As a result, the number of LANs and LAN-based applications has exploded.
A consequential development relating to the increased popularity of LANs has been the interconnection of remote LANs, computers, and other equipment into wide area networks (WANs) in order to make more resources available to users. However, a LAN backbone can transmit data between users at high bandwidth rates for only relatively short distances. In order to interconnect devices across large distances, different communication protocols have been developed. These include packet switching protocols, such as X.25, ISDN, frame relay, and ATM, among others.
Packet switching involves the transmission of data in packets through a network. Each block of end-user data that is to be transmitted is divided into packets. A unique identifier, a sequence number and a destination address are attached to each data packet. The packets are independent and may traverse the data network by different routes. The packets may incur different levels of propagation delay, or latency, caused by physical paths of different length. The packets may be held for varying amounts of delay time in packet buffers in intermediate switches in the network. The packets also may be switched through different numbers of packet switches as the packets traverse the network, and the switches may have unequal processing delays caused by error detection and correction.
As a result, the packets may arrive out-of-order at the destination node. However, the destination node uses the identification and sequencing information in each data packet to assemble the data packets back in the proper order before continuing to process the original end-user data block.
To enhance the reliability of a packet switched network, it is common practice to build the packet switches as redundant devices. Each packet switch contains a primary (also called xe2x80x9cmasterxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cactivexe2x80x9d) packet routing engine that ordinarily performs packet routing and a secondary (also called xe2x80x9cslavexe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cstandbyxe2x80x9d) packet routing engine that takes over from the primary packet routing engine upon failure or upon the occurrence of certain selected events.
In such redundant architectures, the primary packet routing engine and the secondary packet routing engine receive and process the same inputs (incoming packets) in such a way that the secondary packet routing engine mirrors the behavior of the primary packet routing engine. However, only the primary packet routing engine is allowed to perform physical output on the outgoing packets. The secondary packet routing engine also produces the outgoing packets but the physical output is negated. This type of xe2x80x9chotxe2x80x9d secondary packet routing engine allows a switchover (failover) procedure to consist of a simple reversal of the output mechanism (i.e., the output of the primary packet routing engine is disabled and the output of the secondary packet routing engine is enabled).
This type of redundant architecture has basic flaws, however. The two packet routing engine may generate the same packets in the output, but without special synchronization mechanisms, the different I/O behavior of the packet routing engines may lead to differences in task scheduling. This, in turn, may produce a different output sequence from each packet routing engine. Also, even if the sequence is the same, the timing of the outputs may be different. In general, when multiple data streams are funneled through a packet engine, the overall message output sequence is not a deterministic function of the inputs, it varies instead with the load. Moreover, the timing of the actual output is not deterministic. In this configuration, a switchover consisting of a simple reversal of the output mechanismxe2x80x94disabling the output of the primary packet routing engine and enabling the output of the secondary packet routing enginexe2x80x94lead to packet losses and/or duplications.
There is therefore a need in the art for improved redundancy architecture for use in a packet routing device. In particular, there is a need for an improved redundant packet architecture that provides a smooth switchover from a primary packet routing engine to a secondary packet routing engine. More particularly, there is a need for a redundant packet architecture that enables a primary packet routing engine to be switched over to a secondary packet routing engine without the loss of data packets or the duplicate processing of data packets.
To address the above-discussed deficiencies of the prior art, it is a primary object.of the present invention to provide, for use in a packet switched network, a redundant switch comprising 1) a primary packet router capable of routing a first stream of data packets from an input interface to an output interface of the redundant switch; 2) a secondary packet router capable of routing a second stream of data packets corresponding to the first stream of data packets from the input interface to the output interface of the redundant switch; 3) a packet ID generator capable of attaching a unique identifier to each data packet in the first stream of data packets and attaching the unique identifier to each corresponding data packet in the second stream of data packets; and 4) a comparator capable of comparing a first unique identifier associated with a first data packet processed by the primary packet router with a second unique identifier associated with a second data packet associated with the secondary packet router, wherein the comparator, in response to a determination that the first and second unique identifiers match, is capable of causing the second data packet associated with the secondary packet router to be deleted. In some embodiments of the present invention, the comparator may be implemented as a specific-purpose comparator circuit. In other embodiment of the present invention, the comparator may be implemented as software executed by a processor, such as a packet router.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the secondary packet router comprises an outbound data packet queue capable of storing the second data packet.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the comparator is capable of causing the second data packet to be deleted from the outbound data packet queue.
According to still another embodiment of the present invention, the primary packet router comprises a first outbound data packet queue capable of storing the first data packet.
According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, the secondary packet router comprises a second outbound data packet queue capable of storing the second data packet and the comparator receives the first unique identifier from the first outbound data packet queue and receives the second unique identifier from the second outbound data packet queue.
According to a further embodiment of the present invention, the comparator is capable of causing the second data packet to be deleted from the second outbound data packet queue.
According to a still further embodiment of the present invention, the redundant switch further comprises a peripheral device coupled to the primary packet router, wherein the peripheral device is capable of receiving and storing the first data packet and the first unique identifier received from primary packet router.
According to a yet further embodiment of the present invention, the secondary packet router comprises an outbound data packet queue capable of storing the second data packet and the comparator receives the first unique identifier from the peripheral device and receives the second unique identifier from the outbound data packet queue and wherein the comparator is capable of causing the second data packet to be deleted from the outbound data packet queue.
The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the features and technical advantages of the present invention so that those skilled in the art may better understand the detailed description of the invention that follows. Additional features and advantages of the invention will be described hereinafter that form the subject of the claims of the invention. Those skilled in the art should appreciate that they may readily use the conception and the specific embodiment disclosed as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present invention. Those skilled in the art should also realize that such equivalent constructions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention in its broadest form.
Before undertaking the DETAILED DESCRIPTION, it may be advantageous to set forth definitions of certain words and phrases used throughout this patent document: the terms xe2x80x9cincludexe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9ccomprise,xe2x80x9d as well as derivatives thereof, mean inclusion without limitation; the term xe2x80x9cor,xe2x80x9d is inclusive, meaning and/or; the phrases xe2x80x9cassociated withxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cassociated therewith,xe2x80x9d as well as derivatives thereof, may mean to include, be included within, interconnect with, contain, be contained within, connect to or with, couple to or with, be communicable with, cooperate with, interleave, juxtapose, be proximate to, be bound to or with, have, have a property of, or the like; and the term xe2x80x9ccontrollerxe2x80x9d means any device, system or part thereof that controls at least one operation, such a device may be implemented in hardware, firmware or software, or some combination of at least two of the same. It should be noted that the functionality associated with any particular controller may be centralized or distributed, whether locally or remotely. Definitions for certain words and phrases are provided throughout this patent document, those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that in many, if not most instances, such definitions apply to prior, as well as future uses of such defined words and phrases.

Data synchronization system for redundant packet routing architecture and method of operation


To easily specify the position of a defect in a separator, a method for producing a separator original sheet (12b) includes the steps of: forming a separator original sheet (12b) including a separator original sheet (12c) and a heat-resistant layer coated on the separator original sheet (12c); detecting a defect (D) in the separator original sheet (12b); and recording information including information on a position of the defect (D) which position is a position in the width direction of the separator original sheet (12b).

There has been known a deficiency inspecting device for a sheet-shaped product including an optical film (Patent Literature 1). The deficiency inspecting device receives information on a deficiency from a protective film inspecting section, and forms a data code (for example, a two-dimensional code or a QR Code [registered trademark]) having a fixed pitch and indicative of the deficiency. The deficiency inspecting device forms such a data code on a surface at an end of a PVA film original sheet together with information on the position and production identification.

Method for manufacturing separator web, method for manufacturing separator, separator web, and apparatus for manufacturing separator web


A method of activating silicoaluminophosphate (SAPO) compositions by contacting as-synthesized SAPO with hydrated alumina and water, followed by heating to at least 425.degree. C., preferably in nitrogen and then air.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,559,314, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference, discloses a method for activating zeolites by compositing with an alumina binder containing water and thereafter contacting with steam.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,780,444, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference, discloses a method for activating metallophosphates such as aluminophosphates (AlPOs) with an activating metal oxide, such as silica, and water under conditions, such as mulling, sufficient to increase the acid catalytic activity of the material.
Crystalline, microporous silicoaluminophosphates (SAPOs) are described in the Lok et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,440,871, the entire disclosure of which is expressly incorporated herein by reference. Partial substitution of aluminum for phosphorus in silicoaluminophosphate frameworks in order to generate catalytically active acid sites has been a long-standing goal of this area of molecular sieve science. For the most part, significant catalytic activity has not been achieved. This may result from the bulk silicon content being present as coprecipitated silica, or, as silicon-rich islands within the framework affording few active Si-O-Al interactions. The present invention provides a method for enhancing acid activity by increasing the number of acid sites, i.e., tetrahedral aluminum in the SAPO framework.


Included are removing an outermost layer or outermost layers on one side or both sides of liquid crystal polymer film; and a molding step of performing thermocompression molding on liquid crystal polymer film and metal foil stacked on the side of liquid crystal polymer film whose outermost layer is removed. A heating temperature in the molding step is in a range from a temperature equal to a melting start temperature, of the liquid crystal polymer film, measured by using a rigid body pendulum type viscoelasticity measuring device to a temperature 60° C. higher than the melting start temperature inclusive.

In recent years, safety support systems for automobiles using millimeter wave radars have been put in practical use, and electric devices used in the systems have been accordingly required to be improved in performance. As a way to make an electric device highly functionally operate, a high frequency characteristic is expected to be added to a printed circuit board. Therefore, development is being actively conducted on printed circuit boards using liquid crystal polymer having a low dielectric constant, a low dielectric dissipation factor, and a low transmission loss on a signal line.
For example, PTL 1 proposes a method for manufacturing a single-sided metal clad laminated body. In the method, a metal foil, an insulating film made of a thermoplastic liquid crystal polymer film, and a separation film are stacked and subjected to thermocompression bonding, and the separation film is then removed.
PTL 2 proposes a method for manufacturing the following liquid crystal polymer film laminated base material. First, a surface of a liquid crystal polymer film is roughened with etching liquid. Next, a base material to be laminated and the liquid crystal polymer film are stacked in a manner that the roughened surface of the film and a surface of the base material are opposed to each other. After that, a thermocompression process is performed to laminate the base material and the film into one body.
However, different from epoxy resins or polyimide resins constituting common substrates, the liquid crystal polymer film has a problem that heat resistance is low. In particular, if rigidity (for example, viscosity and elastic modulus) of a liquid crystal polymer film becomes too low due to a heating temperature at the time of thermocompression molding, air can get in and stay between the liquid crystal polymer film and a metal foil or between the liquid crystal polymer film and a single-sided metal clad laminated board, whereby adhesiveness can be reduced.

Method for manufacturing metal clad laminated board, method for manufacturing electronic circuit board, and rigid body pendulum type viscoelasticity measuring device

PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.


An object of the invention is to provide a material or composition comprising ultrafine cellulose fibers having excellent fluidity. The invention relates to a composition comprising a particulate material comprising ultrafine cellulose fibers and water, and (B) a non-cellulose particulate material in which the water content of the composition is 2 to 94% by mass with respect to the total mass of the composition, and the content of (B) the non-cellulose particulate material is 0.1 to 12% by mass with respect to the total mass of the composition. The invention also relates to a method for producing the composition and a method for producing a material comprising ultrafine cellulose fibers.

In recent years, for the sake of substitution for petroleum resources and from growing awareness of the environment, materials utilizing renewable natural fibers have been drawing attention. Among natural fibers, cellulose fibers having a fiber diameter of 10 to 50 μm, especially cellulose fibers (pulp) originated from wood have been heretofore widely used mainly as a paper product.
In addition, ultrafine cellulose fibers, which have a fiber diameter of 1 μm or smaller, are known as cellulose fibers. A sheet or composite containing ultrafine cellulose fibers has a greatly improved tensile strength because of the remarkably increased number of contact points between fibers. Further, the fiber width is smaller than wavelengths of visible light, and thus the transparency is greatly improved. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a fiber-reinforced composite material, wherein high transparency is maintained without being affected by temperature conditions and wavelengths, and so on, and various functionalities are imparted by forming a composite of a fiber and a matrix material. Moreover, ultrafine cellulose fibers are also known to be applicable to thickeners or the like.
When ultrafine cellulose fibers are used for a thickener, for example, ultrafine cellulose fibers are dispersed in liquid and the liquid is transported to a processing plant or the like. However, such transport disadvantageously requires high cost because a large amount of a dispersion medium is contained in the liquid containing ultrafine cellulose fibers dispersed therein. For this reason, it has been required for the liquid containing ultrafine cellulose fibers dispersed thereinto to be concentrated as much as possible for reduction of the transport cost.
Powder is known as one of concentrated forms. Techniques for powdering cellulose are conventionally known also in the field of pulp materials. For example, Patent Documents 2 and 3 each disclose a technique for producing powdery cellulose from a wood pulp sheet as a raw material by using a roller mill, cutter mill, or the like. Patent Document 4 discloses a cellulose powder suitable for diluents for compression molding. According to this document, a cellulose powder with excellent compression molding properties is obtained through spray-drying a cellulose dispersion. Further, Patent Document 5 discloses a method for producing a cellulose fine particle aggregate through spray-drying an aqueous suspension containing a cellulose fine particle and a cationic resin.

Composition, material comprising ultrafine cellulose fibers, and method for producing material comprising ultrafine cellulose fibers


An approach for managing the use and distribution of power for wearable smart device is described. A wearable platform receives a notification signal for specifying sensor information associated with a sensor of a wearable smart device of a user. The wearable platform also determines a power requirement of the sensor based on the sensor information, contextual information associated with a mobile device of the user, or a combination thereof based on receipt of the signal. Still further, the wearable platform generates a request to regulate a consumption of power by the sensor or other sensors of the wearable smart device, to access a power controller for charging the sensor, or a combination thereof based on the determination, status information associated with the power controller, or a combination thereof.

Service providers are continually challenged to deliver value and convenience to consumers by providing compelling network services and advancing the underlying technologies. One area of interest has been providing users of wearable smart devices with convenient access to power charging sources. Wearable smart devices include any items that can be worn or that make contact with a user for enabling the performance of intelligent functions. Typically, these devices feature multiple sensors for gathering and sharing information regarding user activity, environmental conditions, etc. Consequently, all of these sensors require active rechargeable battery power to be maintained in order for them to perform their sensing functions. In addition, as no two wearable smart devices are necessarily alike, they may have different connector types, charge requirements and other factors that limit their ubiquity. Unfortunately, as the types of wearable smart devices vary widely in form, use and function, traditional methods of managing the available power and charging these devices must be equally diverse and adaptable to the needs of different users.
Based on the foregoing, there is a need for managing the use and distribution of power for wearable smart devices.

Method and system for providing power management for a wearable smart device


Lice comb cleaning tool. The tool includes a handle, a pair of spaced-apart arms depending from the handle and an elongate member supported at distal ends of the pair of arms. The elongate member has a diameter selected for an interference fit between tines of a lice comb. It is preferred that the elongate member be unwaxed dental floss.

Head lice are reddish-brown wingless insects about the size of a sesame seed. These insects infest hair. Once in hair, the head lice lay eggs which are known as nits. The nits are small greyish-white oval-shaped eggs glued at an angle to the side of a hair shaft. Head lice are mainly transmitted by head-to-head contact but can also be spread through the sharing of personal articles.
Whether or not one chooses to use a pesticidal lice treatment or not, all of the nits (lice eggs) and lice must be manually removed. This manual removal is often accomplished with a lice comb having multiple, closely spaced tines which will remove the lice and nits as it passes through hair. One such highly effective lice or nit comb is the LiceMeister(trademark) available from the National Pediculosis Association of Newton, Mass. See also, U.S. Ser. No. 09/054,211 filed Apr. 2, 1998 entitled xe2x80x9cAn Apparatus and Method for Pest Removal from Hair and Fur,xe2x80x9d and now pending, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
It is important that nit combs be cleaned preferably between successive passings through the hair and certainly between usage so that lice and nits are not spread inadvertently. The present invention thus has as its object a tool for cleaning lice and nit combs.
According to the invention, a lice comb cleaning tool includes a handle, a pair of space-apart arms depending from the handle and an elongate member supported at distal ends of the pair of arms. The elongate member has a diameter selected for an interference fit between tines of a lice comb. It is preferred that the arms have a length that will extend more than halfway across the lice comb for ease of use. It is also preferred that the elongate member be made of a deformable fibrous material such as, for example, unwaxed dental floss. This material may be secured in a hole in the distal end of each of the arms.


A power steering apparatus includes: a torque sensor for detecting a steering torque applied to a steering wheel and outputting a torque signal corresponding to the steering torque; a speed sensor for detecting a speed of a vehicle and outputting a speed signal corresponding to the speed of the vehicle; a humidity sensor for outputting a humidity signal corresponding to a humidity of an interior of the power steering apparatus; and an electronic control unit for receiving the humidity signal from the humidity sensor, and for, when a measured humidity is an reference value or higher, generating a motor current signal for supplying an assistant steering force smaller than an assistant force set in response to the torque signal and the speed signal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a power steering apparatus capable of sensing moisture.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The present invention relates to a power steering apparatus of a vehicle, and more particularly to a power steering apparatus capable of sensing moisture.
A power steering apparatus of a vehicle supplies an assistant force for assisting a manipulation force of a driver when a steering wheel is manipulated by the driver. An assistant force supplied by the power steering apparatus is changed according to a speed of the vehicle.
For example, when a speed of the vehicle is high, the power steering apparatus reduces a magnitude of an assistant force, compelling the driver to apply a relatively large force to manipulate the steering wheel. Accordingly, the driver can safely drive the vehicle at a high speed. Further, when a speed of the vehicle is low, the power steering apparatus can increase a magnitude of the assistant force, allowing the driver to manipulate the steering wheel with a small force. Accordingly, the driver can easily drive the vehicle travelling at a low speed.
The power steering apparatus may be influenced by water or moisture introduced from the outside during an operation thereof, and if the influence is strong, the power steering apparatus may not be normally operated, lowering a travel stability of the vehicle.

Power steering apparatus capable of sensing moisture


A system for controlling driving modes of a vehicle having a driver, where each of the driving modes is adapted to control a behavior of the vehicle during operation of the vehicle in the driving mode, each of the driving modes being associated with a set of driving sub-modes. Each driving sub-mode is adapted to be activated by the vehicle in response to ambient circumstances. One of the driving modes is associated with a first and a second driving sub-mode, the first and second driving sub-modes being accompanied with a first and a second driver controlled setting respectively. The system also includes an input device for selection between the driving modes and for controlling the driver controlled settings. The first and second driver controlled settings are adapted to be manually set by the driver through the input device only upon activation of the accompanying driving sub-mode by the vehicle.

In modern vehicles it has become important to give the driver of the vehicle a personalised driving experience and the possibility to control various functions of the vehicle through i.a. input buttons, joysticks or knobs. The more control functions the vehicle is provided with, the more input buttons and/or input menus are present in the vehicle. The design of these input buttons and input menus is vital for a positive driving experience and is a task that involves the question of how the driver perceives matters like symbols and grouping of buttons in order to make the interface intuitive.
One trend is to collect and to display the most vital information in and around the driver's line of sight to help the driver keep his or her sight and focus on the road ahead of the vehicle as opposed to have to look down to search for a certain menu or display. Some vehicles have even been provided with parts of the displayed information being put on display on the windscreen, a so called Head-up display. Less important and more seldom used items may be placed further away from the line of sight, such as on a centre column between the front seats. Input buttons, joysticks or knobs may also be provided on said centre column or on or around the front door handles.
An often used location for input buttons or similar is on the steering wheel or in close proximity of the steering wheel, where the driver mostly holds the hands during driving. The reason being to help the driver to maintain driving safety by keeping the hands on the steering wheel, or at least not forcing him or her to unnecessarily remove them from the steering wheel. It has been a trend to locate a rather large number of dedicated buttons on either side of the steering wheel, each button showing a fixed symbol. The symbols may seem illustrative and simple to understand for a designer of such prior art systems, but for someone who is not driving the car on a regular basis it may be found difficult to remember the functionality. The full functionality of the vehicle may consequently not be used, or safety is lowered when searching for the proper button.
One prior art system is disclosed in WO 01/60650 A1. Here a large number of buttons are located on either side of the steering wheel, each button corresponding to a button on the display of the dashboard. The dashboard display discloses a symbol for each button disclosing the functionality thereof in order to improve driving safety by not forcing the driver to look down on the steering wheel buttons to search for the desired button.
It is an object of the embodiments disclosed herein to further improve the driver's ease of use of the different functions that are involved in controlling the vehicle in order to maintain, or even improve, driving safety.

System for controlling driving modes of a vehicle


A target searching apparatus includes a display, an object region extractor, a feature amount calculator, a second feature amount calculator, and an object present region extractor. The object region extractor extracts, from a display image, an object region including an identification object. The feature amount calculator calculates in-region and out-region representative values of the image feature amount that respectively are representative values inside and outside the object region in the display image. The second feature amount calculator calculates a representative value of the image feature amount in each of a plurality of small regions into which the object region is divided. The object present region extractor extracts, from the plurality of small regions, one or more small region having the representative value that is closer to the in-region representative value than the out-region representative value, as an object present region in which the identification object is present.

The technology relates to a target searching apparatus, a target searching method, and a computer readable medium having a target searching program that each search a predetermined detection target on the basis of a picture obtained by a camera.
Searching of a predetermined detection target may be performed while an operator who uses an optical camera sees a picture or an image obtained from a height by the optical camera. The predetermined detection target may be on the ground or at the sea. The optical camera may be mounted on an aircraft, etc. For example, reference is made to Japanese Patent No. 4170488.
Upon a searching activity of a predetermined detection target, an operator performs searching over a wide range while seeing a camera-obtained picture based on a wide angle of view. When an object that is a possible detection target is found, the operator turns a visual axis of the camera in a direction in which the object is found, and switches the camera from the wide angle of view to a narrow angle of view, i.e., performs zooming in, to confirm whether the object that is the possible detection target is an actual detection target. The operator returns the camera to the wide angle of view to continue performing the searching when the object is not the detection target. When the object is the detection target, the operator performs an orientation of an actual position or actual coordinates of the detection target, on the basis of a position of the detection target in the image.

Target searching apparatus, target searching method, and computer readable medium


There is provided in accord with the present invention a work vehicle comprising a vehicle support structure upon which a plurality of wheels are rotatably mounted and which structure supports an engine having a fuel injection system operatively coupled to at least two of the wheels. The engine is provided with an engine speed control system in electrical communication with the engine and comprising a controller operatively connected to the fuel injection system with the controller receiving feedback signals from an engine transducer to control engine speed in response to an actuator operatively connected to a potentiometer. The potentiometer is electrically connected to the controller and responsive, proportionately, to the movement of the actuator. The actuator can be operated in a first mode or a second mode as determined by a selector operatively connected to the actuator and the controller, wherein the first mode is an accelerator mode and the second mode is a decelerator mode such that when the accelerator mode is selected the engine speed will increase as the actuator is moved from a first position to a second position and when the deceleration mode is selected, the engine speed will decrease as the actuator is moved from the first position to the second position.

Typical work vehicles, such as agricultural tractors, control the speed of the engine by limiting the amount of fuel into the engine cylinders for combustion. A controller provides a signal to, for instance, a fuel injection system that adjusts the amount of fuel delivered to the engine. The signal is generally produced by a transducer connected to a lever or an accelerator pedal (the "gas pedal") that proportionately responds to the movement of the accelerator pedal or lever. In some circumstances the operator of the work vehicle would desire the "gas pedal" to respond as an accelerator and in some circumstances to respond as a decelerator. In either instance, it is desirable to use the same motion of the "gas pedal" to achieve either response.
Thus, there is a continuing need for a system that would allow the fuel control actuator of a work vehicle to function in either an accelerator mode or a decelerator mode, without changing the usual motion of such actuator.

Engine speed control apparatus and method


Apparatus for increasing the effective differential of a position responsive switch (30) which comprises a mounting plate (43) having an aperture larger than the switch, and stop members (46, 47) carried by the switch for limiting the "tumbling" motion of the switch in the aperture. A second embodiment interposes an intermediate mounting member (56) between the switch (30) and the mounting plate (55), and enables tumbling motion between the switch and the intermediate member as well as between the intermediate member and the mounting plate. The apparatus is shown in a float (29) for use for "pump down" and "pump up" operation.

Numerous types of float switches are known. They may be physically integrated with the devices they control, or physically independent and connected to those devices mechanically or electrically. Again, the float itself may be mechanically connected to the electrical contacting elements, for switching at a site more or less remote from the actual float, or the contacting element may be made a part of a float from which electrical rather than physical connections are extended.
Previous float switches have been characterized by a rather limited range of operation, relatively complicated physical or electrical insulation details, and difficulty of access for repair or maintenance, particularly when the unit to be controlled is in a submerged location.
The limited range of operation is because switches suitable for this use have a quite small "differential", which is to say that there is only a relatively small angular difference between the position in which the switch operates in the "ON" sense and the position in which it operates in the "OFF" sense. A narrow differential is an advantage when it is desired, for example, to hold the level of a liquid in a container as nearly constant as possible, but there are other occasions in which it is permissible to manage a liquid control system so that the liquid is pumped to a first level, the pump is deenergized, and the liquid is allowed to fall or rise to a very different level before pump operation is resumed: examples are filling reservoirs and emptying sumps. In these applications switches having narrow differentials cause repeated brief pump operation at intervals of undesirably short duration.


A method of deflecting and steering laser beams of the kind that comprises generating two converging pumping beams defining between them a convergence angle .psi.. The two converging pumping beams are targeted on a predetermined intersection region of a third-order, non-linear polarization medium so as to intersect therein whereby each of said pumping beams is split in the said intersection region to form a plurality of scattered portions each of which interferes with the pumping beam from which it was formed to generate a light interference pattern, the light interference patterns thus generated from the two pumping beams causing self-generation of a common grating such that there emerge from said polarization medium two output beams each forming with a neighboring pumping beam a steering angle .THETA. which is controllable by variation of the magnitude of the wavenumber of at least one of the two pumping beams so as to form a wavenumber difference dk between the two pumping beams. In accordance with the invention wavenumber difference is obtained by the controlled variation of either or both of a refractive index n' and absorption index n" associated with at least one of the pumping beams.

The following is a list of publications disclosing methods and apparatus for beam steering and for mixing and coupling of laser beams in photorefractive media:
(1) "Electro-Optic and Acousto-Optic Scanning and Deflection", M. Gottlieb, C. L. M. Ireland and J. M. Ley, Optical Engineering, Vol. 3 (1983), Marcel Dekker, Inc., New York and Basel;
(2) "Laser Scanning and Recording: Developments and Trends", Leo Beiser, Laser Focus/Electro-Optics, Feb. 1985 pps 88-96;
(3) "Opto-Optical Light Deflection", G. T. Sincerbox and G. Roosen, Appl. Optics 22, 690 (1983);
(4) "Dynamic Beam Deflection Usxing Photorefractive Gratings in BSO Crystals", G. Pauliat, J. P. Herriau, G. Roosen and J. P. Huignard, J. Opt. Soc. Am. B3, 306 (1986);
(5) U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,579;
(6) "Self Bragg matched beam steering using the double-color pumped photorefractive oscillator", Appl. Phys. Lett. 51, 74 (1987);
(7) "Photorefractive Oscillators", B. Fischer, S. Sternklar, S. Weiss, IEEE J. Quant. Electron 25, 550 (1989);
(8) "Beam Coupling and Locking of Lasers using Photorefractive 4 Wave Mixing", S. Sternklar, S. Weiss, M. Segev and B. Fischer, Opt. Lett. 11, 528 (1986), made the subject of commonly-owned Israel patent application No. 79581, filed Jul. 31, 1986 and incorporated herein by reference;
(9) "Phase-conjugate Nd: YAG laser with internal acousto-optic beam steering", J. L. Aycol, J. Montel, T. Verny and J. P. Huignard, Opt. Lett. 16, 1225 (1991); and
(10) "High-power beam steering using phase conjugation through Brillouin-induced four-wave mixing", D.C. Jones, G. Cook, K. D. Ridley and A.M. Scott, Opt. Lett. 16, 1551 (1991).
The prior art includes mechanical (mirror scanning), acousto-optic and electro-optic methods and apparatus for beam steering.
Mechanical methods have the disadvantages of being bulky, slow and relatively inaccurate (e.g. susceptible to vibrations and flutter). Acousto-optic crystals are widely used. However their maximum steering angle is about .+-.2.degree., limited by the Bragg Condition. In addition, their use is limited to low power continuous wave (CW) beams due to the trade-off between access time and beam diameter in these devices, which dictates the use of focused beams in the acousto-optic crystal. Due to use of focused beams they must have low power in order to prevent damage. This imposes a trade-off between the deflection resolution of these devices and their access time.
Refs. 3 and 4 disclose a complex technique based upon photorefractive wave mixing for overcoming the Bragg condition. This technique requires a relatively large amount of wavelength tuning, of the order of 5%, to achieve angular steering of about 12.degree..
U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,579 and related Refs. 6-8 disclose an improved system and method of steering two pumping beams with demonstrated steering angles of about .+-.3.degree., based on automatic Bragg matching and in which the input pumping beams may have different wavelengths. In accordance therewith the two incident pumping beams impinge on two sides of a third order, non-linear photorefractive polarization medium and have a predetermined alignment and spatial overlap in the interaction region of the polarization medium at which they are coupled and self-diffracted. Each of the two incident pumping beams generates a self-diffracted mate and defines together therewith a beam couple. The beam couples produced from the two incident pumping beams are operative to write a common grating in the photorefractive polarization medium such that there emerge from the medium two steered output beams with controllable offset angles, and optionally with spatial and temporal modulation.
Controlling the steering angle .THETA. in accordance with U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,579 is based on changing the wavelength .lambda. of one pumping beam relative to the other. In case .lambda. of the two pumping beams is a priori the same, the steering angle .THETA. within the non-linear medium obeys the formula: ##EQU1## where .psi. is the angle between the two input pumping beams within the non-linear medium to be referred to hereinafter as "convergence angle", and d.lambda. is the difference in wavelength .lambda. between the two input pumping beams resulting from wavelength modulation. The above formula is an approximation which assumes exclusively obtuse convergence angles of up to nearly 180.degree.; and ##EQU2## so that .THETA.<1 Rad.
Generally, the convergence and output angles outside the medium will be different than inside the medium due to the Fresnel refraction at the medium/ambient interface with the exception of those cases in which the Fresnel refraction valve is 1. Hereinafter, the terms convergence and output angles are meant to refer to the occurrence within the medium.
Although the system and method of U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,579 and other photorefractive methods overcomes some drawbacks of the state of the art at that time, it still has several intrinsic limitations. For one, although U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,579 mentions that steering occurs in consequence of variations of the wavenumber k the only available parameter for control is the wavelength .lambda., and as relatively large variations d.lambda. are required due to the small value of sin.psi. (d.lambda./.lambda..apprxeq.0.1), the steering is not sufficiently flexible. Therefore, the very nature of the system and method according to the U.S. patent implies that to achieve large enough d.lambda.the steering is achieved either by bulky and slow mechanical means or by sophisticated acousto-optical or electro-optic means, which latter are expensive and not readily available and increase radically the cost of the entire system to an extent which, from a commercial point of view, may be prohibitive.
Still further, the system and method of U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,579 are unsuitable for the steering of high intensity beams and in consequence many military and civilian applications are excluded.
It is the object of the present invention to provide improved system and method for steering and deflecting laser beams that will overcome the above drawbacks.

The State of Israel, Atomic Energy Commission, Soreq Nuclear Research Center


A survey system includes a camera provided on a UAV and taking a plurality of images for photogrammetry. A surveying portion tracking the camera and continuously determining a position of the camera and a relative photographing position calculation portion calculates a relative photographing position of each image based on the plurality of images taken by the camera, and a traveling path calculation portion calculates a traveling path of the UAV from a survey result obtained by the surveying portion. A photogrammetry analysis portion associating a point group of the relative photographing positions calculated by the relative photographing position calculation portion with a flight path calculated by the flight path calculation portion, and generating data for photogrammetry.

The present disclosure relates to a photogrammetry system that includes a movable photographing device taking images for photogrammetry and a surveying device determining a position of the movable photographing device.
In typically known stereophotogrammetry, a movable body includes a camera, which takes images (static images and dynamic images) from two or more different positions, the images being used for a survey.
In particular, in recent photogrammetry, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is used as a movable body including a camera, which takes images from the sky.
In such photogrammetry, a spatial position of each image taken is adjusted to generate a stereo model of target areas.
For example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2013-108927, a flying body flies in the sky above target survey areas in a meandering manner to take images. This photographing operation is periodically conducted so that each image overlaps an image adjacent thereto in the travelling direction by a predetermined amount, and overlaps an image adjacent thereto in an adjacent course by a predetermined amount. After all the photographing operations are completed, one pair of two adjacent ones of three images consecutive in the travelling direction is fixed so that one stereo image is produced. The other pair of two adjacent ones of the three images is also fixed so that the other image is produced. Feature points extracted from a portion shared by the three images in the image shared by the two stereo images are used to connect the two stereo images. Moreover, a tie point shared by the images adjacent to each other in the adjacent course is selected to connect the stereo images adjacent to each other in the course. Consequently, all the target survey areas are covered. In this manner, a unified stereo image (a stereo model) represented by the shared three-dimensional coordinate system is produced.


A collapsed hose reel and transport device including first and second generally parallel spaced wall members of generally semi-circular configuration disposed in aligned relation, bracket means extending between first and second wall means along a portion of the length of periphery thereof to form a hose receiving chamber, at least two roller means located at the periphery of the wall means and disposed to extend across the chamber between the first and second wall means.. The devices can also include crank means to extend through the first wall means and with journal means in the second wall means to receive an end of the crank where the crank includes a forked end adapted to receive a collapsed hose between the tines thereof and where the crank means is adapted for rotation when in place extending between the first and second wall means for rolling collasped hose into a reel and where one of the roller members is disposed adjacent one end of the wall means so that hose to be introduced into the chamber rolls over the roller means.. Further, the device includes an arrangement where the roller means include peripherial groove means and plate means to extend transversly across the tub and received in the groove means of the roller means to accommodate hose means of selected width.

The present invention relates to devices for reeling, holding, transporting, and unreeling collaspable hose particularly fire hoses. Fire hose typically comes in selected lengths, for example 50' lengths. After use the base must be cleaned, dried, sorted and then replaced on a fire truck. Specifically, after each use, upon return of the fire trucks to the fire house, the fire hose is throughly washed and hung in a hose tower or rack to dry. After the hose, which is bulky, is dried it must then be coiled and stored until it is necessary to replace the hose on a fire truck. The hose is typically coiled during storage and transported to the fire truck where it is unreeled into a straight length and placed on the truck.
Lengths of fire hose are quite heavy and bulky to handle. It has been found that the movement and unreeling of the firehose consumes considerable time and effort in the operation of a fire house.
Various arrangements are known for reeling a firehose as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,946,964-Zinzer, where a device is provided having a crank received between two arms with a guide means provided at the end of the arms to guide the hose to the crank. When the hose has been reeled, it is removed from between the guide means for storage.
A reel means without guide means is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,471,885--McLoughlin, and another reel arrangement is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,168,260--Kittelson.
A prior art hose cabinet is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,517,118--Lee, and likewise in U.S. Pat. No. 2,300,243--Zierden, as well as U.S. Pat. No. 1,488,364--Snyder, which does not provide means for removing the hose longitudinally from the storage cabinet.
Likewise, collapaible hose can be provided in varying diameter so that the collapsed hose can vary in width from 11/2 inches to even 5 or 6 inches. No prior art device is known to accommodate winding an unwinding collapsible hoses of varying diameter.


A candle is disclosed which comprises at least one body, which is composed of a material which is solid at room temperature such as wax or paraffin, and a wick. The body which is composed of a combustible material which is solid at room temperature, has, at least at the bottom end, a part which can be plugged together or connected with a mating part of an identical body. At the top end of the uppermost body, a tubular headpiece which surrounds said body is provided and is guided, at least at its bottom end, and moves downwards with the burning-down candle.

The invention relates to a candle or the like comprising a body composed of a material which is solid at room temperature, such as wax or paraffin, and a burning element such as a wick. The invention also relates to a method for the manufacture of such candles.
When the term `candle` is used herein, this generically includes every lighting member which has a wick for a light-emitting flame, said wick being supplied with a combustible material which is rendered liquid by the supply of heat, but which is solid at room temperature. In this regard, the candle may also form part of a storm lantern or any other illuminating body, the light of which is supplied by an open flame.
In the case of storm lanterns, it is known to arrange a candle on a base and to surround the candle with a protective covering of, for example, glass. The covering protects the flame of the candle against draughts, with the result that the flame burns relatively steadily. An elevated temperature, however, results in the interior of the storm lantern owing to the covering, with the result that the candle shows an increased tendency to melt down and to run out. In addition, it is also not possible to prevent all flickering of the flame, which leads to an increased soot production. Once the candle has burned down, a residue of wax always remains and must be thrown away.
Known candles comprise a body composed of wax or paraffin into which is drawn or inserted a textile wick which passes through said body in a longitudinal direction, and said body has, on its outside, a layer of hard wax for the purpose of preventing a run-out of the wax or paraffin when liquefied by the flame. In the case of extended burning times of the candle, it does, however, frequently occur that the liquefied wax or paraffin drips down and runs out, despite the outer layer of hard wax, thereby staining or damaging the support, such as a table, table cloth, etc. As stated above, such candles also do not burn down completely. Indeed, there is always a non-burned residue of the candle which frequently amounts to at least about 10% of the original candle body and which must be thrown away. In addition, the manufacture of such candles is relatively costly because of the textile wick passing through said candles and because of the coating of hard wax. The known candles also burn irregularly with regard to the height of their flame. An adjustment or changing of the flame height is, practically, not possible.


An oven latch mechanism for heat-cleaning ovens is disclosed. The latch mechanism employs a unidirectional rotating d.c. motor to automatically latch the oven door upon initiation of a heat-cleaning operation and to automatically unlatch the door after a heat-clean operation and after the oven has reached a predetermined lower temperature. The latch mechanism includes a latch arm which moves arcuately through a variety of positions. The latch member senses whether the door is open and follows a different path of motion accordingly. If the latch member senses an open door, it returns to an unlatched position.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to door locks for ranges and ovens, and more particularly, to motorized range and oven locks for the doors of self-cleaning ovens.
2. Description of Related Art
Modern ovens are often equipped with the capability to self-clean. Self-cleaning is accomplished by heating the oven to temperatures of approximately 400.degree.-480.degree. C. (750.degree.-900.degree. F.). Self-cleaning ovens typically employ a locking mechanism to lock the oven door during the cleaning operation. Existing door locks take various forms, the most advanced of which will automatically lock the door at the beginning of the cleaning operation and automatically unlock the door when the oven reaches a predetermined reduced temperature.
Some existing automatic door locks employ motors to actuate the lock. One example is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,927,996. Conventionally, ovens use A.C. powered circuits. Therefore, existing motorized oven locks, such as disclosed in the referenced patent, employ A.C. motors. With the advent of microprocessor controllers, some advanced ovens have been provided with a low-voltage D.C. powered microprocessor controller and a low-voltage D.C. power supply for powering the controller. The D.C. microprocessor controller thus controls the lock motor and other functions according to a predetermined program. In microprocessor controlled ovens, D.C. controlled relays are added for switching A.C. powered devices such as the lock motor. The addition of a relay to control the lock motor adds to the cost of the oven and increases the number of parts and the possibility of a malfunction.
A problem facing oven designers is the protection of the motor and lock parts from the intense heat of the oven cavity. The usual location of an oven door latch is at the top center of the door, which, particularly during the self-cleaning operation, is a hot location. Existing self-cleaning ovens often have the oven lock motor mounted remotely from the door latch in a relatively cool location. In these designs, a linkage connects the door latch with the motor. Some designs incorporate a cooling fan to cool the motor and actuating mechanism. In addition, heat shields and insulation are used to isolate the door latch motor from the hot oven cavity. The measures used to protect the motor and actuating mechanism from heat add significant cost to the oven. There is a need for a heat-resistant unitary lock mechanism which can be mounted to the front center latch position of an oven.


The present invention discloses a method for the preparation of carboxylic acid comprising contacting β-ketosulfone of Formula (I) with nitrous acid.

Carboxylic acids are useful in several fields such as medical, industrial, nutritional and agricultural fields. The methods for preparation of carboxylic acids can be mainly classified into two types of reactions, oxidation and hydrolysis reactions.
(1) Oxidation Reactions:
(a) Oxidation of arene side-chains: Under strong oxidizing conditions such as hot acidic KMnO4, arenes with benzylic-H are oxidized to the aromatic carboxylic acid. The oxidized side-chain substituent can be primary or secondary alkyl, while tertiary alkyl are not oxidized because they lack a benzylic-H. U.S. Pat. No. 3,282,992 describes the oxidation of ethylbenzene with aqueous ammonium dichromate at 225-275° C. yielded benzoic acid with minor amount of acetophenone and benzamide. Oxidation of arenes with side-chains higher than a methyl group can be considered as cleavage oxidation.(b) Oxidation of primary alcohols: Primary alcohols can be oxidized to aldehydes or further to carboxylic acids. In aqueous media, the carboxylic acid is usually the major product when using reagents such as aqueous Cr (VI), chromic acid (H2CrO4), chromate salts (Na2CrO4), dichromate salts (K2Cr2O7), permanganate MnOt and Jones' reagent (CrO3/dil H2SO4/acetone). Anhydrous oxidants such as pyridinium chlorochromate (PCC) or pyridinium dichromate (PDC), which are used in dichloromethane, allow the oxidation to be stopped at the intermediate aldehyde. Secondary alcohols can be oxidized to ketones but no further, while tertiary alcohols cannot be oxidized since they have no carbinol C—H. For example, CrO3-catalyzed oxidation of primary alcohols to carboxylic acids proceeds with 1-2 mol % of CrO3 and 2.5 equivalents of H5IO6 in acetonitrile to give the corresponding carboxylic acids. Moreover, alcohols can be transferred into the corresponding carboxylic acids with aqueous 70% t-BuOOH in the presence of catalytic amounts of bismuth(III) oxide. By using Pd/C along with NaBH4 in aqueous EtOH or MeOH and either K2CO3 or KOH at ambient temperature, alcohols can be oxidized to their carboxyl counterpart. Catalytic oxidation of alcohols can be realized by using o-iodoxybenzoic acid (IBX) in the presence of oxone as a co-oxidant. Pyridinium chlorochromate (PCC) catalyzed (2 mol %) oxidation of primary alcohols and aldehydes using 2.2 equivalents and 1.1 equivalents of H5IO6 leads to the synthesis of carboxylic acids. Selective aerobic oxidations in ionic liquids convert various primary alcohols into their corresponding acids or aldehydes in good yields. For examples, see M. Zhao et al., Tetrahedron Lett. 1998, 39, 5323-5326; P. Malik et al., Synthesis 2010, 3736-3740; M. Hunsen, Synthesis 2005, 2487-2490.(c) Oxidation of aldehydes: Many of the stronger oxidizing agents, such as KMnO4 and Tollens' reagent (Ag2O; Ag+/NH4OH), can transform aldehydes into carboxylic acids. As an example, the oxidation of aldehydes to carboxylic acids can be realized utilizing oxone as an oxidant. In addition, carboxylic acids can be prepared from aldehydes using pyridinium chlorochromate (PCC) and H5IO6. Aromatic aldehydes can be oxidized to carboxylic acids using sodium perborate. Furthermore, permanganate can be applied as an oxidant in the transformation of aldehydes to carboxylic acids. For examples, see B. R. Travis et al., Org. Lett. 2003, 5, 1031-1034; A. McKillop et al., Tetrahedron 1989, 45, 3299-3306; J. Sedelmeyer et al., Org. Lett. 2010, 12, 3618-3621.(d) Oxidative cleavage reactions: (i) Oxidative cleavage of ketones: Haloform reaction (X2/NaOH, X=Cl, Br, I) has some synthetic utility in the oxidative demethylation of methyl ketones, if the other substituent on the carbonyl groups bears no enolizable α-protons. From an environmental point of view, the conversion of acetophenone to benzoic acid using sodium hypochlorite through haloform reaction is not suitable for industrial use due to the formation of chloroform as a side product. Homogeneous catalyst, such as 1,3-dinitrobenzene and nitric acid, can be used to oxidize acetophenone. However, nitric acid oxidation of acetophenone gives dibenzoylfurazan 2-oxide and benzoylformic acid in addition to benzoic acid. The liquid phase oxidation of acetophenone over rice husk silica vanadium catalyst leads to the products benzoic acid, 2-hydroxyacetophenone, phenol, acetic acid, and 3-hydroxyacetophenone. (S. Adam et al., Chin. J. Catal. 2012, 33, 518-522). Catalytic oxidation in vapour phase of acetophenone to benzoic acid over binary oxides V2O5—MoO3 catalyst resulting in the formation of maleic anhydride, benzyl alcohol, benzaldehyde, benzoic acid, phthalic anhydride and trace amounts of toluene, xylene, and phenol. Although this method manages to achieve high selectivity towards benzoic acid, it needs high temperature and long contact times which are limitations. In addition, kinetics and mechanisms of the oxidation of methylaryl ketones by acid permanganate were studied. (ii) Oxidative cleavage of alkenes and alkynes: The oxidation of alkenes and alkynes by ozonolysis or acidic potassium permanganate (KMnO4/H3O+) breaks the —CH═CH— bond, when a hydrogen atom is attached to each of the alkene carbons in the starting material. In case a hydrogen atom is attached to the carbonyl carbon in the product, the product is an aldehyde which can be rapidly transferred into a carboxylic acid group. If the alkene has no hydrogens attached, the product is a ketone which cannot be easily oxidized further. The alkyne is more highly oxidized than an alkene and the ozonolysis leads to the cleavage which involves the formation of a carboxylic acid groups. For examples, see V. R. Chumbahale et al., Chem. Engi. Res. Design 2005, 83, 75-80; M. P. Nath et al., Aust. J. Chem., 1976, 29, 1939-1945. (iii) Oxidative cleavage of 1,2-diols: Organocatalytic one-pot oxidative cleavage of terminal 1,2-diols to one-carbon-unit-shorter carboxylic acids is catalyzed by 1-Me-AZADO in the presence of a catalytic amount of NaOCl and NaClO2 under mild conditions. Aerobic photo-oxidative cleavage of 1,2-diols yields carboxylic acids using 2-chloroanthraquinone in the presence of photo-irradiation with a high-pressure mercury lamp. (iv) Oxidative cleavage of 1,3-di-carbonyls: Catalytic oxidative cleavage of 1,3-diketones enables the synthesis of the corresponding carboxylic acids, for example, by aerobic photo-oxidation with iodine under irradiation with a high-pressure mercury lamp or by conversion of β-ketoesters and β-diketones using CAN (cerium ammonium nitrate) in CH3CN (Y. Zang et al., J. Org. Chem. 2006, 71, 4516-4520).(2) Hydrolysis Reactions:(a) Hydrolysis of nitriles and amides: Nitriles can be hydrolyzed to carboxylic acids without the isolation of amide intermediate. The carbon skeleton is extended by one carbon atom during this reaction sequence, in which the cyanide anion is a nucleophilic precursor of the carboxyl group. The hydrolysis may be either acid or base-catalyzed, but the latter gives a carboxylate salt as the initial product.(b) Hydrolysis of acid chlorides, esters and anhydrides: N,N-diarylammonium pyrosulfate efficiently catalyzes the hydrolysis of esters under organic solvent-free conditions.(3) Other Methods for Preparations of Carboxylic Acids:(i) Benzilic acid rearrangement of 1,2-diketones: 1,2-Diketones undergo a rearrangement in the presence of strong base to yield α-hydroxycarboxylic acids. The best yields are obtained when the diketones do not have enolizable protons. (ii) Favorskii Reaction of cyclopropanones and α-halo ketones: The rearrangement of cyclopropanones, often obtained as intermediates from the base-catalyzed reaction of α-halo ketones, leads to the formation of carboxylic acids and their derivatives. (iii) Carboxylation of organometallics with CO2: Organometallic intermediate compounds such as Grignard reagents react with carbon dioxide, as an electrophile, usually in Et2O or THF followed by H3O+ work-up. The initial product is a salt of the carboxylic acid, which must then be released by treatment with strong aqueous acid. (iv) Carboxylation of alcohols, esters, ethers or halides with CO: Alcohols, esters, ethers or halides can be converted to a carboxylic acid in the liquid phase with carbon monoxide at temperatures between 50-300° C. and at partial pressures of carbon monoxide 10-1,000 p.s.i.g., in the presence of a catalyst system containing rhodium and a halogen component as active constituents.
Nitrosation of active methylene compounds has been effected by nitrous acid, an inorganic nitrite and an acid, an alkyl nitrite and an inorganic acid or base, nitrosylchloride, nitrosylsulfuric acid, nitrogen trioxide and nitric oxide. However, none of these nitrosating agents is equally effective with all active methylene compounds. U.S. Pat. No. 2,749,358 describes a process for the preparation of oximes by reacting a nitric oxide and a compound containing an active methylene group by temperatures of 50 to 150° C. under pressure in the presence of a variable-valence-metal salt catalyst. Further, it is described that ease and degree of nitrosation depends primarily on the ability of the adjacent electron-attracting groups to promote nitrosation. Moreover, higher temperatures and pressure, longer reaction times and more active catalysts caused oxidation of the oximes formed to acids or oxidized tarry mixtures.